S09.E12: The Knockouts Premiere, Part 2

[Tara Ariano]

The knockout round continues with top team members selecting their own song to perform individually. Rihanna is the key adviser.

[Padma]

So, we lost "Pocohontas" (although Gwen had to praise Madi and Amy's singing as "just like Disneyland"...huh?)  and gained "the Unicorn".

 

Note to Adam: No one, man or woman, is going to appreciate being nicknamed "the Unicorn" and having people constantly thinking about how different they are.  Jordan's a big guy who looks kind of geeky and has a great voice. This show is "The Voice". Do what you can for his stage presentation and let people concentrate on his singing...okay?

 

Speaking of singing, I'm not sure who was to blame for the twins, Rihanna or Adam. But, seriously, their "thing" was that one sang lead the other did the harmony and that was what made them stand out. Rihanna telling them to sing separately turned them into "two similar blonde girls singing together in similar ways", taking them from "unique" to "kind of boring". They were favorites on some media lists going in, but after Rihanna's coaching, no wonder Adam dropped them and no one went for the steal.

 

Yes, I guess that's it--I really didn't like Rihanna's coaching. Because I also thought Amy should have been allowed to use her guitar. She looked fine, all "nightclub chanteuse-style" but obviously wasn't as comfortable and that can make a big difference. Hopefully Adam will let her use the guitar. 

 

I don't know why I like her singing so much where some others with a similar softness haven't done it for me. I think its the phrasing, and her commitment to bluesy-jazz.  Very surprised that Pharrell let her go.

 

Glad for Gwen that she found something she does being much praised--changing Braiden's look like she did for CWB. I think she even made a comment or two about singing that was a little insightful--which was good, because she really doesn't bring much musically. (And was she trying to demonstrate singing to one of her  team? That was painful) 

Edited October 28, 2015 by Padma

[viajero]

As often happens in the Knockouts, song choice had a lot to do with what went down to night.  Andi & Alex, Ellie and Chance all get F’s, while Madi, Blaine and Ivonne get A’s.

 

I was really disappointed to see Andi & Alex and Ellie go home.  With Lindsey out last week, that makes three of my favorites from the Blinds who are not even making the live shows.  But I can’t say they didn’t lose these specific matchups.  Blaine in particular deserved all the praise he got.  Braiden not so much, though he did improver over previous weeks.

 

My two favorite performances of the night were Madi (a revelation) and Amy.  I’m glad both are going through and that Madi is still on Pharrell’s team, where I think she has a slightly higher chance of making it to the Live shows.  She would have had almost no chance on Adam’s team, while I think Amy does.

 

Though Viktor gave a more polished performance than Jordan, I can see why Adam picked the later.  There really is something special about his voice.  His range is nuts.
 

Barrett over Blind Joe: My bias against Barrett was cancelled out by my bias in favor of "Colder Weather" so he gets a pass this week. It also didn't hurt that Blind Joe went wildly off key on most of the closing glory notes....

 

 

You said it.  Colder Weather may just be my favorite modern country song.  While Barrett may not have done it justice (not enough grit in his voice), it was just good enough to beat out a more than imperfect Blind Joe.

 

Even with all these upsets, nothing happened to change my mind that Adam has the strongest team and that the winner will come from either his team or Blake’s.

[Dots And Stripes]

Korin vs. Summer--obvious result considering Summer has been montaged. I like Korin, I think she has a lot of potential. The tone of her voice is beautiful.

 

I don't like Adam's rocker guy. Weakest winner of the night.

 

Darius vs. Morgan--The last battle was epic. Both artists choose songs about wanting to be stars and I think both really took Rhianna's advice and ran with it. They both were awesome in very different ways.  I felt so bad for Morgan. She's singing about following a dream even when it breaks your heart and then she gets her heart broken again. I figured Blake would steal, but yeah I felt for her. 

Edited October 28, 2015 by Dots And Stripes

[Village]

Maybe I've become too cynical watching reality TV but the Morgan situation feels incredibly setup to me. Like it was setup for Blake to let her go and for her to end up back on his team. I call shenanigans.

 

Korin has a nice voice, Irish guy meh. Glad they didn't montage anyone.

Edited October 28, 2015 by Village

[Village]

I think the only mistake Pharrell made last night was in putting Madi and Amy together. I was pleasantly surprised by Madi. I really liked her performance. And then you have Amy who is a clear front runner. I don't think Pharrell really thinks about what's strategically good for him when he makes these decisions. That being said, I knew there was no way in hell Amy wouldn't make the live shows so it was probably a good move if he wanted them both to continue.

