Dan-O from Five-O wrote:
The preceding is called SARCASM, you will find it many of my posts. I liked the song CR, and I said so. Check it out again OK?
OK - apologies for my ungraciousness - I know you said you liked the song and I appreciate it
....or was that sarcasm? Do you really like the song? Damn you and your American cunning...
(I'll remember to add "winky faces" in future - you know, that's how the Cuban missile crisis was averted - Kennedy and Kruschev always remembered to put winky faces on their communications)
Dan-O from Five-O wrote:
The preceding is called SARCASM, you will find it many of my posts. I liked the song CR, and I said so. Check it out again OK?
OK - apologies for my ungraciousness - I know you said you liked the song and I appreciate it
....or was that sarcasm? Do you really like the song? Damn you and your American cunning...
(I'll remember to add "winky faces" in future - you know, that's how the Cuban missile crisis was averted - Kennedy and Kruschev always remembered to put winky faces on their communications)
Yes I liked the song, and without my ususal sarcasm. However, you did have more than a casual reference to our politics so I'm not sure what made you so upset. I really do appreciate your input , both from a song standpoint and a post standpoint , and I value you as an individual who obviously has an invaluable opinion. So please, spend your Australian dollars on recording equipment and guitar and vocal lessons instead of a ticket to the states to kill me.
Dan-O from Five-O wrote:
Likely Lads: The vocals are pretty good but the lyrics are to vague for me to tell if you lost someone close to you or are lamenting the election like the last song.
I was recently told that my floor at work was going to be shut down and that was the main theme of the song. I deliberately left it a bit vague so it could have been about someone lost. The American election didn't come into it but I can see why you might have made that connection. Thanks for the review.
Dan-O from Five-O wrote:
I really don’t like political statements critical of our government coming from folks not registered to vote here
Caravan Ray wrote:[Well, while you have a government who insists on killing and illegally imprisoning "folks not registered to vote here" - you probably should start getting used to it
that other bloke wrote:Piss on ya, ya wanna be Brit. We don't need your's or Tony faggin' Blair's permission to start and finish wars. And just exactly what do you or any other third world country think you're gonna do about it anyway?
I was really pleased with how the vocals came out on The Likely Lads entry this week. I can see what people are saying with the comments about the guitar and bass needing something more to back them up but at the start I feel they work really well together. Thanks for all the reviews.
The ones I saved:
1) Caravan Ray
This has a nice groove to it. It goes on a little bit too long without any variation but I do like the section near the end with the massive intelligence failure reference in. This is my favourite because of the lyrics.
2) Southwest Statistic
The auto-tuned vocals are overused. It's like any other effect, a little is good, too much is off putting. The arrangement is really good but the chorus reminds me of another song, I can't think what though. It might just be because it sounds so professional. A well written and produced song but not really my cup of tea.
3) Explino!
Sounds really well played and recorded but it doesn't really do it for me. I like the verse melody and the chorus is quite catchy. The singing on the bridge sounds a little stretched though and the guitars are mixed too high. Good song but not to my tastes.
The ones I didn't:
Andre Was Here At Midnight
Seems more like a rough idea repeated ad infinitum rather than a finished song. You need to spend more time developing the music and lyrics. When the second guitar comes it starts to hint at what it could become.
Freddielove
The drums sound a bit weak so I think it would be better if they didn't start the song off. Once the guitar comes in you don't notice the drums so much. Nice change of pace for the chorus and the female singer is good, but the main vocal puts me off the song.
MC Feat
Made me laugh, but not something I'd listen too again. Gotta love that evil sounding voice.
The 'Over
The timing of the rhythm guitar is all over the place and makes the song hard to listen to. I fail to see any reference to this weeks title.
AWHAM – I can tell this is a really decent song, good guitar performance & bad vocal performance. The melody is good, I wish I could hear someone else sing it. Your voice has a kind of ‘C Hack’ quality to it, maybe see if you can get him to do some vocals for you.
Caravan Ray – Cool song. Like the vocal style & effects. Good guitar work, I’m not much for Boy + Guitar, especially when the subject doesn’t do much for me (I’m tired of political songs.) But I’d listen to this one again.
Explino! – Interesting intro. There are a few Songfighters who’s voice sounds like this, (the chorus vox), this song sounds like a lot of songs out there. There are quite a few dynamic/style changes throughout the song, I appreciate that. Good guitar, good backround vocals. Just nothing new, nothing special.
Freddielove – Lots of cool stuff going on here. Guitar tends to be overpowering & can drown out other parts. I do like the way it comes in suddenly & very frantic & then is suddenly gone. Just got to turn it down a little. Female vocal is a nice touch, good voice quality. Mix the guitar down & you got a good song.
Likely Lads – Decent melody. Good vox & backround vox. Another political song I can’t get into.
MC Feat – Low voice effect sucks. Backround sucks. Vocals sound like Linda McCartney – HORRIBLE.
