They listened to 500 songs …

[jlh]

The list of songs they had to choose from—500 songs the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame pick as "changing rock"—is pretty sick. It's even sicker that honestys_easy called three out of eight earlier today.

• D.Cook
  1. "Hungry Like The Wolf." So that was fine, though pretty much what I expected him to do.
     
  2. "Baba O'Riley." Totally awesome, totally totally awesome.
  
  
• Syesha
  1. "Proud Mary." First, friends, this is a fucking Creedence Clearwater Revival song. Second, yes, do the Tina version, but Jesus, don't try to dance like her, you moron. Randy's praise of her is growing tiresome. I'm totally with Simon.
     
  2. "A Change is Gonna Come." I agree with Randy. I thought she was quite good, and probably better overall than Castro OR small David, but whatever, Randy just wants a diva.
  
  
• Jason
  1. "I Shot The Sheriff." Um. Yeah, no, sweetie.
     
  2. "Mr. Tambourine Man." So I was going to say, this is not bad, and then he forgot the words. Oh CHAD.
  
  
• small David
  1. "Stand By Me." That was seriously boring, and Simon sees dollar signs and whatever.
     
  2. "Love Me Tender." Once again, I am bored. And it isn't the Vegas-ness of this, because Clay? Clay is all Vegas all the time but I can appreciate it for what it is. small David just does not reach through that TV screen and make me give a shit. He'd better hope he gets picked up by that Disney radio train, is all I'm saying.

[Poll #1183804]

I voted for DCook HARD CORE.

Comments

[annearchy.livejournal.com]

DCook, baby, though neither song was up to the bar he set with his covers of Mariah and Neil Diamond. Still better than the other three. No outstanding performances tonight. Syesha pulled a Brooke with the tears, and Jason looked like he really wants to leave. Naturally my daughter, who is a Dreadhead, is busy voting for him, attempting to cancel out my DCook votes!!!

Some time soon I'm going to write some meta about how DCook has transformed, in the space of less than 3 months, from a talented nerd to a really hot, really talented, molten lava bomb:D

[dreamerren.livejournal.com]

I seriously SO appreciate your levity. And agree with you on all counts. Dcook was solid and then amazing. Syesha was screechy and then a decent vocal but boring. Jason was horrible and slightly better. And bbDavid was...bbDavid.

Why is Randy all about bbDavid this year? I don't get it?

[jlh.livejournal.com]

Randy is boring. He was all about Taylor, too, remember? Even when Simon hated Taylor Randy liked him.

I liked that Ryan was like, "this is the week we lost Tamyra and Daughtry" to put the fear into men's hearts. And fangirls'.

I'm so glad! I really want this to be the angst-free zone, man. Also, how amazing would it have been for d Cook to be all "Don't call it a comeback" with the leather porkpie hat, and all shirtless? Or small David with like, Danny behind him being all Flavor Flav "brothers and sisters!"

[mahoni.livejournal.com]

Jason is so toast. Poor dude. Still the cutest, but yikes with the sucking tonight.

I only saw bits and pieces of all of them due to watching NCIS concurrently (which also sucked tonight; bad night at Chez Mahoni for t.v.), but from what I saw I thought Cook did the best out of all of them. Honestly, if he doesn't win the whole dang thing I will be really surprised.

[jlh.livejournal.com]

It's sad, because I think the Jason fans who aren't all about the conspiracies are very woeful. Alison loves him and she's irritated with him. Three weeks, man!

[mahoni.livejournal.com]

I'm not irritated with him, I'm sort of worn out for him. If I had spent that long trying to accomplish something and there was at least one important person consistently gunning for me, and then two, and then all three, man. I'd go kablooey too.