[jjjmoss]

Korin's voice is really pretty. I didn't care for her audition but her battle was quite nice and grabbed my attention. Hopefully she's good in the lives too.

 

Right now:

1. Amy

2. Korin

3. Viktor, though far behind the other 2

[jjjmoss]

Jordan, I can see why Adam picked the later.  There really is something special about his voice.  His range is nuts.

 

Even with all these upsets, nothing happened to change my mind that Adam has the strongest team and that the winner will come from either his team or Blake’s.

I agree with the poster upthread who called Jordan Glee-esque.

 

Right now I'm rooting for an Amy/Korin T2 and have a feeling I'll shift my ultimate allegiance from the former to the latter if given a chance.

 

Surprisingly, the best advisor the show ever had was T-Swizzle.  Ms. Swift manufactured herself into a giant stage presence, and was surprisingly good at communicating that kind of advice, and that's where these people are always weakest by this stage (since the earlier stages handle sorting out who actually has the best vocals).

Yes, She is the best at everything in life.

[M.F. Luder]

Yes, I guess that's it--I really didn't like Rihanna's coaching. Because I also thought Amy should have been allowed to use her guitar. She looked fine, all "nightclub chanteuse-style" but obviously wasn't as comfortable and that can make a big difference. Hopefully Adam will let her use the guitar. 

This was actually the only helpful suggestion that Rihanna gave, in my opinion. I agreed that Sunday Kind of Love is the type of song that you have to fully get into with body language to really get the audience to feel the emotion behind the song. With a guitar, it's more removed and less heartfelt. That, to me, makes the song rather boring. But, I thought it was a bad song choice for Amy to begin with. Her voice is too light and airy to give the song the kind of emotion that Etta is able to convey. And she clearly was not able to get comfortable with the kind of performance that Rihanna was trying to get from her.

 

That said, I think Amy was one of the bests of the night and I think she'll go far in the competition if she chooses the right songs.

[Kromm]

Yes, She is the best at everything in life.

Well she's (to be honest) very subtly condescending in how she projects her success. Okay, not even so subtle anymore about that. But the three things she IS undoubtedly good at is building a show she tours with mass appeal, a way of building hooks into songs, and a self-marketing program that only through massive over-exposure has shown those cracks (of her coming off now like The Queen of the Universe). But everything?  She's certainly not the best SINGER. She's practiced herself up to being better than she used to be back when Kanye made a cheap shot about how shitty a singer she was, but she's still a vocal lightweight compared to a Beyonce, or an Adele, or anyone like that.

In a way it actually made her advice more directly useful.  She DID improve her vocals, but also it's her stage stuff that was most useful in the short term to people who already HAD good voices.

[Abstract]

Surprisingly, the best advisor the show ever had was T-Swizzle.  Ms. Swift really doesn't have a supreme voice, but she manufactured herself into a giant stage presence, and was surprisingly good at communicating that kind of advice, and that's where these people are always weakest by this stage (since the earlier stages handle sorting out who actually has the best vocals).

 

I read the first sentence of this post and thought "Hmm, never heard of that rapper" before I got to the next sentence and realized who you were talking about. 

[PhD-Purgatory15]

Korin over Summer: While I liked Rihanna and Gwen's focus on the performance aspects of Little White Church, unfortunately Summer focused so much on bringing the sass and acting out the lyrics that her pitch suffered intermittently throughout the whole song. Anyone who's seen Stevie McCrorie's audition of All I Want on the UK version of the Voice would be perfectly justified in being a bit underwhelmed by Korin's rendition. She took a slight, slight step back from her first two performances....but IMO it was still good enough to earn a Lives spot on Team Gwen (especially w/ Lyndsey and Elli already axed). On a more shallow note, if Gwen can radically alter Braiden's appearance....what about Korin? Something needs to happen w/ her hair situation, stat.

 

Keith over Dustin: Dustin surprisingly underwhelmed, too many of those long drawn out "free's" went off the rails. Keith is a dated artist who happens to be a really good singer in that style (a la Terry McDermott from Cassadee's season). Actually the fact that he's a dated rock singer might help him out even more this season (he only has Blaine to remotely split the rock fan vote). I could see him making it through the next cut down despite Adam's team strength.

 

Darius over Morgan (Morgan stolen back by Blake): I'm gonna need Darius to dial back on the vocal gymnastics at some point. I can't totally take credit for calling the steal back by Blake (although the loss to Emily Ann definitely raised some red flags) because I knew Shelby was still out there on Team Adam...but I'll happily take some anyway. She like Yvonne from last night seemed to make a breakthrough in terms of dealing with nerves on stage.

