Well, here's the results for round 3. Scoring has been getting tougher for me on each round, maybe because I'm comparing each song not only to the other songs sent in its round, but somewhat to the songs sent in previous rounds. Also, this is almost certainly the most new music I've listened to in so short a time frame, so this is an experiment in how well I can evaluate 80 songs in two months and then right after assess 300 minutes worth of EPs. The one thing I know for sure is that I've had fun doing this so far and have found a lot of fantastic stuff.
This round looked like it might be the first to have songs I actually didn't care for, but as they do, both the songs I didn't really like at first grew on me, so this is another high-scoring round where ten songs are bunched up in the 7.0-8.5 range in natural scores. This has been a lot of fun, though, really, despite the difficulties I've had with scoring. So here are the results.
Round 3 Results
Sacul: DJ Shadow - Midnight in a Perfect World
On first listen, I really didn’t know what to think of this song at all. It was just very weird confusing to me on the whole. As I’ve listened to it more, though, I’ve definitely grown to like it better. I really quite enjoy the atmosphere that it creates. The drummer is pretty impressive, and I quite like the subtle keyboard melodies and (I assume sampled?) female vocal parts.
The part that’s hit-or-miss with me are the male/spoken-word samples. In some cases they are used really well to accentuate a particular part of the song, but there are also uses that are a bit grating. Near the end, the beginning of the sentence “Now approaching midnight” is repeated a lot of times in rapid succession, in a way that has always bothered me in music because it sounds unnatural. In that case it detracts a bit from the conclusion to the song, which includes a pretty good guitar part.
Nonetheless, I like this song as a full piece. Though that one part does grate a bit for me, there’s a lot of good in this piece as well. I should also mention that I really like the title of this song and think it’s really fitting, so that helps, too. As a whole, this piece is good and has encouraged me to investigate more by this artist, but has some grating parts and oddities that drag it down a bit.
Score: 7.0 + 0.5 bonus = 7.5
kingshmegland: Umphrey’s McGee - Rocker
Another song that seemed rather strange to me, at first, though my first impression of it was modestly positive.
I don’t know how I would describe the style of music in this song, but it’s actually quite cool stylistically. I suppose it would be considered some form of prog rock, because it does go through a lot of time changes and shifts in musical style. But there’s a significant folky element, too. This band really blends the two quite well, and I would be interested in hearing some of their other works.
At the same time, this song has a bit of emotional power behind it as well. The singer isn’t outstanding, but he does well at hitting the right emotional notes for the lyrics, and he hits the right musical notes as well.
As a composition, this song does still come off as a bit disjointed. All the different parts range from good to great, so I can’t complain, but it’s hard to follow a musical narrative or thread throughout the entire song. It’s not enough to bother me, really, or dissuade me from checking into this band’s catalogue, but it is the reason that this is one of the lower scoring songs this round.
Score: 7.5
lonestar: Destrage - Destroy Create Transform Sublimate
When I first heard this song, I really couldn’t imagine liking it. Metal has not been my thing for a long time, and this song was pretty in-your-face. But there were some parts that I really did like, so I gave the song a bit more of a chance.
The chorus is actually really, really good. It’s been in my head for much of the week. The verses on the first half of the song, on the other hand, though they aren’t bad, just don’t do much for me. They fringe on fast heaviness for its own sake, in my opinion, especially with the oscillation between growls and high-pitched vocals. I’ve grown to like the growls alright on the prechoruses, but I do think this guy out to stay away from the shriekiness. But I think that about everyone.
The first bridge starts decently but unremarkably, but gets better as it gets heavier. The second, symphonic bridge, on the other hand, is fantastic. Really the best part of the song. There’s something pretty awesome about the symphonic buildup and distorted vocals that he does.
And then wtf. It ends with a trippy electronic part. Pretty weird, but pretty cool.
This was easily the hardest song of the round for me to grade, lonestar. You definitely achieved your goal of surprising me and going way outside my comfort zone. The song you delivered is definitely not what I would consider my favorite style of music. For me, with metal, I kind of differentiate in my mind between metal that is deliberately “in your face” (and could be more unkindly said to be “obnoxiously in your face”) and metal that uses heaviness for a more artistic purpose. This song kind of sits on the line between those two categories for me, with some parts that lean towards both sides. The fact that this song also brings in symphonic and electronic elements only complicates the scoring. Ultimately, I have to give it a fairly modest score for the round, because the song had parts that I liked a lot, but parts that didn’t do much for me at all. The overall gutsiness of this choice almost enticed me to go higher, but that really wouldn’t be a fair way to grade things. On the merits of the entry itself, this is the score it deserves (which is a good two and a half points higher than I would have given it after the first two listens, so I don’t want you to think it didn’t grow on me).
