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[jb]

This review thread is in response to your inquiry regarding review threads.

JB

[hillbilly]

Sly Eli-Enjoyed this, all ways nice to hear some one new. Song is put together well. Solo guitar sounded like intonation needs to be adjusted, over all good job.

Astro---Good sound and laid back feeling, I'm a groupie (waving my lighter in the air) Sweet guitar tones. My vote and keeper.
pretty easy to quit you, best lyric in a while.

[cookie]

I'm usually way too shy to post reviews or something, but I like Sunday Guts and the Mail Chips's entry so much I felt that I had to tell you so.
congratulations, guys!

[Billy]

Thanks, Cookie!

Voted for your Tyson's Corner, and subsequently downloaded all your past SFs. Great stufff.

I'll add to the thread that The Pannacotta Army's "Unsubscribe" is EFFING GORGEOUS.

[josh]

The Pannacotta Army: Oh gosh, this is *luscious*. I really dig it. All the sounds are so pretty and mellow. Interesting notes, beautiful harmonies. Got a warm retro vibe, which is right up my alley. (vote/favorite)

Mailer Daemon: So weird listening to this after the last. Short and aggro. Don't mind it, but not enough to it to like it much.

Berkeley: The horns are cool. Uke works surprisingly well here (as mentioned in another thread, I'm a bit burnt on uke). Another laid back, jazzy kinda track. The synth sound is cool, but a bit harsh in the context of the rest of the sound. (vote)

Astrolamb: Shaky vocal performance. Chord progression is predictable, but the arrangement is unexpected for the style, which adds some interest. Nice instrumental section.

Nick Soma: The percussion section is pretty unique sounding. Kinda tablaesque? The vocals might be a bit forward in the mix. Some pitch issues cropping up here and there, especially on higher notes and melismata (thanks wikipedia for the fancy word!).

Roflcastle: Does this rhyme with "Waffle Castle"? Vocals don't sound like they were recorded well. Maybe the space? Or reverb choice? Overall the lofi vibe is cool though. Tasty guitar phrasing going on.

Jerkatorium: Vocal delivery is a bit flat (emotionally, not pitchwise). Cool guitar riffs. You're pretty handy with the drum machine. Live drums would add something, but given the e-drums, you have good variation and even fills here and there.

Cookie Blue: I like how the arrangement builds. The punk chorus is cool. (vote)

Sly Eli: Could be me, but the guitar sounds out of tune esp at the beginning... Cool vocals. Kinda Morrisey-like, but not as whinny

Sunday Guts...: Such a good mix/production! (vote)

Inflatable Veggies: The "foreign" vibe is sweet as well as the synth sounds. The vocal doesn't fit into the mix very well. Overall I'm still enjoying the song, though. The quick hard sections add a nice flavor! (vote)

Zack Facco: I had a lot of fun making this one. Vocals could have used some compression and maybe 'verb. Not sure if the "neeneer, neener" autowahed guitar gets annoying for others, I couldn't get enough of it... haha. The hard sounding bridge didn't come off too well... Not the most professional sounding mix (which is not unusual for me). I wrote this while procrastinating for a Nur Ein entry which I didn't finish. Oh well.

[noma]

Nick Soma: The percussion section is pretty unique sounding. Kinda tablaesque? The vocals might be a bit forward in the mix. Some pitch issues cropping up here and there, especially on higher notes and melismata (thanks wikipedia for the fancy word!).

Thanks for your review! The percussion in my song consists of two African / Eastern drums (an Ibo drum and a darbouka - both similar to tablas, indeed) plus tambourine. The arrangement was an experiment which unfortunately didn't turn out very well. I do like the percussion and the flute part, but I couldn't say I'm proud of my vocals in this one. Next week I'll do better

[glennny]

There's no Uke on the Berkeley track. It's a guitelele

[josh]

@glenny: Aha! I stand... sort of corrected. Maybe that's why I don't entirely dislike it Haha. Actually, most of what I dislike about uke is that it got adopted and overused by a particular genre of music I hate. Umm... I guess what I'd call "wuss rock". or "Pop folk". maybe "Hip car commercial indie?" Uhh... "Mrazites?"

[hillbilly]

have you noticed the banjo player (medicine show ) plays a 6 string, like a guitar. Think that what that song about(my baby plays the guitar, I play the banjo now).

[the panna cotta army]

Nick Soma - Good lyrics and arrangement. Like the ethnic mix of percussion and impressive choir backing. My overall niggling impression though is that underneath the exotic exterior, the music (melody and chords) is a little uneventful. The main vocal seems a little dry compared with the heavy dose of reverb on most other things.

ROFLCASTLE - Simple song but another interesting arrangement. The production is a little rough in places but kind of adds to the charm. I like that you've avoided a "straight" drum beat (not that I've got anything against them). The other ethereal elements behind the two guitars are nice and there's some interesting vocal embellishments.

