S09.E05: The Blind Auditions, Part 5

[Tara Ariano]

The blind auditions continue.

[chenoa333]

I apologize if this topic has already been mentioned, but it seems to me that the past couple seasons all of the contestants are pretty close to perfection as far as looks, body type, fashion forward etc goes.

I always thought the purpose of the judges not seeing the contestants was so they could choose them soley on their voice,not their looks.

Now all of the contestants seem to be aesthetically perfect. Granted some are quirky, but all of them look groomed for stardom. Just my opinion.

[TacoBoutIt]

Amy Vachal is my favourite from all the blinds.  And her dad looks like Walter White.

[Dots And Stripes]

I'm shocked Gwen filled her team before Pharrell. I figured some of her montaged singers were because she was the last one left, although it looks like it was down to Gwen and Pharrell and he was so much more selective. 

 

The coaches peaking for that last artist was so cute. They looked like little kids trying to stay up past their bed times.

[Sharpie66]

Amy Vachal was really impressive. I loved her song choice--just last week, I was listening to Mama Cass singing it on my iTunes and I wondered if anyone would sing it on this show, and I was right!

I also liked that last young woman's voice; even the lower notes at the beginning showed her control.

[Jextella]

Not sure how, but I spaced out tonight's show! Completely bummed.

[Valny]

Adam has two really good ones: Jordan Smith and tonight's Shelby Brown. 

The strongest to me on Gwen's team is Jeffery Austin.

[backformore]

So the first guy, Dustin, had a lazy eye as a child!  And makes a big deal out of "Who would have thought a guy who WORE A PATCH ON HIS EYE would one day sing on a stage in front of people?" 

Really, dude?  that's the sob story, coming back from adversity, you're going with?  You wore a patch on your eye when you were a child?

Yeah he sang OK, but I just couldn't get behind a  guy who had so little self-awareness. 

[jjjmoss]

My early faves are Amy and the twins.

 

4 chairs: Adam Jordan, James, Manny, Viktor, Andi & Alex, Shelby (6)

Blake Barrett, Joe, Chris, Krista, Cole, Dustin (6)

Gwen Lyndsey (1)

Pharrell Mark, Evan (2)

 

3 chairs: Adam Amanda (1)

Blake Zach (1)

Gwen Kota, Ellie (2)

Pharrell Siahna, Daria, Darius, Amy (4)

 

Normal spread.

Edited October 6, 2015 by jjjmoss

[photo fox]

Wow, the girl who did Stars made a really bad choice. Two words: Amber Carrington.

[waving feather]

Wow, the girl who did Stars made a really bad choice. Two words: Amber Carrington.

She did remind me of Amber. If I remember correctly, Amber did well on the show?

[HighQueenEB]

She did remind me of Amber. If I remember correctly, Amber did well on the show?

Yes, but she would have done better had she not had Adam for her coach.  I loved Amber during that season in spite of Adam's inability to let her really settle into her desired country wheelhouse.  I'm just praying that Shelby gets picked up by one of the other coaches, any of the other coaches, during the Battle Rounds or Knockouts.

[PhD-Purgatory15]

Well, Adam got another country singer. I wonder if he'll pair them up against each other Highlander style.

 

Felt bad for the 4'11 singer from NH. We all knew she was dead teenager walking from the timing, but she didn't. And really, of all of the no chair turns that got their own packages (no montages), she might have been the one who had the biggest beef of not getting a chair to turn. I'd gladly trade her for Amanda or Chance from Team Adam.

 

Pharrell might have gotten a good one at the very end with Sydney Rhame. She felt a little like Brook Adee from Team Blake and I definitely felt like her voice was a mashup of a few different female alt-pop singers I really enjoy.

 

Even though the style was played out, Blaine something rather has a voice on him. Maybe he could be Blake's next Cassaddee like experiment. I see a heavy dose of songs from Brantley Gilbert, FGL, or maybe Thomas Rhett in that kid's future if he lasts a couple rounds.

 

Somebody needs to make a supercut of all the failed dance pop blind auditions songs in Voice history (including tonight's unfortunate Hey Mama singer) and distribute widely amongst the auditionees. Let's nip those thoughts in the bud while we still can.

