<p>I’ll be watching, but I’m behind you all out here in CA. I don’t mind the spoilers, though- go right ahead. It makes it more enjoyable not to have to wonder. :)</p>
<p>Jackie just did a great job.</p>
<p>My favorites tonight were James, Will, and Jacqui. Matthew was by far the weakest. Also, didn’t care for Ray, but never have and don’t get why he’s made it this far.</p>
<p>I <strong>loved</strong> Will’s performance. Cole was great also. I love his voice. I missed most of James Wolpert’s performance, unfortunately…got a phone call. I would think that the song choice would be right in his wheelhouse. Jacqui was good, too. (Like the judges, I’m constantly amazed by how convincing she is in all these heavy-duty songs.)</p>
<p>I thought Matthew was awful tonight. He sounded strained and pitchy. Bad song choice that highlighted his limitations, IMHO. Caroline was pretty bad, too, and showed more of what she can’t do than what she can. Ray was sketchy here and there. He does what he does fairly competently, but I wouldn’t be sorry to see him go. Tessanne…well at least it wasn’t a power ballad.</p>
<p>Something that I found interesting, although not surprising, because we’ve seen them in action, were the different philosophies expressed by Adam and Blake. Adam said that this show was all about growth/pushing the envelope/doing different things. Blake said (regarding Ray) that when America shows you what you like, you give them more of it. Not surprising that Blake keeps winning, although Adam’s POV might turn out more interesting performers in the end.</p>
<p>James was really solid I thought. Before he started, my family was cringing because taking on Freddy Mercury is a challenge. Most people try and fail. James doesn’t have Freddy’s power (who does??) but did a stand up job - much stronger than average and the staging was excellent. I think it demonstrates what you said above, Consolation, about Adam’s philosophy and pushing the envelope. Good observation.</p>
<p>If you want to see a great take on Queen, look at this:</p>
<p>[Sing</a> Off 3 7 Dartmouth Aires - Queen Medley - YouTube](<a href=“Sing Off 3 7 Dartmouth Aires - Queen Medley - YouTube”>Sing Off 3 7 Dartmouth Aires - Queen Medley - YouTube)</p>
<p>The Dartmouth Aires performing on The Sing Off. They finished second, ultimately, to Pentatonix, the best and most original a capella group I have ever heard.</p>
<p>Love that version, Consolation! Know one of the performers in Dartmouth Aires as well, and was totally rooting for them to win that season of The Sing Off. New Sing Off season starts in 2 weeks. :)</p>
<p>Yes, I can’t wait! :)</p>
<p>Speaking about the difficulty of taking on a Freddie Mercury song, I was horrified at that talent-free chick they had singing with Roger May at the Olympics opening show. Roger was fabulous. She was awful.</p>
<p>Interesting evening.</p>
<p>Consolation, </p>
<p>Great link.</p>
<p>I dont see how James can win after watching the link from the “Sing Off”. That Dartmouth version rocked.</p>
<p>Tonight’s version of Etta James’ At Last was pretty good. I like Will. This reminds me of the very best singer that ever came to any of those singing shows. He did not win in a scandalous way! </p>
<p>How far ahead would he be of the contestants in this season’s The Voice? Remember this was his audition only. Not a rehearsed presentation.</p>
<p>[Josh</a> Krajcik At Last Etta James XFactor Audition 1 - YouTube](<a href=“Josh Krajcik At Last Etta James XFactor Audition 1 - YouTube”>YouTube)</p>
<p>I liked Josh too.</p>
<p>I dont like hearing that Matt wasnt good… :)</p>
<p>Matt, Matt, Matt…</p>
<p>Dont you know I have a bet with Xiggi?</p>
<p>Luckily I still have Jacquie. :)</p>
<p>Jacquie is going to be a star.</p>
<p>ok…Ray is history. I think Cole, James, or…and I cant believe I am saying this Matt can be gone after tomorrow. </p>
<p>Matt…come on…</p>
<p>Will looks good.</p>
<p>Christina…dont screw up Jacquie.</p>
<p>I liked James in the tuxedo and James “multiplying”. Kind of reminded me of Michael Buble transforming into Queen. The jacket fit him horribly at the neck, though. Wasn’t there time for a tailor to shorten the collar before his performance? I’d like to see him dial it back a bit if he’s still around next week.</p>
