Ross wrote:Howl down the chimney - Your voice is enviable, a great blend of everyman and virtuoso.
Wow, that means a lot coming from you, one of my favorite male vocalists on songfight. Made my day.
Thanks to all the reviewers so far. I'm gonna be hip deep in recording LMALBM this weekend, but I hope to knock out some reviews before Wednesday rolls around.
Abominominous- Great to hear your voice! This composition is kind of a mess. I enjoy the parts but it’s rather disjointed. How many endings are there? Sounds like more of a bag of ideas than a song. That said, I dig the playing and singing. Lyrics are weak, and this could really use a catchy melody at some point. Awesome drums! Great guitar playing. Love the voice as well. Short of a vote I’m afraid.
Adam Adamant- Soooooooo New Wave! I dig this. I imagine Deter and the Sprockets lot love this. Good song, good singing. I think this needs a little more variance. Enjoyable!
The Anarchaelogists- this is great! Here are some very catchy vocal hooks. Nice variance and nice raw guitar. The drums don’t sound like a drummer, but they work well. I love the soft part. This gets a vote. Wow left field switcheroo! Listening to the fight all weak I had assumed this was another song. This Layla echo ending is beautiful. Yeah this still gets a vote! Weird track, but I love it!
Cabin Fever- Wow this is beautiful! Big Vote. The vocals are really emotional and well delivered. The harmonies are gorgeous. I like the sparse drumming and plodding piano. Wow, very tasty guitar solo! Nice melodic drumming as well! This is a keeper and probably the song to beat for this fight. Cello is used very well. AWESOME!
The Chadder Random Abyss- Will your genius be realized in your own lifetime? How exactly is this different from your previous entry? I don’t consider this a song, but it is an interesting sound sculpture. This reminds me of some of the tension and weirdness the Dirty Projectors conjure up, but without the melodic release. I’d like to hear your chaos structured a bit more.
Charcoal- Not a bad instrumental. This is an enjoyable listen. This could stand to have a real head melody. As it is it sounds very soundtrack-like. Some nice noises!
Coder Lyte- Nice piano! Very pretty song! Gosh I miss my Atari.
Deetak- haunting and beautiful. Interesting how this title really brought out the piano. I can’t make out the words, but the ghostlike effect is great. This is very cool! Gets a vote!
Dutova- More 80’s fun. This is somewhere between Joy Division and the Magnetic Fields. Nice song. Not quite awesome enough for a vote in this one of the highest caliber fights I’ve heard. Good vocals, a serious hook might have sold me on this.
Electric Needle Room- Here’s a great hook. This song sticks in my head when I’m not listening to the fight. The vocal delivery is slightly comedic. More 80’s New Wave. I didn’t get the memo. Another solid and enjoyable entry!
Heine- Play this on an acoustic guitar and you’re Love and Rockets. Sounds like a B-Side from Earth Sun Moon. Reminds me most of “Waiting for the Flood”. I’m not a fan of the fade out. Write an ending! And it happens too slowly and over the vocals. Decent song!
Howl Down the Chimney & Jan Krueger- I love the Uke! This reminds me of Grant Lee Buffalo. All the voices in the chorus are great! The instrumental break is very cool too! This is a pretty gentle folky tune. Great contribution to the album that is the Elegy for Industry fight, but not quite a vote getter. Very close however, perhaps a little more variation would’ve grabbed it from me.
Jan Krueger- Pretty guitar. Nice singing, I would’ve voted against the whistling, but it’s not bad. The way the chorus melody resolves is a little too obvious for me to really get into. Is that a mouth harp? Funny! Another fade out? WTF? At least this one is far more appropriate.
Jim Tyrrell- Now here’s the signature JT sound I know and love. The backing vocals are really nice. The whole thing is kind of a vamp. The verse and the chorus sound nearly the same. It’s a nice verse, I wish the chorus had more hook, and more punch. Good song in a great fight. Just short of a vote.
John Kloberdanz- I thought this was Ross the 1st few times I heard it. So this is as Dylan as you can be. I suppose “Hey stupid boss” is a little more overt than Bob. This is a pleasant protest song. The job/slob rhyme is a little obvious and weak. I like the harmonica! Fun song.
Jonathon Mann- The song smith master. I’ve been loving the song a day! This song is solid! The chorus is really catchy. The drum machine and keys are charmingly lo-fi. Your vocals are always awesome, the harmonies are really nice! This gets a vote.
Jon Eric- I wish the bass was louder. This chorus is awesome! The vocals really sell this song. This easily gets a vote. Drums are tight and snappy, love ‘em. That vocal vibrato is ridiculous, but I love it in a camp kind of way. It’s like 60’s Elvis or something. Keeper! I still think every song needs a solo, so I miss hearing one here.
