'The Voice' Season 3, Episode 8 Recap - 'Blind Auditions #8'

Home stretch: we're almost done with the blind auditions. Which is good, because as fun as these can be, they get a bit monotonous after a while. Plus, I'm excited to see the new battle rounds with the steal option. That sounds like fun on a bun, as Bender would say.

Nathalie Hernandez is 15, which must be the low end of the age restrictions on this show. Because "The Voice," unlike "The X Factor," realizes that 13 is too young to shatter dreams. She starts on "White Horse," and before the first few notes are out, Blake and Christina turn. You can't blame them, either: Natalie has the loveliest, softest tone, sort of Dia Frampton-esque. But she does show of a bit of power later, which gets Adam to turn too. There are some small control problems, but hey, she's 15.

The coaches state their cases, with Blake trying to convince Natalie that it was a country song. She doesn't buy that. But he does say that she "told a story" with her performance. Apparently that wasn't enough, as Natalie goes with Christina. Interesting, having a soft, folksy singer on Christina's team.

Rod Michael looks exactly how his name makes him sound. He used to be in a boy band called B3 over in Europe, but they never got any traction in America, so here he is. His performance of "Please Don't Go" is very boy-band-ish. He has a nice enough tone and some showmanship, but there's nothing particularly special about him, so nobody turns. He seemed like kind of a douche anyway. Not to make snap judgements or anything.

Caitlin Michele has three different colors in her hair. Three! She looks like one of those astro popsicles. Caitlin suffers from panic attacks, but luckily not while she's singing, so thank god for that, or this could be a really bad scenario. She's taking on "Cosmic Love" by Florence + the Machine, which is a pretty big mountain to climb, but she totally kills it.

Blake turns first on Caitlin's first big note, then Adam follows later on her next one. Very surprised that Cee Lo didn't turn, considering he's used a Florence song before. Adam noted some pitch things, which I didn't hear, and even Blake says "bullsh*t!" when Adam says it. Christina actually suggests Adam to Caitlin, which shocks everyone. That does the trick, and Caitlin lands with Adam.

Nicole Johnson wrote her first song when she was 7, apparently. I'd like to hear that song. What's it about, nap time? Nicole goes with a country version of "Mr. Know It All" that actually works really nicely. Of course Blake turns, but Cee Lo turns with him. Blake is really excited about the country cover, Cee Lo has a lot of questions about it. "You had me at 'thang,'" says Blake, referring to Nicole's twangy take on the chorus. Of course Nicole goes with Blake. How could you resist that line?

Kameron Corvet is a middle school French teacher, but that doesn't stop him from wearing fashionable scarves. He has a bunch of flag stickers on his guitar, which is intriguing. All French speaking countries? I see France and Canada on there. Kameron does Seal's "Crazy," which I've never heard before but it does very much like a Seal song. I thought he was pretty good, but nobody turns. Christina thought it needed more of a build. She has a point.

Chevonne is a background singer who performed in Lady Gaga's tour. She looks it. If you squint, you could swear she's Gaga herself. She sings "Brass in Pocket," which is a great song, but not very well suited for this competition as it lacks range and build. She puts some in herself, though, and gets Cee Lo and Blake to turn at the last second.

Blake notes that he has some success with background singers, referencing his season two winner who performed with Alicia Keys. Chevonne opens up about her past struggles with eating disorders, which oddly did not come out during her interview segment. After some deliberation, and even after Blake throws in a last-ditch "I love you," Chevonne goes with Cee Lo. Good fit.

Kayla Nevarez is just 17, but says she was influenced by her dad's musical taste and is into soul and doo-wop. Interesting. Her dad is also very sick with liver disease, so there's her story. She's currently living in a two-bedroom apartment with seven people. Damn, hon. This isn't "The X Factor." You don't have to have THAT sad a story.

She launches into "American Boy" with gusto, getting Adam to turn before she even hits the first verse. Christina follows soon after, then Cee Lo. She has some interesting quirks to her voice and solid control, especially considering her age. Christina comes right out saying "I'm your coach." When Cee Lo asks about Kayla's influences, she answers "Christina Aguilera." Adam tries his best to wiggle in there, but Christina is determined, clearly more excited about Kayla than anyone thus far. But then, Kayla goes with Adam. Christina is livid! If only Kayla knew that Christina never gets that excited.

