(By complete coincidence, the newest New Kids on the Block single "Summertime" is the first thing that popped up on my iTunes as I sat down to type... I think it's a sign.)
Like many little girls at the end of the 1980s/beginning of the 1990s, I loved the New Kids on the Block. I had their cassette tapes, I watched the cartoon, and we had one of their video tapes (which my mom later got rid of... but more on that in a bit). I was a Joey girl... at the tender age of 6. I knew all their songs by heart (as well as the entire Debbie Gibson cannon... that girl was awesome... I can still bust out "Only in My Dreams" and "Electric Youth" at the drop of a dime).
I was a public New Kids fanatic at least through most of elementary school. A couple years ago, I was going through my old school stuff as we were packing up our Akron house when my parents were moving and I found a school notebook from when I was in 1st grade. In it, we had to write down journal entries about whatever our teacher told us was the topic... and one of my entries was about going a New Kids on the Block concert. I wrote about how I was in the front row and somehow I managed to get a torn piece of Donnie Wahlberg's jeans.
This was all a lie, mind you.
I had never been to a New Kids concert and I surely did not have a piece of denim once attached to the pants of one Donnie Wahlberg. I laughed pretty hard when I reread this (faux) piece of my 1st grade history.
Like many of my peers, once the New Kids stopped making music in 1994, I gave them up. That too was a facade... my sister bought me a New Kids poster at a garage sale before I went to college and I hung it up in my dorm room... we also used it on the set of "College Cookery". And my mom got me their "Greatest Hits" CD a few years ago. It's in my car, and sometimes I'll pop it in to sing along with some of the "Classics" of my youth.
While New Kids were on the outs, BSB (That's the Backstreet Boys for you people not in the know) and *NSYNC were on the rise. My sister liked *NSYNC, but I was a BSB girl for a little while. I never could remember which one was AJ and which one was Howie and I didn't really know what they all looked like at first, but somehow I ended up with their 1st CD - it was catchy.
My sister ended up going to a *NSYNC "No Strings Attached" tour performance and she converted me. She forced me to learn all their songs and I was hooked - their music was catchy *and* they could dance... if I couldn't have the New Kids anymore, this would be a good consolation prize.
While I was never obsessed with *NSYNC like other high school girls, I did end up with an awful lot of their merchandise... like their trading cards, fruit snacks, and yep - I have all 5 of their dolls (you know, the marionettes from their "Bye Bye Bye" video... they are now collecting dust in my parent's storage room hundreds of miles away).
In 2001, my sister, some friends and I went to see the *NSYNC Pop Odyssey tour up at Brown's Stadium in Cleveland... I remember it was very loud and actually kind of fun. Their "Celebrity" album hadn't come out, so we didn't know most of the songs, but it was still neat to see them live.
My mom got me the "No Strings Attached" Madison Square Garden VHS awhile back, and just a few weeks ago, I picked up the "Pop Odyssey" VHS at a Goodwill. For $2, I can take a stroll down memory lane and laugh like an idiot while I watch the tape and fold my laundry (my DVD player is in the living room, so if I'm going to watch a movie in my room, it's gotta be on VHS, or I have to hook my portable DVD player up to my TV, and that's a hassle).
So, over 2 weekends worth of folding laundry, I finished watching the Pop Odyssey tour. I know all the songs now (and sadly, some of the choreography - as hard as I try, there is no way to get some of those steps out of your head... it's one of those situations where I wish I could take the dance moves out of my memory and use that new empty space to store knowledge for the GRE... but nooooooooooooooo). And you know what - those *NSYNC guys put on a good show. They sing, they dance, they entertain. They don't have the greatest songs of all time, but my are they memorable.
I did 2 loads of laundry this weekend, which means 2 sessions of clothes folding. I finished "Pop Odyssey" yesterday, so what was I to do earlier this afternoon when it came time to fold the rest of my laundry?
Oh yeah... popped in my New Kids on the Block "Hangin' Tough Live" VHS.
But Katie - didn't your mom get rid of your NKOTB tape many, many years ago?
Yes friends, she did. But that's what's so amazing about Goodwill stores... you find all sorts of treasures that you never expected to see again the rest of your life. So, my mom threw out our New Kids tape when I was in elementary school, but a few years ago, I found a copy for 50 cents. The greatest 50 cents I've ever spent, let me tell ya...
New Kids officially announced their reunion a few weeks ago and were on the Today show on May 16th, singing their new single "Summertime". It's catchy, but it doesn't really sound like something a group of five 35-39 year old men should be singing about. But whatever - it's New Kids - I'll still listen to it :)
So, I watched some of the "Hangin' Tough Live" tape - and all those songs (and dance moves) are permanently stuck in my mind for all eternity. But you know what? Those boys were lip-syncing like there's no tomorrow. But when I was 7 years old, I didn't know the difference. They were at least lip-syncing to their own voices, but they weren't singing live, that's for sure. (They were on the Today show a couple weeks ago, fear not)
Will I see them on tour? Probably not. Will I get their new album. Probably. Even if it's not great, they are a part of my past and surprisingly, my present - and I embrace that. It's been almost 20 years since I first got into their music (man, that makes me sound old...), and I think it's great that their giving it another go.
Keep "Hangin' Tough"... I know I will :)
Happy Memorial Day, everybody!
Monday, May 26, 2008
Sunday, May 25, 2008
Idol, Indy, SATC...
My last post was kind of manically written post-Idol Finale, pre-Indy 4 screening late Wednesday evening. Since then, I've had some more time to think about my television and movie watching... and since I'm trying to avoid cleaning my apartment right now, I thought I'd write down some thoughts :)
So, American Idol Season 7 is over - and David Cook won. And some people are saying it was an upset, but others are saying that his victory makes sense. I agree with the latter - especially since I thought Cook deserved to be the Idol winner ever since his audition many, many months ago.
Wednesday's Finale was okay, though I shake my head at the Fox corporation... First off - I am friggin' sick of those stupid "Love Guru" time-ins with the show... stop wasting precious Idol time with ridiculous pre-packaged material of the Davids visiting Guru Pitka. As I watched that hideousness unfold before me, I thought to myself "I wonder how much extra time those boys could have rehearsed if they didn't have to make this clip." And I am SICK of Mike Meyers and his dumb characters. The first Austin Powers movie was okay because it was something kind of new... and then he made 2 dumb sequels. And then the whole Shrek franchise - I am not a fan of those films because they are aimed towards kids, but much of the humor is laced with adult themes. Not family appropriate in the slightest, but they made bajillions of dollars, so I guess that's fine! (blah) And now this whole "Love Guru" thing... I think it's kind of offensive.
The Idol Finale had some pretty good music guest... it was cool Cook got to perform with ZZ Top and Archie sand with One Republic. They seemed to be really enjoying themselves. It was nice to see Seal, Donna Summer and Bryan Adams as well. And George Michael... it seems like he's been on TV more this year than in a long, long time (I'm an Eli Stone fan, and he and his music were pretty much at the core of most of the episodes). And I really enjoyed the George Michael medley and his solo at the end of the show, but if Idol is aiming for an increase viewership in the 18-24 demographic, feature someone we like... like Daughtry or Chris Brown. (Yes, I know Carrie Underwood and Jordin Sparks were on, but even Jordin's song was aimed more towards the tweens than college age people). If the producers thought the 18-24 year olds would enjoy the Jonas Brothers, than I think they are mistaken. I am 24 years old. I even like High School Musical (yep, go ahead and laugh, I don't care...). But I don't get what is so great about the Jonas Brothers. I spent that 5 minutes of the Idol staring at my TV with my head cocked to the side, much like my dogs when they are confused about something. But whatever.
You know what I did like about the Idol Finale... those Guitar Hero commercials. I didn't see David Cook's until the next day (we got home after the Finale started, so we zipped through a lot of the commercial breaks... thank you, DVR). Little David Archuleta's was kind of weird to watch - it's not everyday you see a very well known 17 year old awkwardly dance around in his boxers to "Old Time Rock and Roll". It actually took me a few seconds into the commercial before I realized it was him. And since I hadn't seen David Cook's commercial, I was wondering why on earth that David Arculeta would get a Guitar Hero commercial... especially since he never even played guitar on Idol.
