Idol Headlines for 09/12/09

The NY Times has an article on fall pop releases. Adam and Kris are mentioned. Pic of Adam on page 4 (YHA pic), blurb on Kris on page 8, blurb on Adam on page 9. Nothing on Allison that I saw, but I may have missed it. If someone who looks it up could post the link, I’m on my iPod and can’t

The MJ tribute concert postponed

http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/11/jackson-tribute-concert-is-put-off-until-next-year/

If it was going to be a rush job like that BET ‘tribute’ then pushing it back to make it better is a good idea.

David Archuleta will be singing American the Beautiful this weekend at the U.S. Open in New York. He was scheduled to sing prior to the Men’s final. Originally that would have been Sunday. The men’s final has been rescheduled for Monday @ 4 p.m e.t. waiting for update on whether he will siing Sunday or Monday.

Here you go. The NY Times Fall Pop Releases article. (oye that YHA photo.)

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/13/arts/music/13poplist.html?pagewanted=all

I hate the term ‘burlesque’ in reference to Adam.

Squirrely, I agree. I read all the NYT blurbs. All of them were nice and normal. Adam’s was snarky crap. Yes, it would be a good idea for Adam to sing in burlesque revues and Rocky Horror singalongs in B-markets…NOT. That would do wonders for his cred and career. Moron. And the writer seems to think that when Adam sings high crazy notes, he’s using his falsetto. Um, no.

New Tweet from Kris Allen

“Went 2 CVS last nght 2 get some drugs, sat down at the blood pressure machine, and felt like my arm was going to get squeezed off.
less than 5 seconds ago from TwitterFon”

Squirrely, I agree. I read all the NYT blurbs. All of them were nice and normal. Adam’s was snarky crap. Yes, it would be a good idea for Adam to sing in burlesque revues and Rocky Horror singalongs in B-markets’ ¦NOT. That would do wonders for his cred and career. Moron. And the writer seems to think that when Adam sings high crazy notes, he’s using his falsetto. Um, no.

His wasn’t ALL snark though at least. I liked the line about throwing a wrench into the bland-album-making 19. I hope he does. Kris’ wasn’t so great either. But I agree, they did go to far with what they said about Adam.

I had to look it up to see what ny times means. Some media are still very homophobic.

“burlesque revue”, “Rocky Horror singalongs in B-markets”??? Yuck. I find that offensive:(:(:(

It looks like Adam has competition in Europe – according to the NY Times Mika is the Freddie Mercury equivalent and his last album was quite outrageous and did well reaching No. 2. Mika’s new album coming out in October. Based on Adam’s album review, the snark was over the top. I hope this is not a warning about Adam’s cred in the music world – I know, just one opinion, but it just saddens me.

‘Went 2 CVS last nght 2 get some drugs, sat down at the blood pressure machine, and felt like my arm was going to get squeezed off. less than 5 seconds ago from TwitterFon’ 

CVS?! Can’t Kris by his drugs on a street corner, like a normal rock star? Geez!

Squirrely, I agree. I read all the NYT blurbs. All of them were nice and normal. Adam’s was snarky crap. Yes, it would be a good idea for Adam to sing in burlesque revues and Rocky Horror singalongs in B-markets’ ¦NOT. That would do wonders for his cred and career. Moron. And the writer seems to think that when Adam sings high crazy notes, he’s using his falsetto. Um, no.

This. And why oh why do they ALWAYS go for the surface easy? Because Adam wears eyeliner and nail polish he has ANYTHING to do with “that” style? And let’s not even touch upon his ability. Lame. And Kris’ blurb certainly lowballed expectations.

Well, of the boatload of acts mentioned, how many photos did they show? The YHA pic AGAIN (sheesh, people), but that’s cool because the vast majority of readers will likely look at the photos, then scan the capsules for any familiar name, then move on.

I hope this is not a warning about Adam’s cred in the music world ‘“ I know, just one opinion, but it just saddens me.

Welcome to the world of the American Idol contestant after Idol. They have to work very hard to get respect. (Speaking from experience as an AI7 Double D fan.)

I read those nytimes blurbs this am and didn’t find the adam one to be offensive (and I’m a huge adam fan). I just thought the tone was one of “what the heck is this guy gonna come up with and will it be outrageous”. The whole blurb was written in questions. Re the burlesque and rocky horror references I think it was just an allusion to his pre idol videos and wondering whether his post album shows would be similar I actually thought the blub expressed anticipation. But YMMV

Hmmm not sure if “flamboyant” is really a word I’d use to describe Adam’s style. Mika is cheeky flamboyant (see “Grace Kelly”); Adam’s dramatic — sometimes campy — but usually more sexy dramatic to me.

I hated the NYT blurb FWIW.

Welcome to the world of the American Idol contestant after Idol.

Haha, so true. It’s a tough world out there.

terraj, couldn’t agree with you more. Mika looks a lot like Freddie Mercury with lighter colored hair. Adam is just one sexy doll and his music is sexy. Let’s hope his album is sexy and let’s hope his 2012 debut song catapults him into the stratosphere.

‘Went 2 CVS last nght 2 get some drugs, sat down at the blood pressure machine, and felt like my arm was going to get squeezed off.
less than 5 seconds ago from TwitterFon’ 

Good God…don’t they have handlers or someone who can go and pick up medicine.

I didn’t find anything revolting with the NYT preview, maybee it’s because I love the Rocky Horror Picture Show. So does Adam BTW if you forgot his reaction to Simon’s critic in top 7 week (if I remember correctly).

Went 2 CVS last nght 2 get some drugs, sat down at the blood pressure machine, and felt like my arm was going to get squeezed off.
less than 5 seconds ago from TwitterFon

Any news on the health status of Kris, Scott and Adam? The rest were out and about yesterday so I am assuming they are OK.

Well, if it makes y’all feel better, there’s no hideous YHA pic of Adam in the print copy of the NY Times. I realize no one reads the print copy anymore.

Adam has described himself as “flamboyant” in interviews before so I don’t know if it’s an automatic put-down. He’s tended to turn what could be negatives into positives, i.e., “Rocky Horror” and a musical theatre background. Also, “burlesque” is very hip right now. There’s a show called “Absinthe” in NYC – check it out. Adam with the boas? I find that modern burlesque in a way, not kitsch or camp, YMMV.

I’m not a Carrie Underwood or country fan at all, but her Cowboy Casanova song is awesome.

(Speaking from experience as an AI7 Double D fan.)

TMI!!!!

TMI!!!!

Hahahaha! Leave it to you, Sassycatz!

Eh, huge Adam fan here and I’m not sweating the blurb. Exciting stage shows seem to be really hot right now, so whatever. The NY Times gave Adam one of the most awesome reviews of the tour, so I’m willing to cut them slack for the blurb. I’d rather them be intrigued and wondering about his album than not having any expectations other than the usual 19 stuff they reference. Wonder why they don’t list the 24th for Li’l Wayne anymore and just list “November”. I thought his date was set?

I think it was just an allusion to his pre idol videos and wondering whether his post album shows would be similar I actually thought the blub expressed anticipation. But YMMV

You have a point there, mmb. I hadn’t thought about it in that respect, but you’re right about the Zodiac comparison. And thanks, happycat14, for the info about burlesque being hot in New York.

I don’t see how burlesque is an offensive description. To me it means sexy without being explicit. I’m not Adam but I think he’d welcome that word.

So far being the underdog has worked for Kris, we’ll see how long that lasts.

The write up for Carrie is awkwardly written or is it just me.

The wikipedia definition of burlesque is:

Burlesque is a humorous theatrical entertainment involving parody and sometimes grotesque exaggeration. In 20th century America, the form became associated with a variety show in which striptease is the chief attraction.

I do think that fits Adam in some respects but seriously doubt he’d love that to be his definition. I do, however, know that American Idol contestants get no respect unless they painstakingly earn it. I almost feel sorry for Adam fans who think that all the hype equals respect…just almost.

Squirrely, I agree. I read all the NYT blurbs. All of them were nice and normal

Heh. I think you might have missed the ones for Yoko Ono and Diddy. Those are pretty snarky too.

Haven’t we been through this before? Every year the Idols get some bad album reviews (before and after they are released). Nobody gets good reviews all the time and the Idol albums generally have to fight for cred (with reason).

To me the NYT preview about Adam sounded like they were wondering if it would be a cross between the Zodiac Show and what he is doing in this concert. I did not see any thing wrong with what they said. Other people might not read it that way. I don’t know what i would think if I did not know who Adam is. I think it would make me curious enough to check him out.

Kris’ tweet:

Result: Below normal.

Poor Kris. Hope he can make tonight’s concert.

I’ve sat down at the blood pressure machine they have at CVS and I agree with Kris…that does feel like your arm is being squeezed off.

As for the NYT blurbs, not worth getting upset about. They usually come up with the most simplistic crap for these brief notes. And besides, the NYT has written some nice stuff about Adam in the past.

I really don’t think Adam fans have too much to complain about in the NYT article since the blurb on Kris says this:

The aw-shucks winner of ‘American Idol’  has the benefit of reasonable expectations as he tackles his major-label debut; compared to this season’s runner-up, Adam Lambert, he seems very much like the underdog.

Of course it would have been nice if they had talked about the high expectations for Adam’s album in Adam’s blurb and not Kris’, but you can’t have everything.

And it really is mystifying that 19 hasn’t gotten on top of Adam’s photo situation at this point. Apparently even the NYT hasn’t been supplied with any new publicity shots, which seems inexcusable.

It looks like Adam has competition in Europe ‘“ according to the NY Times Mika is the Freddie Mercury equivalent and his last album was quite outrageous and did well reaching No. 2.

smokeyvera the writeup on Mika’s album talks about it being album No. 2, not that his last album reached No. 2.

Will, you are absolutely correct , it’s Mika’s second album. That’s what happens when I’m in a rush. Need to edit more. But still the same, Adam has competition in the Euro market with Mika.

The NYT blurb, wasn’t flattering, but that piece was pretty snarky in general. Few acts managed to avoid that writers acid tongue. Adam’s may have been worse than most, but so what. It’s Adam’s first album, coming from an AI, theatre and Cabaret background, the writer snarked based on what was available to him. He called 19′s usual tour route a “shed shows”. Compared to that I’d say Rocky Horror Show is a step up.
The blurb was about not knowing what to expect from this guy.

Let’s not forget that Adam merited art in that piece, and his name is mentioned 3 times; Once as a picture caption, another in Kris’ blurb and a third in his own blurb. I’d say all in all, given that he’s just an AI runner-up, it’s not too bad.

I agree with the Billboard article, Carrie’s single is going to do well and really help her album. Good for her. The poppier version is fun enough for what it is, and I certainly prefer it to the more country version, but either way, I see another big hit for Miss Underwood.

And Kris’ blurb certainly lowballed expectations.

Once again. Man I get so tired of that. Tired, tired, tired. How pleasant that one has low expectations all the way around, so producing something even somewhat successful and musically okay, will be seen as doing well. Groovy.

To me the NYT preview about Adam sounded like they were wondering if it would be a cross between the Zodiac Show and what he is doing in this concert.

How many people know about Adam’s Zodiac show stuff outside the AI bubble? And not even the AI bubble which includes casual fans, because if one just watched the show, one would have no idea of what the Zodiac show was. And how many non-AI and casual AI fans know what Adam’s set looks like on tour? I know the NYT reviewed the show, but that was one piece, over a month ago.

But I didn’t find the review homophobic or necessarily offensive. I did find it a bit snarky and a bit annoying. Though I did like the line about whether Adam would manage to buck the 19 blanding machine, but than I’ve used the phrase myself, so maybe I’m just patting myself on the back there. Oh and for the record, no, I don’t think he’ll succeed in that. 19Evils blanding powers are too strong.

gingerly
September 12, 2009 at 12:17 pm

I do, however, know that American Idol contestants get no respect unless they painstakingly earn it. I almost feel sorry for Adam fans who think that all the hype equals respect’ ¦just almost.

Well THIS Adam fan doesn’t think hype = respect. I’m HOPING the hype = HUGE A$$ SALES!! I couldn’t give two sh!ts if the music snobs of the world don’t “respect” Adam.

All I care about is Adam moving enough units to keep his record deal and go on tour. Because we all know that in the industry it’s the ability for an artist to MAKE MONEY is what people in the biz REALLY “respect”.

adamlambertJust woke up but I THINK I’m better. Fever is def gone. Portland, Maine is so pretty from my hotel window.24 minutes ago from TwitterFon

Will, awwwww, I’m surprised that you would post that tweet. Glad he feels better – now on with the remaining 4 shows. Hopefully all of them are up to snuff. Sounds like Kris has improved based on his tweets.

Truthiness
September 12, 2009 at 12:47 pm

And Kris’ blurb certainly lowballed expectations.

Once again. Man I get so tired of that. Tired, tired, tired. How pleasant that one has low expectations all the way around, so producing something even somewhat successful and musically okay, will be seen as doing well. Groovy.

SO TRUE. Gotta keep those expectations super low so when he rises above them he gives off the appearance of kick awesomeness. He’s the winner, he should be expected to put out something of good quality and sell at least platinum (overall, not the first week).

Sounds like both Adam and Kris are on the mend, which is good news. Hopefully Kris won’t miss tonight’s concert — but he better be extra careful — Low BP can make you dizzy, and he’s already come close to falling into that open pit behind him on stage when he’s been completely healthy. Don’t want injury on top of illness!

Season 7 Idol David Cook has a couple days off from touring and tweets
“I am honored to be the best man for the wedding of 2 of my closest friends this weekend. I just hope I don’t screw it up!”
Aww Cookie, we know you’ll do fine.
Here a vid from his most recent show. This song is so much better than on the record! An incredible performance by the band and DC looks like he’s having so much fun.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lLsMeF4OFlQ

I almost feel sorry for Adam fans who think that all the hype equals respect’ ¦just almost.

I would feel sorry for those Adam fans as well. Luckily I’m not one of them. Adam placed second on a cheesy karaoke show, I am well aware that hype doesn’t equal respect and agree with snuffles I couldn’t care less about “cred.” Of course I’ve always thought that anyone on this show forfeits their right to cred. Not that “cred,” really matters, btw. What is cred? who cares as long as Adam gets radio play and sells records. That’s the only “cred,” I care about. And no way do I think that Adam’s “hype,” equals either of those things either. In fact I’m very worried about those things, so nope, no buying into hype here. Not in any way, shape or form.

I have a nice, glass is half-empty…and probably will make you sick if you drink it, kind of attitude towards life in general, and Adam’s possible success in particular.

I guess I’ll put this here. I just opened my new EW (hard copy), the fall TV preview issue (9-18), and Jason Castro’s single is #7 on the Must List. Pretty good publicity for him, I think. I wonder if Slezak had anything to do with it?

ETA: The Must List is their top 10 things they love this week… not necessarily music.

“Welcome to the world of the American Idol contestant after Idol. They have to work very hard to get respect.”

So very very true.

edit: don’t tell people what to do

That blurb actually seemed pretty mild and mostly flattering. The good news for Adam is that he’s very much a pop star and not at all a rock star, and I think he’ll be much more easily accepted into the pop format, even though he’s from Idol.

Rock format is particularly unwelcoming to former Idols. David Cook and Daughtry are prime examples of that fact, even though they’ve been hugely successful there are many rock stations that won’t even play them (ironic considering Daughtry has sold more rock albums the past 3 years than any other rock artist, period).

Life after Idol can be very tough, and there are boatload of critics who will hate any Idol album even before ever hearing it, simply because they are so focused on hating Idol.

I think the piece was flattering to Kris too, it seems to me that coming into the market as a ‘proven underdog’ is exactly the best way for Kris to do it. I really like the kid, and if he’s got someone like Chris Daughtry helping him with his album, well I think he’s got a shot.

I worry about Allison though, I wonder if she’s got the maturity to take this opportunity and really run with it. At least she got an album deal, so I guess we’ll see. I like her though.

I think Danny will surprise everyone (except his fans) and turn out to be more successful than anyone expects. Despite all the internet rumor mill I think he actually is pretty mature as an artist and capable of turning out a cohesive album. The only problem is the album won’t be out until… March? Nearly every Idol has gone the easier route of releasing during the shopping season of Christmas. The list of Idols who have successfully released albums in non-Christmas times would be pretty short, I think.

I read the NYTimes mention of Adam as totally positive. He might be one to overcome the bland, and for anyone who’s seen vids of some of his Zodia work, concepts like “burlesque”, “flamboyant” and “Rocky Horror sing-along” are not unthinkable. Wondering if he’ll go that route this time is not homophobic and not an insult if it’s a style that he has purposely and proudly chosen in the past. A mix of those in b-markets and typical Ticketmaster venues doesn’t sound to me at all like a slam. Don’t know what he will do, but the fact that there’s that kind of range of possibility is part of what’s making people interested in seeing what will happen. It’s the album/tour edition of the “what will Adam do” phenomenon on the show last season.

To me the NYT preview about Adam sounded like they were wondering if it would be a cross between the Zodiac Show and what he is doing in this concert.

How many people know about Adam’s Zodiac show stuff outside the AI bubble? And not even the AI bubble which includes casual fans, because if one just watched the show, one would have no idea of what the Zodiac show was. And how many non-AI and casual AI fans know what Adam’s set looks like on tour? I know the NYT reviewed the show, but that was one piece, over a month ago.

But I didn’t find the review homophobic or necessarily offensive. I did find it a bit snarky and a bit annoying. Though I did like the line about whether Adam would manage to buck the 19 blanding machine, but than I’ve used the phrase myself, so maybe I’m just patting myself on the back there. Oh and for the record, no, I don’t think he’ll succeed in that. 19Evils blanding powers are too strong.

I also said If I had never heard of Adam before I would want to check out his music because of the way they descibed it. It would have caught my interest. I like interesting descriptions.

Back to Adam: From any lesson that I’ve learnt from the financial crisis is that past performance is no definite indicator of future ones. I’d like to think of Adam as an outlier in the stable of artists who’ve emerged from American Idol.

Granted, I’ve not followed any of the Idol seasons prior; but I guess that’s also a statement in itself — that many people who’ve experienced the same would attest to — in that he’s managed to suck even people like me, who are very picky about music quality, and wouldn’t give rats ass to a cheesy singing competition, into the whole Idol experience (and ended up following 48 concerts to date and accidentally-ing my life lol)

Moral of the long story: I guess it’s just to stay positive, hope the album turns out well and we’ll leave it to the public to decide how well his album will be received. FWIW, I think it’ll do pretty well in Japan at least as far as the international market goes.

I’m a little surprised that people didn’t care for the NTY blurb on Adam, positing that he might actually be the one to defeat 19′s usual MO of blanding up and dumbing down and overproducing their Idol graduates seemed like a really big compliment to me. As for the rest, maybe it’s a big assumption, but I thought hey maybe a journalist actually did their job this time and researched his past work by doing the strenuous task of typing Adam Lambert in the youtube search box. If he has seen some of Adam’s wilder Zodiac and Upright cabaret performance those comments really do have a basis in past performances.

Anyway, I thought overall, in just a couple sentences in the form of questions, the main emotion I picked up from the writer was that he was intrigued. YMMV, of course.

As for the NYTime article…

Heh. Adam got off easy. Did you read what they said about Creed?

CREED As resurrections go, the return of Creed from years of silence doesn’t rate as a terribly important one. Ignominy has a way of sticking to bands, especially those as grandiose as this. ‘Full Circle,’  its fourth album, figures to be an argument for why the band sounded the way it used to, not a demonstration of recently acquired wisdom. Oct. 27. Wind-Up. (J. C.)

There are other reviews that are as bad.

Adam’s review was fine. No undergarment knotting needed.

soveryMel
September 12, 2009 at 1:46 pm

I’m a little surprised that people didn’t care for the NTY blurb on Adam, positing that he might actually be the one to defeat 19′s usual MO of blanding up and dumbing down and overproducing their Idol graduates seemed like a really big compliment to me. As for the rest, maybe it’s a big assumption, but I thought hey maybe a journalist actually did their job this time and researched his past work by doing the strenuous task of typing Adam Lambert in the youtube search box. If he has seen some of Adam’s wilder Zodiac and Upright cabaret performance those comments really do have a basis in past performances.

Anyway, I thought overall, in just a couple sentences in the form of questions, the main emotion I picked up from the writer was that he was intrigued. YMMV, of course.

I agree. For all we know the person who wrote the blurb really likes those burlesque shows and hopes Adam can bring a little taste of that into the mainstream with his music, videos and shows.

How many people know about Adam’s Zodiac show stuff outside the AI bubble?

Anyone who googles him. And if any writer, editor or tangential music/entertainment industry person (either professional or follower) hears this name popping up, they’re going to google him. It should be the FIRST thing anyone does before writing a blurb, however small, even if they believe themselves to be an expert on the subject.

It’s been awhile, since I get more than my fair share of news here, but it seems every time I’ve googled Adam in the past, the first photos that would pop up were the “kissing” shots and “Crazy” almost always popped up as a YouTube. Just checked again. Still the same. Seems the more “controversial” shots/vids rank higher (go figure), so you don’t need to dig deep to find CTF.

Sassycatz
CVS?! Can’t Kris buy his drugs on a street corner, like a normal rock star? Geez!

[laugh]

luv a slow Saturday, ahhh

here r sum pix from Mike Jones
Makes me want maple candy…

http://twitpic.com/hgni0 – Behind the scene…Angela!
32 minutes ago from TwitPic

http://twitpic.com/hgn3f – Let’s dance..
34 minutes ago from TwitPic

http://twitpic.com/hgmzf – On the dance floor at the party!
34 minutes ago from TwitPic

Portland for a show,,,,only four left.
about 2 hours ago from web

http://twitpic.com/hea7v -
about 15 hours ago from TwitPic

In Portland…very cool wharf area…day off. Headed to final end of tour party.
about 20 hours ago from Tweed

snuffles
He’s the winner, he should be expected to put out something of good quality and sell at least platinum (overall, not the first week).

I don’t know about you, but a decent album that sells well is a “reasonable” expectation to have considering what others in his position have done in the past. Even taking into account the state of the music industry these days.

Personally, it’s probably a better position to be in than “OMG this album will cement Kris Allen as the next (insert dead music icon here) and he’ll go triple-platinum in six months!” considering he has had like what, two seconds to make this album?

But IMO nothing about that blurb implied super low expectations about Kris’s album.

I guess I’ll put this here. I just opened my new EW (hard copy), the fall TV preview issue (9-18), and Jason Castro’s single is #7 on the Must List. Pretty good publicity for him, I think. I wonder if Slezak had anything to do with it?

