- Local
- Community
- Journalism
Support the independent voice of South Florida and help keep the future of New Times free.
Last night: Entertaining in the same way as an especially energetic Chris Botti concert. Probably the most boring
American Idolepisode of the season. Maybe ever. Maybe the most boring two hours in the history of television outside the HSN.
It was Lauren Alaina and Scotty McCreery, each singing 1) their favorite song of the season so far; 2) a song selected for them by their idols; and 3) the song that will be their first single if they should win American Idol tomorrow night. The judges didn't have much to say -- they commented briefly after rounds two and three, but at this point it's all encomiums. (But wasn't it ever thus?) Ryan Seacrest didn't say much either. For the first time all season, he looked tired.
Lauren Alaina actually was tired. She apparently strained a vocal cord during rehearsal and had to get shot full of meds to raise her voice above a whisper. As a result, she sounded a little hoarser than usual -- a good sound for her, and at times she seemed to channel a little smidgeon of Haley Reinhart. If she's lucky, her encounter with Dr. Feelgood will mark the beginning of a long and hellish addiction that'll end with her doing speedballs in a Chelsea backalley and recording a record of bitter, slit-eyed proto-punk. That, ladies and gentlemen, is how idols are made.
Scotty was fine. Meh, but fine. He'll be hugely famous. He'll be
billed as the next Hank Williams Jr. even though he's actually the afterbirth
of Garth Brooks, and Red America will love him. Scotty's victory,
which is assured, is really their victory. The victory of apple pie, of baseball, of a desperate fear of Lady Gaga and her queer witchery;
the victory of not knowing the difference between Iraq and Iran, an
ignorance to which Scotty confessed several weeks ago in song, earning a large
ovation from a theater full of sweating dittoheads and young girls on
the trembling edge of their first orgasms.
Goddamn, this is an awful show. Why do you watch it?
And the songs? There were songs. Six of them, each allegedly different from the others. Scotty sang "Gone." Lauren sang "Flat On The Floor." Scotty sang "Check Yes or No." Lauren sang "Maybe It Was Memphis." Scotty sang his putative first single, "I Love You This Big" (a ridiculous baby-talking treacle) and Lauren sang her own putative single, "Like My Mother Does" (which doesn't even pretend to greatness or blockbusterism, but aims only for respectable profitability).
Tonight,
the results. Scotty will win. Lauren will cry. So will Scotty. And so
will I, probably, because Lauren seems like a nice kid, and her voice
really is stunning, and she only ever really looks at home when
performing, and I'm afraid a loss will make her self-conscious even
then. U2 will perform, and not Aerosmith, as previously reported. Which
is good for the contestants. They'd all look like middling karaoke
stars performing alongside Steve Tyler, whereas performing alongside
Bono will make them seem as unaffected and genuine as they were when
they auditioned for this horrible show in the first place.
Keep New Times Broward-Palm Beach Free... Since we started New Times Broward-Palm Beach, it has been defined as the free, independent voice of South Florida, and we would like to keep it that way. Offering our readers free access to incisive coverage of local news, food and culture. Producing stories on everything from political scandals to the hottest new bands, with gutsy reporting, stylish writing, and staffers who've won everything from the Society of Professional Journalists' Sigma Delta Chi feature-writing award to the Casey Medal for Meritorious Journalism. But with local journalism's existence under siege and advertising revenue setbacks having a larger impact, it is important now more than ever for us to rally support behind funding our local journalism. You can help by participating in our "I Support" membership program, allowing us to keep covering South Florida with no paywalls.