I got to be mean (YGTBK reviews)

[LibraryDogs]

Enough of the nicey nicey.
Flame on!

[Spud]

Review thread good. Necessary, but not sufficient.

[JonPorobil]

Art. Hm. I'll see if I can't whip something up.

Bear in mind that I'm, like, the LAST person you want making cover art, so if anyone else thinks they can do better, please do so.

[Billy's Little Trip]

Pardon me, I arted in the art archive.

[JonPorobil]

Oh, that's who arted.

I'm not even going to submit mine. I like the Vonnegut idea.

[ILB]

Yeah, whatever. No rush. Really.

[Hoblit]

Pardon me, I arted in the art archive.

Oh how I've missed you so.

[Billy's Little Trip]

Pardon me, I arted in the art archive.

Oh how I've missed you so.

Hey Hobz!

[g_rock]

This is my first review and I’ve only read a few so I hope not to offend but just be real.
I read a few other weeks reviews and someone else gave the vote after the review or comments and I like it, so I’m doin it too.
I guess I’ll be first to review since everyone else is too chicken.

Intentionally left blank-
I dig the synth.
Very prog rock influenced. Maybe early genesis sounding (peter Gabriel) at the soft section
crazy time what is played in?
vocals feels very pavement-y loose I like the style.
love the drums. You’ve got a good drummer.
“That’s good!” That means I heard the very end.
Not an easy song to play and you make it feel smooth and easy.
VOTE


foobar-
the song is driven by the piano and keeps a solid swung feel (on time)throughout the whole song.
Like the lighthearted approach in the lyrics.
Vox by the way sit perfectly in the mix. Just my opinion.
The vox and guitar do a call and response thing… very cool
I like your singin
and I like your blues
Im not complainin
Im just writing reviews
played well

TC Elliott-
Good playing and singing man. Well put together.
Not a criticism cause the song stands alone well with just gtars and vox. When I hear the song I want to put drums and bass on it. I think the guitar solo would be a nice segue to the drums and bass hitting at the same time on the final chorus.
Is the electric guitar going through a pedal then straight into the board or is it a mic’ed amp? I can’t tell. Just curious. Nice job man.

nobody et al-
very island feel soft sound with the acoustic
I like the story telling
chorus has very pretty harmonies. are the harmonies all real voices? They sound almost too good to be real.
ahhs and backing vox are very nice at the bridge
really nice bridge
nice song
VOTE

tuners union-
Is it Barenaked ladies that is the influence on you. Maybe its just the cadence of the vocals that remind me. I don’t know.
how do you get the vox to sound that way is that just doubled with a delay
gets funky at the end I like it.
transitions are seamless very well done. I get it.
VOTE

son of supercar-
got a pixies sound with the instruments with a bloc party sounding vocal.
The drums are absolutely drenched in reverb. Very mellow guitar gliding on top of a heavy riff sound
You gotta listen to it loud!

Klownhole-
Man that is a low tuning
Is there a bass doubling the guitar? Cause the guitar sounds really heavy.
The middle about six minutes in sounds like two dudes just jamming having a good time.
Is this band only a drummer and a guitarist. If so that guitar sounds even heavier if it is just one guitar.
I thought the song was over like three times man you tricked me. Was that the point?
9:30 sounds like it has got to be another take or something pasted on the end of the first.
I don’t believe I’ve ever heard a squeaky toy in a song before.


Hoblit-
I kept waiting for the song to HIT get heavy ya know. Drums come in real heavy, distortion on the guitar.
I get the feel. I know where the song was coming from but I just kept waiting for it to get heavy.

TRjones-
Very Wilco-ish love it.(that’s a freakin compliment in my book) Hand claps with the gtar went great. I
like the Flanger on the vox.
Very well done

VOTE(Favorite)

William Lane-
Very somber sounding.
Are you a country fan. Cause it feels like it is coming through in your singing.
Good subtle vox harmonies. The two voices are distinct and sound really good together.