And then the next morning, I saw the David Cook version - and it made me laugh so hard I thought I was going to choke on my own spit. It was great - he had the song down and was completely channeling Tom Cruise in "Risky Business"... Cook had way better moves than Archie. And he's more believable with a guitar in hand. Even if it is just a Guitar Hero guitar.
Now that Idol is over, I can get back to my usual routine of watching movies (though, you can be sure I'm going to try and make it to an Idol tour show this summer and I'll be keeping my eye open for Cook's album... I can't remember the last time I bought a CD, but I'll drop a Hamilton or two the day his album drops).
My first film post-Idol was, of course, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Now, I won't reveal major plot points or anything, because it's still opening weekend and I respect people who don't like to know spoilers before going to the theater, but I will say that I was disappointed. A lot.
I LOVE the first 3 Indiana Jones movies... I remember getting them out from the library a lot when I was younger and they were always fun to watch with the whole family. We still use the phrase "He chose poorly" probably once a month. They are staple films from my childhood and I know them by heart. This Indiana Jones movie does not fit in nicely with those other 3.
I thought Indy 4 opened slow... probably because of the opening credits. I don't remember opening credits from any of the other films. I was also super tired because the film started around 12:15 because of more than a few crappy movie trailers before the film actually started... so, my eyes were ready to shut if something awesome didn't happen. Luckily Indiana Jones showed up and my eyes widened and there was a grin on my face the size of Texas. Oh Harrison Ford, I missed you. (The last Ford movie I saw in theaters was Hollywood Homicide... Yeah, I know.)
And then some more expositiony stuff goes down and my eyes wanted to shut again. But Hello Shia LaBoeuf... my eyes reopen and stay open for the remainder of the film (though not necessarily on the screen the entire time... for those of you who know how poorly I reacted to Spielberg's 1982 opus, I couldn't watch some of Indy 4 for similar reasons).
While there were some cheeky nods to the previous Indy films and some good scenes between Ford and LaBoeuf, there were some major problems for me in the plot and the CGI sequences. I won't go too into detail for you people who have yet to see the film, but let's just put it this way - Why on Earth are there crappy CGI sequences? Speilberg has made films with great CGI parts (i.e. Minority Report - crap movie, but good effects) and George Lucas's Lucasfilm/ILM is pretty much responisble for a majority of the digital effects that have been in films for the last 30 years... so shouldn't the CGI stuff look FLAWLESS?
This film did feel like other films of the 1950s, but I was looking for more than that. I was looking for the perfect bookend to an already awesome trilogy, but instead, I don't feel like I can watch Indy 4 again. At least not for a really, really long time.
Last summer, I wrote an article about film franchises. It was about the time Live Free or Die Hard came out... I was skeptical about that film, because Die Hard was another trilogy that I grew up on (thanks Dad!). Before Live Free or Die Hard came out, I was worried it was going to tarnish the Die Hard name, but instead it was a welcome addition to the series. Indy 4 had the opposite effect for me... I probably won't even want to own this one and when I speak of Indiana Jones movies in 10 or 20 years from now, I will be sure to exclude Indy 4.
I did this to myself - these high expectations. Last summer I was not looking forward to Indy 4. But then I saw teaser trailers and rewatched Raiders and Last Crusade and got my hopes waaaaaay up. And then Indy 4 happened and I felt let down. So, in order to move on, I have to turn my attention to the movie that has now become my most anticiapted release of May 2008... Sex and the City: The Movie.
I managed to avoid seeing anything Sex and the City related until last March. My sister has all 6 seasons on DVD and she was on her spring break and I took a week off from work and instead of working on a script I had started, I decided to watch SATC and see why everyone was so obsessed with it.
I get it. I really do. This is a great show - it's refreshing to see 4 girlfriends work and play hard in the greatest city in the world. And even though Carrie was the main character, we got to know everyone on that show - these were women who were playing out completely realistic situations (though some of the stories and a lot of the fashion were exaggerated beyond the norm).
It's hard to pick a favorite character out of the 4 women, as they all have assets and flaws that make them loveable and dislikeable at the same time. And then all of the men on the show... there are just so many characters to choose from. I liked Aidan a lot (who didn't?), but my favorite guy was Jack Berger, hands down. I did think the relationship ended poorly (a Post-it? Come on!), but when he and Carrie were in the swing of things, it was magical.
Sex and the City: The Movie opens this coming Friday and I am more than excited to see it. I do not see "chick flicks" a lot, and in fact prefer action/adventure movies with lots of shoot 'em ups, but this is one "chick flick" I wouldn't miss for the world. After watching 6 seasons in about a month's time, I am invested in Carrie, Samantha, Miranda and Charlotte and I sincerely want to know what they've been up to. Plus, it's going to be interesting to see if Jennifer Hudson can act in a movie where she's not singing most of the time...
Well - it's time to clean the apartment. Or maybe take my portable DVD player out on the balcony and continue to catch up on some SATC Season 6 while I paint my nails :)
Have a lovely day, and I'll cya at the movies!
So, American Idol Season 7 is over - and David Cook won. And some people are saying it was an upset, but others are saying that his victory makes sense. I agree with the latter - especially since I thought Cook deserved to be the Idol winner ever since his audition many, many months ago.
Wednesday's Finale was okay, though I shake my head at the Fox corporation... First off - I am friggin' sick of those stupid "Love Guru" time-ins with the show... stop wasting precious Idol time with ridiculous pre-packaged material of the Davids visiting Guru Pitka. As I watched that hideousness unfold before me, I thought to myself "I wonder how much extra time those boys could have rehearsed if they didn't have to make this clip." And I am SICK of Mike Meyers and his dumb characters. The first Austin Powers movie was okay because it was something kind of new... and then he made 2 dumb sequels. And then the whole Shrek franchise - I am not a fan of those films because they are aimed towards kids, but much of the humor is laced with adult themes. Not family appropriate in the slightest, but they made bajillions of dollars, so I guess that's fine! (blah) And now this whole "Love Guru" thing... I think it's kind of offensive.
The Idol Finale had some pretty good music guest... it was cool Cook got to perform with ZZ Top and Archie sand with One Republic. They seemed to be really enjoying themselves. It was nice to see Seal, Donna Summer and Bryan Adams as well. And George Michael... it seems like he's been on TV more this year than in a long, long time (I'm an Eli Stone fan, and he and his music were pretty much at the core of most of the episodes). And I really enjoyed the George Michael medley and his solo at the end of the show, but if Idol is aiming for an increase viewership in the 18-24 demographic, feature someone we like... like Daughtry or Chris Brown. (Yes, I know Carrie Underwood and Jordin Sparks were on, but even Jordin's song was aimed more towards the tweens than college age people). If the producers thought the 18-24 year olds would enjoy the Jonas Brothers, than I think they are mistaken. I am 24 years old. I even like High School Musical (yep, go ahead and laugh, I don't care...). But I don't get what is so great about the Jonas Brothers. I spent that 5 minutes of the Idol staring at my TV with my head cocked to the side, much like my dogs when they are confused about something. But whatever.
You know what I did like about the Idol Finale... those Guitar Hero commercials. I didn't see David Cook's until the next day (we got home after the Finale started, so we zipped through a lot of the commercial breaks... thank you, DVR). Little David Archuleta's was kind of weird to watch - it's not everyday you see a very well known 17 year old awkwardly dance around in his boxers to "Old Time Rock and Roll". It actually took me a few seconds into the commercial before I realized it was him. And since I hadn't seen David Cook's commercial, I was wondering why on earth that David Arculeta would get a Guitar Hero commercial... especially since he never even played guitar on Idol.
And then the next morning, I saw the David Cook version - and it made me laugh so hard I thought I was going to choke on my own spit. It was great - he had the song down and was completely channeling Tom Cruise in "Risky Business"... Cook had way better moves than Archie. And he's more believable with a guitar in hand. Even if it is just a Guitar Hero guitar.
