NBC’s ‘The Voice’ review: Danielle Bradbery, Michelle Chamuel make their cases

This week on “The Voice,” there were more than just performances from the top five contestants. There were also hometown visits! This felt in some ways like the ones on “American Idol,” mostly because it showed random (and obviously staged) visits to different parts of town, where the contestants are all treated like stars. It was cheesy, but also sweet at times. We do still think, though, that this stage always benefits people from small towns, since they have more of a chance to get the meet-the-mayor kind of moments.

Once we got through all of this sort-of filler content (and an opening performance from Usher), all of the contestants did two songs. While we don’t know if anyone really blew us away, there were some very good vocals thrown in here from people we love. If we had to call it, we expect to see Danielle, Michelle, and the Swon Brothers making it to the finale next week.

Round One

The Swon Brothers, “Turn the Page” – We hadn’t really been impressed with the Swons lately, mostly because their vocals haven’t been anywhere close the ladies. The truth is that they’re not the best singers left in the competition, but at least they managed a strong, emotional performance of a Bob Seger hit that was their best vocal probably all season. Really, it was a great way to start off the competition portion of the show.

Sasha Allen, “I Will Always Love You” – The battle between Sasha and the wind machine raged, and we think that she emerged victorious, but it was a close one. The fog made it seem almost like she was a serenading character on “Once Upon a Time.” As for the vocal? Very good, but also occasionally predictable with the runs.

Michelle Chamuel, “Clarity” – As another member of the glasses-wearing community, we’ve been a self-admitted Michelle fan from the beginning. Then, that only increased tenfold when we learned she would be singing one of our favorite songs. We do have to admit that the vocals were a little off-pitch at times, but the rendition of the song was completely electric on stage.

Danielle Bradbery, “Please Remember Me” – We’ve admittedly never been a big fan of this song, but we cannot deny that Danielle, especially for a girl her age, actually sounds like a genuine country star with the way that her voice projects, and the way that she never once looks nervous or uncomfortable being on stage.

Amber Carrington, “Firework” – After getting a shout-out from Katy Perry a little earlier in the show, the country star (who doesn’t often sing country) took on a Katy song that once again managed to have her stand out from the pack. Through this first round, what we really had here was a heck of a competitive field, though we do think that Danielle and Michelle are still the favorites.

Round Two

The Swon Brothers, “Danny’s Song” – A song choice that can be best defined as “solid.” The guys knew exactly what they were doing from the moment that they picked it: Trying to drum up some sort of emotional reaction with some of the old-school country fans. It works well for them, and to Blake’s credit, he has not tried to market them as anything other than what they really are.

Sasha Allen, “Bad Girls” – Seriously? This was a rookie mistake on Shakira’s part as coach. While this performance was flashy and fun on TV, nobody’s going to buy this on iTunes, and that is a big part of the equation. It’s just too campy for anyone to spend their money on it, and this is probably what punches Sasha a ticket out the door.

Danielle Bradbery, “Who I Am” – Another smart move for Blake to have the photo album behind her. What a cool way to bring people into her world almost through the entirety of the song! Now, all of you know a little bit more about her save for that she’s a county singer who may secretly be Amanda Seyfried’s little sister. (Plus, there were the family moments at the end.)

Amber Carrington, “Sad” – Okay, so it’s a little narcissistic for Adam Levine to give Amber a Maroon 5 song, but it was actually right for her. The song had a legitimate country sound in it, and it just took someone like Amber to pull it out. Is it a risk still? Sure, since we’re not sure that many non-Maroon 5 fans have ever heard this track.

Michelle Chamuel, “Time After Time” – Did you say “aww” that Michelle dedicated her song to Usher? This song choice was tricky in that it’s a little bit older than anything that she’s done on the show, but she’s just so good at packing emotion into her songs that it really doesn’t matter.

Who was your favorite on “The Voice” this week, and do you think we’re in for a great final 3 next week? We want to hear from you in the poll below! If you want to see where we ranked these contestants going into tonight, just be sure to visit the link here.

Photo: NBC