VOX POPULI #009: Samhain Edition, aka spirits of the dead, we beseech thee

Welcome to the ninth installment of an ongoing feature here at The Dip we’re calling Vox Populi, where Dirk Walker and Jonny Rice review The Voice. And typos. So many typos.

Dirk
Okay, I’m here
Jonny
me too!
Dirk
I had to finish preparing my feast of ramen and halloween candy
Jonny
nice
sooooooo, is it weird the Knockout Rounds are already over?
that seemed FAST
like BLINK and bye
Dirk
it seemed VERY fast
I’m not complaining though…

(awkward three minute gap)

Jonny
sorry my coffee cup is having leakage issues
and i’m trying not to drip on my keyboard

Dirk
No drips on the dip
dot com
Jonny
backslash good point
Anyway
let’s talk last tuesday
Dirk
yes
Jonny
*WINNERs*
Courtney Harrell
Billy Gilman
Christian Cuevas

Jonny
*Not WINNERS*
Bindi Liebowitz
Ponciano Seoane
Belle Jewel (stela, Miley)
that should say steal, not Stela
Dirk
STELAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
I’m kinda sad to see Bindi go
Jonny
*nodding*
Dirk
if only because I can’t make any more bindel jokes
Jonny
I REALLY like Bindi, but Courtney is still one of my Myspace Top 8, so I was glad to see her move forward
tough call
Dirk
Yeah, Courtney is pretty boss
Jonny
Billy continues to impress, and Ponciano picking Ed Sheeran just further proves that no one should perform popular singer-songwriters from the past 10 years on the Voice

Dirk
AGREED
I cringed when Billy chose fight song
Jonny
yeah, I don’t mind it as much as you do
he just sings so effortlessly
Dirk
I just don’t like it. It might be because the radio station I work for played it nonstop
Yes he really killed it
Jonny
And while Christian Cuevas probably outright won his knockout, Belle Jewel is someone who deserves the extra chance
she’s not going to win this thing, because she’s not a powerful a voice as some of the other singers
and it was a very emotional steal

Jonny
Belle’s performances are so on point. she’s the real deal.
imo
Dirk
I think she’ll do well after the show
Jonny
okay, let’s talk last night!
first up, Team Blake, Austin Allsup vs. Gabe Broussard
who was your pick here
Dirk
I really really liked Austin
The judges pointed out that Gabe has incredible vocal control for his age (he does), but his stage presence is still lacking for me
what about you?

Jonny
Austin did a Tom Petty song that I’ve never really paid attention to, but it was a really fun performance
and the coaches were right, his superior stage presence might have tipped the scales on this one

Jonny
Gabe did Bruno Mars’ “It Will Rain” and he didn’t seem *there* the whole time
like something was missing?
Dirk
I do appreciate that he tried to branch out a little though
unlike /some/ contestants…
*cough*RILEY*cough*

Jonny
for real
Adam sans context: “when you’re a fifteen year old boy, you can’t control… anything”
Dirk
lmao
Jonny
Blake ended up picking Austin, but Gabe’s thank you to Blake was super heartfelt
Dirk
agreed
Jonny
like, I want him to have his own Disney sitcom
or something
Dirk
HA!
he would be perfect for a Disney sitcom

Jonny
speaking of sitcoms
guess who has been a background actor and occasional speaking actor in two full seasons of Girl Meets World???
Dirk
who???
Jonny
your FAVORITE
DARBY Walker
Dirk
…………………
Jonny
hahahahaha
anyways, Darby and Maye Thomas performed next for Team Miley
Dirk
I think you can already guess who my pick was from this knockout…
Jonny
both sang cuts from sort of indie-ish performers
Darby: “Shake It Out” from Florence and the Machines
and Maye, “Closer” by Tegan and Sara

Jonny
sorry, Dirk, but I am officially in the Darby Walker fan club
Dirk
Jonny
J O N N Y
Jonny
she’s GOOD
at singing
I mean
whatEVER
she also picked a great song
(but only did a decent job, tbh)
my only question, why does she keep wearing those hats?