Zack Facco - Good to hear some real drums and the basic arrangement is okay although the wah-wah guitar theme is a tad whiney.
Vocals are a bit histrionic for my taste. Probably benefit from some reverb, the whole thing is very dry.

Sly Eli - What I'd call a solid album track as opposed to a hit tune. Something about the solo sounds a bit sour. I think the arrangement needs something else - keys/strings, backing vocals - something like that. Particularly in the choruses, it would give them more of a lift.

Jerkatorium - I'm afraid this doesn't really grab me, though I can't put my finger on exactly why. There's something about the verses and chorus that don't marry together well. Perhaps the tentative vocal delivery contributes to it too. Vocals are also very dry and don't sit in the mix very well.

Sunday Guts and the Mail Chimps - Excellent indie pop song, it got an infectious feel/rhythm and likeable melody akin to Noah & The Whale or something. If I'm being picky, the production is perhaps a tad muddy/distorted but the elements in the arrangement are all good. The lyrics are great although the title isn't mentioned anywhere. Now, I'm no big regular here but I thought this was a prerequisite but I'm probably wrong so someone else might clarify.

Astrolamb - Well put together and competent enough but there's nothing in the arrangement/writing that's remarkable and particularly moves me.
Needs some original element to make it stand out.

Cookie Blue - There's a real proper "band" feel to the song, good performances all round and lots of energy but I'm split.
The slower verses and melody are more original but the chorus is a little too derivative and obvious.

Berkeley Social Scene - I like the general folksy rhythm. Lots of interesting bits to the arrangement too. Nice horns (albeit a bit too panned) and stacato strings. Lead synth is possibly a bit harsh.
Vocals a bit too constantly shouty maybe - I'm getting more used to them as I listen. Overall though I am digging this one.

inflatable vegetables - I find that lead synth patch grating on the ears and the middle-eastern motif is a little overtly clichéd. The production is a bit harsh with a lot of distorted sounds, especially in the chorus.
On the whole, I'm afraid this song didn't really endear me.

Mailer Daemon - I'm guessing it was you intention for this to be not very likeable, so in that respect it's a winner.

The Pannacotta Army - I'm quite pleased with the music but the lyrics aren't up to much. It's come out more of a jazzy crooner than I was aiming for but hopefully some of other elements give it a different flavour. With more time I would improve the percussion and guitar stuff.

many thanks for the "effing gorgeous" and "luscious" comments

[cookie]

Thanks, Cookie!

Voted for your Tyson's Corner, and subsequently downloaded all your past SFs. Great stufff.

thank you, that's very nice to hear. still can't believe anyone would like my songs

[slyeli]

Thanks for the reviews everyone. Here are mine.

astrolamb
Stylisticly the verse reminds me a lot of "Take This Bottle" by Faith No More. That makes me like this song even
though you struggle to hit some of the high notes.

Berkeley Social Scene
This one seems like a strange mismatch of styles. Punky signing with a folky backing and then a synth solo. It's
so weird that it works.

Cookie Blue
I think I'd cut out some of the repetitive sounding verse sections in this song and make it short and punchy. I'd lost
interest by the time the chorus came in and kicked things up a gear. I think a song like this could work at two minutes long, it's got the energy to pull it off. I enjoyed the harmony sections the most.

Inflatable Vegetables
I'm finding this one hard to listen to because of the out of tune vocals. The chorus is better. The music seems pretty
good, you just need to tighten up those vocals.

Jerkatorium
It sounds like the key of this song is too low for you. I think if you raised it up a bit you'd be able to push out
more air and it would be more immediate. Overall a catchy tune but the laid back vocals don't fit in.

Mailer Deamon
I'm liking the start of this. Great intro. It's so short I don't have much more to say.

Nick M. Soma
I'm not a fan of this style of backing music and especially pan pipes. Something about them just rubs me the wrong
way.

Panna Cotta Army
Nice feel to this one. The chilled out vocals fit nicely with the music. It skirts around the edges of cheesy and could
do with a bit more of an emotional hook but it was pleasant to listen to.

ROFLCASTLE
The singing sounds a little off on this one but it's not bad. It has some good use of atmospheric effects but I didn't
really connect with it so I'm struggling to think of more to say.

Sunday Gut and the Mail Chimps
I don't know why but this seems familiar to me. I can't place it and the only thing that springs to mind is Bruce Springsteen's
Philadelphia which isn't right. Anyway, I liked it.

Zack Facco
This one doesn't really gel for me. All the different instruments seem to work on their own but put them together and
they feel a little off. Maybe that off kilter feel is what you were aiming for but I'm not keen.

[slyeli]

Sly Eli-Enjoyed this, all ways nice to hear some one new. Song is put together well. Solo guitar sounded like intonation needs to be adjusted, over all good job.

