The Voice Australia

[JimJim]

Song choices for Monday...

Avril Lavigne – I'm With You
Whitney Houston – How Will I Know
Chris Brown – Forever
The Cure – Friday I'm In Love
Stevie Wonder – I Believe (When I Fall It Will Be Forever)
Bonnie Raitt – I Can't Make You Love Me
Silverchair – Straight Lines
Dire Straits – Romeo and Juliet

I'll guess...

Brittany // Avril
Lakyn // The Cure
Diana // Bonnie Raitt
Ben // Chris Brown
Darren // Dire Straits
Sarah // Silverchair
Prinnie // Whitney
Adam // Stevie Wonder

[JimJim]

Well me guesses were right for most of them!

I'm shattered that Emma Louise went home, a big loss IMO

Anyways, the show delivered again tonight! Let's look at the breakdown...

THE BEST
Darren - Obviously, does anyone really question this? The reaction in the studio was insane. He lacks a bit in versatility IMO, but what he does, he does immaculately.

GREAT
Ben - I'm totally sold, sign me up as a #Hazlenut
Diana - The consummate professional, she is all class. Delivered once again and in a completely different capacity, anyone else think she looks like Tina Arena?

GOOD
Lakyn - Much improved over the previous week, not versatile enough IMO.
Adam - He certainly has his niche, I can see him being popular with the Triple J crowd, he's like the less-mainstream supposedly-indie Lakyn

OKAY
Brittany - I turned to my housemate and said "this could be her 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' moment"... was I right? Perhaps, I think the performance was alright, that moment when the band came in was indeed very nice... but! This won't win her any votes. Very much like Viktoria, she's gone from a front-runner to now fighting for survival.

BAD AND/OR FORGETTABLE
Prinnie - It was fun and nicely sung, but I feel that the original CD recording of that track has this strange magic about it and it is very hard recapture in a live setting, let alone in a cover.

Waiting for iTunes before I make my predictions. No doubt Darren will be #1 tomorrow.

[gagaculture]

You forgot Sarah JimJim

Disappointed Viktoria and Emma went home

Diana and Darren were outstanding! Ben was really great too. I also really enjoyed Adam's performance. I thought Sarah was good too and I think will get voted in by the public for Team Joel.

Poor Prinne, I feel like she gets stuck with pretty bad song choices. They aren't bad songs per se, as she can sing them well, but they are just forgettable when sung live IMO.

I see Darren & Diana making it through for Team Keith, while Sarah & Ben go through on team Joel (unless Lakyn's fan girls vote him in).

[JimJim]

Oh whoops! Sarah would be in the 'okay' or maybe 'good' category, it wasn't particularly memorable and her belting went into some borderline unpleasant territory. She is very hot though...

iTunes is starting to update now...

#25. Sarah De Bono // How Will I Know
#34. Darren Percival // I Believe
#37. Ben Hazlewood // I'm With You
#54. Adam Martin // Romeo & Juliet
#87. Brittany Cairns // Straight Lines
#95. Diana Rouvas // I Can't Make You Love Me

This will look very different in a couple of hours though.

[Virgostar]

Had to catch up today, was out for a bit last night & missed the first 3 performances. I think last night's show was better than last week's actually!

Not too surprised who went through on Team Delta, kinda thought Glenn might get through in the end, cos listening back to Viktoria on the voting ads I have to admit she sounded on the awful side....but I am surprised by Fatai getting through on Team Seal! Really thought Emma Louise would get through and I'm a bit sad I won't get to see her anymore. Still, I think she'll go places regardless, she is very talented.

The Best

Darren - Yep, I too felt as though I was being baptised! MAN that performance was awesome, such heart and soul oooooooooooooooozing from him, the studio going NUTS etc. I agree that he lacks versatility, but he does what he does so well that you can't help but love him for it. He's tooooootally going through to the semis.
Diana - Loving this lady more and more every week. I did feel that heartbreak coming from her (or from the pained expressions on her face) and she looked gorgeous to boot too.

Good
Brittany - She's borderline between great & good for me, I do agree that if she'd pushed herself further with what can be/is an epic sort of tune, she would've been one of the best on the night. I felt as though it was lacking a little, despite there being some nice moments.

