Nur Ein IX Round Zero "Full of Courage"

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Re: Nur Ein IX- Round Zero

Post by Lunkhead »

Kraut Kitten is Ben Krieger right? Just seeing that name I thought it was him and then hearing the vocals I'm pretty sure it's him, but not 100% positive.

So that means with have the following returning champions: Ben Krieger, Paco del Stinko, Balance Lost (Pete from TWSA), and Cavedwellers (Glennny from TWSA)?
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Re: Nur Ein IX- Round Zero

Post by BenKrieger »

NUR FUCKING EIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Re: Nur Ein IX- Round Zero

Post by RangerDenni »

okay. I wrestled over posting this all day. But it is round zero.
I find my song amusing this time, so I pushed my mix along a little instead of doing my "UGH!" thing right after sending it. This one is nicer and not accidentally in mono. so after it has been Officially ignored for judging if you'd like to hear it more properly it is around. :)

http://denisehudson.bandcamp.com/track/ ... so-far-sly
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Re: Nur Ein IX- Round Zero

Post by JonPorobil »

I'll have some direct feedback for all the entrants soon, but some quick points.

First of all, the only people I thought failed to meet the challenge were JoAnn and Adam. JoAnn's song appears to have been cut short due to technical difficulties; I'm sure the finished version had a spoken-word bridge, but I have to judge based on the version that makes it to us by the deadline. And Adam appears to have conflated "spoken word" with "a capella," because although his bridge lacks instrumentation, it's still sung.

To all competitiors: I would really appreciate it if you'd post your lyrics in the lyrics thread. I won't penalize anyone for failing to do so, but if I'm having trouble understanding your words, being able to consult written lyrics might just give me an excuse to like your song a bit more. There were two songs in particular from this batch that I really wanted to see lyrics for, Chocolate Chips and Ligers with Attitude. I can't guarantee that either of those songs would have ranked higher with me if I'd been able to see the lyrics, but I suspect they both might have, and Chocolate Chips could have used the boost.

Speaking of lyrics: Everyone please be conscientious about the mixing of your vocals in the song. Too often decent songs were ruined because of a timid vocal failing to stand out from the instrumentation. Words and expressiveness get lost in this manner, and your songs wind up getting passed over in favor of the people who know how to mix a little better. The ones who mixed their vocals well were more or less who you'd expect: Manhattan Glutton, Merisan, Inflatable Vegetables, Kraut Kitten, Ross Durand, Paco del Stinko, and The Tydon Docks. It's no coincidence that this list of names make up more or less the top 25% of the rankings. Everyone else could use at least a little work mixing their vocals (some more than others), so if you only have enough time to focus on one thing after your first mixdown*, that's a good one to prioritize.

Here's a thread from the "Help and How To" section all about vocals: http://songfight.net/forums/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=9230
And here's one all about mixing: http://songfight.net/forums/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=9139

*If you're only doing one mixdown before turning in your song... Quit that! Finish recording the tracks a day or two before the deadline if at all possible, and listen again after a good night's sleep. I promise that you will find things you'll want to tweak before turning in the song. You have two extra days in the schedule this year, so no excuses!
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Re: Nur Ein IX- Round Zero

Post by glennny »

love to know what the 5th judge clearly disliked about the Cavedwellers track, so hopefully we can avoid that next time (if possible).
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Re: Nur Ein IX- Round Zero

Post by glennny »

I saw Chocolate Chips lyrics every time I hard the song. he embedded them in the MP3, I thought that was nice!
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Re: Nur Ein IX- Round Zero

Post by Calliopeva »

Sorry about the truncated version you heard, I have re-done it and posted it to Niveous earlier today. I will go post the lyrics now.
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Re: Nur Ein IX- Round Zero

Post by Ligers With Attitude »

Where is this lyrics thread, of which you speak?
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Re: Nur Ein IX- Round Zero

Post by josh »

I was wondering about the CaveDwellers myself. The song was clearly well done. I was thinking maybe someone was overcompensating to avoid a conflict of interest (as in, maybe they're friends with you?)
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Re: Nur Ein IX- Round Zero

Post by glennny »

I think we tripped over someones Song Writing pet peeve. They hate square wave monophonic simulated synths or something.
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Re: Nur Ein IX- Round Zero

Post by JonPorobil »

Ligers With Attitude wrote:Where is this lyrics thread, of which you speak?
C'mon, seriously?

