‘The Voice’ recap: Kooky dancing, crazy picks in Night 2 of Knockouts

The second night of Knockouts on “The Voice” brought a few surprises: unusual performances, unexpected choices. Some singers stepped up and made the most of their moments. Others fumbled. Coaches took chances, made idiosyncratic decisions, followed their instincts and veered in directions few probably predicted. If the taped shows are this lively, things ought to be pretty entertaining when we get to the live shows this season.

Of course, there are still a few more Knockouts to go before we get there. Here’s what happened in Tuesday night’s matches:

Taylor John Williams vs. Troy Richie (Team Gwen): Gwen Stefani said she paired these two cute young dudes because they were both in the “indie alternative lane,” but their performances made it seem like they were cruising in entirely different sorts of vehicles. Ritchie bounced and scooted his way through OutKast’s “Hey Ya” like he was an adorable, groovy Volkswagen Beetle. Williams crooned darkly through Tears for Fears’ “Mad World” like, I don’t know, some kind of Porsche. Whatever -- the point is, their performances could not have been less alike. Ritchie was fun and funny, bopping around the stage like a kid dancing around his bedroom. (Blake Shelton compared him to Richard Simmons and Napoleon Dynamite.) Williams was rivetingly intense. (Pharrell Williams called his performance “hypnotic.”) Stefani went with the singer she said put the room “in a trance”: Williams. “Troy picked a song that covered up how great his voice is,” she explained. “At the end of the day, Taylor really served up a beautiful performance.” No other coach stole Ritchie, who nevertheless -- and apparently characteristically -- remained upbeat.

Alessandra Castronovo vs. Mia Pfirrman (Team Adam): Adam Levine said these “two young amazing powerhouse singers” were pretty evenly matched going in. And after Castronovo had poured her pure, elegant vocals into Emeli Sande’s “Next to Me” and Pfirrman dug deep and delivered an emotional performance of Christina Perri’s “Human,” it was hard to say which singer had the edge. The coaches were not of one mind as to a winner. Shelton and Williams thought Castronovo’s voice was the more recognizable and compelling. Stefani was more impressed my Pfirrman. Levine thought both singers were “superstars,” but because he believed Pfirrman was “further along in the understanding of” her capabilities, he gave the match to her, later saying she “seemed fearless.” The other coaches, despite their praise for Castronovo’s voice, did not push their buttons to steal her; Shelton explained that he was waiting for a singer he felt could bring him “to the finale.”

Elyjuh Rene vs. Ricky Manning (Team Pharrell): Because both these singers had a similar “soul/R&B vibe,” Williams was hoping to see who could “deliver the best soulful performance.” He said Rene needed to connect with his song choice -- Chris Brown’s “With You” -- in order to move on to the next round. But that didn’t really seem to happen. Manning, meanwhile, locked into Miley Cyrus’s “Wrecking Ball,” and delivered it with fierce intensity. Stefani, Levine and Shelton all concluded that Manning was the clear winner. Stefani called Manning’s performance “insane” -- “so real … so genuine … so moving.” Levine said it was like watching a star being born, a “ridiculously incredible performance.” And Shelton declared, “That personally for me was my favorite moment of these Knockout Rounds.” So when Williams acknowledged that Rene had a lot more work to do than Manning and for that very reason chose Rene, the other coaches were understandably shocked. Stefani, thrilled, saw an opportunity; she stole Manning straight away. “I feel like I might have just won ‘The Voice,’ ” she told Manning, giddily. “Your performance was amazing.” Williams, meanwhile, told a stunned Rene that he picked him because he believed in him, but urged the young singer not to sing anyone’s story but his own. If he does that, Williams said, “he’s got a really good shot at winning.”

We’ll see.