When Style Outstrips Cash (Lookin' Good in Hand-Me-Downs)

Discuss upcoming, current, and previous song fights.
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When Style Outstrips Cash (Lookin' Good in Hand-Me-Downs)

Post by blue »

STRIP.
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Post by Jordan »

Some quick reviews as a scramble to pack for a two-week canoeing trip in Utah:

Boltoph
Nice crisp production. a "radio ready," fully realized piece. I like the mellow bridge part best. Really well played.

Boon Liver
Cool. Metal-hop. Good performance. Some great, clever lyrics, and some so-so ones. Maybe one less verse?

David Over
I like the sample at the beginning...was disappointed that it's not part of the song. Really nice vocal melody.

Ross Durand
Cute premise. I like the instrumental track a lot -- particularly the keys. The vocals and lyrics are okay.

Songfight Orchestra
Another one where I like the instrumental track quite a bit, but the vocals feel a bit off to me.

Wreckdom
The abstract sound collage doesn't really speak to me. Sorry.

x-tokyo-river-god
This is totally creative and cool. I could see this stuff having a devoted following. It's not quite my style, but that doesn't really matter in this context. This is good, creative work.


...Sorry I don't have time for more detail...gotta run!
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Post by j$ »

Boltoph - oh this would fit right on at the 'Get Me Back' fight. In fact it sounds similiar in style to the Bewells. You are well into this loud / quiet (nu-metal interpretation) aren't you? It's probably a misrememebring, but the last couple of your songs have done the self-same thing. NMB. I want to hear loud / loud or fast/fast at least :) Good for the 'genre' though.

Boon Liver - yeah. That's more like it. fast fast - RHCP-ish. Or maybe it's more Mike Patton-ish. I don't really like the semi-rap vocal style but it's well done. Not sure the chorus is strong enough for the length of the song? I imagine your guitarist wears tomato-red jeans and has a huge fuzz of hair, for some reason. Anyone who mentions 'Combat Rock' gets extra points in my book. Tight as.

David 'Over - I am so glad the annoying sped-up country didn't stay the whole way through. That guitar riff is everybody wants to rule the world by TFF! Pretty tune. The lispy feyness of the delivery is good. I don't like certain phrases 'tatty' sounds stupid here. And don't say Fall unless you're American! *slapppppp* Suitably short and you knicked that last 'oooh' from Pulp! Oh damn, the country came back. Run!

Jordan Yaruss - Bowie-esque opening. (sepcifically the bridge from 'Space Oddity') - The guitar sounds a little bit clumsy at times but that gives a nice edge to the pretty melody and the lovely voice. I think there is too much reliance on the chords here - when the piano comes in it is evry welcome, just offering a counter-point. Good tune though!

Ross Durand - Steve Miller! or someone like that - I'm not so good at comparisions. I like the lyric though you come across a little creepy. I don't like the chorus as much as I like the verses (although the harmonies 2nd time on make it a lot better). It should rock out more or far less. the wacky keyboard solo more than makes up for it though. A little too long - I'm got the measure of it by the time the solo slides in at 2.30

SFO - Ha on the Tom Waits at the Diner vibe. Hiss is emminently suitable. Also I can imagine JoS spunking up to that :)

Wreckdom - Great effect on the guitar.

X-Tokyo-River-God - XTRG pop? The lyric is a cut-up of a song Andy Balham wrote but didn't use. I then cut up the vocal recording. Fun.

Overall, either Yordan or Boon Liver I think. This may change. I'll listen again to this fight, which means it must have been a good'un!

