A Man. And His Blog.

Season 2, Episode 4 (16)
Date of airing: Feb 13, 2012 (NBC)
Watched for review: Feb 13, 2012
Number of review in February/2012: 60/183

How THE VOICE could be shorter in running time and less boring: Cut out the fake thrill moments, when the contestants chose their coaches. Cut out the repeating moments after the commercials. Cut out the “Previously on” in the first two minutes, which don’t even have relevance in the show. Cut out the repeating words of the coaches, when they talk about how angry they were that one of the other coaches stole their performer. You would either get like 15 minutes of extra time with it, showing three more contestants, or the show could be 15 minutes shorter, which would create a faster pace for THE VOICE. But something has to change here, because I notice that the producers don’t really have something to show for all the 84 minutes they have to fill…

Finally, THE VOICE has with Sarah Golden its first contestant, which is shown in the dark, so the audience has something to listen and not watch to. When I saw that in the first season, I was a bit confused about that twist, since I didn’t know what to expect from the show in the beginning. But now I kinda like this little twist, though it was obvious from the beginning that we would have a Kurt-kinda-like with this contestant. Even though her story – not marketable, has to change looks – sounds kinda weird for GLEE. The performance itself seemed okay. Not really my song, and a bit slow for me, but I have learned already that the first look can always be deceiving. Well, Sarah seems to be a solid performer, and as Blake said, she sounds very honest. But honest doesn’t mean it’s a powerful, great voice with all kinds of highlights. Which is why I wonder if Sarah is gonna make it far. By the way: When her face was shown, I was surprised that she looked so normal. Normal behavior, normal character. Not marketable? Not marketable my ass. Though I was thinking at first that Sarah would be a guy (her arms looked like a guy’s arms), because the story she told sounded so Kurt-like.

Elley Duhe (19) is one of the contestants, who has given herself to singing. Open mics, different shows, school dropout – her life wasn’t a teenager’s life, because she lived the life of a musician from the beginning, with the parents’ help. Her rendition of “Mercy” wasn’t really my thing though. I thing for a song like this you must have a powerful voice, and even though Elley doesn’t sound bad, she didn’t have the voice to pull off a song like this. Definitely a wrong song choice here. So, I won’t really miss her in the first place. But it’s nice to have a sweet girl on stage for once, taking it like a lesson.

Pip (19) is another one of those artists on this season. Seems like a boring character, because I have seen people like him very often in AMERICAN IDOL already (most of them couldn’t sing though), so I’m definitely interested in knowing how he will get through the blind audition. With “House of the Rising Sun” he definitely picked the right song for him, and I wondered why Adam needed so long to be the first coach turning his chair. Similar to Jesse Campbell, I would have pushed the button during the first ten seconds. Strong opening, followed by a strong performance. Pip could actually be a guy to follow throughout the battle round. Unfortunately, the blows between the coaches was a bit over the top this time. First Adam versus Blake, then Blake versus Christina, then Christina versus Adam. Where was Cee Lo in that fight?

Erin Willett (22) has to follow a contestant, who turned all four chairs, which will be difficult to do. She is one of the people with an insane friend for a father, also a father with stage 4 pancreatic cancer, which means that Erin has a story to deliver (also, tears during her camera time). She has a dying father with a positive attitude about his situation, and yet she decides to try out for THE VOICE. With the Jackson Five’s “I Want You Back”, she had a little party on stage, and luckily the studio audience went along. Unfortunately, her performance wasn’t that strong as I hoped it to be. It was fun, it was like a party, it was good. But not really great. But maybe just because when I’m hearing a “I want You Back” cover, I have the one from KT Tunstall in my ear. So, it was kinda awkward for me to have Erin sing it here, who doesn’t look like KT at all. She could be a rocker girl though, maybe she will get into a rock number in the battle round. Hopefully it’s gonna work on Team Blake.

David Grace (28) grew up playing football, but he randomly bought a guitar one day and decided to follow the footsteps of his father, who is a singer. David could definitely be the action hero of THE VOICE. He himself said he looks like a UFC fighter, and he could be an interesting person with either one of the coaches. Also, David was another one of those rare contestants to choose the perfect song. The first three notes from “Sweet Home Alabama” he delivered – wow! Great performance, and I was disappointed no one from the coaches turned their chairs during the first 30 seconds. Instead, Blake and Adam battled it out on their seats, wanting to hit the button for each other. That’s why I was disappointed even more at the end that no one turned their chair.

Insurance worker Katrina Parker (34) was handed the invitation to the auditions for THE VOICE by Carson Daly himself. Of course the whole office she was working in was completely empty and she was the only one working with it. Not much of a surprise, huh? Her story is a sickness she had for two years, when she couldn’t sing. Now she’s back in the business, and instantly tries out for THE VOICE with the title song of JOAN OF ARCADIA. A show I really should rewatch in the near future. Her performance was solid. I don’t know if “One of Us” was the perfect song for her, but she chose the right song to showcase her vocal abilities, even though the performance wasn’t really strong – despite the fact you can do a lot with that song.

