FINAL RESULTS??
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3rd place?
Katt – To Lands and Kingdoms Far Beyond
1. Twilight Force – Flight of the Sapphire Dragon
2. Twilight Force – There and Back Again
3. Aquaria – Judgement Day
4. Fairyland – Score to a New Beginning
First impression: Almost every single thing about this is EXACTLY what I expected. It’s over-the-top, but I can’t help grinning from ear to ear.
Final opinion: Ok so I’ll start by saying that I do understand why you thought this would be risky. It’s not that it’s power metal, which I hope I’ve demonstrated I do like, but it’s that particular big, over-the-top, symphonic, “dragons n shit” power metal that admittedly I’m not typically into. Then again, there aren’t many bands in that vein I’ve listened to properly. Rhapsody is one, and I’m not a fan. However, what I did always enjoy with Rhapsody was the big, bombastic epics, and so this EP surprised me with how many of the right notes it hit for me. It was never realistically going to be in the high 8s, but it’s all just so damn fun. Sapphire Dragon is definitely the weakest – it’s a little too happy cheese-fest for me – but I can’t deny the chorus is super catchy. But the other three songs also have some incredibly catchy stuff, but also have a richer sense of melody and harmony, and a grander scope and sound that is really very enjoyable. I guess I can see what you’re saying about the middle of Judgement Day, but perhaps it’s because by that point in the EP, I’ve got into the dragon-cheese mood and it works fine. And the epic first half of that song was the real standout. Anyway yeah, I can’t say it blew me away, but I’ve thoroughly enjoyed every listen.
It's also good flow-wise – simple but effective. Sapphire Dragon works well as a “you’re going on an adventure” opener, the vibe of which continues into There and Back Again. Judgement Day then seems to be the dramatic middle act where things take a darker turn, before Score to a New Beginning is the grand finale. The only jarring thing is the fact that the Twilight Force songs are a lot quieter than the other two, but otherwise it works well.
Music quality score: 8.2
Flow score: 4.0
EP total: 12.2
Roulette total: 70.7
Dude, I just have no idea why you’ve struggled somewhat in my previous roulettes. You just sent me hit after hit after hit in this one – even your absolute weakest submissions were 8/10, and I’m going to be diving into every single artist you sent me. Maybe it’s a feature of us getting to know each other and our respective tastes better. I’m obviously most excited about Night Flight Orchestra and exploring more of Chopin’s piano works, and I’ve already listened to that Monica Heldal album and loved it even more than the selection of songs you sent me. But honestly, everything was great.
As for your position, well… you’ll need to read on. In terms of scores, you place in 3rd just slightly behind the other two. But the other two are tied, and need to settle a winner. And because I’ve decided to have some fun with it, there’s just a small chance that you could still take the title…
You win the award for: Most Second-Guessing Yourself
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1st place (joint)?
Buddy – Construct, Crumble, Ascend
1. Psychedelic Porn Crumpets – Cornflake
2. King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard – Crumbling Castle
3. Phideaux – Wake The Sleeper [interlude]
4. Lauri Porra – Dislocated
5. Psychedelic Porn Crumpets – Denmark / Van Gogh & Gone
First impression: Nice mix of epicness, atmosphere and groove that somehow doesn’t feel disjointed. Not yet convinced by the ending, but the rest sounds excellent.
Final opinion: Just like TAC’s, this EP was a huge grower, and I love it more than I thought I would. Cornflake, Crumbing Castle and Dislocated are all amazing in different ways. Cornflake is some of the funkiest, grooviest rock music I’ve ever heard, I just absolutely love the riffs, and the psychedelic sections work surprisingly well alongside them. Crumbling Castle I already highlighted as my favourite, it still has a bit of groove to it but also a moody, quirky epicness that is right up my alley. That band sound absolutely bonkers, but as hopefully you’ve seen in this roulette, my tastes are pretty diverse so I can’t wait to explore the madness. And then Dislocated is more atmospheric again, and much simpler really, almost post-rock in style. It reminds me of some of my favourite stuff by God Is An Astronaut, with a gorgeous mix of atmosphere and energy. And then the closer I do still find the weakest – the slightly out-of-tune synths at the end I’m not wholly sold on, but it has definitely grown on me and works great as a closer.