Dirk
It’s a great song, but Darby is in the same boat as Riley, imho
She sounds JUST like Florence
Jonny
agree to disagree
my only complaint
some of her smaller embellishments bring nothing new to the song, and I’m seeing more and more artists doing this, I guess to differentiate themselves from the crowd
some are good at it, others have trouble
Darby had some trouble
what’d you think of Maye’s performance?
Dirk
It was certainly not as vocally ambitious as Darby’s
but I get why she didn’t move on
it was pretty flat
Jonny
yeah, “Closer” isn’t really a challenging song if we’re being honest
Dirk
on the other hand, her boots were on point

Jonny
both in practice AND in the performance
Dirk
yes
Jonny
I don’t think anyone really “won” this knockout?
like, it was kind of a toss up, if we’re being OBJECTIVE
but we’re clearly not
Dirk
lol
this was the only one that I wasn’t totally jazzed about
Jonny
anywho, Miley went with Darby

Jonny
maybe she can convince her to stop wearing hats all the time
maybe a bandana
or a shawl
just once
before the show is over
Dirk
we can only hope

Jonny
next was Brendan Fletcher vs Nolan Neal for Team Adam
Brendan, I think, keeps getting better and better with every performance
Dirk
oh my yes
Jonny
while Nolan picked a super cheesy song
“Love Is Your Name” by Steven Tyler

Dirk
P&W anyone?
Jonny
why, with over 40 years of Steven Tyler songs and material, did you chose something from this calendar year?
Dirk
lmao
Jonny
what does it mean if you perform a shitty song well?
is it still a bad performance?
i was just confused
Dirk
Unforgettable
that’s what it was to me at least lol
Jonny
I think Steven Tyler’s record label paid him to sing it

Dirk
hahahaha probably
Jonny
and Brendan did “Soulshine” by the Allman Brothers

Jonny
I mean, when you can bring something to a song that I’ve never really cared for, that’s something
I would listen to his record right now
Dirk
He really nailed it
and I feel the same way about this particular Allman Brothers song
well.. all Allman Brothers songs really, lol
but I really dug his performance
Jonny
I just fall more and more in love with Brendan every time he sings

Jonny
Nolan might have a better chance to win the Voice, but I would have still gone with Brendan here
I’m glad Adam agreed
Dirk
me too
Jonny
ok NEXT
Team Alicia, Michael Sanchez vs. Sa’Rayah
Michael singing “Just the Two of Us” by Bill Withers
and Sa’Rayah, “Ain’t Nobody” by Chaka Khan

Dirk
Jonny. I LOVED this round
oh my god
Jonny
do tell!
Dirk
I don’t know if you know this about me, but I am a huge sucker for an electric piano AND Chaka Khan.

Jonny
haha
Dirk
I couldn’t choose between either!
Jonny
when Michael sings I can’t take notes
I’m just present
every one of his performances so far has been a joy to watch, this one included

Dirk
I think he seemed the most comfortable last night
the piano helped his stage presence immensely
Jonny
Sa’Rayah is so different, she has a presence about her that screams STAR
sometimes I get the feeling that she thinks she is one already
which is both good and bad lol
Dirk
she does have confidence for days
but rightly so, because that performance was F I R E
I had goosebumps

Jonny
I agree with what you said earlier, I honestly don’t know how you pick a winner here.
Alicia went with Sa’Rayah, I THINK, based on potential to win
but she needs further coaching and mentoring to go head-to-head with a Wé or a Courtney and win
Dirk
very true
Jonny
next, Dana Harper vs. Karlee Metzger
Dana sang “You Give Me Something” by James Morrison
side bar:
Faith has been so good as a mentor this season
just seeing her work with Dana, she needs to be a full time coach someday
Dirk
I know! I’d love to see it

