Though it will probably serve as a storyline setup for her triumphant road to victory in a few weeks, frontrunner Crystal Bowersox once again failed to make a true mark on “American Idol,” this time forfeiting dominance to Lee DeWyze and Michael Lynche.
DeWyze, who often fails to strike perfection in the pitch department, has become one of the most polarizing standout contestants in the history of the show. But there was no debate about the quality of his performance Tuesday. He made his “That’s Life” absolutely count.
On paper, the night appeared risky for Lee. The theme–Frank Sinatra songs–hardly gels with his alternative-rock/soul style. The concept–mentor Harry Connick, Jr. personally wrote all of the arrangements and orchestrations–threatened to make this night more about generic vocal chops than unique style, a hazard for a singer whose technique is not his strong suit.
Like someone who truly wants to win, Lee nonetheless came through, delivering an effortless vocal that totally came across as a genuine, heartfelt performance. Of course the pitch not perfect, but in finding a way to fuse his personality and raspy vocal tone into such a classic, standard song, Lee proved that he truly has that magical “American Idol” quality. He took Connick’s framework and turned it into a believable work of art, distancing himself from the pack not simply by how he sounded but by how he conveyed what he felt. And to think: two months ago, people wondered whether Lee could make a connection on stage. Now, he sounds great and ‘sells’ even better.
Also great, but for a different reason, was Michael Lynche. Lee succeeded in making “That’s Life” suitable for his contemporary rock style; Michael, however, succeeded in giving a truly authentic, loyal rendition of “The Way You Look Tonight.” Big Mike has always had an old soul with a proclivity for a jazz/lounge style, and this theme was an opportunity for him to achieve vocal and emotional excellence simply by being himself. By no means did the performance erase doubt that Lynche will only have a small market opportunity in the contemporary pop scene, but it did prove that when it comes to telling a story through stunning vocals, he is one of the best.
Crystal, meanwhile, was middle of the road–and her “Summer Wind” aligns far more closely with the bottom two performances than the top two. Her voice sounded solid throughout, and there were absolutely a few moments in which she showed vocal awareness and ownership that distances her from anyone else on the stage, but the bulk of the performance felt lazy and distant. Even when she was singing well, she wasn’t the same “Crystal” who moved the judges and viewers with her emotional, early-round performances. This was someone performing a song for the sake of performing–trying to show vocal talent without meaning anything. The fact that Crystal said she has a special connection to the song only made the performance more baffling, as she could not have looked or sounded more disinterested in the execution.
Further, Crystal’s post-performance “debate” with the judges again proved tiring. It is not as if one can fault Crystal for defending herself, but one absolutely can get on her case for arguing without any respect or consideration for what the judges are saying. Every time Crystal gets knocked for poignancy, she assumes the judges are just looking for her to belt out a bunch of power notes–while this critic cannot play mind reader for all of the judges, she is definitely missing the gist of their point. The problem is not that the songs are not “big enough,” it is that she is not making the performances important enough. One absolutely can convey more with an emotional whisper than a meaningless screech, but if one’s low-key performances are being delivered by an emotionless, personality-less performer, they are troublesome. At that point, belting WOULD be preferred.
Aaron Kelly, however, was the biggest victim of the theme. There was so much to like, in theory, about his “Fly Me to the Moon.” It came across as sincere, and there were some glimpses of vocal greatness. The problem was that Aaron ideally would have wanted to strip down a big band song and deliver a more personal, emotional performance. In this setting, he simply could not find his place amongst the orchestra, and he was frequently drowned out–if not from an audio standpoint, then from a stage presence standpoint. He offered no sense of ownership over the room or song, and it dampened any potential greatness the performance had to offer.
Then there was Casey James, who followed up last week’s masterful “Don’t” with a horrendous rendition of “Blue Skies.” It truly was awful. From the first note through the end, he could never find the tune, and his perpetual look of awkwardness and discomfort did nothing to convince viewers that he was delivering anything but a bad performance. As Kara DioGuardi pointed out, the vibrato was even worse than usual, adding conflict to what was already a mess of a performance. For someone who found himself in the bottom two even after a strong performance, Casey James did not demonstrate any sort of killer instinct, nor any reason to believe he has a chance at making it through to the end.
Top 5 Performance Rankings
(Based on performance assessment, not vote total predictions)
1) Lee DeWyze
2) Michael Lynche
3) Crystal Bowersox
4) Aaron Kelly
5) Casey James
