Round 2 ResultsLordCost – Cardiacs - The Everso Closely Guarded LineFirst Impressions:Well I think I tried to listen to a Cardiacs album before but did not finish it. So. This is certainly… something weird alright. I don’t know, right now, this doesn’t feel like a cohesive song, it’s just jumping about between ideas arbitrarily and with almost no transition.
The individual parts all seem decently interesting and I could see myself digging this. I’m just hoping they’ll start to feel like more than just parts. I just. Don’t have any other words right now I’m actually kind of tired honestly. And this is exhausting to listen to. Maybe in a good way maybe in a bad way. I can say I don’t really feel like I have any degree of an opinion on this yet though.
Final Thoughts:It seems like you have the bad fortune to send me a song that absolutely does not click for me in every one of my roulettes. Because yeah… this is just a disaster of a song.
Let’s start with the vocals. I absolutely hate them. The tone and style of the singer’s voice is really unpleasant and it doesn’t help that the vocal melodies feel completely out of control. I almost worry that it takes serious talent to sound this unpleasant.
Musically the song fares better than the vocals, though it still often sounds like a disjointed mess. For one. I actually don’t tend to like when music sounds circus-y, which this has a tendency to devolve into from time to time. It works on a few Haken songs but I’ve never found it to work anywhere else.
I can see where they did at least try to tie ideas together – there’s one motif in particular that pops up in a few different places and it’s one of the more melodies in the song, so that was a good call on their end.
I think the big failing here is that there’s not really any emotional connection to be found here though. That’s one thing I look for in music more than anything else and this just feels like unrestrained wackiness with no real point to it other than to be weird. The song has a seasick sense of tempo and different instruments cut in and out for moments just because.
I’ve listened to this five times at this point and there’s very little I can recall from this one when I’m not listening to it. Mostly how annoying the vocals sound. Like seriously, I don’t know what they’re going for here but I very much do not like it.
And yeah this is definitely an exhausting listen. It’s only 8 minutes but because the song has no sense of focus it feels much, much longer and it’s really just too much to take in. My thoughts on this are kind of disjointed since I feel like I haven’t really been able to process this one as well as the other songs here.
I do come off as pretty hard on this but I don’t think it’s really, completely and utterly useless like that one Slint song. There are moments here that work, and aside from the vocals none of it is really that unpleasant to listen to. But it’s definitely lacking in terms of positive qualities, while having a fair few negative qualities. Dunno how else to say it. It’s just a mess.
4.5/10Stadler – The Panic Channel – Teahouse of the SpiritsFirst Impressions:Well I haven’t heard of the artist you sent this time, at least. This is. Well I wish the video I found to download the mp3 sounded better but I couldn’t find a better one so I’m gonna try and not hold that against this one.
This is pretty upbeat but not claustrophobically so, I don’t know if these vocals are my favorite style but they don’t sound out of place here. This is…. pretty brief and a bit lacking in substance but it’s fun enough. I don’t have much else to say, the song is already over.
Final Thoughts:I really do wish I had a video with slightly better sound quality because it does feel a bit muddy and muted here (and quieter compared to all of the other files this round.) But that’s really a minor complain and kind of out of the artist’s control.
I get what’s going on with this song sure but I’m really baffled as to what about it stands out. The closest reference point I really have is earlier Coheed stuff, but even then most of those songs had something beyond the bare minimum to them. This just seems to be hitting a lot of the bullet points and not really doing much else with them.
Does it sound bad? Nah, not at all. It’s a fun enough track & the main guitar line does create a good driving feel, plus the chorus sounds pretty full and powerful and provides a nice reprieve from the energy of the rest of the song. And the vocals are fine, not especially impressive but they fit with the song well enough. I also do dig the actual mixing on this the bass comes through well and that’s nice to hear.
But again it’s just lacking in substance for me, I want more out of this than it has to offer and there’s not much about it that’s particularly memorable. It’s just an alright rock song.
6.5/10Evermind – James LaBrie – Jekyll or HydeFirst Impressions:Who’s this loser on the vocals? He sounds like a dying bird. Also there are growls apparently, nice. Actually this just pointing out how much better he sounds on The Source than usual. So good job on that. Aside from the growls this isn’t really dissimilar from a lot of power metal I’ve heard. Honestly it doesn’t feel like it has the weight behind it to support the growls, they sound a bit out of place because the song sounds too thin.
The instrumental work on this isn’t particularly unique in comparison to a lot of similar-sounding music but it’s, fine enough I guess. Decent level of groove, decent level of technicality. This mostly just sounds like… a song, I don’t know what other way to describe it. One I’m totally okay with but one that doesn’t do a ton for me either.
Final Thoughts:To me this is just a song that doesn’t stand out much in any way, either for good or bad. LaBrie has never been one of my favorite vocalists and he sounds… a bit below average here, honestly. He can do rough-edged vocals well but here it just sounds like he’s trying too hard. And the growls are actually kind of bad, I have no clue if he’s doing them himself or if it’s someone else (I’d guess the latter, but I don’t know).
Musically it’s a pretty alright power/prog metal type of song. Decent energy to it, the riff in the intro and the prechorus makes me think of that Speaking to Stones album a lot for some reason, I dunno why I bought that album.