Now that Idol is over, I can get back to my usual routine of watching movies (though, you can be sure I'm going to try and make it to an Idol tour show this summer and I'll be keeping my eye open for Cook's album... I can't remember the last time I bought a CD, but I'll drop a Hamilton or two the day his album drops).
My first film post-Idol was, of course, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Now, I won't reveal major plot points or anything, because it's still opening weekend and I respect people who don't like to know spoilers before going to the theater, but I will say that I was disappointed. A lot.
I LOVE the first 3 Indiana Jones movies... I remember getting them out from the library a lot when I was younger and they were always fun to watch with the whole family. We still use the phrase "He chose poorly" probably once a month. They are staple films from my childhood and I know them by heart. This Indiana Jones movie does not fit in nicely with those other 3.
I thought Indy 4 opened slow... probably because of the opening credits. I don't remember opening credits from any of the other films. I was also super tired because the film started around 12:15 because of more than a few crappy movie trailers before the film actually started... so, my eyes were ready to shut if something awesome didn't happen. Luckily Indiana Jones showed up and my eyes widened and there was a grin on my face the size of Texas. Oh Harrison Ford, I missed you. (The last Ford movie I saw in theaters was Hollywood Homicide... Yeah, I know.)
And then some more expositiony stuff goes down and my eyes wanted to shut again. But Hello Shia LaBoeuf... my eyes reopen and stay open for the remainder of the film (though not necessarily on the screen the entire time... for those of you who know how poorly I reacted to Spielberg's 1982 opus, I couldn't watch some of Indy 4 for similar reasons).
While there were some cheeky nods to the previous Indy films and some good scenes between Ford and LaBoeuf, there were some major problems for me in the plot and the CGI sequences. I won't go too into detail for you people who have yet to see the film, but let's just put it this way - Why on Earth are there crappy CGI sequences? Speilberg has made films with great CGI parts (i.e. Minority Report - crap movie, but good effects) and George Lucas's Lucasfilm/ILM is pretty much responisble for a majority of the digital effects that have been in films for the last 30 years... so shouldn't the CGI stuff look FLAWLESS?
This film did feel like other films of the 1950s, but I was looking for more than that. I was looking for the perfect bookend to an already awesome trilogy, but instead, I don't feel like I can watch Indy 4 again. At least not for a really, really long time.
Last summer, I wrote an article about film franchises. It was about the time Live Free or Die Hard came out... I was skeptical about that film, because Die Hard was another trilogy that I grew up on (thanks Dad!). Before Live Free or Die Hard came out, I was worried it was going to tarnish the Die Hard name, but instead it was a welcome addition to the series. Indy 4 had the opposite effect for me... I probably won't even want to own this one and when I speak of Indiana Jones movies in 10 or 20 years from now, I will be sure to exclude Indy 4.
I did this to myself - these high expectations. Last summer I was not looking forward to Indy 4. But then I saw teaser trailers and rewatched Raiders and Last Crusade and got my hopes waaaaaay up. And then Indy 4 happened and I felt let down. So, in order to move on, I have to turn my attention to the movie that has now become my most anticiapted release of May 2008... Sex and the City: The Movie.
I managed to avoid seeing anything Sex and the City related until last March. My sister has all 6 seasons on DVD and she was on her spring break and I took a week off from work and instead of working on a script I had started, I decided to watch SATC and see why everyone was so obsessed with it.
I get it. I really do. This is a great show - it's refreshing to see 4 girlfriends work and play hard in the greatest city in the world. And even though Carrie was the main character, we got to know everyone on that show - these were women who were playing out completely realistic situations (though some of the stories and a lot of the fashion were exaggerated beyond the norm).
It's hard to pick a favorite character out of the 4 women, as they all have assets and flaws that make them loveable and dislikeable at the same time. And then all of the men on the show... there are just so many characters to choose from. I liked Aidan a lot (who didn't?), but my favorite guy was Jack Berger, hands down. I did think the relationship ended poorly (a Post-it? Come on!), but when he and Carrie were in the swing of things, it was magical.
Sex and the City: The Movie opens this coming Friday and I am more than excited to see it. I do not see "chick flicks" a lot, and in fact prefer action/adventure movies with lots of shoot 'em ups, but this is one "chick flick" I wouldn't miss for the world. After watching 6 seasons in about a month's time, I am invested in Carrie, Samantha, Miranda and Charlotte and I sincerely want to know what they've been up to. Plus, it's going to be interesting to see if Jennifer Hudson can act in a movie where she's not singing most of the time...
Well - it's time to clean the apartment. Or maybe take my portable DVD player out on the balcony and continue to catch up on some SATC Season 6 while I paint my nails :)
Have a lovely day, and I'll cya at the movies!
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Season 7 American Idol is... DAVID COOK!!!
So, I've been looking forward to the Season 7 Finale like you would not believe... I'm sure my colleagues at work are looking forward to the day when I finally shut up already about Idol and the politics going on with this show and how much I love Jason Castro and David Cook...
Well, David Cook just became our American Idol, like, 1/2 hour ago, so I won't be shutting up any time soon... well, at least not for a ocuple days.
I'll give you more of my opinions about the Finale this weekend... I'm heading to the movie theater in about 1/2 hour to get seats for our mini posse for the first screening of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull... but right now, it's IDOL TIME!!
As we all already know, I have been rooting for David Cook since he first sang at his audition. Last night after the last time both he and little David sang, I called for 2 hours solid (I didn't always get through, but I figured at least that meant other Wordnerds were voting for him too... BTW, I'm not an official "Wordnerd" in David's fan club, but I've been doing crossword puzzles every day for the last 2 years - yep, before my love for David Cook [what can I say, I loves me some crossword puzzles], so I'm a Wordnerd all on my own).
And then tonight, oh glorious night of Idol, you crowned my favorite Idol contestant EVER, our new American Idol. WOO HOO
The Finale on a whole was sub-par, and I thought George Michael's song was going on a bit too long there... by time we got back from the last commerical break, it was 9:57 here. Luckily, the show spilled over until 10:06ish, so my man Cook could have his moment, shed some tears, hug his mom and sing another lame Idol Songwriting competition winner...
But just before Ryan read the results, Simon Cowell did one of the nicest things he's done while on the show - he apologized to David Cook for treating him disrespectfully the previous night. For those of you who watched David sing his heart out and then the judges rip his song choices apart, you know what Simon is talking about. It. Was. Harsh.
But all is forgiven, I'm sure. David Cook had 12 million more votes than little David, and he won fair and square. Props to little David Archuleta... he took his loss like a man. He didn't cry, he didn't make mean faces or storm off - he seemed genuinely happy for his pal David Cook. He is an upstanding citizen, and it takes a lot to have that kind of composure after being hailed as the Front Runner the entire season, only to have someone else walk away with the Grand Prize. But he'll be okay...
Well, I will write more eloquently later... I'm just too excited from Cook winning the Idol and the countdown to seeing Indy 4 in less than an hour and a half (!)
Have a great day!
Well, David Cook just became our American Idol, like, 1/2 hour ago, so I won't be shutting up any time soon... well, at least not for a ocuple days.
I'll give you more of my opinions about the Finale this weekend... I'm heading to the movie theater in about 1/2 hour to get seats for our mini posse for the first screening of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull... but right now, it's IDOL TIME!!
As we all already know, I have been rooting for David Cook since he first sang at his audition. Last night after the last time both he and little David sang, I called for 2 hours solid (I didn't always get through, but I figured at least that meant other Wordnerds were voting for him too... BTW, I'm not an official "Wordnerd" in David's fan club, but I've been doing crossword puzzles every day for the last 2 years - yep, before my love for David Cook [what can I say, I loves me some crossword puzzles], so I'm a Wordnerd all on my own).
And then tonight, oh glorious night of Idol, you crowned my favorite Idol contestant EVER, our new American Idol. WOO HOO
The Finale on a whole was sub-par, and I thought George Michael's song was going on a bit too long there... by time we got back from the last commerical break, it was 9:57 here. Luckily, the show spilled over until 10:06ish, so my man Cook could have his moment, shed some tears, hug his mom and sing another lame Idol Songwriting competition winner...
