The younger Teng's body failed him not once, but at least twice, but the Green Archer forward's will never relented and, in the end, his and his teammates' resilience and determination were rewarded with a UAAP title.
"We just didn't give up," said Teng, who finished with 25 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists while battling cramps late in the game and almost giving the game away with costly turnovers.
Frenetic ending
Back-to-back baskets from Kevin Ferrer and Jeric Teng pushed the Growling Tigers to a 69-67 lead with 34 seconds left.
And after Jeron Teng split his charities to move La Salle within one at 69-68, Aljon Mariano threw the ball away, setting the stage for what turned out to be a game-clinching basket by Almond Vosotros.
Jeron Teng attacked Mariano's defense before passing to Vosotros, who opted to come closer for an open jumper that gave the Archers a 70-69 advantage with 19 seconds remaining.
UST failed to buy a basket in the ensuing play and with the Tigers forced to foul to stay alive, La Salle guard LA Revilla made one of two free-throws to hike the Archers' lead to 71-69.
Karim Abdul then missed two potential game-winners inside the last 9.1 seconds as La Salle copped its first championship since 2007.
More improvement for La Salle
"No real difference. Just the same thing," said rookie coach Juno Sauler. "We played hard. We stood about it."
The win allowed Sauler to duplicate UST coach Pido Jarencio's feat as a coach who won the UAAP title in his first year at the helm.
Despite the inspiring triumph, Sauler isn't ready to rest on his laurels just yet, as the coach known for his all-business demeanor believes there is still a lot more room for improvement for his squad.
"We're looking forward to what we can improve next season," a stoic Sauler said. "I hope we can do better and not make the same mistakes we did, especially in the first round."
Teng was named the Finals MVP even as Almond Vosotros added 16 points and 5 rebounds and Jason Perkins bucked cramps late in the game to finish with 13 markers and 18 boards.
No support for Teng, Abdul
Jeric Teng starred once more for the Tigers with 24 points spiked by 4 triples, but the graduating gunner couldn't get the touches in the end game as he bade his collegiate career goodbye without a title.
Abdul was solid with 26 markers, 8 rebounds and 3 steals but no other Tiger finished in double-figures as Ferrer and Mariano shrank in the pressure of a winner-take-all matchup.
Ferrer, Mariano and senior guard Clark Bautista combined for a measly 14 points on 4 of 30 shooting for UST, who finished in second place for the second straight year.
The scores:
DLSU (71) - Teng 25, Vosotros 16, Perkins 13, Van Opstal 11, T. Torres 4, N. Torres 1, Revilla 1, Tampus 0, Salem 0
UST (69) - Abdul 26, Teng 24, Ferrer 7, Bautista 4, Mariano 3, Sheriff 2, Lao 2, Pe 1
On Saturday, she chose a song (The Climb)
to show her strengths: kulot and falsetto. But, the song is a little bit shabby.
It was a big hit 3 years ago, but people got tired of that song already. And
at the same time, the song was too young to be a classic. But it highlighted
her singing technique. Meanwhile, her Sunday’s performance with Sarah and Sena (Your Song)
was just superb. Excellent blending among the three. It was such a treat. I even
replayed it in my recorder actually. It is something that is not just competition-worthy,
but also concert-worthy… something you’d be willing pay to watch. Her next song,
Open Arms, is another shabby song, but nevertheless a familiar sound. Her
birits were not her best in this song though. But her performance was enough to
earn her a spot in the Top 2.
2.Team Bamboo – Myk
Myk’s traditional formula since the
blind is to sing upbeat Jason Mrazish type of song with Bamboo tone. His
Saturday’s Give Me Love performance deviated from his formula. And it worked! It’s not
upbeat, yet I love it. One can feel his emotions with his number.
His Sunday’s performance was another
deviation, with Myk and Bamboo singing Morning Rose. Again, this was such a cool
and chill number. Like Paolo’s ELESI, it was really entertaining. Honestly, I
never heard that Morning Rose before, but I really enjoyed this number, such that
I’m going to download later the original arrangement of this song to compare. Finally, Myk sang a Michael Buble - again another deviation from his signature Myk upbeat
sound.
Clearly, Myk was trying to deviate from
his proven formula. For the Saturday number, it worked. But I guess for the
Sunday’s numbers, it didn’t. The songs were not finale competition songs. Ok, Bamboo is really differentiating his artist from the other 3 birit contestants. But I think people
miss the signature Myk sound (that Jason Mrazish vibe) that made him reach the Top 4. Myk should know
that this is not the time to experiment on a new formula. Thus he paid the
price. He was the last placer among the 4.
