Ready and willing (To Die On This Hill reviews)

Discuss upcoming, current, and previous song fights.
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Ready and willing (To Die On This Hill reviews)

Post by Pigfarmer Jr »

Stand for something or fall for anything.
Last edited by Lunkhead on Sun Aug 01, 2021 10:05 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Reason: make normal
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Re: Ready and willing (To Die On This Hill reviews)

Post by Pigfarmer Jr »

Please post your lyric here: viewtopic.php?f=5&t=12150
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Re: Ready and willing (To Die On This Hill reviews)

Post by Lunkhead »

Songs posted!
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Re: Ready and willing (To Die On This Hill reviews)

Post by Adam! »

Come watch Max Bombast get loopy
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Re: Ready and willing (To Die On This Hill reviews)

Post by Mostess »

Adam! wrote:
Thu Jul 22, 2021 12:14 am
Come watch Max Bombast get loopy
What a joy to watch! Thanks for sharing the process!
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Re: Ready and willing (To Die On This Hill reviews)

Post by jeffhenderson »

Berkeley Social Scene - I really dig the riff! And also the 60s vibe in the verses. Ooooh, there it is – the tasteful guitar solo to bring it home. Overall, great work. Would listen again. VOTE

Brown Word and the Big Whine - There is more dissonance happening here than I am normally a fan of, but that’s not really a criticism because it’s clearly an artistic choice. At its best moments, this song has some Of Montreal or Animal Collective vibes that I can get down with, but overall this is just a few notches too experimental for my taste.

Carol Toledo Sings - Oh my, I really like this. The verse reminds me a lot of Boy Least Likely To, which is great. The pre-chorus sounds like something Brian Wilson would have written in his peak. The chord choices are just *chef’s kiss*. CERTIFIED FRESH. VOTE

Critical Rave Theory - Nice extended intro is a pleasant listen that makes me involuntarily start tapping my toes. The melody is almost too interesting, to the point where maybe I am not sure if I am smart enough with my music theory to fully appreciate it. Nice choice to slow down at the end there.

Duncan Martin - I really like storytelling in a song. Best lyrics of the fight so far. 1000 points for the Byron/Cylon/Zion verse, which not only made use of interesting rhymes, but actually helps paint the character portrait the this song is offering. The music works well, but I would love to hear it with a more dynamic arrangement. VOTE

Glenn Case - “You brought a gun to a virus fight” is a killer line. You totally nailed the Weezer arrangement, and I’m always a sucker for that. Not all of the vocal harmonies are working for me (maybe I would just bring them down in the mix 🤷‍♂️). VOTE

Hostess Mostess - How did you get Billy Joel??? That’s an unfair advantage! Oooh the drums come in and I’m pulling out my lighter! The verse has such a catchy hook. I love the way you build it up and take it back down. Nice ending. VOTE

Jeff Travis Henderson - Can you tell I attended a Sam Roberts Band concert this week?

Lichen Throat - My wife made positive comparisons between your song and The First Days of Spring by Noah and the Whale. I like the jaunty guitar picking.

Max Bombast - Cool! I like the Beck meets Beastie Boys verses. Oooh and that guitar comes in with power. Great production. I like the harmonies. This is top-to-bottom a great jam. VOTE.

The Mellfire Trifecta - Nice chord choices. Love the backing vocals, especially the chord change as they go into the “Mama said I can’t be that kid” line. I like the acoustic guitar solo. VOTE

Moody Vermin - There is a lot going on here. I am definitely too square for how experimental this is, but I can imagine that if I was in the right state of mind, the section starting at 2:20 might transport me to another dimension.

The Panna Cotta Army - I feel like I’m in good hands. Nice mix. Nice arrangement. Nice singing. I really like what happens at 1:40. VOTE

Pigfarmer Jr - Cool, interesting beginning with sound effects that augment the sweet riff. It’s a little short, but I guess you gotta keep them wanting more!

Possum Sauce - Very Simon and Garfunkel, in the best way possible. Very pretty while making interesting musical choices that make me want to go back and listen again. Love the soft piano touches. One of the best of the fight. ENTHUSIASTIC VOTE

Sweeney Toad and the Synthlads - This would fit perfectly in a playlist with Talking Heads and Depeche Mode, which is not a bad place to be.