Edited October 28, 2015 by PhD-Purgatory15

[Padma]

I would agree that losing Morgan to Pharrell then stealing her back seemed a little "coordinated" except that Blake would have filled that spot with Amy if she hadn't gone with Adam. That doesn't make it seem like he pre-planned to take back Morgan.

 

Glad he did, though, as she is very good and is one who seems to know how to listen to coaching advice and keep improving.

 

I missed most of it but not surprised Adam kept Keith, although I agree he's dated. Still, any decent rock singer is welcome in a pop-and-country-heavy season so glad Blaine and Keith will still be there for another round.

[Glaadrial]

But, I thought it was a bad song choice for Amy to begin with. Her voice is too light and airy to give the song the kind of emotion that Etta is able to convey. And she clearly was not able to get comfortable with the kind of performance that Rihanna was trying to get from her.

I thought that when Amy remembered to take her hands off the microphone (as Rhianna suggested) she was able to connect more fully with the intent of the song. It's possible that Amy does not see herself that way; but if that's the case then, I agree, the song choice was not a good one for her, and that's on her. I really wanted her to go full on with what RhiRhi suggested (the hair and sultriness). There aren't many opportunities for these contestants to connect with the audience by going deeper into themselves and allowing the audience an almost voyeuristic glimpse into something so intimately personal.

 

I was glad that she was stolen, although I think she would have been better off on Blake's team because Blake has a way of intensifying what his steals bring from their time spent with another coach (I think CWB needed to spend some time with Gwen in order to flourish when he returned to Blake).

 

Maybe it's because I don't know either of the songs that Amy and Madi performed, but I thought that both of them managed to make two obvious classics from way back when sound modern, and more importantly, relevant in today's market. Kudos to both for that, but I agree that Madi was more successful on the night. If Amy had committed more, I could see her easily taking the battle because what she did do was that interesting to me.

[bluepiano]

Is it possible that Pharrell picked Madi because he wanted both singers to go on, and he knew that Amy would be stolen? Or is that giving him too much credit? Once he picked Maddie, there was not a second of doubt that Amy would get stolen. The question is, if Amy was the winner, would Madi haven been stolen?

 

So, we lost "Pocohontas" (although Gwen had to praise Madi and Amy's singing as "just like Disneyland"...huh?)  and gained "the Unicorn"

 

When she mentioned Disneyland, I though, oh yeah, because she was a Mousketeer. But that was Christina Aguilera, wasn't it?

 

The unicorn thing was just weird. But not as bad as "you're the most important person to ever be on this show." Still haven't figured that one out.

 

I'm sorry that Ellie is gone. She was one of my favorite auditions, and it was cute the way she went nuts over Gwen. So how does her "idol" pay her back. I can imagine this scenario:

 

Carson: "is there anything you want to say to your coach?"

 

Ellie: "Yeah, thanks a lot Gwen for putting me up against this adorable 15 year old boy who you were going to pick no matter what because you're so proud you gave him a make-over. Wish I'd picked a coach who cares more about music than hair and wardrobe."

Edited October 28, 2015 by bluepiano

[Primetimer]

Carson's MIA, Adam's still bald, and the Knockouts still bore.

Read the story

[Kcat1971]

 

 

Speaking of singing, I'm not sure who was to blame for the twins, Rihanna or Adam. But, seriously, their "thing" was that one sang lead the other did the harmony and that was what made them stand out. Rihanna telling them to sing separately turned them into "two similar blonde girls singing together in similar ways", taking them from "unique" to "kind of boring". They were favorites on some media lists going in, but after Rihanna's coaching, no wonder Adam dropped them and no one went for the steal.

 

 

I completely agree! I think that you not only summed up the reason Andi & Alex were eliminated but also why Duos don't get far on this show.  Typically, they don't perform well during the battle rounds because adding a 3rd singer messes up what the duo does and its hard to figure out how to fairly judge the battle.  (Although sometimes clearly the 3rd singer is the problem and is eliminated)  And those that do survive the battle rounds are often changed too much.  I think the exception to this is the Swon Brothers- who as someone on the board has previously noted actually was more like Zach doing lead with Colton backing him up.  I think they were "left alone" more than any other duo- in other words they survived because Blake didn't try to change what they were doing- just improve it.