Thanks. I fell victim to very old strings and not checking my tuning before I recorded it. Also you can probably tell that solos are not my forte.

Sly Eli: Could be me, but the guitar sounds out of tune esp at the beginning... Cool vocals. Kinda Morrisey-like, but not as whinny

I'm happy with the Morrisey comparison, thanks. I like the way he sings.

Sly Eli - What I'd call a solid album track as opposed to a hit tune. Something about the solo sounds a bit sour. I think the arrangement needs something else - keys/strings, backing vocals - something like that. Particularly in the choruses, it would give them more of a lift.

I'm not sure I'll ever write a hit, this is as good as it gets . I agree about the backing vocals. I started recording them but ran out of time to get them right.

Thanks again everyone for the reviews.

[josh]

@slyeli: Oh, man, I love that you reference "Take This Bottle" in one of your reviews. Been singing that song a lot lately, it's a great one. I really love Faith No More. It's weird, as much as I love Mike Patton, more recently, I've gotten to like the Chuck Mosely stuff better. Maybe it's just a phase Oh and thanks for the reviews, by the way!

[slyeli]

@josh: I'm impressed you can sing it, it goes too low for me

[johndisk0]

Astrolamb
Very well done! The music in this sounds like a solid track. Love the guitar solo between verses. Some might call the vocals "pitchy", but I think they fit the mood of the song perfectly. This is going on my ipod the moment I get home. Voted.

Berkeley Social Scene
You curled your vowels (forming the diphthong) in places that a singer normally wouldn't. For example, most people sing "tol-uh-rat-ing", while you sang "tol-er-a-ting". The difference in the mouth structure between "uh" and "er" is the forming of two vowels. This is very reminiscent of Billie Joe Armstrong, and I really loved the way you sang this track! The killer for me was the horn section. The improvisation felt out of tune and didn't work for me.

Cookie Blue
I really like the vocals and the change-up from verse to chorus on this track. One thing that bugs me is the kick drum pattern. Most drummers conceive a pattern they keep throughout the song, but the pattern here sounded inconsistent every few measures. Again, the chorus was great. I was thoroughly entertained by this song.

inflatable vegetables
Your verses were interesting. Was that autotuning or vocal tricks... or both? Very David Bowie vibe going on here.

Jerkatorium
Solid groove with solid lyrics right on par with the topic. It even made me laugh a couple of times

Mailer Daemon
I half wanted to send this song to a Navy friend of mine to see if the Morse Code at the beginning "said" anything. I'm sure it just said "GET ME OFF YOUR F***ING MAILING LIST".

Nick Soma
Your vocals sound just like Nick Cave and his Rider Song from the Australian western "The Proposition". Great movie and great song. Your song is almost this quality. I liked it!

The Pannacotta Army
(A lot of people did ballads... so crazy how everyone seems to be interpreting the fight the same way... reminds me of "Suitcase".) I liked this one. Your breakdown in the middle had some great sounds to it. This is one of those songs where repetition of the same lyrics actually works, like Jeff Buckley's version of "Hallelujah". Good job!

ROFLCASTLE
An upbeat ballad?? Nice. I like the beat to this track. "2.0" was a nickname of mine about 10 years ago, so you get a shout-out for making a great song AND for putting that in your lyrics!

Sly Eli
Another ballad, but this one is different. I love the volume changes throughout the song. Your changes in intensity bring out the emotion of the song. Totally voted!

Sunday Guts and the Mail Chimps
Yet another song that is really good. Good harmonies in the background, too. I particularly love the ending strum.

Zack Facco
Oh yeah, this one had me laughing Thanks for posting your lyrics, too. I will totally play this one for friends. You get a vote.

**So wow... I am so glad I didn't provide a song this week. I would have been crushed!**

-jd0

[Chumpy]

Astrolamb
A nice country sound you created. There was some odd popping in my right ear at around the two minute mark with music coming in and out, which was somewhat distracting. The bit about Nigeria was funny, and I like your soft subtle backup vocals, also cool spooky ending. Edit: that popping sound was my headphones, my cable was loose I think, because it sounds great today when I listened again.

Berkeley Social Scene
Really dig the chorus, I thought the horns really work well. I should unsubscribe more often, indeed. The need-to-know-basis line is great. Also I dig the strings, and the bit about the sinking armada made me grin from ear to ear. Might be my favorite.

Cookie Blue
Woot, tempo changes! Really dig the YEAH vocal, and Cookie's voice in general, and the rhythm of the verses. I really like the punky choruses and the multi-tracked vocals in the bridge rock. If I had to criticize something I'd say the ending fade could be shorter, less is more.

inflatable vegetables
I know when I hit play on an Inflatable Vegetables song I'm going to hear something different, and I was not disappointed this time! The warbly middle-eastern sounding synth is rad, and I like the idea that dating a dangerous woman could get you watched by the government, definitely dig the lyrics. This might be my favorite.

