SemiFinal #3 Third 12 of 36, 3/3/09

[Chasin'Ace]

Top 36 Week 3

I'm still not overwhelmed with this Top 36 but at least this week's group was better than last week's (which isn't setting the bar very high).

#1 - Von Smith - "You're All I Need (To Get By)"

Von has a good voice and looked very comfy on stage. He makes it look easy. Cool bit of stacatto phrasing at the end.

#2 - Taylor Vaifanua - "If I Ain't Got You"

The song was too low for her -- and it was too high for her. Very poor choice of song for her. She appeared to have no range. I don't think any of them should sing an Alicia Keys song, but especially not when you don't have the chops for it.

#3 - Alex Wagner-Trugman - "I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues"

The performance felt very fake to me. Vocally OK except for the strange affectations. The mic toss bombed (would have even if it hadn't accidentally tipped over). I had mixed feelings over him - the geek thing would have served him well, his voice is clearly a good one, but I think he blew his chance.

#4 - Arianna Afsar - "The Winner Takes It All"

ABBA? Really? I have to say I was distracted throughout the whole song, not sure if she was with the music or not. She has a nice voice that she wasted on this boring rendition.

#5 - Ju'Not Joyner - "Hey There Delilah"

This was a nice, subtle performance. Great tone. He sounded a little John Legend-ish. I enjoyed this. He was a nice surprise.

#6 - Kristin McNamara - "Give Me One Reason"

Nice bluesy performance. She made the song fresh. I liked her!

#7 - Nathaniel Marshall - "I Would Do Anything For Love"

I am puzzled over him. Like him? Don't like him? Don't care? He has a good voice but I don't much care for the Broadway version of an iconic rock song.

#8 - Felicia Barton - "No One"

This was a better version of an Alicia Keys song than earlier in the evening but I wasn't entirely sold. She has a very nice voice to listen to even with a couple of noticable cracks.

#9 - Scott MacIntyre - "Mandalin Rain"

Scott has moments when his tone is beautiful but it doesn't prevail throughout the song. I enjoyed his version of this song very much but I am not sure I can say that his voice is good enough for Top 12 even though he will likely make it.

#10 - Kendall Beard - "This One's For The Girls"

Pretty good singer but nothing special. She was inconsistent. Very cute/sweet but I don't see her getting through.

#11 - Jorge Nunez - "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me"

Good powerful voice; very clean performance. The only glitch for me was his effort to staunch his accent - it sounded stilted. Will his accent bother voters or draw them in? We shall see.

#12 - Lil Rounds - "Be Without You"

She is a natural. Really good. The last note wasn't entirely solid but she's awesome. Going on for sure.

[AceOfDiamonds]

The 3 making it through from this group were:

Scott MacIntyre

Lil Rounds

Jorge Nunez