 

Edited because I completely forget the Dream a Little Dream Artist Girl. Don't really have much to add other than to say she is very pleasant to listen to, and I'm extremely intrigued as to who her battle round opponent will be. Siahna Im or Madi Davis makes the most sense, but I would put all three in Pharrell's top 6.....so I'm not sure what he'll do.

Edited October 6, 2015 by PhD-Purgatory15

[pnina]

Did the guy who had been to Mozambique to help provide clean water get any chair turns.? Blonde, short curly hair & eyeglasses.  I had to turn the channel off when they showed his little brother imploring someone to hit the button.  As I recall, he (the singer) wasn't all that good.  I liked the "Dream a Little Dream" singer very much.  I found her voice very soothing and interesting.  Glad she didn't join the ranks of so many singers who think they have to be loud and belt out the lyrics to make an impression. She was a refreshing change!

[Shades of Scarlet]

Sort of a "meh," out-like-a-lamb final night of what I thought - and still think - is shaping up to be one of the better Voice seasons in a while in terms of talent.  Surprise!  Carson fooled us, and the best was not still to come.  WTH, I feel like doing a rundown.   

 

Dustin Christensen, "Downtown Train" (Blake): I thought he was very good, but not great.  I still think of this song as by Rod Stewart and thought the band arranged it that way too, but maybe not.  Dustin seemed like a nice guy but his vocal was not worthy of a four-chair turn. 

 

Berdine Joseph, "Hey Mama" (-): as noted already by several posters above, doing a hip-hop song (or, technically, an EDM-trap song) without much actual singing is a bad idea.  Seemed like a nice gal, but needed to SING.  I believe Pharrell said as much.  

    
Dustin Monk, "Bright Lights" (Adam):  This guy didn't move me much when watching the show, but upon rewatching his performance online, I got it.  Great song choice (by Gary Clark Jr., not by Matchbox Twenty as erroneously relayed in a couple of places, although the latter "Bright Lights" also features New York City in the lyrics and is a pretty good tune) and he sold it well with a real genuine bluesy grit.  I didn't see this guy with anyone but Adam.  I'm curious to see what sort of vocal range he has.    

 

Chase Kerby, "The Scientist" (Gwen):  Saw "Oklahoma City" as we were FFWDing through the opening package as usual and thought this was some country dude who was a lock for Team Blake, but nope, it was a guy doing Coldplay.  I saw why he only got one chair - he didn't have a whole lot of stage presence and he seemed to lack power in his vocals - but his pitch was really good and if he can push out with a little bit of oomph, he's coachable.  

 

Dawson Daugherty, "Problem" (-):  Did nothing for me, sort of like Ariana Grande.  Really nice kid, though.  

 

Shelby Brown, "Stars" (Adam):  I thought Adam's sales pitch here was perfect and amusingly ironic given the army of country singers whom we see every season: that's not a country song, and Grace Potter is not a country artist.  Hats off to Shelby for going against the grain.  So now Adam has two country singers.  Her vocal was really quite powerful and on-key.      

 

Amy Vachal, "Dream a Little Dream of Me" (Pharrell):  Definitely a nice surprise.  The show got a little weird here because it seemed to be done in order for a change, with Adam complaining that his team was full, and we were frankly wondering why he had been in such an apparent hurry.  Also, with Amy and afterwards, the episode turned into a mildly annoying, offbeat Pharrellfest.  Still, Amy's vocals were great, she did actually appear to be playing her guitar, and the song choice was nice.  I don't want another "inevitable from the blinds" Pharrell contender like last season, which got so dull, but she could be around a while.  Easily Pharrell's best team member IMO.  

 

Blaine Mitchell, "Drops of Jupiter" (Blake):  Another genre-bending singer's choice here, as the guy seemed tailor-made for Gwen (or Adam) but went with Blake.  Should be interesting.  I think DOJ has been covered better but I liked it fine.  Strange pick for Blake to go out on . . . .      

 

Summer Shappell, "Strawberry Wine" (Gwen): . . . because someone might show up right afterwards (as presented to us, anyway) doing Deana Carter's signature song.  Good vocal.  Despite the country disconnect, I thought she fit really well with Gwen and was excited for Gwen that she landed Summer.

