AI:7 - Welcome to the Boomtown
Well. Here we are. It’s all come down to this. What started back in January, ends here in May.
We made it. Yay for us. 
David & David. And I even get to make a throw-away pop-culture reference to an obscure mid-80’s, sorta one-hit wonder (hint: Google the title of this post/entry. Bonus points if you got the reference without having to Google it. Even more Bonus points if you know what handsome Kevin got got or what miss Christina drives…)
I’m glad this season is just about over. I’m glad that I’m reasonably confident that David Cook will beat Gnome-boy. I’m really glad that So You Think You Can Dance 4 starts on Thursday! This season of AI has embodied all that is good & bad about the franchise. It’s been up & down. It’s been excessive, loud, overbearing, self-important, faux, cloying, & absurd. It’s also been inspiring, touching, chock-full-o-talent, fun, and just plain good. It’s been a pleasure to watch, and it’s been a guilty pleasure. Sometimes both at the same time.
Michael Buffer? Boxing-style tale-of-the-tape? Meh…
Cook will win. Archuleta is an immature 17. Last year, Jordin was a mature 17, and it showed, as she grew before our eyes over the course of the competition. This year, Gnome-boy has regressed each week, especially when compared against the stark professionalism & maturity of David Cook. Gnome-boy has become more & more child-like each & every week. He hasn’t crumbled, per se, but neither has he grown and excelled. And that’s a damning observation, when push comes to shove.
David Cook, on the other hand, has grown, stretched, and matured as an artist. He has developed a killer instinct as a contestant on the AI stage, understanding how to work within the parameters of the weekly grind, in terms of manipulating arrangements, genre, & song choices. He’s mastered this as much as anyone ever has on the AI stage. Anyone.
Note: that coin flip? Gnome-boy won it, but had to look out to Daddy-Dearest in order to make his choice…
Round 1 - Clive Davis’ Choice
Cook: I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For - A nice enough interpretation, but not a knock-out performance. The performance by the band didn’t do justice to the vocal performance, IMO, and that brought it down a notch or so. That said, his fanbase is solid, and it’s a fanbase that is (I think) virulently anti-Gnome-boy, so he won’t be hurt.
Here’s the thing, though - I don’t think that tonight’s performances matter, in terms of the final vote & results. I think the voting blocs are pretty much set. There might be some play amongst undecideds, but only if someone really screws up & drives votes to the other guy. That is, I think votes could be lost tonight, but not won…
Archuleta: Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me - A typical performance by Gnome-boy. It was well within his narrow range of expertise. As long as he isn’t challenged to go outside that zone, he’ll be OK and he’ll make his fans swoon (and the judges risk statutory indictment). Given what usually happens on finale performance shows, then, I think he’ll be safe.
Round 2 - Songwriter’s Choice
Cook: Dream Big - The up-tempo choice was a very good one, as was bringing out the guitar. He is well served when he plays up his rock-star/front-man chops. The song itself wasn’t near as good as the first one, but the performance was way better. He’s proving his versatility. He’s proving his artistry. He’s proving his bones & why he deserves to win the whole enchilada.
Archuleta: In This Moment - Ballad. Blah, blah, blah. Message. Meh, meh, meh. The same old Gnome-boy. The same old wooden moves & hand gestures. The same old, oh-so-meaningful facial expressions & squinty-closed eyes. Gosh! I’m so over the saccharine triteness from Utah. When Randy says “You can sing the phonebook, you’re so hawt, dawg!” you know it wasn’t that good.
Round 3 - Contestant’s Choice
Cook: The World I Know - Acoustic start = nice. Emotive connection with the song = outstanding. Emotion after finishing the song = outstanding. He’s very possibly the perfect AI contestant. A rocker. Sensitive. A theater guy. A bit Emo. Funny. Mature. Humble. Sincere. Respectful. Consistent. Creative. A risk-taker. Seriously, what’s not to like? What’s not to vote for?
Re: repeating a song, David was right, Simon was WRONG.
Archuleta: Imagine - COP. OUT. He is a coward. An unimaginative coward. This proves to me he’s an immature, and probably insecure, artist, because at this most important stage of the competition, he regressed & retreated to a safe place rather than boldly make a new conquest. For this alone, he deserves to lose the competition. Begone Gnome-boy, you epic annoyance - darken my TV screen no longer. (Well, ok, one more night, but after tomorrow, no more!)
Now that all is said and done, after 5 long months, I’ll leave you with this:
1) The judges are full of it. Plain and simple. They want Gnome-boy to win. A knock-out? Nope. He was the best? Nope. I don’t see it and I don’t get it. Archuleta will not, I repeat NOT, be a moneymaker for them - he’s destined to be a dud, as he doesn’t even have Broadway potential.
2) Cook for the win — Make it so, America.
-ghp
The Next Great American Band
The latest offering from the American Idol brain trust — The Next Great American Band — ain’t all that bad.
