Gonna find me a date at the (Garage Sale reviews)

[Pigfarmer Jr]

Anyone wanna be my plus one? Just leave a review below for a chance to *win.













*Or lose, depending on your point of view. Also, no dates will be forthcoming. I'm married.

[Pigfarmer Jr]

You know the drill. Lyrics go here: viewtopic.php?f=5&t=12195

[Lunkhead]

Songs posted!

[Pigfarmer Jr]

Erm, I'm embarrassed that I didn't actually render and send in my song like I thought I had. Sent an email but won't expect much consideration for pure stupidity.

[Thanks For The Frisbee]

Garage Sale Reviews
Great fight everyone! Really strong entries!

The Pannacotta Army
Smooth, sweet, not stalkery but almost . I love the breakdown. I feel Like the guy in this song needs to work on his game a little bit if he can’t get past asking the girl her name .
Solid song! I really like the music and the lyrics are good I everything sits well in the mix. I don’t know if that means much coming from me though, my production skills seem to have gotten even worse lol! Good song.

JP Nickolas
The guitar work is really driving and well done . I wanted to hear some vocal layering or harmony or something in the chorus to give them some power too. The guitar is so gritty and powerful, I think the vox could have used more punch in some parts to match the intensity. Overall I thought it was really good.

Rod the Bunman
Nicely done classic western song.
The melody is a bit too familiar. Now I’m just trying to figure out what song this melody is from instead of engaging with the song. Well done though! It sounds great!! Mixed well and nailed the genre perfectly.

NeurodivergentNeroNexus
LOL. Alvin got dark! I don’t know what you were going for, but I think YOU think you nailed it, and that is all that matters. It is a bit jaunty and abrasive for my liking. That being said, I am a huge proponent of people making the music They want to make. So for that, good job.

Lichtenthroat
Sad, specific lyrics. The overall feel of the music does not jive with the story behind the lyrics for me personally. It creates a separateness that is a bit distracting to me. Only my opinion. The music is well done and I do like the uniqueness of it.

Ben Crenshaw
I really like the attitude of this song. It probably accurately conveys how people truly feel when they throw a garage sale . 1.47 is a good length for this song. Got your point across efficiently and didn’t overstay your welcome.

Berkeley Social Scene
Hey Frens!!!
You guys always sound technically perfect! You are capable of literally anything you want to accomplish musically. I love the arrangement, vocals are beautiful, and what a ripping lead! Brings my serotonin and dopamine up just listening to it! Very awesome lead! Are you guys McDonald’s…..cuz I’m lovin’ it…(sorry that was lame) but true, I am in fact lovin’ it.

Duncan Martin
I feel like this could be played during the final scene of a spaghetti western. Our hero rides lazily out of and old western town until all we see is a silhouette of a horse/rider and cowboy hat against the setting sun. The electric lead ruins that image for me a little bit haha, but I think it fits for your vision. All in all I really like your song!

Jon Porobil
I am vibe-ing hard on the oooo’s in the intro! Nice! That alone could be the background music for my entire work day and I would be sooo cool with that. I feel like the vox came in a bit too hot. The rock/bluesy-ness is well done. I love the piano part.

Starfinger
The way this song puts a smile on my face alone makes this my favorite of the fight! Smart, quirky, intentionally silly and honest at the same time. Clever lyrics. I love this song!

The Melfire Trifecta
Nice music. Sounds like it could have started a whole sub-genre in the 70’s. I like the music and the lyrics but what stands out to me the most is the awesome vocal layering! Color me green with jealous rage right now! Those vocals are tight! Good job! “Cut rate prices on everything priceless” good line

Thanks for the Frisbee
Hot mess. Guitar is pingy and sounds a bit out of tune at some points. Most likely due to sloppy playing. Vocals are a bit muddy. I did NOT do a good job layering. This song was written in classic TFTF style. Written and recorded in 2 hours so…still a lot of work needs to be done, but if I’m being honest..that will never happen haha.

