Obligatory American Idol Commentary..THAT BAND SUCKS!
Okay, I get sucked into this damned thing every year. Trish and Billy and I have been watching from day one, as usual, partially due to the lack of other things on with the strike still kicking up TV dust. There were some moments. I like the old guy from the Philippines, and his song about everyone being his brother…he used to drive one of those tricycle things over in his homeland, so I’m all for the old guy getting a bit of money, peace, and a happiness.
Not everything about Idol is happy for me this year, though…here goes.
Josiah Leming. Okay, he MAJORLY imploded on “Stand By Me,” but let’s get serious, the kid sings, writes songs, and has presence. They tried to force him to play up on an illness his mother has - and they even tried to get him to pretend like he was living in a FORD for their stupid, take-advantage-of-the-masses fluff piece. All that aside, the kid has presence, can sing and entertain, and is better than at least half the guys in this “best ever top 24″. I guess it’s cool that he’s making a ton on I-Tunes, and that he has something of a career going - I just hope it pans out, because the kid is the real deal, and what he’s doing is REAL as opposed to a pretty voice mouthing old standards, or someone else’s words, which is what Idol seems to really be all about. Look what they’ve done to Daughtry…
Another point to ponder. That freaking house band…could they BE any more lame? Seriously, they can’t handle a half-assed 70s pop-rock tune without it sounding weak and campy, and there’s almost no way to power past it. Daughtry did it a few times … the guy with the bad combover this year brought his own guitar and forced a little rock out of them, but they sound like a lounge-singer band, and it’s no wonder the contestants often fall prey to that lack of energy.
Not a great night for the guys. The 16 year old boy is by far the best…but there are sparks from others. Combover guy and the dreadlocks guy with the bright eyes…both have charisma to spare. A couple of others have some pipes, but not much in the personality department. The guy who keeps singing Queen needs to get over himself he will NEVER be Freddy Mercury…Simon tried to tell him…he should have listened. Danny Noriega is kind of funny, but not good enough, and I will never forgive him for not seeing how far he fell short of Elvis…
I’d love to know how wide a choice they get on “the 70s,” because the song choices - for the most part - seemed pretty silly.
We’ll see what the girls have to offer. Maybe, if it picks up any, I’ll even remember their names next week…but that band has to freaking go. The band on Rockstar was good…even the band on The Tonight Show kicks ass over this one…for the kind of money AI pulls in, they could get some actually talented studio musicians with a little passion and pump this thing up.
There. I feel better.
-DNW
02/28/08, 8:35 AM |
I’ve managed to avoid this season of AI in its entirety. Seems I have a lot on my plate these days. I do wish they would do another season of Rockstar, though. I believe I would make time for that one.
02/28/08, 8:39 AM |
You have to understand the dynamic of my house. Computers are between recliners. Recliners are in the room with the TV. Even if I’m working, the TV is either playing TV or Playstation nonsense, so at least peripherally, I’m stuck.
D
02/28/08, 9:24 AM |
lol, I gotcha. At least with that arrangement you can still be near your family if if your lost in the throes of producing your latest novel.
03/22/08, 12:06 AM |
Are u ffing kidding me? the house band is a group of the best studio musicians in LA, basically meaning the best contemporary musicians in the world. The house band on American Idol is so good its rediculous. I hate american Idol and the singers on the show are far worse than any of the musicians in that band. These musicians are better than basically any musician or band that you listen to, musically speaking (not creatively speaking)
03/22/08, 9:38 AM |
No, I am not kidding. If that band is made up of some of the best then they should be freaking ashamed of themselves. Every time they try to rock ..>EVERY TIME< they let the singer down. They may be the best at backing up people who are just vocalists, but this show allows the contestants to choose ANY song, and if it’s a rock song, the band should be enthusiastically HITTING IT, which they do not. The only guy with a shot this year doing rock is Cook, and only because he plays his guitar and keeps it on point….even the best can be lackluster, and that’s apparently the case. Just my opinion.
David
04/3/08, 2:38 AM |
David, David you are lost!
The band not only is a great band they are some of the greatest studio musicians in the world the guitar player Paul jackson Jr; is a A-list musician(world-renowned).
Get a ear and learn to play an instrument before complaining.
04/3/08, 11:06 PM |
Jack…
I have played guitar for more than twenty years. I played Cello through jr. and sr. high - and played Baritone Sax. I know when a band is not playing a song well. Just because they are great studio musicians doesn’t mean they can passionately or properly cover every song that comes along - and when they can’t - notably on the ROCK songs - they should bring in others who can and will…it’s only fair to the vocalists.
DNW