http://songfight.net/forums/viewforum.php?f=5
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Re: Nur Ein IX- Round Zero

Post by chocolatechips »

much love to Judge 2. :mrgreen:
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Re: Nur Ein IX- Round Zero

Post by Ligers With Attitude »

Lyrics thread! Oh THERE it's been, all along, hidden in plain sight. If "egg on my face" had its own emoticon. :shock: It would look like this but more eggy
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Re: Nur Ein IX- Round Zero

Post by JonPorobil »

Ligers With Attitude wrote:Lyrics thread! Oh THERE it's been, all along, hidden in plain sight. If "egg on my face" had its own emoticon. :shock: It would look like this but more eggy
Great. I'm just relieved to have my suspicions confirmed that your song was about Starship Troopers.
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Re: Nur Ein IX- Round Zero

Post by Caravan Ray »

If I was a judge - this is how I would rank them:

Nick Soma*
Kraut Kitten
Balance Lost
ManGlut
Zack Facco
Paco del Stinko
Merisan
Chocolate Chips
DJ Ranger Den
Ken
Ross Durand
Cavedwellers
Adam Adamant
Pigfarmer Jr
Rabid Garfunkle
Cookie Blue
Inflatable Vegetables
Levittdown
Bofo Yux Dudes
Ligers With Attitude
Vincent von F
Calliopeva
Ghost Pup

(oh...and I would put Tydon Docks right at the top)


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Re: Nur Ein IX- Round Zero

Post by Niveous »

Adam Adamant
+ Quirky and creative
- Lack of a strong hook
Niv suggests: Get a good hook next time. You can do all the interesting lyrical content and fun musical choices you want but the song has to be memorable.

Balance Lost
+ Great composition
- Self-reflexive bridge.
Niv suggests: A touch of serious goes a long way. After the "fuck", any emotion that was trying to be created in the rest of the song was lost. Keep the emotion consistent.

Boffo Yux Dudes
+ Sprinkling the harmonies throughout.
- Feels more like a song called "Jack the Motivational Speaker" than "Full of Courage"
Niv suggests: Go full comedy or at least black. The song had hints of comedy like the Jimmy the Greek line but it needed to go whole hog into ridiculousness, maybe even going dark but funny.

Calliopeva
The track got truncated somehow when Jo Ann sent it, so the judges had only part of a song to review.

Cavedwellers
+ Great guitar work
- Weak story telling
Niv suggests: An interesting subject matter. This is a good song, well performed and well put together but it feels generic because it lacks a strong story.

The Chocolate Chips
+ Great musical choices, especially the strings in the background
- Lyrical choices
Niv Suggests: Embellish. There's a story here in the song but without embellishing, I can't sink my teeth into it. This song only scratches the surface of a story.

Cookie Blue
+ Emotional delivery
- Some off notes
Niv suggests: Watch that pitch. This song scores with me for conveying real emotion. But the some sour notes hurt the song, so watch those.

DJ Ranger Den
+ Originality
- A lack of consistency
Niv suggests: Stay the course. Quirky brilliance is your strong suit. But watch out for the momemnts when things go off the rails, like the spoken word bridge here in which the character's voice isn't consistant with its voice elsewhere in the song. It's suddenly became two characters, one which I couldn't care less for.

Ghost Pup
+ A willingness to experiment
- A lack of substance
Niv suggests: Give me more. Don't be afraid to think outside of the box but give me more than just the main phrase repeated over a guitar wank.

Inflatable Vegetables
+ Good hook
- Vocal delivery
Niv suggests: Some vocal balance. It felt like I was being yelled at throughout the song. Next time, give me some softer or lower moments for a touch of contrast.

Ken Mahru
+ It ends strong
- Flat delivery
Niv suggests: Acting. It just didn't feel like you were singing about anything you care about, so the delivery suffered. Maybe pull from your history or play a character next time and try to evoke the emotions in your song.

Krautkitten
+ Authenticity
- It's a commercial jingle
Niv suggests: More song. This is a piece of genius which works because it's so well crafted. I think Max the Cat would be proud. But don't think you can't make it through 7 more rounds on jingles.

Levittdown
+ Decent composition
- Middle of the road
Niv suggests: Liven it up. If you heard this song in concert would you wanna sing along? Clap along? It needs some more energy.

