Sometimes, I just need to cry. For those times when reading the front page of the Washington Post won’t cut it (news inspires more fear than grief), I have The Playlist. As of Monday, I have a new addition to the playlist, to go along with such songs as Billy Joel’s “And So It Goes” and Kelly Clarkson’s cover of “It’s Quiet Uptown.”*

Lauren Duski, a Voice contestant, covered Billy Dean’s “Somewhere In My Broken Heart.” This ties with Jordan Smith’s “Somebody to Love” and Michelle Chamuel’s “I Knew You Were Trouble”**  as being my favorite Voice performance. What sets Duski’s  apart is the restraint she shows. Both Smith and Chamuel were singing songs that required them to go for broke — that screamed out to be sung over-the-top, and the performers (especially Smith) gleefully complied. On the other hand, Duski’s performance (especially her studio version), is for the most part quiet, almost delicate.

The one attribute of many Voice contestants that annoys the hell to of me is their tendency to be showy (look how long I can hold this note! look at all the runs I can do!) when the song doesn’t require it. The coaches sometimes encourage this behavior, or at least don’t reign it in. Duski seems to be bucking this trend.

I’m looking forward to see what she sings next week.

*Or the second half of Hamilton. That’s a given.
**Which is on my “Fuck You” playlist.