I think this was yesterday’s headline post…somewhere, but it bears repeating and it’s pretty cool. Pretty cool as well about Jason’s single being downloaded so much, as well. I like him and hope he can be successful. His album dropping Nov. 17th will be interesting though. Same day as Kris Allen and more importantly, John Mayer.

It’s been awhile, since I get more than my fair share of news here, but it seems every time I’ve googled Adam in the past, the first photos that would pop up were the ‘kissing’  shots and ‘Crazy’  almost always popped up as a YouTube. Just checked again. Still the same. Seems the more ‘controversial’  shots/vids rank higher (go figure), so you don’t need to dig deep to find CTF.

When you google images, you get images from the Zodiac show. But when I did a regular google search just now, I just get news articles (with “a must read article for Adam Lambert fans,”by OK magazine) and his offical site and stuff about American Idol stuff. And then some results for Adam Lamberg. And again, how many casual fans of AI go online to google images about Adam? And how many non-AI fans and NYT readers know or care enough to google him to know about his Zodiac stuff? And how many licks does it take to get the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop? I guess we’ll never know.

Tweets re Portland pre-show barricades

BGAmie: @FTL137Kari oh no! They came and told you the Idols weren’t coming out?! Oh man!
13 minutes ago from web

glambert2038: @FTL137Kari the idols have totally faded at the end of this tour haha i hope if theyre luckky enough to have solo tours, they stay strong!
13 minutes ago from web

Tweets from FTL137Kari

They cant come out cause it’s raining & theyve been sick! boooooooooo
9 minutes ago from txt

Its still raining, and we’re still waiting… FAIL :/
29 minutes ago from txt

So @laurafleurs @glamftl153 are SCREAMING “i kissed matt g & i liked it” omgiraud ! haha
about 1 hour ago from txt

http://twitpic.com/hghoc – At the barricades come on out @immattgiraud ! i gotta present 4 you!
about 1 hour ago from TwitPic

On our way 2 the barricades. I’m sick. I definitely just threw up. Anxiety. Ugh.
about 2 hours ago from txt

I just noticed that Danny Gokey crossed the 100,000 Twitter followers line. He has 100,622 followers.

Congrats to Danny.

I hope Adam does well, even as a diehard Kris fan. I’m probably not gonna buy his album because it’s just so much better to see him live and he’s not my type of musician (but oh my God, seeing him live is like awesomely awesome sex, like seeing Kris), so if anything, I’ll be contributing to that. Oh, and Donors Choose. Now that I actually have some of my own money, I’m considering it. I love Adam for endorsing that.

Oh yes, and I’m looking forward to his song from 2012. Sounds really awesome. I hope it’s somewhat haunting, spine chilling, etc.

But my God, I expect to… like…. DIE on November 17th. To be honest, I listened to Kris a bit too much and although it got me a bit bored of his old stuff, I would KILL for new stuff. Admittedly, I haven’t listened to BNS or my Season 8 Favorite Performances from Kris lately.

Yeah, Danny passed 100,000 followers a few days ago. I think it was the day of the Adam silly string bubbletweet. Good for Danny.

Kris is closing in on 100,000 followers as well — about 2,000 shy. I wonder if he’ll get there by the end of the tour?

Oh and it’s too bad the idols aren’t coming outside to sign…but if it’s raining, just as well…especially since so many of them have been sick.

I’d like to think of Adam as an outlier in the stable of artists who’ve emerged from American Idol.

terraj: Have you read that book? I thought of Adam when I read it. I think he is “the right person in the right place at the right time” (an outlier). It was going to take someone with as much talent and charisma as Adam had to overcome the stereotypes and prejudices that he encountered in the AI season. I’m hoping his talent will continue to help Adam overcome these obstacles outside the AI bubble.

I don’t know who “we” is, but I would venture to guess that Adam fans come in all shapes and sizes, with a variety of opinions and expectations, just like every other kind of fan. But there have definitely been a lot of “he will sell six times platinum and be an international superstar/rock god/next Freddie Mercury/next Elvis/better than Sinatra/better than Bowie and kick Kris and everybody else’s ass when it comes to sales” comments. I mean, we hear every day about how he is a delicate genius unlike mere mortals and we must not judge any missteps he makes (AND HE DOESN’T MAKE ANY, DAMN IT!) because his delicate genius sensibilities make him above reproach, and he doesn’t sweat, and he never hits a bum note, and his voice is better than any ever, including the Great Caruso, Roy Orbison and the Choir of Angels combined, and some website/Brian May/Meat Loaf/God have all said that he has the best voice ever, so YOU MUST LOVE IT by special decree of the king!!!1111!!!1!!1!!!.

I think a lot of fans of the rock side of Adam are going to be disappointed if he puts out a Lady Gaga dance pop album, and fans of the over the top glitter queen side are going to be disappointed if he puts out an album that skews heavily toward a soft alt-pop/Gary Jules sort of thing (the rather narrow slice of his repertoire which would interest me personally). But we have no way of knowing, and it will be very interesting to see/hear.

As for the NYT blurbs, I think (as an experienced blurber myself) the writer was looking for a way to sum up what he or she thinks Adam’s appeal and most likely direction is in a few words, without benefit of having an actual album to listen to. I think he or she may’ve assumed too much about what direction Adam’s cd will take, because we just don’t know yet. Tracks of My Tears/Mad World Adam? Muse Adam? Whole Lotta Love Adam? Who knows?

I don’t like the term burlesque in association with Adam if that makes me a fantard then so be it.

I’m trying to keep my expectations realistic for Kris, Adam and Allison. Especially considering the debut albums of most of the past Idol contestants have been, in general, a bit underwhelming musically, even if some of them sold well. I’m just hoping for solid musically and good enough sales figures to allow all of them to have the chance to tour, then to put out a second album on a major label, albums that hopefully won’t be put together in quite as much of a rush as the debuts have been, and that will build on their artistic and commercial promise. I’m certainly not expecting any of these 3 to have the best selling album of the year, or even of the week of release — if that happens, hey, great surprise bonus. Unless their album is complete crap, I doubt any of the 3 will tank — and somehow I just have a feeling that none of their albums will be all that bad — Kris, Adam and Allison are too talented and have too strong of an idea of who they are as musicians to put out something crappy (unless they ae given absolutely no say in what they are recording, anyway).

So fingers crossed for (at least) good albums with (at least) solid sales

IDK, Truthiness, go to the bottom of the page where the images begin to show ‘“ at least on mine and I did a straightforward “adam lambert” google. It will then give you video results and image results (without asking).

Of the seven images shown, two are regular shots of him. Three are in elaborate costume (one is CTF) and two are kissing shots. It would take one click from the main page to get to CTF. That’s what my google turned up anyway. I had the window open still.

http://www.google.com/search?q=adam+lambert&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a

Also, and lulz to this. Under “Blog posts about …” What’s the first one that shows up? Smellygate on MJs. Obviously not the most recent, but apparently one of the largest. Also one from Ricky’s today: faux-bert. It’s a parody with and Adam impersonator. I didn’t watch. Adam impersonators creep me out.

tiger92
September 12, 2009 at 2:33 pm

terraj: Have you read that book? I thought of Adam when I read it.

Are you talking about The Black Swan? I love that book. It made the math geek in me so curious. And the statistical cynic in me ecstatic. It’s a great book.

ETA:

And yes, the minute I saw Adam, I hoped, and still do, that he would be the black swan.

I don’t know, I kinda liked the NYT blurb for Adam. I prefer it to Kris’s blurb, and definitely prefer it to Allison’s misfortune of being skipped completely. THAT is the part that alarms me.

I have a question for all the Adam fans on this board — especially the most hardcore ones who may not have any other favorites among the S8 group. Do you plan on at least listening to the music Kris, Allison, Danny (or any of others) come out with — and possibly buying it if you enjoy it? Do you listen to/buy/attend concerts of any of the previous season’s Idols? Or, once this tour ends, will you be on a strict Aam-only diet when it comes to Idol-related music?

As a Kradison (but Kris, first) fan, I’m planning on listening to, and probably buying, music from Adam and Allison (I’m obviously buying Kris’ debut single/album), and I’ll likely go to Adam’s solo concert (and maybe Allison’s) as well as to Kris’. And if/when any of the other S8 Idols release any solo stuff, I’ll likely give it a listen, although I doubt I’ll end up buying it or going to their concerts (Matt would be the most likely one beyond the Kradison trio for me to shell out my hard-earned $$$ for, then Anoop).

This is all a little weird, because the only prior Idol contestant’s stuff I’ve actually spent $$$ on is Kelly. Usually once the AI tv show is over, Ipretty much ignore them unless I happen to hear them or the radio or something. But not this year…

tiger92
September 12, 2009 at 2:33 pm
terraj: Have you read that book? I thought of Adam when I read it. I think he is ‘the right person in the right place at the right time’  (an outlier).

If you’re referring to the Malcolm Gladwell book, nah. I guess I’m a bit more inspired by Nassim Taleb’s Black Swan, where Adam is the Black Swan, or rather, in his case the glittery alien from planet fierce. (I LOVE THAT BOOK BTW) LOL. I’m slightly pessimistic by nature, and I tend to think of the worst case scenarios but for some reason I’m oddly optimistic about him (it’s probably just the fact that his voice simply makes me happy!)

Sunn
September 12, 2009 at 2:52 p

Are you talking about The Black Swan? I love that book. It made the math geek in me so curious. And the statistical cynic in me ecstatic. It’s a great book.

O M G. Sunn, are you ME?

ETA: The first time I heard Adam, I had just finished reading the book and that was the first thing that came to my mind.

It kinda caught me off guard that when I googled Kris Allen the first picture in the result page is Adam’s. Do you get the same result or is my google skewed by my frequent search of Adam…?

http://www.google.com/search?q=kris+allen&btnG=Google+Search&lr=

Hello, out there!

I wasn’t offended by the NYT blurb. It was actually very good– considering the kind but definitely boring expectations for Kris. The best comment in this thread was this:

Adam has described himself as ‘flamboyant’  in interviews before so I don’t know if it’s an automatic put-down. He’s tended to turn what could be negatives into positives, i.e., ‘Rocky Horror’  and a musical theatre background. Also, ‘burlesque’  is very hip right now. There’s a show called ‘Absinthe’  in NYC ‘“ check it out. Adam with the boas? I find that modern burlesque in a way, not kitsch or camp, YMMV.

(“you lookin at me? you lookin at me? good!”)
Adam’s set is OTT. When he threw the boa over his shoulders he gyrated and said defiantly, “wut?!”
The man has attitude and the blurber seemed excited about that.

Someone above asked why he couldn’t have gotten a “normal” review like everyone else’s. Doesn’t anyone see the irony in that– considering what Adam has shown us so far?
Adam does not do normal..

Yeah, Danny passed 100,000 followers a few days ago. I think it was the day of the Adam silly string bubbletweet. Good for Danny.

Danny’s cousin also brought some followers to Danny because of the comedy.

Not me, however. I just follow the cousin. At least for the time being. If the rare occasion arises that I need to see what Danny tweets, I’ll just do a temp search for him.

Of the seven images shown, two are regular shots of him. Three are in elaborate costume (one is CTF) and two are kissing shots. It would take one click from the main page to get to CTF.

What’s CTF?

girlygirl
I have a question for all the Adam fans on this board…Do you plan on at least listening to the music Kris, Allison, Danny (or any of others) come out with…Do you listen to/buy/attend concerts of any of the previous season’s Idols? Or, once this tour ends, will you be on a strict Adam-only diet when it comes to Idol-related music?

The irony for me is that I rarely buy music. I’m usually a strictly radio listener. I don’t have an IPod and the last time I plunked down money for a CD was for a Vivadi concerto. However, I will be buying Adam’s album (or my husband will, for me – HEE!), and I will seriously consider buying Kris or Allison’s albums, depending on songs. As I said, I don’t download music so for me its an album or nothing. I also WILL go to an Adam concert. I MAY go to a Kris concert, depending on venue and reviews. Its highly unlikely I would go to an Allison, or any other Idol’s concert.

What’s CTF?

crawl through fire, one of Adam’s Zodiac show performances.

I was referring to the book The Outliers. I will definitely check out The Black Swan.

I have a question for all the Adam fans on this board ‘” especially the most hardcore ones who may not have any other favorites among the S8 group.

I don’t know if I’m one to answer this because I have always been a KRADISON fan. In fact, I can’t think of anyone who doesn’t have other favorites in addition to Adam. How could you not? I mean if you had utter indifference to everyone but Adam why would you hang out here? Likely you’d be on a fan board.

Yes, I cannot wait to hear their music and I just get such a thrill when I think of the first time I will hear Kris’ soon-to-be-released single on the radio (going to have to wean myself off my Adam CDs in my car). I do listen to the radio quite a bit and rotate around seven presets. He’s sure to be on a couple of them. This is my first year of being truly invested, so I’ll get such a kick out of that.

ETA: Oh, I didn’t answer your question. Yes, I totally see myself downloading both their albums.

IDK, Truthiness, go to the bottom of the page where the images begin to show ‘“ at least on mine and I did a straightforward ‘adam lambert’  google. It will then give you video results and image results (without asking).

Yeah they’re there, but if the search parameter changes, like it did from Adam Lambert to Adam Lamberg, I don’t go down past the Adam Lamberg. I would just modify my search, not scroll on down because typically the results get further and further away from what I want. So if I typically just change my search parameters if it does something like that. AND getting back to a point (beyond my impatient googling habits), still how many people are really going to look up Adam Lambert who watch the show casually? And who read the NYT and don’t even watch it? and sure the answer could be three there as well.

Oh and I don’t need, or expect Adam to be deified, nor do I expect him to be an icon or to be instantly, outrageously successful. I worry and only expect him to do moderately well with some yes, mostly blandized tunes on an album I hope to personally like 2, maybe 3 songs on.

I’d like to think of ClayBoTaylorBlakeCookAdam as an outlier in the stable of artists who’ve emerged from American Idol.

Fixed. (And MTE )

Portland barricade update?

FTL137KariWe talked about the gift and he started singing “eye to eye” from a goofy movie, bc i got him that! he just kept sayin ur so sweet! haha
2 minutes ago from txt

FTL137KariSo Matt in all his glory comes upstairs & says “hey kari!! good to see you again!” then gave me a big hug!! we chatted it up 4 a while
3 minutes ago from txt

FTL137KariSo we saw ALL the boys and lil & allison! Matt was AMAZING! it was accidental m&g i told sarver 2 go get him & say that its kari he’ll know
4 minutes ago from txt

O M G. Sunn, are you ME?

LMAO! WHen I read your comment I spit my Ice Tea. LOL This and the blog is just too freaky. I think I maybe you in 10 years, and if that’s the case I have a whole list of mistakes that you should avoid. LOL

girlygirl
I have a question for all the Adam fans on this board’ ¦Do you plan on at least listening to the music Kris, Allison, Danny (or any of others) come out with’ ¦Do you listen to/buy/attend concerts of any of the previous season’s Idols? Or, once this tour ends, will you be on a strict Adam-only diet when it comes to Idol-related music?

Kris & Allison maybe individual songs; albums probably no (I seriously doubt them to have really great first albums because of the time constraints; Adam’s case, I’m in love with his voice).
Danny: NO. I hate country.

I’m from Asia so it’ll be unlikely that I’ll ever attend an Idol’s concert unless he/she hits mainstream (which is why I’m hoping Adam does make it good for the selfish reason that that’s probably the only way I’ll get to see him live). Unlike many of the glamberts though (lol), I don’t have any real fantasies (urrgh!) about him other than just some OTT harmless fun I get out from ONTD_AI. Just like NYMichael, I’m more intrigued by how his career path will turn out (but from the perspective of a fan).

Ooh! Could one of you tell me more about “The Black Swan” and how you think it applies to Adam? Sounds fascinating!?

RE: Other Idols

I ALWAYS give every Idol album at least one listen. Definitely the Top 2. Especially if AOL (or similar web site) puts it up for a free listen. And while I’m buying Adam’s album no matter what I’m more than willing to give Kris and Allison a listen. Because they’ve both done at least a FEW things on Idol that I really liked. I’ll even give Danny a listen (though chances of me buying it are slim. I just don’t do country).

But I have a feeling that I’ll probably only cherry pick a few tracks I like from Allison and Kris to download to my IPod (which I’m getting for my birthday in a 2 weeks! Eee!).

Sunn
September 12, 2009 at 3:11 pm
LMAO! WHen I read your comment I spit my Ice Tea. LOL This and the blog is just too freaky. I think I maybe you in 10 years, and if that’s the case I have a whole list of mistakes that you should avoid. LOL

I’ll try keep that in mind…!! D:

@Truthiness, I always get irritated when they throw in Adam Lamberg in the middle of Adam’s search results (yes, he does have full domain over that name now, sorry, Lamberg). I mean, they ask at the beginning if I meant ?? I scroll right past his four (ETA: oops three) entries and curse the poor guy every time.

I was talking more about the writer of the blurb, who should, in theory, do preliminary research (not that they all do, as we’ve read countless times).

RE: some Idols going on Are You Smarter than a Fifth grader?”

Who among the AI8 whould be smarter than a fifth grader? Much as I love Adam, I would have to place my bets on Anoop.

US Open tweeted:

RT @usopen David Archuleta is performing before the Women’s Finals currently scheduled for Sunday 9pm ET. Schedule here http://bit.ly/Zu9rA

RT @usopen David Archuleta is performing before the Women’s Finals currently scheduled for Sunday 9pm ET. Schedule here http://bit.ly/Zu9rA

Well, good for Archie. I wonder if he’s a tennis fan or whether someone at the Open is an Archie fan? (It’s pretty much a “DUH!” when Cook does baseball events since he and “they” have a bit of a mutual admiration society going on.)

Kris just tweeted that he will be performing in tonight’s show.

I have a question for all the Adam fans on this board’ ¦Do you plan on at least listening to the music Kris, Allison, Danny (or any of others) come out with’ ¦Do you listen to/buy/attend concerts of any of the previous season’s Idols? Or, once this tour ends, will you be on a strict Adam-only diet when it comes to Idol-related music?

Kris – I plan to listen and possibly buy songs maybe even the album

Allison – same as Kris, I have a feeling I may definitely buy her album because I like her voice and style.

Danny – Possibly because i do like some country songs especially country with soul. I may buy some songs but possibly not the album. I surprised myself and bought Carrie’s first album, so who knows.

As for concerts Adam’s is the only one I know I will attend no matter what. The others depends on the music. Past idols: I do want to go a David Cook, Jennifer Hudson, Fantasia and Elliot Yamin show.

girlygirl- As an Adam fan I can honestly tell you I will probably buy his FIRST album just to support him, but if it is too upright cabaret-y or electronica, I probably won’t. The others I will buy singles if I like what they put out. I will not, however end up seeing Adam on tour if I don’t like his album and I will not buy his next effort unless it is really good.

I loved Taylor and Ruben, but never bought their stuff because it was, quite literally, crap.

Although I appreciate Kris and Allison, i have never downloaded any of their stuff- not to make a statement or anything, just because they never moved me.

I could never understand the thought of buying multiple copies, but so many people do it. I draw the line there.

Who among the AI8 whould be smarter than a fifth grader? Much as I love Adam, I would have to place my bets on Anoop.

I vote Anoop then Adam but if spelling is involved, forget Adam.

snuffles
September 12, 2009 at 3:13 pm
Ooh! Could one of you tell me more about ‘The Black Swan’  and how you think it applies to Adam? Sounds fascinating!?

I would love to snuffles, but it would be way off-topic and most likely end up deleted. So instead, here’s a link to the author talking about the his Black Swan Theory:

http://fora.tv/2008/02/04/Nassim_Nicholas_Taleb_A_Crazier_Future#Nassim_Nicholas_Taleb_on_Black_Swan

“The only problem is the album won’t be out until’ ¦ March? Nearly every Idol has gone the easier route of releasing during the shopping season of Christmas. The list of Idols who have successfully released albums in non-Christmas times would be pretty short, I think.”

Elliott Yamin put out an album in March that went gold. And he did that as an indy. However he had the advantage of coming off a huge season and having a Top 40 hit. However Danny has the the advantage of being on a major label.

I think Danny has a good shot at doing well. I think he’ll do better than Allison in fact.

I’m not planning on buying anyone’s ablum until I hear the music. I got burned too bad last season with Archie.

True.. Anoop did skip the 2nd grade, got a 4 year scholarship to UNC, and graduated with a double major in Poli Sci and American Studies.

Who among the AI8 whould be smarter than a fifth grader? Much as I love Adam, I would have to place my bets on Anoop.

Ditto on Anoop. Hold the presses…tell Alison!!

And on that note, naptime is apparently over. Bye!

I have a question for all the Adam fans on this board’ ¦Do you plan on at least listening to the music Kris, Allison, Danny (or any of others) come out with’ ¦Do you listen to/buy/attend concerts of any of the previous season’s Idols? Or, once this tour ends, will you be on a strict Adam-only diet when it comes to Idol-related music?

I am pretty much strictly an Adam fan. I started watching Idol the the last 4 weeks of season 3. Thought seasons 6 & 7 were boring, was only going to watch the auditions this time but Adam caught my attention. Iskipped hollywood week & top 36. I don’t watch much tv. Finished watching from top 13 on. Allison was the only other one I liked but I only follow Adam. I come here because people speak their minds & I don’t like the mushiness of the fan sites. I most likely will not watch Idol this coming time because I don’t believe I will find any one I like as well as I do Adam. I have never followed anyone else or bought their music. I can’t wait till Adam’ cd & singles come out.

alison8701
September 12, 2009 at 3:38 pm
True.. Anoop did skip the 2nd grade, got a 4 year scholarship to UNC, and graduated with a double major in Poli Sci and American Studies.

Hah!! I knew I’d smoke you out…

Frogcooke

RT @usopen David Archuleta is performing before the Women’s Finals currently scheduled for Sunday 9pm ET. Schedule here http://bit.ly/Zu9rA

Thanks for that information.

Sunn
September 12, 2009 at 3:36 pm

snuffles
September 12, 2009 at 3:13 pm
Ooh! Could one of you tell me more about ‘The Black Swan’  and how you think it applies to Adam? Sounds fascinating!?

I would love to snuffles, but it would be way off-topic and most likely end up deleted. So instead, here’s a link to the author talking about the his Black Swan Theory:

http://fora.tv/2008/02/04/Nassim_Nicholas_Taleb_A_Crazier_Future#Nassim_Nicholas_Taleb_on_Black_Swan

Aaah! I get it now! So I guess to sum up, it’s a cultural phenomenon that couldn’t have been predicted but in RETROSPECT we should have seen it coming?

Other entertainment world examples he gave was the success of The Harry Potter series and The Beatles.

Is it kind like “I’m going to give you something that you never knew you needed.”? That’s what I feel like when I think of Adam.

