This week saw the remaining seven Idolists competing for five spots by performing in two rounds, with themes of Songs That Make You Want to Dance and Songs from the Adele Songbook, the latter in defiance of my nationwide ban against Idolists singing songs by Adele. Ciara provided coaching for the first round. I didn’t think she helped much. There was no celebrity coach for the Adele round.
Round 1: Songs That Make You Want to Dance
Jack (Little Richard Long Tall Sally) Oh dear. Shades of Pat Boone’s cheesy and comically inept performances of Little Richard’s songs. D
Julia (B52s Roam) Pitchy. Awkward. Didn’t feel the beat at all. Not a good song choice for her. D
Abi (Fall Out Boy My Songs Know What You Did in the Dark (Light Em Up)) This song didn’t fit her as well as last week’s Bring Me to Life byEvanescence. While I agree with the judges’ insistence that the Idolists need to push themselves outside their comfort zones, it shouldn’t come at the expense of losing their identity. This song never felt like her. She handled her stage difficulties incredibly well, though. C-
McKenna (Katy Perry E.T.) I didn’t like this, either. See my thoughts above about the judges. What is happening tonight? Not a good song for her voice. And where was the dancing part? C-
Will (Lynyrd Skynyrd Gimme Three Steps) Finally!! Somebody made an appropriate song choice! I’m glad he ignored Ciara’s advice about dancing. His delivery provided the energy. A
Emmy (Walk the Moon Shut Up and Dance) I liked what she did with the song and wanted to enjoy it. But there were some opportunities for moments in her performance, and she was too timid to go for them. She just doesn’t look comfortable performing, which keeps me from enjoying her. Her timidity is blocking her talent. C
Triston (Travis Tritt T-R-O-U-B-L-E) Terrific song choice (note to Jack: that’s how you boogie), and solid performance. B
[That was a strange round. It seems the dance theme didn’t work for most of the Idolists. I hope the Adele round goes better. I can’t believe I’m saying that.]
Songs from the Adele Songbook (defying my nationwide ban on Idolists singing Adele)
McKenna (Make You Feel My Love[1]) This is totally her lane. Perfect song for her voice. I loved her choices throughout the song. So well done. A
Jack (One and Only) Giving 50s crooner in lounge vibes. What the judges called his “charisma” overshadowed the song’s feeling. Additional evidence in favor of my nationwide ban. D
Will (Rolling in the Deep) I wanted him to sing this, but it disappointed me. I think the key was too low. His energy was off, too. He didn’t propel the song like Adele does. Additional evidence in favor of my nationwide ban. C
Julia (Set Fire to the Rain) At the start, I was convinced that her big voice wasn’t big enough for Adele, and I got more evidence supporting my nationwide ban. But I agreed with Katy that from the bridge on, Julia really delivered. A mixed bag. C+
Emmy (Water Under the Bridge) It was a good song choice – “within her capabilities” per Luke – and a more comfortable performance than is typical for her. B
Triston (Easy On Me) Just OK for me, dawg. I think this would have benefitted from a slightly faster tempo. His slow pace magnified the gap between him and Adele in terms of soul and subtle nuance. Additional evidence in favor of my nationwide ban. C
Abi (Hello) She Gets the Glory Spot. Technically excellent. I love her voice. I wish she had added fewer flourishes, but it was an honest, personal performance. Adele is simply hard to do. B+
Top Five (“Tom – Dim the Lights! And here we go!”)
- Abi
- Jack
- Triston
- Will
- Emmy
Not Top Five
- McKenna
- Julia
No surprises.
Updating my GPAs:
| Will | 3.7 |
| Abi | 3.0 |
| Triston | 2.8 |
| Jack | 2.7 |
| Emmy | 2.5 |
See you next week.
[1] Written by Bob Dylan for his album Time Out of Mind, released in September 1997. It was first released commercially in August 1997 by Billy Joel for his compilation album Greatest Hits Volume III. (Wikipedia)
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