the songs got left at the gate (outside paradise reviews)

[Heather. Redmon.]

The weird sound effects just don’t work and seem very random. Just when I thought it would end, it starts up again. Way too long.

They work because they don't work. And, those false endings are there for just that reason. And, you guys should be grateful we're not sending in ten minute ambient jams a-la Mogwai, 'cause we can start...

Well, what appeals to or works for you just doesn't do the same for me. That's fine, right? I offered my opinion, take it for what it's worth to you. If you do submit ambient jams, I can't guarantee that I'll like it, but I'm sure someone else will. Keep fightin'!

[Paco Del Stinko]

Late-ish reviews, but here we go.

Aaron Price - Scratchpad with scribbles. I think that I'd like your voice with fewer cracks - reedy.

Adnoisium - Sounds like a late-night 4-track recording. Some good lines in there though I can see your eyes move as you read the lines. Big bonus for using two of my favorite words, spew and bunk, in the same sentence! F-yeah!

Andrew Ayers + Guest - Some very good lines in there. The vocals hang on, saved by their freshness (how many takes?) This'd be good playing in the car as you sit in the back seat being driven, reluctantly perhaps, out of town.

Beefy - Great intro, I though that it lost a bit of it's captivation factor as it progressed. Great vocal work and everything is clear. Snazzy chorus, too.

B Ellison - Floating away on clouds. Nail the vocals, tighter and even breathier, softer, and I'm way gone. The breakdown is nice and delicate. Maybe too many cymbals (?) but a very nice song.

Blake Walker - Great layers, which you are showing yourself to be fantastic at putting together. I agree with certain statements regarding vocals being included, as much as I love a good instrumental. Still, I like the mix of triumph and bittersweet here. Nice sounds/patches/samples.

Chin Music - Voice is nice and clear, up front where I think it typically belongs. I like your voice, and Tom Petty's too for that matter. The rhythm track underneath feels like it's almost ahead of the other tracks, which are very nice. Love that chord around 1:30. Nice feel and good lyrics.

The Hell Yeahs - Great. This makes me want to dance, which is not a pretty picture. However, the energy of this can not be denied. I don't want to label this but it's in an area that I enjoy very much. The brief breakdown is suspense building. In ref. to someone here, I like this song better than last weeks, as good as that was.

Jeff Robertson - Some of this loses it's own grip, but the genuine flashes of white and lilac light that I experience in my brain are delightful. Guitar lead is tops! I really like this despite it's stumblings - this'd be fun to jam.

Jim Tyrrell - Nice progression and melody, this is like clear air to me - fresh and cool. I don't mean that as lamely as it translates. Nice bridge, too. I'd only suggest looking at the other cymbals that come with the drums! Very good.

Klownhole - Love the main progression. I dug this a lot more after the first listen, when it began to pummel my face in. I like what the keys do, they are just too out front on my 'system'. Boot-heel + Face = Klownhole.

Lack Of Sleep - Great energy, song, and playing capability. Sounds like a demo for a kick ass prog-pop song. Excellent guitar playing. Put this one together better and it would tear it up big time.

The Landstander - I like the voice if not the entire performance. Good serious tone, don't be afraid to question your god even more. His representative may be mis-leading you.

Paco - I'm fond of the slide tone. This was supposed to address both Muslim and Christian hypocrisy.

Radioface In Hell - I like this more than I should, but I don't know how many times I could listen to it. Love when 'the drums' come ripping in. It might be a little over the top.

Raised By Wolves - Very nice. Sorry the panning click thingy didn't work, it's an interesting idea. (shoe-phone interference?) I very much enjoy the call to arms and marching off to battle feel to this. Nice progression and mood also.

Ross Durand - I think that a good word here is seductive. That great bass line made me think that I was being led to a night of delight in a tent in the desert but was instead dropped off into the nowhere to hide horror of war. Nasty lead section - nice! Very good song, deadly serious.
P.S. - Mail off to KA for his music and war class.

SOTLCTFTF - Moody, but good. I like how the guitars percolate in the back. I wonder if it couldn't be fuller w/o distracting from the vocals. Some of the hooks could be fleshed out some more. Lots of good in here.

Tam Lin Music - Wine by the fire...she's in, man! Very nice. Smooth w/o being slick. Gentle and well paced but not wimpy, your voice is wonderful. Besides being played nicely, I bet that's a nice guitar that you're sportin' too!