RT @usopen David Archuleta is performing before the Women’s Finals currently scheduled for Sunday 9pm ET. Schedule here http://bit.ly/Zu9rA

To bad the rain won’t stop. I’m bummed I missed Nadal/Gonzales but I’m over the moon that Nadal won.

Thanks for posting, Frogcooke. I am so excited for David. I hope his performance is televised. I plan on watching even though I don’t normally watch Tennis. This week is going to be great with him doing the U.S. Open and The ALMA Awards.

I have a question for all the Adam fans on this board ‘” especially the most hardcore ones who may not have any other favorites among the S8 group. Do you plan on at least listening to the music Kris, Allison, Danny (or any of others) come out with

Not even sure I will buy Adams, depends on what he puts out there. If he is too far away from what I like to listen to musically, then no, and if his album is a drek of blandness, then no. As for the others… the only one I would check out is Allison, like her voice, but again, depends on what kind of music she does. Kris’ genre is closest to what I listen to in general but I am not too fond of his voice. Danny … well I don’t listen to country and I don’t think he is musically interesting in his singing (you know phrasing and all that).

I believe the NYT blurb about Kris Allen said “reasonable expectations” *not* low expectations as some posters here have said. There is a difference.

I have a question for all the Adam fans on this board’ ¦Do you plan on at least listening to the music Kris, Allison, Danny (or any of others) come out with’ ¦Do you listen to/buy/attend concerts of any of the previous season’s Idols? Or, once this tour ends, will you be on a strict Adam-only diet when it comes to Idol-related music?

I didn’t watch previous years of Idol, so I haven’t listened to or bought any of their music, with the exception of listening to a few YouTube links that have been posted here.

I plan on buying Adam’s single and CD without needing to hear it first. I’ve enjoyed his music enough so far that I want him to be able to get to record a 2nd CD, even if the first might not be fantastic. (Hopefully, it will be fantastic, but I’m not sure that it will be.)

I definitely plan on listening to music by Kris and Allison, (and will seek it out), once their CDs are released. I might buy both of their CDs, though more likely, will buy single songs. But, if the CD is great, I’ll be buying it. I hope that they both get to record 2nd CDs as well.

More accurately, I hope that Adam, Kris, and Allison will all get to record many CDs, and have longevity in their music careers. But, the first step is getting that first CD out, and having it be successful enough to be able to record a 2nd CD. That’s not a given for any of them.

I haven’t been a fan of Danny, and am guessing I’m not going to like the genre that he’ll record, but when a link is posted to be able to hear his new CD, I’ll take a listen to at least part of it — and if I enjoy it enough, will listen to it all, and potentially buy it. I just don’t expect to enjoy it, since I haven’t been a fan of his yet. But, you never know.

Same for Matt. I hope that he gets a record deal, and I’ll give his music a listen, but don’t know if I’d enjoy it enough to consider buying it. But, I’d give it a chance.

I rarely go to concerts, so it’s not likely that I’d go to any Idol related concerts.

girlygirl
I have a question for all the Adam fans on this board’ ¦Do you plan on at least listening to the music Kris, Allison, Danny (or any of others) come out with’ ¦Do you listen to/buy/attend concerts of any of the previous season’s Idols? Or, once this tour ends, will you be on a strict Adam-only diet when it comes to Idol-related music?

I’ve watched all the AI seasons except for the 2. This is the first year I have ever voted and the first year I’ve ever attended a AI concert. I have none of the other AI cd’s. I went to the concert to see only Adam. Although I enjoyed everyone at the concert, in varying degrees, Adams’ cd is the only one I’m anxiously waiting for and is the only one I will buy.

girlygirl–I never watched American Idol until I happened to catch Adam singing “Satisfaction”. I have never listen to/bought/or attended concerts of previous seasons Idols. And I won’t be watching Idol again.

I will probably follow Allison’s career and will listen to her on the radio and, with maturity, I might go see her in concert. I would listen to Kris a little on the radio.

I will be going to as many concerts as I can of Adam’s and will ‘always’ be following his career! And, I would enjoy seeing Matt in a small venue where I could appreciate his great piano skills and interaction with the crowd.

girlygirl
I have a question for all the Adam fans on this board’ ¦Do you plan on at least listening to the music Kris, Allison, Danny (or any of others) come out with’ ¦Do you listen to/buy/attend concerts of any of the previous season’s Idols? Or, once this tour ends, will you be on a strict Adam-only diet when it comes to Idol-related music?

I had never watched AI. I did this year after I listened to Adam while surfing channels. After I watched the final where I saw how they made fun of some people in the auditions and then kept rubbing it in during the final, I will not watch it again. I think it is disgusting. I might buy Allison and/or Matt singles if I like them. I won ´t buy anything from Kris because I don ´t like him as a singer. Unfortunately, I could not attend any of the concerts because I am in Spain, but will definitely go to at least one of Adam ´s solo concerts, no matter how far from me.
I had never heard any of the previous idols because they are not known in Spain.
I am just enjoying everything that is happening to Adam and hope he has a successful future. I don ´t make predictions because I am not a fortune teller. I have been enjoying each of the steps he has taken since I listened to him for the first time. That ´s it.

If there are more Adam ´s fans in this forum, it is not Adam ´s fans fault.

Finally, when I get on a diet, it is because I want to (which I never do because I don ´t need diets – the mediterranean diet is very healthy.)

ETA: And of course, I will buy anything Adam

Why is that question just for Adam fans? I know y’all are curious who I’ll buy. Well, since you asked…!

It depends. If I weren’t a big Anoop fan, I probably wouldn’t buy his. I know that.. sounds obvious, but I don’t much care for R&B. So I’ll buy his CD based on being an Anoop fan.. Matt, I could see it. Unless he does melodramatic whiney current music like The Fray. But if he was bangin’ out some bluesy piano stuff, I could dig it. And Allison’s music, pretty much, whatever she’d do, I’d probably like it. But I’ll have to listen to it first.

and by buy, I mean, you know, download illegally. I only buy the Killers. But I’ll buy Anoop’s. Maybe. We’ll see. Probably not. Maybe, yeah, I will. I don’t know. Depends.

girlygirl: I am a long-time Idol fan who has never bought anything Idol until Adam. I will buy his real CD and, if offered, a vinyl album. I will also figure out a way to be first row center for Adam first solo concert.

I will listen to a Matt album and consider buying it if I really like it. Iam very unlikely to buy even a track from other of the other finalists.

Who among the AI8 whould be smarter than a fifth grader? Much as I love Adam, I would have to place my bets on Anoop.

Adam would be the most entertaining, but I think Scott would have the best chance of winning. He doesn’t have the best social skills, but he is very, very smart and very well educated. Also, he seems like the Idol most likely to be able to name all the different kinds of clouds, know which planet has the shortest day (Jupiter), the shortest year in earth days (Mercury) and so on.

I do, however, know that American Idol contestants get no respect unless they painstakingly earn it.

And it could be even be an issue on the international market, because most of the franchises have not the quality of American Idol and in the head of some people they compare them to their own bunch of people, which are leagues away from most AI contestants.

What is kind of strange about me listening to and buying most of the songs Adam has out is it is music I don’t normally listen to. I usually listen to country. And no I don’t normally listen to the American Idol country singers. Although I will listen to I’ll Walk by Bucky Covington

So Kris is performing tonight? Did he say anything more? Is he feeling better?

I have a question for all the Adam fans on this board’ ¦Do you plan on at least listening to the music Kris, Allison, Danny (or any of others) come out with’ ¦Do you listen to/buy/attend concerts of any of the previous season’s Idols? Or, once this tour ends, will you be on a strict Adam-only diet when it comes to Idol-related music?

If I like it I buy it, regardless of whether I’m a fan, like, approve, or am even familiar with the artist. I put no such restrictions on art.
Granted so far finding AI, XF, or even Star Academy (Arabic version of pop Idol) music that I like has been as rare an occurrence as finding a single top Quark – meaning it’s happened but only once and for me that was Kelly – but that doesn’t mean it wont happen again.

Adam’s album I will buy out of pure gratitude for the joy he’s given me in the past few months whether I like it or not- I swear that is very uncharacteristic of me, and until a months or so ago I would have said that I would only buy if I like. To the others I owe no such obligation, and will buy only if I like what I hear.

but am not sure whether I’m right, that only Daughtry has actually hit big with the first album after idol. Didn’t both K Clarkson and C Underwood do so on the second?

Depends on your definition of “hit it big”. Daughtry went 4x platinum with his first. Carrie went 6x platinum with her first. Kelly Clarkson went 2x platinum. Ruben went 2x platinum. Clay went 3x platinum. I THINK Fantasia went 2x platinum and Jordin has managed to go 1x platinum. As has David Cook.

I think that covers all of the Idol platinum sellers.

It’s funny– not having watched Idol in the past, I bought music not knowing it was “Idol-related.” I had a couple of Clarkson, one Yamin, a couple of Daughtry and Cook…. along with all my other non-Idol related music.

Now that I am more aware of the show I don’t think I will change my music buying habits. I will buy Adam’s single and CD and download from iTunes… I will probably get one or two Kris and ditto Allison.
That’s not different from anything I’ve done in the past. I have everything ever done by the Beatles, and Bach, and some of my other favorites. I have singles from other artists whose work I don’t love, but like.
Idol-related or not– there will be no dieting for me.

Kris is feeling better to perform tonight. I’m glad he’s not going to miss the final shows that would suck.

Good news about Kris.

KrisAllen4Real

#Just to let everyone know (especially you in Portland ME) that I will be performing tonight and I plan to give you guys a great show.#about 1 hour ago from TwitterFon

So he must be feeling better. I am assuming the doctor has checked him out and given the ok…

Well I didn’t expect that Kris wouldn’t do the show tonight. But nice of him to Tweet to confirm that. Hope that means he’s feeling better, and I hope all the guys are as well.

It does suck to have to do one’s job while feeling sucky. And it also really sucks that one’s being sick interferes with one’s job, like being a singer and having your voice be messed up. And having watched the YouTubes of him from the last few days before his cancellation…yikes! he was really trying to gut it out, but poor bb, the voice and energy were a bit off and getting worse. So glad he took better care of himself by skipping non-show events and I hope he got the chance to get a whole lot of resting in.

Depends on your definition of ‘hit it big’ . Daughtry went 4x platinum with his first. Carrie went 6x platinum with her first. Kelly Clarkson went 2x platinum. Ruben went 2x platinum. Clay went 3x platinum. I THINK Fantasia went 2x platinum and Jordin has managed to go 1x platinum. As has David Cook.

I think that covers all of the Idol platinum sellers.

Yeah, certainly the earlier Idol albums sold big. For some reason I’d got it into my head that Kelly and Carrie’s first albums went major platinum after the success of their second albums (though I also thought they sold something like double platinum before that)..but I could certainly be wrong…

The only Idol winner I was interested in enough to look up how their album was doing online after their win was Fantasia and I didn’t like the music so didn’t look any further.

Quick sneak back

Ironically, in terms of past Idols I most currently listen to and enjoy on the radio are the country or country-ish ones: Carrie, Kellie P., Bo, Josh, and Bucky. Admittedly that has more to due to the fact that country is the one genre that my husband and I will listen to together. I love modern rock and metal, but any station that would play “GayGothEmoBoy” is one that would cause my husband to develop hives. Personlly, I enjoy listening to Kelly Clarkson the most of past idols. David C’s recorded stuff just isn’t that good IMO, Archie only has one decent hit, Daughtry and Jordin are just ok, and no one else has anything on the stations I would listen to. However, no matter how “country” Danny goes, I just can’t envision myself enjoying him. Strangely enough, I would give *Michael* a listen, just to see what he could do with his own material.

KrisAllen4Real

#Just to let everyone know (especially you in Portland ME) that I will be performing tonight and I plan to give you guys a great show.#about 1 hour ago from TwitterFon

So he must be feeling better. I am assuming the doctor has checked him out and given the ok’ ¦

Yeah I am happy to hear this….

IMO in today’s world, anyone whose album is certified platinum in the US is “hitting it big”. I think the biggest selling album of this year (Taylor Swift? MJ?) isn’t even multi-platinum. Which should say a lot about the state of the music industry.

I’m sure Taylor Swift is selling a lot of singles though.

irlygirl
I have a question for all the Adam fans on this board’ ¦Do you plan on at least listening to the music Kris, Allison, Danny (or any of others) come out with’ ¦Do you listen to/buy/attend concerts of any of the previous season’s Idols? Or, once this tour ends, will you be on a strict Adam-only diet when it comes to Idol-related music?”

No. I have Daughtry, Amanda Overmeier, and Kelly Clarkson, and of course, Adam on my iPod. Kris? Idk, i’ll preview on iTunes. If I like it, I’ll buy it. Allison? Hells yes!! Love her. Danny? No. Not a fan. seems like a nice enough guy, but I don’t buy someone’s music because they are nice.

Yeah, certainly the earlier Idol albums sold big. For some reason I’d got it into my head that Kelly and Carrie’s first albums went major platinum after the success of their second albums (though I also thought they sold something like double platinum before that)..but I could certainly be wrong’ ¦

I believe that was just Kelly. Breakaway has gone 6x platinum. Carrie’s second album only went 3x platinum (compared to the first one that is).

Well, I’ve watched every second of every season from 2-8. I attended the concerts from seasons 2,5 and 8. I have cds from Kelly,Clay,Carrie,Taylor,Daughtry,Archie and Cook. I’ve downloaded music from Elliot,Jennifer H. and Kellie P. I will buy Daughtry’s cd for hubby for X-mas and Cooks next one (when it comes out). My daughter will want Archie’s next release.
I’ve seen Kelly in concert and would love to go see Cook. I will be at the stores at midnight to purchase Adam’s cd and can’t wait until his solo concerts.(have money…will travel) I will also check out Allison’s cd and am more likely to purchase it than Kris’s. Also, after seeing Matt in concert, I would go to see him if he comes to my town.

cilady
September 12, 2009 at 4:24 pm

IMO in today’s world, anyone whose album is platinum is ‘hitting it big’ . I think the biggest selling album of this year (Taylor Swift? MJ?) isn’t even multi-platinum. Which should say a lot about the state of the music industry.

I’m sure Taylor Swift is selling a lot of singles though.

Uhhh…NO. Taylor Swift’s latest has gone 4x platinum.

http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS238032+08-Sep-2009+PRN20090908

Overall she has sold 10 million albums world wide and 20 million single downloads.

Ok, fair enough — I can certainly open that up to posters whose favorite is someone other than Adam. Same question! Do you plan to listen to, and possibly even spend $$ on, the music released by any of the S8 Idols other than whoever your favorite is?

David C’s recorded stuff just isn’t that good IMO

Many people are hoping he’ll put out a live album … if that’s what you’re referencing, i.e., he’s better live than the recorded first CD suggests.

But, I tend to agree that the CD tends to make him very smooth and polished, while David’s strength is that growly, dirtied-up, roughness that you get in spades when he’s live.

The album may be multiplatinum but it hasn’t sold multiplatinum this year. And it came out last year. But whatever I stand corrected.

We gotta account for the short attention spans of idol fans. If an idol doesn’t go platinum in like two months it’s practically failure according to the CW.

And as for the “who is smarter than a 5th grader” question, I’d go with Anoop or Scott first (Scott graduated from college when he was what…19?). But Kris went to college on an academic scholarship and Adam appears to be well-read and very intelligent, etc. In fact, ALL of the S8 Idols should be smarter than a 5th grader. But I’m a college grad, and whenever I’ve watched that show, I have gotten many of the questions wrong, because — even if I had learned the info back in 5th grade (or earlier), I’ve long since forgotten the answers…

smartcookie: I think a lot of fans of the rock side of Adam are going to be disappointed if he puts out a Lady Gaga dance pop album, and fans of the over the top glitter queen side are going to be disappointed if he puts out an album that skews heavily toward a soft alt-pop/Gary Jules sort of thing (the rather narrow slice of his repertoire which would interest me personally). But we have no way of knowing, and it will be very interesting to see/hear.

Adam has said from the very beginning that he planned on producing a multi-genre album. I know that there are skeptics about this — particularly the Idol and 19E “experts” seem to doubt this will happen. IMO RCA, 19 and Adam all want the same thing, and that is to sell a lot of units — albums and digital cuts — and the way to do that is with a multi-genre Adam album. And, I have very little doubt now, that we will hear a multi-genre Adam album.

I also don’t think very many Adam fans will be disappointed. People who are “Adam fans” like to broad range of his music and will buy the album, and people who only like the one genre, like the emo-ballad fans (ala Mad World) can just buy the track(s) they like. That sounds like a win-win to me.

Adamland – DITTO everything you said – and you said it well. I, too, am a DIEHARD Adam fan and probably will be for a long time. I am so going to miss daily updates on him (and the other season 8 idols, but mainly him). All the idols have been in our lives since the beginning of 2009 and it’s going to be hard going “cold turkey” when the tour is over as far as hearing daily news, concert videos, etc. So sad. Hopefully, with Adam being in L.A., maybe we’ll get a little more coverage on him from the entertainment shows, like Extra, Access Hollywood, etc. (does anyone know of any TV appearances Adam has coming up or where we would go find out that info?)

For someone on Twitter, would you mind sending a tweet to the idols and asking them to PLEASE continue their tweets even when the tour has ended? We still need to stay in touch with them! (One of the other idols may have to tell Adam since I’m not sure he checks his gazillion he gets on a regular basis!) Thank you!

Let’s hope there’s lots of good news on all the idols when the tour is over and that we can continue to keep up with them on a regular basis.

I have a question for all the Adam fans on this board ‘” especially the most hardcore ones who may not have any other favorites among the S8 group. Do you plan on at least listening to the music Kris, Allison, Danny (or any of others) come out with ‘” and possibly buying it if you enjoy it? Do you listen to/buy/attend concerts of any of the previous season’s Idols? Or, once this tour ends, will you be on a strict Aam-only diet when it comes to Idol-related music?

Oh ok! Fun! I love surveys.

I’ll definitely listen to any music that any S8 Idol makes, and if I like it, I’ll buy it. I’d feel terrible downloading any of their music without paying, so I wouldn’t do that. I anticipate buying at least a few tracks from both Allison and Kris, possibly Allison’s whole album… a smaller possibility of Kris’ whole album. I probably won’t get anything of Danny’s.

So some background: I didn’t watch American Idol this season while it was going. Sometime around the beginning of July I was linked to the Adam Ring of Fire studio, then I watched some of his other videos, and then I watched the season of AI in its entirety online.

So I don’t think I’ll buy anything from S7/ attend any of their concerts because I didn’t watch that season and nothing of their work outside of Idol has really piqued my interest to any of them yet.

Lord love a duck!

Okay, now the Creative Arts Emmys are going to be given out tonight. If Bruce wins one I’m going to…I don’t know what I’m going to do, but it won’t be pretty.

Here are the categories that AI is nominated for that will be given out tonight:

Outstanding Art Direction For Variety, Music, Or Nonfiction Programming
The 81st Academy Awards (ABC)
America Idol (FOX) (“Epidoe 821″)
A Colbert Christmas: The Greatest Gift Of All (Comedy Central)
The 51st Annual Grammy Awards (CBS)
2008 MTV Video Music Awards (MTV)

Er…I’d give it to Colbert. I can’t remember anything fabulous in the art department from the Grammy, Oscars or (least of all) the MTV Music Awards. Oscars are usually the default winner for these sorts of things.

Outstanding Lighting Direction (Electronic, Multi-Camera) For VMC Programming
The 81st Academy Awards (ABC)
American Idol (“Finale”)
The Kennedy Center Honors (CBS)
Saturday Night Live (NBC) (“Hugh Laurie”)
Will Ferrell: You’re Welcome America (HBO)

Umm…er…The Kennedy Center Honours?

Outstanding Sound Mixing For A Variety, Music Series, Or A Special
81st Annual Academy Awards (ABC)
American Idol (FOX) (“Finale”)
Beijing 2008 Olympic Games Opening Ceremony (NBC)
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band Super Bowl Halftime Show (NBC)
Dancing With The Stars (ABC) (“Episode 710A”)
The 51st Annual Grammy Awards (CBS)

Well, AI has no business even being nominated for this one after the travesties we saw last year (back-up-singer-Cryin’ anybody?). Let’s go with the Beijing Olympics. That thing was an echochamber and they made it sound good.

Outstanding Sound Mixing For Nonfiction Programming
102 Minutes That Changed America (HISTORY)
American Idol (FOX) (“801/02″)
Deadliest Catch (Discovery Channel) (“Stay Focused Or Die”)
Survivor (CBS) (“The Poison Apple Needs To Go”)
The Amazing Race (CBS) (“Don’t Let A Cheese Hit Me”)

LOL. Give it to TAR. I love to see Simon’s head explode. Okay, okay, I’m sure the History channel has this one sewn up. How can cheese compete with 102 minutes that changed America? (don’t tell me that’s not what the award is about. If you are a serious show, you stand a better chance of winning everything).

Outstanding Technical Direction, Camerawork, Video Control For A Series
American Idol (FOX) (“Episode 834A”)
Dancing With The Stars (ABC) (“Episode 802A”)
Jimmy Kimmel Live (ABC) (“Episode 09-1182″)
Late Show With David Letterman (CBS) (“Episode 3075″)
Saturday Night Live (NBC) (“Host: Josh Brolin”)

Bruce, you better be practicing your gracious face because you will not be needing that speech. What they hey, I’ll give it to DWTS (Simon’s head just exploded again…I love it when he gets all bittercakes about the Emmys).

Suffice to say, I haven’t a clue, but it’s not a fanwar, so how bad can it be?

Here are the known presenters:

Gabrielle Anwar (Burn Notice)
Fred Armisen (Saturday Night Live)
Carol Burnett
Louis C.K. (Saturday Night Live)
Christian Clemenson (Boston Legal)
Ted Danson (Damages)
Lisa Edelstein (House)
Donald Faison (Scrubs)
Jerry Ferrara (Entourage)
Johnny Galecki (The Big Bang Theory)
Penn Jillette (Penn & Teller)
John Michael Higgins (Kath & Kim)
Nigel Lythgoe (So You Think You Can Dance)
Seth MacFarlane (Family Guy)
Kathryn Morris (Cold Case)
Elisabeth Moss (Mad Men)
Sharon Osbourne (America’s Got Talent)
Andrea Roth (Rescue Me)
Jamie-Lynn Sigler (The Sopranos)
Elaine Stritch (30 Rock)
Mary Lynn Rajskub (24)
Katey Sagal (Sons of Anarchy)
Jimmy Smits (Dexter)
Ashley Tisdale (Suite Life on Deck)
Callie Thorne (Rescue Me)

“the Idol and 19E ‘experts’  seem to doubt this will happen. IMO RCA, 19 and Adam all want the same thing, and that is to sell a lot of units ‘” albums and digital cuts ‘” and the way to do that is with a multi-genre Adam album”

A multi genre album ensures that people will buy lots of single downloads not albums. If I like dance music but not rock, I’ll buy the dance singles not the album. Idols that have done the best in the past have connected with one genre of music – pop, country, rock- and crossed over to the general fans of that music.

