The TAC Roulette V.5...DTF Faves..WTF Am I Missing?? MastoDONE!

[wolfking]

I realised I have quite a few Devin albums but for some reason I've never really gotten that deep into him.  I find him quite pleasant but never really went on with it.  I thought I was a decent fan, but this made me realise, probably not.

I think Tim's scores and thoughts might be something to kick start getting these albums out again and revisiting.

[TAC]

One thing I forgot to do was to post the playlist.

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6rS24ffAM3GfMbh76Vi9Rn?si=c2049ca569494cd6

[TAC]

I know I'm not playing, but I'm kinda following, since this is always a fun group 

Seeing your appreciation for Anneke - do yourself a favor a listen to Mandylion by The Gathering. That's their 1995 album (their third overall, but first with her on vocals), and that's when Anneke was introduced to us unsuspecting metalheads, who would then proceed to fall in love with her. Fantastic record - earthy, doomy and dreamy at the same time.

She's done much more, with The Gathering, guesting on many other albums, and now solo, but that (to me) is a great starting point.

Nick, I mean to come back to this..

I will be following up with her.
Thank you and your participation is appreciated in the roulette.

[TAC]

Results today!
2:00pm Boston time

[wolfking]

Results today!
2:00pm Boston time

What time is it now?

[jingle.boy]

Results today!
2:00pm Boston time

What time is it now?

You've got 6.5 hours.

[King Postwhore]

Results today!
2:00pm Boston time

Wicked Pissa!

[wolfking]

Results today!
2:00pm Boston time

What time is it now?

You've got 6.5 hours.

I guess I'll sleep til then.

[jingle.boy]

Results today!
2:00pm Boston time

What time is it now?

You've got 6.5 hours.

I guess I'll sleep til then.

Yeah... you'll need your preserve your strength and endurance for the Haken round

[King Postwhore]

 

[wolfking]

Results today!
2:00pm Boston time

What time is it now?

You've got 6.5 hours.

I guess I'll sleep til then.

Yeah... you'll need your preserve your strength and endurance for the Haken round

Jokes on you, I'm still awake and just closed a Haken vid to come back here.

True fucking story.  It come up In my feed and watched it.  The whole fucking thing too.

[jingle.boy]

Results today!
2:00pm Boston time

What time is it now?

You've got 6.5 hours.

I guess I'll sleep til then.

Yeah... you'll need your preserve your strength and endurance for the Haken round

Jokes on you, I'm still awake and just closed a Haken vid to come back here.

True fucking story.  It come up In my feed and watched it.  The whole fucking thing too.

But did you enjoy it?

[TAC]

So...

Before I post the results, I really wanted to thank EVERYBODY for their submissions for this round. This format is a great way to get a great cross section of songs/styles simply due to the cross section of participants, with different tastes.

I have known about Devin for a while now, but never really checked him out. Truthfully, I did give Transcendence a listen when it came out. I put my computer on my kitchen counter and did dishes/made dinner to it. I remember digging it, but I think I thought it wore on a bit. Never listened again. Obviously, Devin is a prolific writer. He's part Alice Cooper, part King Diamond, with harsh vocals. He should appeal to me. It just seemed everytime I sampled him on youtube, it was some screamo song, although, it's really been in the last few years that I've come around a bit on that.

I have thoroughly enjoyed this playlist. I may lop off the bottom few tracks, but I listened to the playlist at work, and it totally worked for me. One thing I noticed is whatever song is playing, there is some incredible drumming. He always has a tight AF rhythm section.

So, as the title asks...WTF am I missing? A lot here.
You guys have provided me a wonderful roadmap. Mission accomplished!

[jingle.boy]

You guys have provided me a wonderful roadmap. Mission accomplished!

Too bad this is the road you're on

[Crow]

you should start your deep dive with Ghost

[ariich]

So...

Before I post the results, I really wanted to thank EVERYBODY for their submissions for this round. This format is a great way to get a great cross section of songs/styles simply due to the cross section of participants, with different tastes.

I have known about Devin for a while now, but never really checked him out. Truthfully, I did give Transcendence a listen when it came out. I put my computer on my kitchen counter and did dishes/made dinner to it. I remember digging it, but I think I thought it wore on a bit. Never listened again. Obviously, Devin is a prolific writer. He's part Alice Cooper, part King Diamond, with harsh vocals. He should appeal to me. It just seemed everytime I sampled him on youtube, it was some screamo song, although, it's really been in the last few years that I've come around a bit on that.

