Running Through the Mountains#6: Evermind: Blind Guardian – Wheel of TimeFirst Impressions:Well, yeah, this pretty quickly takes a turn for the cheesy. But in a cool way? The singer is good, he sells it. The middle-eastern influences in the melodies are pretty obviously apparent. At least I think that’s middle-eastern. I could be completely wrong and look the fool. It’s some kind of folk to me, good enough. It feels like it’s going to stick to doing the same general thing, just in slightly different ways, though. At least, that’s how it sounds thus far. I sort of wish this song would stop to take a breath at some point, it’s just “go go go power and energy and grandness” and it doesn’t want to let up at all. Well, okay, I guess it finally made it there at the 5 minute mark. The percussion is still kind of high energy but I think it works in context, it’s still relatively chill in comparison with the rest of the song. I kind of ran out of things to say after that.
This is probably the first song of the roulette that just feels like a bit much, and it’s not even that wacky or weird, or even really that long, just… too much.Final Thoughts:This song is a song where about 75% of the song is the climax of the song. There are very few parts of this song that don’t sound like they’re trying to be the biggest, grandest part of the song. This is pretty much why the song exhausted me on first listen. Most of the song is turned up to 11, which leaves very little room for the listener to breathe. Maybe this is just what people who really enjoy power metal like, I have no clue.
I really think the orchestral elements and choir vocals and everything else that makes the song continuously sound like it’s so grand and epic should’ve been used more sparingly. I think it would’ve made the parts with the orchestral bits hit with more punch and power. Because as it stands, with most of the song trying to be “the big epic part”, none of it ends up standing out. I guess the chorus where they sing the title of the song is a bit more noticeable.
The quiet break ends up being my favorite part of the song because it’s more subtle than the rest of the song and really piles on the folk sound strongly. There’s a sense of tension here, and the song actually has something to build to as a result. When the big guitar chords and horns and stuff kick in they actually hold power, it’s actually effective. When they get back to the chorus, it’s after a satisfying build up and it hits harder than before because it’s not surrounded by moments trying to be as huge and powerful as the chorus was.
I’m basically just diagnosing why the song feels fundamentally broken to me here, I guess. It’s a bit trivial because at the end of the day, even with its problems, it still ends up being a generally enjoyable track. I pretty much enjoy the entirety of the last four minutes of the song, and the intro build is pretty cool, I just wish that nearly half the song wasn’t one long chunk of in-your-face metal and orchestra swell and intense energy.
7.5/10 #4: 425: Pure Reason Revolution – Bullits DominaeFirst Impressions:I’ve seen this one thrown around a lot, and I had a song from these guys in my first roulette that was pretty okay, so let’s see how this goes, sure. As this is going on, I’m finding… hmm.
I have no clue how to feel about this, actually. There’s a nice 6/8 feel to this and the melodies are alright but not really gripping me. When the song really kicks in about halfway through though I find it a bit more interesting. Much like Goshen’s Remains though this song just doesn’t really grab me in any way, or at least not on first listen, and I just find it… nice, solid, plenty listenable, but kind of forgettable. Maybe it will grow on me though, who knows.
Final Thoughts:This is definitely a song that basically rides on its vocal melodies and little else. They’re definitely the most interesting thing about this. Both the male and female vocals, though the former seems to get more of the spotlight, doing the verses solo, and most of the prechorus, and both voices on the chorus though the female vocals definitely have a larger presence here. I can definitely say this one grew on me though, those vocal lines are pretty catchy.
The musical background is basically just setting the stage for the vocals, and it’s a job done pretty well. The song has a really good sense of build, starting out plodding and calm, and gradually escalating to an intense and grand finale, and it does it so smoothly that you barely notice it happening.
I didn’t really notice it the first time, too, but there’s a ton of different instruments adding to the mix here. Acoustic and electric guitar, bass, drums, of course. Piano, organ, and strings all playing some moderate role in the track, with the strings really being given a lot of weight during the louder parts of the track especially, pretty essential to the track’s climax. And there is actually a lot going on musically too, but it kind of takes a few listens for all the layers to really peel back. There’s driving guitar lines, upbeat drums, and wailing strings all fighting with the vocals for dominance during the climax, for example. It works well.
Won’t be going out and preaching to the masses that it’s the best song ever or anything, sure, but yeah, this was definitely a satisfying grower and leaves a much better impression with me than Goshen’s Remains. It’s certainly a satisfying listen. Not especially unique, but does what it wants to do and does it well, can’t fault it for that.
