Kyle's St. Paul, MN Recap

Hey everyone! I've really enjoyed everyone's recaps of the American Idols Live Tour this summer, and I finally get to write one of my very own!

So I went to the show last night in St. Paul, MN. I've gone to the Idol tour the past five years, and these were my best seats yet! My girlfriend and I were in the 14th row right on the side of the stage (they were even better than season 3: ground floor row 5!)

So anyways... we were a few minutes late to the show. As we entered the building I we could hear Mandisa's voice booming through the arena. Let me tell you... I ran like I've never ran before!!! We missed the first verse of "I'm Every Woman", but it was okay because she really didn't get blowing until the end of it anyways. Mandisa was wearing a glitzy silver top and it appeared that she had used a bedazzler on her eyebrows (?)... despite her questionable style choices Mandisa was vocally stunning. I felt like the audience was really feeling her, but by comparison to Ace's entrance it was quite lukewarm.

The crowd went wild for Ace. Being a 19 year old male during the Ace Young set was quite awkward. It was about all I could handle to witness an audience of adolescent girls simultaneously wet themselves as Ace slid off his leather jacket accompanied by the "warm and naked" line of George Michael's "Father Figure." Ace was vocally unimpressive and might I say, quite sweaty. The most impressive part of his performance was when he jumped really high off the stage.

Lisa Tucker was next and she looked amazing. Lordy, is she a tiny thing! "Signed Sealed Delivered" was predictably awkward. Then Lisa sat down to the piano, and she was really in her element. Her duo of Elton John hits was really impressive. She really should stick to ballads and ballads only. I did notice more so at the concert that her voice sounded REALLY young.

Paris joined Lisa for "Waterfalls" and it was not what I was expecting. Their voices did not blend and the audience barely reacted to their hometown girl! After Lisa left, Paris went on to some solos. She was the first person to go down into the audience and someone in the front row gave her a feather boa that she had some fun with. I love when she worked the stage to "Crazy in Love." She looked and sounded great.

I'll keep the Bucky and Kellie recap brief... Bucky was... well.... he was Bucky. "You're the One that I Want" was far and away the low-light of the night. It was painfully staged and sung. Kellie looked horrible in her overly tight jeans, Queen leather jacket, and horrific hair cut. She also gave an awkwardly long speech about being really grateful and lucky.. blah blah blah.

After intermission Chris proved to be the one trick pony he always has been. He is a great singer, has a great look, and could have won this competition. But his performance on the tour proved why he didn't.

Elliot sang magnificently but has the stage presence of a wood chip.

Katharine McPhee looked amazing! "Black Horse.." was really a bad choice for the tour. After the explosive response to Chris and Elliot, Katharine's low key vocals were kind of a buzz kill. "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" was obviously great... she better thank Simon Cowell every day for her career. Without that song she would literally have nothing!

Next up, Taylor emerged from the upper part of the arena. He walked right past my friend who... yes, touched Taylor's arm. He said it was hairy. I was not a huge Soul Patroler during the AI season, but his performance was absolutely spectacular. His vocals, dancing, and energy was so exciting. He was definitely the crowd favorite.

The group numbers were not very impressive, which leads me to believe the tour layout of solos was probably a good idea. However it was good to see them all together. Overall the Idols all seemed a bit tired but they still managed to put on a great show.

Out of the 5 seasons, this tour was the not the worst... but it was the fifth best. Yep, it was a great show but it just didn't stand up to the standard of past seasons. Perhaps it was the lack of big personalities? Perhaps it was the lack of chemistry between the Idols? I still really enjoyed myself. More than anything it got me really pumped for next season! See you all September 8th at the Minneapolis auditions!!!