And please Adam Lambert isn’t changing the music biz in the slightest.
Nobody who’s first single will probably be called “Time for Miracles” is even close. His fans should hope for some good songs and something better than the usual generic crap. That’s already miles above most Idol albums.

How can you comment on other AI alumni when you don’t listen to their type of music or have stopped listening to the radio when you hate what has been on the radio for years?

This has been said before about other Idol alums too..

It’s kind of an interesting progression, being a fan of an Idol contestant. Your season, when you pick someone out as ‘special’ – and they remain special to you after the show, because they make your kind of music and you like what you can see of them from their public appearances – you think that they are unique in some way. You start finding out about them and you begin to feel that they are revolutionary; that they are the only contestant in Idol history who has made people feel this way, so they will have a unique impact in the real world.

Then the next season comes along and you start reading new reactions of new fans to new contestants and they are identical to the ones that you had the year before.

And you begin to understand those world wearly posts from older fans in your season who said that this was nothing new and it has all been heard before.

Anyway, question…

What I find kind of interesting about Idol fans is the obsession with ‘THE voice’. I know it’s a singing competition, but honestly, who has ever bought an album, not related to Idol, because they thought the lead singer had a good voice (unless it’s opera). Is it only me who buys albums because either a) I like a song/songs and want to hear more or b) I liked the previous album or c) it was recommended to me? Seriously, I love loads of artists whose voices are less than ‘pure’ because they are just damn good song writers.

Is that just an idol things or do people generally buy records because they think the singer has a great voice?

honestly, who has ever bought an album, not related to Idol, because they thought the lead singer had a good voice

Me. And I’ve bought a lot of them. The voice is always the biggest priority for me, followed closely by the melodies, the lyrics, and then lastly the production of a song.

Okay, now the Creative Arts Emmys are going to be given out tonight. If Bruce wins one I’m going to’ ¦I don’t know what I’m going to do, but it won’t be pretty.

Here are the categories that AI is nominated for that will be given out tonight:

AI does NOT deserve any award from season 8 based on anything technical, anything involving sound — which is an absolute travesty — or anything involving direction.

In all three categories, it seemed like the show had become some local amateur hour program … oh, excuse me, amateur hour and 7 minutes.

What I find kind of interesting about Idol fans is the obsession with ‘THE voice’. I know it’s a singing competition, but honestly, who has ever bought an album, not related to Idol, because they thought the lead singer had a good voice (unless it’s opera). Is it only me who buys albums because either a) I like a song/songs and want to hear more or b) I liked the previous album or c) it was recommended to me. Seriously, I love loads of artists whose voices are less than ‘pure’ because they are just damn good song writers?

Is that just an idol things or do people generally buy records because they think the singer has a great voice?

I buy EXCLUSIVELY on liking a “VOICE”. This has been the case throughout my life (I’m 44). Once I find a Voice I like, I will buy nearly anything they produce. The voice doesn’t have to be “pure” – one of my all time favorites is Rod Stewart and I like nearly everything he has done from pop/rock to American standards.

Since I love Adam’s voice, I will buy nearly anything Adam produces.

honestly, who has ever bought an album, not related to Idol, because they thought the lead singer had a good voice

Plenty of times. Hell I’ve even bought music because the guy on the album cover was HAWT!

My thoughts on the meta discussion that will surely send MJ on a deleting spree is that:

edit: then why would you comment on it?

snuffles
Is it kind like ‘I’m going to give you something that you never knew you needed.’ ? That’s what I feel like when I think of Adam.

It’s about a statistical improbability, given current data, occurring that in retrospect, and with a more comprehensive picture of the data, would be deemed inevitable. Like the economic crash last summer for instance.

The trick is recognizing it before it happens. Taleb, by the way, predicted the economic crisis back in 07.

Crazylady

I wouldn’t count on Adam (or any of the other Idols) being on the talk shows, or Access Hollywood or whatever until he has his single and/or his album ready to promote. Like Kris, Danny and Allison, he will be pretty much locked in the recording studio for weeks once tour ends, except for the occasional promotional stuff (like the Ford corporate date he and Kris will be doing in Detroit 2 days after the tour ends). And unless he’s suddenly out partying every night or does something really gossip worthy, he might not even be on TMZ or other gossip sites all that much, either (although Perez Hilton might talk a lot about him). Outside the AI bubble, Adam is still a small fish in the big pond known as Los Angeles/Hollywood — there are a ton of much more famous people in L.A. for the media to focus on.

Now once he’s ready to start promoting his single and album, Adam will get a fair amount of media attention. But it’ll probably be pretty quiet the first few weeks after this tour ends. But that’s the case for all this year’s Idols. Kris will probably have the most publicity over the next few weeks, since his single is about to drop. I figure he’ll likely be on a few of the late night shows to promote that. But of course, the gossip sites aren’t as likely to follow him around everywhere he goes as they would be Adam (although if Kris & Katy want to go out to dinner and not get their photos taken, they should avoid the restaurants where the paps are more likely to hang around & they need to make sure that if they are going to fight, don’t do it in public, because the gossip sites would probably enjoy speculating on the state of their marriage).

Me. And I’ve bought a lot of them. The voice is always the biggest priority for me, followed closely by the melodies, the lyrics, and then lastly the production of a song.

Uh, WOW! Me too. And why did Led Zep, Journey, Pink Floyd, Aerosmith, Guns N’ Roses, etc. etc. rise to fame? Sure they had good lead guitarists, but if their lead vocalist sucked, all the guitar in the world wouldn’t cover that up. ETA: And good songs wouldn’t be good songs without the vocalist to deliver them.

ETA2: This show is proof positive that a bad vocalist can sure as hell fuck up a great song and a good vocalist can often sell crap.

Look how far these bands have to go to find lead vocalists once they break up.

I remember vividly the first time I heard Darius Rucker on the David Letterman show in the ’80s (pretty sure it was still the ’80s). I was BLOWN AWAY. I usually don’t tune into musical acts on talk shows ‘“ the performances just don’t translate for me on TV so much.

The next day I kept saying, “This guy last night had the most amazing voice I’ve ever heard …” My best friend said, “Yeah, you keep saying that …” And because of Darius Rucker’s voice, I became a Hootie and the Blowfish fan.

It’s been years of course, and I have never had any use for country music, but I may just have to give that one a listen.

Fadetowhite, you are so on the money.

Idol fans don’t realize how important the songs are because all they hear are the great classic songs they do on Idol. Get ready to be horrified. Because the same hacks who did all the past Idol albums will be doing Adam’s, Kris’ and Allison’s.

Because the same hacks who do all the past Idol albums will be doing Adam’s, Kris’ and Allison’s.

Not true. At least for Adam. The collaborator that he’s going to be doing the most songs with is RedOne.

Btw I think we DO know that the best we can hope for for the first album is “pretty good” song-wise. Our emotional attachment and our love of the voices will push that over in OUR perception to “good.” And that’s enough really.

Okay, now the Creative Arts Emmys are going to be given out tonight. If Bruce wins one I’m going to’ ¦I don’t know what I’m going to do, but it won’t be pretty.

I’ll buy the first round of vodka shooters if that happens. Ugh, AI’s production shouldn’t win jack, unless there is an Emmy version of the Razzie. The only reason this show didn’t suck was despite them, not because of them. Their crap being rewarded? Would suck.

What I find kind of interesting about Idol fans is the obsession with ‘THE voice’. I know it’s a singing competition, but honestly, who has ever bought an album, not related to Idol, because they thought the lead singer had a good voice (unless it’s opera).

Wow. Am I strange? I buy music because of the voice of the artist and if the song is good– not the other way around. If the song is good and I don’t like the artist’s voice– I will end up skipping over it. So what’s the point?

Sherena

Me. And I’ve bought a lot of them. The voice is always the biggest priority for me, followed closely by the melodies, the lyrics, and then lastly the production of a song

Thanks for answering. I guess it just goes to show that we are all different, with different priorities, when it comes to music. For me, the beat/music catches me first. I tuned into Kings Of Leon because I love the musical introduction to the first track on the album and love the last track too – both far superior to the singles IMO.

After that I love lyrics.

Obviously, I want the singer to sing in tune, but I’ve been a fan of UK singer songwriter Billy Bragg since I was about 14 and no-one could accuse him of having a ‘voice’.

I also don’t get this ‘all sounds the same critique on albums. Some of my most favourite albums have taken multiple listens to truely get into: The Editors – The Back Room (another UK band – I’m English); The Jam; Radiohead…once I’ve invested the time and penetrated down to the lyrics, the songs become magical. Other stuff, like U2 has a far more immediate impact.

I like instant hit pop music as well – or some of it – but I’ve rarely become invested in an album full of it.

I guess it just goes to show that we are all different, respond to music in different ways and from different angles and look for different things from it.

Which makes the whole ‘who’s the best’ thing even more nonsensical, when I think about it.

I have a question for all the Adam fans on this board’ ¦Do you plan on at least listening to the music Kris, Allison, Danny (or any of others) come out with’ ¦Do you listen to/buy/attend concerts of any of the previous season’s Idols? Or, once this tour ends, will you be on a strict Adam-only diet when it comes to Idol-related music?’ 

Haven’t read the whole thread, but I do plan to “listen” to the music some of the others come out with. Will I buy it? Depends on if I like it. I plan to buy Adam’s whether I like it or not (I have no doubt I will like it, but you never know) because this has been one of the most fun AI seasons ever, his performances caused me to go to a concert in another state and the discussions here have given me a lot of enjoyment.

I’ll buy the first round of vodka shooters if that happens. Ugh, AI’s production shouldn’t win jack, unless there is an Emmy version of the Razzie. The only reason this show didn’t suck was despite them, not because of them. Their crap being rewarded? Would suck.

I think Nigel Lythgoe’s head would explode and I would not blame him!

jpfan
September 12, 2009 at 5:02 pm

Idol fans don’t realize how important the songs are because all they hear are the great classic songs they do on Idol. Get ready to be horrified. Because the same hacks who did all the past Idol albums will be doing Adam’s, Kris’ and Allison’s.

I realize it all too well. It is at this moment my greatest fear. I expect to be horrified, I’m not ready for it, I dread it, but I’m expecting it. Yet, at the same time, the fan in me is hoping against all hope to be delighted.
Black Swan, please let it be a Black Swan.

PJD – I like Rod Stewart too, though I couldn’t stand him for the longest time, I think because I was put off by his image and I associated him with ‘I Am Sailing’ from my teen years…

But I listened to some of his stuff a few years ago and changed my mind – again, because I liked the music and the lyrics. He has a very distinctive voice, but he had a very distinctive voice during all of those years when I couldn’t stand him too…

The collaborator that he’s going to be doing the most songs with is RedOne.

Did Adam ever confirm whether all of those songs Red One did made the album or not?

I agree that there are some new people coming out of the woodwork for each contestant. You have people like Red One for Adam. You have people like Joe King and Mat Kearney for Kris. And AFAIK, Louis Biancello and Sam Watters are only working with Allison.

But for the most part, jpfan is right, Allison, Adam and Kris are working with quite a few of the same people. They are all 19E so it’s to be expected.

By hacks, I meant TPTB at 19 not only the hack writers they use.
RedOne has worked with New Kids on the Block, Akon, Brandy, Enrique Iglesias, Lionel Richie, The Cheetah Girls, Menudo, Varsity Fanclub among others according to Wikipedia.,So it’s not like he’s some magical genius because he also works with GaGa. As far as I know, she writes her own songs? Does Adam?

I don’t want to predict doom and gloom. His album could be decent but I’m just trying to be realistic about the 19R/Idol product.

But for the most part, jpfan is right, Allison, Adam and Kris are working with quite a few of the same people.

Arg!…and one of those same people is Kara….. We need Boundaries!!!!!

Not true. At least for Adam. The collaborator that he’s going to be doing the most songs with is RedOne.

where did you find this info?

I got the impression that there are some 20 songs that will be on the table to choose from and nothing is yet decided. I have not seen anything one that redone will be the main contributor ( song writer and/or producing) , but maybe I missed that?

On the ‘Who’s music will I buy’ topic:

Kris – my favorite… already have the iTunes pass, so I’ve bought the CD without listening. There’s only 1 or 2 other groups/singers I do that for, but in this case I figure I owe it to him – if for no other reason than to make up for my unpaid download of Brand New Shoes that I’ve enjoyed so much. Depending on how bonus tracks play out, I would seriously consider buying a 2nd copy – a real CD.

All the others get my standard iTunes treatment… preview all the tracks, and download singles that I like. Usually when I hit about 4 or 5 singles from the same album, I just buy the whole thing.

On the ‘Adam dominates the boards’ topic:
I really think that this is strongly connected to there just being more Adam news… he’s been more open about his collaborators for his album, there’s been more media buzz, etc. More news = more to discuss. Sure, I’d love to read/contribute more about Kris. But other than his recent illness and the occasional collaborator-related tweet, there hasn’t been much (except for the occasional frustrating tour review, and I just ignore those)

here’s a picture from todays M&G

FTL137Kari http://twitpic.com/hhqx8 – Hey-o! before partyyy!
4 minutes ago from TwitPic

When we went to preshow, matt took my pic signed it, and held it up 4 the whole room. Hilarious! haha
less than 10 seconds ago from txt

@BGAmie mma do my damnedest to get Matty G 2 buy me a drink He said he saw my tweets about come 2 the bar! haha Whoops!
1 minute ago from web in reply to BGAmie

@ginadarlin i mean we talked 2 him for like 15 mins. hes wearing the button up shirt! *gahhh*
2 minutes ago from txt

@FTL42Kristin Which moment? haha the “sexy jeans” comment, or perhaps him knowing my NAME. And the “To my love” on my pic. Ah!
5 minutes ago from web in reply to FTL42Kristin

@ginadarlin yeah, i saw noop! twice! matt made me laugh he said my jeans were sexy! *thud*
7 minutes ago from txt

I’m not worried that Allison, Adam and Kris will have only decent– and not great– first albums. They are at the beginnings of their careers. They have to evolve and grow and find their musical grooves– and that will take time and experience. They are all talented enough that they probably will have a shot at album number 2…. where they go from there will be the real test.
Not one of my favorite artists ended up with the exact same sound they started out with. Artists, by definition, bring something to the table that we ordinary folks lack– talent, grit and vision. the vision part is the hardest– how they define themselves and whether or not they continue to grow will be the true test of their artistry.

Yet, at the same time, the fan in me is hoping against all hope to be delighted. Black Swan, please let it be a Black Swan.

Sunn, I watched that clip. Fascinating. I’ve often been intrigued by similar phenomena but I had never heard this term. Now I’m loving it for a potential album name for *whispering* He Who Must Not Be Named Too Often, but shhh, let’s keep that on the down-low.

I have a question for all the Adam fans on this board’ ¦Do you plan on at least listening to the music Kris, Allison, Danny (or any of others) come out with’ ¦Do you listen to/buy/attend concerts of any of the previous season’s Idols? Or, once this tour ends, will you be on a strict Adam-only diet when it comes to Idol-related music?

I’m an Adam fan, and I’ll be doing this:

- Ones I’ll definitely buy without previewing: none

- Ones I’ll make a point to remember release days and look for a chance to preview, and anticipate maybe liking enough to buy: Adam and Allison (in that order)

- Ones I’ll try to watch for and it wouldn’t surprise me if I liked them enough to buy: Kris and Danny (no particular order)

- If I happen across a link to a preview track, I’d bother to click the button and listen: Anoop and Megan (I think she’s horrible, but I like her voice type, so, in hopes of stroke after which she wakes up able to track pitch, rhythm and taste, I’d listen once)

Everyone else, if I happen across it already playing (like on the radio), I’ll listen, but I’ve not heard anything yet from them that would make me anticipate their albums. I’m open to being surprised, but there’s so many other artists that I also follow, so I don’t typically spend much time on people I’ve already heard but not connected with. And if I seek out someone I haven’t heard, it’s because it was recommended to me or I read something that intrigued me. The fact of being a former AI contestant isn’t, in and of itself, intriguing enough to make me seek someone out, in the absence of some other recommendation.

Latest tweet from Adam:

# Over $ 125,000! http://bit.ly/25qzMK only 8 days left in fangroup competition!! Keep it comin for these kids!!!38 minutes ago from TwitterFon

FTL137Kari http://twitpic.com/hhqx8 ‘“ Hey-o! before partyyy!
4 minutes ago from TwitPic

While I am thrilled that Adam is feeling better, I hope he’s not pushing it being at the meet and greet.

wowwwww that shit was looong:/

Idol fans don’t realize how important the songs are because all they hear are the great classic songs they do on Idol. Get ready to be horrified. Because the same hacks who did all the past Idol albums will be doing Adam’s, Kris’ and Allison’s.

Oh no, this Adam tard and Kris and Allison fan is all to aware of the how crappy the albums are after being folded, spindled and mutilated by the 19Evil crap-izing machine. Which is why I, again, say if Adam has even 3 songs I like on his album, I’ll count myself lucky because I’m expecting it to be only 2 I like. But more importantly than my liking it, I want it to do well commercially, so he has a chance not to suck artisically as much with the others. Same for Kris and Allison, of course. And to the question of buying Idol material? I will buy Adam’s CD no matter what, it’s like what? a two latte (double, tall, non-fat, no whip, cinammon dolce) and one tofu Pad Thai (5 star) investment for me. Kris and Allison I will probably buy. I really want to buy their music though, so I would love to buy their stuff and have more music I like to listen to. Whee! Nothing wrong with more good music to enjoy.

adamaloha
…the vision part is the hardest’“ how they define themselves and whether or not they continue to grow will be the true test of their artistry.

I agree with you that it’s the hardest part. But only because with 19E/Sony Idols, the “vision” that matters is that of 19E and what they see as commercial. See: Kelly Clarkson who tried to evolve herself and got smacked down only to return to the formula with her latest album. And you’d think that selling a lot of albums would give her some clout, but nope.

What I find kind of interesting about Idol fans is the obsession with ‘THE voice’. I know it’s a singing competition, but honestly, who has ever bought an album, not related to Idol, because they thought the lead singer had a good voice (unless it’s opera).

Maybe for a lot of people it is not consciously, but the funny thing is Idol make me listen to my favorites with a new interest for the voices and I just then recognized that the ones with I had a long time interest in, have been the ones with good voices.

I’ll be going through here to delete all the meta crap about fans, who should be posting, what you should be posting and why.

I spend way too much time monitoring these threads. Why not just follow my guidelines?

Luv, why are you in class on a Saturday? and with a fever?
*hands u a grape popsicle*

jpfan
September 12, 2009 at 5:14 pm

By hacks, I meant TPTB at 19 not only the hack writers they use.
RedOne is has worked with New Kids on the Block, Akon, Brandy, Enrique Iglesias, Lionel Richie, The Cheetah Girls, Menudo, Varsity Fanclub among others according to Wikipedia.,So it’s not like he’s some magical genius because he also works with GaGa. As far as I know, she writes her own songs? Does Adam?

Yes, Adam does write his own songs. But on this album he’s doing a lot co-writing collaborations (which is smart because he’s not ready to do it all on his own yet). And by the way, Red One helped co-write every single one of Lady Gaga’s big hits (“Let’s Dance”, “Poker Face” and “Love Game”).

That said, Red One isn’t a miracle worker; but when working with some extremely gifted people in their own right, he does great things. And I’m not comparing Adam’s song writing skills to GaGa, but he’s got an extraordinary voice and a unique style. I’m very curious and excited to see what he and Red One come up with.

The NYT comments: The entertainment industry (any branch) is brutal. I read previews/reviews for legit theater, music, film & television. They are often harsh and purposely snide (that’s part of the writer’s job – make it entertaining). If we take it for what it is – opinion – and let it go, we can enjoy what we like regardless.

girlygirl
I have a question for all the Adam fans on this board’ ¦Do you plan on at least listening to the music Kris, Allison, Danny (or any of others) come out with’ ¦Do you listen to/buy/attend concerts of any of the previous season’s Idols? Or, once this tour ends, will you be on a strict Adam-only diet when it comes to Idol-related music?

I don’t really consider myself a “fan” of any of the Idols – depending on how “fan” is defined. I am a fan of talent – period. I have greatly enjoyed Kris, Adam & Allison’s music thus far. I purchased a few Itunes videos from this season. I don’t own an IPod and generally don’t care for ITunes period. If I buy music, I buy the hard copy.

I have never purchased any Idol music in the past. As much as I like what Kradison has done thus far, I won’t be buying anything until I hear it first. If I like it, I will buy it. If I think it sucks (regardless of critics’ opinions), I won’t.

I think that Kris, Adam, and Allison all have the potential to be very successful…but there are a lot of factors involved with that. I DO want them all to succeed. My personal hunch is (if 19 doesn’t completely beat her into pop submission and allows her some room to actually rock the way I know she can), Allison may be the surprise seller this fall. I was (to borrow an MJ word) flummoxed to see that the NYT piece didn’t mention her at all.

I’m sick of the New York Times referring to Kris as “aw shucks.”

Im a huge Adam fan, and will definately buy his album even if its the suckiest crap ever created. I plan on buying Allison’s as well, and if I like some of Kris’ songs, I may buy his too.

Btw all of the New York Times blurbs are great, and pretty accurate/fair. Adam IS flamboyant, and Kris IS unassuming and aw-shucks.

I’m worried because Allison didn’t get a mention, tbh. She’s kind of fallen off of a lot of people’s radars since the show.

Maybe I should have altered that quote to ‘solely because the lead singer has a good voice’.

In other words, comments about AI singers often seem to focus on the voice to the exclusion of everything else: because they have a great voice, their album will be great.

The only album I’ve ever bought, because of the singer was by Frank Sinatra and that was as much for the interpretation as the voice. Of course, he was singing classic songs, so the quality of the music was guarenteed anyway (if you like that kind of thing).

That’s why I would query the voice focus: not because having a great voice and great music and great lyrics is a bad thing, but because the voice itself, to me, is the lesser of these. Case in point: I like Bohemian Rhapsody in all its OTT insanity. The voices are great on it, but I like it because the sounds/harmonies, lyrics and sheer reckless musical abandon draw me in. It wouldn’t sound great without the voices admittedly, but that’s not why I like it.

