Thank God for Reviews!

[mc_wino]

[FFSmasher]

EDDIE D!!!!!

[Bad Cactus]

These are in the order they were on the main page. I didn't realize there were other pages with everything alphabetical. Next time.

4 a.m. Cigarette - TERRIBLE recording (were you eating the microphone?). Music's pretty simple -- some finger picking on an electric (or maybe just single notes). “Best part of Memphis was being with you” bit was nice. Made a reference to Bourbon Street which, if I'm not mistaken, is actually in New Orleans.

Booty Chesterfield Trio - The echoed lyrics were cool but got annoying after a while. Nice balance. Nice drums. Good ideas but goes on and on. Doesn't really go anywhere or resolve.

Steve Durand - Egypt. Funny lyrics. Clever. Music fits the tone well, but doesn't really build much. Singing leaves something to be desired. It's hard for me to enjoy comedy in music unless it's really, really good comedy and really, really good music. This doesn't earn that distinction in my book, but it was a good effort.

Hans Gruber - Generic guitar sound. But nice groove. Nice lyrics (repetitive, though). Even keel throughout. No big surprises.

Gurdonark - I cannot handle your affected singing. And consider editing out the crap the microphone is picking up between verses. Not my style. Thank God it's over. This is too experimental for me.

Billys Little Trip - Like the opening guitars. Not sure what the song was about. Not a big fan of the vocals once the music gets loud. I do like the music. And a decent recording.

Hoblit Was Here At Midnight - Live version. I was confused by the lyrics. Good attempt to break up the chords. But not very satisfying. I liked the Studio Version MUCH better. I also like the harmonies. I'm a fan of oblique rhymes myself (“Go” and “man” don't rhyme even obliquely) but if you're going to do it, it seems like it would be better to push a lyric that we haven't heard before in order to justify it. I wish there was some more variation in the guitar. Even playing the same thing with different dynamics would have been better. As it is, it just trucks along.

DJ Big Dick - Hate this kind of music. Not inspired use of samples. At all.

Ken's Super Duper Band and Stuff - Live. Hard to hear the voice. Like the driving feel. Like the melody okay, but it doesn't really go anywhere.

Jeff 'Flapjack' Robertson - Live. Crisp guitar. Bluesy. Liked the idea. Sounded like there was some other instrumentation that never quite got off the ground. I think this could have been a little more dynamic. Liked the guitar solo a lot. Love the last line.

Urine Luck - Cute? Um, I kind of wish there was more of it. Seemed to have promise.

WreckdoM - Considering how much the music is affected, I wonder why the vocals are so clear. I don't really like the vocal swagger, personally. I do like the music itself. It sounds dirty -- music, lyrics, and all. But the song doesn't feel resolved. I would have liked to see it go somewhere.

The Weakest Suit - Really good idea for the lyrics. Like it overall. Wish there was more instrumentation.

'Iron Man' Bobby Graham - Had a hard time hearing the lyrics. Sounds like the tuning may be a little off on the guitar. The slide sounded kind of random in terms of when, or if, it was playing. Didn't build much. The vocals could have been a little more emotive. I got the sense it was supposed to be a blues-type song but it wasn't delivered like one.

Puadxe - Liked it overall. It's not catchy in a pop kind of way, but still strangely alluring. Not sure if it was live or not (or was it just you?). I wish the lead guitar was a little more specifically placed instead of going the whole time. Could use a little more structure musically. It starts well but then moves ahead full steam almost through to the end. Also sounds like you could use a compressor on the bass (there's some distortion going on that sounded like it was the bass's fault).

Flvxxvm Florvm - Just like the live version, I wish there was more done with the backup instrumentation. I miss the guitar solo. I think I prefer the live overall.

The Hedonistic Calculus - Like the opening. The vocal doesn't stand up to the rest of the music. And there seems to be a lot of lyrics packed into a melody that can't handle them. I REALLY like the music. So moody.

Starfinger - Pretty wildly out of key. I have no idea what the song's about. There's so much reverb on the vocal it totally blankets the annunciation. Wish those drums would have kicked in earlier. As a sound experiment, it's kind of interesting. But I really don't know how to evaluate it on any other level.

