OK holy shit everyone, sorry for being an asshole and taking so long with these results. I usually wrote up results on Saturday afternoon, and it turns out trying to summon that same motivation after getting off work for the day is super fucking difficult. ANYWAY I have triumphed.
ROUND 8 RESULTS
Puppies_On_Acid
Imperial Triumphant
Swaming Opulence
Kaleidoscopic Orgies
Transmission to Mercury
3 points
I don’t really get this at all. I guess it’s kind of doomy, in terms of the vocals? They’re echo-y and generally buried amidst the wall of noise the instruments create, which can work in some instances, but here it just kind of seems like noise. That’s my overall impression of the songs here; it’s just a bunch of stuff stacked on top of each other until it becomes overwhelming, and I don’t find any of the individual bits to be particularly engaging on their own merits, except for the occasional brass sections which I do really like.
HOF
Sweet Billy Pilgrim
Candle Book and Bell
Kalypso
Make It So
These Sudden Stars
5 points
So stylistically I actually like this kind of bluesy southern rock, it’s got a fun sort of swagger to it. Unfortunately, the vocalist is just really not working for me at all. His voice doesn’t seem strong enough to carry the songs, especially on Kalypso. I’m not sure if it’s the same singer on These Sudden Stars, but if it is, there the combination of him with the female singer actually works really well, and a lot of the harmonies in the chorus are absolutely lovely.
Elite
Caligula’s Horse
Marigold
Will’s Song (Let the Colours Run)
All is Quiet by the Wall
5 points
I’ve tried listening to CH a few times since I’ve seen them mentioned a fair bit here and over on the r/progmetal subreddit, and my reaction has generally been the same; pretty competent prog metal that doesn’t really grab me in any way. That’s pretty much what I’m getting from this, too. There are some nice moments here and there, but none of the songs are really that engaging to me.
TAC
The Absolution Sequence
Destitute
In Atrophy
Silent King
Splintered Soul
5 points
This is some alright tech deathy stuff. It’s enjoyably heavy and the harsh vocals in particular are really nice, but I don’t really get much of a sense of cohesion from any of the songs. They’re nice enough to listen to, but not much stands out or sticks with me after I’m done listening.
The Walrus
Aquaria
Expedition
Skies of Amazonia
Your Majesty Gaia
5 points
This has got all of the over-the-top elements you expect in power metal, but they don’t seem to work as well as your other power metal submissions. Both the synth driven instrumental sections and the choir-esque vocals feel a bit obligatory but not particularly engaging. The vocalist is quite good, but apart from the chorus of Expedition, most of the melodies don’t do too much for me. None of it is bad, but not much of it sticks with me either.
Cyril
Poly-math
1258 | In the Sights of Mesopotamia
Alchemy | Terra Incognito
5 points
I tend to struggle with instrumental music in general, and instrumental prog in particular is something that usually doesn’t do much for me. It’s definitely well performed and there are several really cool rhythmic ideas throughout the two songs, but overall the music doesn’t make much of an impression on me beyond that.
Stadler
Cheap Trick
Way of the World
The Summer Looks Good on You
Won’t Take No For an Answer
Voices
Takin’ Me Back
6 points
This is a case where the score probably doesn’t do a very good job of indicating how I felt about the songs. The first two I really love; Way of the World has a great driving pace and The Summer Looks Good on You has a slightly slower, arena-rock feel to it, and both have really great vocals and melodies. The other three branch out a little bit in terms of style (the Moody Blues/Pink Floyd sound of Voices, for instance), but the melodies aren’t as strong, and all of them tend to get a bit repetitive, especially Takin’ Me Back. So the score evens out to be kind of middle-of-the-road even though some stuff here I really like.
wolfking
Atheist
Piece of Time
I Deny
Water
Mother Man
6 points
This reminds me a lot of Death, which I suppose isn’t surprising since I think they were concurrent in the death metal scene. And like Death (what I’ve heard from Death, at least, mostly from Human), it’s very enjoyable death metal with a lot of techiness to it; the bass in particular is a standout for me. The early death metal vocal style I still find a bit odd, but it works pretty well here. Nothing much resonates with me beyond being pretty good, though, it’s missing something to make it something really memorable for me.