Anyhow, as I said earlier – we’re all different, looking for different things in music and valuing different musical qualities. And thank goodness for that, because it maintains a rich musical landscape.

Cilady– I love your avatar.

adamaloha
‘ ¦the vision part is the hardest’“ how they define themselves and whether or not they continue to grow will be the true test of their artistry.

I agree with you that it’s the hardest part. But only because with 19E/Sony Idols, the ‘vision’  that matters is that of 19E and what they see as commercial. See: Kelly Clarkson who tried to evolve herself and got smacked down only to return to the formula with her latest album. And you’d think that selling a lot of albums would give her some clout, but nope.

I sort of agree with you– only I don’t think it has to be an all or nothing proposition. There are actors who do both commercial project and indies. The one for the money and to keep their status as box office draws– and the other to satisfy their desire to be more adventurous, creative and to grow as artists.

Kelly chose to go back to buttering her bread. She’s satisfying one part of her fan base. That doesn’t close the door on the other side of her creative spirit and if she really wants to branch out I doubt she will make the same record over and over again. I give her more credit than that.

Yes, Adam does write his own songs.

I can’t wait to hear the follow up to such lyrical genius as “Pop goes the camera”.

It’s certainly interesting to read about how people make their musical purchases but if the average person bought an album based on the VOICE, well aforementioned multi-platinum Taylor Swift would not be selling all of those albums. ETA: and pretty much every idol alumni who makes an album should hit like gold, because whether you liked them or not, they sing better than 80% of the recording artists out there.

adamaloha
That doesn’t close the door on the other side of her creative spirit and if she really wants to branch out I doubt she will make the same record over and over again. I give her more credit than that.

Honestly I think she’s going to have to wait until her contract expires and go elsewhere before she could get the control she apparently seeks. She pleased her corporate overlords this time around but even then she still fought and lost a battle over releasing Already Gone.

The NYT comments: The entertainment industry (any branch) is brutal. I read previews/reviews for legit theater, music, film & television. They are often harsh and purposely snide (that’s part of the writer’s job ‘“ make it entertaining).

There was a great critic in Boston for years, Elliot Norton. He was never harsh or snide, that I can recall. He was referred to as “The Dean Of Theatre Critics.” His reviews of plays that tried out in Boston were so constructively critical that directors and playwrights were eager for his opinion and input. He was very popular with readers, too. He said what he had to say without meanness, yet he was an entertaining writer. Too bad more critics can’t be like that.

I’m worried because Allison didn’t get a mention, tbh. She’s kind of fallen off of a lot of people’s radars since the show.

There was a previous article on the upcoming releases that left Allison off its list also. I’m counting on her fireball energy to get her noticed when the CD is released, but I do wonder why she is often overlooked. Someone at 19 needs to step up the promotion for her, IMO.

Adam is a pretty terrible writer. Kris is a mediocre writer. I’m glad both are cowriting, not writing directly for their albums.

I am an international fan and itunes only sells apps here, not songs, so buying tracks would be impossible. I will buy Adam’s without having to listen to it, probably through Amazon or if someone buys for me abroad. Adam’s and Kris’ cds will probably be available here but much later, as happened with cook (who had no local promotion at all).

Since it would be too much trouble, I would only buy Kris’ and Allison’s if I come to like very very much, but I am not sure if my interest will not end up vanishing before I have a chance to listen to and buy it here (months after it drops in the us) as happened in other seasons (even with cook who I loved).

Adam is the only one since season 4 that kept me interested. The fact that it is basicaly impossible for them to have airplay here makes my vaniushing interest more likely to take place.

I was already planning a trip to california, so my very understanding husband promised to schedule it according to adam’s tour dates. It is unlikely for obvious reasons that I see any of the others, I cant cross continents so many times and they will certainly not come here.

Someone at 19 needs to step up the promotion for her, IMO.

Yeah I agree.

And while they’re at it they can go buy a decent template for their websites. adamofficial, allisonirahetaofficial, and krisallenofficial all have the exact same cheap template. If they can shell for Adam’s photoshoots they can shell for a website template.

There was a great critic in Boston for years, Elliot Norton. He was never harsh or snide, that I can recall. He was referred to as ‘The Dean Of Theatre Critics.’  His reviews of plays that tried out in Boston were so constructively critical that directors and playwrights were eager for his opinion and input. He was very popular with readers, too. He said what he had to say without meanness, yet he was an entertaining writer. Too bad more critics can’t be like that.

I would love that – but snark and nastiness seems to be the norm of the internet world.

yinyang
There was a previous article on the upcoming releases that left Allison off its list also. I’m counting on her fireball energy to get her noticed when the CD is released, but I do wonder why she is often overlooked. Someone at 19 needs to step up the promotion for her, IMO.

I think the reason why she wasn’t mentioned in that article about upcoming releases is not because 19E has dropped the ball on promotion but because she hasn’t announced a drop date yet.

ETA: Shreena- Kris is writing songs by himself. We’ll see if any of them make the album though. Cook and Chris Daughtry had some success with that so it’s not out of the question.

ha! Edyta said exactly what I did when I heard about the Maks/Karina split…AWKward. And again, why workplace romances can be so dangerous. And even worse being friends with both and considering that both Maks and Karina seem like divas, that could be fun on the DWTS set.

My fav from this season is Kris, and in line with Kt_cle, I have pre-ordered his album because I want to give something back for the copy of BNS I nicked from the net. I NEVER before downloaded anything illegally (having a brother in the music business) but after checking out what was available on youtube, and liking it very much, I couldn’t help my self.

Unless too much of happy-go-lucky pop I will get Allison’s, love her rock voice! If I like the songs I will probably get some of them from Adam, not sure were he is going musically but I will most definitely check it out.

I will keep an eye out for what Megan will do also, like the tone of her voice. If she get something out I will be checking it out

Did not watch season 7 but purely based on some Youtube videos posted here I went ahead and downloaded David Cook’s album. It’s “OK” I guess but I definitely say ay to a live album!

lady
September 12, 2009 at 5:44 pm

Yes, Adam does write his own songs.

I can’t wait to hear the follow up to such lyrical genius as ‘Pop goes the camera’ .

I LOVED the lyrics to “Pop Goes The Camera”!

Adam is a pretty terrible writer.

He is??? I love Pop Goes the Camera!

He is??? I love Pop Goes the Camera!

me too, and Kiss and Tell.

I LOVED the lyrics to ‘Pop Goes The Camera’ !

And don’t forget Oh My Ra
“Oh my Ra it’s made of gold
How much love can one hold
Oh My Ra!”

Or I Got This
“Bendy bendy bangy bangy”

Adam may be a bad writer, but he’s a hilariously INTERESTING bad writer. No cliched, boring tripe from Adam. I actually like his stuff, in a lol oh you Adam way, even though I intellectually know it wouldn’t be a good idea for him to write too much for his album.

Let’s put it this way. I think Adam has really creative, vivid, colorful ideas in his writing. What he needs to work on is his presentation of them. Don’t make every line rhyme. Don’t make your songs too wordy– stick to simpler hooks. That kind of thing. He could be really good with some practice.

me too Ross. I didn’t like the nyt thing at all.:(.I love u too beckymd <3.awesome I her multiple exclamation marks.score !!!! lol HI adamaloha !!! valilac my parents are the pushy kind like work harder now instead of the long run,blah blah blah.they end me to EXTRA classes over the weekend and summer.idk why I'm gt,honors,honor roll ,straight a's tons of extra-curricular activities etc.shrugs.especially since this one is high school level.evil teacher that yells all the time.scary.we take practice sat is January.yuck.hate it but it's just an hour so somehow I survive.lol be then there's homework.idk apparently were local to one of the best schools in the country,impossible to get into ,etc.in other news thanks for the grape Popsicle.LOL .;)

I will buy Adam as soon as available album be single kris single and maybe 2 songs frm album Allison idk like 4 songs frm her album and then her single.danny probably nothing maybe one.matt probably not maybe one .anoop probably nothing.Lil probably nothing.Scott nothing.megan maybe one probably nothing.sarver probably nothing.

I’m sick of the New York Times referring to Kris as ‘aw shucks.’ 

Well golly gee willikers, whatever could be your problem with that phrase, Andy? And the whole Lowered Expectations thing for him…could we stop that now? He won, he’s talented, let’s expect things in line with those things.

alaadam
September 12, 2009 at 5:55 pm

Adam is a pretty terrible writer.

He is??? I love Pop Goes the Camera!

It is all a matter of taste and opinion but besides Pop goes the Camera I love Kiss and Tell and Crawl thru Fire..

Adam may be a bad writer, but he’s a hilariously INTERESTING bad writer.

Thankfully Adam himself has said he was a bad writer. Which, yeah.

I don’t want to predict doom and gloom. His album could be decent but I’m just trying to be realistic about the 19R/Idol product.

There is a fine line between being realistic and being pessimistic. There is nothing wrong with acknowledging reality while still hoping for the best outcome. In fact I would say it’s the only way to live. What’s the point of anticipating disaster, no matter how likely, when there’s nothing you can do to change it. Why not enjoy the hope of averting it.

A note worthy distinction between a fan’s outlook and that of a non-fan, is that the fan invariably has faith in his idol. Not necessarily blind faith, but faith that the non-fan lacks. Whether that faith is justified in the end or not depends on the believer, not the agnostic.

His reviews of plays that tried out in Boston were so constructively critical that directors and playwrights were eager for his opinion and input. He was very popular with readers, too. He said what he had to say without meanness, yet he was an entertaining writer. Too bad more critics can’t be like that.

I totally agree with this Ross. I think these days, alot of critics just go for the quick internet type blurb. The more snide/snarky/rude they are, the more internet interest. It’s sad really.

GeminiDolly
September 12, 2009 at 5:39 pm

Im a huge Adam fan, and will definately buy his album even if its the suckiest crap ever created.

I so want to laugh at you but I can’t cause I will be doing the same thing. I sure hope Adam’s album won’t be the suckiest crap ever created.

Adam is a pretty terrible writer.

I prefer to think of him as a potentially brilliant writer. Glass half full.

I will watch Adam and Allison and buy their albums but after I have a chance to hear songs. I will definitely go to see them in concerts.

I will be watching Matt too especially if he proves that he can be consistent. I would prefer him to sing uptempo, energetic jazz, instead of melancholic, soulful songs. He is great in improvisation and has a wonderful freedom in delivering the energetic music, but he lacks depth in the moment IMO. Maybe later it will change for me. I said right away after I heard his concert performance that I would go to see his solo concert, preferably small venue, but this true for any concerts. Sound is better in small venues.

I am interested to see how it will go for Megan. Despite many flaws she was original on the show IMO and something fresh was in her whole personality and presence. I see her in some alternative punk rock, or jazz, or some underground artsy sort of project. She has something intriguing and sweet about her, maybe it is her extraordinary beauty, maybe it is more than that.

I will buy Kris’s songs if they are interesting. I do expect him to become a respected musician, maybe a singer, maybe someone who works in music industry.

Squirrely
September 12, 2009 at 5:50 pm

There was a great critic in Boston for years, Elliot Norton. He was never harsh or snide, that I can recall. He was referred to as ‘The Dean Of Theatre Critics.’  His reviews of plays that tried out in Boston were so constructively critical that directors and playwrights were eager for his opinion and input. He was very popular with readers, too. He said what he had to say without meanness, yet he was an entertaining writer. Too bad more critics can’t be like that.

I would love that ‘“ but snark and nastiness seems to be the norm of the internet world.

Squirrely – that was where I was headed about reviews, but never quite got there, and it applies to print reviews as well. Unfortunately, many critics can’t write an entertaining review without being nasty. It appears to be a dying (if not dead) art. There are only a handful of critics whose opinion I truly respect these days.

The harsh reality is that nastiness is now the norm when criticizing art – at least in most of the reviews that I read.

It is all a matter of taste and opinion but besides Pop goes the Camera I love Kiss and Tell and Crawl thru Fire..

Me too! Listen to them every day.

I prefer to think of him as a potentially brilliant writer. Glass half full.

Me too, actually. See a few comments above. He’s just so creative. I mean, who thinks of writing a dance song to an Egyptian god? And who knows, maybe he’s already gotten a lot better at writing since those first songs. Who knows. But as of now I think he still needs some more practice.

Girlygirl

Thanks for your input re getting news on Adam (or the other Idols) when the tour ends. I guess I just hate facing reality! What am I going to do with myself until he re-surfaces? Guess I can clean out a closet or two!

I really do hope that he (or any of the Idols) doesn’t abandon Twitter and remembers that we NEED to hear from him/them. When you’ve got momentum going (re: the tour), don’t abandon it! Keep those fans in the palm of your hand! Even though his single will drop in October, that seems like a long time away, especially when there are no daily updates.

On another note – re: the poster for the movie 2012 – outside of this website, we haven’t heard anything else about it, i.e., in the media, etc., have we?? Is that strange or was that poster released in error by someone in the media? Anyone know anything? MJ?

Truthiness
And the whole Lowered Expectations thing for him’ ¦could we stop that now? He won, he’s talented, let’s expect things in line with those things.

Some may call the lack of inflated hype for Kris’s debut “lowered expectations” but I’m going to go with NYTimes and call it “reasonable”. And in line with most of the debuts from winners in the past. Also, I want to point out that his blurb did mention that he was working with top producers.

Let’s put it this way. I think Adam has really creative, vivid, colorful ideas in his writing. What he needs to work on is his presentation of them. Don’t make every line rhyme. Don’t make your songs too wordy’“ stick to simpler hooks. That kind of thing. He could be really good with some practice.

That’s pretty much what Adam said about his earlier songwriting attempts–that he needed to learn that less is sometimes more.

I find a few of his songs quite entertaining and listenable. “O My Ra”, however is not one of them

@jambajim: Rehearsing the VMA Pre-Show. How much would y’all pay me if I figured out a way to mention @KrisAllen4Real or @adamlambert live on the air?

LOL

I really like Adam’s lyrics buuuut….let’s just say he’s not the *best* songwriter evah!!! probably better with just cowrites.like Taylor swift even *i* can sing better than her but she’s REALLY catchy and the lyrics are nice too.yeah,nice.let’s go with that.;)

like the lyrics “she wears short skirts I wear t-shirts she’s cheer catain and I’m on the bleachers”… …are stuck in my head right now.love story was stuck my head for months so I had to give in and download it.btw my friends 4 yr.old sister sings love story.sooooo cute. But as much as A FRIGGIN love oh my ra the lyrics are never stuck in my head.oh wait…never mind.heh. so much 4 that post.lol.

I see her in some alternative punk rock, or jazz, or some underground artsy sort of project. She has something intriguing and sweet about her, maybe it is her extraordinary beauty, maybe it is more than that.

I thought that Megan said somewhere that she wanted to do alternative punk rock. I think that she could be very interesting in that role. I think that she was pushed into a role for the show, and is not comfortable with it. I’d love to hear the kind of music that she’d like to be doing, and hope that she’ll be successful.

On another note ‘“ re: the poster for the movie 2012 ‘“ outside of this website, we haven’t heard anything else about it, i.e., in the media, etc., have we?? Is that strange or was that poster released in error by someone in the media?

No, I don’t think it was an error. Several people have reported seeing the same poster in movie theaters.

This is too cute. For those who didn’t see this tweet yesterday:

thedavidcook: # I am honored to be the best man for the wedding of 2 of my closest friends this weekend. I just hope I don’t screw it up! ~D
about 21 hours ago from UberTwitter

# http://twitpic.com/hhvl7 – It’s a nice day for a wedding! ~D
38 minutes ago from TwitPic

awwwwww lol

Thanks Luv!

Ok, not to change the subject, but a random thought occurred to me while driving today. In an article, or maybe a twitter party, Matt stated that he couldn’t read music. So here’s my question for those more musically informed than I am: How important is reading music to writing/composing songs? How common is it for professional recording artists (especially those who play an instrument) to not be able to read music?

Yeah Allison NEEDS more promotion.(((hugs))) sunn:)LOL I love jim cantiello.when are the vma’s anyway??!!!! does Adam hve press today!??? Yay concert in an hr.emiemoemoemoemoemoemoemoemoemo

I find a few of his songs quite entertaining and listenable. ‘O My Ra’ , however is not one of them

Oh My Ra is one of my favorites.

I don’t think we can talk anymore.

thedavidcookhttp://twitpic.com/hhvl7 – It’s a nice day for a wedding! ~D
40 minutes ago from TwitPic

David Cook in a tux! His hair looks a bit messy, but he still looks goooood!

VMAs are tomorrow! With host Russell Brand!

He wasn’t so hot last year, but I think he’s learned his lesson. I rewatched his stand-up last night and he mentioned the VMAs and his sort of errors in judgment. Plus, him and Jordin Sparks together could be interesting.

I would love megan singing jazz.oh and btw there was A kris dan post the page b4 this.don’t kno the name but u rock!

thedavidcookhttp://twitpic.com/hhvl7 ‘“ It’s a nice day for a wedding! ~D
40 minutes ago from TwitPic

David Cook in a tux! His hair looks a bit messy, but he still looks goooood!

He looks nice, he got “The Godfather’ vibe going on there.

ETA: I don’t like the MTV award shows, but I will catch the opening to see Janet’s tribute to Michael.

THNX ALISON!!!!!!!!!!!!

Taylor Swift lyrics are cheesy as all get out but here’s the thing, every teenage girl will listen to the “she’s a cheerleader and I’m on the bleachers” line and go “OMG that is my life!” and immediately put that song on their myspace profiles.

I think Ne-yo is another artist who benefits from that sort of writing. Except it’s not so much “OMG I identify with the lyrics” but he sings a lot of “oh girl you’re so sexy, beautiful and independent, I used to be a pimp but you’re making me change my way” songs. And people eat that stuff up.

lol ita cilady:)

Heck, I’ve written songs, and I don’t read or write music at all. A tape recorder helps, though.

Matt (and Adam) will come up with stuff far, far superior to mine.

# http://twitpic.com/hhvl7 ‘“ It’s a nice day for a wedding! ~D
38 minutes ago from TwitPic

But is it a nice day for a White Wedding? (Whooooo!!)

sorry, couldn’t resist.

Oh and I do like Kiss and Tell (Fonzerelli version) and Pop Goes the Camera and Crawl Through Fire, but I think Adam and Kris and Allison could all use some help from some professional writers and producers to work with to hone their skills. Why not take advantage of working with people who have done well in the field and learn from them? Luckily all three of them seem to be very open to the idea of collaborating.

Oh and cilady ? it’s “she’s cheer captain and I’m on the bleachers” LOL sad I kno that or actually care so much……:)

Reminder:

Just finished going through all these threads. UGH. The person who started the tangent about fans is now in moderation. But all of you should have known better than to respond. That there are folks posting…knowing I’m going to delete later is very frustrating.

It looks like I’m going to be tightening up and rewriting the guidelines. So look for that in the near future.

A bit of confusion on my end….I hate the term “song writer” because it is so ambiguous about someone’s part in the birth of a song. Aren’t the correct terms lyricist and composer?

So, is the current term for someone who does both “songwriter”? And credits for the “songwriting” team can be extended to someone who just adds a phrase (see Jesse McCartney and Bleeding Love).

I don’t have a clue about any of the idols’ roles in the “songwriting”. Is Adam just a lyricist or does he compose music? Does Kris do both? How about the Davids or Daughtry? Back in the good old days you know who did what and in what order. Roger Waters usually penned all the words for Pink Floyd but it was David Gilmour who was the lead for most of the music. And didn’t Elton compose with Bernie doing the lyrics?

So, for those in the know…what part do the idols play in the songwriting?

Susan M
Sunn, I watched that clip. Fascinating. I’ve often been intrigued by similar phenomena but I had never heard this term. Now I’m loving it for a potential album name for *whispering* He Who Must Not Be Named Too Often, but shhh, let’s keep that on the down-low.

That’s a great idea! (Whispering) Black Swan would be a great name for the album. Someone should tweet it to him, in very hush hush and on the down low fashion.

Taylor Swift’s lyrcs are cheesy but they fit her.

#DavidCookRocks is trending on Twitter now. Yay!

How important is reading music to writing/composing songs? How common is it for professional recording artists (especially those who play an instrument) to not be able to read music?

Well, if you can play an instrument by ear you could be able to write music that way as well – you can always record it even if you cannot write down on a sheet. However, at some point I’d think that actually plotting down the notes/harmonies would be necessary if anyone else was to be involved – but I’m not a writer so I don’t know really. But I think being able to read music will always be an advantage. ETA: especially if something more complex is the goal

I wonder if Jive if going to go overseas with Allison first. This is based on what a fan talking to Alli’s mother said.

Confirmation from the U.S. Open…. David Archuleta is performing before the Women’s Finals, currently scheduled for Sunday, September 13 9:00 pm -11:00 pm Women’s Final on ESPN2….

David will be singing ”America the Beautiful”…… this is going to be awesome. Someone from the Open twittered after hearing him rehearse…

joked with the group that @davidarchie should be our soloist and we should call ourselves ”David Archupella”
6 mins ago from web

saw @davidarchie this morning at his rehearsal space. stood outside and could hear him rehearsing. boy can siiing!
7 mins ago from web

Congrats to David, and wishing him good luck on this great opportunity!

http://twitter.com/usopen

woooow David. Looks great! I wasn’t a big cook fan last yr.but I do like him and have that magic rainbow thing on my iPod.LOL.in addition to all my Adam and other season 8 idol pics saved in my iPod (about 1500:/) I have on e d.c.pic becuz it’s so awesome.if I was a d.c. Fan it would be an AWESOME wallpaper…

I am goig to miss the concerts when they end. Can’t wait for Adam’s cd too come out. If he has any music videos out for his songs I’ll most likely watch it. If any of the others have any music videos out I will most likely watch at least once. Whether it is on CMT or Vh1 that is usually how I find new songs to listen to. Which I haven’t done all summer. Thanks to this spot. I do have something nice to look forward to after the concerts are over. My first grand baby is going to be born sometime this month. I can’t wait to meet him.

But is it a nice day for a White Wedding? (Whooooo!!)

That was good. Heh

Adam is a pretty terrible writer. Kris is a mediocre writer. I’m glad both are cowriting, not writing directly for their albums.

I sorta agree. **ducks**. LOL. Adam’s not that good at it, though I’m sure he’d be good at crafting a whole package (looks, styles, sound) and knowing what songs fit him when he hears them. Kris’s album was alright, it showed promise, but he didn’t sound ready to write a hit album all by himself yet. Then again, Kris himself said that album was not his best and that he’s improved since then. So who knows! In any case Kris a quick study, so I bet he’ll be more prepared next album.