Wages - This has some real Eddie Vedder energy.

William Parsons Project - The guitar kind of drowns out the rest, but I like that descending bit. My wife says you sound like the singer from Arcade Fire.

Yaks of the Industry - An eclectic mix of influences here. A lot of bigs swings, but you stick the landing. The verses are like if D’Angelo wrote a song for Mika, and then Harry Nilsson did the chorus, followed by harmonized guitars from Queen. Killer guitar solo. A great listen. VOTE
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Re: Ready and willing (To Die On This Hill reviews)

Post by Evermind »

jeffhenderson wrote:
Thu Jul 22, 2021 11:13 pm
Moody Vermin - There is a lot going on here. I am definitely too square for how experimental this is, but I can imagine that if I was in the right state of mind, the section starting at 2:20 might transport me to another dimension.
Yeah, I'm putting this one in my forum sig. :D

Moody is nothing if not experimental but I'd dare say this song is experimental even for us. Thanks for the review!
I am definitely too square for how experimental this is, but I can imagine that if I was in the right state of mind, the section starting at 2:20 might transport me to another dimension - jeffhenderson
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Re: Ready and willing (To Die On This Hill reviews)

Post by mo »

listen I'm sure there's a high schooler somewhere who's got some shrooms you can buy
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Re: Ready and willing (To Die On This Hill reviews)

Post by WilliamParsons »

> The guitar kind of drowns out the rest, but I like that descending bit.

I usually write things incrementally and take the time to re-record and do a proper mix, but I had a late start and then had to prepare for The Big Scary Lightning Storm which never arrived. I liked the lyrics on this one so much that I submitted it as-is, even though the production falls short of Parsons Project standards.
:ugeek:

Code: Select all

\    /     |
 \/\/illiam| “The corpse of Frank Zappa
 ___       | should knee you in the groin
|___)      | …you know…to return the favor”
|arsons    |
 ___       | ”If Barry Gibb joined ZZ Top…”
|___)      |
|roject    |
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Re: Ready and willing (To Die On This Hill reviews)

Post by the panna cotta army »

Some excellent songs in this fight

Widgets - I quite like the natural roominess; the acoustic guitar sounds decent but the performance is a bit hesitant, unassured and lacking fluency. The untamed vocals have plenty of fervour and enthusiasm though.

Licenced Thought - Your music is very formulaic and mechanical sounding though this is possibly the most coherent song I’ve heard of yours - certainly the verses. Having said that, I still can’t really discern melodic intention in the vocals. Have you ever considered abandoning singing and trying something like Sprechgesang? Do a Rex Harrison....Or even just spoken word. The chorus is less compelling than the verse and middle eight just sounds a bit like “filler”.

Wobbly Parsnips Protest - I’m quite into the Smoke On The Water-like riff intro but you’ve overdone it with the arena reverb so the guitar lacks clarity and the mix is a mush. Did you forget the bass? This is crying out for a dum, dum, dum, dum driving bassline. A lot of timing issues here I’m afraid. I’m not sure what the drums are really doing most of the time. You need to tighten things up. Just get yourself a simple steady beat and try to synchronise everything to that more.

Baking Soda Sceptic - I dig the intro theme/motif which is also repeated throughout. This is a good solid song and the arrangement is likewise. The electric piano and guitars work nicely for a slightly 70s retro-ish rock vibe. Perhaps there could be a bit more light and shade in the instrumentation, but overall I’d be pretty happy with this if it were mine.

Modern Virgin - The synthy delay chords are cool - a little bit of a Boards of Canada feel, though for me the modulated panning is a touch overboard and distracting though I am hungover. The beat is nice but the synth bassline is possibly a bit detached from it. Not crazy about the discordant middle section but I do like the bit that comes out of it which has a Washed Out sounding thing about it. Good variation in the arrangement.

Sweaty Toes and the Skinheads - The clubby 4 to the floor Eurobeat and the pulsating synth are neat. Some sort of other more melodic theme would’ve been good. The siren thing is cool. The chorus is earwormy though 8 repeats gets me a bit itchy. Sounds like you’re going for a comic Russian accent. I feel the one note rapid fire verses are a bit much - need a bit more dynamism in the delivery dude.

