I can't see through the windscreen (Covered In Bugs reviews)

Discuss upcoming, current, and previous song fights.
Cärpetbürn
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I can't see through the windscreen (Covered In Bugs reviews)

Post by Cärpetbürn »

Pre-emptive explanation/apology:
I was in two minds about posting this as drawing anyone's attention to the fact might not be the best idea, but...
I got my old Tanglewood working for the first time in about 4 years last week and so recording this weeks song with it seemed like the right thing to do. Trouble is I'd forgotten how noisy it was so it left little pops all over the recordings whenever I inadvertently touched any of the screws in the pick-ups. Just so yez'all know it's not computer or recording issues. it's my crappy old guitar, I hope it doesn't spoil the mind-blowing experience for anyone :D
Sounds nice and jangly at least
Mogosagatai
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Post by Mogosagatai »

No worries mate, that pre-apology was probably unnecessary. We'll be like, "what, <i>these</i> pops? cuz I am <i>lovin'</i> these pops" an' shit.
j$
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Post by j$ »

Speak for yourself.

So my song this week (not in this fight) has one very audible pop in it. Which is less palatable, lots of small clicks or one giant cockroach hopping onto your track?

I guess we will find out, over the course of the reviews ....
TheNedPlimptonOrchestra
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Post by TheNedPlimptonOrchestra »

you shouldn't appologize for anything you do artistically.

i try to never preface anything i play for people. just let 'em listen and react, thats the best way to get good, helpful feedback. if you're already explaining yourself before they even hear the tune, then you're less likely to get an honest, unbiased reaction.
Stubby Phillips
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Post by Stubby Phillips »

j$ -- my mind is made up. I ain't voting for no song with a large oval flat-bodied insect on it!
Enter a song? Review songs!
j$
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Post by j$ »

Damn! *puts giant cockroach back into production box for one more week* :)
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Future Boy
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Post by Future Boy »

roaches I am down with. cocks, not so much.
New Album: Comes Apart | Missed Connections | With Johnny Cashpoint: A Maze of Death | modular synths on Youtube
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Crates
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Post by Crates »

REVIEWS: Covered in Bugs

With fourteen submissions this week, the battle for the undisputed rights to the title "Covered in Bugs" is certain to be nothing short of epic.

As usual, we have a couple musical giants with music that moves, and in tandem, the usual handful of midgets greasing themselves up before they're tossed. Yet the majority of the entries lie somewhere nebulously in the median between talented and... not.

So before we begin, grab some popcorn, and if you submitted something that sucks bleeding goat rectum, a box of kleenex-- because remember, kids, Crates is not your friend.



Scoring System
Innovation, instrumentals, and vocals each count for up to ten points.

Code: Select all

 1-4 : F
 5-6 : D-
 7-8 : D
 9-10: D+
11-12: C-
13-14: C
15-17: C+
18-20: B-
20-22: B
23-24: B+
25-26: A-
27-28: A
29-30: A+


Carpetburn

Joining the SongFight scene in late January of this year, Carpetburn has presented four songs in as many months. With their fifth submission, they're hoping to break an 0-4 streak by wowing the crowd.

The song opens up with an ethereal combination of guitar and string synth, followed by a haunting single vocalist. Yet somewhere around 0:42 into the song, the listener is taken from eerily haunting to full out Linda Blair head-spinning-around-while-projectile-vomiting possessed.

For fifteen seconds, we're treated to a chorus that is completely indecipherable... the only recognizable attribute being that it's clearly not English. It's got hints of being perhaps an oriental dialect... but really, who knows. Still, it's not the language that makes these fifteen seconds so unbearable: it's the wailing, nut-crushing nature in which it's sung.

And as quickly as a little possessed child snaps back to reality and looks up at you with innocent eyes, the storm passes, and we return to what is really quite a decent song separately. For thirty blissful seconds. Then it's back to Amityville.

As if the track couldn't be any more schizophrenic than it already was, at 1:50 Carpetburn decides to submit a second, entirely different song, appended to the first. However, this second part is incommunicably better than the first. My advice: listen to what you're submitting, bro. You obviously have a good ear for music, because you play it quite well. This would have been a phenomenal song (albeit short) if you had simply omitted the first two minutes or so entirely.

With the continuous quick transitions found in the first half of the song from soothing, enjoyable music to the ear-jarring sounds of shrieking gibberish, Carpetburn's entry is reminiscent of a good blowjob intermittently ruined by the girl's teeth shredding the skin off your dick. Thank you, Carpet... now my penis is bleeding. At least you finished me off nicely.

