The Voice 10: The Knockouts Part 1

I'm back! The Battle Round is finally done - as you should know by now, I don't review them for the most part - and The Knockout Round is here. To be honest, I'm still not particularly fond of this stage of the competition as I feel like some of the pairings are a little unfair since they usually throw in favorites with some cannon fodders, but I digress.

As for the performances, I thought it was mostly good given how deep the talent pool is this season. I'm surprisingly very excited for the Live Show. I kid you not.

On with the show!

TEAM BLAKE

Angie Keilhauer
Take Your Time
On paper, this should've been a brilliant song choice - given the unconventional structure of the song - but she just executed it poorly. Her pitch, in particular, was terrible and failed to deliver the potential this performance initially had. 4

Paxton Ingram
Hometown Glory
Not entirely a big fan of Paxton's almost whiny tone, but I can't deny the fact that this was a better performance than Angie. The arrangement was structured in a way where he had enough vocal bombast to highlight his range and restraint to prove control. 7

WINNER: Paxton Ingram

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TEAM ADAM

Owen Danoff
She's Always A Woman
This was a lovely, understated performance from Owen. I wasn't sure about the song choice - this would've been a total snoozer if handled by a less capable vocalist - but he managed to make it sound interesting with the little liberties he took with the melody. 8

Ryan Quinn
Drops of Jupiter
There was something missing with Ryan's version of Drops of Jupiter. Vocally, it was, arguably, superior than Owen, but the performance strangely lacked a connection that I always get from him. It just came off empty and that's not a good thing. Glad he's given another chance because I can actually see him winning the whole show. 7

WINNER: Owen Danoff

STEAL: Ryan Quinn (Team Christina)

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TEAM PHARRELL

Hannah Huston
House of the Rising Sun
Other than her distracting hand gestures, Hannah delivered possibly one of the best vocal performances this season. Her control was impeccable, the vocal dynamics was impressive, and she delivered it with enough fire and passion that's hard to ignore. Fantastic! 9

Malik Heard
Isn't She Lovely
Sad. Malik had a pretty stellar Battle Round performance and to see him deliver a good but hardly memorable performance was quite unfortunate. Yes, his vocals were mostly fine and his energy was infectious, but when you're up against a vocal beast, Isn't She Lovely just wasn't the best decision. 7

WINNER: Hannah Huston

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TEAM BLAKE

Katie Basden
Gypsy
I have a confession to make: I've NEVER heard of this song. That said, she sold this long like it was her. Her rich vocal tone was fantastic, the haunting melody - or was it the arrangement? - complemented her voice and vibe perfectly, and her phrasing was exquisite. Look, Katie has always been a cannon fodder to me, but she proved to be a fantastic dark horse after this. 8.5

Lacy Mandigo
Zombie
Lacy has been a very dependable vocalist - she held her own against an insanely talented Alisan Porter - but this was a bit underwhelming. I don't know. It felt mechanical and tepid with little connection to the song. Plus, I honestly don't see her winning this thing. 7

WINNER: Katie Basden

STEAL: Lacy Mandigo (Team Pharrell)

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TEAM CHRISTINA

Alisan Porter
River
There's no denying that Alisan is an outstandingly fantastic vocalist, but parts of this performance came off terribly indulgent. Look, everything sounded absolutely gorgeous from her tone to her transitions to her impressively perfect pitch, but that belting note in the middle of the performance, while fascinatingly riveting, did not make sense. Was it just to show off? 8

Daniel Passino
Ain't Too Proud To Beg
Eh. Of course, his vocals were good, but I didn't care much about this. 6

WINNER: Alisan Porter

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TEAM PHARRELL

Emily Keener
Big Yellow Taxi
I actively hated her Blind Audition with a passion, but this was a huge improvement from that vocal mess. I thought her vocals were more consistently on pitch, I appreciated the humor she added to the performance, and her tone actually sounded sublime. She was slightly behind the rhythm as soon as the band kicked in, but that's more of a nitpick than anything else. 8

Shalyah Fearing
A Broken Wing
This girl has some serious potential! Yes, her vocals weren't perfect - her intonation was wobbly in parts and her phasing needed some work - but her range and ability to connect with the material was more than impressive. She was fearless to say the least. 8

WINNER: Emily Keener

STEAL: Shalyah Fearing (Team Adam)