At The Hospice (We Keep Them Alive Reviews)

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Re: At The Hospice (We Keep Them Alive Reviews)

Post by PiGPEN »

jast wrote: L:* (not rated; post your lyrics next time to change that)
My lyrics were on the mp3...although i think the the vocals were clear enough to not need them.
Bread Skeletons i know also had the lyrics on his mp3...them you need.
Manhattan Glutton wrote: Where are your reviews?!?
I dont do full reviews because im not good enough at music to be able to offer constructive criticism and so rather than constructive criticism i offer cruel jokes which offends people. They dont seem to like that so now i just sometimes mention stuff i liked. ...such as...

Skeletons song was great again this week...though the lyrics dont make much sense to me this time. I liked last weeks lyrics alot...i even went to the trouble of figuring them out since the mp3 only had one chorus line.
"Now And Then was playing at the Cinema 10" threw me off for a long time.
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Re: At The Hospice (We Keep Them Alive Reviews)

Post by Manhattan Glutton »

PiGPEN wrote:I dont do full reviews because im not good enough at music to be able to offer constructive criticism and so rather than constructive criticism i offer cruel jokes which offends people. They dont seem to like that so now i just sometimes mention stuff i liked.
It's part of the learning process! Plus, who's to say you aren't better than others doing reviews?
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Re: At The Hospice (We Keep Them Alive Reviews)

Post by inevitableguy »

Manhattan Glutton wrote:
PiGPEN wrote:I dont do full reviews because im not good enough at music to be able to offer constructive criticism and so rather than constructive criticism i offer cruel jokes which offends people. They dont seem to like that so now i just sometimes mention stuff i liked.
It's part of the learning process! Plus, who's to say you aren't better than others doing reviews?
Yeah. What he said. Although I've been writing and recording music for a very long time, I have absolutely no formal training. As a result, I very often know what I like and what I don't like, but have no idea how to put any of it into words. Doing reviews has started to help me with that. Although my reviews are often opinionated and unhelpful, I'm very slowly learning how to describe what I like and don't like about things.

That being said, here are my reviews, in the random order I completed them in:

Todd McHatton - Your vocals have a real Peter Gabriel feel to them. Come to think of it, the whole song does, especially the bridge. (This is a good thing)
Mailbox - I really like this. I can't think of anything I'd change.
Flvxxvm Florvm - Conceptually, I like this, but the execution isn't quite getting me there.The noises add a nice touch, but they get a little too over-the-top at times.
deetak - Here's another one that I like conceptually, but I'm not digging on the execution. I think it's the breathy-falsetto parts of the vocals that are getting to me. Very few people can pull that style off convincingly.
Ramen-Flavored ROM's - Dial back the distortion on the vocals - they've become unintelligible. This also needs some more variation in the melodies to make it less repetative.
Steve Durand - This is pretty good, but it's lacking something that I can't quite put my finger on.
Ross Durand - This is pretty wild. And weird. And great. Not something to listen to over and over, but great nonetheless.
Quoonsryche feat. Anaconda Hans - I'm not a fan of vocal caricatures, which makes this hard for me to listen to.
Max the Cat - This might be great if I was really, really high.
The Weakest Suit - The instrumentation feels kind of choppy.
IndiAdamJones - This isn't a bad effort, but nothing is really grabbing my interest.
The Hell Yeahs - This is good, but if the guitars had a little more punch (maybe a boost in the mid-range?) and the tempo was jacked up just a few bpm, it would be great.
Enter it in The Art Show - Too much volume.
Howl Down the Chimney - I like the way this comes and goes in waves.
PiGPEN - I really like the music, but the vocal style doesn't seem to match it. Still pretty good.
Binary Red - This just doesn't feel very "We Keep Them Alive" to me. It's tough to set up such a specific theme without lyrics.
Turkey and Giblets Dinner - I couldn't understand a lot of the words, and that would be key to making this style work.
The Sky Looks Pissed - I like the combination of low-fi guitars with the harmonica. The vocals are off key, which is bothering me a lot.
Sheail - I think this would be a lot better if the music didn't drop out completely for the samples.
Manhattan Glutton - Nice use of overlapping vocal textures. For just a moment, the voice sounded like Weird Al making fun of a rock singer, and now that idea is stuck in my head, even though it was just for a second. I still like it.
Berkeley Social Scene - I like the lyrics. The timing feels off in places.
Jizzazz 5:30 AM - Not bad, but it seems a little sparse.
SomeGuyCalledNoel - This needs drums all over the place. Also a little more variation in the melodies.
John Eric feat. Steve Durand - This isn't bad, but it should've been shorter.
Bread Skeletons - I really like this song. The guitars and keys could stand to be fattened up a little in the low end, but otherwise, I wouldn't change a thing.
Nigel Clements - The performance is too silly for this subject matter.
Paco del Stinko - This needs something else, but I'll be damned if I can figure out what.
Swilington - The way this started, it felt like a Dandy Warhols song. I felt like it never really got going, though.
Jan Krueger - I'm impressed that you can pull this off.
Who Fly - This is pretty good. It goes on a little too long, though. I do like the noises at the very end.
Naked Philosophy - I'm pretty happy with what I came up with this week, it was a departure from the kind of things I usually write. It was fun to record, too.

