Don't Think I Don't Like Your Song (or Miss You reviews)

[a bebop a rebop]

Songs that use only the 1, 4, and 5 chords can be found in abundance in blues, punk, rock, folk, and country. Oh, and in drinking songs, too.

And they're boring.

Seriously, it's not really a big deal that you're self-taught, just keep messing around with stuff that sounds interesting to you, and eventually it'll start sound interesting to everyone else.

[frankie big face]

Songs that use only the 1, 4, and 5 chords can be found in abundance in blues, punk, rock, folk, and country. Oh, and in drinking songs, too.

And they're boring.

Not as boring as sweeping generalizations.

[j$]

I IV I V is roman numerals: 1 4 1 5.

Does anyone know where and when this shorthand for chords developed? I am curious because when tabbing out a guitar part, you refer to the open string as 0 and up, but this one starts at 1 even if you're not playing barre chords.

I am probably missing something really obvious (wouldn't be the first time!) but like I say, just curious.

And like Frankie says, chords don't bore people, people with chords do

j$

[Dan-O from Five-O]

I see you're taking the compliment well, Dan-O.

On the contrary, I've been very pleased with the feedback, positive and negative. A lot of the flaws that have been mentioned I pointed out in my own review back on page 2. Vocally I could have done a lot better on this song, mixing and singing. Some of it may just be flat out of my range, I dunno yet, I'll work on it.

The Santana references, 3 to be exact, are flattering in that I think he's a very accomplished guitarist. But they puzzled me in that I was sure I would get B.B. King references instead. I've gone back and listened objectively looking for the Santana sound, and although this song is devoid of the heavy percussion one would find in his songs, I think I'm hearing the part others are.

Putting the Santana-esque thing in my tag was just me trying to be funny. And failing yet again. Thanks to everyone who's reviewed, great job.

[deshead]

Does anyone know where and when this shorthand for chords developed?

With German composers in the early 1800's: http://library.thinkquest.org/15413/theory/chords.htm

I am curious because when tabbing out a guitar part, you refer to the open string as 0 and up, but this one starts at 1 even if you're not playing barre chords.

Using Roman numerals for chord notation isn't a guitar-specific thing.

Remember, too, that Roman numeral chord notation identifies no explicit key (it comes from the key signature on the staff,) whereas guitar tab is very explicit in which notes are to be played. And an open string kinda has to be 0 so that the rest of the frets are numbered correctly

[boltoph]

...one of those recycled gold soccer trophies, perhaps?

That trophy is the best, especially because he's upside down!


On a side note, just remember, if you're reading guitar-specific sheet music, the roman numeral designates which position you should be in, where your first finger would be based. When the song calls for a high D on the 7th fret, first finger, there'd be a little Roman numeral above the staff that says "VII". Use the second finger for that D and the position would usually be VI.

[Dan-O from Five-O]

...one of those recycled gold soccer trophies, perhaps?

That trophy is the best, especially because he's upside down!

It reminds me of that scene from "Saving Silverman".

[Kill Me Sarah]

But they puzzled me in that I was sure I would get B.B. King references instead.

In the opening portion of your song, I totally thought I was gonna hear B.B.'s voice start pouring through my speakers.

[deshead]

On a side note, just remember, if you're reading guitar-specific sheet music, the roman numeral designates which position you should be in...

Ah, I see the confusion.

I'm not sure which use of the Roman numerals j$ referred to. (I guess if it's those used to denote position, then the reason they start at "I" is that "open" is implied by the absence of a numeral.)

[boltoph]

..."open" is implied by the absence of a numeral.

Yes, exactly...

J$ was reading Tab so I'm not sure that my footnote here even applies.

What I'm talking about is in staff guitar music, esp. in jazz standards. I did this version of "Prelude to a Kiss" that had a different Roman above almost every chord, the chords moved all around the neck.

Check out this one. You can see the roman numerals, indicating which position to be in. The tell-tale sign is that there's a high (12th fret) E in that first chord. Hence, IX position. Even the left hand fingerings are listed next to the note.