Geoff McBride (51) is not just one of the oldest contestants of the blind auditions this season, he is also singing for 19 years straight. He doesn’t wear his sunglasses for the cool-factor, because he actually carries damages in his eye after getting too much kickboxing into his eye. Of course these specific sunglasses are not for the cool-factor… especially with “Higher Ground” as song choice, where he rocked even more. As if his sunglasses were also singing for him. His performance was solid though. Nothing spectacular, even though I was expecting this, when Geoff started singing. I actually noticed some pitching problems in the second half of the performance – probably a reason for the whole party environment in the studio at that time. Maybe he was a little too excited during his audition. I was also surprised he didn’t choose Cee Lo as his coach. From sunglasses to sunglasses, it could have been great partnership. Instead he chose Team Christina. Which isn’t wrong. Just surprising.

Erin Martin (28) is a former print-model, and jumped to music a couple of years ago. For the audition, she chose the wrong outfit though. She kinda looked like Cleopatra, or another Egyptian princess from the antiques. But then her audition happened. What the…? I mean, I was speechless. In the most positive way I can mean it She was so awesome, so cool, so unique, I couldn’t even stop smiling. Her persona on stage was so different from her persona in front of the camera during her introduction bit. Her way of singing I didn’t expect at all, but kinda reminded me of Lisa Hannigan with an accent. Okay, maybe not really but she reminded me of somebody, yet I still think that Erin is unique. Maybe too unique for a show like this though, because I don’t know how she’s gonna end up the winner of this season, when she’s so anti-mainstream in her performance. But I have to give rights to Blake. She is really cool. Definitely the most surprising audition so far this season. She could be a favorite. But I don’t think she is going to win this competition.

Boston native James Massone (23) wants to get any one of the coaches, since he just wants to get out of his day job. He’s most likely one of the contestants not liking his normal life, and instead having dreams of a bigger, more awesome life. I feel already sorry for him, seeing in the auto shop, listening to his father, doing things for work. He also almost met death from a gun in 2005, when he told the story of a basement massacre in 2005. Three rappers died that day, and James’ brother was supposed to be one of the dead people, since he was supposed to be in that basement studio that day. It’s curious to notice how I instantly stopped watching the episode and googled the incident, found out more about it. And only because I couldn’t really understand James, when he was telling the story. Anyway, now to his awkward performance. Because I really don’t know what to say of it. The song choice seemed wrong, the pitch seemed totally out of place, and I had the feeling James was totally into all kinds of stress on stage. I didn’t know the song (or completely forgot it by now), which is what I believe he sometimes forgot the lyrics and didn’t know what to do. And the fact that he sounds like a heart-throb (but doesn’t really look like one – instead he looks like he jumped out of a John Hughes movie). So, I can’t really understand what the coaches were seeing in him. Maybe his voice. Blake said that James fell apart at the end of the song, yet I saw him falling apart during the song. I don’t know, but he might be the worst contestant for me, who actually advances to the next round. Not really somebody I will be looking for. But who knows how he’s gonna do in the battle round.

Winter Rae (26) is the next contestant with an ass-kicking haircut, as well as a dreamer, who wants more of her life. She looks like she’s going to be a punk girl, especially with the pictures from her school days, where she still had blond hair. Then she surprises with a soul voice and “Hero” by Mariah Carey being her favorite song. What a shame she didn’t sing it (instead “Take a Bow”), because it could have been her ticket to the next stage. Her performance really was shaky. She never risked something, she ever really was into the song, and especially at the end she kinda fell flat, when she tried to get the title lyrics past her lips. That was the moment, when I had to close my eyes, because it sounded so wrong. It’s a shame she didn’t advance, because she had a few nice elements there. And I really wanted to see a punk girl doing slow music numbers – that would have been unique.Erin MartinErin Martin

Chris Cauley (27) introduced himself with his grandmother as his musical influence. Everything musical for him came from her, and with one of her songs came product placement for sprint, which is always awkward, when it’s so damn obvious. Like the KIA promotion, when Carson was giving the invitations away. His performance was cool though. His soul rendition of “Grenade” sounded cool, and again I was pretty much surprised no one turned their chair during the first 20 seconds, and it had to take such a while for at least Cee Lo to honor Chris and push the button. Though I was really expecting for Adam to hit it first. Well, eventually he didn’t. And eventually Chris was one of the few contestants, who got better during his performance. Especially when one chair was turned already. Respect for that! He could be one to watch.

The last artist of the episode left it all on the stage of THE VOICE. Like, all kinds of nerves and sweat and stress: Jordis Unga (29). She started to play in a punk-rock band, before stepping into a pop band. Now she’s on THE VOICE, and she is giving her life. And she already gave me the best song choice anybody could choose. “Maybe I’m Amazed” is one of my favorite songs of all-time, so she already won with me. But I have to say she left a lot on stage, even though she shouldn’t have. That song isn’t a punk-rock number, and she didn’t put much emotions to it, which I could feel. It felt like she just wanted to rock the night away and wow the coaches with her powerful voice. So, int he battle round I hope she’s going to learn something vocally, putting not too much strength into the performance and instead show some emotions.