Garfan-
I wasn’t sold on the commitment to the song in the vox until the chorus.
Great guitar solo very nice build up!
Nice vocal harmonies… are they real or pedal?
Guitar really takes the song off and makes it.

---grock---

[LibraryDogs]

A nice intimate little fight. Must be Nur Ein time.

Foobar - ha HA! Oh hell yes this gets a vote. Funny stuff, nice work. Could use a little EQ to separate all the parts out and keep them from stepping on each other. But clever and appropos.

garfan - You have a good voice. Straight-ahead radio-friendly power arrangement. Vocals could be a little more front and center so that the lyrics punch through a bit more, but overall pretty darn solid. A little (more?) reverb on the vox might help them pop a little too. Nice guitar solo. Good energy overall. Chorus begs for harmony vocals.

grock - nice lurchy waltz groove ya got there. It's hard to make out your lyrics. Partly because you're mumbling, partly because it's way back in the mix. And you didn't post your lyrics. Some of the vocal tones you do remind me of Toad the Web Sprocket. Which is a good thing in my opinion. Guitar solo is nice as well. You've got some good gritty attitude in the arrangement that doesn't seem like it's quite matched in the distant, moany vocals. Did you throw "happy to be here" in there? props. Song goes on a bit long. Overall nice work. Welcome to Song Fight.

hoblit - What have you got to be kind with? Interesting approach to the prompt. Clean electric picking. Something about your into progression reminds me of Chrono Trigger but I'm not sure why. I'm not following the lyrics totally. Like the world takes all the energy out of us, so there's nothing left to use for kindness? I think that's what you were going for but I was a little confused. Couple of clever rhymes in there. Bonus points for "grim reaper with a Sith."

ILB - Feel changes up a lot, which is nice. Due to having the attention span of a scatter-brained labrador retriever, I'm big into lyrical imagery and there's not a lot of it here to latch onto. The riffy bridge section with the cymbal bell hits is pretty cool though. You can clearly all play your instruments. Parts of it have an early Rush feel with the synth and that effect on the guitar.

Klownhole - 20 seconds of studio chatter at the beginning of the song is a bit much, but at least there's some nice mammoth-stomp grooves when you get going. OMG how long is this tune. It changes up eventually which is a nice break. I gave it until about 5 minutes in until you started with the German lyrics.
On second listen, I realize you're throwing some German in there earlier too. Something tells me I'd dig this a whole lot more if I was high at a party. Which is an objective statement, not a dig at you.

Nobody - mine. Experimenting somewhat with this new JamStix drum thing so it's a little busy but I'll dial it in eventually. And a friend of mine lent me an acoustic bass guitar that I am just totally loving. So there's that. I am extremely happy with how this came out.

sonofsupercar - chord progression is unsettling but I like it. Usually I don't like so much static on the guitar gut there's something in the tone or chords that draws me in. Gritty and loud. And short. "got to be kind when you desert me" - nice.

TC - Gloomy. Which I think is what you were going for. Throw some harmonies on there. It'd really take it up a notch. Electric guitar solo is nice.

TRJones - Geez I can't think of the guy this reminds me of. It's got a bluesy feel, and the vocals are decent. Brett Dennen, that's it. The rhythm is loose, but it fits the feel. I like this tune. Good job. Hand claps are a nice touch, but the acoustic could be a little more present to provide some of the percussive edge that's missing without a drum kit.

Tuner's - top notch as usual. Half-time feel in the chorus is an interesting changeup. Vocals could be a little more prominent in the mix during the verses (between the first part and the chorus). Anyway I'd gush for a paragraph about how much I like this but I have my pride.

WilliamLane - got some atmospheric guitar backing there. Very meditative and sad. The harmony vocals are subtle but nice.

[LibraryDogs]

chorus has very pretty harmonies. are the harmonies all real voices? They sound almost too good to be real.
ahhs and backing vox are very nice at the bridge

Thanks! It's all real voices, autotune-free. I asked kaz (Tuner's Union) the same thing once upon a time and he gave me a good tip about double-tracking all the harmony parts and panning them left and right to get a natural shimmer and even out any slightly-off notes. So that's what I do.

