ok, i am currently listening to the new idol cd that drops TODAY! (you can listen to it in its entirety here, too)
Lets get the rundown:
Melissa (what about love) – I think she sounds amazing in a studio. Her voice is still raw, but cleaned up ever so slightly so it doesn’t sound quite so straining and manic. The song choice is great for her, and maybe this is because i also love the song, but I think it is one of the best performances on the CD.
Bucky (superstition) – This was just ok for me. I’m not such a fan of the instrumental background on this one. I think it acutally overpowers him. His studio voice is just eh for me.
Mandisa (i’m every woman) – listening to this recording reminds me that she definitely ranks third behind predecessors Trenyce and Baby v. Her studio voice doesn’t come across as powerful as her stage performance and presence. Her voice actually sounds a bit squeely instead of powerful.
Chris (dead or alive) – i was a bit disapointed at the first half of the song because it sounded like the pulled a bo bice on him and wussed everything out. However, the last half of the song is great. His recording voice is AMAZING, but the instrumental is a bit lacking. I guess thats what happend when idol tries to do Bon Jovi. Chris will totally rock w/o 19 ent. involved.
Ace (father figure) – This is another one of the top tracks on the cd. Ace has a great studio voice that is perfectly suited to take on justin timberlake any day. The arrangement is great, and he just sounds so much better on the cd. Stay in the studio ace (but send us pictures so we can all see your pretty face.)
Taylor (taking it to the streets) – Actually the track is better than i thought it would be, but i had very low expectations. Taylor loses alot because he is much better suited for stage performances, but his vocals were ok. Again the background instrumentals (and background vocals) were distracting on this one.
Lisa (Signed sealed delivered) – This is one of the worst tracks on the whole thing. They took a stevie song and made it some terrible remake by the a-teens. the instrumentals were awful, and lisa sounds like shes 10 years old on this. It really doesn’t feature her mature vocals that were always so hyped. Definite disappointment.
Kellie (walking after midnight) – ugh! Another bad track. Her voice is so annoying and she is trying so much to be “raw” and grovely-sounding with her vocals and its just not good. If your self-preservation instincts kick it, you will skip this one.
Elliott (Moody’s mood) – It is a pretty good track. very Harry connick jr. as expected. His cd will be very well done and enjoyable for all elliott fans.
Kat (think) – I don’t think the studio particularly helped or hurt her. It was a pretty good performance (though i still prefer degarmo singing this better…i know kat fans, stone me now) but i think she could have chosen a more ballady song for the cd. I think that would have showcased her range better. I do have to be thankful that the song wasn’t too manic or filled with crazy vocal runs, but it probably ranks in the middle range as far as this cd goes.
Paris (Midnight Train to Georgia) – She sounds amazing in the studio. Her voice really comes across well. She is vocally strong and the performance and song choice was great for this. I mean, too bad gladys night got to this song first, because the sigle could be great. I am now looking forward to a Paris cd (as long as it is nothing like the babymama cd came out)
Kevin (When i fall in love) – I think the fad of kevin has worn off. He comes across as awkward and uncomfortable on the track, and his voice in inconsistent throughout the track – random and weak vibratos, the instruments are way too much for this song…its just bad. I have to admit that he went out with a bang with this song on the show, but it has lost all appeal with me following this recording.
Rank (based on performance on the cd):
Paris
Ace
Melissa
Chris
Elliott
Taylor
Kat
Bucky
Mandisa
Lisa
Kevin
Kellie
Listen yourself and let me know your thoughts!