Also, note that among the 4,
it was only Myk who did not win the public votes in the Top 8 show. So the
Paolo votes might not have necessarily translated to Myk votes, I suppose.
3.Team Apl – Janice
Learning from her past mistakes, Janice
sang familiar songs at the finale, starting with The Greatest Love of All last
Saturday. Well, it wasn’t her best I think. The kulot wasn’t as good as
Klarrise’s. The growl was not too full. But of course, she hit the high notes,
as always. And last Sunday, it was a
surprise. An unexpected mash up on an OPM and an Apl dance hit Time of Your
Life with Apl and Lolita. She danced and “beat boxed.” This really came as a surprise, with Janice
deviating from her usual high pitch competition songs. And due to this surprise
factor, the public liked it… so much! Janice's song and dance number gave a magnitude 7 earthquake at the RWM.
Finally, yet another indication of
Janice’s learning, her unexpected final song was another pop dance hit, We
Found Love in a Hopeless Place, which I also like. Janice’s surprises paid off. She gambled and she won. From being the iTunes consistent
last placer, she managed to rank higher than Myk. She should have done this earlier because at
this point, no matter how well she sings, she will not gain significant number of new followers. The public already have their favorites which are cast in stone.
The artists were just singing for the undecided, or for the followers of those who were
evicted last week (if they don’t remain in their teams).
4.Team Lea - Mitoy
Don’t forget, this guy is a club performer,
and as such he surely knows what it takes to get a standing ovation from the
crowd: singing high birit karaoke songs that we are all familiar of. He started
with a rock version of Anak. Sunday was a fun performance. That Total Eclipse
of the Heart, which is the King of Karaoke Songs, was just totally fun and entertaining, due to Vice Ganda. And that
surprising kiss was a climax to the comedic act.
Total Eclipse of the Heart - The King of Karaoke Songs such that people even managed to map its lyrics into a flowchart
Finally, he sang Leaving on a Jet Plane. Mitoy was consistent with his formula since Day 1. Karaoke birit songs. He
never deviated from it. Among the Top 4 or even Top 8, he’s the one that showed
least variety. He knows his formula will win him votes. And that just
happened.
And of course, the Vice Ganda
appearance helped him get even more votes. But the biggest question is why did Team
Lea choose Vice Ganda? I understand Sarah’s Sena and Apl’s Lolita. But why Vice
Ganda? He’s not a singer and this is The Voice (as emphasized by Mitoy). Oh I
forgot, Vice is a singer. He even had a concert which just happens to be the
record holder for the highest ticket sales at Araneta. He did a movie as well,
which happens to be Philippines' top grosser of all time. Got it? Case closed!
Well, the four coaches did very well
also. Their performances clearly show why they were chosen as the coaches of
The Voice PH. Just watch the replay to see for yourself.
The
Voice PH Top 2
And the Top 2 are… Mitoy and Klarisse!
Janice was third and Myk was fourth.
1.Klarisse
For
the final song, Klarisse sang an OPM song that I wasn’t familiar of. Well, it’s
a traditional singing contest song.
2.Mitoy
Keeping
his tried and tested formula since day 1, Mitoy sang Help Me (is this the
correct title?). Told you, this is the guy who showed the least variety. Well, he
has a point. If his formula worked in the past, why change? If that has won him an Eat Bulaga title, why
change? If that has earned him followers in the clubs, why change?
Well
the final 2 already had a solid following at this point. They were just singing
to get the votes of Myk and Janice. Unfortunately, votes were reset to 0, thus iTunes downloads no longer counted. Klarisse was the biggest loser for this news, as she is iTunes' Number 2.
And
then Toni announced the winner… and it is MITOY!
So
what happened?
Sabi sa Twitter,
Kakao Talk daw kasi gamit pang vote ng mga popsters! Haha.
Myk
and Klarisse were consistently in iTunes' Top 2. Yet Myk placed last, and
Klarisse did not beat Mitoy. Well, I guess my earlier theory is right. The voting
public is excited and fully supportive of Mitoy. They will spend to vote him.
But they will not spend to download his music. As for Myk’s followers, they don’t
care about the competition. They will download Myk’s song because they want to
hear him over and over again in their playlists. As for Klarisse, votes were reset to 0, thus no iTunes downloads were counted. OR this is another theory… the iTunes download might just really be a neglibible number, as people would
rather download their songs on Piratebay or buy them at Metrowalk and Makati
Cinema Square. Only ABS-CBN knows as we don't have the absolute numbers.
