American Idol 2006--Live Thread I

FOX ^ | 1-16-06

[silent_jonny]

for Tammy

[retrokitten]

TALL CHICKS ROCK!!!

Damn straight we do! And if you don't agree we will stomp your town...

[retrokitten]

Mikayla was annoying, but in a cute, fun way.

I have to disagree. She made me want to throw things through my TV. Really large heavy things. And hopefully through the magic of television they would somehow also hit her.

[retrokitten]

To be honest, most of the folk that washed out were less than camera friendly.

You can say it. They sent most of the uglys home. There are a couple who are borderline who we didn't see much during the audition phase.

[ken5050]

You know, I was really hoping for the Anita Ekberg pic from Boccacio 70.. (hint, hint..)

[ken5050]

FYI..Big pics and bios of all 24 on the AI home page...good looking wimmenfolk, all in all.

[ken5050]

Oh my, I'm sooooo dissillusioned..

You know, maybe she can go on tour with the Brittenum twins..Actually that's a great idea, we just need to come up with a catchy name for the group..something with "Oreo" in it, perhaps.??.

[twin2]

I didn't know you were an NC guy, it's one of my favorite states (after FL of course).

Taylor Hicks is still one of my early favorites along with Katherine McPhee (correct?). I think that Paris girl will really get on my nerves in a couple of weeks as well as that hideous Brenna.

[Wyatt's Torch]

I had the pleasure of watching her annoying traits in glorious High Definition. Made me wish the picture and sound wasn't crystal clear...

[retrokitten]

This is the best I could do...

[retrokitten]

My deepest sympathies. Makes me glad I don't have HD. LOL

[Wolfstar]

Like Ken, some belated observations from the delayed viewing corner:

Overall, so far I like the guys better than the girls this year. As a group, they appear to have more potential than the groups of guys from past seasons.

Re Taylor Hicks, I've warmed to him a little -- but only a little -- because he played the harmonica last night, and he clearly has music in his soul. He seems like a nice guy.

Re the young guy with dark hair combed down over his forehead, turns out there were two last night who fit that description. Both of them made it through, but in the clips they showed last night of their solos, neither was as good as what I remembered. So I'm confused now about which of them is the one who stood out for me before.

SCREEEECH...WHERE'S THE UNDERTAKER?! I don't think we saw him in any of the Hollywood shows or last night during the cut down to 28. (BTW, the cut down did not happen in Hollywood. That was Pasadena.) I don't remember his name. Did he change his look between the early auditions and the Hollywood round? There were several weeks between the auditions and H'weird. That little geeky kid with glasses and the big voice changed his look a little between the auditions and H'weird. He let his hair grow out.

I wonder if the undertaker dropped out for some reason before they got to H'weird. Does anyone know?

As for the girls, several have good voices, but so far there isn't one who stands out for me -- at least not in a positive way. There are two obnoxious ones that are going to get on my nerves in a hurry. The one you all have tagged as this year's Mikalah, and Katharine McPhee, the one with a vocal coach mom.

The pretty 16-year-old girl has potential. Good voice and still unspoiled attitude.

[Wolfstar]

Here's a link to the idolonfox.com page with the top 24 contestants' pictures, hometowns and ages:

idolonfox.com/contestants

[ken5050]

There was a very famous billboard for the film..a giant-size AE takes a man and deposits him into her cleavage..

[Hetty_Fauxvert]

Well, I finally sat down late last night and caught up on Tuesday and Wednesday's shows ... and all I can say is thank the good Lord in heaven that those ODIOUS Brittenem twins got in trouble and took themselves out of the running! I honestly think I would have had to just not watch AI this year. I cannot believe how annoying and self-important they were. What a pair of maroons!

Impressions from last night:
I like the crooner kid (not the Fred Savage clone, the other dark-haired one) but I think he'll be washed out early. He has a "standards" voice, which is great for me, but I think the youngsters who watch won't get it.

Paris: I thought she would be a front-runner at first, but I'm starting not to think so. *Everything* she sings so far has that jazz sound to it, which is not always appropriate.

Big chick with "trunk": I can't remember her name (I guess I'll have to start watching with a notepad, like kevkrom!) but I like her a lot. Terrific voice, lots of stage presence. I think she might stay on for quite a while, though I think she'll ultimately lose to a more photogenic type.