 

[and now, the really odd, boring and yet somehow simultaneously exhausting Who Will Be Pharrell's Last Pick Finish]

   

Caroline Burns, "A Thousand Years" (-):  Aw, this was seriously a shame.  She was really good and sang the heck out of this song, even if it wasn't quite as good as Matt McAndrew's version (which, I think, was his blind audition song a year ago), but Pharrell wasn't picking up what she was laying down.  I really want to see her come back. 

 

Andy Buckner, "Can't You See" (-):  Got to hear about 1.25 lines of the song.  No clue.  This show is weird sometimes.   

 

Justen Harden, "Wonderwall" (-):  Oh, that was "Wonderwall?"  Sure, okay. 

 

Adam Melchor, "Crystals" (-):  I don't know this song, which is apaprently about six months old.  I still don't know it.  Pharrell: not biting. 

 

Sydney Rhame, "Photograph" (Pharrell):  Gee, with nine minutes left, I wonder if this latest of about eight or nine Atlanta-based blinds entrants could be the qualifier?  Yep, and she sure deserved it.  I don't know my Ed Sheeran very well, so this one was new to me, but wow, she could sing low, which female contestants on The Voice can almost never pull off well.  In fact, she must have about a four-octave range or something.  She's only sixteen?  Looked in her twenties and sang like someone who's been doing this for a long, long time.  So Pharrell gets two really strong artists at the "last minute" to shore up what was a pretty weak squad.   

 

My only real takeaway from the previews (not a spoiler) was that Adam evidently shaved his head for the battles.  Great.  Regardless, he still has the best team.  It's a more narrow lead than I thought over Team Blake, though, and in fact Gwen has quite a sleeperish group.   

 

Looking forward to the season.   

Edited October 6, 2015 by Shades of Scarlet

[DeLurker]

So the first guy, Dustin, had a lazy eye as a child!  And makes a big deal out of "Who would have thought a guy who WORE A PATCH ON HIS EYE would one day sing on a stage in front of people?" 

Really, dude?  that's the sob story, coming back from adversity, you're going with?  You wore a patch on your eye when you were a child?

Yeah he sang OK, but I just couldn't get behind a  guy who had so little self-awareness. 

Resisting the bad joke here...episode was kinda of meh for me.  I think the blinds run too long and have to much filler.  They montage people who get chosen but sometimes do profiles on people who don't?  That's sow.

[Primetimer]

The final night of Blind Auditions sees some pretty attractive talent come out to play.

Read the story

[photo fox]

She did remind me of Amber. If I remember correctly, Amber did well on the show?

 

Yep, she did well on the show, and then she went to Nashville and failed to get any traction.

 

I just think when you intro with, "I want to go to Nashville and be a country star," and the coach who has a proven record of introducing people to Nashville and getting them record deals says, "I want to make you a country star", you're pretty foolish not to choose that coach.

 

As for "that's not a country song/Grace Potter isn't a country artist", I'd argue that the way Shelby sang it, it was a country song.  And Grace Potter had a recent, extremely successful country project with Kenny Chesney, so she's country-adjacent, in my mind.

 

Basically I just wish country singers would realize that when Adam is pitching them, it's all about beating-Blake-with-a-country-singer, and has nothing to do with them personally. I don't feel like Adam has any interest in nurturing a country singer (while letting them stay country).

[Shades of Scarlet]

I figured someone was going to rebut with Grace's collaboration with Kenny Chesney.  My point is that Shelby clearly wasn't limiting herself, and that was fairly obvious from her song selection.  There were thousands of country songs she could have chosen but she eschewed them all for a tune that is most definitely not country.

 

Amber liked working with Adam and has indicated that many of the non-country songs that she chose were her own idea.  She was a hell of a singer and my choice that season other than Danielle, but it wasn't Adam that limited her, and a lot of Adam-haters tend to forget that Blake didn't turn for her anyway.

 

Blake can't help everyone.  Craig Wayne Boyd isn't enjoying much more traction in Nashville than Amber is.  And I think Adam is just as willing to help anyone as Blake is, irrespective of genre.  In fact, I suspect Adam would ask for Blake's help if needed; their rivalry is real but they're quite good friends.  Disappointing to see the same anti-Adam memes trotted out every season.     

[waving feather]

Basically I just wish country singers would realize that when Adam is pitching them, it's all about beating-Blake-with-a-country-singer, and has nothing to do with them personally. I don't feel like Adam has any interest in nurturing a country singer (while letting them stay country).