It was a good episode. Not really one with blew-my-mind contestants, but with some, who actually deserved to advance to the next round, yet didn’t. It also shows, once again, that THE VOICE is so much more serious about what it wants to be – without saying bad things about the contestants. 7/10

Pip is ready to blow the women some kisses

Erin Martin is the surprise of the season. Adam won't see it that way though

Season 2, Episode 2 (14)
Date of airing: Feb 6, 2012 (NBC)
Watched for recap: Feb 6, 2012
Number of review in February/2012: 35/158

I haven’t seen the two-hour long shows during the first season, because I cancelled THE VOICE for me before that. So, here my opening questions: Did the double-length episodes in the last year opened with a music number too? it’s actually a pretty interesting to open up two hours with the judges having a micro concert for the studio audience. Even though I can’t do any Prince music, it’s always great to have the coaches show how it’s done, at least in all things regarding singing. Despite the fact that Blake didn’t really fit well to the Prince songs he was performing. But maybe just because he is so much of a country singer that everything else doesn’t color well with him (even though I liked the “Kiss” part of the medley). Anyway, if the producers would just get the three-minute flashbacks and “war talk” out of the beginning, the show would get into the episodes much faster. I don’t need repeated “I wanna have the best team” and stuff like that for one and a half minutes after an unnecessary one and a half minute recap of the last episode. But maybe that’s just me.

The Line is going to open this episode – a duo consisting of Hailey and Leland. Starting as a couple with romantic interest, they soon developed to a little songwriting/performing group, and are now on THE VOICE. With those kind of singing groups, I’m always thinking about the possibility that the boy or the girl (or maybe both) are still thinking about the romantic part of that duo thing. Hailey and Leland said they have great chemistry, and that is one of the reasons why they are performing together. But I know it for a fact that the back of the mind is still filled with all that romantic crap floating around, because you will never get away from the first thought you had about a person you’re close with. So, who knows, maybe The Line will also have The Wedding in a few years (Adam was obviously thinking the same). Their performance was good. I liked the song, I liked the chemistry playing out on stage, and despite some minor pitching problems (especially with Hailey), it was all about the entertaining factor up there. The two had fun performing, and it helps a lot, when you don’t push too much effort into a competition like that. Fun helps you around difficulties, and The Line definitely managed that. Respect for that, and no wonder that all four coaches turned their chair.

New Yorker Jamar Rogers (29) is one of those storytellers of singing competitions. Crystal meth, homelessness, HIV positive, and he is currently about to get his life back. THE VOICE seems to be the thing for comeback kids like him, and I have to say that people like him make THE VOICE even more interesting. AMERICAN IDOL doesn’t seem to have those “problem kids” in the first place, for what reason soever. So I’m glad THE VOICE gives second chances to people, who have already seen the end of the world. metaphorically speaking. Also, Carson’s invitation handing in New York was pretty sweet. Though it could be … more real. Like, more authentic. Like with a hidden camera or something like that. I can’t imagine that Jamar didn’t notice a big fat camera behind him, when he was unloading a car. But that’s just the thought of a guy, who watches too much television. His performance itself was good enough to deserve a place in the battle round. He also has deserved a place in Cee Lo’s team, because the two guys fit for each other like strawberries and me: a match made in Heaven. Nice that the other coaches were thinking the same, giving Cee Lo the chance to work with Jamar. By the way: That “match made in heaven” I wrote, before Adam said it just seconds later. Dammit, Adam THINKS LIKE ME!

Neal Middleton (33) says he is singing since he was four years old, that it’s his passion, that he doesn’t dream of anything else. He also has a story to tell: Eight years ago he fell 35-40 feet deep to the ground, and he was almost about to die, or to live as a paralyzed guy. Now he has a wife, two kids, and his standing on his two feet. I can’t say much about his performance, because I think that “Heard it Through The Grape Vine” is one of the most boring songs on this planet. So that’s already bad song choice in my opinion. But at least Neal seemed to have fun on stage, despite no coach turning their chair. I can understand the coaches here though, and am on Christina’s side. Before her tits are jumping out of her décolleté, she actually said some true things about Neal’s range being way too wide-open. The performance was partly really over the top. Only Adam’s comment (“That was awesome”) was ridiculous. So, why didn’t he turn his chair then?

She doesn’t look that old, but Gwen Sebastian really is 37 years old. When I look at her introduction bit, she looks like 27. No joke. Maybe it’s her hair. Her age is also the reason why she chose to be with THE VOICE. Stopping her family life for a second, and trying out music. Pausing the wish to have children and a family of her own (before it’s too late), and deciding to try it for THE VOICE, because a career in the music business seems to be more important than having a family. Especially when you have the desire to make it big in the business. And her performance was actually interesting, even though I didn’t like the song and I didn’t like the beginning. But boy, did she surprise me with that slow song. I was believing for her to make a party on stage, to jump up and down, to show herself as a rocker girl. And then she just sung a ballad. The first real surprise of the season for me. But not really a contestant whom I would follow throughout the season. Maybe with a better song choice. I don’t know if it’s gonna work with Blake though.

