‘American Idol XIV’ review: Jax, Tyanna Jones, Sarina-Joi Crowe shine in top 12 show

Last night, the top 12 guys came out on “American Idol XIV,” and delivered what was for the most part a solid show. The men are seemingly better at this point this season; they’re certainly more consistent, and there were a few women tonight who disappointed us. Tuning was a big problem, as was trying to make sure that the wrong songs were chosen that suit their individual voices.

With that being said, there were a few highlights, including one or two singers who seem to be perfectly capable of taking on anyone. There’s a lot going on in this show, but here are our quick-takes on some of the performers.

Lovey James, “Love Runs Out” – We really liked Lovey’s audition. Didn’t love this here. It felt too much like she needed another year or two of training to ensure that she gets to the right place with her performance.

Adanna Duru, “Rather Be” – This wasn’t terrible, but you need to be fantastic to be remembered when there are 12 singers performing over the course of an hour. Otherwise, you run a major risk of simply being forgotten.

Alexis Gomez, “Gunpowder and Lead” – This is one of those songs we wonder about when it comes to young contestants and lyrical interpretation. The biggest problem here is just that it has been done a billion times.

Joey Cook, “Somebody Like You” – This is how to cover a Keith Urban song! It felt like something different, and not just her doing a Keith impression. We still worry that she is a little too out-there for everyone, but we enjoyed this performance.

Katherine Winston, “Safe and Sound” – This was neither. Major pitch problems, and to us, this means that Joey may be the only standout from the first five singers to perform.

Shannon Berthiaume, “Who Knew” – A decent performance, but not entirely memorable. Better than some of her off performances in Hollywood Week.

Loren Lott, “Note to God” – We’re surprised by the song choice, but Loren made it work.

Shi Scott, “Umbrella” – We have no idea what exactly this was, since it felt like she was mostly shouting the lyrics at us. Also, quite possibly the raciest outfit we’ve seen from an “American Idol” contestant. This tends to be a somewhat-conservative show.

Maddie Walker, “Gone and Done It” – Nice choice! It’s something original, and it was clear to us that the show did the right thing here in bringing Maddie to this round.

Sarina-Joi Crowe, “Mama Knows Best” – Sarina-Joi can SING. How she didn’t make it this far before now is a shocker.

Jax, “Bang Bang” – Jax seriously loves to perform. It wasn’t perfect, but she put her everything into it, and she is not going to treat this like a talent show.

Tyanna Jones, “Hips are Moving” – Tyanna would be for us below Sarina-Joi, Jax, Maddie, Loren, and Joey, but that’s still in the top six. Good enough to advance.

Who was your favorite from this “American Idol” episode? Share with a comment, and head over here to get some other updates related to the show! Also, you can sign up now to score some other TV updates on all we cover via our CarterMatt Newsletter. (Photo: Fox.)