But just before Ryan read the results, Simon Cowell did one of the nicest things he's done while on the show - he apologized to David Cook for treating him disrespectfully the previous night. For those of you who watched David sing his heart out and then the judges rip his song choices apart, you know what Simon is talking about. It. Was. Harsh.
But all is forgiven, I'm sure. David Cook had 12 million more votes than little David, and he won fair and square. Props to little David Archuleta... he took his loss like a man. He didn't cry, he didn't make mean faces or storm off - he seemed genuinely happy for his pal David Cook. He is an upstanding citizen, and it takes a lot to have that kind of composure after being hailed as the Front Runner the entire season, only to have someone else walk away with the Grand Prize. But he'll be okay...
Well, I will write more eloquently later... I'm just too excited from Cook winning the Idol and the countdown to seeing Indy 4 in less than an hour and a half (!)
Have a great day!
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
American Idol Top 2 - Let's go David (Cook!)
Yes, since the dawn of Season 7, I have been a David Cook supporter... and since the last half of the season, so has the AI website...
Have you noticed that little David Archuleta used to be featured in the center of the weekly group photos, but in the past few weeks, David Cook has been the man in the middle.
I think AI finally realized that they should support Cook because in the end, he's going to rack up more record sales than little Archie... and probably have a stronger career. Week in and week out, David Cook has improved, covering pseduo-obscure covers or coming up with his own awesome arrangements which pique the interest of viewers. Archie sings well, there is no arguing that, but he's plateaued. He hasn't had any amazing performances as of late, unlike Cook.
Also, there is the age/maturity factor... David Cook is 25, went to college, had some "life experiences", worked as a b"arrrrgh"tender, has been in some bands and has given the music industry a whirl. Little Archuleta is 17, still lives with his parents, and seems like a genuinely nice teenage boy who has yet to face the harsh reality of the "real world". He's been groomed to be a performer, but do you actually believe him when he's singing songs about "love" and relationships and heartache and sorrow? Because I don't... not one bit. When Cook sings, the lyrics have that extra punch of "yeah, I've been through this" whereas what Archuleta is belting out are just words. Mostly in tune words, but just words nonetheless.
So, how about tonight's performances? It was the last time the Top 2 performed for the viewer's votes... and by the judges tally, little Archuleta won. (Boo/Hiss)
Up first was David Cook:
1. Clive's pick - "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" - now, I'm not a U2 fan, but Cook's performance was great, in my opinion. True, he didn't change a huge amount of stuff, but his vocals were solid, and I felt like he was saving himself for his later performances. He wasn't wielding his guitar on this song, which is fine - as he is awesome enough to rock a song with or without an instrument.
2. AI song - "Dream Big" (?) - Pretty lame song, but because David Cook was singing it, I dug it. I enjoyed the guitar and it had a decent beat. At least it didn't have the word "moment" or the phrase "this is my now" in it.
3. David's Choice - "The World I Know" - I know this Collective Soul song just like everyone else, but it never meant anything to me. It still doesn't, but David's performance was endearing - with his accoustic guitar and the orchestra behind him. I liked the arrangement and when it was over, and David was getting a little emotional (you could tell he realized how big all of this is and how he knows the end is near and he's probably almost at a breaking point) and it actually made me tear up.
The judges (well, Randy and Simon at least... Paula is just a seat filler who spouts kind things to anything that moves) gave Cook sub-par scores throughout the evening, especially Simon. Which was totally weird b/c Simon was on Leno and Ellen last night and today and told them that he wanted David Cook to win. So, Simon, what's with the harsh Cook critiques? He didn't suck, and he certainly didn't do worse than Archie... what gives?
Speaking of little Archie:
1. Clive's pick - "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" - Um, didn't Clay Aiken sing this on Season 2? (Answer: Yeppers) And the judges went wild with praise... but from my recliner at home, I could hear some pitch problems... it sounded a little shrieky even at times. And that little boy still moves his microphone around like it's the secret to how he manages to hit the right notes on those runs he puts into every freakin' song.
2. AI Song - "I Wanna Be" (?) - Lametastic... one of those little HSMesque numbers talking about how you are in your moment blah blah blah. Yes, he was in tune - he best be in tune - no one should make it to the finale if they can't sing well - but that song was hideous. If I heard that on the radio, I'd flip the channel. Though, I'd probably only hear that song if I was on Radio Disney or some other teen ballad station that features the Jonas Brothers and Miley Cyrus 24/7. And that's not what I listen to...
3. David's pick - "Imagine" - Wow, that was such a *surprise*. Of course he chose the song he got the most praise for. (Cook went with a song he had never sang on the show before - a gutsy move on his behalf, as everyone and their moms are fans of his versions of "Hello", "Billie Jean" and "Always Be My Baby"...) So, of course the crowds were on their feet. And little Archie was so overwhelmed he looked like he was going to tip over.
The show ended with Ruben Studdard "Celebrating" himself "home"... and I turned off the TV in Idol anger (I'm taping my Dancing show finale... I'll get to it in a minute - this way it'll be mostly commercial free... thanks DVR:) )
Why were the judges so harsh on Cook? Is it some kind of reverse psychology to America? If Archie wins, he'll be super happy, and maybe throw up a little in his mouth, and then have to go off and do a bazillion interviews. Have you watched this kid give interviews before? It's almost painful. He still has some growing up to do - his voice is there, but his social skills are not. If we plaster the title of American Idol on him, he's never going to get a chance to live a little bit. He'll just be thrown into the machine that is the music industry, and I'm sincerely afraid it will chew him up and spit him out. He seems like such a nice little person and as much as I think he'll do fine with a music career, I just don't think he's quite ready yet.
So, dial 1-866-IDOLS-01 (03 or 05) with me, America, and vote for David Cook. This guy has a lot to offer - he's a talented musician and vocalist, appears to be a genuinely polite guy and though he's teared up on occassion (only because he's a real person and not a musical robot), he seems mature enough to handle himself on his road to music stardom.
You can be sure I'll be plastered to my recliner tomorrow night watching the 2 hour Finale. I look forward to seeing some Idols past and some Idols present singing their cheesetastic group numbers and some duets with established musicians. And after David (hopefully Cook) is annouced this season's American Idol, I'm off to the movie theater for a midnight screening of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (woot!).
So, my final Idol thoughts on this blog will probably be coming sometime this coming weekend, after I've had some time to process it all (and enjoy some Indy 4).
Happy Idoling, and to those of you also partaking in some Indy goodness - I'll see you at the movie theater :)
Have you noticed that little David Archuleta used to be featured in the center of the weekly group photos, but in the past few weeks, David Cook has been the man in the middle.
I think AI finally realized that they should support Cook because in the end, he's going to rack up more record sales than little Archie... and probably have a stronger career. Week in and week out, David Cook has improved, covering pseduo-obscure covers or coming up with his own awesome arrangements which pique the interest of viewers. Archie sings well, there is no arguing that, but he's plateaued. He hasn't had any amazing performances as of late, unlike Cook.
Also, there is the age/maturity factor... David Cook is 25, went to college, had some "life experiences", worked as a b"arrrrgh"tender, has been in some bands and has given the music industry a whirl. Little Archuleta is 17, still lives with his parents, and seems like a genuinely nice teenage boy who has yet to face the harsh reality of the "real world". He's been groomed to be a performer, but do you actually believe him when he's singing songs about "love" and relationships and heartache and sorrow? Because I don't... not one bit. When Cook sings, the lyrics have that extra punch of "yeah, I've been through this" whereas what Archuleta is belting out are just words. Mostly in tune words, but just words nonetheless.
So, how about tonight's performances? It was the last time the Top 2 performed for the viewer's votes... and by the judges tally, little Archuleta won. (Boo/Hiss)
Up first was David Cook:
1. Clive's pick - "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" - now, I'm not a U2 fan, but Cook's performance was great, in my opinion. True, he didn't change a huge amount of stuff, but his vocals were solid, and I felt like he was saving himself for his later performances. He wasn't wielding his guitar on this song, which is fine - as he is awesome enough to rock a song with or without an instrument.
