As Alexis Grace, Michael Sarver and Danny Gokey looked on from the sidelines, twelve more American Idol contenders took to the stage last night. All of them were singing for what could be the last time on the Idol stage; all of them wanted to impress.

Few of them did. Almost everything about the Wednesday night performances - from Ryan Seacrest’s outfit to more than half the song choices - was a bit of let down. Which three diamonds will be roughed out this minefield of poor decisions, off-key notes and obvious voter influencing?

Before the show started, I thought Jasmine Murray might be one of them. This absolutely adorable 17-year-old was featured in Hollywood Week but came to the stage first on performance night - bad placement which usually carries heavy weight during the two-hour broadcasts. The fact that Murray stayed somewhat wooden during her rendition of “Love Song” didn’t help matters much, and the vocals weren’t as completely on as they might have been. Randy Jackson found it “pitchy,” Kara DioGuardi thought it was “all over the place,” and told Jasmine “it wasn’t your best.” Paula Abdul said she “sang all around it,” but Simon Cowell was the harshest of them all - as usual. “You just haven’t got a great voice,” he pronounced darkly, adding “I think you’re a couple of years too early.”

Matt Giraud, 23, made a big impression when he sang “Georgia” during Hollywood Week, but no so much when he sang a Coldplay ditty Wednesday night. This was absolutely the wrong song and Giraud didn’t have the chance to show off much vocal strength. The completely unintelligible lyrics and breathy singing will probably keep him out of the Top 12. “Tonight, I’m just not blown away,” Kara DioGuardi admitted. “It was a risky song to pick,” offered Paula Abdul. Simon Cowell thought it was “verging on a horrible performance,” and called Giraud a “wannabe popstar.” “I’m still pullin’ for ya,” Randy Jackson supported Giraud.

Jeanine Vailes, 28, then stepped up to sing “This Love.” She’s got great hair, but her voice and outfit were a little off. It was a bad song choice all the way around, and honestly I no longer remember her singing at all. “Great legs,” Paula Abdul told her. “It’s Season 8…Simon?” When even Paula can’t say something good about the singing, it’s all bad. “I thought it was terrible,” Simon Cowell didn’t hold back. “You’re all choosing the wrong songs,” he summed up the problem of the evening. Kara DioGuardi found the whole thing to be “over-done” and thought “everything about it was wrong.” Randy Jackson thought it “would have been better if it was in tune.” “She has no shot,” Cowell muttered to him in an aside. Vailes is a very pretty girl, but she didn’t quite shine Wednesday night.

Enter Nick Mitchell/Normund Gentle, who was going to give a great performance one way or another. From the moment this “provocative” (Ryan Seacrest) contestant started his number on the stairs wearing shorts and tails, I knew it was about to be good. He belted out the ditty Jennifer Hudson made famous, offering up a very amusing and entertaining performance - one of the highs of the evening. Mitchell’s very active performance ended on a strong note, and he displayed some decent vocals through his song. The judges just weren’t feeling it, however - obviously, Normund Gentle just isn’t in the Idol plan. “I pray you do not go through to the next round,” Simon Cowell was blunt, calling it “sort of horrible comedy.” Randy Jackson thought it to be “definitely one of the most entertaining performances” and said “that was funny.” “We remember you,” Kara DioGuardi told him, adding “you’re not a terrible singer.” “You are a true performer,” Paula Abdul told him. Nick then bantered for awhile with Ryan Seacrest before he was dismissed. The judges don’t want Nick to go through, but I love, love, love him - and he’s the VFTW pick for the week for those who like to go against the grain.

Barely-featured Allison Iraheta, 16, arrived on stage next. Her hair is terrible, but her voice is absolutely fabulous. Unafraid Iraheta went out there and belted “Alone,” an incredibly difficult song, with strong authority. There wasn’t a bad moment or off note in the performance. As Randy Jackson cried, she “just blew it out the box!” “This girl is serious,” Kara DioGuardi announced. Paula found her to be the “best we’ve had tonight.” “You’re the best tonight by a clear mile,” Simon Cowell drove the point home. But don’t start voting just yet - good reviews or no, Iraheta isn’t necessarily the girl Idol is pushing this round. Stay tuned.

