Disappointing for DDS, but I see those Blanck Mass ratings. 
Yes round 3 is going rather better for you, despite them getting identical scores in the roulette. 
As promised, and with apologies for taking a while over this one (I blame Crow... Vylet Pony has so much music!), here's the results of my exploring the round 3 artists. Thanks as always to everyone for sending me so much good and interesting stuff!
Buddy: Blanck MassDespite getting an identical score to death's dynamic shroud, this went in the opposite direction. The tracks you chose made sense for the roulette but I don't know if they're even my favourites, the whole of World Eater is just so good. Same with Animated Violence Mild, which is in much the same vein although with some nice distinguishers. I had a look back at our posts at the time and forgot that those were the two albums you highlighted as well, so it seems we're on the same page here. The other albums are all quite good but I didn't find them nearly as interesting. But those two albums are among my favourites from the round.
Crow: Vylet PonyGood golly Vylet has made a lot of music.
You really sent me down a rabbit hole with this. I started with her latest three - you sent me songs from the last two, and the one before, Cutiemarks, seemed to be her breakout album. And yeah all three are really great - having explored some of her earlier works now, it's clear her writing is more focused and consistent now. The stuff before is inconsistent, but there's still some damn great stuff. The other album I love as a whole is Homeward. About half of Fairytales also excellent, but man she really didn't know how to trim the filler until recently. I sampled a few other albums and there were a handful of strong tunes on each. Anyway just really digging the music in general. The whole MLP fan community isn't something I'm interested in, but it provides a nice backdrop for her stuff.
Elite: Wes Montgomery As you know I was fairly familiar with Wes already, having heard a couple of his albums myself in the past and you sent me a few tunes of his last time as well. I do enjoy live jazz but, like the selection from it that you sent, this album doesn't really have the dynamic energy I was hoping for. It's good for sure and his playing was as super cool as ever but it just doesn't excite me much unfortunately.
Evermind: Lords of BlackI've given a good few listens to each of their five albums and they're all solid - two of them (II and Icons) just about reach the 4 star mark for me. The style is fairly straightforward power (ish) metal, and so really requires good hooks and energy to grab me, and those two albums hit my tastes nicely in that regard. Some really catchy stuff and generally very enjoyable. The singer's slightly gravelly voice helps give the sound a slight edge too. The other three all sit slightly below that mark - some good songs but not consistent enough to hold my interest.
faizoff: Van SheI like these guys, but generally the whole albums haven't quite lived up to the selection of songs you sent. I gave a good few listens to both V and Idea of Happiness, and enjoyed both but neither quite did it for me. The sound is very cool, kind of indie pop with varying degrees of electronic elements and occasionally something a little more rock oriented. It's a good mix, and some songs are pretty great but not enough of them to make whole albums sufficiently engaging.
Glasser: NospūnOpus has ended up being one of my favourite albums from the roulette, and a mighty fine debut. Like many debuts, they definitely wear their influences on their sleeves. I mentioned this in another thread I think (or was it on Reddit?) but along with the obvious DT and Haken influences at times, there are also elements of more cinematic prog metal bands like Native Construct and Beyond the Bridge. But while the influences are obvious, I like that the band doesn't rely too much on them and still made an album really dynamic and engaging.
HOF: Dim GrayThe songs you sent were comfortably the highest score you’ve gotten from me (so far!) and the quality and creativity on Firmament just doesn’t let up. Not much to add to what I said originally about your submission - the music is gorgeous, interesting and emotive. It also works great as an album, elevating another level up. I’m digging their debut Flown as well - it’s not quite as special but it’s still great stuff.
jingle: Nuclear Power TrioYou already know this because you sent me the entire EP, but I love it. And because once the round was over I already knew their entire catalogue, I kept up with what they were doing and checked out their full length as soon as it came out. And I love that too! I also like that they made use of the longer run time with a bit of variety of styles and influences. It’s not often I really get into instrumental rock but these guys just have so much energy, dynamism and great sense of melody.
King: Our Lady PeaceThe bands you sent me have so far gone one way or the other, and unfortunately these guys haven’t held up quite as well as the selection you sent. I did end up giving a good go at all four of the albums you sent me songs from, as they have a good sound and a few great songs. But none of the albums felt consistently interesting enough to really grab and hold my attention.
Litho: DejafuseOk so my journey with this album has basically been exactly the same as it was with the songs you sent from it. First couple of listens I liked it, but beyond the songs I already knew I didn’t feel wowed by it. But once again everything just grew on me loads. The whole thing is pretty great, but in addition to Blanque Cheque the other one that’s ended up being a favourite - despite it mostly being instrumental noodling - was Continuum. Go figure.
lonestar: Rolling QuartzNot really a surprise considering you sent most of their EP already but yeah I enjoy it a lot, for all the reasons I liked the songs you sent. Blaze is also a really fun song. I checked out all the other singles available on Spotify but none were that interesting - seems you picked the best set!
Luke: Coheed and CambriaYou did it again! Just like with Deafheaven (though not King Gizzard I’m afraid), you have managed to turn me on to an album by a band I’ve tried before with no success. I mentioned this in the Coheed thread, but Vaxis II is such a massive step up in how much I like it. I tried Vaxis I as well and while it’s maybe a little more engaging than the previous albums I’ve heard from them, there’s still something awkward about the melodies and songwriting. But Vaxis II is so catchy and smooth flowing. Hope this is a new direction for them (melodically, not stylistically) rather than just a one-off!
