Some of the kinds of funny animal pools in Flickr:
Hotel New Hamster
Your Dog Nose
Furry Friday
Wednesday, March 09, 2005
sepia experiment
An experiment using camera settings, then iPhoto. Click for more info.
It's one of the photos I took at the ville faux -- a WWII re-enactment set beside the Mid-Atlantic Air Museum in Reading (RDG) -- from last Saturday.
I finally made a photo set for the Mid-Atlantic Air Museum, with the pictures I liked the most.
David brought home Adobe suite tutorials for me a couple of weeks ago, but they're still sitting upstairs on my desk. I know... no excuse, really. There's something of a purist in me who appreciates untreated photographs, directly from what the photographer sees and sets up in the LCD panel/viewfinder. I even crop very sparingly. Which has nothing to do with not learning Photoshop, other than to honestly say I don't know how to use it (therefore I don't), which is bollocks because it's like saying I don't want to go hiking because it erodes the forest...
What am I on about???
It's one of the photos I took at the ville faux -- a WWII re-enactment set beside the Mid-Atlantic Air Museum in Reading (RDG) -- from last Saturday.
I finally made a photo set for the Mid-Atlantic Air Museum, with the pictures I liked the most.
David brought home Adobe suite tutorials for me a couple of weeks ago, but they're still sitting upstairs on my desk. I know... no excuse, really. There's something of a purist in me who appreciates untreated photographs, directly from what the photographer sees and sets up in the LCD panel/viewfinder. I even crop very sparingly. Which has nothing to do with not learning Photoshop, other than to honestly say I don't know how to use it (therefore I don't), which is bollocks because it's like saying I don't want to go hiking because it erodes the forest...
What am I on about???
my Flickr addiction continues unabated...
Check out this photo by Hendrik, who lives in Vancouver. I also "faved" another photo from his stream here.
Part of why I'm so addicted to Flickr.
I'm also addicted to the forums, like the chaotic FlickrCentral, which has discussions on everything from artistic merit to hardware to current events and all manner of topics in between.
There are regional groups where you can find people arranging meetups, computers and internet groups, life groups to discuss work or family and showcase personal photos, recreation groups for people with similar interests and hobbies (like FLYING!), and whatever you can't find, you can initiate yourself.
I sound like an ad for Flickr, but the creativity of the photography I see every day (every hour!) never ceases to amaze me. There's something very egalitarian and tangential about its structure, which is very appealing. There are professional photographers on Flickr, but they're usually there for personal reasons and post photos unrelated to their work. Everyone comments on everyone else's photographs and everyone is all jumbled together. Dandy!
Part of why I'm so addicted to Flickr.
I'm also addicted to the forums, like the chaotic FlickrCentral, which has discussions on everything from artistic merit to hardware to current events and all manner of topics in between.
There are regional groups where you can find people arranging meetups, computers and internet groups, life groups to discuss work or family and showcase personal photos, recreation groups for people with similar interests and hobbies (like FLYING!), and whatever you can't find, you can initiate yourself.
I sound like an ad for Flickr, but the creativity of the photography I see every day (every hour!) never ceases to amaze me. There's something very egalitarian and tangential about its structure, which is very appealing. There are professional photographers on Flickr, but they're usually there for personal reasons and post photos unrelated to their work. Everyone comments on everyone else's photographs and everyone is all jumbled together. Dandy!
Tuesday, March 08, 2005
The Up Series: 21
me: Leverkusen, Germany - Dec 1994
This post has been sitting in draft mode because I've been thinking about it all day!
Follow-up to Thursday's post: The Up Series - Mother of All Reality Shows.
We watched '21 Up' last night-- the 14 children who were interviewed when they were 7 years old in 1964 are now 21. David and I are fascinated by this documentary. On one hand, 21 years of age feels like a lifetime ago for us thirtysomethings, but at the same time it feels like yesterday. David was taking Graphic Design at Penn State and I was traipsing around somewhere distant. In that time of our lives we were oblivious to each other's existence. While David had a clear sense of direction, I was flying by the seat of my pants. It's a pivotal age -- legally an adult, but lacking the certainty and confidence that adulthood is expected to bring.
The 14 children from '7 Up' and 'Seven Plus 7' are interviewed again, 14 years after they're first brought together one day in London, and asked various questions about sex, happiness, careers, family life, and what they thought of themselves, watching the footage from when they were 7 and 14. For every question they answered, five more popped into my head:
What if they were filmed every 5 years, instead of 7?
Why 4 girls and 10 boys? Why not 7 and 7?
Would the boarding school children ship their own kids off to boarding school, too?
Would these people have agreed to participate if they'd known how long the series would go?
Were any of the kids coached on what to say by their parents?
How did their parents react to their interviews?