MC Thadderoous Gunderstank- This is the most unimaginative, childish, weak, stupid, piece of garbage I’ve ever heard on songfight. I suppose it’s in time, but that’s the drum machine now isn’t it. There is no wit, there is no charm, and it’s not even imaginative enough to be offensive. If you want to learn to swear in a shacking and effective way you should go watch the South Park movie, now they can swear! I assume you made this drek to insight such reactions as I’m giving you. Let me indulge you. This is horrible. Talentless. Obvious. A waste of bandwidth. A waste of my precious time. If Messiah reads this, he should think “why would you write that review, when you should be working on my very late GOM?” he’s right, but I have rambunctious kids that won’t be quiet for the microphone at the moment. Anyway, I hope you got this out of your system, and you return with something resembling music that will improve my opinion of your taste and ability in music.
Noah McLaughlin- Ever get the David Sylvian comparison for your vocal stylings? Your musical style is quite different, but I always think of Dave when I hear you. I like the drum beat and bass line for the verse. I think this might be a bit over sung at points. Over all very well done. Here’s another nice folky tune without a real chorus and hook. I suppose that adds to the somberness of the mood from the title. The acoustic is a little shaky in it’s delivery. I love the backing vocals and the weird ghosty effect on them. The break it down bridge in the slower tempo doesn’t really work for me, it’s not bad, but I think you could’ve done better. Good stuff, not quite a vote.
Paco del Stinko- Starting with Awesome guitar. Here comes the Evil Clown narration. And I’m laughing with joy! Enter the Black Sabbath nation. Bitchin guitar leads! Rolling R’s . I usually don’t like plodding riffs with dinosaur feet, but this really works for me. It makes the searing guitar licks all the more intense. Drum fills working with the guitar licks are excellent. Gets a big vote. Best guitar playing of the fight by a mile.
Quimby- Great song! That horn line is great. The acoustic sounds very good too. Your voice is awesome! I like the straighter you sing and the less affectation. Great verse and chorus. I would axe the whistle solo, and give it a proper guitar solo, and a proper ending rather than the fade out. Really ends with a wimper. In such an awesome fight I think I will withhold the vote for such sins, but I was going to vote for it until the ending. BTW I’m liking every entry more than the previous entry from you. I look forward to the next one!
Raised by Wolves- I’m really in awe at how all of these songs fit together. This is a gem in the very good fight as well. Wonderful dynamics in this song. The vocals are earnest and well done. The piano is well played and melancholy. The melody is great. This gets a vote. Very well done. No real complaints, just would prefer real drums, but I bet you would too. For that matter it’d be nice to have a chamber orchestra rather than the keyboard patch. Still, great song!
Rone Rivendale- This makes MC Thadderoous Gunderstank look good.
Ross Durand- I expected nothing less from Ross on this title. Perfect mood. Fantastic lyrics! Is that you on piano? This could be on Pink Floyd’s “The Final Cut”. There’s a real Roger Waters writing style to this. The Applebee’s line is more true than I wish. Big Huge Vote on an excellent song! Great dynamics, great performances, tasty sparse drums. Very well done!
Slats- As mentioned before, I enjoy the King Crimson reference. The verse melody is the real hook for me. This is a good pop song. The big chords give this an 80’s vibe. I don’t think the guitar solo was quite as furious as I think it should’ve been. This is so early 80’s hard rock. I really enjoy this. Gets a vote.
Steve Durand- How nice it is to have something so musical. This conveys the title far better than any other song this fight. I contend music is far more poetic than lyrics. I guess I wish this was longer. The point is made. The accomplishment is a wonderful success. I guess I’d like to see a Durand Durand co-win on this fight. This gets a vote, and is probably my favorite of the fight. I’d also just love to see an instrumental win for once, and I can’t think of one more deserving.
Todd Mchatton- I love the sound of everyone of your songs. Your vocals are a little to lost in the Elliot Smith breathiness. The mix is great. The song isn’t anywhere near as strong as your usual self. I think you’re an amazing artisan, but this track doesn’t really bring out the artist in you. You’ve done much better. All the playing is top notch. I just don’t care for the writing on this one.
The Weakest Suit- A decent song. I think the verse melody is nice and playground snarky. If the chorus had a Hell of a lot more punch “Get , Big, Fast” could be huge. Think of the crunch in Creep. Or have every instrument nail those punches. The way it is the chorus is whimpering.
Berkeley Social Scene- Lunkhead started this off. We rehearsed and wrote one weak, then came back the next week to record. The keys and Erin are overdubbed. I guess Ken’s lead vocals are overdubbed as well. However the drums, guitar, guitar, and bass are live. The solo is from this live take as well. I like it more and more as time passes. At the time I didn’t think it was that good. Erin’s and Ken’s vocals are excellent. This may be our poppiest entry. It’s one of my favorites, and I think we stand well with the elite of this fantastic fight!
To Sum up What an incredible fight! I liked 27 of 29 songs! This may be the fight I point to when I want to turn a newbie on to Song Fight. My votes go to: The Anarchaelogists, Cabin Fever, Deetak, Jonathon Mann, Jon Eric, Paco del Stinko, Raised by Wolves, Ross Durand, Slats, Steve Durand, and BSS.