EDIT: I voted for Jordan, with Boon Liver a very close second and SFO close on their heels. But I liked just about everything.
Last edited by j$ on Sat May 14, 2005 8:28 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by nyjm »

boltoph
- great opening riff
- great over-driven-guitar chorus; could you do something with the vox to match how this song musically breaks out?
- great dynamism: when it's quiet, it's just right, and when it rocks, it really rocks

boon liver
- good lyrical metaphor
- damn this grooves and rocks out
- that solo/bridge is just what this aural assault needed

david 'over
- ... whoa; slight change of pace...
- the dual vox don't match well; they fall out of harmony/tune
- interesting sound choices

jordan yaruss
- well-executed, has a good beat, but not particularly gripping or outstanding
- the piano is nice touch; i'd like to hear more of it
- cute story; love the ending, even if i could see it coming a mile away

ross durand
- i love these lyrics!
- good guitar groove
- great backing vocals for the second and third choruses

sfo
- what is this lyrical obsession with the big sister's clothing?

wreckdom
- interesting use of samples
- nice guitar groove
- not a fan of the vox, which is just kind of flat and boring

x-tokyo-river-god
- this sounds like someone took a pop song and ran it through it blender; i LOVE it!
- is that nataly on the chorus?
Last edited by nyjm on Mon May 16, 2005 1:41 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by boltoph »

j$ wrote:You are well into this loud / quiet (nu-metal interpretation) aren't you?
Yeah I have been lately haven't I...I do like the contrast. But I promise my next songfight's going to be a bit different, not a lot, but a bit. Thanks for the review! I'm rocking out to Boon Liver a little bit over here as well.
nyjm wrote:could you do something with the vox to match how this song musically breaks out?
I wish I had. damn! I wrote all the music and on Sunday sat around trying to get a real vocal idea and had trouble getting the catch. Spent too much time around the instruments, versus starting with a vocal idea.
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Post by nyjm »

boltoph wrote:
nyjm wrote:could you do something with the vox to match how this song musically breaks out?
I wish I had. damn! I wrote all the music and on Sunday sat around trying to get a real vocal idea and had trouble getting the catch. Spent too much time around the instruments, versus starting with a vocal idea.
actually, i think just a simple doubling of the vox is all it needs. no effects come right to mind (though eight-legged oedipus has a through-the-telephone-effect that i love), just a little more oomph.
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Post by boltoph »

nyjm wrote:just a simple doubling of the vox is all it needs. no effects come right to mind (though eight-legged oedipus has a through-the-telephone-effect that i love), just a little more oomph.
Hmm...it actually is doubled but I kept the double lower than usual. I hear what you're saying...maybe need to double the original and pan them out a little to match the rest of the mix better. I was originally going to put distortion on the chorus voc or use the megaphone type of eq during the chorus...guess I ran out of steam on Sunday night. I always say I'm going to go back and remix but I always slack on that big time...I love playing and performing, kinda hate tinkering with gear. Anyone wanna mix and master all of my recordings from now on? (I can do cubase or digital performer which imports directly to protools too). hee hee :P
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Post by Niveous »

nyjm wrote: x-tokyo-river-god
- this sounds like someone took and pop song and ran it through it blender; i LOVE it!
- is that nataly on the chorus?
Nope, That's pure Johnny. Our 4th member hasn't resurfaced in a while (x-tokyo is now officially Johnny, Noah, Nataly and myself, for those who don't know.)
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Post by boltoph »

Always worth the wait...

x-tokyo-river-gods
I like the catch to the rhythm of the beat you started with, between the "scraping" sound and the "squeezing" sound. Great intro. Really happy to hear the guitar and bass kick in. And this must be the distinct voice of j$, no question. I like the playful quality and how well the bass melody line fits with the vocal melody. It's a rare thing for me to say this but I actually like the pitch bending on the vocal. I'm not sure why, but i do. I like the fact that it stops and starts so many times but think it may flow smoother to the ear if it didn't (not that I'm one to talk).

Wreckdom
I'm waiting for the day that you guys perform a song entirely with body parts. That would be one hell of a creative idea if you could pull it off (or push it out, rather). A friend of mine once explored "internal mic'ing" with SM57s. I think you guys should step up the creative notch, abandon the midi instruments and drum machines and do it up pure organic, human style. Otherwise I'm not quite sure what you're going for, sounds like four separate tracks all from separate songs, put together. Kinda bummed that the drums have no rhythm, but liking some of the samplings.

Song Fight Orchestra
This is one of the best Songfight Orchestra songs I've ever heard I think. Great Jazz feel, totally authentic, great upright bass. Ready to hear it break into (edit): Charles Mingus style madness at some point. Damn these sfo songs for being so short (I know I'm not the first to say it).