SCORE

Innovation: 4 / 10
Well, you're creative, I'll give you that. But it's not a good kind of creative. It's more like, hey, I just invented anthrax, creative. And the parts of the track that aren't deadly to infants and the elderly are more or less Nickelback, rehashed.

Instrumentals: 8 / 10
Really nothing wrong with this part of the track, however, it didn't exactly cause the dead to walk the earth and all women in a five mile radius to orgasm, either. Still, some real talent here.

Vocals: 0 / 10
Cut the first two minutes off the track, and you'd have a much higher vocal score. Yet those first two choruses are worth, collectively, negative seventy million points. Graciously, I grade on a scale of zero to ten... otherwise your total score would be negative sixty nine million, nine hundred ninety nine thousand, nine hundred and eighty eight out of a total possible score of thirty.

TOTAL = 12 / 30 = C-



Cuddle Buddies

Though this girl has never submitted any songs under this name before, she certainly sounds familiar. As in, the same acoustic-guitar-and-teenage-vocals mess that's submitted by two or three different people every week. At least, they claim to be different people. I'm not so certain myself.

There is no part of this song that merits dissection... it's as generic and stale as the cereal you find in plastic bags on the shelf three inches off the floor at the grocery store.

SCORE

Innovation: 1 / 10
A pity point towards innovation under the assumption that you at least wrote your own lyrics for this song. You... did write your own lyrics, didn't you?

Instrumentals: 3 / 10
You've obviously practiced guitar for a little while... I mean, you do know a good four different chords or so that I was able to pick out. But despite the fact that you're clearly not over-exerting yourself with searing electric riffs or passionate, rapid spanish fingering a la Desperado, you still manage to screw up the chord changes. Yet most artists submit to SongFight for their own amusement, and not because they expect anyone to tell them they're any good. So for what it's worth, I hope you're having fun.

Vocals: 4 / 10
Hey, it's a cause for celebration... You're not completely tone deaf! But to be perfectly honest, unless you have a lot of time on your hands and possess the willpower found among the professional pull-a-tractor-through-mud-with-my-teeth circuit, a career in music is probably not for you. But hey, I could be wrong... after all, they put Fallout Boy on the radio.

TOTAL = 8 / 30 = D



The Cutie Pies

Celebrating the one year anniversary of their first submission (and only win), The Cutie Pies come in with a bubbly, harmonic and fun tune. I always wondered what happened to Aqua... apparently they're bored with touring and are trying their hand at the amateur level.

This song is really one of those guilty pleasures... if you enjoy it, you certainly don't want other people to know that you're enjoying it. Like mopeds, fat chicks, and anal beads. Nevertheless, it's a catchy track, and if you listen to it more than once you might find it stuck in your head for days on end, which would probably end up with a power drill, a new facial orifice, and a big mess.

SCORE

Innovation: 8 / 10
While not entirely unique, this track is still pretty damn fresh. A breath of fresh air from the same stuff we usually get around here.

Instrumentals: 7 / 10
When I was like ten years old, I had a Nintendo game called the Quadglacier or some shit like that. It came with four crappy, crappy games all on one convenient cartidge. Two of those minigames I don't even remember, but two I still do: "Kangaroo Kid", and "The Adventures of a Hard Boiled Egg that Wears a Snorkel, Wields a Shovel, has Access to Controlled-Demolition Explosives, and Has Only One Goddamn Life Before You Start Over at the Fucking Beginning for the Forty Eighth Time". I'm pretty sure that was the name. Anyways, the point is, both of them had distinctively confounding plots and equally bizarre background tracks, and I'm pretty sure The Cutie Pies sampled one or the other for this song. The only reason you guys didn't get more points here is because when listening, at points it actually feels like I am covered in bugs. I don't know how you guys pulled that off, but it's fuckin with my head...

Vocals: 5 / 10
The chorus is a bit repetitive, and while on-key, the vocals aren't especially impressive... but that's not what drags this score down for The Cutie Pies. The score in this section has been depreciated because if you listen closely to the lyrics of the song, you'll slowly realize that they are the Creepiest. Lyrics. Ever. Seriously, here's just the chorus: "It's like I'm covered in bugs when I kiss you. I start itchin' all over when I miss you. Holdin' hands gets off those bug legs churnin', I call you on the phone because I miss the squirmin'."

Ugh. My stomach is churnin'.