This was a much better fight than last week's. I could easily justify voting for 10 or 12 songs, but I'll limit myself to 4: Mailbox, Ross Durand, PiGPEN, and Bread Skeletons

EDIT - What the hell, I'll give myself a vote, too.
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Re: At The Hospice (We Keep Them Alive Reviews)

Post by mailbox »

Jizzazz 530am *
-Great Middle-eastern waltz feel. Brilliantly switched to 4/4. The mix is a little muddy -- I wish I could hear what everyone was playing better in the choruses. One of my favorites this week.

Jon Eric / Steve Durand
Guitar is out of tune - a big no-no in my book. The levels and EQ are not well-balanced. I'd move the drums back in the mix a little -- maybe even just by rolling off some the highs so it's not so piercing.

Manhattan Glutton *
Nice vocal performance and mix. Lovin the drums - what did you use? I use EZDrummer and it almost sounds like that.

Max the Cat
The heavy message at the end of the track is commendable but too little, too late. The rest of the track was so bizarr-o that it was hard to take it seriously.

Naked Philosophy
Seems like all the instruments are fighting each other in the mix. I think it's the acoustic guitar -- that could come down in the mix and have some high-end rolled off. Maybe bring the synth up to match the vocal. Song felt a little under-ripe but a good seed of an idea.

Nigel Clements
I recommend panning your instruments a lot more. Keep the vocals, bass and drums centered but you can move the others around the stereo spectrum. The mix is muddy as is. I'd also bring the vocals up a bit, but that's just one's taste. Nice guitar work.

Paco Del Stinko
Excellent guitar recording. I have been trying to get that kind of sound. Is it just mic'd? What kind of mic and where did you place it? Drums were too loud and dry - compress them more with some reverb so they don't feel like they're the lead instrument.

Pigpen
The instrumental arrangement is clever but the vocals don't quite match them. Mess with the EQ and experiment with a little reverb. Something else you could try is panning both vocals in the center so they take the focus.

Quoonsryche
Vocal sibilance is tough to get past. I love the piano note. Try rolling off some low-end on the acoustic so it doesn't compete with the drums and bass.

Ramen-Flavored ROMs
Unintelligible, sorry. The first vocal could be louder -- match the other vocal level. Some variety would be nice.

Ross Durand
Old-skool! Aww yeah. The full mix compression (mastering) is a bit overdone. Personally, I'd rather hear more drums and less of the synth bass line - just a thought. Curious, what did you use for vocoding? Some un-vocoded harmony backing vocals in the chorus would be a nice touch. I almost gave this a vote.

Sheail
I'm not sure where this was going. I liked the samples you chose but the overall composition felt meandering.
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Re: At The Hospice (We Keep Them Alive Reviews)

Post by Ross »

A little rough around the edges

bss - slinky sounding - nice energy - excellent guitar break - fun wordplay, but overall message a little lost in it

Binary red - Instrumental - with a tune? - hmm ... more interesting than usual. But this could just as easily have been called “Peanut Butter and Jelly.”