Embers of Autumn - It sounds pretty successfully emo. Vocals get lost quickly in the rest of the music, though. May want to consider hooking up with a singer or else write in a register that's compatible with your voice. I do like the music. But the melody falls out of key often enough that I'm not even sure what the melodic intention was at points. You have a good sense of drama and dynamics.

Blues Train Blues Industry - How far down your throat was the mic? Not my kind of music, personally. I don't know how to review it. Most songs I can tell what they're going for even if it's not up to snuff. I'm not really sure what this was supposed to sound like.

Snape Killed Dumbledore - Intrigued by the opening although I wish you hadn't used the “there's a place in France” melody. I've spent a total of 48 hours in Memphis so I'm no expert, but this doesn't remind me of the town in any way shape or form, especially with that damn “France” melody coming back. And with no lyrics, I don't know what else to latch on to. Sorry. Don't get it.

Melvin - Funky. Like the lyrics. Nice guitar work. Good overall. Wish there was a fuller band.

LSK - Are you trying to brainwash 3rd graders? I don't know how to evaluate this kind of music. Sorry.

Ross Durand - Nice to hear a full recording. Good music. Obviously a lot of work. Not my style, but definitely a good effort.

Chris Cusack - The background vocal was a nice surprise. Like the duet! Pop filter would have been appreciated. But I like the song overall. Love the chorus melody.

ADD Music - Not the most inspired lyrics. The chord progression is nice enough as is the melody. But, um, what?

Wages - Let me say up front that blues songs don't resonate with me. I like the delivery (except for the way that everyone seems to think that “Memphis” should be pronounced). Clearly you can play guitar. The vocals could use some work (especially the last line). Overall, a solid song.

The Anchors - Interesting guitar. Vocals are a little out of tune. Lead guitar gets lost in the rest of the music during the solo. Was this live? I like that there are stops and starts. Overall pretty good.

MC Eric B - I liked the doubled vocal. Wish there was a little more of that. I don't know how the music came about so don't take this the wrong way but it sounds like “band in a box” where you just plug in the musical style and how many measures you need and let it do the work. The lyrics were good enough and stayed on topic. Better than a lot of others.

Blumptown Singers - Like the vintage sound. Really like the lyrics. Nice solo. One problem: I can't tell if the pops and hiss are supposed to be there or not. If you're using a plug-in that's not Vinyl by iZotope, I suggest checking that one out.

MC Wino - Pretty guitars -- sorta cuts in, though. Probably the most professional-sounding I've heard so far. Strangely it has the feel of an 80s hairband tune especially when the guitars kick in. Holy crap, I like the idea but the guitar sound really doesn't work for me. Doesn't seem to fit with the melody which is awsome (along with the harmony). It sounds like the guitar playing is correct for the tune, just not the tone. Maybe something a little crunchier and less anthemic? Overall a good listen, though.

Paco del Stinko - Cash anyone? I'm impressed by the skill behind the song but this is so totally not my kind of music. You can definitely play guitar. The drums sound like they're from a polka. I'm not really sure what else to say. Um, the music was tight. But I never want to hear it again.

King Arthur - Good lord. Why so much country? Like Stinko, this is definitely a tight recording. Man, the last three for me have been on a different level in terms of musical ability and recording. Since I'm not versed in this style, it's hard for me to evaluate it on any other level. Good work, just not my type of song.

Lyricburglar - May want to consider laying off the vocal reverb. Seemed a little thick. It doesn't match the room tone you've got going on the piano so it's distracting. I like the vocal layering, though. Nice arrangement. On some level it's pretty sappy. Maybe that's just the reverb talking.

Big Matt Hyatt and His Rusty Red Ryders - Oh, I had such high hopes when the song started. And then there was singing. Or something approximating singing. Seems like a better idea would have been to save the riff and enter a later fight with an actual song. It might have been fun to record. But it's not fun to listen to.

Lord of Oats - The vocals are a little timid which I think takes the tuning off. You and LSK seem to have taken the same tack with the lyrics. I can't really get behind something like this. The music, though, is nice. I like the guitar solo. If you can figure out how to record your acoustic a little better (sounds really muddy to me -- maybe you can EQ it?) I think you'll have a nice mix. I really do like the melody and chord progression. Makes me sad that the lyrics aren't on the same level.

x-tokyo-river-god - Techno country? At least it's trying something new and interesting. Consider editing your tracks a bit so you can't hear the shuffling between verses. I liked this more than I thought I was going to. But it seems to not quite ever take off. Almost, but not quite. And, hey, if I was left wanting more, that can't be bad.