I predict Cabin Fever or Ross Durand will take this one, although I’d really like to see Steve Durand win this one.
Phillipso, Older Brothers, Semolina Pilchards, Zipline , Thank Glennny for the Frisbee, The Odoriferous Valley, The Worldly Self Assurance, Berkeley Social Scene, Very Gentle Knives, Daddy Bop Swing Set, GUNS, The Kraken Lives, Cavedwellers
1.) Raised by Wolves, easily.
2.) Jim Tyrell, easily.
3.) Berkley Social Scene, easily.
4.) Howl Down the Chimney feat. Jan Krueger, after it had a chance to grow on me.
5.) Ross Durand.
6.) The Anarchaeologists.
...and just barely making it in, mainly because I can't get his riff out of my head...
7.) Todd McHatton.
Great fight, guys. See you next week!
"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
I sent PM's to the first couple of people that left me feedback, I didn't realize that so many would give specific and detailed reviews...so for everyone else let me say Thank You! Things have been nuts lately, I'm hoping to have time to record my LMALBM tonight.
I've tried to find the time to write my own detailed reviews of everyone else's entries, but it's not happening. As for my Elegy For Industry, I discovered songfight.org just a few days before the deadline, with my wife's birthday and family responsibilities that weekend too. I really wanted to write "something", so I wrote something quickly because that's all I had time for. The folky approach is something I do alot (although not exclusively) so it was easy to lean on, and I admit to overusing the "double singing" as a simple effect, but I was rushing. While fiddling around with words and chords I sang "Hey, stupid boss", the kids busted a gut and that was that. Not genius, not even normally as decent as I write things that become finished and recorded, I was just trying for fun.
As far as my awful recording quality, I have no excuse. I'm not normally good at recording but this exceeded my normally low standards. Sorry!
ujnhunter wrote:Don't apologize to these knuckleheads!
Did you hear my song? I'm surprised anyone got through it, even though it clocks in at under 2:00!
I didn't vote for you, but you weren't the worst in this fight. Not by a long shot. Keep it up, man!
"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
glennny wrote:Ross Durand-Is that you on piano? This could be on Pink Floyd’s “The Final Cut”. There’s a real Roger Waters writing style to this.
Thanks for the very nice review (even if you did ike Steve's better )
Yes that's me on piano. and I agree with the Waters comment, I actually became aware of three subconscious "references" I was making in this song, one is the "Who'd have ever thought" line which ended up feeling like a quote from Pros and Cons, but I'll take the Final Cut reference - I love that record.
I didn't get to review this fight, but I'd like to praise
- The Anarcheologists : for an ambitious reach
- Raised By Wolves : for living, and creating more journeys I want to go on ("dead bulls litter the ground"!)
- Howl Down the Chimney with Jan Krueger : for strumming the truth ("where can I find a new religion, I think it's too late to be saved")
roymond.com | songfights | covers
"Any more chromaticism and you'll have to change your last name to Wagner!" - Frankie Big Face
roymond wrote:I didn't get to review this fight, but I'd like to praise
Ditto, I just never got around to it.
Great fight this week. These are the ones that stuck in my mind:
Jan Krueger, for being awesome to work with. You knocked out perfect background vocals for my tune, and you still found time to write and record something amazing of your own.
Speaking of 60's folk, I particularly enjoyed John Kloberdanz's protest style song. Very authentic, a great first fight.
Steve Durand for doing things with instruments I only wish I could do, and for pushing the envelope.
Heine, for creative percussion and his best arrangement to date.
deetak, for atmosphere. Like I talked about last time, your music is begging to be the backdrop for an eclectic stop motion cartoon.
Ross Durand, for songwriting. I love it. This genre is a good match for you.
i thought about doing reviews, but i didn't. however, i did listen and rate the songs. here is a list of the songs i voted for:
abomb
anarch
berkeley
cabin
tyrrell
kloberdanz
noah
paco
quimby
rxw
slats
weakest (hey, i didn't used to like your stuff, but congrats, this one is great)
-bill
No Horse Town wrote:Why have an audience if you're not trying to entertain anybody?
Maybe songfight has one collective brain that can only achieve one collective thought of single-minded musicalness but maybe out there somewhere is a brain that isn't shared, maybe they'll like it and I put it out there so that they can find it and share in my crazy ass good time. I don't presume to understand anything that anyone else might enjoy because people might know better than to enjoy something, it might be against all they know is true and right, and they might hear it and be all OMG I LOVE THIS WHATS WRONG WITH ME~!~!~!one1tilde.
Its happened before, I've made plenty of really stupid songs that surely I was the only one that would enjoy them, a lot of which happened long before I even had a name with the words random or abyss in it, and there were people who actually enjoyed them, people I didn't even know. So all I can do is entertain myself and hope people come along for the ride. If they don't thats their deal.
OK, fair enough. Sorry for being a dick. I like craziness too, maybe not of the same variety, but it's all relative, yeah? So, hmm... yeah, you're totally right. Carry on!
There's a place where a total stranger will give you their blood...
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