Score: 7.5
OpenYourEyes311: Frameshift - La Mer
I must admit, when I first listened to this song, I was rather perturbed because I really thought that this was James LaBrie, but I’d never heard of this project before, so I wasn’t sure. But once I found out that it was James, which would have been obvious to me if I’d just trusted my ears, I was able to settle in and listen to this song.
I have to say, this song would be best described as “pleasant.” It’s really pleasant to listen to throughout. The piano playing is really nice, and I greatly enjoy the slight electronic element that comes into play later (and wish there had been a bit more of it). The full-band climax at the end is slightly underwhelming, but it’s still very pleasant.
James’s singing is good as always, but there are moments in this song when I think he maybe does a bit too much, like the line “you came out of the sea,” where he throws in a bit of grit that was perhaps not necessary, strictly speaking, but overall he does nicely, especially since this was early 2000s, I think? And the vocal melodies are really quite excellent. The chorus is bordering on amazing.
Overall, this is a good ballad with a somewhat underwhelming power ending. This song never really blew me away, but it grew on me with every listen and is definitely a song I’ll come back to in the future. Very pleasant.
Score: 8.0
Evermind: David Gilmour - Where We Start
I have, regrettably, never really listened to any of David Gilmour’s solo material until now. This song is pretty much exactly what I expected his solo material to sound like. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, because dreamy music with soft singing and slow, melodic electric guitar playing are what Gilmour does best.
Gilmour’s guitar playing rightly gets a great deal of positive attention, but I feel he deserves positive recognition for his singing, as well. The man really is a very good singer, and brings an astounding, almost ethereal softness to this song (and, of course, to much of his work in Pink Floyd).
This song is one of the most tranquil pieces I’ve ever heard. It’s really a beautiful love song that expresses a deep sense of contentment. And Gilmour executes it fairly well, with soft, restrained guitar playing for most of the song and then a lovely slow solo of the type that he turns in so very often. The reason this song doesn’t score as high as some others, then, is that it doesn’t move me quite as much as I’d want it to. It’s not really supposed to, but I’d like a tranquil song like this to transport me or move me with its emotional power. It does its job exceedingly well, and I’ll absolutely be looking into this album, but that’s why it doesn’t quite get into the upper echelon (sometimes, when I feel like I’ve praised a song to the heavens, I feel the need to explain why it doesn’t quite get an 8.5 or a 9 or whatever).
Evermind, I feel like I keep doing the same thing to you—finding intangible, minor deficits in your simple ballads. I’m not trying to, it’s the way it’s fallen. I really loved Pictured Within, and have enjoyed all of your submissions, really. The Gentle Storm’s album and On An Island are definitely on my list.
Score: 8.0
TAC: McAuley Schenker Group - Never Ending Nightmare
This is a really interesting song. Like a couple of other songs I’ve gotten this round, it really jumped out as being something I’ve never heard stylistically. I guess it’s a largely acoustic rock power ballad.
But labels aside, this is a pretty strong piece. The acoustic guitar playing sets a powerful atmospheric base, and makes the song pretty unrelentingly creepy. What’s more, they do shift throughout the song, making the constant presence of picked clean guitar less monotonous. The singer’s voice is not of a type that I generally am in love with, but he’s absolutely perfect for this song—I couldn’t imagine anyone else doing it, really, besides maybe Dio.
I really like the false ending, as well. It’s an unexpected twist of the sort that I really like, and is followed by a pretty good outro guitar solo.
I like this song a lot. For what it is, it’s pretty fantastic. The one issue for me is that it doesn’t have the emotional element which, as you may have seen so far, has been capable of pushing some songs into the top score ranges. Still, a really good entry and definitely worthy of this grade.
In response to the joke you made earlier about how you thought you might have joined the wrong roulette; I don’t want to leave you with the impression that I haven’t enjoyed your submissions. I really have enjoyed all three songs that you’ve submitted, with this latest one probably being my favorite. I do value your participation in my roulette and I absolutely think that you’ve provided me with music from bands who are going to be part of my collection in the future. It is true that I’m giving high scores to a lot of artists from non-rock genres, but I don’t want to leave you with the impression that I haven’t enjoyed what you’ve sent, because I really have. Hence two 8s and a 7.5
Score: 8.0
Shadow Ninja 2.0: Justin Cross - Drink the Water
One of the more interesting songs I’ve received in this roulette. This song is best described, I suppose, as a political, melancholic country song. By a relatively unknown artist, it seems. Hopefully he doesn’t stay unknown for long, because he’s really amazing.
