Canadian Idol Fans Watching American Idol

[ross 1]

Okay, the cell phone girl is at the barricades. Ohhhh, his damn static/buzzzz. Grr.

Allsion, Anoop, and Kris are there. And Katy, she says.

Just got a hi from Katy. Hey, there's Kris. This is kind of cool, actually. "So glad you got rid of No Boundaries," she says. Screaming for the idols. Kris has a handler, Anoop and Allison don't. The static is killing me, I've had it. Danny and Matt coming.

Great quality:

YouTube - "All These Things That I've Done"- Kris Allen 7/10/09

This is great, and it has one of those moments where he gets "lost" and it's like he doesn't know where he is (in a good way. Very good way), that you mentioned. Only other person I ever saw do that is Jacob. In a different way, but still, totally lost in the music. It's cool.

Observation: I guess in concert Kris has to be "big," or loud, or it has something to do with following Adam, or being the headliner? But I don't want him to blow his voice, and I love it when he's quiet and I get to hear the beauty of his voice and his phrasing. I'm not objecting to him doing a lot of big stuff, exactly, but he has to be who he is.

I'm not referring to this number especially (because I like it), but I actually think they're going about his set with some wrong assumptions. If he really quieted it down, for one or two numbers, and played something acoustic, sitting on a stool, and was very intimate, he would capture the whole audience very easily.

As for following Adam, the thing is not to match his volume, or rock out as hard, it's just for Kris to be himself and do his own magic, which is always equal to or more than Adam's magic. This is why he won the show. Now, are they afraid that isn't enough?

Seems there's also an issue with the audience sitting. Like that's a bad thing. Sitting in rapt attention isn't a bad thing.

I don't necessarily think the venues are too big for taking it down to an itimate level. I've seen some concerts in big places by people who sang quieter stuff. I mean there's a mic, and there are huge video screens, so it's not like they can't hear him or see his face.

I guess Ain't No Sunshine is his most intimate number. It's a good one, but it's still a little different from what I mean. Falling Slowly or To Make You Feel My Love are more what I mean. He has that romantic, heartfelt, regretful quality that's very, very awesome.

G'night.

 

[SleepinIn]

Time of My Life became the song that would never die (played during the Olympics, played on various sporting events, performed on Oprah,all of this definitely helped the song reached platinum status).

That's a very good point too. If the song gets outside exposure from another outlet that will definitely help it. And the Olympics and Oprah.. really what could be bigger?

Did the concert sound good, SleepinIn? I mean, was the sound good?

Yeah the sound was amazing quality. It wasn't Rickey's though it was some guy streaming from his cellphone from the concert - video too (although the video was from so far away the only thing you could see was the light show). He only did Adam's set though because he said his battery would die but he did say he would tape Kris's set.

Observation: I guess in concert Kris has to be "big," or loud, or it has something to do with following Adam, or being the headliner?

I just think Kris likes to rock out with the guitar. LOL As well as the softer stuff he sings - and I agree it's beautiful when he does that. He strikes me as someone who just enjoys the actual playing of the music. I'd love to see him in a longer than 5 song set I think it would be really interesting.

As for following Adam, the thing is not to match his volume, or rock out as hard, it's just for Kris to be himself and do his own magic, which is always equal to or more than Adam's magic. This is why he won the show. Now, are they afraid that isn't enough?

I don't think so, I just think he wants to show that he has another side too. He didn't get to show as much of that side on the show and it might be just a matter of him wanting to prove that he can get up there and rock out and have the audience eating out of his hand as much as when he sits quietly at the piano and plays ANS. That's my thought anyway.

Seems there's also an issue with the audience sitting. Like that's a bad thing. Sitting in rapt attention isn't a bad thing.

Someone said that on twitter actually. The people .. they were listening.

I guess Ain't No Sunshine is his most intimate number. It's a good one, but it's still a little different from what I mean. Falling Slowly or To Make You Feel My Love are more what I mean. He has that romantic, heartfelt, regretful quality that's very, very awesome.