I
asked my Mom who she was rooting for. She said she’s for Mitoy. If she had 1
vote to spare, she would have surely given it to Mitoy. But note that although my
mom watches The Voice regularly, I never saw her buy a CD nor saw her watch a
concert. I guess this applied to the rest of the voters. Pinoys are just so in love
with biriteros, to see them do their stunt in a contest such as this. Thus
they win big. Review
your history: Erik
Santos, Jovit Baldevino, Roel Manlangit, Jonalyn Viray, Frenchy Dy, Angeline
Quinto, and of course Regine V. Season 2 wannabes, you know what it takes to
win the crown, ok? Random thought: If Lea
Salonga were not a part of TVOP, Radha’s and Paolo’s songs will probably end up
in her playlist. BUT I’m wondering if Mitoy’s Bulag will get there as well?
Anyway,
I may not be a Mitoy fan. But with the sound of his BULAG single, his songs are not really marketed for me. I'm sure he
will be the next April Boy Regino. And, I am also sure that TVOP is making
history. The artists (like Myk, Paolo, Klarisse, and maybe Darryl, Morissette and Radha)
will be the face of the music industry. As I mentioned in my previous blog, the
winner gets an MCA-Universal contract due to its global partnership with The
Voice, while Star Records is not contractually prohibited to make a profit out
of the rest. The Voice Season 1 is such an overwhelming success. The TVOP artists
will surely be dominating the airwaves and ASAP stage soon enough, most specially Team Bamboo's artists due to their uniqueness and musicality. Season 1 of
any contest is always the most successful. Can’t wait to get copies of the
albums of Paolo, Myk and Klarisse. And maybe some are also just as excited for the
albums of Darryl, Morissette and maybe Radha.
Another thing, I said before that The Voice PH should be renamed to The Voice of Sarah G, because this show will crown the artist from the most popular coach. Luckily I was wrong. Team Sarah was just a second placer. The masa votes prevailed. At least it's about the artist, not the coach.
If last week’s theme was 3Cs (Calm, Cool,
Chill), guess what’s the theme last night? Well… it’s MMK NIGHT! Too much drama
from all of the contestants. Oh well, this is semi-finals, and everyone wants
to stay in the final 4 badly!
With my predictions, I only got 2 out of 4.
Let’s now break this down…
1.Team Lea
Mitoy
Mitoy sang Power of Love, with his usual TENORish super
high notes birits. What’s new? Nothing, it’s the same old banana. It was
boring. Rearrangement on the original song was very minimal. Listening to him
was like listening to a typical karaoke session in your neighborhood, except of
course he birits those high notes well. Again, since his forte is the high
notes, his number was really not pleasing to the ears at the beginning of the
song, in those low notes. Well, all he’s
got to do is to make the high birits, to win the pinoys’ hearts. Thus, he won
the public votes.
Radha
Classy version of Let It Be, showcasing her technical skills
in high- and low-notes, as well as her kulot-ability. But, you’re up against
the masa-favorite Mitoy. Even if Lea gave Radha a 55% score, Radha is not as
popular as Mitoy to secure the final spot of TeamLea. Hence, she’s out. Ouch,
too bad, I started to like Radha last week, when she sang a slow version of Time
After Time. And Radha is starting to break my iTunes Data Analytics Pattern.
So, I predicted Mitoy will win, andMITOY WON. This was an easy prediction! Why? Well, pinoys get
easily impressed with high birits. And, maybe, just maybe, he won the masa
hearts when he was saying in the Saturday broadcast that he was even poorer
than that person they visited in Payatas. Plus, he had that MMK moment with her
wife on stage, with Lea validating what Mitoy was going through.
Ok, Radha was out, it’s an ouch. But let’s move on.
2.Team Bamboo
Myk
Myk’s signature beat and voice were again
heard in his version of “Oh baby I love your way.” Well, he’s consistent. It’s
in the same sound as the songs he’s been performing since the Blinds. Hope his formula flies until the finals. The
difference this time is he was guitar-less. He was dancing. But, I think his moves looked too awkward. It even seemed like he was in a demonic possession. And his shirt
looked too fitted for him. Was it two sizes smaller? Good thing, this is THE
VOICE, not YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE, so the coaches just let it pass. Finally, toward
the end of the song, Myk inserted that “Oooh, Sarah I love your way”. Well,
this could have earned him some popsters’ kilig votes as well, which I briefly
mentioned in my last blog. By the way, Myk is such a little Bamboo. I downloaded some of his soundcloud.com songs, and shuffled it with Bamboo in my iPod. Now, I dont know which one is Myk and which one is Bamboo.