<p>Didn’t like Tessanne’s song choice tonight.</p>
<p>Thought Cole had his best song choice and performance of the season.</p>
<p>Agree… Matthew couldn’t have picked a worst time to give his poorest performance.</p>
<p>Liked the group performance with Jacquie, Matthew, Caroline, and James. I think Caroline gives some of her best performances in groups. She looks and sounds more comfortable to me.</p>
<p>Still can not believe that only 1 chair turned for Will and then that (female) coach turned him loose. He can certainly be a finalist!</p>
<p>Thought the horn section overshadowed Ray’s performance but I still liked him.</p>
<p>Jacquie was solid… again! Front-runner… </p>
<p>Christina may have done the best coaching job (Jacquie) and the WORST coaching job (Matthew) this week!</p>
<p>Based on the performances tonight, I think Caroline and Matthew should be the ones going home but I am hoping Matthew will be staying around!</p>
<p>I agree about Christina.</p>
<p>I like Caroline. I dont think she should go home.</p>
<p>Ray is going home.</p>
<p>“Liked the group performance with Jacquie, Matthew, Caroline, and James.”</p>
<p>I liked it too.</p>
<p>Edit…Based on today’s performances only…Matt should go home.
I think Hallelujah will save his tush…better not have a terrible week again.</p>
<p>I agree that Matt should go home based on that performance, but I think the two before that will save him. </p>
<p>Caroline would be fine if she would stick to, as one commentator put it (paraphrasing), building magical little castles out of a cardboard box and glitter and inviting us in, and we believe her.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, I think Ray will stay over better people because “the girls” find him more attractive. I’m kind of done with Tessanne at this point, as a singer, although as a person she’s delightful.</p>
<p>So this is a dumb question that will show how out of it I am, but what do you do with itunes songs after you download them? f I want to listen to something, I just use youtube. I’ve never had an ipod.</p>
<p>Are they still doing that multiplier thing for songs in the top 10?</p>
<p>It’s about cut off time for voting and the bottom 3 weren’t the bottom 3 in itune downloads before, but here are the current standings on the itunes download list…well, as current as I could figure out.</p>
<p>8 Will
13 Cole
16 James
21 Jacquie
24 Tessanne
25 Caroline
56 Ray
85 Matthew</p>
<p>I really liked Tessanne last night. She came close to getting a more authentic reggae vibe and swagger. I love reggae music though. </p>
<p>I wasn’t impressed with Cole’s performance. I thought he was off through the entire song and that he was straining. To me, he’s not much of a singer though. He speech sings.</p>
<p>Matthew’s song was really dumb, and he did a bad job with it. It wasn’t him. Is Christina clearing the deck for Jacqui? Why would she pick a song for him that neither showcased his strengths nor suited his personality? It makes no sense.</p>
<p>It seems Christina is putting her eggs in Jacqui’s basket- but I’m afraid she’s ruining her voice. At sixteen, Christina was singing with the Mickey-Mouse club, and pampering her own voice. She seems to be really pushing Jacqui beyond her years, and what is good for her in the long run.
One reason Danielle was able to pull off her win last year at her young age is that she didn’t push her voice beyond what she was capable of. It’s the nature of country to be a bit laid back, but had she been turned into a screamer just for the sake of variety and the show, it would have been a travesty.
I thought Will was strong, was a bit bored with Tessanane. The one who really went up in my estimation was James.</p>
<p>James was the only one I watched without forwarding too much. I can’t believe the show is getting so boring already. I miss Usher and Shakira, they brought that energy to the show. </p>
<p>I agree about screaming, it should actually be banned during live shows 
It makes me wonder if there is “auto-tune and pitch correction” that goes on behind the scenes for recorded songs?</p>