I know what you mean, I like all the sides, I sort of need to have the new album - yesterday.

 

[SleepinIn]

Okay, just listened to the buscast. Hysterical. That lady is awesome.

(I think it's also hysterical that I'm so into this.. but what are you gonna do?) LOL

 

[ross 1]

Lost my post.

 

[ross 1]

YouTube - Kris Allen "heartless" & "all these things ive done" idol tour front row!

This is a great video after the shaky beginning. I never get tired of Heartless. At all. He sounds great on it, a little less great on the Killers song, but it's new. I love how he's into it, though, he really rocks out. I think his set must be very impressive with each song following the other so closely, and the different instruments.

I enjoyed one of the reviews on mj's today because it was by a Kris fan for a change. Maybe I should have volunteered to recap the Boston show. I don't really like that blog so I didn't volunteer when she asked, but it seems like fun.

This is just random, but have you guys ever tried to look up Kris under "Find People," on twitter? For some reason when you look him up as "Kris Allen," it doesn't come up. You should also be able to look him up using "KrisAllen4Real," but that doesn't work, either. Try it. I don't know how people are even finding him.

 

[SleepinIn]

That is a great video (ahem.. I may or may not have been the first one to comment on it.. lol - I have google-itis I think it's an actual disease *innocent look*)

You should recap for her Ross. I think you'd be great - lots of detail, and I think you'd be fair to all of them regardless of who your favourites are. You should totally do it.

These ones are good too. (I think this might be part 2 but the others are linked)

YouTube - Kris Allen Kris Allen Entire Set Part 2 American Idol Live Tour Oakland

On twitter I never do the people look up, I can never find anything that way. I just do a general search then scan through the results to see if anything adds up. Usually you end up finding a lot of gobbldygook, but sometimes gems pop up. And I like that (see: google-itis)

Are you following the band members? (aaronspears, kokoki, timstewart1) They didn't seem to be fans of NB either.

 

[ross 1]

Thanks for the band members twitter names. I'll have to follow them. I'm following Aaron Spears but not the other two.

The videos of the whole set are awesome! Thanks.

That is a great video (ahem.. I may or may not have been the first one to comment on it.. lol - I have google-itis I think it's an actual disease *innocent look*)

I took a look at your YouTube account and you have all the Kris stuff! I'm going to get some of that and favorite it, myself.

You should recap for her Ross.

Maybe I'll inquire. I'm kind of scared of the Adam freaks over there.

I just watched Adam's set, btw -- filmed at the same distance from the stage as Kris's. Having seen it, I think he was excellent, though, as always, not really my style. But from my admittedly biased point of view, I don't think Kris is anticlimactic, as some reviewers and a lot of Adam fans have said. He gets huge cheers, and he seems as charismatic in his way as Adam is in his. I thought ditching NB was a great move, of course, but now, seeing the whole set, I think so even more.

I still think if Adam can sing Mad World, Kris should be able to sing Falling Slowly. I'm not gonna give that one up! HA! MW is Adam's sinature tune, and FS is Kris's. That's all.

Anyhow, Looking at this stuff, it reminds me of what I liked about Kris all along. He's authentic and passionate, the real thing.

 

[ross 1]

Some great videos of Oakland are up at mj's. Great sound and picture quality.

(What's with the protestors? I don't know at this point. Hopefully not a big thing.)

 

[YukonJack]

Incoherent screeching noise on both.

Mental opium for the feeble minded.

 

[SleepinIn]

Ack - hit post too soon.

Maybe I'll inquire. I'm kind of scared of the Adam freaks over there.

I think if you post your opinion without being disparaging about the person you're talking about then it's fair. Everyone is entitled to an opinion and you can accept what they have to say. Look at the two reviews that were posted by Kristen and Anastacia (?) they managed to state their opinion without being overly harsh. I can accept that someone doesn't like something, but cheap shots either annoy me or make me laugh because the person is so unwilling to open their mind.

