Kris Allen vs Adam Lambert ... Again
12/03/2009 12:58:00 AM
kenmouse
, Posted in
My father has baseball, my brothers have football and I have American Idol. I'm not much different from them while watching Idol. I cheer, curse and yell at the contestants just as they do at the players. Last season I was wrapped up in the competition between winner Kris Allen and Adam Lambert, who was the most popular runner up since Clay Aiken. I eagerly awaited their debut releases because I enjoyed most of their performances throughout the competition. The wait is over and both titles meet with mixed results.
Kris Allen's self-titled debut carries on the tradition of other Idol debut releases. There's radio-friendly fare ("Live Like We're Dying"), heart-tugging ballads ("I Need to Know"), and his most popular cover from Idol, Kanye West's "Heartless." There are some good tracks such as the self-penned "Red Guitar" and "The Truth." Allen's clear voice and sincere delivery helps him maintain his all-around good guy image. The overall problem is the blandness that dominates rest of his debut. Allen proved that he can make a song his own (check out his outstanding rendition of "Falling Slowly" from Idol on You Tube), but there's little of this evidenced here. Allen seems to want to go in the direction of Jason Mraz, but he lacks Mraz's fun and loose style. Kris Allen is a predictable and bland debut that hardly demonstrates why he became 2009's American Idol.
Adam Lambert's For Your Entertainment falls under the category of less is more. Highlights include "Aftermath" and "Broken Open," because they best showcase Lambert's powerhouse vocals and dramatic delivery. "Soaked" guarantees Lambert the lead if a film is ever made based on the life of Queen's lead singer Freddie Mercury. Other tracks such as "Music Again" and "If I Had You" are so overproduced that it's a wonder I'm not suffering from a broken eardrum after listening to them. Some of Lambert's lyrics try to be suggestive such as the title cuts--"Can you handle what I’m 'bout to do/ Cause it's about to get rough for you"--but feel as though they're recycled from artists such as Madonna and Lady GaGa. There is some evidence of what made Lambert popular on Idol on Entertainment. The problem is talents are overshadowed by silly lyrics and extreme overproduction. Lambert's debut will be remembered more than Allen's but more so for his antics promoting it than any of its songs.
Overall, I expected more from both Allen and Lambert. I figured if they’re capable of outstanding performances then they’ll make top-notch debuts. Hopefully they’ll progress as artists on their follow ups. I give them both credit for keeping Idol's awful 2009 coronation song "No Boundaries" off their debut releases. It shows good judgment on their parts and I don't have to be reminded of one of the low points of last season.
Kris Allen's self-titled debut carries on the tradition of other Idol debut releases. There's radio-friendly fare ("Live Like We're Dying"), heart-tugging ballads ("I Need to Know"), and his most popular cover from Idol, Kanye West's "Heartless." There are some good tracks such as the self-penned "Red Guitar" and "The Truth." Allen's clear voice and sincere delivery helps him maintain his all-around good guy image. The overall problem is the blandness that dominates rest of his debut. Allen proved that he can make a song his own (check out his outstanding rendition of "Falling Slowly" from Idol on You Tube), but there's little of this evidenced here. Allen seems to want to go in the direction of Jason Mraz, but he lacks Mraz's fun and loose style. Kris Allen is a predictable and bland debut that hardly demonstrates why he became 2009's American Idol.
Adam Lambert's For Your Entertainment falls under the category of less is more. Highlights include "Aftermath" and "Broken Open," because they best showcase Lambert's powerhouse vocals and dramatic delivery. "Soaked" guarantees Lambert the lead if a film is ever made based on the life of Queen's lead singer Freddie Mercury. Other tracks such as "Music Again" and "If I Had You" are so overproduced that it's a wonder I'm not suffering from a broken eardrum after listening to them. Some of Lambert's lyrics try to be suggestive such as the title cuts--"Can you handle what I’m 'bout to do/ Cause it's about to get rough for you"--but feel as though they're recycled from artists such as Madonna and Lady GaGa. There is some evidence of what made Lambert popular on Idol on Entertainment. The problem is talents are overshadowed by silly lyrics and extreme overproduction. Lambert's debut will be remembered more than Allen's but more so for his antics promoting it than any of its songs.
Overall, I expected more from both Allen and Lambert. I figured if they’re capable of outstanding performances then they’ll make top-notch debuts. Hopefully they’ll progress as artists on their follow ups. I give them both credit for keeping Idol's awful 2009 coronation song "No Boundaries" off their debut releases. It shows good judgment on their parts and I don't have to be reminded of one of the low points of last season.
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