Final week of battle rounds! I am excited to see how the public will vote next week.
James Massone vs Wade – “True Colors” by Cyndi Lauper
What a weird choice for those two singers. I have a real hard time with James' tone. It's just not for me. Wade struggled a bit with this song. The battle was not that great. James wins.
Nicole Galyon vs Mathai “Love Song” by Sara Bareilles
Mathai has such an interesting voice, and great attitude on stage. Nicole needs more self confidence out there, but damn I love her voice. Not surprised Adam chose Mathai. He's all about quirky and different voices.
Moses Stone vs The Line – “Satisfaction” by The Rolling Stones
Country singers battling against a rapper? So weird! But it actually does work. Seem to me like Moses had many more lines than his country opponents. LOVE the male singer from The Line - he should ditch his partner and go solo. She was NOT happy to not get through. Moses wins.
Orlando Napier vs Karla Davis – “Easy Like Sunday Morning” by the Commodores
Not a great song for those two. They both did ok, I guess. Not perfect on either side. Karla wins.
Naia Kete vs Jordan Rager - “I’m Yours” by Jason Mraz
ouch. OUCH. OUUUUUUUCCCHHHHHHHH. No, just. NO. Naia wins, but really they should toss them both.
Tony Vincent vs Justin Hopkins – “Faithfully” by Journey
Wow. Two great voices. Great, great, great battle. I prefer the warmer tone of Justin's voice, but wow, Tony is a great singer, too. Tony wins, but I would have loved to see them both stay.
Pip vs Nathan Parrett – “You Know I’m No Good” by Amy Winehouse
I like Nathan better, but it was no surprise that Pip got the win on this. Nathan definitely needs more self confidence on stage. Good battle.
Erin Martin vs Shields Brothers – “What’s Love Got to Do With It” by Tina Turner
Adam was right - it WAS really weird. I have a real hard time with Erin. I like her weird voice, but really, she's not all that. The Shields Brothers are fun, but vocally not on par with all the rest of the contestants. No surprise at all that Erin takes this one.
Ashley De La Rosa vs Jonathas – “No Air” by Jordin Sparks and Chris Brown
Preferred Jonathas. I felt he did better, pushed harder, improved the most. Again, not surprised Ashley won. The judges really telegraph who they favour.
Jermaine Paul vs AlyX – ‘Out of My Dreams” by Billy Ocean
What a weird song choice! I mean, I love that song, but it's silly, cheesy, not serious at all. Maybe that's why Blake chose it for this battle? I preferred Jermaine, but there's something in his performances that bugs me. No surprise that Jermaine wins this one.
Angel Taylor vs. Katrina Parker – “Bleeding Love” by Leona Lewis
I like those two ladies voices. I love that song, and I feel they both did a good job. I really thought Angel would take it, but this was one of those rare battles where the winner was not pre-determined. Or maybe it was, but it didn't seem obvious, not to me anyway. Angel did a great job, I preferred her in this battle. But I'm happy Katrina won it.
Erin Willett vs Gwen Sebastian – “We Belong” by Pat Benatar
I really like Gwen's voice. I'm no fan of super country voices, but she's got a little something in there that grabs me. Erin's voice is so powerful, love her tone. Great battle. I was surprised Gwen was not chosen, but I'm glad Erin got the win.
A little late, but here are my thoughts on week 2 of the battle rounds!
Thanks to NBCTheVoice for the videos.
Geoff McBride vs Sera Hill – Chain of Fools
Unfair battle #1. Sera is the contestant that Christina sang with on stage during the blind auditions. Sera definitely has a great voice and great potential. But there is something in Geoff's voice that gets me. I thought he sang the crap out of this song and held more than his own while facing a belter/diva/vocalist. No surprise that Sera wins this round, but because of my personal preferences I would have given it to Geoff.
Charlotte Sometimes vs Lex Land – Pumped up Kicks by Foster the People
Unfair battle #2. I like Charlotte. I like Lex. I actually prefer Lex to Charlotte. I did NOT enjoy this battle. I didn't think the song was a good fit for that kind of format. Charlotte did sing it better than Lex, although as the song went on Lex got more comfortable and sang super well. Charlotte wins.
Juliet Simms vs Sarah Golden Stay With Me by Rod Stewart
Unfair battle #3. Completely different styles for those two women. Juliet's got that rock edge and gravely voice I love. Sarah has this singer/songwriter vibe that I really dig. A Rod Stewart tune is much better suited for Juliet's voice and this one especially is. Sarah does well, but Juliet overpowers her. Juliet wins.