[jpnickolas]

Ben Crenshaw
Nice and short. I like the aggressive tone and it contrasts with the more laid back vocals. The dooo-ops in the backing vocals are also really fun, although a bit loud relative to the main vocals at times. Maybe could have used some eq scooping so they weren't competing with each other so much.

Berkeley Social Scene
I love love love the bridge in this one. Excellent dissonance and a great lead into the solo. I probably listened to just the solo 5 or so times - really dig it especially as it hits those sick arpeggios. Guitar tone could potentially use some more distortion (or maybe just some more compression) during that solo. The clarity's impeccable but also unforgiving since it sounded like a few notes during the arpeggios ended up unintentionally weaker. I'm nitpicking hard here, though. Fun choruses, and I especially liked how how they layered more on each time around.

Duncan Martin
The plucked strings that came in around 0:12 was pretty cool. I would have liked to hear it stick around longer. Felt similarly about the organ when it came in around 0:53. Maybe they just got mixed so quiet for the rest of the song that I'm struggling to hear them. Excellent imagery in the lyrics, especially "take the bypass round the artery/it clogs up bad this time of day". I liked how sad the guitar solo sounded. Do you have any reverb on the guitar? It may help it fill up more of that empty space that the organ seems to be compensating for, plus a lush hall reverb can help make tricky solos a bit more forgiving. Overall enjoyed this one a lot. Many good ideas teased in here.

Jon Porobil
Bombastic! Whatever quiet echo grows in my left ear from ~0:30-0:50 is great. Everything in this mix is just so clear and polished. Great contrast with vocals that can get pretty raw at times. Not sure I totally understood the lyrics, but that's likely not an issue on your end so much as one on mine.

JP Nickolas
Just moved close to my hometown and was able to rescue an old guitar from my parent's basement and use it on this song. Really happy with how it sounds, although I probably could have dropped the gain a good deal. Spent way too long on lyrics I'm overall lukewarm about, but I don't think extra time would have gotten me much better. Vocals need the most work per usual - definitely not my strongest but far from my weakest performance on that front. Maybe I could have doubled up verses and put some harmonization on chorus, but I think that would just hide the bad vocals more than actively fix them.

Lichen Throat
These drums that open are pretty cool, and remind me a lot of southern rock. Could potentially use a driving set of 8th notes on the ride cymbal or hi-hat when the alt drums come in around 0:35, since the whole song seems to have the same level of energy. I think the level of solumn is on point for the song, but having some breaks during either the verse or the chorus will help add extra weight to the solumn sections. Changing the drums isn't the only way to do this, just a potential fix. The lyrics are great and really tug at your heart strings.

The Mellfire Trifecta
Nit: When the song starts, there's a buzzing in my left ear that's really distracting for most of the song. It had me paranoid that my headphones were busted. The drum beat is interesting, with how sparse and consistent it is through most of the song. The slowdown around 2:45 felt a bit too stilted at first, but eventually resolves nicely. I like the line "Lost, like my long hair"

NeurodivergentNeroNexus
This definitely felt harsh and hard to take seriously. That being said, once I turned down the volume a bit, it made for great background listening while reading the saga that is this song's copyright metadata. No notes, definitely a joy.

The Pannacotta Army
I really enjoyed all the key changes in this song. Very fun key modulations, and I definitely took a few listens to just jam along. Hard to find much that could be improved overall.

Rod The Bunman
Very chill. I like the guitar solo. Lyrics stand out as notably sad, even among some of the big heart-tuggers in this lineup.

Starfinger
Excellent funk. Absolutely delightful overall, and I found myself nodding my head more than I did with most of the songs. Doesn't take itself too seriously despite each part of the song being surprisingly quality. Especially love the "ahhh's" around the one minute mark.

Thanks for the Frisbee
Read that you wrote and recorded this over two hours which is pretty damn impressive. I can rarely even put together lyrics in that time. I think the guitar came out better than you're giving yourself credit for. I like how the guitar starts out more terse at the beginning, leaving a lot of empty space, then filling it out as the same subsequent parts repeat. Gives the song a good progression when you don't have the luxury of adding drum parts.

