That went over like a rock... (Rosetta Reviews)

Post by **Spud** » Mon Jun 12, 2006 12:02 am

Just sitting here waiting for some review threads to pop up so I can do the update... dum de dum de dum...

Caravan Ray · Post by **Caravan Ray** » Mon Jun 12, 2006 2:16 am

Tex Beaumont's entry didn't seem to make the cut

Here it is here:

Rosetta - Tex Beaumont & The Dirty Hearts

Feel free to have a listen

Niveous · Post by **Niveous** » Mon Jun 12, 2006 7:49 am

Rosetta Reviews:

DDD- painful guitar sounds start off this one on the wrong foot. The guitars just aren't working. The vocals could be good in a tongue & cheek way but the guitars kill this song like a thousand butchers with a thousand cleavers. The percussion is a bit odd too. What is it?

Anna Help Us- Rosetta the cow, huh. Wow I talk about butchers in the previous review and then a cow gets slaughtered. Great guitar solo on this. I love a good campy tune but Rosetta the cow may be a bit much even for me. But it's well done. Eww, Ribs on Rye. That doesn't sound too appealing.

Zero Magnitude- From my research, it seems that this is the return of a once dead project. Let's see if this was a worthwhile resurrection. Okay, there are some words in there, so it's not a complete instrumental which is a plus when it comes to me and songfighting. It's had to convince me that an instrumental fits the title. Only problem here is that the words are unintelligible. At least the beat is enjoyable. I can see playing a zero gravity racing video game with this on the soundtrack. But is it a "Rosetta"? I have no clue.

Ratt Poizon- Trying new things lately, huh. I'm all for that. Interesting sounds with the fake sitar. Instrumental, huh. It had a good sound. Was it "Rosetta"? I have no clue. What makes an instrumental scream out- "I am Rosetta"? It's not as cut and dry as something like JoS' "welcome to Windows". Hard to judge.

Popular Electronics- Who countrified PE? Oh wait a second, I hear the rock emerging. Rocked out Banjos is interesting. It's like a Bela Fleck punk band. This is very avant garde and I dig that. The structure is what makes the tune with its frantic highs and lows. Good work. This right now has my vote.

Burt F'n Reynolds- Smokey & the Bandit Motherfucker. Very Silverchair. I'm not a big fan of the vocals. The music has its charm. Like I said it's very junior Nirvana so it's a bit catchy but the off-key vocals make it hard to fully enjoy. Good breakdown at the end but the vocals work the least at that part.

Inflatable Shoe Tax- I can't get past the odd odd name. It's a cute little tune and I like the play on Rosetta Stone. I was wondering who would do that. It's a cute tune. I wouldn't keep it but I wouldn't bury all the copies under the bridge either. Guess I'm 50/50.

My vote goes to Popular Electronics.

Last second tune:
Tex Beaumont- the usual Tex Beaumont tune. The alter ego de la Caravan Ray has a very distinct sound. Good guitar solo. Okay, this is a fine li'l song. Not my fave but I'm not regretting listening to it instead of watching them film Spiderman 3 outside my office. That's a good sign.

Post by **Spud** » Mon Jun 12, 2006 8:35 am

Caravan Ray wrote:Tex Beaumont's entry didn't seem to make the cut

Here it is here:

Rosetta - Tex Beaumont & The Dirty Hearts

Feel free to have a listen

Administrative oversight. Tex is back in the ring.

SPUD

Caravan Ray · Post by **Caravan Ray** » Mon Jun 12, 2006 8:52 am

Cheers Spud! I'll buy you a beer one day.

j$ · Post by j$ » Mon Jun 12, 2006 10:08 am

What an odd fight for a not all that odd title ...

Anna Help Us - A bit too cute for me. being in love with a cow does not ring true to me, even with the folky pastoral setting. Actually I do like the lyric, this is just not the sort of music that i enjoy very much, despite being very well done.

