The Voice Season 3: The Battle Rounds Rebound and Contestants Shine

Two weeks ago,  the battle rounds on The Voice was disappointing at times, the two episodes this week proved that the talent is better than ever.

Episode 1 of Week 2 of Battles 

This past week of battles began with two members of Blake's Team, mariachi singer Julio Cesar Castillo and Terisa Griffin singing Conga by Gloria Estefan-- I like both of these artists, and I'm beginning to find that I am routing for both people competing in the battle. Cee Lo liked Terisa for her soul. Adam thought Terisa was fierce, but said he would choose Julio because he brings something different. Blake ultimately chose Julio for the same reason Adam said, he brought something different, but also Blake said he struggled in practice, and he came so far, which means he probably put the most work into it.  Both of these singers are solid, and I am really glad that Cee Lo decided to steal Terisa.
Battle goes to: Julio Castillo

Cee Lo stole Terisa Griffin

Dez Duron and Paulina from Christina's Team faced off with the song Just the Way You Are by Bruno Mars-- Cee Lo said he would choose Dez because he's the whole package. Adam felt that both contestants had inconsistent performances, but said he'd choose Dez because he's more experienced and Blake echoed that sentiment. I agreed, and so did Christina. Dez moves on; this was easy!
Battle goes to: Dez Duron

Adam decided to pair Benji and Sam James for a You Give Love a Bad Name by Bon Jovi duet. Blake felt that Benji had more moments in the performance. Cee Lo felt that Benji had a stronger voice, and explored more. Adam liked Benji's screams but felt there was a lack of control. Adam respected that Sam had his own style and really owned that. Ultimately, he felt Sam was more solid as a singer and chose him. For those who were more Benji fans, why scream when you can sing like Sam?
Battle goes to: Sam James

Next to battle it out was Nicholas David and Todd Kessler from Cee Lo's Team singing the Hall & Oates classic She's Gone-- I have to admit, I wasn't impressed the first time I heard Nicholas David. I thought he was just trying too hard to be different, and now that I see his being different is so authentic, I'm all in. Adam said their voices sound amazing together. Christina complimented Nicholas' definite style and swag. Cee Lo appreciated both of them but chose Nicholas because as Blake said, there is no one in this world like him.
Battle goes to: Nicholas David

Two young women with two big voices, Leila Broussard and Suzanna Choffel of Team Blake sang The Dog Days Are Over by Florence and the Machine-- Christina felt it was beautiful, a great pairing and a great match. Cee Lo felt they both deserved to be there. Adam felt like he was hearing them for the first time. Blake decided on Suzanna saying she is a chameleon. I was torn with this battle because both women were so strong, either one could have moved on in my book.
Battle goes to: Suzanna Choffel

The final battle of this episode was between Team Christina's Joselyn Rivera and Sylvia Yacoub who sang Best Thing I Never Had by Beyonce-- Cee Lo was impressed by Joselyn and felt like he was hearing her for the first time. Adam said he would probably choose Joselyn. Blake felt that they had very different styles from one another. All that being said, Christina liked that Sylvia was fierce and passionate and decided on Sylvia. I personally am a Joselyn fan because I think she has the stronger, better voice.
Battle goes to: Sylvia Yacoub

Adam stole Joselyn Rivera because he believes she can really sing.

Episode two featured a lot of unexpected match ups and a few of those had little air time.

Blake opted for an all country battle with Liz Davis and Nicole Johnson singing Baggage Claim by his wife Miranda Lambert-- To me, Liz Davis seems like she was born to be a country singer. There's something about her that reads like a combination of Faith Hill and Carrie Underwood.  Blake said they are both great country singers, but Nicole lost her breath at times. He chose Liz and said the deciding factor was the experience.
 Battle goes to: Liz Davis

I don't know why he did it cause I love both of these girls but Adam chose Alessandra Guercio and Kayla Nevarez to battle it out with Katy Perry's Wide Awake-- Blake liked Alessandra's raspy sound and Kayla's verbrato. Christina said that they were neck and neck. Cee Lo said he would go with Alessandra because she had a lot of sweet moments throughout the performance and she had that nice rasp in her voice. Adam said that Alessandra should be more confident in herself because she has the talent. For Kayla, Adam said he remembers picking her and her pulling him aside and saying, "let's win this". He picked Kayla because of her confidence. Consequently, Christina said, the can't bear to watch a talented woman like Alessandra doubt herself and be anything less than confident about her abilities. She stole Alessandra from Team Adam and vowed to instill in her more confidence.
Battle goes to: Kayla Nevarez

