For me, the performers are the show. I’ve grown to respect what Simon brought to the show, especially as he learned that American audiences don’t enjoy the same level of meanness and snark that British audiences do and adjusted it somewhat, however, he’s not what I watch it for. I watch it for the farmgirl from Oklahoma knocking one out of the park, or to see if the musical theater guy gets too ambitious and crashes & burns, or if he pulls it off.
What are the auditions going to be like this year? I’ve avoided them in the past, as they seemed to dwell on the train-wrecks, and I don’t enjoy watching the possibly dim or mentally unstable be made fools of. I suppose though, it could be argued that many currently in the entertainment industry are dim or mentally unstable.
I think this year will have to be a letdown after last year. There was a great group of fairly diverse talent, and I think several of them could have won in weaker years.
The thing that is starting to get me down about the show is that they bring these performers on, and we hear some great performances, and some that just knock it out of the park week after week (David Cook, Adam Lambert), then they win or come close, get their big record deal… And their album is overproduced, overwritten crap. Kris Allen’s album was a major disappointment. Adam Lambert’s was only so-so. Same with Allison Iraheta. David Cook put out an album of completely generic 90’s rock that was instantly forgettable. None of them have found their own voice or put out anything even remotely unique.
This month Jason Castro’s CD comes out. I hope it’s actually something different. The fact that it took him almost 2 years to make it gives me hope that it won’t just be another generic product from the 19 entertainment machine.
Judging from the one original song I heard Castro perform live on some talk show, it’s not that it took so long because he was working to craft each song perfectly. He was probably just too baked to remember where the studio was.
After hearing what Kris, Adam, and Allison put out, I don’t really hope to hear much I like out of any AI finalist soon after they leave the show. I’m just hoping they don’t OD or blow out their voices before they get a chance to put out a body of work worthy of their talent(and that hopefully includes some songs I do like). I’m not sure it’s all 19’s fault either - I have to accept that as I’m in my 40’s, my taste isn’t always going to line up with what 20-year-old’s are doing. I loved everything Adam and Kris did on the show, but they were forced to perform old classics, many of which I already like.
Adam, in particular, did really well with just about everything he did on the show, and many of those songs on in my everyday MP3 rotation. I doubt “Feeling Good” and “A Change is Gonna Come” is anything he would have thought to do if left to his own devices, but I’d LOVE to hear him do more along those lines.
I agree with Sam, by the way. No a single decent album has ever come out of this show. Not even a decent single, although it has produced one all-time piece of excrement – that Jesus on the highway song.
Unless we count Jennifer Hudson’s “And I’m Telling You,” I agree. I did like Carrie’s version of that Pretenders song but I don’t know that it’s significant.
That guy sucked too. I hate the way they load this show with nothing but the most bland, colorless, non-threatening performers they can find.
Whatever happened to that guy with long beard who sang “God’s Gonna Cut You Down” that one time? That was the most awesome audition they’ve ever had on the show, and they never mentioned him again.