American Idol Recap: Top 16 - The Top Eight Men

Ryan introduced the crew tonight, as always. It’s the top 16, which means tonight is the top 8 men and the last night of being split up. When he introduced the judges it appeared that everyone was ready to get things moving.

Randy was looking himself tonight. He had on a fly t-shirt and his bling. Paula had on her bright, hooker getup with some scary hair. I don’t know what’s with the wannabe Farrah curly flip. Maybe she was doing it because it’s her 80s motif, but whatever it is, it isn’t working. Finally there was Simon, and well, he’s Simon. He looks as good as he always does and the slight scowl on his face said he was ready to get things moving.

Tonight’s theme is 80s music and each contestant has to tell about their most embarrassing moment.

Up first was Luke Menard. His special moment was when he was dressed up like a ballerina by his sister, when he was a child.

What he sang: “Jitterbug”

What he wore: A white T-shirt, open button down, and jeans

How he sounded: Wham was a good group and he just doesn’t have the energy for it. He’s trying to be peppy, but what it ends up being is a karaoke kind of thing that was a bad start to the night. It was boring, static, and it just plain sucked. He ended up going all breathy more than he needed to and his high notes were weak. The performance was less than good all around.

What the judges said: Randy felt he was pitchy in the beginning, it was corny, but it was alright. He was keepin’ it real. Paula was surprised he picked the song. She loves that Luke has a great instrument. She loves, loves, loves the interpretation. She loved it. Simon didn’t like it. It was weak. It was girly. He can’t win. It wasn’t very good.

A break occurred right off the bat since we only have an hour to get through the guys. Ryan announced that David Archuleta would be up next, singing some Phil Collins.

David’s embarrassing fact was that he was thirsty and had to pee. The other fact was that he was unable to finish a song in Honduras so his mom came on stage and finished it for him.

What he sang: “Another Day in Paradise”

What he wore: He wore some earthy colors tonight, a jacket and patterned shirt with slacks. He was at the piano tonight and looked good

How he sounded: He slowed the song down a bit, but it sounded great. He made it his own, as you would expect of him by this point. He ended up leaving the piano halfway through, so that it did not consume the entire performance. His voice was beautiful, despite an occasional waiver in it. Even with the slight vocal errors, his performance was the best so far, and likely of the night.

What the judges said: Randy felt it was like watching a concert. It was an interesting choice. It was nice, but there were pitch problems occasionally. Paula loved that some notes were off so that she was sure he wasn’t a robot. He’s still perfect though and he’s sensible about his song choices. Keep going David! Simon didn’t feel it was as good as last week. He left the piano and he shouldn’t have. The big problem is that his song choice is gloomy and he needs to be more upbeat. He thinks he will be in the final two, but needs to have more fun.

Ryan announced two more would be up after the commercial. Next up would be Danny Noriega and David Hernandez.

First up was Danny. He was embarrassed because he was tripped. He fell in front of his crush and so he turned into a tomato!

What he sang: “Tainted Love”

What he wore: A black jacket, purple shirt, and pants

How he sounded: If I said he called Sanjaya for song advice would you believe me? You should because I think he did. Alright, being fair, this is the best he has been since this thing started. However, I haven’t liked anything else he has done so what can I say. It was weak in the beginning and while the arrangement was nice, it could have used a strong, more competent singer. The off-beat hip check thing was a little lame, too. I understand that he feels the rhythm, but let’s not be spastic.

What the judges said: Randy felt there was some good and some bad. It was rough and pitchy in the beginning, but it got good at the end. You can do this! He was a little vocally shy at first, but worked it out. Paula loves that he’s a bright light. He’s sensitive and spicy. He’s real, too. Can you tell Paula’s kinda drunk tonight? He’s great vocally and needs to be true to himself. Simon thought it was horrible. It was absolutely useless. He hated the arrangement, vocal, and everything else about it.

So, now it’s time for David Hernandez. He was doing a photo shoot and noticed that the pictures showed him with a booger in his nose. It was one of those flaky boogers, too.

What he sang: “It’s all Coming Back to Me Now”

What he wore: A black button down and jeans

How he sounded: Hearing David do Celine was kind of surreal. I didn’t hate it completely, but it’s not a guy’s song and it is Celine. It’s hard to beat her, like her or not. He changed it up enough to show some of his vocal abilities, but I didn’t love it completely. My biggest problem was that it wasn’t as good as it was last week, but I think it might keep him here for at least another week.

What the judges said: Randy felt it was a nice choice of song because he has a good voice. Paula was glad that he is getting into his groove. He is becoming a good performer and has some of the best vocals in the competition. Simon didn’t feel it was as good as last week, but he will definitely be in the top 12.

