Hear ye! Hear ye! Ring Them Bells Reviews

[ken]

Ring my bell, ring a ding a ding.

[Generic]

Haven't listened to them all yet, but Boltoph is really amazing, and Signboy deserves major props for making a halfway decent song out of a Rone Rivendale collab.

[Paco Del Stinko]

Well, I listened to the entire fight and there's some really strong stuff in there. I thought this was going to be HUGE, but the strong songs provide the quality over quantity. Reviews later, but the always welcome Boltoph is great, as is the dark return of Luke, BSS is infectious, and Pann Cotta are the immediate standouts. Fear not, fellow travelors, your's is most likely good as well. Mine...eh.

[Authors Of]

I heard Signboy's SONG featuring Rone Rivendale. The guitar is really tight. I love the cheering in the background. Rone and Signboy work well together in a strange way. Rone Rivendale's singing is alllll over the map. I find it works and it doesn't really work. I think it's cool but it's hard for me to groove to it. (Sorry I had to say that word.)

[kemmrich]

I think I heard at least 4 or 5 that sounded very creative and worthy of a vote immediately. But I still need to find a time to listen to all the songs 100%. I was immediately impressed that one group really worked on their volume levels for this challenge.

Kevin

[Ross]

I was reminded of the old days of multiple titles when I'd log in when the songs were posted to see who had chosen the same title as me, since that often effected one's chances of victory. I would always be like, "Crap, Boltoph chose the same title, oh well."

Nice to see your name on the list - I look forward to hearing the tunes.

[Rone Rivendale]

lol Ross, I was the way with the multiple titles. Only if it was Melvin in the same fight as me I'd know I was screwed.

[Authors Of]

Hi folks! I managed to put some time in to give a few critiques. I'll try not to be too strict.

Paco Del Stinko: Nice retro sound that reminds me of Johnny Cash. Can't go wrong.
A little tongue in cheek with a bit of a sense of humor but it's well done. It's what i don't
hear, but when I listen I can hear the complexity. Good inspiration for musicians.

Naked Philosophy: I find the vocals a little quiet. I wish there was more emphasis on the vocals
I can hear backup vocals there, and I wish they were more pronounced. I like the
heavy-ness about this song and I wish it was a little more aggressive. Maybe it's
a challenge getting that sound 'cause I know you want it too. The light melody on the guitar
when no other instruments are playing is kindda boring.

MC Milk Plus: What a combination! It sounds like Swamp Rock and Hip Hop. With an English
accent? I like how it breaks into a chorus. Melodic. There's a hook. Wow. This gets a vote.

The Weakest Suit: Nice tone on the guitar. I wish the vocals were a little louder up front.
Great sound, great vocals and I can tap my foot. Vote.

Berkley Social Scene: Nice polished sound. Nice chick singer. great. Vote.

Cville Ramblings: Wish the drums were louder. This song has that old tyme sound to it.
I don't mind the vocal style in that aspect. I wish the backup vocals were more pronounced
to liven up the vocals that way. The music parts of this song are all great.

Luke Henley: Not bad at all. Very simple song with minimal instruments. I wish the backup
vocals were tighter with the lead vocals, so each word is spoken at precisely the same time.
Perhaps your style wanted to have them slurred a little bit? Not sure.

Ross Durand: Always loved your guitar playing. Nice vocals. I love that lead riff during the
verses. Actually, I'd make one comment about when your voice lifts off before the solo. I wish
you tried a little harder to hit that high note. That would just bring this over the top.

[glennny]

Authors Of- this recording is sure quiet. It’s rather enjoyable actually. Nice to hear some violins. The melodies aren’t strong enough to be very memorable. It’s great background music. I like the mellow Fairport Convention of it all.

Boltoph- The haunting beginning is very ominous and cool, but I don’t get how it relates. Man your voice is really good! The guitar playing is perfect. Harmonies are excellent too. I have to say I’m not a fan of the lyrics. As long as I ignore the lyrics I love this song. So much that it does get a vote from me. Great sense of space and dynamics! Vote.