JR Pilgrimfather - I like the descending bass, the strumming and the tone of the guitars. The vocal melody is okay too but why have you only delivered half a song? Two verses and two bridges does not a winner make. There’s a promising idea here but it needs more meat on the bones and some more bones.

Glass Castle - You know what you’re doing, don’t you? This is your usual high standard of writing, production and performance. We’re in your signature territory (late 90s rock-pop), though maybe this is a little grungier in terms of the guitars. Everything sounds super dupe though if I was being uber-picky (which I am because I you don’t get everything your own way) maybe the solo tone is a tad fizzy. Usual excellent close harmony vocals too. Drums on point too. Too too. Two too

Possible Sarcasm - Some comfortingly familiar sounding fingerpicking; lovely and mellow. The 7 bar verse progression is a nice quirk without getting awkward. There’s the odd unusual chord turn too, as well as all the little tastefully judged melodic interjections of piano, mellotron-like strings and buzzy synth. And over it all your effortless soft vocals with a lovely melody and intriguing lyrics. Top notch, me old mucker.

Crystal Rain Fairy - This is well put together but it wanders around all over the place in fancy key-change world and for my simple brain it's just too jarring. It also rolls along in a very busy and relentless pace without a breather. There’s a lot going on. When the vocals eventually turn up, the melody feels kind of man-handled in to cope with all the oblique chord changes so it lacks a little natural flow. As a song, it’s less than the sum of all its cleverer parts.

Bombay Mix - Oh groovy drums, love that beat. And really awesome pro-sounding sharp clean production. Guitars sound immense - are you micing an amp or is that some kind of sim-box? I’d like to know. Excellent energy and lyrics. Vocals sound powerful and the chorus line is catchy. This has quality written all over it. Maybe not the best song in the fight but certainly best production.

Jaffa Tragic Hendrix - I like this song. A little bit of Radiohead vibe in places. It’s quite a gentle, polite production but there’s plenty of good sounds; clean and uncluttered. I don’t know if the acoustic and electric guitars are possibly too separated by the extreme panning but apart from that small question mark, it’s otherwise well put together. Synth stuff is sparing but well thought out. Excellent vocals and guitar twiddles. Are the verse vocals doubled and hard panned?

Hostage Monster - I’m a sucker for a 80s style power ballad especially with CP70 keys (e.g. Against All Odds) and I think this is just awfully fabulous darling. Terrific vocals. The arrangement/production doesn’t quite hit the nail fully on the head but it very nearly gets there. Noice!

Dancing Manatee - There’s an odd kind of rigid vibe to this. Is it done with loops? It sounds alright but there’s something that feels not quite the ticket in the backing - somehow doesn’t quite gel with the vocals. I feel it’s missing some sort of breakdown or change as it goes along repeating the same chord pattern and at the same dynamic level all the way through to its tail-end.

Careless Tuxedo Signs - You’ve laid the kitsch on with a cake slice here, especially with the Casiotone drum beat, the vibes, xylophone, sleigh bells, plus the kitschen sink et al, but it’s also kind of dreamy too; in a John Lynch sort of off-kilter way. I like it, it’s fun and well put together.

The Melting Trifle - The performances are all well done and it sounds good overall; the guitars are clean and jangly. The instrumental parts are pretty. The verse vocal melody is a bit stiff in parts but harmonies are excellent. The ending is slightly odd and abrupt.

Yes to Dysentery - This is another song with weird stuff going with panning. Is this some new craze? I like the electric piano instrumentation and there are some great vocals. Drums seem a bit quiet or is other stuff too loud? The instrumental interplay is cool but somehow I feel it’s a bit too hectic in places. Nothing much wrong with this but it doesn’t quite float my duck.