Pamela Rose (28) is the next contestant on stage, and she definitely has no mommy issues. Because she actually doesn’t have a story to go with her person. At least one that’s interesting to recap here. So, she sings, and she already messes up her pitch during the first lines of lyrics. Seems like it’s all about pitch in this season, because the three contestants so far not having much of a pitch control in her voice (Pamela) included, were not chosen by the judges. Here you can see that the coaches are pros, but also don’t see hope in the contestants with a little less nerves of steel.

The clock is definitely ticking for Pam Grier lookalike Kim Yarbrough (50). In fact, when I first saw the promo for this episode, I was thinking Pam Grier would have a cameo appearance on the stage. What a shame that Pam Grier isn’t doing a cameo. But who knows, maybe Kim is interesting, though I already know I will never be friends with her, no matter how good she will be. She definitely chose an interesting song to perform though. it had a little magic in there, and I kinda liked her style, and she definitely didn’t look that old on stage than on her birth certificate. Definitely a positive surprise, but still not good enough for me personally. I’m definitely following her, because I’m interested in what she will become during the battle rounds.

Staff Sergeant Angie Johnson (31) shows that military experience will help you in going through THE VOICE. Those nerves of steel I was talking about? Well, she has them, because she has the experience people need to survive THE VOICE. Her story of being part of an army band is actually interesting. And when she mentioned that one of her performances was uploaded and seen by millions of people on YouTube, I was just thinking ‘Why have I never heard of her before?’ So, maybe her words of “America’s eye” having seen how she got to THE VOICE isn’t really that true. Because not only America’s eye is looking at her. Her performance? Looked good, but nothing that wowed me. Let’s see what Cee Lo is going to do with her during the battle rounds. Also impressive that it was Carson, who actually found her. It’s already proven that the initiative from some of the contestants come from the producers or the show itself. Now Carson. Not that it’s bad, but it’s just interesting to see who is going to the show in the first place, for what reasons they ever have.

Dez Duron (21) wants to end his football career in Yale, and instead try it for THE VOICE. Giving up college and football for music is quite ballsy. Also, his father is a Grammy winner, which is probably one of the big reasons why he’s on stage now. Also, he’s singing the Backstreet Boys, which is even more ballsy than his move of stepping out of Yale. I don’t know if this might be the stupidest song choice in recent years of singing competitions. It’s not because the song was bad and all, but you can’t prove yourself with a song, which doesn’t show your range, even when you drastically change it up, because you wanna show your vocal range. This performance was perfect proof: Dez had to change it up to actually sound like he’s a great singer. Which means the song must have been so boring in his original state that you can’t do anything with it. Especially when you only have to rely on your voice. Totally bold and wrong song choice here. No wonder why no coach turned the chair.

Lindsey Pavao (22) also does not have nerves of steel. Her story is all about choking on stage and not being able to finish a performance in her past. She also seems to be talented, when it comes to changing the arrangements of a song. Two points of information I already like, because it makes her shine as an authentic artist, who is so small, she actually cares about what she is singing, and how she feels about it. And this I felt when she performed the song I was not knowing. (So, sadly I couldn’t compare it to the original, seeing how she changes arrangements) Somewhat a really great performance, but also very shaky. I felt like her vocals were dancing up and down during the performance, but her charm was saving it all. She had confidence in herself, there was lots of magic on stage, and she has a unique presence which I really like. Lindsey is not really a strong singer, who proves to have a strong voice, which will rock your socks off. Instead she’s just a small-time singer, who can warm your heart, and give you some happy emotions on the way. And I like those coffee-shop-type singers, when they know what they are doing and singing. Glad she’s with Christina, and hopefully she will bowl away her competition. And she really is beautiful and her hair is kick-ass.

Hoja Lopez (25) never had a real role model in her life, but wants to be one. Understandable. Fill a niche, especially in a show like THE VOICE, which shows how to make a star out of yourself, while you stay true to yourself. That’s why I was a bit disappointed that she flunked her performance, because of that magic word “nerves”. It really was a surprisingly solid performance, and I really would have wished to see how Hoja would make herself during the battle rounds. It’s definitely not easy for women like her to make it that far, or to step past the own shadow. Not that I’m gonna miss her, but it would have been an interesting contestant to follow.

Jermaine Paul (33) has superstar experience already. Working with Alicia Keys, opening for her, having a career already, and now on to THE VOICE. Again, this season shows that experienced musicians take the chance to step forward, to get some of the fame of a successful TV show, to get the name out to the audience. It already worked with Tony Lucca, so why not with Jermaine? Anyway, when he started to sing Avril Lavigne, I was reminded by my own choice to do karaoke with one of her songs. I horribly failed (okay, I was partly drunk that night), and I was fearing that Jermaine would also fall into the big black hole of wrong song choices. But what the hell… great performance. He sure as hell rocked that song. The episode isn’t over, but I already have my favorite performance of the night, even of the whole blind auditions round of this season. I never would have guessed that a guy singing Avril Lavigne can be that great. Top performance, he totally nailed it. Despite a flunker during the first seconds of the performance. Which were forgotten though, as soon as he went rocking. He didn’t just own the room after the performance.