Cain- Cain reminds me of Can. This is pretty cool. That riff is good, but perhaps too heavily relied upon. A lot of the tracks sound too hot. I’m getting icky crackle, which is a bit distracting. The structure is odd also. The end with the musical solo section followed by a bridge then done is odd. I think a final return to the chorus would’ve strengthened this. Good stuff, short of a vote I’m afraid.

Cville Ramblings- Wilco! The organ is tasty. Your chorus is not very catchy. The verse is excellent; I was anticipating a killer chorus. Sax solo!!!! Maybe I’ll vote for the fact you have a sax solo. This is very cool. I wish the chorus and the lyrics were more clever. I really enjoyed this, but I end up very disappointed with the chorus. Band is great, major props for the Organ and Sax. Write a hook!

Doscientos- Thank you for not breaking my ear drums this time. Why not take a couple more takes at the vocals where hopefully you can hit those notes and not be so pitchy? The organ line as a guide vocal only exacerbates the pitch issue. This is not a bad song. It makes me want to hear the Velvet Underground take it on. I really miss drums on this.

Luke Henley- What is that incredible amount of hiss? The nearly subsonic bass is alright., albeit one note in a Runnin’ with the devil bass line. The vocals are fantastic! The harmonies are great too! This is perhaps too long. I wish it was just pure a capella . I think the hiss and the bass are more distracting than helpful.

MC Milk Plus- This is fantastic! I generally hate rap, but I really like this. The production is right on! The jazz flute is great! That’s a huge beat! Slide guitar is super tasty! The rapping has excellent flow. This is so good , I must seek your back catalog. This is the way to do rap. The music stays interesting and super tight throughout the song. Nice melodic chorus! Keeper, Download, Winner? BIG VOTE!

Naked Philosophy- That main lick is silly. This is so Spinal Tap, full with the blick’m blick’m blick’m tom fills. This is very melodramatic for a reason I can’t place. Your melodies sure have a lot of bends down, at the end of a phrase. Not bad, but I can’t really get into it.

Paco del Stinko- I didn’t believe this was you at 1st. Upon further listens I was sure it was you. It’s like Johnny Cash with the California Guitar Trio backing him up, busting out awesome licks and guitar harmonies in very tasty places. Very tasty solo! I think I wish there was bass and drums. It’s very campfire . I love it! VOTE.

Panna Cotta Army- This reminds of the Triplets of Bellville. The instrumentation is fantastic! The double bass sounds great. Excellent vocals and harmonies. I do wish the drums were more variant. The one beat is good, but it’s the whole song. Kazoos! Ukes! Yeah this is a keeper, a download, and a vote recipient.

Geoff Hooper- Drama. Rain and actual ringing bells. Very nice to hear the trumpet. Piano is nice. The drum machine lacks variation, and gets a little annoying. Vocals sounds like you’re unsure of yourself. This is an OK listen, the horn is the best part!

Ross Durand- You’re in your element here. Did I miss the Johnny Cash memo you and paco got? The bass is great. Is that a fretless? Sure sounds like one. This is very well produced. Mix is great. Your dynamics are excellent too. I don’t know what this is about, but I really like this song. Vote!

Signboy Featuring Rone Rivendale- Big heavy Signboy riffage! The vocals don’t really work for me. Neither the verse or chorus works. I think I like the Signboy parts, and the Rone shines through as stuff I just don’t get. Cool riffs, can’t get into it.

The Weakest Suit- Another case of a promising verse with a weak chorus. I like the raw rawk of this. I think your vocals could be louder. Doesn’t grab me as much as some of your other stuff. But it’s alright.