[MC Eric B]

4 a.m. Cigarette - The mic problems are very very distractiing and annoying. Otherwise the vocals are good and the song is not bad.

ADD Music - The music and vocals were good but as a whole the song did not thrill me. Good energy though.

The Anchors - I liked it. Fast moving and catchy.

Andre Was Here at Hoblit - I like it. Catchy. The vocals go well with the music.

Bad Cactus - I like the lyrics and atmoshpere of the song. Very good overall but maybe the ending could have been better.

Big Matt Hyatt and His Rusty Red Ryders - It sounds like some of the singers are trying to sing off key (or drunk sounding?) on pupose, which I find very annoying. This is fine for a minute or so, but after that it is way too long for this kind of thing.

Billy's Little Trip - I like the intro. I can't understand the vocals much in the part where the music gets really loud. And, since the vocals that led upto that were kind of meandering, it did not really hook me in. Overall a very good song, but I have no idea what it is about other than I heard the word "Memphis" and some depressing sounding words.

Blues Train Blues Industry - It sounds like your mouth is too close to the mic. You have a good blues type voice, but the whole thing sounds very very amateur.

Blumptown Singers - I love the music part. I generally like songs with funny lyrics but I think this might have better as a serious song since the singer and the song are so good. Still very very good though.

The Booty Chesterfield Trio - Intro was good but kind of long. Once the vocals started I liked it better. It has lots going on with the instruments which I like and the vocals go great with the music.

Chris Cusack - Catchy, and I like how the female vocalist came in to give the song some variety. Very good overall.

DJ Big Dsck - I liked the first half best since it was more like a song. After that seemed like just random clips of things.

Embers of Autumn - Vocals were faint as compared to the guitar. Other than that, I liked the song.

Flvxxvm Florvm - Didn't excite me, but was good. Maybe a little generic sounding.

Gurdonark - Not bad, but did not excite me. Nothing really catchy about it.

Hans Gruber: Ultimate Villain - I like how it rocks right from the start. It might be better if if the chorus had more a build up and was more catchy. I like the guitar parts a lot. The vocals fit the song well and seem mixed very well into the song.

The Hedonistic Calculus - I like the smart lyrics, but the song is too laid back for my taste. It is still a good song though.

Hoblit Was Here At Midnight - Good song.

'Iron Man' Bobby Graham - Vocals sound faint/weak. I don't hate it, but I find it boring and the vocals make it sound depressing.

Jeff 'Flapjack' Robertson - Song was alright, but not a like of variety musically in the song.

Ken's Super Duper Band n' Stuff - I like it. Pleasant sounding voice.

King Arthur - I like everything about it. One of my favorites this week.

Lord of Oats - The vocals sound faint but the music is great and the I like the lyrics (what I could hear of them). song is fast moving so keeps my attention the whole way though. The electric guitar solo was unexpected but a good addition to the song.

LSK - I did not like the intro. No, wait, the whole song is like that. And, the lyrics are really boring, making this whole train wreck 10 times worse. At least have something good to say if you have no real music. Cookie Monster ending was better than the rest of the song at least.

Lyricburglar - I am biased since he used my lyrics, but I like his version better than mine. I am very happy with his version and I found it catchy. I suck at doing choruses (since I can't sing) so he especially did a great job on that part.

MC Eric B - My song may not be the best, but in my opinion it does have a very "Memphis" sounding feel to it as compared to most of the other entries.

MC Wino - I like it a lot. A little slow moving until you get to the chrous though, and then the chorus seems a little off in terms of mixing levels/production. But, overall a great song.

Melvin - I liked it. Electric guitar part sounded very Elvis-like.

Paco del Stinko - I love it. For a one man band, this is very creative, including the intro and ending. One of my favorites this week.

Puadxe - I liked it, but not the most exciting song. Overall very good.

Ross Durand - Very professional sounding. One of my favoites this week.

