Round 3 write upsI listened to this round without paying attention to whose song I was listening to, so as to eliminate biases. Of course I didn’t succeed in most cases and had a strong suspicion about whose song it was in most cases, or I knew it (see Evermind’s song for example), but I did mix up some people and their songs (for example Scorpion’s and Nekov’s song)
Scorpion: Myrath - My Inner WarThis song takes the cake for most interesting intro of the round. That piano is amazing. I don’t really like the transition to the main part though. In general, transitions between parts are not this song’s strong point. The parts themselves range between pretty good and awesome, though. Some parts here really remind me of Symphony X and Russel Allen’s voice, then suddenly the song becomes all groovy and funky, only to go back to being heavy a few seconds later. All the different parts make the song fly by and it feels considerably shorter than its 8 and a half minutes.
Parama: Baroness - The Line BetweenAfter a short calm intro, this starts of really heavy. I can’t help feeling I’ve heard that intro riff somewhere, but this familiarity doesn’t distract from its awesomeness. It becomes quite a bit calmer afterwards, though (or at least less heavy). I’m having a really hard time writing more here, because nothing sticks out as particularly awesome to me, but neither is it anywhere near a bad song. The vocal melodies are nice and the singer does his job well, the guitars and drums do a good job of setting the mood. I didn’t quite like the guitar sound during the heavier parts, but this kind of washed out and not as “in your face” sound is also what gives the song it’s mood during the less heavy parts (as in: most of the song).
Evermind: Jethro Tull - Farm On The FreewayTo make this clear: I don’t dislike old-sounding production in general, as long as it fits the song. Usually it doesn’t fit with heavier songs, but stuff like Pink Floyd, Supertramp and other classic bands, it doesn’t distract from the song at all (unless it’s just a terrible production, but there were terrible productions in each age of music recording).
Now, on to the song: This reminds me of a holiday where I tried to get into Yes, and failed to do so. There were always some parts I really enjoyed, but as a whole the songs just never worked for me (and I actively disliked their singer’s voice). This song has kind of that Yes-flair, but with only good parts and a much better singer. He’s not doing anything really wild or out-there with his voice, but it really fits and enhances the mood of the song. Mood is also what this one does best: It makes me feel like I’m on a road trip through the U.S., in some really small rural town with nothing around it and just one small restaurant/pub in the 70s or 80s, even though I’ve never been to the U.S. , I was born in the 90s and I’ve never done a roadtrip. Also, that instrumental section in the middle is really fucking groovy, and I love that keyboard/flute (I’m not sure what it is).
Nekov: Pure Reason Revolution - Bullitts DominaeThis one was a real grower. It left me completely unimpressed the first time I listened to it and I would have given it a 2 back then probably. Now the only part that isn’t absolutely amazing is the first 30 seconds or so. I love the vocals, love the overall mood, love the guitar, love the harmonies. The only moment that really sticks out to me is the first time it gets louder, but this is just so consistently excellent that that’s really not a negative. That strings are really excellently used as well, and really enhance the song.
What makes this really stand above the rest of the songs submitted this round is the emotional impact it has on me. It makes me happy and sad at the same time, make me feel like I long for something, but I don’t really know what. And that’s how you get a really high score from me in this roulette: a 4 is for a really good song that I enjoy, everything above that has that special emotional impact on me, be it happy, sad or any other kind of feeling. The only question is: will this be the next 5 from me, or just a 4.5?
Beardfish - Green WavesThis is definitely a relatively good song, but there’s nothing that makes it particularly memorable or stand out on top of all the other prog songs this round. It’s relatively heavy, more “nod your head along” than full out head banging and jumping around the room. The vocalist does a good job, they have nice riffs and melodies, but there’s nothing that elevates it from just being somewhat good to something more special. Also, it could do with a minute or two (or three, it does drag quite a bit) less. It repeats itself a bit too much, and by the end some off the riffs start to annoy me a bit. To close this off with something a bit more positive: the solo section just after the 6 minute mark is really damn groovy.
Sacul: Bent Knee - Being HumanThis was the most different song this round, and the most interesting one. I already checked out the album and it seems really good on first listen. This starts of with this really innocent, girly sounding voice singing “I imagine your dead body on my bed”. I love that contrast. Then it gets really loud, with some trumpets (or at least I think that’s trumpets), only to become more quiet again. The vocalist here is really versatile and I love her voice, she switches between totally innocent and calm to almost screaming and totally creepy sounding without much of an effort. To be honest, I’m not sure why I love this song as much as I do, it’s just so charming, combined with a great atmosphere and makes for a really interesting and rewarding listen.
Lonestar: Mandroid Echostar - Iron HandsSorry, but this song is just really mediocre. It has a few good moments (like the intro, when the vocals first appear), but there’s nothing here that makes it stand out as something. It’s not bad or anything, but I have to agree with Nekov’s assessment in the thread that this really isn’t that special. Maybe you would have been better served sending another song by that band, because I like their style in general and they do have a few good moments (and even one or two that are very good), but all together this is one of the weakest songs this round (it was originally the weakest one, but it did grow on me a bit, and the other one kind of de-grew, so now it’s just among the weakest ones).
Jingle-boy: Meat Load - Bat Out Of HellI swear I’ve heard that first part with just piano and vocals before. Maybe it’s just because the whole song has a bit of a Queen vibe, as I have no idea where I’d know the song from.
Anyway, I think this is your strongest submission so far, just slightly etching out that Headspace song last round. I don’t usually listen to this specific kind of music (I mean, it’s both rather old and fairly happy, so not my usual listening
), but when I do I usually enjoy the hell out of it. It sounds like the musicians where having a shitload of fun while playing and composing this, and this feeling certainly transcends to the listener. It switches between really different parts, but the transitions are never jarring and I enjoy everything here. Great submission. (Regarding production, refer to the Jethro Tull write up, same thing applies here.)
Wolfking: Evergrey - King of ErrorsThis starts of really strong with some great riffs and great vocals, as well as a great atmosphere. I really like the keyboard melodies here, as well as the guitars and solos. In fact, everything here is great, the only weakness of this song is that it takes just a bit too long and I lose interest at some points in between. Those moments are short and few though, so they don’t really distract from the song much. Really cool submission!
Very varied round score-wise. I loved some songs, but didn't care much for some others.
@Bolsters: I'm still not certain about 2 scores, so I'll only send the scores to you tomorrow so I can do one more listen to those two songs. If I did it now, they would get the lower score just because I'm too tired too doo them justice
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Topic: 2016 Roulette Championship v. THE CONCLUSION (Read 107232 times)
