Sorry, guys, if you're hoping for Parama to have a bad day...
Again, as I said, this is a really impressive round. The scores range from 6.5-9 without bonuses, 7-9.5 with. Hopefully y'all keep it up, though the fact that everything is so good makes it harder to figure out how to score these things!
Round One Results
Sacul: Burial – Raver
Sorry, Sacul, you fell a bit short of the 8 mark. Please don’t sent me grindcore.
Honestly, I really did like this track. It has a really cool atmosphere and some good musical themes. The vocals are really weird, but I wound up liking them and finding them well-fitting. You said that he puts a lot of feel into his music by the standards of the genre, and I have to agree. I can definitely feel the emotional power behind the music. I’m not sure how well I relate to the emotions of the track, personally, but I definitely enjoy experiencing his passion anyway.
One of the downsides to me is the repetitiveness of the song. Perhaps there’s a good reason for it, but in the end there are relatively few themes repeated a lot of times over a five minute runtime.
You said I should listen to this song at night, and you weren’t kidding. This is a definite mood piece that is appropriate for nighttime listening. Ultimately, this may have hurt you a bit, because it feels like something I have to be in a particular mood for, which caused some of my listens to be less enjoyable than others. That and the repetition factor is why ultimately, I feel that this is deserving of a slightly lower score than the next song listed.
I feel bad because I told you to go for electronic music and then I gave you the lowest score in the round, but I really do feel open to the genre. And I like this song, but at the end of the day I just don’t feel strongly enough about it to give it a higher score.
Score: 6.5 + 0.5 bonus = 7
Big Hath: Tower of Power – Squib Cakes
This entry is a very fun soul/funk instrumental. I’ve long been a fan of brass instruments but never really checked out any artists that place them front-and-center. Tower of Power does so in a big way, though the traditional rock instruments (drums, guitar, organ) impress here as well. Squib Cakes is absolutely packed with some great rhythms and brilliant solos on practically every instrument. Somehow, every solo manages to fit well into the piece and make the song feel like a coherent whole.
The main detraction from this song is that there are a couple times where the organ player holds a high note for like 20 seconds; something about those notes are kind of grating to me. On the whole, though, I really enjoyed listening to this song. It doesn’t reach the levels of some of the other songs this round because of those high notes and because I lean a little more towards emotional or atmospheric gravitas than towards pure composition, but that isn’t meant to take anything away from this song. This won’t be the last I hear from Tower of Power.
Score: 7.0 + 0.5 bonus = 7.5
kingshmegland: Lo-Fi Resistance – Fading Pictures
This prog rock song really impressed me off the bat with its strong emotional core. The sad piano melody is simple, but really quite powerful in its simplicity. On my first couple of listens, I wasn’t too sure about the transition into the louder chorus, but I’m finding it more and more fitting the more I listen to this song. It’s not as good as the verses, though. I really like the singer’s voice; he conveys a lot of emotion and really fits the song perfectly without sounding jarring at all, which can occasionally happen with prog. The guitarwork is also really quite impressive as well, I especially like the slow solo at about the halfway mark, though the subtle, quiet playing on the first verse also deserves credit.
The main flaw here is that I’m not head-over-heels about the more chaotic, loud section near the end. I think it’s Gavin Harrison drumming on this track? I’m not sure if it’s him and I know I’m not allowed to criticize him on this forum, but the drumming on that part is just more busy than I’d like it to be. But to the band’s credit, the transition out of that part into the outro is fantastic, and the song ends on a solid note.
I do feel like the first half of the song is stronger than the second half, because it creates this impressive buildup while the second half has to figure out what to do with that buildup, but on the whole, I greatly enjoyed this song.
Score: 7.5
Evermind: The Gentle Storm – New Horizons (Gentle Version)
I really didn’t expect to get anything like this on the opening round of the roulette, but it really was a pleasant surprise. The Celtic vibe really appealed to me right off the bat on the very first listen. It’s an interesting texture that’s totally different from that of most music that I listen to, and I really value that.