Paolo
Paolo sang a jazzy version of ELESI. Well,
Bamboo asked for a total performance from Paolo, and he gave it in ELESI. The performance
was really entertaining, to be objectively honest, especially with the colorful
backup dancers. Unfortunately, the song was not a The Voice Semi-finals
material. It didn’t have the high notes that Pinoys are looking for. And at
some point, it seemed like Paolo was losing his breath to power his notes. But
again, it was really entertaining. This costed him his coaches’ vote. Bamboo
gave Paolo 45%. His 3-percentage lead in the public votes over Myk was just
not enough to reverse his coaches’ score. Thus, he lost. Some Zamboanguenos are saying they couldn’t
vote because there’s a curfew and stores were closed, hence they couldn’t buy
loads to vote. Oh… how unfortunate.
Result
I correctly predicted that Bamboo will give
55% to Myk, but my predicted public votes for Paolo fell short. It was not enough
to reverse Bamboo’s score. He was 6% deficient. Hence MYK WONinstead.
A second OUCH for the night. But, I’m glad he didn’t win,
and most especially he didn’t get the leading score from Bamboo. If he did, his
haters will just multiply exponentially, at ma-LEE-LEE GRANE na rin si Paolo,
thus ruining his just took off career. Anyway, iTunes top notchers are Paolo
and Myk. Paolo’s votes > Myk. Clearly, this is not the end for you. With his
gwapong voice (as mentioned by Lea), we will see you on ASAP for sure. And I
think his ELESI performance is his way of saying, “My voice might not be a
match to Mitoy, but I’m ready to entertain on the ASAP stage.”
Oh, to credit TeamBamboo, even if it was MMK night, the
little Bamboos were consistent with their team’s motto. Just cool and chill music. No
drama, except of course that Saturday tears from Myk. And isn’t their
numbers a welcome break to the biritans of the other camps? They added a different
flavor to the show, pampaalis umay.
Interesting tweet from Lea: At one point there were so many girls in #KampKawayan... remember those days? Then that team's top 2 were guys. Funny!
3.Team Sarah
Morissette Vs. Klarisse
Well, Team Sarah is like the traditional singing
contest performers. Vocal power, vocal quality, kulot, birit… etc. etc.
Morissette’s performance was impactful, though not all viewers are familiar
with her song. And Klarisse, she just showed how versatile she is. She sounded
well in low notes, in mid notes, in high notes. She did kulot. She did birits.
And that falsetto thing was a climax to her performance. Since day 1, she has
been doing different genres, and she passed each test with flying colors. Her
coach cannot help but notice this, thus the score from Sarah.
I correctly predicted Sarah’s 55% score for
Klarisse, and that Klarisse will win this round. What I failed to predict was
Klarisse had a significantly higher public votes than Morissette. Since I
prefer Klarisse over Mori, this was a pleasant surprise! KLARISSE WON!
And, to stay true to the night’s theme,
Mori and Klarisse also gave their MMK stories as well. But Karisse’s story was
more touching. Oh by the way, you two, your names are difficult to spell. Some
votes might have been misspelled.
4.Team Apl
Thor
Thor sang that competition song CLIMB EVERY
MOUNTAIN. Is it just me? Why does it seem like whatever song Thor sings, it
ends up sounding like a telenovela theme song. Thor was my early favorite. I
started losing interest in him due to his telenovlish delivery of every song.
Well, guess what, he gave another telenovela performance again last Sunday. And
I saw that signature Thor litid-tearing birit at the end of the song again. Nothing
new!!! He was not reading my blog. Hehe. Maybe we'll hear his voice on Primetime Bida soon enough, singing telenova theme songs.
Janice
As for Janice, it was a different Janice I
saw in the Saturday’s show (with their Umagang Kay Ganda song). She showed her
sweet 16 voice, which surprisingly, was beautiful. And in her Sunday’s
performance, she sounded great in her low and high-notes, for the IMAGINE
performance. Good job! I like it. No wonder, you are a star in Bangkok. From a Thor
fan, I instantly shifted to Janice last Saturday.
I
predicted a 55-45% score from Apl. And that’s what Apl gave. But I incorrectly
predicted the public votes. Janice surprisingly surpassed the votes of Thor.
Again, this was a pleasant surprise! I think it’s the Umagang Kay Ganda song that
shifted the public’s votes from the strong Thor to the big Janice. Thor is
showing the same thing since day 1. Hence naumay na talaga ang tao! JANICE WON!
Of course, staying true to the MMK theme,
Thor gave his MMK flavor as well (but it looked kinda forced to me). And
Janice, as the last performance, gave hers as well. Truly, it’s an MMK night at
The Voice PH.
Bamboo, your team was not following the
theme, huh!!!
NOTE FOR THE LOSERS
For the non-winners of the night, don’t be sad. One
of the grand prizes is a 4-year MCA Universal recording contract. Why not Star
Records? It’s because The Voice has a global contract with the Universal group.
