ariich's Song Roulette - all done

[Sigz]

I can't really get into Joanna Newsome :/

[orcus116]

Her voice was more tolerable when I believed she was deaf.

[sonatafanica]

I'll murder both of you.

[Marvellous G]

And I'll help. 'Good Intentions Paving Company' is one of the finest songs of last year.

[shadowfex]

Thrice are amazing.

[Fuzzboy]

Her voice was more tolerable when I believed she was deaf.

Try her new album. She uses a 'smoother' voice on it. Try '81, my favorite track on the album.

[Sigz]

I actually don't have a problem with her voice, her music just doesn't seem very well written.

[ariich]

Sorry for the delay, I promise the next one won't be such a big gap!


Bands and artists from round 4, part b:

Crippled Black Phoenix (Portrucci)
So far I've only really been able to listen to their latest album 'I, Vigilante', but I'm completely wowed by it, what a fantastic album! Beyond the fact that they are clearly a rock band, their music is pretty indefinable, which is a great quality to have. The amount of variety on this album is great, from the dark quirkiness of Fantastic Justice to the big bombastic prog of Of A Lifetime, but impressively it never feels disjointed or inconsistent, and they do everything so well. It's definitely an album that takes the listener on a journey and leaves them happy and satisfied by the end, especially with the strangely upbeat closer. How do their other albums compare?
I, Vigilante [2010] – 9/10 – (bought on digital download)

A Perfect Circle (zxlkho)
I first heard APC years ago, when Mer de Noms first came out, and I wasn't really a fan, but I'm glad you sent me the song from their next album, because I'm really liking them now. I listened to MdN again as well and it's great, so I've no idea what I was thinking back then. There's definitely a bit of a similarity to Tool, particularly with Maynard's vocals, but it's all round a bit more accessible. There are some weaker songs on both albums that don't really interest me much, but most of the songs are great – some excellent riffs and ideas and lots of good lyrics. I'll have to listen to the other two albums they did at some point, although their average ratings on RYM are a lot lower...
Mer de Noms [2000] – 7/10
Thirteenth Step [2003] – 7/10

Bonnie 'Prince' Billy (Voxyn)
This guy writes some very pleasant folk music! I listened to his debut album first, which you sent me a song from in the Roulette, and I liked it, but I didn't find it all that exciting really. I think it's his voice, which is very mellow but not desperately interesting, and there wasn't really enough going on in the music to compensate. Still good though, and then I listened to one of his more recent albums and thought it was really good. I think the superior production works immensely in his favour, because there's not a great a difference in style, but I enjoyed the latter considerably more. It's a really nice listen with the occasional song that sounds a bit bigger or darker, giving it some nice variety. Good stuff!
I See a Darkness [1999] – 6/10
The Letting Go [2006] – 7/10

Big D and the Kids Table (UMH)
Strictly Rude (the album with Shining On on it) isn't on Spotify, but I've managed to have a listen on Grooveshark, and it's a really fun album! Not among my favourite ska, but still very enjoyable, and there are a few really good songs like the opening track Steady Riot which sets the album nicely, and a couple of the more epic songs like Snakebite. Still not a huge fan of the vocals, but I can overlook that for the most part! I've also had a couple of listens to the previous album How It Goes, and I have to say I didn't like that one so much – it's not bad and it has some good stuff, but the serious stuff isn't as good and the fun stuff isn't as fun.
How It Goes [2004] – 5/10
Strictly Rude [2007] – 6/10

[Ultimetalhead]

Glad you explored further. The biggest problem with Big D is that I can almost never sit through a whole album. They have a bunch of really great songs, but when you try to listen to more than 5 or 6 at a time, it gets really annoying. That said, Sounds of Allston Village/LAX is pretty much the best one-two punch ever.

[ariich]

Yeah that was exactly how I felt as well. Pretty fun band to just put on random shuffle for a bit though.

Next update should be up shortly. Told you it would be quick!

[TheVoxyn]

 

[bodiesinflight]

Sorry for the delay, I promise the next one won't be such a big gap!


Bands and artists from round 4, part b:

Crippled Black Phoenix (Portrucci)
So far I've only really been able to listen to their latest album 'I, Vigilante', but I'm completely wowed by it, what a fantastic album! Beyond the fact that they are clearly a rock band, their music is pretty indefinable, which is a great quality to have. The amount of variety on this album is great, from the dark quirkiness of Fantastic Justice to the big bombastic prog of Of A Lifetime, but impressively it never feels disjointed or inconsistent, and they do everything so well. It's definitely an album that takes the listener on a journey and leaves them happy and satisfied by the end, especially with the strangely upbeat closer. How do their other albums compare?
I, Vigilante [2010] – 9/10 – (bought on digital download)

all of their albums are good, but the new one is the best.
watch out for an interview I'm doing with them come April.

