Author Topic: 425's Roulette v. We crown the skies with our tiara! (Final Results Inside!)  (Read 55193 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Offline Scorpion

  • Unreal Heir
  • DTF.org Member
  • *
  • Posts: 9908
  • Gender: Male
  • Ragnarök around the Clöck!
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #595 on: August 07, 2015, 09:21:55 AM »
I can say with confidence that Track 4 was your fourth favourite on my EP.
scorpion is my favorite deathcore lobster
Hey, the length is fine :azn: Thanks!

Offline Shadow Ninja 2.0

  • Heir Transparent
  • Posts: 7663
  • Gender: Male
  • Transcribing Existence Rivets
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #596 on: August 07, 2015, 11:16:51 AM »
I have no idea which one of these is mine.

Online King Postwhore

  • Couch Potato
  • DTF.org Alumni
  • ****
  • Posts: 59288
  • Gender: Male
  • Take that Beethoven, you deaf bastard!!
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #597 on: August 07, 2015, 11:35:35 AM »
Well, I know I'm one of 2.

Hint, hint.
I don't like country music, but I don't mean to denigrate those who do. And for the people who like country music, denigrate means 'put down'.” - Bob Newhart
So wait, we're spelling it wrong and king is spelling it right? What is going on here? :lol -- BlobVanDam
"Oh, I am definitely a jackass!" - TAC

Offline 425

  • Posts: 6910
  • Gender: Male
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #598 on: August 08, 2015, 09:58:49 PM »
I have 6 out of 10 writeups done, as well as the intro of the final results post. I won't provide a 100% guarantee that the final results will be up tomorrow, but I'd say it's more likely than not—I'll probably do two writeups during the day tomorrow and two at night and then post. I've been trying not to do more than two in one sitting.

I promised a "what I learned post." I don't know if anyone cares, but I figured I'd go ahead and provide that:

What I learned, or what was re-emphasized to me, about my music taste:
  • I really do like good music of a lot of different styles. There were some songs that I didn’t like too well for stylistic reasons, yes, but I was surprised by the breadth of what I liked here. And relatively few things scored low.
  • I like serious or mostly-serious music.
  • I like female vocalists a lot.
  • I prefer clean-sounding production to dirty-sounding production, though it’s not a dealbreaker. By this I mean that I like crisp instrument tones over dirty ones and I don’t like a lot of background sounds that seem pointless to me.
  • Atmosphere, mood and emotional impact are all important to me.
  • Vocal melodies are among the most important things to me in any non-instrumental song.

What I learned about running a roulette:
  • Nine rounds was too many for me to do given my rate of listening. It was really awesome in terms of the quantity of music I got, but it just took too long.
  • I don’t regret having ten contestants at all. Yeah, it made listening longer and scoring more difficult and more crowded, but it meant getting more music. And it never really felt like I had too much in any given round.
  • I shouldn’t have done both an epic round and an EP round without shortening the number of rounds in the roulette. I don’t regret having either round, but they’re both really lengthy.
  • The EP round was a really good idea. It complicates things a bit, but it’s just really interesting to see what mixes and samplers everyone comes up with.
  • I shouldn’t have scored things out of ten. I should have done a ranking system, where the highest ranking gets a set number of points, then the next, etc. I had little consistency in what scores I gave, and virtually all my scores were bunched up in 7.5-9.0 natural scores.
  • Doing a ranking system (or, alternately, head-to-head) would have added clarity, reduced listening times, and just generally made things easier for me.
  • I almost think that on V2, if that day ever comes, I will have a relatively low number of rounds and include multiple EP rounds. Something like five rounds including two EP rounds and an epic round.




With that done, there's little more to do than make the final results post, hopefully tomorrow. I'll also try to provide some analytics either tomorrow or in the next few days after including the rankings of the songs sent by each contestant and a top ten songs from the entire roulette.

And, of course, there's the matter of who won this thing. Which I either already know right now and am keeping secret from you or don't know yet pending my thoughts after listening to these final four EPs one last time. Pick one. :biggrin:
And if spirit's a sign,
Then it's only a matter of time

Online Evermind

  • DTF.org Alumni
  • ****
  • Posts: 16232
  • Gender: Male
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #599 on: August 08, 2015, 10:02:36 PM »
Look, the winner should obviously be the guy who participated in Nightwish survivor and didn't vote Song of Myself even once. We both know that.
« Last Edit: August 08, 2015, 10:10:52 PM by Evermind »
This first band is Soen very cool swingy jazz fusion kinda stuff.

Offline 425

  • Posts: 6910
  • Gender: Male
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #600 on: August 08, 2015, 10:03:19 PM »
**Surreptitiously adds Song of Myself to Evermind's EP**

WELL WOULD YOU LOOK AT THAT
And if spirit's a sign,
Then it's only a matter of time

Online Sacul

  • Spinettapilled
  • DTF.org Alumni
  • ****
  • Posts: 12115
  • Gender: Male
  • ¿De qué sirvió haber cruzado a nado la mar?
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #601 on: August 08, 2015, 10:06:26 PM »
You missed one point: Doing roulettes is a fantastic way to expand your tastes a bit more, and find some of your new favorite albums and bands.

Anyways, its been lots of fun, and now you have a hell lot of new music to listen to. Enough for 2-3 months I'd say.

Offline 425

  • Posts: 6910
  • Gender: Male
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #602 on: August 08, 2015, 10:49:01 PM »
You missed one point: Doing roulettes is a fantastic way to expand your tastes a bit more, and find some of your new favorite albums and bands.

Well, yes, that too! In fairness to me, though I forgot it in this particular list, I really emphasize it in the final writeups.

Anyways, its been lots of fun, and now you have a hell lot of new music to listen to. Enough for 2-3 months I'd say.

:rollin For me, it'll be a lot more than that (which is why, right now, V2 is more of an "if" than a "when")! Especially if I like a lot of the artists enough to get their whole discographies. I've seen your spreadsheet, and I have to say that I am not at all like you in terms of music discovery speed! That spreadsheet would take me a lifetime!