Were their parents given a list of questions they'd be asked?
Did the parents object to any of the questions? Were they allowed to see the footage before editing?
What information was lost in the editing process?
Did they regret anything they said, or admitted?
At first I thought 5-year increments would be more interesting, but after seeing how difficult it was for some of them to respond, I realised just how intrusive this documentary may have been to their lives. Now I think 5 years would've been too frequent -- it might have affected their decision-making, and too present in their minds around the filming year. One crucial difference between the 'Up!' series and today's reality TV is that these participants did not volunteer themselves for the project -- their parents did, and it was likely the case when they were 14 as well. By the time they reached 21, they were able to decide for themselves whether they wanted to participate or not, and this is the first installment where we get to see them as independents. It's not an easy time, and definitely not an easy time to be under the microscope, exposed to the public at large.
Would I have participated in such a project? At this stage, I am increasingly doubtful. At first impression, it sounds interesting to document your life this way. But, 7 and 14 are tender ages and the audience is left to guess at a great deal of information, such as what their parents are like and how much influence they have on these children. Where do their ideas about politics and racial issues come from if not from their parents? In '21 Up' nearly all have moved out of their family home -- one is a squatter -- and two of the girls have married. Some sound defensive, resentful, and cynical. Some sound genuinely happy and hopeful. Others seem resigned, frustrated, or vague about the future. (Interestingly, many of the upper-class children's parents have divorced.) Everything positive and negative cross class lines, and defies whatever patterns one may expect from status in terms of success or failure or happiness at 21. Each participant has his or her own story, and while comparisons can be made to each other, the most interesting comparison to make is over time.
Time is the most compelling feature of this documentary.
The way I see it, the main issue with making a documentary is its subjectivity of truth. Truth is somewhat fleeting, ephemeral. Interviewing the 7-year old is most ephemeral. Kids like green beans today but not tomorrow. They were friends yesterday, but had a falling out at 3 o'clock and now it's all over. Change is the most enduring and inevitable aspect of childhood. Yet, we cannot help but lock them into a personality at 7 years old. I'd mentioned last week how dismayed we were at hearing upper-class Londoner Susie talk about "coloured people" with disdain after she's filmed in a ballet class. We laughed at little Neil from Merseyside, so chirpy and full of beans. We see them again at 14 years old -- Susie is almost completely withdrawn and Neil isn't smiling anymore. At 21 Susie is a chain-smoking cynic but more open, while Neil is a drifter who dropped out of Aberdeen University after one term, criticising his parents for leaving him unprepared for life...
What happened? Why are our expectations so disconnected from what we see? What is static and true about their personalities and what is not? Do some of them just get along better with Michael Apted, or do they inwardly resent being interviewed at all and therefore represent themselves in a better/poorer light?
Did the documentarian himself drag in preconceived notions about them and edit the film to match the story HE wanted to tell? There were a few things I noticed:
NONE of the parents were shown except one -- Symon's mother. Symon is half black and attended a charity school until he was 13. He didn't know his father. Symon mentioned his mother had suffered from depression and at that point Apted chose to show footage of Symon's white mother leaving the house and going down the street. This smacked of overstatement to me -- was it necessary to make a point that his father was black AND absent? Why weren't any of the other "absentee" parents shown, the ones who exported their small children to be minded at boarding schools?
The three upper-class boarding school boys were seated together on a couch at 7, 14, and 21 in exactly the same order. It wasn't so much that the order was the same, but John, Andrew, and Charles were unavoidably compared to each other -- John and Charles were at the opposite ends of the political spectrum and Andrew was in-between. Whether that arrangement was just coincidental or by design I have yet to find out (maybe not), but it definitely stuck in my head.
They threw a party for the kids in 1963 (the film was released in 1964), but didn't bring the group together for 14 years. They're shown the footage of themselves at 7 and 14, and as they watch they groan and cover their faces or laugh at themselves. Later they're filmed chatting together, smoking and drinking, many with seemingly nothing in common other than being subjects for the documentaries. Are they pretending to be nice to each other in front of the camera so they don't appear to be snobs or uncaring? Would these people speak at all if they'd met on the street? Did any of them agree to be filmed at 21 so they could defend whatever negative impressions they might've given at 7 or 14?
Time took a snapshot of them at three stages of their lives, and whether time or Michael Apted portrayed them fairly or accurately is something not any one person can answer... maybe not even the participants themselves. At 21 most of them are excruciatingly vague, and visibly struggle with their answers. They're self-conscious. They're unsure. They're introspective. I think they remind me of myself, except they've got the added pressure of the camera. I don't view this series as a extended film, per se, even though it's exclusively about these 14 people. I also don't think it's simply meant to answer questions about them, telling us everything about them so we know them as we know our circle of friends. It feels intimate, and I do think the audience cares about what happens to them, but I see it as more about life in general and how we conduct ourselves at those ages. Although, a camera can follow you every single day for a year, but ultimately you show what you want, when you want. A camera can't intuit anything -- it can only record, and the audience infers the rest.
