Wow, this round was tough. I literally liked all the submissions except for one, so if you only got a couple points don’t be discouraged. Aside from Explorer’s Club I liked everything, just not equally! I also tried to be more decisive this round, not allowing as many ties and such.
First place, 8 Points: Ariich- The Flower Kings, Chickenfarmer Song
This song was really good. You’re right, that I’ve never listened to TFK before, and now I realize I’ve been missing out. I coulda sworn Nick was going to win this round, but then this song came along and pretty much kicked my ass.
Second Place, 7 Points: Nick- Pendragon, As Good as Gold
This song definitely had the good, positive vibes going on. I liked it a lot. I haven’t heard much Pendragon, and what I have heard I haven’t especially liked, but this submission inspired to give what I do have of theirs another chance. The first time I listened to it I thought it was good, but the second time the melodies stuck out even more and it was even more apparent how cool of a song it is. Loved the piano at the end, too, though I have a feeling something more melancholic is on the way. This might be an eventual album purchase for me!
Third Place, 6 Points: Cupster- Gamma Ray, The Last Before the Storm
I thoroughly enjoyed MasterShakez submission this round. It definitely had that uplifting metal vibe going on, which is just what I was looking for. Aside from when Jeff was on Nick’s show, I don’t think I’ve heard much of this band, but I do like it quite a bit. The pick also prompted me to watch a live version in the side-bar. Was very impressed with what I saw from their Wacken performance. Will definitely be looking into this band more later!
F
ourth Place, 5 points: Ravenheart- Tori Amos, Happy Phantom
I love piano, so this song was a big hit with me even though it wasn’t metal at all. It took a couple tries to fully digest it but once I did it was well worth it. The strongest point though was obviously the lyrics, and once I felt like I could follow them I enjoyed it even more.
Fifth Place, 4 points: Zantera- The Pineapple Thief, 3000 Days
Another really nice prog-oriented pick. Loved the mellotron (is that what it was?) action going on here. Another great plus for this song was the lyrics. I felt like it lost a bit of its stride during the heavy break-down, though. If things would have been reigned back in more at the end if would have been better, but instead they give us just a taste. Anyway, still another solid submission from Zantera.
Sixth Place, 3 points: Energythief- Manowar, Carry On
Heh. I love what I’ve heard of Manowar. I only know one or two albums, though. But, anyway, this submission was just what I was looking for. And again, beneath all the cheese and machismo and whatnot here were some very good melodies which, again, is I think something a lot of metal has though unfortunately the world doesn’t seem to acknowledge that aspect of it. The 80’s production and obvious cheese did not keep me from enjoying this song at all! “Rawr, we’re all together! Let’s sing a fighting song!”
--Tied with--
Sixth Place, 3 points: Ultimetalhead- Pyschostick, It’s Just a Movie Stupid
This song definitely brought the lols. Not exactly “happy” but still pretty funny, which is also pretty rare in metal. The lyrics were definitely the strongest part, I loved the dynamic between the cheesey love story and the BULLSHIT, BULLSHIT part. This one wasn’t the best, but it was certainly solid enough to get the job done.
Eighth Place, 1 point: H- Explorer’s Club, Fate Speaks
Eek, this song started out decent with Steve Howe’s acoustic guitar and John’s solo, but it went downhill as soon as the vocals came in. What I didn’t like about it was how repetitive it was. Usually prog-epics might be long, but you don’t keep hearing the same chorus and verse over and over again. Well, I couldn’t say the same about this song. It wasn’t all bad, though. Someone, I think it was John, had a good solo at the 8 minute mark. But man that riff was just too repetitive. The Explorers Club could probably write good shorter songs, but as a prog epic this one was long but ultimately fell flat due to lack of any real girth. Anyway, I’d been wondering if I should check out Explorer’s Club for awhile, and now I have my answer!
The current rankings are as follows-
Nick- 6+7 = 13
Ariich- 4 + 8 = 12
Zantera- 7 + 4= 11
Ravenheart- 6 + 5= 11
Cup- 4 + 6 = 10
H- 8 + 1= 9
UMH- 2 + 3 = 5
ET- 1 + 3 = 5
The next round is the “mid-term” since my roulette is about half-over now. I want something epic or something that makes me feel a sense of accomplishment, so interpret that as you will. Points will be doubled for this round!