[Kcat1971]

Korin over Summer: While I liked Rihanna and Gwen's focus on the performance aspects of Little White Church, unfortunately Summer focused so much on bringing the sass and acting out the lyrics that her pitch suffered intermittently throughout the whole song. Anyone who's seen Stevie McCrorie's audition of All I Want on the UK version of the Voice would be perfectly justified in being a bit underwhelmed by Korin's rendition. She took a slight, slight step back from her first two performances....but IMO it was still good enough to earn a Lives spot on Team Gwen (especially w/ Lyndsey and Elli already axed). On a more shallow note, if Gwen can radically alter Braiden's appearance....what about Korin? Something needs to happen w/ her hair situation, stat.

 

Keith over Dustin: Dustin surprisingly underwhelmed, too many of those long drawn out "free's" went off the rails. Keith is a dated artist who happens to be a really good singer in that style (a la Terry McDermott from Cassadee's season). Actually the fact that he's a dated rock singer might help him out even more this season (he only has Blaine to remotely split the rock fan vote). I could see him making it through the next cut down despite Adam's team strength.

 

Darius over Morgan (Morgan stolen back by Blake): I'm gonna need Darius to dial back on the vocal gymnastics at some point. I can't totally take credit for calling the steal back by Blake (although the loss to Emily Ann definitely raised some red flags) because I knew Shelby was still out there on Team Adam...but I'll happily take some anyway. She like Yvonne from last night seemed to make a breakthrough in terms of dealing with nerves on stage.

 

Spot on analysis! I would only add that I don't expect both Keith & Blaine to make it past the next round.  Unless America votes them both through, which I doubt will happen. They are too similar and neither is enough of an Adam favorite for him to pick if the other has already been voted through.  I think Adam really wants to keep Jordan & Amy.  I think he also really likes Shelby.  I think Keith's only chance to move on is America's vote.  I don't see Adam choosing him over Blaine.  Depending on Shelby's performance, I think Blaine has a chance to be picked by Adam if America votes for Jordan & Amy. But if Shelby is really good in her knockout and live performance (assuming she wins her knockout which isn't a guarantee against James- but I don't really like James) and not voted through by America I see Adam advancing her over Blaine because she the country artist he wants to beat Blake with. 

 

All that speculation is based on the live performance being comparable to what we have seen from the artist so far. 

[Cramps]

PhD Purgatory 15-

Wow, you're right. As much as I enjoyed Korin last night, I totally forgot that was the Stevie McCrorie audition song--because it was nowhere near in the same class. (For those of you who don't watch the Voice UK, google or YouTube it. It may be the best blind audition of all times not involving an Italian nun). That said, both were much better than the original song.

But considering Gwen Braedon-ed my two favorite female singers from the blinds this year, Korin has now moved to the top of my list. With Morgan after her. Hope Pharrell doesn't get rid of Evan.

[ChicksDigScars]

Speaking of singing, I'm not sure who was to blame for the twins, Rihanna or Adam. But, seriously, their "thing" was that one sang lead the other did the harmony and that was what made them stand out. Rihanna telling them to sing separately turned them into "two similar blonde girls singing together in similar ways", taking them from "unique" to "kind of boring". They were favorites on some media lists going in, but after Rihanna's coaching, no wonder Adam dropped them and no one went for the steal.

 

And I have the feeling that if Blake had been their coach, that never would have happened. Blake knows country music and he knows how successful The Judds were for doing the same exact thing. They made millions off Wynonna singing lead and her mother backing her up with harmonies.  Mistake number one came when those girls decided to be different and NOT pick Blake, because they didn't want to be pigeon holed into a particular genre, instead falling for Adam's used car salesman pitch and his obsession with beating Blake, especially when it comes to singers that probably slant toward a country sound.

 

Blake didn't mess with the Swon's style too much. He knows that duos or groups that harmonize, are VERY successful; in Country music. Aren't Florida Georgia Line a duo with a band backing them up? Girl Crush is the biggest Country Song of the past year, which has also crossed over into the pop charts. Sung by a quartet with one person taking lead and the other three harmonizing to back her up. 

 

The twins are a prime example of what happens when you pick the wrong coach.  

Edited October 28, 2015 by ChicksDigScars

[jjjmoss]

Technically speaking, Girl Crush did not cross over to pop (but rather ac/hac where it was somewhere below the top 20), but it is indeed the biggest country song this year. 

[Dots And Stripes]

Isn't Girl Crush by Little Big Town? I only know that song because of The Voice. 

[Tara Ariano]

I moved a bunch of posts here from the S09.E11 thread that seemed like they were actually about Tuesday's episode. If any are wrong, please edit. Thanks.

[Padma]

Not sure why posts about Amy, Braiden and the twins were moved here. Those were Monday night battles.