Let's hope Adam has learnt his lesson and lets Shelby do some country songs, like how Pharrell basically let Sawyer do his thing. But Shelby confused me because in her intro she said she wants to be a country star in Nashville and then after the audition she mentioned she doesn't necessarily want to do country. So, I doubt she is truly a country artist.

[Sammich63]

 

 

Amber liked working with Adam and has indicated that many of the non-country songs that she chose were her own idea.  She was a hell of a singer and my choice that season other than Danielle, but it wasn't Adam that limited her, and a lot of Adam-haters tend to forget that Blake didn't turn for her anyway.

 

.     

I believe Blake didn't turn around for Amber because his team was already full.  I did like how Adam allowed Amber to sing songs that weren't just country, whether these choices were Amber's, producer's or Adam's choices.

 

  I wish I knew why these artists don't really get a lot of traction from the show.  I think Cassadee is the only winner who really stands a chance of being successful by today's standards. 

Edited October 6, 2015 by Sammich63

[Shades of Scarlet]

I believe Blake didn't turn around for Amber because his team was already full.  I did like how Adam allowed Amber to sing songs that weren't just country, whether these choices were Amber's, producer's or Adam's choices.

 

  I wish I knew why these artists don't really get a lot of traction from the show.  I think Cassadee is the only winner who really stands a chance of being successful by today's standards. 

 

 

Ooh, you're good.  Blake's team was full; Amber was one of the last contestants we saw perform that season.  Still, Blake never seemed much interested in her, and yet even though Adam is always accused of somehow being the architect of Amber's "failure," she got to the Top Five when Danielle and the Swons were gobbling up every country vote in sight.  If either Danielle or the Swons had not been around, Adam might have had Amber doing country, or doing whatever, and she might well have won. 

 

Totally agree with the rest of your post, except I think Danielle has been pretty successful in addition to Cassadee, and I think she still has a good shot. 

[photo fox]

a lot of Adam-haters tend to forget that Blake didn't turn for her anyway.

 

I'm no Adam-hater, actually.  And I'm not trying to argue Season 4, but I do feel compelled to note that Blake's team was full when Amber auditioned.

 

I mainly mentioned Amber because Shelby really reminded me of her in sound and style. Not because I think her path will be exactly the same. But I think - given the chance to pick Blake - country singers are foolish to go with Adam (or Gwen, or Pharrell, or Xtina, or...)  I could understand if this was one of those cases where Blake turned, but then was clearly not really pitching, but that wasn't the case here.

 

Blake can't help every one.  He doesn't even try.  But the ones he has helped have been helped in a big way.  I think I'd take that gamble.

So, I doubt she is truly a country artist.

That's a good point. She is really young, and from a place where I'd guess country is really popular at her karaoke nights, etc. She might have felt compelled to go in that direction. It'll be interesting to see where she goes from here. I did really love her voice, and I thought she had decent stage presence considering her only "gigs" until this point have been at a bowling alley!

[waving feather]

And everyone seems to think it's easier to break into Nashville than to the pop scene or top 40 radio. It might be true, who knows.

Anyway, Shelby is young so she still has time to figure out what kind of music she wants to make. The only thing that bugged me during their commentary is how the other 3 coaches kind of discouraged Blake from talking or making his pitch to Shelby. I mean, he did but do they really have to gang up like that?

Edited October 6, 2015 by waving feather

[Cementhead]

I don't have anything of value to add but did notice that under all of that hair & facial hair Blaine Mitchell totally looks like a young Jim Carrey.  Also got a good laugh at Blake calling the newly balded Adam 'Lex Luther' in the promo for the upcoming show and am SO happy to be done with the Blinds so that I no longer have to hear & watch Gwen squeal with surprise over the 16 year olds.  Whaaat?!  Wow!? 

 

 

Did the guy who had been to Mozambique to help provide clean water get any chair turns.? Blonde, short curly hair & eyeglasses.

No.  And call me mean but I was happy that he didn't.  He is a perfect example of what happens to a kid who grows up with parents (and a youth pastor) who tell him how amazing and unique and special he is.  Must be a real kick in the teeth for these kids to grow up and find out that actually no, they're not.  Just a regular schmuck like the rest of us, Dude. 