Snape Killed Dumbledore - If you had just added some lyrics, I think I would have liked it. You need lyrics though.

Brainpipe - Kind of odd, but not too bad. Something different at least than the rest of the crowd.

Steve Durand - The Egyptian sounding vocals/music give it a good feel, and the lyrics are very high level. The tune is even catchy. Great overall.

Urine Luck - Much like the bus in your lyrics, your song fell into the void. I liked the part you did make a lot. It has lots of potential. Just needs to be finished.

Wages - Has a good Memphis feel and you voice sounds good. I like it.

The Weakest Suit - I like your voice and guitar playing. I think the studio version would be more exciting.

WreckdoM - I like it. Vocals are easy to hear and the music is creative. Maybe it could use more of a hook though,and a better ending.

x-tokyo-river-god - Sounds a little like Gwen Stefani singing. I like the lyrics and mood of the song. The singer is talented and has a good way of changing her vocals as the music changes. Not just the notes, but the loundess/softneess/tone (maybe vocal inlfection?). One of my favorites this week.

[The Weakest Suit]

The Weakest Suit - Really good idea for the lyrics. Like it overall. Wish there was more instrumentation.

The Weakest Suit - I like your voice and guitar playing. I think the studio version would be more exciting.

thanks for the reviews. the ideas i had for the studio version were much grander than what i submitted. i usually record "live" (meaning one take vocals and guitar) skeletons for my songs and then fill them in with the other instrumentation and better vocals.
this time, though, when i finished the skeleton, i saw the optional challenge, and since i did record it all in one take, i decided to just go with it in the spirit of songfight live. so i added an effect to the vocals and another to the guitar to thicken the sound and just submitted it.

bad cactus - i've had the chorus to your song in my head for the last few days. it's actually interfering with me coming up with anything for the next title. great job on a very memorable number.

mc eric b - you are right. i really think you captured the memphis "sound" in your tune. i always enjoy hearing your music, and it's great to have you back in the fights. the lyricburgler's version has a totally different feel, and i liked comparing and contrasting the two. since i've been here, you've been picked on twice, once by mc wanna b and now by lyricburgler. i applaud you for taking it all in fun and continuing to songfight.

[Caravan Ray]

...since i've been here, you've been picked on twice, once by mc wanna b and now by lyricburgler. i applaud you for taking it all in fun and continuing to songfight.

Obviously I don't know what is going on in the Lyricburglar's head - but I'm pretty sure he wasn't picking on anyone. His usual pattern of operation is to take Songfighters who write good lyrics and usually perform them in a particular style - and dropping them into a completely different genre. Hence his (or her) previous appearances have included reinterpreting Flvxxm Flovrm as eurodisco and Eclectic Spoons as 60's guitar pop. A sappy 80's power ballard in place of Eric B's lo-fi D-I-Y rap stylings probably seemed like an obvious choice for him this week. I'm pretty sure he means no offence - it is more just like a pre-emptive cover version.

[blue]

- and dropping them into a completely different genre.

like some sort of Schroedinger's cover band, since he hasn't heard the original.

[anti-m]

- and dropping them into a completely different genre.

like some sort of Schroedinger's cover band, since he hasn't heard the original.

But is the cat dead...or alive? Or somewhere in between?

(Oh, and yes... imitation...flattery...etc...)

[MC Eric B]

Speaking of Schrodinger's Cat, I wrote a song about that: http://nerdcoresongs.com/schrodingerscat.htm

Note: this is one of the early songs I recorded, using a bad mic and no production. So, it sounds even worse than my Songfight songs.

- Eric

[Bad Cactus]

bad cactus - i've had the chorus to your song in my head for the last few days. it's actually interfering with me coming up with anything for the next title. great job on a very memorable number.

Wow. Thanks. Sorry to get in your head, though. Can't wait to hear the new one, even if it uses my chorus.

I respect the live fight. I don't think I could do it, frankly. Or it would take most of the week just to practice enough to attempt it. I only asked for more instrumentation because I think the song deserved it. I understand there's time pressure.

Do SongFighters ever go back to their songs and brush them up after the competition? And if so, is there a place to find those versions?

[Billy's Little Trip]

...since i've been here, you've been picked on twice, once by mc wanna b and now by lyricburgler. i applaud you for taking it all in fun and continuing to songfight.

