Time left




Friday, March 3, 2017

SpinTunes #12 Round 3 Reviews: Nick Dellaposta

Amoreliebephilia
The punchline here is highly similar to the Hozier song 'Someone New'. But despite the 54 million views they have on their video, your song... that you wrote as part of nonsense-word songwriting challenge... in my opinion... is far superior. It's clever, heartfelt and truly beautiful. Please don't let the similar reference discourage you. Your song is different in so many ways from the other and I'm only drawing the comparison to point out how much stronger yours is than a song with a moderate level of success.

Mareno (The Biggest Little Casino On The Seven Seas)
Ryan, Excellent chord progressions. There are some awesome story-telling details and musical elements: melodic hooks and a theatrical bridge that make this tune top-notch. Well done.

Lullaburbia
Zoe, you have a gift for versatility. More so than your previous submissions, this song showcases a sultry facet that would feel at home in a 007 film. Where your first song was darker, your second was ultra-fluorescent. Lullaburbia paints a picture of a lucid dream which has a color palette all of its own. I love that your songs are so visual, for me at least. Being a musical shapeshifter will serve you well for years and will undoubtedly keep things interesting.

Pondle
"Maybe not having, is the key to change what your life needs"... in a round where you were tasked directly with using a nonsense word prevalently you somehow managed to sneak in really insightful, uplifting, and inspirational lyrics. Thank you for taking what you do seriously even when it comes to writing songs about pondling. Highly enjoyable.

St. Wendigo’s Day
Brian, you never cease to impress me. There's so much drama and tension that explodes into a grand choral cry. I'm not DQing anyone based on whether their invented word is a proper noun or not, that would be silly. (I see the prompt as more of a guideline or starting point than a strict rule) but that's really the only deduction I have for this song. I'll take a quality song over strict adherence to the rules any day and you've delivered a thoughtful song that took time and effort that deserves to be rewarded.

The Ineffable Moment Of Mazoom
I've often wondered what it would have sounded like if Roger McGuinn collaborated with the Beatles. Now I know. Great tune and excellent use of alliteration throughout.

Wrenchion di Gnausque
The arpeggiated progression gives this tune a "House of the Rising Sun" kinda vibe. I appreciate how the chorus really opens up. It probably has potential to stand out a bit more if the predictable picking pattern varied to quarter notes or if the instrumentation was altered, but you have a quality tune here that had me tapping my foot along even without knowing what Wrenchion di Gnausque was.

broken/lost/alone/adrift
Peaceful and captivating, your song captures that "adrift" quality very well. The spacey atmospherics and lyrics penned from intercepted alien transmissions make me reimagine what it's like to really be lost by contrasting 'unknown whereabouts' with 'not being able to understand external signals'. I question the heavier section toward the end. It seemed a little foreign but then again I guess that's kind of part of the story isn't it?

Delbajifrasticderigibalistic
That is a mouthful! Your song has all the elements of a good song. Strong hook, and melody, and identifiable subject matter. That being said, and i hate to say this… it kind of sounds like Ted Cruz singing a Mary Poppins outtake.

Splyng
Your lyrics tell an interesting story that creates images in the mind and flavors on the tongue. The interlude is well-written and tasty. Keep writing music that stimulates the senses.

Nojrelias
Nojrelias or “Sailer Jon” backwards. (I’ll pretend there’s some hidden meaning there). Your song has identifiable lyrics and some well-played electric guitar that many songwriters would enjoy. You seem to have come to peace with writing music that isn’t “meant to please a crowd”, getting older, and being misunderstood. None of these things are bad. As songwriters, it’s easy to write music for that all-important audience of 1, (I’m guilty of it too) but I’d encourage you to try to use your art to channel characters, tell stories, give pause, inspire, or make others feel a certain way.

The Ignorists
I'm a big fan of using idioms in songwriting. I do it frequently in my own, but after a while it starts to seem like a crutch. "Empty vessels make the loudest noise" is a great line, but I'll challenge you with the same thing I challenge myself with in my own writing... Try to invent new idioms. You'll find it to be more rewarding, more unique and for lack of a better term... you'll feel like less of a hack for borrowing a pre-built lyric. All of that aside, I appreciate the curveball chorus and other musical surprises you've used throughout this tune.

Bilpm - The Ballad of Don Martin (Cracked Up) 
Interesting story. I enjoy the contrasting chaotic sections with the verses. The character voices seem like they could have come straight out of Mad Magazine which is cool but not entirely obvious without the backstory.

oblagetauta agmepulot
Lots of style points here. This is an imaginative production that took a lot of talent to pull off. Compositionally, lyrically, and substantively however there is less for me to evaluate from a songwriting perspective. It's got feeling and a great backstory but your preface in the liner notes was more compelling and understandable from a story-telling perspective than the actual lyrics you used for the song.

Hatebaby
Your lyrics tell a tragic story that is accompanied by appropriately ill chord changes that force your listeners to confront the uneasiness of the situation. To be clear, just because something is difficult to listen to doesn’t mean it’s bad. In your case, I think the anemic instrumentation and difficult subject matter support one another in an artistic symbiosis.

Am I Yurtinflorfum?
I appreciate the Introspective angle you took. The lyrics make me want to fill in the blanks and leaves me wondering what Yurtinflorfum is. Unfortunately, your tune is so laid-back and pale that it is undistinguished among the crowd.

Gazebonea
Mick, the sparse interplay between the guitar, vocal and woodwind was interesting from a strictly tactile perspective. Unfortunately, there is not much here in terms of songwriting elements. Lyrical content, melody, rhythm etc.

No comments:

Post a Comment