I also love the flow in this EP. If I think about each track individually, they’re all quite different in style (even the two that are by the same band), but it’s never felt that way when I’m listening. There’s a really nice journey from maximum groove at one end to quite an ethereal, nebulous sound at the other, and it all flows really smoothly to get there.
Music quality score: 8.6
Flow score: 4.3
EP total: 12.9
Roulette total: 70.9
This has been the most competitive roulette I’ve ever run, and so for a complete newbie to my roulettes with minimal prior knowledge of my tastes to have got the joint highest score is pretty amazing really. You were someone I’d hoped would sign up, and I’m so so glad you did because you never stopped sending me amazing music – even Dir En Gray who earned your only sub-8 score is a band I want to explore more. Everything else I’m definitely diving into enthusiastically, and unsurprisingly the ones I’m most excited about are Destrage, Elder, the EP artists and Ghost’s newer albums.
But have you won? Well, as you’ll find out shortly, that’s partly up to you…
You win the award for: Best Newbie
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1st place (joint)?
Evermind – A Frail Road
1. Lee Abraham – Realisation
2. Sunburst – Remedy of My Heart
3. Conception – Feather Moves
4. Oceans of Slumber – No Color, No Light
5. Invadable Harmony – Memory
First impression: Powerful, proggy and very emotive. There’s a nice variety of styles but it’s incredibly consistent tonally, which makes it feel very convincing.
Final opinion: For the final time, I’m going to start by talking about the flow, particularly as this is a very story-driven EP. In general, it’s really good. The narrative is very emotive and pretty damn depressing. Both musically and lyrically, I wasn’t entirely sold on the role of the Conception song at first, but I’ve come around on it. There’s one slightly jarring transition as Realisation clearly leads into another track in the album it’s on, but that doesn’t affect things too much.
The songs are all really good too, but the quality isn’t uniform and this is another EP where I can rank every song. Easily my favourite is the Sunburst. It definitely has a large hint of Kamelot in there, particularly because of the singer of course, but also in the harmonic approach – but it’s also crunchier than most Kamelot, and really is very epic and engaging. My second favourite is the Oceans of Slumber – the song is strong but actually isn’t even anything special, but I absolutely love her voice which elevates it to another level (the Tom Englund guest performance is also cool – that’s twice he’s appeared in this round!). Next is Memory, which is a gorgeous, sombre instrumental closer. Feather Moves is nice – definitely more interesting than what I’ve heard from Conception before, but a clear step down from the other three songs I’ve mentioned. And then the Lee Abraham song is fine, it works well as an opener but isn’t especially interesting in itself.
Music quality score: 8.3
Flow score: 4.1
EP total: 12.4
Roulette total: 70.9
Considering your strategy (until the final anyway) was to not care too much and just send stuff that you liked based on whatever came into your head, your performance has been quite incredible. You started amazingly, and while you never peaked so high again, your consistent high quality kept you at the top of the table and has landed you on the joint highest score. I’m not going to list everything you sent me because it was all great, but the ones I’m most excited to explore about are Marketa Irglova, Beyond the Black, Sunburst and Oceans of Slumber. I didn’t include Evan Carson in that list simply because I’ve already bought his album and it’s amazing.
But have you won? In my v3, you won the most rounds and had the highest average score, but were unlucky in the final and the rules meant you came second? Will the same thing happen again? Well, that will be partly up to you. Read on…
You win the award for: Least Fucks Given
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So wait, who the hell won?
Well, there’s a tie. So, there are a few options:
Option A: A tiebreaker. I don’t really want to do this as it’s a pretty unsatisfactory way to end a roulette.
Option B: Joint winners. I’d considered this as it would fit the inclusive nature of this roulette, but you all convinced me it might be anti-climactic.
So that leaves option C. What is option C? Well, this roulette will be settled by…
Prisoners’ dilemma
Buddy and Evermind, you each have two choices: Share or Steal.
If you both choose to Share, you will be joint winners.
If one of you chooses to Share but the other Chooses to Steal, the Stealer will be the outright winner, and the Sharer will come 2nd.
If both of you choose to Steal, neither of you wins and the title goes to Katt.
You don’t need to rush, but please PM me your choice as soon as you’re able and definitely today. You can of course confer with each other either here or in private, but how much would you trust what the other says…?