Alrighty, sorry for the long wait. Here we go, the final results!
---FINAL ROUND RESULTS---Firstly, I give you the write-ups for each album by themselves, only sorted by the standings going into this round.
Sacul
Hooverphonic - A New Stereophonic Sound SpectacularSince I liked Risingson so much, I suppose it only made sense for you to throw me into the deep end of trip-hop with a full album. Unlike that song, however, my feelings on this album are decidedly more mixed. While the other two albums I got this round felt quite wholistic, this one feels more like a collection of songs, some good, some lackluster. The start of the album is very promising; the opener Inhaler features a smooth beat and some cool-sounding synths, but what really elevates the song to another level are the sparse bursts of funky guitar. This track, like many others, has a very interesting combination of sounds; I will definitely say the record as a whole is very pleasant to the ear. The well-crafted soundscapes carry most of the weight, but the smooth, dreamy vocals on every track also help a lot. The next song, 2 Wicky, showcases the record’s variety with a more sultry, jazzy aesthetic. It reminded me a lot of Glory Box by Portishead, albeit much brighter. The song Wardrope is a big highlight for me; I like the polyrhythm between the main beat and the echoing guitar, and the song introduces layers very well. The album starts to dip in quality after the first three songs, however. Plus Profound is the first track that just feels way too basic and uninteresting. Other songs like Cinderella and Sarangi don’t do much for me either, and the biggest clunker by far is Revolver. I’m really not a fan of the peppy vibe it has, and the samples repeated throughout it are just plain annoying. I was definitely left wanting some stronger atmospheres on a lot of songs as well. Sure, many tracks have very distinct moods, but nothing as strong as some of the other songs you’ve sent this roulette. There are some bright spots in the second half of the album here and there, though. Barabas has an incredibly dramatic, string-driven climax that’s one of the most intense moments on the record. The more hard-rocking Nr. 9 is a cool change of pace, and the verses are very dreamy, but the song does feel a little underdeveloped. Lastly, the songs Someone and Innervoice are very laid-back and peaceful, but not all that memorable. This album had its high points for sure, but it did leave me wanting a few more peaks and a bit less valleys.
Favorite Songs:
Inhaler, 2 Wicky, Wardrope, BarabasLeast Favorite Song:
Revolver
Cyril
A Novelist - FolieOut of the three records, this one was certainly the most challenging, in both a good way and a bad way. Even after many listens, I feel like I still haven’t fully figured it out. Part of that is undoubtedly due to its dense, everything-but-the-kitchen-sink sound. Black metal influences, mathcore influences, post-hardcore and progressive elements, a horn section, and even some auto-tuned background vocals at one point, why the hell not? It’s a lot to process, and how well all these elements blend together is a bit of a mixed bag for me. I like a lot of the mathcore-inspired guitar shredding; tracks like Tombeau and Strangers In The House Of Auto-Da-Fae have plenty of blistering lead guitar lines that bring a lot of energy to the sound. The jazzy horns are almost always used to great effect, especially in the outro of His Kingdom Is Vast and the intro of Caveat Lector. On the other hand, the sound as a whole has a very sour and noisy quality to it, which isn’t really my preferred metal aesthetic. This largely comes from the prevalence of the wretched harsh vocals and a surplus of dissonant harmonies and chords from the guitar lines. There’s hardly any breathing room on the album either; it’s nearly an hour long and I wouldn’t call a single song on it peaceful. That’s not inherently a bad thing, but all the harshness does add up and doesn’t make sitting through the entire album in one go the most appealing prospect to me. Song wise, it’s only fitting that the songwriting is as all-over-the-place as the sound. This is one of those albums where the songs are largely defined by individual moments, rather than their overall structure or cohesiveness. This is a double-edged sword for me, but while many songs aren’t too memorable as a whole, there are plenty of moments sprinkled throughout the album that will be sticking with me for quite some time. As I mentioned before, the horns in the outro of His Kingdom Is Vast create one hell of a climax. I really like the second half of Acacia Crown, with its bright keyboards, emotional vocals, and intricate lead guitar lines. The intro of Caveat Lector is absolutely fantastic; easily the best part of the entire record for me. The ending chord of Acacia Crown transitions into it perfectly, the guitar lines build up an incredible amount of tension, and it’s all complimented amazingly well with some smooth saxophone playing. It pains me that this part of the song feels so disconnected from the remainder of it; the rest isn’t bad, but I wish the intro were developed upon more. Apparitions is probably the most consistently great song on the album for me, with all of the album’s best qualities getting at least a brief spotlight somewhere within it, all wrapped up by a considerably brighter mood than the rest of the record. Finally, I liked how the closing track Interiors wraps up the album on a relatively low-key and somber note. It’s a nice finish after a somewhat weak final stretch. While my first impressions of this album were pretty negative, its complexity and depth certainly caused my opinion of it to grow over time. At the time of writing, I’m still not completely sold on it, but I cannot deny the creativity on display here. It’s a very interesting and decently fulfilling journey, though not exactly an easy one.