Edited October 6, 2015 by Cementhead

[Shades of Scarlet]

 

I'm no Adam-hater, actually.  And I'm not trying to argue Season 4, but I do feel compelled to note that Blake's team was full when Amber auditioned.

 

 

Yup, true.  And he never had an opportunity to steal her because Adam advanced her twice (once over Sasha Allen who ended up being eliminated in the five-to-three cull).  I'm glad you're not an Adam-hater . . . hearing about Amber, a Top Five finisher who very much wanted to do pop songs, as some testament to Adam's inability to coach really gets old.  Back to S9. 

[Shades of Scarlet]

Forgot to mention that Amy Vachal told Pharrell that she was into "blurring lines" . . . after Viktor Kiraly told Pharrell a show or two earlier that he had a good ear for being able to detect that he was doing the Donny Hathaway version of "What's Going On."  Unintended ouch.  Pharrell is indeed probably quite good at being able to distinguish what is and isn't Marvin Gaye by now. 

[saber5055]

Now all of the contestants seem to be aesthetically perfect. Granted some are quirky, but all of them look groomed for stardom.

 

 

They have to look their best in case they get chosen. Because in the battles, the one who looks the best will be the winner.

 

I LOL'd at Gwen squealing when the 16-year-old revealed her age. And her "I'm a girl" speech to try to get contestants to pick her. All because of you guys here pointing it out. So, thanks for the laughs!

[beaker73]

Amy Vachal is my favourite from all the blinds.  And her dad looks like Walter White.

I liked her too at first, but then she started in with the whole "Ella and Frank and Sam" bit and I liked her a little less.  But she can sing well, she's pretty and dresses well, so she'll get far. 

 

So the first guy, Dustin, had a lazy eye as a child!  And makes a big deal out of "Who would have thought a guy who WORE A PATCH ON HIS EYE would one day sing on a stage in front of people?" 

Really, dude?  that's the sob story, coming back from adversity, you're going with?  You wore a patch on your eye when you were a child?

Yeah he sang OK, but I just couldn't get behind a  guy who had so little self-awareness. 

I am forever complaining to Mr. Beaker about the stupid backstories and he always thinks I'm being dramatic.  He happened to still be in the room when Dustin came on and was like, "Really? A lazy eye?  How ever did he overcome it?"  **eyeroll**

[Amy Beth]

Amy Vachal was really impressive. I loved her song choice--just last week, I was listening to Mama Cass singing it on my iTunes and I wondered if anyone would sing it on this show, and I was right!

I also liked that last young woman's voice; even the lower notes at the beginning showed her control.

Oddly enough, Amy tweeted that she was singing a Michael Buble song, but the official Voice account attributed the song to Doris Day.

[Sharpie66]

Actually, "Dream a Little Dream of Me" was first recorded by Ozzie Nelson (as in Ozzie and Harriet) and His Orchestra back in 1931. The Mamas and the Papas would sing it when just jamming because Michelle Phillips knew it really well as a kid (her father was friends with the song's co-writer), so they finally recorded it in 1968.

Edited October 6, 2015 by Sharpie66

[ProudMary]

I liked her too at first, but then she started in with the whole "Ella and Frank and Sam" bit and I liked her a little less.  But she can sing well, she's pretty and dresses well, so she'll get far. 

 

I am forever complaining to Mr. Beaker about the stupid backstories and he always thinks I'm being dramatic.  He happened to still be in the room when Dustin came on and was like, "Really? A lazy eye?  How ever did he overcome it?"  **eyeroll**

While the relentless backstories drive me crazy after a while too, in fairness to Dustin, it's more than just a lazy eye in that he's virtually blind in that eye.

[limecoke]

Glad the blinds are over.  Looking forward to two things...the end of Gwen's stupid hairdo and Brad Paisley!!!  Looks like Blake will be using him as some sort of mentor in the battles.  I'm a fan.

 

With the exception of the girl who sang "Dream a Little Dream" (which I bought on iTunes), I was underwhelmed with this group of auditions.  She had an exquisite voice but could be powered out in the battles (which would be a shame).

 

Shelby blew it falling for Adam's pitch and not going with Blake.  Whether you win or not, Blake can open doors in Nashville and that should be what she's aiming for in the end.  We'll see what happens.