Compared to its siblings, it’s different in certain ways & similar in others. Overall, however, I’d say that it bears a closer resemblance to AI than to SYTYCD. That’s not bad & it’s not good; rather, it just *is*.
I liked that the first two “rounds” were handled differently, in that the “open auditions” were done via DVD submissions, which served as the fodder for producers to winnow things down to the 60 bands that were flown out to the Nevada desert for the equivalent of AI’s Hollywood & SYTYCD’s Vegas phases. The producers erred on the side of brevity for this first installment, and I think it was an overall good choice. Hewing too closely to the formula that requires lots of “train wreck” auditions might’ve been just a bit too much for this initial installment. The two hour premier left me wanting a little bit more, instead of feeling fatigued & abused by the parade of delusion & ineptitude.
The host (the New Zealand version of Seacrest) is ok. He’s no Cat Deely, but he’s ok.
The judges are right out of the AI playbook, except that Sheila E is so far & away better than Paula that it’s not even funny, and Johnny Rzeznick does a more credible job in the Dawg role than the caricature that Randy has become. Dicko’s Aussie spin on Simon’s “bad/mean” slot isn’t bad, but I can’t help but be distracted by the fact that he looks & sounds to me like Darrell Hammond playing a role in an SNL sketch.
The top 12 bands represent a reasonably diverse cross section of the musical spectrum. It’s nice to see genres as diverse as big band swing, bluegrass, gospel-tinged heritage, Philly-funk, new-wave/punk, 70’s hard rock, 60’s Brit-pop, speed/heavy metal, and country-pop. It’s not cookie-cutter in any way — I mean, come on, who would’ve thought that there’d be two bands that feature the mandolin?!? Cool!
My personal favorites at this point are the Clark Brothers (the trio of brothers who are sons of a traveling tent revivalist) and their gospel-tinged heritage music, The Muggs with their Detroit 70’s hard rock (in a serious Ted Nugent, Stranglehold-era vibe), Sixwire with their very slick country-pop sound, and Rocket because I’m a sucker for their neo new-wave/punk, Go Go’s type of sound.
I think that Franklin Bridge could also go a long way, and it’s quite possible that they could work their way into my favs list, as they are really, really good with their whole Philly power-funk sound.
None of the rest of the bands are really grabbing me all that much. Light of Doom could be interesting, if only to see how their speed metal sound will develop. They’re also interesting because they’ve got such strong musicianship for a bunch of 12 & 13 year-olds. Musically, they really do do justice to their metal genre; unfortunately, their vocals & overall presentation (keep your shirts on!) hold them back.
It’s not the best of shows — it strikes me as more of a Summer realitytv offering — but it’s certainly not the worst show out there. And that, is good enough to keep me watching.
-ghp
Just because…
Because I need something to write about (as I hate the thought of having less than one post per week…), here’s some news about Survivor: Survivor China’s Cast Revealed
Yay… The fall TV season is just about here. At least I’ve got that going for me…
And Sabra winning SYTYCD was a good thing…
I’ve been trying to spend more time reading books lately, because reading books is better escapism than spending time online (i.e., writing/blogging)…
<*sigh*>
-ghp
Nothing much to say
Not much to say lately. I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing…
I’ve got work-angst & I’ve got church-angst. I feel like I’ve been fighting a two-front war, with the main casualties being my own internal compass/well-being and (more importantly) the folks that I’ve been trying to protect from the two-front war (i.e., my family). Even on the best of days I can be a bit cranky, but throw in stress, worry, and a lack of sleep? Well, that’s not all that good, knamean?
So, I’ve set into motion some things that I hope will lead to a lessening and/or elimination of one or both fronts. That carries some angst of its own, but it’s more of a “good” angst than what’s been going on…
I hate to feel/sound like the pharisee of “The Publican & The Pharisee” fame, but keeping track of last week’s ELCA Churchwide Assembly (aka national convention) both cheered me and horrified me. I was cheered because it helped me realize that there are some Lutherans out there who face far more difficult circumstances than I do. The ELCA is seriously messed up & whacked out on a bunch of issues. I’m even more horrified about many of the things that they are doing over there, not the least of which is this: Lutherans to allow pastors in gay relationships. For some very interesting discussions about all things related to the ELCA’s CWA, check out the discussion forums over at the ALPB. It’s really sad & amazing to see just how much twisting and turning can be done in the effort to make God’s Word be “relevant” to our sinful minds & feelings. Lord knows I’ve got planks in my own eyes, but still…
So You Think You Can Dance is about to wrap up this week, and I’ll be sad to see it go. I’ve said it before — in a great many ways, SYTYCD is my far-and-away favorite of all the realitytv shows out there. I’m not sure exactly who I want to win, much less who I think will win, this season. That’s more a testament to the strength of the remaining dancers than it is an indictment of my decision-making prowess. In the end, though, I think a girl will win it this year, and I think it’ll be either Lacey or Sabra…
That’s enough new content for now…
-ghp
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