'Idol' Top 4: Jason Castro's 'emp mah nah-nah uh-uh ungh-uh' heard 'round the world
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- May
- 7
I think I’d actually enjoy hanging out with Jason Castro, the person. He seems like a mellow, upbeat kind of guy who’d pick up his guitar and strum some basic chords at a party with adult beverages (which he’s been able to do legally since March 25, when he turned 21).
But I’ve never really understood the appeal of Jason Castro, the singer, at least as far as a potential “American Idol” is concerned. Even an unconfident Castro recently admitted his inferiority complex in so many words, according to a Jessica Shaw piece published in the latest edition of Entertainment Weekly:
It’s the fact that I have a weaker voice than the rest.
Some might argue it’s a confidence issue; I just think it’s a fact.
Fast-forward to his decisions last night to do a subpar karaoke version (meaning subpar, even for karaoke) of Bob Marley’s “I Shot the Sheriff” and a Forgetful Jones chorus on a listless cover of Bob Dylan’s “Mr. Tambourine Man”:
And hey, Mr. Tambourine Man/Play a song for me/And the emp mah nah-nah uh-uh/Ungh-uh followin’ you….
Is it any wonder that Carly Smithson, while applauding this attempt, might as well have had a “How the hell did I lose to this guy?” thought bubble floating above her head? And while he might benefit unfairly from sympathy votes as a result of Simon Cowell’s subsequent, humorless zinger…
I’d pack your suitcase.
… any other result would be unfortunate for everyone involved. David Archuleta, Syesha Mercado and David Cook didn’t just perform better, they deserve better.
About a week earlier, Castro himself even said he’s “kind of ready to go home.” Voters should have helped him pack at least a month ago, but should have done so last night at the very least. Especially because it’s unfair to contestants who actually work hard to win this competition.
More thoughts on the performances from Rock and Roll Hall of Fame night, and the rankings thereof, after the break.
Host Ryan Seacrest opened the episode by saying that three of the Top 4 contestants had already been top-vote getters at a given time. This likely means that, considering Syesha Mercado’s countless Bottom 3 and Bottom 2 appearances, Castro topped the votes at least once. Even if it was for “Hallelujah,” that’s disgraceful.
I instantly recognized Jamie-Lynn “Meadow Soprano” Sigler in the audience, but couldn’t figure out for the life of me who was the scruffy chap, thumbs-upping the camera, even when paused on DVR. Turns out it was Luke Menard, eliminated during an early “Idol” voting round this season. How quickly even devout “Idol” fans forget!
How many times has the phrase “warm, fuzzy” been used to describe anything involving Ike Turner? In last night’s case, Seacrest used it to describe the distorted sound that came from his hooking a guitar up to an amplifier for his guitar.
Despite the metaphorical wink, I wasn’t laughing when Seacrest said the judges would be judging contestants after each song this week. Y’know, because of this whole mess, after all.
OK, onto the rankings:
1. David Archuleta—Yes, his song choices (”Stand By Me” and “Love Me Tender”) were predictable; their delivery, robotic. But they were also technically near-perfect and pleasing to his rabid fanbase of tweens and grandmas.
Still, just once, I’d like to see the 17-year-old step out of his comfort zone. The judges will never say anything—they (are told to?) love him too much. But for all the times they’ve called contestants’ song choices “safe,” it’d be nice to throw Archie a curveball, to see if he responds with a truly surprising performance. It might just make him the No. 1 choice for more viewers between the ages of 18 and 30.
But his reportedly overbearing dad, who looks like a brunette Danny Bonaduce, probably would never such PG-rated performances happen. Especially in the current era of Miley Cyrus.
2. David Cook—His performance of Duran Duran’s “Hungry Like the Wolf” was his dullest in recent memory, but he made up for the gaffe with a stripped-down, slowed-down version of The Who’s “Baba O’Riley.”
My only gripe about the latter song choice (one that, admittedly, I pitched for him yesterday): Just as it was about to pick up speed and momentum for the famous fiddle solo, it was over. There’s a bit of a difference between leaving the audience wanting more and leaving out the best part of the song.
3. Syesha Mercado—Her rendition of “Proud Mary” was both impressive from a performance perspective and awkward in a cruise-ship/wedding-band kind of way. (Insert Luke Menard joke here!) I still loved it though; not only did she look drop-dead gorgeous, her voice often matched and her hip-wielding sex appeal was off-the-charts.
I was less impressed with her version of “A Change is Gonna Come,” which had some excellent moments, but perhaps for the first time made me relate to detractors who call her “shouty.” Plus, it was off-putting and perhaps downright tacky that she kept comparing the lyrics—about the struggle of the civil rights movement—to her run on a reality TV show. In addition, she loses points beacause he normally composed performer’s teary breakdown upon hearing Paula Abdul’s raves seemed to fall somewhere between “actressy” and “phony” on the integrity scale.
It’s tough to be too critical of her, though, because she does have some seriously raw talent. But on rare occasions, like last night, it can be too raw.
4. Jason Castro—Quoth the Cowell: “I’d pack your suitcase.”
(All photos by Frank Micelotta/FOX.)
This entry was posted
on Wednesday, May 7th, 2008 at 2:51 pm by Chris Serico.
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