OK
Lakyn - Better than his last performance that's for sure. Still not fussed on him, but I think he's a sure bet to go through, basically due to the fangirl votes.
Adam - Another niche artist. I preferred his last performance to this one I have to say.
Sarah - I actually can't remember her performance that much today, but I remember it being good enough for me to consider voting for her. I dug her gold tunic/dress!
Prinnie - Sung it well, but she's borderline between here and forgettable sadly. I think she can do better than this show, but I haven't seen that yet. She won't make it through.
Ben - I haven't got the heart to put him any lower than here, but tbh I didn't enjoy that performance as much as others did. I do think he's got talent, certainly more than Lakyn IMO, but aside from his battle round performance (I missed his blind audition sadly), I haven't seen anything to convince me that he's destined for greatness.

Who will go through?

Darren & Diana for sure from Team Keith. Unless Brittany can pull off a miracle with her Britter Critters in the voting, but I doubt Keith would pick her.
Sarah and Lakyn or Ben from Team Joel. Prinnie's nowhere in the mix, but Ben could be the surprise here. Sarah will get through on public vote I reckon, but it'll be interesting to see whether Joel goes with Lakyn or Ben. I'd like him to go with Ben, but the smarter money says he might pick Lakyn instead.

[JimJim]

The thing is, iTunes has been so good at predicting the results, even with who the judges pick. The judges always pick whoever the next most popular person was on iTunes after the public vote winner. The only exception to this is when Joel picked Prinnie over Laura.

I think the results will be...

Team Keith...
- Darren on public vote
- Diana picked by Keith

Team Joel...
- Sarah on public vote
- Ben picked by Joel (wouldn't be surprised if he drags Lakyn through though)

Very funny recap on THE AGE WEBSITE

[Virgostar]

Forgot to mention that the Team Joel group performance was ACE! Keith's one wasn't bad either, but I think Team Joel's was the best out of the groups.

Just reading that recap now...I can't get through a paragraph without bursting into laughter! Team Tigger (The hair was great I have to admit.)

[JimJim]

Team Joel? For real?

IMO:
#1. Team Delta // Born To Try
#2. Team Seal // Kiss From a Rose
#3. Team Keith // I'm In
#4. Team Joel // Dance Floor Anthem

Joel's voice is so up and down for me, sometimes he sounds great - see: [V] Performance of 'Lifestyles of the Rich & The Famous' or even when the judges sang 'One'. Whereas, other times he sounds absolutely crap.

[Virgostar]

OK, I kinda take that back...I enjoyed that team performance the most out of them all and although Joel's voice was pretty bad, I think his team carried the whole thing and did a great job (well, Sarah/Prinnie/Ben did anyway), hence why I thought it was ace. All of this coming from someone who isn't a Good Charlotte fan by any stretch.

I guess if I had to rate it based on overall:

Delta (ends up being top cos she actually sung better than Joel did during her team performance)
Joel (would've been top if he'd sung better)
Keith
Seal

[JimJim]

Ben has now overtaken Sarah on iTunes...

#1. Darren Percival
#2. Diana Rouvas
#4. Ben Hazlewood
#5. Sarah De Bono
#6. Adam Martin
#12. Lakyn Heperi
#20. Brittany Cairns
#105. Prinnie Stevens

Also, apparently Ben came fourth in NZ Idol a few years ago

[king_oxymoron]

Full recap tomorrow but just as a controversial opinion - despite how professional or whatever Darren and Diana are, I find them a bit boring.

What a shame that Adam will go home when in the last two weeks he has been the best of team Keith by miles for me. Thought he killed it tonight, would LOVE his album!

[JimJim]

^ Where is this full recap? *cough*

Anyways, here are the songs for Monday, obviously dependent on who gets through...

Bryan Adams - Heaven
Il Divo - Nights In White Satin (Notte De Luce)
Jeff Buckley - Hallelujah
Donna Summer - On The Radio
T-Bone Walker - Stormy Monday Blues
The Temper Trap - Love Lost
Rickie Lee Jones - Chuck E's In Love
Rose Royce - Love Don't Live Here Anymore
Jason Derulo - Breathing
Leon Russell - A Song For You
Tiffany Taylor & Company - Here's Where I Stand
Emeli Sande - My Kind of Love

[gagaculture]

Let me just say, I was shocked he picked Darren over Diana.

I just can't get over that, Diana was AMAZING. Not discrediting Darren, because he is great but Diana is on a whole other level IMO. She's phenomenal and I'm really, really disappointed he didn't put her through.

[king_oxymoron]

^ Where is this full recap? *cough*

Whoops First I'd like to say that I obviously know Australia better than you lot #mysticmeg - happy for Fatai!

Secondly, not looking at the post above me as I THINK you've had another episode already...