I thought ditching NB was a great move, of course, but now, seeing the whole set, I think so even more.

Did you hear that Kris is re-recording Heartless for radio this weekend?

I still think if Adam can sing Mad World, Kris should be able to sing Falling Slowly. I'm not gonna give that one up! HA! MW is Adam's sinature tune, and FS is Kris's. That's all.

LOL - I love it too. But look how much fun it was to see something new too.

Anyhow, Looking at this stuff, it reminds me of what I liked about Kris all along. He's authentic and passionate, the real thing.

Me too.

 

[ross 1]

Did you hear that Kris is re-recording Heartless for radio this weekend?

No! Where did you hear that?? I was thinking today they'd probably do that! Reason is, I heard it on the radio again today, and I listened to it really carefully. The vocal is fantastic, but the arrangement and a few other elements really do say "AI studio version" to me.

I was actually thinking, "If they re-do this, they should keep the vocal track and just re-do the arrangement." I don't actually dislike the arrangement, but it's a bit too Adult Contemporary to get airplay on Top 40 stations, I think. I wonder if that's why they're re-doing it. Have you listened to it lately? It's a really sexy, cool vocal, actually. I hope they don't fiddle with is voice too much. I like hearing the voice "as is," or a reasonable facsimile.

That station, Mix 98.5 seems to have it in regular rotation.

I think if you post your opinion without being disparaging about the person you're talking about then it's fair. Everyone is entitled to an opinion and you can accept what they have to say. Look at the two reviews that were posted by Kristen and Anastacia (?) they managed to state their opinion without being overly harsh. I can accept that someone doesn't like something, but cheap shots either annoy me or make me laugh because the person is so unwilling to open their mind.

Good points. I think if I did it I'd approach it that way. Did you happen to see the review today? The one where the person called Allison "immature?" She also said Allison was "nice," but people really ran with that immature comment. I've never seen a forum like that in my life! They hardly ever talk about the music, they go off on ridiculous tangents for pages.

I also enjoyed the Kris fan's review ("AC"). Nice to hear that the person she went with, who had never seen AI, thought Kris was the best.

I'm just watching those HQ videos of Oakland now. Wow, what a difference. Naturally, I'm watching/listening to Kris. I'm assuming this arrangement of Heartless is like the one he's going to be re-recording? It actually sounds similar to the iTunes version, but with a rockier edge, maybe?

Kris's voice just sounds different to me lately. Is it the concert setting, or what? Deeper, in the lower register. And the last couple of concerts he seems to be getting slightly pitchy, or something; maybe just strained a bit, vocally (though I don't hear any strain in his voice). Usually his vocals are more pure, but then usually he isn't headlining an arena tour. So I don't know.

Question: Do they have backup singers on tour? I mean, I hear backup singers. Are they recorded? When he plays electric on BL it actually sounds like a recording of himself, his own vocal, he's playing to.

 

[SleepinIn]

No! Where did you hear that?? I was thinking today they'd probably do that! Reason is, I heard it on the radio again today, and I listened to it really carefully. The vocal is fantastic, but the arrangement and a few other elements really do say "AI studio version" to me.

MJ posted it - can't remember where. But yes, I agree the studio version is very Idol-studio version. It will be interesting to see how he plays it on Conan - if he plays it.

I'm assuming this arrangement of Heartless is like the one he's going to be re-recording? It actually sounds similar to the iTunes version, but with a rockier edge, maybe?

I thought that too.

Am I being annoying? Am I being picky? Hm. Don't answer that.

LOL. I thought he sounded okay. But when you compare youtubes from concerts I think some are always going to sound different live in different places. I haven't studied Adam's but I'm sure even he had vocal variations at times.

Question: Do they have backup singers on tour? I mean, I hear backup singers. Are they recorded? When he plays electric on BL it actually sounds like a recording of himself, his own vocal, he's playing to.

I think there are back-up singers. Not 100% sure but I think I heard it mentioned. I've never followed the Idol tour before so what do I know? I'll have to take a look at the rehearsal video.