2. AI song - "Dream Big" (?) - Pretty lame song, but because David Cook was singing it, I dug it. I enjoyed the guitar and it had a decent beat. At least it didn't have the word "moment" or the phrase "this is my now" in it.
3. David's Choice - "The World I Know" - I know this Collective Soul song just like everyone else, but it never meant anything to me. It still doesn't, but David's performance was endearing - with his accoustic guitar and the orchestra behind him. I liked the arrangement and when it was over, and David was getting a little emotional (you could tell he realized how big all of this is and how he knows the end is near and he's probably almost at a breaking point) and it actually made me tear up.
The judges (well, Randy and Simon at least... Paula is just a seat filler who spouts kind things to anything that moves) gave Cook sub-par scores throughout the evening, especially Simon. Which was totally weird b/c Simon was on Leno and Ellen last night and today and told them that he wanted David Cook to win. So, Simon, what's with the harsh Cook critiques? He didn't suck, and he certainly didn't do worse than Archie... what gives?
Speaking of little Archie:
1. Clive's pick - "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" - Um, didn't Clay Aiken sing this on Season 2? (Answer: Yeppers) And the judges went wild with praise... but from my recliner at home, I could hear some pitch problems... it sounded a little shrieky even at times. And that little boy still moves his microphone around like it's the secret to how he manages to hit the right notes on those runs he puts into every freakin' song.
2. AI Song - "I Wanna Be" (?) - Lametastic... one of those little HSMesque numbers talking about how you are in your moment blah blah blah. Yes, he was in tune - he best be in tune - no one should make it to the finale if they can't sing well - but that song was hideous. If I heard that on the radio, I'd flip the channel. Though, I'd probably only hear that song if I was on Radio Disney or some other teen ballad station that features the Jonas Brothers and Miley Cyrus 24/7. And that's not what I listen to...
3. David's pick - "Imagine" - Wow, that was such a *surprise*. Of course he chose the song he got the most praise for. (Cook went with a song he had never sang on the show before - a gutsy move on his behalf, as everyone and their moms are fans of his versions of "Hello", "Billie Jean" and "Always Be My Baby"...) So, of course the crowds were on their feet. And little Archie was so overwhelmed he looked like he was going to tip over.
The show ended with Ruben Studdard "Celebrating" himself "home"... and I turned off the TV in Idol anger (I'm taping my Dancing show finale... I'll get to it in a minute - this way it'll be mostly commercial free... thanks DVR:) )
Why were the judges so harsh on Cook? Is it some kind of reverse psychology to America? If Archie wins, he'll be super happy, and maybe throw up a little in his mouth, and then have to go off and do a bazillion interviews. Have you watched this kid give interviews before? It's almost painful. He still has some growing up to do - his voice is there, but his social skills are not. If we plaster the title of American Idol on him, he's never going to get a chance to live a little bit. He'll just be thrown into the machine that is the music industry, and I'm sincerely afraid it will chew him up and spit him out. He seems like such a nice little person and as much as I think he'll do fine with a music career, I just don't think he's quite ready yet.
So, dial 1-866-IDOLS-01 (03 or 05) with me, America, and vote for David Cook. This guy has a lot to offer - he's a talented musician and vocalist, appears to be a genuinely polite guy and though he's teared up on occassion (only because he's a real person and not a musical robot), he seems mature enough to handle himself on his road to music stardom.
You can be sure I'll be plastered to my recliner tomorrow night watching the 2 hour Finale. I look forward to seeing some Idols past and some Idols present singing their cheesetastic group numbers and some duets with established musicians. And after David (hopefully Cook) is annouced this season's American Idol, I'm off to the movie theater for a midnight screening of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (woot!).
So, my final Idol thoughts on this blog will probably be coming sometime this coming weekend, after I've had some time to process it all (and enjoy some Indy 4).
Happy Idoling, and to those of you also partaking in some Indy goodness - I'll see you at the movie theater :)
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
If David Cook doesn't win American Idol, then something is seriously wrong with America...
Good day,
So, I know this is supposed to be a movie blog, but American Idol is closing in on its finale (next week!!), and I am committed to this show for the long haul.
Let's take this back to last week...
I'm in Minnesota at my parents house, vacationing with my entire family. Playing lots of Boggle and Ping-Pong and attempting to master Guitar Hero (dude, I can barely play those songs on Easy Mode... but it's cool strumming along to "Barracuda" and "When You Were Young" and pretending you are in Heart and The Killers, respectively)...
So, last Tuesday, instead of watching the Idol from my recliner here in Indiana, I watched it sitting next to my mom - a non-lover of Jason Castro. After he gave a not so awesome performance of "I Shot the Sheriff", I had to listen to my dad saying how much he sucks and how he can't believe I have been voting for him for the past 2 months. And then a little later we watch Castro forget pary of his lyric for "Mr. Tambourine Man" (which I'm actually listening to right this very second as I'm typing this... no, that was not planned, that's just the magic of iTunes "Shuffle Mode" while I'm on my Jason Castro/David Cook playlist... oh snap).
As I cringed on the sofa while our puppy, Moose, was trying to get our attention to play fetch, I realized this was the end of the road for my favorite Dreadhead... but I still did my civic duty and called for an hour and a half.
To no avail, Castro got ousted last Wednesday with a smile on his face and a sincere look of relief in his eye. After much hub-bub about people thinking he mouthed "Don't Vote" and wanted to get kicked off the show, he has said in every interview since then that he wanted to make it as far as he could and was saying "Vote, Vote". I believe it... the guy recognized his inexperience compared to the remaining 3 contestants and he left the show as happy as he was the first week he was on. Good for you sir, good for you. Plus, he's been on a bunch of talk shows this week, so it's fun to see him do interviews because they really aren't his forte. Though, it seems everyone just wants to talk about 2 things: "Vote, Vote" and his hair. Come on, interviewers, there are way more important things to ask him then that...
So, tonight, the Top 3 sang 3 songs apiece. In all honesty, I was not blown away by anyone, though David Cook was obviously the best performer this evening.
Lemme break it down for ya:
1. David A - I wonder how all this press about his Stage Dad is going to affect the votes. The kid sings well, there is no denying that, but he doesn't really have stage presence. He stands there - eyes mostly open these days, and only licking his lips on occassion - and belts his little heart out, shaking the microphone during every run he sings. I thought his Billy Joel song was he strongest of the night. He should *not* have sang Chris Brown's "With You" - because no one can compare to Chris Brown. Though David A. and Chris Brown are close in age, they are not close when it comes to charisma... plus he botched some of the words. And though little David A. sang Dan Fogelberg's "Longer" quite well, Simon was right, that was not a good song choice for this little 17 year old. The lyrics are well beyond his years. He'll still make it through to next week, though.
2. Syesha - I still hate her. And I know "hate" is a strong word, especially because I don't personally know her, but that's the problem - we don't know who Syesha is because she's such a phony every time you see her on the TV. Did you notice then when the pre-packaged material where she received her Judge's Pick, she was all alone in a limo... whereas the Davids were with other people, interacting like normal folks. Syesha is an actress, and a damn good one because I (along with the whole of America, I suppose) have no idea what kind of person she is or what kind of music she would put on a record. All 3 of her songs showed a different person, and there was nothing that linked them together except that Syesha was singing them. With "If I Ain't Got You", it seemed as if she was trying to sing it exactly like Alicia Keys, who is awesome because she is Alicia Keys... when Syesha sang it, it just sounded like karaoke. And then that whole "Fever" fiasco. Simon was right - it was a lame cabaret act. She worked that chair like a pro, but the song is too old fashioned for her, and she made it seem like a showtune instead of a contemporary hit (which is what she should have done). And then that last song... I don't even know the title (I didn't see "Happy Feet", so I'm in the dark about this one), but she didn't look like she was into the song at all... like she felt it was beneath her or something. So what if the song the Producer's picked isn't your kind of song... MAKE IT YOUR OWN! She needs to go home tomorrow night, for reals.