Burt Effin' Reynolds - Ummm, yeah. I don't mind this but it doesn't conjure up rosetta or burt reynolds for me much. I think the squealing feedback (which is cool) threatens a little too heavily to chew on the rest of the song and spit it out. Pretty good mix apart from that. I don't think I'd rush to listen to this again but that doesn't mean it is without merit.

DDD - You are not a duck and you do not sound like you're from Dublin, although mixed that quietly you could be both. Are you dispensing? Not for me, much. This has a messy charm but it feels like it was knocked together by the band members in 20 minutes.

ISS - good powerful opening - that's two songs in a row that are revealing Plat's Show leanings. This is more 'little shop of horrors' than the 'grease' of last week, but still. Nice trumpet (patch?) I like this has a nice swing but that 'joanna' is really holding it back for me. Makes me think of Chas 'n' Dave.

PE - i put the words in the lyric archive because despite all my good work (*ahem*) i can never make out a word of mine that Puce is singin'. No bad thing, probably

Ratt Poizon - I like Sitars. Would you like to contribute to my longterm project of an album of Jefferson Airplane / Starship covers played in an Indian style, called 'We Built This Sitar On Rock 'n' Roll'? Oh come on this has nothing to do with the title, does it? I feel like it's done at 2.21 but I really like it anyway. Like I said, I like Sitars.

TB - I dunno if it's Garageband or a very deliberate decision, but the tone of your recordings have changed ... in a literal sense - everything sounds so soft here - it's not a bad sound and it's probably more polished but I like the rough edges. This makes me think of Westworld (the band) who did 'Sonic Boom Boy' or Tranvision Vamp at their rockier. Again no bad thing

Zero Magnitude - this sounds to me like a Pet Shop Boys instrumental remix from around the 'Very' era. Which is cool if you like that sort of thing. I do but not enough to vote for it.

blue · Post by **blue** » Mon Jun 12, 2006 11:34 am

burt effin' reynolds is:

weaselslayer on vox + guitar
wreckdom on slide guitar
wreckdom on theramin
blue on bass and mixin
klownhole on drums

we had the usual collab virgin issues with the tracks, but overall it was a lot of fun.

Rabid Garfunkel · Post by **Rabid Garfunkel** » Mon Jun 12, 2006 1:06 pm

Reviews and stuff...

Anna Help Us
The added elements (guitar solo, harmony oohs) with their extra 'verb is kind of heavy handed, pulling the attention from the sick lullaby feel you've got going on.

Burt Effin' Reynolds
Aaaand the windup... aaaaaaaaannnnnndddd... the pitch (re: the minute-long intro). Digging the theremin. Drums sound really trebly compared to the rest of the mix, really brutal high transients compared with the rest of the thick wall o' sounds.

Dublin Duck Dispensary
Muddy mix, and back off the vocal mike(s)! Though the closing guitar tone does sound like a duck, so I guess that's some truth in band naming.

Inflatable Shoe Tax
Perky. Some dynamics in the keys' levels might make the other elements more discernible. I feel like I'm being mugged by a piano.

Popular Electronics
Dig the swirly keys patch in the second half, right channel. Hell, dig the whole thing. This is pretty damned nuts. Thanks!

RattPoizon
Dunno. Was enjoying it in the beginning, but then it got relentlessly repetitive by the middle. Still made it to the end, but it took a little work.

Tex Beaumont & The Dirty Hearts
Whoa. Sweet '60s groove. I think I'm in love with Tex.

Zero Magnitude
Oh hell, 5:55 of this? Sorry, sir or madam, it's at 3:00 and I'm done listening. Nice street racer background music, I guess.

Tex and Popular Electronics vying for the vote.

Stubby Phillips · Post by **Stubby Phillips** » Mon Jun 12, 2006 1:34 pm

As I listen...

Inflatable Shoe Tax:
+ fast, tight
+ drums are great
+ booogy wooogy piano
+ good vox and overall fidelity
+ cool lyrics
- the accordian and horn intermingle a bit much for my taste; they sound too much alike, and one morphs into the other. Intentional?

