Top 24 Women: The Performances

Paige Miles - "All Right Now" (sang first, +1)
What's with this weird tendency for the first song of the season to be some weird '70s classic rock non-entity? Has this been a thing or am I just remembering the year "Free Ride" was the first song? Anyway, this is Paige, who we have never seen before. Kara seems determined to imbue her with "soul" for reasons that are probably less offensive and more because it's Kara and she's kind of a dingbat. Me, I think Paige was okay -- reminiscent of Allison Iraheta's vocal style, if absent the power and the weirdo ball-of-fire stage presence -- but nowhere near the ballpark of where the judges said she was. The best voice of the girls, Simon? Really?

Ashley Rodriguez - "Happy"
So she sang Jordin Sparks (the Simon Cowell-reviled "Battlefield") in Hollywood, and now a Leona Lewis song. Is the plan to just keep covering songs by artists whom Ashley resembles? Anyway, bum notes galore, but the last one sounded really pretty. Is this a matter of not picking a song that fits the things her voice does well? Because I can't imagine she can afford another performance that spotty.

Janell Wheeler - "What About Love?"
You guys, NO ONE picked Heart as their musical artist. I feel like we all dropped the ball on that one. Janell's performance was kind of the definition of "karaoke," at least as I find it on this show. To borrow a semi-frequent critique from So You Think You Can Dance?, Janell sang above the song rather than down in it. She didn't sound terrible, but it was in no way a performance that could stand on its own. That said, no one has gone home after singing a Heart song yet, including far worse performances than this one.

Lilly Scott - "Fixing a Hole" (The Beatles +2)
Jotting down my notes, I scribbled "this is what the judges have been talking about re: song choice." And then Ellen said exactly that! Ellen Degeneres! And me! Better than Facebook friends! Anyway, I really dug this performance and am suddenly quite bullish on Lilly's prospects on the show. She's not the most consistently perfect vocalist, but she most certainly put her stamp on the song. I only worry about the judges feeding into the indie/busker/cool-song-choice-girl thing, which is the one area where Lilly might veer into annoying.

Katelyn Epperly - "Oh Darlin'" (Beatles +2)
I remember the fact that I really liked Katelyn's audition more than I actually remember the audition. And nothing I saw of her in Hollywood stands out to me either. But I have to say, I really liked her performance here. It feels like she's got that Duffy/Adele tone that Simon will end up complaining about (but which I really like), but she also throws in some big, deep notes along with it. The styling is ... a problem, on that Kara and I agree. Like a Virgin Madonna combined with "Tell me about it...stud" Olivia Newton-John combined with Gilly is not a great look on anyone.

Haeley Vaughn - "I Wanna Hold Your Hand" (The Beatles +2)
First of all, fuck you, Beatles-pickers. Second of all, this wasn't great, and it's nowhere near the ballpark of what I'd like to listen to. That said, I don't think it was a complete failure, and I still think she's the perfect storm of a kid-that-lasts-too-long contestant, pulling from the Paris Bennett, Kellie Pickler, AND Archuleta/Sanjaya (depending on how you view her talent) demographics. She's staying.

Lacey Brown - "Landslide" (Fleetwood Mac +2)
Objectively, I can totally understand how this would be considered the worst of the night, and at best it qualifies for "hot mess." But you guys? Something is wrong with me, because that performance both fascinated and compelled me. Maybe it was car-wreck curiosity for her voice, which sits at the exact midpoint between Regina Spektor and Jewel. Or the fact that her face is oh so very crazy. She loses a bunch of points for answering the judges' "We didn't like that" with "But I love this song," and she will probably be eliminated tonight and cast in the pile of Idol weirdos who I liked, along with that pale kid with the hair. But I gotta be honest: I'd listen to that again.

Michelle Delamor - "Fallin'" (Alicia Keys +2)
WHOOOOOOO? Sorry to be so glib, but at least Paige (who we saw the same amount of zero times that we saw Michelle, before tonight) gave a performance worth discussing on its merits. Michelle was straight forgettable, and while she sang decently, I would not be at all surprised to see her eliminated.

Didi Benami - "The Way I Am"
Points for originality on the Ingrid Michaelson song, I suppose, and I certainly spent fifteen long minutes trying to find the words to describe that rainbow-colored afghan-cape she was wearing (I settled on "braided throw-rug you'd find at an indoor-outdoor cafe in Tucson, AZ, with arm-holes"). But the bottom line is, I like how this girl sings a song. She does have the Brooke White thing ... well, she has many of the Brooke White things, but among them is that she needs to have an instrument in her hands always or else she looks a bit lost, but her voice was wonderful. As to the judges pooh-poohing, I have to say: it's not Didi's fault if Simon thinks they cast too many similar-sounding strummy girls. I totally called that Simon would call the performance "indulgent," though. It's his code for "I don't know that song."

Siobahn Magnus - "Wicked Game"
I had almost the same reaction to this as I did to Lacey Brown, only without the guilt. What a totally bizarre and weird performance! Except, bonus, I also kind of love her voice. Those low notes are not easy, and Siobahn nailed 'em, so much so that I need to invite her over to help me figure out the low notes on Karaoke Revolution. Roommate Mark said she was rocking some "Paula Cole Realness" and I cannot disagree. Of course, Randy Jackson wants belters and nothing but, so he hated it.

Crystal Bowersox - "Hand in My Pocket"
I love Alanis and all, but "Hand in My Pocket" is a huge exception. But Crystal made me like it anyway. I thought her scaled-down makeover (lip-gloss! eyeshadow! some tooth-whitening!) was adorable, as is her "Mama needs a paycheck" ethos. Of all the women tonight, she's the one with the emotional pull.

Katie Stevens - "Feeling Good"
Damn it, Katie, do NOT make me have to go into my whole spiel about how much I hate the Michael Buble version of this usually-awesome song AGAIN. Ugh. Anyway, why don't I like this girl? She's giving me Secret Life of the American Teen vibes, so maybe that's it. I love that she got called "pageanty" in Week 1. She's in it for at least the semi-long haul, but I can't say I'm greatly looking forward to it.

Going Home? My guesses are Lacy (awful to everyone's ears but mine...and even then I kinda agree) and Ashley (#2 death slot, plus terrible), but I wouldn't rule out Michelle.

Back hopefully tonight or tomorrow with a write-up of the guys!