3. David Cook - Oh, David Cook. I've said it before and I'll say it again, I've been a fan since we saw your audition (Anyone who can sing "Livin' on a Prayer" as well as Bon Jovi has my vote... plus he had on a vest at the audition). He is the most consistent Idol contestant this year, and he's got a really great voice (his "Hungry Like the Wolf" is playing now... thank you iTunes :) ), and he plays the guitar well, and he's a true performer, commanding the stage and the microphone as opposed to just standing up there and singing his song selection. So, I thought the Roberta Flack number was great - yes Randy, we know he's the rocker guy, but he's capable of singing other styles/genres of music too... (see Andrew Lloyd Webber week for further proof). And I thought his version of Switchfoot's "I Dare You to Move" was good. I thought the song was too short, though, as soon as he started rocking out, he was done, and I literally sat up in my chair and said aloud to myself (my sister is out of town, so I was solo-Idoling tonight), "What?! That's it?!) And then "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing"... I don't really like this song (so sue me), but I thought he did well. Plus, Diane Warren was sitting right there... that's got to be intimidating.
So, Syesha needs to go home and the two Davids need to duke it out in the final next week. And David Cook needs to win... just because I think he could handle all the press and craziness that comes with being the American Idol. If David A. wins, he'd probably hyperventilate and keel over. But so long as a David wins and not Syesha, than that'll do.
When Idol is over, I suppose I'll have to get back to watching movies :) I did see Iron Man and Speed Racer (liked 'em both) and am very much looking forward to Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and the Sex and the City movie... Idol withdrawl will be hard, but it'll be nice to get back to what I love most - film.
Have a fantastic day and I'll catch ya later :)
So, I know this is supposed to be a movie blog, but American Idol is closing in on its finale (next week!!), and I am committed to this show for the long haul.
Let's take this back to last week...
I'm in Minnesota at my parents house, vacationing with my entire family. Playing lots of Boggle and Ping-Pong and attempting to master Guitar Hero (dude, I can barely play those songs on Easy Mode... but it's cool strumming along to "Barracuda" and "When You Were Young" and pretending you are in Heart and The Killers, respectively)...
So, last Tuesday, instead of watching the Idol from my recliner here in Indiana, I watched it sitting next to my mom - a non-lover of Jason Castro. After he gave a not so awesome performance of "I Shot the Sheriff", I had to listen to my dad saying how much he sucks and how he can't believe I have been voting for him for the past 2 months. And then a little later we watch Castro forget pary of his lyric for "Mr. Tambourine Man" (which I'm actually listening to right this very second as I'm typing this... no, that was not planned, that's just the magic of iTunes "Shuffle Mode" while I'm on my Jason Castro/David Cook playlist... oh snap).
As I cringed on the sofa while our puppy, Moose, was trying to get our attention to play fetch, I realized this was the end of the road for my favorite Dreadhead... but I still did my civic duty and called for an hour and a half.
To no avail, Castro got ousted last Wednesday with a smile on his face and a sincere look of relief in his eye. After much hub-bub about people thinking he mouthed "Don't Vote" and wanted to get kicked off the show, he has said in every interview since then that he wanted to make it as far as he could and was saying "Vote, Vote". I believe it... the guy recognized his inexperience compared to the remaining 3 contestants and he left the show as happy as he was the first week he was on. Good for you sir, good for you. Plus, he's been on a bunch of talk shows this week, so it's fun to see him do interviews because they really aren't his forte. Though, it seems everyone just wants to talk about 2 things: "Vote, Vote" and his hair. Come on, interviewers, there are way more important things to ask him then that...
So, tonight, the Top 3 sang 3 songs apiece. In all honesty, I was not blown away by anyone, though David Cook was obviously the best performer this evening.
Lemme break it down for ya:
1. David A - I wonder how all this press about his Stage Dad is going to affect the votes. The kid sings well, there is no denying that, but he doesn't really have stage presence. He stands there - eyes mostly open these days, and only licking his lips on occassion - and belts his little heart out, shaking the microphone during every run he sings. I thought his Billy Joel song was he strongest of the night. He should *not* have sang Chris Brown's "With You" - because no one can compare to Chris Brown. Though David A. and Chris Brown are close in age, they are not close when it comes to charisma... plus he botched some of the words. And though little David A. sang Dan Fogelberg's "Longer" quite well, Simon was right, that was not a good song choice for this little 17 year old. The lyrics are well beyond his years. He'll still make it through to next week, though.
2. Syesha - I still hate her. And I know "hate" is a strong word, especially because I don't personally know her, but that's the problem - we don't know who Syesha is because she's such a phony every time you see her on the TV. Did you notice then when the pre-packaged material where she received her Judge's Pick, she was all alone in a limo... whereas the Davids were with other people, interacting like normal folks. Syesha is an actress, and a damn good one because I (along with the whole of America, I suppose) have no idea what kind of person she is or what kind of music she would put on a record. All 3 of her songs showed a different person, and there was nothing that linked them together except that Syesha was singing them. With "If I Ain't Got You", it seemed as if she was trying to sing it exactly like Alicia Keys, who is awesome because she is Alicia Keys... when Syesha sang it, it just sounded like karaoke. And then that whole "Fever" fiasco. Simon was right - it was a lame cabaret act. She worked that chair like a pro, but the song is too old fashioned for her, and she made it seem like a showtune instead of a contemporary hit (which is what she should have done). And then that last song... I don't even know the title (I didn't see "Happy Feet", so I'm in the dark about this one), but she didn't look like she was into the song at all... like she felt it was beneath her or something. So what if the song the Producer's picked isn't your kind of song... MAKE IT YOUR OWN! She needs to go home tomorrow night, for reals.
3. David Cook - Oh, David Cook. I've said it before and I'll say it again, I've been a fan since we saw your audition (Anyone who can sing "Livin' on a Prayer" as well as Bon Jovi has my vote... plus he had on a vest at the audition). He is the most consistent Idol contestant this year, and he's got a really great voice (his "Hungry Like the Wolf" is playing now... thank you iTunes :) ), and he plays the guitar well, and he's a true performer, commanding the stage and the microphone as opposed to just standing up there and singing his song selection. So, I thought the Roberta Flack number was great - yes Randy, we know he's the rocker guy, but he's capable of singing other styles/genres of music too... (see Andrew Lloyd Webber week for further proof). And I thought his version of Switchfoot's "I Dare You to Move" was good. I thought the song was too short, though, as soon as he started rocking out, he was done, and I literally sat up in my chair and said aloud to myself (my sister is out of town, so I was solo-Idoling tonight), "What?! That's it?!) And then "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing"... I don't really like this song (so sue me), but I thought he did well. Plus, Diane Warren was sitting right there... that's got to be intimidating.
So, Syesha needs to go home and the two Davids need to duke it out in the final next week. And David Cook needs to win... just because I think he could handle all the press and craziness that comes with being the American Idol. If David A. wins, he'd probably hyperventilate and keel over. But so long as a David wins and not Syesha, than that'll do.
When Idol is over, I suppose I'll have to get back to watching movies :) I did see Iron Man and Speed Racer (liked 'em both) and am very much looking forward to Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and the Sex and the City movie... Idol withdrawl will be hard, but it'll be nice to get back to what I love most - film.
Have a fantastic day and I'll catch ya later :)
Friday, May 2, 2008
Yeah, I know this is a movie blog, but Paulagate cannot be ignored...
Good day to you,
I know this is a movie blog, but because we are in the thick of things with the Idol, this is pretty much my Idol blog until the next person is named our American Idol. Plus, because I've been working like a mad fiend, I haven't watched any movies in about a week... not since I saw Baby Mama last weekend.
So, here's my take on "this week on Idol".
Tuesday night - Neil Diamond night
First off, I love Neil Diamond music. I might now know all the words (or titles for that matter) to his songs, but I know fair few... and I knew over 1/2 the songs the Idols sang this week. In fact, I'm listening to some Neil Diamond "I Am I Said" right this very minute - what can I say, I was inspired.