LWA
+ It's F'n Starship Troopers
- A lot of the same.
Niv suggests: Shake it up. This song has a wealth of charm and I really like the harmonies but it needed to switch up from the strum-strum-strum.

Manhattan Glutton
+ Great basswork
- Na Na Na's
Niv suggests: A more substantial chorus. It's a fun song with some smart lyrics and phenomenal bass work but it's all around some na-na-na's.

Merisan
+ A strong chorus
- Some lyrical choices
Niv suggests: A little clarity. Musically, you are top notch. The chorus with its xylophone is a thing of beauty. Musically, keep doing what you do. My only problem was struggling to understand the story in the song. I just didn't get it.

Nick Soma
+ Joey Ramone vocals
- The bridge
Niv suggests: Watch the tone. This song was a lot of fun with some good lyrics. But there was a tonal shift on the bridge which took the song from cool and slick to pro-wrestling promo. Just watch tone shifts.

Paco del Stinko
+ Dirty Surf rock guitars
- Heavyhandness
Niv suggests: Watch the lyrical choices. I just think I would've liked the song more if it included more of the reasons why the character needs to be full of drug-fueled courage instead of lyric after lyric which just said I'm drunk/I'm powerful. But the song has a very catchy hook with helps it get past that flaw.

Pigfarmer Jr.
+ Charming g^2 (guy & guitar)
- Cheesy bridge
Niv suggests: Variety. First, let me say that the touch of comedy in the bridge was ill-placed, but overall the song was good but just didn't standout. As the competition goes on, I'd like to see some variety from you. If the next few weeks are just more of this, it'll be nice but it'll wear thin. Add something else to the mix.

Rabid Garfunkel
+ A dark tone
- Vocal delivery
Niv suggests: Sing. This song could've been spoken word through out and wouldn't have felt very different. I want to hear you sing. Maybe even double track a harmony.

Ross Durand
+ Excellent story
- Some lyrical choices
Niv suggests: Editing is your friend. Does the listener give a damn about the lack of ice or soda in your drink? Nope. Does the listener care about how you still leave a space for her? Absolutely. A little editing so as not to stray from the meat of the story will help.

Tydon Docks
+ Drinking song style
- No one likes to hear a puke
Niv suggests: Watch the edge. The song is hilarious and it's got a great sing-along feel. Just watch the sharp edges. The listener can get a bit sideswiped when the song starts talking about skullfucking and then someone throws up (especially when you are wearing headphones) out of the blue.

Vincent Von F
+ Organwork
- Production
Niv suggests: Tighten it up. I hate dinging anyone's scores due to production but I definitely had some problems hearing parts of the song especially the vocal at the beginning. If I can't hear it, I can't review it or enjoy it.

Zack Facco
+ An original take
- Some vocal choices
Niv suggests: Chest voice. I liked this song. I enjoyed the lyrics and your take on Full of Courage. One problem with the song is the vocal delivery because it's kind of nasal and that effected some notes. So, trying out some vocals using your chest voice could be beneficial.


Overall:
I know some of you really hated having to do a Spoken Word Bridge, but the judges panel wanted to start off with an easy challenge that still took some of your out of your comfort zone. Not many people still do the Spoken Word Bridge but it's a classic and part of Nur Ein is making you try something different. I think it was a successful round. A few of you have created some songs that I hope stick around in your repertoires.
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Re: Nur Ein IX- Round Zero

Post by furrypedro »

Caravan Ray wrote:If I was a judge - this is how I would rank them:

Nick Soma*
Kraut Kitten
Balance Lost
...

(oh...and I would put Tydon Docks right at the top)
Thanks Ray. I feel a bit better now :)
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Re: Nur Ein IX- Round Zero

Post by carlo bruno jr »

Disclaimer: These reviews are based solely on my musical tastes and should only be taken seriously if it useful. As non speakin Inglés human being, I do not feel entitled to judge the quality of the texts, but the sound of the voice and how it is embedded in the song is subject of reviewing.

Disclaimer 2 Reading this review you can suffer severe english pain. Or laugh. Or contempt, compassion and grief. Who knows. Let's go with my review, in pure Brunglish.

Adam Adamant: Great dark ambient. Good song. Like specially the rythm work. Also like much the "less elements" criteria.

Balance Lost: Good song starting. I like the way to use the reverb. Rest of song don´t reach the good expectations inspired by the intro.