But it's been great, really.
And if spirit's a sign,
Then it's only a matter of time

Offline Crow

  • Holy Guide of the 4/10
  • DTF.org Member
  • *
  • Posts: 26734
  • Gender: Female
  • tdjghjjkhliòujoàupougjyufkuyrkuyt
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #603 on: August 08, 2015, 11:09:01 PM »
i'm sad because i couldn't sell you on Oceansize

i should've sent Paper Champion though I bet you'd have loved that one  :lol

Offline 425

  • Posts: 6910
  • Gender: Male
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #604 on: August 08, 2015, 11:48:54 PM »
Hey, I may not have been sold, but I wasn't turned off either.
And if spirit's a sign,
Then it's only a matter of time

Offline Crow

  • Holy Guide of the 4/10
  • DTF.org Member
  • *
  • Posts: 26734
  • Gender: Female
  • tdjghjjkhliòujoàupougjyufkuyrkuyt
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #605 on: August 09, 2015, 12:23:27 AM »
life goal is to make oceansize everyone's favorite tho
you and bolsters both stand as obstacles to my goal  :(

Online lonestar

  • DTF Executive Chef
  • Official DTF Tour Guide
  • ****
  • Posts: 29700
  • Gender: Male
  • Silly Hatted Knife Chucker
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #606 on: August 09, 2015, 12:59:39 PM »
Aaaaaaaaaan....    :corn

Offline 425

  • Posts: 6910
  • Gender: Male
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #607 on: August 09, 2015, 04:35:33 PM »


 :corn
And if spirit's a sign,
Then it's only a matter of time

Offline Scorpion

  • Unreal Heir
  • DTF.org Member
  • *
  • Posts: 9908
  • Gender: Male
  • Ragnarök around the Clöck!
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #608 on: August 09, 2015, 04:38:06 PM »
:dangerwillrobinson:
scorpion is my favorite deathcore lobster
Hey, the length is fine :azn: Thanks!

Offline Crow

  • Holy Guide of the 4/10
  • DTF.org Member
  • *
  • Posts: 26734
  • Gender: Female
  • tdjghjjkhliòujoàupougjyufkuyrkuyt
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #609 on: August 09, 2015, 04:50:48 PM »
i scored a 20

out of 200

Online King Postwhore

  • Couch Potato
  • DTF.org Alumni
  • ****
  • Posts: 59288
  • Gender: Male
  • Take that Beethoven, you deaf bastard!!
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #610 on: August 09, 2015, 04:55:23 PM »
Since he has a chick, I though RJ would be off his game.

Man among boys.
I don't like country music, but I don't mean to denigrate those who do. And for the people who like country music, denigrate means 'put down'.” - Bob Newhart
So wait, we're spelling it wrong and king is spelling it right? What is going on here? :lol -- BlobVanDam
"Oh, I am definitely a jackass!" - TAC

Offline 425

  • Posts: 6910
  • Gender: Male
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #611 on: August 09, 2015, 05:12:42 PM »
i scored a 20

out of 200



 :omg: How did you know?
And if spirit's a sign,
Then it's only a matter of time

Online King Postwhore

  • Couch Potato
  • DTF.org Alumni
  • ****
  • Posts: 59288
  • Gender: Male
  • Take that Beethoven, you deaf bastard!!
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #612 on: August 09, 2015, 05:15:14 PM »
 :lol
I don't like country music, but I don't mean to denigrate those who do. And for the people who like country music, denigrate means 'put down'.” - Bob Newhart
So wait, we're spelling it wrong and king is spelling it right? What is going on here? :lol -- BlobVanDam
"Oh, I am definitely a jackass!" - TAC

Offline Crow

  • Holy Guide of the 4/10
  • DTF.org Member
  • *
  • Posts: 26734
  • Gender: Female
  • tdjghjjkhliòujoàupougjyufkuyrkuyt
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #613 on: August 09, 2015, 05:20:56 PM »
oh, my one-day-in-the-future self hacked my account and posted that, screw that guy

Online Sacul

  • Spinettapilled
  • DTF.org Alumni
  • ****
  • Posts: 12115
  • Gender: Male
  • ¿De qué sirvió haber cruzado a nado la mar?
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #614 on: August 09, 2015, 05:33:36 PM »
life goal is to make oceansize everyone's favorite tho
you and bolsters both stand as obstacles to my goal  :(
And me ;D

Offline 425

  • Posts: 6910
  • Gender: Male
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #615 on: August 09, 2015, 05:39:26 PM »
Just wrote the most glowing review I've written all roulette.

#425roulette2k15
#maybetwentyoutoftwenty
#maybe

The wait continues...
And if spirit's a sign,
Then it's only a matter of time

Offline Crow

  • Holy Guide of the 4/10
  • DTF.org Member
  • *
  • Posts: 26734
  • Gender: Female
  • tdjghjjkhliòujoàupougjyufkuyrkuyt
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #616 on: August 09, 2015, 05:49:20 PM »
oceansize is literally the best because even their few below average songs are still decent and they have about 20 amazing songs as well  :'(

Online Sacul

  • Spinettapilled
  • DTF.org Alumni
  • ****
  • Posts: 12115
  • Gender: Male
  • ¿De qué sirvió haber cruzado a nado la mar?
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #617 on: August 09, 2015, 07:35:22 PM »
I used to say the same about DT :P

Offline Crow

  • Holy Guide of the 4/10
  • DTF.org Member
  • *
  • Posts: 26734
  • Gender: Female
  • tdjghjjkhliòujoàupougjyufkuyrkuyt
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #618 on: August 09, 2015, 09:01:29 PM »
I used to say the same about DT :P
I never said that about DT but I've felt that way about Oceansize for 4+ years now SO.
it helps that the band is dead and thus can never "get worse" tho I doubt another album would've been a nosedive in quality lol

Offline Crow

  • Holy Guide of the 4/10
  • DTF.org Member
  • *
  • Posts: 26734
  • Gender: Female
  • tdjghjjkhliòujoàupougjyufkuyrkuyt
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #619 on: August 09, 2015, 09:52:14 PM »
my power is out and i'm on my 3DS waiting for you to post results, help :c

Offline 425

  • Posts: 6910
  • Gender: Male
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #620 on: August 09, 2015, 09:56:04 PM »
I'm on the second-last EP. I'm a bit less than halfway through this one, and then I have another to do. So it'll probably be about 45 minutes to an hour still.


And I still don't know for sure who won...
And if spirit's a sign,
Then it's only a matter of time

Offline Shadow Ninja 2.0

  • Heir Transparent
  • Posts: 7663
  • Gender: Male
  • Transcribing Existence Rivets
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #621 on: August 09, 2015, 10:01:46 PM »
hint: I am the winner.