The final artist of the episode is Angel Taylor (23) – difficult childhood, music as an escape, “hope in the madness” as a quote. Even though she had one of the Charlize-Theron-stories to offer, the producers surely didn’t keep any of it in the episode. Which I’m thankful for by the way. Audition episodes don’t always have to be filled with loads of information about a contestant’s life, when it’s gonna be forgotten after a while anyway. So, for the future, have a look at Angel’s introduction bit. She comes over more charming this way than with her whole tragic story. That also reflected well on her performance. Very smooth, very ballsy with that overplayed Adele song, with a really good voice. And like Cee Lo said, very warm. Now that she made it to the battle round, she won’t have problems with those nerves at the beginning again, because she will learn how this business is running now. I’m glad she took Adam too. Somehow I’m getting the feeling that he knows what he wants from his team and exactly knows what he is seeing in them.

All in all, a pretty good episode. Lots of great contestants this time, and I will remember some of them. I’m also glad that only some of the two hours robbed my time (actually, only the first seven minutes). The second season already has better singers than I can remember from the first season. And I watched both blind auditions back then. I’m happy I’m sticking with THE VOICE this year. 8/10

The Line has been drawn (also, it has a great rack)

Lindsey could be considered a front-runner. Like Xenia back in the days?

Season 2, Episode 1 (13)
Date of airing: Feb 5, 2012 (NBC)
Watched for review: Feb 5, 2012
Number of review in February/2012: 26/149

Wow. That’s how you waste the first three minutes of a second season. With rule explanation, with Adam saying “I won last year”, with the coaches being cocky already, and with enough words that this season might shine above anything else on television. Which has some sort of talent. Wow. How NBC was actually able to cut this one together, as if it was the most important and the best show on Earth. Wow. I know I can’t say much when it comes to reality television, since I don’t watch much in that direction, but those three minutes even annoyed the crap outta me!

But I have something else to say: Similar to my AMERICAN IDOL recaps, I will try to watch the whole season this time, since I found some time in my schedule to actually spare my evenings between AMERICAN IDOL on Wednesdays and Thursdays, as well as THE VOICE on Mondays. If I can’t make it during the blind auditions (are there just two, like last year?) or the battle rounds, I will be back for the final shows. Otherwise I’m gonna be on it for the whole season, giving all my reader, who don’t care about the singing competitions in US television to have a sight into this business. So that they know what’s the talk on Twitter and all the sites on the web. And if you’re not interested, well, you just wasted 30 seconds reading this. Or you just have fun reading this. Or you’re in love with me. I don’t know.

Anyway, second season of THE VOICE, here it goes. Texas-girl RaeLynn (17) is the first contestant of this season, and she should be glad she is the first (hot?) girl to be seen right after the Super Bowl. She is blond, she seems easy-going, she seems happy. A little geeky young lady, who wants to be a star. She has decided to wow Blake Shelton with singing a song by his wife Miranda. Blake obviously went batshit-crazy while hearing that performance, and of course he wanted to have RaeLynn in his team – if there wouldn’t be Adam, who (righteously) heard something different in her voice than the country voice she had during the second half of the performance. I just want to say one thing: RaeLynn kinda quivered with her vocals throughout the performance. I don’t know if it was the song, if it was on purpose, or if it was cold in the studio. Even though it was a good performance, I couldn’t help noticing that I had some shivers running down my spine hearing her singing, and not in a good way. And what about the fake thrill, when RaeLynn was all like “This is a difficult decision”? It was clear she would choose Blake. Come on, stop it with the fake thrill already. First contestant of the season, and the first sheer fake thrill moment. Oh. My. God.

Jesse Campbell (42) lets me realize there is no age restriction on THE VOICE. Something I’m missing on AMERICAN IDOL. He also is kind of the contrast of the auditioners on AMERICAN IDOL: Some of the women over there are divorced mothers. Jesse is a divorced father, who has something more to offer: He and his daughter were homeless for a while, sleeping in his car. So, Jesse delivers the first story of the season, and he also kinda did something of a record during his performance: All coaches except Blake pushed their buttons during the first two lines of lyrics Jesse was singing. What the hell? Blake soon followed, so that means Jesse is the first favourite of the season, right? Definitely a highlight, because he did a strong performance. A voice that actually rocks without singing a rock number; a great range, which is not that annoying with a guy like Jesse. First of all, I’m gonna keep an eye on him during the battle rounds. Second, I’m disappointed he chose Christina as his coach. Third, what’s with all the fake thrill? The season is 15 and a half minutes old, and it needs three of those minutes to show how the contestants chose their judges. Dammit, cut those sequences out and have one more contestant filling the episode. 15 Minutes in, and it’s getting ridiculous already. Also, very annoying.

