TV Review

The night started off promising on The Voice with the four coaches joining forces in singing “Under Pressure” by Queen (and David Bowie). The men sounded amazing, Christina Aguilera did not shine. She appeared to be having trouble hearing, and once she joined the song I had a problem listening.

Continuing to separate themselves from American Idol, each finalist sang an original song and a duet with their coach. It was a good combination and it worked. Brad Paisley, Pitbull and Ne-Yo also appeared (not together, thank goodness!).

First up with his original song was Javier Colon singing “Stitch By Stitch.” It was a good song, but it was a bit boring. It appears that Coach Adam Levine has finally drilled it into Javier’s head that he needn’t add runs to every song he sings. The result is a much more radio worthy song.

Dia Frampton and Coach Blake Shelton took the stage looking like the Blues Brothers to sing Tom Petty’s “I Won’t Back Down.” It was a good song choice for Dia, but her voice is so breathy that it didn’t really work. Especially when Blake Shelton took over his part of the duet and really showed strong vocals.

Vicci Martinez put her war dance to her original “Afraid To Sleep.” I liked the lyrics to the song and overall I give it to her for the best original performance. Vicci has a way of commanding you to watch her. She doesn’t have the most unique voice, not by a long shot, but she does have a strong husky tone that I like. Vicci thanked Adam Levine for a pair of jeans he got for her after she told him she admired the ones he was wearing (I’d love any pair of jeans he’s in too). Blake Shelton commented that, “I can’t say she’s been in my jeans, but…” Comment of the night from Coach Shelton.

Rapper Pitbull took the stage with singer Ne-Yo and sounded strained at best. Neither sounded good, and the song was inappropriate for the age group of the tween audience watching at home.

Beverly McClellan and Coach Christina Aguilera took the stage to sing their duet. Aguilera decided to stretch herself vocally by choosing her own song “Beautiful” for them to sing. It was good, but of course Aguilera could not allow Beverly to have her night in the spotlight. While the duet was good, I can’t say it was the best.

Dia Frampton come on next with her solo original “Inventing Shadows.” I liked the song, but again the breathy sounds just bothered me. Not as much as the shadow dancers bothered Christina Aguilera and Adam Levine. Aguilera was on a roll tonight, and not in a good way. Coach Blake Shelton told them both that they’d be distracted later by Dia topping the iTunes charts with her single.

Adam Levine and Javier Colon took on Michael Jackson’s “Man In the Mirror” for their duet. I was a little worried for them. It turned out really pretty good for both guys having such high voices. They seemed to work off each other well and the crowd got into it. This was my favorite duet of the night, due to Aguilera’s refusal to let Beverly sing.

Brad Paisley came out to sing some true country music, teaming with Blake Shelton for “Don’t Drink the Water.” It was fun… Shelton has a way of making everything look fun.

Beverly McClellan’s solo was a sort of rock anthem original called “Lovesick.” I think Beverly may win because she has a strong following, but I don’t think this song did anything for her. She had to throw in her prerequisite “woooooooo” which just bothers me.

Coach CeeLo Green and Vicci Martinez gave the final performance with “Love Is a Battlefield” by Pat Benetar. It was the perfect song choice for Vicci and CeeLo allowed her to rule the stage. They included a major dance show with it and CeeLo was dressed like a video game lord. I think he should stick to producing, he has a way of bringing out the fierceness in a performer, but he’s not a great singer. At least not tonight. But then again, it wasn’t about him, and unlike Aguilera, he knew that.

So that was it for the final performances of Season 1 on The Voice. I’m hoping Vicci Martinez wins, mostly because I think she’s the only one to not have released an album on her own yet. All the rest have, and have been dropped by their labels. It’s a tough business and I think Vicci deserves her shot.

Who do you think is going to win The Voice tomorrow night? Did you vote? Don’t forget to watch the finale of The Voice tomorrow night on NBC at 8/7c.