And then there were 8 girls…

Last week we got rid of Haeley the Annoying and Michelle Delamor. I didn’t expect Michelle to go so quickly, as the red haired screecher, Lacey Brown should have gone out before her.

Katie Stevens is up first with “Breakaway” by Kelly Clarkson. No pre-packaged interviews tonight to make fun of? Guess it’s a shorter show. Katie’s having pitch issues through the whole first verse. I’m incredibly bored by her. Major Yawn reporting for duty. Where’s my iPhone? I’ve got Words with Friends games to play. Randy said it paled in comparison to Kelly’s version. Ellen thought it was a good song choice but didn’t think she showed any personality. Kara thinks she has a good radio voice but lacks a vision of who she is as an artist. Simon thinks she’s been listening to the judge’s advice but thinks she sucked the energy out of the performance.

Siobhan Magnus chose “House of the Rising Sun” by The Animals. This is kind of a strange song choice, that will either go really well or really badly. Most of the audience is going to say, “What the hell is this song?” She started out completely a cappella and dead on the pitch. A very nice start! She’s totally got that sultry look at the camera and shift her eyes thing going for her. This was a really nice display of her voice. Randy loves what she does. Ellen says “You are why I love music.” She called it captivating and current. Kara loved the a cappella start and her vibe. Simon wasn’t such a fan, he thought it was a bit weird. He remains “underimpressed.”

Lacey Brown is singing Brandy Carlisle’s “The Story.” Can we talk for a second about the outfit? Did she raid Doris Roberts’ closet before the show? Holy hell! You just look at her and know that she smells like she took a bath in some heavy floral perfume and is still irritated that her gardener hasn’t weeded the front yard of the townhouse she owns in Boca. And while I’ve been sitting here flabbergasted at the ridiculous leopard print and bright red lipstick, I’ve totally missed the song. Which is probably a good thing… it was super slow, had no real hook, and if I had just heard this as background noise, I’d be wandering around the house looking for an injured cat. I usually love the quirky girl with strange hair that there seems to be on every season…. and in this case I still do – only it’s not Lacey, it’s Lilly. Randy thought the song was sleepy, but called it her best performance in a long time. Ellen agreed it was her best performance to date. Kara said it was effortless and was a “brilliant choice.” Simon didn’t love the song but thought she sang it really well.

No one mentioned the fact that she’s wearing a salmon colored frock that clashes terribly with her bright red hair. I didn’t see her feet, but I would bet she’s got combat boots on.

Katelyn Epperly is performing “I Feel The Earth Move” by Carole King. She’s playing keys and doing absolutely nothing to make this song her own. It was nearly a note for note version without the cool gritty timbre that Carole has. That being said, she has a nice tone, she’s pretty, and isn’t plagued with the same nerves and pitch problems some other contestants are, so there’s that. Randy liked her look but didn’t feel the vibe and thought there wasn’t anything special about it. Ellen doesn’t know that the song was the best choice for her. Kara didn’t feel like she was competing or connected to the song. Simon likes her hair. He called it “request night at a restaurant” and she performed it quite well but didn’t do anything special with it.

Didi Benami is up next with “Rhiannon” from Fleetwood Mac. She’s playing it acoustically on the guitar and playing with the melody a little bit. Again, I find myself absolutely intrigued by Didi. Last week the judges ate her alive for a performance that I loved. This version was very cool with an interesting arrangement. It was quite haunting and I really wanted to hear more of it when it was done. Her tone is unique and she’s able to make huge interval jumps look absolutely effortless. I’m officially a fan. Randy called it “a whole lot better than last week.” He didn’t see a lot of “wow” in it. Ellen said, “Yes indeedy Didi.” Kara called it one of her favorite moments of the show for this whole season. She called her rendition brilliant. Simon thought it was head and shoulders above anything so far tonight. He disagreed with Randy and said it was a complete “Wow” moment for her.

Paige Miles chose “Smile” a standard written by Charlie Chaplin. She seems to be rushing the band just a bit. She’s also just slightly flat. I don’t know what the problem is here… did they lose the monitor or what? This was an ugly mess. Maybe the problem was a terrible arrangement with multiple key changes, or maybe Paige isn’t feeling well, or maybe this was just an absolutely terrible song choice for her. Whatever it is needs to be fixed immediately, because my ears aren’t speaking to me any longer. Randy said it just didn’t work and he hated the arrangement. Ellen said it’s supposed to be uplifting, but it was just sad. Kara said, “it’s just all wrong.” Kara keeps putting the contestants on the spot with stupid questions. Simon called it a horrible choice of song and blamed the awful arrangement on the band.

Crystal Bowersox picked one of my signature songs, “Give Me One Reason” by Tracy Chapman. She’s the first contestant to perform the song any where near the way I do. This song has so much opportunity for personality and most of the people who sing it don’t interject any. Crystal of course does. I would have liked to see her go a bit more aggressive with it, but she still performed it quite well. As far as I’m concerned, Crystal is the girl to beat. Randy loved it. Ellen can’t stop calling her “amazing.” Kara commends her for knowing who she is. Simon guarantees she will be in the top 12. He actually said, “You are the one to beat.”

Lilly Scott is closing the show with a Patsy Cline hit, “I Fall to Pieces.” She’s playing an electric mandolin. I just can’t help but smile when she’s singing this song. I love her quirky voice. She changed up the melody a bit and did some cute things with it. That being said, I would never have picked this song for her, and I’m not sure it will be a very big hit with the viewing audience. Randy thought it was hot. Ellen loves her voice and style. Kara said she made Patsy Cline feel current. Simon called it a brave song choice. It didn’t have a wow factor, but it was cute and quirky.

Here’s my ranking:

1. Siobhan Magnus
2. Crystal Bowersox
3. Didi Benami
4. Lilly Scott
5. Katelyn Epperly
6. Lacey Brown
7. Katie Stevens
8. Paige Miles

I think Katie and Katelyn are in the most danger of being forgotten and voted off… I really think this competition is down to the first four girls in my ranking. The rest will fall one by one. What do you think?