So, losers with great talents, don’t be sad. It might actually be better not to
win the grand title, as Star Records is not contractually prohibited to contract you. We know the muscle
that ABS-CBN and Star Records have in developing stars. So, the main winner for the eviction of
iTunes top-notchers might actually be Star Records, don’t you think?
SIDELIGHTS
What happens when you have 2 siblings hosting
a show? Last Saturday, it was just amusing when Alex said:
The coaches are very generous in giving donations to the Payatas
choir. Toni, as the main host of the show, what are you giving? Thus, the
impromptu talent fee donation from Toni. Haha.
On Sunday, Alex did it again. Picking it up
from Twitter, Alex called Toni, the BANGS OF THE PHILIPPINES! Haha. The MMK's title for the show should be BANGS!
Bangs of the Philippines
It also looks like some of them came for a First Communion last night.
And a number of them from a funeral?
PREDICTIONS FOR NEXT WEEK
So, who will win? Since my favorites are out, I’d
go for any of them, except Mitoy. I just don’t like the sound of his vocal
tone. Yes, he belts really well. But, I’m not a fan of his vocal tone in low-
and mid-notes. With his original song Bulag, I now get it. ABS-CBN plans to market him along with the market of Jovit, Renz Verano and April Boys. Anyway, if I have to choose one, I'd go for Klarisse. I also predict KLARISSE WILL WIN! Going back to
my review after the 2nd Live Show, I already predicted then that the
winner will come from Team Sarah, for sure. Why? Here’s what I’ve written in that blog.
"Sarah has
got tons of loyal followers. They will vote whoever is left with Team Sarah
(even if they don’t like that artist). I hate this, but this is what will
happen. I’m already seeing comments from popsters in social networks
encouraging fellow popsters to get ready to vote, as they want the first
TheVoicePH winner to come from Team Sarah. It totally defeats the purpose. The
Voice of the Philippines will not be the best vocal talent, but will be the
artist from the most popular coach. If your bet if not from Team Sarah, accept
this now and you won’t be disappointed. With this, I just hope it’s Klarisse
from Team Sarah. Klarisse has the qualities of a Bamboo talent. Unique quality
tone and original. Remember, Bamboo and Sarah were fighting for Klarisse during
the blinds."
So there, I’m just glad and fortunate that Klarisse is the last-man
standing of
Team Sarah. Also, it’s a pleasant surprise that an iTunes download is now
considered as 5 votes. Using my iTunes analytics which I established in my
previous blog:
Team Young tops
iTunes
Team Old is at
the bottom of iTunes
Chill songs top
iTunes
Birit songs are
at the bottom of iTunes
It would seem like Myk and Klarisse are the main beneficiaries
of the new voting system. And Mitoy is at the main disadvantage. Let's wait and see! I just don't get it. If Mitoy has a lot of fans who are ready to spend to vote, why aren't they buying his song on iTunes? Don't they want to listen to their idol over and over again in their iPods?
Last
week, results were very predictable. I got 4 out of 4. This week, it’s the exact opposite. This
is because the characteristics of the remaining two team artists of each coach
are very much alike… actually somehow mirroring their coaches’
characteristics. Team Bamboo: soulful, unique voice quality and original, plus makulit. Team Sarah:
Young talented singers, fresh, vocal calisthenics expert. Tea Lea: High notes, professional, technically
competent. Team Apl: High notes, professional, world-class.
The
format: Saturday is ala battles, while Sunday is solo performances. Voting
starts on Saturday and ends on Sunday.
1.Team Bamboo
Paolo Vs Myk
Two very similar
artists. Paolo has a better vocal tone but lower range. Myk has a higher range,
good voice quality and musicality. Both are iTunes top notchers. For the
battle, it will depend on the song, on which singer would fit the song better.
But generally, Myk will have an edge, since he has a louder voice and a higher
range. As for Paolo, he stands out more when he sings soulful solo songs. But
Myk is also a fun performer. Thus, I predict Bamboo will give a 55-45 score,
with Myk getting the 55%. But, public votes will be higher for Paolo, due to
his numerous Paollo-wers. But the race is so tight, as Myk has loyal followers
as well… not to mention some of Sarah’s fans might get kilig with Myk’s admiration of
Sarah. So, the final score will be very close. But I predict Paolo will snatch
this one, in a very tight match. Just a thought Myk, why is your name spelled that way? Uso na ba txt spelling when you were born? :)
I WANT: Paolo
WHO WILL WIN: Paolo
Paolo Vs Myk
2.Team Sarah
Klarisse
Vs Morissette
This
is another very difficult battle. They’re both good, and their styles are quite
different. Anyway, Sarah will give Klarisse 55% and the remaniing 45% to
Morissette. Morissette will get slightly more public votes (at most 55%), but not enough to reverse Sarah's choice. Like Team Bamboo, the final scores of the two will not be far from one
another, but I predict Klarisse will have a narrow lead over Morissette. This is a crucial battle, because remember my previous post (Live Show 1), this contest is The Voice of Sarah G, not The Voice of the Philippines. Whoever wins this battle wins The Voice
I
WANT: Klarisse
WHO
WILL WIN: Klarisse
Klarisse Vs Morissette
3.Team Lea
Radha
Vs Mitoy
Battle of the two halimaws. Vocally,
the coaches won’t have any negative comments on the two. But Radha is not very
popular with the public. She would not win if she ends up in the final 4. Lea,
being a strategist will give between 55-60% to Mitoy. Mitoy will also have
higher public votes.