I mean - think about if this was the sort of competition where Brooke's and Jason's styles were what the show/judges wanted and were praised even when they were boring or flubbed their lyrics. David A. would be getting his ass kicked by the judges and (assuming his nervous, aw-shucks attitude isn't a total put-on) he would totally be self-destructing by now. I think it's the nature of the show that someone who doesn't particularly fit the preferred mold is going to get shit on, and if that person doesn't have nerves of steel they're going to eventually fall flat on their face. I've sort of been waiting for Jason to do that, and he finally did. It's too bad (meaning, too bad that he couldn't keep it together and come back and blow them away instead of blowing up), but on the one hand, I hope that if he gets kicked off he can take breather and stop stressing, and on the other hand, his recent performances don't affect whether or not I'll give his CD a chance, if he releases one. I'm looking forward to that regardless. If he can get with an agent or a record company who knows how to pair him up with the right songs and market his kind of music, then I foresee spending money on his music in the future...

[jlh.livejournal.com]

This is the part that I don't understand, and I know it's been going around on the Jason fansites, but who has been gunning for him? I definitely feel the overpraise of Archuleta, but he is what the show wants, and I think the show is incredibly upfront about what it wants; it wants pop stars who will make a lot of money. If you're a sensitive singer-songwriter the show isn't for you because the machine of the show won't help you, and certainly won't show you off, because there's no place to showcase your songs.

I don't understand the idea that the show is gunning for Jason. I don't think it has been. I honestly feel that he had several good weeks, and then three weeks ago wasn't very good but that was okay, and then last week was mysteriously not good at all, and this week I felt no energy from him. Plenty of folks have gone a long way with Simon not being into them—Blake, certainly, and Taylor, and Kim Locke in season 2. I think last night it was clear that Randy wants desperately to keep Syesha around, but other than that, I don't get the whole "the show hates Jason" thing.

Brooke, I thought, also had great weeks and just seemed to be getting ground under the machine as well, and that would only get worse. I think the way that Jason and Brooke worry me is that they didn't seem to understand what they were getting into. It isn't a place for someone who wants a sort of Aimee Mann or Sam Phillips sort of career.

The thing is, I think Simon really likes him and was really pulling for him, and so was Paula, and I think that's why Simon is so upset with him now.

[mahoni.livejournal.com]

EDIT: I'm not sure if what I wrote below is useful at all, because, erm, I was writing quickly because I only had until my kid got out of the shower and the before-school activities kicked into full gear. But I feel uncomfortable removing it, so I'll let it stay.

However, I think all I was trying to say was, to someone like me who is biased in favor of Castro's style and against (to use him as an example/pick on him a little *is just as bad as the judges, seriously*) Archuleta's style, the fact that Archuleta gets constant praise even when he's boring (to me) or does the same thing over and over and over or forgets lyrics, whereas Jason does well (to me) or maintains his style week after week or forgets his lyrics and gets firstly faint praise and then lukewarm response and eventually just plain nastiness: it totally feels, to me!, like he's being picked on. And like I said earlier, if it was me, I would self-destruct in the face of that because I don't have nerves of steel, so to me that's what it feels like has happened to Jason. It's nothing to do with any conspiracy other people feel is going on, it's to do with my reaction and how I feel about it.

Also, based on the...can't think of the word, the...thing! Um. Premise? Mission? Something, of the show, Jason needs to go. Regardless of how much I like his style and his voice, he did terrible last night, and it doesn't really look like he's going to be able to make the sort of change he needs to thrive, so he really needs to go.

***

I should probably have phrased that differently, with qualifications galore along the lines of 'to me' and 'it feels like' and whatnot. Again, a show like this - the judges not holding back when they don't like someone is part of the thing, and is generally deserved depending on your perspective, i.e., from a sort of nebulous 'objective' standpoint. I spend a lot of the time I watch AI thinking "you know, I can think of any number of popular and beloved performers who sound like that or worse; and if they came on this show they'd be getting the smackdown too." It's a little weird. I'm not trying to say that all singers on AI who get ripped by the judges therefore are awesome; some suck, some suck occasionally. Okay.