[Lunkhead]

Thanks to those who fired off reviews so quickly! I just added a couple barely late entries to the fight, The Magnetic Letters and Sugar Johnson. Give 'em a listen when you get a sec.

[Pigfarmer Jr]

Very strong group of songs. Especially for being a bit larger fight than the previous round(s).

Ben Crenshaw: Sounds a little bit like a Wilco out take (early Wilco that I like, not later Wilco that I... don't listen to much.) Sloppy in a good way. The mix could be cleaned up, I think. But this is fun to listen to.

Berkeley Social Scene: Lovely vocal tone. I like the guitars. This is probably my favorite BSS of the past however long. (You guys have too many good songs to irresponsibly say it's my favorite of all time without listening to a couple hours of BSS songs to verify.) Cool solo. Cool bass tone. Lovely melody. Did I mention I like the vocals?

Duncan Martin: Vocal reminds me of They Might Be Giants crossed with Jay Farrar from Son Volt. Which is a damn weird combination. Maybe because I haven't listened to TMBG for well over a decade and I'm totally off base. I like the solo: the tone and the shape of the melody.

Jon Porobil: Cool vibe. I like the guitars but they definitely could use more definition for my ears. (Granted, my ears are shit.) I like your vocal. I like you reaching for those notes. This is cool. Lyrically this is a great take on the title. And the rhythm in the written word matches that in the song. I like it.

JP Nickolas: I like the melody interplay with the guitars. But I feel the vocal performance is a bit weak in places (in some of the held notes) and mixed too hot in the verses. But there's something about the delivery that works very well for me. I like the rhythm, too. Cool guitars. This is fun to listen to.

Lichen Throat: I feel you use that eighth note, eighth note, quarter note motif in your instruments quite a bit. I like the tone of the instruments. Your drums/rhythm usually have a sparse non-4 on the floor feel and that can be cool. But I wonder if you had a more solid rock feel to them if the song would feel more supported and take the focus away from the other instruments which still sound a bit midi despite the sounds that I like. All that being said, I like the direction you took here. I'd like to hear a bit more in this vein.

The Magnetic Letters: It's hard to resist this rhythm. And you use the tightly doubled (tripled?) vocals well, although maybe they border on being a bit too straight. I have a hard time sitting still while listening to this song. I like your arrangement and the mix is good.

The Mellfire Trifecta: When I listen to the drums they seem a bit too simple, but if I listen to the dang song (like I'm supposed to) they work well. Why is that? At any rate, I really like the vocals on this song. The guitar part seems just slightly... actually I think it's the tone/lack of clarity. I like the acoustic. The solo tone is cool. Maybe the phrasing could be a bit less spot on, but I liked it well enough. I'd have liked to hear a fade out on the ending, even a fast one. Those vocals are so tight. Seems like I was nitpicking your song, but I do enjoy it.

NeurodivergentNeroNexus: What the flying fuck? I was just starting to get into the choppy rhythm and that vocal comes in MIXED WAY TOO HOT!!! On a side note, if you change the playback speed to 1.5 or even 2.0 then this sounds pretty cool. Even with the vocals MIXED WAY TOO HOT!!!

The Pannacotta Army: I was gonna start singing, "I see trees of green, red roses, too" but then it kicked in and became a Tim song. Good drum work here. I like the arrangement, too. The vocal phrasing on top of the cool guitars on the chorus. I love that box/knots rhyme. Another more than solid song from the P. Army. I think I gravitate to your more simple arrangements in general, but this really showcases your ability with the more full ones, too. Liked it even more on second listen.

Rod The Bunman: Suitably sad. You've managed to bring the country/roots feel without being too dead on with it. I like the sparse leads. The bookend verse works well, too.

Starfinger: Another fun song. I'm digging this arrangement. I think this would work well as an instrumental. And there's no doubt that the vocal delivery is fun.

Sugar Johnson: Live recording could be tightened up.

Thanks for the Frisbee: Not the cleanest mix. But there's something about this that I really like a lot. I think maybe using the same distinct spatial sounds on both the guitar and vox is causing it to be less clear. But I like the vox, the layers, the melody, the performance. I had to immediately listen to this again. And the more I listen the more I like it.

