Sorry for the delay on this guys. I'm conscious that there are people starting to show interest in roulettes again, which is awesome.
I'd originally said that there would be eliminations, but haven't said anymore about this since then. In the interest of keeping this moving I'm only going to let 8 progress forward for the final two rounds. But I'm going to start the eliminations after the next round (round 7). Currently we have 15 participants so after the next round I'm going to eliminate the bottom 4 participants, then after round 8, the bottom 3. That means going into the final 2 rounds there will be 8 of you.
Depending on my ability to keep up with that I may make final eliminations after round 9 so the final round has 5 participants or something, but as it stands I want the final round to be 8 still.
So if you have been keeping anything in your back pocket then now is the time to send it.
Anyway, onto round 6 results...
Elite: Major Parkinson - Fantasia Me Now! I honestly am not sure what you were thinking. I really cannot stand music like this, and especially with those auto tuned vocals. The one saving grace is the mention of The Neverending Story, which is a classic. I don’t really know what to say. I really wanted to skip this most times I listened, which is really something. There are flashes that are kind of alright but then it goes back to fingers down a chalkboard. Sorry dude, just when you were statring to get back on track!
3/10Cyril: Capital Cities - Farrah Fawcett Hair I wasn’t too taken with this on first listen, but you know what, it’s not half bad! I like the spoken word quotes, I feel it adds to it quite nicely. The little pop culture references appeal to me and add a little something relatable, which I think can often be something I find lacking in pop music, something relatable. This is not the first pop submission you’ve sent and I’m assuming it won’t be the last? Andre 3000 is fine in this, he doesn’t really impact on my overall score in anyway, though I would like this just as much without him. I liked a few OutKast songs back in the day but was never a fan really. I’d say this is one of your better submissions in this roulette, but I mourn the days of Cyril sending good metal!
6/10LithoJazzoSphere: Skitsystem - Maktens Murar Rasar You went there again. I like the dirty, grimy, Lemmy-esque bass. I appreciate the hardcore, crusty punk, grind cross over, it does kind of line up with a lot of what ive been listening to this year. Generally, I prefer music with a punk edge to have clean vocals. The punk that I like is basically everything that stemmed from Bad Religion's Suffer and Operation Ivy's one and only album (have I said that before?). This is pretty good, and I will certainly check out an album or two. There's just not enough in the song alone to earn a higher score from me.
7/10Revenge319: Avantasia - Twisted Mind A band I am pretty familiar with and one that did the rounds in roulettes back when I first started participating. I know I mentioned Seventh Wonder in the last round, but these bands are just kinda similar to me, and my brain lumps them together. I know I said in the first impressions this was cheesy, but it’s really not that cheesy at all
just a few lyrics here and there. The vocals are pretty good, and I like the vocal melodies.
7/10Nick_z: Novembre - Come Pierrot I stand by my statement that this is a bit on the dreary side. It really is, and the way the vocalist kind of slurs his delivery at times is also a bit of a turn off. Luckily I don’t pay too much attention to lyrics, as I think this would’ve bugged me more if I did. In classic Nick form, the guitars are the saving grace, but unfortunately aren’t enough to truly save it. That recurring guitar riff is really familiar, but as always I’m struggling to place it. The harsh vocals are much better, is it the same guy? A good song, just not a great song.
7/10TAC: Illyria - Autumn Fades Away You only went partially metal this time Tim. Is that strategic or mixing it up for the hell of it? I remember checking this album out as you pimped it fairly hard if I remember correctly. So the first two thirds are filled with some atmospheric acoustic guitars, that take me away to that forest scene on the album cover. I personally love acoustic guitar like this where you can hear every time the fingers move on the frets. The vocals are a little weak in the first section but not enough to really harm it. We get a nice build to the last third where the black metal shrieks are unleashed. It’s honestly all pretty good but it never kicks it up a notch to really make me love it.
7/10Puppies: Lykathea Aflame - Bringer of the Elvenfris Flame I'm not sure who mentioned these guys on DTF, possibly you dude, but I know this album is hard to get hold of, and not on any streaming services. It just increases my interest really. I know I wound you up about the snare, but clearly the drummer here is not Lars
saying that though the snare choice does stand out in the mix, and feels somewhat out of place. As for the rest of the song/music, well this is definitely the type of death metal vocal I struggle with (and would've flat out refused 15 years ago). I'm a bit torn with this one as the musicianship is really good and the death metal is enhanced by the progressiveness of the rest of it. I've recently been digging into classic death metal albums, from the early 90s, that had atmospheric synth as part of their sound, so this appeals to me, even if it is a bit buried in the mix. With more appealing harsh vocals and a less jarring snare this may have scored better. Definitely want to try and unearth the album somewhere though.