Edited October 7, 2015 by limecoke

[viajero]

I thought we had a fairly strong group to wrap up the Blind Auditions, with Shelby, Amy and Sydney as the standouts.   

 

Shelby also reminded me of Amber, even before she picked Adam.  I suspect she's also going to sound a lot better on the non-country songs, just like Amber did.  It's because of this that Adam may not necessarily have been such a bad choice for her.

 

Overall I think Adam does have the strongest team.  But the other coaches each have solid contenders.  My favorites on each team include:

 

Team Adam:  Jordan, Andi & Alex, Shelby

Team Gwen: Ellie, Lyndsey

Team Pharrell: Amy, Sydney, Siahna

Team Blake: Krista

[Glaadrial]

Shelby Brown, "Stars" (Adam):  I thought Adam's sales pitch here was perfect and amusingly ironic given the army of country singers whom we see every season: that's not a country song, and Grace Potter is not a country artist.  Hats off to Shelby for going against the grain.  So now Adam has two country singers.  Her vocal was really quite powerful and on-key.      

Perhaps not strictly country, but Grace Potter does include a duet version of "Stars" with Kenny Chesney as a bonus track of The Lion the Beast and the Beat.

[SpringTulips]

WtH with Gwen referring to Amy as Pocahontas?

[DownTheShore]

Forgot to mention that Amy Vachal told Pharrell that she was into "blurring lines" . . . after Viktor Kiraly told Pharrell a show or two earlier that he had a good ear for being able to detect that he was doing the Donny Hathaway version of "What's Going On."  Unintended ouch.  Pharrell is indeed probably quite good at being able to distinguish what is and isn't Marvin Gaye by now.

Maybe the story didn't get much play in Hungary...

[waving feather]

"Stars" is not a country song but I wouldn't call it a rock song in any stretch. It's more of a pop song or pop country if I heard the song for the first time.

[viajero]

I always thought of Stars as being more like an 80's style rock ballad than anything that goes for pop these days.

 

This may be a bit off topic, but since we are discussing the song Stars ...

 

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/move-over-adele-youre-no-211334968.html

Edited October 7, 2015 by viajero

[Wings]

I apologize if this topic has already been mentioned, but it seems to me that the past couple seasons all of the contestants are pretty close to perfection as far as looks, body type, fashion forward etc goes.

I always thought the purpose of the judges not seeing the contestants was so they could choose them soley on their voice,not their looks.

Now all of the contestants seem to be aesthetically perfect. Granted some are quirky, but all of them look groomed for stardom. Just my opinion.

 

 

Some of them yes, but there were many who I made over in my mind, as they sang!  The screening team clearly took appearance into their decisions, though. 

 

Gwen. I love Korin's voice and style.  Her look is quirky and odd but still needs to be tweaked.  Something is off about it even in the arena of 'staged geek'.  Kota and Summer's purple hair girls need an updated cut and wardrobe change.  I think Summer may be wearing a wig. 

 

Adam.  His last one (Shelby) needs to look current in both hair and style.  The head band AND pony tail is not cutting it.  Amanda, lose the extensions, they are over and yours are too much. Regina's Wendy Williams look is not good.   He must have cringed inside, at the chair turn. 

 

Farrell.  Pretty good looking team other than the over done extensions.  

 

Blake.  Okay but 2 out of his 3 women have the ubiquitous extensions on over drive.   

Edited October 7, 2015 by wings707

[Wings]

The blind auditions are the most interesting part, for me.  This next phase has some aspects I like.  I enjoy trying to figure out why 2 people are paired.  I assume they choose someone they may have regreted taking or the weakest in their eyes to pair with a possible winner for the first round, anyway.   During the apparent endless round of solos,  I lose interest and use FF a lot until the numbers are down substantially.  

 

Seeing Gwen with a new hair do and clothes is another perk!  

Edited October 7, 2015 by wings707

[Padma]

WtH with Gwen referring to Amy as Pocahontas?

Seriously! That reminded me how weak so many of Gwen's pitches are and how I absolutely hate her two favorite tacts--"I'm a girl" (or worse, and yes I know it's about the song, "I'm just a girl")--or some comment on their looks/age, "Oh! You're so cute!" Sometimes she says something worthwhile when no one has turned, but most of the time she has nothing of interest to say about the song or the singing of it.