Favorite Songs:
Apparitions, His Kingdom Is Vast, Acacia Crown, Caveat LectorLeast Favorite Song:
Learning Paralysis
Kattleox
Voyager - Ghost Mile (2017)While I enjoyed this album from the start, I initially couldn’t help but feel like I had heard most of what it had to offer many times before. A lot of progressive metal bands these days seem to be going after that more accessible, melodic, and mildly atmospheric flavor of djent that I first heard from Tesseract on their album Altered State. This album’s no exception, and nowhere is that more obvious than the very first song, Ascension. From the ethereal, effects-slathered clean guitar line, the soaring clean vocal lines, the extremely tight and technical riffs, and the overall floaty atmosphere, it’s a dead-ringer for that sound to the point where listening to it still gives me a sense of deja-vu. It’s not bad, but it does feel very generic to me. Thankfully, the rest of the album feels considerably more fresh and unique. Compared to most others like it, this album features a very prevalent use of piano and keyboards, which add a nice dimension to many of its songs. The vocalist also has a pretty unique voice, and the catchy vocal lines showcase his abilities quite well. The focus on melody across most of the album is welcome, and results in some really great choruses and hooks. The batch of songs immediately following the opener are all relatively straightforward yet very well-written and memorable tracks. Misery Is Only Company is a big highlight for me, with some great interplay between the guitars, vocals, and piano in its frantic verses, and its slower chorus which has a lot of power to it. Lifeline features a very nice atmospheric synth soundscape in the background and another great, catchy chorus. The Fragile Serene ends off this three-hit combo with a bang; I love the slow main riff and the soaring lead melody, which come together to create an absolutely massive sound. Afterwards, we get the first of two calmer piano-driven ballads on the album, To The Riverside and later on This Gentle Earth. While I wouldn’t put either of these among the absolute best songs on the album, I do like them and the change of pace they bring. To The Riverside sets up and transitions into the title track seamlessly, which is a surprisingly sprawling and complex song despite barely being over four minutes long. The song What A Wonderful Day has a very interesting electronic beat unlike anything else on the album, but compared to the rest of the record, I found the vocal melodies and lyrics to be quite mediocre. I’m also not a huge fan of the heavier Disconnected, as I find the album to be at its best when it’s trying to be more melodic and hook-driven. The brief use of growls toward the end of this song also feel pretty out of place. Finally, the album wraps up nicely with As The City Takes The Night, which is a great climactic closer with some sick bass guitar breaks. At a tight runtime of 44 minutes and only ten tracks, this record’s got pretty much the perfect length. It doesn’t feel too short, it has very little filler, and it covers all the ground it needs to without overstaying its welcome. That alone puts it above a plethora of other records for me. While this record shares a lot of similarities with other modern progressive metal albums, it’s executed better than the majority of them. As a fan of that sound and quality songwriting, I definitely enjoyed this one.
Favorite Songs:
Misery Is Only Company, Lifeline, The Fragile Serene, As The City Takes The NightLeast Favorite Song:
What A Wonderful Day...aaaand now that you've skipped those to get straight to the results, here's the final standings!
3rd Place: SaculYou were on fire for most of this roulette, I gotta say. While I didn't enjoy your album quite as much as the other two, that doesn't take away from how much ass you've kicked throughout this entire thing. Thanks for sending so much quality stuff - I've already bought Void Mother by Obscure Sphinx and I think it's fantastic, and I'm sure more stuff you sent will lead to even more great discoveries.
2nd Place: CyrilWell hey, in the end, at least you beat Sacul! Your album was the biggest grower for sure, and maybe if I had sat on these records for another week or two, it might have ended up winning. But I've already kept this round going on long enough, and had to cut it somewhere. Congratulations on almost winning a second time, and thanks for all the
1st Place: KattleoxWell, this was unexpected. You've come a long way from being dead last in a round with thirteen other people! After the first few rounds, I was sure you were going to get eliminated, but I'm glad you proved me wrong. Since Arcturus, you've been incredibly consistent in sending great stuff, and in the end, your album managed to snag the top spot. Congratulations on your first roulette win! Thanks for playing, and thanks for the great music!
---FINAL SCORES---1: Kattleox - 76
[ALL PERKS USED]2: Cyril - 90
[ALL PERKS USED]3: Sacul - 92
[ALL PERKS USED]Eliminated4: Ruba - 72
[ALL PERKS USED]5: Nekov - 68
[ALL PERKS USED]6: Tomislav95 - 59
[ALL PERKS USED]6: jingle.boy - 59
[ALL PERKS USED]8: DTA - 36
[ALL PERKS USED]9: Puppies_On_Acid - 34
[ALL PERKS USED]10: TAC - 31
[ALL PERKS USED]11: Stadler - 18
[PERKS USED: DOUBLE POINTS]12: kingshmegland - 17
[PERKS USED: DOUBLE POINTS]13: senecadawg2 - 12
[PERKS USED: DOUBLE POINTS]14: Evermind - 9
[ALL PERKS USED]One last thanks to everyone who participated in this thing. Might have been my best roulette yet. I hope to see you all again for another one eventually, but until then, I've got a backlog of albums to check out! Thank you and goodnight!
Poll
Topic: Buddyhunter1's Roulette v4: Post-Roulette Updates: Sacul (Read 44123 times)