I
WANT: Radha
WHO
WILL WIN: Mitoy
Halimaw A VS Halimaw B
4.Team Apl
Janice Vs Thor
Same as above (refer
to Team Lea). Haha. Janice = Radha. Thor
= Mitoy. Therefore Thor will win. Apl will give one artist 55% and the other 45%. Who will get 55%? I don't know. I can't read Apl. But this is irrelevant. Thor will significantly have more public votes than Janice, easily reserving whoever Apl chooses to give his 55% score to. If Apl's vote is unpredictable, Apl's comment for the loser will surely be predictable: I can't wait to tell my foreign peers how ready you are in the international stage. hehe...
I WANT: Either of the
two
WHO WILL WIN: Thor
Thor Vs Janice
I also predict that most coaches (if not all) will give 55%-45% scores this time. Why? They want the more popular artist to win, as he/she will have higher chances in the final 4. So it’s gonna be 3 males, and 1
female in the final 4.
iTUNES PREDICTIONS (to be checked on Monday): Based on the (scientific... lol) data patternI've established in my previous blog, here are my initial iTunes chart predictions for Sunday's performances. No. 1 Top spot will go to whoever wins in Team Bamboo No. 2-3 Nos. 2 and 3 will be shared between the loser of Team Bamboo and the winner of Team Sarah No. 8 No. 8 will go to team Apl No. 7-8 Whether Janice wins or not, she'll take the 7th-8th spot. No. 6-7 Mitoy will take the 6th-7th spots. I'll revise this prediction tomorrow, when they reveal their song choices.
BINGO!
I got 4 out of 4. My predictions last Saturday all came true. Well, as I’ve
said, it was very much predictable.
I
enjoyed the 4th Live Show. It was just 3Cs (Calm, Cool, and Chill),
very far from the typical noisy biritan. Great show!
Now
my review…
1.Team Sarah
Eva Vs Klarisse
·For
a change, Eva made less birit in her IKAW LANG MAMAHALIN, as advised by Sarah. And
she became too emotional with her song that it affected her vocals. Well, as
I’ve said before, Eva just seems like any ordinary singer when she doesn’t belt
and whistle. Nothing special with her voice. Thus, her performance did not
stand out. Now, you guys know she doesn’t practice “It doesn’t mean if you
could, you should.”
·Klarisse
showed that she’s a powerhouse. She sang a soft song I CANT MAKE YOU LOVE ME.
Oh, didn’t Lee sing this song as well during the Lives? Anyway she was just awesome. Technical
aspect, she won. Emotional aspect, she had it, though Eva’s emotions were
deeper. But Klarisse is just too good. Lea's expressions below show perfect way to describe
Klarisse’s performance.
·Coach
Sarah and the public both voted for Klarisse. Thank God!
Here's Klarisse's performance.
2.Team Bamboo
Isabella Vs Myk
·Isa
sang NO ONE with a surprise mash up with WHERE IS THE LOVE. It was good. It
showcased her soulful and husky voice. But, pinoys are never impressed with
singers singing mid-range songs beautifully. Thus, she didn’t get the votes. But
still, you are iTunes’ No. 4 Isa! Not bad at all…
·Myk
sang a fun and Bamboo-style of CHASING PAVEMENTS of Adele. Adele seems to be
the favorite of TeamBamboo, huh? As you would expect in every performance of Myk,
it was fun. The arrangement was original, unique hyet tasteful. It has that
signature Myk sound that made the audience groove with him. The audience liked
it. It’s iTunes No. 1. Myk and Chasing Pavements were trending until Monday.
· Bamboo and the public voted for Myk, and Isa
was out.
·Oh...
did you see how proud Bamboo was with his two artists, standing up and grooving
with every beat of their songs? He’s like a proud dad to KampKawayan. And I
agree, your artists are all ready for their albums. The iTunes chart is a
proof.
