Ship of Fools: The voice

Thread: The voice Board: Oblivion / Ship of Fools.

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Posted by Schroedinger's cat (# 64) on :

Anyone watching? I like the idea of the blind auditions. And every one of those shown are better than the finalists of the ex-factor.

The mentors are all very samey, though, and getting the contestants to choose is odd. Of course most are going to go to Jessie J ( the best looking ) or Sir Tom ( the legend ).

Posted by Nanny Ogg (# 1176) on :

I saw the first one on iplayer as I was bored being at home.

Same old, same old.

At least Simon Cowell is not on it.

Posted by Smudgie (# 2716) on :

Unimpressed. Mind you, I can't stand all these "talent show" programmes which have totally taken over from all decent viewing. Forced by my teenage son to take an interest in this one, I have to say that it passed the time, but then again, the time would have passed anyway.
Liked the idea of singers being judged on their voice alone - but then it seemed they were also being judged on their choice of song. If each judge is choosing ten in total, how do they know the later ones won't be worse than the ones they rejected now, or better than the ones they chose now? And how do the choosing singers know how good the judge will be as a trainer/marketter?

Twaddle... accompanied by occasional good music, and the delight of Tom Jones' voice!

Posted by Beethoven (# 114) on :

It would be better IMO if the judges couldn't see one another, so instead of all the silly 'are you going?' looks, they had to make a decision by themselves. Whatshisname on the end seems to be particularly bad at wanting someone else to press their button first - which hardly says much for his self-confidence as a mentor, I feel! [Roll Eyes]

Some good singers, though, and at least it's a tiny bit different to the normal 'judge you by your looks, voice is a secondary issue' format...

Posted by Schroedinger's cat (# 64) on :

The other thing I hope they can avoid is the "big up my crappy team; slag off the other good teams" that XF has turned into. Hopefully, they will all seek the best singers.

Yes it is the same, but at least they can sing. At least it is a singing competition, I think, not a personality competition.

Posted by Schroedinger's cat (# 64) on :

The opera singer was good.

the thing I like about it is that even the ones who are rejected are good. They may not be selected, because they don't quite fit the particular expectations of the mentors. But they are all good, and many of them will do well from the publicity they have.

Does anyone know who Daniel is, apart the person who sang his song?

Posted by The Rogue (# 2275) on :

When I first saw the trailers I thought that it was all inspired by Susan Boyle and the fact that she did not look particularly appealing to a music industry to whom image often means more than talent. I saw some of today's show and agree that there were some good singers on it, often with some performing experience, which makes it better than the shows where anyone who thinks they can sing but can't is allowed on so that they can be mocked.

Posted by Schroedinger's cat (# 64) on :

I think the auditions are good, and not the freak show that ex-factor has become.

I actually enjoy listening to them. I was glad that the singer from 5 got through. She was, I have to say, very good - better than the the one from last week, who was not a solo singer at all.

Posted by wilson (# 37) on :

Enjoying it so far.

I'm an unashamed X-Factor and American Idol fan except for the auditions rounds where you're either watching people destined to go through or people you're invited to laugh at[*].

By only having people who can actually sing, and by being up-front that some of them are already in the business this feels more warm-hearted and trust-worthy.

The dynamic between the "coaches" is interesting. I feel like Tom Jones is playing it safe. Will.i.am comes across as a nice guy and Danny is full of enthusiasm.

I'll definitely keep watching.

Posted by wilson (# 37) on :

oops!

The missing footnote [*] was that it's all the worse when you discover that the "auditions" you see on these shows are in fact the 3rd or 4th (or more) time these people have been in front of someone, usually a succession of production assistants, before the actual televised bit. So those really bad singers who don't apparently know how bad they are? have been encouraged to think they have a chance by getting through several un-aired rounds already. It's kinda sick really.

Posted by Schroedinger's cat (# 64) on :

Wilson - that is what I meant by a freak show. I find it very disturbing that we allow such a thing in this day and age.

Posted by Enigma (# 16158) on :

My view so far is that there are no real duds on the show which makes it very interesting.
What is a bit strange though is the way that the mentors communicate with each other before pressing their buzzer.

