NBC’s ‘The Voice’ review: Luke Wade, Taylor Phelan, Jessie Pitts, Damien rock out Knockout Rounds

Tonight, “The Voice” aired a new episode that is all about the Knockouts, and seeing if there are some genuine contenders who didn’t quite get a lot of attention during the Battles. That format is terrible, so it’s hard to really have these moments during it.

We’re not going to waste much time here, so let’s just dive in some to the artists who performed on the night.

Bryana Salaz vs. Sugar Joans (Gwen Stefani)

Bryana, “Heart Attack” – Very strong. The question you have to wonder here is if the potential is great, or if she is too raw to be a part on the show.

Sugar, “Love on Top” – We agree with Gwen that this is too many Beyonce songs, but this was stylistically the better performance of the two. She brought a complete bag of tricks to the table, and Pharrell basically eliminated all drama when he told Sugar that he’d still her if she’s not picked.

The winner – Bryana, but Pharrell steals Sugar. He probably made this decision for Gwen easy.

Griffin vs. James David Carter (Blake Shelton)

Griffin, “As Long as You Love Me” – Hate the song choice, but he did quite a few little tricks vocally. Our major disappointment here is that after his Michael Buble audition, we were hoping he’d be more of a crooner.

James, “You’ve Got a Friend” – This was pleasant, but a little bit boring. If you are going to give us something that is not a challenge vocally, then you need to really do an awesome job of emoting. We didn’t feel it.

The winner – James, and this one was obvious. Blake typically favors country artists, and to be honest, James probably has a better shot at getting votes.

DaNica Shirey vs. Katriz Trinidad (Pharrell)

DaNica, “Saving All My Love For You” – We’re bored with Whitney song choices at this point. Everyone with a big voice does them, and don’t change up the song much at all. DaNIca sounded great, but it sounded like a predictable cover.

Katriz, “Superwoman” – We are not as familiar with this song (probably a good thing), but we did find it for the most part to be very good. Great stage presence, and it felt like there was more originality here.

The winner – DaNica. We’re actually surprised here, but in the end all right with it. DaNica probably is more seasoned and “ready” for this right now.

Damien vs. Toia Jones (Adam Levine)

Damien, “How Do I Live Without You” – Nice choice! We prefer something unexpected at this point, since any good singer can just do a cover. This emotion was incredible. Our favorite of the Knockouts so far.

Toia, “Crazy in Love” – Meanwhile, Toia brought a ton of entertainment to the table. She’s got such a magnetic personality, and while we didn’t love the song choice, she made it WORK.

The winner – Damien. Toia is great, but we feel like the risk-taking and emotion was too much to pass up.

Jessie Pitts vs. Tanner Linford (Blake)

Jessie, “Your Song” – It’s funny how everyone acts like the Ellie Goulding version is so original now, given that so many people do it. Luckily, Jessie really nailed most of the style and the emotion of the track.

Tanner, “Calling All Angels” – A strange choice here, and too big of a song for him. He’s a good kid, but his voice is just too shaky and he’s not entirely ready for this yet. Come back in three years.

The winner – Jessie. Right choice, not too much else to say.

Luke Wade vs. Taylor Phelan (Pharrell)

Luke, “Rich Girl” – We heard this performance before the show, and loved it then. Still, we loved it now. This isn’t that challenging a vocal, but he brought so much passion and soul to the table here.

Taylor, “Rather Be” – A super-original song. We prefer Luke’s performance vocally, but his creative choice here shows that he’s willing to take chances. Very important.

The winner – Thanks to the editing tonight, we knew that all three coaches other than Pharrell would go for the steal. Pharrell kept Luke, and Adam took Taylor.

Who was your favorite on the Knockouts tonight? Share your thoughts with a comment, and head over here to get some more news worth singing about via our CarterMatt Newsletter. (Photo via NBC.)