Sanford and Songfight (Jalopy reviews)

[erik]

whu-whuh WANNA

[GlennCase]

whu-whuh WANNA WANNA whuh

[EightLeggedOedipus]

<b>Astrolamb</b>
--- Major timing issues. ---
+++ I actually dig this quakey singing. Very impassioned. Reminds me of Joy Division. Short +++

<b>Extra Credit</b>
+++ Bonus points for the psychotic trash assault +++
--- The track could have been perfect with a better bass tone and more crisp playing. That would have afforded you more leniency on the sloppy-everything-else ---
CONTENDER

<b>The Frontalittle Squad</b>
--- Forced and unmelodic chorus. ---
/// On par with most SF rap, but just not on par with most Frontalittle ///
+++ Bass guitar in the verses +++

<b>Smalltown Mike</b>
+++ oh I love the rhythm of the coda - it sounds like you'd rhyme the "word" on the last line, but instead it's the S. Brilliant. Good procustion overall. +++
/// Your singing is not very good, liek you can't really hold a note, but I'm totally into it anyway. ///

<b>Song Fight Orchestra</b>
/// Bizarre... need to listen a few more times. Later. As in ... Not now. ///

<b>Star Challenger</b>
--- Who's the newbie with the out-of-tune solo? ---
+++ And where'd he get this nice beat? One of four measures has this nice little syncopated hihat (crash?) +++

<b>Steve Durand</b>
+++ You are quite the brassman +++
/// I'd like to hear maybe something more jazzy, a little edgy from you, without any midi drums. ///

<b>Vapour Can Ideas</b>
+++ More gush about Caravan Ray... This track is about 90% Ray. I think I was supposed to arrange it, but I really liked most of it the way it was - disjointed and in your face. +++
--- There's a beat in the third movement that I tried to fix, but still just didn't work. Transitions should be adjusted to make it flow a little better from 1st to 2nd movement. ---

<b>Wayward Sway</b>
+++ It's a pretty sound. Good album closer +++
--- Ouch. The guitar solo has been diagnosed with suckage. Fadeout ---

[Smalltown Mike]

Astrolamb

This is a good song, but it needs way punchier drums. It sounds great when everything kicks in after a minute, but it needs to come in way tighter and kicking harder. I like how the two people in the car expand to four. It sounds like you could be a little close to the mic, too. The track has great potential, though

Extra Credit

I don’t like how buried the and obscured the vox are. I want to know what you’re saying. Good sudden stop intro to the chorus.

Frontalittle Squad

This really doesn’t really do anything for me. Sort of sounds like people rapping for the first time, and reading the lyrics as they go.

Songfight Orchestra

Lots and lots of weird sounds in my head. Not really one of my favourite Songfight Orchestra tunes. I do like the J.Lo Pie and other crazy pronunciations, though.

Star Challenger

That’s a pretty long drum loop intro, followed by a pretty long guitar and drum loop intro. Your voice sounds great when it comes in, though, and I love the lyrics. Really strong. It would be nice if the drum loop could kick it up to double time at the end.

Steve Durand

This is brilliant. Your horns save this, for sure, and your vocals really fit this type of music. I love the jalopy horn honk, too. Great work. Vote.

Vapour Can Ideas

Your vocals are obscured, though differently in the chorus and the verse. I far more enjoy the style of music that kicks in at 1:25. Way funkier. Although then it starts feeling like you can’t decide on a riff.

Way Ward Sway

Great production. This isn’t really my style, but I really like the verse chord progressions. Nice solo.

Smalltown Mike

I can’t believe I went for the easy rhyme of jalopy with sloppy, but at least I kept it short.

[Leaf]

ASTROLAMB: I like the vibe. Makes me think of White Stripes. I don't like the sloppy guitar off the top...maybe sloppy rhymes with jalopy but it's painful. After the top of the song... it evens out. Good feel in the music and vocals. Production is ok. I like your melody off the top on the guitar, despite it's suspect time. You get that Johnny rotten warble going a tinsy bit eh? This song, with development, could be much much better... I like your ideas. This is what I call an ok tune. If not for the sloppy start, I'd throw this in my rotation of listens...but I think that'd just bug me more and more. all in all, pretty good work.

EXTRA CREDIT: I really dig that bass line. Cool tone, cool line. Then it busts down... and I like that too. This is cool. It's sonically fun... and you use drum loopy things..but they don't sound cheesy, they sound just right for the piece. You know, this is kinda fun... it'd be a good late night driving around partying tune... change the mood around kinda thing. I like it.