I know that it’s practically a crime on this forum that this is the first time I’ve listened to anything involving either Arjen Anthony Lucassen or Anneke van Giersbergen. Well, I won’t remain an outlaw in that regard any longer. The song was ear-grabbing enough to get me interested in Mr. Lucassen’s work, but the main focus for me is Anneke. I assume I’m preaching to the choir here, but I really greatly enjoyed her soft, sweet singing. She really lent a hand into giving this song a really pretty, hopeful feeling. I particularly loved her soft vocals.
In the end, what keeps this song back from scoring higher for me is that the composition is not extraordinary once you get used to the arrangement. Don’t get me wrong, the composition is good, particularly the vocal melodies which are very strong, especially the chorus, but it’s not extraordinary. There’s a novelty factor to the fact that the song uses a really unconventional set of instruments, but the composition itself is really good, but not great, in my opinion. I guess it’s a case of “there’s something missing” for me. Maybe it would be better if I heard it in the context of the concept album. Ultimately, the atmosphere and Anneke’s singing help it out a lot and make it really enjoyable listen, but only up to a certain point.
Score: 7.5 + 0.5 bonus = 8.0
lonestar: Enchant – Juggling Knives
This song might be the clearest case of a grower in this round. It went from being one of my least favorite entries to ranking in the top half of all the songs in this round.
The musicianship of these guys is spot on. The instrumentalists play just as much as they need to on the vocal parts. The verses have a nice groove and the choruses are carried well by the band’s playing. Great job complimenting a vocal section. On the instrumental section, the band really gets a chance to shine. I really like keyboard solos most of the time, and this is no exception—this key solo is one of my favorite parts of the song.
The vocal melodies, though, are what really makes this piece for me. The chorus is brilliantly catchy. It’s been running in my head all afternoon today, along with the chorus of one other song this round (coming soon…). The singer isn’t really distinctive stylistically—his style definitely shouts “I like Jon Anderson,” which isn’t my favorite style vocally (though not something I dislike either)—but he hits the melodies well. That’s good enough for me when the melodies are as good as this.
Score: 8.0
Shadow Ninja 2.0: Beach House – Myth
Stylistically speaking, you nailed it on the first go. This sounds like the type of music that I’m looking for more of. Atmospheric, dreamy, vocal pop music. I really love the soft guitar (?) work that makes up the primary instrumental melody. Quite gorgeous, and it really helps with the spacey vibe created by the keyboards and vocals.
The vocals are probably the main focus here, and fortunately, they’re quite good. The singer’s tone is perfect for this type of music, and he hits the right notes emotionally as well. And the melodies are just spectacular. The verses and choruses are memorable and lovely, but the bridge is just amazing.
I just have to mention the dreamy vibe. I absolutely love the atmosphere here. It feels like being on the beach at night, which is one of my very favorite things to do. I like to think they felt similarly given the name of the band. Spectacular, beautiful vibe. If this band’s other songs have a similar level of attention paid to atmosphere, and especially if they have a similar atmosphere, sign me up.
Score: 8.0 + 0.5 bonus = 8.5
TAC: Iris Divine – Prisms
This is a really impressive heavy prog rock song from what seems to be a new band, Iris Divine. Everyone, if you haven’t heard this band and you like prog rock or heavy metal, you should give this song a go. It’s really quite good.
It might be a weird comparison, but this band reminds me a little bit of a more metallic Haken. That’s a positive comparison. The heavy riffs that these guys throw out left and right are really good. There’s a lot of memorable guitar work in here, in those riffs and also in the solo during one of the instrumental breaks, which are both pretty cool proggy parts.
The singer is perhaps not the most extraordinary vocalist you’ll ever hear, but he’s actually quite good. He has a strong voice and just the right amount of grit for the more aggressive bits. The vocal melodies may actually be the strongest part of this song. After my first listen, my opinion of this song was mixed, because I liked the riffs, but wasn’t sure how much more this had than just good riffs, but I found that the chorus was seriously sticking in my head. Next time through, I paid closer attention to the melodies and found them to be really very good.