Are these points in time being cruel or kind or honest to them? Do their late 1970's hairstyles, clothes, and carefully chosen words give us a truer picture of who they are than the unself-conscious kids of 1963? I await the next installment with equal parts anticipation and dread. I want to know how they change between 21 and 28, but 28 is closer to my age and thus a more relevant state of self-examination.
Sunday, March 06, 2005
The Office
NBC's The Office
From the very, very short preview shown on TV, it looks terrible...
Here's the kicker: it's filmed in L.A., but the setting is a paper-supply company in... SCRANTON, Pennsylvania. Yeah, HERE! WE are the American equivalent of Slough!
(I'll bet it won't last more than a season.)
Saturday, March 05, 2005
Reading
We flew south to Reading (72 nautical miles) today to take advantage of the fine weather... and so I could try the airport restaurant's hot wings David's been raving about. When we landed, Air Traffic Control informed us that the restaurant closed down (awwww...), but we found plenty of other wings to keep us occupied -- onsite there's the Mid-Atlantic Air Museum and a set for WWII re-enactment. David will write up a post about it in his Multiply journal tomorrow. For now, I've tagged all 63 of our photos uploaded to Flickr, not in any particular order:
Mid-Atlantic Air Museum, Reading, PA (all photos from our cameras, combined and mixed together)
ADDITION: Sunday, Mar 6
David's entry in Multiply: Man's Quest for Wings
Mid-Atlantic Air Museum, Reading, PA (all photos from our cameras, combined and mixed together)
ADDITION: Sunday, Mar 6
David's entry in Multiply: Man's Quest for Wings
Friday, March 04, 2005
R.I.P. Stella
I was shocked to read that Stella, Socar's beloved Gambian Pouched Rat, lost a swift and deadly bout with cancer this morning.
Ratty's Ghost: Stella, Come Back
Socar is working on uploading some images/video to her site. In the meantime, as a memorial I'll re-post the Stella video I made last April.
Larger, MOV format (14MBs)
Smaller, AVI format (6.9MBs)
More Stella images on Flickr.
Stella was a real character, and will be sorely missed by all who were bitten (and nearly bitten) by her... including me.
Ratty's Ghost: Stella, Come Back
Socar is working on uploading some images/video to her site. In the meantime, as a memorial I'll re-post the Stella video I made last April.
Larger, MOV format (14MBs)
Smaller, AVI format (6.9MBs)
More Stella images on Flickr.
Stella was a real character, and will be sorely missed by all who were bitten (and nearly bitten) by her... including me.
Living next door to a Catholic Church...
... it can get rather comical.
When it's time for mass, bells chime, but the sounds come from loudspeakers... it's TAPED! David says there's even a belltower, where there were probably bells at one time, but now there are just speakers. I'll hand it to them -- they really do sound like bells.
When it's time for mass, bells chime, but the sounds come from loudspeakers... it's TAPED! David says there's even a belltower, where there were probably bells at one time, but now there are just speakers. I'll hand it to them -- they really do sound like bells.
Thursday, March 03, 2005
The Up Series: The Mother of All Reality Shows
IMDB links:
Seven Up!
Seven Plus 7
21 Up
28 Up
35 Up
42 Up
I'd heard about this documentary series off and on for years, and I'm finally getting around to seeing them all at once. I've queued them all in my Netflix list, and tonight we watched the first two: Seven Up! and Seven Plus 7
It's interesting in these reality-TV times to look back on the longest-running documentary ever. The project is still ongoing -- 49 Up will be filmed this year -- and set a precedent for social commentary in the form of a serial documentary film.
Some articles:
Oct 18, 2004 - MSNBC: 'Seven Up' kids back under the lens at 49
Oct 26, 2004 - DVDtalk.com review by Bill Gibron (comprehensive)
Right now the 'Up' series is my antidote for American Idol. I started following American Idol for the first time three weeks ago, and found myself both fascinated and turned off by what I've observed. At the same time, I couldn't very well scorn it on the basis of one show, so I decided to continue watching until the finale, and figure out if my original observations were deserved. However, there are some major differences between American Idol and the 'Up' films aside from the premise of singing contest versus documentary. Both are trying to capture the drama of life -- one being the drama of competition, the other the drama of ordinary life. It sounds like an oxymoron to say there's drama in everyday life, but that is -- to me -- where reality TV drama has left me cold.