Jerkatorium
Not our best work, but happy to finished and participate. Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially those who were critical. I definitely hear the emotional flatness of the vocals.

Mailer Daemon
Definitely captured the angry feelings I have about spam. The buildup in the beginning is great. Get me off your fucking mailing list is really all that needs to be said, but I thought some additional variance in the way you said it would have helped.

Nick Soma
Percussion sounds great. The monk-like backup 'may i unsubscribe' vocals sound really good to me too. I felt like you took chances with the vocal melody line, which is commendable, and they mostly work, except for the 'part of your tribe' section which is a bit off. I like the lyrics, especially the lines about the people being faceless robots, houses cold and sterile, clean and septic... The flutes help add atmosphere. Impressive.

The Pannacotta Army
Dreamy and melancholy. Your voice is really pretty and on point. The tracked 'I hope you find' vocals are sweet enough to make my neck tingle, and I am not high. The instrumental bit starting at around 2:20 is nice, but a bit too sanitized / elevator and isn't in the same league as the rest of it. This is a great song, voted.

ROFLCASTLE
Really enjoy the lyrics, and I like your voice and how you go for it. I like details that help to paint the picture, like 'How soon is Now' playing on New Year's Eve. I think the way you introduced the song title is one of the best. There is some popping and other audio noise, but it didn't bother me that much. I love how nerdy the lyrics are, but at the same time you capture a feeling sadness and longing. Nice work.

Sly Eli
Nice melody. The chorus hook really works, the 'something on your mind' part is wonderful. I didn't pick up the notion of unsubscribing from the lyrics, but I don't care.

Sunday Guts and the Mail Chimps
I want to join the Sunday Guts fan club. Great lyrics, great feeling, well produced. This is actually my favorite, grouped a really competitive group of songs for me it's the standout, voted. The only thing that nags me is this feeling that I've heard the melody before, but I don't know where.

Zack Facco
Heh, this reminds me a bit of the Minutemen. I like the punky sloppiness of it, and I've certainly wanted to unsubscribe from annoying people. My only complaint is the ending is kinda a downer musically, and kinda colors my impression of the song.

[josh]

@slyeli: Well... you might not be too impressed if you heard my version I sing parts of it in a different register than the original, which helps. But Mike Patton has a tough voice to cover.

[rnagoda]

Finally got around to listening to these on half-decent speakers ... sorry for being so late in reviewing!

ROFLCASTLE. Has a sound similar to some of the cassettes I've been randomly buying bandcamp lately. I like the instrumental breaks - they sound purposefully clunky. Vocals are growing on me as well ... a fun song, well put together.

Mailer Daemon. Oh, too short. Not "too short because I think songs need to be longer," but "too short because I wanted it to come back." I was beginning to setlle into the idea of the repeated vocals, and I liked the sound as it was building, or as I thought it was building.

Berkely Social Scene. The main thing that stands out here is that the listener isn't really going to think of this as a "unsubscribe" song. Which is really nice for songfight - personally, I'm terrible at not being overt about the assigned song title/them/whatever. Loving the horns, the synth lines, etc.. This song is fun as hell. Voted.

Zack Facco. Definitely a "college student union basement punk show in the mid 80's feel" to it. Or whatever that means. I've only seen videos of stuff like that since I was not cool enough to know about them.

Jerkatorium. You already addressed this, but - yeah - the vocals have that "don't want to bother the neighbors at 3am" feel to them. Which is really too bad, because I think a strong vocal line would really make this song shine since it is otherwise pretty damn cool.

Sunday Guts and The Mail Chimps. Nice work here ... gives me visuals of slow-mo, Southern Cali type things happening ... definitely a cool, chill vibe.

Nick Soma. Took two listens to get along with the vocal bit, but now I feel like I like what you're doing here. Not digging the pan flute bit, not because I don't like pan flutes, but it seemed like it was just stuck there fairly randomly. The drum sample is cool, though.

Cookie Blue. Sounds cool, right off. I really like the verse bits, and the choral vocal bits. The punky chorus didn't make a lot of sense until the bridge/outro which ties it together nicely and changed my mind about the whole thing. Really nice seqay into the outro too, by the way. Voted.

Inflatable Vegetables. Vocals seem like they aren't sitting well in the mix here. The cool underlying song and music sounds like you are probably a few fader adjustments from this sounding much better.

Astrolamb. Thanks for all of the reviews on this one ... I couldn't really come up with anything resembling an original idea on this one, so I thought I'd try playing some keys (not something I do).

Sly Eli. A nice song. Normally I love a good guitar solo, but I feel like this one takes away from the really nice sound of the other guitar(s). Can't say why I feel that way ... maybe it needs some more OD or something to jump out a bit. Good vox, good playing, good song ... solid all around!