'The Voice' Season 2, Episode 5 Recap - 'Blind Auditions, Part 5'
by Andy NeuenschwanderFinally, the last installment of the blind auditions! By the end of the episode, the rosters will be filled. We hope. I like "The Voice," but they're dangerously close to pulling an "American Idol" here and making this process way longer than it needs to be.
Whitney Myer has a kind of a Cyndi Lauper look going on, but hey, it's a singing competition and not a fashion competition. She comes out with some Alicia Keys and sings it very nicely. She has a clear tone and pretty good control... but it's hard to tell with the control because after Adam, then Cee Lo, then Blake, and finally Christina turn, she's pretty elated.
The judges begin their pitches, and Adam says that Whitney reminded him of Mary J. Blige. Blake says that he also enjoyed watching how much fun Whitney was having. Adam gets his last words in. Christina gets hers in after that. Awkward count for Christina is at 1.
Eventually Whitney goes with Adam. He did give this one a hard sell, and after all, he turned his chair first. Another solid addition for his team... will he win again?
David Dunn looks like an elongated David Boreanaz. David is an engineer and his father wants him to work at his company. Awkward family moment as his dad says "we'll see how long it lasts" about his son's music career.
He begins singing and Adam's reaction says it all: this guy sounds like he could front Maroon 5. He has a high, smooth, slightly tremulous voice. But he's missing something, the oomph to make them turn. Plus, he's a little pitchy. And here I'm sure we all wanted him to be able to tell his dad to suck it.
The Shields Brothers are a duo of actual brothers who live on a farm with their parents. They're colorful, but their dad wins the comedy award, intentional or not, for his hopeful talk of his sons finally making some money.
They launch into "Dancing With Myself" with some simple and slightly messy harmony. But you can't fault them for their enthusiasm, I guess. The only person that would ever think to turn would be Cee Lo, and... there he goes. This could actually work.
To commemorate the win for the rockers, the guy in charge of the music chooses Smash Mouth to play them out. What? Stop that.
Cheesa is next, she's a Hawaiian native. She pronounces her name more like "Chessa," but I'm trusting that whoever is in charge of the titles here knows what they're doing with the spelling. Then again, considering we just heard Smash Mouth, I don't know if we can trust anyone.
Cheesa sings "If I Were A Boy," starting impressively low and still hitting the high notes. She can't seem to decide on a style here, throwing in some grit here and there but not really committing to it. Her voice is a little heavy, for lack of a better word. Cee Lo turns, who is exactly whom she wanted to turn. Cheesa actually flirts back at Cee Lo, much to the surprise of everyone everywhere. Even Cee Lo doesn't seem sure what to do with it.
Preston Shannon is the ripe old age of 64, and is the blues king of something or another. He's wearing a three-piece suit, and so I like him. He claims he needs some training, which is why he's here.
He sings "The Midnight Hour" with a predictably gravelly, soulful voice. It might be just a little too gravelly, as the mentors all consider it, but nobody turns. "Shit!" says Adam. "My sentiments exactly," responds Preston. Dammit, I like this guy! But there he goes.
Lex Land is a camp music counselor. She's a girl, in case the name Lex brings up images of Superman's arch nemesis for you. Lex is nervous about the coaches and the cameras and stuff, so we'll have to see if nerves get in the way.
She has a surprisingly smoky tone, though it sounds a little weak and covered by nerves. It's like she's constantly out of breath. Still, she gets Adam and Cee Lo to turn very quickly, and Blake follows. After that, she makes a couple of slip-ups, which Cee Lo blames on them turning so early.
Adam practically starts coaching Lex already. Blake says he had a "huuuuuuhhhhhh" going on when Lex started in that low, breathy start. That seems to win Lex over, because she chooses Blake. He'll have his hands full getting her on pitch and not nervous in front of a crowd, but if he did it with Xenia, why not Lex?
Cameron Novack is a "jack of all genres." He lists off his resume for us, which includes going to Europe to sing opera. He also raps, I guess. He demonstrates both in the lobby. God, I hope nobody chooses him.