Christina stole Alessandra Guercio

The battles that were shown so quick that they practically flashed across the screen:

Cee Lo's Team-- Ben Taub vs. Mycle Wastman sang Too Close by Alex Clare
Battle goes to: Mycle Wastman

Adam's Team-- Adanna Duru vs. Michelle Brooks Thompson sang Crazy in Love by Beyonce
Battle goes to: Michelle Brooks Thompson

Christina's Team-- Beat Frequency vs. Laura Vivas sang Poker Face by Lady Gaga
Battle goes to: Laura Vivas

The final battle of this episode was a great one and it was between two very different singers, country rocker Emily Earle and pop singer MacKenzie Bourg of Team Cee Lo. They tackled the duet Good Time by Owl City and Carly Rae Jepsen-- Adam didn't think the chemistry was as good as he expected it to be. Blake loved both of them and offered comments to both; he said MacKenzie didn't need all those breaks in his voice and that Emily had an authentic country sound. Christina said that MacKenzie had the more entertaining performance. Cee Lo ultimately felt he could do more with MacKenzie and that he has that all American voice. He had a lot of mixed emotions about Emily's performance and had to choose MacKenzie.
Battle goes to: MacKenzie Bourg

The Voice Season 3: Week 3 of the blind auditions lose steam

Hopefully when week four of The Voice's Blind Auditions role around they won't be the weakest week yet because week three definitely lost steam in comparison to weeks one and two. Because there were so many weak performances, I decided to make the format different from weeks one and two.

The contestants in the strong category would be the contestant's I would want on my team. 

Strong Performances:

Adam was actually honored and blessed that Michelle Brooks Thompson, who sang Proud Mary by Tina Turner turned up for auditions and wowed them.
Who did she choose? Adam

Dez Duron may have chosen an odd song....... what is Sara Smile? However, he was charming and had a great voice, that's two checks in the plus column for me.
Who did he choose? Christina 

Latin rocker Laura Vivas added an element to the competition that wasn't there before. I love her hard, yet soft edge, and she displayed it perfectly when she sang Whaddaya Want From Me by Adam Lambert!
Who did she choose? Christina

Brandon Mahone is what is termed as a singer's singer. He has the style and flair of an old school rhythm and blues singer, someone like Nat Kind Cole, Al Green, or The Temptations. In fact, Brandon sang, I Wish it Would Rain by David Ruffin of The Temptations.
Who did he choose? Adam

Ex teen pop star Jordan Pruitt was actually significantly better than I believed she would be. She has a strong feminine voice which was perfect with her singing The One That Got Away by Katy Perry.
Who did she choose? Christina

Terisa Griffin has more than just a big personality; she also had a massive voice. The thing about Terisa is that the talent is real , and she's deserving. I loved that she chose Blake, that was so unexpected, yet I completely understand her reasoning.
Who did she choose? Blake

The total package, Sylvia Yacoub is a pop star in the making; although, her voice may need some work, she poses a triple threat. Singing Only Girl in the World by Rhianna was a smart choice because it was young and energetic and it embodied the spirit that she was trying to get a home message.
Who did she choose? Christina

The best of this week for me was Cassadee Pope, a former lead singer in a band, Cassadee sang a stripped down version of Torn by Natalia Imbruglia, and it was brilliant. This is someone who I can see going far in the competition.
Who did she cboose? Blake

And here's the rest:

Diego Val sang Animal by Neon Trees and joined Cee Lo's team. I actually did like Diego and I look forward to seeing what he's going to do in the next round. The rumor is that there is a twist to the battle rounds and that the contestants may be able to jump teams.

Suzanna Choffel sang a heartfelt rendition of Landslide by Stevie Nicks and joined Blake's team.

Also picked up by Blake was

Michaela Paige who sang Sober by Pink and

Ryan Jirouec sang Amazed by Lonestar

Then there were a bunch of artist's who auditions barely made air time........

Alexis Marceaux sang Go Your Own Way and joined Cee Lo's team

Adam picked up Adam James who sang Imagine by John Lennon

and Leila Broussard sang We Can Work it Out by The Beatles also joined Blake's team.

Rounding out week three of auditions,

Charlie Rey sang Home by Michael Buble and in a battle, Rey chose Blake over Adam.

And then Amanda Brown had an unimpressive performance of Valerie by Amy Winehouse and joined Cee Lo's team.