THE FINALWell, here we are. A well fought battle, and a very tough decision. In alphabetical order:
antigoon
Arcade Fire -
Funeral [2004]There’s one thing in particular that you are absolutely right about – this album is a real grower! If I’m honest, on the first couple of listens I was a little disappointed, especially considering the quality of your submissions over the course of the Roulette, but the third listen was when it started to hit me how much good stuff there is in here, and since then I’ve just enjoyed it more and more. I think part of the problem was that the album gets better as it goes on (IMO), and so it doesn’t give a great impression on first listen. Although now I quite like the opening song, but the next couple aren’t so interesting. For me, Crown of Love is where it starts to get really great, and the second half of the album is top-notch stuff.
What I love most: All the songs, even the less interesting ones, have a really great feel to them. I also love the variety of instrumentation that the band uses, keeps the sounds fresh and interesting.
What I’m less keen on: His vocals. At times they do fit the music really nicely, but at others they just sound a little weird and irritating. I’ve got used to them so it doesn’t stop me enjoying the music now, but I still find them annoying in a few places.
Favourite songs: Crown of Love, Rebellion (Lies)
orcus116
Neutral Milk Hotel -
In An Aeroplane Over The Sea [1998]This is a really solid album, and it grabbed me from the very first listen! Some of the fuzzy rock songs required a couple of listens to get into, but the folky stuff in particular was instantly appealing, and are really where the album shines. The album has an excellent flow to it and the quality is pretty consistent; there are a couple of less interesting tracks, but the start, middle and end of the album are all fantastic which helps it to be very accessible right from the off. There are a few moments throughout the album that remind me a bit of The Smashing Pumpkins for some reason, particularly in some of the rockier songs.
What I love most: The flow of the album is terrific, and the album has a great vibe throughout. But most of all, I really really love Oh Comely.
What I’m less keen on: The production. It’s not bad, but in some places the mixing isn’t all that smooth, and just occasionally the recording seems a bit lazy, as though the take wasn’t a very good one but they couldn’t be bothered to do another.
Favourite songs: Oh Comely, Two-Headed Boy Part Two
Winner:This is such a hard decision as both are really good albums that I’m going to rate 4 stars on RYM (I was going to do it already, but figured I should wait until after I’ve done my write-ups!). One was more immediately appealing, but the other was more of a grower, and so it’s quite hard to compare them. I thought about bringing past submissions into play, but to be honest you’ve both been fantastic throughout, so that didn’t help.
After much deliberation, I have decided that the victor is...
…orcus116!I just really enjoy listening to this album so much, and there are 2 factors that just slightly give it the edge: Oh Comely (seriously, such a great song!) and the fact that it really feels like a complete whole much more than a collection of songs. You had a bit of a slow start to the Roulette but I think once you identified where the overlap in our tastes were, you’ve been terrific, so thanks so much playing!
Joe, you came so close!
Sorry to have to give you the runner-up place, but thanks so much as well for playing; you’ve been the most consistent out of anyone and have introduced me to so much great music.
And that’s it! I’ll keep updating this thread as I check out full albums by all the bands and artists.
Topic: ariich's Song Roulette - all done (Read 50430 times)