It's me.

Offline Crow

  • Holy Guide of the 4/10
  • DTF.org Member
  • *
  • Posts: 26734
  • Gender: Female
  • tdjghjjkhliòujoàupougjyufkuyrkuyt
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #622 on: August 09, 2015, 10:04:30 PM »
prob, my EP is only getting 6 out of 21 points so

Online Sacul

  • Spinettapilled
  • DTF.org Alumni
  • ****
  • Posts: 12115
  • Gender: Male
  • ¿De qué sirvió haber cruzado a nado la mar?
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #623 on: August 09, 2015, 10:45:00 PM »
:dangerwillrobinson:

Offline Crow

  • Holy Guide of the 4/10
  • DTF.org Member
  • *
  • Posts: 26734
  • Gender: Female
  • tdjghjjkhliòujoàupougjyufkuyrkuyt
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #624 on: August 09, 2015, 10:53:30 PM »
i'm listening to sigur ros rn how about you?

Online lonestar

  • DTF Executive Chef
  • Official DTF Tour Guide
  • ****
  • Posts: 29700
  • Gender: Male
  • Silly Hatted Knife Chucker
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #625 on: August 09, 2015, 11:05:57 PM »
I'm on the second-last EP. I'm a bit less than halfway through this one, and then I have another to do. So it'll probably be about 45 minutes to an hour still.


And I still don't know for sure who won...

Hurry up. It's slow at work and I need entertainment.

Offline 425

  • Posts: 6910
  • Gender: Male
Re: 425's Roulette v. Nine
« Reply #626 on: August 09, 2015, 11:09:54 PM »
Alright, here come the results. They're going to come in several posts because of how long the writeups are. And I know that the razor-thin, photo-finish of a victory here is going to spark some controversy, so I'll head everything off by saying that I am 100% confident in my decision.

Okay now you can comment. On the next page. :lol
« Last Edit: August 09, 2015, 11:20:30 PM by 425 »
And if spirit's a sign,
Then it's only a matter of time

Offline 425

  • Posts: 6910
  • Gender: Male
I have to repeat: I’m really pleased with the way that the EP round turned out. I really did get 10 playlists that I really like to listen to. There is not a single one here that I dislike. I really encourage you to, if you get the chance, check out some of your fellow contestants' playlists. There’s really just so much good material here. By my count, I received 55 songs in total this round, and they ranged from ambient atmospheric music to trip hop to djent to all-out power metal to pop punk to folk. This is really an impressive, diverse almost 5 hours worth of music. And I really feel like some of you kept back your best submissions for this round, because this is almost certainly my favorite round of the roulette. I hate that I have to score some of these higher than others. However, that’s the way these things work!

These writeups are bit different here from usual, as you can imagine. First of all, they’re all really long. This is mostly because I’m trying to cover five, six, seven songs in one writeup. I try to keep things succinct, but I also think more commentary is not really a bad thing to provide. I also included a section where I talk directly to the contestant. Here I kind of say I’m sorry you didn’t win unless you won, and note what I liked or didn’t like about your submissions in the roulette as a whole. I also say what artists you sent that I’m most likely to be checking out very soon.

The other thing I added is a final ranking of the songs on the EP. Some of these have changed since the third listen, when I made those teasers. Because I’m sure you’re all curious, I’ve included these. I also decided to quickly come up with a brief score guess for each song—raw scores out of ten. These scores do not reflect the same amount of thought that I normally give to individual song scores, and it’s important to note that the score of your EP is NOT related to the average of these song scores (though it’ll usually be pretty close to double that average). Throughout this round I’ve been thinking of and scoring the EPs as units and the score represents my score out of twenty for the full unit of music. The individual song scores are more of an afterthought. Also, right next to your username, I noted which EP from the teaser post is yours. This can kind of show you where I was after three listens with yours and how I evolved into the fourth. And also I know you’re all eager to find out which you were.

Alright, no more meta. Enough of me talking about me talking, time to get on to just plain old me talking. Multiple posts here because these are long and the character limit. Here goes.





Round Nine Results



TAC (EP #4)
Fields of the Nephilim - Endemoniada
Alice Cooper - Years Ago
Alice Cooper - Steven
Alice Cooper - The Awakening
Fields of the Nephilim - Love Under Will

Many of the contestants decided to use the EP round to send me half-hour samplers of a particular genre of music, usually ones that I was unfamiliar with going in. TAC sent one such sampler, bringing to the table a bunch of what I suppose is called gothic rock. This really resulted in an intriguing playlist, though also certainly a creepy one.

This EP is bookended by tracks from Fields of the Nephilim, starting with Endemoniada. The intro, the first couple of minutes of the song, is pretty strange and creepy. The creepy vibe does not vanish once the main part of the song sets in, with some memorable downcast guitar riffing leading into the faster-paced vocal part of the song. The vocalist employs a very creepy style, or really a variety of really creepy styles. It’s not at all sympathetic, but it really fits with the mood of the song. I like the verse that starts at around 6:12 quite a bit, with the deep voice.

Fields of the Nephilim gives way to the famous Alice Cooper and his Steven Trilogy. I have to say that Alice Cooper is someone who I had obviously heard of, but hadn’t given a second thought. Though I wouldn’t say that he’s exactly moved into my list of favorite artists, this collection of songs definitely caught my attention and demonstrated to me that he’s not just a straightforward hard rock musician. This whole trilogy is very atmospheric and rock-opera-esque. Years Ago sets the scene with a kind of creepy atmosphere and Cooper doing all sorts of different vocal styles. This continues on the centerpiece of the Trilogy, Steven, where the rather impressive theatrics of Cooper’s voice are joined a symphonic element. The creepy trilogy comes to a close on The Awakening. Overall, I thought this was a well-executed little mini-rock-opera, though it’s also kind of a creepy thing.

In any case, Fields of the Nephilim returns to close things off with Love Under Will. After another creepy intro, they once again deliver creepy guitar work, this time scored with a bit heavier of a keyboard presence. The singer comes in much earlier in this song, and I like him quite a bit better in this song. The melodies are a bit stronger, especially the line “when I’m gone, lay here.” The big guitar riff at around 2:13 is one of the most memorable parts of the EP, as is “lay, lay, lay it on me.” This is my favorite song of the EP, for both atmosphere and songwriting.