Popular Electronics:
+ This set off some alarm bells at the beginning, then it's dynamic personality took me for a roller coaster ride. That last hill was the best.
+ Good sound and performances.
- The lack of anything in the bass register is a problem for me... don't know why.

Dublin Duck Dispensary:
- paste glitch at 0:28
- timing
- clipping
+ This is a cool idea. You have the bones of a good song -- it just needs to sound more like the one in your head. Not necessarily sync'd with, but at least closely tied to, a reliable beat(s). When the timing is clean, it disappears and lets the song speak for itself. Blah blah. Anyway, people here have said my timing sucks.

Anna Help Us:
+ This is fairly clever and well done.
+ nice guitar work.
- the arrangement with the cow is disturbing.
- I'm not in the mood for this kind of music, I guess.

Ratt Poizen:
+ Like the beginning...
+ Lucky me -- I can also hear a chainsaw, about half a block away, leaking thru my headphones. Very cool.
- chainsaw stopped.
- That's all I can say. I don't consider this a valid SF entry.

Burt Effin' Reynolds:
+ Awesome intro. Reminds me of the Helter Skelter seagulls.
+ Love the soundscape
+ Drums are all over yet always rock solid. Love it. Bass too.
+ Vox is competently insane.

Tex Beaumont:
+ Dave Clark would be proud.
+ This time I could hear a screaching radiator belt during the whole middle break. And some birds. Very cool.
+ Good take on the title.
+ Good song. Like the voices.

Zero Magnitude:
+ Now I hear pigeons.
- ...and an airplane flying overhead. At least something is going on...
- thanks for the break, but it's not enough.
+ now a frog... no, that's somebody talking.
- too long, and I didn't get the connection to the title. Unintelligibility... is that the connection? Ha.

PE, IST, and Burt stand out here. Pretty good fight. We're getting some (I think) new fighters that have good performance and production skills. As well as some that have been around.

Post by jb » Tue Jun 13, 2006 10:39 am

You people are insane, <b>Anna Help Us</b> is fucking brilliant! I cracked up, and people THREE CUBES AWAY were like "wtf is he laughing at".

I loved it.

catch · Post by **catch** » Tue Jun 13, 2006 10:46 am

There are some wild entries this fight!

(Reviews forthcoming.)

Eric Y. · Post by **Eric Y.** » Tue Jun 13, 2006 11:04 am

anna help us - i think i'm afraid of this song. "what are you singing about" really sounded out of place, and further, with all the dozens of mentions of cows or beef throughout the song, saying "my rosetta, my rose, MY COW" in the chorus seems a little too blunt.

burt effin reynolds - the intro is awesome. on my shitty speakers the vocals sound a little too loud and the cymbals are way trebly. but this is a way cool concept. the theremin is a nice bonus.

dublin duck dispensary - the vocal "ohhh ohhhh ohhh" bit sounds like a badly-pasted-together loop, and i'm not even sure it really is looped. most of the parts sound badly-pasted-together. the guitar is way muddy, and the main vocals are (unintentionally) distorty..

inflatable shoe tax - when recording vocals, the best choice of placement is probably not putting the mic above the piano and vocalist beneath. everything else is about right, but the vocals are really low and piano is really loud.

popular electronics - nice singing. interesting arrangement. "rosetta, let's get stoned" made me cringe a little bit. this is a pretty cool song, all in all, though.

ratt poizon - the bass part here is a wonderful touch, rounding out the arrangement very nicely. this is probably the best instrumental (and the most title-appropriate) i've seen on here, in a really long time.

tex beaumont + dirty hearts - backing vocals sound great. organ is cool.. the bass is really reminding me of something, but i can't quite put my finger on what it is. dig the lyrics too.

zero magnitude - i was going to bitch about how quiet it was, and then the song fully kicked in. unexpected, but nice. the orchestral pad that plays the chords throughout, sort of gets old in my opinion, maybe it could drop out at some point, or get more buried, but for the most part this is varied just enough to stay interesting the whole way through.

