American Idle

So Michael Castro is gone…and Norman Gentle is still here. Wow. It was probably inevitable since Michael Castro, the brother of Jason wasn’t really that great a singer compared to the bonafide ringers they have competing on Idol 8.

Thinking about the fact that Castro actually outlasted an Osmond, though, has to be something that the rooster-tailed brother of the white Bob Marley will remember.  

On what had to be one of the truly stranger nights on American Idol 8 to date, Norman Gentle (uh, Nick Mitchell in the above photo) stole the show by actually singing great even though he used his alter ago.

That said, Mr. Gentle, or Mitchell, or whatever he is this week is becoming a force of nature during Idol 8. At first I thought this guy was a joke but now he is proving me — and every other Idol follower — to be dead wrong in our assumptions. He may be the next Weird Al.

And that reminds me: assuming — as my mom always said — makes an ass out of you and me — and so Mr. Gentle will now have a place on my site from here on out.

And don’t look now, but Michael Sarver, the oil rig roughneck is carving himself a place on the Idol mantle and could be the runaway shocker of the season. The other shocker is that Casey Carlson (second from top photo) yet again survived despite singing okay. It wasn’t a shocker at all, however, that ringer Adam Lambert made it. Same with Scott McIntyre, who despite the fact he’s 99 percent blind, is also a ringer. Ditto for Joanna Pacitti.

Some surprise people who made it were Tatiana Del Toro, that raging hormonal bull from Puerto Rico who basically can’t shut up or stop doing it up for the cameras. I doubt that Del Toro ever hated a camera, but she might hate the media once her run comes to an end, which, hopefully, will be very soon. I don’t honestly know if I can take much more of her.

So…tomorrow we will have a Top 36! It’s about time. And don’t forget to sign up for my new betting pool. I know you have opinions on who you think is gonna win. Soooo…do something about it! Tell me which ringer is gonna make it all the way to the end.

David Osmond may have gone home prematurely but Idol just might have a few tricks up their sleeves this year with Brent Keith Smith, Jeremy Michael Sarver and Matt Breitzke. Sarver’s an oil roughneck and Breitzke is a welder, leading one to believe that all we really need is a policeman and these guys could redo “YMCA.”

Just kidding. These guys can actually sing, so even though you may be sad that Osmond is gone (maybe forever…maybe not) you can bet your bottom dollar Smith, Sarver and Breitzke will keep things entertaining. Also not out yet is Nick Mitchell, or Norman Gentle.

So even though you may have been beside yourself after Osmond, Bikini Girl and Emily Wynne-Hughes were sent home, rest assured that these three will be bringing it every night.

Sure, you may think they had a run on rednecks on Idol this year — and frankly so did I — but the truth is the dudes can sing, so give them a chance. Then we’ll decide whether these three guys can actually do some damage.

They got about 15 seconds to sing the song they picked on the stage of the Kodak Theater in Hollywood this evening, but it was enough for some of the stronger singers to get through to tomorrow night’s Group Round.

Danny Gokey (below photo) had a great audition in Kansas City and he needed just a few seconds to cement his place in the Top 104 going into tomorrow night’s Group phase. Same with Lil Rounds (above photo), who sang Whitney’s classic “I Will Always Love You” and in that short time span, still tore the roof off the theater. Man can that girl sang! Video also above.

As for David Osmond, he had better bring the noise tomorrow or else he might be going home early. It Didn’t even look like he was trying out there. If somebody can tell me what was going on I would appreciate it. I’ve been a fan of his from day one, but his rendition was weak.

And word to the wise: do not change your song before you go up and sing it. Emily Wynne-Hughes did that and if not for some sympathetic judges — and the fact she’s basically a pro — she would have been sent packing.

Other new faces making the cut on day one of H-Wood Week were Jeremy Michael Sarver, who is a roughneck from Texas and can sing like an angel. The chances of him making it past Hell Week, though, are pretty slim. This field is loaded with talent, perhaps more than before.

Another newcomer to keep an eye on is Jackie Tohn, who is a ringer but seems to have a unique voice, a la Amanda Overmyer. And then there was Nick Mitchell, or Norman Gentle. The boy can sing, but can we please get rid of the outfit?

 And Von Smith was put on notice too, so expect more from him tomorrow.

One other good note was that Rose Flack barely survived the cut, as her group was whisked away to the next round. And Anoop Desai’s solo was shorter than most, but good enough to get through. Same with Scott McIntyre.

If you thought you had seen everything when it came to American Idol, like Sanjaya, or Antonella Barba, apparently you were mistaken, because you haven’t met Emily Wynne-Hughes. Or, at least you thought you hadn’t. Actually, you have probably seen more of her than you think!

FYI, she was working in the beauty salon where Britney Spears famously shaved off her hair before Spears flipped out and went ballistic on the paparazzi. Ah, now it’s flooding back to you like that rum-and-Coke you weren’t supposed to drink before bed.

For example, Hughes is already a steely-eyed TV veteran, having completed an interview with KABC, in which she explained what Britney wanted at the salon that fateful night. She followed that work up with hamming it up at the Idol 8 Phoenix auditions, in which she stole 16 seconds from everyone else by singing “Barracuda” and gaining attention for her crazy red hair.

Vote For The Worst has unearthed gobs of other interesting information on Hughes, including the fact she plays in a band called Go Betty Go, which just completed their European tour. How that still qualifies her for Idol 8, I haven’t a clue! Doesn’t that make her a professional? Or is she being paid in beer and cigarettes?

Anyway, in her 21 years of existence it looks like Hughes has seen just about everything and so I predict this Idol hoopla will be like a walk in the park for her, since she’s already hobnobbed with stars, headlined on an Idol 8 commercial (video above), and been invited to exclusive Hollywood parties.

So look for Emily Wynne-Hughes to make some sort of difference on American Idol 8, even though it’s too early to tell what kind that might be. Personally she looks a lot like Carly Smithson so it may just be that this has all been done before. Or it’s just that she’s so crazy people won’t ever forget her.

However, if she were to shave her head and use the fact she knows Britney based on that chance encounter at the beauty salon, you never know.