The Berkeley Social Scene- Our entry this week. We started a blog about the process. I didn’t add to it like I should have. This was a double Tuesday fight. The 1st night Lunkhead took the lead. “the song will only be in 4/4”, “the song will be in one key, well maybe a major minor thing”. Coming off of “Made to be Played” where my bandmates were subjugated to my progressive tendencies, I acquiesced to Pop. The live band was ken on drums and Glock, Lunk and Glen on Guitars, Steve on bass. We had a structure very similar to the final product on that live jam, but I think it got slightly rearranged. I was a bit afraid the bridge riff I came up with was a little too Siberian Katru. We distributed the instrumental jams and then we all began pitching ideas for vocals and lyrics. Both mine and Martyrs ideas were shot down. Erin was working secretly on lyrics and melodies. I didn’t hear her stuff until the night before. I was blown away. She’s sooo damn good! Another bad idea I had was to do a rapid syllabic bridge thing. I thought it was funny. I imagined “I am the very model of a modern major general” but it came off as bad rap, with no laughs. Nobody says “that sucks” in the BSS, there’s just a lack of “that’s great!” that’s when you know it sucks. Anyway, the end result is Pop gold. The ending is the only sort of left turn we take, and is my favorite part.

All good songs! Nothing Sucked! The above and beyond that grab my votes are:

Boltoph
MC Milk Plus
Paco del Stinko
Panna Cotta Army
Ross Durand
And Berkeley Social Scene

[boltoph]

Hey ya'll, how's it going?

Here'r some thoughts I typed up for ya, to let you know I was listening and all. Last time I was in a Songfight, I swore I'd do reviews, but never delivered. Wanted to make sure I got these in, this time.

authors of
Kind of out of tune, intro's a bit long but the violins are pleasant in a quaint way. Tough to see how this relates to "Ring Them Bells" but I was in Portland Maine a few weeks ago and this music would do perfectly while putting on a nice buzz at one of those wraught-iron / brick alley pubs that they have there right on the harbor.

Berkeley Social Scene
Nice tight and rockin. One thing I always hear with you guys is that bass and always drums sound like they're produced "vintage" style, like Beatles style, but the guitars and vox sound big and 2000-ish. (if that makes any sense). Anyway it's a cool signature thing that I feel about you guys' sound. I like the first bridge although I thought you could have doubled the length of each chord change, since a couple at the end are sort of unexpected, staying on them a little longer would help feel that tonality more, give me time to bite onto it (I speak of the bridge, only, with that last comment). The stop/breakdown 3/4 the way through with the bells, the ending is sweet, like Portishead sweet. The ending is definitely my favorite part.

cain
I like the bare guitar and wanton beat. Needs a fat bass. The chorus vocal and instruments don't fit together well though, and that lead guitar on the right could be doing some chords instead of those high notes. The reverse swells and reverse guitar parts, too.

Cville Ramblings
Aw yeah. This is rockin. Ring them. Damn right, driving me crazy. Needs chick vocal. And halfway through the verses, the vocal sounds like it wants to move to something higher. I think a changing vocal line halfway through the verse would spice it up a bit. Even though it's already pretty spicy what with those horns and such. In a room with a bunch of musicians you've never met, this song would be so doable and so much fun. Keepin' it simple, and gritty. I dig that.

Doscientos
Sounds interesting somewhere halfway through the verses. Halfway through the verse is my favorite part of songs, in general. I think if you had some drums on this, you might then want to re-record with the bass following the drums in tighter fashion, but I think without drums this would benefit from a more legato bass, like hitting the notes less times. I think the song would feel better with a clean legato bass, and a single acoustic or clean(er) electric guitar with a tiny bit of organ on top. I like when you sing the "happy now..." line, the last time.

Luke Henley
I really like where this is going right off the start with that low organ pedal, all bassy and smooth. This sounds like an Indian death chant and it's the death bells, bring them home. I like that chorus too, it's so familiar sounding, it's a hook. Nice lyrics. I would like to hear a wooden flute-type instrument, low and dark like what would do moonless night, justice. Would also sound real damn good with Johnny Cash circa 1968 and his band playing it.