[Niveous]

Sorry to interrupt all the chord theory (though I do love this stuff) but here's some more reviews. And with no proofreading, woo-hoo!

Time for another trip through my stream of conscious. I've just finished battling it out with some attorney over the necessity to pay a 110 dollar filing fee (just pay the crap!) and now I'm doing reviews. Will my pissed mood show in my reviews? Let's find out.:

Dan-o from 5-0: Nice guitars in this. The driving cymbal clank is bad. A better quality cymbal might help or is this a sample? This is sample stuff isn't it. Get a better cymbal sample. The vox are too far back in the mix and I find myself paying too much attention to the clink-clink-clink-clink. The guitar solo wasn't half bad. But that should've been a sign of the song winding down. There should not have been an extra two minutes of tune. Too much. Good effort but it just misses the mark.

Wages: Somebody listened to my reviews from last week and tried to put more feeling into his vocals. And he also tried to add some drums. The drums are very threadbarren so they aren't doing anything but clutter up the song. The lyrics aren't catching me and the rhythm is very sing-song (duh-nuh, duh-nuh, duh-nuh, duh-nuh) and that's probably what's making me zone out instead of getting into the lyrics. It's not your best. It's not your worst. Mediocre.

The Barstools: This is the story of 2 dirty girls, huh. What's with the fake bar sounds lately. First the Doscientos and now this. Okay, this isn't a story about anything. It's just a list of repetitive sentences that are barely connected and sit around a nice chorus. It's pop fluff. Double tracked vocals, nice production and absolutely nothing to say. It's perfectly vapid. This could've been good if it hadn't something to say, if it really was the story of something.

IPA: Wow, I completely zoned out on this tune and started playing Wheel of Fortune on another forum. That can't be good. Let me give this another try. It's got a cute little riff running through it. And then it loses it by the second verse and begins to lose me until it revs up on the bridge. This is very mid 90's like it should've been done by Hum or Feeder. That was okay. Decent little tune.

Fifteen Years (Lonbobby & Anita): Lonbobby makes such good music and he also finds such spectacular vocalists. This is very catchy and well done. It reminds me of the Kidney Theives or Snake River Conspiracy. That's a very good thing as I love the Kidneythieves. The bridge with the wild guitars behind the keys is spectacular. This is a keeper and may get my vote. This needs a music video. This is a single.

Sober Irishman: Sober meets Santana? Lots of really nice playing on this. There is a lot of good stuff here. It's not actually my style as it doesn't jump out at me on the record. I think if I saw a full band play this and could see some spectacular playing then I'd be all over it. Wow, it was 6 minutes and didn't feel that way. That's impressive. Good work, Sober.

Andy Balham: Did I ever thank you for helping on that TFC song? Well if I didn't, thanks. Now to your review. The intro is good but I don't dig your vocals. I think that's a personal preference. The performance is just fine. The chorus is a bit bland. It takes down the song. It's an okay tune but it doesn't warrant extra listens.

Leaf 62: It started off sounding like it was gonna go ska but then you brought the rock. There needs to be more rock on Songfight. Hey Spud, maybe next week the optional challenge should be rock the f--- out. The vocals are okay here. The guitar are good and crunchy. The "car-a-ar" is great. I like the overall feel of this one. I may download this. You know what, I will. *click*. This is a contender. I'm digging this ending. Nice job, Leaf62.

Eclectic Spoons: Sex sells but does it win songfights. Not in this case. I'm all for the experimentation but this is an experiment that fails. The vocal effect is annoying. Sometimes playing with those effects pays off big or it's a whammy. This is a whammy. And this gets repetitive quick. By 2:30, I'm wishing a little red guy would pop up and sweep this song away.

Matte Glosst and the 8x10s. Cute name. One sided but it's not annoying me too much. Just fix the panning next time. The backing vocals are not good on this. The chorus is kinda cute. It's like a Herman's Hermits b-side. This runs way too long. 60's pop needs to be short, catchy and punchy. Better than average song. Mostly, it's cute.