Hicks: Hm, vellllly interesting. I like his voice a lot and he seems like he has something to say with his music, but good heavens, he looks like he's doing a Ray Charles impersonation. I was starting to wonder if he *was* blind at one point! It almost seems like a parody sometimes. Perhaps they'll advise him to tone that down a bit.

I'll miss the "l'il cowboy" (he was the genuine article!) but I'm just as glad not to have to listen to him anymore, LOL! Wow, was his trio atrocious or what? (And no, "what" is not really an option! :)

[retrokitten]

LOL!! That one didn't come up on the search.

[kevkrom]

Ok... initial rankings for the gals and guys. I'll probably not mix the lists until the start of the final 12, but on the whole, I find that the pool of girls is more talented than the guys.

First up, the gals:

1. Katherine McPhee - One of my early favorites, she showed a bit more control and expression in what little we got to see from her Hollywood week.
2. Lisa Tucker - On the opposite note, Lisa struggled in Hollywood compared to her initial audition. I'd still bet on her winning the whole thing, but she needs to show improvement.
3. Paris Bennett - I'm not trying to "tear down" Paris, she is an excellent singer, I just don't think her voice fits the style of this competition. Still, there's no denying the talent, which is why she still ranks this high.
4. Ayla Brown - Cute, nice voice, will she ever stand out, though? She makes things look easy, but it's hard to tell if that helps or hurts her when the going gets tough.
5. Kellie Pickler - Something about her rings false, and she's not as cute as Carrie to be able to pull the act off. Too many other good women this year for Kellie to win it all unless she really steps it up.
6. Becky O'Donohue - Let's just say I'd pay money to watch her even if she can't sing, if you know what I mean. Certainly not the best voice, so she'll need to nail everything and show off her... um... other assets.
7. Mandisa - Voice, check. Look, not so much. She'll do OK, but not a winner.
8. Stevie Scott - Her voice is kind of weak compared to those ahead of her. She's cute and has a nice attitude, but the end will most likely come soon for her.
9. Heather Cox - Can't say much as we haven't seen much.
10. Kinnik Sky - Ditto.
11. Melissa McGhee - Ditto again... though from what little I saw, she doesn't compare well to the top gals.
12. Brenna Gethers - I don't care how long she survives the voting. With the "diva" attitude, I'm ranking her dead last on general principle.

And the guys:

1. Ace Young - The gals seem to like him, and he's got a pretty good voice, though I personally don't like the whole "breathy" thing.
2. Patrick Hall - Haven't seen much from him, but what we have seen has been very good.
3. David Radford - Toss-up between the "crooners". I'll take David higher because I was impressed with his composure during the initial auditions.
4. Will Makar - See above.
5. Taylor Hicks - Just flat-out fun to listen to. As many have said, he has the music inside him. He certainly is the most unique competitor. But he is rougher on the eyes, both in general look and in stage presence.
6. Elliott Yamin - Surprisingly good voice, and he gets bonus points for p***ing off a Brittenum brother and still outsinging him.
7. Chris Daughtry - The clips from last night showed he could do more than just "rock it out". I'm still not certain he's a top competitor, but he's in position to move up if he can deliver.
8. Bucky Convington - Haven't seen much, can't say much.
9. Gedeon McKinney - Confident, but I'm not impressed with the voice.
10. Jose Penala ("Sway") - His best performance was the final solo, but everything else before that puts him this low on the list.
11. Kevin Covais - Geek. Can't really compare to the pure voices from David and Will. Too bad, he seems like a nice kid.
12. Bobby Bennett - Talk about qualifying via the back door... he wouldn't be in this at this point without others being forced out.

[ken5050]

from the AI website...Katherine McPhee..when asked if she thought the audition process was fair..replied.."No. They let some good talent go and kept some PRETTY ones.."..MEEEEEOW..

[retrokitten]

Kellie Pickler - Something about her rings false, and she's not as cute as Carrie to be able to pull the act off.

Yes!! You nailed it. Something is not genuine with her. I can't put my finger on it.

[ken5050]

You should consider posting odds...SJ can make book...LOL

and Melissa McGhee DOES resemble Julia DeMato..

[ken5050]

Serious, though unrelated question..when I saw Stevie Scott make the cut...my mind wandered to one of my all-time fave female singers ALSO named Stevie...Nix...just wondering how you both assessed her voice..