[JonPorobil]

Holy cow you guys. I think I'm voting for over half this fight. My #1 pick for the week is Pannacotta Army, but everyone did such a great job that it's hard to choose.

Full reviews hopefully today or tomorrow.

[Merle Fyshwick]

Thanks for the Frisbee: Nice octave guitar riff, effective use of reverb/delay. Bittersweet. Would make a good movie song!

NeurodivergentNeroNexus: A challenging listen, but I've performed with a similar ring-buffer pitch shifter myself so it'd be wrong to dismiss it. Here's my transcript of what I hear: Ring-like from a Skeletor I've got me a hernia from listening to this. My mother gets tired of returns, and in fact in mid terms I got stabbed for a thousand years. My lemon flesh will melt away. Remaining only with only away Got a da da da da I got to a my trail God sale beware I got it on my trail Going to a garage sale doomed to the gagrage sale Doomed to the garage sale. Da da da da. Doomed to the garage sale. I've spent more time thinking about this one than most of the others, so you got into my head!

Duncan Martin: Yeah, dig it. I really like the line about having your copper pulled, as a metaphor for nerves or whatever. I always like your vocals.

Starfinger: Hehe. 'Junk for you'. I wonder how often some items get passed from GS to GS. Some wicked stereo things going on in my headphones.

Jon Porobil: I like that bass. Neil Young-esque, that mega stereo delay on the vocals is either great or a bit distracting, not sure yet. The song builds nicely to 2:30 then bam, big notes win the votes! Bravo.

Sugar Johnson: Record crackle;) That guitar sounds sweet. My dad sold my BMX bike when I was 11 at a garage sale - I feel your pain;) The 'live' sound is a nice auditory change.

JP Nickolas: Yeah, frenetic intro. A bit like It's Gonna be a Long Night, love it.

Ben Crenshaw: 'Buy my fucken shit then go to hell' - that's a sales pitch I can get behind! I like the arrangement. Don't know if the clipping is intentional. This one grew on me, probably one of my faves.

BSS: A collab? Nice, wow, some really nice 60s-ish changes - super. There was/is a Perth band called The Bank Holidays, this is like a more punchy version of them. Yep, this is pretty great.

Pannacotta Army: Nice intro - wow those strings. That warbly little conti organ or whatever (can't quite place it) is a really good match for a song about a GS. Sweet harmonies. It's one of the longer ones, but doesn't outstay its welcome.

Lichen Throat: I was nodding my head to this one. That really driving kick drum. And the quirky rhyme scheme in the chorus. Distorted piano is an ominous touch. Nice.

Mellfire Trifecta: Cool progression, nice harmonies. Like Ben Folds Five meets Joe Jackson.

Rod the Bunman: Nice Neil Young vibe. I like your voice. The two dollars/fifty cents line is good!

The Magnetic Letters (me): Don't vote for this one, it was late. Also, the garage sale link is tenuous. However, just want to say hooray for songwriting. My car/stuff was nicked, as per the song. I've been in a funk and really, a bit of mild ridicule directed at the thief (caught on security camera with sneakers on his hands, no less) has made me feel a bit better. Thanks Song Fight and song fighters, this is a way healthier outlet than cyber-stalking and re-watching CCTV footage for clues.

[MellyP]

The Mellfire Trifecta: When I listen to the drums they seem a bit too simple, but if I listen to the dang song (like I'm supposed to) they work well. Why is that? At any rate, I really like the vocals on this song. The guitar part seems just slightly... actually I think it's the tone/lack of clarity. I like the acoustic. The solo tone is cool. Maybe the phrasing could be a bit less spot on, but I liked it well enough. I'd have liked to hear a fade out on the ending, even a fast one. Those vocals are so tight. Seems like I was nitpicking your song, but I do enjoy it.

Yes, I think the drum beat is distracting because it should be more complex for the rhythm and I didn't get time to do it again. Might be mixed too loud as well. Anyway, appreciate you taking the time to review all the songs.