I'm not sure whether television audiences have become so desensitised that reality just isn't entertaining enough, so we must artificially create drama, or if dramatic fiction TV isn't entertaining enough that we have to artificially create reality? I guess the question lies in each person's definition of entertainment.
For my money, the documentary wins over reality TV for entertainment value. Granted, not all documentaries are interesting, most documentaries do not have a fraction of the production value of a TV show, and some toe the line of the very truth they purport. But I believe documentaries are extremely underrated in terms of entertainment; at the very least they can make us more socially aware.
Take, for instance, the documentary Dark Days, a film by Marc Singer about the people living in the subway tunnels of Manhattan. He lived with them underground for five and a half years, and later -- with no previous experience -- made a film about their lives and what it's like to be homeless. When I first saw it, I was riveted and watched it again. This is reality at its starkest, yet the film has a great deal of aesthetic value -- it's shot well (even though it's underground) and DJ Shadow's score is phenomenal. It's been years since I saw it, but the images and soundtrack are still burned into memory. (*opens another tab to add it to Netflix queue*)
The 'Up' series, in contrast, does not follow its subjects around. It's a series of interviews with occasional clips of their activities, so in that respect it does not follow reality TV format. The first, 'Seven Up!', was filmed in 1964 and it's still in black and white. The children at the age of 7 are cute and innocent, telling us their thoughts unabashedly most of the time. Even with classic British reserve, the shy ones are still charming. When David and I weren't laughing, we were alarmed at the level of class and racial prejudice some expressed in their ideas. (Not surprisingly, from the privileged.) Their parents are never shown, so we are left to wonder how they were raised and what kind of people their parents were. In the second installment, 'Seven Plus 7', the kids are 14 and much more canny about life in general. It's a bit saddening to see their cuteness and innocence give way so quickly to worldliness; it's an indication that life has been less than idyllic for some -- it's reality, after all. We can only imagine what internal struggles they may have, or the pressure they feel to represent themselves properly to the world at 14 when they're in the throes of adolescence in 1970.
David's review of 'Seven Up!' and 'Seven Plus 7' on Multiply
We're waiting for the next four installments to arrive, when the group are 21, 28, 35, and 42 years old. More reviews to come.
Wednesday, March 02, 2005
Backstage at American Idol
The folks at American Idol came to their senses this week and cut our torture in half. Elimination Wednesday was only half an hour instead of an hour. So, there should be far less crying than previously, right? Dunno 'bout that... maybe more drinking, instead.
We watched Monday's performances later that night, and Tuesday's and tonight's together. It was easier to make observations, and spared ourselves from the ad schlock.
THE PERFORMANCES
Monday: The Guys
I think this bunch had a group prayer after last Wednesday, then each went his own way... the ones who squeaked through on a nice word from Randy or Paula watched some Tim Robbins motivational videos and the guys who did OK or better went on a pub crawl bender.
Improvement Award Nominees
Scott Savol - "Never Too Much"
Nikko Smith - "Let's Get It On"
Joseph Murena - "Let's Stay Together"
Scott must've read my blog last week (har har), because he took it up a notch: funky glasses, moved around a lot more, and got into the song, which was pretty challenging. I'll even forgive him for wearing a pink shirt. I think his momma would be proud. The judges even laid off the digs about his appearance, including Simon!
Nikko and Joseph both sang much better, moved much better, but Joseph was sporting this AWFUL fake bottle tan he must've borrowed from George Hamilton's medicine cabinet, and Simon slammed Nikko for looking too much like Bobby Brown... cheap shot Simon, Bobby looks more like a thug! I think he's even missing teeth!
Uh Oh, You're in Trouble
Constantine Maroulis - "Hard To Handle"
Travis Tucker - "All Night Long"
David Brown - "All In Love Is Fair"
Constantine's credibility took a steep, steep dive trying to emulate Chris Robinson of the Black Crows, which was worsened considerably by the crappiness of the American Idol band. Did they not PRACTICE rock and roll, or did they push a button called "American Idol arrangement" in GarageBand and hit play? It's a great song, and they did a hatchet job on it! Constantine's singing hit an all-time low when he screeched midway... even the cat ran off!
David called David Brown's singing "flatter than a pancake"... Stevie Wonder is blind, but he ain't deaf -- hope he doesn't watch American Idol and hear his song get butchered. If David Brown doesn't get booted off this week, I'm calling the producers.
Travis Tucker has this... KNACK.... for resurrecting songs best left buried. Last week he sang "My Cherie Amour". This week, LIONEL RITCHIE?? "All Night Long"? Was Travis even alive when this song came out? I'll say this for him, though: the boy can move.
You Still Stink, But Why Are You Still Here??
Anthony Fedorov - "I Want To Know What Love Is"
I thought Anthony dug his own grave singing this Foreigner song. Stop ruining the '80s for me, Anthony! And why is he being compared to Clay Aiken, who I think has a much better voice??