Bread Skeltons - Supercatchy and fun! (a little frantic sounding?). Nice changes in the chorus. Is your voice effected or is that your natural voice? The words went so fast - and I can’t get a feeling for their coherence (but it’s late).

deetak - this feels a bit more structured to me. I wish your vocal production was better, because the words are sometimes hard to pull out of the mix. Perhaps a little over-complex for this setting - if that makes any sense.

Enter it in the art show? - just for the sake of entering?

Fluxxum - you got me at the opening. I like this. Is that an anime voice near the end? This seems like a very successful execution of your idea - and for that reason I may have to vote for it! Ever since “After the Gold Rush” and “’39” I have loved Sci-fi folk songs.

hellyeahs - I just thought the words were kinda dumb - I mean I guess they’re sort of supposed to be - but yeah - they sound it. It rocks good, like always

howl - really interesting idea - sounds like it could have used a little word/pace editing.
Then all of a sudden it’s a scene from the last Matrix movie. In the end I was left feeling like you weren’t quite sure how to follow through on the concept - no resolution, climax, whatever. But an interesting listen.

Indiadamjones - wow - really nice job - your voice sounds familiar. Very enjoyable lyrics - guitar solo - good! Vote!

jast - excellent opening - If I could sing in tune - I’d probably try this kind of thing every once in a while. What kind of vocal mic do you use? Great arrangement!!! From the point of Guardian Angels? Excellent! Vote!

jizzazz - another excellent sounding tune - a little long winded. I would need a few more tries to suss out the meaning of the lyrics.

Jon Eric - vegan take is interesting but seems kinda forced, too. Is this about the point of view of parents with a kid coming back from college? oh, no it’s not. I like where you were going with the coda - but I think it did result in the song being a little long.

Mailbox - great sounding. Catchy. I am a child of the 80s. Nice chorus! (doubled vox would have been great there, or harmonies). Is this about prison?

manhatton glutton - interesting chorus - a bit long - the words didn’t really get me involved - but it rocks.

max - well, I admit I put this in the “not a song” category for me. It didn’t relly speak to me, and I never figured out why the voice was so effected.

naked - long intro - about pot

Nigel - there are a LOT of really interesting things about this track. Not sure the lyrics are jumping out me and the vox on the chorus seem off. Is this about Obama? God? the structure could use something. I get 1- Satan, 2 - God, a 3 vs or something would help

paco - very nice job on all the guitar orchestrations - I wish I had that kind of tasteful restraint - a little awkward on the lyrical rhythmic placing. The overall theme didn’t really suck me in, either. I hear a lot of Steve Howe in sections of this.

pigpen - so happy sounding. the music contrasting with the lyrics is quite interesting - I haven’t decided if I like it or not, though. Why the doubled vocals? I found them a bit distracting being panned so far out and not matching closer - everything else about this track is so clean

quoons - is this about cats? really long for whatt it is. voice is irritating.

ramen - obnoxious - I have no idea what he is saying - it is all just harsh. is it about basketball? - the chorus was buggin me.

sheail - drums and bass. interesting. Using the heartbeat monitor theme to tie this to the title - but it goes in my “not a song” file. Also, I’ve never really enjoyed the drum and bass thing, so I am not a very in-touch reviewer on this. I assume the voices are from a film or tv.

sky looks pissed - Harmonicas ought t be in the same key as the song - but seriously. the harmonica is not fitting in some spots. The word flow is odd for me - stilted. Did you make this up as you went - the vocal pitch is all over the place, as is the guitar lead. addthat up and this ends up seeming really long

some guy - always impressed by your finger picking. Great theme, sound ,and nice vocal build - is this an open tuning? - perhaps a little long. I look forward to when you have better production equipment

Steve - not a fan of the “skit” part at the front, and I don’t think it was necessary to get the song across - the lyrics do that (although a little encyclopedic) for a sec I pictured a scene from a Mel Brooks thing like History of Life - galley slaves dancing and singing - I don’t think you meant it that way and it doesn’t really come off that way, it just crossed my mind - nice build - good brass as always. I like the vocal arranging, too.

swilingotn - so we’re keeping the jumpsuit and hair alive? I’ll have to go read these lyrics is this about an alien abduction? What vocoder do you use - I tried to figure out how to use one this week, but couldn’t get it to do this

