Round 1 Results!!
Lonestar Mary’s Blood-World’s End
Musicwise, this is exactly what I was going for here. The vocals let this down though.
This was the first track I got and when transferring it to my playlist, the beginning started unexpectedly and it sounded fantastic. Upbeat high energy, exactly what I’m looking for in this round. I can’t say I love the vocals, even though they did grow on me a bit. The vocal bridge after the solo is quite nice though. I also really love the pre chorus/chorus, whatever it is. It has a great melodic vocal line there. Don’t love the beginning of the guitar solo, but it definitely redeems itself. Love the pace of this.
8.2
Faizoff Volbeat-Rebel Monster
Really high energy. I was a bit iffy on the vocals at first, but they kind of grew on me as the song went on.
This song really surprised me. I feel like it was the one song that I looked forward to the most to hear. It has this really cool vibe to it. The off kilter vocal verses caught me off guard, but they have a really cool vibe and flow to them. The chorus also has a really endearing quality to it. I actually went to youtube during the round to pull up some live performances. It’s kickass live too. Musically, it reminded me a bit of Anthrax, especially Charlie’s drumming. This song was just supremely enjoyable. Surprise!
8.9
Romdrums Obsidious-Under Black Skies
Holy shit! My face is melted.
This shoots out a rocket right at you. Blastbeat city with ridiculous drumming that is constant throughout the song. The harsh vocals are a tad out of my enjoyment range. Thankfully, they are offset by a really nice clean voice. Love the quick little change of pace before and after the guitar solo.
BTW, is the lead guitarist playing a JP Majesty, because he sounds like JP. This song is really ferocious and keeps you on your toes. Unfortunately, this song had diminishing returns, mostly due to the harsh vocals.
7.9
Tomislav Kingcrow-Drenched
I feel like this would’ve been better served in an Open Round as opposed The Opening Track Round
I noticed that this is an Opening song on its album, and maybe it works for the band, but I usually expect an opening song to have a bit more punch to it. While listening, I kept comparing it with the Karnivool track. This song is definitely better, my First Impression still stands. Not a bad song by any stretch, but it doesn’t stand out to me, unfortunately.
7.5
Kingshmegland Karnivool-Simple Boy
I cannot believe this is actually an opening track. Doesn’t exactly come out and smack you in the face.
This song starts with a Derek Smalls bass solo. I also love the cracking snare too. Kind of iffy on the vocals here. Not sure if it’s the singer of the lines. Love the Levee Breaks part at 2:30. This has a latter day Rush feel to it…..which I always found as kind of mundane. I see this is actually an opening track to its album, but it doesn’t compel me to listen to the rest of the album. Perhaps would’ve been better served in an Open Round, but this song really lacks punch and energy.
6.8
Twosuitsluke Machine Head-Cleanching The Fists Of Dissent
I’m on record as not liking this band. Musically, this is pretty intense and quite good. But I just hate this dude’s voice.
TBD
Stadler Genesis-Eleventh Earl Of Mar
I’m sorry..is this the Wussy Keyboard Round?
Oh boy..Stadler, I admire your conviction with this entry. It’s obvious that this means a lot to you, so I’m not going to rip this too hard. But seriously, ARE YOU FUCKING CRAZY??
I actually hated everything about this so I’ll spare you the details.
6.5
Vmadera The Stone Roses-I Am The Resurrection
Let’s bust out the fucking hula hoops, make some TV Dinners, and watch Laugh In.
V, I asked why you sent this to me because I thought it was an extremely interesting choice. Pleasantly interesting, I must say. The style of the first half, which sounds like The Monkees, is not really my style, but it’s quirky enough and holds my attention. But then, halfway though, it goes on this long instrumental section, ultimately to close out the song. I have to say that I loved this part. I’m actually surprised it went on as long as it did. But I love long instrumental passages like this.
8.0
Buddyhunter Cave In-New Reality
I had no idea what to expect, and while not perfect, I thought it was cool as shit.
In the mid 90’s, I was in a band with this guy, and I swear he had a song with is exact opening riff. This song has great energy. I think the chorus is fine, but I the vocal lines and the vocals were really just secondary and provided the bare minimum. The strength of this song lies in the controlled but frantic instrumental track. Is this drummer having fun or what? Love the classic Alice Cooper styled guitar solo around the 3:55 mark. I wish I liked the vocals more, but musically, this song was like crack.