Consistency is the Key
Anwar Robinson - "What's Going On"
Bo Bice - "Whipping Post"
Mario Vazquez - "I Love Music"
I don't know if it's because we're watching old-technology cassette tape with rather lousy sound quality, but Anwar Robinson sounded terribly mediocre. I love Marvin Gaye, but "What's Going On" indeed...
Bo's pre-performance interview didn't do him any favours (here's a tip, Bo: don't mention collecting unemployment... shut up... just sing). In fact, it made him look like a hick, but obviously this didn't affect his ability to sing, because he belted out "Whipping Post" -- a song David knows, but I don't. It's another one of those YELLING songs that I think covers up a bad singing voice, like Judd Harris singing John Fogerty last week, but the judges loved it. Go figure. But, he flung his long hair around satisfactorily like the rocker guy he is, and completed his signature style with his wardrobe of country-meets-hippie, which counts with Paula.
Mario Vazquez started off the evening in his characteristic high-energy way, but I didn't think it was as good as last week. Simon totally disagreed with me, and added that Mario looked like he'd been doing it for years. If that isn't a rousing, full-bodied endorsement, I don't know what is.
AN ASIDE: Was it just me, or did Paula look like she was on drugs? She was out in space, especially commenting on Anthony Federov's performance.
MY ELIMINATION PICKS: Anthony Federov (please! please!) and David Brown
DAVID'S ELIMINATION PICKS: Constantine Maroulis and Joseph Murena
Tuesday: The Girls
Improvement Award Nominees
Amanda Avila - "Turn The Beat Around"
Jessica Sierra - "A Broken Wing"
Jessica Sierra was far more dynamic this week, and the judges LOVED her performance. We were bullish too, but less so than the judges... our tepid response to her singing may be attributed to our old-school technology, the videotape, but clearly she pulled the rabbit out of the proverbial hat this go 'round.
Amanda Avila, who I never thought would even make it this far with her stinker of a song last week (Michael Bolton, remember?) must've seen a spike in her votes when Simon added that he'd like to come back in the next life as her microphone. But she managed to get over that comment and watched some Gloria Estefan videos to pump herself up for "Turn the Beat Around", obviously a highly motivational song and more effective than Tim Robbins. I don't think Amanda is going to win -- heads should roll if she does -- but she picked a song much more suited to her voice.
Uh Oh, You're in Trouble
Carrie Underwood - "Piece Of My Heart"
Aloha Mischeaux - "You Don't Know My Name"
Celena Rae - "When The Lights Go Down"
Janay Castine - "Hit 'Em Up Style"
Lindsey Cardinale - "I Try To Think About Elvis"
Vonzell Solomon - "If I Ain't Got You"
There are so many girls in trouble, they need to call in the therapists.
Carrie Underwood took some bad advice from someone and attempted a LeeAnn Rimes-ish version of Janis Joplin. Oh dear. First of all, she barely moved onstage, just lots of finger wagging and hip movements and head turns. Perhaps Janis Joplin's drug-fuelled rocker legend looms too large in the collective consciousness for a wholesome Oklahoma farm girl to take on, but GIVE US SOME EDGY ROCK 'N' ROLL, girl!! None of this LeeAnn Rimes crooning business. For her efforts, Paula Abdul said the harshest words I've heard pass from her lips: "That wasn't believable... that didn't prove versatile to me..." Uh OH.
Aloha Mischeaux and Vonzell Solomon sang Alicia Keys songs, and weirdly, Simon said something later very similar to what I said to David as we were watching it. I think they made it unnecessarily hard for themselves by choosing songs that are still current in people's minds. There's just too much heavy rotation in pop music for the public to disassociate the treatment by American Idol singers from the original musicians. It's kind of farcical to reach back for the cheese like Travis Tucker did with Lionel Ritchie, but at least pick songs people would have some nostalgia for and be happy to hear, without the burden of the artist's memory on their minds. My two non-vocalist Armchair Critic cents, anyway.
How weird would it be for people to perform Paula Abdul songs? Has anyone tried it? Somebody SHOULD!
Celena Rae looks good, but has zero charisma... I'm surprised she made it as far as she has. I feel the same way about Lindsey Cardinale, who pumped things up with her hoedown song, but these two are grasping at straws.
Let's not forget the gratuitous full-body camera pan on Janay Castine, who steeled herself against the judges for her rendition of "Hit 'Em Up Style" by Blu Cantrell. Somebody should've talked her out of it... seriously. Janay has a great voice, but she's far too young to successfully carry off a song about a woman taking revenge on her cheating lover:
While he was scheming
I was beamin' in the Beamer
Just beamin'
Can't believe that
I caught my man cheatin'
So I found another way
To make him pay for it all
Even when Janay was singing, she looked like a deer in headlights. It was as if all her nervousness from last week travelled to her eyeballs.