But, and we've had this conversation before - one of the reasons I don't generally watch AI is because the kind of music/voice they tend to promote and praise is not the kind of music/voice I tend to like. The judges were supportive of Jason early on, but as the season has gone on, it seems to me that when he's done a really nice job per his style of music and someone else (Archuleta; even Cook on occasion, but mostly Archuleta) has been excruciatingly boring, the judges have little patience for him but continue to praise the other. Given that his style is, essentially, my style, and Archie's style makes me barf, it feels like they're picking on Jason unfairly.

And I think that, honestly, I take it a little personally because, dude, that's the music I like! And they're telling me it sucks. I mean, I know my tastes totally differ from the judges, and if I'm going to be offended on some level when they pick on what I like and praise what I don't I probably shouldn't watch the show. Which...is why I normally don't. :P

On the other hand, I should possibly point out that while I am sort of disgusted with how nasty the judges can be it's not like I expect them to be any different - that's the whole point of the show. Even a non-AI-watcher like me knows that, and if a person is seriously going to get mad and truly, severely offended by it and expect the show/judges to change their ways OMG, that's...kind of naive.

I think the way that Jason and Brooke worry me is that they didn't seem to understand what they were getting into. It isn't a place for someone who wants a sort of Aimee Mann or Sam Phillips sort of career.

I totally agree, and I was trying to sort of get that across. But on the other hand, if that's the case I do kind of wonder why Simon or anyone spent any effort at all being supportive if that's the kind of music they don't want. Maybe, they wanted it up to a point, but if the performers don't change along the way they get bored with it? I don't know.

[jlh.livejournal.com]

I think one of the inherent problems for someone doing the singer-songwriter thing on this show is that they aren't writing their own songs. For someone like that, at least half if not more of their appeal is the song itself. And even if you are that type, you have to take someone else's song and make it over into your own style, or be savvy about picking songs that are like your style. Jason is too far in the competition at this point to be choosing songs to sing just because he kind of likes them. Every song should be saying, "this is who I am as a performer, this is what I will do" and being so stubborn about that, that the mechanics of the show can't touch him. So yes, if you have decided that at some level you are going to defy the show, you have to be Blake, or Daughtry, or hell, Amanda. And I do think that Simon respects that. There were moments at the beginning when it looked like Jason could do that, take his charm and infuse it into the songs he was singing. But what he's done the last three weeks just feels unfinished and not thought through.

I think there's a difference between them critiquing the music that you like, and them saying that it wasn't done well. I can understand the frustration with the praise for something you don't care about, but I don't really think that they were saying, "we don't like this kind of music" but more "if you're going to do that, you have to do it well." I just don't think that Jason has actually performed well in the last three weeks. It's just all been a mess.

I don't know, I guess what I'm saying is, there is a base level of professionalism that has to go into being on this show. Jewel sang in coffeehouses, but she could have come onto this show in early days and knocked people out, because she had a great voice and a great musical sense--and heck, she was a guest judge for the auditions one year. And you have to be the person who is pushing that. Yes, there are types that can rely more on the judges, but if you aren't your own guiding light even that will come back and bite you in the ass--see Kat McPhee.

But this all may be that I don't see them as being particularly nasty. They're remarkably consistent, and there are definite ways you can piss them off and still win--Taylor did.

[mahoni.livejournal.com]

there is a base level of professionalism that has to go into being on this show

I get that that is the essence of the show, but again, that's not really how I tend to view music and musical performance. I mean, professionalism, yes, a good thing, but...

Hm. I also don't have the history of AI or watch it closely enough to see patterns and stuff; I don't enjoy competition, whether as a participant or a viewer. I'm not AI's audience, really. When I watch the people perform, I don't think, how are they doing on this show; I think, how do they compare to musicians I like. I kind of don't care so much how they are in terms of what the show expects, that's not what I'm watching for.

