For the past couple of weeks, I’ve been dogging the guys. Let’s face it; they’ve been bad. And the girls have been so much better than the guys that it’s made them seem worse than they probably actually are. That is, until tonight. After another above average week for the girls last night, the guys needed to bring their best, and for the most part, they really did.
Lee DeWyze – It wasn’t an amazing performance, but he was pretty good. He’s representing the Chicago music scene very well, and I’m 99% sure he will be for at least another week.
Alex Lambert – His vocals continue to improve, and he’s probably one of the three best guys right now, vocally. However, he still has zero stage presence and zero confidence. But, the guy can sing, so I think he’ll stick around. Also, enough with the banana joke, Ellen…
Tim Urban – When they said he was singing Jeff Buckley’s version of “Hallelujah,” I was skeptical of whether or not he’d pull it off. This particular version is one of my favorite songs of all time, so I knew I’d be highly critical. But it turned out to be the PERFECT song choice for him! He nailed it. He’s come a long way since his debacle two weeks ago.
Andrew Garcia – I used to look forward to his performances, but now, he’s just another contestant. I feel like he sings everything the same exact way, and it’s just not working. He might make the top 12, but he won’t be around much longer if he can’t right the ship.
Casey James – I felt like there were tempo issues all the way through, but he managed to still sing really well. I’m sure he’ll be safe, regardless.
Aaron Kelly – What…was…that? He started completely off key, and he stayed off key for most of the song. He was really bad tonight, and for some reason, the judges liked it. Apparently we weren’t watching the same thing, because that was a train wreck from start to finish.
Todrick Hall – Freddy Mercury was such a distinct singer that I felt this was a really bad song choice. He managed to do all right with it, but I thought it was just okay. The judges loved it, though.
Michael Lynche – At some point between week one and tonight, something clicked with Big Mike. He was so-so week one, good last week, and tonight, he completely blew me away. He was definitely the best of the night, and he even made Kara cry! He’s looking like the front runner for the guys now.
Going home: This is a lot tougher than I thought it would be. The two people I thought were the worst, the judges liked. But, that doesn’t always translate into votes. I think I have to go with Andrew Garcia and Aaron Kelly. I feel like maybe people are tired of Andrew doing the same exact thing week in and week out, and I’d like to think that I’m not the only one who thought Aaron was downright awful.
Overall, it was a great week for the guys, and it couldn’t have come at a better time. It looks like they’ve really hit their stride and maybe they can compete with the girls now. We’ll find out tomorrow who gets the chance as they cut down to the top 12!
-Josh
My choices for the guys to go home would be Todrick and Aaron.