So that fills Adam's team. Full rosters at the end of the recap.

Celica Westbrook comes from a long line of singers, but apparently doesn't have enough connections to get a record deal. She almost got one when she was 14, and was apparently going to tour with Justin Bieber. No dice, though. She starts up on "A Thousand Years" and has a nice tone and good control. Christina turns quickly, and Cee Lo follows later, along with Blake.

Blake asks "what are they giving these kids?" when Celica reveals that she's 16. Cee Lo attempts to say "peripheral vision" but says something like "peripital vision." Christina pitches hard again, but not as hard as Kayla. She does say "you need to be on the radio right now." That does it for Celica, who goes with Christina and fills the last spot on her team.

That leaves just Cee Lo and Blake, who suddenly get very picky with just one spot remaining on each team.

Jessica Cayne is up next, and she tells a story about being overweight when she was younger and being bullied. Here's a fun fact: this girl was in season two, episode 1 of "Dating in the Dark" and ended up being chosen at the end. Guess she's on the reality show circuit. Unfortunately, she doesn't get chosen here. She's strong on the verses on "Good Girl" by Carrie Underwood, but can't quite hit the runs on the chorus. Tough song. Jessie gets a hug from Christina. And hey, at least Dave chose her on "Dating in the Dark."

Rudy Parris is a 46-year-old rock fan who idolized Kiss. But he gave up on trying to be a big touring rock star so that he could raise his daughter. She's now 22, so he can do his thing. For a guy who was into Kiss, Rudy sure does go up there and sing "Every Breath You Take" as slowly and countrified as possible. That's enough to get Blake to turn, and Cee Lo is impressed by the pipes too, and turns later. But Rudy is rooted in country, and goes with Blake.

So, Cee Lo now gets his pick of the remaining contestants. Cody Belew, a southern boy who's the son of a bull rider, looks like he's going to be the guy. Cody started in country, but then got into soul, and is hoping Cee Lo will choose him. He also says he thinks he was a black woman in a past life. Cody might just be crazy enough for Team Cee Lo. Sure enough, his rendition of "Hard to Handle" has the coaches' toes tapping and gets Cee Lo to turn, but only at the very last second. At first, Cody doesn't realize that Cee Lo hit his button, so when he sees it, he absolutely flips out. "YOU HIT IT?!" he says, followed by a string of ecstatic profanity.

So there we go. Here's how the final rosters for each team stack up:

Team Adam: Bryan Keith, Joe Kirkland, Samuel Mouton, Loren Allred, Nicole Nelson, Melanie Martinez, Brian Scartocci, Alessandra Guercio, Adanna Duru, Collin McLoughlin, Benji, Michelle Brooks-Thompson, Brandon Mahone, Sam James, Caitlin Michele, Kayla Nevarez

Team Cee Lo: Daniel Rosa, Trevin Hunte, MacKenzie Bourg, DOMO, JR Aquino, Nicholas David, Avery Wilson, Mycle Wastman, Emily Earle, Ben Taub, Todd Kessler, Diego Val, Alexis Marceaux, Amanda Brown, Chevonne, Cody Belew

Team Christina: De'Borah, Devyn DeLoera, Adriana Louise, Aquile, Nelly's Echo, Lisa Scinta, Marissa Ann, Beat Frequency, Paulina, Joselyn Rivera, Dez Duron, Jordan Pruitt, Laura Vivas, Sylvia Yacoub, Nathalie Hernandez, Celica Westbrook

Team Blake: Terry McDermott, Gracia Harrison, Casey Muessigmann, Julio Cesar Castillo, 2 Steel Girls, Liz Davis, Kelly Crapa, Suzanna Cheffel, Terisa Griffin, Michaela Paige, Ryan Jirovec, Lelia Broussard, Charlie Rey, Cassadee Pope, Nicole Johnson, Rudy Parris