Ross Durand
Another classic rocker for us, eh? Nice. I like that your vocals are flowing smoothly with the rest of the song, I like the changes during the chorus and the catchy title line. Could hear "she's looking good in hand-me-downs, but would look even better without them". I think this is my favorite Ross D. composition yet. You got Steven Stills' lead guitar tone too!

Jordan
Interesting chord changes, glad you're able to follow them with the vocal. Great line in the chorus about girl vs. boy. There's a great potential groove here to build up into something big, I'm digging that vibe about it. I could think of a bunch additional things, like actually making some sort of noise when you say "in the back of the class she never made noise". So much going on there. Great chorus catch, stop, and back into that verse. Production is rough but the song is great and I know it's good by how much I can "hear" it being really great while imagining crazy production. So far you've got me caught on yer hook...you fisherman, you.

David 'Over
I'm impressed with the diversity of the intro, how the violins and such crossfade into the body of the song. I have to put aside the production to hear your song, it's really short without developing into much. Could use another change or more instruments around banjo / violin part into a more solid part of the song, versus it just being a quick intro / extro.

Boon Liver
Yeah you guys are rocking it. Think the vocals could move around more (i feel like I'm always saying that about songs). Kick ass chorus. I love that guitar line. Switches back to the verse real well, the whole of this goes well with itself. The little lead guitar lines are in just the right places. My favorite thing is the rhythm section during the chorus. But when you do palm mutes, your guitar tone is just a bunch of papery mush. My guess is that you like that tone...I actually think it works during the verses but long to hear a nice cleaner thicker overdrive during the chorus. But rocking. I really like the chorus groove.
Back for the edit to say :!: my vote goes to Boon Liver for the kickass lyrics and changing of the rhythm over the course of verses.

Boltoph
About those elitist art-wear shops where rich hipsters go to buy special thrift clothes and stand in front of a mirror for an hour every morning to get themselves looking like they just rolled off a park bench, smelling like roses though. Ya know, pockets with holes that fill and fill ;) . I screwed up and lost too much bass from the mix. Maybe this time I really will do a re-mix. The guitars sounded better before I went boosting highs on the master. Note to self: when mastering, adding 2-8khz boost will drastically change your distorted guitar tones. Alright I just had to do a remix, just because of the bass not being loud enough and the mess up I had mastering Sunday night (cause of work, gotta get the entry in then). So anyway, same song, same parts..but the guitars, so much tighter..they got out of line when i got a little pissed at cubase. learning a new program and hitting old program's commands... Boltoph's second mix - lgihmd Just an extra hour...here's to not falling asleep after lunch for staying up til 2 the night before. coffee...coffee
Last edited by boltoph on Sat May 14, 2005 10:46 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by Bolio »

Reviews

Helping me with the reviews today are the Peeps from my Roller Coaster Tycoon 3 park: “The Crypt.” They heard your song on the Roller Coaster “Blood, Gore, Etc” & gave me some comments to pass on. Short comments, they wanted to get back on the ride of course.

Boltoph
Beckett H – I don’t mind the music
David R – The music is okay
Bolio – No way, this is much better than Okay. A few very different sections, a plus for me. Great production & vocal performance so it’s crankable. Great intro, stopping & restarting many times to hear that guitar again, great great tone. Chorus not as interesting & vox a bit quiet, maybe a better melody would work here.. but that guitar brings in the saucy bridge & I'm grooving again. Plenty here to keep me happy.

Boon Liver
Gavin J – The music is okay
Estella G – The music is really great
Bolio – Have to agree with Estella here. I love leafdrums. That bass line is too cool also, awesome tone. Very powerful song, got a great groove here. Not sold on the vocal style in this... kinda wish it rocked more like the rest of the song….. but the guitar solo makes me forget about it, rip-roaring, perfect. Very good song & already a tough fight.

David ‘Over
Heather N – I don’t mind the music
Lori B – I don’t mind the music
Bolio - A :27 intro on a 1:54 song might be too long, but I like it all the same. Nice melody & the performance works. At 1:36 sounds like a turnaround back to Verse 2, but damn it’s the ending. Many listens... this song deserves another verse or 2. Keeping it anyway.