These were the ones last night:

Korin over Summer: While I liked Rihanna and Gwen's focus on the performance aspects of Little White Church, unfortunately Summer focused so much on bringing the sass and acting out the lyrics that her pitch suffered intermittently throughout the whole song. Anyone who's seen Stevie McCrorie's audition of All I Want on the UK version of the Voice would be perfectly justified in being a bit underwhelmed by Korin's rendition. She took a slight, slight step back from her first two performances....but IMO it was still good enough to earn a Lives spot on Team Gwen (especially w/ Lyndsey and Elli already axed). On a more shallow note, if Gwen can radically alter Braiden's appearance....what about Korin? Something needs to happen w/ her hair situation, stat.

 

Keith over Dustin: Dustin surprisingly underwhelmed, too many of those long drawn out "free's" went off the rails. Keith is a dated artist who happens to be a really good singer in that style (a la Terry McDermott from Cassadee's season). Actually the fact that he's a dated rock singer might help him out even more this season (he only has Blaine to remotely split the rock fan vote). I could see him making it through the next cut down despite Adam's team strength.

 

Darius over Morgan (Morgan stolen back by Blake): I'm gonna need Darius to dial back on the vocal gymnastics at some point. I can't totally take credit for calling the steal back by Blake (although the loss to Emily Ann definitely raised some red flags) because I knew Shelby was still out there on Team Adam...but I'll happily take some anyway. She like Yvonne from last night seemed to make a breakthrough in terms of dealing with nerves on stage.

Good comments. I'm not sure how I feel about Darius. The first part of "On Broadway" was just like George Benson's--not necessarily a bad thing, and he did it well, but not a "competition winner for originality" either.  Then he added his own interpretation for the rest of it and, I thought, overdid it all the way through. I'm glad he went through because I liked his song choice and would like to hear him again IF he gets to stay in his wheelhouse, but I hope coaching can bring a little more restraint without ruining the confidence and performance (a tough thing for a coach to balance). Overall, I felt the right people were kept, including Morgan getting back to Blake for at least one more round (I don't see him keeping her if it comes back to his two blonde country singers again, but I could see him helping her post-show now, so that could still be a "win" for her even if she doesn't advance. You could see last night how much he enjoys what she does.)

[ChicksDigScars]

Isn't Girl Crush by Little Big Town? I only know that song because of The Voice.

 

Yup. Truth be told, I didn't know the song until Meghan sang it last season on The Voice and was so awesome with it. Then, I sought it out and listened to the Little Big Town version. I like some country, but not an avid follower. 

[Noreaster]

And I have the feeling that if Blake had been their coach, that never would have happened. Blake knows country music and he knows how successful The Judds were for doing the same exact thing. They made millions off Wynonna singing lead and her mother backing her up with harmonies. Mistake number one came when those girls decided to be different and NOT pick Blake, because they didn't want to be pigeon holed into a particular genre, instead falling for Adam's used car salesman pitch and his obsession with beating Blake, especially when it comes to singers that probably slant toward a country sound.

Blake didn't mess with the Swon's style too much. He knows that duos or groups that harmonize, are VERY successful; in Country music. Aren't Florida Georgia Line a duo with a band backing them up? Girl Crush is the biggest Country Song of the past year, which has also crossed over into the pop charts. Sung by a quartet with one person taking lead and the other three harmonizing to back her up.

The twins are a prime example of what happens when you pick the wrong coach.

I wouldn't go overboard with thinking that Blake definitely would have been a better coach for the twins. Yes, he had success with the Swon brothers but he also let a lot of duos go. Off the top of my head, a mother-daughter duo, a pair of 4-chair turn twins, the Oklahoma female duo (I think Alaska & Madi).

[Adusk81]

Keith was the best of the night for me. That is a hard song and he sang it perfectly. He has a killer rock voice and his choices so far have been pretty great to showcase his skill. I don't find him boring at all. Unlike Blaine who I find to be a creed knock off. He isn't bad but nowhere near as good as Keith. Something that has annoyed me this season is how much they are messing with who these people are. If you go into it with a blind audition, then it should stay about their voice. Telling Amy to lose the guitar and Korin to lose the glasses are lame, irrelevant suggestions that the coaches throw out to feel useful and it does nothing but make them look superficial and cheap. Amy is a guitarist. Own it. Korin is an awkward quirky chick with glasses who can sing incredibly well. Own that shit. And sorry but Darius is annoying. We get it. You're black and you can sing Motown and r&b. Those over the top runs that he will do in every cliche song he chooses will get annoying fast.

My top 3:

1 madi

2 Keith

3 Korin

Edited October 28, 2015 by Adusk81

[roamyn]

I've seen Keith & his band several times. They are fricking awesome - esp their R&R medleys.