Cameron starts in on "You Oughta Know," and does this obnoxious warble thing at the top. Everybody keeps looking at Cee Lo, but Cee Lo wants none of it. After nobody picks him (yay!), Cee Lo admits he "made a mistake," and then they all wonder if they can cheat and have Cee Lo take him anyway (no!), but then Cee Lo says that it would "ruin the integrity of the show" (yay!).
And now, Betty White and Zac Efron are in front of a green screen, pretending to audition for The Voice, with the Lorax in one of the chairs. And I am sad about everything.
Orlando Napier is one of the guys to get his invitation from Carson directly, and he says something weird about doors. Apparently he also went to jail for fighting in a bar. He plays in a band with his dad, who wears a fine scarf.
Orlando gets Adam to turn almost immediately, despite the fact that he's singing "Waiting on the World to Change." Yuck. At least the dude has some style, though, with a very specific delivery. Adam is the only one to turn, which means his roster is now full. Not sure this was the best choice for his last spot, but it'll work.
Lee Koch is a baker, which is great because his last name is pronounced "cook." Words are fun! Lee comes out and does "Like a Rolling Stone," with an interesting approach. It is a bit like what Bob Dylan probably would have sang like if he had been born in the mid-80's.
He's certainly interesting, but not enough to turn the judges. There isn't really much movement to the melody in this song either. Adam lazily taps his button, which at this point does nothing. Christina, surprisingly, presses her button. I guess she's going the eclectic route. The harmonica sold her. The derby hat sold me.
Wade is up next, and it's hard to tell from the font, but I do believe he spells his name in all caps. So, make that WADE. Fun. It's like he's yelling at us at all times.
Wade does an interesting arrangement of "Rehab" and, unsurprisingly, turns Cee Lo. The whole thing is pretty funky. His voice has some power and soul behind it, but with a lighter tinge to it. This should be a good matchup. So that fills Cee Lo's team.
Adley Stump has a mighty country-fied name, doesn't she? She says she's only been singing for 10 months. Huh. Her mother brings up her potty training, and the mortified look on Adley's face is pretty priceless.
She launches into "Last Name," and it sounds pitchy at first, but it seems as though she might just be making some choices with the song that are making her sound flat. She has a very strong voice, but you can really tell the difference between someone who has been trained, and someone who has been singing for 10 months.
Still, Blake and Christina turn, and Adley's mom literally jumps on Carson. Christina insults Blake's training, and then says "I love you Blake, we're still going to go fishing," to which Blake responds "Good, I'm gonna drown you." Zing of the show, thus far. The two of them argue, but of course Adley goes with Blake. So that completes Blake's team.
Following that, Christina gets to be picky about the following singers, including a couple of pitchy ones and a girl who sings "Friday." Yes, by Rebecca Black. Really?
Sera Hill is the last one up, so clearly she's going to be Christina's last team member. Sera does "I'm Going Down," and while it isn't a particularly inventive cover, it's definitely a strong one. Christina waits until she hears the entire chorus (checking for pitch, I'm sure), then hits her button.
Christina says she wants to sing the song with Sera, and actually picks up a mic and does it. Sera is ecstatic, and it's a pretty cute moment. Nice way to wrap up the auditions.
So, here are the full teams as we head into the battle rounds:
Team Adam: Tony Lucca, Angel Taylor, Chris Cauley, Katrina Parker, Mathai, Karla Davis, Pip, Nicolle Galyon, Nathan Parrett, Kim Yarbrough, Whitney Myer, Orlando Napier
Team Cee Lo: Juliet Simms, Jamar Rogers, James Massone, Sarah Golden, Angie Johnson, Jamie Lono, Erin Martin, Justin Hopkins, The Shields Brothers, Tony Vincent, Cheesa, WADE
Team Blake: RaeLynn, Erin Willett, Jermain Paul, ALyX, Jordan Rager, Gwen Sebastian, Naia Kete, Lex Land, Jordis Unga, Charlotte Sometimes, Brian Fuente, Adley Stump
Team Christina: Jesse Campbell, Monique Benabou, Ashley De La Rosa, The Line, Jonathas, Anthony Evans, Chris Mann, Moses Stone, Geoff McBride, Lindsey Pavao, Lee Koch, Sera Hill