Jordan Yaruss
Becket H – I don’t mind the music
Johan D – I don’t mind the music
Bolio – Right away I’m hearing ‘She Don’t Use Jelly’ by Flaming Lips in both the Melody & Vocal Timbre. Hard to shake it. Lyrics are cool, but song overall doesn't hold my attention.

Ross Durand
Becket H – The music is okay
Josephine B – The music is okay
Bolio – I think it’s better than okay. Good groove. It grows on me with each listen & I await those guitar break twangs. The Neilyoungish guitar solo fits like a glove. Varying the drums on verse 3 is a great change & one of those little things that make me love a song.

Song Fight Orchestra
Hollie W – I don’t mind the music
Nicole T – The music is okay
Bolio – What? That song didn’t even last until you were to the top of the Climb Hill!!! How can you say it’s okay? Looks like the peeps are looking for free ride coupons or something. Quit teasing me with 45 delicious seconds.

Wreckdom
Loretta B - The music is okay
Earl F – What on Earth is that music
Bolio – Have to agree with Earl. Wreckdom had a bad day. Kinda funny song, but you’ve set the bar higher recently imo. If you're playing that wah guitar part it's a big plus. Chiropractic adjustment, hee. Vocals, meh.

X-Tokyo-River-God
Nicole P – The music is okay
Ginger M – The music is okay
Bolio – Agreed. This is okay, very creative, but doesn’t really tie together like a song. Been waiting for some J$ 'Man Speaking German-ish' vocal manipulation, very cool. Interesting parts at every turn, but kinda really messy. Yep, it's okay.

Between Boon Liver, Boltoph & Ross Durand for me. The Peeps break the tie & vote goes to Boon Liver
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Post by Märk »

Reviews:

Boon Liver: I like it. I think I'll vote for this right off the bat. Finally some *balls* Nice guitar freakout.

David 'Over: Oh tra la la fucking de dah. Just shut the fuck up. Kidding! Nice song, but I don't like it, and besides, I already voted for Boon Liver.

Jordan Yaruss: Nice voice. I like this song. Don't really have much else to say about it.

Ross Durand: Maybe I'm getting tired and irritated, but this song is getting on my nerves. Just not a very good song. Sorry.

Sf Orchestra: This is probably pretty good for it's genre, but I hate that genre.

WreckdoM: O....kay.

XTRG: Interesting. There is such thing as too much stuff in the mix, and this is sort of guilty of that. I wouldn't suggest listening to this if you're high on something.

Boltoph: Wow, this is good. I like the rawk, and this rocks pretty good. Don't like the tweedly-deedly guitar. Ask yourself "Did thsi song need that 32nd note run?" and if the answer is 'No" then don't put it in. More likely than not, you'll annoy people rather than impress them. Still, other than that minor bitch, good song.

Like I said at the beginning, vote goes to Boon Liver
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Post by Gazelles »

Cancelled plans=reviews. Bad for me, good for you!
* indicates a keeper

Boltoph*: This is very clean sounding like all of your stuff. Like previous Boltoph, quiet verses, followed by a rocking chorus. The chorus is the real gem of this song. The guitar freak out is very cool, but I see where Sven is coming from on the gratuity. Though I like the lead guitar in the verse following the first chorus. The very last guitar solo is entirely gratuitous and at this point I'm kind of wishing the song were over. I like this though.3 and 1/2 stars.

Boon Liver*: Excellent intro. You know how to write a song that rocks. This is nice and gritty. I like this very much. Makes me feel like jumping around to the bass line. I like the guitar solo a lot. The song could be shorter, it's a little too long. Overall, a very nice song. 3 and 3/4 stars.

David 'Over: Oh great intro! Wait. Where'd it go? Bring that awesome riff back! Agh, this is boring. What was the point of that sweet fiddle intro and outro? Man. 2 and 1/2 stars.

Jordan Yaruss: Very candycoated pop. The story isn't real great. I don't know, I just find this pretty boring and very average. 2 and 1/2 stars.