Martin Chitty (aka Roy Castle Experiment): I looked it up. I was right. It's RCX's return. Using that voice in a simple paino tune is a good idea. The instrumentalization that comes in at the second verse is good, nicely understated. And I'm not hating the key solo. This is very nice. A contender.

Jonas Murdock and the Child Inside: The MIDI is a lethal predator. It hunts down its prey and slaughters it with a sonic assault. I am despising the instrumentalization on this. There is so much more that can be done electronically instead of this bad videogame soundtrack stuff. Next.

Roymond: Sometimes there are some real strong sparks of feeling in this song and then there's the chorus which is middle-of-the-road. If only this song could have the feeling through out. The guitar solo is nice and dark. This needs to be gothier as if this needs to be handed off to London After Midnight or at least a SF equivalent (Bloodberries & Cream? Hentai Kitty Death?). "Don't even think it". Good ending.

Chief Takahah: Thirteen minutes and 21 seconds of experimentation. Crap. Few can pull this off. I don't think this is gonna be one of the good ones. Oh, it's not. By one minute thirty, I'm looking at the scissors on the death and thinking mercykilling. I can't say that answering machine messages don't make songs because Poe and Lonbobby have both used them well. This is...........not good at all.

The Landfills: Wow, that was disappointing. I dig the Landfills but this was short and bland like a bad Erasure song. The lyrics seem okay but all together there is nothing to catch me which isn't good for something so short.

X-Tokyo-River-God: This song makes me happy. It started with a dose of Niveous soundscaping and then Noah added the drums (I didn't think they would've worked as well as they did) and the great guitars and our newest member Anti-M added in the saw violins and great keys. I wrote the lyrics. Anti-M proofread thankfully and then nailed those vocals giving a very eerie finishing touch. I really enjoy this one and I hope everyone else does as well. It's fun making these XTRG songs and hopefully there will be more of them in the future. PS- J$ is still in XTRG, he just couldn't contribute this time. Hopefully next time will have all of us.

Beuhiss: Nice harmonica. The drums aren't doing anything for me. The vocals are so monotone as if you phoned in the vocals. Mediocre. The guitars are good. The lyrics are okay but not interesting in the least. All in all, this is a bit of a bore.

The Befores: Zareen's voice is phenomenal on this one. I think a little longer with this song and this will realy find itself. That first section leaves much to be desired. Especially the percussion at the beginning which lacked luster. I love when the song kicks into high gear at around 1:50. That damn rhythm block is annoying me. The bridge between the high powered parts is really bad in a really good song. This is running too long and losing steam. I want a crescendo!

Kill Me Sarah: Okay, i turned it up. I can't fault anyone for that because people in glass houses can't throw stones. "Don't think that I'm not blue". You're not Blue. If you were Blue this would've rocked. This meandered. This has a little potential. Find someone to sing along and listen to some Bishop Allen beforehand (especially "Come Clean") and have fun and boost this up.

Uncle Boltoph & the Deshead Kid: It's the next day and this is my first SF song of the day. Hmmm, after last week's return of the Doscientos, I think I've become spoiled when it's come to rockabilly guitar tunes. This is okay but it's not hooking me in any way, shape or form. Deshead's voice is good as ever (still Josh Woodward Jr.) and the production is top notch but it's as bland as tofu to me.

Li'l Moses and MC Minimum: A rap tune. Hmmm. Why has it been so long since there was a FAL song up in this joint. I'm looking at you, Glenn. The beat to this tune is boring as can be. The idea of this tune is okay. The delivery needs some work. The song is way too long. I definitely think a better sample choice would've helped. I've heard so many criticisms of rappers and their samples but it's really hard to find the right sample to create a song from. This song is a perfect example.

