Hey all! I'm Julia, the lyrics-writing half of
Kenka. JJ does the majority of the actual songfighting for us, but since he's busy, I thought I'd chime in for the both of us. We've submitted for the past few rounds (three were under the name
Airlines) and we've appreciated all your thoughtful feedback. I'm not a musician, but I wanted to try to repay the favor with reviews of my own. So many submissions this time!
Since I do lyrics, I quoted the lines that particularly stood out to me during listening.
Anastasia Elizabeth: "I might love you, but I don't know yet. It's only September."
Voice is lovely and clear, with an occasional soft airy vibrato that I would have loved to hear more of. A bit too shrill at times during the choruses and I had to lower the volume when listening. I'm a big fan of the bridge for the softer contrast and lyrics: "I see you in March with a piece of my heart... talk about it in June, maybe I'll marry you."
Balance Lost: "So many love songs, never been in love."
Whoa, love the energy of this track! Really fun song. While I think the manic tempo is the highlight, the really fast drumming in the intro and at 1:05 sound slightly off and muddled? Perhaps they're a bit too fast.
Berkeley Social Scene:
Oh man, sweet bass line... I was nodding along to the whole song. Voice sounds muffled, I think because the bass line is so prominent. Love the quiet bridge and fade-out -- feels like nighttime on the beach in late August.
Chocolate Chips: "Remember September/ you ate? me up as I ate? you down"
I almost skipped this track by accident-- the "Stream All" playlist doesn't play this track properly. Someone should look into this.
I'm an electropop fan, so I definitely dig this. I like how you added layers of different instruments as the song goes on. I couldn't really understand your lyrics because of the muffled filters on your voice. I know it's a stylistic choice, but that's the downside.
flvxxvmflorvm:
I liked the slow chiptune-ish sound of this track, but I couldn't get into this otherwise. A bit too sluggish and that high-pitched drum beat sound (I'm not sure what instrument it is) became grating after awhile.
Foobar: "Let me wake up from this dream with you."
I may be biased, but I love Ben Folds Five and I was definitely getting that vibe. The piano added some welcome and lovely variety for this round. Nice, slow song with haunting and engaging lyrics. I could see this fitting in the soundtrack for the Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. (huh, just noticed that someone else made the comment above)
Holly Furlone: "September came as quickly as I did/ to the conclusion that all we are is haunted."
Seriously beautiful voice and harmonies as usual. I got chills at 1:48. Same as the last round though, this song suffers from too much noise in the background and your voice sounds a bit tinny and distant. There's a drastic drop in sound quality around the 2:50 mark for about 30 seconds, not sure what happened there. If you could improve the recording conditions, this song would be perfect. From a lyrics point of view, I had trouble making out what you were saying at times (for example, the verse at 1:48), which is a shame because what I could hear was really nice.
Inflatable Vegetables: "September, you're not my friend."
The back to the school special.
The clever lyrics saved this song from being overly droning. A slightly faster tempo would have made this song more balanced.
Jeff DeSantis: "I see things that I used to be/every time September comes around."
Ooh, loved this right from the intro hook. GREAT beat, great voice, great mix of instruments, really fun song. Rocked along to the whole four minutes. Well written lyrics, both for content and sound of the words.
Kenka: "Stars danced around us as we waltzed on the moon."
I'm the lyrics half of our duo, so I'm going to confess that I wrote this song about a video game very dear to my heart: Final Fantasy 8. Who else remembers that the game came out on 9/9/1999?
Also, our song for "What Anna Can See" was based on Bioshock Infinite...
Speaking for my musical partner, this was one of the more ambitious vocal arrangements he has ever attempted. He said the guitar work is sloppier than he would have liked, but I couldn't tell. He worked the chords from "Eyes on Me" into the guitar solos, hopefully some other gamers can appreciate that. We'll like to eventually redo this song with actual female vocals and a proper second verse. Overall, I really liked our song this round. It's bright, warm, and catchy. JJ challenged himself with the composition and each song feels more polished than the last. I'm always amazed at what he can do after I throw a bunch of words at him.
King Arthur:
Seconding the comment about the Tom Waits vibe-- cool, laid-back retro sound, just personally not my taste.
Lou Porrazzo: "Am I really in my skin? Or is it all just but a dream I'm in?"
Really liked the bass line and that slight echo effect on the voice. Hard to pick up any particular highlights during listening, but overall, it's a refreshing, peaceful ballad that washes over you.
Melvin: "We were young and innocent last June/ when September comes, I'll be gone for good."
Whoa, this hooked me right away, and then when the tambourine kicked in...! Tight composition, solid lyrics, solid vocals, catchy--- loved this song! I wonder if singing in a higher pitch would have worked better.
Montana Fudge: "Oh, last September/ the leaves were turning brown, like poop."
Haha, your lyrics! You rhymed poop with stoop--- what more can I say? Loved the whistling intro... the unexpected vocals and lyrics started up... and then I knew what I was in for. I don't know if I would listen to this again, but I appreciate the effort.
Schlimminycricket: "I think of you as brave and true."
The accordian and strumming reminded me of the Amelie soundtrack at times. This is bright, elegant, and well-composed. I really liked the instrument solo at 1:45. Some higher-pitched harmonies could have elevated this.
Slickitude:
Definitely full of slickitude. Great driving beat, hand claps, liked the contrast of fast and slow. Short but sweet.
Starbuck: "When she goes/ it's September day"
Great riff! I don't normally listen to hard rock, but I got into this. Especially when the organ kicked in! I like that your dog is part of your band.
Toby Robkot: "September asked me to stay."
I liked the story in your lyrics and the Miss September reveal, but I found it hard to focus on this song all the way through, even with a few listens--- a bit more variety or energy in your voice could have helped.
Worldly Self-Assurance: "The cure is not running, not running away/ The truth is in what you do, not what you say." <-- nice lyrics
Strong intro and solid all the way through. Sounds like the boss level of a video game. Really liked the drumming and the mix of vocals and instruments. The saxophone interlude could have been longer and louder. Guitar outro was great!
Zeegee: "I thought I'd know by now/ I was so warm-blooded then"
I really like your voice! You said in your post that you kept it very stripped down. The minimalism could work, but since your voice is the focus, vary it up more instead of singing it straight the whole way through-- more emotion, softer here, louder there, etc.