Bran Whirl and the Bad Wind - A wall of sound but not necessarily in a Spector way. I think the production could have a haircut - a less is more thing. It’s very thick and dense and busy sounding with lots of noise; it feels like there’s too many distorted sounds competing for the same frequency range. Space is required. The chorus is catchy but I feel the vocals need more control and be less frenetic.
Last edited by the panna cotta army on Sun Jul 25, 2021 10:31 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Ready and willing (To Die On This Hill reviews)

Post by Pigfarmer Jr »

the panna cotta army wrote:
Sun Jul 25, 2021 10:22 am
JR Pilgrimfather - Two verses and two bridges does not a winner make.
It's two verses and two pre-choruses. Sheesh.
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Re: Ready and willing (To Die On This Hill reviews)

Post by WilliamParsons »

> I’m quite into the Smoke On The Water-like riff intro

I like to think of it as the “Man on the silver smoke with a Saturday night special” intro.

> but you’ve overdone it with the arena reverb
> so the guitar lacks clarity and the mix is a mush

Nolo contendere

> Did you forget the bass? This is crying out for a dum, dum, dum, dum driving bassline.

No, I just didn’t have time to add bass or do a proper mix but really liked the riff and the lyrics(actually redid drums and added bass today)

> A lot of timing issues here I’m afraid. I’m not sure what the drums are really doing most of the time. You need to tighten things up.

Yes, DAW console has a latency issue I need to debug, too.

> Just get yourself a simple steady beat and try to synchronise everything to that more.

Thanks for listening and providing this feedback
:ugeek:

Code: Select all

\    /     |
 \/\/illiam| “The corpse of Frank Zappa
 ___       | should knee you in the groin
|___)      | …you know…to return the favor”
|arsons    |
 ___       | ”If Barry Gibb joined ZZ Top…”
|___)      |
|roject    |
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Re: Ready and willing (To Die On This Hill reviews)

Post by sleepysilverdoor »

I can't read this title without having Running Up That Hill popping into my head with a modified chorus.
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Re: Ready and willing (To Die On This Hill reviews)

Post by BoffoYux »

It looks like tonight’s LP will be a little delayed. Probably will start 10-10:30 pm

https://youtube.com/watch?v=9cv_M2WlG8w
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Re: Ready and willing (To Die On This Hill reviews)

Post by Mostess »

the panna cotta army wrote:
Sun Jul 25, 2021 10:22 am
Hostage Monster
Oh man I'm seriously considering a name change...
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Re: Ready and willing (To Die On This Hill reviews)

Post by GlennCase »

Mostess wrote:
Tue Jul 27, 2021 6:49 am
the panna cotta army wrote:
Sun Jul 25, 2021 10:22 am
Hostage Monster
Oh man I'm seriously considering a name change...
Clearly, this is our band name when we collaborate.
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Re: Ready and willing (To Die On This Hill reviews)

Post by Mostess »

GlennCase wrote:
Tue Jul 27, 2021 6:12 pm
Mostess wrote:
Tue Jul 27, 2021 6:49 am
the panna cotta army wrote:
Sun Jul 25, 2021 10:22 am
Hostage Monster
Oh man I'm seriously considering a name change...
Clearly, this is our band name when we collaborate.
Sending the PM now...
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Re: Ready and willing (To Die On This Hill reviews)

Post by Adam! »

Reviews! In Yes Please to No Thanks order, roughly.

Carol Toledo Sings: Hell yeah! Thank you for bringing that Spinto goodness and warping me back in time to when I was half my age. I like everything about this song but especially that euphoric chorus. VOTE!

Jeff Travis Henderson: Love the smooth, chilled-out vocals. Great lead melodies, every piece is catchy. That bass propels this song forward. It's nice to hear a mix that has tons of space without being minimal. Love the wet surfy electric guitar. This song is four and a half minutes long but it doesn't drag for even a second. VOTE!

Yaks of the Industry: This one caught me by surprise, as until now I'd only heard the Yaks in ElectroPop mode. Arresting sounds as always, but the real showcase here is JB's funky, Prince-ly verse vocals. I'm a sucker for electric piano, and chopped'n'screwed guitar solos. Pretty much the only thing I'm not crazy for is the chorus melody, but the lush doubling and great lyrics do a lot to paper that over. Rad song. VOTE!

The Pannacotta Army: Wonderful, punchy mix. Love the tom-ride beat and staccato piano parts. This song mostly has one gear, but the bridge really lifts it. I would dance to this at the sock hop. VOTE!