Boffo Yux Dudes: Hard to find connection points with this song. It's a positive point for me to perceive some kind of coherence that I'm not capable to explain, even in spanish. Passes round and keep in observation room.

Calliopeva: Is your mp3 truncated at 00:32?. Hard to review....Anyway, your vocal skills seems good for competition, but doing in "solo voice" format will be hard, very hard. Make some noise, make background voices, dont leave you alone. Let's see next round.

Cavedwellers: A very good song. Nice sounds and arrangements. The general sound is good. Pulling down the hi-hat level could be the final cut for a very good mix. In terms of quality, I find the final du-du's one or two steps down from the rest of the song. Very pleasant listening from start to end.

Chocolate Chips: To say "Lovely song" is being short. This review is also short, because I don't know where to point my finger. Everything is absolutely OK for me. The sound palette, the melody, the BPM's choose, that warmblooded robot feel, ... Great song in many levels.

Cookie Blue: A less dressed song that I no specially like from start, but the way the "spoken bridge challenge" was solved makes the song obtains extra survival points. Don't ask me why, because I'm not able to know it, but this is the fact.

DJ Ranger Den: A "Full of Courage" proposal that I liked, more as the song develops. From less to more interest for this listener, being hard say why. Very well ambiented and nicely performed. Expecting surprises from this contestant at future rounds. This is a kind of outsider player, just as...

...Ghost Pup: Great drone effect in the lowest frequencies!!!. If this was the case, that drone itself could pass the survival line on this round, simply because I love it. The guitar work is almost ok. Upon the listening of the guitar arrangement, I think maybe using a more sustaining tone could take better place in the song context. Less work on text is impossible, Pup. Anyway, a great improvement on production skills from past Nur Ein to here. Congrats. Special surveillance for you because your distinctive style.

Inflatable Vegetables: Nice guitar work, but the sound delivery don't work for me. I like more drums presence (maybe less volume on hi-hat will leave space for push up the other drum elements). The song, for me, is victim of that bad sounding.

Ken Marhu: Good sound. right performance, a little flat, maybe. But, no surprises. Middle of the pack only for technical reasons.

Kraut Kitten: Your entry is the one that smashed my face, wich is one of my favourite/relevant parameters as music listener. My congrats for that superb commercial tune. The keyboard section is great, very well choosed sounds. Nothing to say about song lenght: it's avertising!!.

Levittdown: The way the song is being singed is too Bowie-esque for me (the musical treatment also reminds me) and when the verse starts to seem too long ....oh, I really love the way the chorus enters. Maybe my prefered chorus starting of the round. A little gem inside your entry. Avoid of that ugly distortion as appears in some vocal parts. I think that unless if is a very well justified technical/artistical decission, that distortion pulls down the general quality indicators.

Ligers With Attitude: A "Are you lonesome tonight-ish" song. The song starts boring me until first verse finishes, When the aaahs enters some puts me in alert and beat by beat that voices become likeable. Soft, simple and well done, but not enough, I expect some different things for another rounds.

Manhattan Glutton: The sound is amazing. I like the verse growth on layers. Love the rimshot (or fake handclaps) break. Very well produced. Despite the very first position of bass I find the mix is very well balanced. Congrats on that. About the song: having the necessary, for some reason don´t make any relevant connection with me.

Merisan: Hearing your songs is always a lesson of tone balancing and elegance. Both guitar and vocal performance are very stilish. I like specially the percussion parts, very good (and conscious) work in this section. My taste tends usually to a songs with any kind of transgression or approach to some extreme, wich is not your case. Anyway, a XVIIIth century reverence for your inmaculate sound and performance.

Nick Soma: Very great sound, clear and powerful, very tasty for me. The song rocks enough, starts very effectively and the initial punch is up until the end. Effective breaks and dynamics on structure. Good work on mix, power and balance. Rocks. A suivre.

Paco del Stinko: The Stinko legend continues on this song. The rythm section rocks as usual. I like that darkness & urgence feel. Great guitar solo moment. Good sound & vibe. Full of Courage, full of Beer.... yeah!

Pigfarmer Jr: The song, as is, is correctly done & performed. There's a audience for this style of song, but not me. Good guitar sound, but nothing amazing to me.

Rabid Garfunkel: Nothing to remark on this song. This song contains almost all the things I fear of the "solo guitar/voice" format.

Ross Durand: There's a few vocal notes at the verses that make an strange tension that I'm not able to appreciate and makes me go away from song. I see you feel comfortable in your style. Maybe some risk...