So my last week critique - typically my top 4 are the bottom four on Oz iTunes

01. Adam - Romeo & Juliet
Absolutely love this, considering he was told by Seal he didn't connect in battles he has been the one to connect with me most. A very credible performance, loved his different stylings for different lines. One of my favourites of the series.

02. Brittany - Straight Lines
This was kinda odd and very different for her but that made it GREAT! Perhaps I just liked the song but I just really enjoyed myself. Loved her variations of high and low choruses... a very interesting showing.

03. Prinnie - Forever
My favourite performance of hers! Very slick and polished, great choreography... very well performed.

04. Lakyn - Friday I'm In Love
Nice to see him go upbeat but I would say I have preferred his other showings so far. Still his tone is just absolute quality.

05. Diana - I Can't Make You Love Me
I don't find her very exciting and she looks awful but vocally I do have to say this was very beautiful and she is indeed very professional.

06. Darren - I Believe
There were parts in the verse which were heaven, but I think it was overegged by the end and the chorus of that song is just dull and allowed him to showcase nothing. I don't think he's as other worldly as everyone is hyping him up to be.

07. Ben - I'm With You
Agree with Shell, he shone in the battle rounds, otherwise I don't think he makes songs his own or stands out enough. He has got high on itunes just based on the song IMO and those big 'I'm with youuuuuuuuuuuuuu' notes, which weren't even that well done. One of the bigger disappointments for me.

08. Sarah - How Will I Know?
Not sure why everyone went wild for this. Lots of wrong/cracked notes and it was a bit screechy.

To go through I'm predicting Darren very easily for Keith. Then it's really a Brittany/Diana fight with Adam getting very little look in. Suspect he'll pick Diana based on her last perfomance, despite Brittany being the better singer and having hit No.1

Joel is harder. Ben is the obvious one just based on ITunes and the fact it's two votes, but wouldn't rule out the Lakyn voting army. Will say Ben with Joel picking Sarah just as she's a girl.
08.

[JimJim]

I'm not shocked that Keith picked Darren - he's the more popular one sales-wise, so I guess it is logical to have the best chance of winning by taking your most popular contestant through. However, I agree, Diana was consistently amazing and better than a couple of the others who are in the final four.

Karise pretty much has this competition in the bag, she has the popularity and is peaking at pretty much the exact right time. I don't quite get how they will market her post-show, I get Casey Donovan vibes from her in that perspective.

Team Delta has no hope of winning, Team Joel has the youthful pop market in hand, but I think it's gonna be pretty much Darren v Karise. Does anyone know if they are singing 'winner's singles' next week?

And here's iTunes:

#1. Karise Eden // Hallelujah [with a considerable lead]
#5. Darren Percival // I Believe
#13. Darren Percival // A Song For You
#14. Sarah De Bono // Here's Where I Stand
#17. Karise Eden // Landslide
#20. Rachael Leahcar // Nights In White Satin
#27. Karise Eden // Nothing's Real But Love
#34. Sarah De Bono // How Will I Know
#49. Karise Eden // It's a Man's World

...and that's just top 4 contestants in the top 50.

[Virgostar]

Watch out, tl;dr time!

I wouldn't say Team Delta's got no chance of winning. I think Rachael's got just as much of a shot at being 2nd than Darren does...or hell, even winning the whole thing. Don't think Sarah will get anywhere in the mix.

Mind you, Rachael's performance last night was booooooooooooooooring and I didn't like it. Maybe cos I know and love the Moody Blues original so much that anything else just doesn't compare. Same sort of thing with Halleujah, cept that (a) the song has been done to death and (b) I know and love the Jeff Buckley cover so much that no other cover can compare. However, I give props to Seal for finally letting Karise rip...still waiting for another blown-away moment like her blind audition.

IMO Keith should've taken Diana through - don't get me wrong, I am a fan of Darren, how could you send her home after that performance? It was IN-SAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANE! <3 <3 <3 Best performance on the night and, dare I say it, the best performance by anyone on the entire show to date! I guess as someone said on Today this morning, he was being pragmatic & looking at the field, decided to send a bloke through to make things not-so-one-sided and also the popularity thing might've swayed his decision too. Now I wish she'd been on another team so she could've got through to the final. If she ends up releasing something post-show, methinks I'll be buying it.