But Korrin won hands down. That haunting voice...

[bluepiano]

 I'm glad he went through because I liked his song choice and would like to hear him again IF he gets to stay in his wheelhouse, but I hope coaching can bring a little more restraint without ruining the confidence and performance (a tough thing for a coach to balance).

 

I see zero chance of that, considering how the judges were gushing over his range and "saxophone" runs, and Darius seemed to be eating it up. (He makes no attempt to hide the high opinion he has himself, unlike many of this season's contestants, who seem to be poster children for low self-esteem).

 

So I expect we'll get more vocal gymnastics from Darius, but his time on the show will be limited. Past seasons show that voters prefer the singers with whom they can identify and feel an emotional connection, and those are usually not the ones with the crazy vocal chops. Sawyer Fredericks from last season is a perfect example. All you kept hearing about was his "sincerity." Korin could be another in that category. Not that she doesn't have a good voice, but I suspect it's the vulnerability, the whole "geeky girl gaining confidence through singing" story that will be what people connect with, and it could push her all the way to the finals.

 

I also think Keith will be around for a while. He's a good singer, but more than that, he's nice looking, likeable, and has his wife and cute daughter in the audience and another kid on the way. Those are some major selling points.

 

I think I need someone to create a visual guide to all the blonde country singers, because they all run together in my mind.

Edited October 28, 2015 by bluepiano

[Jal]

Keith is really boring to me. He reminds me of Matthew Bellamy (Muse) and some other artists put together, but somehow less unique.

[amaranta]

I'm not much for country but Morgan won me over with her song choice of If It Breaks Your Heart.  I have Will Hoge's (the songwriter) version on my favorites playlist; I just love it.  So yay for Blake stealing Morgan back.

 

I wanted Keith to win for the petty reason that I liked Manny Cabo and Keith was the one who beat him.  I find that song cheesy but I get it can be a crowd pleaser.

 

I also liked Darius, mostly for the fact that he was visibly wowed by Morgan and gave it up for her performance.  And aside from all the runs, he really does have a nice voice.

 

I have a feeling we haven't seen the winner yet; Pharrell has a 15 year old female version of Sawyer on his team.  She wears a hat and sings old soul type songs, then exhibits a kind of child like personality.  And I can't for the life of me remember her name right now.  It begins with an S, I think.  Anyway, I think she might be a dark horse once it comes to America voting and if she gets the right songs.  With Pharrell that's always a gamble; I think Sawyer won because it seemed like Pharrell loosened the reins and let him make his own choices.

 

Or maybe it's just that I yet to be wowed.  By anyone.

[DownTheShore]

All those girls with long hair wearing hats, singing their plaintive songs - I automatically mentally tune them out. Such a cliché.

[PhD-Purgatory15]

A bit slow on the trigger to respond....

Kcat1971: I'm with you, I don't think there is a path for both Keith and Blaine to advance next week. I think the real challenge for Adam is going to be deciding between Amy and Keith or potentially Amy and Shelby (if she doesn't end up beating James, something will have gone horribly wrong). I'm already resigning myself to the fact that Jordan will probably be voted through next week...

Padma: I agree, Blake could have a repeat decision between Emily Ann and Morgan (more than anyone else in the competition I think these two could really have an issue splitting votes w/ one another). I could almost see him flipping around and going w/ Morgan this time because of the "seasoning" she got while on Team Pharrell.

Just looking at the landscape of who's left for the rest of the knockouts......IMO it feels like Pharrell's steal will either be Nadjah off of Team Blake or if Gwen really does pair up her two steals (Regina and Riley), the loser of that match up. Which would workout as a Blake-esque steal back if it's Riley. Since he went country for one of his battle round steals (Morgan), I'd be somewhat surprised if he went back to the same well for this stage in the game

Edited October 29, 2015 by PhD-Purgatory15

[abelard]

I'm surprising myself by having three favorites at this point in the competition: Ivonne, Jordan, and Morgan.  I've only ever had two other faves before EVER with this show: Michelle Chamuel and Craig Wayne Boyd.  But most seasons, while I appreciate really strong individual performances, I don't really have any longing for anyone to win or even advance.  Cassadee Pope's rendition of Over You was a case of splendid song choice, great styling, fantastic stage movement, and adequate vocals, and I ate that up, but I wasn't rooting for Cassadee the entire rest of the season.  But right now, I'm cheering on Ivonne and Morgan, and also hoping for a lot of advancement for Jordan.  

 

It feels weird to care.  The Voice is super entertaining to me b/c of the coaches, not the contestants, but for some reason this season's singers are getting to me!!! 