7/10Ariich: Animal Alpha - Billy Bob Jackson I’m not sure where I picked up on the ‘less industrial Rammstein’ but I’m going to stick with it. I guess it’s in the riffs. Mixing that with Bent Knee style vocals is not what I expected, and isn’t that ultimately why I’m here? To hear unexpected sounds? It surely is, and this fits the bill. This song certainly kept me on my toes and I wasn’t really sure how I was going to score this until right until the end.
7/10HOF: Echorec - Darling, I Familiar yet something I find hard to write about. This is similar to another song in this round, in that it feels kinda like something that borders on my wheel house but never fully showcases anything that I love. I can respect the band and the music they create, it’s just not got the wow factor that I was hoping for.
7/10Sacul: Weyes Blood - Movies Those repeating synths is what made me think “sci fi” and if anything, it’s probably because it reminds me of Stranger Things. I didn’t notice until the third or fourth listen that this also reminds me a fair bit of Muse! The vocals are haunting and sit alongside artists like Chelsea Wolfe and Emma Ruth Rundle. I don’t often listen to much music with female vocals, but am trying to expand my tastes, so this might help. I know I’ve seen you post this album cover on the ‘what album’ thread, and it wasn’t quite what I expected, in a good way. It’s interesting enough to want to at least sample the full album.
7/10Kingshmegland: A.C.T - Checked Out This is some funky, catchy stuff. The bass takes centre stage, and quite rightly so. It also has a classic prog feel in the vocals but I’m fine with that. The main thing I like about this is the infectious catchiness of it all. The instrumental section in the back half is the best part for sure, even if it feels fairly run of the mill. There were lots of nice sounds going on though. I’d certainly like to hear a whole album.
7/10Romdrums: Allegaeon - Of Beasts and Worms Allegaeon is a band I’ve sampled a few times, and I’ve checked out this latest release at least two or three times. I feel I’ve been on the edge of ‘getting’ this band for a while, and have been waiting for that song/album. I was hoping this was going to be it, but alas. Maybe it’s the more traditional style death metal vocals? I dunno, I know I can be really picky about those. The unrelenting drums really drive this song eh? This is somewhat saved by a nice guitar solo towards the end.
7.5/10Wolfking: Orpheus Omega - Face of Vengeance A pretty good all rounder by all accounts dude. The keyboards give it a really familiar sound as do the guitars, and they were what my ears were drawn to on first listen. This is nothing new to me, and although really solid doesn’t really give me the urge to dig any deeper. Doesn't stop it being a pretty decent song though.
7.5/10Buddyhunter1: Barren Earth - As it is Written I know I compared this to Opeth, but it isn’t really that similar, outside of those harsh vocals. What I always loved most about classic Opeth was the contrast between extreme and ethereal. Few bands can pull that off even close to how Opeth could. But I’m really not here to fanboy over Opeth. I love the folksiness of this and the keys, which make me think of some kind of bagpipes or something. The lovely little piano interlude leads nicely into a cool instrumental section, with sweet guitar leads and folky goodness. It’s a well put together package that feels rooted in the past, whilst still feeling recent.
7.5/10Evermind: Xanthochroid - Of Aching Empty Pain Song of the round eh? Im pretty sure Cyril either sent this band in my first roulette, or I participated in a roulette in which he sent this band. Either way, Cyril why you stop sending good music? In some ways this is kind of similar to Allegaeon, but has the contrast of the piano, and is also way more epic and grandiose. I really love the harsh vocals in this, as they sound just like Ihsahn, who I really love. In typical fashion I’m not really able to explain why this hits, where others missed but it’s in the epic heaviness with vocals I can get on board with. Really good stuff.
8/10Standings: Buddyhunter1 - 46
LithoJazzoSphere - 44
Evermind - 44
Wolfking - 43.5
TAC - 43
Ariich - 42.5
King - 42.5
Nick - 42.5
HOF - 41
Romdrums - 41
Puppies - 40.5
Sacul - 40
Cyril - 39.5
Elite - 38
Revenge - 36.5
Topic: Twosuitsluke's Second Roulette v. Final Results Part 2 (Read 30692 times)