Todd McHatton - Wow this is a striking piece - channeling a little Peter Gabriel here. Nice arrangement good message - vote

Turkey and giblets - not a song and not very interesting to me - the production made it hard to listen to okay, but when you say “Won ton” instead of “Wanton” is hilarious. and your reaction is charming - especially given the seriousness of your delivery up to that point.

weakest suit - wrong title - good chorus - nice chord changes and some cool choices with tunes. reminds me a little of some David Lowery stuff

Who Fly - not sure what this is about groovey though, too long
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Re: At The Hospice (We Keep Them Alive Reviews)

Post by Teplin »

Ross wrote: howl - really interesting idea - sounds like it could have used a little word/pace editing.
Then all of a sudden it’s a scene from the last Matrix movie. In the end I was left feeling like you weren’t quite sure how to follow through on the concept - no resolution, climax, whatever. But an interesting listen.
Thanks for the review!

Yeah, doing vocals was unusually hard again this week, and I wish I would have had more time to work on them in general, especially the timing issues.

Just for the sake of clarity, the lack of resolution is intentional. There's no resolution for the characters either, and the situation only gets more eerie as years pass without any change. Ultimately, the mystery is preserved, and who or what is actually underground is left to the imagination of each individual listener. In my opinion, no climax I could tack on there would trump that.
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Re: At The Hospice (We Keep Them Alive Reviews)

Post by jeff robertson »

Ross wrote: Fluxxum - you got me at the opening. I like this. Is that an anime voice near the end? This seems like a very successful execution of your idea - and for that reason I may have to vote for it! Ever since “After the Gold Rush” and “’39” I have loved Sci-fi folk songs.
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Re: At The Hospice (We Keep Them Alive Reviews)

Post by jast »

Ross wrote:jast - [...] What kind of vocal mic do you use? [...] From the point of Guardian Angels?
To the first: a large diaphragm studio mic. More precisely, a Studio Projects B1. I love it, even if it does sound a bit too bright. I have two other mics but I haven't really used those in a fairly long time.
To the second: that's not what I thought of while I was writing the lyrics but it sort of ended up a bit like that. My personal take on it is a bit more abstract.

Thanks for everyone else's comments, too. Regarding the feedback about vocals: the "held back" thing makes a lot of sense. Interestingly, I mainly get that while I'm trying to record stuff. It's on my list of things to change.
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Re: At The Hospice (We Keep Them Alive Reviews)

Post by mailbox »

Is this about prison?
Ross, I hadn't thought about this as being about prison but I can see what you mean. My lyric is about our own inner-demons that we keep alive for no good reason. Each verse mentions one or two.
Verse 1: "your doubts do your breathing"
Verse 2: Our angels and devils
verse 3: "two fears: the dark and tears" - fear of the unknown and fear of failure.

The full lyric is in the Lyric Archive board.
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Re: At The Hospice (We Keep Them Alive Reviews)

Post by inevitableguy »

Ross wrote: naked - long intro - about pot
Yes and yes. I kind of figured that a song about pot needed a long intro, otherwise no one would really believe that it was about pot.

I am glad that someone mentioned it. From reading earlier reviews, I was beginning to suspect that no one was getting the point...and when I wrote it, I wondered if I was being too painfully obvious.
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Re: At The Hospice (We Keep Them Alive Reviews)

Post by JonPorobil »

Man, I've been a real slouch about reviews these last few weeks. I apologize about that. Haven't even finished listening to the fight yet (I usually listen in the car, but my tape adapter broke), but I know I'm voting for Bread Skeletons, Jan Krueger, and Max the Cat. I mean... whoa.

Also... was Jizzazz actually Mark? If so, I'm very impressed.
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Re: At The Hospice (We Keep Them Alive Reviews)

Post by Ross »

jeff robertson wrote:
Ross wrote: Fluxxum - you got me at the opening. I like this. Is that an anime voice near the end? This seems like a very successful execution of your idea - and for that reason I may have to vote for it! Ever since “After the Gold Rush” and “’39” I have loved Sci-fi folk songs.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ty-1zWsXFNs
Oh, man. I used to LOVE Star Blazers - awesome theme song on that!!!!!
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Re: At The Hospice (We Keep Them Alive Reviews)

Post by Ross »

inevitableguy wrote: I kind of figured that a song about pot needed a long intro, otherwise no one would really believe that it was about pot.
Excellent point.
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Re: At The Hospice (We Keep Them Alive Reviews)

Post by JonPorobil »

Ross, did you just get antsy after doing a whole album full of solo acoustic songs based on a single Dylan tune?