I don’t think any of them have ever come on Idol ready to write an entire album by themselves. They may have been ready to craft good indie material but they know nothing about writing hits…. what big labels look for, what radio will play, that kind of stuff.. save Daughtry and “Home”. Much less producing it quickly. I think the co-writing with pros is one of the most beneficial parts of the process for these guys.

Heck, I’ve written songs, and I don’t read or write music at all. A tape recorder helps, though.

Haha this! I think reading and writing music, and just basically having a knowledge of music theory, basic chords and structures and rhythms and all that, can really help in writing music. But the soul of music–what makes a song inexplicably catchy or beautiful– isn’t in that. I’m sure your songs are great! ^.^

Truthiness
And the whole Lowered Expectations thing for him’ ¦could we stop that now? He won, he’s talented, let’s expect things in line with those things.

Some may call the lack of inflated hype for Kris’s debut ‘lowered expectations’  but I’m going to go with NYTimes and call it ‘reasonable’ . And in line with most of the debuts from winners in the past. Also, I want to point out that his blurb did mention that he was working with top producers.

Well the Lowered Expectations was mostly a reference to the Mad Tv sketches, but f’realsish, I find this idea of “reasonable expectations,” to be annoying because he won. I expect him to have the most sales of the year. Not to mention he is very talented, hence his winning, so yeah I would like to see someone expect something talented musically from Kris. He plays three instruments, has a nice voice and has a huge audience from AI and will get a big push from 19/Jive, so why can’t we expect him to be the top seller with a good product again?

I mean other than that all things 19Evil are mostly blandized crap of the damned. And why isn’t Kris expected to buck that trend, as Adam in his review blurb? Kris beat the machine right, as the underdog winner? Well than let’s see some beating the machine.

Donorschoose.org/adamlambert is over 127,000 – ontd_ai is amazing. I wonder when the chat will be held after the contest is over? So how many signed pictures will be giving out? I’m sure ontd_ai has a huge member count.

Sorry mj:(

The signed pictures are to the ten highest individual DONORS, regardless of fan group. Ontd_ai has 5,000 members but only a select group will be allowed into the chat, I think, in order to keep it sane.

Interesting interview with Danny, Matt, Lil, Megan and Scott’ ¦

http://www.realitywanted.com/newsitem/2412-american-idol-season-8-exclusive-interview-with-megan-joy-lil-rounds-scott-macintyre-matt-giraud-and-danny-gokey

I don’t think Adam is a terrible writer. I like “Pop Goes the Camera” , “Glamorize”, CTF, and “Kiss and Tell”. They are all clever, catchy songs IMO.

tinawina.great avatar btw .LOL .:) perry the platyus…I’m sure there some deeper meanng yes? No? okay then.I_0.congratulations krickette….

thedavidcookhttp://twitpic.com/hhvl7 ‘“ It’s a nice day for a wedding! ~D
40 minutes ago from TwitPic

I can’t believe he tweeted from there LOL People were begging him to twitpic a shot of him in his tux..I didn’t think he would! Ha!

I don’t have a clue about any of the idols’ roles in the ‘songwriting’ . Is Adam just a lyricist or does he compose music?

I think I read somewhere that Adam was going to partcipate in both.

Then again, Kris himself said that album was not his best and that he’s improved since then.

I have to admit, Brand New Shoes was a bit of an acquired taste. At first sampling, my attention wasn’t grabbed. Most of the songs are missing that big hook that radio hits have. Since it was a free download, there was no risk. After a few listens, it really grew on me – especially 4 or 5 tracks. Given that this was Kris’s first songwriting effort, and was done a few years ago, I certainly would expect growth and improvement since then. Add to that the influence of the mentors and collaborators he’s worked with in the last year, and I expect even more. I’m hoping that he will have writing or co-writing credits on most of the tracks on the new album. He’s indicated that he is doing some solo writing, so I really hope a couple of those make the cut – those would be the tracks I could compare to BNS to measure growth and improvement.

I think Adam has the potential to be a really good songwriter, as many of his ideas and images are really creative and interesting. But simply based on what I’ve heard of their original stuff pre-Idol, Kris may be the more natural songwriter of the two AT THIS MOMENT IN TIME. Even though Kris dismisses it as immature and not great, I think several of his songs on BNS are really good, both in melody and lyrically. BNS may be a little too laid back/mellow for some people’s taste, but there is still a lot of potential there. I like several of Adam’s pre-Idol songs that he’s written as well, but IMO his songs comes off as a little too forced at times, trying to rhyme the lyrics too much and sometimes a little too wordy or overly complicated. The ideas in what I’ve heard of his original songs are generally good, the execution is a little spotty. But that’s to be expected, gien his relative lack of experience.

But this is only my opinion. YMMV

yay danny’s not talking about twang anymore.and scott is doing billy joel? Ohhhhh Scott….:/

Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder seemed to do just fine without being able to read music. Scott and Matt don’t read either I think. But imo I think the learning curve may be steeper for people who can’t read (at first).

Truthiness
so why can’t we expect him to be the top seller with a good product again?

No one’s stopping you from doing so.

I find this idea of ‘reasonable expectations,’  to be annoying because he won. I expect him to have the most sales of the year. Not to mention he is very talented, hence his winning, so yeah I would like to see someone expect something talented musically from Kris. He plays three instruments, has a nice voice and has a huge audience from AI and will get a big push from 19/Jive, so why can’t we expect him to be the top seller with a good product again?

Adam has more buzz and attention so the expectations for him are higher. I don’t think it’s anything to be mad about really. It comes with the territory when you get that kind of buzz. Kris’ win gets the “Really? he won?!!” reaction a lot, so now he seems like the underdog to those who pay attention to such things. It will all work itself out in the Fall regardless.

tinawina.great avatar btw .LOL .:) perry the platyus’ ¦I’m sure there some deeper meanng yes? No? okay then

Ha! Thanks. No deeper meaning. Phineas and Ferb is my favorite cartoon, and Perry (along with Jeremy’s little sister Suzy and Ferb) are my favorite characters on that show.

Tess

Don’t know about Adam or the others, but I’m pretty sure Kris wrote all the lyrics and the music on BNS all by himself, no co-writers at all.

Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder seemed to do just fine without being able to read music.

Good point, hadn’t thought of them

Luv:
Algebra/Essay Writing (?)

Sorry to backtrack but I love the “what CD would you buy” question…

I’d take a really good look at:
Anoop (jazz)(the new Michael Buble)(don’t like R&B)
Matt (jazz)(whatever)
Danny (loved his rat pack night)(don’t like country or gospel)

I’ll buy:
Allison (rock)(whatever)
Kris (whatever)
Adam (whatever)

But I wouldn’t be looking at any of these guys if MSNBC hadn’t mentioned Adam Lambert soooo many times.

Because I’ve only seen three AI episodes:
*the finale where brunette with the big voice beat sweet curly haired guy with the softer voice (seemed fair)
*the finale where bland blond girl beat rocker guy (seemed a travesty)
*the finale where Kris beat Adam (??? … but then I looked further)

I looked further on Youtube and the AI site and this Korean site where the videos included the judges comments and lots of other places

and now I’d take a serious look at CD’s by Kelly (C), Fantasia, David (A), David (C) and all of the above.

So, they should all thank MSNBC (and Adam) for any sales that they make to me.

fun thread today… sorry I missed it

mischa
September 12, 2009 at 6:38 pm

Interesting interview with Danny, Matt, Lil, Megan and Scott’ ¦

http://www.realitywanted.com/newsitem/2412-american-idol-season-8-exclusive-interview-with-megan-joy-lil-rounds-scott-macintyre-matt-giraud-and-danny-gokey

Thanks for this article. One of the better interviews. IMHO

Isn’t there a piano “type writer” made expressly for people who don’t read music (or see) which types the notes on a music bar as they are played? Or am I remembering trivial things that I just made up?

tinawina
September 12, 2009 at 6:33 pm
Adam is a pretty terrible writer. Kris is a mediocre writer. I’m glad both are cowriting, not writing directly for their albums.

I sorta agree. **ducks**.

You can’t duck. Your avatar is a duck. You are a duck, not an avatar. (this doesn’t work as well without the macros, so just imagine it here). Oh and I don’t think Adam is terrible, he’s only co-written a few songs and most are very dance-y (with a good beat, I can dance to). And as I can get into that scene, for that scene, it’s fine. And given the popularity of talking about disco sticks, Boom Boom Pow, blaming it on the alcohol and the aforementioned cheerleaders and bleachers, really? are ‘good,’ lyrics really that important? Well to be popular, no. To be good, yes.

So isn’t the question really not about lyrics, per se, but about hooks? I mean when one talks about becoming popular. Ideally one would have both, but than that’s what makes the difference between a song that popular and sucks, and a song that is good and happens to be popular. At least imho.

How important is reading music to writing/composing songs? How common is it for professional recording artists (especially those who play an instrument) to not be able to read music?

It hasn’t hurt Paul McCartney that he can’t read or write music. He seems to have had a few hits to his name.

Isn’t there a piano ‘type writer’  made expressly for people who don’t read music (or see) which types the notes on a music bar as they are played? Or am I remembering trivial things that I just made up?

I don’t know if such a thing exists, but now that you mention it there are probably computer programs that do that when you hook up a keyboard…

My daughter has had many accolades for her poetry and writing ability. In the 6th grade, her health teacher was about to write her up for plagiarism…until he spoke with her English teacher who mentioned that she was, indeed, an amazing writer. She’s now at university on a full scholarship. Yet, she says she could never write lyrics to songs. She doesn’t rhyme, nor does she ever want to.

I guess what I’m trying to say is that there’s a special skill to writing songs. If you do both lyrics and music, IMO it’s an even more special skill. Not everybody can do one or even both. While I’m partial to songwriters, I can so understand that not everybody can do it. Maybe it’s because I am so partial to songwriters that I forgive their typically non-perfect voices. It just happens so rarely. You can have a voice or you can have the songwriting skills. They don’t have to meld. For me, the only “close to perfect” songwriter with a “close to perfect” voice has been Joni Mitchell. I’d have to say that her lyrics were better than her music.

Julie Waldorf tweeted that she will be styling be David.. still unclear if it’s for the U.S. Open, the Alma’s on the 18th, or both.. either way, looks like he’s going to be in very good hands!

juliewaldorf Styling for David Archuletta from (my favorite show) American Idol!!!

about 4 hours ago from TwitterBerry

A little about Julie Waldorf from her Web site:

Julie Waldorf has been a fashion stylist for over a decade and brings an expert point of view to her work. With a Bachelors Degree in Fashion Design & Merchandising from the Paris American Academy of Design in France and the American College in Los Angeles, California. Julie has an extensive background in wardrobe styling for television, editorial, and commercials. Her experience in working with celebrities such as American Idol host Ryan Seacrest, George Clooney, Jessica Alba, Adam Sandler, Magic Johnson, Samuel L. Jackson, Bill Maher, Usher, Heidi Klum, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Pamela Anderson, Jennifer Garner and many more has given her ability to artfully create a distinctive wardrobe for any client and any occasion.

http://www.juliewaldorf.net/juliewaldorf_005.htm

Scott and Matt don’t read either I think.

You are right about Matt, but Scott has studied music for years.

On another note, does anyone know what is up with Josiah Leming? He tweeted a few weeks back that he’s going on tour with Better than Ezra.

The dates/locations on his myspace match some of BtE’s dates, but not all of them. They start touring this week, so whatever the logistics, I sure hope it’s a successful tour.

Also, Josiah has been working on his CD for a long time. But now, he is tweeting about an upcoming EP — Punk Ass Rain. I found it on Amazon, with a release date of Sept 15. So, it looks like a big week for Josiah, but it’s hard to find real information about him. He doesn’t show up on Warner’s list of artists…..Hope he hasn’t been dropped.

Punk Ass Rain is listed as being released by Reprise, which is a Warner subsidiary, I think.

Tess Now we have MIDI. Although I have yet to come across a program that will produce readable notation from someone who isn’t a robot (though Digital Performer comes close). But that’s what the Quantize feature is for.

I think reading and writing music, and just basically having a knowledge of music theory, basic chords and structures and rhythms and all that, can really help in writing music. But the soul of music’“what makes a song inexplicably catchy or beautiful’“ isn’t in that. I’m sure your songs are great! ^.^

Haha.. thanks, Sherena. my stuff’s not great, but I have brothers and sisters who CAN read music and none has attempted to write a song. They do, however, help me out by transcribing what I’ve created to sheet music.

What you’re saying about writing music is true… it’s the understanding of it, not necessarily the technical aspects– that make a song good or bad.

which is why I also agree with yinyang:

It hasn’t hurt Paul McCartney that he can’t read or write music. He seems to have had a few hits to his name.

Truthiness
so why can’t we expect him to be the top seller with a good product again?

No one’s stopping you from doing so.

Cool! when do I start controlling the media to start this there as well?

Yeah newfan it’s like SAT preparation.sigh.but megan’s starting a band??!! Hmmmmmm……………..thnx mischa.anyway kris fans this is 4 u(and me heh)

KRIS’s ALBUM DROPS IN 65 DAYS 1566 HOURS 93968 MINUTES AND5638094 SECONDS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! or 65 days 6 hours 8 minutes and 14 seconds!!!!!!!!!!!!!( when I checked)

Yup, I don’t know what it even matters if you can read and write music. If you’re a studio musician or technician, you better read music. If you are a creative, there’s many peeps/programs who will do it for you. For me, it’s actually a non-question.

You can’t duck. Your avatar is a duck. You are a duck, not an avatar.

Hey! Perry is a PLATYPUS! Get it right. LOL.

So isn’t the question really not about lyrics, per se, but about hooks? I mean when one talks about becoming popular. Ideally one would have both, but than that’s what makes the difference between a song that popular and sucks, and a song that is good and happens to be popular.

Okay, but I didn’t think he wrote great hooks either. I can’t remember how any of those songs go, and I’ve heard them. YMMV on that one.

He may morph into a good songwriter (or hook writer, or both) – maybe even on this album. I just haven’t heard the evidence yet. BUT we do know that he’s very good at picking material that works for his voice and vibe, because he did it on Idol. And he was adept at working with others to develop new arrangements. So he has just as much shot as any of them to make a decent album.

From the RealityWanted interview:

Matt: I’m going towards Jamie Cullum, James Morrison type stuff.

Interesting, I hadn’t heard those names from him before. Cool

72 DAYS 6 HOURS AND 0 MINUTES AND SECONDS UNTIL ADAM’S ALBUM DROPS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! eeeeeeekkk crying flailing shaking,everything

or 72 days 1733
hours 164039 minutes and 6242366 seconds!!!!!!!!!!!

OMA IM DEAD!!!!!

Idol fans don’t realize how important the songs are because all they hear are the great classic songs they do on Idol. Get ready to be horrified. Because the same hacks who did all the past Idol albums will be doing Adam’s, Kris’ and Allison’s.

Yet, I think Daughtry’s first album was a good one.

As a crazy Adam fan, I realize so far he’s just a guy that sang really well other people’s songs. But I just don’t assume his album is going to be crapy, just because he’s recording with 19E. I hope his album will be something I will like, though I don’t expect it to be genius, because he had like two seconds to record it, while on tour at the same time. The expectations on his album are insane. Noboby should be expected to make a record that’s the work of the “second coming of Elvis” (for the record, I think the comparisons between Adam and Elvis are just stupid) in such a small amount of time.

And now I have Pop Goes the Camera earworm. Help me someone.

It’s def not necessary to be able to read music to be an amazing writer or musician. My husband writes, plays guitar (and piano and other instruments to some degree) and sings and is never limited by his inability to read music. He just records stuff or sings stuff he wants others to play. If you can hear what you want in your head, you can write by playing it. (if you can play it, of course. lol) Matt is incredibly gifted… he won’t be limited in the least.

adamaloha
September 12, 2009 at 7:07 pm
And now I have Pop Goes the Camera earworm. Help me someone.

LOL! Resistance is futile, give in to the worm. (mixed scifi metaphor, to remove any doubt as to my geekiness)

or 72 days 1733
hours 164039 minutes and 6242366 seconds!!!!!!!!!!!

Luv – the former middle-school math teacher in me loves that you took the time to do the conversions. And thanks for posting the Kris countdown… you’ve saved me the time of figuring it out for myself

Re song writing: it’s not well defined. It can mean anything that the copyright holders want it to mean, including just paying money for a song writing credit.

But if you think how, organically, a song might come about, it’s easier to see how credits can be distributed. An idea of a melody has to take shape and an idea of a lyric. They can come whole, or in pieces. If in pieces, they get changed to fit each other. An idea of rhythm and harmony has to be created. It all probably gets reworked as it comes together. Now, that can all happen in one brain, but it’s not uncommon, say, in a band, for it to get created somewhat on the fly. Someone comes in with part of an idea, or even a tune and lyric. But the band fleshes out all the harmony, rhythm, instrumental solos, etc. So everyone gets a credit.

One guy, like Kris or Adam, working with another song writer, is probably contributing ideas, some lyrics and certainly playing with the melody. And since it’s the style now for all singers to be songwriters, and these are the guys whose names are on the project, they’ll be called song writers no matter how big or small their contribution. It might be no more than their contribution to the reworking of their Idol competition performances. But since now they’re the name on the project and the songs aren’t already out there famous, it counts as song writing.

In my mind, the biggest thing they need is a good producer: someone with good taste, a good ear for new songs, a good understanding of what makes the artist in question interesting, and balls to tell said artist to stfu when necessary and get with the program. If the overall sound and production is good, they can survive a few banal lyrics. Look at “Slow Ride” on the tour. Everyone just about enjoys that number and it’s not because of the great tune or fascinating lyrics. It’s the groove, the riffing, the delivery. Flip side, bad production can sink even terrific songs. It’s why so many music lovers would rather slit their wrists than watch Idol. So, a few non-cringe-inducing songs, all with good production, and in a genre that has a reasonably large buying public. And, for their sakes, pretend the Idol wrote them, bless their hearts.

leeaundra, I was the one who posted about Elliot Norton, the critic, not Squirelly.

Hey! Perry is a PLATYPUS! Get it right. LOL.

This didn’t work with my joke, therefore I reject it.

Well I don’t know if you like dance type music, but I do and some electronic dance type songs have been popular lately, and given both those things, I thought that Adam did a reasonable job at creating some decent dance-ish songs with some decent enough hooks with http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f7vDziPv964 and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QoKm9nvP-D0 But his production values weren’t great and with dance/electronica, that matters, I think even more than some other genres.

Though again, Adam himself has said he needs help with his lyrics and good hooks and is working with people (RedOne, Max Martin, Linda Perry) who have managed to at least one of those two things at a time. Just like Kris has said that he realizes that BNS isn’t great (it isn’t) and that he looks forward to working with people to hone his great natural talents (which are obvious on BNS) and create some good songs.

Of course both of them are idiots! (insert Ren voice here) for thinking that 19Evil will let too many good songs slip through their spindling, mutilating, bending Crap-izer!machine of Doom (doom doom).

Super late to the party, but just wanted to let fadetowhite know that s/he is not alone. I too scratch my head when I hear people talking about buying albums sound unheard just because of The Voice. I have never bought an album because of a voice (maybe a song — IDK, I honestly don’t remember) but I have to like the music first (i.e., the tunes themselves) and the vibe of the music/lyrics have to resonate with me in some way. If the voice sucks (or sounds unpleasant to me) that can ruin a perfectly good song, but I don’t need the bestest, purest voice in order to enjoy a very well written song. But I surely wouldn’t buy an album full of showtunes just because someone’s got a great voice. *shudder* So, yeah, the AI fandom focus on The Voice is as bizarro to me as it seems it is to you.

For instance, I love Carrie Underwood and think she’s got a great voice and, from all I’ve seen, she seems like a cool lady. Have lots of feelings of goodwill towards her, but I still have not bought a single album or track nor do I plan on buying her next album or even bothering to click on the link to her newest single. Why not you ask? Because I really just don’t get country at all and at this point have given up trying. She will be successful with or without my patronage and I’d rather just look at her looking pretty in all those magazines. Heh.

me too keel except I have lots of carrie.kt_cle nope I got it frm this website.it the weekend I’m not going to do more math then I have to!!!: D

sunn exactly what I was about to post:)

He plays three instruments, has a nice voice and has a huge audience from AI and will get a big push from 19/Jive, so why can’t we expect him to be the top seller with a good product again?

Totally fair question, Truthiness. I agree with you.

He’s the winner, got the most votes, so he should have the most sales. I don’t buy the twisted logic of other arguments.

Luv

ISEE or SAT? Me thinks that MCAT, LSAT, GMAT, GSE are just around the corner
except that you have far too many more interesting distractions. Fess up now. Are you trying to use your Ipod while doing multiple choice questions?

Sorry, won’t bring up the subject of school again. It’s the weekend ……………..

Sunn: LOL! Resistance is futile, give in to the worm. (mixed scifi metaphor, to remove any doubt as to my geekiness)

Yes, but does it look good in a skin-tight uniform?

ross
September 12, 2009 at 7:17 pm

leeaundra, I was the one who posted about Elliott Norton, not Squirelly.
She just wrote a response that you also quoted.

I knew that ross, Squirelly’s post was just faster to quote. I understand your point. Good critics are hard to find these days.

Keel and Fadetowhite:

Yep, it’s the VOICE.

Didn’t Kris write “Wastin’ Time?” I loved that and downloaded it to my Ipod. It had a bit of a Latin flavor to it.

How about the Davids or Daughtry?

Well, coincidentally, David Cook answered this question in a recent interview — he answered about himself, this is, not anyone else. Heh. Anyway, he said he heard and put down the music first. Only then did he come up with lyrics to fit the tune.

I too scratch my head when I hear people talking about buying albums sound unheard just because of The Voice.

Have you ever heard of Celtic Woman? Five gorgeous females Voices and I bought their album filled with both classic and obscure Irish songs just to hear their sound. Lovely.

Buying an album by the VOICE without actually hearing it isn’t so big a risk. You forfeit, what, a few lattes from Starbucks, a cinema movie with eats, an inexpensive meal on the town … We must take big risks and live dangerously sometimes.

HoppersSkippersMiners: Yes, but does it look good in a skin-tight uniform?

Or bare chested in a castle on a desert planet? (James McCavoy in Dune is just Yummy)

Look at ‘Slow Ride’  on the tour. Everyone just about enjoys that number and it’s not because of the great tune or fascinating lyrics. It’s the groove, the riffing, the delivery.

Brilliant point, webster!!

I made the case about WLL before that it is NOT a great example of songwriting profundity. It is a high-energy, sexually charged song that showcases exceptional rock vocals and lead guitar. “Slow Ride” is another example of pulsating rhythm that allows for a ton of improvisation. See, the singer CAN make the song.