Kris Allen, 23, is good-looking, clean-cut and so far all but completely invisible on American Idol. He chose “Man in the Mirror,” and though he changed the key he started out fairly off in the beginning, singing very uncomfortably. This guy’s got good vocals, but he probably wasn’t good enough on the night. Kara DioGuardi found that the “back half was way better than the front,” but added, “this was just the wrong song.” “You nailed it!” Paula gushed - and Simon Cowell agreed. “I’m not gonna say you are the best singer in this competition,” he said, but did tell Allen, “I think the chicks are gonna love you.”

Very pretty Megan Corkrey, who has great hair, was the next to appear before the crowd. At my own risk I’ll say right now that I didn’t like one minute of Megan’s singing. She chose “Put Your Records On,” and started out very off. She overcompensated plenty and ended up singing all over the place. It was a bad song for her, and throughout the performance Corkrey looked stiff and tense on stage. She stood practically immobile and didn’t seem to hit too many melodious notes. But the judges went absolutely wild for her. This is the female they’re pushing. “Tonight, you picked the right song,” Paula Abdul enthused, calling Megan “beautiful,” “interesting,” “hip,” and “wonderful.” “You look gorgeous,” Simon Cowell observed, adding “you are relevant, you are current,” though even he admitted she “over-sang” the tune a bit. “I loved the tone of your voice,” Randy Jackson told her, saying she did a “nice, nice job.” “You could be a break out hit artist,” Kara DioGuardi told her. I’m completely baffled by these reviews.

I thought Matt Brietzke, 28, did a much better job vocally. He sang “If You Could Only See” very well, displaying a good tone and great vocal command. But the judges were all over him the minute he finished the last note. “I really like you,” Simon Cowell told him, “but I absolutely hated that song.” He found that the performance was “boring.” Randy Jackson agreed, saying the “performance was so boring,” but that “it was okay.” “It fell really flat,” Kara DioGuardi stated, but told Brietzke, “you can sing.” “You have a good voice,” Paula Abdul smiled.

Jesse Langseth, another single mom, decided to sing the outdated “Bette Davis Eyes.” Let me be very clear here: I love Bette Davis, I love the song. I’m not sure about Jesse Langseth.. She mumbled lyrics at me, threw weird dance poses into her performance and chose to sing in a strange tone. Langseth seemed nervous and somehow the whole thing seemed rushed. “I thought it was okay,” Randy Jackson wasn’t very enthusiastic. “This is definitely your best look,” Kara DioGuardi offered, adding “I think you took some risks.” “You’re cool,” Paula Abdul told her. “I think you’re forgettable,” Simon Cowell observed, saying Langseth acted “too cool for school.”

Kai Kalama, 27, also has terrible hair - and he’s badly in need of a shave. He chose to sing “What Becomes of the Broken-Hearted,” a truly catastrophic decision. This poor song is so old and tired, Kalama’s number stretched to two minutes instead of keeping itself at ninety seconds. Kalama hit only a few sour notes, but there was something lackluster about the whole thing. “You’re a really good guy,” Kara DioGuardi observed, but cited “pitch issues” in his performance. Paula Abdul liked him, but Simon Cowell found Kalama to be “corny” and found “nothing distinct, nothing original” in the performance. Randy Jackson thought it was “safe.” But Kalama probably isn’t safe from elimination.

Mishavonna Henson, 18, is a very cute brunette with a very good voice - but she picked a song that didn’t much lend itself to fun. Her version of “Drops of Jupiter” had a few strong moments, but Hensen’s performance didn’t wow the panel. “You definitely can sing,” Paula Abdul admitted, but said “it just didn’t excite me.” “You’re very serious,” Simon Cowell told her, saying that “something left me really cold” in her performance. Kara DioGuardi advised the Henson “loosen up.”

Adam Lambert, 27, won the strong spot in the line-up. Lambert has the right look and a great voice, and he rocked “Satisfaction” from beginning to end. Lambert worked his camera angles and his own hair to the hilt, displaying everything from great range to strong vocal power. This one is very much a performer. Paula Abdul gave him a standing ovation, saying “I don’t even have words.” Simon Cowell found that some parts were “excruciatingly bad,” but that some were “brilliant,” calling Lambert’s a “love it or hate it” performance. Randy Jackson said it was “a little bit manic.” “Your vocal technique and ability is amazing,” Kara DioGuardi praised him.

But how will the voters feel? We’ll all find out tomorrow night during the hour-long results show.

(You can find all the American Idol 8 posts here.)