Finally! Top 12 week on American Idol is here! True, the show is still jam-packed with as many commercials as it can pack in within a very long 2 hours, and having four judges really drags things out, but it's great to finally be in Top 12 week, with the big studio and all.
This was Rolling Stones week, and the most enjoyable night so far. Host Ryan Seacrest began with saying the Stones are the most iconic band on the planet. Um, The Beatles? U2? Backstreet
Boys?!
Michael Lynche shook his groove thang through "Miss You," which was a great, fun performance. We learned his mom died (sad) and saw his baby. He's worth rooting for.
It seems like Didi Benami somehow managed to sneak some pot past the producers. She got pretty sleepy during her performance, but she still has the best voice out of the girls. Like Ellen DeGeneres would say, "She was gr-eat."
Casey James could probably make this list of sexy men with ponytails, but while he's likable and his performance was upbeat and fun, it was generic. But hey, he brought one of the best moments of the night when Ellen reminded us she was a lesbian...um, I mean, a blonde. On that note, I'm lesbian for Ellen.
God (and yes, I'm taking the name in vain, just in honor of Lacey Brown) she's cute, but Lacey really needs to go. Wow, WTF was she wearing, and WTF was with those bum notes? Prediction: Bottom Three.
Andrew Garcia has no charisma whatsoever, but his parents seem really lovable. He rocked a chain with a sport coat, which was pretty disturbing. Too bad his dad can't be awarded a record deal, because there's nothing that stands out about Andrew's voice. Prediction: Bottom Three.
Katie Stevens' voice sucks now, and it did when she was a little kid, too. But hey, at least she's funny. She wore a super-poofy princess dress to perform a super-boring song, which was wonderful when it finally ended. Too bad her entire high school is voting every week to keep her on--and we all know high school kids will dial non-stop, so Stevens has an advantage.
Tim Urban, the less-hot Zac Efron, basically said that the only way to become an individual in a brood of 10 is to get on American Idol. His Jason Mraz-ed out version of "Under My Thumb" was really enjoyable, but for some reason, the judges hated it, which is too bad because he's one of the most commercial contestants on the show. Prediction: Bottom Three.
Siobhan Magnus is one of the quirkiest contestants ever, not to mention one of the prettiest. She sang the best Stones' song of the night, "Paint It Black," and the arrangement was pretty cool. Too bad she has such a deep voice, and that note at the end was really painful. But who would turn down a comparison to Snooki's hair-do?
Lee DeWyze is bad at memorizing paint colors, and he's not much better at singing. Like Andrew, Lee majorly lacks charm and memorability, and that guarantees he won't win this competition, but the judges are pimping him out, so he's safe for now.
Paige Miles had a huge improvement over last week, even with laryngitis, and that's wonderful because she's super-sweet and has a broad range. It's really sad her dad died when she was young, too, which should give her the sympathy vote. Hopefully, she'll continue to improve.
Aaron Kelly always smiles when he talks, and that's really endearing. His version of "Angie" was solid, and his likability only solidifies his spot in the competition.
Crystal Bowersox's dad's crying really broke my heart, and she's definitely the most relatable of the Top 12. She performs as is she would at her local bar, and that's refreshing. Her version of "You Can't Always Get What You Want" was wonderful, and I could totally picture her at Lilith Fair. She's the most enjoyable contestant so far.
Maybe the contestants were just horrible at picking songs when they had the freedom of such a broad selection, but there weren't really any super-horrible performances, and that's a major difference from past weeks. Hopefully, we'll be saying good-bye to Lacey finally this time.