MC Milk-Plus
Wanted to hear that "we're on a road trip" melody repeated more often, but it's jammin. Wanted more chorus, longer chorus action. Some nice hooks in there and a nice kicking bass drum.

Naked Philosophy
Ring the lunch bell. I like when it gets heavy and the vocal reminds me of System of a Down. It's like SoD meets Pixies and I like that about it. Lots of room in the choruses to be made into a stunningly dark and brooding metal-fest.

Paco del Stinko
Reminds me of Ween right off the bat, I love the little guitar fills in the verses. Maybe it's the slapstick vocal that makes me think of Ween. I really dig the choruses, and the clean acoustic guitar throughout, nice punch and ring on the low notes. I'd rather hear a warmer vocal with less reverb and a slightly more-lo-cut tube pre run semi-hot. The "ring them bells" after "gel" is so Johnny Cash-ish, love it.

Panna Cotta Army
Really nice vintage tones and style, I like the intricacies of the solo section and that hyper piano part. Nice work on the drum production too. Very nice all around vibe and performance and I really just dig the feel of this, the 1-2 thump of that bass with the original drum kit and then the samples or enhanced drum kit. And the vocal is well developed and fun.

Rosemary Leonard Art Studio
Very interesting variation for the first quarter of the song. I like the sound of the thunder and rain but can't help thinking bells would be more fitting. All sorts of weird bells, interrupted here or there by a bit of vocal and trumpet. Cool piano line and ending. Reminds me of feet crunching on snow.

Ross Durand
I really like the song, how it turns at the end of each verse phrase. While I totally understand the Scarlet Begonias reference, hearing that line every time is a little much for me. I think that there are always new words and phrases waiting, to describe a woman so why 'rings on her fingers and bells on her toes' so many times, that's all I'd say. My only gripe is the number of times you sang that line. The ending is really sweet. That hook line is fantastic.

Signboy Feat. Rone Rivendale
It's like 311 on acid. Seriously, the metal jamming and erratic vocal and especially the bits of what sounds like harmony vocals. Should've tightened up that vocal rhythm, and more harmony vocals. Make the choruses more distinguished from the verses. I like when you move up on that last line before the break halfway through. Those guitars are badass.

The Weakest Suit
Oh yeah Pixies all the way. Ring 'em. Nice ending to the songfight, too. Could use another chord section beyond the one that keeps repeating. And some jingle bell samples.

Boltoph- The haunting beginning is very ominous and cool, but I don’t get how it relates.

Yo glennny, the intro haunting is ghosts, it's a church choir, it's a cold breeze in a graveyard, that sort of thing. I was inspired to write this after being at a funeral last week. Life always ends the same for everyone. I thought about dying, then I thought about what it'd be like: "one last look, half a thought, etc". Ring them bells proud and loud means "take it (life and death) like a man" or something like that. Funeral bells, ring them loud, proud. It was way too slow though, I should have sped it up at least ten bpm.

[Authors Of]

Kind of out of tune, intro's a bit long but the violins are pleasant in a quaint way. Tough to see how this relates to "Ring Them Bells" but I was in Portland Maine a few weeks ago and this music would do perfectly while putting on a nice buzz at one of those wraught-iron / brick alley pubs that they have there right on the harbor.

Yeah it is pretty quiet isn't it? I found my speakers at home were giving it a different sound than my computer speakers at work. As for being out of tune, I find with the violins it's hard to get the fingering exactly right and in that split second you have to make tiny adjustments with vibrato to get the pitch just right. I found as the song goes on it builds in intensity, the violin playing, I mean.

To answer your other question, "I don't see how this relates to Ring Them Bells," I was trying something bold. I deliberately didn't add vocals this time to raise controversy. Also, some people said in last week's comments, "Could do without the vocals." So what happens when you have a song without vocals?