Ross Durand: This reminds a lot of the previous song, Jordan's song. It's just an average chord progression with an OK arrangement and boring story in the lyrics. 2 and 1/2 stars.

Songfight Orchestra: Oh smooth jazz. It's really more funny then anything. Nice job. 3 stars.

WreckdoM: Hahaha, this is so crazy. Wow, when did I start even mildly enjoying WreckdoM? Unfortunately, I don't think I could listen to this more than once. 2 and 4/5 stars.

x-tokyo-river-god*: Oh man this is absolutely insane. I love it. Sounds like a Johnny Cashpoint song was thrown through a giant fan and then everyone arranged it's remains into something coherent. This is great and original. 4 and 1/10 stars.

Top 3:
4. Songfight Orchestra
3. Boltoph*
2. Boon Liver*
1. x-tokyo-river-god*
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two cents...

Post by shadowdog »

Ok I'm deep in writing code while i am listening to this weeks submissions and gotta stop to comment about xtrg - "This is awesome!!!" and is definitly the best xtrg I've heard so far!!

Wow, I just noticed Sven Mullet... where were you three months ago? We were hoping to use one of your songs in our home grown xtra low budget (actually no budget) video. oh well, some other time i guess, its good to know that youre still around...
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Reviews

Post by Ross »

Sorry it took me so long to get to my reviews. It’s been a heck of a week and I put recording my song ahead of reviews today.

Boltoph – Sounds great. And good take on the title. But I’ll admit that the music-lyric connection doesn’t exactly work for me. I guess I also wanted more lyrical development to match the musical sophistication.

Boon Liver – I like the word work and the way you take it on. I think the style fits very well, too. I think it may be too long, especially in the verse structure, to sustain itself. Some instrumentation changes may have helped keep the ear interested. Overall very cool. Two songs – two shredders. Part early Suicidal Tendencies, part Primus.

David ‘over – I don’t quite follow the words. “It won’t be so bad if you go” “You’re looking god in hand me downs” hmm. I like the sound of the intro/outro, but they seem like non-sequiter to me.

Jordan Yaruss - I almost thought you were going to take the same angle as me here. Good tune, good hook into the chorus. I like the story. And cool ending (again a song similarity). If it ain’t me, I guess I’m rooting for you.

Ross Durand – First off, I appreciate the Stills/Young comments. Nothing intentional there, but I guess I don’t mind sounding a little like the music I love. All the guitars here are totally non post-processed and no effects. All sounds created by my amp head and my ‘84 American Tele. I wish I could have worked a few of the words here without having to stretch some of the ideas out. I’m also sort of proud of the fade-out that still ends.

SFO – Tight – pun? A good one. Another big sis/little sis thing. Pretty elegant little song – you left next week a pretty easy assignment.

WreckdoM – hmm. Okay. I guess this makes sense - I’m sure The Residents and Ween are glad to have a following.

x-tokyo-river-gods – Ok, J$ vocals. I guess these words didn’t really move very far for me. Pretty great sounding song, though. By the way, KTLK 1150am in LA has this voice that says “KTLA” just like your creepy computer voice from a few weeks back. Scares me every time – not safe for freeway driving.
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Post by deshead »

Boltoph:
Best part: the intro!
(I'm reviewing the SF mix, though the 2nd one is definitely better. You know this already.) The mix is well-balanced, in that I can hear everything. I think it kinda lacks warmth (which might be because the bass is a) too quiet, and b) all bass, no mid,) but too much warmth would take the edge off the guitar sound, so it's probably not a bad thing. This is a complicated song, with all the schizophrenic guitars, but it's still totally accessible. I'll be honest: I'm not sure what it's about. Maybe I need to listen a half-dozen more times, but as it is, your voice blends into the song like it's another instrument. Unless the song packs a big message, I think this is actually desirable. Oh, and the guitar solo lacks neck-bending and whammy-bar action.

Boon Liver:
Best part: "'cause they got my brother's soul."
Good mix, though I find it center-weighted. The lead guitar is kinda thin, so I'd like to hear it doubled and hard-panned left and right. I really like the interplay between the bass and guitar when the guitar's doing the noodly bits, like from 1:33 to 1:50. And the RAtM guitar solo is perfect. Negative bonus marks for length, though. I was ready for the song to end around the 3 minute mark. Like, if it just stopped dead on the word "system." That said, the ending is great. Nice 1-2-3 punctuation with the drums.