This EP is a nice introduction to a style of music I hadn’t given a second though to. Through this playlist, Alice Cooper has at the very least caught my attention as an artistically interesting musician, and I was introduced to a band that I might end up liking pretty well in Fields of the Nephilim. In the end, though, the problem here is the same one that Shadow Ninja faced back in the epic round with the song he sent from Devil Doll. The songs here achieve a very creepy atmosphere and do so really well. I like them, and I like the way I do this. But that type of atmosphere is not really what I look for in music. That really sets an upper limit on scores here, unfortunately.

TAC, this must be getting all too familiar for you. I imagine that how I’ve responded to your entries has been frustrating for the both of us. I can tell that you’re sending me songs that you like quite a bit, and almost every time, the songs just don’t quite connect with me. I suppose that’s just the way it goes sometimes. I appreciate the effort and your participation, I really do. And in Iris Divine and Constantine, you’ve introduced me to a couple of newer bands that I’m definitely interested in checking out further.

Final Song Ranking
Fields of the Nephilim - Love Under Will (8.0)
Fields of the Nephilim - Endemoniada (8.0)
Alice Cooper - Steven (7.5)
Alice Cooper - Years Ago (7.0)
Alice Cooper - The Awakening (7.0)

Score: 15.0 + 1.0 bonus = 16.0


OpenYourEyes311 (EP #8)
Rise Against - Survive
The Offspring - Dirty Magic
Eden’s Curse - Guardian Angel
SR-71 - Alive
Eve 6 - Girlfriend
Queen - It’s Late

This EP is a heavy dose of hard rock with a lot of punk influence, with a tiny bit of prog thrown in. Punk influence is a tough nut to crack for me. On an ideological level, I don’t really appreciate the intent of punk, as a stripping down of rock music in response to prog. I can enjoy music that has a punk/hardcore influence, but I also tend to find that there’s a ceiling on it—usually the best case scenario is for me to consider it good, but not great. I do appreciate the attempt to get me to expand my comfort zone, and there’s at least one of the punk-influenced artists on here that I’ll be checking out. This EP has helped ease some of my musical prejudices for sure.

The first song here is Survive, from Rise Against. The intro to the song is quite good, but the step into fast-paced thrashy hardcore music is a bit of a step down for me. Fortunately, it doesn’t stay that thrashy, and there are some good vocal melodies later in the song. This is one of my least favorites from this EP, but it’s a solid track.

We go from there into The Offspring’s song Dirty Magic. Dirty Magic was my definite favorite song on this EP. The punk influence isn’t as prominent as on the Rise Against song. It’s got a cleaner song and is more melodic. The chorus is absolutely infectious. I absolutely love the melody and the way he sings it. This is one of the 55 songs here that I’ve been singing the most over the past few days. The instrumentation and verse vocals aren’t too shabby either, so those combined with the great chorus make for a very nice listening experience.

The Eden’s Curse song, Guardian Angel, is a nice stylistic shift from what we’d heard before. There’s a nice keyboard presence on this song, and I’ve grown to like the singer more on successive listens. This is a big melodic power ballad, and I really have grown to like it quite a bit.

SR-71’s Alive starts out as a bit of a quiet ballad. The vocal melodies are catchy and well-done. It launches into a bigger sounding rock song and the solid melodies continue. Not as good as some of the top-billed songs on here, but a very nice contribution.

Eve 6 follows with Girlfriend. Another nice rock song with strong vocal melodies, and here, a nice keyboard presence. Again, not as special as something like The Offspring song, but a solid addition.

The grand finale here is all-time classic band Queen with It’s Late. I’m not a Queen devotee, but I’ve always liked what they’ve done. I hadn’t heard It’s Late before, and though it won’t be my favorite track from Queen, it’s still absolutely an impressive performance. The main attraction, as always, is Freddie Mercury, who belts it on this song, as usual. The verses here are my favorite part. The chorus is maybe a tiny bit weaker than on other Queen songs, maybe, but the verses really make up for that.

I have to imagine that the way this roulette has progressed has been somewhat frustrating for you, OpenYourEyes. You jumped off to a great start and a bit of a lead with the fantastic songs from The Lone Bellow and Christina Perri. But after that, things started to not go so excellently for you. I don’t think there’s a single one of your submissions that I didn’t like, and you sent me a good number of artists that I plan to check out, with The Lone Bellow, Perri and Styx leading the list, but you didn’t really ever return to the heights that you achieved in the first round. Unfortunately, that trend continues here, with an EP that I have grown to like quite a bit but do not love as much as the highest scoring ones, partially because of just a slight stylistic gap between the music on this EP and my preferred style of music. It’s unfortunate that things turned out this way after such a promising start, but you have definitely contributed some artists whose songs I loved a lot. I’m glad I was here to be your first roulette host, and I’m pleased that you decided to play.

Final Song Ranking:
The Offspring - Dirty Magic (8.5)
Eden’s Curse - Guardian Angel (8.0)
Rise Against - Survive (8.0)
Queen - It’s Late (7.5)
SR-71 - Alive (7.5)
Eve 6 - Girlfriend (7.5)

Score: 16.0 + 0.5 bonus = 16.5
« Last Edit: August 09, 2015, 11:23:31 PM by 425 »
And if spirit's a sign,
Then it's only a matter of time

Offline 425

  • Posts: 6910
  • Gender: Male
kingshmegland (EP #9)
People In Planes - Barracuda
Slow Motion Reign - Isn’t It Time (Rats)
The Raconteurs - The Switch and the Spur
Shudder To Think - X-French Tee Shirt
Slow Motion Reign - Life Simulator
People In Planes - Moth
The Raconteurs - These Stones Will Shout

Here’s yet another rock-centric EP, this one featuring seven songs but just four bands—three of the bands feature two songs each, which may have helped me get a bit more familiarity with each artist here.

The EP opens with Barracuda by People In Planes. This is a fine hard rock track. It’s one of my least favorite ones from the EP, but it’s not bad—a perfectly solid song. I like the chorus, not the “barracuda” line, but the other, more melodic chorus.

Slow Motion Reign follows with Isn’t It Time (Rats). This is another strong rock track with a memorable vocal melody on the chorus. There’s also a stronger piano presence here, which gives the song another dimension. This is also not among my favorite songs on here, but it’s a perfectly solid contribution.

