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The Voice Recap: The Song Choice Dilemma

The Voice

The Knockouts, Part 2
Season 5 Episode 12
Editor’s Rating 3 stars

The Voice

The Knockouts, Part 2
Season 5 Episode 12
Editor’s Rating 3 stars
Photo: NBC

Good morning, friends! It was another night of terrible song choices on This Is the Voice. In your opinion, who picked the worst song? I definitely think it was Anthony Paul. Also, why is Carson Daly so excited about steals? I suppose he rejects Fitzgerald’s dictum that there are no second acts in American life. He would.

Lina Gaundenzi vs. Preston Pohl
Is singing an Etta James song on This Is the Voice a good idea? No. Yet Lina Gaundenzi, former model and owner of an indefinite accent, sang an Etta James song on last night’s episode. It was as boring and strange as one would imagine. However, should someone sing “No Woman No Cry” on This Is the Voice? No! Yet Preston Pohl did it. So, what a battle! Preston still won because he was supposed to anyway. Adam has always favored Preston. Remember, in the last battle, when he pitted Preston against Barry and gave them both a song only Preston could sing? Adam has definitely engineered it so Preston can go to the live rounds.

EG Daly vs. Ray Bourdreaux
Remember when Blake baby-talked to EG Daly because she was so little? I do. She sang “I Can’t Make You Love Me.” That is a fantastic song, but poor EG seemed to have a lot of trouble modulating her pitch and tone on it. The clear winner was Ray, who did a very serviceable rendition of Otis Redding. He has a great sense of rhythm.

Jacquie Lee vs. Anthony Paul
I agreed with Xtina when she said that she felt like Anthony was a better vocalist than “The Other Side” allowed him to be. He was so good on Justin Bieber. But he could not sing “The Other Side” at all. Like, do you HAVE to sing a song once you realize it’s terrible for you personally? I guess you do. Anthony Paul barely hit any of the notes. It was kind of sad, actually. Jacqui was very accurate on “Stompa,” and she really is so incredibly adorable. It was right that she survived.

Stephanie Anne Johnson vs. Tamara Chaunice
I really enjoyed when Cee Lo said that Stephanie Anne was “like his sister.” It was so fun. This was an interesting performance for Stephanie, because I thought she sounded SO different than usual on Norah Jones. It was as if we had never heard her before. She was great! Tamara, on the other hand, has a fantastic instrument. She was super competent on “No One.” It made sense that she won, but it was strangely satisfying when Christina stole Stephanie Anne back.

James Wolpert vs. Juhi
Look at these two dropouts! This was a hard one for me. I liked Apple Store’s snazzy, ironically lounging blouse; I liked him without glasses; and his rendition of “More Than a Feeling” was both periodically brilliant and pitchy. Juhi, however, is adorable and a tiny Duffy. Adam is super biased toward James. so he was definitely going to win, but it was a tough call. At least, Juhi will be able to go back to school.

Austin Jenkes vs. Brandon Chase
I hope both of these people get kicked off soon. These were both so boring I actually started making coffee during Austin Jenkes’s performance. I didn’t even care who won. Austin won.

Caroline Pennell vs. George Horga Jr.
This song was just too adorable for Caroline, don’t you think? It was the most on-the-nose selection ever. Like Blake, I also felt like I was drinking hot chocolate when I was listening to her. (I wasn’t. I was drinking coffee to stay awake) George, on the other hand, really couldn’t sing Ne-Yo. He was flat on practically every high note. It was sad to see him go, but it was also a no-brainer. Cee Lo’s team is the one to beat, in my opinion.

Matthew Schuler vs. Will Champlin
God. I wish Christina had used these guys to knock out weaker people on her team. She should have preserved both of them. Matthew did a fantastic job on Florence and the Machine. He really is a powerhouse. Will Champlin was tremendously vulnerable on that Bruno Mars song. Sure, Will was not as good as Bruno Mars, but who is? I would have given this to Matthew, but Christina picked Matthew/Dennis the Menace (he really didn’t dress as much like Dennis the Menace this time. Progress?) and Adam stole Will, who was originally on his team. Justice was done.

And that’s our show! Who has the strongest team, in your opinion? I say Cee Lo’s, but I am comfortable with eccentricity. What say the rest of you?

The Voice Recap: The Song Choice Dilemma