I have thoroughly enjoyed this playlist. I may lop off the bottom few tracks, but I listened to the playlist at work, and it totally worked for me. One thing I noticed is whatever song is playing, there is some incredible drumming. He always has a tight AF rhythm section.

So, as the title asks...WTF am I missing? A lot here.
You guys have provided me a wonderful roadmap. Mission accomplished!

Awesome, go team!

[ariich]

you should start your deep dive with Ghost

No, Devlab.

Or The Hummer.

[TAC]

Devsults!!


Lonestar

Supercrush!....... 8.4

The chorus is the best part of this, ends really strong.

Anneke! Holy shit!. I really like Devin in this chorus. I would’ve liked a different pace or some sort of changeup in the bridge. Listening at around 3:45 and there’s too much going on in my ears. I like that quick little thing at 4:08 to set up the final chorus. The part at 5:00, I like and they exited that section too soon to end the song. I would’ve rather dropped the bridge and built upon that ending. Still, great song.

Addicted!....... 7.2

This is the Keep It In The Family riff! Driving track for sure.
 
The beginning of this reminded me a lot of Anthrax’s Keep It In The Family. Totally the same groove. This song kind of lives on this groove for the entire song. The female vocals are nice, but this isn’t my favorite Devin vocal. The chorus isn’t bad. I wasn’t expecting the circus music until the next round.
Unfortunately for Addicted!, there's way more songs in this round that are more....addictive!

8.4+7.2=15.6/2=7.80



Kingshmegland

Stormbending....... 8.3

The first half was amazing, almost Styx-ish, but it peters out by the end.

This starts off with a cool section. At 1:40, it goes full on Styx, and it’s awesome. I love this part. Love it! Has a cool JP styled solo. The second half of this song isn’t nearly as good as the first, but like most other songs, this section has grown on me.

Where We Belong...... 7.1

Nice enough but not very exciting, though it “grands up” for the second half.

Wow, this feels almost too safe. There’s some intense stuff in this round and this is having trouble stacking up.

8.3+7.1=15.4/2=7.70




Vmadera00

Kingdom..... 9.0

Really strong vocals for the early verses.  This song is really thick, but good.

Damn, what an amazing intro. When the vocals come in, it is literally my favorite moment of the entire playlist. These first verses are amazing. This song stays on an intense journey. This song really gets better with every listen.

Life......  7.9

A very nice and simple tune. A nice change from the noise. But is it good enough?

Sounds like a song you’d hear on the radio. Quality track. Quite simple and effective. I definitely like it. So many of the other songs in this round are so thick, this is like a breath of fresh air.

9.0+7.9=16.9/2=8.45




Romdrums

Almost Again......  7.5

Decent enough tune. Will it stand out?

I have really struggled to come up with comments on this song. The verse is ok. The chorus is ok. There’s nothing I inherently dislike about this song, but there’s nothing I really grab onto. The best moment of the song comes at 2:00.. the  “so it’s over” part.

Kingdom (Live)....... 9.0

Not sure the Live version really adds much but it’s still cool.

Here’s what I said about the studio version:
Damn, what an amazing intro. When the vocals come in, it is literally my favorite moment of the entire playlist. These first verses are amazing. This song stays on an intense journey. This song really gets better with every listen.

This live version is pretty faithful, but it is strong. Tons of energy.

7.5+9.0=16.5/2=8.25



Kwyjibo

Funeral.....  7.4

This was actually pretty nice to start but damn it lingers

This song has a nice pace to it. Almost hypnotic. There seems to be layers to this, but I feel like this plods along a bit. I am glad it changes a bit at 5:30. Breaks it up a bit, but it’s the same tempo. I kind of wish they’d had ridden this out. When it comes back full on, it just feels like a long song.


Planet Smasher...... 8.2

Really cool rhythm guitar to start. Quite a bit of variety for a song of this length.

I like the Megadeth styled opening to this. I don’t know what kind of story is going on, but the music really supports it well. There’s a wicked double bass flurry at 2:15. Wow! This music really keeps you engaged. Really intense. I like the bit at 4:00 and it would’ve been a nice way to ride this out. I didn’t need another chorus, which is the weakest part of the song. This song has some really cool rhythm guitars. I really digged this.

7.4+8.2=15.6/2=7.80





HOF

Life......  7.9

A very nice and simple tune. A nice change from the noise. But is it good enough?

Sounds like a song you’d hear on the radio. Quality track. Quite simple and effective. I definitely like it. So many of the other songs in this round are so thick, this is like a breath of fresh air.

