The blind auditions gave us 48 acts, some of them great, some not so much. But that's exactly what the battles are from, to get the filler out of the way. Each judge will have two saves this year, which acts will be the lucky recipients? ... This is The Voice!

Recap and videos after the jump ...

Since the battles are mostly filler, I won't be recapping everything that happens on it, just the actual performance.

Episode 1

Johnny Rollins beats Maybelle Galuvao - "Rolling in the Deep" - Team Kylie - Johnny's soulful voice got to shine here, in a way it didn't during the blinds, clearly trumping over Maybelle, whose nerves definitely got the best of her, making her sound overly flat.


Fely Irvine beats Mia Morrissey - "Young and Beautiful" - Team Ricky - Mia was the one that got my attention during the blinds but tonight, it was Fely who stole the show. Both girls sounded great though, but while Mia struggled a bit at the beginning, Fely was always on point, showcasing a ferocious heartbreaking sound I'd not seen before.


Julian Simonsz beats Krishool - "Superstition" - Team Will - Krishool got super excited when Will handed him this song but I bet that all changed once super smooth Julian got assigned as his partner. Krishool is a dancer, an entertainer, but not a strong singer. Julian simply sang circles around him, even though he wasn't that good either.


Robbie Balmer beats Jackson Thomas  (saved by Ricky) - "Strong" - Team Kylie - This is an obvious pairing with an obvious winner, Robbie. His falsetto was not only stronger than Jackson's but at the end of day, more original and captivating. Yeah, he hit a bunch of awful notes but so did Jackson. Making them sing in falsetto for most of the song was a mistake, in the end, it felt as two screaming cats.


Holly Tapp beats Courtney Hale - "Addicted to You" - Team Joel - Holly is one of my faves but I feel like Joel screwed her with this song choice, especially since Courtney is so loud and dramatic. Ok, I admit the song isn't as awful as I expected though Holly still gets a little drowned by it and her voice isn't shining as I know it can. I'm not digging Courtney at all, to me, it feels like an over the top character. She's super entertaining but maybe a singing competition isn't for her.


Elly Oh beats Jess Berney (saved by Joel) - "O Mio Babbino Caro" - Team Ricky - The battle of the opera singers! I don't know much about this genre but to me, classically trained Elly sounded better than raw talent Jess, even if just a little. Great performance but I really don't care about this style.

Anja Nissen beats Sarah Hamad - "When Love Takes Over" - Team Will - I'm not a fan of this song but I must admit Anja sounded amazing on it. The music was too loud and it made it hard to listen to them. Sarah seemed to have more issues though, such as failing in the ladder-like riff and a bunch of bum notes. Anja was simply flawless.


Doug Williams beats Dallas James - "Hey Brother" - Team Joel - This is a smart move from Joel, giving pro Doug a current tune. I loved Dallas tone during his audition but I'm not liking how it sounds here, it's very wobbly, and overall he sounds really messy, flat and out of breath. He's clearly not as seasoned as Doug, who, despite not doing the greatest job with this song, still sounds pretty good on it.


Candice Skjonnemand beats Thando Sikwila (saved by Ricky) - "Clown" - Team Kylie - Thando wasn't familiar with the song, she even called it out of her comfort zone despite being perfect for her, but then went on to completely nail it. Her audition was somewhat generic but with this song, I saw a different side to her voice. Candice was equally great, with her husky, clear tone making a deep connection with the material. Both girls gave a few chills and for that, they deserve their extended stay.


Brandon Duff beats Gabriel and Cecilia (saved by Will) - "Demons" - Team Ricky - Gabriel and Cecilia, to me, were the best audition of the year and despite the fact Ricky cut them was shocking, I'm glad he did. At least now they are no longer under his clutches! Haha. Brandon is an uncharismatic singer but he did hit one awesome note towards the end and was more consistent so he did deserve to win. The duo was never made to battle, which explains why it was so messy, so I'm glad to see they've survived this stage.


Josh McDonald beats Scotty Gelzinnis - "High and Dry" - Team Ricky - Josh sounds just gorgeous here and while Scotty was surprisingly great on it, he came nowhere near the sheer beauty of Josh's sound, even when sounding as good as he did.


Taila Gouge beats Annabelle Eve - "The Climb" - Team Joel - Miley Cyrus is Joel's favourite artist at the moment. Ok then, is he serious? If I were Joel, I would have used both this girls as fodder. None is particularly great but I guess if I had to pick one, I'd go for Taila, her tone is barely more interesting than Annabelle's.


Louise Van Veenendaal beats Jayde Grey - "Since U Been Gone" - Team Will - I didn't see this one coming. Neither did them, as Louise pointed out, Jayde is her complete opposite. This song clearly favours Louise, though if properly arranged, it could work for both of them, that won't happen, so Jayde was definitely screwed. She stood her ground though, sounding much better than I expected but unfortunately, Louise's dramatic, powerful approach got all the attention, pushing poor Jayde into the background.

John Lingard beats Tom Oliver - "Counting Stars" - Team Kylie - They both start rather flat, which isn't entirely their fault since this song is so hard. Tom's voice is very unpleasant though and tends to be pitchy whereas John's is a pleasure on the ears, when he delivers that is. Unfortunately, this has to be the worst battle of the series if I'm being honest.