TOTAL = 20 / 30 = B



Damien Verrett

This song is shaping up to be Damien's ninth completely uneventful fight. First off, it's normalized to 20% of the volume of all the other tracks... meaning that it's extremely hard to hear. Tragically, that's really the only good thing about it... until you get to about two minutes into it, that is. I have no idea why artists prefer to put the best parts of a song after the worst of it: SongFight is about competing for votes, and that's really hard to do when the listener has moved onto the next track in disgust halfway through.

Just the same, it's important to note that this song does have one redeeming quality, if you're the type who has an affinity for complete batshit craziness. Because at 1:51 in the track, Damien's medication runs out, and he spends the remaining forty four seconds rocking back and forth, speaking backwards in Latin and from what I gather by listening, running a metal comb back and forth across his teeth.

SCORE

Innovation: 8 / 10
The majority of the song isn't anything to write home and tell Mom about... but you get mega ultra super fun time happy bonus points in creativity for losing your goddamn mind. Which is great, because you're going to need them for the tea party with Snuggles the Unicycle Bear and Cinderella at your new home in Arkham Asylum.

Instrumentals: 5 / 10
You've got some guitar skill, from what I'm hearing on the track, and you get a bump up for having some kind of shaker effects going on in the background. Still, even in the parts of the song where you seem remotely sane, I get a chill up my spine from the way you're going to town on those guitar strings like they're an unattended eight year old girl at the park.

Vocals: 3 /10
It's not that you're a bad singer... it's just that the vocals are way too soft. Also you sound like you're about to kick back in the ol' living room, grab a frosty beer, turn on the ball game, and, well... rape children. Something about the way you hang onto the letter S as if you're it's sole representative on Sesame Street. Which, on an entirely unrelated note, would probably be a good line of work for you-- all those people are serial rapists too.

TOTAL = 16 / 30 = C+



Level Nivelo

Level Nivelo is, according to his artist biography (which is inconsiderately prefaced with a picture of him naked and clutching his testes as if they're about to hose him down at the state pen), best described as "a pioneer in the genre of baroque homo-pop."

While I'd hardly call him any kind of pioneer, I can certainly agree that his music is indeed Gay with a capital G. Richard-Simmons-getting-gang-banged-by-Dame-Edna-Ricky-Martin-and-the-entire-cast-of-Queer-Eye-for-the-Straight-Guy-all-at-once-Gay.

To make matter's worse, Nivelo is yet another artist whose speakers were turned up to Deafen the Neighbors before he recorded... because at any other setting, the track is practically inaudible.

We put up with your shit twenty five times before. Now please, for the sake of common decency, give it a rest.

SCORE

Innovation: 0 / 10
Gay.

Instrumentals: 0 / 10
Gayer.

Vocals: 0 / 10
Gayest.

TOTAL = 0 / 30 = FAG



MMMC

Crates doesn't review his own stuff. Enjoy the song.



The Older Brothers

Quite new to the scene, this is the third song for The Older Brothers, each having been submitted in the last month. Their upbeat and inspired song is the kind of thing you'd listen to on your front porch, Corona with lime in hand, on a hot summer day.

It's biggest downfall, though, is that it's 6 minutes and 16 seconds long-- not because they had so much to say, but rather because they just thought it sounded so good that you'd want to hear twice as much of it. Sorry, boys... you're not Pink Floyd, and you can't get away with that shit. Well, maybe at SongFight you can, but on a CD, it's just taking up twice the time it should, and keeping you from having one extra track on the album.

SCORE

Innovation: 7 / 10
It's nothing we haven't heard before, but at the same time... it isn't.

Instrumentals: 9 / 10
These guys are really good on a guitar. I especially like the ending, where they wail on an electric axe so hard I'm pretty sure the guy playing it must be a ninja.

Vocals: 5 / 10
This area really needs a spit shine. You're not terrible, and yet it's clear when listening to the song that your instrumental talent is the main thing carrying it. Practice makes perfect. Well, not really, practice just makes you slightly better, and even lessons won't make you perfect... but if you took 'em, your music would be damn close to it.

TOTAL = 21 / 30 = B



Paco Del Stinko

Out of the blue comes Paco, with his first SongFight submission ever. And without exaggerating, this is quite possibly the best-produced first submission in the history. Not counting MMMC's first submission, of course.

If Weird Al Yankovic, Eddie Vanhalen and Johnny Cash somehow managed to father a kid while they were all taking acid, Paco would be the result.

SCORE

Innovation: 10 / 10
Not only have I never heard anything like this on SongFight before... I haven't heard anything quite like it anywhere, ever.

Instrumentals: 10 / 10
The skill shown on this track is, quite simply, outstanding.

Vocals: 8 / 10
You've got a creepy kind of voice, but it works with the nature of your production. Almost as if the creepiness is part of your "niche".