Funeral..... 7.4

This was actually pretty nice to start but damn it lingers

This song has a nice pace to it. Almost hypnotic. There seems to be layers to this, but I feel like this plods along a bit. I am glad it changes a bit at 5:30. Breaks it up a bit, but it’s the same tempo. I kind of wish they’d had ridden this out. When it comes back full on, it just feels like a long song.

7.9+7.4=15.3/2=7.65



Buddy

Addicted!...... 7.2

This is the Keep It In The Family riff! Driving track for sure.

The beginning of this reminded me a lot of Anthrax’s Keep It In The Family. Totally the same groove. This song kind of lives on this groove for the entire song. The female vocals are nice, but this isn’t my favorite Devin vocal. The chorus isn’t bad. I wasn’t expecting the circus music until the next round. Unfortunately for Addicted!, there's way more songs in this round that are more....addictive!


Skesis...... 6.9

Kind of hectic, even a bit monotonous. Nice drum patterns near the end.

Another song that reminds me of Anthrax. Except, I can’t say I’m a huge fan of this song. It’s intense and all, but I don’t feel it takes me anywhere. It’s not terribly musical. The last minute is pretty cool though. Amazing drumming.

7.2+6.9=14.1/2=7.05




Puppies

Deadhead........ 8.2

Great opening guitar! Not a fan of Mid Tempo, but it works here.

I love the opening guitar here. Mid tempo, but I like how the vocals float above the rhythm. There’s two run throughs over the verse/chorus before a long instrumental section where it stays at the same tempo and not much happens. Then a third verse/chorus, all at the same pace. I think at 8 minutes, this is probably 3 minutes too long. I like the idea of this, but it just kind of wears on. Still, it's one of the stronger tracks in the round.

Failure...... 9.0

Really nice. Excellent chorus. Cool guitar. Nice.

Cool guitar to start this off. The rhythm leading into the verses is cool. Nice vocals and falsetto. The chorus is grand. Nice intro to the instrumental part at 2:16. Then at 3:12, it goes full on La Villa Strangiato. This is fucking nice! Closing with another chorus and brief outro. Excellent song!

8.2+9.0=17.2/2=8.60





Cyril

Stand..... 7.4

Wow, that’s a powerful song, but it does test your patience.

Kind of a brooding beginning. The whole song is brooding. Love that little thing they do at 7:46. I think my first listen to this was the best one. It never really took off from there. It’s just kind of monotonous.

Sumeria.....  7.7

Sounds like from a play or something. Almost choral in parts.

The gang vocals are really cool. Like an entrance of a Disney villain. Probably my favorite part of the song. This song has a ton of layers. Not sure I’m crazy about the verses though. Interesting way to end it. Doesn’t feel connected to the song in any way.

7.4+7.7=15.1/2=7.55

[TAC]

Elite

Poltergeist...... 8.1

Cool driving rhythms. Frenetic pace to this.

Not sure if this song fits into its album contextually. Standing alone, it feels a bit odd. I like the “Give it to me”s in the background at about the :50 mark. Best part is at 2:40. Love that groove. Interesting switch at 3:15. This kind of thing was needed a minute earlier. I wasn’t sure if this song was ever going to come up for air.

Regulator...... 6.9

Driving tune with a steady beat. Might be too driving and too steady though.

I ain’t gonna lie. I don’t really like this song. Probably my least favorite of the round. It just pulses and doesn’t do much else for me.

8.1+6.9=15/2=7.50



LudwigVan

Deadhead..... 8.2

Great opening guitar! Not a fan of Mid Tempo, but it works here.

I love the opening guitar here. Mid tempo, but I like how the vocals float above the rhythm. There’s two run throughs of the verse/chorus before a long instrumental section where it stays at the same tempo and not much happens. Then a third verse/chorus, all at the same pace. I think at 8 minutes, this is probably 3 minutes too long. I like the idea of this, but it just kind of wears on. Still, it's one of the stronger tracks in the round.


Traveller......  8.5

This isn’t the Rush Round.

Right away, the rhythm guitars reminded me of Rush. Even the drums..looking at the Test For Echo era, although some of the guitars harken back even further. Really nice vocals in the chorus. The chorus has that 80’s college radio feel to it.
8.2+8.5=16.7/2=8.35



Evermind

Failure...... 9.0

Really nice. Excellent chorus. Cool guitar. Nice.

Cool guitar to start this off. The rhythm leading into the verses is cool. Nice vocals and falsetto. The chorus is grand. Nice intro to the instrumental part at 2:16. Then at 3:12, it goes full on La Villa Strangiato. This is fucking nice! Closing with another chorus and brief outro. Excellent Song!