Carpetburn: I like Carpetburn. Their song "Before and After Shots" is a gem that I've played on my radioshow. (Speaking of that, I haven't made a new one because I changed PC's and need to update my software) This isn't as much of a gem. I feel like someone took this song, cut up the sheet music and taped it together at random. It doesn't flow very well. I think it's because there is no steady v-c-v to this tune. Not my cup of tea.

Jordan Seavers: JB loved this and announced it at the start of this fight. Wow, that's pressure. Does it live up? Not in my eyes. But that's probably because I hate the keys in this. I reminds me of something Paul McCartney would do in the Wings days, like "Simply Having a Wonderful Christmas Time". They are just grating to me. I can't even take in the vocals and lyrics underneath the cheesy synths. CCS does this right, Jordan Seavers does this wrong.

Ryan Rickenbach: La-dee-da. The vocals are fine. The guitars are clean. The lyrics aren't interesting but they aren't ishkabibble. This song is the midpoint of the fight. It's incredibly average. Not great. Not horrible. Out of 10, I'd give it a perfect 5.

Flvxxvm Florvm: No. No. No. Jeff, I'll level with ya. I heard your song last week and you'ev got the chops. But this Motorhead stuff just isn't your speed. Your voice doesn't carry it well. You're a better guitarist then you display on this. Please stop being Flvxxvm Florvm and do more stuff like last week.

Okay, I wanna state again that I really love the XTRG song, but I don't vote for myself because that's just uncouth.

Here are my top 3:
1. 15 Years
2. Leaf62
3. Martin Chitty

[Lonbobby]

Thanks so much for everyone's reviews so far. Mine are coming after my exams!!!!!!!!!!

Also, I made a new mix based on some people's comments about the drums and chorus vocals.

http://www.dirtcheapmusic.org/artist/_u ... s%20Yo.mp3

Thanks!

(PS If the fightmasters feel compelled to change it on the site, I would be really grateful....but I understand if it's against the rules)[/url]

[MC Minimum]

Lil Moses and McMinimum
Again a little bit if you had a woman speaking the woman's parts. Who got bitch slapped for singing the girl part?

• That was me. The rapping was all me, for better or for worse.

[jeff robertson]

I probably won't get all the songs in this one post... I'm doing this at work.

Leaf62 - Really good mix of "hard" and more mellow groovier elements. The guitar is harsh and brutal, which I think is what the song calls for. As I can't even remotely play drums or even competently program MIDI ones, I don't feel qualified to say anything about them except that they rock. The overall play of drums, bass, and guitar reminds me of Custard-Pie-era Led Zeppelin as filtered through lots of 1990's bands.

Andy Balham - At first I think this sounds like New Wave or 70's punk, but then when it gets to the title line, and those background vocals come in and its really 60's. In a good way.

Barstools - At first it sounds like a cover of "Knockin on Heavens Door". Somebody may have already pointed that out.. there are too many posts in this thread for me to remember. The singing is good, but I keep wishing you sounded like more Axl Rose (yes, I'm from a time and place that causes me to forever associate Knockin on Heavens Door with GnR, not Dylan or Clapton or Warren Zevon.. one of my musical handicaps). At the end, I get the feeling I've been cheated.. I wanted to hear more about those two dirty girls.

Befores - [Good], but not the sort of thing I usually listen to. I'll just say "digg".

Beauhiss - harmonica.. my wife hates harmonica, so she wouldn't like this song. As a fellow sometime harp-blower, I don't mind it. The vocals are kinda mumbly, which I guess some people probably like. (Like I'm one to talk about hard-to-understand vocals anyway)

Carpetburn - I wish I knew how to write songs with that kind of joyful sadness that seems to come natural to everyone except Americans (and the Shins). It hurts to listen, but its a good pain.

Chieftakaha - What everybody else said.

Damien Verret - Love the music. Everybody keeps saying Nintendo, but to me its more like 70's synth rock meets early TMBG. I'm not a huge fan of the sound of the voice, but you don't like mine either so we're even.