TOTAL = 28 / 30 = A



Phunt Your Friends

Phunt comes in with their latest instrumentals-only track, after 27 crippling defeats... yet this one is distinct in that it's short and sweet. Thanks for that much.

While appropriate to, perhaps, the background of a video game, this little number isn't a song so much as a soundbyte, in and of itself. And even though it only lasts for one minute, six seconds, its repetitiveness makes it seem like an eternity. Take an electric fan and some wind chimes- nothing else- into a recording booth, and there will more excitement on the track than this one had.

SCORE

Innovation: 0 / 10
Yawn.

Instrumentals: 5 / 10
Aside from the repetitiveness, it really is decent instrumentally. Sadly, that's all there is to the "song"... a short clip of fairly decent instrumentals.

Vocals: 0 / 10
What vocals?

TOTAL = 5 / 30 = D-



Popular Electronics

Last week saw the debut of Popular Electronics, a Staind-esque rock band with just a dash of Marilyn Manson for good measure. Their rendition of Covered in Bugs is marked by solid production and fantastic instrumentals, but falls sorely short in the vocals section.

SCORE

Innovation: 7 / 10
Your sound isn't new, but you did manage to shine it up a bit and give it your own twist.

Instrumentals: 10 / 10
Really, really good stuff here. Absolutely no criticism for this section.

Vocals: 5 / 10
Unlike most artists who do poorly vocally, Popular doesn't seem to be missing the mark for lack of talent... rather, it seems simply reflective of a lack of experience. Some time spent polishing the vocals, or simply bringing in another lead singer, would pull this group across the divide: from amateur garage band to heartthrob sell-out MTV icons.

TOTAL = 22 / 30 = B



Prophets of the Robot Wars

These "Prophets" have never competed before, and if there is a God, never will again. For all those people who have worked to raise the bar at SongFight, there will always be a few who are hell bent on taking the bar, wiping their ass with it and subsequently piledriving it into the pavement.

SCORE

Innovation: 0 / 10
What you did isn't creative or new. What you did is suck, HARD. And guess what? There have been people who sucked hard since the beginning of time.

Instrumentals: 0 / 10
Seriously, it's like you shoved a pencil up your bunghole, spun it around until it was covered in chunks of shit and corn, and then stabbed me in the ears with it.

Vocals: 0 / 10
Let me say this plainly:

You have no future in music.

No human being will ever listen to your bastard creation and think, "Wow, this is pleasant."

No amount of practice can make you better. Sucking sweaty monkey nuts runs thick through your blood. Maybe you could take up ballet, or get a fast-paced lucrative career in the fast food industry. Otherwise you will spend the rest of your life eating chips and playing video games in your mother's basement.

TOTAL = 0 / 30 = F



Ratt Poizon

Ratt Poizon is another new fighter on the scene, and while very different in their own right, these boys have a long way to go before being palatable to any large-scale audience.

Their first song has all kinds of random oddities tossed in... what kind of effect they're trying to achieve, though, I can only guess. Repetitiveness and bugged-out little nuances like a young boy crying in the background are everpresent.

However, whatever iniquities this band might have, the instrumentals are pretty solid, and the ending to their track is fairly hardcore. Not really "hardcore" enough that you could actually call it that without disrespecting the truly hardcore bands... but these guys are well on their way.

SCORE

Innovation: 7 / 10
For all the effects and glitter you tossed on this song, underneath, it's still generic metal. Nevertheless, your band shows promise.

Instrumentals: 9 / 10
Easily the strongest factor in this song is the Instrumentals.

Vocals: 6 / 10
In the words of Strong Bad, these were... "lacking... at best." Yet for what it's worth, your song doesn't fail because of the vocals- they're not terrible, and it's still worth listening to.

TOTAL = 22 / 30 = B



WreckdoM

Not one to be discouraged, WreckdoM has won a single fight out of the seventy two they submitted music for in the last eighteen months. In their seventy-third fight, they're doing a good job of not breaking their streak: not a single victory in over a year.

SCORE

Innovation: 0 / 10
To put it simply, you're not clever, funny or talented, and the only people you're amusing is yourselves.

Instrumentals: 4 / 10
The instrumentals to this submission are okay, but totally masked by the violently annoying vocals.

Vocals: 0 / 10
You guys suck.

TOTAL = 4 / 30 = F



Your Money Wasted

This is YMW's third song fight since they came onto the scene in March of this year. Despite the obvious vocal inexperience of the singer and the brevity of the track, though, the excellent instrumental skills and production pulls this song right out of the mud.