The Tydon Docks: Kind of medieval irish pub flavors to refresh the ambient, thanks. Very well done. The chair noise at "spoken word bridge" is perfect, and the way that bridge runs towards to vomit is greater. A touch of dirty realism. Not like much the folk-oriented songs (if this definition don't hurts), but this song rocks to me in a certain corner of my brain.

Vincent Von F: Chaos of ideas fighting to have some sense. Too many, I think. Guitar level unnecesarily high and a very dangerous reverb accumulation that difficults any comprension of what you wanted with this song. I suggest more definition and maybe less arrangements. As I suspect your intention was to do beauty things, I keep waiting for it next round. Remember this pair of things: 1.- Check final level of the master mp3 you submitt, this was very low. 2.- Keep your chihuahua away from mixing console. :D

Zack Facco: This enters in the "only guitar/voice" bunch. Then, nothing significant to say..

Overall: I agree on Jon Eric's impressions about the challenge delivery. Great round, some tunes are going right to my pod. Courage fullfillness for next round to all.

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Re: Nur Ein IX- Round Zero

Post by JonPorobil »

Detailed reviews. First, a couple of quick notes:

I listened in alphabetical order. I fear that this may have affected my take on Zack's song, so I'll randomize it next week.
I don't think I was quite done listening and ranking when Niveous announced the results. I'm not sure it would have made a difference for anyone, especially since I had pretty strong opinions about my top 5.

Adam Adamant
Your sound is pretty unmistakable. If we're dealing with drum machines, synths, and a poorly-tuned uke, it's Adamant. This is no exception. The songwriting is par for the course. I wish the uke were better tuned and played a bit better. The vocals get better as the chorus repeats in a swell near the end, but they're pretty lackluster throughout the rest of the song. I dinged you a little bit for your interpretation of the challenge, but I didn't have you neck-and-neck with any other songs, so I don't think it made a difference.

Balance Lost
I like this jangly Britpop thing you do, even if I can't always understand the lyrics. I may need a few more listens to figure out what this is all about, but I'm pretty sure it's top-tier. On a first listen, I liked your interpretation of the challenge, even though I'm a bit puzzled why it came so early in the song. On subsequent listens, it fell a bit flat, largely because I didn't get the sense that making a point of saying the f-word in between verses added anything more than a chuckle to the song, or really interfaced with your verses in any meaningful way.

Boffo Yux Dudes
It may sound mean to point this out, but I'm pretty sure I've never actually laughed at anything you've recorded. I honestly think you would be a lot better if you stopped trying so hard to be funny (heck, just "stop trying so hard" in general) and just focused on writing good lyrics. Ah well. This has a nice vibe, like a ramshackle acoustic demo from a 60s psychadelic rock band. The lyrics make it tough for me to get into it.

Calliopeva
Unaccompanied voice can be a powerful technique if it's done right, but I suspect that you only did this because you couldn't find any accompaniment. I also don't think we got the whole song, as mine cuts off at 0:32 with no spoken word bridge. You benefited more than anyone else this week from the lack of eliminations. Hope you can get your act together for round 1.

Cavedwellers
Right off the bat, I'm drawn in by that unexpectedly early snare hit. This seems like the one to beat so far. The vocals could have some more oomph, but it's structurally right-on, and the melody is strong. Nothing too terribly creative for the spoken-word bridge, but it works perfectly for this song. I love the eBow and the "doo doo" background vocals at the end. Well paced. This was my #2 in the final rankings. A comfortable #2 - my actual favorite was way out ahead, and this was way ahead of my #3 pick.

Chocolate Chips
I'm having trouble making out any of the lyrics through the vocoder. Not my favorite audio technique in the best of times, but when it interferes with the lyrics, it practically sets me on edge. I do like the synth and guitar groove you set up, but the vocals kill it for me.

Cookie Blue
The vocals are confident and heartfelt, but I think this is just a little too simplistic for my taste. A bit too twee. Maybe I'm judging too harshly, or expecting this song to be more than it was meant to be, but this just wasn't working for me.

Ghost Pup
At the thirty-second mark I was looking at the time remaining and wondering if you'd ever get to the point of actually saying anything. I guess the spoken-word bridge counts, or it would, if I could make out what you were saying. Oh well. I would appreciate it if you could contribute more original lyrics next time—actually have a message.

