This week, American Idol showed us that one thing’s for sure—Simon’s really not all that impressed with the contestants, especially vis-à-vis taking the judges’ suggestions seriously. This was another strange night, with only a few standouts in the bunch. And there was no doubt that Chikezie just had to go.

Ramiele Malubay, in a attempt to pick it up a bit, chose a Heart song (I thought Carly had Heart songs LOCKED?), “Alone”. Granted, she performed while sick, but for a woman who can sing so well, she’s really just not a very entertaining performer. I’m impressed by her voice, but not so much that I feel she should win at this point. She needs to have more fun, and next week she needs to pick something a little more recent and just give it her all because I think she’s running out of time.

Jason Castro, who is usually really dependable on the guitar, gave us a mediocre rendition of Sting’s “Fragile”. As we learned, Simon thinks Jason isn’t stepping it up and Jason’s so shy or under the influence of something that he handles it the way Jason always does—almost subdued. I really like Jason, and at this point I would absolutely buy a record of his music, but I want to see him pull out some Jack Johnson or something incredible because he hasn’t had a “wow” moment in weeks.

Syesha Mercado, who does that scary baby cry at a drop of a hat, is one of the best vocalists on the show and got the closest she’s ever been to a “wow” moment with that song, “If I Were Your Woman”, that seems to be Whitney, but no one knows for sure.

Chikezie bored me to tears by bringing nothing new to “If Only for One Night” and he looked genuinely shocked to take Simon’s criticism of his reaching out to the audience during the song, as a attempt to “reach them.” Yeah, reach them to dial on their cells to save him, maybe. I’m sorry, but I expect better from someone who’s had some really fun performances recently; he went from that to being the most forgettable person on this week’s show.

I love Brooke White because she didn’t break down and cry when she messed up the beginning of “Every Breath You Take”, though she kind of always looks like she’s on the verge of crying anyway. I love Brooke because most of the time she carries an honest confidence in her ability, and is just incredible when paired up with a piano. Having said that, I completely agree with the assertion that if she had made it an entirely stripped-down performance with just the piano and her voice, she would have stolen the show from the rest of the women.

Michael Johns, the quintessential Queen singer, rocked it out. Michael has the quality to pull off big songs like that one but as much as I love Michael, I don’t know if he’s really all that original. The one thing Michael does bring when he chooses songs that increase his confidence is his passion for rock music. Anything else he does would be a total disservice.

Carly Smithson had a lot to follow, there, and as much as I love Carly and couldn’t wait for her to nail “Total Eclipse of the Heart”, it was obvious that she was distracted. Actually, this is one of the few times I’m interested in hearing her in-studio version on iTunes, which FOX pimps out weekly.

David Archuleta sang some song he claims he actually picked, though it wasn’t the greatest of choices for his particular voice. It’s okay to “really love a song”, but if you can’t make it original or memorable, don’t try to tackle it. But since he’s so gosh darn lovable, there is no way he’d be in the bottom three.

Kristy Lee Cook went for the blindly-patriotic song by Lee Greenwood, and I really believe it’s not fair. I just feel if you’re going to sing such a patriotic song, why not make it a theme so it’s fair for everyone? I wish she had chosen a different song altogether, but I knew she was going to be safe for going after the jingoistic viewers and/or the ones who would have felt guilty to vote off the girl who sang a song about being a proud American. That said, she’s going to soar for Dolly Parton week.

David Cook did his emo-rock twist on “Billie Jean” and I thought that while it was a great risk, it certainly makes him seem to be one of the most contemporary contestants; David could make that a hit right now, and I like what he brings to the show. Not quite sure what he’s going to do with Dolly Parton’s week but if he does “Joleen” just like he did “Billie Jean”, I’ll be very entertained.

YouTube Video of the Week
Heather Lloyd of ilyAIMY performing Led Zeppelin’s “Whole Lotta Love” with with Aowtar. I really enjoyed the tribal acoustic vibe; David Castro should take note.

Thank you for reading; make your moment your breakthrough.