‘American Idol XIII’ review: How Jena Irene, Caleb Johnson, Jessica Meuse rocked out
The “American Idol XIII” top 9 went on the stage Wednesday with a bigger challenge than ever before: Trying to rock out to a performance that featured a full band right on stage with them. This meant making a more intimate connection, having energy, and also making sure that you were never quite completely drowned out by the noise around you.
For some, this was a chance to really rock out and shine. For others, this was only a chance to do more of the same. As always when we review this show, we’ve listed out our picks in order from favorite to least-favorite.
9. Dexter Roberts, “Boondocks” – Yawn. This just wasn’t the sort of thing that is “American Idol.” This is more of a good performance in a country bar. There’s nothing original, or anything that makes us want to get up and actually pay to see this guy in concert. Let’s just forget about this performance happening.
8. Sam Woolf, “Hey There Delilah” – This wasn’t a terrible performance by any means, but it doesn’t quite feel like he actually knows what he is singing about. There is no emotional connection to the lyrics at all, and we just didn’t feel it or understand why he chose the song, other than it could be a cool arrangement.
7. Majesty Rose, “Shake It Off” – Majesty is one of those contestants who feel came into the live show with so much confidence, but has been forced to build it back up … and shake it off. Terrible pun, but true. This was another improvement from her, but she is not back to that “favorite” label and is probably in danger still.
6. Alex Preston, “Don’t Speak” – We’ll start by saying that we’re not a No Doubt fan, and this song really had a disadvantage thanks to that and that alone. It was a nice twist on the song, but for the first time we felt like we wanted something different from Alex. While he has the best musicianship and creativity of anyone this season, we don’t know if his concerts would have enough zing to them. Lots of standing with his guitar.
5. Malaya Watson, “The Long and Winding Road” – Malaya is really starting to find her rhythm here, and while we don’t want to say that she has a Jordin Sparks-like run ahead, she is making serious progress when it comes to the matter in which she emphasizes subtlety now over screaming big notes at us. That means that she is listening, and will only continue to get better and better.
4. CJ Harris, “If It Hadn’t Been For Love” – We said last week that we can enjoy a performance even if there were pitch problems, and there were so many good things about this that we were able to overlook the band. We didn’t know the song, but it felt completely original and cool. We also believed, contrary to what Keith Urban said, that he understood the song.
3. Jessica Meuse, “Rhiannon” – A very good song choice, and with that outfit that Jessica was wearing, she really could have gone back in time to when Fleetwood Mac first recorded this song. One of her better performances, but we still feel like the judges never seem to want to give her the same sort of credit they do some of the other singers who don’t have the same edge.
2. Jena Irene, “Bring Me To Life” – This song was a really great performance from start to finish, and there was almost nothing to complain about. Did we see this coming a mile away when it comes to song choice? Sure, but there are times when you have to play to your strengths. As long as you don’t do it every week, it’s cool.
1. Caleb Johnson, “Dazed and Confused” – There was no doubting going into this week that Caleb was going to be one of those guys with the capacity to really come out and dominate this week. There was just no other way to think about it. He’s a natural rocker with a huge voice, and of course having the band around him was only going to give him more energy.
Who was your favorite from this week’s “American idol”? As always, we want to hear your thoughts below! You can also sign up for our CarterMatt Newsletter to get more updates worth singing about via email.
Photo: Fox