Tuesday, December 1, 2015

The Voice 9: Top 10

I wasn't expecting much from this group - I've been constantly underwhelmed the past few weeks - but they somehow delivered some pretty solid performances this week. It's interesting how messed up and unpredictable my ranking went, but I stand by it and that makes for an interesting final two (2) week for this incredibly bland season full of religious songs. Ha. 

On with the show!


10. Braiden Sunshine
Radioactive
[TEAM GWEN]
What was that? Vocally, Braiden hit more notes than I initially expected, but it felt like I was watching a high school talent show. America, please don't torture this kid any further. Let him go home and enjoy his childhood. Haha. 5

09. Jordan Smith
Hallelujah
[TEAM ADAM]
Jordan's vocals were, as usual, on top form, but why did I rank him so low? Other than the obvious pandering once again, this just wasn't as exciting as the rest of the performances. The song choice was annoyingly overdone and while I was impressed that he didn't go overboard with his vocal gymnastics, I was still left cold. It came off basic and quite generic. 7

08. Shelby Brown
Go Rest High On That Mountain
[TEAM ADAM]
So Shelby went and used the religious card  this week and it somehow worked. Again, not a fan of all the pandering, but at least it was a song that wasn't covered to death on these reality singing shows. Her vocals weren't perfect - she hit a couple of wonky notes during the versus - but she connected well with the material and she actually looked at ease with the whole performance. The number eventually felt strangely long, but I digress. 7

07. Zach Seabaugh
Crazy Little Thing Called Love
[TEAM BLAKE]
Zach's performance was a complete turnaround from Jordan and while he didn't have a vocal moment in this number, it was still pretty entertaining. He worked the stage quite well, he got more control of his vocals, and the charisma was palpable. Maybe he's more comfortable with uptempo songs? 7

06. Amy Vachal
Bye Bye Bye
[TEAM ADAM]
The way Amy transforms a song to fit her limited vocal range is impressive on it's own, but I wish there's more dynamics to her vocal performances. Bye Bye Bye had an interesting and quite brilliant arrangement, but her vocals, though mostly intact, sounded one-dimensional and almost monotonous. Her creative vision and musicality will give her the edge for the rest of the competition, but people will eventually get tired of it. 7.5

05. Korin Bukowski
Same Old Love
[TEAM GWEN]
This was, hands down, Korin's best performance on the show since The Knockouts. Not going to lie, I didn't think she was capable of pulling off a song with enough sass more so something from Selena Gomez, but I thought she nailed it. Her pitch wasn't a hot mess, the modulation of her voice was surprisingly solid, and she performed it with some much needed attitude. Good for you, Korin. 7.5

04. Barrett Baber
I'd Love To Lay You Down
[TEAM BLAKE]
I was expecting to doze off from this performance, but to my surprise, he actually grabbed my attention from start to finish. His tone was lovely on this song, there's sincerity to his delivery, and he looked like a legitimate country star. Solid job. 7.5

03. Jeffery Austin
Jealous
[TEAM GWEN]
Vocally, Jeffery had this in spades. His transitions were clean, he took his time with the melody, and there's enough vocal dynamics for the performance to sound interesting - given that this song has been covered thrice in a matter of two (2) weeks. That being said, there's something strangely hollow about his delivery that kept me emotionally at arm's length. It's an emotional song, but I didn't feel anything. 8

02. Emily Ann Roberts
She's Got You
[TEAM BLAKE]
Just lovely. Many of you may know, I'm not a big country fan, but this was quite stellar. Her clear and pure tone was sensational, her intonation was surprisingly consistent, the song choice was genius, and how she controlled her vocals was quite impressive. She could very well be a potential contender for the title this year. 8

01. Madi Davis
Girls Just Wanna Have Fun
[TEAM PHARRELL]
Madi sounded terrific in this slowed-down, stripped-down rendition of Cyndi Lauper’s classic anthem. The gorgeous lilt in her voice sat perfectly with her arrangement of the song and there's intimacy to it that was just beautiful. One of my favorite performances this season. 9


WHO SHOULD GO HOME?
Braiden Sunshine

WHO WILL GO HOME?
Braiden Sunshine

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