[ariich]

Awesome, thanks Ben, I'll try and check the other albums out when I can.

[sonatafanica]

I actually don't have a problem with her voice, her music just doesn't seem very well written.

Sigz, try to not do this anymore ok

[ariich]

Bands and artists from round 5, part a:

Petter Carlsen (Voxyn)
This guy has such a sweet voice! The tone of his voice is quite high and very pure, and so at times it has a very angelic quality. He actually reminds me a lot of the guy who won the most recent X-Factor, Matt Cardle (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QmffsSRWaUk for those who don't know). As for the music, it's really lovely. For the most part it's soft and pleasant and very accessible, but I really love the way he adds in these sections that are dark and powerful as they really give the music a bit of an edge. There's lots of good stuff on You Go Bird, but my favourite song so far was the latest single that you sent me, so I'm very excited about the new album!
You Go Bird [2009] – 8/10

The Antlers (orcus)
Another very sweet voice right here, and the vocals really turn this music from good to great! Don't get me wrong, the music on Hospice is really lovely, and a few of the songs in particular I absolutely adore (Kettering, Bear and Wake come to mind), but there are spots where there is less going on that I think still work really well because of the singing more than anything else. As a result, this ends up being a consistently nice album from start to finish, with a number of high points but no real low ones. I haven't had the opportunity to listen to their previous album or any of their EPs as they're not on Spotify; how do they compare?
Hospice [2009] – 9/10 – (Owned on CD)

Redemption (DTVT)
I've been listening to a couple of Redemption's albums, and so far I really like one while the other is merely good. Strange really, there isn't a huge difference in style between the two, but the writing on Snowfall... is just so much more interesting and engaging, and the instrumentation really adds to a great sound overall. Obviously that album is where you sent a song from, and really the whole album is very solid, and I found myself enjoying the whole thing. The only thing I'm not keen on with this album is the guitar solos – he really just isn't an interesting player. But there's enough great stuff in there for it to not be an issue at all. The Origins of Ruin is, sadly, a lot less interesting and I wonder if the soloing annoys me more as a result. Ah well, at least one great album anyway, will check out their earlier stuff too!
The Origins of Ruin [2007] – 6/10
Snowfall on Judgement Day [2009] – 8/10

Alcest (zxlkho)
This is really fantastic stuff. Their debut album is excellent, very interesting and with some really gorgeous parts, they create a great sound. But their latest is really amazing – even after the first song I was just in awe of how wonderful the music was, so I can see why you wanted to send me that originally. And the closer! Just phenomenal peaks and troughs and climaxes and diminuendos. This is definitely the best post-metal I have heard to date, I really can't get enough of it. The first and last songs are perfect and the rest range from good to great!
Souvenirs d'un autre monde [2007] – 8/10
Écailles de lune [2010] – 9/10

[zxlkho]

Alcest is incredible. Glad you like them.

[TheVoxyn]

Petter Carlsen and The Antlers are both awesome  . Petter's new album is really good, hope it ends up on spotify sometime soon  .

[Dr. DTVT]

The Fullness of Time is much better than Origins of Ruin.  Memory really props OoR up.

[ariich]

Bands and artists from round 5, part b:

NàTTSòL (Portrucci)
This is a good album, and certainly a debut that shows some promise. I do find the album a little hit and miss – at the best of times it is atmospheric and powerful and the vocals are used really well, but at other times it sounds like to me like pretty run-of-the-mill black metal, and at times the vocals are a little over the top to the point of being annoying. It's not too often though, and overall the album is fairly solid, but not something I can see myself going back to regularly. I'll certainly check out any follow-up though, simply because of how excellent the good parts of the album are!
Stemning [2010] – 6/10

Floater (UMH)
I dig these guys.  I was interested that their genre definitions say "Progressive rock" and "Alternative metal" as I wouldn't really say they are particularly either progressive or metal, but no matter. I really like the hard rock vibe that they have and I think they pull it off well. I've been listening to a couple of their albums – Alter I think is the more consistent record, but doesn't have any real standouts, plus is just slightly shaky vocally in a couple of places; Wake isn't as strong all the way through, but has a couple of really excellent songs, and very good vocals that really make the songs come alive. All in all both are solid albums and I look forward to checking out more of their stuff.
Alter [2002] – 7/10
Wake [2010] – 7/10