This piece is powered by Cross’s memorable and powerful guitar playing and some pretty nice strings in the background. His voice, of course, takes center stage, and he really gets a lot of praise from me for putting a great deal of emotion into his singing. I hope everyone has pretty much figured out by now that I love emotional singers. He’s no exception.
This song also has a surprisingly powerful climax for a largely acoustic piece. It might be my favorite musical climax of the round. He just executes the quick rise in tension very well using both his guitar and his voice. On the whole, this is a really nice atmospheric piece from a relatively new artist. I liked it a lot!
Score: 8.0 + 0.5 bonus = 8.5
Big Hath: The Mayan Factor - Warflower
Another really cool song I’ve received this round that I really don’t know how to classify. Immediately, the song gives off a really cool vibe, which only gets stronger once the vocals enter.
The vocals in this song are what really astound me. The instrumental elements are integral to the atmosphere, yes, but the singer. Wow. The melodies are astounding, of course, and quite melancholic. The lyrics are as well, and slightly creepy, too. And he just nails the melodies and the mood for the song. He actually reminds me of two singers, one of whom I don’t especially like and the other I do like: Kurt Cobain and James Hetfield, respectively. But in any case, he puts tons of emotional power behind the vocals of the song. There are a lot of memorable parts in this song, and it’s really thanks to his skill that they are so memorable.
Big Hath, this is definitely my favorite entry from you (not that I didn’t enjoy your previous two entries, of course!), and one of my favorite entries overall. I look forward to getting more music that I hopefully like this well from you.
Score: 8.5
Parama: Lorde - Buzzcut Season
This song is a really lovely atmospheric, electronic pop song. Which is something I really like. Of course, I’d already heard Lorde’s most popular song, Royals. I liked that song fairly well, but it didn’t entice me to seek out more of her music. This song might. I really hadn’t given her enough credit from Royals for being a really good singer. I find her voice really pretty on this song, and she’s pretty diverse as well.
And, of course, the melodies that she sings are all really fantastic. She jumps from one beautiful melody to another, absolutely nailing them all. And the harmonies are a fantastic touch as well.
The background music is not jaw-dropping—Lorde herself is definitely the main attraction here (and, oh my, what an attraction she is!), but the instrumentals do get the job done and set a pretty nice atmosphere in which she can sing these beautiful melodies.
Score: 8.5 + 0.5 bonus = 9.0
Scorpion: Grayceon - War’s End
I really quite enjoyed this expansive, somber piece from the very first listen. It’s an interesting and quite unusual piece, but it’s truly a beautiful one.
I actually really enjoy the fact that this song uses a lot of different textures to sustain a lengthy, somber piece. It starts with acoustic and electric guitars, and after a brief and pretty verse, opens up into this beautifully sad section driven by the cello but with the acoustic guitars still playing a role. One of the noticeable and appreciable aspects of this song is the fact that nobody in the band tries to do too much. The drummer is restrained, as are the guitarist and the singers. The restrained instrumentation and singing lend perfectly to the somber atmosphere.
Speaking of the singing, while the female singer’s voice is absolutely lovely, the song takes on its greatest level of emotional impact when the male singer joins her and they sing a few very sad lines together. Their singing combined with the surrounding music is fantastically beautiful. And then it leads into this gorgeous, expansive slow fade. The instrumentation here is just fantastic.
Scorpion, your gut has not once led you astray. You really seem to get to the heart of a lot of what I love in music. Your very first entry may still stand as the best song I’ve gotten in this roulette, and this one gets very close to that status. For reference, I’d rank this song a bit below the three natural 9.0s of the first round, but I feel it deserves more than an 8.5, so it will also receive a 9.0. Keep doing what you’re doing, Scorp.
Score: 9.0
All of this round's artists have been added to the banned list.
Standings:
OpenYourEyes311 - 26.5
Parama - 26.5
Scorpion - 26.5
Shadow Ninja 2.0 - 26.0
Evermind - 25.0
Big Hath - 24.0
lonestar - 23.5
TAC - 23.5
kingshmegland - 23.0
Sacul - 23.0
Again, let me know if I messed up the scores somehow.