Posted by Christopher R. Weingarten on 04/08/2011 at 1:37 PM News

The Popdust Files: american idol, iggy pop

So, the producers of this season’s American Idol obviously think the success of the show is hinged on Steven Tyler’s smile-wrinkles, because there’s apparently a mad rush to bring out comical, rubbery-faced 63-year-olds—keep that day-planner open, Meat Loaf! Last night they brought out punk godfather Iggy Pop, once the most dangerous man in rock & roll, now currently giving unsolicited advice to pretty kids who dream of being the next Clay Aiken. Iggy’s performance of his classic “Real Wild Child” created a weird, wonderful Venn diagram where pop commerce, punk ethics and “being a shirtless sexagenarian” meet national TV. The critics obviously had a field day. Let’s peep some of their reactions…

• The L.A. Times Pop & Hiss blog loved it, saying “Iggy’s always good for some spectacle, and more than four decades into his career something about him is still enthralling and dangerous. Hopefully some of the less magnetic potential Idols were taking notes.”
• Popcrunch also gushed, saying, “The 63-year-old dynamo still rocks a taut, toned six-pack and trim physique that isn’t that much different from his hellion heyday… Iggy was a study in how to rock the night away.” (In other news, their post is the only search result on Popcrush for “Iggy Pop”).

And while most grown adults are done debating what’s “punk” and what isn’t, some definitely recoiled at the less-than-cool aspects of the performance.

• NBC New York noted “We can get over Steven Tyler being a judge. In some twisted reality, that makes sense. But watching Iggy Pop wiggle around the Idol stage with a bunch of hired guns that look fresh out of the tool shed just leaves my head bloodied from all the scratching.”
• Newsday was just crazy oldist, saying He looks like he’s one of those preserved cavemen… Fun watching him perform, he just really needs to spare us from looking at his naked torso.” Dude, we can only pray we look half that good at 63. Many Popdust writers are half his age and already have body parts that look like a sick shar pei.
• Finally, the Star-Ledger has our least favorite comment of the day, calling out Iggy for “his orange Snooki-like tan.” You know that in places that aren’t New Jersey, some people just have natural tans, right?

And as for the Popdust take? Well, we’ve seen Iggy live recently, and can confirm that he still has a manic, sweat-soaked, audience-baiting energy—he was definitely holding back on Idol. It was probably the biggest audience he’s had in 40 years of performing, and he played it a little safer than he should have. Imagine the headlines we’d be compiling if he stagedove onto Randy Jackson or got chunky peanut butter all over Seacrest?