I'm going to answer the question by saying, "When you listen to the song, perhaps in your imagination you can see bells ringing."

[signboy]

Oh my. How bold of you. You're just like a zesty steak sauce, aren't you?

[kemmrich]

Lots of good ones for this challenge.

Kevin

************************************************************************************************************************

Authors Of: My first impression is that one of the guitars (right one?) is out of tune at the very beginning. When the violins kick in it doesn't sound as noticeable to me. Nice instrumental. Didn't remind me of bells at all, but pretty good little composition. That part at 2:37 was pretty cool.

The Berkeley Social Scene: The drumming opening was cool as was the guitar licks. I wanted to vote as soon as I heard the first note from the singer. Good story, overall just a great song and very well performed. I am not sure about the change up at 1:58, it didn't seem to fit the mood you had going. -- but I still sort of enjoyed it. The change at 3:13 made a lot of sense. VOTE

Boltoph: Pretty cool tune, well crafted and I am enjoying the vocals. If I am going to hang out here, I am really going to have to up my game a bit. This composition is great and the lyrics are quite interesting, too. VOTE

Cain: The guitar riffing on the right side in the beginning seemed a trifle "out" in some way. Dang, this is close to being really good, but something seems a little out of whack to me. Still pretty cool, though. Nice "industrial" type jam to end it all out (hmmm, more vocals, too).

Cville Ramblings: This is me. Straight forward rock and roll song about a cat. Nothing to get too excited about. I appreciate the few reviews I've gotten -- gives me stuff to think about for the next one.

Doscientos: Wow! You really worked hard on bringing your volume under control -- major props for that! Reminds me of some european pop groups from the 70's. Major improvement based on the first two tunes I heard.

Luke Henley: Interesting approach, lots of promise here. You are really going for that old-timey a capella style that would be better served by percussion and not the bass plunking along. Found it interesting, but the bass detracted from the experience for me. Vocally it was really, really good.

MC Milk Plus: By the intro, I thought we were going to go "little feat". In fact, maybe this is what Lowell George would be doing if had been born later. Excellent groove and the vocals seemed to be right on. This is pretty fantastic. I saw the lyrics and I though to myself, that's a lot of words. But it all works. It did seem a trifle long to me, though. VOTE

Naked Philosophy: Not my kind of thing, but I hung out and listened to the whole thing. I can appreciate what you are doing here. Nothing stood out as being wrong or anything. You might have overplayed that acoustic riff, maybe.

Paco del Stinko: Loved the simple instrumentation and the story was pretty good. Vocals worked here, too. I likes the way you added more guitars as you went along, but putting in other instruments (bass, percussion, harmonica, kazoo,...) might have made it even better. A lot to like here.

Panna Cotta Army: Loving all the instrumental parts , lots of stuff going on (is that a kazoo, too -- ha, ha). Percussion is cool, too. Pretty inventive and interesting. I think I've got to cast a vote on this one, just because. Vocals were fine also. VOTE

Geoff Hooper: OK, I don't see a Geoff Hooper in the list, I wonder what band this is? I guess I could do a process of elimination, but that's too much work. Waited a long time to start the vocals, instrumentation was cool, though. The "trumpet" part sounded pretty good.

Ross Durand: Another solid performance with pretty good recording quality. The overall story didn't capture me too much, but that's OK. Pretty good stuff.

Signboy Featuring Rone Rivendale: Pretty standard heavy metal thing (that's OK, I just did a standard rock type tune). I don't think the singing matched up to the music too well. I had to cut this one short.

The Weakest Suit: Garage band doing early punk type stuff, pretty interesting. Not a big fan of this style, sorry about that, but personal taste does get in the way some times.