Daniel Rosa (20) is looking for confirmation on THE VOICE. He also looks to give away some tears. The second guy this season, and the second one who starts to cry in front of the camera, because he has emotions. Also, he has some nerves he couldn’t control on the stage, and which ruined his pitch. The first half of the performance was in fact terrible, though the second half of it was much better. I believe Daniel is one of those cases, who can’t believe during the first 30 seconds that he’s singing in front of a big audience, but gets captivated by it real fast and gets better. Or maybe his performance was weak, because he was better in the higher notes, but seemed to fail in the lower regions of his vocals. I’m not gonna hurting he won’t be in the next round, but I’m also gonna hope that he really takes something out of it, maybe returns next year. In AMERICAN IDOL!

Juliet Simms (25) reminds me of somebody, but I can’t name her. Maybe I’m able to do so after her performance, because she really resembles somebody. Anyway, I’m glad that the show also has a rocker girl to offer already. I love rocker girls since Amanda Overmyer (season 7 of AMERICAN IDOL), and I wouldn’t mind to have a favourite among those clientele of future pop singers. Then I was pretty much surprised she wasn’t rocking it on stage. “Oh Darling”? With that smoky voice? I don’t think that was the right song choice, even when it sounded interesting in the second half of the performance. But here I’m doubting that Juliet can do more than just smoke through the performance in three or four tones. The highlight was the sexual tension between Adam and Christina anyway. I’m happy the coaches continue to be cocky and “funny” in the second season, trying to battle it out between them. But how predictable was it that Cee Lo got Juliet into his team? After the car sale and “Christina not being the greatest coach”, I would have chosen Cee Lo, just to kick both Adam and Christina for my personal amusement. At the end I still don’t know who she is resembling.

Chris Mann (29) seems to be the first one with classical training to be on the stage for singing competitions on NBC. Already an interesting guy, because this kind of clientele is never really able to choose the right song. When I remember correctly, some of the classical trained artists were on AMERICAN IDOL, and they always behaved like they were on Broadway – which is just the wrong thing to do. I can’t say much about his performance, because it’s just not my kind of music. I would overlook it without thinking about it much, no matter how good the vocals are. Sure, Chris is a good singer, has a great voice, but what is he doing in the battle round, when he has to sing a complete different song? it’s always about the first impression also, and even though singing an opera song is not always a wrong move professionally, I just don’t know what to think of Chris as a contender. Then he came with “I decided to sing like myself”, and suddenly I can understand. I still don’t think that he will do well in the battle round though. Which is why he’s probably well on Christina’s team. Which doesn’t mean Team Christina will be crappy this year.

When I realized on Twitter that Tony Lucca (35) was a contestant in this season, I couldn’t believe it. He’s like my first one whom I actually know. I mean, his music. I mean, only “Devil Town” – one of my all-time favourites, and not only because it was running through one of the best scenes of one of the best TV shows on Earth. I didn’t even care about his background with MICKEY MOUSE CLUB, or singing with Christina and Britney Spears. I was just looking all the time, if this guy has gotten an album out, because I could never find one. Now he’s on THE VOICE< and before he could even sing, he’s one of my favourites already. That’s how fast it can go. And also, Tony is proof that even established singers can do a show like this. Even when they don’t need to. What a shame he didn’t sing “Devil Town”, but what the hell, I loved his performance of “Trouble” anyway, and place a bet that he will win this season. And about Christina not remembering him (or even his name), well… I pretty much don’t care. When you’re not wandered in that kind of music, then you wouldn’t even remember a guy like Tony. Even when it was funny to hear Christina talk about Tony and not remembering him a bit. Well, at least she remembered at the end.

Finally I have to say I’m having THE VOICE against AMERICAN IDOL. Live music is much better, when it comes from the heart and from established singers. If the producers would just tone down the audience screaming and applause more, because it’s still annoying. Other than that: THE VOICE is still a good show. With some annoying bits and pieces here and there, which is not a wild thing though. 7/10

The rocker girl wants to be hard-ass

And that guy with a song on FNL is just that... a guy

Team Cee Lo: Tje Austin vs. Nakia – “Closer”
It is the perfect duel. Not just because of the similar “unusual” look of the two (much hair), but because I was expecting this duel, before the 2-minute recap/preview at the beginning of the episode told me that one of them will be battling this round. The rehearsals were interesting; both showed that they both can win and want to win, so there’s no real favorite or frontrunner for this battle. It was a really open battle with similar characters in the ring, similar powerful voices, and a pretty much average song. “Closer” might show what the two have in store, but it is not really song to wow me. The battle itself showed that: average performance, which only showed that the two have powerful voices – nothing more. As a duet, the performance was kinda lame. I had the feeling the two wanted to prove to Cee Lo that “my voice is stronger than his” – especially Nakia, who had overdone it on stage. Which made Tje my favorite in the battle. Unfortunately the coaches weren’t my opinion, and Cee Lo chose Nakia. Seems right anyway, because that guy is still a good performer. Hopefully he doesn’t overdo his performances in the live shows.