Ratt Poizon · Post by **Ratt Poizon** » Tue Jun 13, 2006 9:24 pm

WOW! alright. let me start out by admitting that I have just eaten the greatest meal I have ever had. I feel like god is giving me a piggy-back ride. new york strip, corn on the cob, red bliss potatoes, and 1 pound of alaskan snow crab.... I'm in such a great mood right now. I don't know if it's just this enlightened and satisfied state i'm in, but most of these songs are freakin' GREAT!!!

Anna Helpos
This song sounds AWESOME! I don't like alot of the guy/guitar stuff, unless it's done well, and let me tell ya pal, DONE RIGHT. that solo brought a happy tear to my eye... then gave me a boner. I also enjoy the lyrics. The background singing is also fantastic.

Burt (to the muthafuckin') Reynolds
next time go with "turd ferguson." that would please me. this song is absolutey great. It really has a feel about it that's familiar. I'm not sure what it is though. I hear some butthole surfers, and perhaps even some kyuss. the cymbal highs hurt my ears a bit, but the songs so cool I'm not turning it down, you know what they say... if it's too loud, you're too old. hmm.... I just realized I'm enjoying the music so much, I forgot to really listen to the lyrics. I supose it doesn't matter with a song like this. the ending rules.

Dooblin Duck Disapointment
haha! this is ok. certainly would be better if not recorded so terrible.

inflatable shew tax
this is pop-music! but still good. I love the trumpets. to be honest I could do without everything but the piano and trumpet on this one. sounds unbelievably well performed. I LOVE THE TRUMPETS.

Poopuwar Ewecktonics
this RULES!!! I have a banjo, I don't use it much though, the tuning of the thing confuses the hell out of me. this has an almost "tool" feel to it I think. but with a banjo, which must mean that you're awesome. drums sound awesome. the only complaint or suggestion I'd have is why didn't you experiment with more sounds? I think with the addition of a few more instruments or perhaps keychanges or something this would be so much more amazing than it already is. alright, i guess in my mind I want it to have a church organ part. I love you.

sir Ratt of Poizon
I didn't intend for this to be an instrumental. I ran out of tracks(on my 8-track). but even with the obvious playing errors I made throughout this very repetitive song, I thought I did a very good job of something that I could percieve as being an almost "soundtrack" of an imaginary movie entitled "rosetta." however, I supose this is more arabian than egyptian. I dont' know. I thought it was kinda cool. alot of people don't like it though. that's ok. I'm not sure what it is about that damned sitar-guitar, but it's very difficult to play with out screwing stuff up.

Tex Beaumont with dirty <3's
this is interesting. I absolutely love the organ part. solo is pretty cool. when it drops down after the solo- me likey alot. background singing really helps this.

xero magniboob
this really ain't my thing, unless you're going to switch it up very drastically genre wise, but I know you don't. Other than that, I supose I enjoyed it. it could be the crab legs talkin' but this song is actually kinda cool.

I think this one's between Poopular and Turd Ferguson. I'm gonna go drink.

Caravan Ray · Post by **Caravan Ray** » Wed Jun 14, 2006 6:32 am

Anna Help Us:
A steer is a castrated bull - it doesn't have udders. That simple yet telling error leads me to believe that this song isn't the heart-warming tale of canibalistic bovine love it pretends to be - but just another cynical sneer at the tender art of animal husbandry that I have become just oh-so-used-to over the years. You disgust me.

Mind you though - I do really love the chorus. The "common-law-wife" bit cracked me up. Maybe the verses could have done with a little more work - but it was pretty good overall. Very nice guitar bits.

Burt Effin' Reynolds:
Someody spilled Custard on the Pavement! I approve. I'll probably vote for this.

Dublin Duck Dispensary:
This is pretty ordinary.