Ryan cut off the fun for a minute to break for commercial, but announced that Michael Johns would be hitting the stage next. Well, actually he said one of the David’s would be up, but there was a guitar issue so Michael was next by default.

Michael’s embarrassing fact was that he was dressed as a Kangaroo for a Rugby match and he got beat up in front of 20,000 people.

What he sang: “Don’t you Forget about Me”

What he wore: Leather jacket, t-shirt, and jeans

How he sounded: This is one of my favorite songs. It’s one of the best songs of the 80s. The arrangement was a little bit interesting. It was too different for me to really feel it like I do the original. That being said, I thought his vocals were pretty good. This was the first rock-ish song of the night and it was decent, if not good. He will be here next week or he should be anyway.

What the judges said: Randy loved it. It was totally him. Good song choice. Paula was glad that he is the artist that defines who he is. It was a perfect song for him and he has a unique presence that was great. You got it! Simon liked it, but didn’t love it. He feels like he’s similar to one of the girls in the competition – he has huge talent, but he hasn’t hit his big song moment yet. He really likes him, despite not really loving that song.

Next up was David Cook. He is the one who had some guitar issues so they had to play with the order a little bit. They took a break after Johns to see if they could get things handled and get David Cook on stage.

David’s embarrassing fact was that when he was little he sang “Sandman” by America in a talent show. He forgot the words halfway through and ended up standing on stage quietly until the end.

What he sang: “Hello”

What he wore: A black T-shirt, Jeans, and Electric Guitar

How he sounded: Having an electric guitar and a rock arrangement for this song was just completely interesting. I wasn’t sure about the guitar at first, but I have to say, I love him. I want him to stick around. His voice is unique, his style is his own, and he has so much to offer this competition.

What the judges said: Randy loved the emo changes to the pop song. It could be a hit. Paula loves when David is up because she knows that he’s going to impress her. She believes he will be a shining star. Simon felt it was a very brave thing to do and he loved it! He likes people who take risks. He hopes that he will be around next week!

Jason Castro’s embarrassing moment dealt with a date gone wrong one night with a girl that he apparently no longer dates. They ordered food and when it was on the way to the table, he went to pull his hair back and ended up pulling out a dread at the same time. He did get another date, though so apparently she liked him for more than his dreads.

What he sang: “Hallelujah”

What he wore: A button down and Jeans

How he sounded: The song is by far one of the most forgettable so far. It’s not that he’s bad, but the competition is getting more impressive. He chose a mellow song that isn’t going to make much of an impression. He had some pitch problems, and it just didn’t hit home the way he would need it to in order to stay around.

What they said: Randy loved the degree of difficulty. He did an okay job and he gets props for it. Paula felt that he made it sound so easy. It showed vulnerability by leaving the guitar behind this time. She loves that he’s unique and recognizable. Simon loves that song and the song arrangement was brilliant. It was one of his favorite songs of the night. He keeps getting better.

The night came to a close with the song stylings of Chikezie. However, before we heard his song we needed his embarrassing moment. Chikezie used to use the same bathroom all the time in high school. One time, he went to go into it, the door was closed, and he noticed that it said Womens. He used it all the time and never realized it was the girl’s bathroom. Of course, that explained why there were no urinals!

What he sang: “All the Woman I Need”

What he wore: Light brown pinstripe suit jacket, pink button down, and jeans.

How he sounded: This was kind of like the hotel singer at my brother’s wedding. You didn’t feel the need to chuck tomatoes at him, but at the end of the day he wasn’t getting it down in a professional setting. The vocals were okay, but it was a big song, and despite okay vocals, it wasn’t a song that he made his own.

What the judges said: Randy felt it was an interesting choice, but it worked out and it was good. Paula loves his personality and his vocals were really good. He was rocking. They all were rocking! Simon didn’t like Chikezie doing a Whitney Houston song. He was okay in some spots, but far too cabaret in other spots. It wasn’t a smart move.

Paula explained the night in two words….Phe-Nominal (have some more Coke, bitch). Simon was asked to reply, but with such words of wisdom, he was struck speechless as you might expect.

Who should Stay: The David’s all are worthy of sticking around, as is Michael Johns. Out of these four it’s hard to pick a favorite. If I had to pick one to leave Hernandez would end up leaving so that the other David’s and Michael Johns could stay. As for actual contenders, if things keep up, I could see a battle of the David’s (Cook & Archuleta) as the top two.

Technorati Tags: American Idol, Top 16, Top 8 guys, David Archuleta, David Cook, Michael Johns, David Hernandez, Chikezie, Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, Randy Jackson, Danny Noriega, Jason Castro, Luke Menard