[IMG:L]Below are my assessments of Tuesday night’s disco-themed performances on American Idol, followed by a sure-to-be-dead-wrong prediction of Wednesday night’s bottom three and elimination.
Lil Rounds: “I’m Every Woman,” by Chaka Khan
After weeks of Celine Dion and Bette Midler covers, Lil finally chose a song that suited her, and … it still came up well short. Her voice was absolutely all over the place — a shocking development for Lil, whose vocal stability is typically her biggest asset — and even the sudden burst of energy felt contrived.
Grade: C-
Kris Allen: “She Works Hard for the Money,” by Donna Summer
Last week’s best, Kris seemed doomed for disco death this week. But he threw us a serious curveball with his Jack Johnson-ization of Donna Summer’s classic, and it really, really worked. Kris knew he was not fit to adhere to the rules of disco, and his acoustic translation paid off in a big way.
Grade: B+
Danny Gokey: “September,” by Earth, Wind & Fire
Despite it being disco night, Danny managed to inject his trademark soulful vibe into the Earth, Wind & Fire staple. He also looked uncharacteristically comfortable up there (perhaps a little too comfortable!), and his voice was, as always, impressive.
Grade: B+
Allison Iraheta: “Hot Stuff,” by Donna Summer
Allison was another one who seemed destined to struggle with the trappings of disco, but boy did she make “Hot Stuff” her own — the song would’ve been utterly unrecognizable if not for the chorus! Everything was great, from the arrangement (sorry, Randy) to those vocals, which were once again out-of-this-world.
Grade: A-
Adam Lambert: “If I Can’t Have You,” by Yvonne Elliman
Enough killing time with the other contestants — here’s the reason we watch! Adam went back to his clean-cut, non-Flock of Seagulls hairdo, which is essentially his “Slow things down” look. That’s just what Adam did, and by (very) successfully pulling it off, he displayed once again that there’s nothing he can’t do. He could’ve easily indulged in the theatrics of upbeat, dance-y disco, but he instead showed us yet another impressive side of his vast repertoire.
Grade: A-
Matt Giraud: “Stayin’ Alive,” by the Bee Gees
Ah, yes, a metaphor for his own narrow survival on Idol (Giraud was the recipient of the judges’ save last week). Matt broke out of his shell a bit on Tuesday night, leaving the piano and the slow ballads for the immediacy of “Stayin’ Alive,” and it was a surprise success — for the most part. It was solid but summed up Matt’s overall identity crisis: He’s generic and somewhat disposable in today’s Timberlake-wannabe musical landscape.
Grade: B-
Anoop Desai: “Dim All the Lights,” by Donna Summer
Anoop closed the show — and possibly the curtains on his Idol stay. He was once upon a time the field’s most exciting contestant, but now, with Scott MacIntyre gone, Anoop might just be the resident cornball. He hit some notes, sure, but the performance was simply cheesy, something everyone else was able to avoid on the sneakily dangerous disco night. I wholeheartedly agreed with Simon on this one: The other judges got it wrong.
Grade: C
PREDICTIONS
Bottom Three: Matt Giraud, Lil Rounds, Anoop Desai
Eliminated: Matt Giraud, Lil Rounds (two will be eliminated, per the consequences of last week’s judges’ save)
LAST WEEK’S RECAP: Tarantino Night!