3.Team Lea
Kimpoy Vs Radha
·Kimpoy
sang WEAK. Well, the song choice was as weak as the song title. It was a bit
boring, though her unique tone still stood out.
·Radha
surprisingly sang a softer version of TIME AFTER TIME (Eva Cassidy’s version?),
highlighting both her low notes and high notes. I’m not a fan of Radha, but I
love her performance last night. I’m actually gonna download it on iTunes
later.
·Clearly,
Radha stood out. What do you expect? Besides, Kimpoy will never be a match to
Mitoy in the next Live Show.
·Lea
and the public voted for Radha.
4.Team Apl
Janice Vs Jessica
·Janice
as always was a pro in her CHAINS OF FOOL. And as always, she sings big songs
with big birits, matching her big figure. And her notes are always perfect.
BUT… what’s new? I’ve seen that already in your past performances?
·Jessica
opted for the softer version of IKAW with less birits. She’s good, but still
needs to practice more on the control, to perfect a soft rendition of a ballad.
Some notes seemed flat (but upon replay, parang hindi naman). Since she’s only
16, expect this lady to be a Jaya in 5 years. She’s gorgeous though. She can
join Bb. Pilipinas as well.
·That
night, Janice was bigger than Jessica, literally and figuratively!
·Apl
gave Janice 65%, and Jessica a mere 35%. Ironically, the public gave Janice 40%
and Jessica 60%. Since Apl was having a hard time reading his cue cards
containing his scores, and Lea even had to help him out, the public thought it
was cooked by ABS-CBN from the start. Thus, FB and twitter were on FIRE… again!
#VoicePHLive4
kumusta yung 65-35 votes? :/ not fair. it was a great performance then 35%?
UNFAIR!
During the battles,
the Twitter victim was Bamboo. Then it was Lea. Now it’s Apl. Whos next… Sarah?
Well, this makes The Voice of the Philippines very interesting, and one factor
that made it the most successful singing contest in Philippine history (to the
point that I made my own blog J).
And I think, Pinoys are this passionate because we are just simply music
lovers. We have our own bets based on our individual musical tastes, and we
fight to death to defend our bets. That’s how much love we have for music. Oh,
maybe I’m just exaggerating. Hehe.
Anyway, I don’t think
there’s some cheating going on. You know, the coaches are so well established
not just locally, but internationally. I’m sure, their talent fees from ABS-CBN
are not worth their reputation. And, weren’t you guys watching TVOP’s earlier
episodes. Toni explained that Apl has an eyesight problem, thus he has a
monitor beside his chair during the blinds. That’s why Lea had to help her out.
And if he was reading his cue cards this week, he was also reading his cue
cards (mobile phone) last week. He’s consistent. That’s just how he does it to
make sure he announces the right scores.
For those who say
that the coaches should leave the judging to the public, this is just not going
to happen. This is the format of The Voice, and this makes it different from
American Idol. It gives weight on the coaches’ judgments. It assumes that they
have high caliber coaches to judge a good voice as against a popular voice (at
least until before the finale). So if you want purely public votes, stop
watching The Voice, and wait for GMA to air Philippine Idol again. By the way,
who won GMA’s Philippine Idol again? Is she still active? Well… I honestly
don’t know.
CALM, COOL AND CHILL
So,
it was a different THE VOICE LIVE SHOW yesterday, with all singers singing
calmer songs (except one): the usual power belter Radha opting for a soft
version of Time After Time, Jessica singing a more controlled version of Ikaw,
and Eva not using her signature glass-breaking Eva whistle. It was only Janice
that showed nothing new. Could the change be because of the Mitoy brouhaha last
week? Could it be that the artists saw the iTunes chart last week? For whatever
reason, I just love it. Isn’t that just pleasing to our ears, a welcome break
for our eardrums, huh! With this break, we would appreciate their birits again
next time.
And
the highlight of the night was… Bamboo’s WONDERWALL. Another calming and cool
rendition to end the night’s 3C’s theme. My god, it was an orgasm watching that
performance. With those flute, unconventional string instruments, + soft voices,
& emotions, it was like a calming yoga music that takes you to nirvana. Unfortunately,
Wonderwall is not available on iTunes. All coaches’ performances thus far are
proving the public why the 4 were chosen as the coaches. They’re all indeed institutions.
Now,
the casualties of the night: Janice showed nothing new… again showcasing her
jaw-dropping birits. What happened to her? She only got 40% of public votes. If
only Apl did not give him a 65% score, she wouldn’t have been out of the
contest. Next casualty is Eva. The show revealed that without her whistles and
super high notes, she won’t stand out, hence lacks versatility. Similarly,
Jessica’s Ikaw showed us that there’s still a lot she needs to improve on.