SCORE

Innovation: 7 / 10
I like the sound. You've definitely found a style and made it your own.

Instrumentals: 8 / 10
The sounds you're using mesh quite well.

Vocals: 3 / 10
Of all the areas of your music, this one needs the most work... not just in the quality of the singing, but also in the length of the song. It's really not that hard to write lyrics-- don't submit a one minute snippet if you're skilled enough to put together a whole song.

TOTAL = 18 / 30 = B-





Well, that should just about wrap up this fight's reviews. For those of you who are kicking ass, keep on kicking ass, and for those of you who are sucking ass, leave and don't ever come back.

Peace out, girl scout.
-- Crates
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Geoff WreckdoM
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Post by Geoff WreckdoM »

Did something different with my reviews this time, instead of listening repeatedly and trying to come up with pros and cons for each song, you got my impressions from my first listen as I was listening. I did not edit or even proofread. and I've been drinking.


Carpetburn- Just when I thought you’d be buried in a lack of energy the song busts out. Love the crisp guitar tone, cuts right through and straight at me! Ha! Like the breakdown too. I tell you, the start had me rolling my eyes but you sold me. Wow, the changes are really compelling and cool. You kicked some serious ass this week sir.

Cuddle Buddies- If you have recording limitations you should look for ways to be creative and use it to your advantage. This stops exactly where it started and went nowhere in between. Well, I’ve never been a fan of just vocal and acoustic guitar entries anyway.

Cutie Pies- The Cutie Pies and Cuddle Buddies in the same fight? What lovey, happy….anyway, your mix is out of control. Turn the vox down. Turn it all down actually. Happy technobop I have no problem with it. It is cute and happy, and a hell of a hook. Good job. Now work on mixing.

Damien Verrett- Instantly like the bizarre dreaminess of the vocals and the overall vibe, but the sparse instrumentation is wearing thin. Cool whistling solo and I dig the lyrics, ultimately unmemorable.

Level Nivelo- I’m so happy you’re back! Yay Level! This is the funness I missed. Very cute and funny, simple and an amusing take on the title. I like this a great deal more than your last entry, this is why I dig your stuff (and missed you, welcome back!)

The Older Brothers- Well, the vibe is not what I go for. It’s kinda wishy washy, but the chorus is catchy. You know man, your singing through your nose, and it drains the performance of emotion and energy that I think you meant to have in there. So work on your volume and suing from your gut. Amusing girl voices are too little too late.

Paco Del Stinko- I like the layers, the varying guitar tones. The vocals are also cool, and they get better and better as the song goes on. First I’m thinking your singing through your nose and as soon as you hit the emotional pe4ak I’m tuning out, but instead you psychedelic chorus and then manic madman, so you won big points with me there. I dig the schizophrenia at work here, keep it up. Great lyrics too.

Phunt Your Friends- This one is cool, but not as moving after the first 15 seconds as I think it’s going to be. I like it though. I really like that sawing sound. Ding Ding! Has kind of an Asian feel, nice.

Popular Electronics- Nice band name. I always like songs that go for that pounding drive, but shouldn’t you be screaming instead of mumbling? Oh there it is. I’m a much bigger fan of the music than the vox, which is just not my preferred style. I like the percussive structure. Guitars are cool but the high end sounds are distorting in their competing one another. Too much high end, too much mang, too much.

Prophets of the Robot Wars- I like it right away, anarchy and then warbly computer stuff, cool. Vocals below the mix are cool, but these are a little too buried. It’s a lot of fun though, and I dig the vocal approach. This is the aborted fetus of Sebadoh and Brainiac. I like this one a lot. Meandering messiness and some outright silliness, aw hell, I just love noise and you guys got it right.

Ratt Poizon- God Ween Satan? Pass the scotch guard. It’s creepy and gross and it rocks. I like the vocals a lot, just right where they need to be in the mix so that they rest barely comprehensible but still sick and odd as fuck. Oh my god, the second half is fucking awesome!!!! This is so fucking cool man, and with each change your still reminding me of Dean and Gene, before they got strung out.

Your Money Wasted- Another cool band name. Nice manic energy, has a feel it could fall apart on top of itself at any time, I like that. Oh, but the chorus is not as compelling.

WreckdoM- I like the lyrics but we should have at least 3 more ideas at work here. Kinda lazy actually, but we started late and ran out of time. Next week, we’ll kick ass. Still love backwards stuff. A LOT.