Inflatable Shoe Tax:
This sound like Ben Folds - I like Ben Folds - I like this! This is a well-writen song. I like the lyrics. Yeah - this is cool.

Popular Electronics:
This isn't quite as good as it should be. The vocal performance is sensational. As is the banjo/beat/backing music stuff. It just seems to be the mixing letting it down - the vocals don't stand out enough and it sounds a little muddy. Kudos for a great effort - but there's something technical here that leaves me wanting more

RattPoizon:
No points for the instrumental - but this is pretty good. I really quite liked it a lot.

Zero Magnitude :
Like Ratt Poison - but even more so. Not a valid entry for mine - but this is really good. That strage spastic duck sound is very cool. I like this a lot

Tex Beaumont & The Dirty Hearts:
2 minor milestones for me on this song -
1) the lead guitar stands out! I've always had problems with that - now I know how to do it!
2) I think its the best bass guitar sound I 've ever got. I'd virtually given up playing real bass because it always sounds so crap when I record it - but on this song it isn't too bad.

This was an entertaining firght. Vote is toss up between Popular Electronics (great++ but flawed) and Burt Reynolds (just great)

Caravan Ray · Post by **Caravan Ray** » Wed Jun 14, 2006 7:34 am

j$ wrote:TB - I dunno if it's Garageband or a very deliberate decision, but the tone of your recordings have changed ... in a literal sense - everything sounds so soft here - .

Well, my general plan, started back at the begining of Nur Ein was that Tex Beaumont would have a particular, identifiable and describable sound (and Caravan Ray would be everything else), but yes - I think I know what you are saying. Partially it's deliberate - the "Tex" sound is vocal heavy and the multi-vox adds to the 'softness', which I like - but I thinnk the pre-sets on Garageband do add a little blandness to the overall mix.

As mentioned in my review of myself - I think I managed to bring the guitar out a little on this one - which is nice. I wanted to have a harsher single voice on here as a contrast - but it didn't work when I tried it - so I removed it.

Ideally - when I get it right - Tex Beaumont should slot somewhere in between the Monkees and the Gorillaz. Maybe I'll change his name to Tex Bonobo.

Meatwad · Post by **Meatwad** » Wed Jun 14, 2006 1:09 pm

blue wrote:burt effin' reynolds is:

weaselslayer on vox + guitar
wreckdom on slide guitar
wreckdom on theramin
blue on bass and mixin
klownhole on drums

we had the usual collab virgin issues with the tracks, but overall it was a lot of fun.

Because I suspect that Blue's good name needs a lot of clearing, I should probably take responsibility for the cymbal treble problem in the mix. I didn't notice it as bad as I do now, I wonder if the wav to mp3 to wav to mp3 conversion messed it up. More likely I'm just a dumbass.

Reist · Post by **Reist** » Wed Jun 14, 2006 9:24 pm

Reviews!

Zero Magnitude - I like the blank space at the start. It's actually pretty good once the song gets going. I like it ... I'm not a huge fan of the style, and it's a bit repetitive, but it's well-done. I like the spots with vocals - those make it so much more interesting.

RattPoizon - Love the fake bongos! Being a drummer, I totally like the ideas of the slowly swelling percussion section. I totally dig the Egyptian sound that this song has. I totally didn't know what this had to do with the title, but then I remembered how the Rosetta Stone was discovered in Egypt with the Egyptian Hieroglyphics ... That connection, as well as the overall cool sound makes this song a very possible vote!

Dublin Duck Dispensary - I don't mind the spots that I can hear well ... I think this one has some good ideas in it, but they just need to be figured out a bit better ... maybe you could do some guitar harmonies on the solo to mix it up a bit. I like the end of it better than I do the beginning.

Burt Effin' Reynolds - I wouldn't recommend the long silence at the start of the song. Those just frustrate me. I really love the intro though. High hat and other cymbals might be mixed too high. I really like your use of guitars, but I'm not loving the vocals too much. If I'm not mistaken, this is your first fight ... if it's not, sorry, but if this is actually your first one, I'm really looking forward to what's coming in the future from you. You've got some great dynamic changes, and an awesome ending. Possible vote.