The next song is from The Raconteurs, who are my favorite of the bands on this EP. This is one of my favorite songs on the EP as well. This rock song has a strong brass element and a western feel. I like the vocal melodies throughout, and the singer is pretty good as well. My favorite part of the song is definitely the “Any poor souls who trespass against us” section. It really adds to the vibe of the song and is just pretty cool vocally.

The other contender for my favorite song on the EP, and probably the winner in that category, is X-French Tee Shirt by Shudder To Think. The vocal melodies throughout are very strong, and the singing and instrumentation are both strong on the “Hold back the road that goes” section.

After that centerpiece, we come back to Slow Motion Reign with Life Simulator. This is definitely my favorite of their two songs on this EP. The back and forth between loud and quiet is appreciated, and I like the electronic elements. The vocalist does a good job telling the “story” of the song, and the chorus is very memorable. This song comes in a close fourth among the tracks on this EP.

People In Planes returns next with Moth. I prefer this one to their last song, I think it has stronger melodies and instrumentation, though on the whole, unfortunately, People In Planes is my least favorite artist on the EP. This is still a good song, though.

The closer is These Stones Will Shout, the second song here by The Raconteurs. I like this one about as much as I like The Switch and the Spurs. It has some very strong singing and vocal melodies, once again, and interesting guitar instrumentation. I think, when put next to the other bands in this EP, The Raconteurs superior instrumentation is very apparent. This is a very nice song and a good closer.

The whole EP is a very good sample of rock music. It’s not necessarily my favorite style of music, but many of these songs are very strong. This is a fun listening experience for sure.

King, you’ve had a lot of entries in this roulette that I’ve liked but haven’t necessarily loved. There isn’t an artist here that I wouldn’t be interested in hearing more songs from, but, unfortunately, there are also relatively few songs that scored excellently. I do appreciate that you kept trying with the artists you wanted to send, and you did send me a steady stream of very good songs. I liked The Pineapple Thief, The Raconteurs and This Day & Age quite a bit, and you did hit the jackpot once with Ben Folds Five’s song Brick, which is among my favorite songs of the entire roulette. I don’t quite know why that worked for me, and some of your others didn’t, but that’s just the way it falls sometimes, I guess. Thanks for participating!

Final Song Ranking:
Shudder To Think - X-French Tee Shirt (8.5)
The Raconteurs - These Stones Will Shout (8.0)
The Raconteurs - The Switch and the Spurs (8.0)
Slow Motion Reign - Life Simulator (8.0)
Slow Motion Reign - Isn’t It Time (Rats) (7.5)
People In Planes - Moth (7.0)
People In Planes - Barracuda (7.0)

Score: 16.0 + 1.0 bonus = 17.0


Scorpion (EP #3)
“425’s Awesome EP"
Massive Attack - Angel
The Cat Empire - Fishies
Ozric Tentacles - Snakepit
Caravan Palace - Brotherswing
Kirlian Camera - Drifting

Scorpion sent me this lovely EP of songs that have one-word titles (though I think Brotherswing is cheating a bit :P).

No, really, Scorpion sent me the most curiously constructed EP of this round. Only two of these songs, the opener and closer, could be said to really have any stylistic similarities. The mood runs the gamut, too, from fun dancing songs to depressing electronic music.

The EP opens with Massive Attack’s song Angel, a trippy bit of electronic music emphasizing beats and one main hook “You are my angel…” Either Scorpion got really lucky here, or remembered from one of my earlier writeups that I love the television show The West Wing. This song scores one of the most excellently choreographed scenes in that show. I won’t spoil what happens, but it’s in the episode Commencement, and it’s incredible. So, I already had a predisposition towards liking this song, and as I listen to it more, though it does not reach up into the level of my very favorites, it doesn’t disappoint, either. I like the way the song mixes beats, guitar work and the vocal melodies to create a song that is at the same time low-key and intense.

We go from that pretty intense experience into a sort of Latin-influenced dance song. This song is really quite a lot of fun. I like the singer quite a bit, he’s a lot of fun, and brass-powered instrumentation and nice rhythms make for a very fun listening experience. It’s kind of a strange transition out of the Massive Attack song, as are most of the transitions on this EP, but the more I’ve listened to them, the more they’ve worked for me.

Then, we jump from there into Ozric Tentacles’ song Snakepit. I’d heard of Ozric Tentacles as being a very strange prog-esque band, and this doesn’t really disappoint. There’s guitar playing, both acoustic and electric soloing, to all sorts of crazy time signatures with some synth stuff going on in the background. I can’t not mention the bass player and drummer either, because they’re obviously talented and drive this whole thing. This song is certainly nothing like I’ve ever heard before. I’m not sure I could listen to a whole album of this, but as a single song, I like it pretty well. It just happens to fall as my least favorite song on the EP.

The next song is so weird, I didn’t even know anything like this existed before. It’s Brotherswing by Caravan Palace, and it’s I guess what you call “electroswing,” which is not a misleading genre name. I mean, this is definitely swing music combined with electronic music. I found it really tough to listen to at first, but as I continued to listen, this one really found its way into my head. It’s still not one of my favorites, but it definitely came to impress me with its creativity by the end of listening. I also like that it has a female singer who employs some grit.

Then, we return to trippy electronic music with Kirlian Camera’s Drifting. This one is my favorite song on the EP, topping Angel. The main electronic musical theme is memorable, and the singing that comes in over the top is very nice, both the wordless “ahh”s and the distorted singing. On the whole, this song is just an excellent piece of melancholic electronic music, one that really elevates my view of the whole EP by closing it out excellently.

Scorpion, when I look at the lists of everyone’s submissions, on the whole, yours are the strongest. Yes, you sent me one of my least favorite songs with that Extreme track on the happy round, but under the rules of the roulette and in my own mind, the quality of many of your other submissions makes up for that. You sent me several of my favorite songs of the roulette, namely, Glory Box by Portishead, The Great Escape by Seventh Wonder and one that is growing to be one of my favorites, Limousine by Brand New. Grayceon and God Is An Astronaut were also appreciated submissions as well. When I just look at everyone’s submissions and guess who seems to be the most likely winner, you’re one of the most likely answers that comes to mind. Well done, and thank you for participating!