March Of The Poozers...... 7.4

Feels like there should be some animation to go with this.

Two visions entered my mind listening to this. The marching hammers in Pink Floyd’s The Wall, and Disney’s Fantasia. This song is really well executed. I’m sure that in the context of whatever album this is part of, it fits in great. As a stand alone track, it’s less effective.

9.0+7.4=16.4/2=8.20



Professor Peart

Suicide...... 8.0

This song is some heavy duty shit. Deep track that will need more listens.

This is a thick song that I’m really having trouble feeling one way or the other about it. It’s heavy, but it does kind of feel ‘there’. It does have a decent chorus. The instrumental part at 4:04 is really nice leading into that excellent solo at 5:09. The ending chorus fits nicely after the instrumental section. This song is growing on me, like I knew it would.

Deep Peace...... 8.4

Was thinking this was a bit wanky but that guitar solo is nails.

Not sure of the setting or what animal those sounds are supposed to be. Thinking of a seashore or something. Pink Floydish when the vocals start for sure. When the guitar solo starts, it sounds Kung Fu Panda-ish, but then morphs into something really fucking cool. Phenomenal solo. The bands’ backing behind it is incredible, supporting every twist and turn. Standard ending which I feel lets the song down a bit.
8.0+8.4=16.4/2=8.20



Wolfking

Poltergeist...... 8.1

Cool driving rhythms. Frenetic pace to this.

Not sure if this song fits into its album contextually. Standing alone, it feels a bit odd.
I like the “Give it to me”s in the background at about the :50 mark. Best part is at 2:40. Love that groove. Interesting switch at 3:15. This kind of thing was needed a minute earlier. I wasn’t sure if this song was ever going to come up for air.

Love?...... 7.5 

My name is mud. Not to be confused with Bill or Jack or Steve

This song has a pounding rhythm. I’m glad the chorus breaks it up a bit. But I’m not sure it’s enough. For such a short song, it’s a bit monotonous.

8.1+7.5=15.6/2=7.8


Stadler

Deep Peace (Live).....8.5

Totally enhances the studio version

Here’s what I said about the studio version:
Not sure of the setting or what animal those sounds are supposed to be. Thinking of a seashore or something. Pink Floydish when the vocals start for sure. When the guitar solo starts, it sounds Kung Fu Panda-ish, but then morphs into something really fucking cool. Phenomenal solo. The bands’ backing behind it is incredible, supporting every twist and turn. Standard ending which I feel lets the song down a bit.

The song feels intimate live. And the ending feels a bit stronger than the studio version.

Bend It Like Bender!...... 8.5

It’s Deaf Forever’s riff. Nice poppy track.

Yeah, the Deaf Forever riff hit me right from the jump. Great blend with the female vocals for the chorus. She has a great voice. This has a real nice fun feel to it.

8.5+8.5=17/2=8.5



Ariich

Vampira....... 9.0

Love the vocals in this song. Really cool rhythm guitars too.

Nice chugging rhythm guitars to start this song. This might be my favorite Devin vocal in the playlist. Reminds me of Freddie Mercury honestly. Not so much in range, but in versatility. The chorus is excellent. Big time Metallica moment at 1:48. The chorus at 2:25 is particularly strong vocally. Really impressive piece.

Failure....... 9.0

Really nice. Excellent chorus. Cool guitar. Nice.

Cool guitar to start this off. The rhythm leading into the verses is cool. Nice vocals and falsetto. The chorus is grand. Nice intro to the instrumental part at 2:16. Then at 3:12, it goes full on La Villa Strangiato. This is fucking nice! Closing with another chorus and brief outro. Excellent song!

9.0+9.0=18/2=9.0



425

Higher...... 7.9

My first impression is that you cannot give a first impression with just one listen. This song is loaded.

Pink Floyd to start. This one word chorus is ..interesting. It is grandiose. Cool rhythm under the verse at 2:40., and the following verse as well. The middle part from 4:00 to about 5:20 is excellent. This song is quite a journey. Feels a bit long. While there were a few too many “Higher”s in the beginning, those final ones must go over amazing live.

From The Heart....... 7.9

I was finding the song  a bit slow going, but the instrumental passage to close the song is outstanding.

Even though this song starts out kind of slow, there’s a strength behind it. The verses are really nice. It meanders (not sure this is the right word, because it is effective, but…boring) a bit as it decompresses into the instrumental second half. The instrumental section is quiet and dreamy, but quite gorgeous.

