Alright guys, it's time for the final results. It's been a long road, but it's finally over. Remember, the points awarded for this round are higher than usual, so here's a little refresher in case anyone's confused with their final score:
1st place: 16 points
2nd place: 14.4 points
3rd place: 12.8 points
4th place: 11.2 points
5th place: 9.6 points
6th place: 7.9 points
7th place: 6.3 points
8th place: 4.7 points
And with that, here we go!
---FINAL ROUND RESULTS---
1st Place: Evermind
Avantasia - The ScarecrowWell, you certainly saved the best for last. While power metal usually isn't my thing, I can enjoy it when it's done right, and this song didn't even make me think of power metal all that much. It's got some elements of it, for sure, but it leans more on the progressive side if you ask me. I was heavily reminded of Ayreon, and while Ayreon has never really done much for me, this song is fantastic. The main violin melody is great and very memorable, and the anthemic choruses are super powerful. At eleven minutes long, it has a very epic feel to it, and the flow and pacing of it is pretty much perfect. After going through a couple verses and choruses in the first half, the song goes into a quieter break around the middle with some really nice sounding bells and harp. It then builds up and breaks into a guitar solo, and the riff that plays behind the solo and into the following sections kicks some serious ass. Speaking of the section after the solo, that point onward is where the song really gets amazing. I love how it gradually gets faster and more energetic as it builds up to the final chorus, and when it finally hits, it's even more powerful than the first two. I don't really have any complaints about this song; it's pretty much everything I could ask for in a 10+ minute prog metal song. I highly doubt the rest of the album is as good as this, but I might have to check it out at some point anyway.
2nd Place: Sacul
Infected Mushroom - Becoming InsaneThis song was probably the biggest grower of the entire roulette. The first time I heard it I thought to myself that there's no way this could do that well, and it ended up reaching second place in the end.
I was initially put off by the pretty basic trance beat, but this song does a great job with gradually layering instruments on top of each other to build up energy, and the more busy, full-sounding sections are fantastic. The song's weirdness definitely works well, and it has a good use of effects and some interesting instrument choices. It also has a really great climax; the electric guitar that sounds like it's sampled from Michael Jackson's Beat It works really well, though it made me laugh a bit the first time I heard it. Overall, this song was a really pleasant surprise for me. It's got a ton of energy to it and is just incredibly fun to listen to, so it definitely gets a thumbs up from me.
3rd Place: senecadawg2
Sufjan Stevens - Fourth Of JulyOn the complete opposite end of the spectrum from Becoming Insane, this song is incredibly depressing. It has a very soft, beautiful atmosphere, and personal, sad lyrics about the death of the artist's mother. It's all very emotional and heart-wrenching. The instrumentation is very basic; while it's got some good ambiance, it's largely minimalistic and never really changes much throughout the song, which is probably the reason why this song never really fully clicked with me. I'm just not really a fan of minimalistic music, and while the emotion of the song is powerful, it's not quite enough to carry the whole track for me. This is something that I'd have to be in the right mood to really enjoy, which isn't the case for other sad, emotional songs I can think of.
4th Place: Scorpion
Noneuclid - The Black Plague Of The SoulYou've sent a lot of really dark metal this roulette, and this song certainly fits into that category. The slow, doomy tempo, the dark, murky atmosphere, and the sludgy riffs all come together to create a pretty brutal sound. The vocalist feels pretty out of place though; I would have expected some low, guttural growls as opposed to the higher, more clean-sounding vocals. My main problem with the song, though, is that I find it a bit boring. While the sound is great, it never really changes, and there aren't any really memorable moments or sections in the track to grab my interest. As such, it becomes pretty monotonous after a while, especially in the second half of the song. I like certain elements of it, but overall it could have been a lot better.
5th Place: mikemangioy
Genesis - Dancing With The Moonlit KnightDespite all the influence they've had on more recent bands I really enjoy, I've never really been able to get into classic 70s progressive rock bands, except for Pink Floyd. Genesis, along with other bands like Yes, would be a prime example of that. While I didn't think this song was fantastic, I did enjoy it a bit more than I thought I would. It takes a little while to get going, with the first couple minutes merely being okay, but when things really kick into gear two and a half minutes in, things get really energetic, almost heavy even. The fast drums and guitars and an aggressive string melody create a sound that I quite enjoyed, and the song's instrumental segments would definitely be the highlights for me. Other than that, the parts with vocals were okay, and the quiet, cinematic-sounding ending is pretty nice. Pretty good overall, but still not really my thing.
6th Place: Lucien
Ulver - Darling, Didn't We Kill You?I actually got two Ulver submissions this roulette, but the first one I had already heard, so this one's the only one that actually got approved. This song is apparently taken from an EP consisting of outtakes from Perdition City, an album I quite enjoy (at least parts of it). Stylistically, this song has a similar vibe to that album, except darker and more ambient. If there's one thing Ulver has proven itself to be fantastic with, it's atmosphere, and this song is no exception. It's incredibly dark and creepy, with haunting melodies and dissonant, glitchy noises and soundscapes. It certainly conjures up some vivid mental surroundings. Composition-wise, though, it's very repetitive. It's pretty much split into two different parts, each with its own melody that repeats ad infinitum, sometimes introducing a new effect or texture here and there. The first half is definitely the stronger of the two, as the second half with the drum beat is less atmospheric and the repetition feels a bit more monotonous. Overall, I liked this song, definitely more than a few songs from Perdition City, and the atmosphere is superb, but with its length and repetition, I can't see myself returning to it all that often.