My final vote list is Bread Skeletons, Jan Krueger, Max the Cat, Todd McHatton, and Who Fly.

Some songs haven't gotten a listen yet, and that's not fair, but that's also just how it works. I probably won't get around to them before the voting deadline. Sorry.
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Re: At The Hospice (We Keep Them Alive Reviews)

Post by TheTungstenSheik »

I, too, have some reservations about sharing my opinions here, but as much time as I spend wondering what people think of my pieces when I do submit, I figured any reasonably constructive opinion is worth throwing out there. Plus, people seem to like my reviews better than my actual songs anyway. I realize these are late, so maybe no one cares anymore, but I wrote them out a few days ago and forgot to post them, so here they are, for anyone who wants to know what I think.

Berkeley Social Scene - Vocals sound a little muddy. I'm maybe a little biased against modern references, but that "Obama, God or Jesus" line kind of grates. Competently performed; I know some people who would listen to this. Not me, though.

Binary Red - Ooh, yeah! I am totally ready for my 1983 love scene or montage to happen now. Is it that feeling that you're keeping alive? Because I like it. I like it a lot. Right about halfway through, your synchronization stumbles; I can't tell if it's intentional or not, but it breaks up the delicious groove you had going.

Bread Skeletons - Very chipper. The vocals are spritely, kind of a Peter Pan meets They Might Be Giants thing going, which is cool. It's a little more upbeat than the kind of thing I usually listen to, but I definitely like it. Well done all around.

deetak - This is very amusing. I can't quite tell if it's supposed to be silly, but if so, nice job. I probably say this too much, because I suspect it's the kind of thing people already know, but this is another song that I think would really benefit from some higher-fidelity recording of the vocals.

Enter It in the Art Show - I... Huh. I don't get the impression that SF gets a lot of metal entries, so kudos for tackling it. You've got a good beat going, but as short as the piece is, it doesn't quite develop the way you hope a good metal epic will. To the singer, I wouldn't bank too heavily on a career in screaming.

Flvxxvm Florvm - I kind of like the driving synthesized beat combined with the guitar and bass, which are both competently executed. It comes across a little homogenous, though, and I have to be honest, the vocals sound like you're still recovering from a blow to the head.

The Hell Yeahs - The performance sounds a little loose, but I like it compositionally. Good old-fashioned rockin'. I guess old-fashioned is sort of a relative term, but it's easily relatable, is what I'm saying.

Howl Down the Chimney - Mmm, this is nice. I like the oscillation between floaty, ethereal sounds and solid grooves. Cool concept, too; I like the story here. If I didn't like this so much, I could maybe think of more useful things to say about it.

IndiAdam Jones - Honestly, I'm just not feeling it. The drum and bass are cool, but the guitar doesn't quite feel like it fits, and the vocals are pretty dead. Keanu Reeves style, you know what I'm saying?

Jan Krüger - It takes some serious brass to go a capella, and I think you pulled it off well here. I mentioned it in my review of your song last week, and it's true of this one too - I love your maths. The way you use meter is very appealing.

Jizzazz 5:30AM - I do not care for your lyrics. They strike me as a little obvious, a little - and I hate to use the word, but at the moment it's what comes to me - cliché. The music is pretty good, though, and you perform it well. It's not a stand-out, but I probably wouldn't get up to change the station.

Jon Eric feat. Steve Durand - I can't call it bad, because it isn't, but truthfully, this song made me laugh, and not for the kindest of reasons. It's just... Believe me when I say that I understand the irony of my making this assertion, but this song is really dorky. Which, I guess, is respectable in its own right, but I would still probably slap a "SPAZ" sign on you when you weren't looking.

Mailbox - Was this song in a car commercial, or was that a different song that sounded exactly like it, but better? Actually, I like the instrumental bridge, but pretty much the rest of the song around it, I could do without.