[Ross]

Mc Milk plus - cool intro - excellent backing tracks and nice variety to your rapping cadences - especially getting into and out of the chorus. All that having been said, I still have not developed the ability to really stay interested in rap based songs. Oh and you actually kinda lose me right at the end there. Unsure about a vote here. Very well done - I’m not likely to listen again for pleasure. hmm

Cville Ramblings - wow - thick country groove. The chorus is kinda catchy but a bit mixed metaphor-ish. Are there literal bells here? I don’t think so. hmm. I also think the middle solo section is problematic from a structural point of view. Sounds better than it is. Would be good in a bar - dancing - but on a close listen, I felt it fell a little short lyrically (but wait till you hear mine )

BSS - hmm I guess my first two thoughts are - catchy track - but not all that interested in the song content. Kinda sounds made for video. A touch of Cville Ramblings’ country stylings could probably get this on CMT oh, then it gets a little ethereal feeling in the middle - what’s that about? Nice melody - and some neat sonic moments. Another one where I think I will have to think about the vote a bit - seems successful at what it set out to do. I wonder what happens at the end of the dream sequence

Paco - neat little ditty - not wild about some of your rhymes and phrasing. The arrangement and playing are excellent. Interesting little story I guess. not exactly sure what the bells have to do with it - Celebratory pealing in the middle verse?

Doscientos - this is an interesting idea for a song. Something really stilted about both the composition and delivery getting in the way of the song idea, although I think the lyrical structure is part of the stilting I am hearing. Lots of neat little hints in here of where it could go, though.

cain - I like this. Cool grooving that fits the words well, and the chorus pumps it up well. Interesting instrumental section. Nice job.

Luke Henley - I wish there was more lyrical glue. Part “Oh Death,” part “Sympathy for the Devil?” nice convincing performance for the most part, although there are times when I wished the two voices lined up a bit better - I assume you were going for a more spontaneous “Live” feel, but I think the other approach could have effectively pumped some moments up as well. Really like the opening “arctic foxes” line.

Authors of - I think I kind of get where you are going here - a little long for what it is. I like the chord changes in the middle part. Might just as easily been called “my lover waits for me” or some such thing - title connection can be a challenge with instrumentals.

Signboy and Rone - Excellent intro - the audience sounds are fun. I would have no idea what the words are without the lyric posting. Did the singer lay this down to a preliminary track? How do you not lock into this groove? Interesting sort of techno breakdown is a nice distraction if a bit long.

Panna Cotta Army - a little old fashion feeling here. Are you a regular? Something about your voice sounds familiar. Great orchestration - a touch of Spike Jones in places. Nicely put together in every way, but still unsure how the bells cause this behavior. Even so, vote here for sure.

Boltoph - sounds wilco-ish to me in a good way. very interesting. a good listen - very well put together from both a writing and recording point of view. nice to hear you here again.

Rosemary Leonard Art Studio - This really takes quite awhile to get going. Wow - I have to mention that after the grandiose opening - your voice is a little underwhelming. Also for all the arrangement the two verses and chorus are not very compelling.

Naked Philosophy - these lyrics are one notch too ambiguous for me. nothing grabbing me. In that context the big production and crescendos end up sounding sort of pretentious to me.

Clubs - hmm a song about masturbation - not as funny or clever as the Chuck Berry one you invoke. A nice driving punk - is that sound heavy breathing? That seems a little tacky. Turned on by the carol of the bells? ehhh.

[inevitableguy]

Pretty strong fight. As usual, mostly unhelpful, highly subjective reviews. Songs listened to randomly, reviews alphabetized for your inconvenience.

authors of - The guitar sound is kinda muddy. I'm not getting a "Ring Them Bells" vibe from this.

Berkeley Social Scene - This is pretty darn good - fantastic groove. I'm probably nit-picking a bit here, but I find the keyboards a little distracting and the outro goes on just a shade too long.

Boltoph - It starts off all evil and dark, and then it turned into something not as good.

cain - This needs a couple of ladies in slinky black dresses singing backup harmonies.

Cville Ramblings - This sounds familiar, but I can't place it. Not bad, but too generic-sounding for my tastes. The horn around 1:30 is a nice touch.