Posted by Schroedinger's cat (# 64) on :

The duets are amazing. Not a dud yet. There are some seriously good singers, and pairing them up brings out their best aspects.

Cool.

Posted by Gracious rebel (# 3523) on :

quote:
Originally posted by wilson:
oops!

The missing footnote [*] was that it's all the worse when you discover that the "auditions" you see on these shows are in fact the 3rd or 4th (or more) time these people have been in front of someone, usually a succession of production assistants, before the actual televised bit. So those really bad singers who don't apparently know how bad they are? have been encouraged to think they have a chance by getting through several un-aired rounds already. It's kinda sick really.

Yeah, ever since I read Chart Throb by Ben Elton I have been totally unable to take these shows seriously. It's a great tale. I love these 'modern parodies' he writes, there's another one that does Big Brother.

[ 22. April 2012, 08:25: Message edited by: Gracious rebel ]

Posted by Schroedinger's cat (# 64) on :

Chart throb is worth a read. As is most of Ben Eltons writing, TBH. Blind Faith is one of my favorites, and has a very clear message.

What I like about The Voice is that those who never even made it to the top 40 are better then 70% of all X-factor finalists. And the ones who go this weekend, some of them will have had enough exposure to get some form of career in music, I suspect.

I think the judges made some wrong decisions, if I am honest, but they were using different criteria from me - like who can take direction.

Posted by bib (# 13074) on :

I watched some of the first episode of the Australian 'the Voice' but couldn't stand very much of it. The so called singing was mostly loud screaming and screeching, particularly from the women. What has happened to the ability to sing with musicality and produce the voice properly and with finesse? The ability of the so called judges also left me in no doubt that their standards represented the worst of the current pop culture. Give this rubbish a miss! [Projectile]

Posted by Schroedinger's cat (# 64) on :

I think they must have kept the poor duets for today. There were some bad ones today.

And some strange decisions, I think. We will see.

And Cerys Matthews was looking a fright, I thought.

Posted by Tubbs (# 440) on :

quote:
Originally posted by wilson:
oops!

The missing footnote [*] was that it's all the worse when you discover that the "auditions" you see on these shows are in fact the 3rd or 4th (or more) time these people have been in front of someone, usually a succession of production assistants, before the actual televised bit. So those really bad singers who don't apparently know how bad they are? have been encouraged to think they have a chance by getting through several un-aired rounds already. It's kinda sick really.

A modern form of the Victorian freak shows or Bedlam being open to the public for "entertaiment".

A friend of ours went for it but didn’t make it to televised stage. They said that the producers saw everyone who applied, then some of those were called back for further auditions / questions before making it onto TV. (And IIRC, the producers also did the backwards chair thing).

The entire family have been watching this – and one of the things that is making it more enjoyable than similar shows is that all the people on it have some degree of talent. There’s no one there because they’d make good telly but are actually rubbish. The comments, even for the ones that don’t make it, are constructive and helpful as well.

We missed Saturday’s battle but saw Sunday’s. Some of the battles we saw didn’t look as spectacular as the clips, but John James v David J was class! And all credit to them both for being sporting with it.

Some of the people who survived are surprising … (Ruth-Ann rather than Ben K, but both irritated the crap out of me so there was no right decision there!) I’m assuming that some of the decisions have been made on the basis of who the mentors think they can “make up” – so the audience sees the journey from raw talent to finished article – rather than who was best on the day. (Like will.i.am choosing Sophie over J Marie). And on who the mentors think they can work with without wanting to kill them … (Indie and Pixie came over as a right pair of whiners, which may have influenced the final outcome). But others I was pleased with.

We’ll stick with it … Not sure who we want to win at this stage.

Tubbs

Posted by MiceElf (# 4389) on :

Saturday was definitely the best show.

I was half watching Sunday's as it was not nearly as good... and half doing something else, in the end I had to turn it off as the screaming and cries of the audience and back room family reunions became so tedious and loud that my ears were hurting... Hoping for better next week when the live shows start.

