Episode 'American Idol' Season 10, Episode 26 - The Top 7 Perform Recap

Everything kicks off with some of the ousted finalists singing Pink's "So What."

As in, "So what I got kicked off, I still have a record deal and I'm going to sing on 'Dancing With the Stars' next week." Right Pia?

The theme of the evening is songs of the 21st century, but before we get to Scotty, the contestants mock him in a video. McCreery gets a load of crap for his microphone holding. THANK YOU.

Scotty McCreery:

Anyway, Scotty sings "Swingin'" by LeAnn Rimes, which is kind of cheating since it was a cover of a song originally recorded in the 1980's. What's the deal, Scotty? Not enough country songs written in the 2000's?

Stephen thinks Scotty should "boot-scoot" a little bit more, and the other two think he needs to sing something a little less "safe." After all, he had a decade of music to choose from (actually, more than that as Scotty proved).

James Durbin:

Durbin gets mocked for his scarves, and Scotty gets stuck in his back bend. James is up next, and he chooses "Uprising." There's a lot of talk about him staying current, seeing as (and some might disagree here) there hasn't been any decent heavy metal since the 1990's.

...but there is Muse. Solid choice! James comes out with a drumline, and with them standing right behind the judges, it's a wonder they can even hear him. That is, until he hits the high notes. They're impressive, but a bit flat...considering the theatricality, though, he probably won't be docked for that.

Sure enough, the crowd and the judges go nuts. It's a strong showing for Durbin. Tyler says his outfit looks like "Mad Max meets Stormtroopers on Melrose" and that he sounds like he's going in a "T-rex" direction. Someone needs to reconfigure Stephen's speech box.

Haley Reinhart:

Haley gets mocked for her growling and her "arm thing." Haley chooses Adele's "Rolling in the Deep," another really great song. Solid choice...except Haley seems to have not thought about what it means. Why is it Adele week on Fox? First Gwenyth sings her on "Glee," now here we are one night later.

Haley sings it well, growls and all, but doesn't really "perform" it. The judges think the song is a great fit for her, though, and it's a good point. The sound really works for her.

Jacob Lusk:

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The gang calls Jacob a diva and mock his "yeahyyahhs." For his song, he chooses "Dance With My Father" by Luther Vandross, in honor of his father, who died when he was 12 years old. Really sweet, in fact it moves Jacob to tears.

That emotion translates to the performance, and Jacob pretty much kills it up there...and without any "yeahyyyeahs" and with losing his earpiece for a second. Randy thinks he needs to let loose and try something a little more flashy musically.

Casey Abrams:

The contestants mock Casey's beard and call him "a little weird." Casey chooses "Harder to Breathe" and plays a little guitar too. This song is a bit of a departure for him, but it doesn't matter: he totally kills it. His voice and style fits the song perfectly. He even nails the attitude, planting a kiss on J.Lo at the end of the song. The place goes nuts!

Judge comments: Casey has soft lips, and he's "so f***ing good."

Stephano Langone:

The gang mocks Stephano for trying to be a ladies' man. Jacob says he would "flirt with a piece of paper." He picks Ne-Yo's "Closer" and starts going into his "thing" which causes Jimmy to say "f*** that s***." Man, today's show is foul-mouthed. It's not a bad performance, but what's with the little red suspenders?

The judges like it, they feel like he took his time, owned the performance, and ditched his usual "bad karaoke" thing. It looks like he's turning into more a performer, which might have come just in time: he's been close to elimination two weeks in a row.

Lauren Alaina:

Wait, Stephen Tyler has another daughter? You're telling me that girl is related to Liv Tyler?

What will the contestants mock Lauren for? Her accent, of course. She picks "Born to Fly" by Sara Evans. Jimmy tries to get her to open up by teaching her to shut out the things that make her nervous. It doesn't seem to reach her, as her performance is still a little held back. She sings great, but like Randy and Jennifer say, she needs to start aiming for the big stuff.