The Over – Right off the bat I’m liking the strange chord progression – a definite plus. The drums sound a little out of tempo sometimes. Pretty good lyrics. Vox might be a little too loud in mix, but they sound good. Decent song & the frontrunner so far.
Southwest Statistic – Vocals really shine on this song, backrounds too. Good crunchy guitar work too, love the guitar break with the light synth. Plenty of good guitar here to go around (would love to hear a solo bust out.) Good song!
Andre Was Here at Midnight
This could actually be cool if you didn't repeat the same thing over again. You have a unique, naive way of picking out solos that I like. Ultimately though, this wanders around and doesn't get anywhere.
Caravan Ray
Nice lower register to your voice, I hadn't noticed that before. Riding a nice groove. This song could use a little more variation from beginning to end in either structure or instrumentation, though I like the way you worked the title into the bridge.
Explino!
From the start I was expecting a one minute punk song. A little strange how the tempo drops almost instantly, though I am warming to it. Once again, I think the bridge is the best part of this song, nice energy. Great backing vocals especially in the last verse.
The likely Lads
Aside from the guitar part at the beginning, this is great. A little between the Proclaimers and Gomez, with that voice, which is great. Catchy chorus as well. I wish there was more to this song, but that's better than too much. Looking forward to hearing more from the lads.
MC Feat
I guess you thought this was funny.
David
Your title says An Unlikely Occurrence. Perhaps you should read how this works.
Southwest Statistic
See you soon at an arena near me. In three songs now you've proved yourself to be at the top of the production chart here along with a few others. The reverbed keyboard behind the crunchy guitar is great, my favorite part of the song. Drum patches are good too, took a couple listens to notice them. Although it's way overused, I liked the vocoded vocals here, esp in the backing vocals. The song feels a bit style over substance, though there is a lot to like.
Top Songs
The Likely Lads
Southwest Statistic
Explino!
Caravan Ray
Everything But the Girl but without the scary big chinned woman
Caravan Ray wrote:In summary – I’m voting for FreddieLove – that was a cracker.
Hey, two votes, cool.
Kapitano wrote:MIDI guitar, which absolutely always sounds fake
Ha, first person to call me out on this. Yeah, this weeks was entirely done in Garage Band sans vocals. What really hurts about it is I have a beautiful Fender Hot Rod Delux amp (coutesy of J~ the other, beautiful vocal in the song) that I almost never get to use because it's so loud the neighbors would be hitting the walls almost instantly.
As for the vocals....
I was going for a scratchy, distorted Strokes feel to contrast with the echoy female vocals so I compressed and kicked up the distortion on mine, and well, the results speak for themselves. I knew they crap but I didn't have the will to change them. Thanks for the feedback.
Everything But the Girl but without the scary big chinned woman
Here you go, some cross fight reviews for that ass! We need more of these. If you enjoy reviews but don't write them, start now. I've threatened with voodoo before and I'll do it again. Don't make me do it. I really don't like to see people in pain as they lay there wondering where these intestinal parasites came from. Without further Ado:
Andre was here at Midnight: Vocals are terribly off pitch and the Guitar seems stumbly. It has a 5:00 in the morning with Garfield eyes feel to me. I think that you have better mics than I do. Jerk.
Caravan Ray: I like these lyrics quite a bit. You put a lot of time into that. I'm really not a fan of the guy-tar
Explino!: I think that yours go to 11. This is louder than the rest. This has some professional elements to it. I think that the vocals are just a touch too loud in the mix.
MC Feat: That was very entertaining. Short and sweet with a meaningful message. The singing was a little flat. Don't give up because of the harsh reviews. Try making your own music though.
The Over: This could use some real production and mixing. The vocals are so far in front that it feels like you're singing live but the music is pumping through a boom box.
SouthWest Statistic: That sounds very professional. The production is all that I can say good about. The vocals sort of drone and the music is pretty uninteresting to me. Don't feel discouraged by this. What you have hear is probably at least ten times more marketable than WreckdoM.
Freddielove: This could be better. The mix needs some real work. The dramatic transitional sounds are pretty interesting. This isn't entirely terrible, but it could use mix work.
Likley lads: your levels are a little low. Cheesy chorus part would remind me of Against Me! if it were more punk and less cheesy. This leaves the listener feeling depressed which I think you're going for. Thanks for the downer.
This was an interesting fight. I think I may send an encouraging thumbs up vote to MC Feat. Great job everyone. It takes a lot to get a song done in a week. Keep em' coming. I'd hate to see the number of fights reduced to 1.
However, you did have more than a casual reference to our politics 
so I'm not sure what made you so upset. 
I really do appreciate your input 
, both from a song standpoint and a post standpoint 
, and I value you as an individual who obviously has an invaluable opinion. 
So please, spend your Australian dollars on recording equipment and guitar and vocal 
