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The Voice of Ireland: Season 4 - Semi-Final!
21 April, 2015 4:45 PM
Published by Kevin Mc Stravock
We're down to eight acts, two on each team so tonight will see us finally find out who the finalists for 2015 are. Each act has just one last chance to prove why they deserve a place in the final and the coaches are powerless as it's fully down to the public to decide who gets through. The top four acts, regardless of teams will make it through to the final meaning we could well see two whole teams being knocked out tonight.
Recap and videos after the JUMP...
John Sheehy
'Sugar' by Maroon 5 - 8/10 - John was saved by his coach last week over his fellow Team Una member Niall O'Halloran. Niall probably had a stronger voice but John had been stronger in the live shows, so I agreed with the decision. This is good, I think I prefer it to last week's performance but at the same time, it isn't as strong as his performance during the live knockouts. Due to the fact that John's voice is quite high, the falsetto parts didn't have the same wow factor that the original song. Aside from a few pitchy parts in the chorus, his vocals were generally alright but it just didn't stand out as much as 'Firework'.
Denise Morgan
'Weak' by Skunk Anansie - 9/10 - Denise had an absolutely amazing performance last week with her unique swing take on a Natasha Bedingfield song. This song came a little bit out of nowhere as I expected Bressie to want her to continue to go down the blues/jazz route but it surprisingly works really well. I adore this song and Denise nails it, it's only when you see her doing tracks like this that you realize what a strong voice she actually has. Denise has been one of my favourites throughout the contest because she hasn't played it safe every week. Bressie has challenged her, given her songs that she wasn't necessarily comfortable with but she has taken them and put her own spin of them. Skin has a really unique voice but Denise's rendition of the song was surprisingly great. Aside from perhaps a few too many runs at the end, it was another fantastic performance from Denise. I'll be so disappointed if she doesn't make the final.
Sarah McTernan
'I Earned It' by The Weeknd - 7.5/10 - This is a hard one to score because it was very much a performance of two halves. The opening was quite flat and it took her a while to find the correct pitch of the song. However, once she got into the song, I actually really started to enjoy it. Sarah isn't the strongest singer in the competition, she has certainly struggled with her pitch at times but she's one of the more unique vocalists in the competition and I love the intensity of this performance. The vocals definitely could have been much better but it's the first performance since her blind audition where I actually felt that she was engaged with the song, this darker style definitely suits her better than the slowed down club tracks she has been given a lot of recently. I really like Sarah as a performer but at the same time, I will be annoyed if she gets through over someone like Denise who killed it tonight as vocally, there were clear issues.
John Bonham
'Welcome To The Jungle' by Guns N Roses - 9.5/10 - There's only so many times he can lurk around the 9 mark but this was very close to getting the perfect 10. I literally cannot think of a single bad thing to say other than I wish he had went for the run in the 'bring you to your knees' line. The commitment that John puts into his performances is unrivalled. I'm slightly worried that John's consistency will work against but surely they wouldn't not vote for him after that performance?
Kieran McKillop
'Give Me Love' by Ed Sheeran - 8.5/10 - I've said it a lot this series about him but Kieran's improvement over the course of the competition is definitely worth noting. Again, this was relatively faultless, slightly pitchy in the first verse perhaps but nothing outstandingly bad. Emotionally, I actually felt that he connected with the song a lot more than he has with previous performances. Where I'm stopping short is that I don't feel that his voice is as unique as some of his competitors. His vocals are strong but his song choices have all been quite safe choices, I've been waiting for Rachel to take him out of his comfort zone and she hasn't done that with him. All the same, it's hard to criticize someone for being consistently good and this was probably his best performance to date.
Helena Bradley-Bates
'You're The Voice' by John Farnham - 9/10 - As much as I want to sit here and criticize the fact that she's singing yet another pre-90's song, in fairness to Helena, this is easily her best performance in the show by a mile. I don't even particularly like this song but it's perfect for her, she has such a pure voice. Vocally, she's in the top three with John and Patrick for sure and I'm glad that we're finally getting the chance to see that, this song was so much better for her voice than the last couple of songs. I have to give her credit, to sing this well whilst in the final stages of your pregnancy is commendable, I've been half expecting her to go into labour on stage, who knows what will happen if she makes the finale?
Emma Humber
'What Kind of Man' by Florence and The Machines - 10/10 - She's done it, I can't hold back any more, the first perfect performance of the series goes to Emma. After last week's slightly duff song choice, Emma is back to her best with this fantastic performance. I can't think of a better song for her voice, she had it all, the intensity, the incredible tone, the natural charisma on stage. Emma is one of the best contestants we've ever had on The Voice, I was slightly worried that she may only be able to do intense indie ballads but this shows that she's able to nail a higher energy performance too. I know I've said it a lot tonight but I will be fuming if she doesn't make the final after that performance.
Patrick Donoghue
'Ain't Nobody' by Chaka Khan - 8.5/10 - 8.5 for Patrick seems like a low score but this is actually my least favourite performance of his. I really like the soul in Patrick's voice and he definitely had plenty of it in this performance but I just felt that he didn't really get into the performance as much as some of the previous songs. Vocally, there's no denying that he's one of the best in the competition but this didn't have the same wow factor that previous performances have had. If we were basing it on consistency I would probably be inclined to want Patrick in the final but based on tonight's performances, it's a hard one to call.
Who Should Go Through:
Emma Humber
John Bonham
Denise Morgan
Patrick Donoghue/Helena Bradley-Bates
Who Will Go Through:
Emma Humber
John Bonham
Patrick Donoghue
Sarah McTernan/Kieran McKillop
Results
Eliminated:
Denise Morgan
John Sheehy
John Bonham
Helena Bradley-Bates
Woah, I was certainly not expecting John Bonham to go home, it just shows that being brilliant doesn't always guarantee that you will get through, consistency can end up counting against you. Rachel's two acts getting through does seem a little annoying considering that they were two of the weaker acts tonight but I don't think anyone had a bad performance so to speak so it was never going to be an easy one to call. Poor Kian loses both his acts before the final for the second year in a row. I'm gutted for Denise as well who has been fantastic.
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