Ives the Band (antigoon)
This is a very strong debut album – I still think the vocals are a little weak in places, and a couple of the songs aren't very interesting, but it's a really nice album with lots of good ideas. Just really top-notch pop rock, and I have to say that the song you sent me (The Joker) has really grown on me so much, it keeps getting stuck in my head. I'm very much looking forward to any follow-up that they do, as hopefully they'll be able to strengthen and refine things a bit, which should allow them to create something really great!
The Incredible Story of Mr. Birch [2009] – 7/10

Disasterpeace (sonata)
I have to admit, I was apprehensive about checking out a whole album here. As I said when you first submitted a song from his latest album, it was kind of endearing but I couldn't imagine listening to it very often. And indeed having listened to the whole of that album, I feel pretty much the same way. However, I am very glad that before I listened to that album, I checked out his 2008 album Level first (because it was on Spotify so I could listen on my iPod) and I have to say, I really like it! The sound, while still all 8-bit, is much better produced, and the way he layers the different sounds works surprisingly well. But most of all, the musical ideas are great! Very intricate and intelligent, and with some fantastic moments, which I never thought would work so well with such basic sounds, but as I said the sound on this album is done very nicely. Finally some chiptune that I really enjoy! Do any of his other albums have a similar sound to Level?
Level [2008] – 7/10
Rise of the Obsidian Interstellar [2011] – 5/10

[sonatafanica]

Do any of his other albums have a similar sound to Level?

Hmm, that's a good question. I haven't listened to Level much, but Neutralite was made around the same time and is pretty darn cool. Atebite and the Warring Nations as well.

Jammage is definitely worth listening to, if only for the track At the Zombie Gates.

[Ultimetalhead]

As far as Floater is concerned, Alter is definitely my favorite album. I adore every song on it. I'd go for Glyph next. It'll be a bit of a grower, but once it hits you'll be a fan for life.

[ariich]

Do any of his other albums have a similar sound to Level?

Hmm, that's a good question. I haven't listened to Level much, but Neutralite was made around the same time and is pretty darn cool. Atebite and the Warring Nations as well.

Jammage is definitely worth listening to, if only for the track At the Zombie Gates.

Ok cool, pretty sure Atebite is also on Spotify so will give that a listen, and I'll try and hear the others too.

As far as Floater is concerned, Alter is definitely my favorite album. I adore every song on it. I'd go for Glyph next. It'll be a bit of a grower, but once it hits you'll be a fan for life.

Yeah am definitely interested in hearing Glyph, that seems to be the most popular one on RYM. The reason I checked those two out is one had the song you sent and the other you said was your favourite, but Glyph is next.

[ariich]

Bands and artists from round 6, part a:

Ólafur Arnalds (Voxyn)
This is some really beautiful music. I can’t decide if I consider it classical or post-rock, but I don’t care, and the fact that it’s so indefinable speaks volumes about how interesting it is. My only small complaint is that the music does get a little samey – on Eulogy for Evolution for example, the vibe is pretty similar all the way through until the very end, where (although it’s totally out of place) I love the breakdown in the almost post-metal section. The songs individually have some glorious buildups (3055 is still incredible), but there’s not much to distinguish between them, and the same goes for his latest album as well. Really excellent music though, thanks for introducing me to it!
Eulogy for Evolution [2007] – 8/10
…And They Have Escaped the Weight of Darkness [2010] – 8/10

Kevin Gilbert/Toy Matinee (DTVT)
I already discussed Gilbert in round 1, but I’ve now had a chance to listen to Toy Matinee’s album, so I’ll talk about that instead. I really like it – it’s fairly straightforward, not quite as good as Thud and it doesn’t sound as quirky as Shaming of the True, but it’s still some really nice proggy hard rock with a good amount of variety. As with Gilbert’s solo stuff, what really shines is the softer stuff – he really knew how to write sad songs! The title song in particular is just gorgeous, and I love the closer.
Toy Matinee [1990] – 7/10

Björk (sonata)
I’ve been listening to her Homogenic album since way back when we did the roulette, and I think it’s a great album! I love the way she incorporates different sounds and styles, and her voice is really fantastic. The big sounding songs in particular, like the first two, I just can’t get enough of. More recently I’ve also been listening to her next album, Vespertine, and it’s also good but doesn’t really grab me in the same way at all. There are some nice ideas, but nothing that really stands out in the way that lots of parts of Homogenic do. I’ll continue to check out more of her albums though – she clearly has a lot of variety so there’s bound to be plenty of great stuff I haven’t heard yet!
Homogenic [1997] – 8/10
Vespertine [2001] – 6/10