 

I thought her comment to Amy were her worst of the season--completely about her appearance, something about a girl who could sing, with dark hair "who looks like Pocahontas"...whatever it was in total, it was really bad. There was no way I would have chosen her if I were Amy (and I'm pretty sure that was NOT the image she wanted to leave the audience with). The best pitch for being Team Gwen that I've heard actually was from Adam when he talked about how experienced she was in the business and how she had built a career around being open and creative with many musical styles. True or not, it was a lot better than "I can help you dress better" or "I'm the only girl here so...."

 

Speaking of Amy, I was surprised and disappointed to see in the "retrospective" show last night who Pharrell paired her against and the song choice/style he chose for them. That said, if she's bad, she'll surely get stolen. (Oddly, maybe Gwen would be the best coach for her, although Blake, with his limited musical knowledge outside of country, might just let her do her own thing which could work out, too).

[Wings]

Who did Farrell pair Amy with?  I stopped watching too soon and didn't see that.

[Padma]

Who did Farrell pair Amy with?  I stopped watching too soon and didn't see that.

The couple who got engaged. They seemed determine to overpower her in the clip, and they succeeded. Her style of singing was so refined and delicate compared with that battle that I really didn't know what Pharrell was thinking.

[Wings]

The couple who got engaged. They seemed determine to overpower her in the clip, and they succeeded. Her style of singing was so refined and delicate compared with that battle that I really didn't know what Pharrell was thinking.

 

Wow, that is very odd.  She will be stolen so all is well.  

[ProudMary]

WtH with Gwen referring to Amy as Pocahontas?

That was definitely cringe-worthy.  

I watched the "Best of the Blind Auditions" and picked up on another cringe-worthy moment; this one from Blake to Blind Joe about imagining himself at the CMAs in a duet with Ronnie Milsap.  Yeah, because the only singer Joe would ever be paired with would be another blind country singer.  Ouch.

[Village]

Speaking of Amy, I was surprised and disappointed to see in the "retrospective" show last night who Pharrell paired her against and the song choice/style he chose for them. That said, if she's bad, she'll surely get stolen. (Oddly, maybe Gwen would be the best coach for her, although Blake, with his limited musical knowledge outside of country, might just let her do her own thing which could work out, too).

 

I thought he put them together because they're clearly fodder. Why in the world wouldn't Pharrell choose her? He does make mindboggling "trying to be fair" decisions during battle rounds sometimes but this would be a doozy even for him. He always makes me nervous during the battle rounds because he cannot be trusted with his picks.

[Padma]

I thought he put them together because they're clearly fodder. Why in the world wouldn't Pharrell choose her? He does make mindboggling "trying to be fair" decisions during battle rounds sometimes but this would be a doozy even for him. He always makes me nervous during the battle rounds because he cannot be trusted with his picks.

I thought they were obvious fodder, too, but I thought the song and arrangement -vastly- favored them which was weird (though, likely, as you say, to try to be "fair" since they were up against an obvious favorite).  But from the snippet they showed, I thought the choice was Unfair to Amy and would kind of threaten someone's confidence, especially a soft, nuanced singer, to find herself in a battleround with

an aggressive duo overpowering her vocals with everything they had on a "volume-type" song

. I would think it would make it harder for Pharrell to chose her (as I'm sure he will) since he would have set up a situation where she would be far from "at her best".

[Paron Xanthis]

Team rosters/cheat sheets:

 

Team Adam

Keith Semple (2)

Jordan Smith (4)

Regina Love (2)

James Dupré (4)

Amanda Ayala (3)

Manny Cabo (4)

Cassandra Robertson (1)*

Chance Peña (1)

Viktor Király (4)

Andi & Alex (4)

Dustin Monk (2)

Shelby Brown (4)

 

Team Gwen

Kota Wade (3)

Braiden Sunshine (2)

Ellie Lawrence (3)

Noah Jackson (1)*

Tim Atlas (1)*

Hanna Ashbrook (1)*

Jeffery Austin (1)

Lyndsey Elm (4)

Korin Bukowski (1)

Alex Kandel (2)

Chase Kerby (1)

Summer Schappell (2)

 