And about Adam’s songwriting skills, as a professional writer who has been through BRUTAL academic programs where they didn’t know when to nurture and when to critique, having someone’s embryonic efforts held up to professional scrutiny has ruined more potentially brilliant artists than we will ever know about.

I would NEVER brand anyone’s early efforts as terrible. It’s a process of growth that (almost) every creative goes through. I say almost, because there are prodigies out there, but they are a rarity and usually they have just accelerated their learning curve.

And unfortunately, some fledgling efforts make it to a public forum and are held up to the scrutiny of established, polished professionals. The effect can silence a talented voice forever.

He plays three instruments, has a nice voice and has a huge audience from AI and will get a big push from 19/Jive, so why can’t we expect him to be the top seller with a good product again?

Totally fair question, Truthiness. I agree with you.

He’s the winner, got the most votes, so he should have the most sales. I don’t buy the twisted logic of other arguments.

I expect Kris to sell the most. He won. He got the most votes. He should sell the most.

As for who is talked about and generates the most hype, that’s another issue altogether. If the most buzz-worthy contestant doesn’t win why would you expect that person to sell more?

I mean other than that all things 19Evil are mostly blandized crap of the damned. And why isn’t Kris expected to buck that trend, as Adam in his review blurb? Kris beat the machine right, as the underdog winner? Well than let’s see some beating the machine.

Kris is not considered to be one of the most talented of the top ten and I’m not just talking about Adam. A lot of people think Kris is less talented that Danny, Allison, and even Matt. Just because he won doesn’t mean a thing because we all know that winning isn’t always about who is the most talented.

Newfan I think it’s sat.which isn’t for like 4 or 5 yrs. The class is mostly for getting into this local high school that’s one of the best in the country .specializes in math and science(whennim good at English-greeeeat) and like impossible to get into……:/

Well I don’t know if you like dance type music, but I do and some electronic dance type songs have been popular lately, and given both those things, I thought that Adam did a reasonable job at creating some decent dance-ish songs with some decent enough hooks

I do like dance. I like some of everything really. But the best dance stuff out right now is not only super catchy, but also has the artist’s personality really infused into the sound. Adam’s early stuff fit in a little too much if you ask me. It could have been anyone doing that kind of thing singing it. And the hooks were not nearly earwormy enough for me. But I do think he had the right idea of what would work with his sound and feel. He just needed more polish and better crafted songs.

Of course both of them are idiots! (insert Ren voice here) for thinking that 19Evil will let too many good songs slip through their spindling, mutilating, bending Crap-izer!machine of Doom (doom doom).

LMAO! I feel kinda partly responsible for the pessimism since I was one of the people early on emphasizing 19R’s track record with promising talent. But really while I think it’s hard for idol albums to be great, I do believe they can certainly get into the realm of decent, even good with some luck. I buy a lot of music and most albums, even non-idol ones, aren’t masterpieces anyway IMO. To me if any album has a handful of really great songs and the rest are mostly okay to good with one or two clunkers then it’s a decent album. In other words, if I don’t have to hit the skip button more than a couple of times when listening to the record I’m satisfied. Idols can pull that off with some luck. A few of them have in the past. I think Kradison can do at least that, fingers crossed.

The problem with 19 isn’t that the songs will be all be horrible – though that could happen – but that they might be safer than what one would like IMO. They tend to pick songs that sound like stuff that already hit. Part of that is because they are looking to make a collection of hits rather than an album of songs I think. But part of that is also because people aren’t necessarily writing for the idols as much as they are combing through their old songbooks to see if they have anything that fits some description the label sent out. So the material isn’t really crafted to the artist per se, not usually. The albums ends up sounding blander and more generic than one would hope for. Even if the songs themselves aren’t bad. Does that make sense?

As for who is talked about and generates the most hype, that’s another issue altogether. If the most buzz-worthy contestant doesn’t win why would you expect that person to sell more?

Because the buzz says he’s the “real” star and he has the hot producers and the magazine covers and the more rabid fanbase. So the expectations shift to Adam. The buzz comes with good stuff (attention) and bad stuff (expectations). That’s the way it always has been. And since Idol has produced winners who got outsold by lower placing contestants in the past, it is no longer a done deal that the winner “should” sell more.

Now, I’m not saying Kris will fail to outsell Adam. There’s no way to reasonably guess without hearing material and/or seeing the promo that is planned. If anything I’d bet they’ll open about the same. But I am saying that the expectations rumbling around Adam out there are to be expected since he has the high level chatter right now.

lyndseyparkerRT @Primetimeemmys: Art Direction variety, music, or non fiction programming “American Idol” <– YAAAAY!!!

Which episode was that?

Are people talking about Adam not able to read music? Has he said so? Just because he doesn’t play a musical instrument doesn’t mean he can’t read music. He has taken many years of voice lessons. He could have been taught to read music during those years.

very insightful and wise words susan m… i agree 100 per cent that the singer can absolutely sell a song – let’s face it… there are lots of songs that if you just went by the lyrics alone read ”cheesy” as heck… match them with the right musical arrangement, and the right singer, and you can have a hit… whitney houston’s ”the greatest love of all” is one example of what many consider cliched and cheesy lyrics… but oh boy, her vocal delivery, the sheer power in her voice, and her ability to know when to belt and when to use restraint is what ”sold” that song to millions, and helped secure her legacy… yep, the voice matters, for me anyway…

Luv
You will do great but don’t give up on the English. We here believe that you have a special aptitude in that department. I was worried though, SAT would mean that you would have (or would be) skipping 3 or 4 grades. And that can have limited fun value. See you at the concert.

Kris is not considered to be one of the most talented of the top ten and I’m not just talking about Adam. A lot of people think Kris is less talented that Danny, Allison, and even Matt. Just because he won doesn’t mean a thing because we all know that winning isn’t always about who is the most talented.

The idea of talent is subjective and effectively moot as the season is waaay, waaay, waaaaaay over. Kris won, therefore his combination of talent, and personal charisma whatever, did in fact win and is valid as such. And I do for the record, think he’s a genuinely talented guy. Therefore it is unreasonable of us not to expect him to do the best, sorry NYT reviewer blurb person.

I feel kinda partly responsible for the pessimism since I was one of the people early on emphasizing 19R’s track record with promising talent.

Don’t feel responsible. I’m glad you’re here to help me be a fellow prophetess of 19Evil Doom! (doom doom) because I have dealt with Idol winners and contestants work in the past before this blog and yeah, what a bunch of car-rap! And no offense, David Cook didn’t escape it and though I didn’t really watch the last 3 seasons, I was sent clips of DC and I liked him and Jason Castro (same deal, though I liked DC more) , but DC’s album is just pretty terrible for me. He’s much cooler live and as I’ve said before (will say again) I want material worthy of his talent.

I actually liked the NYT blurb for Adam. Maybe it’s because I like burlesque and the idea of not being bland, but it works for me. It was better than the Kris write-up, but I don’t get the underdog analogy. Does that sort of thing work off the show? Works as a narrative in American Idol, but seems very odd in the pop world where hype and buzz are king.

The problem with 19 isn’t that the songs will be all be horrible ‘“ though that could happen ‘“ but that they might be safer than what one would like IMO. They tend to pick songs that sound like stuff that already hit. Part of that is because they are looking to make a collection of hits rather than an album of songs I think. But part of that is also because people aren’t necessarily writing for the idols as much as they are combing through their old songbooks to see if they have anything that fits some description the label sent out. So the material isn’t really crafted to the artist per se, not usually. The albums ends up sounding blander and more generic than one would hope for. Even if the songs themselves aren’t bad. Does that make sense?

No, that makes sense to me. And the formulaic aspect really is the problem with a lot of the Idol artists, not complete suckitude. Following the formula and picking songs that were generic tend to lead to blandness, not badness. At least, imo.

And I am with you on albums I buy. It’s rare that I have CDs that don’t have a song-that-gets-skipped. Granted, I stopped buying CDs, so there are now songs that don’t make my playlist from albums now. With vinyl, I listen to it anyway.

Adam has more buzz and attention so the expectations for him are higher. I don’t think it’s anything to be mad about really. It comes with the territory when you get that kind of buzz. Kris’ win gets the ‘Really? he won?!!’  reaction a lot, so now he seems like the underdog to those who pay attention to such things. It will all work itself out in the Fall regardless.

It’s funny, but I don’t know anyone who watches AI, but doesn’t know that Kris won, and I don’t know anyone who doesn’t watch the show who knows or cares about who either Kris or Adam is. I think sometimes it’s easy to forget that those who post on message boards don’t represent the majority.

That being said, I think there were actually some good points raised in the NY Times blurbs, the expectations for Kris aren’t low, they are reasonable, on the other hand, based on what some online posters have said, the expectations for Adam are ridiculous; I’d go back to my statement about both of these people being new artists, and nobody outside of the idol fandom really knowing what they have to offer. Neither is going to be a success if they don’t connect with the vast majority of people who don’t watch the show, or who don’t obsess about it on internet message boards.

Buying an album by the VOICE without actually hearing it isn’t so big a risk.

Well, in this day and age, there’s no need to take a risk in the first place. Most albums are leaked before release anyway or you can find them in other, erm, places so you can preview the content. I myself always listen to at least 4 or 5 songs before I ever buy/download an entire album. (Yup, I’m still an album buyer, with an emphasis on buyer. I’d probably break out in hives if I ever downloaded for free stuff that was available for sale.) I am not saying that a great voice (well, acutally it’s mostly a great interpretation) won’t raise a so-so song into a very good song, but there’s has to be some hook or something underlying the thing for me to pay attention. For example, I am primarily a rock fan but I love me song Lady Gaga too — but that’s because the songs are quite well done. (But for what it’s worth, I tend to buy rock albums and download dance/poppy singles.

I just woke up from a nap, but is it too late to add that Lionel Richie said He and Michael Jackson also don’t read and write music. I saw him said this on those weeks after MJ pass away.

babybelle I see that recation in real life…

On balance, I like David Cook’s CD…. I just wanted to say that.

I do like dance. I like some of everything really. But the best dance stuff out right now is not only super catchy, but also has the artist’s personality really infused into the sound. Adam’s early stuff fit in a little too much if you ask me. It could have been anyone doing that kind of thing singing it. And the hooks were not nearly earwormy enough for me. But I do think he had the right idea of what would work with his sound and feel. He just needed more polish and better crafted songs.

If Adam really go for the dance route, I can’t wait to see how he will doing.
Dance’s seems to dominate by sexy women and I was never sure how much it is the sound that sell them and how much is just their appeal to the male population.

@Primetimeemmys Outstanding Chorgaphy Tyce Diorio for So You Think You Can Dance

Nothing against Kris, but I think he contributes to the whole “diminished expectations” thing. I just listened to some cuts from Brand New Shoes and I like them, I can definitely imagine them on the radio. I hadn’t listened to any of them before, since Kris had said that BNS basically sucked (not his exact words). I think he needs to be less self-effacing, as “endearing” as some of his fans find it.

I disagree justschool me I like that about him.I like davids album too sassycatz.congratulations tyce-was it that cancer thing? Ewwwwwwww GROSS.

BestAI
September 12, 2009 at 7:58 pm
“Are people talking about Adam not able to read music? Has he said so? Just because he doesn’t play a musical instrument doesn’t mean he can’t read music. He has taken many years of voice lessons. He could have been taught to read music during those years”

No, we were talking about Matt Giraud not reading music.

And no offense, David Cook didn’t escape it and though I didn’t really watch the last 3 seasons, I was sent clips of DC and I liked him and Jason Castro (same deal, though I liked DC more) , but DC’s album is just pretty terrible for me.

No offense taken, though I clearly liked the album a lot more than you did. But hey, that’s the way these things go. I also think Blake Lewis’ album was pretty decent. Fanny, Archie, and Kelly’s were spotty but showed off their promise well. And while they are not my thing, I think both Daughtry and Carrie have millions of fans who liked their debuts just fine. So I think a decent debut product is a possibility.

If Adam really go for the dance route, I can’t wait to see how he will doing.

You and me both. I think the electronic sounds are a perfect fit for his voice and vibe, but I think he can take that several ways. I think his music needs to lean towards a fusion of different genres. But I have no idea how he will play to the general public, so it will be something to watch!

It’s funny, but I don’t know anyone who watches AI, but doesn’t know that Kris won, and I don’t know anyone who doesn’t watch the show who knows or cares about who either Kris or Adam is.

I didn’t mean it like that LOL. More like people couldn’t believe Kris actually won, not like they didn’t know he won. Heh.

On balance, I like David Cook’s CD’ ¦. I just wanted to say that.

I wish I did. DC is cool, from the clips I saw (I didn’t watch the season) he was cool, he is high-sterical in interviews, Twitter, whatever. He’s a charming guy. I was rooting for him in a TWoP and other board non-David A. kind of way and happy he won. And let me say, I’ve come to like David A. as a person since then (still don’t like his music and his mauling Lennon’s “Imagine,” but bygones). His Tweets alone have made me root for him as a person, if not an artist I will ever enjoy. But no, it just didn’t happen for me musicaly with David Cook’s record. I wanted it to like it. Again, I’m all for more music I enjoy in my life, but no. And I worry about that with Kris, Adam and Allison as well, so not like I’m all hating the DC. Just worrying.

Remember, my glass is half-empty, I’m in a desert and the water probably has cholera in it. I roll kind of on the negative side, you could say. In case that wasn’t obvious by now. But this way I am pleasantly surprised when I don’t die a horrible, painful, drawn out death, figurtively speaking, of course. So yeah, if Adam’s record doesn’t totally suck and does fairly well financially, I’ll be thrilled! Modest success and I’ll be ordering Moà «t & Chandon for us all.

Mila
September 12, 2009 at 7:57 pm
lyndseyparkerRT @Primetimeemmys: Art Direction variety, music, or non fiction programming ‘American Idol’  <’“ YAAAAY!!!

Which episode was that?

It’s episode 821. Country week this year.

I disagree justschool me I like that about him.

Yeah, I know a lot of people like that about him, but it’s not a very good way to get people to give your original music a listen, or to be optimistic about your future writing. BNS is good shit, he shouldn’t knock it. And if it really does suck in comparison to his new stuff, his new album should be really great.

#davidcookrocks is currently #3 on Twitter Trending Topics.

Sorry about misspelling ur name justshootme:) itouch spell check.oma frm justin to Kelly is on tv.I saw like a minute of it.lol.

Sorry about misspelling ur name justshootme:)

No problem. Actually I like justschoolme better.

Was the US Open postponed?? Wasn’t Archie supposed to sing?

I wish I did. DC is cool, from the clips I saw (I didn’t watch the season) he was cool, he is high-sterical in interviews, Twitter, whatever. He’s a charming guy. I was rooting for him in a TWoP and other board non-David A. kind of way and happy he won. And let me say, I’ve come to like David A. as a person since then (still don’t like his music and his mauling Lennon’s ‘Imagine,’  but bygones). His Tweets alone have made me root for him as a person, if not an artist I will ever enjoy. But no, it just didn’t happen for me musicaly with David Cook’s record. I wanted it to like it. Again, I’m all for more music I enjoy in my life, but no. And I worry about that with Kris, Adam and Allison as well, so not like I’m all hating the DC. Just worrying.

May I ask if you like any songs on Cook’s CD? I’m not challenging you. I’m just wondering if you don’t like “Lie” or “Kiss on the Neck” or “A Daily Anthem” or “Permanent” as much as you might not like “Come Back to Me” or “I Did for You?” Are there no songs you like on the album?

Yeah, I know a lot of people like that about him, but it’s not a very good way to get people to give your original music a listen, or to be optimistic about your future writing. BNS is good shit, he shouldn’t knock it.

I agree with you on underpromising as a form of promotion. I am not saying he needs to change who he is and yes his humility was an “endearing” trait on the show, but it doesn’t really work to promote oneself (which may be why Simon picked on that trait as I do think Kris comes across as very confident, especially when I saw him at a live taping of the show). Weird adjectives and hype are more likely to cause someone to notice or check it out, even if it isn’t the bestest thing EVAR.

Take UK artist Little Boots. I have seen her called “The Sound of 2009″ in the British press and hyped up (which the British press do on a much higher scale than the US, from my experience). Now, that could be crazy hyperbole that nobody can match, but people pay attention and check it out. I like her album a lot, but “sound of 2009″ may be a bit too much. Not that it matters since I liked it, checked it out, bought it. Outside of overly invested fans, most people don’t care if the hype isn’t matched — as long as they like it and it isn’t totally incongruent with what was said (which is what I think the fear is with some fans and non-fans who follow Adam’s hype, but outside of fans with expectations, I don’t think having lower ones outside of the AI bubble really matter as people don’t go “well, that album was only mediocre instead of sucking — I shall get it” very often). Sure, some people might go “WTF? BAD!” and not care for it, but they cannot take away from sales, so if another person liked it — it worked. It doesn’t guarantee anything, but a greater interest is a better start.

That’s not to say quality doesn’t matter to people nor should I handle PR or anything, but I don’t see how this underdog tactic works outside of Idol. Maybe I am wrong and there are loads of “underdog artists” out there. ETA: Just to be clear, that’s not a slam on Kris as an artist, just the hype vs. underdog buzz tactic.

Was the US Open postponed?? Wasn’t Archie supposed to sing?

The US Open is a multiday event. He was originally going to sing before the Men’s Singles Final which was scheduled for Sunday night. But because of rain delays, the Men’s Singles Final has been moved to Monday afternoon. David will still be singing Sunday night, but it will be before the Women’s Singles Final instead.

Truthiness, you owe us a round,

American Idol won an Emmy

@Primetimeemmys: American Idol wins #Emmy09 for Lighting Direction – Variety <–YAY, more Emmys for Idol!

The idea of talent is subjective and effectively moot as the season is waaay, waaay, waaaaaay over. Kris won, therefore his combination of talent, and personal charisma whatever, did in fact win and is valid as such. And I do for the record, think he’s a genuinely talented guy. Therefore it is unreasonable of us not to expect him to do the best, sorry NYT reviewer blurb person.

Again, it is not a fact that he won based on talent and charisma. A lot of factors play into who wins a reality show. That said, his win does not guarantee success as we’ve seen from past seasons so it’s very reasonable to assume he won’t be the most successful of the bunch this season.

@Primetimeemmys: American Idol wins #Emmy09 for Lighting Direction ‘“ Variety <’“YAY, more Emmys for Idol!

If they’ve won anything, it’s because they thought the show was owed. In terms of production and technical aspects, AI was an utter disgrace last season.

David confirms that he will be singing Sunday night…

JoyFod: @DavidArchie David..please tweet us when you know what time you’re going to be performing tomorrow. We’re getting conflicting info…
about 2 hours ago from web in reply to DavidArchie

DavidArchie: @JoyFod I think it should be around 9.. but I’m not 100% sure either since there have been weather delays haha.
about 2 hours ago from web in reply to JoyFod

DavidArchie: Oh wow, Crush just came on in the restaurant we’re in. How awkward lol.
about 1 hour ago from txt

I think many people forget that any new singer that looks outside to get material is going to have a harder time than an established singer. How many of the ‘top’  professionals would consider it their pleasure to work with a non-proven unknown with a fan base that comes from a reality show. It isn’t that 19 is serving us ‘drek’  it’s because the newbies aren’t proven enough to get the ‘best’  beating down their door. So they take what they can get and the rest of us live with it.

I agree with that to a point. I think that for most of these guys, they are going to get the Idol stable of songwriters handing over back catalog tunes. That and B- or C- list material from a “name” in their genre.

BUT, I do think if a contestant has generated enough hype in the industry they have a shot at getting better than usual tracks. Idols (at least the ones lucky enough to be favored by 19 and Sony) are some of the few new acts guaranteed a high profile marketing push and a built-in fanbase, which is as close as a songwriter can get to sure fire sales/royalties. So I think some of them do end up getting solid material.

AI has won 2 Emmys, right? Lighting and art direction. They did jazz up the set this year. So, I guess Debbie falling from the stairs and the set exploding aren’t taken in to account since it didn’t happen on air?

Truthiness owes us 2 rounds:

lyndseyparkerRT @Primetimeemmys: Art Direction variety, music, or non fiction programming “American Idol” <– YAAAAY!!!
about 2 hours ago from TwitterFon

For the country episode this year.

DavidArchie: Oh wow, Crush just came on in the restaurant we’re in. How awkward lol.
about 1 hour ago from txt

I absolutely adore Archie. What a sweetheart. Never change!!!

I agree Richie 10…

If they’ve won anything, it’s because they thought the show was owed. In terms of production and technical aspects, AI was an utter disgrace last season.

I agree. I think it’s a shame they are winning this year when they’ve been better in the past and lost.

I also fear that they will think they are doing a good job and continue to screw up (or worse).

Although, I can’t really complain about the lighting guys this year (I didn’t notice them enough to gripe about them, so they were probably doing better than the sound guys and Bruce). Goodness knows they were certainly going all out for Adam (maybe Adam should have gotten the award since I often read claims that he micromanaged everything that actually worked).

Art direction? If AI won, I don’t even know what that award is for. I would think that it would go to something artistic. The Ford commercials might warrant something (some are quite imaginative), but AI is pretty plain. And the backgrounds they flash up on the screen are just sad. Commodore 64 crica the 1980s.

Here are the actual people winning the awards:

Art Direction – Episode 821/822
Andy Walmsley, Production Designer
James Yarnell, Art Director

Lighting:
Kieran Healy, Lighting Designer
Joshua Hutchings, Lighting Director
George Harvey, Lighting Director

Prior to this, AI had won a
1. Special Emmy for Idol Gives Back (S6)
2. Outstanding Technical Direction, Camerawork, Video For A Miniseries, Movie Or A Special (S6) for forcing a dead Elvis to sing with Celine
3. Outstanding Picture Editing Of Clip Packages For Talk, Performance, Award Or Reality Competition Programs (S7) for David Cook’s home visit

Wow ,phineas and fern is on tv in the other room “gitchie gitchie goo” WTF ?! As long as the idol albums are better than that I have somethingto look forward too…LOL

American Idol actually won 3 emmy’s tonight.
The third is Outstanding Technical Direction, Camerawork, Video Control for A Series – Episode 834A

Here is the complete list

Hello! I don’t really post on the weekends because I give myself an internet break, and I am hours late to the party, but here are a few random thoughts:

I wish ppl (NYT) would stop calling Adam flamboyant, because I find that insulting. Maybe it’s because my sister, who wanted Danny to win, uses the term–well, actually she says he has a great voice but is over the top (she keeps forgetting about MW, ToMT, ACIGC, One, and IICHY, if she means more subdued)–and I am flamboyant means showy, but in a negative way. Maybe that’s just me, but I prefer adjectives like exciting and electrifying.

