Welcome to the Live Playoffs! Things have apparently gotten a little out of hand, and while poor Carson's doing his best to catch us all up -- each coach gets to bring back one eliminated performer from any team; half of the current performers will be sent home on Wednesday; etc -- all that really matters is Adam's new suit. Dude looks like the most handsome employee Dunder Mifflin never had; it's baffling, and a little unfair, how such an ugly tie can make him actually look better than Ryan Quinn, despite Ryan's suit having the superior fit and cool factor of a t-shirt instead of a button-down. The tie even gives Adam the win over Blake, who also shows up in a dark suit (with button-down, sans tie), for what may actually very well be the first time in his life -- aside, maybe, from one of his multiple weddings. So yeah, it's a weird night.
Anyway, there's the Rankling, on a scale of "grr arg" to "most obviously going to win:"
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Nick Hagelin
If Nick's what these bring-backs are going to be like, the whole idea can just go right back home right now. I'm all here for this song (it's the best thing Rihanna's ever done), but this performance just doesn't do anything for me at all. Nick's trying too hard to be too profound, and it leaves a bitter taste, even though he technically nails all of the many vocal tricks he packs into the arrangement. His case isn't helped by the camera's framing him to look like an awkward hunchback (no offence to hunchbacks), but this just isn't any good at all.
Song: "Stay"
Team: Christina (bring-back) -
Adam Wakefield
As this year's token white guy with guitar, Adam gets a pass for a lack of originality. His tone is fine, but there's nothing really exciting going on here.
Song: "Seven Spanish Angels"
Team: Blake -
Mary Sarah
"(I Never Promised You A) Rose Garden" is the most modern song Mary Sarah has taken on so far, but her specialness suffers for trying to play along with the contemporary. She mumbles and loses the watchability factor that made her such an early standout, leaving her on-pitch but without many eyeballs or ears paying attention.
Song: "(I Never Promised You A) Rose Garden"
Team: Blake -
Katie Basden
Katie is great, but this performance is pretty lackluster. She tells Blake during rehearsals that she needs to find her connection to the song, but apparently never does. This difference makes it easy to look away, knowing logically that she's nailing the vocals but still not caring because there's not enough heart in the piece to make it truly captivating.
Song: "Georgia Rain"
Team: Blake -
Tamar Davis
Technically, what Tamar does is impressive, but this is still The Voice, not The Falsetto-Off. Besides, if you're going to stake an entire performance on your falsetto, you might want to make sure that you're not pitchy.
Song: "Rise Up"
Team: Christina -
Joe Maye
Joe's good, and the arrangement of the song is fun, but the performance itself is clearly over-rehearsed: each high note and pelvic thrust is carefully executed, and Joe's clearly more concerned with hitting his marks than with living in the moment. It takes a way from the performance a bit, but this is still one of the night's stronger overall outings.
Song: "Long Train Runnin'"
Team: Blake -
Justin Whisnant
Sure, Justin's another white guy with a guitar, but he's also more of a Merle Haggard or Johnny Cash-type gentleman than the average honky tonk joe. He takes care to watch his diction, as Blake asked, and his tone has a richer quality to it than the typical twang. His performance is fun, and while I probably wouldn't have missed him, I'm glad Blake made Justin his one bring-back.
Song: "Here's A Quarter (Call Someone Who Cares)"
Team: Blake (bring-back) -
Paxton Ingram
Paxton seems like a fun dude, and it's fun to watch him have fun with this performance, but the whole thing almost feels like a letdown in terms of substance. Lyrically, there's nothing going on, and though the arrangement varies, the tempo is never switched up quite enough to alter the pace of the overall piece. Paxton works the stage and makes the most of his time, but it's fluff on top of fluff instead of the real Bruno Mars-y moment it could have been.
Song: "How Deep Is Your Love"
Team: Blake -
Ryan Quinn
Ryan's clearly benefited from his team switch, even if Christina does have him angling for the heartthrob vote pretty overtly. His performance is simple, but the lyrics connect with his life experience (poor baby was cheated on) and the arrangement allows him to show off his full range. Pharrell nails it when he calls the whole thing "tender and awesome."
Song: "I'm Not The Only One"
Team: Christina -
Bryan Bautista
Bryan's a mess in rehearsal, but you would never know it from his confident live performance. His tone is clear and he has a great sense of cadence, working the arrangement to show off his vibrato with a string of smaller tricks before taking a moment (okay, two) to really show off his falsetto. It's all that's needed to be incredibly effective.
Song: "Pillowtalk"
Team: Christina -
Kata Hay
Kata was the original hot mess of the season, but she's somehow turned herself around in record time, delivering her second surprisingly polished performance in a row. She has a Joplin-like rasp to her vibrato, and an uncanny ability to control the pace of the performance, raising the crowd's interest as she works the stage. It's an impressive delivery of an otherwise uninspired song choice, and Curly Sue better watch her back as Kata gains even more confidence.
Song: "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman"
Team: Christina -
Alisan Porter
Sure, Alisan's getting the winner's edit, but when she keeps showing up and singing like this, it's hard to deny that she probably deserves it.
Song: "Cry Baby"
Team: Christina
What did you think of the bring-back gimmick? And what about the fact that we'll be saying goodbye to half of the performers on Wednesday? It feels like we haven't even gotten to know/hate them yet!