The live shows are here, the live shows are here! Team Adam and Team Blake were the first to take the stage for season 7’s live shows. But will they make the cut for America?
Welcome to another exciting season of “No one told Carson Daly this was live until five minutes ago.” Our favorite stubbled and formerly-black-nail-polished host with the most is back, and tasked with reining in Blake Shelton’s antics in front of the live cameras. Our first night of live performances saw Team Adam and Team Blake taking the stage to show America what they’ve got.
Maroon 5
Coach Adam’s band Maroon 5 kicked off the first live show of season 7 with their first primetime performance of their new hit “Animals.” It was a typically great performance, (That howl is…everything.) but the most important takeaway from this performance was the fact that Adam seemed to be wearing some really weird-fitting leather pants. Or possibly pleather? And were they tapered? What was going on with those pants? Seriously.
Team Blake
Taylor Brashears
Blake gave Taylor Brashears the Dixie Chicks’ “Long Time Gone” because the song has a lot of sass, just like Taylor, and would allow her to show off her powerful voice. Taylor related to the song’s story of trying to make it in Nashville. She busted out her fiddle for her live performance, but it may have been a little bit to her detriment. She played it for like two seconds, but the rest of her performance seemed to be lacking a little bit in energy and personality. However, the vocals were strong, and she won points with the judges with a flash of her thigh tattoo.
Jessie Pitts
Jessie Pitts took us back to the ‘80s with Bonnie Tyler’s “Holding Out For a Hero,” but it was less Footloose and more laid-back, ethereal country. Blake feels she can be the country music world’s version of Lorde. The breathiness in her voice is like honey for your ears, and the flip in her voice is irresistible, but does she run the risk of being a one-trick pony as the show progresses? Only time will tell, as it doesn’t seem like she’ll be going anywhere anytime soon.
James David Carter
James David and his coach Blake have been pals from the very beginning (and maybe father and son?) but their collaboration for James David’s first live performance brought out his very best. Singing Garth Brooks’ “Two of a Kind, Workin’ on a Full House,” Blake finally wrung that extra bit of country out of him that he’s been hoping to see. But it worked out well, because it showed a more uptempo, country version of James David that we haven’t seen from the ballads he’s performed thusfar.
Reagan James
First of all, Reagan is blonde now, which made her almost completely unrecognizable. Secondly, this transformation was a little ironic, considering her first live performance was Colbie Caillat’s ‘Be Yourself’ anthem, “Try.” But you do you, girl, you do you. This song was the perfect choice for Reagan’s mix of indie and R&B, and she once again showed both a confidence and a skill level that goes far beyond her 15 years (Almost 16 – her birthday’s the same day as eliminations, no pressure America.) The song sounded like it was hers, and Reagan is certainly proving that she belongs in this competition.
Craig Wayne Boyd
Blake is thrilled to bits to have his buddy Craig Wayne Boyd back on his team. He gave Craig The Drifters’ “Some Kind of Wonderful” to re-establish his Southern rock style. Blake said Craig doesn’t just sing a song, but rather attacks it, beats it up, and eats it, which is pretty accurate. He did all those things and more in his live performance, and had the entire audience in the palm of his hand. Blake called it the performance of the night, though he may be just a little bit biased.
Team Adam
Chris Jamison
Chris Jamison took on Ed Sheeran’s “Don’t,” because it’s just the kind of passionate, romantic, singer/songwriter song he’s into. He worried about breath control for the fast-paced song, and Adam recommend he do some cardio. Chris did struggle a bit with his breath in his live performance, which may have also been his nerves getting the best of him. But when he got to the end of his performance, he was able to take a breath, sing some long notes, and make the song his own. Awkward dancing and breath control issues aside, it was a great performance.
Matt McAndrew
Season 7’s token adorable nerd Matt McAndrew took a big risk this week, performing The Voice’s first ever Beach Boys song, “God Only Knows.” It may have been a risk, but it paid off in spades. It’s hard not to love that song, unless someone totally butchers it. Matt, thankfully, did not. His sweet voice was perfect for it, and he even threw in some scatting. It was a performance that’s sure to win him a lot of votes, and make his mom, the person who introduced him to the Beach Boys, very proud.
Taylor Phelan
Taylor Phelan is new to Team Adam, after Adam snatched him from Pharrell’s reject pile in the knockouts, but his coach most definitely sees him as an asset to the team. Taylor’s blind audition performance of “Sweater Weather” is still climbing the charts, so Adam decided to stick with that indie style by choosing Echo Smith’s “Cool Kids.” Taylor connected with the song’s lyric, and maybe that’s why he gave such a great performance. There is something that is just captivating about him, no matter what he’s singing. At times, his wide-eyed expression makes him look like there’s too much music inside of him, and he’s afraid he’s about to lose control of it. But he never does.
Mia Pfirrman
Adam chose Lana Del Ray’s haunting “Young and Beautiful” from The Great Gatsby for Mia Pfirrman, to help her step outside of her comfort zone and keep her from getting too poppy. Adam discouraged her from embellishing the song too much, but she wanted to put her own Mia spin on it. And that she did. It was certainly beautiful, and she had a pretty outstanding moment of her own creation. However, the “Mia-zation” of the song kind of sucked it dry of all of the haunting beauty that makes Lana’s version so unforgettable.
Damien
Adam gave Damien Sam Smith’s “I’m Not the Only One,” because he wanted to prove that Damien, much like Sam Smith himself, can take his talent as a soul singer, and give it a contemporary radio-friendly sound. Damien’s voice is inarguably great, but this writer could do without the melodrama. Every performance is just too, too much. The crowd went wild for him though, as did the coaches.
Team Pharrell and Team Gwen will take their turn on stage Tuesday night at 8 p.m. on NBC, with the live results show airing on Wednesday at 8 p.m.