DJ Ranger Den
I really liked this at first, then the background vocals started meowing, and it slowly dawned on me that this is from the point of view of your cat, at which point I basically tuned out. The piano is pretty, the vocals are suitably delicate, and your sense of melodic phrasing gets stronger over time, but... I'm sorry, I just don't know if I can get into a persona poem from the point of view of your cat. The spoken-word section doubles down on the silliness. If the silly aspect of the song had worked for me, I probably would have liked the bridge, but since it didn't work for me, the bridge just killed whatever goodwill I had left. By the time the rankings were due, I still wasn't quite sure what to make of this, so I kind of just threw it arbitrarily in the middle. I have every confidence you'll rally in the upcoming rounds.

inflatable vegetables
A little power pop goodness! Yeah! I think it's funny how these overdriven lead vocals are easier to understand than many of the other vocals this round! I think I've detected a missed opportunity: The chorus rhymes "grit," "hypocrite," and "quit," then just repeats "Half full of courage / Half full of courage." I feel like you should have just gone for it and ended the line with "Half full of shit." I normally prefer to exercise extreme caution before deploying swear words in a song, but that one is just staring us right in the face! Maybe you intended it to be an implied rhyme? That can be a pretty powerful trick (one I've leaned on perhaps a bit too hard in the past, myself), but I'm not sure this was the place for it. Anyway, the spoken word bridge here is a little skit that works pretty well with this style, and the guitars are well arranged and well-played throughout. Great work!

Ken Mahru
You're the first (only?) person on this list who's been doing Song Fight for longer than I have. How intimidating! Your "Why Are You Making Me Kick You Out?" was the first song I ever voted for. This week's effort is in a similar vein to that old classic, though I wish that you'd thought to transpose this whole song up a step and a half or so, so that you're not straining at the bottom of your register. The chord progression is very "Canon in D," but lesser songwriters have gotten away with that progression, so I won't hold it against you. The spoken word bridge is a bit trite, but it fits in pretty well with the meticulous pacing of the song. I love how this builds to a beautiful emotional crescendo! A better vocal performance might have put you in my top 3.

Ben Krieger
This is a spot-on pastiche of an 80s commercial, complete with very clever rhymes and a flawlessly-integrated use of the challenge. "Snort responsibly" made me laugh. But I was the only judge who gave this song fewer than 23 points, because, well, at the end of the day, as funny and well-executed as it is, it's still just a 30-second ad for cocaine. You're capable of bringing it in a much more satisfying way than this, and I look forward to hearing you do exactly that.

Levittdown
Reminds me a bit too much of "Horse with No Name." This song isn't bad, and I appreciate the lyrical approach, but I'd be more excited about it if it had more dynamism in the mix. It's pretty much the same volume throughout, and the arrangment never changes, except for that harmony that gets added in the chorus. Straight-up middle-of-the-road stuff here.

Ligers with Attitude
And the award for "Best Simon & Garfunkel Impersonation" goes to... I guess that's a backhanded compliment. I really love Simon & Garfunkel, and y'all really nail that sound. Combining it with this science fiction premise (wait... is that Starship Troopers? Wow!), it's alternately silly and moving. This could have benefited from some more brevity. I was about ready for it to be over by the time the spoken word part came.

Manhattan Glutton
This is kind of a modulation of your Cake impression, which is one of the modes I like you best in. This is great. Smooth groove, silky bassline, clever lyrics, great spot harmonies, the "na na na" chorus works great, and I'm not even bothered by the fake handclaps. I think your spoken word part fits the song perfectly, and then you vary up the pace on it to keep it interesting, even in that one section! This is very well done, and it's been stuck in my head all day. I had it at the top of my list.

Merisan
Can't hide my bias on this one either; Merisan is one of my favorite Song Fight groups. This seems like a pretty average Merisan song, but even an average Merisan song is better than many other songs that come out of this community. Sam's guitar work is really slick here. I'd love to hear more harmonies, and some less generic drums, but that's more of a nit pick. There's a chimey instrument (vibes? glockenspiel?) that adds a significant amount of texture in the second half, and it works really well. This is probably on the same tier as Ken's song - not a winner's circle entry, but excellent nonetheless.

Nick M. Soma
This is well-executed pop-punk, which we don't see very often around here. I guess other artists just find it too easy to fall on the side of cacophony. I like the way the vocals are delivered through a sneer. I like the chugging guitar. The drums match the song well (though they could stand to be de-quantized a bit). Not bad at all.