Dan-O from Five-O - Don't hear as much blues or even blues-rock around these parts as I'd like.

Eclectic Spoons - no time to listen to this.. have to go to a meeting.

[nyjm]

the reviewing marathon continues! (not that i mind; this is a really good week for songfight!)

andy belham
+++ rocking out +++
--- sing-songy chorus ---
+++ like the "oohs", though +++
/// vox could use some tightening, rhythmically and tune-wise ///

dan-o from five-o
+++ great blues vibe +++
--- vox are bit too quiet and, even, dare i say it, listless ---
--- takes its time too much ---
/// i think this excellently-produced tune just needs some more verve; at 2:47 it finally hits that energy i would like to see earlier, if not right away ///

chief takahah
+++ neat idea, reminds me of ani difranco's kazoointoit +++
--- way too long; could have ended around 3:00 ---

the wages
+++ drums! +++
/// well, their presence; hammerhead is a good learning tool, but it always really scream "robodrums!", which in some songs you want, but not with GnG tunes, usually ///
--- guitar out of time ---
+++ vox effects +++
/// keep working on fleshing out your tunes; at the core, they show promise; start looking for VST amplifier emulators (like tuneamp) ///

carbetburn
--- vox out of tune/time ---
+++ cool indie rock vibe +++
+++ outro +++

uncle boltoph and the deshead kid - download
+++ rock! (especially the chorus) +++
+++ loping drum and guitar riff +++
/// man, this is the kind of music that always makes me want to spend my last dollar on a electric guitar and rock my life away +++

roymond
+++ "nothing else matters" guitar treatment +++
--- vox are a little out of tune here and there ---
+++ i really like the drum panning, hell the panning in general gives the song just the right amount of space to breath +++
+++ strings outro +++

ryan rickenbach
+++ nice acoustic guitar riff +++
--- why are the main vox panned to the right? it's kind of distracting ---
+++ lead guitar is really nice. we should here more of it, but not full bore in both ears all the time +++
+++ the falsetto is a gamble, but i think it pays off in a beatlesque kind of way +++

the landfills
/// meh. this is too consistently mediocre, no dynamics, neat hooks or anything to make me sit up and listen ///

x-tokyo-river-god - download (before it hit the site, even!)
+++ vox +++
+++ lyrics +++
+++ atmosphere +++
/// the solo guit is my doing, for better or for worse. i think it works nicely about 80% of the time, which isn't bad if you consider that i recorded it before the vox. if i had my druthers, i would have re-done it after the vox were recorded to parallel and accentuate them better; there's some really bad faux pas around 1:04 and 1:24 where i would have matched the vox more closely ///

the sober irishman - download
+++ gets me dancing +++
+++ refrain makes me want to sing along +++
--- 6:19 is a little long ---

the i.p.a.
+++ bell +++
--- vox are too quiet ---
+++ break-out at 1:20 +++
--- ... but then the vox are just yelling out of tune, and the self-referencing certainly isn't cool ---

leaf62 - download
+++ RAWK! +++
+++ dynamics +++
+++ bass +++

the befores - download
+++ sucker as i am for any female singer, you have a great voice +++
+++ atmospheric touches +++
+++ dynamics +++
/// damn, seriously, why haven't you guys been signed somewhere? i would pay for your music ///

flvxxvm florvm
+++ rocking out +++
--- those cymbals could come down in the mix ---
+++ harmonica +++
--- vox are a bit quiet; you've got a good belting voice, don't be shy! ---
+++ cool down-beat bridge +++

@electic spoons
--- repetitive ---
--- repetitive ---
--- repetitive ---

matte glossy and the 8 x 10s
--- i agree with jb, the whole right-side dominance is really annoying ---
+++ organ parts are a nice accent +++
--- falsetto backing vox are not, however ---

[and we're back...]