Manhattan Glutton - WAM WAM WAKKA WAKKA WAM WAM WAKKA WAKKA James Hetfield's PG-rated side band! (this is an okay thing, I am not bashing you)

Max the Cat - At this moment, as I speak, a stoned philosophy major is having his mind FUCKING BLOWN. This is pretty cool stuff, but boy, I'd really have to be somewhere else to enjoy it properly.

Naked Philosophy - Huh. This actually goes pretty well with Max the Cat's entry. It must be a good week to be a stoned philosophy major. I like the instrumental half, it's got kind of a Pink Floyd vibe going, but the latter half doesn't feel like it quite matches, and it's totally killing my buzz.

Nigel Clements - This calls to mind a scruffy gentleman marching in military lockstep with himself back and forth between the walls of his studio apartment, where he writes his column for the weekly socialist newsletter and has conversations with his bowel movements.

Paco del Stinko - This is pretty cool. Those vocal jumps are ambitious, and I'm guessing you could clean them up with some more time to rehearse, which would really kick it up a notch. I still like it the way it is, though. I haven't been around for very long, but I must say the sound isn't quite what I expected from you, which I also admire.

PiGPEN - I like the instrumentals a lot - that lead synth voice you're using is delicious. The vocals, though, I would honestly trade out for maybe a synth solo or something. I don't know what it is exactly, they just don't work for me.

Quoonsryche feat. Anaconda Hans - I know what you mean. My cat is the worst paperweight I ever bought.

Ramen-Flavored ROMS - I can't understand the lyrics in the song at all, so I looked them up on the Lyrics Archive, which is good, because they're pretty much awesome. I like the idea of your song a whole lot, and I dig the music, but in the future, I would maybe back off of the vocal distortion a little.

Ross Durand - Whoa, another instance of my expectations being totally wrong. I'm not sure the lyric structure matches the funkadocious machine voice, but I like both individually, so I'm pretty sure it's all right. Yeah, I dig this. I would do the robot to this. Mmm. This might be my favorite song of yours to date.

Sheail - Oho, I see what you did there. Clever. I like the concept. This reminds me a lot of Hive, which is a good thing, from where I sit. I wish it were longer - like maybe, right after where the end is now, you could go into a wicked complicated break, then bring it back, I don't know. Good stuff.

The Sky Looks Pissed - Your vocals are out of tune and out of sync, and the harmonica is just... just don't do that with a harmonica. The other instruments are passable, but bland.

SomeGuyCalledNoel - That's some purty pluckin', sir. My hat goes off to ye. I'd have brought the vocals up in the mix just a bit, but I totally dig the old-timey feel here. The harmonies work well.

Steve Durand - Hah! This is, I think, one of my favorite concepts of this fight. Good stuff, man. There aren't nearly enough songs about slavery practices of the 17th century.

Swilington - Nice and mellow. 1980s techno-chic, tastefully rendered. I approve. Kind of reminds me of ELO.

Todd McHatton - An interesting musical melange. I don't know if I'd like it based on any one part of it alone, but the way you mix it up works pretty well.

Turkey and Giblets Dinner - Yes yes. I do like this. I don't know what to call this kind of thing, but it's a kind of thing I enjoy. My primary suggestion would be to include an occasional flourish in the background sounds there, just to break it up a little.

The Weakest Suit - You may keep them alive, sir, but not, I suspect, awake.

Who Fly - This has a kind of jaunty, suppressed menace that reminds me of the Deftones. You lose a bit that in the chorus, though. It starts to stagnate a little toward the end. Still, I like it.
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Re: At The Hospice (We Keep Them Alive Reviews)

Post by JonPorobil »

Tungsten Sheik, I really don't like your music, but your reviews are awesome. Please do them more often. :D
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Re: At The Hospice (We Keep Them Alive Reviews)

Post by jast »

TheTungstenSheik wrote:I realize these are late, so maybe no one cares anymore
I always care. Thanks!
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Re: At The Hospice (We Keep Them Alive Reviews)

Post by TheTungstenSheik »

Generic wrote:Tungsten Sheik, I really don't like your music, but your reviews are awesome. Please do them more often. :D
Well, as long as I'm doing something right, I suppose. I MEAN UH DONT CENSOR ME FASCIST WATEVER LULZ
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Re: At The Hospice (We Keep Them Alive Reviews)

Post by inevitableguy »

TheTungstenSheik wrote:I realize these are late, so maybe no one cares anymore, but I wrote them out a few days ago and forgot to post them, so here they are, for anyone who wants to know what I think.
Late reviews are OK, we still care.