Paco del Stinko
I like how this (and many of your songs) hit a sort of staggering groove. The guitar seems to lurch along, which fits the song pretty well, yeah? My only complaint here is that your songs kind of occupy this weird genre which is just a little too weird to fit in with a batch of rock songs, but not quite silly enough to be considered full-out comedy or novelty. So I have a difficult time picturing being in the mood to hear this song any time in the future. But you do what you do very well, and we all know it.

Pigfarmer Jr.
I had a conversation with you about an hour before I got around to listening to this, and you seemed quick to make excuses: "Oh, I was just experimenting with this new recording method, I didn't have much time," etc. Were you trying to lower my expectations? If so, mission accomplished. This is perfectly lovely. You may think it's a "mic fart" entry, but this is easily in the top half for me. Could be a bit shorter and not be any worse for it, but the performance of both the guitar and vocals are on-point, confident, and appropriate. Other people did songs I enjoyed more this round, but I see nothing wrong with this.

Vincent Von F
I like this groove, what would you call it? It's vaguely funky, but really low key. It sort of reminds me of New Radicals, or maybe the kind of sound they'd accomplish at an open mic in some quiet coffee shop with Persian rugs on the walls. Anyway. My big problem here (as with many of the other entries) is that I can hardly hear a single word of the lyrics. It also runs a little longer than it ought to - I think you could have stood to fade this out twenty seconds into the solo that comes after the bridge. I'd rather be left wanting more than checking my watch, y'know?

Rabid Garfunkel
Hmm, an unpretentious four chord progression strummed on an acoustic guitar? Is this really Rabid? Well, I do recognize that voice. This is a rough mix, even for a simple guy-and-guitar song. Your voice occasionally spikes loud enough to be distracting in the mix here, and might have benefited from a few more takes, or some judicious compression.

Ross Durand
The polish on this guy-and-guitar song only serves to underscore what Rabid's song is missing. Ross, your lyrics are tight, you deliver them with emotional swells in all the right places, and you hit all the marks. The spoken section here is fine, and like a good bridge should, it introduces a twist of sorts, but it's seems a bit flat to me.

The Tydon Docks
This is the sort of daring intro I'm not used to hearing from Caravan/Tex/Sid/Tydon/whatever you're calling yourself this time around. This is a great drinking song, but the lyrics are packed a bit too densely to sing along to, which hurts it in that regard. I like the drunken delivery in the bridge.

Zack Facco
I rambled a bit about whether it suits the challenge to do a song where all of the verses are spoken-word. I guess this squeaks by, since the bridge is spoken without cadence whereas the verses are kind of sing-talked. Maybe I've got listening fatigue from hearing 24 of these things, but this one is just annoying to me. I can tell you're trying to be kind of tongue-in-cheek, but it just comes across as annoying. It's entirely possible that you didn't get a fair shake due to listening fatigue. I'll try to be more charitable in the next round, when your score actually counts.

Overall, good round. The bright spots were REALLY bright. If some of the people in the middle of the pack can tighten up their vocals, then later rounds should be especially tight and fun to listen to!
"Warren Zevon would be proud." -Reve Mosquito

Stages, an album of about dealing with loss, anxiety, and grieving a difficult year, now available on Bandcamp and all streaming platforms! https://jonporobil.bandcamp.com/album/stages
Ligers With Attitude
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Re: Nur Ein IX- Round Zero

Post by Ligers With Attitude »

I was also referencing this guy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EfPwXQ9NbiU

This guy, plus Starship Troopers, plus Are You Lonesome Tonight = Nur Ein non-gold
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Caravan Ray
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Re: Nur Ein IX- Round Zero

Post by Caravan Ray »

Niveous wrote:The listener can get a bit sideswiped when the song starts talking about skullfucking and then someone throws up
:cry: That wasn't my idea Sir. Rabid Garfunkel made me do it....well, maybe the vomit was my idea.
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Rabid Garfunkel
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Re: Nur Ein IX- Round Zero

Post by Rabid Garfunkel »

Caravan Ray'll do anything for "bonus points" :twisted: (which were awarded with pleasure for his usage of "I'll skullfuck your corpse!"). That's what I get for making a not-so-idle comment on FB, heh.
"Urban cartoon music." -- Paco Del Stinko
Be my friend? --- Song of the Day
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