Are You the Same Person From Last Week?
Mikalah Gordon - "God Bless The Child"
Nadia Turner - "My Love"
In the first instance, it was a good thing for Mikalah Gordon to do a 180-degree turn. She was on the verge of getting electric shock therapy to calm her down. Her eye makeup is still a little scary, but she wasn't wearing the hula-hoop sized earrings from Monday's show, her hair was tied back, and her clothes were all of two colours. It matched her voice, which in turn matched her jazz number. It was a perfectly co-ordinated package, and totally blew away the competition.
Nadia Turner, on the other hand, turned the volume down and the power went off. The clothes, the song, her voice... nothing matched. Paul McCartney, Nadia? It was hurting us to watch her take the same steep dive as Constantine.
MY ELIMINATION PICKS: Janay Castine and Celena Rae
DAVID'S ELIMINATION PICKS: Janay Castine and Carrie Underwood
Wednesday: On the Chopping Block
The atmosphere seemed far different this week going into this elimination round, probably because of the change in format. A half hour show allows less time for cheesy suspense tricks and head games with the contestants.
However, the host script for Ryan Seacrest (Captain Obvious) remained as horrendous as ever:
"See who pulled the... (insert dramatic pause here) LOWEST... number of votes..."
"One of you pulled the LOWEST... number of votes... and one of you pulled the SECOND LOWEST... number of votes..."
Oh, puh-leeze...
Another annoying tactic that has remained from last week is that the FIRST person to get eliminated is the one allotted the greatest share of shame time onstage alone. Poor Celena Rae, who at least half-expected to get sacked, accepted her fate gracefully and to her credit didn't break down in tears. She probably breathed a sigh of relief she wouldn't be forced to sing again.
Hey, we're ALL thankful for that -- those forced songs were an exercise in unnecessary cruelty (as opposed to necessary cruelty -- the competition itself).
I noticed some major bumbling jobs by the camera crew, though -- what was up with that? Maybe half an hour doesn't warrant an attention span.
This week seemed to devote much more time to constructive criticism. More of the contestants were allowed to speak their minds and actually engage in some discussion, despite Seacrest's banal line of questioning --
"You did great in rehearsal, why couldn't you perform it on Tuesday night?"
If I were a contestant, I'd want to clobber him over the head. There's this small matter of being on TV with a panel of judges and millions of people watching, moron!
Cue suspense music. Cue more head games. Finally, Aloha and Vonzell get dragged onstage and this is when they get their tonguelashing about choosing current pop music. I was quite surprised to see Aloha get the heave-ho, but apparently, the judges were, too. They all expressed the opinion that she was robbed of at least one more week in the competition (i.e, there were worse performances). I definitely thought Lindsey Cardinale or Janay Castine would get cut before she did. But she took it quite well, considering, and even had parting advice with a smile on her face. Hats off to Aloha for maturity.
The guys, on the other hand, were spared most of the scrutiny and dissection. I suspect the producers ran out of time. They were summoned onstage as a foursome, and David Brown and Joseph Murena were eliminated as a pair. David Brown didn't look too surprised, but Joseph Murena was in a state of denial.
Personally, I don't think these people should take American Idol to heart. Sure, take it seriously as a competition, but this is not the be-all and end-all of opportunities. As far as Simon's cracks about singing in hotels, don't all the greats end up at the MGM Grand in Vegas at one stage or another?
We watched Monday's performances later that night, and Tuesday's and tonight's together. It was easier to make observations, and spared ourselves from the ad schlock.
THE PERFORMANCES
Monday: The Guys
I think this bunch had a group prayer after last Wednesday, then each went his own way... the ones who squeaked through on a nice word from Randy or Paula watched some Tim Robbins motivational videos and the guys who did OK or better went on a pub crawl bender.
Improvement Award Nominees
Scott Savol - "Never Too Much"
Nikko Smith - "Let's Get It On"
Joseph Murena - "Let's Stay Together"
Scott must've read my blog last week (har har), because he took it up a notch: funky glasses, moved around a lot more, and got into the song, which was pretty challenging. I'll even forgive him for wearing a pink shirt. I think his momma would be proud. The judges even laid off the digs about his appearance, including Simon!
Nikko and Joseph both sang much better, moved much better, but Joseph was sporting this AWFUL fake bottle tan he must've borrowed from George Hamilton's medicine cabinet, and Simon slammed Nikko for looking too much like Bobby Brown... cheap shot Simon, Bobby looks more like a thug! I think he's even missing teeth!