Team Pharrell

Mark Hood (4)

Siahna Im (3)

Ivonne Acero (2)

Evan McKeel (4)

Madi Davis (2)

Riley Biederer (1)*

Daria Jazmin (3)*

Jubal & Amanda (2)

Darius Scott (3)

Celeste Betton (1)

Amy Vachal (3)

Sydney Rhame (1)

 

Team Blake

Nadjah Nicole (2)

Barrett Baber (4)

Blind Joe (4)

Zach Seabaugh (3)

Emily Ann Roberts (2)

Morgan Frazier (2)

Chris Crump (4)

Tyler Dickerson (1)

Krista Hughes (4)

Cole Criske (3)

Dustin Christensen (4)

Blaine Mitchell (2)

 

Names in bold indicate someone who has been newly added to a team.  The number in parentheses indicates the number of chairs to turn for each contestant.  An asterisk indicates that this contestant was montaged.

 

So Dustin was really good.  Loved his voice.  Blake was a good choice for him.

 

Berdine Joseph looked cute.  But "Hey Mama" wasn't a good song choice.  I'd hoped for her to get a turn, though.

 

Dustin's song didn't really move me that much.  But his style was closer to Adam's than Blake's, so this is the one time someone's chosen Adam that I can get.

 

Chase Kerby . . . I think he should've gotten more than one chair.  I'm actually surprised none of the others turned around.  Nice of him to give the judges candy.  Still, if he's a Gwen fan, he's lucky to be on her team.

 

Dawson Daugherty had a decent enough voice, but there was something not quite there.  Maybe because he was too sharp.  Not surprised he got no chair turn.  I'll give him props for taking a risk, but "Problem?"  Really?

 

Shelby Brown rocked my socks!  Pity she's yet another person who's gonna choose to waste herself on Adam, but I do think her voice is amazing.  She'd better not be surprised if he dumps her, though.

 

Amy was amazing.  But I was shocked that she mentioned that there are female crooners.  I'd always thought that crooning was an entirely male genre.  I hope Pharrell doesn't try and change her too much the way he did poor Lowell last season.

 

Blaine Mitchell sounded pretty good.  I think Blake was definitely the right choice since he sounded totally country.  But I could tell that Gwen almost had him.

 

I actually liked Summer Schappell.  I hope Gwen doesn't let her go to waste.  Looks like she has a country singer, too, now.

 

Would've had a soft spot for Caroline Burns just because she's from NH, where I used to live.  But her voice just wasn't ready yet.  Better luck next time if she chooses to come back.

 

Andy Buckner, Justen Harden, and Adam Melchor . . . obviously, these guys weren't making the cut.

 

Sydney Rhame had an excellent voice.  The perfect person to cap off Pharrell's lineup.

 

I'll agree reluctantly that Adam seems to have the strongest team, but that's only because nearly every four-chair turn was so fucking in love with him.  I imagine he dumps most of his stronger acts in the Battle rounds, leaving them open for a Gwen or Pharrell steal.  Gwen looks like she has the weakest team with so many one-chair turns.  But as said above, a few of them could be sleepers and dark horses.

 

Awaiting the Battles next week.

Edited October 8, 2015 by Paron Xanthis

[Village]

I thought they were obvious fodder, too, but I thought the song and arrangement -vastly- favored them which was weird (though, likely, as you say, to try to be "fair" since they were up against an obvious favorite).  But from the snippet they showed, I thought the choice was Unfair to Amy and would kind of threaten someone's confidence, especially a soft, nuanced singer, to find herself in a battleround with

an aggressive duo overpowering her vocals with everything they had on a "volume-type" song

. I would think it would make it harder for Pharrell to chose her (as I'm sure he will) since he would have set up a situation where she would be far from "at her best".

 

That's true enough. It certainly was a mistake in song choice as it doesn't favour her vocal ability at all. I wouldn't be so sure that Pharrell does choose her though if she clearly loses the battle as he's been known to edge towards the clear cut winners. If this was Adam or Blake we were talking about it wouldn't even be a discussion because they don't even pretend to be fair. They know who they want and that's that. Pharrell is a lot more about gut feeling in that instant even if that gut feeling makes him pick singers that have no shot in the live shows.

 

Oh well. She'll be picked up for sure, if she loses.