[Pigfarmer Jr]

Is the electric guitar going through a pedal then straight into the board or is it a mic’ed amp?

BR-900CD with a butt load of Boss COSM effects. It was tweaked ever so slightly. All the presets are super cheesy, but if you take the time to go in and mess with them you can get some decent tones out of them.

I wrote out reviews and lost them all. Will revisit soonish.

[foobar93]

I didn't realize Nur Ein would thin the field so much, but I have to say I'm glad. A lot of sweet songs in this batch. My song refers to events inspired in part by this forum thread. Thanks to everyone who reviews!


grock
Nice vibe overall. I like the intro, especially. Vocals sound slightly sour to me. By later verses it's sounding better, not sure if that's just my ears adjusting or if it's different. Ironically (given my song), I think your vocals might be too low (for my desktop speakers). I can make out the title phrase but not many of the other words. Guitar solo is great. There's something intense about this song that I really like. I guess less really is more. I think the song would be better shorter. By 4:20 I had lost interest a little in the repeating sections.

Klownhole
Even with speakers cranked, could not make out the the spoken intro. Of course that left me wide open for a very intense start once you kicked in, so maybe that was the idea? This is too creepy for my taste. After about 2:00 I skipped ahead. I liked some of the instrumental sections in the 3-5 minute area, but mostly I skipped ahead when the vocals came back. Unnatural end point indeed.

Nobody et al
Sweet. Like the change on "this can't be what you wanted to be." Agree on the great harmonies, too.

garfan
I like the idea of this song. I feel like there is a missing intensity, though. Maybe the vocals could be a little grittier to match the guitar? And I think the guitar could be even more processed and distorted. Or maybe it's a tempo thing. I honestly don't know, but it just feels like something is missing to me.

T.C. Elliott
Good sad emotional texture throughout. I found it a little slow, but enjoyable nonetheless.

Tuners Union
Sweet tone right from the start. Love the constant changes of texture, stops and starts, phrasing. Keeps it interesting throughout. I've enjoyed listening to it several times and I don't quite think I could say what the song is about yet. Maybe the issue is that the vocal sound blends so well with the rest of the parts that I can't pick out more than the occasional stray word. I'm not even sure that's a bad thing because the overall sound is so pleasing. Well done.

William Lane
Melancholy. Great vocal sound. I like the instrumental break a lot. During the verses, I don't like the guitar as much, maybe because it's so regular but still loud enough to pull attention from the words. The song has a lot of emotional impact, which is great. I wish it had a little more contrast. In the chord structure, right when you hit the change on "talking to the angels" I want to have a little more of a bright, happy moment right there. I think that would make the rest even more poignant.

Intentionally Left Bank
I like the song when it calms down, like around "most of the time" and "every day" etc. The louder parts don't work for me, although I'm struggling to offer anything constructive other than that. I thought the song would re-start at around 2:55, going back to the intro and then one final chorus (which I thought was clever), so I was surprised when it ended.

TR Jones
Simple and nice arrangement right off the bat. I like the raw singing style. The guitar sounds flat to me at moments, which is a little painful. I liked the moment when the claps kind of fall apart at the end. Overall I liked the verses a lot more than the chorus.

sonofsupercar
Loud! Between the distortion, dissonance and yelling I really have no idea what's going on. Impressed that you can make the vocals cut through so much static. I want to listen a few more times to figure out what the song is saying, but my ears can't take it.

Hoblit
I don't know if this is what you intend, but I read your tone as ironic. But I think the song would stand strong if sung completely serious. I really like the reworking of so many cliches to mean their opposite. Guitar sounds good, with a few minor errors that are easy to overlook.

[Pigfarmer Jr]

Foobar - I kind of like the meta-songfight! factor but this just isn't something I'd likely want to play again.
Intentionally Left Blank - I like the synth and guitars... except that repeating staccato guitar line got to me after a while. It was good to start but by the end...

