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- Decoding Siobhan Magnus’ style
- Decoding Siobhan Magnus’ style
- Is an indie sensibility driving ‘American Idol’ ratings to longtime lows?
- Is an indie sensibility driving ‘American Idol’ ratings to longtime lows?
- The ‘Idol’ lament: Top 24’s final elimination hits a bummed note
- The ‘Idol’ lament: Top 24’s final elimination hits a bummed note
- Ann Powers: Has ‘Idol’ gone too indie?
- Ann Powers: Has ‘Idol’ gone too indie?
- Casey James on his DWI arrest: ‘I was young and stupid’
- Casey James on his DWI arrest: ‘I was young and stupid’
| Decoding Siobhan Magnus’ style Posted: 13 Mar 2010 06:13 PM PST
The Ink: Siobhan currently boasts three tattoos. On her right shoulder (middle inset) is the cover image from Edward Gorey's book "The Gashlycrumb Tinies." "He's an author from Cape Cod who's one of my mom's favorites," she says. "He lived close to us so I grew up being very familiar with his work." On her left wrist (bottom inset) are the words "I find hope" in Swahili. "It's from a Hanson song," she says. "They're my favorite band ever." Indeed, the line comes from "The Great Divide," from Hanson's album and African charity effort "The Walk." Her third tat (not pictured) on the opposite wrist, is a heart with an X through it. "That's a Hole reference, she says. "Courtney Love is my other favorite." The necklace: Siobhan's neck accessory (top inset) was a gift from home. "My boss made me this for good luck," she revealed. "It's an Egyptian Scarab beetle because I'm really into ancient Egyptian stuff." The jacket: "My mom's the biggest Ramones fan you ever met," says Siobhan of the bright yellow patch adorning her denim jacket. "My parents are old school punk rockers — they partied with Black Flag! " In red ink: another tribute to Hole. On the back? A patch for "The Devil's Rejects." Says Siobhan: "I love Rob Zombie and I'm obsessed with horror movies. I love fake blood and gore." – Shirley Halperin Follow @IdolTracker on Twitter  |
| Decoding Siobhan Magnus’ style Posted: 13 Mar 2010 06:13 PM PST
The Ink: Siobhan currently boasts three tattoos. On her right shoulder (middle inset) is the cover image from Edward Gorey's book "The Gashlycrumb Tinies." "He's an author from Cape Cod who's one of my mom's favorites," she says. "He lived close to us so I grew up being very familiar with his work." On her left wrist (bottom inset) are the words "I find hope" in Swahili. "It's from a Hanson song," she says. "They're my favorite band ever." Indeed, the line comes from "The Great Divide," from Hanson's album and African charity effort "The Walk." Her third tat (not pictured) on the opposite wrist, is a heart with an X through it. "That's a Hole reference, she says. "Courtney Love is my other favorite." The necklace: Siobhan's neck accessory (top inset) was a gift from home. "My boss made me this for good luck," she revealed. "It's an Egyptian Scarab beetle because I'm really into ancient Egyptian stuff." The jacket: "My mom's the biggest Ramones fan you ever met," says Siobhan of the bright yellow patch adorning her denim jacket. "My parents are old school punk rockers — they partied with Black Flag! " In red ink: another tribute to Hole. On the back? A patch for "The Devil's Rejects." Says Siobhan: "I love Rob Zombie and I'm obsessed with horror movies. I love fake blood and gore." – Shirley Halperin Follow @IdolTracker on Twitter  |
| Is an indie sensibility driving ‘American Idol’ ratings to longtime lows? Posted: 13 Mar 2010 06:13 PM PST In an earlier post, Times pop music critic Ann Powers wondered whether "American Idol" contestants are going "too indie" this year. And when you look at the recent ratings, you do have to wonder whether viewers would like it better if the kids stuck with more Beyonce and less Brandi Carlile. But there may be other factors at work too. First, those numbers. Through the first nine weeks, "Idol" has slipped 4% on the Tuesday telecasts, to an average of 26.7 million total viewers, according to the Nielsen Co. This week's show, with the girls singing, was a bit subpar, at 25.6 million. On Wednesdays, the show has tumbled 9%, to an average of 25 million. This Wednesday's program, devoted to the boys, drew just 20.7 million viewers, a very low tally by "Idol" standards. On one hand, the numbers don't seem so bad. The network points out that the show is down less this year than it was last season — although down is down, no matter how you position it. Officials also point out that the declines are modest for a show in its ninth season, which is certainly true. The numbers