John Mayer (antigoon)
I’m starting to like Mayer’s music – I’ve always really liked the song you sent in the Roulette, but on my first listen of that album, I found it a little bland and, I don’t know, normal. But I’ve been listening to that and one of his older albums, and after a few listens, it definitely grows. Pretty simple pop-rock for the most part, but it’s nicely done, and some of his songs just have a great feel and there are some nice melodies. I discovered this week that it is perfect music for working to; simple but pleasant and not too distracting.
Heavier Things [2003] – 7/10
Continuum [2006] – 7/10

[Marvellous G]

For Mayer, I cannot recommend 'Where The Light Is' enough. You'll gain a newfound appreciation for him as one of the most skilled 'complete packages' in music today in terms of singing, songwriting and ridiculously good guitar, which I don't quite get from his studio stuff myself.

[ariich]

That sounds great, it's on Spotify so I'll definitely check it out. I did consider that he might have a bit more energy live, but figured I'd start with studio albums!

[Marvellous G]

Yeah, that's a good way to go. Especially as it has now set the bar slightly lower for an album that would (hopefully) have blown you away anyway. 

Marvellous G trivia: 'Out Of My Mind' off of that live album is probably in my top 5 guitar performances of all time. OF ALL TIME.

[ariich]

OF ALL TIME?!

[antigoon]

Glad you like Mayer. Where The Light Is is definitely his definitive work.

[antigoon]

definitely definitive.

[Marvellous G]

You should also check out 'Covered In Rain' off of 'Any Given Thursday.' *stops fanboying*

[ariich]

Bands and artists from round 6, part b:

Buckethead (zxlkho and UMH)
This guy plays some really awesome guitar. And his music isn't too shabby either! I've only listened to two of his albums so far (there just isn't time to listen to each of the gazillion albums he has made), the ones that you guys sent songs from, and while I like Colma, I think his style really benefits from more modern production, because I enjoy Crime Slunk Scene a whole lot more. He has a great amount of variety, from the mellow to the rocking to the downright bizarre, but he is slick enough to be able to pull it off. Standout tracks so far are both the ones you guys sent in, plus I really love King James and We Can Rebuild Them! On that basis, which of the many albums should I check out next?
Colma [1998] – 6/10
Crime Slunk Scene [2006] – 8/10

Alice in Chains (orcus)
Ok, so I've been listening to the Jar of Flies EP, and it's a good album, but I have to be completely honest, it just doesn't do much for me. It's a very close and personal album, quite dense, and while I can completely appreciate that, I think I just find it a little inaccessible. On the flipside, I've also been listening to their full length album Dirt, and I absolutely love it! It has a really great bluesy hard-rock sound, and there's a nice amount of variety on the album, from some pretty serious songs (both heavy and soft) to more fun ones. Everything about the album (except maybe the production, which sounds a little dated to me) is really top-notch, and quite frankly the result is genuinely amazing. I'm looking forward to checking out more of their stuff now!
Dirt [1992] – 9/10
Jar of Flies EP [1994] – 6/10

Neu! (Portrucci)
When I first decided to start listening to some full albums by Neu!, I was a little apprehensive. The song you sent me I kind of enjoyed, but the fact that it was all based around a single chord was a little inaccessible and made it hard to get all the way through. I'm happy to say that my fears were completely unnecessary – sure there are moments where things drag on and get less interesting, but that is ultimately in the nature of music that is largely improvisational. But other than the occasional dull section, the band created a great sound and had a lot of very cool ideas, and actually I thoroughly enjoyed the majority of both albums I listened to. Maybe not for every day listening, but completely unlike anything else in my music collection, so it fills a niche!
Neu! [1972] – 7/10
Neu! 2 [1973] – 7/10

[zxlkho]

You liked Colma but not the production? Try A Real Diamond in the Rough or Captain EO's Voyage. For heavier albums, I recommend Pepper's Ghost and Albino Slug.

[73109]

Dirt

I love Jar of Flies and you probably will too. You just need to stop failing.

[zxlkho]

Jar of Flies is my favorite Alice in Chains album, if you want to call it that. It's amazing.

[Ultimetalhead]

So, you like the guitar playing, and you like Crime Slunk Scene. But Colma is underproduced...

Alright, first off, I'm calling sacrilege on the Colma comment. That album is godly through and through. On a happier note, you are going to absolutely adore Buckethead's modern material. Check out Captain EO's Voyage, Shadows Between the Sky, Real Diamond in the Rough, and for the heavier side, Albino Slug is all you will ever need (but Pepper's Ghost is a good choice as well).