William Lane - I expected/wanted a full band kick in towards the end there and never got it. But I like this song.

TRJones - Something about the kind of raw vocals drew me in. The simple arrangement must be to my liking. I like this song.

T.C. Elliott - The lyric is too repetitive. The music is too repetitive, too.

Nobody, et al. - I like the tone of your voice, but somehow the verses don't hit me right. I like the chorus all right, though. (I like the doubled vox.)

Klownhole - I made it eight minutes in before I skipped ahead. I like the squeaky toy.. coulda done without the fucks.

sonofsupercar - Erm, not digging the sound to start. I feel I'm straining to hear stuff in the mix. I like the vocals, though. Well, I dig the sound a bit more as I get into it.

Hoblit - Ironic or purposefully snide? This isn't bad, but I'd love to hear it hit a few gears and kind of rock me for a bit. Okay, it's growing on me a bit. I'm beginning to like it.

grock - My biggest complaint is it's a bit quiet. That must mean I like it. Yup, I like this song.

garfan - I like the non tonic ending of the first two lines of the verses. That's cool. I like this song.

Tuners Union - I like the guitars, not sure I like the vocals. They work better with the full arrangement, though. Erm.. yeah, the prechorus and chorus sections are much stronger. You had me moving by the end. You've done won me over. I like this song.

***ADDED***

Berkeley Social Scene - I like the song especially the guitars but there is a spot or two in the vocals that I don't much care for. Reminds me of me at an open mic a while ago. So maybe it's all my own "stuff". The lead guitar is a bit "up" in the mix and I can't hear the panned vocals as well. All that being said, I'll reiterate my first thought. I like this song.

[ken]

I don't know why Berkeley Social Scene's entry hasn't been added yet, so here it is.

berkeleysocialscene_ygtbk.mp3

Berkeley Social Scene - You Got to be Kind

(5.83 MiB) Downloaded 227 times

Ken

[Hortus Ortus]

Some good entries.

My two fav's this time were Tuners Union and Foobar.

Tuners Union: I love the chords, harmony, and really a 60's good time folk feel with a mix of Chicago and the blend is awesome!

Foobar: Good song and excellent lyrics. Great message and thank you for writing that. I actually had an idea along those lines for this current Songfight but we have gone a different way.

Teresa (Hortus Ortus)

[Hoblit]

Yes, my song was snide and sarcastic. I mean, my art is about the only way I'm allowed to be who I am deep down. And that is a smart ass cynical guy. But if you know and interact with me, you'll be slightly surprised as outwardly I'm a very social and positive person.

Anyway, on to the reviews:

Foobar: I think the song's pace made it a bit difficult for the timing. It sounds like you want to play faster the whole time. Outside of that...for a song done under a deadline, it's not bad. A 12 bar blues song is always a nice fall back and I think this is a very listenable song. I like the piano and the obvious review Songfight! review thread references. I'm being kind, dammit!

Garfan: I dig the energetic guitar and drums. This is something that I can get into. I like the rough yet poppy music. The vocals are good in that they are not out of key or anything like that. They don't seem to match though. Maybe it's just the mix but the vocals don't seem to carry the same energy and seem too be a little too out front. That is a small complaint about a decent song. I like the cheesy pick scrape and then the standard guitar solo refrain. The song as a whole is basic, but right. Good work and this is one of the best songs this week. I'd suggest adding an effect to to the vocal to help blend it in with the rest of the mix and maybe turn the music up just a hair. Good tune.

Grock: I like the guitar tone and creepy vibe of the song. Deep bass and filtered vocals. It reminds me of late 80's college radio type songs. This is a lot like music I was listening to in the late 80s and early 90s. I used to see bands in Atlanta that sounded much like this. Good execution and great mix. This is one of my favorites of the week. I just wish I could understand the lyrics a little better.

