Well, it's not the Adam vs. Danny final the producers so desperately wanted, and it's not the Kris vs. Allison final we so richly deserved, but it is the most interesting final we could have gotten, and by far the sharpest contrast any Idol final has ever presented. It's pop against rock, understatement against flamboyance, sincerity against artifice, subtlety against bombast -- it's Kris against Adam, and THIS...
...is the final rundown.
Round One: Something Old ...
Adam, "Mad World" -- I liked this better than his first performance of it, if only because he kept it almost entirely in his lower register this time, where we can actually hear him singing instead of screeching. This song really brings out his tendency to gasp for breath between phrases, though, and the drawback of being able to understand the lyrics this time around is that you notice how maudlin the song is, and that it's impossible to sing it without looking like a self-pitying 14-year-old. I wish he'd chosen "Tracks of My Tears" or "Feeling Good" instead.
Kris, "Ain't No Sunshine" -- Absolutely the right song choice; Kris's only other real option was the Kanye song from last week, and it wouldn't have been wise to do the same song twice in a row. The original was one of my favorite performances of the year, and I think this was just as good. It's an intense performance, and the dynamic shifts are beautifully done. The last note didn't really need to be a falsetto note -- again with Idol men and their falsetto obsession -- but at least it was in tune.
Round One to Kris, but it's closer than I'd have expected. Interesting to note that Kris's performance was as theatrical as he ever gets and Adam's was as understated as he ever gets; they meet in the middle between their usual styles, giving us the most direct comparison we've ever seen.
Round Two: ...Something New...
Adam, "A Change Is Gonna Come" -- I can understand why Fuller would choose this song for Adam; it certainly plays to his flair for the dramatic. But this is a song about determination in the face of seemingly insurmountable obstacles, and Adam simply doesn't project the world-weariness or the sense of having suffered that the song requires; the biggest obstacle this guy's ever faced is that Starbucks was out of blueberry muffins. The overdone vocal gymnastics in the second half don't help; they detract from the simplicity of the song's message.
Kris, "What's Going On" -- I wish he hadn't chosen to end it in essentially the same way he ended his first number -- big pause, dramatic final note -- but otherwise, that was a fine performance. The arrangement works well, though I think Kris is lucky that this is the last week of the competition; one more acoustic-guitar arrangement might make him start to seem like a one-trick pony. Not his best performance of the year, but after Adam's disappointing work in this round, it didn't need to be.
Round Two to Kris, by a comfortable margin.
Round Three: ... and an Idol Anthem, too!
Adam, "No Boundaries" -- I've been curious about this moment all week. For the first time, Adam was going to have to sing a crappy piece of Top 40 Pop that he wasn't allowed to re-arrange or re-invent, and I wondered whether he'd be able to do it. Well, he managed it, but he didn't look happy about it; this is the most tense and uncomfortable we've ever seen Adam. There are even a few notes badly out of key as the chorus enters near the end of the song (and whatever I may dislike about Adam, ptich has rarely been a problem for him). It's as good a performance as Adam could have given in a style so far from his comfort zone.
Kris, "No Boundaries" -- Oh dear. What a moment to have a really craptastic performance. Kris is pushing so hard to be heard over the band that his pitch is off and his tone is unusually harsh and unpleasant. There's not much to say, really -- it's a disaster on every level, and it's painful to sit through it.
Round Three to Adam, not so much for giving a good performance as for not sucking. I feel sorry for both guys, though, for having to sing that wretched song, which is surely one of the worst official Idol singles ever.
For the night: Kris, but damn, it's surprisingly close, as Adam spent much of the night proving that he could actually sing if he decided to.
For the season: Kris deserves it, and if the vote was really that close last week, then I think he'll win it, as the Danny Gokey vote is likely to break heavily in his favor over Adam. That last performance, though, just might have been awful enough to lose the whole thing for him.
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