Your EP was not one of my very favorites of this round, but I liked it pretty well and it falls into around the middle of the pack, getting a pretty good score. The question that everyone wants to know is: will that be enough? I don’t know. Really, because I have not done the writeups and final scores for the EPs that follow.

Final Song Ranking:
Kirlian Camera - Drifting (9.0)
Massive Attack - Angel (8.5)
Fishies - The Cat Empire (8.0)
Caravan Palace - Brotherswing (8.0)
Ozric Tentacles - Snakepit (8.0)

Score: 17.0 + 0.5 bonus = 17.5


Big Hath (EP #10)
“It May Be Too Late to Make a Comeback, But Here Are Some Good Songs”
The Dear Hunter - The Lake South
The Dear Hunter - City Escape
Thrice - Open Water
Dave Matthews Band - Minarets
Fair to Midland - Walls of Jericho
Harvest - Roundabout
The Dear Hunter - Lost But Not All Gone

Big Hath’s EP is a prog-rock centric selection of songs and a really solid grouping, at that. Like some of the other EPs, one artist bookends the EP, in this case, The Dear Hunter. I am interested in checking out their work after listening to this EP, as well as that of several other bands on this submission.

The EP begins with The Lake South and City Escape by The Dear Hunter. The former serves as an intro for the later, and is a solid folky instrumental piece. It’s a solid intro, though nothing spectacular. It gives way to City Escape, that really feels like the beginning of a prog rock concept album, if that makes sense. Both musically and lyrically, it feels like it’s unfolding the beginning of a story, making a big dynamic statement at the beginning of the thing before, presumably, the album proceeds to later aspects of the story. Because it feels this way for me, it doesn’t impress me as much as an individual song as you might think a band so popular on this forum would. I think it’s a solid song in all respects—I really like the instrumentation, which is dynamic, powerful and virtuosic without being overly aggressive or anything, and the singing is quite strong—but it also doesn’t seem like a standalone powerhouse. Incidentally, that makes it a perfect entry for this round—it’s a nice intro into this EP and does provide a nice energetic opening that unfolds into the later parts of Hath’s mix, as well.

Then we move into my definite favorite song on this EP, and one of my favorites of the entire round: Thrice’s Open Water. This is a really nice atmospheric, vocal driven piece. There’s a really dark, powerful vibe here related to the title. I really love water and ocean imagery, so this is a big win for me. I like the vocals quite a bit, his restrained yet emotive style is really a perfect fit for this track. And I really like the way the guitars and keyboards lead into a crescendo on the choruses. Honestly, this is a band that had not been on my radar at all before this round, and now, having gotten this superb song on this EP, and another one that I liked pretty well on another entrant’s EP, they are near the top of my list. So well done.

This gives way to Dave Matthews Band with Minarets. This is one of those bands I had heard of, obviously, but had not really thought about checking out their music. This song definitely changes that. The instrumentation is very nice and subdued, with some nice guitar, keyboard and drum work. The vocals are really nice for the most part, very soft and well-suited to the strong melodies.

Then comes the centerpiece, Walls of Jericho by Fair to Midland. This is a really strong prog/alt rocky song. It’s got that nice soft verse/building prechorus/explosive chorus dynamic that’s in a lot of alt rock, and it executes this very well. Honestly, this song actually reminds me a lot of The Mayan Factor’s Warflower that you sent earlier in the roulette, though a happier version. But this song has enough of its own identity (and I really liked Warflower anyway) to not feel like a duplicate, and so this is another very solid contribution.

After this comes Harvest, with the prog rock song Roundabout, which is seemingly unrelated to the Yes song of the same name. This was one of the weaker songs on this EP, and I still liked it a whole lot, which shows a lot about the general strength of this playlist. I like female vocals, you all know that, so it’s no surprise that I like the singing here, particularly on the chorus. The instrumentation is good too, so though this is a pretty standard prog rock song aside from the female singer, it’s also a pretty strong contribution to the EP.

For the closing, we return to The Dear Hunter, with their song Lost But Not All Gone. This is my favorite of this band’s songs on the EP, as a standalone song. The piano drives this one at the very beginning, and launches into a still-piano-heavy prog rocker. I really like the vocal melodies on here and the counterpoint between the male lead singer and female backing vocalist. It’s a solid closer, and brings the EP to a nice end.

Overall, this is a very strong, consistent EP. There is not a song on here that I don’t like, and like pretty enthusiastically. The Dear Hunter has moved up my list, and Thrice really wowed me. The other artists are also very solid, and ones that I’m interested in looking into in the future. This is just a very nice EP—if you’re reading all these writeups from start to finish, this is the first one where I’m saying “very good, all the way through” with few caveats instead of “this is good, but…"

Big Hath, you’ve been one of the middle of the pack people here, with some successes and some songs that I didn’t like as well as you probably hoped. I really do greatly appreciate your participation in this roulette, though, for several reasons. For one, you sent me a couple of really good songs in Song For a Dead Friend by Kevin Gilbert and Warflower by The Mayan Factor. For another, you got me to give a second look to Redemption and especially Symphony X, which were bands I had listened to but not seriously. I’m definitely more interested in Symphony X after you sent The Odyssey on the epic round. You also gave me good introductions to several bands I hadn’t really had on my radar (Thrice, Dave Matthews Band, Fair to Midland) on this very strong EP (and one I had on my radar, The Dear Hunter). Finally, you really did do a good job of selling me on soul/funk/jazz music. Tower of Power and Snarky Puppy were pretty different submissions within similar genres to open and close the traditional rounds, and I really liked them both. Snarky Puppy scored higher for me, and still would, but Tower of Power is one that, if I could go back, I would score somewhat higher. Both have my interest for sure, and I’ll be checking out those bands works. Even though you didn’t really finish in the upper echelons here, I really did find a lot to like about your varied contributions. Thanks for playing!