[lichenthroat]

Ben Crenshaw—This sounds like one of those songs where the hip-hop group discovers a piano and records in a new style. Or maybe where the hard-rocking group unplugs. This grew on me a little as I listened to it more. I think it works. It’s not quite my thing, but it works.

Berkeley Social Scene—The drums and bass sound good. I like the vocal melodies and performance too. I’m not as keen on that falling instrumental melody, but that’s a little complaint in a sea of good stuff. I really like the harmonized vocals. The resonant solo is cool, too.

Duncan Martin—I don’t think you need the double tracking throughout the whole song. Also, turn up the sustained instruments in the mix. I like the guitar solo at the end: gentle but interesting. I like the mix of instruments you have.

Jon Porobil—I’m impressed with your ambition here. This song rewards paying close attention; I liked it a lot more when I listened to it carefully to write the review than I did when I had it on in the truck on my way to buy two lilacs and a rosemary. Very, very nice vocal performance. Epic.

JP Nickolas—I like the effect on your vocals, and I like the vocal melody. I’d like a freer-sounding vocal performance, but I know that’s often easier said than done. Nice guitar-work. I wished this was longer.

Lichen Throat—I’m not very happy with this. It seems really boring to me. I’m surprised I haven’t gotten more complaints.

The Magnetic Letters—I’m not sure what to call this, but I think I like it. Whatever you’re doing with the vocal works pretty well and is distinctive. I’m not sure what to say about this song. I’m perplexed but not dissatisfied.

The Mellfire Trifecta—I feel like the guitar notes and drums notes are too much in unison, even though I’m not sure they actually are. I really like the changeup at about 1:52. Overall, I neither strongly liked nor disliked this. The chord at the end is the prefect conclusion.

NeurodivergentNeroNexus—I had a hard time with this one. The vocal is really loud in the mix and is very hot in the mic. It also seemed like there wasn’t enough variation throughout the song to justify its length.

The Pannacotta Army—Wow, this is mixed well. Performances are good as usual. I’m not gripped by the song, but I don’t think I’m the target audience, so that’s okay. I liked “and then it was over,” and the song ends. Nice touch.

Rod the Bunman—The beginning of the song seems to cut off a tiny bit of your vocal. I like how you’ve mixed your vocal and the guitar. It sounds very much like the vocal is on top, but the guitar is still clear and distinct. That solo is sweeeeet and is the cherry on top of the atmosphere.

Starfinger—I see you’ve brought the funk. The echo on the vocal fits very well with the rest of the song. Your vocal delivery is nice and smooth.

Sugar Johnson—I am not an afficionado of the blues, so this sounds like every other blues song to me. It seems competently done, your guitar playing is good, and your lyrics are funny. I’ll leave it to someone better versed in this genre to comment more about the songwriting.

Thanks for the Frisbee—I don’t think I’d want a whole album that sounded like this—like you’re recording in an echoey stairwell—but it works very well for one song. Close your album with this. I think this was my favorite of the week. It sounds tender and genuine. Nice work.

[Duncan]

Pretty much all of these* were pleasant to listen to while having a quiet evening on the couch with the big cat. Thanks for the reviews so far. I got to a few garage sales this summer, but we may have to move if our house gets sold or demolished, so I really need to think about having my own garage sale. Best purchase I ever made was in Missoula Montana, and I paid $5 for a Helly Hansen raincoat, bronze ram (animal, not truck) belt, and three freeze-dried meals. The beef stroganoff one must have been punctured and was rancid, but my friend and I still ate it, and then spent the rest of the evening at some KOA-style campground trying to mask the rancid burps using beer and twizzlers. The two chilli meals were great.

*neurodivergentnexus has some explaining to do

Thanks for the Frisbee:
The lyrics lay out a nice vignette, and the chorus turns it into a plea, which drives things along well. The melody/rhythm is reminiscent of a genre I’m not too keen on -- that’s personal preference though. The mix makes it seem very present and live, which works well for the message. I would turn the reverb down a bit. It works well, but I think there's a little too much in the mix.

Ben Crenshaw:
Love this right off the bat. The beatles-y foundation makes me think of that Ringo classic “Don't Pass Me By.” Love the raspy voice. Fun tune all around -- good one to have a beer to.

