American Idol Review – Top 7 – To Own The Stage Or Not

Posted on 18. Apr, 2008 by Per Bristow in American Idol, Performance, Singing

This week the 7 remaining contestants of American Idol got to sing Mariah Carey songs.  They are being thrown from one genre to another and have to pick a good song that fits them and stil be able to make it their own – in one week mind you.  With that in mind we can appreciate what they are going through.  People have asked if my kids watch American Idol.  You can read the answer at the end of the post. Now let’s look at what we can learn from this week’s performances…

David Archuleta – When You Believe

Excellent. Once again, he was deeply involved in the song and did his thing with comfort. Then it’s a matter of personal taste whether we like it or not.

Carly Smithson – Without You

Delightful beginning.  Knowing her history of pushing hard I was afraid of the moment when the song goes into the higher octave. But she did it alright. As a matter of fact it felt she was constraining the sound. The song didn’t become as big and powerful as the song is known for, and her sound became quite compressed – lacking the depth and richness she has in the lower register. I disagree with Randy who didn’t like the beginning. I thought the beginning was the best part.  It’s the depth and richness of her voice that is her strength.

Now I am going to do something that may not seem nice to Carly, but it would in fact be extremely helpful and perhaps transfoming if she read and watched this – This video below shows Carly and Leona Lewis sing the same song.  Watch the difference between physical effort/force and true passion/power (Then it’s a matter of preference)

Syesha Mercado – Vanishing

Another wonderful performance from Syesha. I don’t recall how Mariah sung this song, so I have no comparison. This is good (as I wrote about in the last blog). Due to her song choices in the past we haven’t really gotten to know her.  The more we get to identify with who she, the more we will like her. She has grown so much in the last month.  I love the richness, power and dynamics of her voice and how she really genuinely connects.

Brooke White – Hero

A folk song works well with just an acoustic instrument, but a power ballad…???

Hmmm. This came across as a high school recital to me. Not that a high school recital is bad, but there is a difference between reciting a piece of music and performing to engage a worldwide audience. I felt she was in a hurry. She was rushing the song and the phrasing, and her piano accompaniment felt very simple. Then again, this is not really her kind of music. Even so, I think a bigger accompaniment would have helped her with this song. Anyway, Brooke is genuine, authentic and likeable.

Kristy Lee Cook – Forever

Her singing was alright, but I didn’t think the accompaniment did much to help her.  I’m glad to see that her confidence seems to have grown tremendously in the last weeks.  Once she let’s her charming personality that we see in the interviews come through on stage, she will take yet another leap.

David Cook – Always Be My Baby

Okay let’s talk. David isn’t afraid of surprising and he can make songs his own. He already has a great career in the making and I’ve hailed him in the past. But, although the judges were blown away, I am going to be tough on him this time. As daring and unique his vocal arrangement of the song was, his performance was anything but daring and unique. In addition, David is sometimes “pitchy” (to use Randy’s favorite expression) in the lower register (which is a prime example of the fact that singing on key is far more a muscle issue than an ear issue).

However, the main critique I have is that David does the same thing every single time. Let’s put it this ways: If you went to a concert and the singer stood glued behind the mic stand every single song, you’d be bored stiff. This is what David does every single week. A couple of weeks ago, he for once ventured into the audience but it didn’t work that time. He has since retrieved back to the old mic stand comfort. This isn’t spontaneity or an artistic choice to make the song better.  He’s ordering the mic stand there because he feels uncomfortable without it, just like Michael Johns used to do until he broke free with his final goodbye performance. It is a fear-based decision. Among the previous American Idol rock singers, neither Chris Daughtry or Bo Bice had this habit. And you certainly don’t see it among the successful rock singers out there. (Imagine Mick Jagger or Bono clasping a mic stand for ten songs in a row). David is excellent in making genuine contact with the audience – but only from a distance it seems. He has yet to show that he can get up close and personal to really engage us all. Once he does, the audience will truly melt and he will elevate to the league of great performers. Any day now…

Jason Castro – Don’t Wanna Cry

Randy said it best. A nice beach hang-out with some pleasant music in the background. Jason has also become accustomed to hanging out from a distance – on a bar stool or behind a guitar. It’s cool and laidback a couple of times but after a while it gets old. When he sang the song Michelle a couple of weeks ago, he apparently felt a little self-conscious and was called on it by the judges. Since then he’s been sitting on a stool. I thought his performance with “Michelle” was a step in the right direction that could have become very interesting. He allowed himself to play and be a little goody – just the way he is. Since he is so genuinely charming and fun spirited with his song choices, it would be nice to seem him be the host of the party and get us all going.

To recap: David Archuleta has such an easy time standing out for the sole reason that he uses the stage. That’s more a reflection of the other singers than on him. I don’t feel any of the singers own the stage the way they could. I sense fear – getting trapped in their comfort zones. There’s no wonder they experience fear – wouldn’t we all. One bad choice and they’re out. They are being judged constantly. Music and art should really not be judged or made into competitions. I’ve been asked whether I let my young kids watch American Idol. The truth is that they don’t watch it, nor would I encourage them to do so. No way am I going to promote the idea of judging others to young children. The more you judge others, the more you judge yourself and vice versa.  Art and music and life is to be enjoyed and experienced without judgment.

What you and I are doing here is to watch and learn from it which indeed can be very valuable.