Top 7 Perform!

It was expected for Paul not to win this thing... he was entertaining to watch and oasionally listen to.... but it was his time. I'm totally fine with it.

For the outcast number, he sounded AWFUL.

My DVR did not work last night, so I had to watch youtube to get the performances. This will be short and sweet.

1. Scotty McCreery- he is solid, but he's not switchin' anything up.
2. James Durbin- he is the creative, think out of the box contestant, love this Muse song, he did an ok job until the octave higher deal. He shoulda kept it down.
3. Haley Reinhart - I really need to check out this Adelle album apparently, she was confident and she nailed the whole thing vocally.
4. Jacob Lusk - Luther Vandross dance with my father,,, I'm done with Jacob.
5. Casey Abrams- I much prefer Casey doing his jazzy bluesy thing over the rock thing. His duet with Haley last week was off the chart good. I loved it. No more rock and scary faces Casey!
6. Stefano- woo hoo, the sexy camera eyes. ha. He did alright for me.
7. Lauren Alaina- still has not had her moment on the stage. Everything is so immature with her movements and her self-esteem. She should have waited until after high school to mature a bit. Decent song, did not blow me away.

my power rankings for the performances are:

1.  Haley Reinhart
2. James Durbin
3. Scotty McCreery
4. Casey Abrams
5. Lauren Alaina
6. Stefano Langone
7. Jacob Lusk

I think America will send Stefano home tonight!

Top 8 Perform

Well, Pia is gone. That was a shocker. But after everything I've read the past week, Nigel (the producer) said she was never going to win. Her votes and fans were never that high. He knows who the winners will be based on the votes each week. He said Carrie Underwood was the top vote winner every single week during her season. Plus, she's already signed a recording contract. She'll be fine, and we will hear from her soon I'm sure.

So. Movie Week.... songs from the cinema! This is a very broad theme which is good for all the remaining  contestants. I can't believe there are only 2 girls left.

• First up was Paul McDonald. I wasn't too thrilled with his rendition of  "Old Time Rock-n-Roll" mostly because his voice didn't mesh well with it. Loved his crazy suit though. I think he does do better with his guitar. Still a fun performance, but it didn't get him anymore fans.
• Lauren Alaina- Hells yes she would perform "The Climb" a million times better than Miley Cyrus. I'm so annoyed that the writer of that song wasted it on her voice. I think this was Lauren's best vocal performance because she actually 'went there' with the chorus and the big notes. Love Seacrest's comment about her mom... I laughed and rewinded it a few times.. something along the lines of "that's some volume in that air mom"... ha ha. Her mom bugs.
• Stefano Langone- singing the old favorite End of the Road from boyz 2 men. If you just listen to him sing it's much easier for me. Something about his performances are always so desperate and intense. He has a great instrument though.
• Scotty McCreery- As much as I would like to critique him I just can't. He sang George Strait's "Cross My Heart" and I'm sure he did it better than George. I repeat myself each week, I just can't get over his voice and his age. I would like him to hold the mic like a man though... I'm always afraid he's going to drop it with his lightly gripped finger tips.
• Casey Abrams doing the bass again,, and doing it so smooth and cool. He sang Nat King Cole's "Nature Boy" ,, a song I'm not familiar with, but it was so dope. The dude is so musical,,, loved it.
• Haley Reinhart doing a little Blondie action singing "Call Me" and it was alright. I really wanted her to get into it, but I think it's her performance that I just don't like sometimes. She's too smiley? This is a song that does not require as much teeth as she was showing. Her chorus was really good,,,but I just don't know about her on this one.
• Jacob Lusk seemed a little less confident and happy this week. I think being in the bottom 3 and being called out several times on his little "America is afraid to look at themselves in the mirror" schtick kinda got to him. Good. He needed to be brought down a bit. So he sang "Bridge Over Troubled Water" and did a decent job. His vibrato sounded like a baby lamb was being strangled though. I can't even duplicate that sound when I try. It's way too much.
• James Durbin closed the show with "Heavy Metal".... and was getting a little wordy with the producer guy. James knows his little genre and stuck to his guns. His voice is out of this world, but sometimes I don't feel like he's really a rocker... kinda like he's just a poser or something. I don't know what it is, but it's off. I like James and think he will be in the Final 3.

