Tonight''s American Idol auditions from Atlanta were refreshing.  There were no horrendous, water-cooler worthy auditions, there was a whole load of quality singers and the requisite sob stories were handled with unusual grace by the American Idol producers.  I know America enjoys the terrible auditions and the people who make complete fools of themselves, but it was nice to have an almost completely straightforward episode for a change.  Perhaps this was just a result of the crowd who showed up for auditions in Atlanta – if no real crazies show up, then you have no real crazies to air. 

The Good:

Joshua Jones:

Joshua is a glass blower by day, and a jovial one at that.  He has a good, not spectacular, voice, but is a bad performer.  As noted by Simon, he does this crazy demon eye thing when he sings and it is very off-putting.  The judges made him turn around and sing, so they wouldn't have to see those eyes.  It worked.

Asia'h Epperson:

A'siah was informed that her father  died in a car accident as she made her way to the audition.  This is, of course, unspeakable sad, but Epperson managed to show incredible poise when auditioning.  It helps that she's an awesome singer, cool raspy voice and a likable personality.  American will be rooting for her come Hollywood. 

Brooke Helvie:

Dumb and unlikable, this Star Fair beauty queen made it to Hollywood despite the judges hating her.  It was a little weird to watch.  She deserved it, though – girl can sing. 

Alexandrea Lushington:

We didn't get to see much of Alex, but I suspect we'll see a lot more in Hollywood and beyond.  For a sixteen year old, she blew me away.

Amanda Overmyer:

Finally, we might have the female answer to Chris Daughtry.  Make no mistake, this girl is for real.  The best rocker voice out of anyone this season.

Josiah Lemming:

Josiah dropped out of school at seventeen and has now been living in his car for almost a year.  He's got an OK voice, but a good presence and personality.  He's a real musician, can play the guitar, and I think he'd be way better off in a band.  The judges think the same thing, but let him through to Hollywood nonetheless.


The Bad:

JP Tjelemand:

This delusional fool sat next to Carrie Underwood during auditions for season 4, and somehow decided that he should give it another shot.  He's terrible, just awful, at singing, though. 

Eva Miller:

Simon thought she was putting on an act, and so did I.  She even fell down during her audition.  But, as the tears began to fall, it was clear that it wasn't an act and Eva thinks she can sing.  She can't.

Nathan Hite:

This idiot thought he'd come into the audition room and show Simon what's up.  He claimed that he'd give Simon some witty retorts, and he tried.  Dude wasn't funny and his entire audition was painful to watch.


-Oscar Dahl, BuddyTV Senior Writer
(Image Courtesy of FOX)