[adhoc]

Just listened to Korin's performance. Maybe it's just nerves but man, that was a little too breathy for me. It's distracting to hear a singer suck in air between each line.  (See Brenda Vaccaro's famous commercial, the one where she has the same problem.)

 

While I'm here, let me add that I just also listened to Braiden's performance. Since I missed it live, maybe someone who saw it can tell me--did anyone chew him out for that ridiculous song choice? What kid sings "Feelin' Good"?  He sang it nicely, I guess, FOR A 15-YEAR-OLD.  But I just could not take it seriously.  Go listen to Gil Price's rendition. Now that's what I'm talking about.

[Bryce Smith]

Team rosters/cheat sheets:

 

Team Adam

Blaine Mitchell (defeated Andi & Alex)

Jordan Smith (defeated Viktor Király)

Keith Semple (defeated Dustin Christensen)

Amy Vachal (stolen from Team Pharrell)

 

(Still Waiting)

James Dupré
Shelby Brown

 

Team Gwen

Braiden Sunshine (defeated Ellie Lawrence)

Korin Bukowski (defeated Summer Schappell)

Viktor Király (stolen from Team Adam)

 

(Still Waiting)

Kota Wade

Jeffery Austin

Regina Love

Riley Biederer

 

Team Pharrell

Madi Davis (defeated Amy Vachal)

Darius Scott (defeated Morgan Frazier)

 

(Still Waiting)

Mark Hood

Siahna Im

Evan McKeel

Tim Atlas

 

Team Blake

Barrett Baber (defeated Blind Joe)

Ivonne Acero (defeated Chance Peña)

Morgan Frazier (stolen from Team Pharrell)

 

(Still Waiting)

Zach Seabaugh

Chris Crump

Nadjah Nicole

Emily Ann Roberts

 

Names in bold indicate someone who has newly won a Knockout and stayed on his or her team, or has been freshly stolen.  An asterisk indicates that this contestant was montaged.

 

So the Knockouts:

 

Korin vs. Summer: Korin won that one, hands down.  As has been said, Summer was concerned more about the spunk and sass than the substance of the performance.  Korin focused on the song and message.  And since Summer was montaged through the Battles, of course she wasn't going to get stolen.

 

Dustin vs. Keith: I think the right choice was made here.  Keith definitely killed his performance.  Dustin was good, too, but there was really no comparison between the two.

 

Darius vs. Morgan: I think this could've gone either way.  But from what I could tell here, I do think Darius was deserving of the win.  I just hope that being montaged through the Battles doesn't hurt him in the Lives.  As for Morgan, she did such a good job that I approve of her being stolen and thus returning to Blake's team.  Good for her!

 

Okay enough episode.

Edited November 3, 2015 by Bryce Smith

[blueray]

I liked the episode. As for the battles:

 

Korin vs. Summer: I'm so happy that Korin won, it's nice to see a quiet singer who really connects with the song and that audience win against someone who could entertain but is lacking in the meaning of the song. I was a bit sad however, that Gwen told her to take off her glasses, what is wrong with wearing glasses?

 

Dustin vs. Keith: I agree with the decision here, Keith won that battle.

 

Darius vs. Morgan: To be fair to Darius, I don't like that kind of music so I can't really say how he did, and I accidentally fastforward some of his performance and didn't feel like rewinding it. Morgan on the other hand, did a great job and I'm glad that Blake stole her back.

Edited October 31, 2015 by blueray

[bluepiano]

While I'm here, let me add that I just also listened to Braiden's performance. Since I missed it live, maybe someone who saw it can tell me--did anyone chew him out for that ridiculous song choice? What kid sings "Feelin' Good"?  He sang it nicely, I guess, FOR A 15-YEAR-OLD.  But I just could not take it seriously. 

 

I know what you mean. It seems that the whole OTT praise for that performance was based on,  "look at this cute little boy dressed like a grown-up and singing a grown-up song. How adorable." It's a completely different standard of judging than would be applied to an older singer, and it's not fair. It's why I don't think singers who are so young should even be on this show. (Maybe they should have "The Voice Junior.")

 

Probably even worse for me was Sianha's "Fever." When you get a 15 year old girl singing an extremely sexual song, it's not only hard to take serious, you also add in a creepiness factor. (Peggy Lee was 38 when she recorded her definitive version).

 

The age inappropriate/creepiness factor is certainly something that's never bothered Blake when he picks songs for his young female singers.