FRONTALITTLE SQUAD: Sounds like the FAS... I like the chorus. It's goofy. The backing track needs sparkle. It's kinda....dull sounding... I'm trying to pick out who the voices are... The mix is not as stellar as it could be. I like the quick almost-gonna-stumble rap stuff... it's got face-paced rhythm... and the backup shout outs are cool... I dunno , I guess I have high expectations of this group... cause they do so much stellar work... it's ok, but it's not grabbing me as a sure fire vote getter like zombie son or something...

SMALLTOWNMIKE: I like the organ. And the one your playing is cool too. .. ok, maybe there is something wrong with me... like a lack of sleep. Your mixes are getting better and better... that's cool. what? You jealous of the songfightorchestra? Had to do your own little ditty? I like the story... reminds me of a story you told me once... cops tapping on your window... I think you know. Short and sweet. I like it. Maybe a bit short though.

SONGFIGHT ORCHESTRA: Speaking of...good for you..you mispronunciatcketd jalopy. I like that. As with all SFO's, it needs to be heard in context to really get a grip on it... I haven't downloaded a complete SFO in a while...gonna have to do that. This is freaky though...cool stuff going on.

OMEGA#: I just had some omega 3's this morning...sugar sockeye...yum yum. So... this is taking some time to get going..."steal things that are free?" ARe you talking McDonald's ketchup? This has some elements that are ok, but it's kinda dull. Lead guitar sounds a tad out of tune. Yeah, it's messy and unfocused. And dull. do I have anything good to say about it? Well, yeah, your voice is good. And some of the lyrics catch me a bit...but it just doesn't go anywhere compelling... I find myself just ... not interested. You know, the groove that develops around 3:20 is happening way more...if this happened sooner, and then it took off a bit more, I'd be more into it. Yeah, if you trimmed that intro, and re-did your lead, had a more compelling 1st verse (backing tracks), then at least it wouldn't be dull. It's ok, but it could have been so much better.

STEVE DURAND: Wacky. The drums sound washed out. The instruments seem to far in the background. I like the idea, old swing band... their's a band around here "The Desperation Jazz Band" and they sound JUST like this. Cool. No, I'm listening at work through shitty speakers, but maybe if the vocals were just a hair lower, it'd blend better, and sound more authentic. You've ALMOST captured that 33 sound...but not quite. The horn playing is excellent. I feel like I'm at the CNE or something...real good.

VAPOURCANDIDEAS: I may have spelled your name wrong... boom shakalaka? Seriously? C'mon. This has some neat bits, but it doesn't do it for me. You sound like you got way worse ADD then I'll ever have! ha! Wow..there's some real cool ideas, and some not so cool ones. I liked the solo part...it was working for me. Reminds me alot of IMOTHEREARTH, which in turn reminds me of Eddie Bangs...although as your name isn't an anagram...I'm not sure about that. It's ok.

WAYWARDSWAY: uh. Great sound, good guitar playing, good vocals, but seriously, this is so not the right vibe for singing "jalopy". It comes off pretty cheesy. Damn. I want to hear you singing a song, just like this one, with lyrics that make sense for the idiom. I mean, c'mon... tenderhearted mournful references to someone calling you "jalopy"? Doesn't work. I think everyone's guitars are out of tune for some reason..it sounds like something isnt' quite right. What you got here is tons of talent, and a great sense of this style, with lyrics that seem forced into the song for the sake of the title. Hey. Songfight ain't easy. So, basically, I both really like this, and don't.

I'm thinking of voting for Durand...or extra credit. Or Smalltown..if it wasn't so short. (The song). Seriously, if SM's was a bit longer, it'd be the one for me, I just dig that vibe, and the story was fun. But Durand did a little more with it ...and gave it this neat twist....ah...I'll mull it over.

[JonPorobil]

Since when do people have high expectations of the Frontalittle Squad?

[Leaf]

Since when do people have high expectations of the Frontalittle Squad?

ha!!

Now you know.


(And knowing is half the battle).


And oh...maybe your 41% winning average has something to do with it!

