ROUND 5 RESULTSTAC: Cea Serin - The End of SilenceMetal done not so right.There's a lot going on here. For starters, the production hurts my ears. It's so loud, like every instrument is cutting in my ears, man. I'm almost always easy with production, so it's really hard to turn me off on that level. Then beyond that, there's a lot going on.. the riffs are okay but not spectacular. Everything else ranges from irritating to outright off-putting. Both the harsh and clean vocals. The fact that the drums are pretty much just copying all the rhythm guitars 80% of the time. Odd time sigs when the song isn't demanding any. A wanky keyboard / guitar battle. It doesn't help that this is also the longest song of the round.
TASTES (tm)
3.75/10home: Explosions in the Sky - Your Hand In MineFound it pretty hard to stay focused on this from beginning to end, it had some nice moments for sure though.Cyril was pretty dead on with the description, I mostly feel the same way. It's really nice in the background, but this band has never seemed to draw me in. I would compare them to Mogwai in that regard, only that Mogwai still have the occasional shift in their sound that I can latch onto. This band seems like mostly a mood/atmosphere band that you just really have to resonate with, I haven't gotten there yet. I believe this band was one of the first along with Mono to make crescendo-core a thing
but it doesn't make me like it any more just because they were pioneers. I do like Mono a lot though! Maybe because they're darker and also heavier?
6.25/10Bolsters: CHVRCHES - Never Say DieNot very interesting on first impression, but definitely catchy and potential to grow more.Yeah, on first impression this was leaving me a bit cold. The Mother We Share is such a nice song (and I believe also the fan favourite?) but this just paled a lot in comparison. I was right though, this definitely grows. The melodies are on point, the instrumentation is very detailed when given a closer look and I feel like this perfectly depicts that thick synth sound I mentioned in the purity ring write-up which always hooks me. The only gripe I have is that the vocals are just not very exciting. I don't like the backing vocals at all and the lead vocals are not really eventful, it's more of a standard synth pop tune than your last song for sure.
7.5/10Sacul: Arca - DesafioThis is leaving me hanging a bit, something about the atmosphere draws me in but doesn't quite keep me curious.This song has one of the most beautiful atmospheres I've heard in this roulette, it's really dreamy and trippy. Just like with the Stateless song, I also get some Massive Attack vibes here. The hooks in this song are just not cutting it for me that much, one ear in and out the other. But whenever I listen to it, I feel like this could be really nice to have play in the background when working, or something like that.. it doesn't distract me, but also doesn't
engage me!
7.5/10Cyril: Gabriel Kahane - Empire Liquor Mart (9127 S. Figueroa St.)I'll be needing some time to unpack this, there's a lot going on.I keep being between 'this is brilliant' and 'this is annoying' every time I listen to this one, it's a suuuuper unique tune and I love it for that on its own. But it's usually around the middle of the song where I start to realise that I'm not that excited about it anymore and want it to wrap up. On one hand I love that even when the music changes drastically, they still tie it together by keeping the same vocal themes throughout the song. It's still really interesting to hear something this experimental in a very chill music style, and despite my slight gripes I would love to discover more. The songwriting is undeniably innovative and noteworthy.. though it does go a bit too far with for example this moviescore-like string section, that's the prime example of being 'too derivative'.
I DON'T KNOWWWW if I love it or hate it, this song is one of the main reasons this round has taken over a week. But I'm definitely leaning towards yes, I think it's great enough, I want to give this Gabriel guy a shot. And this song is really awesome for what it is.
8/10Puppies: The End - In DistressMetal done right.I don't know why Cyril scrapped this, this is precisely my type of metal man. Fast groovy guitars, a dark tone set, clean production, super aggressive core-vocals. They remind me a bit of that band Eryn. Non. Dae. that Cyril also sent me one time, but this band is more metalcore-y, I dig that. To be honest, the riffing is kiiiiind of basic, but it's groovy, it packs a punch, and it fits with the in-your-face style of metal this does. The clean singing is okay, but not nearly as good as the harsh as it comes across a little too emo at times. But no worries here, this song is fucking ace, will listen to this album
8.25/10Elite: Misþyrming - Og Er Haustið Líður Undir LokThe base of the song is great, I just expected/hoped for it to develop more.I've been wanting to check out this band for quite a long time, I'm always really happy to receive artists that are already on my radar so I can finally get an idea of what they sound like.
I love it when the guitar sound and rest of the mix are so good that almost any riff will sound great because of it. It's such a complete sound, and the vocals add a lot of oomph to the whole. It's just a big powerful wall of aggression altogether. The comment in my first impression about the lack of development is not bothering me much anymore. It's a powerful straightforward blackened death metal tune, and it shouldn't have to derive from the base to be interesting. I'm super excited to check this album out.
8.25/10Evermind: Marketa Irglova – Without a MapChills down my spine, man.I love it when songs have one main theme in the melodies that they build around, but don't derive too much from. The main discussion in this song though is how chilling the interplay between the lead singer (Marketa?) and the backing choir is. I love super emotional stuff like this. I guess with metal I don't always like it when songs are like that, but the Misþyrming song in this round proves that it does sometimes. It's great that this song builds CONSTANTLY, but at the same time it's not building super slowly and leaving you hanging, and the climax is not an unrealistically big step beyond the rest of the song in terms of epic. Very nice mayne.
8.5/10Kattelox: Kiev - Ariah BeingFull of surprises, kept me hooked all the way through.I'm really excited to have a round with so much good indie-influenced music. The vocals are really catchy, the production sounds really full but not over-compressed. There's so many things to focus on that there's never a second of boredom. The Snarky Puppy-like horn section is a really cool section too, though where the song really sold me is when that horn section grows and grows with the backing vocals and slowly breaks off into that avant-garde ending. And then it shifts super smoothly into more Snarky Puppy stuff, and back into the 'main body' of the song so to speak. It's the complete package man, in most rounds this song would have won.. but.. Stateless. Stateless man.
It was I not you who set this trap, but
You did leave me here without a writeup
8.75/10ariich: Stateless - Curtain CallIt takes very long to get interesting, but when it does oh boy. Will need more time to figure out what I think on the whole.FUUUUCK what I said about the long buildup. It's a really beautiful dark atmospheric piece that sets the tone very well for later on. Then it maintains the dark mood and moves to a more indie style, and it's combined with this super heavy and trippy breakdown in the chorus. There's the wall of bass that dominates this chorus, and then the high-pitched distorted vocals to contrast it, and this neutral low frequency synth reminiscent of Nine Inch Nails. It has the trippiness of Massive Attack, the dark indie vibe of Her Name Is Calla, man.
I've already checked out the album and I love it, this is easily the best thing to come out of this roulette so far.
9.5/10StandingsEvermind: 40
ariich: 39.5
Sacul: 38.25
Cyril: 37
Puppies: 36.5
home: 35.5
Bolsters: 35
Kattelox: 34.5
Elite: 34.25
TAC: 33.5
Topic: Big Big Train of Daftness Roulette! POST-ROULETTE CEREAL HOURS (Read 33121 times)