Round 4 Results!
Evermind: Beyond the Bridge - Doorway to Salvation 7.5A lot of energy at the start of the song, I’m not too big a fan of the sound there, it feels a little too compressed or pushing. The female vocals are really great though! They form a really nice contrast with the intro. I like how it builds up with the male vocals adding some extra power. The chorus is nice, I really like how it varies a little each time. It’s a very competently written prog metal song, but I feel kind of burned out with this kind of classic DT like prog metal music.
Luoto: Enslaved – Singular 7.5+1 Psychedelic I really can’t get into the goblin-esque harsh vocals, like at the start of the song (the cleans here are really nice) but instrumentally this song is pretty solid. A lot of energy and enough variation to keep it interesting. The harsh vocals get more enjoyable when they are a little bit further away in the mix instead of being the focus point though, like from 2:40 – 2:55, I quite dig them there actually. The slow mid-section is pretty epic, the spoken word part works really well, a very nice dark atmosphere here. Again, the harsh vocals will prevent me from listening to this more often, but it was still an interesting song to listen to. Kind of odd choice for the psychedelic bonus point, tbh
Tomislav: Fates Warning - Seven Stars 7.5Liked the intro, some nice vocal melodies near the start too.The chorus is pretty nice and very catchy. This song reminds me quite a bit of Dream Theater. Which is a good thing I guess but same comment as with a very Evermind song, it’s a very competently written “classic prog metal” song, but I feel kind of burned out with this kind of music lately. Still really liked this song! It’s just not unique enough for me to check out their album. The heavy ending is good though.
Parama: Being (feat Spencer Sotelo)- Air Atlantic 7.75+1 DjentI like the soft intro, there’s something about how that djenty riff comes in that makes me smirk though. The low guitar works great with the high melody . I really like the vocalist, the whispery words at the end of some sentences are pretty rad. There’s a nice atmospheric middle section. I Like the rhythm near the end, that tremolo like effect on the vocals at the end is pretty nice, fade out ending is a bit a of a bummer though.
Twosuitsluke: DSME – Mirage 8+1 Djentsome really nice rhythms. I wasn’t too fond of the harsh vocals at first but they grew quite a bit on me. I can’t say I love them but they fit the song. The high sound in the background is pretty nice, directly makes the song a lot creepier
. The female vocals are really nice and work surprisingly great
The Miraage part (chorus I think) is great, love how the song goes crazy there. The samples at the end are really good, they have a really nice impact after the heavy part, it’s a really nice way too end this song.
Scorpion: Infected Mushroom – Heavyweight 8.25+1 PsychedelicThe start of this song is amazing, a very nice kinda dark atmosphere. I Love the weird electronic drums and all those sound going on. The eastern melody is really great and works really well with the heavy sound behind it. Love all the different effects and sounds they are using. Not too sure about that weird electronic sound from about 3 minutes on, reminds me a little of Adebisi Shank though. The guitar (or synth lead?) after it is so good though. Besides a few small electronic bits I really enjoyed this song, a really nice and varied composition!
Elite: Nordic Giants - Evolve or Perish 8.25+1 Spoken WordI really like the sound at the intro, the notes at the start sound a little predictable though . Love how rich the sound gets near about half a minute. This has to be one of my favourite use of samples in this roulette so far, they work absolutely great with the song. The piano chords at the middle of the song sound so disturbing, which works so well. The way the intense post-rock parts are alternated with the samples is really good, the samples have a nice impact this way.
Tyrias: Amplifier – Airborne 8.25Nice atmosphere at the start, I like how it suddenly stops and then almost hesitates to start again, but then starts more intensely. I like the lead sound here. The it’s “time to fly”part is really epic! Despite the simple lyrics it’s one of my favourite choruses? in the roulette so far. The heavy part at 6 minutes is pretty great, there something about the timing when it starts that’s almost a little awkward though, like it starts just half a second before you expect it too. I love how intense it gets near at ending.
Sacul: Gazpacho - Chequered Light Buildings 8.5This starts out so soothing! The singers voice, the minimalistic piano, it touches me. I like how gradually things are added in the background. The part at 1:50 is really nice. It’s get pretty intense at 3 minutes, and then completely does away with the soothing atmosphere, getting a little disturbing with the distant vocals. It forms a really nice contrast with when she singing starts again. The song slowly getting more soothing/pleasant again near the end. Really enjoyed this song, it has a really nice composition and also carries a lot of emotion.
Train of Naught – Ivar Bjørnson & Einar Selvik’s Skuggsjá - Skuggsjá 8.5+1 Spoken WordI love the flute at the start of the songs, it conjures some really nice images in my head, it’s got this kind of misty battlefield atmosphere or something. I like how the music gradually build up intensity behind the spoken vocals. The way the more screaming vocals join in and then go to singing vocals is pretty great too. After the softer middle part it has the same kind of awesome build up, ending really intense but a little suddenly perhaps. I Loved the atmosphere throughout the song!
Score list:10 Evermind 23.5 + 7,5 = 31 X
9 Twosuitsluike: 22.5 + 9 = 31,5 XX
8 Luoto: 23.25 + 8,5 = 31,75 XX
7 Elite: 23.5 + 9,25 = 32,75 X
6 Tomislav95: 26.25 + 7,5 = 33,75 XX
5 Tyrias 25.5 +8,25 = 33,75 XX
4 Train of Naught 25.25 + 9,5 = 34,75 XXX
3 Parama: 27 + 8,75 = 35,75 XXX
2 Scorpion: 26.5 + 9,25 = 35,75 XX
1 Sacul: 27.5 + 8,5 = 36 XXX
Overall this was a pretty solid round again, both the highest minimum score and the lowest maximum score in this roulette I think. The total scores are quite close to each other too with only 5 points between the 10th and 1st position (4 points if all bonuses are sent) Perhaps I should be stricter with scores… So far no one has used the “short song” and “Rap/Hip Hop” bonus, probably the other bonuses are easier haha. Please send before next Monday, no haste as I am away most of this weekend so won’t start listening until Sunday evening anyway.