As I believe I've mentioned, my schedule is pretty tight this week, so this will probably be pretty short and sweet. After all, I don't have Gokey to kick around anymore, so there should be fewer tangents/rants.
On with the show!
1) Adam Lambert - "Mad World": Great choice, as this was an absolutely breathtaking performance the first time around (and I think this was the one that Simon awarded with a standing ovation). I also like the choice because there is not nearly as much of the so-called "screaming" that his detractors talk about (although that's not screaming...that is a very powerful, very controlled falsetto voice). He looks fantastic, the set looks great, and I think the vocal was actually BETTER this time than last time. He also hit the lower note on the end, which you may recall me saying that I wish he had done the first time around. Just a gorgeous, flawless performance.
2) Kris Allen - "Ain't No Sunshine": Another great choice, as this was also my favorite of his from this past season. This is what I'm talking about when I say that although Adam is maybe the most talented contestant this show has ever seen, and he probably deserves to win, the first album I will probably buy from this season's cast is Kris's. Love the arrangement, love his treatment of the song. This is one of my top 2-3 favorite performances of the whole season.
3) Adam Lambert - "Change is Gonna Come": You know, I don't know how much more we can say at this point...this was another great vocal, as well as another great PERFORMANCE. He connects with his songs so well, probably due to his musical theater background, and I thought he did a great job with the emotional aspects of this song, which I'm sure has a good deal of meaning for him considering his background. And the suit rocked.
4) Kris Allen - "What's Goin' On": I didn't think this was a great song choice for him by Simon Fuller, but I liked what he did with it. He pulled out the congo and accoustic arrangement that he used previously on "She Works Hard For The Money," and I thought it worked here, as well. Vocally, he's not in Adam's ballpark, but I really enjoy how he arranges songs and manages to twist something that we have heard a gazillion times, like this one, and turn it into something "relevant," as Simon would say.
I know I'm breezing through these, but sorry....when the performances are this good, it doesn't give me anything to be snarky about. So far, this has been a concert I would pay good money to see.
5) Adam Lambert - "No Boundaries": Kara manages to follow the great Idol tradition of crappy coronation songs. Man, have any of these been good since Fantasia's? This isn't as bad as "This is My Now," but it's still pretty bad.
As for the performance, it was fine...the usual Adam vocal gymnastics, and it sounds good, but I have no interest in hearing this song again, which is not good considering we'll probably hear it about 70 billion times over the next 6 months.
6) Kris Allen - "No Boundaries": Yeah, this wasn't very good, but I'm not putting the blame for that at his feet. This song does not fit his style AT ALL, and it's too high for him, as well. I think it was probably written with their Golden Two (Lambert and Gokey) in mind. The less said about this, the better.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
- Well, at least the production staff is consistent...still can't bring a show in on time, even in the finale. I don't want to hear about the four-judge thing, because a professional production staff should have found SOME way to adjust for that by now. I mean, didn't ALL of us know that there would be four judges, like, three months before the season started? How did the production staff not get the memo?
- This was a very enjoyable show...two great performers, and both of them sounded great, with none of the "voice issues" that have plagued finales in years past.
I would honestly be happy with either of these two as the winner. Like I said, Adam probably deserves based on the fact that he has turned in consistent jaw-dropping performances, and has done things on this show that we've never seen before. But part of me actually wants Kris to win, just because I think he needs it more...Adam is going to be fine at this point, from a career perspective, no matter what, but Kris may need that extra push that being the American Idol WINNER brings.
- Loved seeing my girl Carrie again...and seeing that montage made it even more amazing that we ended up with such a quality top 2. Remember Normund? Freaking TATIANA? BIKINI GIRL?!?!?!?!
Tonight should be fun, and VERY interesting. I think most of Danny's votes probably went to Kris, for reasons that I have NO interest in discussing. With that in mind, for the last time this season...
Who SHOULD win: Adam
Who WILL win: Kris
And that's OK with me.
This may be the last you hear from me until after vacation...tune in then for all of my LOST thoughts, a review of GLEE (Short review...loved it, and it took me down memory lane in a big way), plus the countdown to kickoff begins...by the time I get back, we will be down to under 100 days!
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