I get what you're saying ross, but I'm not sure I agree completely. Maybe it's because we're missing CI, but I don't think we should forget that the judges were putting pretty mediocre people through also. Yes, they were putting through original contestants, but they were also putting through some people that made us wonder when the hell they were going to leave.
You're right, it always bugs me when I'm defending CI that some of the mediocrities lasted halfway through the summer, last season. I don't think Mark Day would have made Top 10 on AI (though I understand some AI Top 10s have been questionable, too, at times).
But then neither would Sebastian, and probably neither would Mitch (a favorite of mine all along, though he tried my patience at times). I think these guys are an example of good people AI probably wouldn't even let into the top 22. 24. 36. Whatever it is now.
Sebastian's voice wasn't strong and I think he suffered from the workout it got, since it got worse as the show went on (and it couldn't have helped to be told repeatedly you can't sing--or to feel "I'm here and Oliver isn't" guilt). But I always thought he deserved Top 10. If only judging from his
MySpace. ("Sebastian Pigott doesn't like what you're implying." I love it.) And though Mitch has some vocal issues, as well, he wasn't just there because they like to vote for homies in the Maritimes (though I'm sure it didn't hurt). In my opinion he's an interesting, talented musician I myself would go to see perform any time. (And he
still doesn't have a MySpace. I just checked. Damn, Mitch. Still playing hard to get?).
Of course, the judges don't choose Top 10, so you really have to look at CI6's Top 24. The above two guys, and probably Gary Morissette, Shaun Francisco, Adam Castelli, Paul Clifford and Jesse Cottam don't seem like they could have made AI's cut. And possibly not a lot of others you could name, I can't list them all (or remember them all). Whatever one thinks of them, they're not cookie-cutter, and I never heard any big arguments that they shouldn't have made the cut.
But, yeah,
missaddicted, I have to agree it's a temptation to be avoided, to see CI through rose colored glasses. I did like Zack's comments and thought they were valid; the trouble is, the judges (or TPTB) on CI didn't always fulfill their own idealistic intentions. I get the impression they (judges) have to compromise with TPTB, and part of their mission must be to make sure all regions are represented, so that ratings won't suffer. (If the folks love to watch, and vote for, their own, in Nfld, for ex., there's no way the judges are going to reject any Newfie kid who's halfway decent.) And sometimes I also think there isn't always enough talent at hand at CI auditions to truly fulfill the intention to choose musical originality and diversity. If there were more great people auditoning, the judges would choose more great people. In my humble opinion.
Anyway, I have to give them credit for their good intentions, however things end up.
But I agree with you on one thing: too much R&B and not enough diversity on AI this year. The conspiracy theorists would say that it's because the producers know what they're looking for even before the season and they're going to put through the contestants that fit the mold. For example, there's no male rocker this year (well, not really). Obvioulsy, they don't need one, since David Cook just won, and there's also Daughtry.
I see what you're saying. Though supposedly the usual Hollywood M.O. is, "If something works, do it again. And again. And again." So, in a way, I thought they'd be looking for a Cook clone for Top 36. Not that too many talented rockers seem to have auditioned. Which is weird, considering how well David did! You'd think they'd be coming in the windows.
(I guess Adam Lambert is a sort of rocker. Though he's really a theatre gypsy. I think he will be able to sing all the genres they throw at him. I think he must be madly talented. But I don't really like him. I don't think he's got the je ne sais quoi, the "soul of an artist," maybe? that I like in a singer. He's too slick by half, for my taste. But I might change my mind totally when I see him some more. Anyway, right now he seems about as far from a Mitch MacDonald, a Paul Clifford, or an Oliver Pigott as you can get.)
And yeah, the scene hair is rampant. Even
Theo's rocking it. Some guys can pull it off, and some look like they're wearing a small animal on their head.