Luoto
Palehørse
Dead Wrong
Pale Horse
Darken Waters
Quicksand
6 points
This band is an interesting mix of some more straight-forward metal/hard rock with a number of extreme metal elements. The vocalist is the real attraction here; he’s got a really powerful mid-range yell, but he handles the screams really well too. I think the band is at their best when he’s really belting out choruses, like in Dead Wrong or Darken Waters. Dead Wrong is also where I think they use all the disparate elements of their sound to the best effect, and they tend to lose me a bit in some parts of the other songs, although the vocalist is always impressive regardless.
Evermind
DREAMCATCHER
Scream
BOCA
PIRI
Deja Vu
Red Sun
Good Night
8 points
So I’ve never listened to any kind of kpop before and I have no idea if this is representative of the genre, but it’s way more varied than I was expecting. It’s definitely poppy, but there’s these funky rap sections too, there’s some surprisingly heavy guitar riffs, there’s a lot of electronic elements, and they manage to pull all these together into short, coherent songs. I’m not sure if there’s only one vocalist here, but if so, she’s doing an amazing job handling all the different styles. Not everything works for me; I don’t really get Red Sun at all, but the majority is really impressing me.
Sacul
Markéta Irglová
Go Back
Fortune Teller
Time Immemorial
Without a Map
8 points
This is the kind of sacul music I can really get into. I tend to love bands or artists that incorporate a substantial brass presence like in Go Back. The other songs stick mainly to vocals and piano, but there are still strings and other instruments appearing occasionally, and the song structures are still interesting unexpected. The vocals are similarly varied; although she sticks to her light delivery, the inclusion of choir-esque sections and the Björky vocal noodling in Fortune Teller keeps the songs engaging throughout.
Tomislav95
Villagers of Ioannina City
Age of Aquarius
Cosmic Soul
8 points
This is a really interesting sound; it’s got a Mastodon-esque sludge sound in the vocals and some of the guitar tone, but it’s quite a bit more restrained and lighter, and there’s a vague sense of folk to it as well (the flute section in Age of Aquarius). Musically it’s mostly pretty straightforward, but it changes up enough to stay interesting through the long runtimes and provides a great backdrop for the vocalist, and when solely instrumental sections come up they stay engaging without seeming out of place or just opportunities for solos.
Buddyhunter1
Baroness
Morningstar
Shock Me
Chlorine and Wine
8 points
I’ve heard a bit of Baroness here and there and generally liked what I heard, but never went much farther with them. Musically I think the closest comparison is Mastodon (I’ve compared two submissions to Mastodon this round now), although vocally they mostly stay with a stoner rock type style reminiscent of The Sword albeit heavier, and I think it works really well. There are a lot of heavy riffs here, but they pull off some really uplifting moments as well, like the chorus of Shock Me, and the slow instrumental, post-rocky buildup of Chlorine and Wine is fantastic. I can definitely understand the complaints about the production, but it’s not my favorite, I don’t think it detracts too much from the music.
ariich
The Reign of Kindo
The Moments in Between
Let It Go
Nice to Meet You
Till We Make Our Ascent
8 points
These guys have a really interesting sound, it’s a sort of popish indie with a jazzy tilt (or at least from the perspective of someone who doesn’t listen to much jazz). Instrumentally the piano and the guitar stand out to me the most; they seem to work as co-lead instruments most of the time which is a very cool approach. The vocalist has a really warm tone that reminds me a lot of Casey from The Dear Hunter, and he does a great job on all of these songs.
romdrums
The Panic Division
The Miracle in You
Still In Motion
No Power Great Enough
Dark Days
Fireflies
9 points
You’re down a little bit from your 30 points last time, but this isn’t too bad. This is just really great music, from the rock of The Miracle in You, No Power Great Enough, and Fireflies, to the new agey Still In Motion to the electronic Dark Days, everything is incredibly tight and held together by consistently the consistently excellent vocal performance. I’m actually surprised I’ve never heard these guys before, this is really just my kind of music.
STANDINGS
ariich 61
Tomislav95 59
Luoto 57
romdrums 57
Buddyhunter1 55
The Walrus 55
Evermind 53
Sacul 53
Elite 47
HOF 47
Stadler 47
TAC 46
wolfking 46
Cyril 45
Puppies_On_Acid 45
Please send for the ninth and final round! We are very close to the finish line now.
Topic: SN's Homestuck roulette: jpeg hero (final results) (Read 56751 times)