I'm so voting for Ratt. Otherwise it would have been Level. Otherwise it would've been Prophets or Carpets.
"perhaps the most offensive and disturbing image I've ever heard in a song" - Hans Gruber
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Post by Damien Verrett (Jonas) »

Wow, Crates' review process is the most indepth I've seen on SF. Congrats.

Also, I hope I don't already sound like a serial rapist, because if I do at my age that is going to shape up to be a problem in 20 years.
j$
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Post by j$ »

Crates wrote:Level Nivelo TOTAL = 0 / 30 = FAG
crates, who has the gayest avatar i have seen in a long time wrote:MMMC
Crates doesn't review his own stuff.
I'll review it for you. Or rather let you do the hard work -
the sane population wrote:leave and don't ever come back.
j$
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blue
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Post by blue »

Crates wrote: Innovation: 0 / 10
Gay.
Instrumentals: 0 / 10
Gayer.
Vocals: 0 / 10
Gayest.
TOTAL = 0 / 30 = FAG
i guess it's possible to hang out on songfight after you'd invalidated every musical opinion you've ever had by turning out to be a flaming homophobic asshole, but it can't be much fun.

we'll find out, for sure.
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Post by catch »

Crates: You look cute. We should go out sometime.

<3
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Post by Adam! »

Geoff WreckdoM wrote:Popular Electronics- Nice band name.
Thanks. When I saw this old issue of the eponymous* magazine I had a pang of guilt for stealing a name that would works so much better on you guys.

Image

Reviews soon.

* I'm not sure if this is a legal usage of the term
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Post by glennny »

Crates wrote:REVIEWS: Covered in Bugs



The Older Brothers

Quite new to the scene, this is the third song for The Older Brothers, each having been submitted in the last month. Their upbeat and inspired song is the kind of thing you'd listen to on your front porch, Corona with lime in hand, on a hot summer day.

It's biggest downfall, though, is that it's 6 minutes and 16 seconds long-- not because they had so much to say, but rather because they just thought it sounded so good that you'd want to hear twice as much of it. Sorry, boys... you're not Pink Floyd, and you can't get away with that shit. Well, maybe at SongFight you can, but on a CD, it's just taking up twice the time it should, and keeping you from having one extra track on the album.

Hey thanks for the compliments! One minor correction, the song length is actually 3:30. I think because I compressed it at a variable bit rate it reads as though it has varying lengths, on my PC at work it read 1:17. If you actually time it I assure you it's only 3:30. Geez I hope it doesn't FEEL long.
Last edited by glennny on Thu May 11, 2006 11:36 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by Leaf »

Crates is clearly joking, as his tune is obviously much gayer than Nivelo.


It's an in joke, I'm sure.
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glennny
DALL-E
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Covered in Bugs review

Post by glennny »

14 entries, lot's of great rockin' stuff here. Tough tough choices.

Carpetburn- Off the bat one of the strongest entries. I especially like the Minus the Bear clean tap guitar, though there are 2 wrong notes (to my ears) it strikes me weird at 2:16 and again at 2:46, was that deliberate? Otherwise I love the composition, probably the 2nd half more than the 1st. I'm jealous of the great vocals too.

Ratt Poizon- The vocals might as well be incidental, can't make out a bit of it. However the riff is pretty bitchin, and the drums remind me of Hella. This sounds like some of the glorious Vaccination bands of the late 90's, dark and weird. Some cool stuff.

Popular Electronics- What a good fight! Nice to hear soem harder rock of quality. This is another contender for me. I actual song doesn't grab me as much as how good all the instruments sound. Good track!

Your Money Wasted- I'll say it. It's too short. I want more!
very cool.

Cutie Pies- Nice production! This is a great little pop gem. Reminds me of the Rentals or Mathlete. This is catchy! I was pretty sure that was the genious of Ken, (just looked up the photo) man it's hard to keep track of all your projects! This is a very cute tune true to name.

Cuddle Buddies- You picked the wrong fight, the competition is way too steep in this fight for a track like this. Your voice is good. The guitar is rythmically not so good. Song doesn't do anything for me, and the recoding is very quiet and hissy.

Damien Verrett- I like the voice, again a little too effected. The frantic then mellow guitar doesn't work as well on this track as some of your previous entries. Some interesting bits, but as a whole falls short for me.

Level Nivelo- This is a cute song. It's really quiet and hissy. This sounds like the song a talented improv artist would whip out on the spot. Pretty obvious structure and melody.

MMMC-- I really like this tune. I don't care at all about the rap or the lyrics or the story, but the beat is fun, and the chorus harmony vocals are soooo delightful. That makes this track for me. Good entry!