David 'Over:
Best part: The tempo change at 1:29. Great mood.
Dump the intro/extro, it does nothing for the song. The harmonies are out of tune, but I think that actually helps the mood. It has this quaint sound that makes me feel sorry for the singer, which I think is what you wanted. The lower guitar is out of tune too, but not in a good way.

Jordan Yaruss:
Best part: the piano solo is exactly right for the song.
Perfect length! I'm glad you kept the vocal so up-front and present. It suits the song. I also like how you never push your voice. It has a delicate sound that adds sincerity to the performance. The bottom end of the mix is pretty muddy. I think there's a bass guitar in there, but it has no definition. Ditto the kick drum. Here's what I'd try: kill every below ~120Hz on the acoustic guitar. Kill everything below ~60Hz on the bass, and boost it somewhere around 250Hz. Make sure the kick drum has lots of 50-80Hz in it, and push the level up.

Ross Durand:
Best part: the change from F# to A at 2:01 works really well, with the backing vox.
Your voice here has an unfortunate Adam Sandler quality. Actually, the whole song does: the lyrics, the arrangement, the phrasing especially. The vocals are too hot, and I think a little muddy. I'd kill some of the bottom end, and maybe excite the highs a bit. The kick drum has no punch at all. Your mix would benefit from the same kind of treatment I mentioned to Jordan above. Also, I respectfully disagree with Bolio: The Neil-Youngish guitar solo doesn't work at all. You distorted the guitar by clipping it on the way in, right? That never sounds good. If you're using a DAW, there are tonnes of free distortion plugins that'll sound better. Finally, The song's about a minute too long, though I'm not sure how you'd shorten it ... Maybe pick the tempo up a bit, and lose the last chorus. Man ... harsh review, sorry. I mean it all constructively :)

SFO:
Best part: the walking bass line sounds fantastic.
This is beautifully eclectic. Other than the too-long delay on the voice, which puts the vocal in a different-sized room than the rest of the track, I think this is perfect.

WreckdoM:
Best part: wowp, wowp, wowp, dee, wowp
I love the auto-wah'd guitar. I hate the way your voice slides around in the stereo field. While the sonic experiment itself doesn't do much for me, I gotta hand it to you for the change at 1:32. I'm a little less sane after hearing it.

X-Tokyo-River-God:
Best part: Thanks for the speaker workout.
I liked this much more than I usually like this stuff. It sits on the edge of breaking apart the whole time, but manages to stay together. Actually, it even manages to sound like pop, even though the individual bits are mostly noise. Sum of the parts, I guess. I think this must have been tricky to mix, so I applaud you for pulling it off so well.


Tough call for me between Boltoph and Jordan Yaruss. But I keep going back to Boltoph's for another listen, so I think that's the vote.
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Post by Leaf »

I got reviews half done... so I 'll either post what I got tonight when I get home (reviews are on my home machine) or finish and post when I get home.

But a word on the length of the Boon Liver track: It's a fair criticism from the perspective of a songfight review, in that reviewers are listening for the end to move on to another review.


But I would n't change it for two reasons:

1) Cause it's not a long song. Hello Attention Deficient society.... it's under 4 minutes long.

2) At a gig, live, it 'd be too short for those flailing about and dancing!!

That said... I must admit that I didn't give SmalltownMike enough time to give the vocals the proper treatment... see, he wrote the main riff, and sent that to me with a boom-boom bap drum beat, and then let me go crazy on it... so I did!! Back in the day when we were jamming together, RATM was a glimmer in the eye of the world.. in fact, he was the first guy I knew who even heard of them. I remember, 1990 or 91, sitting in his room, and him saying... "have you heard these guys?" ... it changed the sound of our band... it changed my mind on music. Cause they are fucking awesome. So it seemed fitting to give it a bit of that treatment, while maintaining our own sound at the same time.. although the solo is a TOTAL RATM vibe... thanks for noticing!