Wages - I like the progression and the dynamics. Your story telling and voice continue to be excellent, even if the singing needs to reign in a note here and there. Again, you are correct about feel trumping production - if I tried to sing like you it'd be like Fozzy the bear having a seizure.

Wormsweater - Mix aside, this is a decent song. Good progression, melody and harmony ideas. Get that punch sound (as fun as it is) outta there! Some of your talents are showing this week, so don't be afraid to drop some of the silly stuff - you can always bring it back later.

Enjoyable fight. I can not vote for myself and will scontinue to be a bastard regarding where my vote goes. See ya!

[j$]

The weird sound effects just don’t work and seem very random. Just when I thought it would end, it starts up again. Way too long.

They work because they don't work.

iyo. nimo.

you guys should be grateful we're not sending in ten minute ambient jams a-la Mogwai, 'cause we can start...

If you could actually make 'em sound like Mogwai then i would lap 'em up. I strongly doubt you currently have the requisite chops.

I admire people who are prepared to defend their opinions but simply saying 'that's how it's meant to sound' is not a very sound defence. imo. niyo, obviously.

[jimtyrrell]

I'd only suggest looking at the other cymbals that come with the drums!

No doubt. If there's anything I wish I'd had time to redo on this one, it's those cymbals. And maybe a less tentative vocal take. But oh well. It's just good to be in the ring again. ...that said, I've got nothing this week.

The drums, by the way, are from a Roland V-Kit that I picked up used. I'm having fun learning to play it, and I hereby apologize for subjecting you all to my musical 'growing pains'. Hehe.

Anyway, thanks for the review!

[Paco Del Stinko]

jim tyrrell - That's great about the kit, what a good thing to have for so many reasons. I thought that they fit in well and weren't all stiff and machine like, just very well programmed or something. They, China-type included, sound good too.

[Adnoisium]

Some good lines in there though I can see your eyes move as you read the lines.

Really? I never wrote them down or read them. That tint may be from recollecting, but that's unlikley too as I recorded each line seperatley and took the time to think about what I was going to sing before each one.
It could be the simultaneous tones of indifference and preachiness I tried to inflect that you're hearing.

[Heather. Redmon.]

I may be totally out of line in saying this (and I'm sure you're going to comment on it), but are we to ever expect reviews from Adnoisium or Wormsweater? Did I miss ‘em? I'm not trying to be a bitch, it's just, you two seem to make comments on other's reviews of your songs, yet haven't offered up reviews of the rest of the songs in the fight. Just an observation...

Fire away!

[Erwin Cloibhofer]

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[Paco Del Stinko]

It could be the simultaneous tones of indifference and preachiness I tried to inflect that you're hearing.

I think that this is more like what I meant. That's an interesting approach coming up with each line, one at a time. I can see doing that for the melody but doing the lyrics that way never entered my mind. Very interesting.

[Paco Del Stinko]

Just an observation...

That's an interesting one. Hmmm...very interesting. (gonna be my new tag-line ala Arte Johnson)

J$ da-di-da

This too oughta be interesting!

[Erwin Cloibhofer]

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[jb]

simply saying 'that's how it's meant to sound' is not a very sound defence.

I disagree. If someone says such a thing, it's then basically a matter of taste. Yours vs. theirs.

If Pearl Jam releases something that sounds like shit, you assume that's how they wanted it to sound, right? I think basically everyone deserves the benefit of that doubt. One can make inferences about their skill level, and try to give feedback accordingly, but if they come out and say "it sounds how I wanted it to sound" then you just have to take them at their word and reply "ah, well, I don't care for it sorry."

[jb]

Ingrate? Thanks, benji.

you deleted yours, so i deleted mine.

JB

[Erwin Cloibhofer]

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[hillbilly]

Really enjoyed a lot of the songs this week. Voted for Beefy but seem to replay Andrew Ayers the most. loved those lyrics. Thought Wages had a killer voice this week, the guitar was all most too rude. Tam Lin is allways very tasty. Full reviews later

[blakewalker]

i'd like to point out that i started to agree with reviewers who said my songs were too sequenced and lifeless sounding, so i played outside paradise entirely by hand. does it show?

get ready for an explosion of fake, sequenced instruments this week.