[j$]

Astrolamb - I'm recycling my review from somesongs - "the guitar and the drum don't seem quite in time ... other than I like it, only get the bass / synth bass / keyuboard / something all the way through the song ... cos this could be a sweet Hives type song but as it is it just sounds ... weird, but not in a cool-freak way, just in a punk demo way ... " I'll add I like it but it is in need of fattening / arranging
Extracredit - Why is the rapping mixed so quiet? Great creepy weird backing track - and great great bass tone - and the lyric is really cool until it gets self-referential. You're wrong - I'm voting for it, as promised. In fact I already have.
FL - Cute. Good mix. Goes a bit pumpkin blizzard at OO:43. Nerdcore isn't really my thing and as I don't drive, I have to say 'ah'.
Smalltown Mike - Nice organ - head-bopping ska - sweet little lyric. Good length - it could have gone on for 8 minutes as well. Nothing in between though
SFO- J-Lo-Pie made me smile. In fact I liked it all.
OMEGA 3 / Star Challenger - half that drum intro I was getting really bored until the unexpected acoustic came in. Funny Hats always a winner with me. Like your voice like the absurd nature of the lyric sung as if it was a love song. Lose the drum machine I believe - it's crushing the delicacy of the tune. Also point definitely made by 3.00 minutes ish. But good.
Steve Durand - Brass? Tick. That a tuba? Nice. Like the 30s vocal filter. You should collab with the Bewells. (though actually this is more convincing than their 'june bug') I think you should invest in some mastering software. This song needs to be stretched to fill the height and width of my headphones, and something like Ozone could do that for you. (unless you're using it, of course, in which case I say use it better!)
Vapour Can Ideas- This is still dangerously close to a Zigue Zigue Sputnik 12 inch remix. Or maybe a Malcolm Mclaren early 80s art-dance thing. Overall it doesn't really thrill me, but the imagination and creativity in it does, if that makes sense. Too fragmented even for my tastes. Some people will go 'wow!', I am absolutely sure, but in my book, sometimess less is more ....
Wayward Sway - Lovely tune. I am not wild about the choruses but I really like the verses. the little guitar noodle isn't really enough to carry the length. needs anotyher insturment. but a great tune.
I already voted extracredit. (4 to go, eh, chucky? In the real world I would have vioted for that, smalltown mike, steve durand or omega 3.

[chucky]

4 to go, eh, chucky?.

don't feel obligated..
erm... not that i mind or anything

[Caravan Ray]

VAPOURCANDIDEAS: ..although as your name isn't an anagram...

the name is an anagram

[Caravan Ray]

oops

[Mogosagatai]

Is "Eddiebangs" an anagram? Anyway...

<b>Omega 3</b>: 54 seconds of intro is way too much here. I'm also not a big fan of the hi-hat sound, the open one in particular. I think would have fared better as a folksy song with no drums. When you strum the guitar double-time with respect to the drums, it really makes me wish you'd done that (without the drums) the whole time. Okay, so looking back at my review, I just really don't like the drums here at all. Everything else is pretty good.

<b>Extra Credit</b>: Sweet bass. I don't like the vocals one bit, though--they're very uncomfortably muffled and distorted beyond goodness. With that bass and those drums, you need pissed off, super-aggressive vocals. Or, with those vocals, you need spaced-out ambient post-rock. I'm not crazy about the lyrics either--little too meta in a silly way.

<b>Astrolamb</b>: I wish this went all balls-out rocky. It really seems like it's going to (and I know y'all are good at that), but doesn't really get off it's feet. The drums are a little too quiet, too.

<b>Frontalittle</b>: Glenn Case is a fairly good nerdcore rapper. You other guys, I dunno, even for nerdcore... The "FESS/MESSED UP" in the chorus jumps out a little too loudly. I don't really like the chorus's tune, either. Inside (and outside) jokes can be fun I guess, but it'd be a lot a cooler if they were done secondarily to the music.

<b>Vapour Can Idea</b>: I don't like the silly voice rapping, but I do like the "boom-shaka-laka-laka" and the frantic beat. The brass is a bit too cheesy--sounds like music you'd hear in a commercial or a tourist shop. The extended "jaaaaalooooopy" is pretty cool, especially with that car-horn sound (maybe it's from a guitar?) zooming behind it. The breakdown and re-buildup is also cool. More of that! And less rap & cheez-brass. Oh, also, you spelled "vapor" wrong...

<b>Wayward Sway</b>: The chord change on the second "jalopy" in the chorus is pretty nice, enough to make me overlook the slight genericness of the rest of the guitar chords. One thing a guytar song should pretty much never do is a fadeout. Other than that, decent song, the kind I might want to listen to while coming home from a hard rock concert to unwind.

<b>Steve Durand</b>: This is so silly it's almost likeable. Really, the only thing I don't like is the off-key, dampened singing. If you sang like Carol Cleveland Sings's frontman, this would be very likeable. The phonetics of "hop in my jalopy" are amazingly entertaining. The brass solo is pretty nifty as well.