Jonny
Dana is the first singer to blast apart my “no recent singer songwriters” rule on this show
she could sing blue-eyed soul singer songs from this point on, and I wouldn’t mind.
she totally make them hers
Dirk
I love her voice so much. Definitely in my top 5
Jonny
just a chill, very relaxed performance
kind of surprising for the Voice

Jonny
Karlee picked a Kelly Clarkson song
and I love Kelly Clarkson but I don’t think I’ve ever really loved one of her songs?
she’s great, Karlee’s great, but I just don’t know if this was the right song for her
Dirk
They all seem to be about overcoming some sort of breakup woe…
I agree. This wasn’t the best choice for Karlee’s voice
Jonny
I don’t even mind the themes or subject matter
just too often they lack really HOOKY hooks

Dirk
lol
Jonny
Karlee’s voice was all over, I wonder if the song meant TOO much for her
gotta get that veto power, coaches
Dirk
Maybe in season 12
Jonny
and Blake correctly chose Dana
Dirk
there was really no dispute

Jonny
then we had a QUICK KNOCKOUT
a QUICKOUT
which Sophia Urista won
Dirk
I wish I had her hair lol

Jonny
I had to search the internet to find out who she went up against!
Josette?
did we ever even see Josette sing once?
I can’t remember
Dirk
the invisible contestant!

Jonny
the skips at this point are frustrating
I understood it early on
but now?
the performances must have been really bad, I guess
#VoiceBeefs
whatever
lastly, Aaron Gibson vs. Josh Halverson
which I ended up enjoying A LOT more than I thought I would
Dirk
I am liking Josh more and more as the season goes on
Jonny
yeah, Aaron Gibson did “Die A Happy Man” by Thomas Rhett

Jonny
I’m just realizing that Aaron is like a poor man’s Brendan
I’m so sorry, Aaron
you are so much more than that!
but maybe not
Dirk
hahahaha
Jonny
I also do not know who Thomas Rhett is?
he has almost one million twitter followers
am I old?
Dirk
I’ve never heard of him
Jonny
*phew*
Dirk
we’re out of touch!
Jonny
Josh Halverson really brought the thunder
with a great take on “Whiskey and You“
one of Tim’s songs

Dirk
A Tim McGraw song I was unfamiliar with
but he did such a good job with it
Jonny
Tim mentioned this, but it was written by Chris Stapleton
but I guess Tim recorded it first
Josh is just so good at these slow burner songs

Dirk
yes lord
and he ditched the hat!
Darby, take note
Jonny
with Dana’s performance, and Josh’s, too, I wish we had more singers doing laidback jams
under constant threat of elimination I realize why they DON’T
but it’s refreshing to hear some quiet music, too

Dirk
agreed
as much as I love the powerhouses, it’s nice to tone it down a little
Jonny
I also wrote in my notes “oh, Miley” about this performance
with no context
???
Dirk
LMAO
Jonny
anyway, Aaron won
maybe that’s what it was about
Miley picking Aaron
BUT ALICIA STOLE JOSH BACK
Dirk
AMEN
Jonny
possibly my fav non-singing moment from the episode
Josh’s reaction
I was not ready for him to go home

Jonny
so now that we’re down to 20 performers, who are your favs at this point?
Dirk
My top 5 right now are Sundance, Wé, Billy, Sa’Rayah and Josh
what about you?
Jonny
mine are Courtney and Kylie, Sundance and Wé, and then a 7-way tie for #5
but those are far and away my fav four
Dirk
It’s a solid list for sure!
Jonny
any closing thoughts about the Knockout rounds?
Dirk
Besides the fact that it was fast AF, I don’t really have any final thoughts on the knockouts. I’m looking forward to the live episodes!

Jonny
and next week we’ll be reviewing live, rather than recapping afterwards
Dirk’s fine idea
so see you then!
Dirk
Hooray!
bye!