Uh Oh, You're in Trouble
Constantine Maroulis - "Hard To Handle"
Travis Tucker - "All Night Long"
David Brown - "All In Love Is Fair"
Constantine's credibility took a steep, steep dive trying to emulate Chris Robinson of the Black Crows, which was worsened considerably by the crappiness of the American Idol band. Did they not PRACTICE rock and roll, or did they push a button called "American Idol arrangement" in GarageBand and hit play? It's a great song, and they did a hatchet job on it! Constantine's singing hit an all-time low when he screeched midway... even the cat ran off!
David called David Brown's singing "flatter than a pancake"... Stevie Wonder is blind, but he ain't deaf -- hope he doesn't watch American Idol and hear his song get butchered. If David Brown doesn't get booted off this week, I'm calling the producers.
Travis Tucker has this... KNACK.... for resurrecting songs best left buried. Last week he sang "My Cherie Amour". This week, LIONEL RITCHIE?? "All Night Long"? Was Travis even alive when this song came out? I'll say this for him, though: the boy can move.
You Still Stink, But Why Are You Still Here??
Anthony Fedorov - "I Want To Know What Love Is"
I thought Anthony dug his own grave singing this Foreigner song. Stop ruining the '80s for me, Anthony! And why is he being compared to Clay Aiken, who I think has a much better voice??
Consistency is the Key
Anwar Robinson - "What's Going On"
Bo Bice - "Whipping Post"
Mario Vazquez - "I Love Music"
I don't know if it's because we're watching old-technology cassette tape with rather lousy sound quality, but Anwar Robinson sounded terribly mediocre. I love Marvin Gaye, but "What's Going On" indeed...
Bo's pre-performance interview didn't do him any favours (here's a tip, Bo: don't mention collecting unemployment... shut up... just sing). In fact, it made him look like a hick, but obviously this didn't affect his ability to sing, because he belted out "Whipping Post" -- a song David knows, but I don't. It's another one of those YELLING songs that I think covers up a bad singing voice, like Judd Harris singing John Fogerty last week, but the judges loved it. Go figure. But, he flung his long hair around satisfactorily like the rocker guy he is, and completed his signature style with his wardrobe of country-meets-hippie, which counts with Paula.
Mario Vazquez started off the evening in his characteristic high-energy way, but I didn't think it was as good as last week. Simon totally disagreed with me, and added that Mario looked like he'd been doing it for years. If that isn't a rousing, full-bodied endorsement, I don't know what is.
AN ASIDE: Was it just me, or did Paula look like she was on drugs? She was out in space, especially commenting on Anthony Federov's performance.
MY ELIMINATION PICKS: Anthony Federov (please! please!) and David Brown
DAVID'S ELIMINATION PICKS: Constantine Maroulis and Joseph Murena
Tuesday: The Girls
Improvement Award Nominees
Amanda Avila - "Turn The Beat Around"
Jessica Sierra - "A Broken Wing"
Jessica Sierra was far more dynamic this week, and the judges LOVED her performance. We were bullish too, but less so than the judges... our tepid response to her singing may be attributed to our old-school technology, the videotape, but clearly she pulled the rabbit out of the proverbial hat this go 'round.
Amanda Avila, who I never thought would even make it this far with her stinker of a song last week (Michael Bolton, remember?) must've seen a spike in her votes when Simon added that he'd like to come back in the next life as her microphone. But she managed to get over that comment and watched some Gloria Estefan videos to pump herself up for "Turn the Beat Around", obviously a highly motivational song and more effective than Tim Robbins. I don't think Amanda is going to win -- heads should roll if she does -- but she picked a song much more suited to her voice.
Uh Oh, You're in Trouble
Carrie Underwood - "Piece Of My Heart"
Aloha Mischeaux - "You Don't Know My Name"
Celena Rae - "When The Lights Go Down"
Janay Castine - "Hit 'Em Up Style"
Lindsey Cardinale - "I Try To Think About Elvis"
Vonzell Solomon - "If I Ain't Got You"
There are so many girls in trouble, they need to call in the therapists.
Carrie Underwood took some bad advice from someone and attempted a LeeAnn Rimes-ish version of Janis Joplin. Oh dear. First of all, she barely moved onstage, just lots of finger wagging and hip movements and head turns. Perhaps Janis Joplin's drug-fuelled rocker legend looms too large in the collective consciousness for a wholesome Oklahoma farm girl to take on, but GIVE US SOME EDGY ROCK 'N' ROLL, girl!! None of this LeeAnn Rimes crooning business. For her efforts, Paula Abdul said the harshest words I've heard pass from her lips: "That wasn't believable... that didn't prove versatile to me..." Uh OH.
