Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Alexa Cappelli and Hannah Goebel rehearse for a battle round match that didn’t take place. (NBC Photo)

First of all, wouldn’t it be nice if The Voice mixed up the performance arrangement for the battle round once in a while?

I mean, this is a show that decided the blind auditions needed to be freshened up and introduced a silly gimmick called the block.

Yet every season, during the battle round, it’s the same thing: We get down to the final battle of the final battle round night and there’s one steal left.

Whoa! Suspense alert! I wonder who will advance.

There’s no suspense, of course. Because you know as soon as the singers are announced, both will advance. It’s just a question of who wins the match and who gets stolen.

Wouldn’t it be refreshing if The Voice slipped in that final steal on the first or second match of the night for a change, then presented a couple of its best battle round matches in which the winner didn’t advance.

Presto: Much more suspense.

Three other notes before I get to the recap …

1. Hannah Goebel had to leave the show “for personal reasons,” host Carson Daly told us Tuesday night. Hannah, you might recall, is the pop-soul singer living in Nashville. She was also one of only five singers who turned all four chairs during the blind auditions.

On an Idol spoiler site, someone said she came down with the flu and was unable to compete in the battle round. I have absolutely no idea if that’s the case. I do know iTunes has a recorded duet by Alexa Cappelli and Hannah Goebel, so she must have expected to participate. And The Voice has posted photos of her rehearsing with Alexa.

Hannah celebrated her four-chair turn on social media, but has been silent since. I’ve reached out to Voice p.r. for an explanation, but am not expecting an answer tonight.

2. Tuesday’s show included two more montages. And Angel Bonilla — like Megan Lee before her — disappeared from the show before we got to hear her sing.

Anyone who follows my blog knows what I think about the montages. They’re terribly unfair to the participants given the time they invest in The Voice process. And no one should ever disappear from the show without being heard once.

3. Tomorrow night’s show is a clip show, featuring the best of the blinds and the battles, a rehash of things we’ve already seen. Which makes it doubly difficult for the show to defend why the battle round montages were necessary.

On with the recap:

THE COACH GOT IT WRONG

TEAM ADAM LEVINE

The matchup: Jackie Verna vs. Stephanie Skipper
The song: “These Dreams” by Heart
The background: Stephanie Skipper, 33, of Nashville, Tenn. performed “Piece by Piece” in the blinds and turned two chairs; Jackie Verna, 23, of West Chester, Pa., was one of the last singers to earn a spot on the show and auditioned with “Peter Pan.”
The performance: First off, I start by countering Kelly Clarkson’s opinion: I didn’t think it was a great song choice. That said, both ladies turned in impassioned performance. I think Stephanie has just a bit more character in her voice. And I was mesmerized by Stephanie’s performance in the blinds, so I’d hesitate to cut her.
The outcome: Adam advances Jackie to the knockouts; Stephanie is eliminated.

JUST WHEN WE NEEDED A STEAL

TEAM ALICIA KEYS

The matchup: Livia Faith vs. Terrence Cunningham
The song: “Stars” by Grace Potter And The Nocturnals
The background: Terrence, 36, of Los Angeles, covered “My Girl,” turned four chairs and scored the biggest iTunes hit during the blind auditions. Livia, 17, of Stanton, Kentucky, put a unique spin on “Dream a Little Dream” and turned three chairs.
The performance: I’m predicting that will be an iTunes hit. It’s going to be impossible for Alicia to cut loose a four-chair turn who demonstrates that much range and sincerity in his performance. But major, major kudos to Livia for an enchanting vocal. She has such a sweet tone. Shame there aren’t any steals left. In fact, in that performance, I think I preferred Livia.
The outcome: As I expected, Alicia advanced Terrence. With Alicia holding the only remaining steal, that meant an automatic elimination for Livia. Too bad. She deserved better.

NO SUSPENSE HERE

TEAM BLAKE SHELTON

The matchup: Dallas Caroline vs. Spensha Baker
The song: “I Could Use a Love Song” by Maren Morris
The background: Spensha, 24, of San Antonio, Texas, auditioned with “Blackbird” and turned two chairs; Dallas, Dallas auditioned with “You’re Always on My Mind” and turned all three chairs possible; Alicia’s team was already full at the time.
The performance: The first verse by Spensha was a bit rough, but her voice sure soared when she hit the chorus. Dallas shows great potential. And she does remind one a bit of Season 4 winner Danielle Bradbery. I’d have to give the edge to Spensha. She has so much power in those pipes.
The outcome: Blake picks Spensha as the winner. Alicia swoops in and steals Dallas. So they both advance. Of course, on TV there was no suspense. It was the last battle and there was one steal left.

NO CONTEST HERE

TEAM KELLY CLARKSON

The matchup: Alex Cappelli vs. Hannah Goebel
The song: “Pray” by Sam Smith
The background: Alexa, 18, of Upland, Calif., auditioned with “I’ve Got the Music in Me” and turned two chairs. Hannah, 21, of Nashville, Tenn., auditioned with “If I Ain’t Got You” and turned all four.
The performance: Hannah bowed out of the competition. The Voice didn’t provide an explanation why. But there is an official version available on iTunes.
The outcome: Alexa automatically advanced.

THE MONTAGES

TEAM BLAKE SHELTON

The matchup: Austin Giorgio vs. Brett Hunter
The song: “Me and Mrs. Jones” by Billy Paul
The background: Austin, 21, of Rochester, N.Y., performed “How Sweet It Is” in the blinds and turned two chairs. Brett Hunter, 30, of Oakland, Calif., auditioned with “She’s a Bad mama Jama.” Only Blake turned.
The performance: Who knows? The Voice montaged the performance, and they’re too lazy to edit it and post it to YouTube.
The outcome: Austin was declared the winner by Blake. Brett was eliminated.

TEAM ADAM LEVINE

The matchup: Angel Bonilla vs. Gary Edwards
The song: “When You Believe” by Whitney Houston
The background: Gary, 26, of Dallas, Texas, auditioned with “What’s Going On” and turned two chairs; Angel, 31, of Los Angeles, Calif., performed “Lay Me Down” to earn a spot on Team Adam in a montaged audition.
The performance: Who knows? The Voice montaged the performance and is too lazy to edit it and put it online.
The outcome: Gary advanced. Angel was eliminated before we ever got to hear her sing.