FINALLY getting a chance to weigh in a bit. I confess I've been a little diappointed by this crop of groups as compared to Season 3. I still go back to performances by Delilah, Afro Blue, Vocal Point, and of course Pentatonix.
That said, I am starting to see potential. Vocal Rush has really impressed me so far. I'm not normally a fan of the groups that have so many members, but they are blending really well while doing a good job of highlighing their soloists and putting the song forward. Right now, they're first for me.
Close behind them is Home Free. These guys are just so smooth. You can tell they've been performing together for a long time. I'm not a big fan of country, but they make it accessible, at least so far.
The Filharmonic are just adorable. I think acapella can lend itself well to the boy band groove, and they have the personality to make it happen. I can totally see them ruling YouTube with crazy fun videos.
VoicePlay is growing on me. I love how eclectic they are. I think they can really grow, at least I'm hoping to see that happen. "Play That Funky Music" was a big step up from their first performance.
As for the rest...
Poor Element. They are having to follow Delilah, who had such a great blend and such great personalities that just flowed off the stage. Element doesn't have the blend, doesn't have the sound, and doesn't have anyone except Jo that gets my attention at all. They need to go.
Ten - I can see the talent. They have potential. But they really need to learn how to be a group, not a bunch of soloists. I would think that as background singers, they'd be having an easier time supporting each other. But I get the feeling that this a group of people who all want to be stars and are too focused on showcasing themselves to fuse into a group.
AcoUstiKats (and by extension the Princeton group) - The two college groups are I think the least engaging of all the college groups from any season. Ugh. The sooner the AcoUstiKats are gone, the happier I'll be.
I thought Street Corner Renaissance was charming, but like with any of the older, doo-wop/barbershop groups, they have a hard time competing with the innovation represented in the more modern groups. I have to admit I loved their One Direction cover, and really all their performances were very good. I just couldn't see how they would go anywhere.
Calle Sol didn't seem to really understand the point of an acapella group. Too much sassy dance and not enough focus on their vocals and blend. Not at all suprised they're gone.
While I think Jewel is doing an admirable job, I have to admit I miss Sara. For some reason I don't really believe Jewel knows what she's talking about sometimes. I think it's mostly an effect of her mispronouncing musical terms and maybe too that she talks so fast I wonder if she's really thinking about what she's saying. Still, she is way better than poor Nicole Scherzinger, whom I love as a personality but thought didn't bring much to the table as a judge. Ben and Shawn are doing their usual great job, and Nick is his cheesy, charming self.
Lastly, I'm glad the show finally broke free from Hulu's "web only" list of death. I can finally watch on my TV! For some reason it's not up on Amazon for sale, and all my computers are so old that Hulu's streaming lags too much to make watching on the computer enjoyable.
Looking foward to next week! And hoping Pentatonix will be invited back for a performance at some point.
I hope they find success elsewhere. At least Home Free is still in it. To me they should be the clear winners, based on performances so far. Ten and Vocal Rush are good but don't stand out as particularly special to me.