Well the show was very very good. It's hard to critique this season without a Tim Urban, or Sanjaya, or even a Tatiana,,,, so my power rankings based on last night's performances are:

1.  Scotty McCreery
2. Casey Abrams
3. Lauren Alaina
4. James Durbin
5. Stefano Langone
6. Paul McDonald
7. Haley Reinhart
8. Jacob Lusk

I predict from this point on that Scotty, James, and Lauren will be the TOP 3 this season.

The Top 9 Perform!

So, results... Naima and Thia are gone,,,, phew.

Let's get to last night. I didn't live blog, was feeling a little under the weather, plus my hubs was hogging the laptop. The theme

Rock'N'Roll!!! Let me repeat, that no one performed awful. So if I'm harsh, it's because someone has got to go....

• Jacob Lusk - Man in the Mirror- Hated it! Hate watching him perform. Something about the white suit, and sneakers that reminded me of a male nurse. When he starts moving on stage he is just too dang bouncy,, Ug. Can't handle it.
• Haley Reinhart - Piece of My Heart - Loved it! She really wailed up on this thing and showed she's got some dirt behind that voice of hers. I would like to see her in less high of a heal so that she could really move around that stage without fear of breaking an ankle. Maybe Less smiley when she sings??
• Casey Abrams - Have you ever seen the rain? - This guy is sooooo good. I mean a Bass, for reals? He sorta reminds me of a Counting Crows - ish type of sound. Like I've said before, this dude is pure music.
• Lauren Alaina- Natural Woman- I still feel like she is a pageantry singer. Is she really singing from her soul,, or is it just all too staged. She has the pipes, but it's her immaturity that is killing me.
• James Durbin - While My Guitar Gently Weeps - And then James gently weeps, I thought the tears were a little too much. He did a good job. In fact, I told my husband before he performed that he needed to tone it down this week. Glad he took my advice...um, if we compare him to a former rocker with a wailing voice, Adam Lambert, James' softer performances are nothing to compare. So there. (think Mad World)
• Scotty McCreery - That's Alright - Haha. J Lo asks him if he watches rap and hip hop! I was thinking the same thing with his little arm motions. But, he never sings bad, he's always on! He should be safe.
• Pia Toscano - River Deep, Mountain High - So, I must say, that she thinks she's singing an upbeat song and changing things up by moving down the stairs and such, BUT SHE IS NOT! She is still strolling around the stage like it's a Sunday afternoon. I SOOOOO agree with J LO. She needs to get into it, not just move her arms up and down a few times more during the 2 minute performance. She had to lose her mind and body during that song.. I mean go watch Tina Turner perform this and slay this. Even Celine Dion goes a little nuts during her faster paced songs. I just want Pia to stop bending her knees together and then moving one hip out... jump up and down and make me feel it. Mary J is another good one who really goes into the song. OK... are you listening Pia??????
• Stefano Langone - When a Man Loves a Woman- He might just be done tonight. Not that it was bad, but he doesn't really stand out as much as the others, plus he's been in the bottom 3 before. I'm not sure his fan base is growing week to week.
• Paul McDonald - Folsom Prison Blues - He's such a weird skinny gangly creature! I thought this was a fun one and loved him playing the guitar. He would be fun to see live I think. I hope he's safe, cause I like watching him perform.

I thought the whole night was enjoyable and fun to watch,,,each kid did a real good job, so this was hard putting them in any order,, but for now, based on last night's performances,, we have the order:

1.  Paul McDonald
2. Casey Abrams
3. Scotty McCreery
4. Haley Reinhart
5. James Durbin
6. Pia Toscano
7. Lauren Alaina
8. Stefano Langone
9. Jacob Lusk

Constantine is set to perform tonight... oh boy! Remember his Bohemian Rhapsody and his longing looks into the camera?  haha.  If anyone goes home before Stefano or Jacob I'll be pissed. Just so ya'll know that,,,