American Idol Season 9, Top 12 Boys

I'm glad this is going to be the girls' year, because it was hard to find anything to like about the boys' performances yesterday. One bad song choice after another. What can I say about a night in which Bryan Adams' "Heaven" turned out to be the best song of the evening?

It all started with the likable Todrick Hall's almost unrecognizable performance of Kelly Clarkson's hit song "Since U Been Gone". There's a lot to like about the original song, but Todrick funked it up badly. (No, that's not a typo, although come to think of it...) He changed the rhythm, he changed the melody, he even spoke part of it. Nothing about his performance worked. Todrick is a charming guy with a good voice, and I think that will get him through, but I hope next time he does something we can recognize.

16-year-old Aaron Kelly chose a Rascal Flatts song, "Here Comes Goodbye." I'm not a fan of country music (hell, I thought Rascal Flatts was a person's name). He's got a good voice for somebody so young, but he could use a little more seasoning, a little more experience. A lot of rough edges, but a lot of nice moments, too. The judges all liked him.

Jermaine Sellers describes himself as a church singer. He chose “Get Here” by Oleta Adams. When he came out on stage, I wondered, what is he dressed as? He was wearing a kind of fedora and there was a tacky black fabric rose boutonniere on his gray jacket - which had tails, believe it or not. His singing was horrible. I don't like his upper register; he kind of shrieks rather than singing. I hope he's gone soon. Ellen thought he pushed a little too much. (I think she's referring to the shrieking.) She thought he was trying too hard. A weird choice for Randy because it's such an old song. He tried to do too much vocally with it. “Sing the melody, it's good, the melody actually works, that's why it was a hit.” Simon thinks it's the kind of song somebody in their 50s would ask for in a cocktail bar. He thinks he's totally blown his opportunity with this performance. I think he'll be eliminated tonight.

And speaking of singers who should be eliminated and who should never have been here in the first place... we have Tim Urban. He totally murdered "Apologize" by OneRepublic. His upper register is weak and unpleasant-sounding. I hate his hair. Simon said they made the right decision the first time, when they cut him. Kara said the music swallowed him up. She thought he did better when he used his guitar (which he didn't last night). Randy said it was the wrong song; he doesn't have the falsetto for it. Tim said the song was a last-minute switch; he thought it was a lot of fun. The song he was going to do, would have had to be cut down too much. (he didn't say what it was.)

The first performance of the night that didn't make me wince (much) was Joe Muñoz. He sang a Jason Mraz song, "You and I Both." He has a nice voice. Not every note was on key, but I enjoyed listening to him and watching him smile. Ellen thought he felt comfortable on stage. Randy didn't think it was the perfect song choice “for me for you”, but he thought he did a good job with it. Simon thought it was okay, safe and forgettable.

Tyler Grady is a throwback to the 1970s - his hair, his clothes, his singing. He chose "American Woman" by the Guess Who. He started out with a bluesy introduction that I really liked, then he segued into the rock part, and it deteriorated. I think he's got potential, though. Kara suggested he do something like "1901" by Phoenix. I'd really like to hear that. The judges tore into him a little for his fixation on the 70s. He made a remark about visiting a mall for new clothes. It'll be interesting to see what he wears next week. This week he wore a horrible purple shirt with some kind of loosely tied scarf dangling down his front.

Lee Dewyze did "Chasing Cars" by Snow Patrol, accompanying himself on the guitar (at least at the beginning). I thought it was a good choice for him. He has a husky voice that he can use effectively, but he has a lot of pitch problems. Simon thought this was the best performance of the evening by a mile. Obviously the off-key parts didn't bother him the way they bothered me.

They introduced John Park by showing his audition in Chicago with Shania Twain telling him he had a nice "bottom end". It wasn't what it sounds like - well, maybe that, too, but she liked his lower register. He sang "God Bless the Child", an old jazz standard people remember as being sung by Billie Holliday. His "bottom end" didn't do him any favors during the performance, which was kind of emotionless. It got better when he went into his higher register. He has a nice voice, but I don't think the song was a good choice for him. The judges didn't really like it, either. Kara made a good comment: "It got a bit loungy at times."

And now for one of the two best performances of the evening: Michael Lynche, the big personal trainer, did one of my favorite songs, "This Love" by Maroon 5. I loved it. He's got so much energy and charisma, he had me singing along, and I never sing along with American Idol performances! His voice gets too nasal, but he's so charming I'll forgive him for that.

The best thing I can say about Alex Lambert is that he survived being in a group with the queen bitch Mary Powers! He sang "Wonderful World" by James Morrison with a deer-in-the-headlights expression on his face. He sang in a weak and scratchy voice that I don't remember from his Hollywood Week performances. The kid was scared to death. The judges think he's got all the right elements, but they just haven't quite jelled yet. Ellen put it best: she compared him to an unripe banana.

And now for the best performance of the evening: Casey James singing Bryan Adams' "Heaven", a song I usually dislike. It was a great choice for him, even if he bleated a few notes. But the judges almost blew it for him. All they could do was joke about Kara's crush on him. (She had him take off his shirt at his audition.) Kara said he's eye candy, but he's also ear candy. Simon said he and Casey are both cursed with good looks. He chose the right song, it came over as honest and sincere.

And what EW's Michael Slezak calls the "pimp spot" (the last spot of the evening) was given to Andrew Garcia. He chose one of my favorite songs, "Sugar We're Going Down" by Fall Out Boy, and he didn't do it justice. It was a bad choice for him. I like Andrew's voice and his originality, and this song didn't show off either of those. He accompanied himself on the guitar, and this probably wasn't the best choice. Simon said it was too serious, too indulgent and not original enough.

My choices for elimination are Tim Urban and Jermaine Sellers. The top honors of the evening go to Casey James and Michael Lynche. I'll update this when I find out how it went.