Overall, this song is a strong entry from, again, what appears to the be the debut effort of a new band. These guys may not be breaking any new ground, but they don’t have to be if they can produce prog metal of this caliber.
Score: 8.0
OpenYourEyes311: The Lone Bellow – Green Eyes and a Heart of Gold
Wow. This is totally something I would never have found myself, and I love it so much. I wondered whether someone would actually pay attention to that bolded “Taylor Swift” on my banned artists list, maybe this answers that question?
Perhaps more than anything else in this round, this song and this band worked its way into my heart. You should be glad that you sent me the music video, by the way. Because I sure am. You can hear it in the song, but it’s even clearer in the video: these people care so much about this music. This band put so much passion into this song. I could watch the male lead singer perform all day, because he so clearly puts all his heart into everything he does.
As for the music, this is the simplest of the top three songs of this round, but I love it for its infectious catchiness and heart-on-its sleeve passion. The chorus is absolutely infectious, and so are the verses, really. The instrumentation isn’t complex, but it fits the song perfectly. Same with the singers, who aren’t technically stunning, but they are perfectly suited to the song and have such emotional power.
This song has been steadily climbing up the rankings since the beginning. It was in the top half right off the bat, but I think I had some hangups about putting something this simple this high. Well, this song has been playing in my head for four days straight, and my fourth listen was enough to convince me that it absolutely belongs among the top songs of this round.
Score: 9.0 + 0.5 bonus = 9.5
Parama: Casualties of Cool – Moon
Another artist that I’ve broken DTF law by not having heard up until this point: Devin Townsend.
This song really impressed me. The main attributes of this piece—subtle instrumentation, strong sense of atmosphere, memorable vocal melodies—match up quite well to a lot of what I’m really liking in music lately. And yet this song did so in a way that I totally didn’t expect. As I put in a more brusque fashion in the element of my initial notes that I quoted a few posts up, “wtf even is this genre?” Honestly, this combines so many elements of different genres into one completely cohesive piece that I have no idea what to call it, except “good.”
I assume Devin Townsend himself is the one doing the male vocals. He’s not doing a whole lot, but it absolutely works for the song and is one of my favorite elements of the song. The song does a good job of building from the sparse beginning to something of a crescendo, bringing in the female vocals and saxophone while never totally abandoning the original melody, though it does get a little busy for a minute or so there, but it somehow works with the union of the male vocals, saxophone and female vocals building working in tandem.This is a standout piece and definitely deserves a place among the top three of the round.
Score: 9.0 + 0.5 = 9.5
Scorpion: Portishead – Glory Box
Right from the beginning, this song was the class of the round. And it still is right at the top (though two other songs have managed to ascend to a similar height). Because this is just spectacular.
The smokey beat here is spectacular and is a big part of what makes this song so enjoyable, but it’s just the beginning. The instrumentation appears where it needs to and really contributes to the excellent vibe of the piece. I love how the guitar supports the vocals on the chorus and on other bits of the song. It’s used really well.
And then there’s the real reason to listen to this song. The singer’s amazing voice. Her singing is really beautiful, emotional, and, frankly, smokey as fuck. I love the way she sings the word “tenderness” in the second verse. And really everything else. She’s quite a spectacular singer, and really makes the song that much better for her presence. The lyrics also really add to the total package, because they’re really quite touching and relevant.
Score: 9.0 + 0.5 bonus = 9.5
Standings:
OpenYourEyes311 - 9.5
Parama - 9.5
Scorpion - 9.5
Shadow Ninja 2.0 - 8.5
lonestar - 8.0
TAC - 8.0
Evermind - 8.0
Big Hath - 7.5
kingshmegland - 7.5
Sacul - 7.0
Round Two: Open
Another open round. Impress me again.