Obviously I don't know what is going on in the Lyricburglar's head - but I'm pretty sure he wasn't picking on anyone. His usual pattern of operation is to take Songfighters who write good lyrics and usually perform them in a particular style - and dropping them into a completely different genre. Hence his (or her) previous appearances have included reinterpreting Flvxxm Flovrm as eurodisco and Eclectic Spoons as 60's guitar pop. A sappy 80's power ballard in place of Eric B's lo-fi D-I-Y rap stylings probably seemed like an obvious choice for him this week. I'm pretty sure he means no offence - it is more just like a pre-emptive cover version.

I have to agree with The Weakest Suit. Anyone that reeks of wallaby jism and mashed peas is always going to be up to no good. Eric, I am sorry from the bottom of my heart that you have to endure this incredibly astonishing covers of your art that has been plagiaristicly burgled with no remorse.
I'd sue.

[MC Eric B]

I very much like having other people do versions of my songs, since they are almost always better than my versions. I take having my lyrics burgled as a compliment though, since I assume he/she would not want to do a song with bad lyrics, and I generally think my songs have good lyrics even if they lack musical talent.

- Eric

[Billy's Little Trip]

I assume he/she would not want to do a song with bad lyrics

Well Eric, I think you assumed correctly. In fact, I think he/she may have found his/her Bernie Taupin for this Queens musical stylings.

[The Weakest Suit]

i'm thinking i should have used the phrase "singled out" instead of "picked on". i don't think lyricburgler was making fun eric. i'm just saying that since i've been here, eric has got more of this type of attention than any other songfighter. and i agree, that eric's lyrics are one of his strong suits, and would lead to a variety of vastly different interpretations.
by the way, i really like the lyricburgler's interpretation of eric's lyrics. the melody is very, very nice. and i thought i recognized that voice.

[blue]

bad cactus - i've had the chorus to your song in my head for the last few days. it's actually interfering with me coming up with anything for the next title. great job on a very memorable number.

Wow. Thanks. Sorry to get in your head, though. Can't wait to hear the new one, even if it uses my chorus.

I respect the live fight. I don't think I could do it, frankly. Or it would take most of the week just to practice enough to attempt it. I only asked for more instrumentation because I think the song deserved it. I understand there's time pressure.

Do SongFighters ever go back to their songs and brush them up after the competition? And if so, is there a place to find those versions?

all the time. quite a few reworks have ended up on albums. there is a thread for your reworked or late-written or unsubmitted tunes here:

http://songfight.net/forums/viewtopic.php?p=76954#76954

[wages]

Wages - Has a good Memphis feel and you voice sounds good. I like it.

Thanks my man!

I was gunna tell you that I felt your "non-rap" song turned out pretty decent. I'd like to see you do more in that style of singing, and then maybe after you've got that down pretty well, try to combine the two.

[HeuristicsInc]

i'm just saying that since i've been here, eric has got more of this type of attention than any other songfighter.

I think a part of that is also that he posts his lyrics early, and Mr. Burglar has enough time to record a song to them
-bill

[Billy's Little Trip]

i'm just saying that since i've been here, eric has got more of this type of attention than any other songfighter.

I think a part of that is also that he posts his lyrics early, and Mr. Burglar has enough time to record a song to them
-bill

*taps head* Bill, you are always thinking, aren't you?

[Steve Durand]

Steve Durand: .... If you have a website or something, I want to listen to all your stuff.

Essentially everything that I have out on the web is in the Songfight! Archives.


Steve

[trevbot2]

So my question and this is what i really wanna work on how where my vocals on 4 am cig cause i really wanna make those better

[Bad Cactus]

So my question and this is what i really wanna work on how where my vocals on 4 am cig cause i really wanna make those better

See <a href="http://songfight.net/forums/viewtopic.p ... 3400">this thread</a>.

Or are you speaking lyrically?

[trevbot2]

So my question and this is what i really wanna work on how where my vocals on 4 am cig cause i really wanna make those better

See <a href="http://songfight.net/forums/viewtopic.p ... 3400">this thread</a>.

Or are you speaking lyrically?

like is my voice actually good or should i just stop now