are still huge compared with virtually everything else on TV. Even so, "Idol" is logging its lowest numbers in seven years, both among total viewers and the target demographic of young adults aged 18 to 49. And among that crucial demo, "Idol" is actually logging a worse rating now than it did in 2003 (9.4 versus 9.9 for the Wednesday shows). It's possible that many viewers are just as cool to the contestants' song selections as the judges have often been. For whatever reason, a number of singers has elected to perform acoustic covers of laid-back folk-rock numbers by Ray LaMontagne, Fleetwood Mac and other artists, rather than the hip-hop-inflected numbers that dominate the current charts. But it's also true that "Idol" is simply aging, no matter what music the contestants perform. The show has been on TV a long time and has traded its feeling of novelty for an institutional air. Seen from that perspective, the ratings declines are hardly a surprise. Just like the kids who grow famous on "Idol" ultimately learn, youth can't last forever. -Scott Collins (follow me on Twitter @scottcollinsLAT).  |
| Is an indie sensibility driving ‘American Idol’ ratings to longtime lows? Posted: 13 Mar 2010 06:13 PM PST In an earlier post, Times pop music critic Ann Powers wondered whether "American Idol" contestants are going "too indie" this year. And when you look at the recent ratings, you do have to wonder whether viewers would like it better if the kids stuck with more Beyonce and less Brandi Carlile. But there may be other factors at work too. First, those numbers. Through the first nine weeks, "Idol" has slipped 4% on the Tuesday telecasts, to an average of 26.7 million total viewers, according to the Nielsen Co. This week's show, with the girls singing, was a bit subpar, at 25.6 million. On Wednesdays, the show has tumbled 9%, to an average of 25 million. This Wednesday's program, devoted to the boys, drew just 20.7 million viewers, a very low tally by "Idol" standards. On one hand, the numbers don't seem so bad. The network points out that the show is down less this year than it was last season — although down is down, no matter how you position it. Officials also point out that the declines are modest for a show in its ninth season, which is certainly true. The numbers are still huge compared with virtually everything else on TV. Even so, "Idol" is logging its lowest numbers in seven years, both among total viewers and the target demographic of young adults aged 18 to 49. And among that crucial demo, "Idol" is actually logging a worse rating now than it did in 2003 (9.4 versus 9.9 for the Wednesday shows). It's possible that many viewers are just as cool to the contestants' song selections as the judges have often been. For whatever reason, a number of singers has elected to perform acoustic covers of laid-back folk-rock numbers by Ray LaMontagne, Fleetwood Mac and other artists, rather than the hip-hop-inflected numbers that dominate the current charts. But it's also true that "Idol" is simply aging, no matter what music the contestants perform. The show has been on TV a long time and has traded its feeling of novelty for an institutional air. Seen from that perspective, the ratings declines are hardly a surprise. Just like the kids who grow famous on "Idol" ultimately learn, youth can't last forever. -Scott Collins (follow me on Twitter @scottcollinsLAT).  |
| The ‘Idol’ lament: Top 24’s final elimination hits a bummed note Posted: 13 Mar 2010 06:13 PM PST If there's one thing we learned from Thursday's final Top 24 elimination, America apparently does not appreciate the left of center. How else do you explain the ouster of two favorites, one a critics' darling (Lilly Scott), the other an underdog that came up from way behind (Alex Lambert), who delivered more than decent performances last week? Or maybe it's just a distaste for music of the 1970s? Whether it was King (Carole, that is) or Queen, Todrick Hall and Katelyn Epperly were shown the door for reaching too far back. During Friday's conference call with reporters, you could sense the befuddlement on both sides of the line. The journalists were clearly still getting over the shock of elimination, while the contestants just tried to make sense of it all. But perhaps Lilly put it best: "I thought I could break the mold, but I guess it's going to be a season of the Indeed, the 20-year-old Littleton, Colo., native was championed from the get-go by "Idol" viewers and the media for picking an unexpected song like the Beatles' "Fixing a Hole" and delivering it with her own distinct singing