Not A Bad Apple In The Bunch,
But Some Are Too Polished

Really good, but nothing special. That seemed to be the overall trend of the night for the top 10 guys of American Idol 4. Most were good, but not great. Some were great, but not original. The guys need to step up their games to show what they could and would do as artists. At this point, most are merely showing that they are good singers. A few at the top of the pack are proving that they are good performers, but too much so. They are polished to the point that they lack any originality or excitement. They need to take it to the next level and do something that excites the audience, something original and bold. Last week showed that there is no room for being good. This week showed that there is no room for being great. If they want to stick around, these guys need to throw off the formalities and show us something undeniable.

Mario Vazquez
"I Love Music"
Destiny: The first over-polished apple of the night. He is so good at what he does that the voting audience may become complacent. He needs to do something different every week- he is capable of it. The theme weeks in the next level of the competition will serve him well. Hopefully, he will take full advantage of the themes to show some diversity. Also of note is that he is the first contestant ever to essentially say, "If you want to know if I have hair, VOTE FOR ME!" As you can see by the picture to the left, he does.
Rank For The Night: 4th
Liza: What is this song? What is that ridiculous hat? Didn't we hear this last week? Why does he keep telling us to "come on"? Is he the male Diana DeGarmo? Does he sing the chorus or is he relying on the background vocalists? Why do the judges love him so much on this performance?
Rank For The Night: 8th
Tammy:First impressions: What is this song? I Love Music? His voice doesn't sound very impressive on this song. Very average. He still can move, same as last week. Also? Enough with the hats. Seriously. You can hide under your hats when people actually know what your face looks like.
Rank For The Night: 5th

Anwar Robinson
"What's Going On"

Destiny: It's nice to see Anwar's constant joy. Tonight he loosened up and had fun during his performance. Not my favorite song, but he has such a cool sense of style he makes it OK.Rank For The Night: 2nd
Liza: Perfect song choice for him. This is his kind of style. He has good movement, hits a really nice power note. He's just COOL. He looks like he had a great time on stage and is much more comfortable at looking into the camera this week. The Stepford look is gone. haha. Rank For The Night: 2nd
Tammy:The backup music is way too loud. "What's Going On?" Kind of blah at the beginning, but reels me in with his 'heeeeeeeeeey!'s. After last weeks outfit, and tonights army-inspired number, I wonder what Anwar did to the show's stylist to deserve this punishment.Rank For The Night: 2nd

Joseph Murena
"Let's Stay Together"

Destiny: He was looking good. Loved the jacket. This song was already done to perfection during the first season of American Idol by a certain top two finalist, so it is a major risk to take it on. Joseph did a nice job vocally and worked the stage, but overall it was a forgetable performance.
Rank For The Night: 8th

Liza: So I hear Joe used to work for a DJ company doing weddings, bar mitzvahs and corporate parties. Um yeah. You can tell. The whole performance screamed wedding singer, right down to the open shirt with chains. His voice isn't bad, but it doesn't stand out either. Rank For The Night: 7th

Tammy:Those are some tight pants. This is a little too Wedding Singer for me. And its been done much better on Idol in the past. Average at best. Portuguese Nightclub? Simon needs to stay out of Paula's medicine cabinet.Rank For The Night: 6th


David Brown
"All In Love Is Fair"
Destiny: He started out weak and about halfway through he built up some excitement, but it wasn't enough, considering his steep competition. I am curious to know just what it is that the judges saw in him that they so desperately want him to bring back. Rank For The Night: 10th
Liza: Oh dear. Another bad choice for David. The song does him no favors in the beginning, and he sounds very mush-mouthed. It takes too long to build to a point where he can showcase his vocals, but when he reaches that point, he sounds great. It is easily an improvement from last week, but still not as good as he was early in the audition process. Rank For The Night: 9th
Tammy:Another Stevie song. How unexpected. Starts off very shaky. David sounds very nervous. He sounds tight (and not in the good way). The judges seem rather dumbfounded at David's poor showing thus far.Rank For The Night: 7th


Constantine Maroulis
"Hard To Handle"
Destiny: Although I don't like to associate with Paula's comments, she was right- Constantine does own the stage. He is the only contestant of the night to totally own the room, not to mention the camera, and makes you look forward to and wonder what he will do next week (instead of worrying about what they'll be doing next week). It was nice to see him having fun again, too. This show is looking for stars, not mere singers. Constantine is a star. Rank For The Night: 1st
Liza: Poser. And pitchy. If he makes it any further than Bo, there is something wrong with this world. Rank For The Night: 6th
Tammy: "Hard to Handle" is dangerous? If you say so, Constantine. Oh my. These screams. And not from the crowd. Very pitchy. If anything screams 'poser', it's this performance. Still, its better than the dreck that is "Kiss From A Rose" (but that's not saying much).Rank For The Night: 8th