Ricotta Militia:
Great hooks and pacing. I wish I could play and mix and sing and compose like this. The whole song has a nice crescendo to it that pretty well captures the feeling of brief and fleeting infatuation.

Rod The Bunman:
You’re supposed to hold the memories but get rid of the shit, right? “The books that you’d pretended that you’d read” is quite the dig right before expressing regret! I really enjoyed the guitar solo. Clear sound and nice little cords interspersed in it. This song is a definite bummer, but I like it.

Jon Porobil:
Cool mood with the harmonies here as we get into it. Wow the vocals are very loud. I like this ‘70s rock/blues mix. Sort of a “When the Levee Breaks” vibe. Then it goes into a Andrew Lloyd Webber zone. This was fun -- maybe a bit too reverb-happy, but who cares.

Sugar Johnson:
NIce guitar licks. Good concept. I would have liked there to be some kind of clue where it becomes plain to the listener why she did this, while the singer remains oblivious. I like your vocal delivery. Vinyl static effect is fun but gets a little distracting.

Starfinger:
Bringing the funk to the songfight. “To take a little peek inside” sounded very cool. This is a feast for the ears. This must have been hard to sing without gasping for breath. Lots of great sound effects and the vocal theatrics are terrific. I’m sold.

Magnetic Letters:
I sent this to my sister and we both agreed it’s a very special number. I will be voting for it because Fightmaster deemed it worthy of the fight, and it is deserving of a vote. You’re able to string long compound sentences together in verse with perfect phrasing and it really allows you to pack in a lot of meaning and specificity (especially the pre-chorus "If you're a .....in Victoria Park...." This is pure gold! I’m sorry you had your stuff taken, but this really is the best outcome. Sneaker handed bandit is a great lyric in itself. The synth loops, the quick pace, it's a keeper. The dog parking was icing on the cake. It's getting a download

BSS:
Rock and roll! This is one of my favourites of yours since I joined this weird online community in January. Everyone is sounding good. In-ev-it-a-ble decay didn’t work for me as a phrase. The chorus is really catchy, and I like hearing that male vocal blend in toward the end.


Lichen Throat:
Abigail is a perfect name for someone who was really into garage sale dresses and oddities in 2006. This paints a vivid picture. I like that you specify that you would go to the suburban and outlying towns’ garage sales. They have a really different vibe. I wasn’t as into the instrumentation on this as some of your others -- there was a weird click for a while. Your lyrics are always full of great detail.

Neurodivergentnexus:
Is this a test to see who decides in their reviews to be like “DUDE WHAT THE FUCK, DUDE?! “ Fair enough. Some interesting stuff happening here once I turned the volume down and chilled out a bit. Jesus though. I like the key you are scatting in, whatever it is.

Mellfire Trifecta:
Coming after Neurodivergentnexus, this is a welcome return to order. The vocals seem to lack a certain punch. Some of your recordings have the vocal cutting through a lot more, and I think that works better for the texture of the song. But maybe it’s because you’re doing more doubling here. I like this tempo change in your solo. This really reminds me of Arthur Lee and Love from that Forever Changes album. Nice job.

JP Nich:
Your riffs are tight. They carry it well, and I like the entry into the chorus most. I think the vocal could be stronger (louder, shouted more, especially toward the end) to meet the energy of the song. Hard to find time to shout multiple takes when living in these modern times with
Things like neighbours, families, roommates, and all that.

Duncan Martin (me):
Lichen Throat’s suggestion to not double the vocal all the way through is well taken. Mo mentioned this once too. Vocal doubling sure is tempting when you’re trying to add some texture to the song, but I think it would have been better to leave it just to the chorus, or turn the double way down. I’m not good at all at guitar, so a simple solo like this is satisfying to include, and it prevents me blowing into a clarinet or harmonica constantly. I like Reaper’s fuzz effect. Overall, I liked how this came out. I treat Songfight as a way for me to make demos and first drafts, and I think this song has potential.

[Lunkhead]

BSS wins! Go team!