7th Place: Dr. DTVT
Therion - The Rise Of Sodom And GomorrahStraight-up symphonic metal is something I've only been able to get into on a few occasions, and this song didn't do all that much for me, unfortunately. The focus is clearly on the strings and the choir, and everything else is largely just there to compliment them. The guitars, in particular, just chug along for the whole song and never really do anything interesting. Some of the string and vocal melodies are quite memorable, but at the same time they aren't that interesting, either. Lastly, the song structure doesn't really go anywhere, mostly just progressing through the same order of sections twice before ending. Sorry, but I couldn't find much to like about this one.
8th Place: Shadow Ninja 2.0
Steam Powered Giraffe - Automatonic Electronic HarmonicsI really don't have much to say about this one other than it just wasn't my thing at all. It's certainly got a unique sound to it, mixing old western-sounding country with barbershop quartet-esque vocals, with a few more modern instruments thrown in here and there. It's interesting, the vocal harmonies are well done, and some of the melodies are memorable, but there's just nothing that lines up with my musical tastes at all. Oh well.
Alright, now that the final round is done with, it's time for...
---THE FINAL RESULTS------8th Place---
Lucien - 44.9 Points1: Blue Man Group - Klein Mandelbrot
2: Haken - Darkest Light
3: Duran Duran - Ordinary World
4: Ulver - Darling, Didn't We Kill You?
5: Radiohead - Optimistic
6: Igor Stravinski - The Rite Of Spring: Sacrificial Dance
7: Beethoven - Symphony #5, Movement IV
8: Mad King Corduroy - Ice Fields
---7th Place---
Dr. DTVT - 48.3 Points1: Amorphis - Silent Waters
2: Enslaved - Clouds
3: Orphaned Land - The Birth Of The Three
4: Evergrey - The Aftermath
5: Ice Age - Perpetual Child
6: Therion - The Rise Of Sodom And Gomorrah
7: Dan Swano - Patchworks
8: Sigh - Graveward
---6th Place---
mikemangioy - 52.6 Points1: Nevermore - I, Voyager
2: Alter Bridge - The Uninvited
3: Destrage - My Green Neighbor
4: The Mars Volta - Son Et Lumiere / Intertiatic E.S.P.
5: Frost* - Hyperventilate
6: Foo Fighters - Still
7: Genesis - Dancing With The Moonlit Knight
8: Evile - In Dreams Of Terror
---5th Place---
Shadow Ninja 2.0 - 54.7 Points1: Beach House - Myth
2: Celldweller - Birthright
3: Polkadot Cadaver - Last Call In Jonestown
4: Second Person - Spilt Milk
5: Mirrorthrone - So Frail
6: The Dillinger Escape Plan - Prancer
7: Justin Cross - Drink The Water
8: Steam Powered Giraffe - Automatonic Electronic Harmonics
---4th Place---
Sacul - 56.4 Points1: David Maxim Micic - Smile
2: Infected Mushroom - Becoming Insane
3: Destiny Potato - Love Song
4: Chimp Spanner - Under One Sky
5: Nine Inch Nails - Heresy
6: Refused - New Noise
7: If These Trees Could Talk - Red Forest
8: Dead Can Dance - Children Of The Sun
---3rd Place---
senecadawg2 - 59.8 Points1: Kauan - Aiden Laulu
2: Foals - Spanish Sahara
3: Headspace - Invasion
4: Sufjan Stevens - Fourth Of July
5: Native Construct - Mute
6: Wayfarer - Children Of The Iron Age
7: Mazzy Star - Fade Into You
8: Addaura - City Light
---2nd Place---
Scorpion: 63.2 Points1: Alkaloid - Cthulhu
2: MONO - Surrender
3: SikTh - Tupelo
4: Kalmah - Rust Never Sleeps
5: The Oracle - The Sorcerer
6: Noneuclid - The Black Plague Of The Soul
7: Persefone - Kusanagi
8: Portishead - Glory Box
And the winner is...
---1st Place---
Evermind - 67 Points1: Avantasia - The Scarecrow
2: IQ - The Road Of Bones
3: Phideaux - Micro Softdeathstar
4: David Gilmour - Where We Start
5: Pain Of Salvation - Beyond The Pale
6: Beyond The Bridge - The Call
7: Galahad - Empires Never Last
8: Need - Symmetrape
Believe me, I'm just as surprised as you are that you ended up winning this.
Our tastes may be a bit different, but you sent some fantastic stuff this roulette. In fact, while I'm not too huge on your bottom three submissions, everything above that was great, and you never sent a flat-out bad song the whole roulette. You were very consistent, and also a bit lucky that your worst songs still never quite ended up ranking at the bottom.
Thank you for participating, it's been a blast.
That goes out to all the other contestants, too! Thank you for making this roulette as fun and rewarding as possible. While I may have ripped your submissions a new one on a few occasions, I greatly appreciate each and every one of you for participating, and I've already discovered a few new artists that I'll certainly explore more of in the future. I hope you all had a good time, and take it easy out there.