Aloha Mischeaux and Vonzell Solomon sang Alicia Keys songs, and weirdly, Simon said something later very similar to what I said to David as we were watching it. I think they made it unnecessarily hard for themselves by choosing songs that are still current in people's minds. There's just too much heavy rotation in pop music for the public to disassociate the treatment by American Idol singers from the original musicians. It's kind of farcical to reach back for the cheese like Travis Tucker did with Lionel Ritchie, but at least pick songs people would have some nostalgia for and be happy to hear, without the burden of the artist's memory on their minds. My two non-vocalist Armchair Critic cents, anyway.
How weird would it be for people to perform Paula Abdul songs? Has anyone tried it? Somebody SHOULD!
Celena Rae looks good, but has zero charisma... I'm surprised she made it as far as she has. I feel the same way about Lindsey Cardinale, who pumped things up with her hoedown song, but these two are grasping at straws.
Let's not forget the gratuitous full-body camera pan on Janay Castine, who steeled herself against the judges for her rendition of "Hit 'Em Up Style" by Blu Cantrell. Somebody should've talked her out of it... seriously. Janay has a great voice, but she's far too young to successfully carry off a song about a woman taking revenge on her cheating lover:
While he was scheming
I was beamin' in the Beamer
Just beamin'
Can't believe that
I caught my man cheatin'
So I found another way
To make him pay for it all
Even when Janay was singing, she looked like a deer in headlights. It was as if all her nervousness from last week travelled to her eyeballs.
Are You the Same Person From Last Week?
Mikalah Gordon - "God Bless The Child"
Nadia Turner - "My Love"
In the first instance, it was a good thing for Mikalah Gordon to do a 180-degree turn. She was on the verge of getting electric shock therapy to calm her down. Her eye makeup is still a little scary, but she wasn't wearing the hula-hoop sized earrings from Monday's show, her hair was tied back, and her clothes were all of two colours. It matched her voice, which in turn matched her jazz number. It was a perfectly co-ordinated package, and totally blew away the competition.
Nadia Turner, on the other hand, turned the volume down and the power went off. The clothes, the song, her voice... nothing matched. Paul McCartney, Nadia? It was hurting us to watch her take the same steep dive as Constantine.
MY ELIMINATION PICKS: Janay Castine and Celena Rae
DAVID'S ELIMINATION PICKS: Janay Castine and Carrie Underwood
Wednesday: On the Chopping Block
The atmosphere seemed far different this week going into this elimination round, probably because of the change in format. A half hour show allows less time for cheesy suspense tricks and head games with the contestants.
However, the host script for Ryan Seacrest (Captain Obvious) remained as horrendous as ever:
"See who pulled the... (insert dramatic pause here) LOWEST... number of votes..."
"One of you pulled the LOWEST... number of votes... and one of you pulled the SECOND LOWEST... number of votes..."
Oh, puh-leeze...
Another annoying tactic that has remained from last week is that the FIRST person to get eliminated is the one allotted the greatest share of shame time onstage alone. Poor Celena Rae, who at least half-expected to get sacked, accepted her fate gracefully and to her credit didn't break down in tears. She probably breathed a sigh of relief she wouldn't be forced to sing again.
Hey, we're ALL thankful for that -- those forced songs were an exercise in unnecessary cruelty (as opposed to necessary cruelty -- the competition itself).
I noticed some major bumbling jobs by the camera crew, though -- what was up with that? Maybe half an hour doesn't warrant an attention span.
This week seemed to devote much more time to constructive criticism. More of the contestants were allowed to speak their minds and actually engage in some discussion, despite Seacrest's banal line of questioning --
"You did great in rehearsal, why couldn't you perform it on Tuesday night?"
If I were a contestant, I'd want to clobber him over the head. There's this small matter of being on TV with a panel of judges and millions of people watching, moron!
Cue suspense music. Cue more head games. Finally, Aloha and Vonzell get dragged onstage and this is when they get their tonguelashing about choosing current pop music. I was quite surprised to see Aloha get the heave-ho, but apparently, the judges were, too. They all expressed the opinion that she was robbed of at least one more week in the competition (i.e, there were worse performances). I definitely thought Lindsey Cardinale or Janay Castine would get cut before she did. But she took it quite well, considering, and even had parting advice with a smile on her face. Hats off to Aloha for maturity.
The guys, on the other hand, were spared most of the scrutiny and dissection. I suspect the producers ran out of time. They were summoned onstage as a foursome, and David Brown and Joseph Murena were eliminated as a pair. David Brown didn't look too surprised, but Joseph Murena was in a state of denial.
Personally, I don't think these people should take American Idol to heart. Sure, take it seriously as a competition, but this is not the be-all and end-all of opportunities. As far as Simon's cracks about singing in hotels, don't all the greats end up at the MGM Grand in Vegas at one stage or another?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