Paco Del Stinko- I love this tune especially when the "when I was a little boy..." kicks in with the false etto and silly low voice. Great musicianship, wonderful fun tune! It's very silly. I haven't heard a song this epic since the Existential Blues.

Phunt Your Friends- Not a bad instrumental representation of being covered in bugs. Not so much a "song" as a score, but I do enjoy this entry!

Prophets of the Robot Wars-If I pay attention to the instruments individually they seem cool or interesting. All together however, I don't get what any of them have to do with each other. Sounds like 3 radios set to different stations competing. I just don't get it.

Wreckdom- The false etto is hilarious! I like the quirky 1st half a lot more than the resulting chaos. The keys are annoying, but I like the sparse guitar.

The Older Brothers- This is my entry. Really it's only 3:30! That's my lil' sis on the Moon Unit gross out track. The most fun was laying down the guitar at the end.

So my faves are Carpetburn, Popular Electronics, Cutie Pies, and Paco Del Stinko
martyr
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Post by martyr »

CarpetBurn
Moments I like best are when the vocals near the end of a line, touch down low in the mix, and the guitar gets atmospheric and licky. I can't think of what the ecclectic stuff in the middle reminds me off -- perhaps the Owls. There is something nice here, yet distractingly random as well. These indie jams really appeal to me -- perhaps with more time it could have really polished into something epic. One demerit -- are bugs ever mentioned at all?? B+

Cuddle Buddies
Solo female acoustic song. I think the writing and performance have to be really strong to pull this off. Sorry, I'm biased toward full bands and production this week. Bugs? C

Cuties Pies
Pretty sweet keyboard tracking lays a great foundation on this one. Very poppy cutsie love song with squishy itchy squirmy bug related story line to keep it interesting. Solid track - catchy chorus - I like it, esp. that the vox have nicely done doubled high tracking the lead. A-

Damien Verrett
Low mix. Something about insects. Acoustic slow, acoustic fast. Stop. Wax on wax off. Not really getting into this one. Woah, some whistling flamanco attempt. Silence for a few seconds. This just isn't cohesive to me. Again, I'll use bias against solo acoustic tracks this week as an excuse for not understanding the vision here. C-

Level Nivelo
Ugh, another solo acoustic! This one attempts to be a joke around the campfire. If you tracked this as a sing along, you might have gained strength in numbers. The thin mosquito vocals get a free ride considering the subject, and I'll give an inch for the lyrical twist that brings the chorus around. C+

MMMC
First of all, hats of to Crates for the most extensive research and review I've ever seen in a forum of any kind. I mean, how do you dig up # of fights and history and stuff? It must be hidden in archives somewhere... Anyway, I'm still impressed by Google sometimes. MMMC is alluding to Eminem in many ways. My lady is from Detroit and liked this track when she overheard it. Yes, this is has me groovin from the start. I don't know how vocals this fast can be so clean. Phat! Unfortunately, I have an indie rock bias.. A-

Older Brothers
I gotta go to sleep, so no commentary on our goals or focus this week. Though I agree glenny is a ninja on the axe!

Paco Del Stinko
Intro is great -- I love when bass is mixed high and complimented with melodic counterpunctal guitar. Surprise - strange ecclectic vocals circa They Might Be Giants meets B-52s meets Primus meets Velvet Underground?! I'm so confused, but still held captivated by insanely crisp production. The guitar distortion TV static outro is just perfect. The middle need to be a bit more indie pop grounded for my taste. A-

Phunt Your Friends
Pluck pluck. This is like the sounds a baby toy makes when you press the big square button. Oh, but the cello note in the middle implies that the toy is actually part of an installation at a museum. I could go into abstract interpretive mind thought about this, but I'd be falling for the trick. D

Popular Electronics
Strong bass is always a ++plus in my book. Scratching guitar strings through delay is good too. Smooth vocals are topping this off and establishing a nice progression that isn't cliche, but memorable all the while. Modulation, that's always good. Lyrically: "eaten by the little bugs, life's covered in death" is good, "Big bug killed my big bug" not so sure about. I think this is getting genre bonus. A-

Prophets of the Robot Wars
Yeah! Enter jam improve robo effect madness. Oh, well that was exciting for about a second. Actually, the pitch changing samples are cool. Some gimicky effects overload happening here. How many effects boxes do you have anyway? The guitar is all over in places, then a sustained wall. This reminds me of those one chord jams that tries to peak and exit but ends up sounding all the same. B-