<b>Smalltown Mike</b>: Fuck yeah for the drums; they sound awesome. Nice lyrics too. I'd prefer a much dirtier, heavier sound from the guitar and especially organ. More gusto in the singing would be good, too.

[Leaf]

so what your saying is....you and 8lo did a tune... but your still not Eddie Bangs.

That's what I meant Mr. I'm on top of the world.

[Caravan Ray]

Astrolamb
Love the start – your voice sounds great. But it doesn’t really go anywhere after that.

Extra Credit
Very Mellow Gold-era Beck-ish. Not bad, but not really grabbing me

The Frontalittle Squad
Some good lyrics and your rhythm in delivery is very good – but overall it doesn’t really interest me

Smalltown Mike
I love the sound of this – very jaunty – but the lyrics are turning me off

Song Fight Orchestra
Who is this? Certainly one of the better SFO’s

Star Challenger
First verse lyrics had me laughing out loud – and the vox/beat/gtr all sound great (out of tune guitars are fine by me). Chorus lets the song down I feel. Starts with enormous potential but in the end the song doesn’t really deliver

Steve Durand
This is really great! Normally I’d rather place my testicles in a vice than listen to anything jazz-like – but I love this. Your vocals sound like you’re somebody’s mad, old uncle who gets drunk and embarrasses everybody at family BBQ’s. And the horns are very cool

Wayward Sway
I liked this song better when it was “Only Women Bleed” by Alice Cooper

Vapour Can Ideas
8LO has done a sterling job in tidying up some of my random nonsense. I like the vocals at the end – they cover up the guitar non-ending nicely and make it sound like it was all intentional.
I like the word “Boom-shakalala”. I think I’ll use more often in general conversation.


I think Steve Durand will get my vote

[Caravan Ray]

<b>Vapour Can Idea</b>: I don't like the silly voice rapping,

Is that rapping? Cool! I've never rapped before!

[Mogosagatai]

Well it ain't singing. Excited talking?

[king_arthur]

Keepers were Steve Durand and Wayward Sway (once I determined it
was going somewhere besides Donovan's "Atlantis").

Frontalittle was well assembled, as always, I guess I just wasn't
in the mood. I do remember I liked the original song about the
Honda; I think that one had a much catchier chorus.

Astrolamb, the guitar riff at the start was off-beat to the cymbal
taps, made me nuts.

Extra Credit, Vapour Can Ideas, just not my thing. Star Challenger,
gave up after about 45 seconds and it hadn't turned into a song yet.
Smalltown Mike, seemed like the melody had an entirely different
tonal center than the accompaniment.

Voting for Steve Durand. I'd love to hear Jim of Seattle cover
this someday...

Charles

[nyjm]

<b>Astrolamb</b>
- love those effects on the guitar and vox
- where's the bass?
- the drums need to be more beefy to help the chorus kick out more

<b>Extra Credit</b>
- now <b>that's</b> a bass rumble!
- the vox are a little too effected-up
- the stop and start thing gets old quickly
- sounds like early beck

<b>Smalltown Mike</b>
- that was it? good, but it seems like maybe you just ran out of lyrical ideas

<b>Song Fight Orchestra</b>
- this is awesome; great random sounds and i love the mispronunciation of "jalopy"

<b>Star Challenger</b>
- the drums and the acoustic guitar don't seem to be from the same aural world
- tune your guitar
- i like the lyrics in the first (and last) verse; nostalgic

<b>Steve Durand</b>
- out of tune singing is painful; nonetheless, a fun little melody
- love the old car horn!
- your trumpeting seems to stumble here and there

<b>The Frontalittle Squad</b>
- hehe; this is really rather cute
- the rap is good, and that's quite an accomplishment
- the chorus needs have more oomph; it just seems to be formulaic

<b>Vapour Can Ideas</b>
- holy crap! those "boom-shackalacka"s just came out of left field
- very cool breakdown, and the crescendoing re-build is awesome
- would like some more lyrical development

<b>Wayward Sway</b>
- great band name
- 1st prize for prettiest phrasing of "jalopy"; you, sir, have a very nice voice
- your guitar work isn't bad, but it does get old; how about some other instruments?
- the solo could use some note-bending

[Smalltown Mike]

it seems like maybe you just ran out of lyrical ideas

You know, I never considered there was/could be more to this story, but there probably is. If I ever get the chance (see Boon Liver's Chance for likelihood of me getting this chance) I'll flush out the story into a full-fledged song. Thanks.

[mkilly]

I think the only wins I have are with FAL. That's kind of a bummer, but also not.