The Ticket Chest

DeWyze Wins the Idol Penant

Friday, May 28th, 2010 | American Idol, Concerts | No Comments

So there you have it, Lee DeWyze is in, and Simon Cowell is out.  The Season Finale of American Idol this past Tuesday and Wednesday was more of a Simon Cowell Graduation Party, perhaps because everyone knows the show is toast without Simon.  Simon calls it as he sees it, and for that he will be missed.  Lee DeWyze is a good guy and that is why many including me are glad he won.  I do not think his post-Idol career will be as absolutely tepid as Michael Cook and Kris Allen before him.  We will know as soon as he releases a record whether he is the genuine article or a manufactured star like Cook and Allen, who have proven that a good voice is not enough outside the cover-band circuit.

The Producers of American Idol seemed to be purposfully trying to make the show less cool last week.  The musical guests included Hall and Oats, Michael McDonald from the Doobie Brothers, and versions of Joe Cocker and Poison’s Brett Michaels that made one consciously aware of his or her own mortality.  It reminded me of watching 247 year old Dick Clark bring in the New Year in Time’s Square.  It is somewhat depressing to see in full relief where we are all headed, as the aging game cannot be won.  Michael McDonald has not been relevant since he was parodied in the comedy film 40 Year Old Virgin.

By making DeWyze sing U2′s “Beatiful Day” his departing anthem it seemed as though Idol producers had sealed DeWyze’s fate as the loser.  The song is too new to be redone, and DeWyze was powerless to make it better, as he did, for example, with Simon and Garfunkle’s “The Boxer.”  Singing “Beautiful Day” he reminded me of a high school kid in a talent show. It was too bad for him because to that point in the season the Idol machine had failed to make DeWyze as cheesy as the institution itself.

The show American Idol is one-part talent show and one-part making fun of nerds with poor self awareness.  From time to time the Show brings back its worst examples of the later, and on Finale night the nerds got their revenge when one of them stole the microphone during a singing number and started making fun of Simon.  It was a delicious live TV moment and it prompted FOX to abruptly cut to commercial.  They should know that nerds are volatile, and that this type of outburts was inevitable given the mileage this show has taken at the expense of the nerd psyche.

I will follow Lee DeWyze carefully to see for myself if he can remain cool despite all the adulation he has received in the past 6 months.  Most important than whether he is the next American Idol is whether he will be the next Taylor Hicks?

Tags: American Idol, David Cook, Dick Clark, Doobie Brothers, Joe Cocker, Kris Allen, Lee DeWyze, Michael McDonald, Nerds, Simon Cowell, U2 Beautiful Day

Casey James — Putting the Cool Back in Texas

Friday, May 21st, 2010 | American Idol, Concerts, General | No Comments

The Man from Cool Texas

The run is over for contestant Casey James, the pride and joy of dusty Cool, Texas — but who could feel sorry for the svelte blond Texas bluesman given the fawning he has received from female viewers, including the ageless Shania Twain herself.  And there is no way an understated guy like James could ever win a true-to-form reality show like this in which sensationalism is required to trump substance. In his second to last performance on the show James gave a solid and bluesy rendition of “OK, It’s Allright With Me” by Eric Hutchinson.  He received tepid reviews from the Judges, but who cares.  This is the group who every week seems to crave Ethel Merman-styled high notes, spandex unitards and sexually ambiguous performances that shock, as if more is always more, and as if subtlely is evil.  Idol isn’t about perpetuating guys like Casey James, nor would a young Eric Clapton have had a chance before the self-important analysis of Kara DioGuardi.

It is a fact that Idol contestants get less cool each week they compete on the show.  You realize this when you review the video montages of the departing contestants — Idol’s overbearing presence dulls the edges of artistry as it works to m

anufacture cookie cutter Justin Bieber-esque clones.  The Ford commercials, the corny tap and jazz ensembles before each Results show, the hair and wardrobe make-overs . . . in the end it is hard to know what is manufactured by FOX and what is the genuine article.  Yet I keep watching like a meth-addict.

Who knew James would make it this far — second runner-up — when Victoria Beckham a/k/a Posh Spice asked him to remove his shirt during his first audition, revealing a slender if somewhat furry physique that caused Kara DioGuardi to blush and caused me confusion because it appeared that Mr. James did not have nipples.

