As The voice continued their Season 23 battles on Tuesday night, three more acts reached the end of the road – including one whose quirky personality had already endeared her to viewers during blind auditions. Who got the chop – and who was sent home with it? Keep reading.
Team Niall: Ross Clayton (Grade: B+) beat Laura Littleton (Grade: C) on “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around” | Paired by their trainer because they’re both kinda country – just like Stevie Nicks and Tom Petty on their classic – the contestants sounded great together. But aside, Ross really shined, taking Niall’s advice to heart to allow room for himself to grow and get grittier as the song progressed. Laura, on the other hand… I mean, you have to like her personality. But beyond the constant oscillation of his voice – and a bit of that goes a long way – I didn’t hear anything in his performance that was as “intoxicating” as the coaches.
Team Chance: Magnus (Grade: B) defeated Alyssa Lazar (Grade: C+) on “Your Song” | Ahead of rehearsal, Chance explained that he pitted these two against each other because he liked the mix of different styles — like Magnus’ soulful one, Alyssa’s rocky one. But on stage… huh. Not sure it fully worked. Alyssa, who had already been roughed up during the Blinds, was not at all bad — and even had a great time (that growl!). She just couldn’t match the overall richness of Magnus’ voice. It felt like “a warm, cozy home,” Blake said. Alyssa, he added, was using too much vibrato. Even Chance questioned his team members’ choices on their duet.
Team Kelly: Marcos Covos (Grade: C+?) defeated Sheer Element (Grade: B+?) on “I Could Fall in Love” | Hard to rate this battle as we heard what, like a single line of it? Anyway, in this snippet, Marcos was serving overworked lead vocals a la Omar Jose Cardona from season 22; Sheer Element, providing heavenly, harmonious backing vocals – which, again, based on a few seconds, at least, I preferred. Kelly, not so much. (Which means Season 16 returnee Jej Vinson now holds the distinction of being eliminated from The voice twice.)
Team Blake: Kylee Dayne (Grade: B-) defeated Mary Kate Connor (Grade: B) on “Anti-Hero” – Mary Kate Playoff Pass’d to the Playoffs | While both contestants sang quite nicely, they also sang quite… well, dully. It takes a lot to make this TayTay hit sound listless and limp, but yes, they managed to pull it off. If one stood out from the other – they were at their best when harmonizing – it was Mary Kate, whose voice is a bit higher pitched (in a good way) and therefore cut through the music for make at least a slightly larger impression. (A little puzzled as to how she deserved a Playoff Pass, but Team Chance’s Mariah Kalia didn’t even get Steal Monday.)
Did anyone really knock your socks off on Tuesday? Even a sock? Pick your favorite in the poll below, then hit the comments.
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