Edited November 1, 2015 by bluepiano

[Bryce Smith]

Okay.  It's that time again.  We have quite a bit of time before the final Knockouts tomorrow, so how do you all think it's gonna go down, in terms of final Live teams?  Last season was much easier for me to analyze since I followed that very closely and could reasonably assess everyone's strengths and weaknesses, as well as their visibility via being shown or montaged.

 

Team Adam

Only one pair left here, and I think this could go either way.  But if Adam is still as obsessed with his bromances as ever, I think James has the edge over Shelby.  I actually wouldn't mind this, because it was universally agreed that Shelby made a huge mistake picking Adam over Blake.  It'd serve her right if he dumps her tomorrow when I highly doubt that Blake ever would have.  Shelby does have a chance, though, if Adam's still desperate enough to try and beat Blake with a country singer.

 

Final team for the Lives: Blaine, Jordan, Keith, James, and Amy.

 

Team Gwen

Two pairs left here, and the previews have already mildly spoiled one pair -- Regina vs. Riley.  Yes, Regina's older than everyone in the competition.  And yes, her taste in music leans toward older hits.  But she does have a great, powerful voice that I can see Gwen being intrigued enough to hold onto.  Riley, from what I heard of her, is sweet and nice, with a good voice of her own, but not in Gwen's wheelhouse.  So I can see her advancing Regina and sending Riley packing.  So this leaves the other remaining pair as Kota vs. Jeffery.  Obviously, Kota should rate higher, given that she's a three-chair turn vs. Jeffery being a one-chair turn.  But if Gwen's still obsessed with working with younger boys, then I think Jeffery gets the edge here, regardless.  But if one of the Knockout losers gives a great performance, he or she could be Pharrell's steal.

 

Final team for the Lives: Braiden, Korin, Regina, Jeffery, and Viktor.

 

Team Pharrell

Two pairs left here, as well.  And regardless of how the pairings go, I think Mark's getting through, no matter what.  He's the strongest, best person on Pharrell's team right now.  Evan, Tim, and Siahna are all up for grabs.  But looking at skill level and chair turns from the Blinds, I think Tim and Siahna are toast.  Tim is very good, but not ready for the Lives, and Siahna is sweet and cute, but I liken her to Treeva Gibson and Jacob Rummell from last season -- young singers good enough to get to the Knockouts, but not quite ready for the Lives just yet.

 

Final team for the Lives: Madi, Darius, Mark, Evan, and whomever he steals.

 

Team Blake

Two more pairs left here, as well.  And I don't know how they're going to be matched up.  I suspect that Blake will advance Emily Ann regardless of her opponent, and just as likely send Zach home regardless of his.  So that leaves Chris and Nadjah.  If he wants to stay in his own wheelhouse, then I imagine that Chris will go through and, sadly, Nadjah will go home.  Chris was shown through both the Blinds and the Battles, while Nadjah was shown in the Blinds, but montaged through the Battles, so that'll give Chris the easy edge here.  But if Nadjah gives a great enough performance, there's always the chance that Pharrell could use his final steal on her.

 

Final team for the Lives: Barrett, Ivonne, Emily Ann, Chris, and Morgan.

 

So those are my predictions.  But with seven pairs left to show and the final Knockout show more than likely only going to show six of them, I wonder whose Knockout will get montaged?  Last season, it was possible to show all of them because there only fifteen matches rather than sixteen (due to Anthony Riley's withdrawal causing that three-way Knockout among Sawyer Fredericks, Mia Z, and Paul Pfau).  This season, not so much.

Edited November 2, 2015 by Bryce Smith

[jjjmoss]

It's why I don't think singers who are so young should even be on this show. (Maybe they should have "The Voice Junior.")

 

I disagree on the basis that my favorite contestants are Melanie and Danielle, both of whom were not of-age when they were on the show, and I couldn't agree with the critics of the latter especially about singing songs "out of her emotional depth because she lacked life experience."

And while I wasn't necessarily a fan of Sawyer's, I preferred him as a winner to already-had-a-t10-album-and-t10-country-radio-hit Meghan or consistently dull Joshua.

[adhoc]

I've always believed the minimum age should be 18--no one should need a chaperone or a tutor--but there should be a summer taping for teens 13-17 or something like that. I'd be totally on board with that.

 

Personally, I'm tired of 2 things:(1)  youngsters getting voted through because they have so much "potential" and (2) "I'm keeping this 15-year-old over this 28-year-old because I know I can make more of a difference in the teenager's career". We've seen that played out several times this season alone. That really sucks. The Voice originally seemed focused on folks already singing steadily (maybe just regular local gigs around town, etc.) but who wanted to advance to the next level. Now some of them are bounced because certain judges want to work with the younger people.