Scott Savol
"Never Too Much"

Destiny: He is actually working on his looks- and they haven't even hit the stylists yet! Good for him. Not the best song choice- it was a little dull- but it does take skill to pull it off. He sounded smooth. Rank For The Night: 6th
Liza: More Luther. I think I see a pattern. Scott's becoming more and more Ruben-like as the show progresses. But this is a great song for Scott's voice, and I applaud him for trying to look hipper. But he should never try to sing in his upper register again. Ever. Rank For The Night: 5th
Tammy:The Rubenesque arm movements are still there. Looks like Scott's image is being tinkered with this week. An improvement no doubt. Though I still wouldn't want to come across him in a darkened alley. Oh, the performance? Good. He sings some Luther song I'm not familiar with.Rank For The Night: 9th

Travis Tucker
"All Night Long"
Destiny: If ever a performance on AI deserved to be called karaoke, this was it. And wouldn't you know, the judges loved it! Ever the hypocrites, they are. It was like he went to a karaoke party and the only song they had was this one. Totally out of place. At least he had fun. Rank For The Night: 9th
Liza: Baby, you fine. Ahem. This guy can really dance. I love the move where he pulled himself up by his shirt. That was tight. Overall a really fun performance. This is the kind of thing he should do. It's what makes him stand out from the others. We haven't seen a contestant not look ridiculous while dancing on AI since Justin sang "Love Machine" on the American Idol Las Vegas concert special. I think Travis' voice is underrated, and I was really glad to see Simon apologize to him for last week. Rank For The Night: 3rd
Tammy:If he's going to be doing some Usher moves this week, why do you choose Lionel Richie to do it to? Are there no contemporary songs to choose from? Good grief. Wow, his voice is really unspectacular. The ladies in the audience don't seem to mind, however.Rank For The Night: 4th


Nikko Smith
"Let's Get It On"
Destiny: Loved the outfit, and loved him without the hat. He is a great singer, but like Mario, he is too polished. He needs to do something original and unexpected.Rank For The Night: 5th
Liza: I swear I really did write down that Nikko looked like Bobby Brown before Simon said it. That freaked me out that he said that. Nikko may look like Bobby Brown, but he doesn't have enough Bobby Brown bad-boy in him to quite pull that song off, nor is his voice husky enough, but I give him mad props for the effort. His performance skills are fantastic. Overall a really good job. Rank For The Night: 4th
Tammy:Where is the hat? He looks pretty good without it. The song doesn't really do much for him vocally. But he still is better than most of his competitors this week.Rank For The Night: 3rd


Anthony Fedorov
"I Want To Know What Love Is"
Destiny: Nice singing, but he needs to show more personality. There is just not much there beyond a nice voice. Rank For The Night: 7th

Liza: Eww. That was one of the most wretched beginnings EVER. I was barely able to stop cringing long enough to notice that he reigned it in a little bit and got it more on track, but one glory note does not a song make. What's really sad is that this was probably what Anthony considers to be "edgy". And if this was edgy, now I know why Anthony sticks to drecky ballads. I really shudder to think what he would do with an up-tempo song. I suggest listening to Australian Idol 2 runner-up Anthony Callea's version of this song to get this one out of your head. You can download Callea's version at TheIdolZone.com
Rank For The Night: 10th

Tammy:Oh look! He's wearing ripped jeans! He's a rocker too now! Lots of belting. He's been studying the Book of Aiken. I am so ready for Anthony to go home. Rank For The Night: 10th


Bo Bice
"Whipping Post"
Destiny: His outfit was perfect for him. There's no doubt he has a good voice. However, it is nothing original. If Simon is handing out bar singer credentials, this is the guy he should have given one to. Glad the judges loved the performance, but it didn't really earn a place in the Idol Hall Of Fame. Rank For The Night: 3rd
Liza:Excuse me. I think my TIVO must have changed the channel here. I thought I was watching American Idol, not a rock concert. Wait. What? That was American Idol? Really? Wow. That was awesome. Bo knows Rock & Roll and he just reinvented American Idol. Rank For The Night: 1st
Tammy: Another song I've never heard before. Wow, Bo is really working this song! Holy Moses! He is a pro at working the stage. The rest of the performers pale in comparison tonight. And might he just be...sexy? Ye gads! When did this happen?Rank For The Night: 1st

Who Should Go Home:
Destiny:David, Anthony
Liza: David, Anthony
Tammy:David, Anthony
Who Will Go Home:
Destiny: David, Joseph
Liza: David, Joseph
Tammy:Scott, David

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