I think the chorus is a bit annoying honestly, more for the vocal melodies here. They just don’t really do it for me. Also the background growls make it sound really silly actually. Again it doesn’t sound awful but it doesn’t sound particularly good either. And the instrumental break is… eh. The kind of solo here can work sometimes (see: Hacride’s Awakening) but here it just sounds kind of… forced. Like of course there has to be a solo section because most DT songs have solo sections you gotta have it man.
I don’t really wanna be too hard on this song but at the same time I can’t find myself wanting to return to this, or wanting to check out JLB’s solo work on the basis of this. It’s an okay song. Just not particularly memorable.
6.75/10Train of Naught – Khemmis – Beyond the DoorFirst Impressions:I hope this is a song. Wow, it’s a song. Like I dunno what to say for the start. It’s nice but maybe a bit slow to get going. I like this more when it picks up that triplet groove though it still feels like it’s maybe a touch too slow. And the transition back into the doom-ier sound feels completely botched and awkward.
It leaves me stuck at least enjoying the entire song, but definitely liking some parts more than others, and feeling the way the song moves between those different parts stiff and messy. And I’d almost just rather listen to the song without the slower parts, really? The groovier stuff is more fun and stands out way more.
Final Thoughts:Yeah, I agree with my first impressions self, this kind of feels like two songs that are only tangentially related and stitched together to make one song. Not that either of the main styles of this song is bad, and I think they totally could work well together just fine, it’s just that in this case they kind of don’t, unfortunately. And that’s primarily the fault of the awkward transitions in this song.
Beyond that what is there to say. Hmm. I don’t think this hits on either niche particularly well? Like sure it doesn’t do a bad job either. There’s some fun groove to the more upbeat moments & the lead guitar work is solid if a bit uninspired. I guess it’d be more enjoyable if it progressed a bit faster?
The doomier stuff is solid too though a bit too driven by guitar leads for my taste. In my plodding, sludgy music, I really prefer it to be riff and atmosphere driven as much as possible. Something visceral I can really get into. The melodic work here is far from bad of course and it fits just fine but I would genuinely prefer it to not be there. The riff right at the end is a pretty solid riff though. I dig it.
I feel like this is just a song that should do more for me than it actually ends up doing. Is it a bad song? Nah. But nothing about this really stands out for me and it’s not something I’d check out a full album of, especially since even this song feels a bit stretched out for what it has on offer.
7/10home – Kowloon Walled City – The GriftFirst Impressions:Right off the bat I’m inclined to like this more than Old Man Gloom even if that guitar tone isn’t quite as thick. The 6/4 riff that varies itself up a lot is certainly more compelling than a 4/4 riff that never changes. And the riffing in this song does have a sense of groove, albeit not so straightforward of a groove but it’s there nonetheless.
And I like that the song stays pretty dynamic throughout, a balancing act between some heavier moments and quieter interludes, without ever really losing momentum either. It’s not like, an especially compelling song but I can definitely see the appeal here.
Final Thoughts:Of the songs this roulette that fit into this kind of post-metal vein this is probably the best of them so far. Though one thing that definitely stands out to me. The guitars don’t feel like they have enough crunch during the heavier moments. They sound a bit too rubbery and can’t quite provide the punch I think this song needs.
What’s being played though is pretty cool. The riffing has a nice jagged feel to it that creates an interesting groove and keeps me pulled into the song even as it keeps repeating. Like, there isn’t really a ton to this song but no one part feels like it goes on too long either. The clean moments aren’t as strong as the heavy main riff but they serve their purpose well enough.
It does feel like the song ends maybe a bit anticlimactically though? The payoff for the buildup in the back half of the song doesn’t really go much of anywhere, or doesn’t go far enough. It leaves the ending feeling a bit unsatisfying.
Again I don’t know if I’m really feeling this that strongly, but it’s alright enough. I do find that this shorter style of straightforward post-metal is never as compelling as the more longform pieces though so it’s a bit weird I keep getting sent it but oh well, still solid stuff.
7.25/10Luoto – Thrawsunblat - Rivers Of UnderthoughtFirst Impressions:So like two minutes in and this is certainly pretty solid folky black metal so far.
This really doesn’t have anything unique to offer for the style of music it is, but it’s plenty competent for what it is too and I can’t really knock it for that. Like I really don’t even know what else to put here. The production seems sufficient? It’s diverse enough to not really get boring? The clean bit in the middle with just acoustic guitar and strings is rather pretty. Yeah I really don’t have much but at the same time this is probably my favorite of everything I’ve listened to so far this round.
Final Thoughts:This is a very agreeable song, for me. Like, it just has a lot of qualities I find to be pretty solid qualities. There’s not much in the way of standout moments here but the way the song flows and the way it sounds are both things I am inclined to like. Which makes it incredibly hard to have much to say about this song.
Like, genuinely stumped as to what to write. I’m already almost halfway into the song and there’s just not much to comment on other than “the riffs are pretty solid and the dense atmosphere is satisfying”. I guess, I would say the harsh vocals aren’t that great, but they’re passable? I don’t mind listening to them?