RE: Allison and the blogger/recapper - You're never going to please some people. No matter what you do they would want you to be something else. I've been pleasantly surprised by the personalities of all this year's Idol peeps so I'll give them the benefit of the doubt every time especially when the fan goes into things with heightened expectations.

 

[ross 1]

I've been pleasantly surprised by the personalities of all this year's Idol peeps so I'll give them the benefit of the doubt every time especially when the fan goes into things with heightened expectations.

Yeah, I like this group. If I didn't, I wouldn't have kept watching this season. Until they got to Top 13, it was kind of touch and go, for me. But then this group seemed so basically down to earth and real, and likeable. I never kidded myself they were perfect or angelic so I don't really care about stuff proving they aren't.

"Mattgate." Did you read about that? "I'm not Adam's messenger service," or whatever he said. I mean, no, not gracious, but, cripes, he's not Adam's damn messenger service. He's one of the stars of the show. Reminds me of the time I read on mj's blog, all the Adam fans suggesting that Kris should accompany Adam on guitar, on Mad World, on their talk show appearances. I thought: Kris is not Adam's accompanist! He's the American Idol. Fer crissakes.

Which reminds me. I'd rather not bring it up, but it has put me in a bad mood and where else can I bring it up? Nowhere. So...

Okay, here it is. I just Googled "Kris Allen" in Google News, and got three reviews that all basically said Adam is the star of the tour, and he puts Kris Allen, the supposed winner, in the shadows. One had a headline that read, "Wait, Who won 'Idol' this year? Also-rans woo fans as tour hits Bay Area."

The not-quite-sold-out crowd seemed more subdued than at previous shows, with one 15-minute exception. The audience made it clear that in the Bay Area, second-place finisher Adam Lambert was the majority choice. The androgynous, Björk-like power singer didn't disappoint, giving the most memorable performance - justifying the crowd's decision to stand for every one of his songs, while sitting through most of Season 8 winner Kris Allen's performance.
Lambert came out dressed like he should have been in a dune buggy chasing Mel Gibson across the Australian Outback, and followed Led Zeppelin's "Whole Lotta Love" with a medley of David Bowie songs - complete with a fake British accent. But it was still the low-key Allen who flirted with self-parody. As he tinkled the piano to Bill Withers' "Ain't No Sunshine," it sounded instead as if he might be trying to cover Dana Carvey's "Choppin' Broccoli." (Look that one up on YouTube, kids.)

What's odd is that since I found this, 15 minutes ago, the headline has been changed! (To: "'American Idol' road show casts gimmicks aside.") And originally he called Kris a "parody of a singer-songwriter," I think. He softened it slightly in the rewrite. Why he re-wrote it I have no idea. I have no idea what he was talking about, either. Dana Carvey. Are any of these people actually music critics?

And this standing/sitting thing? I've really had my fill of that b.s.

I'm really stunned that more critics, and people on the forums, etc., don't get Kris. Great talent, wonderful personality, right under their noses, and they're missing it. I somehow know they are going to be eating their words someday, so I don't totally worry about it. I'm also really happy that TPTB are behind him (wanting to push Heartless, for ex.). Obviously they think he's worth it.

But I hate to see a great guy get crapped on.

 

[missaddicted]

Very interesting post guys! I can't wait to hear the new version of Heartless and I hope that means they'll take the time it takes in the studio with Kris to make everything great and choose the best first "real" single possible instead of recording one as fast as possible. You both know that he'll be on the Tonight Show with Conan tomorrow night, right?

I think I'm personally pretty much done with the angst over the bad reviews and Adam's fans, etc. I guess I've been through the angst last year waiting for David's album, the reviews, etc, so I think I feel more calm this year. Who knows what will happen? I'm just waiting for his music and watching the occasional tour video. I'll probably keep reading what the critics/fans have to say about him, but I can't really feel worked up about it.

 

[missaddicted]

Oh, and I wanted to add that I find it funny that Kris' new "coronation single" is the song Heartless! Talk about irony!