style. Still, Lilly was the first to acknowledge that her nontraditional vibe may have done her in. "I wanted to be that offbeat contestant," she said. "I did exactly what I wanted That sentiment was echoed by Todrick, who launched into an animated semi-rant about his early dismissal. "I'm For her part, Katelyn has also reconciled her decisions thus far, starting from when she first considered auditioning. The way Katelyn sees it, "Idol" has a credibility problem, but being allowed to play an instrument made her "much more OK" On the opposite tip is Alex Lambert, also 19, a true novice and, by many estimations, the epitome of untapped talent. Unlike the girls and his fellow Texan Todrick, here you have someone with zero stage experience, little charisma and a somewhat goofy haircut but with an otherworldly voice that screams potential. He opted for more contemporary fare, like James Morrison's "Wonderful World" and Ray LaMontagne's "Trouble." So what did him in? To hear Alex tell it, he concentrated too much on the singing and not enough on showmanship. "It was all – Shirley Halperin Follow @IdolTracker on Twitter Photos: Clockwise from top left, Alex Lambert, Lilly Scott, Todrick Hall and Katelyn Epperly perform during Round 3 of the "American Idol" semifinals. Credit: Frank Micelotta / Fox  |
| Ann Powers: Has ‘Idol’ gone too indie? Posted: 13 Mar 2010 06:13 PM PST
Yet even with the craftily ornamented Scott and the Mraz-tastic Lambert gone, this Top 12 remains, well, eccentric. Front-runners Michael Lynche, Crystal Bowersox and Siobhan Magnus all own typical big Idol voices, but pull them out in service of defying genre (Lynche may be a soul man, but he's also a jam band-er), gender (Magnus' strongest performances have been of big ballads made famous by males) or unspoken "Idol" rules (Bowersox is as independent-minded an Idol as we've ever seen, just doing her hippie-gal-in-the-subway thing week after week, and showing how much power a woman performer can have without resorting to either cheese or cheesecake.) As for Lee Dewyze, who's pulled up from the outside to rival Lynche and put Casey James in a little danger, I'm not a fan yet. He's the top Idol who most clearly fits a type — the scruffy, initially underestimated heartland rocker. Yet this overwrought, meaty-voiced sad sack made a choice this week that not only helped his chances, but said something bigger about where "Idol" is going. Dewyze's rendition of the Owl City hit "Fireflies," a melodically irresistible, morally corrupt bit of fluff that borrowed so heavily from the sound of the dormant Ben Gibbard side project the Postal Service that some have called it plagiarism, reminded us that one of "Idol's" main functions is to show how weak the gates between musical styles and scenes truly are. What does it mean that the bookish musicality and nerdy emotional openness once wholly characteristic of what people called "college rock" back when R.E.M. ruled that wheelhouse can now be deployed by a dude who also likes its direct opposite — the mercenary crotch-pop of Hinder, another Dewyze cover selection? I think it means that "Idol" has gone indie. And it's kind of a problem. But if this year's remaining contestants, judges and producers solve it, the show could get really interesting again. Now, when I even type the word "indie," I open a huge can of worms. The term, first associated with independent film and later adopted by music-besotted kids to describe the sometimes rough, shambolic, do-it-yourself sounds bubbling up from the margins during the Michael/Madonna/Boss era of blockbuster pop, has been hotly debated for years. Many feel that indie refers to a set of business practices: making and distributing music outside the major-label system, touring on the cheap, and seeking direct fan support, even to the point of patronage. Others might describe indie as a sound with roots in punk and experimental rock that can vary widely, but which is always more homespun and individualistic than slick corporate pop. Today, "indie" style pops up everywhere, beyond music: in the youth-driven crafts revival emblematized by Lilly Scott's big earrings; in artisanal food movements like the cupcake-shop craze; and, controversially, in corporate marketing, especially for technology brands like Apple. I don't want to take on the larger discussion about indie's current state or even survival. Go read Rachael Maddux's provocative Paste magazine piece, entitled "Is Indie Dead," if you want some of that action. There' much to debate there. What got me thinking about Idol and indie was another essay on the