American Idol - The Guys - Another Bad Night

Blake Lewis is a clever, canny performer. I did not recognize the song or the band. 311? A recognized them as a mid-90s band, but I have no idea who they are. I wonder if they are like that Crazytown group someone sent me, amazed I had never heard them. Yeah, I don't listen to the radio. Ever. Unless someone recommends a group or I read a killer review, I have no idea what's out there.

I actually really like the John Mayer song Sanjaya sang. I bought it as a single on iTunes before Continuum was released. (Yeah, shut the hell up, I know it's corny and I don't care. Someday he'll fulfill his potential.) Sanjaya on the other hand, should go home. He has a nice voice, but he's not a good or developed singer.

Sundance -- oh, this makes me so mad. Seriously, he's going to sing freaking Jeremy?! Really?! He can't sing. I hate his personality, and then he's going to sing Jeremy. Hate. Hate. Hate. It's an appallingly bad performance, aping the original. His pitch was totally off and he sang it like the original, but worse. A just reminded me that there's something about him personally that we just don't like. Eh, it happens.

Chris Richardson singing Keith Urban. A: "Who's Keith Urban?" Me: "That Australian country singer married to Nicole Kidman." He seems like a nice kid. He's not a great singer, but he's likeable and his performances are more entertaining. Simon's comments were right on,

Jared. I have this theory about singers: R&B singers were often successful athletes. (Rappers, almost never.) I actually dialed the phone for him and Brandon because they are so obviously the two -- undeservedly -- going home. I think Jared's good, but Paula and Simon were actually right.

Brandon. Singing Rare Earth's I Just Want to Celebrate. (Yes, I googled it.) He has a decent voice, good vocal, control. He's a great backup singer. He just didn't step up, though it was fun. I voted for him, just because I think he and Jared are in trouble. A said he sounds like Corey Glover from Living Colour.

Phil. Rough, rough, rough start. He's really just not good . . . all sorts of flat and then sharp and then flat again. He'll make the final as cannon fodder because he had the baby during the audition. A: "He needs to go first. Before Sundance, before Sanjaya. He just needs to go."

Chris Sligh. Singing Christian music . . . he'll be around for a while, though I really don't like him. He's probably among the top 4 guys in singing. I agree with Randy that he was the best of the night, but that's a low bar.

If I had my choice, I would take Blake, Chris Sligh, Jared, and Brandon. Blake is the only one who has a real chance of staying for a long time in the final.

Television Without Pity has a great recap, as always.