Hoblit: I wish I had more time for the vocals. I got the music exactly like I wanted it but I don't really sing this low ever. My pace is a bit off and I miss a few notes here and there. But I like the end all vibe of what I was trying to do, I just couldn't quite execute the vocals.

Intentionally: I thought a Rush or Yes lost demo track was found. I like what you're going for here but I'm not crazy about the full execution of it. The effect on the guitar is a bit much by today's standards but if you're going retro...I think Police. I think this could have been a better song if you had a little more time to work out the kinks. But it is a very listenable piece and I do like some of the quiet strange vibe you get. Looking forward to hearing more from you in the future.

Klownhole: My wife had suggested to me the idea that you ended up using. "you got to be kind ...of something or other". I didn't go with it but I can appreciate that ya'll did. I like the overall 70's monster rock you guys go for and you execute it pretty good. I assume you are doing this live in a studio and I can get into that too. But I'm not crazy about the vocals or the over all pounding it through for as long as the track goes on. But I have to admit, I like this better than some of the stuff I have heard in the past. You guys sound like you do at least hang out and jam all the time and that this is a good medium for ya'll to practice for. So good work and thank you for the memories!

Nobody: This is one of my favorite songs of the week. I might even vote for this. It reminds me of Paul Simon a little bit. It's honest and it blends with itself really well. I like the lyrics, the guitar, the vocals and the rhythm track and how they all come together. It has an organic feel and it feels good on my nerves. Very pretty and I'm downloading this one for my collection. I think this one will go well in the 'Sunday Morning' type collection. Thank you for such a good song this week.

SonOS: This isn't one of my favorites from you guys. I don't want to be that 'i really like your older stuff' guy but in this case, I'm simply not crazy about this. The music is decent and I really think it's just the vocals that sort of take me out of it. They're mixed a little high to. I don't want to get to negative because I really do like the music and the changes. It does have a short & sweet effect, hit and run kind of thing.

T.C.: This is pretty okay for a Songfight! song. I think you can sing but at points (just like I said about myself) you miss it. That might just be a problem with the time we get on these productions. But overall it's not a bad song, I'm just not really into it. I typically like the guy and his guitar thing I just think this one isn't spot on. I can kind of get into the dark vibe of it though and I look forward to more from you in the future.

TR: I can get into this okay. The production is low fi but that seems to work for it. It's almost like an outtake that you'd put at the end of an album because it got recorded on an 8 track at a party. I do like it overall and its intimacy. Just a couple of simply things thrown together that work out just right. I like the vocal style quite a bit. Even if it is off a little bit here and there, it doesn't matter. It's supposed to be that way...it's honest and has a ' it was just performed that way, that night' type feel. This is really pretty good for what it is. Less is more!

TunersU: I dig the rhythm guitar on this as it is one that I've used in the past. Your vocals are superb. It's a bit contemporary for my taste but I can't dig on it for that. This is a well executed song and very well produced. Very good work and you deserve votes. The music comes together really well and I think I particularly like the bass and bongos. You might even win! Who knows, and thank you for the change up in the middle there. That part reminds me a bit of Frank Zappa and while I'm not a big fan, I recognize that kind of talent for what it is, good. Nice entry, man.

Willy Lane: Again, another dark vibe song. This one has hair metal ballad all over it but at the same time it sort of avoids that. I think that the lyrics aren't something you'd hear from a band like that. It is a really well executed song though. I can appreciate the time and effort. It is very pretty and dark. You did a good job. Your vocals are nice over the guitar picking. Your lyrics are pretty good, given the title. I'm not crazy about the guitar effect as it sort of 'dates' it...like I said, sort of 80's or maybe even late 70's. At one point it reminded me of an Ozzy song. But that isn't a bad thing. Another really good entry this week.