8/10#3: home: Panzerballett - Der SaxdiktatorFirst Impressions:I absolutely cannot find this online anywhere so no youtube link, sadly. Oh yeah, this is that jazz-metal thingy isn’t it. I legitimately enjoyed the first 10 seconds of this more than the entirety of the other song you sent. They’re definitely not lying about the saxophone, to be certain. Always appreciate that in my metal.
It’s definitely a technical whirlwind but they have enough intelligence to break things up with some more chill moments every now and then. They play up both the metal and jazz elements to a fair degree, though it sort of sounds a bit too clean to really have a ton of power. But I certainly enjoy listening to this, or at least I do on first listen.
Final Thoughts:I’m finding that my biggest problem with this is that the main motif that keeps popping up throughout the song… isn’t very appeal. It sounds off-rhythm and seasick. Like legitimately, feels like it’s off the beat of the song. It just doesn’t hold much appeal to me, regardless. And considering how much the motif pops up throughout the song I would consider that a bit of a problem.
On a technical level this is definitely a pretty satisfying song, too. The drums and bass both provide a solid and interesting backdrop for the rest of the instruments and they’re both plenty interesting even taken on their own. There’s guitars providing some ominous melodies in the quieter moments and some crunchy riffs during the heavier parts. Some parts of the song also give off a definitely djenty feel too, but not really in a bad way? It’s kind of jagged but it feels like it works because there’s no straight rhythms to keep the jaggedness feeling forced, it just flows.
And of course you have the saxophone and horns and lead guitars and whatever else showing off throughout a lot of this but not just in a “playing solos everywhere” kind of way. There’s a lot of moments of harmonization and texture. Especially in the middle where the lead instruments all chill together and let the rhythm elements take the foreground. It never really feels too showboaty or over the top.
I will say that this song definitely feels like it’s lacking some kind of hook to really draw me in and keep me interested; but this may just be because I’m not a huge fan of the main motif that’s supposed to serve as the hook here. And it can be a bit hard to tell parts of this song apart, it’s just a long string of ideas that never really shift too wildly but things keep getting done in different enough ways to not bore me either.
It really feels like a case of a song needing more listens to really sink in for me, because I’m not quite sure I’m sold on it yet, but I still do enjoy this a good bit regardless. It definitely has a strong jazz aesthetic going on without just simply sounding like “jazz, but louder”. I’d definitely be interested in checking out more from these guys at the very least.
Except I can’t freaking find any songs on this album online anywhere, so, there’s that :V
8/10#2: Bolsters: Purity Ring – Begin AgainFirst Impressions:Begin Again is a DT song, banned. Really though this sounds even more mainstream pop to me. They could play this on the radio and it wouldn’t really sound that out of place. At the same time, I probably wouldn’t notice it? The main motif feels played out and kind of generic.
I get that the focus of this is definitely meant to be the vocals, and yeah, the singer sounds pretty good, but everything else here is just not working for me. The watery and droning bass, the sparse percussion, the blaring synths playing the main melody. The only thing about the music that I like is the piano that creeps in at times. And yeah, the vocals are cool, I just wish they were on a different kind of song. They fit in fine here, sure, but I just don’t have interest in something like this.
Final Thoughts:Nothing about the production in this song really stands out in any way. The drums are so minimal, they serve their purpose, they build up to the chorus as the rest of the song does, just fine. The droning bass provides a solid melodic backbone but doesn’t do much else. The piano sounds alive enough to have decent power to it but the melodies it’s stuck playing aren’t especially unique. And the synth line behind the chorus is just the same melody that the piano plays right before it.
But goddamn, do I love the singer here. I didn’t, on first listen. Honestly on first listen this was my least favorite track of the entire bunch. But then I listened to it again and realized, oh dang, she’s a great singer. And the vocal melodies on this are fantastic. Like, ridiculously catchy. Especially, especially, on the “I need not one thing more” part of the verse. The slight rhythmic variations there, on top of just how natural and flowing those melodies are. Pop perfection to be honest. The prechorus/chorus is second place here, with the first half of the verses probably being the least compelling melodies by a sliiight margin, but really,
I just adore all the vocals in this song. They pretty much carry this entire song and they do it well enough that I’m not bothered at all by the production. It works, it serves its purpose, but it lets the real star of the show here shine. This song’s basically up this high for the catchiness factor of it, and damn am I glad to hear a decent pop song in 2016 because have you looked at the charts this year, they’re absolutely abysmal. Christ. Totally aware that, yes, this is a 2015 song, but it’s the listening to it in 2016 part that’s important. Anyways. Yes. Good stuff. Surprisingly. Thankfully.
