So happy the audition portion of the competition is over. I’m just not part of the segment of folks who finds the bad singing amusing. Many of those same folks seem to have no interest in the competition itself–which is what I really look forward to.
I’ll have more on Part 1 of the Hollywood Rounds tomorrow.
Fun Fact to Know and Tell About the Boston Auditions: The initial auditions took place in Foxboro stadium, about 20 miles south of Boston, at the end of August. The celebrity judging took place in downtown Boston a FULL TWO MONTHS LATER.
Here it is, yer Boston Recap:
What more can I say about Miss Ayla Brown–daughter of the well-connected, Basketball Star, Pretty Singer–that hasn’t already been said? Actually, I’m kinda sick of talking about her. She’s continually referred to on the show as the “All-American Girl”. But wouldn’t that description fit somebody more middle-American and middle-class? Somebody the average person can relate to? Therein lies the problem with Ayla advancing to the very top. She’s the Atypical American girl–and the girl you love to hate. The one with the silver spoon in her mouth who appears to have had everything handed to her. Folks want to cheer someone on who they can identify with–and that’s just not Ayla. If she makes the Top 12, I expect her to finish somewhere in the middle of the pack. As for her performance, I found her vocal talent unremarkable. Though she does have the rich-girl sneer down pat. I was amused when all the judges dissed her, then put her through. I would bet the orders came down before they even SAW Ayla that she’s one to put through. Her father–the state senator, and her mom, local anchor woman–are powerful enough to bring tons of publicity to the show. Definitely worth allowing her to advance far. But her privilege will prevent her from winning.
Becky O’Donahue’s identical twin sister, Jessie, is also a singer. Unfortunately, she just had throat surgery, and was unable to audition. But she accompanied sister Becky to the audition to lend moral support. Now, that’s a smart hook! One beautiful girl gets noticed. Two identically beautiful girls…well they are going to get noticed. Becky seems like a real cool gal, but I have to say I was unimpressed with her vocals. Paula said, “Your singing is not as beautiful as how you are beautiful, ” and I agree. Jessie crouching in the corner miming as Becky auditioned looked a little creepy–but I suppose you can never underestimate the bond between identical twins. I can’t figure out if that unison thing I continually see between these twins is real. I have a feeling it is.
Tatiana Ward was an odd choice to move on to Hollywood. Folks I know are split on her. It’s a you-either-love-her-or-hate-her kinda deal. I found her really hard to watch–her voice has a really strange quality that I just didn’t like. I didn’t find her transparent sucking-up to the judges very charming either. I did find her story about her mom, who is white, being rejected by her mother when she married Tatiana’s dad, a black man, really sad. Tatiana said she wanted her grandmother to see her on television and know that she was raised right. I say forget about that bigoted old bag. But then, that’s just me.
Sigh. Uhhhm. NO. Kevin Covais is rumored to be in the Top 24 and I don’t understand it. His audition was like Giles Goat Boy meets American Idol. He sings with a distracting vibrato and he’s got a lisp on top of that. Kevin is another 16 year old who could use a few more years of experience under his belt. The glasses and crew cut combo are not a good look. Although, I was tickled that Kevin provided Simon with yet another opportunity to diss Clay Aiken. Simon said, “Folks over 80 would love you…nobody under 20 would understand you.” And then Paula said, “You don’t look like what the next American Idol would look like…it didn’t hurt Clay Aiken.” Cut back to Simon to see him grimace. Good stuff.
Holly Corrente’s vocals were certainly as good as many of the singers who’ve been put through to Hollywood. The judges vague complaint seemed to be something about her being “old fashioned.” Randy said she sounded like Doris Day. She did kinda have that Patti Page vibe going for her–but so what? They send other throwback types through–like April Walsh–so why not Holly? She works at a rehabilitation hospital that appears to cater to elder folks who’ve had strokes. I squirmed when one of her encounters, with a befuddled old fellow, was played for laughs. Maybe it just hit too close to home.
Irada Jafarova claimed to be a classically trained mezzo-soprano, but she sounded more like a contralto to me. Does that sort of distinction really matter when the singer’s voice sounds like re-fried ass? Probably not. Irada started stripping as she performed in front of the judges. What’s with the stripping on American Idol? At one point, she tried to pull the flower out of her hair but she couldn’t, so it just hung there. When the judges told her she was horrible she just stared at them, picked up her stuff and ran out of the room. Strange.
Alison Laverdiere is my favorite kind of “bad” contestant–the kind that’s in on the joke. Being in on the joke is NOT the same as being a faker. Fakers try to pass off as clueless. Contestants like Alison perform something goofy or silly with a wink. In this case, Alison performed “Everybody’s Working For the Weekend” in an operatic soprano. She smiled as she performed, but she never cracked herself up. She cracked me up. The judges passed, but heh–at least she sang in tune. That’s more than you can say for some of the folks that were passed through to Hollywood.
Kenneth Maccarone singing like Cher (really, dude’s voice was a dead-ringer for Cher’s) was funny. The stupid, scripted argument that followed was not so funny. Once again Simon told a contestant that he should consider being a female impersonator. But this time, I don’t think Simon’s suggestion was an insult. Kenneth told Simon that not only does he impersonate Cher, but Judy Garland too. Simon’s advice was perfectly reasonable, but then the contestant inexplicably started arguing with him. I kinda tuned out at that point.
Micheal Sandecki was your typical lame-ass fake audition. Not funny dude. And actually, not only don’t you sing like Clay Aiken, but you don’t really look like him either. There was one funny moment–when he told the judges, “Actually, I can sing, but I’m nervous as hell, and I gotta pee.” But then, they should have just left it at that rather than following him into the men’s room, and back to the judges room to take another shot, pee-free. Really, at this point I just wanted him to STFU. The only solace was knowing this was the last lame audition of the season, and that after tonight, Idol would finally begin to feature the good singers.
Boston promoted 28 contestants to Hollywood! Whoo hoo! Go Boston Go Boston Go Boston…
Bahhston on the Road To Hollywood