Anyhoo, some more quick thoughts:

- Fatai had her best performance IMO last night.
- Thank heavens Lakyn didn't get through!
- Still wasn't enthused about Ben, but I did feel for him a bit when he didn't get through. Could see the look of disappointment on his face.
- Glenn was pretty good, but I don't think he topped his previous performance.

Who would I like to win? Karise or Darren. Not sure how either would be marketed though post-show. If I had to absolutely make a choice...Karise. I've been a fan since day dot, even if her performances post-blind auditions haven't been entirely up to scratch (save for maybe battle rounds and last night). I'm waiting for that voice to be unleashed Diana-style!
Who will win? Karise. The mags love her and her story.

[picciottino]

totally agree about Diana's performance! I was like this O.O

amazing, I liked her way more than Darren and I hope she manages to grab a record deal =)

[Virgostar]

Thoughts on last night:

Sarah - Thought she overdid the Tina Arena cover a bit, but her original is a bonafide radio & chart hit already IMO....it's just one of those songs you could hear getting airplay. Hate to say it, but I think she'll win on the strength of that + the power of social media/Joel whoring her out on Twitter...

Karise - Her original wasn't too bad. I could feel the pain in the lyrics, but overall I think there was something missing in the arrangement. Just seemed a little boring to me. Luckily she killed it with Stay With Me Baby...now THAT'S what I've been waiting since blind auditions to see! Excellent.

Rachael - She nearly brought me to tears with her Smile cover, that was lovely. As for her original, I dug the sentiment behind it and it was nice, but I couldn't see it being a hit.

Darren - Enjoyed the original, like Karise he sang from life experience & I enjoyed seeing him perform at the piano too. Out of all the originals, his is the other one that I thought was the best. Stevie Wonder cover was tops too, but not entirely as tops as I Believe.

My $ are still on a Karise win, but I wouldn't be too surprised if Sarah is crowned the first Voice of Australia tonight. I'll be a bit disappointed if she is cos I find that she overcooks the vocals at times.

Does anybody know if the originals that they did will be their first single if they win? I'm going to presume so until I know otherwise. Either way, it's nice to see that happen on a show like this...just shows what extra talent these people have and I don't know if other versions of the show overseas allow that aspect, but I'd say not.

[JimJim]

I was a little underwhelmed by the final performances for two reasons:
- Poor song choices (which has been a consistent problem with this show)
- The original songs were only alright

I still think Karise has it in the bag, her original song wasn't too interesting though. The only one I could actually see working as a single would have been Sarah's. Like I said to my housemate, you can have the best lyrics in the world, but without a good hook and melody, it's just a glorified poem.

iTunes insanity:

#1. Karise // Stay With Me Baby
#2. Karise // I Was Your Girl
#3. Sarah // Beautiful
#4. Karise // Hallelujah
#5. Darren // Damage Down
#6. Darren // For Once In My Life
#7. Rachael // Smile
#8. Rachael // Shooting Star
#9. Karise // Nothing's Real But Love
#10. Flo Rida // Whistle

+ a shitload of others in the top 100

[gagaculture]

I assume no one was shocked with the winner, as it was pretty predictable.

One thing that surprised me was that Sarah was in fourth place, I thought she would have been second.

Man am I gutted that the show is over. What am I going to do with my Monday nights

[Virgostar]

SPOILER ALERT! (For Adam/king_oxymoron's sake and anybody else who hasn't seen the finale yet.)

Well I was wrong in who joined Karise in the top 2! Glad it came down to her & Darren, my 2 faves left in the competition. Also really glad that Karise won...heard her original from last night on 2DayFM today, just briefly. Also loved the emotion from Darren in his thank you speech too. Really surprised at Sarah coming 4th!

Was the song Karise sang at the end an original or not? I felt as though it was a cover. Unoriginal name for a first album though. I think somehow the ARIA top 10 next week is going to be completely Voice-ified!

Now I dunno what I'll do with my Monday nights...shall miss it.

[gagaculture]

Yep, the song she sang at the end was an original. Its her first single.

[Virgostar]

Knew it was her first single, just wasn't sure if it was an original song or a cover. Thanks!

[king_oxymoron]

I can't remember enough about the ahowings to comment in great detail but I was happy with the winner... Karise grew on me a lot by the end with great performances of Stay With Me Baby and (especially) Hallelujah.

Wasn't too fussed on their original songs to be honest but I did love their duets - Sarah and Joel's 'It Will Rain' was crazy good!

Shame Diana didn't make it - agree with Shell she just got better and better.
As with all Voice finals, I did feel it was a tad boring, but best of luck to Karise!