the barstools
+++ i like the bar atmosphere in the background +++
+++ vox harmonies +++
--- the anaphore ("this is a story...") gets old by the second verse ---

ross/beuhiss
/// it's a small thing, but it's important: edit your tags properly ///
--- off-key, listless vox ---
--- the whole thing rather drags ---
--- the guitar sounds really tinny ---
+++ nice harmonica part +++

damien/jonas
/// see above for ross/beuhiss about your tags ///
--- casiocore ---
--- take the mic out of your mouth ---
+++ lyrics are pretty good +++

jordan seavers
--- music that sounds like it was made on a toy annoys me ---
+++ catchy little tune, though +++
/// needs a hook ///
--- the piano sounds like it was recorded from the next room ---

kill me sarah
/// whoa, way quiet, but that's been discussed ///
--- underproduced; this is a good demo for a cool song ---
/// this could go in lots of directions; i can hear a very johnny cash or hank williams, sr. thing, or a bunch of children for the chorus ///
+++ "since you've been gone, i write songs like this" - great line +++

lil moses and mc minimum
+++ i like the fake start +++
+++ it takes a moment to understand what's going on, but a rap song about both halo and your girlfriend at the same time is pretty cool +++
--- there are a few points where the rhythm is awkward, like "my lady said she was aiming fine" ---

lonbobby feat. anita - download
+++ really cool vibe +++
+++ the chorus blossoms wonderfully +++
+++ vox are great, i don't care who they're by +++

martin chitty
/// mopey music; this isn't necessarily good or bad, but there's no passion to it, especially in the opening. this would make a good track 9 ///
+++ i like the slow build of parts +++
--- the patch/fill, high-pitched thing is no good, tho; in fact, it's grating ///
/// how about some call-response, musically or vocally to make the verses more interesting? ///

et voila! :-)

[Damien Verrett (Jonas)]

what's this about the tag?

[Ryan Rickenbach]

I'd like to apologize for my production. I recorded and produced it in one night. The levels sounded great at the time.

So I'm really looking forward to doing this one over.

It seems that when I produce on headphones it sounds great, but the jump to car or home sounds a lot worse. Is there an easy way to fix this?

[nyjm]

what's this about the tag?

it's a minor thing, but it's very helpful for reviewing. your entry is listed on the front page under the name "damien verrett"; alas, your song identifies itself to my computer as "jonas murdock et al." now, being capable of reason, i put two and two together.

however, when i'm giving your song my full attention, it's distracting (read: annoying) to go "jonas who? that name wasn't on the list..."

so, yeah, if you submit to the fight master as damien, please be sure the mp3 tags say "damien"; if you want to sumbit the song under the name jonas murdock, tell the fightmaster "jonas murdock" have the tags read the same.

thank you!

[Kill Me Sarah]

kill me sarah
/// whoa, way quiet, but that's been discussed ///
--- underproduced; this is a good demo for a cool song ---
/// this could go in lots of directions; i can hear a very johnny cash or hank williams, sr. thing, or a bunch of children for the chorus ///
+++ "since you've been gone, i write songs like this" - great line +++

Thanks for the kind words. I really do appreciate everyone's advice and criticisms (even if I do like the ones that like me the best ). And I promise, I'll crank the next one as high as it'll go without clipping. Cuz that's how I roll...er...something.

[Sober]

My song is not six minutes long. It's just over three minutes long. Your player is incorrect, and either your perception of the passage of time is faulty, or you didn't listen to the whole song. Either case is forgivable

[a bebop a rebop]

I'm pretty sure there's something wrong with the encoding, Sober. It reads as 6:19 in my Winamp as well but goes directly to the next song when the time indicator's about in the middle, like you say.

[nyjm]

My song is not six minutes long. It's just over three minutes long. Your player is incorrect, and either your perception of the passage of time is faulty, or you didn't listen to the whole song. Either case is forgivable

damn. my bad. with the over-abundance of songs this week, i've been playing them in the background at work and then just skimming as i write reviews. you tune is 4:48 when the music stops. that's a perfectly fine time. let me take the time to re-give you props for the cool riff and the vox harmonies.