Anyway, by the time he had done a vocal track that responded to the new riffs, time was gone. Such is songfight. But those lyrics... damn he is good. You can hear and FEEL the kid inside telling the story... and I don't even know if he HAS an older brother!!! Great job on the lyrics! And what a cool opportunity to whore yourself out on someone's ideas and try and take it to another dimension... just awesome.

Boltoph... your guitar playing is sick. Ignore the anti-guitar chops sentiments expressed previously... cause I loved it, thought it was totally appropriate. I am personally fed up with people assuming that virtousic expression is always a negative ego trip. IT DOES NOT SOUND that way on your track. You didn't spunk all over the tune, you tastefully placed some sweet riffs and lines , and then ripped it up for the solo. And it has vibe. Until I am informed otherwise, I personally crown you the best damn guitar player on songfight. It ripped.


So... I'll try and get my comments on y'all later... it was a bizarre weekend... but perhaps tonight will be better.
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boltoph
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Post by boltoph »

Leaf, thanks a helluva lot, that's a huge compliment. I think it's funny how in the 90s and 2000s people find it lame to do fast solos and licks in rock songs. But it's always ok in Classical and Jazz though, and was great in rock up until the grundge era I guess. I still love it, in moderation, in all genres.
I usually hold back and opt for a more constructed melody over a fast steaming lick, but because of all the talk on the prog cover sidefight board, I felt I had to do it. And was pumped about it, too. :)
Thanks to Boon Liver for bringing the rock like lead feet stomping through a cranberry bog!
deshead wrote:I'll be honest: I'm not sure what it's about. Maybe I need to listen a half-dozen more times, but as it is, your voice blends into the song like it's another instrument. Unless the song packs a big message, I think this is actually desirable. Oh, and the guitar solo lacks neck-bending and whammy-bar action.
Agh, lacks artificial harmonics and fingertapping too! The song doesn't have a huge lyric point except cynical attitude toward elitist fashion trends. :lol: I'm gonna have to remix the remix though. You know that the post-submission failure and regret can be never ending...
<pulls out a clump of hair>
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thehipcola
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Post by thehipcola »

Boltoph
Wow...awsome intro! Love the sounds on this tune. Very crispy...maybe a tad too much...listening on my pc speakers though...Great chords. Wow...great fucking guitar work. Wow. You are a machine man! I like the place this song lives in. I want the drums to get heavy comensurate with the guitars. Great harmonies.. Boltoph rules. Period. gonna be tough to get the vote away from you man. Not only are the sounds awesome, but the song is fuckin' A. I'm a fan.

BoonLiver
Great performances. Not a huge fan of this genre..but I really respect all the playing. I find the bottom end to be a tad muddy /huge. But that could be my pc speakers though..there's a subwoofer. On the other end, I'm impressed by the same bottom end, I always have trouble with that. Nice work. I'd like to have more distinction between talking and singing sonically...Mike you have a great voice but more dynamic variation would help this tune move along. Sounds are awesome, and by the end I'm bopping my head. You can't not, such a huge groove. Nice heavy guitar crunchy, nice drum sounds, snare wasn't as cutting as I'd like it to be. Personal prefs all of them. Nice to hear BL back together again! This is a keeper, but it's not quite vote status. 2nd runner up so far.

David Over
Nice chord work. This is nice. I appreciate the production effort. The guitar needs more presence. Don't like the outro loop. It makes me remember the intro one and the fact that I was wondering what it was for, then, too. Your voice is nice, also needs a bit more presence. Maybe a smidge of compression, roll of the bass a bit too. The harmonies are great in intent, but on execution a bit shy of the mark. This is among the better Over tracks I've heard. Good job. No vote today though.

Jordan Yaruss
The opening crash is too hot. I'd have put the tamborine on the other side from the hats. Good quirky fun tune. I'd like to hear more complicated lyrics and delivery over the simple song. It would be a good juxtaposition. Nice piano sounds...they don't fit the sonic space you've set up already...different reverb? Nice mix overall...everything is there. Ha! like the lyric "looked even better on my floor"...cheeky. Nice song. No vote. Good ending.