Posted by wilson (# 37) on :

Just finished watching Sunday's show. Yep not as good though it had its moments - enjoyed the David J/John James performance and thought Becky has a great voice.

Having said that I think The Voice is a cut above some other shows it still has things that niggle - like those little clips of what's coming up[*] which manufacture controversey. Also it felt like some of the choices were based on who, should they go further, would have the best "story" - so go for the young but raw, the guy who's given up his job for the show, the boy struggling with self-confidence. I would mind that more were it not for the fact that the quality is generally high enough that there's no one I would begrudge a place in the next round.

[*]feels like it's edited to be shown on a channel with commercial breaks but it's on the Beeb plus since it's a franchise show you'd think other countries would do their own version rather than buy the UK one.

Posted by Schroedinger's cat (# 64) on :

I think the format for this last weekend was poor - the idea of a boxing match, and one-on-one with people going out if they are not as good as their pairing, rather than the best overall.

Twitter suggested we need Voice Bingo. You get a point each time:

Will-i-was says "Dope"
Jessie J sings along with an artist who is not one of hers
Tom Jones name drops
Danny says something because he hates being "that other one".

Posted by SFG (# 17081) on :

I didnt like the boxing ring set either, and was a little disappointed at how it is going.

having said that it was relaxing enough if I didnt give it full concentration [Smile]

Posted by Jenn. (# 5239) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Schroedinger's cat:

Twitter suggested we need Voice Bingo. You get a point each time:

Will-i-was says "Dope"
Jessie J sings along with an artist who is not one of hers
Tom Jones name drops
Danny says something because he hates being "that other one".

I saw it as a drinking game, but I would have been very very drunk by the end with those rules. Jessie sings along to EVERYTHING - I don't know how she can concentrate. Tom Jones is super-annoying with the name dropping too.

Having said that, I enjoyed the first round. Was not impressed with this week, which just seemed like an excuse to get rid of people who weren't marketable. Which given that this was marketed on the blind auditions is frustrating.

They are all better than most of the x-factor finalists though. So it's quite relaxing and enjoyable.

Posted by Schroedinger's cat (# 64) on :

they were all good I thought. Some spectacular performances.

Posted by Schroedinger's cat (# 64) on :

I think most of them sang well this week. Although one was a little pitchy*. I have picked 3 of team Tom and 2 of team Will to go through, so I will be wrong.

the guy who sang "High and Dry" this week will have a career in music, whatever happens, I reckon. He is far from perfect, but the girls like him and he can pull of the rock numbers.

*out of tune.

Posted by Tree Bee (# 4033) on :

I agree with the mentors choices this week.
Especially Ruth and Jaz.

I'm enjoying the show on the whole, it seems to be a celebration of music rather than the humiliation-fest that the X Factor can sometimes be.

Some of the singers are too shouty though ;I appreciate the more mellow tunes.

Posted by Schroedinger's cat (# 64) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Tree Bee:
I agree with the mentors choices this week.
Especially Ruth and Jaz.

I disagree with the mentors choices this week. I think they were both wrong. Ruth and Jaz were the publics choice, and I think the public were right to keep them. Ruth, in particular, seems to have won the public over, so I think she will do well - and possibly win.

Posted by quetzalcoatl (# 16740) on :

I think some of the song choices are weird, and some of the arrangements also, which sound like a blend of jazz and easy listening. Will.i.am is particularly prone to this.

Still enjoyable though, and surely the last few ones will have careers in music, as they have good voices.

It often has a flash trashy air, but I quite like that. Tom is a legend of course. He knew Elvis.

Posted by Roseofsharon (# 9657) on :

I had picked the four that I thought should go through, and was 75% right. I preferred Adam to Leanne, so I think Sir Tom was wrong [Biased]

I did wonder if there was a bit of 'engineering' going on, to get a gender balance for the next round. It'll be interesting to see who gets through from the other two teams.

Posted by Balaam (# 4543) on :

quote:
Originally posted by Roseofsharon:
I had picked the four that I thought should go through, and was 75% right. I preferred Adam to Leanne, so I think Sir Tom was wrong

I did wonder if there was a bit of 'engineering' going on, to get a gender balance for the next round. It'll be interesting to see who gets through from the other two teams.