Radha showing her other side, gave her public acceptance. She got 65% public
votes, and her song is iTunes’ No. 2. Hope that the other biriteros could also
show that they could sing well even in low- and mid-range tones… Attention:
Mitoy, Thor, and Janice.
iTUNES & DATA ANALYTICS
Click to enlarge
The
iTunes ranks for last week’s performers are (as of Sept 16, Monday, 9:30 PM):
1.Paolo (Bamboo)
2.Darryl (Lea)
3.Morissette (Sarah)
4.Thor (Apl)
5.Maki (Sarah)
6.Penelope (Apl)
7.Mitoy (Lea)
8.Lee Grane (Bamboo)
The
iTunes ranks of this week’s performers are (as of Sept 16, 9:30 PM):
1.Myk (Bamboo)
2.Radha (Lea)
3.Klarisse (Sarah)
4.Isa (Bamboo)
5.Kimpoy (Lea)
6.Jessica (Apl)
7.Eva (Sarah)
8.Janice (Apl)
To
make my review unique, let’s do some data analyses here:
·For
the previous and current week, the top 2 spots are non-birit songs. Just
chill and cool.
·Both
weeks’ top-most spots belong to Bamboo… whom we know as the only coach who put
more weight on musicality, uniqueness and vocal quality than belting
capability.
·Last
week’s and this week’s iTunes No. 1, 2, 3 belong to Bamboo, Lea and Sarah,
respectively (in the same order).
·This
week’s bottom 3 includes the 2 Apl artists.
·Apl’s
artists do not seem to be doing well on iTunes. The highest spot of an Apl
artist (current and previous week) is No. 4. Apl, you have a lot to work on. I
think it’s because Apl artists don’t show new stuff every week, with Thor and
Janice singing the same type of song every time. Eating too much rib eye steak
is nakakaumay, as well as deadly.
·Last
week’s winners: 3 male + 1 female. This week’s winners: 3 females + 1 male.
Wow, incidentally perfectly balanced.
·Last
week’s first and last spots belong to Bamboo. Most liked and most hated.
·With
the exception of Lee Grane (we all know she’s the most hated artists this
season, thus she’s statistically a data distortion or a freak point), the last
spots for both weeks belong to power belters (Mitoy and Janice). Ironically,
these two belters are getting thunderous applause and standing ovations in every
performance. Quite inconsistent, huh? Could it be that those giving them applause at RWM are just confined at RWM? Or probably these fans are not buying their songs on iTunes after all.
·Sarah’s
artists are in the mid-ranks in both weeks. ·Among this week's losers' club, Bamboo's artist (Isa) has the highest iTunes rank. Needless to say, Bamboo's artists also got the highest ranks among the winners' clubs this week and last week. Wow, Bamboo is lording the iTunes world. This guy surely knows how to make hit songs.
·Sarah’s remaining team members is Team Estrogen, while Bamboo’s team is Team Testosterone (I read this
from Twitter).
·Team
Sarah + Team Bamboo = Team Young (<25 yo). Most (if not all) members are
doing their music only on the side.
·Team
Lea + Team Apl = Team Old (>30 yo). All members are professional singers,
with music as their primary source of living. Good thing Lee is out since she neither belongs to Team Young and Team
Old.
·Both
weeks’ top spots belong to Team Testosterone, which is a subset of Team Young.
·Both
weeks’ last spots belong to Team Old (>30 yo, professional singers). ·All OPM songs (from Mitoy, Eva, Jessica) are in the bottom 3 for both weeks.
·This
is just overly simple data analytics (or Business Intelligence for the IT world, hehe), based on factual data. Nothing biased
here. Hope the teams use this to strategize their next performance(s). Asa pa…
Hehe. And please feel free to add more data interpretations.
NEXT
WEEK’S FORECAST
·The
result for next week’s show is very difficult to predict. But let me try:
oTeam
Sarah
§I want: Klarisse
§Who will win:
Klarisse
oTeam
Lea:
§I want: Radha
§Who will win: Mitoy
oTeam
Apl:
§I want: Neither. I’m
not a Thor fan anymore. I’ve eaten too much rib eye already
§Who will win: Thor
oTeam
Bamboo:
§I want: Either of the
two
§Who will win: I don’t
know. Let me toss a coin… it’s Paolo.
§Team Bamboo is one
lucky team. They need not win The Voice. The final 2 are ready for their own
albums. In contrast, some others (with a few exemptions) have to sing their hearts out to win TVOP, because if they don’t they’d would
end up as having the same fates as the runners up of other singing contests
(like Star for a Night, Philippine Idol, Protégé, Dream Academy).