subject, written by Nitsuh Abebe as a decade-end assessment of the term's impact for Pitchfork.com, the site many consider this decade's indie bible. Abebe argues that indie has been fully co-opted into the mainstream, losing its associations with grassroots business practices and instead coming to signify "the blend of strong, accessible songwriting with aesthetics just stylized enough to be head-turning." Abebe goes on to write that indie, by one definition, is "pop music for the 'thoughtful' person." That seems like a perfect definition to me. Indie is what you hear featured on National Public Radio, wafting through the sound system at farm-to-table restaurants, shared by parents with their children at Kidrockers shows, scattered over the soundtracks of feisty little films. And now, it's what's dominating "American Idol," not so much in song choice but in sensibility. "Idol's" top pundits have been busy lamenting this year's bunch of hopefuls as less compelling than any in recent memory. They've also been dubbed "quirky." In fact, even when they're singing songs previously owned by major pop divas like Christina Aguilera or Aretha Franklin, what they are, mostly, is indie. The prevalent attitude displayed by this year's Top 12 fits Abebe's definition to a T. They are thoughtful, a bit timorous, and given to making moves that seem like missteps, but are really little indie-style dares. Tim Urban singing the much-abused but still relatively highbrow "Hallelujah," when he's supposed to be the lost Jonas Brother? Indie. Michael Lynche showing that he gets boho R&B as well as he does James Brown, by covering Maxell's hyper-arty reworking of the Kate Bush classic "This Woman's Work"? Indie. Benami sounding more like Joanna Newsom than Stevie Nicks while warbling "Rhiannon"? Indie. Lacey Brown turning Brandi Carlile's magnificent "The Story" into a miniature? Indie. This shift seems to be baffling the judges, who are still looking for heroics to make them weep. But the "Idol" voters get it. The dismissal of Scott might seem to indicate otherwise, since she is the vocalist most obviously linked to the music Pitchfork.com regularly covers, both in terms of her voice and her style. But that's important too: it shows that for "Idol" voters, for mainstream America, indie has limits. It must not be too hard to understand; it can amuse, even bemuse, but not startle. Between the poles of the deeply conventional and the truly bizarre, indie is the middle. Scott was too weird, too old-fashioned in a strange way. Scott belongs in a niche, while "American Idol" has always been a conversation about what can cross over. Won't it be something if it turns out the indie America embraces is made by an African American hunk like Lynche, or a hippie chick like Bowersox, or a girl with a dad who looks like a member of AC/DC, like Magnus? Or, strangest of all, by a guy who seems like the type that indie rockers invented their scene to avoid, like Dewyze? That would be something to ponder. And if indie is nothing else at this point, it's still great food for thought. – Ann Powers Photo: Lee Dewyze performing for the judges Wednesday night. Credit: Frank Micelotta / Fox. Related: Ann Powers: The 'Idol' girls try to go universal, but mostly miss Ann Powers: The men, in their own world Ann Powers: The boys take their chances Ann Powers: The girls work the quirkiness, and the smarts  |
| Casey James on his DWI arrest: ‘I was young and stupid’ Posted: 13 Mar 2010 06:13 PM PST
"I figured it would come up, but it's kind of been blown out of proportion," he told Idol Tracker at Thursday night's Top 12 party. "It's common, public knowledge, but it was also 10 years ago." According to Radar, Casey pleaded guilty to reckless driving in 2001, for which he was fined $200 and given 30 days in jail as well as Casey emphasized that the experience, while embarrassing, helped him – Shirley Halperin Follow @IdolTracker on Twitter Photo: Casey James attends the "American  |
| Casey James on his DWI arrest: ‘I was young and stupid’ Posted: 13 Mar 2010 06:13 PM PST
"I figured it would come up, but it's kind of been blown out of proportion," he told Idol Tracker at Thursday night's Top 12 party. "It's common, public knowledge, but it was also 10 years ago." According to Radar, Casey pleaded guilty to reckless driving in 2001, for which he was fined $200 and given 30 days in jail as well as Casey emphasized that the experience, while embarrassing, helped him – Shirley Halperin Follow @IdolTracker on Twitter Photo: Casey James attends the "American |
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