So, Tuesday night... after getting his a$$ handed to him last week for an altogether not too bad rendition of "Memory", Jason Castro led off the night with a decent performance of one of my Neil Diamond favorites - "Forever in Blue Jeans". True, I usually think of Will Ferrell doing his Neil Diamond impression to this song, but little Jason Castro held his own while strumming his guitar and channeling the Neil... it wasn't the best performance ever, but it wasn't bad. (more on that later...). This all comes after the pre-packaged tape that shows Jason forgetting his lyrics in front of the Neil and then smacking himself in the forehead... And *this* all coming after last week's incident of not knowing "Memory" was sung by a cat AND a popular song... (more on that later)
David Cook did well (of course), though it was hard to make out what he was saying part of the time. Brooke looked like a deer in the headlights during "I'm a Believer" (poor song choice for her... she looked in a panic the whole time). Little Archuleta looked like he was the star of Karaoke Idol with his "Sweet Caroline" performance - no one should have sung this song, not even him. It's too cheesy... "Sweeeeeeeeeeeeeet Caroline... DUNT DUNT DUHHHHHHHH Good times never seemed so goooooooooood!" Come on... And how do the judges never call him out on squatting in one spot and shaking his microphone around like it's some sort of magic stick that helps him sing his runs. And then Syesha... who botched her key change and had her fake smile plastered on her face like a Barbie doll.
And then even though Ryan told us the judges wouldn't make comments until after everyones second song... all the Idols were wrangled up and brought out to the center of the stage for a mass judging/execution. Randy "Yo dogged" his way through hyping up Archie and then we get to Paula.
Hey, hey Paula... why do you even bother to open your mouth at all?
She slammed Castro on his first song, then proceeded to slam him on his second song, telling him his charm is gone and that he's not even putting in any effort to make it into the top 4.
But wait Paula, he only sang 1 song. Everyone only sang 1 song so far.
When Randy, Simon and Ryan finally cut her off and told her to only judge Castro's 1st (and ONLY) song, she tried to cover for herself by saying she was looking at David Cook's notes.
So, David's charm is gone and he's not putting in any effort to make it into the top 4?
NOOOOOOOOOOO... Paula stops, smiles, and tells David Cook that he's fantastic.
So, if he's fantastic, then why did you say that all those things you just told Jason were Davids notes? Wait a tic... that doesn't make any sense.
Paula finishes her babbling and Simon cuts to the chase, swiftly knocking each Idol into their place before round 2.
As we cut to commercial, the whole of America and I are wondering what the hell just happened. I'm still scratching my head as the Fox commercials indicate the show is about ready to start up again... cue the music (you know which music I'm talking about) and there sits poor Jason Castro... stuck singing his second song ("September Morn" - swoon) just minutes after he was told it lacked charm... before he even sang. Wrap your mind around that, America.
I enjoyed Castro's "September Morn" performance. He's usually awkward when he's not able to hide behind his guitar, but this wasn't bad. He commanded what little chunk of the stage he took up and looked/sounded confident. But he got bad reviews from the judges. He does need to mix it up a bit more, but it wasn't awful.
Cook rocked it again and then Brooke KILLED "I Am I Said". Holy smokes, I forgot how much I liked that song, and I really liked Brooke's performance. It was minimalist and raw and vulnerable and just great. But we all knew she didn't have a chance in hell at winning the whole show.
And then there was Archie... singing "America" (which I think Cook should have sung). And it was CHEESTASTIC... more so than "Sweet Caroline" because of the flag and the constant repetition of the word "America". We get it, the song is about America, and for some reason unbeknownst to me, most of America loves David A. I am not most of America. I do not love David A. Sorry Charlie Bucket.
And then there's Syesha... who I like even less than David Archuleta. I cannot stress how much I wanted her off the show this week (well, really since week 1, but alas, she's still here).
Tuesday ended and there still was much speculation about the whole Paula incident.
Wednesday morning I heard they were going to talk about it on the Today show, so i taped that to watch when I got home from work. Those are hard hitting journalists on the show, so i thought I'd get an answer. But noooooooooooo, they just said Paula was confused. COME ON TODAY SHOW. Something was up, and we need to get to the bottom of it.
In between 5:30 PM and 9:00 PM when the Idol elimination show started, I tried to look up some theories on-line to see what the real deal was with Paula. I read so many different stories and none of them really make sense to me...
Here are the stories:
* Paula saw Jason's rehearsal earlier in the day and had notes based off of that - that's cool that she saw rehearsal, but she shouldn't be judging a rehearsal, she should be judging the live performance right in front of her eyes. Someone could have a perfect rehearsal but a crap performance... so is it fair to judge what the American people haven't seen, or judge their crap performance?
*Paula said that the judges were busy writing notes and she got confused - well, she wasn't taking any notes during Castro's 1st performance... she was sitting in her chair bopping her head and snapping her fingers along to his music number. No pencil or paper in sight... she seemed to be enjoying herself an awful lot.
*Some people are saying that what the judges say is scripted for them... which I could believe to some extent. What bothers me though is that though Castro's performances were pretty un-extraordinary, they weren't God-awful either. Yet the judges harp on him, especially these past 2 weeks. He has got one of the bigger fanbases and it's been said in some tabloidish magazines that executive producer Nigel Lythgoe thinks that Castro should have been voted out last week instead of Carly. There was something on EW.com that said Castro was ready to go home. (Yet other sites say that he says he is in it to win it and enjoys being on the show)... Who are we to believe? And who is behind all this negative press and anti-Jason Castro movement?
I know my parents aren't Jason fans, but I am... and not just because he's super adorable and has nice eyes and whatnot... he's got a soothing voice and a cool singer/songwriter vibe that I really dig. My mom calls him a "Space cadet" and I think that this is aided by the horrible pre-packaged materials they show regarding him on the show (he does come across as spacey a lot). If you can remember back to the Top 24 or Top 20, he admitted that he was really bad at interviews... and the show has really played that up.
Luckily, Wednesday night proved that Jason has spunk and the ability to answer a question like an intelligent human being.
So, elimination night always starts with a group number... this week was a medley of Neil Diamond tunes, with Jason starting things off with "Cracklin' Rose" - and though the group number was pretty crappy as a whole (mostly due to the girls voices not blending - yikes), Jason gave a strong vocal, and was lip synching everyone else's parts as he danced around in the background. He probably thought he was in the bottom 2, but at least he looked like he was having fun.
After the group number and before any contestants got called out, Seacrest brought up the 1 and only mention of "last night" and dispelled rumors by saying Paula is part of the Idol family and that they love her.
WAIT A MINUTE... who cares about Paula? I want to know what really happened. Or at least for someone to apologize to Jason for slamming his song before he sang it. Or to admit to the American people that the Idol is kind of shady. But nooooooo... there was no more mention of anything and no apologies. Not cool Idol, not cool.
Castro was the first contestant to be brought out to find out if he made it to the couch or was in the bottom 2. When Seacrest asked him about his critiques from the previous night, Castro shocked everyone by giving an articulate response regarding song choice and arrangement. Props to you , Castro, you probably aren't as dumb as people think you are. And then he was directed toward the couch... saved once again by his massive fanbase (I called for an hour and a half... that kid won't win the whole show, but I'll be damned if he doesn't earn his way into the Top 3).
And of course the Davids were safe. And as much as I wanted Syesha to go home, I knew it was going to be Brooke. That poor girl, she really took it hard. I felt bad while I watched her fumble the beginning of "I Am I Said" and then choke her way through the song... that must suck trying to sing right after you get your hopes and dreams of being the American Idol swiftly pulled out from under your designer shoes.
So, next week is Rock 'N Roll Hall of Fame music... I guess there are 500 songs to chose from. Everyone has a wide variety to pick through, so if they botch their song choices, it's their own fault (or, their Dad's fault, if they are David A...)
Here's hoping for an all male Top 3 and a smooth show (and maybe a real explanation about what happened this past Tuesday... No? Didn't think so, FOX).
Happy Idoling :)
I know this is a movie blog, but because we are in the thick of things with the Idol, this is pretty much my Idol blog until the next person is named our American Idol. Plus, because I've been working like a mad fiend, I haven't watched any movies in about a week... not since I saw Baby Mama last weekend.
So, here's my take on "this week on Idol".
Tuesday night - Neil Diamond night
First off, I love Neil Diamond music. I might now know all the words (or titles for that matter) to his songs, but I know fair few... and I knew over 1/2 the songs the Idols sang this week. In fact, I'm listening to some Neil Diamond "I Am I Said" right this very minute - what can I say, I was inspired.