[Erwin Cloibhofer]

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[blakewalker]

naw dogg i wasn't calling you out. i meant in general. and yeah, it was cheesy.

thanx for the reviews, urrbody.

[Heather. Redmon.]

Reviews

Yay! Thanks for doing 'em! I missed all the crap that must have gone down with all the mention of edits, etc. But I'm glad to see that reviews came of it!

[Adnoisium]

I may be totally out of line in saying this (and I'm sure you're going to comment on it), but are we to ever expect reviews from Adnoisium or Wormsweater? Did I miss ‘em? I'm not trying to be a bitch, it's just, you two seem to make comments on other's reviews of your songs, yet haven't offered up reviews of the rest of the songs in the fight. Just an observation...

Fire away!

My Muma said if'n you can't say sumthin' nice... No I'm kidding. I had planned on having a win under my belt before reviewing because it seemed like that would give credence to my opinion.
As for comments that I make on the reviews of others they're simply to clear up any missunderstandings, or to answer any questions possed in the review.
I suppose if you're really want to know my opinion...

Aaron Price - I didn't like the hissing/humming/noise and delayed start. The voice has a quality that Glenn Branca has. That being it makes me want to clear my own throat because it sounds like you need to. As for the quality of the voice I love it. I'm a big proponent of faultering voices, maybee because mine is like that. And it couldn't hurt that great musicians like Biz Markie,Daniel Johnston, and Calvin Johnson (of Beat Happening) do too. Could be mixed with better levels. I dig the lyrics themselves.

Andrew Ayers and Guest - The laughter at the beging and end distract from the true nature of the song. Some of the lyric choices I didn't like mainly The "product placements" (I.E. Cheeze-Its and Harley). They took me out of the song for some reason. Other than those I enjoy the lyrics. Towards the end it sounds to me that you're holding back to much on the singing. Like it's on the cusp of being emotional, which makes it more frustrating than anything else. The guitar is well played, and I assume it's your guest that played the shaker.

Beefy - The Production of the instruments is mayhaps a little to clean for my tastes, also should be mixed a bit quieter as It stands now it distracts me a bit. There are a some anoying high pitched pops. You certainly have enough ego to be a rapper (good or bad your choice). The lyrics are well done, and seem to mirror a style of "Geeky" rapper like MC Chris of all people.

B Ellison - The shaker at a few points is a little high pitched. The vocals could be mixed a bit louder. The lyrics have a tone of wonderment and fantasy. Though the fact that it would seem to be about Adam and Eve is a bit too religious for my tastes. Over all it's well produced sans previous examples.

Blake Walker - Reminds me a lot of 80's movies, namley Labyrinth. If that's what you were going for then you hit the nail on the head. Beyond that it's nice to see an instrumental track submitted, and as an instrumental it does great.

Chin Music - The voice sounds like Tom Petty with a bit of Bob Dylan thrown in and it's not doing anything for me. The part that goes:

I took your Hand, but you took it back
So I fixed it with my glittering eye

reminds me of Neil Young's 'Transformer Man' I think it's the chords the part that goes:

So many things still left to do
But we haven't made it yet

That drove me crazy trying to figure out what song that part reminded me of, but I digress. The mixing could have been a bit better. Beyond those things it's a good song all together.

Hell Yeahs - To say it sounds like The Sonics would be sacralige and quite a stretch. It sounds more like The Donnas or a band of that nature. I probably would have been compelled to squeek a bit on the pronuciation of Chico, but that's just me. I'm not a fan of slant rhymes so I'm not digging rhymes like Dealo, Yearo, Steero. Good song overall.

Jeff Robertson - Hearing it now my brain picks out millions of little problems with the drumming, not to mention it falls out of synch for the last line. But hey you're your own worst critic. I dig the guitar, but as it has been said the vocals are a bit quiet. A good song all in all (cept that God Damned drummer).

Jim Tyrrell - There are some highs, the cymbals I beleive, that are a bit painfully high. Though I think this has been covered. The quality of the drumming itself is good. The vocals could be a bit louder. Guitar is good to. For some reason the song reminds me of one you'd hear on a TV show where "the gang" starts up a band, like on Saved By The Bell, or 90210. It's overall a good song.