And then, again, argh competition. I'd honestly rather just sit and listen to people perform, period, full stop. Having viewers vote them off without commentary wouldn't be maybe so bad. But the judging thing? Augh. I think it's my embarrassment squick coming into play. It's awkward enough when someone fumbles - or even when they think they did well but it's clear that not everyone would think so - but then to have it held up and picked apart by three random people? Aieee. *clutches blankie* And those dudes can come up with some zingers. I know you don't think they're being nasty, but the things they say sometimes, regardless of who they're saying them to, just make me cringe.

I think that's why I enjoy reading your recaps - you give your honest opinion, and you get across why the show brings you joy, without getting truly mean-spirited about anyone. I enjoy the show a lot more through your recaps than I do actually watching it, if that makes sense.

I do kind of think that I should probably just stop engaging in conversations about the show in general. I mean, I'm not able to enjoy the judging/competition element; but I'm also not able to shriek with the other Castro fans about how the whole show is out to get him. I can say the show is out to get him, but I'm perfectly aware that what I mean by that is *embarrassment squick* and *hides CD collection from Simon and Randy*...which I then explain really badly and long-windedly.... So I'm kind of no fun to anyone about this. Um. And I bet you're wishing I'd figured that out before I started posting essays in your LJ....

[zorb]

Commenting before it's over because I know wee!David's just going to bore me for the umpteenth time.

I wish they got to do longer versions of the songs. It ends up being "verse, chorus, series of runs to fill up time," and that's just not fun. "Baba O'Riley" needs more time to be fully awesome.

Voting for DCook, of course; if by some tragedy he goes away, I'm done with this season.

[jlh.livejournal.com]

ITA re Baba O'Riley, it was just getting to the awesome and then it was over.

[strawberrytatoo.livejournal.com]

If Jason doesn't go home tonight, I will smack a bitch. I had enough of him like, 4 weeks ago.

[ziggy1278.livejournal.com]

I just realized that I hate Syesha. Apparently everyone has already had this revelation, but I just now got it. "I'm just trying to show people who I am, like, I just like to have fun." That's who you are? Okay, you're 21 - maybe instead show me how you are DIFFERENT from other 21 year olds. And then... Paula Abdul says "Welcome to your dreams, you've made it" and you lose your shit? First of all, what happened to just having fun, second of all, I'm pretty sure she said that to that kid at the beginning with the flock of seagulls haircut and the stray chin whiskers. Also, that song is not about you becoming a pop star. At all. Ugh.

Castro never belonged here. He is an elf. A bad bad elf. I hate him.

All during Stand By Me I was just thinking that I hope little David turns out to be gay, because It would be like one gigantic scoop falling off the collective ice cream cone of every 14 year old girl in america at the exact same time, and the stunned silence seems like it would be really really funny.

Having said that, if this is truly a vocal competition, he should win. Because he is by far the best.

David cook only seems like he should win because he in infinitely cooler than David A - but he's way less cool than, like, you and me. So what does that say about all these people?

I hate this show.

[jlh.livejournal.com]

We're cooler than a lot of people, so that can't be your yardstick.

I would be incredibly surprised if David A doesn't win. It would mean that everyone voting for Syesha right now voted for David Cook, and that seems unlikely. David Cook is well out in the lead this week, but I don't think he can really pick up more votes. Randy wants Syesha to stay in so bad he can barely stay in his seat, and I wonder how he'll react next week.

The word online is that the show "hates" Castro and is "sabotaging" him and it gives me a headache, and there will be hell to pay tonight and tomorrow and I will be really grouchy and avoiding half of my flist.

I know, I'm sorry, but the weird thing about it is, even when it's hateful, it's hateful in an interesting way.

[ziggy1278.livejournal.com]

Toootally. I don't hate it like I hate LOST.

[ziggy1278.livejournal.com]

Leonardo - The leader, erm and the BORING one.
Donatello - The smart, thoughtful, talented one.
Rafael - The self absorbed one with the bad attitude.
Michelangelo - Um, Jason Castro.

Why am I the only one who voted for this group? Where the hell is Alison's vote?

[jlh.livejournal.com]

I don't know; I put that in there for her. Feel free to bug her about it.