Is it just me, or were there fewer reviews than normal on this fight?
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Post by saunter »

__________
Last edited by saunter on Tue Nov 21, 2023 9:42 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: At The Hospice (We Keep Them Alive Reviews)

Post by JonPorobil »

Enter It In The Art Show wrote:...I'd just like feel a mutual sense of respect. In regards to what I (and many MANY others) have produced that hasn't been "up to par", it's not very fun to be shot down relentlessly, just because it may not fit the mold. Maybe you're bitter and jaded because YOUR music doesn't receive the accolade you feel it deserves, I don't know, but that is also wrong.

...

Anyway, I think ANYbody who lacks the "proper" musical, songwriting, or production skill shouldn't have to endure a battering at every hand just because they don't fit the desired songfight! criteria.

... limiting yourself to making and enjoying only one or two musical styles is pretty closed-minded. Homemade hardcore is just as much a viable form of musical and artistic expression as hip-hop, Tuvan throat-singing, polyrhythmic industrial/trance/house/trip-hop, atonal pot scraping, spoken word slam poetry, guy-and-guitar, sitar-and-tabla-driven chants, electrogarbage, and whatever else people want to unleash on this community. AND, they should be welcome to do so!
I've liked songs of yours before, and even voted for them, so I can't help but feel a little offended that you think the only reason people didn't like your song was because it was "different."

I've been hearing that argument a lot these past couple of weeks, and it reeks of the Straw Man fallacy. I didn't like your "We Keep Them Alive," and as Songfight is a weekly competition, and whereas reviewing has been an integral part of this site since long before you or I got here, I shouldn't be made to feel ashamed to express a distaste for a song.

By brushing off criticisms like this and assuming that the reviewers hated you just because you're "different" or "don't fit the mold," and assuming that the reviewers are just projecting their own frustrations onto you, you shut out potentially valid criticisms. Surely you don't think your song is perfect, or should have won? It has nothing to do with genre, or the fact that it's "different." I voted for Max the Cat this week; how populist does that make me?

The fact is, EiitAS, your song last week had lyrics composed of two lines of lyrics repeated over and over again. It hinted at some kind of story, but never developed them, so questions like who the "we" is, and what kinds of "old habits" you're talking about. Should you be surprised that some people think this needed to be fleshed out? The song is mercifully short, but it never goes anywhere. When people listen to a minute-and-a-half long song that doesn't explain questions like these or go anywhere, they often feel like they've wasted a minute and a half. I wouldn't go that far, but I certainly don't think your "We Keep Them Alive" is a good song.

Contrast to your "Walking the Border," which I voted for. The snare-drum tattoo ties into your lyrical theme, which is clear. You engage in some clever wordplay, staying in what feels like an organic spoken-word monologue, but you're actually paying close attention to the rhythm. Repeated listens reveal that you never actually stray off the beat, even while sounding like you're just talking. The "How'd you like to live here?" refrain builds the urgency and draws the listener in. The almost-melodic rise in your voice on the word "Roast-ED" sounds like a cadence leader, again bringing us back to the theme, and then after one more refrain, we hear the cadence chant, which seals in the scene as we fade out.

I voted for "Walking the Border" because I loved it. I didn't vote for "We Keep Them Alive" because I didn't like it. Is one opinion more valid than the other? Should I not tell you if your song is less than superlative in a particular week? That's an awkward position to put reviewers in, you know.
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Re: At The Hospice (We Keep Them Alive Reviews)

Post by jast »

Enter It In The Art Show wrote:*Side-note, addressed to all: [...]
I have two thoughts about that. Number one: yes, constructive reviews are a good thing. Number two: I don't think you're doing yourself a favour if you totally ignore (or don't want to hear) the subjective opinions of fellow Songfighters. Music is nothing if not subjective. It's not the music that's alive by itself, it turns alive in the heads of the people listening to it. If I suppress that aspect in a review, it's a dead review. I don't like writing dead things.
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