Doscientos - The rhythm of the vocals feels off in places. It needs something to break it up a little bit, too...maybe a bridge or a breakdown somewhere around 2:30 - 2:40?

Luke Henley - The vocals sound more and more comfortable as the song progresses. A think a bit more rehearsal time would have benefited this one greatly.

MC Milk Plus - Really well produced. I don't think the lyrics are good enough to pull it off though.

Paco del Stinko - Like most of your work, it's really nice to listen to, but it's more of a caricature of a song than a song.

Panna Cotta Army - A solid effort. It needs a little something to push it to the top, but I'm not sure what.

Rosemary Leonard Art Studio - Not sure what to say about this...

Ross Durand - I like your take on the title.

Signboy and Rone - The choppiness of the main riff and the overly-processed vocals are hard for me to get my head around. Not sure what I'd do different, though...

The Weakest Suit - I'm not a huge fan of the lyrics, but the melody is infectious. It rocks right along, ends at the right time. I like this.

As for my entry...this one was written really easily, but I had a hell of a time getting what I heard in my head down on tape. Reviews of it have been pretty spot on. I still like it; I think I should work on it some more when I've got the time. I also realized about halfway through the recording process that I should have kicked this up about 5 bpm or so.

[Paco Del Stinko]

Paco del Stinko - Like most of your work, it's really nice to listen to, but it's more of a caricature of a song than a song.

Ouch! Truth hurts. Well put, sir.

[HeuristicsInc]

Heh. An appropriate comment, but not necessarily a bad reflection on the music
I say, run with it!
-bill

[kemmrich]

Are there literal bells here? I don’t think so. hmm.

Ross,

LOL -- I guess you've never had a cat with bells on her collar. We have one! (You're not missing anything, though.)

Kevin

[oddbod]

Are you a regular?

Not regular by any means. I've entered 3 times before under my usual moniker 'oddbod', not for a while though. Just fancied a change of name

[Todd McHatton]

Hello everyone! Nice bunch of songs this week.
I am really enjoying:
Boltoph
MC Milk Plus
and Panna Cotta Army

[Paco Del Stinko]

authors of - I like where you go with this and your other entries as well. Organic and genuine feeling. I do, however, have to jump on the no lyrics bandwagon. It could be about anything and if I heard it minus title, I'd probably apply a nostalgic or minor conflict theme ti it. Regardless, there's plenty of melody within and it is a nice little journey. Keep'em coming.

Berkeley Social Scene - Hey! That's not a Charlie Watts fill! Great to hear Erin's return, sorry the gents had to drop the time-sig wiggles. But great result. Sweet and poppy without getting sicky sweet, its just right. Nice about this is while Erin steps up to the spotlight, she doesn't hog it, and you all come across as partners here, working together. The whole song is good, but as others have mentioned, the ending is sublime. What a cozy blanket of stars gently embracing.

Boltoph - Strong made stronger by the background info you provided to the song's inspiration. The pacing here is wonderful, and it straddles being a little heady with a nice earthy stroll. Evolving nicely as it goes without getting all crazy, it's like an epic that feels nowhere near long. Beautiful recording and what a nice snare sound as well. Beautiful work and contender for the win.

cain - The riff sounds like it was lifted from the guy I grew up playing guitar with's arsenal, so I latched to it right off. I like the dark and stark feel here, but it almost makes me feel a little nervous. Maybe 'cause it's a little cold feeling overall? I dunno. I like it, and the Frippish breakdown is strong and exciting. I am a bit put off by the too digital mood of it all, but that's a minor production nitpick after the fact of a strong song.

Cville Ramblings - I totally dig the Stones vibe that you both went for and obtained. Whiffs of classic era Stones abound and play homage more than rip-off. The vocal is the weakest part. While a good performance, and a pleasant voice, more sleaze or perhaps booze, would have sold this all the way. You couldn't copy Mick, but rather chase the devil down the same road. Great tune though, and would make a super all-star jam on stage somewhere. Thumbs up, Johnny!

