I’ll be live blogging tonight’s The Voice 5 Battle Rounds right here!
The Battle Rounds are over. Count on things to become even more boring with the Knockouts, easily my least favorite phase of the competition. I don’t see the point of pairing up singers, who will each perform a different song, in order to eliminate one. It only makes sense if the singers are similar, and a coach is trying to weed out redundancies, but other wise, it s a really random and uninteresting way to eliminate contestants. That each of the coaches get a steal will lend a little excitement to the proceedings.
Tonight’s battles. I thought the results of all 3 full battles were fair. Barry Black is talented in his own right, but his battle mate, Preston Pohl is something special. Ditto the Jonny Gray, Shawn Smith pairing. Shawn is an adequate, but generic singer. After years of gigging in clubs, Jonny has developed his own style. The Olivia Henken/Stephanie Anne Johnson battle. What was that? Olivia sings country pop, while Stephanie Anne prefers blues and soul. Then, Christina gives them a Band Perry song. Of course Olivia won the battle. Thankfully, Stephanie was rescued by Cee Lo, who understands her potential to bring something different to the competition. Now she can pick her own damn song for the knockouts and kill it.
Poor, poor montaged contestants. Apparently, according to a tweet from Cilla Chang, her pairing with Holly Henry contained mistakes that would not make for good TV. Two of Blake’s team members were montaged tonight. We were completely cheated out of another full mentoring session with the ever-amusing Cher. That just ain’t right.
UPDATE: The NBC press release was confusing. It listed Thursday’s show as new. But the Battle rounds end tonight. Next week, the Knockouts begin. The artists perform songs of their own choosing alongside another team member. Their coach decides who goes and who stays. A new twist: Each coach gets ONE steal. We’ll have a Top 20 by the end of next week.
Team Cee Lo Green with Miguel
Jonny Gray and Shawn Smith – Refugee by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers – They are both veterans. Which is why they were paired together? Cee Lo went to Military school. That’s totally the same thing! Not. Cee Lo is so weird. Jonny isn’t being assertive enough, according to the mentors. Shawn is having some timing issues. In the last rehearsal, Cee Lo advises Johnny not to rush it. Shawn sees no flaws in Jonny and is feeling intimidated.
These two are such different singers, it’s hard to compare. It’s kind of a stupid pairing. Jonny has a lighter, smoother, quirkier, tone. Shawn is all growl and rasp. Jonny has more finesse and a distinctive sound. Shawn attacks the song with a blunt object. Adam believed every single word from each of the performers. Adam chooses Jonny if forced. Blake likes that they didn’t hold back. Christina wishes that she turned for Jonny. Cee Lo calls Jonny frenetic, but Shawn moved him. Cee Lo chooses Jonny. That was the right decision.
Team Adam Levine and Ryan Tedder
Barry Black vs Preston Pohl “I Wish it Would Rain” by Temptations – Barry, from Samoa, plays the Flugel horn with his mouth. Preston fronted a popular Christian band. Adam put them together because they are both so soulful. Adam wants Preston to hold back sometimes. He feels Barry will have to step it up to compete with Preston. He misses the high note, which raises eye brows. The are also skeptical about Barry breaking out the horn gimmick during the performance.
Preston has a super old soul. He sings like a 70 year old, and that’s not a bad thing. Barry has his charms too, a very pleasant soulful voice. But Preston is something special. He’s got a one of a kind voice. Barry did the fluegel horn thing with his mouth, and it was kind of cheesy. I don’t blame him for trying something that would set him apart from Preston. Christina is in awe of Preston’s voice. She was impressed with his uniqueness. Cee Lo compared Preston to David Ruffin, which is high praise, indeed. Adam had his doubts, but he felt the mouth horn worked in the performance. But, Preston gave him goose bumps. Adam chooses Preston
Now, it’s time for some montages!
Holly Henry vs Cilla Chan sing “Torn” for Team Blake. Holly wins the battle
Emily Randolph vs Brandon Chase sing “Tiny Dancer” also for Team Blake Brandon wins the battle.
Tamara Chauniece vs. Keaira LaShae sing “Big Girls Don’t Cry” for Team Cee Lo. Tamara wins the battle.
Cee Lo is getting ready to use his last steal…
Christina Aguilera with Ed Sheeran
Olivia Henken vs Stephanie Anne Johnson – “Done” by The Band Perry – Olivia is the blond Carrie Underwood wanna be. Stephanie Anne is the unique blues/soul singer. Olivia is psyched. “Done” is her jam! But Stephanie is confident. She’s sure she can sing anything. Ed believes they are evenly matched. Christina coaches them to have more attitude. She demonstrates an ad lib, but they can’t quite get it. Stephanie is having trouble with the lyrics.
Olivia wears this song like an old shoe. Stephanie not so much, but it’s way out of her wheelhouse. Olivia wins this battle by default. If Christina had given them an Aretha Franklin song, there’d be a different story to tell. Stephanie confesses that she never heard the song before. Cee Lo thinks you couldn’t tell. But yeah, you could. Stephanie’s confidence and stage presence suffered. Surprisingly, Adam goes with Stephanie, because he heard a nugget of grit in her performance. Blake noticed when Stephanie fell out of the pocket. Adam teases that Olivia looks like his wife. Christina chooses Olivia But then, Cee Lo steals Stephanie. I’m glad she got a second chance, based on her audition performance of “Black Horse and a Cherry Tree” she deserved it.
