'The Voice' Season 2 Semifinals: TV Recap - Wall Street Journal (blog)

By Jozen Cummings

NBC

Christina Aguilera on “The Voice.”

Judges have their final two singers, both of whom sing one song each. For the contestants, the only competition is their fellow teammate. Who moves on is determined Tuesday evening. Tonight, each performer sang exactly like you would expect them to: like they only had one shot left, and they had to make it count.

Singer: Tony Lucca

Team: Adam

Song: “How You Like Me Now” by The Heavy

This is the second week in a row Lucca has made an impression on judges, and likely, the viewers at home. Last week’s cover of Britney Spears’s “Hit Me Baby One More Time” brought down the house, and this week’s cover of the lesser known hit by The Heavy proved no different. Wearing a natty dark suit, with a skinny tie, Tony Lucca came out guns blazing, with fancy footwork and a voice that set a very serious tone for the semifinals.

Singer: Erin Willett

Team: Blake

Song: “Without You” by David Guetta

Willett’s performance was the polar opposite of Lucca’s: somber, serious, emotional. Going with a power ballad like “Without You” is a risky move, but Willett gave a focused set, making sure to never over-sing and keeping her emotions in check until the end. When she was done, Willett let out a sight of relief, and a couple of tears from her eyes.

Singer: Chris Mann

Team: Christina

Song: “Ave Maria” by J.A. Bach and Charles Gounod

It was the moment many of Chris Mann’s fans had been waiting for, the opera singer doing what he does best: Singing opera. Mann gave his best performance of this season and showed everyone, if the pop singer route doesn’t work, Mann is more than ready for prime billing at an opera house anywhere in the world.

Singer: Jamar Rogers

Team: Ceelo

Song: “If You Don’t Know Me By Now” by Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes

In an interesting twist, Rogers asked Cee Lo if he himself could rearrange the the soul standard his coach picked out for him. Though skeptical at first, Cee Lo came around during the rehearsals, and the end result proved to show a different side of Rogers. Upbeat, loud, and all over the place, the fan-favorite Rogers went with a somber electronica/pop-like twist on the original and impressed the judges as much as Rogers has been impressing the fans at home.

Contestants Performance Interlude 1

Singers: Juliet Simms, Katrina Parker, Jamar Rogers, and Tony Lucca

Song: “All These Things That I’ve Done” by The Killers

Considering they’re all in competition with another and the high stakes at this point in the contest, each of the contestants are able to put their differences aside for the sake of a cohesive performance.

Singer: Jermaine Paul

Team: Blake

Song: “Open Arms” by The Journey

Jermaine’s background as a singer for Alicia Keys has put him in somewhat of an R&B box, so this week, he went a different route. Paul opted to go with the power ballad much like his teammate Willett did. For Paul, it worked and proved to the judges, he’s better than his resume. As Adam said, with that performance Paul proved he’s no longer a background singer.

Singer: Katrina Parker

Team: Adam

Song: “Killin’ Me Softly With His Song” by Roberta Flack (covered by Lauryn Hill and The Fugees )

Seems like the theme of the night is stepping out of comfort zones. With a hip-hop beat behind her, Parker attempted to channel her inner-Lauryn Hill. She was stiff for the most part, but vocally proved why she’s been able to survive this long in the competition. It was perhaps the first performance that didn’t blow anyone away, but it wasn’t the worst performance of the evening.

Blake Shelton Performance Interlude

Song: “Over”

Blake’s selection is his latest single from his 2011 acclaimed album, “Red River Blue.” The performance was a reminder of why Blake is one of the judges, his voice roared on the country ballad.

Singer: Lindsey Pavao

Team: Christina

Song: “Skinny Love” by Bon Iver

Pavao was taking a chance to do such a lo-fi song at this stage of the competition, but to Aguilera’s credit, and as Blake pointed out, the performance was the kind of song Pavao sang to get her this far. She sang the gentle, folksy Bon Iver song with a grit that made it tough for her coach to pick a final winner.

Contestants Performance Interlude II

Singers: Jermaine Paul, Chris Mann, Erin Willett, and Lindsey Pavao

Song: “Edge of Glory” by Lady Gaga

Team Blake and Team Christina also get along and sing beautiful music together. The clash of styles between Mann, Paul, Willett, and Pavao make for a much more interesting mix than the previous contestants performance.

Singer: Juliet Simms

Team: Ceelo

Song: “It’s A Man’s, Man’s World” by James Brown

The producers of “The Voice” had to know what they were doing by putting Simms last. It was not only the best performance of the night, it was, arguably, the best performance by any singer all season. Her teammate, Rogers, did well, but he did not do what Simms do, and at this point, it doesn’t seem like anyone else will be able to do what Simms has done. The competition is hers to lose.