Every part of this is just so fundamentally “fine” that I have nothing to say about it, I’m sorry. I’ve heard the riffs and melodies in this song done in other songs. I’ve heard similar clean breaks before. I’ve heard moments of intensity that far surpass the loudest parts of this song. I’ve even heard the intro like this song has done before (Saor – Farewell is very similar). I think the problem is that everything is solid but nothing stands out and there’s no unique twist on anything. Which can be, fine, absolutely, but I guess I’m just looking for something a bit more than that.
But still, I mean, it’s a solid song for sure.
7.5/10Nekov – Von Hertzen Brothers – Bring Out the SnakesFirst Impressions:It’s funny that you make the assumption I like “weird” music when most of the highest scorers thus far have not actually been very weird at all, and as well I have an entire post on my tastes at the start of the thread. Anyways right away I do not like these samples at all. Like I’d stop listening to the song if I wasn’t obligated to listen to it, honestly. Is this… ever going to start? Okay good finally. I dig the noodly bass thing going on in the background throughout this but there definitely needs to start being more to this to get me interested. I can’t say I’m a big fan of that really processed-sounding heavy guitar tone either. It makes it basically just sound like a synth at that point.
Is there really anything nice I can say about this, because I’m worried there isn’t going to be. I guess, it’s got a nice energy to it? That’s really all I can think of here. It doesn’t sound all bad but the song feels really slow-paced and there’s a lot here I could really do without.
Final Thoughts:I really, passionately, do not like the spoken bits that take up almost the first two minutes of this song. It’s very viscerally unpleasant to listen to. Both the tone of voice and the dialogue itself piss me off honestly. The music here is okay, decent atmosphere and the drum stings are solid but god I want to punch that guy so much and make him shut up. Jesus christ. It’s so damn long.
And honestly it’s a shame, because the rest of this song is actually pretty solid? The twinkly melodies going on in the background of a fairly decent atmosphere and the way the song is constantly building up are both pulled off well. I don’t dig the break in the middle with the really crunch guitar line though, it’s an okay line but it’s really out of place and completely disrupts the momentum of the song.
I even like the washed out sound a lot of the song has. It just results in lots of elements blurring together to build atmosphere and by the last few minutes of the song the momentum of the song is exhilarating. Considering this is decisively not metal, the song sounds bloody huge during that outro. It’s really damn great stuff and the way the melody of the “come on press rewind” refrain keeps changing with the music reflecting the tone changes is pretty great.
I do think having a fade out at the end is really anticlimactic though. That kind of sound really deserves a proper, bombastic ending instead of just fizzling out at the end.
Anyways. Despite 75% of this being actually pretty great, there’s also an entire quarter that is
goddamn insufferable and I unfortunately have to dock points for that, because it is genuinely a big deal that absolutely will keep me from wanting to relisten to this again, in spite of how good its best parts are. So that’s a bit of a shame.
7.5/10Tomislav95 – Votum – VerticalFirst Impressions:I feel like I listened to this album before (or had them played in plug.dj) but I remember literally nothing about them so I’m fine with keeping this. I’m really having a hard time finding much to say about this on first listen though. I guess, and I’m gonna keep saying this all roulette long I imagine, but the vocals aren’t doing much for me. Like I’m pretty sure this specific style of vocals never has. I generally just don’t like deeper vocal tones, or something. And I’m not really finding the instrumentation of this particularly compelling either.
At the very least it’s decently diverse, a mix if chugging metal, dense atmosphere, and some cleaner moments, and by the end I can get into it at least a little. But it’s just very normal, in every aspect, and not in a way that particularly speaks to me.
Final Thoughts:I want to talk about something. The effect that you can create when every part of a song snaps into place at once and creates something really cool and powerful out of it. It sort of requires having something to contrast off of; like a quiet start, or a bit of space before everything clicks into place. It’s a technique a lot of pop songs use to great effect – one of my favorite pop hits ever, Sia’s Chandelier, does this exact thing and the end result is utterly glorious.
And that’s exactly what I feel like they’ve managed to pull off here – having that little pause before the song just explodes into full force for the first chorus. It makes what would otherwise be a solid but unremarkable chorus into something I actually find myself really getting into. It’s definitely a quality I would consider admirable. They don’t exactly pull off the same stunt as well with the second chorus since the buildup is just as loud, but at that point I’m already biased to like the chorus.
I think the unfortunate side effect is that the rest of the song can’t really support the weight though. The intro itself is fine, works well as a buildup. The second verse is a bit… forgettable, not bad but doesn’t stand out. I at least dig the atmospheric back half and the way it builds up, it’s executed pretty well. Nothing about it is really that impressive but it comes to a nice climax for the song. I can’t fault it for that.
And yeah, still not really a huge fan of the vocals by themselves but they work well on the chorus for sure, and having them in the backdrop for most of the second half of the song takes the focus off them and mostly has them provide some texture for the atmosphere.
Huh. When I lay it all out like this, I actually like this one a lot more than I expected to, huh? It does one thing really well and a few other things pretty satisfyingly, though not especially impressively. So yeah. I can dig that.
7.75/10