7.9+7.9=15.8/2=7.90


As always, please check my math!

[TAC]

Standings!


Ariich...9.0
Puppies...8.60
Stadler...8.50
VMadera...8.45
LudwigVan...8.35
Romdrums...8.25
Evermind...8.20
Professor...8.20
425...7.90
Lonestar...7.80
Kwyjibo...7.80
Wolfking...7.80
Kingshmegland...7.70
HOF...7.65
Cyril...7.55
Elite...7.50
Buddy...7.05

[Crow]

everyone sending the heaviest songs getting the worst scores is some good karma 

[wolfking]

Glad you enjoyed the round mate.  I'll revisit a lot of these songs myself.

[Crow]

also the ending of sumeria connects to the next song on the album, which is a 16 minute epic called The Mighty Masturbator.

It's...... a trip 
idk decon has kinda wormed its way up to being probably my favorite metal album by devin overall honestly it's just a good time

[Buddyhunter1]

Wow, what the fuck.

Well, let's just consider this a team effort.

[wolfking]

Results today!
2:00pm Boston time

What time is it now?

You've got 6.5 hours.

I guess I'll sleep til then.

Yeah... you'll need your preserve your strength and endurance for the Haken round

Jokes on you, I'm still awake and just closed a Haken vid to come back here.

True fucking story.  It come up In my feed and watched it.  The whole fucking thing too.

But did you enjoy it?

I did not.

[Evermind]

Huh, Poozers only got 7.4. Well, I'm not here to win anyway.

[Zoom E]

Glad to see the love for Vampira. That’s a killer song.


*returns to lurking*

[wolfking]

Glad to see the love for Vampira. That’s a killer song.


*returns to lurking*

Yeah, I got that totally wrong in what Tim would think here.  That's cool though.

[425]

I basically agree with your assessments of the two songs I sent! I'll definitely take a middle of the pack score right now, even though numerically I'm slightly closer to last than I am to first. Not one of my stronger artists (really only know a couple of albums), so hopefully that's a good starting place for me to build on.

And yeah, it's pretty cool that this round went over so well and got you to reevaluate the artist. I hope that happens again.

Haken submissions coming soon.

[lonestar]

Nice.. Supercrush is easily my favorite Devy song, and Anneke is just


Let the Hakenation begin.. Sent.

[TAC]

 

Huh, Poozers only got 7.4. Well, I'm not here to win anyway.

Poozers felt like a transitional piece. There's just something that felt incomplete to me about it.

Glad to see the love for Vampira. That’s a killer song.


*returns to lurking*

Yeah, I got that totally wrong in what Tim would think here.  That's cool though.

Vampira had the best vocal of the round, plus I loved the old school Metallica style riffing.

[Evermind]

Poozers felt like a transitional piece. There's just something that felt incomplete to me about it.

I think it's a live staple! I don't actually know but one time I saw Devin live, he played both Failure and Poozers. Both sounded pretty good!

I should've went with Kingdom though, yeah.

[Buddyhunter1]

For funsies, here's my personal ranking of every song this round:

Addicted!
Funeral
Skeksis
Love?
Deadhead
Kingdom
Stormbending
Deep Peace
Bend It Like Bender!
Vampira
March Of The Poozers
Suicide
Stand
Supercrush!
Failure
Regulator
Sumeria
Poltergeist
Where We Belong
Higher
Almost Again
Life
Traveller
Planet Smasher
From The Heart

I like everything from Higher onwards though, and the bottom five certainly aren't bad. Kinda surprised I ranked all the Deconstruction songs that low, but I think that album works better as a whole and my favorite three songs from it weren't sent (The Mighty Masturbator, Planet Of The Apes, Deconstruction).

[TAC]

I should've went with Kingdom though, yeah.

To be fair, everybody should've went with Kingdom.

[TAC]

For funsies, here's my personal ranking of every song this round:

Addicted!
Funeral
Skeksis
Love?
Deadhead
Kingdom
Stormbending
Deep Peace
Bend It Like Bender!
Vampira
March Of The Poozers
Suicide
Stand
Supercrush!
Failure
Regulator
Sumeria
Poltergeist
Where We Belong
Higher
Almost Again
Life
Traveller
Planet Smasher
From The Heart

I like everything from Higher onwards though, and the bottom five certainly aren't bad. Kinda surprised I ranked all the Deconstruction songs that low, but I think that album works better as a whole and my favorite three songs from it weren't sent (The Mighty Masturbator, Planet Of The Apes, Deconstruction).

Thanks for the list, Buddy!