‘The Voice’ recap: The knockouts come to a close

“The Voice” knockouts coasted to a close with few surprises on Monday night. In almost every matchup, the winner seemed to come into focus quite clearly, so that by the time the dueling contestants’ coach announced which singer would be progressing to the live shows with his or her team, it felt as if it were simply the natural order of things. Even the steal, a component of the competition meant, one imagines, to introduce an element of surprise, brought little of it, since Pharrell Williams waited until the final knockout round of the evening to use it -- on a singer who had already been on his team, no less.

Still what the evening lacked in shock value, it made up for in singing. Here’s how it all went down:

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Shelby Brown vs. James Dupre (Team Adam): Adam Levine matched the two country singers he’d once so coveted, resigning himself to losing one. Brown, a 17-year-old singer from a small town who is capable of hitting some seriously soaring notes, turned in a lush, rich rendition of Carrie Underwood’s “Jesus Take the Wheel.” Kind-seeming dad Dupre, meanwhile, bravely and quite capably tackled Blake Shelton’s “Sure Be Cool If You Did,” lending it his low, resonant tone. But Brown’s song choice, which showed off her range, dynamics, emotionality and potential, bested Dupre’s. Even Shelton called Dupre’s choice -- his own tune! -- “a pretty laid-back song for a knockout round.” Brown won handily. Dupre went home to his family. (Shelton noted that he’d already used his steal.)

Mark Hood vs. Siahna Im (Team Pharrell): Williams paired Hood, a pastor’s son with a gospel flair, and Im, an anime-cute teen with a tiny speaking voice and a singing voice that is nothing like it, because, he said, “both naturally gravitate toward classic songs” and he wanted to see who could “let the old soul out.” Hood took a simple song -- Ben E. King’s “Stand by Me” -- and made it wonderfully complex and engagingly theatrical. Im may have bitten off a little more than she could chew with Amy Winehouse’s “Back to Black,” but she managed, essentially, to deliver it. Nevertheless, Hood was clearly a lock for heading to the live playoffs as a member of Team Pharrell. Williams later said that he wanted to nurture Hood’s talent as a “storyteller.” No one stole Im.

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Jeffery Austin vs. Kota Wade (Team Gwen): Gwen Stefani teamed these two “rock-soul singers” because, she said, she only had room for one, moving forward. Again the winner seemed to come down, in large part, to song choice. Austin, who had ditched his youthful musical aspirations for a job in public relations, fully inhabited Adele’s “Turning Tables” and made it his own, vocally and emotionally. Purple-haired Wade’s talents, meanwhile, seemed to get swallowed up by Heart’s “Barracuda,” a song that, Shelton noted, lacked dynamics, seeming to be “on 10 the whole time.” After naming Austin the winner and calling his tone “magic,” Stefani said she felt what he’d done so far was “just the tip of the iceberg.” Wade headed home.

Emily Ann Roberts vs. Nadjah Nicole (Team Blake): Shelton said he was pairing these two singers because they were “both sweet, soft-spoken girls” with “unique, delicate voices,” but Roberts -- a cute teenage country singer -- had a big edge going in. Her pitch-perfect rendition of the Dixie Chicks’ “Cowboy Take Me Away” only broadened her lead, and even though Nicole did a fine job with Alicia Keys’ “A Woman’s Worth,” it really was no contest. After Shelton named Roberts the winner, he said he expected her “to be played on the radio” in the very near future and predicted she’d have a long career in country music. “You’re going to be around for a while, kiddo,” he told her. “You’re going to make me rich.” Nicole left empty-handed.

Zach Seabaugh vs. Chris Crump (Team Blake): While we were shown little of this montaged match, we saw enough to know 16-year-old heartthrob Seabaugh bested Crump to make it through to the finals.

Evan McKeel vs. Tim Atlas (Team Pharrell): As soon as Williams teamed these two “alternative indie artists,” it was clear that it was McKeel’s match to lose. He bettered his chances by electing to sing “Dare You to Move” by the alternative/Christian rock group Switchfoot (Williams gravitates toward the “inspirational”), and then improved his odds again by doing a great job with the song. Meanwhile, Atlas, who’d been stolen from Team Gwen, didn’t seem to have enough vocal oomph to really tear into Natalie Imbruglia’s “Torn.” McKeel took the match. Atlas didn’t land a steal.

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Regina Love vs. Riley Biederer (Team Gwen): This match between Stefani’s two battle-round steals brought what may have been the evening’s sole surprise. Love, a 51-year-old gospel singer turned radio host, sang the stuffing out of Gladys Knight and the Pips’ “Midnight Train to Georgia,” earning a standing ovation from all the coaches and moving Stefani to tears. Given Love’s age and accomplishments, however, you might have predicted Stefani to choose her rival, Biederer, a YouTube-famous 19-year-old who did quite well putting her own spin on Beyonce’s “XO.” “I’m so confused because you should be on the show -- but so should you,” Stefani told her two worthy singers. Ultimately, Stefani went with her heart and chose Love, leaving Biederer open for a steal. Williams, whose team Biederer had previously been on, scooped her back up. Stefani said that, while Biederer was talented enough to win the whole competition, “there was no way I was going to sit there and ignore what Regina had just done -- she moved the whole room.”

Next week, “The Voice” takes Season 9 live for the playoffs.