Ross Durand
Clipping vocals...unhunh. They cut too much. The guitars could be a bit more distinct sound...maybe the vocals are masking them..they seem too upfront. Could be my speakers. This song is reminiscent of something..can't put my finger on it. You and Jordan confab on song subjects? This is alright. Kind of vanilla. Nothing really bothers me, but nothing grabs me. No vote

SongFight Orchestra
Great vocal treatment. Everything else sounds so dry, why not give it all a bit of the vocal treatment to liven it up a little. Nice job..it works well as a vignette for SFO. Very stylized.

Wreckdom
heh he...got all the way through. Some funny moments in there. "gonna be authenticated". Careful, you might get accused of having some flow. Not much to say about this otherwise.

x-tokyo-river-gods
Sounds like J$ again...sweet. This is fun. Very not what I'd expect from x-tokyo. Well, except the abrasive noisescape. Kind of Men Without Hats ish. Love the bass. Definite keeper. No vote. But damn, you surprised me. Great job.

----

Sweet fight..some really great tunes, not alot of shake. :) Vote goes to Boltoph, 2nd place Boon Liver, 3rd spot is x-tokyo.

Thanks!
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Post by HeuristicsInc »

wreckdom - kind of neat, actually. i think the main low voice should be a bit more dynamic. jumping from those parts to the highpitched parts doesn't happen smoothly.

xtrg - freaky and cool. Has its own internal logic, unconstrained by norms.

david over - hey, this is nice. i think it needs a stronger chorus to lift it up. i see the seconds ticking off and know already that it'll be too short.

sforch - vocals & bass don't feel together enough. nice sound, though.

boltoph - nice guitar! vocals are good, although a bit indistinct in the beginning. ah, a change. i feel like these vocals are also mixed too low. shreddy guitar is good, i like that.

boon liver - i guess this is the fight for loud guitar. this one is good too. almost hip-hop twiddles on the guitar there. this is pretty catchy. i feel like i shouldn't like this, because the vocals aren't my favorite, but i like it anyway. kinda like king missile with the talking over guitars. the vocals need /something/ though.

ross d - hey, good intro. heh, the lyrics are amusing. i like it. good twist on the lyrics.

jordan y - hey, i saw your post at cdbaby. i was thinking, hey, i recognize that name. the sound here is all up in the top and no bottom, to my ears. sounds thin. pretty good though. you know, this makes me think of ben folds, but it needs to be more exciting :)

1: xtrg, boltoph, boon liver, ross d
2: wreckdom, david o, sforch, jordan
boltoph and ross are nice and acessible but i think this week i'll vote for the weird and unexpected and go with xtrg just because it works so well while being completely bonkers.
-bill
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boltoph
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Post by boltoph »

Damn me for voting for Boon Liver instead of myself. :lol:
You guys rocked!
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Leaf
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Post by Leaf »

Boon Liver accepts this honour.

I'd like to thank the lord for giving us these gifts and making this possible, and all my peeps back in the burb. Mama, I love you. Peace out. Our god works in mysterious ways. There's just so many people to thank... uh, first my cousin Binky for showing me hers after I showed her mine. Thanks Binky, you changed my concepts of what the word moist really means. To my Uncle Geoff, I just wanna say, rot in your cell you bastard, we won songfight and you can never take that from me, never. To the President of the United States of America...thanks for your vote man, I knew you could relate to the riffs, if not the lyrics.


Thanks to all who voted, you made our week, and I 'm glad you dug the tune. Definitely gonna take some of the ideas from the reviews to polish this baby up... yes, a twitch muddy, and I need Boltoph to give me some axe lessons... I have no clue what you meant by papery mush...but I 'm curious. ..

On behalf of Boon Liver: Thanks.
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Post by Jordan »

Hey all...I'm back from vacation and just wanted to say thanks for all your comments, which I think we're generally spot-on. I felt like this was a "well-crafted" song without a whole lot of emotional depth.

Deshead: thanks for the specifics...I've been having some trouble with a muddy bottom and, uh...okay that didn't sound quite right. Anyway, I'll try those tips next time.

Jordan
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