So, Tuesday night... after getting his a$$ handed to him last week for an altogether not too bad rendition of "Memory", Jason Castro led off the night with a decent performance of one of my Neil Diamond favorites - "Forever in Blue Jeans". True, I usually think of Will Ferrell doing his Neil Diamond impression to this song, but little Jason Castro held his own while strumming his guitar and channeling the Neil... it wasn't the best performance ever, but it wasn't bad. (more on that later...). This all comes after the pre-packaged tape that shows Jason forgetting his lyrics in front of the Neil and then smacking himself in the forehead... And *this* all coming after last week's incident of not knowing "Memory" was sung by a cat AND a popular song... (more on that later)
David Cook did well (of course), though it was hard to make out what he was saying part of the time. Brooke looked like a deer in the headlights during "I'm a Believer" (poor song choice for her... she looked in a panic the whole time). Little Archuleta looked like he was the star of Karaoke Idol with his "Sweet Caroline" performance - no one should have sung this song, not even him. It's too cheesy... "Sweeeeeeeeeeeeeet Caroline... DUNT DUNT DUHHHHHHHH Good times never seemed so goooooooooood!" Come on... And how do the judges never call him out on squatting in one spot and shaking his microphone around like it's some sort of magic stick that helps him sing his runs. And then Syesha... who botched her key change and had her fake smile plastered on her face like a Barbie doll.
And then even though Ryan told us the judges wouldn't make comments until after everyones second song... all the Idols were wrangled up and brought out to the center of the stage for a mass judging/execution. Randy "Yo dogged" his way through hyping up Archie and then we get to Paula.
Hey, hey Paula... why do you even bother to open your mouth at all?
She slammed Castro on his first song, then proceeded to slam him on his second song, telling him his charm is gone and that he's not even putting in any effort to make it into the top 4.
But wait Paula, he only sang 1 song. Everyone only sang 1 song so far.
When Randy, Simon and Ryan finally cut her off and told her to only judge Castro's 1st (and ONLY) song, she tried to cover for herself by saying she was looking at David Cook's notes.
So, David's charm is gone and he's not putting in any effort to make it into the top 4?
NOOOOOOOOOOO... Paula stops, smiles, and tells David Cook that he's fantastic.
So, if he's fantastic, then why did you say that all those things you just told Jason were Davids notes? Wait a tic... that doesn't make any sense.
Paula finishes her babbling and Simon cuts to the chase, swiftly knocking each Idol into their place before round 2.
As we cut to commercial, the whole of America and I are wondering what the hell just happened. I'm still scratching my head as the Fox commercials indicate the show is about ready to start up again... cue the music (you know which music I'm talking about) and there sits poor Jason Castro... stuck singing his second song ("September Morn" - swoon) just minutes after he was told it lacked charm... before he even sang. Wrap your mind around that, America.
I enjoyed Castro's "September Morn" performance. He's usually awkward when he's not able to hide behind his guitar, but this wasn't bad. He commanded what little chunk of the stage he took up and looked/sounded confident. But he got bad reviews from the judges. He does need to mix it up a bit more, but it wasn't awful.
Cook rocked it again and then Brooke KILLED "I Am I Said". Holy smokes, I forgot how much I liked that song, and I really liked Brooke's performance. It was minimalist and raw and vulnerable and just great. But we all knew she didn't have a chance in hell at winning the whole show.
And then there was Archie... singing "America" (which I think Cook should have sung). And it was CHEESTASTIC... more so than "Sweet Caroline" because of the flag and the constant repetition of the word "America". We get it, the song is about America, and for some reason unbeknownst to me, most of America loves David A. I am not most of America. I do not love David A. Sorry Charlie Bucket.
And then there's Syesha... who I like even less than David Archuleta. I cannot stress how much I wanted her off the show this week (well, really since week 1, but alas, she's still here).
Tuesday ended and there still was much speculation about the whole Paula incident.
Wednesday morning I heard they were going to talk about it on the Today show, so i taped that to watch when I got home from work. Those are hard hitting journalists on the show, so i thought I'd get an answer. But noooooooooooo, they just said Paula was confused. COME ON TODAY SHOW. Something was up, and we need to get to the bottom of it.
In between 5:30 PM and 9:00 PM when the Idol elimination show started, I tried to look up some theories on-line to see what the real deal was with Paula. I read so many different stories and none of them really make sense to me...
Here are the stories:
* Paula saw Jason's rehearsal earlier in the day and had notes based off of that - that's cool that she saw rehearsal, but she shouldn't be judging a rehearsal, she should be judging the live performance right in front of her eyes. Someone could have a perfect rehearsal but a crap performance... so is it fair to judge what the American people haven't seen, or judge their crap performance?
*Paula said that the judges were busy writing notes and she got confused - well, she wasn't taking any notes during Castro's 1st performance... she was sitting in her chair bopping her head and snapping her fingers along to his music number. No pencil or paper in sight... she seemed to be enjoying herself an awful lot.
*Some people are saying that what the judges say is scripted for them... which I could believe to some extent. What bothers me though is that though Castro's performances were pretty un-extraordinary, they weren't God-awful either. Yet the judges harp on him, especially these past 2 weeks. He has got one of the bigger fanbases and it's been said in some tabloidish magazines that executive producer Nigel Lythgoe thinks that Castro should have been voted out last week instead of Carly. There was something on EW.com that said Castro was ready to go home. (Yet other sites say that he says he is in it to win it and enjoys being on the show)... Who are we to believe? And who is behind all this negative press and anti-Jason Castro movement?
I know my parents aren't Jason fans, but I am... and not just because he's super adorable and has nice eyes and whatnot... he's got a soothing voice and a cool singer/songwriter vibe that I really dig. My mom calls him a "Space cadet" and I think that this is aided by the horrible pre-packaged materials they show regarding him on the show (he does come across as spacey a lot). If you can remember back to the Top 24 or Top 20, he admitted that he was really bad at interviews... and the show has really played that up.
Luckily, Wednesday night proved that Jason has spunk and the ability to answer a question like an intelligent human being.
So, elimination night always starts with a group number... this week was a medley of Neil Diamond tunes, with Jason starting things off with "Cracklin' Rose" - and though the group number was pretty crappy as a whole (mostly due to the girls voices not blending - yikes), Jason gave a strong vocal, and was lip synching everyone else's parts as he danced around in the background. He probably thought he was in the bottom 2, but at least he looked like he was having fun.
After the group number and before any contestants got called out, Seacrest brought up the 1 and only mention of "last night" and dispelled rumors by saying Paula is part of the Idol family and that they love her.
WAIT A MINUTE... who cares about Paula? I want to know what really happened. Or at least for someone to apologize to Jason for slamming his song before he sang it. Or to admit to the American people that the Idol is kind of shady. But nooooooo... there was no more mention of anything and no apologies. Not cool Idol, not cool.
Castro was the first contestant to be brought out to find out if he made it to the couch or was in the bottom 2. When Seacrest asked him about his critiques from the previous night, Castro shocked everyone by giving an articulate response regarding song choice and arrangement. Props to you , Castro, you probably aren't as dumb as people think you are. And then he was directed toward the couch... saved once again by his massive fanbase (I called for an hour and a half... that kid won't win the whole show, but I'll be damned if he doesn't earn his way into the Top 3).
And of course the Davids were safe. And as much as I wanted Syesha to go home, I knew it was going to be Brooke. That poor girl, she really took it hard. I felt bad while I watched her fumble the beginning of "I Am I Said" and then choke her way through the song... that must suck trying to sing right after you get your hopes and dreams of being the American Idol swiftly pulled out from under your designer shoes.
So, next week is Rock 'N Roll Hall of Fame music... I guess there are 500 songs to chose from. Everyone has a wide variety to pick through, so if they botch their song choices, it's their own fault (or, their Dad's fault, if they are David A...)
Here's hoping for an all male Top 3 and a smooth show (and maybe a real explanation about what happened this past Tuesday... No? Didn't think so, FOX).
Happy Idoling :)
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