Berkly Buzz: This is my second favorite song this week. It is very close to the best one...in fact, tomorrow it will be and then the next day it'll be my second again. It's just a matter of the day or time. It's a very good song. Simple indie pop. I love the intro that relieves the listener when the versus hit. Then grabs us again at the chorus. I like the guitar tone and the quiet vocals into the dramatic ones. They're a little wobbly at times but seem natural to the style. Another very well executed song this week. I'm sorry that it didn't get into the list though. I'm keeping this one for my collection as well. Thank you for the good song and I look forward to more in the future.

Well, that is all I got.

For those of you who do not know me, I'm always 'late' on reviews. Not really 'late', just the perception. I have to listen to these songs several times before I am comfortable enough to know and review them. Always been this way.

[ILB]

Some reviews, though brief. Thanks for the feedback of our stuff!

TR Jones
I take it you're sincere, though one can never know with the blues, since it sort of writes itself. I like the chorus better than the verses.

Hoblit
Raw Hoblit is just great, so hey, man where ya been, married or something? And it's all so sensitive, too I like the straight forward growl behind these arpeggios. Also love spot application of reverb and delay. So there's that. You got my vote!

Sonofsupercar
Like that bass riff in the setup and the break, but the guitars are a bit washed out here throughout. And so the drums are lost, too.

Foo bar
If this is what goes down at Bar Foo I'll go elsewhere, thanks. Bummer. Sorry, I have few kind words to offer. Clever words, sort of, are as good as it gets. This just digs a hole deeper as it goes.

TV Elliott
I like your voice. Don't like the refrain, as plodding and predictable as it is. This needs to get mean at some point, but it just stays sort of polite.

Nobody et al
Cute story, if sappy. Sweet chorus, if sappy. Nice background music. I don't like background music. The lyrics get better as it goes, though.

Garfan
Rockin and cruising, though very vanilla. The vocals are too soft for the guitars. I'd like harder, edgier vocals. I couldn't sing them but that's what I hear. The requisite solo is in line with the groove. It's the vocals that stand alone. Like to diddly guitar towards the last refrains, too.

Grock
Intro feels too long. Self pity flag raised high. I like the overall feel of this. It's sort of got the grand empty gestures of Pink Floyd. Some organ would be nice in there. The solo is tough, you make a good attempt but it feels too much character acted where some whack headed improve would have done better. Like that ending.

William Lane
This has the snappiness of nobodyetal, but comes off as a much more cohesive package. Crystals are glimmering and the Moody Blues are still echoing off the canyon walls. Lush and beautifully performed.

Tuners Union
Your music is exhausting! It's so slick and enthusiastic. I like the change ups and the catchy guitar licks. Do you record full tracks or loop short sections? Either way, it's very effective. The meter changes (or full/halftime) with your tight vocals makes for great commercial potential.

Klownhole
Always loved your bass/drums and those repeated toms on 5. Yeah, love this 3+5 feel. "Gotta be kinda stupid" stands on its own. Nice. Like the half time around 4:15, and the broken deutch. This is beatnik klownhole. Are you wearing black tights? Is that Audrey Hepburn dancing?

Berkeley Social Scene
I haven't listened enough...will update later.

Intentionally Left Bank
This is me with Sanjaya on drums. We had a night to record drums and guitar. Then I tracked the rest. Is awesome to play with a real drummer for a change! We'd jam and it naturally went into odd meters, so I'll exploit this as much as I can.

[foobar93]

Bonus Berkeley Social Scene review:

I love the intro. Clean and simple. Nice touch on "harmonize." I like how the guitar switches back and forth between gritty and clean. Nice transition back to the slower verse. On my earbuds the bass is mixed a touch loud, esp during verses. Another great transition for the bridge, I especially like the rearrangement of the stereo placement. Overall, a very catchy tune. I think I'll be humming this later today. My only criticism is that at points the vocals in the chorus are strained. It makes me cringe every time, even though I like everything else about those moments. I'd vote for this if I could.

Also very grateful for the constructive comments this time around - all very kind! I just submitted for "This Week We'll See" and I tried to incorporate as many points from this week and last as I could. Bonus points to g_rock for reviewing in verse.