Klownhole - Oddly enough it's not my kind of thing. It's to metal for my tastes, and (clearly) not the kind of metal I like (I.E. Black Sabbath). I'm having a love/hate relationship with the vocals. And if you're going for modern metal or Metalica you've got it down pat. It fits that cattegory to a T.

Lack of Sleep - The delivery sounds very emoish or something like Incubus. Unfortunatley I'm not a big fan of this genre either. The layering
of instruments or playing is a bit sloppy and chaotic at points. If you were going for the aforementioned style then you succeeded. It's good for the genre, which might not mean a lot to me, but If you like the genre you'll probably like this song.

The Landstander - The voice reminds me of Kathleen Wilhoite (Voice of Pepper Ann). The noise is a bit distracting. It gets a little to religious sounding for my tastes at some points. But overall it's still a good song.

Paco del Stink - The drums sound a little flat (not tunning wise but sound structure wise). The voice is pretty durn sexy durring the first verse. I would have liked to hear it like that the whole song though, or maybee just verses. A good song overall with a fairly catchy melody.

Radioface in the 9th Circle ov Hell - The buzz at the begining reminds me a bit of some of my earliest surviving work. The name does seem to fit with how the song ends up sounding, very screamo. Which I personaly don't dig. I can't tell if the percussion continues throughout the song because it ceases being audible. It would have helped the song for there to be audible percussion through the whole song, because this foreboding of a guitar can't stand on it's own. Once again if you like this kind of thing you will probably enjoy this.

Raised By Wolves - I can't put my finger on what the music in the begining reminds me of. Maybee Fleetwood Mac w/ Steevie Nicks or Men at Work. When the vocals kick in this is no longer the case however. It starts sounding more like something one might hear on The Current/NPR.
Like the the Decemberists mayhaps. It's a good song, but not quite my tastes.

Ross Durand - I'm not a fan of the bass overloading, and the jury is still out on the vocals. The verse reminds me a bit of Jihad Jerry, but not the chorus. Overall I'm not feeling the funk elements of the Bass. Once again not liking the religious references. It's still a well done song however.

Somewhere Off the Left Coast- TFTF - Very indie sounding. I could see myself enjoying the song if I was in the mood for Indie. Which does happen sometimes. The vocals remind me a bit of The Unicorns, oddly not as much The Islands. A good song overall.

Tam Lin Music - For some reason this song reminds me of the Christina Aguilera song "Beautiful". The organ strays away from that feeling (not nessicarily a bad thing), but everything else keeps that tone.
The strings sound a bit midi-ish, but no one could be expected to have a live string section. A good, well produced song overall.

Wages - I'm on the fence as far as the lyrics are concerned. The Guitar is pretty good, but I don't know if it really stands on it's own well. Some percussioned would have been nice. A good song overall.

Wormsweater - The mixing is a bit off at points. I like the word paradisical. I'm digging the slower drums they have a bit of a reggae feel to them, but I didn't like the sped up drums. The guitar could be louder, but is well played. The harmonica is a bit too high pitched. And the punches are a pretty weird. A the song is a bit too long, it could have ended earlier without hurting the song. A good song all in all.

And there you have it folks yet another reason I haven't reviewed, I can't find a good compromise between really long and really short reviews. I Tried to be constructive in my criticisms (comments really), something pretty much no one else seems to do. That's right I just reviewed the reviews. Oh and the winner is...

Adnoisium. I'm sure I built suspence as well as "Yo Momma" (The show not the insult), but if I didn't vote for me who would. Also kudos to anyone who took the time to read this whole post, because as long as it took you to read it it probably took me twice as long to write it.

[raisedbywolves]

Thanks for the reviews everyone. I probably won't have a chance to do any for this song, but I'll start reviewing next week. I like the Hell Yeahs particularly this week, partially because I am a fan of slant rhymes.

[Pierre Menand]

Klownhole - Oddly enough it's not my kind of thing. It's to metal for my tastes, and (clearly) not the kind of metal I like (I.E. Black Sabbath). I'm having a love/hate relationship with the vocals. And if you're going for modern metal or Metalica you've got it down pat. It fits that cattegory to a T.

Unfortunately we were trying to push the Muse button this time, but our fingers, flayed out from too many years of recapping tires, pushed down the suck button as well. Apologies again.