Final Song Ranking:
Thrice - Open Water (9.5)
Fair to Midland - Walls of Jericho (9.0)
The Dear Hunter - Lost But Not All Gone (8.5)
The Dear Hunter - City Escape (8.5)
Dave Matthews Band - Minarets (8.5)
Harvest - Roundabout (8.0)
The Dear Hunter - The Lake South (N/A, since it’s basically an intro)

Score: 18.0
« Last Edit: August 09, 2015, 11:23:21 PM by 425 »
And if spirit's a sign,
Then it's only a matter of time

Offline 425

  • Posts: 6910
  • Gender: Male
Shadow Ninja 2.0 (EP #5)
The Tallest Man On Earth - I Won’t Be Found
Jon Gomm - Passionflower
The Tallest Man On Earth - Love Is All
Low Roar - Patience
Half Moon Run - No More Losing the War
The Tallest Man On Earth - Weather of a Killing Kind

Shadow Ninja’s EP focuses around the modern folk artist The Tallest Man On Earth and includes several other artists, in a similar folky/soft rock vein. Definitely one of those genre samplers here.

The EP opens with The Tallest Man’s I Won’t Be Found. What’s immediately evident here is some really strong acoustic guitar playing and a very Bob Dylan-esque vocal performance. This was such a different experience from the music I typically listen to that on first listen I wasn’t sure if I liked it or not! But this is a really strong song. I like the acoustic playing and I’ve come to like his singing a lot. This is definitely an artist to check out, on this song alone, let alone the other two.

Then we go to Passionflower, a song by Jon Gomm. Just watching the video, I was really impressed by this guy. He plays all sorts of melody, rhythm and percussion just on a single acoustic guitar, all at once. It’s just his guitar and his voice, making some relatively complex music, which really impresses me. At first, I was so focused on how he was doing it all that I almost forgot to focus on the song itself! But on subsequent listens, I focused more on the song, and really found it to be one of my favorites on this EP. He plays some really strong melodies on that guitar, and his high voice is really good on some pretty strong vocal melodies as well.

The Tallest Man returns with Love Is All, another very strong folk song. He’s got some strong melodies played on acoustic guitar in this one, as well as very good sung melodies as well. This is another really pretty song. I’ve also found that, though I haven’t looked at all of them as a whole, I really like his lyrics too. He’s definitely a good one, and this is another good song from him.

Low Roar is next, with Patience. This song takes the EP on a bit of a diversion from the folk-heavy earlier parts to a more electronic song. The electronic elements are really strong here and set a nice atmosphere. I really like the singer here, too. The chorus is kind of haunting and very memorable. “Get out of my mind.” I love the string aspects, when they come in, as well, particularly towards the end. This is also among my favorite songs here.

Half Moon Run’s No More Losing the War follows. This is another quiet song, this one with a great deal of acoustic guitar and string-sounding synths. It’s stylistically similar and not quite as strong as Patience, but it’s another really good song, for sure. The chorus here is quite memorable as well, and there’s something about the use of a name, when done right, that makes a song seem that much more personal and powerful.

The Tallest Man returns to close things off. Weather of a Killing Kind is another very strong folk song. I’m really impressed by how well he captures a sense of Americana in his lyrics, especially since he isn’t actually American. It’s all quite authentic, while still clearly being its own thing. This song feels quite sad, really. The instrumentation is solid as always, as is his singing.

This is a very good EP. All six songs are quite nice, and definitely make me interested in investigating the works of The Tallest Man On Earth, Low Roar and Jon Gomm. For whatever reason, it isn’t quite as enjoyable of a listen straight through as Big Hath’s, so that is why the natural score is a tiny bit lower. But a half point here is like a quarter point on a score out of ten, so it’s a really minor step down. And it’s not the difference between winning or losing, Shadow Ninja, since Scorpion has you beat even if you get a natural 18/19 with bonus, so that half point shouldn’t be not too much to worry about. Very well done regardless.

Shadow Ninja, you’ve been one of the best and most consistent scorers here. You’re one of the two or three participants who, when I look at the lists of everyone’s submissions, I would guess would be close to the top of the standings. Unfortunately, it looks like you’re going to fall just a bit short, but it’s been a really strong performance from you on the whole. The Katy Song by Red House Painters was the only song that scored extremely well from me, but I liked all of your submissions quite a bit. Beach House, Santigold, Justin Cross and God Is An Astronaut were all very good, and are artists I will be looking into more. Your other submissions were all quite good as well, even Devil Doll, which kind of scared me. Really well done, really close to pulling the whole thing off. Thanks a lot for participating here!

Final Song Ranking:
Jon Gomm - Passionflower (9.0)
The Tallest Man On Earth - Weather of a Killing Kind (9.0)
Low Roar - Patience (9.0)
The Tallest Man On Earth - I Won’t Be Found (9.0)
The Tallest Man On Earth - Love Is All (9.0)
Half Moon Run - No More Losing the War (8.5)

Score: 17.5 + 1.0 bonus = 18.5


lonestar (EP #2)
Tesseract - Of Matter
Voices From the Fuselage - Meteorites
Voices From the Fuselage - A Principle God

lonestar probably had the most interesting idea for an EP. While remaining within the confines of the limits on amount of time devoted to an individual artist, he included only one singer on the EP, Ashe O’Hare from Tesseract and Voices From the Fuselage. The results is a ton of good (and well-sung prog metal)

The EP begins with Of Matter, a lengthy three-part song by Tesseract. It begins with a quiet intro and vocals from Ashe before moving into a “djent” section. I was not overly familiar with djent coming into this round, and I didn’t really have a formed positive or negative opinion of it. Here, in my mind, it works, because it’s not just djentdjentdjdjdjdjent—there are plenty of other aspects to the music as well. The first section, “Proxy,” really oscillates pretty nicely between the djent section and some softer musical sections that do well to highlight Ashe’s soft voice. The next section, “Retrospect” is an improvement over Proxy, because the djent moves further back and plays a role more as a part of an overall musical landscape. It also features some more interesting vocal melodies for Ashe to tackle. I really do like, particularly in this section, the way that the song effortlessly moves back and forth between heavy djent sections and soft, melodic sections. And Ashe’s voice is applied well to both types of music. Retrospect gives way to the final section, “Resist,” which is a very nice quiet outro. I like the way the synths and guitars provide nice backing music to Ashe’s very nice vocal melodies on the softer opening to this section, and then the song launches into a pretty good epic ending before fading out nicely.

We then turn to Voices From the Fuselage, who open with Meteorites. This song is really special right from the intro, a nice piano opening with a very memorable and powerful vocal melody sung by Ashe. This leads into a much heavier section, in which, again, Ashe’s soft voice oddly does not feel out of place. The chorus of this song is very nice indeed. Then we go into a softer section in the middle, on which the instrumentation is really memorable, as is Ashe’s fast spoken/sung section. It’s really a very good part. And then it launches into this huge “Have I lost you…” section, which is very good as well. Honestly, this whole thing is a really, really good prog metal song, one of my favorite songs of the whole round.