Ratt Poizon
Metal mania. I can like metal, but I don't like this. Laugh track vocals, and high treble guitar chord hits reminds me of bad suburban death rock shows in Orange County or San Jose. The church bell part is ambitious, and almost compelling enough to win me over. Then double bass drum solos splits your head open. The performance is good, I just can't handle this stuff! B-

WreckdoM
Very gothy drum track. The vocals start badly -- perhaps too loud or close to the mic. Later, when they repeat, they seem to fit in better. This song definitely talks about bugs, which is good. Monotonous maddening, but thankfully short. B-

Your Money Wasted
This one seems young vocally. The composition is good. The guitar and instrumentation are pretty indie groovy. Woah, is it over already?! Okay then. B-

P.S. I tried adding grades, but the grades don't really mean anything! They all have an error of +/- 3 units, and are very mood dependant. Also, it is difficult not to be influenced by other reviews... Tough fight!

:roll: :roll: :roll:
m++
Cärpetbürn
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Post by Cärpetbürn »

glennny wrote:I especially like the Minus the Bear clean tap guitar, though there are 2 wrong notes (to my ears) it strikes me weird at 2:16 and again at 2:46
martyr wrote:perhaps the Owls
you guys just made our week :D

when you said 2 wrong notes I thought I must have let something slip through, but they're both the same phrase repeated and yes they are out of key but they are intentional.
Crates wrote:Carpetburn's entry is reminiscent of a good blowjob intermittently ruined by the girl's teeth shredding the skin off your dick
you understand us!! that was an excellent review, and it reminded me that even I used to dislike some of my favourite bands not that we're as good as Pixies; but next time you want something to piss the neighbours off with remember us? :wink:
j$
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Post by j$ »

martyr wrote: "Big bug killed my big bug" not so sure about.
It's "Big bug killed by bigger bug"
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Paco Del Stinko
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Covd. In Bugs - Review

Post by Paco Del Stinko »

Greetings - This is my 4th review, and my first fight! I listened to each song, including my own, twice yesterday and again this morning while taking notes. I will give them all many more listens prior to voting next week. I am honored to be included in such good company.

Carpetburn - Just like the dinosaurs, the giant that is man will also become extinct. Meanwhile, good guitar playing and arrangements save us from Latin class.
Cuddle Buddies - Bugs may have nibbled on the seed for this song. Re-plant it with a bit o' plant food and watch it grow. Is that something about New England in there?
Cutie Pies - The fat synth-bug, although handsome, made me think that the vocals were distorted. It shore is a cutie pie of a song though.
Damien Verret - I'd like the child inside to bring this outside and let it play in the sun. Don't be afraid to do more than peer around the corner, you little dickens you.
Level Nivelo - Satchmo could have done this in his later years. A pleasant little ditty.
MMMC - Crazy-circus of bugs in hot pursuit! I'm very paranoid and can't run fast enough to not let this overtake me. My tongue got sprained trying to speak that quickly and articulately. Is that 3100 or 2900 in Roman numerals?
Older Bros. - The bugs here are sunny and cozy. They do not appear to be of the slimey variety. Step up in production too.
Paco - My first fight. Will you still love me tomorrow?
PHUNT - I thought that this was more like "one bugs' discovery and pondering." If all of his or its friends came, I would be frightened.
Popular Electronics - Nice and dark, and I don't mean the mix. A throat shredding scream of horror echoes in my head although it's, um, not in the song. Me likey.
Prophets of the Robot Wars - The 1st 30 seconds are heart poundingly good and then, perhaps, a few too many bugs crept into the vocals. I think that I get the point, though, and enjoy the sonics.
Ratt Poizon - My sister always said that gin=death. Maybe she meant death metal. I may need some gin after surviving this delightful foray through Hell Town. Good and insane.
Wreckdom - Remember when Khan put that bug thing into Chekovs' ear? Yeeeeaaaaahhhh! Sweet pain oh sweet pain! It hurts but I can't reach my hand through my helmut to stop it. This too is good and insane.
Your Money Wasted - I'd like to be covered by more of your bugs. In a friends kind of way, of course!

I can not vote for myself as I don't thnk it's the best song. My vote will be cast by secret ballot after further review and considerations. Thanks.
Last edited by Paco Del Stinko on Fri May 12, 2006 12:28 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Bringin' the stink since 2006.
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Paco Del Stinko
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Apology

Post by Paco Del Stinko »

I want to offer a public apology to Phunt Your Friends as I had inadvertently left them off of my review page. My handwritten notes are not pretty and I am also a bit of a daff. I believe in fairness and have inserted the original review as it was intended for the whole world to see. Again, my sincere polly-logies. Love, Paco
Bringin' the stink since 2006.
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