Team Blake: Elenowen vs. Jared Blake – “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough”
Yeah, wonderful. That’s gonna be a thrilling thing. I want to see Elenowen go through the live shows, and I don’t really want to see Jared anymore – don’t know why, I like the duo just better than Jared. And of course I want to see how Elenowen makes it in a battle, which is supposed to be a duet on stage – with another singer. And Jared said it right during rehearsals: it’s two voices against one, and with the harmony of Elenowen, his voice is not beautiful enough. Blake, who says “I’m looking for who sells the song the best”, didn’t prove otherwise. Not even the stage rehearsals, where Elenowen lost some steam, couldn’t show me different. But the battle performance did. And, boy, it did so on all levels. Jared really rocked that soulful song with his rocker voice, while Elenowen didn’t do more than just be safe with their harmonies. At the end it somehow sounded like the wrong song choice for Jared, as if he was too good for this song. Which is why he ruled that song from the beginning until the last second. At the end it really surprised me that he had all the advantages in the battle. He really did great. And he deserved to win this battle. Which still surprises me. A lot.

Team Adam: Javier Colon vs. Angela Wolff – “Stand by Me”
Hm, the frontrunner of the competition against a singer, whom I already forgot. Seems predictable about who will win this round. First I have to say: love the song. It really is a classic I could listen to over and over, and as long as the two are bringing it on stage and making the song their own (typical AMERICAN IDOL cliché here), it could be a great performance. The rehearsals showed both were not really frontrunners in this battle. Both had their flaws, both had their good moments. At this point I wouldn’t know who will win. The performance itself could have been more of a duet. With the exception of the last lines of the song, both were singing their own thing without the support of the other. More a battle, less a duet like I wanted it to have. At the end, it was just a performance of “Stand by Me” without something special in it. It could have been the best performance of the night, but it wasn’t. That Javier would win this battle was pretty much obvious. Since I didn’t remember Angela before the battle, I won’t miss her.

Team Christina: Beverly McClellan vs. Justin Grennan – “Baba O’Riley”
Holy crap, another great song. Looks like Beverly has already all the advantages, because she is the rocker girl, who can smash this performance and her competition. And the rehearsals showed she is comfortable with the song; in addition of me being surprised that Justin didn’t know the lyrics and hadn’t performed this song before. But I was surprised that his voice reached the falsetto of the song, though the song could be a couple of notes deeper for him. Otherwise Beverly would have a too big of an advantage, and she is going to use it all. Together with her cocky confidence on stage (thanks Christina for mentioning it – it is the only thing which annoys me all the time Beverly has screentime). And as expected, this battle was easily the best of the episode. It really was a powerhouse for both performers on stage, and they showed and delivered everything they got. And it really was a duet, unlike the previous battle performance. In this case, I wouldn’t know who will win the battle, because both were that good. So, I don’t mid that Beverly made the battle her win and heads to the live shows.

All in all, solid performances, no failures, good songs, good battle pairings. I have nothing bad to say about the show. 7/10

Angela is standing by Javier

Rocking the teenage wasteland: Justin and Beverly

Team Christina: Tarralyn Ramsey vs Frenchie Davis – “Single Ladies”
It was actually interesting to see the rehearsals for the battle, and what Christina and her advisor Sia (very lucky to have her in the episode) had to say to the two girls. And thankfully it didn’t become a POPSTARS kind of thing. The tension between the girls was mentioned, but it wasn’t shown, and the six minutes of rehearsals were shown in a professional way, which was very refreshing. Like the premiere of the competition show, it is all about music. The battle round itself was alright. I don’t like the song anymore, and I think Tarralyn went a bit over the top during her part, while Frenchie practically went to higher classes during the bridge. In my opinion Frenchie won the battle rounds in points. And good for Christina having the same opinion (yes, I’m indirectly telling you I am writing these pieces of opinions while I’m watching the episode, not after I finished watching it).

Team Blake: Patrick Thomas vs. Tyler Robinson – “Burning Love”
Interesting song choice for the two. The country artist Patrick gets an Elvis classic, and the seemingly pop artist fan Tyler gets a song he doesn’t really know by an artist, whom he should be able to cover: Elvis. It couldn’t have been the perfect song for both of them. During the rehearsals, it became clear that Tyler was the frontrunner of this battle, which isn’t wrong. If Patrick can show he can do more than country, he should be able to show it in the battle round. The performance itself was surprisingly weak though. Hearing them singing the song I finally realized it was not the perfect song for the both of them. They couldn’t really show what they have to offer, and performance-wise I saw the two didn’t give anything. In this case I wouldn’t know who would win the battle, since both were … not really perfect. I don’t know, it didn’t get to me a hundred percent. I like both of them, so I’m fine with Patrick moving on to the final shows. Bad for Tyler, because I liked him too.

Team Adam: Casey Weston vs Tim Mahoney – “Leather and Lace”
Interesting pairing. A boy with a unique voice versus a girl, who could do great in this competition. If it would be all about me, Casey has the advantages. During the rehearsals, Adam already mentioned that Casey was more kick-ass than Tim, with Tim questioning the falsetto in his performance. So, it all looked like a sure win for Casey. The performance itself was not really oe of my favorite ones. Casey played too much with her voice, which was a bit annoying during her part, but Tim could surprise me with his soft approach on the song. When the two went into the duet, the song became better, but Casey couldn’t stop swinging her voice around, which sounded totally awkward. In this case, Tim was the better singer in the battle in my opinion. Curious: Casey was my favorite from the start, but Tim was the better performer. Did I still care about who was moving on and who would go home? Since Casey was the winner of the battle round, I don’t care much, but I saw more development with Tim than with Casey. So lets see what Casey is doing during the live shows.