The final song on the EP is A Principle God, also by Voices From the Fuselage. This is not as good as Meteorites, the preceding song, but it absolutely holds its own and is a very good contribution to the EP. Ashe’s voice is, again, amazing, and the chorus is very good and very memorable. This band, which seems to be relatively unknown, is really quite good. I definitely plan to buy their album, and encourage others to check them out.

This EP represents lonestar finally hitting a homerun with the “mostly prog rock” approach he has taken this roulette. These two bands are really good and have quite a good singer. I like Voices From the Fuselage a bit more, but Tesseract is very good too. What’s more, these three songs work really well as a playlist. This is one fo the better EPs of the round, so well done.

lonestar, I suppose my overall scoring of your submissions here might have been a bit of letdown compared to your reputation as roulette grand champion. You delivered a lot of songs that I liked, and a few that I loved, but ultimately I just didn’t enjoy your submissions as much as those of the others, which I suppose is just how that goes. I really enjoyed the submissions from The Grateful Dead, After Forever, Marillion and Enchant quite a bit. And though it didn’t score that well at the time, Destrage’s Destroy Create Transform Sublimate has really stuck in my head and will definitely merit another look. You may have provided your best submission right here in the very end, as your EP ranked among my favorites from the round, so you went out on a high note indeed. Thank you for participating here!

Final Song Rankings:
Voices From the Fuselage - Meteorites (9.5)
Voices From the Fuselage - A Principle God (9.0)
Tesseract - Of Matter (8.5)

Score: 18.5


Evermind (EP #1)
“All A Man Can Do (To Win the Roulette)”
Kamelot - Fallen Star
Avantasia - The Scarecrow
Vanden Plas - Vision Eight: Misery Affection
Beyond the Bridge - All A Man Can Do

As promised, Evermind sent an EP dominated by heavy metal. Though one of them is a ballad, all four tracks are from metal bands, and two of them are big prog metal epics.

The EP starts off with Kamelot’s song Fallen Star. Kamelot is a band I had heard a lot of good things about prior to the roulette, but hadn’t listened to much until I received two songs from them in the EP round, from two different contestants. Evermind’s Kamelot submission is from their newest album, on which they seemingly have the Seventh Wonder singer, so I already like that about this one. It begins with a nice piano and sung intro before launching into more of a heavy metal section. The riffing here is pretty good and is complemented nicely by the keyboards and the singing. The chorus here is quite good, “You are my reason to stay…” Generally, this is quite a good power metal opener with a singer who I like, quite a bit more than I like singers on a lot of other power metal bands.

Avantasia’s The Scarecrow, the first of two epics, follows, and this one is clearly a different sort of metal song right of the bat, as the intro heavily incorporates the folky, celtic sound that appears throughout the song. It’s a pretty good moment when the heavy guitars and then the keyboards come in and play the same riff that had been playing before. Now, I know this is multiple singers because Evermind told me, but I’m not quite sure where one ends and the other begins. But in general, I would say that the vocal aspects of this song are very good, though not great. The chorus is really brilliant, quite anthemic. The more aggressive of the two singers, I guess, is good for that particular style of vocal, which I’ve been warming to. The other one, the cleaner one who sings on the verses is a bit more emotive and is good too. The instrumentation here is really good and it moves quite well underneath the various vocal melodies. There’s a really good vocal melody that comes in a bit before the 8 minute mark, I like that one a lot. And it gets even better during the minute that follows. That’s a really good section, really good climax for this epic going into the final chorus.

Then, things slow down a bit with Vanden Plas’s Misery Affection, the ballad of this EP. It’s a really nice ballad, and was definitely worthy of inclusion here. It’s definitely more heartfelt than most ballads you hear from metal bands. I really like both singers, and their voices combine well to make those nice harmonies (“I’ve been waiting for you”). The piano melody is solid as well. When it builds up, it gets really good there, too. Nice ballad.

That sends us into All A Man Can Do, the finale. The present listen of which is win or lose for Evermind. No pressure, though. After a nice proggy intro, showing off both guitars and keyboards, we calm down for a second before the singer comes in with “Tinker Tailor…” I liked his voice on this song from the start, and I like it more on each successive listen, as the melodies start to make sense to me more and more. My main complaint here might be that we go into the big chorus too quickly, within two minutes and after just one verse. I think that makes sense when this song is at the end of a long concept album, but as a standalone it almost seems to get very big very fast. The verses are really good. It might hurt that I’m not 100% in love with the chorus at this moment, though. This is starting to sound more epic on later listens, but this is a 9 minute song that is frankly somewhat repetitive. I get the Finally Free vibe as there are different variations in the background music to the same chorus. And it’s very good. I think it might be better in the context of the album. I really do like the big epic finale towards the end. It’s good. This EP is very close, very close indeed.

Evermind, I can tell that, though you’ve done very, very well, you’ve been a bit frustrated with how I’ve responded to some of your submissions. I know you’d wanted me to like the David Gilmour song you’d sent a bit more than I did, and weren’t crazy about the score I gave The Gentle Storm’s song (to be honest, I’m not too crazy about the score I gave that one either). But honestly, you’ve done well by me. I really liked the emotional Mark Knopfler and Jon Lord songs you sent me, and Dimension Act and Phideaux were both worthy prog submissions. And, of course, you sent me Susanne Sundfør :heart .

I didn’t really want to know exactly how much everybody needed to tie/win, but the numbers stuck in my head, so now I know consciously when scoring this EP how much you need. Which makes this all the tougher. But unfortunately, I’m going to have to say no. The qualms I have about the final song make this EP equal to a 9.5, not a 9.75, which is what would be the equivalent of that 19.5 you need. You came so close. Thank you greatly for participating.

Final Song Rankings:
Avantasia - The Scarecrow (9.5)
Vanden Plas - Vision Eight: Misery Affection (9.0)
Kamelot - Fallen Star (9.0)
Beyond the Bridge - All A Man Can Do (8.5)

Score: 19.0
« Last Edit: August 09, 2015, 11:23:12 PM by 425 »
And if spirit's a sign,
Then it's only a matter of time