Sabrina Batshon beats Lionel Cole (saved by Kylie) -"Beauty and the Beast" - Team Ricky - Super cheesy song, props for that Ricky, yet they totally slayed it. It was obvious Lionel was struggling with the song, as he said before, it was very hard for him, and he still delivered, for most of it, since the way he ended the performance was a total mess. Sabrina, on the other hand, was sublime from beginning to end and that's why her win is completely deserved.


Frank Lakoudis beats Harry Healy - "Under the Bridge" - Team Joel - I wasn't expecting this pairing, mainly for the age difference but style wise, it doesn't make sense either. Easy way to put Frank through I guess. I've already stated I prefer Harry's tone and I do think he was better here, Frank is too loud for my taste and not original enough.


C Major beats Carly Yelayotis (saved by Will) - "Where Have You Been" - Team Ricky - His name is "Music Box" levels of stupid. I hate it so I will never call him by it, I'll refer to him by his actual, better name, Carlos. I wasn't sure about this song but it fits Carly's voice perfectly, she actually sounds really similar to XF's Joelle. She's a bit flat a few times and is obviously not as comfortable on stage as Carlos is but she did a great job with it. Carlos did sound better than her though but he should learn some new moves if he insists on dancing cause what he does is amateur hour at best.


ZK beats Tasha Amoroso - "The Cave" - Team Will - Awesome song, great pick for them, glad Will is pushing ZK out of their comfort zone. I'm loving this battle. I cannot really pick a winner cause they all sounded terrific on it. ZK had a slight advantage, them being a duo and creating a more resonating sound, while Tasha had to perform on her own. That said, I understand why Will picked ZK, though I wish Tasha could've gotten a save.


Kat Jade beats Hayley Jensen - "Roar" - Team Kylie - Why do people insist on covering this song? There are much better Katy Perry songs for them to sing. At least we get this performance now and not during the liveshows. Kat is singing rounds around Hayley, even though the former Australian Idol is standing her ground. I prefer Kat's crystal clear tone, so I'm glad she won.



Megan Longhurst beats Brittanie Shipway - "I Know Him So Well" - Team Kylie - I must admit I don't really remember Megan. Both girls are similar, and as Kylie noted, this was a necessary pairing. It's all very theatrical, almost operatic, and perfectly controlled, great for a Broadway show. They actually sound so alike, it's hard to pick a winner though I guess Megan won this, since I find her tone a bit more pleasant.


Isaac McGovern beats Luke Koteras - "Reckless" - Team Joel - I love Isaac's guitar, his mom did such a wonderful job on it. I also love everything about him and while Luke did a good enough job on this song, it was Isaac's delicate approach that stole my attention. Wonderful, unique tone, ready to be recorded.


Jacob Lee beats Jhoanna Aguila (saved by Kylie) - "You Make It Real" - Team Will - Jacob keeps doing the weird thing with his eyes, he closes them but they aren't really fully closed, Will should have told him to open his eyes. Jacob does sound better than Jhoanna, only because the song was written for a guy and because he chose the key he was comfortable with. Jhoanna still did a wonderful job with it but I bet she would've sounded so much better had she gone higher. I'm glad Kylie saved her, I know she can give a lot more.


Rosie Henshaw beats Reece & Tino - "Umbrella" - Team Kylie - This pairing makes no sense, neither does this atrocious song. Rosie is the more interesting performer, maybe not the best singer, but compared to the duo, she's clearly a lot better. She needs to bring out those cool instruments she can play next.


Blake Leggett beats Lij Gilmour - "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)" - Team Joel - I don't care much about this pairing. Blake made no impression and Lij proved to be a weak singer. My opinion hasn't changed after this battle, Blake won but he should start packing either way.



Mat Verevis beats Soli Tesema (saved by Joel)  - "Ordinary People" - Team Will - This was by far, one of the best battles of the year and it was all thanks to their intense delivery. Soli totally stole the show, with that rich, soulful tone of hers. Mat was also rather great, his theatricality was in full display here but it worked very well with this song, but if I had to pick one, it's definitely the gorgeous Soli.


Chita Henneberry beats Emily Rex - "Clarity" - Team Will - Same case as with Laura and Elise. Almost in every aspect, bad song choice, bad battle. I would've picked Emily either way, since her audition was so great and Chita wasn't that much better than her in this battle, in fact, I think Emily was better given the song was so out of her comfort zone.


Matthew Garwood beats Peter White - "Eleanor Rigby" - Team Ricky - Why end the battles with this pairing? Mat and Soli made for a stronger closing act. Not a fan of what they did here, especially Matthew who insisted on creeping me out with his weird faces. Peter wasn't vocally perfect but at least I didn't fear for my life when looking at him. None is making it far either way.

ZK beats Tasha Amoroso - "The Cave" - Team Will

 Isaac McGovern beats Luke Koteras - "Reckless" - Team Joel

 Jacob Lee beats Jhoanna Aguila (saved by Kylie) - "You Make It Real" - Team Will