I do think the expectations for Adam’s album are crazy high, at least by the media and many inside the Idol bubble, like us, so I am not sure how success will be defined, tho I expect it’s by record sales and maybe radio play. I hope it gets good reviews, which will fuel sales and help his tour, I suspect. I have no idea what the reviewers expect from him (Lady GaGa comes to mind, mostly because he has worked so extensively with RedOne and b/c he is such a GaGa fan). But it might sound a lot like Muse or Goldenfrapp or older Moby/Fatboy Slim), and for me I hope the tracks are catchy and showcase his voice. I don’t think it will be a safe album, based on what he has been able to do on the Tour. But who knows?

As far as Kris, I do think expectations are different, tho not lower. He did win Idol, so there are expectations attatched to that, but he gas been able to fly under the radar a bit more. I do expect an album with tracks that sound like Heartless, tho I could be wrong. That would be great with me, b/c I love it and I am a huge Gavin DeGraw fan, and I hear similarity in their voices. Maybe Kris’s album won’t sound anything like Heartless or DeGraw or Rob Thomas, but I have a feeling it will. I hope his album sounds organic. From what I’ve read, Cook wasn’t happy with all of the songs. However, I like the album a lot, tho CBTM and LO are two of my least favorite tracks. I haven’t seen Cook live–I really want to–but I would guess he’ll go more gritty on the album. I suspect we will learn a lot about Kris’s album with the album track they release as his first single. OTOH, I don’t consider LO representative of his album–it’s too generic.

And as far as albums, I don’t download singles typically (exception: Katy Perry, Hot and Cold). I hear the single, stream the album if possible, read reviews, and then decide whether or not to download the album from iTunes. As much as I like U2 and Coldplay, I heard parts of their latest CDs and decided not to buy either. But I did buy Kelly’s and Daughtry’s and like both of them. So for me it depends on the album itself as much as the artist. With the Idols, I am getting Kris and Adam’s, maybe Allison’s, and def Matt’s when he releases one. This is not usually the case, but I got so attached to these guys that I want to support them and hope the albums are as good as I think they will be.

I hope I made up for my lack of posts today.

HI SUEBRODY!!!!!!!!!

let’s just fall inoce again is growing on me.I’m listening to a mad world dance remix.AWESOME!!!!!!!!

Don’t give American Idol any encouragement, you jackass Emmy people! Are you blind and deaf?!

I wish ppl (NYT) would stop calling Adam flamboyant, because I find that insulting.
I prefer adjectives like exciting and electrifying.

I think flamboyant is only negative for homophobic people (not you) or if people think it means “gay” or is a slur for gay. Which it isn’t.

It’s a word with a definite meaning. It doesn’t mean exciting or electrifying so those words aren’t interchangable with it.

Definition: : marked by or given to strikingly elaborate or colorful display or behavior

I think that wanting people not to use the word just gives in to homophobia. Some gay guys are flamboyant, most are not. Some performers are flamboyant, some tv personalities are flamboyant, and many are not gay. People who think it means gay are probably the same types who think the rainbow means gay.

Oh yes, Adam is definitely flamboyant! This is one of his assets that sets him apart from other singers. It makes for a more exciting presentation.

What’s hot, what’s really not on the CD sales racksBy ADAM GRAHAM – The Detroit News

We’ve combed through and outlined the biggest and best releases that will be hitting store shelves ‘” and illegal download services ‘” as the leaves turn.

THE BEST OF THE BEST

Followed by a list of 9 upcoming albums, including this one:

‘ ¢ Adam Lambert, title TBA (Nov. 24): The ‘American Idol’  runner-up is the most exciting contestant the show has seen in years, despite not winning the ‘Idol’  title. For his debut, the glammy rocker has enlisted the help of Swedish pop mastermind Max Martin (Britney, Kelly Clarkson), among others.

Here is the link to full article:
http://www.thestate.com/living/story/938378.html

@Pacomarj Is the 2012 song your single or will you have a separate single? My first single will be from my album. 2012 song is for the film.

Yes. Adam’s first single won’t be Time for Miracles. Now he gets two chances to get a hit single instead of one!

suebrody
Hello! I don’t really post on the weekends because I give myself an internet break, and I am hours late to the party, but here are a few random thoughts: I wish ppl (NYT) would stop calling Adam flamboyant, because I find that insulting.

While I didn’t feel as strongly as you against the word, sometimes depending on context I felt like it was being used as a euphemism for teh gay. But recently in an interview he himself used it to describe his own performance style in comparison to Kris. So with just one quick sentence in an interview, for me he turned something that seemed like a lingering negative criticism into something positive.

ETA: Just checked my bookmarks and the interview was actually back in Cleveland. I don’t want to bring old links into a current headline thread, but if you want you can find it by youtubing “Adam Lambert Interview Q104 Cleveland.” It starts around 3:40, and he embraces both “flamboyant” and “theatrical” as descriptions of his style.

Q3- WOW! That is some impressive company Adam is keeping on that list.

( i am still scared about all this hype- it’s almost too much)

Bette Midler is flamboyant, Cher is flamboyant, and they aren’t gay

Okay. i didn’t read back very far, only this page. But if this is some kind of argument about the word flamboyant it is an epic fail. You cannot, even in your wildest dreams, find two more gay icons than Bette and Cher if you even tried.

Okay, maybe Liza.

Person who linked to the Christina Dirrty performance on the tour thread as an example of what Adam would like to do as a collab with her: why you gotta do that my heartttt <3 Christinaaa. I would love to see Adam do something like that. In an outfit like that. With dancers.

And Cheetara, so excited that Allison is working with Max Martin as well! I think she could get a hit single out of that collab. Maybe even a lead single! Talking about lead singles, I wonder when hers is coming out.

Sherena: Thank you.

That was me, got carried away and had 2 mj’s threads open and posted in wrong one, sorry MJ:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ir2YK0M3Yzk

What’s hot, what’s really not on the CD sales racksBy ADAM GRAHAM ‘“ The Detroit News

What’s interesting about this article is that Adam is placed prominently in the Best of the Best category. He gets a blurb.

All others Idols– including Kris– are mashed together in the ‘American Idol overload’ category. No blurb, just names.

I expect Kris to sell the most. He won. He got the most votes. He should sell the most.

As for who is talked about and generates the most hype, that’s another issue altogether. If the most buzz-worthy contestant doesn’t win why would you expect that person to sell more?

According to this logic, Elliott, Kathryn and Taylor should all have sold more than Chris D. It didn’t happen.

It’s more about the albums that each of them put out and how much they will appeal to the music buying population.

Couldn’t sleep, so gave a quick peek over here. Just had to comment on the following:

lyndseyparkerRT @Primetimeemmys: Art Direction variety, music, or non fiction programming ‘American Idol’  <’“ YAAAAY!!!

Mila:Which episode was that?

CindyM: It’s episode 821. Country week this year.

So…in other words, RoF helped win the award??!!! So much for Simon telling everyone that “televisions were being thrown out windows” or some such nonsense!

Going back to bed. ‘Night.

Kris is not considered to be one of the most talented of the top ten and I’m not just talking about Adam. A lot of people think Kris is less talented that Danny, Allison, and even Matt. Just because he won doesn’t mean a thing because we all know that winning isn’t always about who is the most talented.

I am one of these people. I don’t think Kris is anywhere close to as good a singer as Adam, Danny or Allison. As a singer, he and Matt are close, but Matt strikes me as more musically gifted than Kris, and he’s definately a better performer. Of course this is all just my opinion.

However, with all of that said, it’s still very possible that Kris could sell the most albums. He has a pleasant voice and if he gets the right songs and he’s promoted well, he very well could be a major hit. It’s not like all of the major stars in the music industry have the best voices or are the best instrumentalists, etc. He just needs the right songs.

You said that winning American Idol isn’t always about who is the most talented, but then neither is selling the most albums.

vids up on the concert thread…

Someone mentioned this on TWoP… so I went and hunted it down. It’s a post on the datalounge.com…

And I don’t know how credible it is– just thought it was interesting.

I heard most of Adam Lambert’s new song from the movie 2012
It kind of reminds me of “The Show Must Go On” by Queen. That’s the only song I can think to compare it to. It has that big, round sound with a crashing crescendo, etc . Very “sound-trackish” but good.

by: Not saying because I’m scared of the Lambert fanatics

Anyone know anything abut this site?

Keel – thanks for adding your comments; I’m glad I’m not alone…

Newfan – your enthusiasm for ‘the VOICE’ is infectious and I’m really pleased for you that you’re so excited to hear it come the Autumn, on the record…

The problem is a) I don’t actually like the VOICE that much (I can hear the purity and the control, but to me that’s exactly what I could hear on many a West End stage right at this moment; I also think the VOICE focuses too much on the falsetto and various vocal flourishes that add nothing to the music/song itself, for me and b) as I said, I just don’t buy music for voices, even if I did like this particular one.

But different strokes for different folks and there are certainly enough people who disagree on both a) and b) for it not to make a whole heap of difference come the Fall.

That said, I could just as easily hear a couple of tracks off the record and fall in love with it – who knows.

According to this logic, Elliott, Kathryn and Taylor should all have sold more than Chris D. It didn’t happen.

It’s more about the albums that each of them put out and how much they will appeal to the music buying population.

ITA. It’s truly more about things like music and audience and less about resentment towards Kris because of the fear that Adam isn’t going to live up to his (overblown) hype. I don’t really understand it (Kris isn’t the one hyping Adam up or lowering his own expectations), but I imagine the people who feel this way will continue to be frustrated until the music comes out.

But is any of it really surprising? I’m a fan of Kris, I think he’s the most talented but I wasn’t oblivious to how the media handled this season. This is the same media who treated anyone not named Adam Lambert (or Danny Gokey because Lambert needed a foil) like they didn’t exist. According to them, Kris wasn’t supposed to win–he won, oh wait I mean Adam lost because culture warriors took advantage of Idol’s flawed voting system. It’s not surprising that he’s not supposed to be the star of the season now that the show is over. Sure that stuff makes my eyes roll something fierce, but why complain about it? The media hype didn’t prevent Kris from being the American Idol and it won’t prevent Kris from being the most successful either . We’ll see what happens.

Oh and to add to jpfan’s point about the same usual suspects working on Kradison’s albums, Max Martin now goes on the list of collaborators who has worked with his share of idols before and is working with more than one contestant this year.

You said that winning American Idol isn’t always about who is the most talented, but then neither is selling the most albums.

Pretty much this. It could go any way. I’m not going to predict anything about sales until I have singles from all three, because there’s just no way I could predict accurately.

I went back as far as I could and didn’t find any reference to this Variety article
It’s Mike Darnell and it sounds like the show will go back to the previous boys-girls format:

“She will absolutely at a minimum be there for the boy-girl rounds,” Darnell said.

And Cheetara, so excited that Allison is working with Max Martin as well! I think she could get a hit single out of that collab. Maybe even a lead single! Talking about lead singles, I wonder when hers is coming out.

Is this new? I didn’t see any article about it.

tehpen on twitter did an interview with some idols

@Charmqn Her album isn’t dropping the 11th. It will be later. And she’s about to work with Max Martin.

Thank you Sherena
It’s great news if it’s true, not only for the potential song(s) but also because it’s a sign that Jive is invested in her album.

I can’t wait for the day that he doesn’t need the prefix ‘Idol runner up’  to his name anymore. So that day better happen! Are you listening, world? I’d really like you to run my way. Muah, Sherena.

I second the motion ! Hear,hear!

May I ask if you like any songs on Cook’s CD? I’m not challenging you. I’m just wondering if you don’t like ‘Lie’  or ‘Kiss on the Neck’  or ‘A Daily Anthem’  or ‘Permanent’  as much as you might not like ‘Come Back to Me’  or ‘I Did for You?’  Are there no songs you like on the album?

Can I sneak in and answer this? I listened through the album since you guys were mentioning it so much and I agree with thruthiness, didn’t like it at all. I have also seen clips of David from his AI season and I thought he was awesome, a great singer and performer, but the album not so much.

Regarding his album, some of the songs are good but some of them lacks melodic verses which makes them a bit repetitious. I don’t know how to explain this well but it’s like this kind of verse is formulaic, does that make sense?

What I like least about it is the production. The music arrangement (the instrumental) is very standard. No special guitar or drum background to make the music stand out or emphasize certain parts, it’s just the standard rock comp. And it’s the same all over the record which gives it a very bland feeling. Listen to Muse (or maybe KOL) instrumental arrangement and you’ll see it’s much more varied. I think you can play around a lot with the arrangement, for example letting one guitar do a melodic arrangement with fingerplay and the other lying in the background with the chords.

Also another part that I hated is that David didn’t vary his vocals either, always starting perfectly on beat. Where did phrasing go? I mean, if he used standard rock instrumentals, why not fuse in some organic accoustic feel by using vocal phrasing and not always start on beat? Drag behind a little sometimes and go ahead on other places. This is what he does live and he does it very well.

To sum it up, I think this is why the idols have such bland records. There is no time to think about arrangement so they go for the standard one. Also they might not have access to musicians who can work out the arrangement with them, like a band has. A guitarist in a band would probably know of different interesting ways of displaying his instrument and would contribute. Same for other instruments.

Oh, and about Matt not being able to “read music”, I think that’s total bull (or maybe we misunderstand his meaning). He wouldn’t be able to play the way he does if he had no idea how a chord was structured, what chords goes well together and which belongs in a certain key or how to transpose a song to a different key (things a songwriter benefits from knowing).

He probably means that he does not know how to follow a sheet pefectly as it was written, with correct note length and such.

saga
Oh, and about Matt not being able to ‘read music’ , I think that’s total bull (or maybe we misunderstand his meaning). He wouldn’t be able to play the way he does if he had no idea how a chord was structured, what chords goes well together and which belongs in a certain key or how to transpose a song to a different key (things a songwriter benefits from knowing).

Why not? There are plenty of musicians who are very good but can’t read. If you play a lot, all the things you’ve mentioned will eventually come. You don’t need to know how to read music to know what sounds good if you have ears for example. It may take longer to learn but it’s not impossible at least not in my experience.

saga
Oh, and about Matt not being able to ‘read music’ , I think that’s total bull (or maybe we misunderstand his meaning).

I think he himself has mentioned in interviews before that while he has like some freaky cool photographic memory for the melodies he plays, he doesn’t read music.

ETA: The only place I could find it directly from him (and not paraphrased by an interviewer) was in his Comcast chat:

Comment From Greta:
Did you ever have any formal vocal training before Idol?

Matt Giraud: No, not really. I was in a jazz group called Gold Company at Western, which was a great group. I still don’t read music, but I’m learning. I just had my first vocal lesson the other day, which was crazy, because I never knew how much I did wrong.

Source: http://www.comcast.net/tv/eyeonidol/66318/idoltop10chat/

I am saying it’s improbable that he doesn’t know music theory or how chords are structured and how they work together and if he played jazz he certainly needs to know how the different between a regular chord and a chord with a minor or major 7. My point is that him saying that he doesn’t read music doesnt mean he doesn’t know a lot music theory.

saga
My point is that him saying that he doesn’t read music doesnt mean he doesn’t know a lot music theory.

Oh, that totally makes sense. It’s just that Matt not being a pro at reading music makes his creating arrangements the way he does extra impressive. That it comes to him naturally, and what he does know is self taught.

It’s just that Matt not being a pro at reading music makes his creating arrangements the way he does extra impressive.

I don’t want to diss Matt in any way, I think he is very talented, but I also think that for making arrangements and doing songwriting, being able to “read music” (if we mean being able to play after a note sheet) is not as important as knowing chords, different styles and tempos, how the chords relates to a key and so on.

I might be totally wrong, someone with more music knowledge might want to chime in.

Sunday Morning just had a rather large piece on upcoming fall movies – must have mentioned 30 of them. Not a peep about 2012.

cool little article about David Cook here
http://www.mlive.com/entertainment/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2009/09/david_cook_on_life_after_winni.html

#davidcookrocks is still trending on Twitter after 12 hours. and he’s up to 50,000 followers since joining mid-August

Once you know how to do a minor chord in one key it doesn’t take much work to transpose to whatever key you want. The pitches may not be the same but the intervals are regardless of the key you’re in. I may know that because I know music theory, but play around enough and it can be figured out no theory needed.

IMO, people who can play at Matt’s level but not read probably have good ears, a good memory and they play a lot.

But knowing theory probably (I’m basing it on my experience with learning second instrument) makes the learning process faster. Not so much experimentation needed. See: Kris, who, according to him, has not been playing piano for that long but can play well enough to rearrange songs on it and not embarrass himself on national tv.

Saga – ITA to an extent about DC’s album. There is a formulaic aspect to the construction of the songs and there was clearly no time to get into instrumentation or even lyrics in any depth.

That said, the album is fine for me and I enjoy the songs.

The ones where something more interesting is going on certainly stand out: Kiss On The Neck; Permenant; Mr Sensitive (though that is a million times better live from the videos on the net).

The way that the group have taken this somewhat workmanlike material and twisted it into great live tracks gives me great hope for the future: the instrumentation and guitar/drum work is just so much better now and gets better almost each time I hear it. Of course, he was working mainly with session musicians for the album and recording vocals on days off between Idol stops (just like Kris, Adam and every other idol before them). The people in his band now are great and future collaborations should hopefully be much better musically as a result.

I also think that the lyrics will greatly improve when the next album has time to breathe and grow…I love the lyrics on KOTN and there are hints of some good stuff in other songs. I love his lyrics from Axium/Analogue Heart days and also love his knack for taking one path in a song and then twisting it on its head (as in KOTN).

The way that the group have taken this somewhat workmanlike material and twisted it into great live tracks gives me great hope for the future: the instrumentation and guitar/drum work is just so much better now and gets better almost each time I hear it.

This is why I think David should record a live album of the songs. I also think it’s a smart move for him to have his own band. They sort of becomes his “own” collaborators, people he can work with and feel comfortable with. I also hope David takes some time to think about how he wants his second album produced and what qualities are needed to make the recording good.

i agree 100 per cent that the singer can absolutely sell a song ‘“ let’s face it’ ¦ there are lots of songs that if you just went by the lyrics alone read ‘ cheesy’  as heck’ ¦ match them with the right musical arrangement, and the right singer, and you can have a hit’ ¦

Time of My Life, anyone?

What I like least about it is the production. The music arrangement (the instrumental) is very standard. No special guitar or drum background to make the music stand out or emphasize certain parts, it’s just the standard rock comp. And it’s the same all over the record which gives it a very bland feeling. Listen to Muse (or maybe KOL) instrumental arrangement and you’ll see it’s much more varied. I think you can play around a lot with the arrangement, for example letting one guitar do a melodic arrangement with fingerplay and the other lying in the background with the chords.

Thank you for your response.

Actually, many of David Cook’s fans — including myself — agree with this. The album is over-produced. Thank you, Rob Cavallo — NOT. It’s also very polished, negating one of Cook’s greatest assets beyond the voice and that is the gruff, dirtied up delivery. David knows how to style a song to suit himself; how to deliver it. That’s how he won Idol. But — oddly enough — when making the CD, they only concentrated on the fact that David COULD sing a song, not HOW he SHOULD sing it. And they had no time at all to play with it. Look at Light On, for instance. Very, very difficult song to sing, but — so what? — it’s still not a great song for David. And, apparently, Chris Cornell already had that written and just wasn’t using it — probably because he couldn’t sing it. It clearly wasn’t written for David at all and it just doesn’t suit him. Heh. And it sold platinum, so what do I know?

Anyway, even Simon recognized — I know, it’s hard to believe — that a well-rounded, polished Cook is not the best example of his talents. I think it was after Music of the Night? (Or, maybe it was something else.) After DC sang that song on Idol — straight up — Simon said, it’s good, but I don’t like you this way.

Now on to where I don’t agree. I don’t agree that all of David’s CD suffers because of a bland delivery. I think songs like Lie, Avalanche, and Permanent are beautiful ballads that work well on the CD, as they work well off of it. Maybe more could be done instrumentally, I don’t know. (David’s been singing a portion of Lie without any instrumentation at all, and the way he and the band presented Permanent on Idol is different from the CD. Many like the latter version better with the band coming in midway, giving the song some Oomph!) I think Kiss on the Neck and A Daily Anthem work well. All of these songs say “David” more to me and maybe that’s the trick. He wrote or co-wrote these songs. So, they already fit him. He didn’t have to change them to make them fit. The songs that do not work as well for me because of the production and uninventive delivery is Declaration, Heroes, and I Did It For You. However, out on tour they sound great. The way they are performing “I Did It For You” live is a revelation. Totally changed the tempo and feel of the song.

Funny enough, and I may be the only one who thinks this, but I think Bar-ba-sol works better on the CD then off. I like it, but I get more excited when David sings “Kiss on the Neck.”

Oh, I forgot ADAM (How did that happen?!). I love the lyrics on the verses to this one…and it doesn’t have that formulaic issue either…and it was written pre-idol – unsurprisingly!

RCA – please let DC and his band take the reins on the next album!

Sassycatz – ITA, the latest live version of IDIFY is fantastic. More please.

PS – I also love Lie live.

PPS – Saga, a live album would be fantastic, but it doesn’t sound like we’re getting it any more than it seems that DC is ever going to get any publicity in the UK – even David Archuleta has received more of an effort to launch him over here (unsuccessfully as it happens). This, I don’t understand, as Cook fits in well with the kind of US alternative rock bands who do well over here (or at least live Cook does).

Anyhow, crossed fingers that we get more of the live band on album 2.

To sum it up, I think this is why the idols have such bland records. There is no time to think about arrangement so they go for the standard one. Also they might not have access to musicians who can work out the arrangement with them, like a band has. A guitarist in a band would probably know of different interesting ways of displaying his instrument and would contribute. Same for other instruments.

Wow, I’m just seeing this! The funny thing is I agree with almost everything you said, but I still like the album more than you. My attitude is all pop music is formulatic… its all verse, (hopefully) catchy chorus, verse, chorus, bridge, out. The lyrics are universal and relatable, or at least easy to remember and sing along too even if you can’t understand exactly what it means. The key is to find a way to be a bit inventive within the formula, maybe to push its boundaries a bit. But still, if its catchy, well sung, has a bit of personality I’m usually not too mad at it.

To me Cook’s album is like that. It is frustrating in that I think he is quite capable of being creative within the boundaries of what is radio-friendly, and this album is not all that inventive save a few songs. At the same time, I find some of the songs touching and/or fun, his voice sounds good, and some of the stuff is great to sing along too. So to me its a decent pop/rock album with a few great songs and a lot I don’t mind hearing repeatedly. But I have to admit, I am expecting more out of him the next time, for all the reasons you said. There is the potential for a great pop/rock album in him. I want to hear him get closer to that on the next go around.