 

[missaddicted]

OK, just read that Kris won't be on Conan. Someone died in his family. Allison will be on Conan. Condolences to Kris and his family.

 

[ross 1]

Must be Kris's grandmother who passed away. He said something about her in an interview, recently; he said it's the best time of his life except for her being near death. It's great she got to see the amazing things that have happened in his life over the past few months. (I'm assuming she's the family member who died.)

I think I'm personally pretty much done with the angst over the bad reviews and Adam's fans, etc. I guess I've been through the angst last year waiting for David's album, the reviews, etc, so I think I feel more calm this year. Who knows what will happen? I'm just waiting for his music and watching the occasional tour video. I'll probably keep reading what the critics/fans have to say about him, but I can't really feel worked up about it.

That's the right idea. I guess I don't care, myself, what the critics say, believe it or not. I'm thinking more about the way they influence the business. Sometimes it's more about buzz than reality. If the buzz is that Adam is stealing the show from Kris, it might be bad for Kris's career.

Going to bed now.

 

[missaddicted]

That's the right idea. I guess I don't care, myself, what the critics say, believe it or not. I'm thinking more about the way they influence the business. Sometimes it's more about buzz than reality. If the buzz is that Adam is stealing the show from Kris, it might be bad for Kris's career.

I get what you're saying. And the comparisions won't stop with the tour either. First single sales, first week sales of the album, the comparisions happened last year with Archie and Cook and they're going to happen with Kradam this year as well. If Adam outsells Kris it could be brutal. I guess if I'm still worried about something, that's it.

Kris really needs a great first single that can have success on the radio, and then drive the sales of his CD. I don't think he can afford a "Light On" type of single, that even a lot fans found iffy and questioned the choice of the song as a single (not that Light On didn't have any success, it's almost platinum by now, but it took a lot of time before the song took off). I don't think Kris has the crazy devoted fanbase that David or Adam have to drive the important first week sales of the album, so everything will really depend on his music.

Anyway, the comparisions will die down eventually and Adam and Kris will stop being compared to each other and I can't wait for this day to happen, but it is what it is and we can't really do anything about it.

 

[ross 1]

​

I get what you're saying. And the comparisions won't stop with the tour either. First single sales, first week sales of the album, the comparisions happened last year with Archie and Cook and they're going to happen with Kradam this year as well. If Adam outsells Kris it could be brutal. I guess if I'm still worried about something, that's it.

Yeah. I guess I have to wait a while to worry about that one! I tend to think that Kris is the "slow and steady wins the race" type, and I usually don't make predictions.

I actually like Light On, and I don't really know why it gets such hate. (Except it sounds a bit like a country song.) Anyhow, I would be fairly satisfied if Kris gets a hit that isn't a mega-hit but builds over time. As long as he doesn't flop, like Blake Lewis, or whatever.

I can see Adam selling well, but I think maybe Adam is a phenomenon rather than a popular singer. Maybe that has longevity and maybe not.

 

[missaddicted]

Oh, I guess I wanted to say that I'm not really worried about Kris, just worried about how even more brutal the media/critics are going to be if Adam outsells him. I don't really want to make predictions either. I prefer the "wait and see" mode.

It's funny, because on my way to work, after my earlier post, my iPod (on random) played Light On. I ofter skip it, but I let it play this morning and yes, I do enjoy it. It's just not my most played song from David. I've never heard anyone compare it to a country song though! I think the reason it gets a bit of hate from the fandom is that most would have prefered another song from the CD as his first single, like Declaration. Also, David has co-written all the songs on his CD, except Light On and Come Back to Me, his two singles. And a lot of fans find that disappointing.

Of course, I would prefer that Kris had a slow-building hit than a flop. But, I still think he needs maybe a bit more. Cook also had the benefit of an ubiquitous coronation song, which made casual fans pay attention to him before Light On was released. Kris doesn't have that now, but we'll see how the (re)release of Heartless does the job.