I don't think so. I was 100% right.

The women were the strongest on team Tom and the men strongest of Team who.am.i.

There was some gender engineering in the early rounds, but a least it was open. Especially Danny and Sir Tom not turning because they already had a lot of women in their team.

I think we have seen the winner in the two who were voted through by the audience last week.

Ruth has the power in the voice. When she drops to quieter stuff there are problems though, mainly with diction. If she puts a lot of work into the quiet stuff she could take the top prize off Jaz Ellington who is already the complete package.

The only other contestant that excites me is Vince Kidd, not because he's the best singer, but soul with a punk attitude is a new twist which I like.

As for team Danny, they're good, but not quite as good as the three I have mentioned.

My final three are:

Jaz
Ruth
Vince

The top two could be reversed if Ruth works on the quieter stuff.

Posted by Roseofsharon (# 9657) on :

With you on Jaz and Ruth.
The other finalists, I think, will depend on the musical tastes of the voters/ judges

Posted by Schroedinger's cat (# 64) on :

The problem with Vince, is that he reminds me of Keith Flint from The Prodigy. Not necessarily a bad thing, but then when he sings totally non-prodigy-like stuff, I get confused*. But his punk attitude I do like.

*Not difficult.

Posted by Schroedinger's cat (# 64) on :

I think the public and judges got it right this week. Overall, I think the 4 public picks and Becky are the best of them. Bo probably stands out from them even.

Becky I do like - she got away with saying "Fuck" on BBC prime time. She is crazy as a bag of spanners, but I do like her. I worry that the Janis Joplin similarity may run rather deep though - she seems like the perfect person to go crazy when she has some success.

Posted by tessaB (# 8533) on :

Loved, loved, loved the Danny group song. Beautifully staged and sung.

Posted by Schroedinger's cat (# 64) on :

quote:
Originally posted by tessaB:
Loved, loved, loved the Danny group song. Beautifully staged and sung.

Agreed. It was tough this week. It is a pity that Becky went, but Vince was also exceptional. Both will do well. Leanne did well to beat Ruth, but I think she actually sang her way into the final.

Jaz did poorly, but that is partly because he say that puking crap by McCartney. And he did nothing with it. Bo, of course, was always going to get through as long as she didn't completely mess up - she is still my bet to win.

Posted by Roseofsharon (# 9657) on :

We were away for a w/e earlier this month and missed it - and I had forgotten all about it since then. Seems I was totally wrong about the finalists, so I don't expect to be watching again.

Posted by Balaam (# 4543) on :

The local council have booked a free pop concert for the weekend after the Jubilee (Sunday 10th). Tinchy Stryder is headlining, but Vince Kidd is on the bill.

Bet they never guessed he'd be in the Voice final the week before the concert, good publicity. (The concert is free but there are plenty of opportunities to fleece you of your money once there.)

Posted by Balaam (# 4543) on :

That's all my predictions gone.

Posted by Schroedinger's cat (# 64) on :

Well that was a bit of a surprise. But all of them deserved to do well, and will. None of them really shone last night, although they all had some good moments.

The problem, in a sense, is that there were so many good quality singers, and none of them stood out as the only clear winner. I think Bo would have been my choice, and she will do well eventually.

We will hear from many of them again I think. I gather the series in the UK produced substantially better singers than other countries. You see, Britain does have talent.

Posted by Balaam (# 4543) on :

I wasn't surprised, the best performance on the night won. All of them were great singers, and all deserve to do well. Particularly Vince, who whilst never being the best voice on the show was the most unique talent. Of all the acts I liked Vince the best. (I still think that Jaz was the best singer overall, but he played the price of having one weaker week.)

The curse of UK talent shows means that beaten finalists usually have the better long term careers than the winners anyway.

Posted by Fr Raphael (# 17131) on :

Ii was impressed that not the most glam looking won - it was votes on voice.

Although I have to say appearance does influence me a little more than I'd like it to.

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