Whitney Myer Vs. Kim Yarbrough – No Drama by Mary J. Blige
This was an interesting battle. Two divas/belters/powerhouse singers. One clearly has a life long experience and the other one, while having quite a bit of experience with singing with her family, is not quite there yet. Whitney's voice needs to mature more, but wow, she's got it. She's got a really interesting tone, style and phrasing, while Kim is more classically "diva". I really didn't have any preference. Kim wins.
Lindsey Pavao vs Lee Koch – Heart Shaped Box by Nirvana
Unfair battle #4. Even before they began to sing, it was decided Lindsey would win this one. I like both their quirky style. I like Lee's tone, and Lindsey's voice is very interesting. But this song? This battle? These two singing that song? So. Freaking. Boring. And weird. But not in a good way. I think the fact that Lindsey plays so much with the melody really didn't complement this song at all, and did not compliment Lee's style. On the other hand, Lee's "Sweet Home Alabama" style of rock doesn't go well with Lindsey' style. I actually would have loved to have heard Lee sing this song by himself. I think he would have killed it. Lindsey? Not so much. Lindsey wins. Meh.
Jamar Rogers vs Jamie Lono – I Want To Know What Love Is by Foreigner
Unfair battle #5. Damn, what's up with that? Jamie has a nice voice, but no confidence whatsoever. And that's too bad, because he could be very good. Jamar, on the other hand, has tons of confidence and emotes very well, maybe even a bit too well at times. Jamar wins, easily.
Yep. I've gotten into The Voice. I can't help it - I'm a sucker for music, and I love discovering new artists. Singing competitions are as good a way as any other, right?
At any rate, I feel like there is a whole damn lot of talent on The Voice this season. Really nice. Here are my thoughts on the first Battle Rounds!
Tony Lucca vs. Chris Cauley - Beautiful Day by U2
In my opinion, both guys did super well. I felt the song was perhaps better suited for Chris' voice. Tony certainly had to show how he can bring it to win this one. I felt Chris might have been a bit more consistent than Tony, but they both brought it and turned this into a really nice duet. Tony wins.
RaeLynn vs. Adley Stump - Free Fallin' by Tom Petty
I thought Adley had this one in the bag. She was stronger than RaeLynn all around. In my opinion, RaeLynn has enormous potential but she is still too young. I guess Blake say it differently. RaeLynn wins.
Chris Mann vs. Monique Benabou - The Power of Love by Celine Dion
Is it just me or those two were not really on pitch the whole time? Monique has a nice voice, and wow, Chris has amazing technique and control. Monique lacks experience and training, and Chris lacks the emotion, I think, which resulted in me not really enjoying this. Also, the changes in lyrics were really distracting. I guess in the circumstances it made sense to go with Chris. Chris wins.
Cheesa vs. Angie Johnson - Total Eclipse of the Heart by Bonnie Tyler
Two solid female voices. Great battle. This really was a battle, NOT a duet. Angie's tone is more pleasant to my ears, so I would have picked her. But this is one that could have gone either way. Cheesa wins.
Jordis Unga vs. Brian Fuente - Ironic by Alanis Morissette
I really enjoy Brian's voice. Weak in the higher part of his register. Jordis... Wow... Poor girl almost let her nerves get the best of her AGAIN. She needs to get out of her own head fast or she won't last. This duet was a train wreck. Harmonies were NOT good. Jordis wins by the skin of her teeth.
Anthony Evans vs Jesse Campbell will sing “If I Ain’t Got You” by Alicia Keyes
Very nicely done. I'd say that was the best battle of the night. During the blind auditions I prefered Jesse, but last night, Anthony was my favorite out of the two. Their voices blended well, and the solo bits were pretty damn good. In my mind, it could have gone either way. Jesse wins.
Until next time....
Friday, March 2, 2012
Hit Me Baby One More Time cover - Jim McGorman
Members of Avril Lavigne's band covering Brittany Spears Hit Me Baby One More Time from a hotel room in Canada on a day off on tour.
Visit Jim's website: http://jimmcgorman.com/ and get his music!
Mom Has Stacked Dinner Party Roster
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GOLDEN, CO—Their eyes widening in amazement as the 43-year-old rattled off
the names of heavy hitter after heavy hitter, impressed members of the
Dreesh...