7.9
Ariich Borknagar-The Rhymes Of The Mountain
This is exactly what I expected which is to say, it’s mostly excellent.
As Crow would say, I call this Ariich-core. I really enjoy a lot of it as well. This song has a great and atmospheric start. The transition where the harsh vocals come in, with that very brief rest, is effective as hell. I love when the clean voice raises up a bit higher for the “Excellence in barren nobility” part. The one flaw I had with this song is that it feels a bit too long. Doesn't necessarily feel like an opening track, but I dig it.
8.4
Dragon Attack MC5-Kick Out The Jams
No fancy passages here. This song just punches you in the face.
So, Joe I think you picked out a great tune perfect for this round. It’s a classic, and I’ve gotta be honest…I’ve never heard it before. It’s easy to see its influence, like on Buddy’s Cave In track. This is simple but effective and it’s cool to see an old song like this basically define what this round is all about.
8.0
Wolfking Hellfuelled- Let Me Out
Um..Ozzy Osbourne is banned!
The first time I heard this, I thought the Ozzy voice was kind of distracting, but…I like Ozzy’s voice, so the more I listened, the more I enjoyed it. This is a short punchy song, perfect for this round. Nice ripping solo on this.
8.5
Lithojazzosphere Non Human Level-Divine Creation Of Void
These guitars are razor sharp. Great instrumentation.
I knew with just the intro that I was going to like this. Nice tone on the guitars and excellent riffing. The harsh vocals are acceptable. There seems just enough taken off the top of them. The chorus is nice. The bass solo section at 2:50 is awesome. Nice way to break things up and the rest of the instrumental break absolutely kills.
9.0
ReaperKK Incubus-Redefine
Oof…not sure about this.
Normally, I shut off any song with electric scratch sounds immediately. Because I have to listen to this in order to score it, I couldn’t. It does go into funky RHCP territory, though I prefer their heavier side. That breakdown at 2:08 is RIDICULOUS. Wow, that was awesome. Unfortunately, it’s the only part of the song I really like.
6.8
Jingle Boy Motorjesus-Drive Through Fire
Wow, I’m pleasantly surprised. This is pretty good.
This is an excellent tune, but what really stands out here are this dude’s pipes. I love his voice. The chorus is a real earworm. The bridge where it slows down just a bit takes me back to the 80’s, along with the solo. Not much to break down here. Solid entry.
8.3
Puppies Forgotten Silence-Rosa:The Beauty
What’s with the bird sanctuary?
That’s an evil opening riff. It’s like 4 different songs in just the first two minutes before our fist visit to the bird sanctuary sans birds. The song is pretty cool until the birds actually do show up at the 5:30 mark. I have no idea WTF this is all about. I do like the part after it though. But then it’s back in the bird sanctuary. I don’t know. Honestly, I find it a tad distracting and the song is up and then it’s down, doing it three times. I feel like my first listen to it was the best listen. I am interested in the rest of the album though.
7.5
Crow Thurisaz- In Balance
That was a big meal. I’m not sure how filling it was though.
This song has a really grand opening. The keyboards in this are really evident, almost symphonic. The song is mostly enjoyable, if unmemorable. The ending and solo are fantastic though. Great opening, great ending, but kind of long. However I played this in the car a few times and found it quite enjoyable. This is a song that you have to let wash over you, rather than sit and try to overanalyze.
8.0
Elite Adagio-Dominate
This kept going back and forth between safe and interesting.
This is really good energetic song, perfect for this round. For the most part, it’s pretty straightforward, but there’s some really nice surprises, like the harsh vocals, and the keyboard (piano?) flourishes in the chorus. This dude has an awesome voice. The bridge is really interesting leading into the solo. I actually have Adagio’s 2017 album Life in my Spotify library. Don’t remember anything about it. Might have to check it out.
8.0
Round 1 Standings!
Twosuitsluke...TBD
Lithojazzosphere...9.0
Faizoff...8.9
Wolfking...8.5
Ariich...8.4
Jingle Boy...8.3
Lonestar....8.2
VMadera...8.0
DragonAttack...8.0
Elite...8.0
Crow...8.0
BuddyHunter...7.9
Romdrums...7.8
Tomislav...7.5
Puppies...7.5
Kingshmegland...6.8
Reaper...6.8
Stadler...6.5
Topic: The TAC V.6 Helping Ariich With Diaper Duty Roulette (FINAL RESULTS!) (Read 76288 times)