Doscientos - I'm a little torn on this. I like the melody but feel it's a little stiff at times, yet it doesn't just repeat a simple blues phrase over and over or anything like that. I like the imagery from the lyrics and the theme is cute. Great bass tone along with the swirly keys and your voice compels me to listen, as it sounds like you're smiling the entire time and that maybe you're a little bit kooky. Hey, that's a good thing!

Luke Henley - The pulse is perfect here, nice and tense. The patient pace works great under the dark lyrics missing only the accompaniment of the rhythmic ping-clang of railroad spikes being hammered home or the crunch of an army's footfalls. Nice build, vocally, as it goes, and ebbing away. Simple and powerful. Nice return, here's to more.

MC Milk-Plus - Tastefully done, as always. Great lyrics, strong hooks, and almost boozy groove. Neat mix of Delta swamp feel with hip-hop. The lyrics are too cool and well done, accented nicely with the flute in the right places. It's long, but doesn't drag, the bridge a nice break. Contender for the win.

Naked Philosophy - I like this more as it goes. At first, it sounds too primitive, but that's actually its biggest strength. It makes me think of some post-punk band being all artsy-fartsy, and pulling it off. The mostly dry, sparse arrangement and mildly sinister lead vocal. I like the swell of the bridge and deconstruction afterwards. This is like a minor cousin to Luke Henley's song. Nice, maybe a little undercooked at the end.

Paco del Stinko - I wanted to do a Cash type song, but man, that's way harder than it may appear. Yeah, this was done in a hurry as well, but I'm glad I left out bass and drums.

Panna Cotta Army - Great tune. The finger snapping groove pulls you in right off the bat. No bullshit melodies with a slightly old-tymey feel, performed sweetly with just enough darkness to them. The musical accompaniment is perfect, and well balanced, changing up enough to keep fresh but not manic. The chorus sticks with you but doesn't annoy. I mentioned other songs as contenders, but this one should win this week as it I think it may be all around strongest of the fight. Great work!

Rosemary Leonard Art Studio - Walking to the funeral, it sounds like, until the singing starts. It goes from spooky to restrained jauntiness. I like it, and the warm horn calling out of the cold is nice. A goober like me would've made this into a miniature horror epic, so I can't help myself. The sound effects are nice and quite 3-D feeling. The beat could be simpler, I think. Neat ideas, a little jumbled.

Ross Durand - I couldn't have predicted where you'd go with this title, but this is totally you. I love this. Dark and mysterious, the sexy woman fitting into each listeners mind as they see fit, the bells on her are romantic in the legendary sense. All I wanna do is make them bells ring is a super insight into the narrators, and our, probable obsession. The twangy guitar implies a western setting, but replace with a mandolin, violin, whatever, and this could be eastern Europe, Syria, wherever. Classic, and should contend for the win.

Signboy Feat. Rone Rivendale - A very bold venture, this. And it rocks, to a point. Rone's voice all flat, sounds good in the verses but maybe dropped out of the chorus section would have punched harder. I don't like Linkin Park, but isn't that what they do? Rappish and moody narration followed by a more musical chorus? Would've helped here. The bridge is cool, and sounds almost video gameish. Rocking, but falling short overall.

The Weakest Suit - I like the skipping a chord feel of the progression and the Frank Black-like vocal. I like the lyrics and relate to the taking a pass mentality. The ending is premature and takes away from the overall impact, but what a tasty ride up to there. File under "I can't win with this crowd" but real drums would kill here. Ha! Don't get pissed, I'm jarshin' ya! Good little tune, underbaked at the end.

[boltoph]

Word! My favorite part of MC Milk's is about 3:14 to about 3:30 or so. That "Ring them bells" and the band drops out and the bells start up, is pretty damn sweet. Long hot summer...funky drummer...would you could you be...mama. Good shit yo.