So there you have it, Mount Prospect, Illinois native Lee DeWyze and Western Ohio’s Crystal Bowersox are headed to the Final.  As I stated in my last Post, DeWyze is too good for this show, and he “should” be the hands-down winner, and thereafter he should be capable of producing real music, unlike the limp post-Idol debut of previous winner Kris Allen, whose “Live Like Your Dying” makes lactose-intolerant people immediately crap in their pants without warning.

Tags: American Idol, Casey James, Cool, Cool Texas, Crystal Bowersox, Eric Clapton, Eric Hutchins, IL, Kara DioGuardi, Lee DeWyze, Mount Prospect, OK It's Allright With Me, Shania Twain, Texas

American Idol – Michael Lynche Ends His Run

Friday, May 14th, 2010 | American Idol, Concerts | No Comments

It was not surprising that Michael Lynche was sent packing this week from his fifteen minutes of fame as the third runner-up on Fox’s hit TV show American Idol.  On this show, fifteen minutes of fame lasts so long that some contestants start thinking that they are actual celebrities.  Lynche is a very large man — could probably eat Ryan Seacrest — but not a fantastic singer.  To this writer, he is a cheesier version of Luther Vandross, but without the vocal range or musical heft.  It was time for him to go.

Of the remaining three contestants — Lee DeWyze, Crystal Bowersox and Casey James — all seem to be credible musicians.  They are largely believable, have a genuin musical identity, and thus rarely embarrass themselves with the antics of typical Idol contestants who seem to lose Street Cred every time they pathetically ass-kiss the judges or explain hackneyed, karaoke-style vocal disasters with the American Idol contestant canned response “I had fun with it.”

I have a clear favorite — Lee DeWyze — but I find myself wondering whether it would be better for him to lose.  At its core, American Idol is a Fox-style cheese-fest, and it robs its finalist contestants of dignity just as a yellow chicken suit does to a man hired to promote a rotisserie grill.  Imagine buying a Taylor Hicks CD?  Has anyone unrelated to that over-confident divo winner ever done that?  The problem I have with Mr. Hicks is that he made the mistake of believing his title, and started assuming people unrelated to him actually give a crap about how he feels “as an artist.”  Were the Idol predecessors who kicked-ass on the Gong Show artists?

DeWyze is a former paint shop salesman and I can completely imagine chatting him up about whether Mocha Moon or Pale Celery would be a better pallate for my powder room.  The reason I like him so far is because he still seems like a paint shop guy, despite the adulation that the Fox-Industrial Complex has showered upon him.  Michael Lynche got too proud of himself a few months ago and that was the beginning of the end for him.  We got it Mike, you are huge and you could play ping pong with the heads of most men.  But you flexed too much, and your smile was faker each week, and the American mainstreem can detect this, the 1992 election of Bill Clinton not withstanding.

I’ll be disappointed if DeWyze loses I guess, because as a matter of competition I think he is the best and most relevant singer on the show.  But I’ll be even more disappointed if when he does win he starts throwing off Lorenzo Lamas winks and otherwise forfeits his biggest human asset in exchange for the behaviors the needy contestants think they are required to adopt.

Tags: American Idol, Casey James, Crystal Bowersox, Idol Finalists, Lee DeWyze, Michael Lynche, Ryan Seacrest

Kris Allen this years American Idol

Wednesday, May 20th, 2009 | American Idol, Concerts | No Comments

Everyone was thinking it was going to be Adam Lambert as this years American Idol. It turns out the big upset was Kris Allen who had more votes. Millions of people voted for the two on Tuesday night.  If you want to see all your favorite Idols they will be on tour this summer. 2009 tour info

Tags: Adam Lambert, American Idol 2009, Kris Allen

American Idol is going to be live this summer

Saturday, May 9th, 2009 | American Idol, Concerts | No Comments

Looks like American Idol is going to hit the road again this summer for the 2009 Tour. This is one of the biggest years for Idol thanks to its two super stars Danny and Adam. From the looks of all the fans Adam already has he could turn out to be the easy winner. Only a few more weeks until we know this years Idol winner. Check out the full tour below.

Tags: 2009, American Idol, Tickets, Tour