8.25/10The Lowest Peak#7: Scorpion: Caladan Brood – A Voice Born of Stone and DustFirst Impressions:I think I listened to these guys once but all I remember is “folky black metal” and that describes about a dozen bands I’ve listened to so yeah, sure. I think I vaguely remember this one though because the mixing is absolutely awful? The tambourine sound is like the only part of the percussion you can really hear and the vocals seem keen on drowning out a lot of the guitar and bass. This has been rather motionless for several minutes straight at this point as well, past the synth orchestra intro. Okay, it does break for some more strings and a solid plucked melody going on.
I don’t know, on first listen this sound both a bit sparse and a bit played out. And the mixing really isn’t helping matters.Final Thoughts:Oh god that tambourine. It’s not quite as bad as the Dead Can Dance song from my last roulette and its infernal beeping, but damn has the mixing really done a number on this song’s potential, and the tambourine is like the driving force of the problem. Why is that the only percussion I can hear besides the snare. Why are the buzzsaw tremolo guitars completely buried in the mix. Why are the vocals this loud. I guess you can hear the bass drum at times and the guitar is audible when it’s doing that palm-muted guitar thing, but. There’s a difference between bad audio quality (which is also kind of the case here, but not enough to be distracting) and just downright being mixed wrong, constantly trying to draw the listener’s attention to the wrong things and destroying a lot of the punch the song could have had.
That being said, the hook of this song is actually pretty dang strong. An atmospheric black metal song with a discernable, catchy chorus. Who would’ve thought. The harsh vocals sound raspy, sure, but in a way that works. They sound otherworldly and not just like a person who really needs a glass of water like Agalloch always, -always- sounds to me. They work quite well. The hook is really memorable, despite the vocals not having any melody to them. The guitar melody being drowned out helps too, the same melody as the start of the song and all.
I don’t really mind how blatantly fake the orchestral elements sound because they still serve their purpose just fine. They create a nice wall of texture and play some simple but effective melodies. There’s enough subtlety to the quieter moments and they carry enough emotional weight to be effective. Also, that bit around the 7 minute mark is just fantastic. The guitar chords with the shreddy solo buried under them. Creates a nice big epic feel, even if the guitar solo itself is pretty meaningless and generically shreddy. It works, regardless. And the drums build up a really intense climax at the end of the song too.
Like, really, once you get past the mixing and that goddamn tambourine, this is actually a pretty cool song all around. Everything else works, it just could’ve worked so much better with a little more time put into the production here. I actually poked around to see if it was just a fluke and the video I was sent just had an audio error, and, no, all the versions I could find of this basically just sound like this, so I assume it sounds like this on the album too. Which is a shame, really. I may peek at this album again but if it all has the same mixing issues I’ll probably end up skipping it. Solid song, just a bit frustrating to listen to.
7.25/10Star in the Sky#1: Tomislav95: The Antlers – PalaceFirst Impressions:Pretty shortly into this and I already like it more than Parade, the music just has more atmosphere to it. This music fits the vocals a lot more, too, especially with that reverb on his voice. This is definitely along the same song as the Goldfrapp song you sent, though a bit slower-paced and more ethereal in sound. The horns are a really nice touch too, they fit right in and give the song a really grand feel. And it builds to a satisfying climax, too.
This is definitely hitting all the right points with me for this kind of music; atmospheric and gorgeous and easy to get lost in.Final Thoughts:What a freaking gorgeous track this is. Like damn. Right from the moment that piano line comes in, gentle and melancholic and with a great tone to it. And I just really like the horns. It’s really nice to see them used in a way that isn’t just “make this part sound epic”. They have subtlety and real emotive presence, they’re an integral part of the atmosphere here. There’s so many different melodies going on as the song builds up, just creating a really pleasant twinkly soundscape. It’s… very pleasant.
The vocals aren’t really that impressive on their own but they just blend in with the sound of this song so very well. Ethereal and distant, just another layer of melody to add to the mix. They’re plenty pleasant and they escalate as the rest of the song does; a few layers going on in the climax of the song to give them more depth, too. It works well.
I just… don’t think there’s a lot that needs to be said about this. It’s straightforward but complex enough musically, and just, it just sounds so nice. It’s not a huge emotional gutpunch or anything but it’s a well-crafted song that I enjoy quite a lot each time I listen to it.
8.5/10So, at the end of the day... Bolsters and Scorpion are out. The rest can send me Round 5.