Possum Sauce: A beautiful mellow little song that belies a hidden depth and darkness. It's probably just because the arrangement evokes Simon & Garfunkel but I wish there was a second higher harmony vocal as well. I love those sparse string/pad/melotron-y parts, they add a lot. VOTE!

Hostess Mostess: Cheesefest piano ballad and a lumpy mix but damn is this a well written song. Those high notes in the vocal are sublime. These sorts of heavily piano-chord driven songs can drag and this one is no exception. VOTE!

Duncan Martin: This is a fun song with a jaunty melody and delivery. Clearer lead vocal than I'm used to from you, the harmonies/doubling don't hurt discernibility. This arrangement feels pretty busy, I wish there was a bit more space and individual instruments got a chance to shine. I hope the next song I hear from you goes further out of your comfort zone. VOTE!

Glenn Case: Solid groove, straight-ahead rocker. Of course I love the lyrics. This is another song with basically one gear; when the drums change to playing a ride pattern it's a much needed breath of fresh air. I like the verse melody a lot, and I'd trade a chorus iteration for more verse in a heartbeat. VOTE!

Pigfarmer Jr: At ~75 seconds this is obviously dashed off, but there are some great melodies in here and overall I dig the vibe. I found the garbage guitar solos endearing. VOTE!

Brown Word and the Big Whine: Cool sounds and mix, but for some reason this song washes over me and puts me into a fugue state where I forget who I am, what I am doing, or how I got here. I like the bigbeat heartbeat breakdown.

Berkeley Social Scene: It feels weird putting this song below Pigfarmer's, considering it's, you know, a real song. Well put together but I just do not like this melody, sorry.

Wages: Well enough performed but I demand a lot from guy+guitar songs and there's just not enough here for a 3-and-a-half minute song

Lichen Throat: I like that nylon patch. This song is quite pretty, but the lead melody loses me pretty quick.

Moody Vermin: I do not like this melody one bit, but the back half where the song embraces its atonality and transmogrifies into a glitch soundscape is pretty rad.

William Parsons Project: Wha... did something go wrong during mixdown? I assume it's not supposed to sound like this.

The Mellfire Trifecta: Pretty guitars and harmonies, but perfect rhymes always clang on my ear and "Sing/Thing", "Two/Blue", "Double/Trouble" were too much for me to take. By the time it got to the titular "Thrill/Hill" I was actually annoyed.

Sweeney Toad and the Synthlads: Captivating vocals as always but too much of this song is that two note riff, and too much of that two note riff is one note.

Critical Rave Theory: Great band name. There's a lot of stuff in this song but it doesn't really fit together. The vocal melody goes places I cannot follow.
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Re: Ready and willing (To Die On This Hill reviews)

Post by Paco Del Stinko »

One liners on ZE-ro sleep.

Berkeley Social Scene - If Ian Gillan as JC Superstar was singing, wow.

Brown Word and the Big Whine - Loses some of its magic by the second half, but longing and sweaty throb works nice.

Carol Toledo Sings - Even if the universe is made of similar matters, it's still endless.

Critical Rave Theory
- Van music that shouldn't avoid the disco potholes.

Duncan Martin - Round that moody bastard up, Cowboy Dave.

Glenn Case - I'm on the case and wheezing, but I still feel good.

Hostess Mostess
- Unfinshed prom or TV theme tryout song hits some right spots that feel more good than guilty.

Jeff Travis Henderson - Diggin' the desrt vibe if not completely lost out in the Mojave or whatever.

Lichen Throat - Heart pulling mood with recitation needing a Springsteen delivery.

Max Bombast - Missing only girls doing the yeah back-ups oh boy yeah!

The Mellfire Trifecta - Smarter than KISS by a lot.

Moody Vermin - Bubble gum when needed, not all the time there, Stretcho.

The Pannacotta Army - I have an arm hanging at an angle out of the car window.

Pigfarmer Jr - Jack Betts wants his riff back, but says he doesn't mind if you jam it for a while.

Possum Sauce - Put it on a loop and don't let it go too far

Sweeney Toad and the Synthlads - The pirhanna would dig the start and appreciate it if the men would begin wearing their head gear.

Wages - Right part of town, wrong street to ask for quarters on.