Inflatable Shoe Tax - Are you the Cow eXchange guy? This is a nice, energetic tune. I dig it a lot. Your vocals are really good. I like the instrument solos too. This is well done, and a style that I like a lot! Great job. A very possible vote.

Anna Help Us - I like the guitars, I like the vocals, but I don't think I'd listen to this song more. The only problem I have is that it barely has any dynamics. That's my only problem. If you had more dynamics, I would like this song way more.

Popular Electronics - Is that a banjo? The drums might be a bit hectic, but that might just go with the style. I'm not a huge fan of this, but I like the ending a lot, with the whole speeding up spot. Not a bad song.

Tex Beaumont & The Dirty Hearts - It's really catchy, and a bit repetitive, but that's kind of what you want in a catchy tune. This is definitely one of my favorites in this fight.

This was a wicked fight. Nearly everything was good. For me it comes down to Ratt Poizon and Inflatable Shoe Tax, with IST as the winner. Good job everyone.

nyjm · Post by **nyjm** » Thu Jun 15, 2006 6:45 am

ratt poizon
/// cool, but instrumental. i dig the tones ///

anna help us
+++ hahahahahahahahaha! +++
+++ as cute as it is disturbing +++

dublin duck dispensary
--- not an a-side ---
--- not a b-side, either ---
--- this took, what, three takes to record? ---

burt effin' reynolds
+++ the soundgarden-esque guitar tone has me from the get-go (c.f. "Searching With My Good Eye Closed," from Badmotorfinger) +++
--- the vox need more presence, more assurance ---
+++ i love how this hangs together so loosely; having that kind of cohesion is particualrly impressive for a collab +++

popular electronics
+++ cool energy in the tempo changes +++
+++ the percussion is awesome +++
+++ i like your vocal inflection +++
--- the super-slow down at the end seems... superfluous ---

inflatable shoebox tax
+++ good groove +++
+++ nice touch with the horns +++
+++ love the gitmo line! +++

zero magnitude
/// sounds like it should be on the half-life 2 soundtrack. take that for what it's worth ///

tex beaumont & the dirty hearts
+++ you have a great voice and the vox-heavy arrangements are thus quite suitable +++
--- this is a bit too repetitive ---
+++ cool solo +++

HeuristicsInc · Post by **HeuristicsInc** » Mon Jun 19, 2006 9:20 am

favorites: inflatable, tex, popel, ratt

0mag - okay, this has some nice sounds, but the drums totally need to be more interesting and change up. definitely a weak point. i'm gonna assume that whatever was spoken there has something to do with rosetta. also should be about 30secs shorter.

ratt - cool, but where's the title connection?

i'm voting for tex, good stuff even though he repeats himself a bit it doesn't bother me. it's catchy!
-bill

catch · Post by **catch** » Wed Jun 21, 2006 10:19 am

Congrats, Pyoose!

john82 · Post by **john82** » Sun Jan 27, 2008 3:25 pm

this is how i rank the songs, on a scale from 1 to 10:

anna help us 10 (funny as hell)
burt effin reynolds 8.5
dublin duck dispensary 7.5
inflatable shoe tax 9
popular electronics 6
ratt poizon 9
tex beaumont + dirty hearts 8
zero magnitude 8

i only i would remember how to calculate an average, i'd do it right now

Johnny from guitars101

Gemini6Ice · Post by **Gemini6Ice** » Sun Jun 29, 2008 11:03 am

So I'm working my way through many old songs...

I wish I had been able to vote for your Rosetta submission, RattPoizon. It was an amazing example of the very rare occurance of an instrumental submission fitting the title perfectly.

That went over like a rock... (Rosetta Reviews)

That went over like a rock... (Rosetta Reviews)

Re: That went over like a rock... (Rosetta Reviews)