MUSIC: American Idol 08: men's semifinals, week 1

And they're off!

I haven't watched any of the audition or Hollywood week shows, and have managed to avoid any YouTube clips, so this was my first glimpse of these contestants.

It's 60s night -- theme weeks are a new twist for the semis, which had been free choice in previous years. I wished they'd left it that way; it was nice for the contestants to have a few weeks in which they could sing songs they really felt comfortable with before being thrown into the challenges of theme nights.

The goal of the semifinals is simply to get rid of the deadwood, so we'll just do a very quick rundown:

David H, "In the Midnight Hour" -- the slow intro with the organ is fabulous, with a lovely little falsetto break. The rest of the song isn't quite as good, and there's one very sour note near the end, but overall, it's quite nice.

Chikezie, "More Today Than Yesterday" -- a disastrous arrangement makes the song sound like something from a cruise ship lounge. His voice isn't particularly distinctive or interesting.

David C, "Happy Together" -- pitch is off throughout, and he tends to bellow in a most unattractive fashion.

Jason Y, "Moon River" -- if we were looking for the next Perry Como, he'd be our winner hands down, but can he actually sing in a more contemporary style?

Robbie, "One" -- I suspect that the judges are right and he's really a pop singer; his voice is a bit too clear and pure for him to be a real rocker. A solid performance, if not wildly memorable.

David A, "Shop Around" -- he can't quite hit the low notes in this key, but it's a fine, energetic performance.

Danny, "Jailhouse Rock" -- if you can't enunciate, then don't choose a song with lots of words in it.

Luke, "Everybody's Talking" -- Pitch is off throughout, and there's just a bit of rhythmic stiffness, as if he hasn't really learned the song yet and is still frantically counting beats in his head.

Colton, "Suspicious Minds" -- It's an adequate performance (the slow section is the weakest), but there's absolutely no force of personality behind it, nothing to push it off the screen.

Garrett, "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do" -- It's 60s night, so doing the slow 70s version is a cheat to begin with. Remarkably dull; it is, as the judges are so often wont to say, like bad karaoke.

Jason C, "Daydream" -- I wasn't quite as impressed as the judges were, but there is a nice relaxed warmth to his singing that I like.

Michael, "Light My Fire" -- Stupid song choice; never invite comparisons to one of the most iconic performers in rock history. Reasonably well done, though.

Deserving to come back next week: David H, David A, Robbie.

Not sure yet, but would like to hear more: Jason C, Jason Y, Michael, Luke.

Won't miss 'em when they're gone: Chikezie, Colton, Garrett, Danny, David C.