Team Cee Lo: Vicci Martinez vs. Niki Dawson – “Perfect”
An interesting team as well. Both have powerful voices, but I’m going with Vicci here. During the rehearsals I’ve heard the song for the first time and again, Vicci managed to become the frontrunner of this battle , but I kinda saw they weren’t really developing much. Maybe because of the 10-minute timeframe for every battle in the episode, maybe because they were talking too much and not singing, and maybe because I never really could make out a perfect contender for the final shows between the two. The performance itself was great. Easily the best of the episode, because both girls are really that good, and because it didn’t feel like a competition when they started rocking. Lucky for me Cee Lo chose Vicci, and one of my five favorites stay in the run of the competition.

I don’t even know if I should rate the episode. The battle round itself looked interesting, but as long as NBC teases all the stuff of the episode before the commercial blocks, it is becoming extremely uninteresting while I’m watching the episode. So I really hope the producers and editors stop all the previews within the episode. Anyway… 7.5/10

Thanks for Sia making the show even better

Tim versus Joss Stone - it was not an obvious battle

My expectations were low before the premiere. My expectations were high after the premiere. Now my expectations are back in the middle of the scale, where they belong. After the premiere I was really surprised how many talent got together to perform for the coaches, but after the second episode I was surprised that THE VOICE can go down the road as well. Most of the artists weren’t really interesting, most of the performances weren’t really great, and I realized that probably no future singing competition will beat what was the awesome season seven of AMERICAN IDOL.

The second part of the blind auditions wasn’t really bad as an episode, but almost all the artists were average, slightly above average, or sometimes really shaky in their voices, where I asked myself why especially Christina and Cee Lo turned their chairs and decided to pick the artists into their teams. In addition, I didn’t really like the “final twist” of it all – some of the artists getting a second chance, because the coaches couldn’t get all their eight places filled. Okay, after the premiere only brought three artists to each group, it was predictable that something would happen in this episode, since there was no time to see how 15 artists are going into the next round (must suck for NBC not to have ordered more episodes – they could have spread the blind auditions to three episodes without any troubles and lengths).

Some words to this episode’s contestants. I actually liked just two: Tyler Robinson, and the two pig farm sisters Tori and Tyler Thompson. Tyler was the first contestant, whom I thought he was the first really good one of the episode, and the sisters were just so damn cute, adorable, and their performance was awesome as hell (because it was a duet, though the song didn’t really work as a duet). I am already about to forget the names of the other performers on stage, though I should notice that Casey Wilson looked like an acoustic version of Joss Stone, which I really liked to see. And though her performance was somewhat memorable, I was forgetting her again after the show, and I don’t know why. And for the rest is just to say: I hope they are getting better during the battle round, or I’ll stick with my five favorites now.

At least the episode showed that THE VOICE is all about fun as well. I chuckled during Adam’s penis talk with Tim Mahoney, and that Cee Lo is transforming into a womanizer on the show. I hope they are gonna keep the humor in the future, since it overshadows the fact that all the coaches don’t want to be negative to the contestants. I really noticed Christina, who was always loving everybody (while either Adam or Blake were saying something about “not good” and “shaky” seconds after Christina talked), never said something negative about the performances, though at least two of them (Raquel Castro, Julia Eason – and Christina has them both in her team) were bad on an IDOL season 9 level.

And notice that for the history books: “Rolling in the Deep” was the first song to be performed more than once on the stage. And I didn’t even know this song was from Adele. I missed something… 6/10

Cee Lo is looking at his white facial-haired brother

There're no pigs on stage for the sisters

I’m somewhat a friend of casting shows. As long as they are good and I have the time to watch them, I will follow them throughout the season. AMERICAN IDOL managed to keep me, but time never wanted me to continue watching it throughout the last couple of years, but on the other side of the spectrum was AMERICA’S NEXT TOP MODEL, which was funny for one and a half season, but then completely crappy. And before FOX comes with THE X FACTOR around the corner in the fall, NBC took the first step in introducing a new casting show, to find the next best superstar of the United States, just not being called a superstar.

I’ve heard a lot of good praise about THE VOICE, when the blind auditions were shot almost a month ago, but I didn’t want to believe that it was really THAT good. I have to say, these 85 minutes were perfectly spent with – lots of great talents and voices, lots of great music, coaches (who never call themselves judges), who have chemistry with each other, and an interesting hook overall. This could be the best premiere of a non-fiction show in US television I have ever seen. Already surprised by the previous praise, and now surprised again by the quality of the first show: it was all about the hook of it, without wasting my time with contestants I won’t ever see again, which AMERICAN IDOL does all the time during the audition episodes. Read the rest of this entry »