William Parsons Project - Missing the Dusty Hill and firecracker snap, by a mile.

Yaks of the Industry - Sexy could be turned up even more and still hang in the air.
Bringin' the stink since 2006.
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Re: Ready and willing (To Die On This Hill reviews)

Post by Duncan »

Carol Toledo: I like the Beatles/Nillsson/Badfinger aspects of this. Sunny British pop sound. Great melody. The bells remind me too much of a telecom or corporate responsibility bank ad.


Mellfire Trifecta: A great funeral dirge. I like that “on the double” fall. I couldn’t tell if you were doing a double entendre of “die on this hill” or if it was quite literal.

Brown Word and the Big Whine: The vocals are really low, but there are lots of fun sounds in here. Not my favourite BWBW but I like that second half.

Possum Sauce: English folk -- great progressions and arrangement. Lyrics are really well written. I think it could come alive more with slightly louder singing/less vocal amplification.


Jeff Travis Henderson: This is a cool intro. Great catchy chorus -- bridge progression. Great mixing, by my ear. Guitars sound great. I like the lyrics, but I think I want slightly more specificity about what the hill is that you’re dying on.

Lichen Throat: The story is dynamite. I think a straight reading of this over the music would sound cool.

Duncan Martin (me): As I listen to this next to everyone else’s I agree with the comments about lack of dynamic range. I tend to show very little respect for the final mastering process, based on little knowledge of it. Aside from that, I really liked how this came together. I have trouble going outside of the low-key style, so this was at least an exploration of other low-key moods.
(@Pannacotta Army -- yes a fair bit of manual looping of verse guitar)

Wages: Something very disjointed here. But I love the Eddie Vedder delivery.

Sweeney and the ‘Lads: This is so different than anything I do, but full respect. Good driving music, always fun to listen to your lyrics. Bit of a Devo sound.

Max Bombast: Makes me want to eat some Cake. I love all the layers, and that you keep the little beat box running throughout. “Tilt’n and tilt’n and tilt’n all day long” and “walk your dog and clean your kitchen” -- great lines, among others.

Pannacotta Army: Quality comfort food music -- reminds me of the Wilco and Ween tracks that go down easy. Great chords/melody/arrangement. I wish I could get that wall of sound you get without my inevitable mud and off-tempo elements. Lyrics didn’t grab me the first time, but I’ll be listening again.

Critical Rave Theory: Loving the intro. Oh wait it’s not just an intro it’s like 1.5 mins. More great driving music. There are a lot of unexpected melodic turns here. Jazz. Love it.

Glenn Case: I like the vocal harmonies here (reminds me of “Mary Moon - she’s a vegetarian”). “You brought a gun to a virus fight” is a great line.

Pigfarmer Junior: I like these sounds. Chains dragging? Cars starting up? It’s very short. Where is this going? I enjoyed it.

Moody Vermin: Groovy in the headphones, some vertigo. A bit indulgent at 4:02, but all’s fair in songfighting.

Hostess Mostess: This is a good approximation of if Marc Coen and Boz Scaggs could have a sexy baby. You give it everything -- I love this. Well done with the transition to “shoulder”

William Parsons Project: Latency issues! I can relate. I can see what you’re going for though.

Berkeley Social Scene: It started with a bit of a Doors/The Who’s Tommy sound. I like your singing.

Yaks of the Industry: “And give me consistency….” I like that line. Nice funky groove. Good full chorus harmonies. I also like that staccato singing bit. Gong finish, noice.
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MellyP
Somebody Get Me A Doctor
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Re: Ready and willing (To Die On This Hill reviews)

Post by MellyP »

Duncan wrote:
Sun Aug 01, 2021 2:09 pm

Mellfire Trifecta: A great funeral dirge. I like that “on the double” fall. I couldn’t tell if you were doing a double entendre of “die on this hill” or if it was quite literal.
That’s great Duncan. That’s exactly where I was trying to leave the listener…. After the wedding, three is an awkward number
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Lunkhead
You're No Good
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Re: Ready and willing (To Die On This Hill reviews)

Post by Lunkhead »

Jeff Travis Henderson ties Berkeley Social Scene!
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