Luoto: Cain's OfferingYou know, I came quite close to giving Stormcrow 4 stars but never quite got there. Their debut feels pretty solid 3.5 star territory for me - enjoyable but fairly middle of the road power metal for my tastes. Stormcrow was definitely an improvement - I love the over-the-top symphonic stylings which really give it a very enjoyable grand feel. And a few songs have strong hooks as well, but I don’t feel it’s quite enough of them.
nick_z: EneferensWasn’t at all surprised by this, but The Bleakness of Our Constant is indeed an excellent album. Definitely one of the stronger one-man-bands out there. I sampled his two earlier albums as well (one fully, one only very briefly) and they really weren’t up to scratch. Less atmosphere, less melody, less crunch in the heavy sections even. Bleakness was back in 2018 so I wonder if he’ll make any more music - I hope so!
Puppies: EcholynThis was a fairly bold submission considering I’d rated their previous album only 3 stars, but it did pretty well for you. And I’m pleased to say that the self-titled album as a whole stacks up too. Not everything is a hit, but in general the album is rich and vibrant and has some great emotional moments. Tried their latest too which was also better than what I’ve heard from them before, but not on the same level as the self-titled.
Reaper: From Monument to MassesI gave a good couple of listens to On Little Known Frequencies, and it was very much what I expected. Not bad by any means, perfectly sold post-rock. But basically I feel the same way I did about the tracks you sent. Even more so perhaps, as nothing else interested me as much as that section in the middle Checksum.
romdrums: Jaga JazzistWell now, Starfire turned out to be a pleasant surprise. You may recall in the roulette that I found the first few minutes of the title track a bit slow but loved it when it kicked in. As the opening track of the album, that slow start completely makes sense, and in general the album is just really engaging and enjoyable synth-heavy prog/jazz fusion. Melodically interesting and rhythmically intricate. I tried a few other albums too (What We Must, One-Armed Bandit and Pyramid) and they all have things I like about them but none quite does it for me.
Sacul: The Black QueenThis is another artist that was pretty much what I expected. Fever Daydream is a good album, with nice mix of different synthpop styles that keeps it pretty interesting. I think you picked a good selection from it - some of the album was a little more run of the mill, but it’s all nice stuff.
seneca: Emma Ruth Rundle So Engine of Hell was exactly along the lines I’d expected, which is to say that I like it but it doesn’t hold my interest that well - just like the songs you sent from it. But because I find her interesting and you and Litho bigged up Some Heavy Ocean, I figured I’d give that a listen to. It was a bit more my cup of tea - more sonic and tonal variety and interesting to listen to. Hasn’t so far hit the 8/10 mark for me - something about her vocal melodies doesn’t quite capture me - but I’m willing to give it some more listens and see if it grows some more.
soupy: FellowshipWhy do I enjoy this so much? My experience with your submission is exactly the same with the full album. It’s far too cheesy for me. Surely? I mean come on. Why are these songs so catchy and fun? TIME FOR AN ADVENTURE. I honestly can’t explain it but for some reason I love this album.
Stadler: AsiaAs you know I was pretty familiar with Asia already, having checked out a bunch of albums from across the years - already a big fan of Silent Nation but not so keen on earlier material. The songs you sent me went down really well and I did wonder if you’d pull the same thing you did with Sabbath but alas not quite this time. Don’t get me wrong, Alpha is a solid album and probably my second favourite I’ve heard behind Silent Nation - about half the album is strong and a couple of songs are really great, but the rest leave me a little bored. I remember there being a song or two on their debut I liked as well, so I should probably put together my own little best-of from their earlier works.
TAC: CastlewayAs safe a bet as folk metal might seem with me, this album hasn’t worked out as well as I’d have hoped. The songs you sent are really good, especially A Shivering Sea. In fact there’s a general correlation on here between how serious/poetic the titles are and how much I enjoy the songs. Not sure exactly what the root of that is, but songs like Chicken Run: A True Viking Story and Goblin Goblin Goblin feel tonally off and possibly reflect the band’s mindset when writing them. Anyway it’s an enjoyable album though not one I feel particularly compelled to return to.
Vmadera: PrototypeI decided to give Catalyst a couple of listens and, you know what, I liked it more than I expected. Not quite enough to reach the 8/10 mark maybe - the vocal melodies just don’t quite hit the mark for me - but the prog thrash sound is cool and the sound palette is a little more expansive than the songs you sent. I wouldn’t say I love it, but I do kind of dig it more than I might have thought for something that came last in the round.
wolfking: BrymirDamn, this band is really great. I described it during the roulette as the most melodic thing you’d ever sent me (up to that point anyway), and I stand by that certainly for the selection of songs you sent and indeed a whole bunch of others too. Especially on their latest album Voices in the Sky, which is superb. But all three of their other albums are excellent too. There’s more in the way of dark or melodically dense stuff dotted throughout but it’s all good and there are always these big, melodic, epic as hell moments to really immerse me.
Topic: ariich's DARK TO LIGHT roulette (v8) - Post-roulette updates (ongoing) (Read 91482 times)