Rankings and reviews from Nancy Rost:
Also In Blue - A Good Man (But A Lousy Wizard)
This is just overall superbly crafted, and fits the prompt perfectly, in an original way. The character portrait is insightful and sympathetic, with an unexpected perspective and lots of wit and charm.
Great sound, excellent playing - love the swung eighth notes on piano. The music is so very catchy and well produced. Love the chord progressions, richness of the chords, harmonies, bass licks, piano licks. Nice dynamics. I like the changeup in the bridge.
I enjoy the clever turns of phrase and imagination and multi-rhyming (rattlecan green, all tangled up in green / don’t look behind the screen, homely little humbug)
I really like the reflection in the bridge, quieter but emotionally climactic. Great work!
"BucketHat" Bobby Matheson - Ease My Mind
I like the vulnerability and strength of these lyrics.The song has meaningful things to say and digs into emotions with honesty and sensitivity. It’s an excellent take on the prompt, too.
Musically, I appreciate the suspenseful intro and gradual buildup of instrumentation. The lyric was clear and easy to make out, but I felt the doubled vocal detracted a bit from the intimacy the lyrics were conveying. The key change at the end was a nice twist.
chewmeupspitmeout - Who put Bella in the Wych Em?
This is so dark and lush. The beautiful, strikingly unusual instrumentation grabs me right away.
Really well orchestrated, great use of space dynamics, juxtaposition of old and new instruments. I love the spare bits of melody on the piano, and what sound like backmasked elements.
The words are somewhat buried in the mix, especially in the beginning. The musical mood is strong enough that I get a sense that it’s about something dark and mysterious, but without reading along I would not know more than that. Add in my lack of familiarity with the archaic language, and unfortunately a lot of this goes over my head.
Dented Bento - A Man Is A Clam
The juxtaposition of light, catchy music and silly lyrics with the intense vocal delivery makes me chuckle.
You’ve taken the idea of “clam up” to a twisted, unusual place. While exaggerated and surreal, it does point to a dynamic between some men and women!
Musically, it’s well executed, a nice send-up of funk and disco.
The ascending chords in the pre-chorus are a particularly nice touch. Nice chord sequence, bass octaves and extended-chord strums. Love the abrupt finish!
FireBear - The Seeds
I’m intrigued right away. The picking on the electric guitar is lovely and sets a great mood, and the unusual story is told with a great dynamic arc. I like how the secret is talked about, but that it’s made clear that it’s something that needs to be experienced to be understood.
The production is lovely, and fits very well with the mystical feel of the lyrics. Great dynamics and contrast, and beautiful chorus. I really dig the spoken/chanted bridge, too. The only reason I didn’t rank this higher is that I would have liked a little more melodic movement or variation, particularly in the verses.
Firefly - It’s Juicy
That playground-taunt musical motif is perfect, and I love the way it plays out in the backing vocals and guitar licks.
The music is catchy and sets up a playful take on the secret-brokering of this increasingly psychopathic narrator. The lyrics are immediately compelling, with some of the strongest use of detail in this contest round. I don’t like this guy, but I’m fascinated and amused despite myself. I would happily have listened to another verse of this stuff. The guitar solo is good and I like the contrast of that section, but to me it felt a bit long for the snappiness of this song. But man, is this catchy. Your chant rings loud, and takes me back some.
Fluke Wilson - Corner Store Jesus
The lyrics do a great job of indirect storytelling. The intimate feel is appropriate to secrets. This has a strong folk-noir vibe. So many great lines, too. Love the couplet about the chapel owls, and the cobain shave.
I like the subtle and understated way you put across this dark tale, and I didn’t think “my sweet honey is liquor” needed to be spelled out, as it’s amply illustrated. I found myself wanting more dynamic and melodic variation. I was lulled by the repetition and almost missed the climax when I wasn’t reading along.
Governing Dynamics - Widow's Peak, Kentucky
This is a good story about a secret. It strikes an interesting balance between serious subject matter and soft-rock polish. I like how it jumps right into the scene, with the music filling in the tone and some of the meaning. Strong opening, great riff and really nice musicianship. Suspenseful rollout of lyrics and ominous vibe. There is good craft in the rhyme scheme. I wish the vocals were a little less effect-laden, as I think that would have more emotional impact.
Hanky Code - Secret Lair
There’s a charming personality to the vocals and lyrics. This is refreshing in its playful self-deprecating tour of the basement. It’s kind of an anti-secret, and I like that as a take on the prompt.
I love the rhythmic spacing of the vocal melody, the pleasant sound, and the catchy overall rhythm.
The rhymes and imagery are so fun!
Hot Pink Halo - Invisible Ink
This has a nice arc, building from that alluring intro strum and gaining energy up into the chorus. I especially like the catchy chorus! Great hook, strong lyrical statement, and beautiful, unexpected harmonies.
I like the indie-pop vibe of this. There are lots of interesting things to listen to, like that little chromatic climb, the hand claps, and the synth break.
I’d like to hear the vocals louder, especially in the verses.
L.J.P - Hero
My favorite thing about this is the groove and feel.
Nice intro -- I like the percussion and strum.
The vocal has a nice suppleness, complemented by the bluesy guitar playing.
Beautiful dynamics.
The production is tasteful.
The lyrics are positive and affirming, but the relationship to the “secret” prompt seems a little distant.
Mandibles
I love the modal harmony and vocal presence!
The vocal harmonies are beautiful too. I really love the singing overall.
The switch into a major key is great too.
What a cool progressive rock feel this has.
I’d have rated this higher, but I had a really hard time figuring out who all the people were in the story, which made it hard to fully engage with the song.
marlon. - *Tom Delonge Voice* Wheroar Yheww
I love an idiosyncratic lyrical voice that can pull off juxtaposing “pissed off the powers that be” and “beautiful dreamer” and “two oneirauts”. So many great lines. “Pilfer my heart from the safe”. Lots of great rhymes too.
The composition is rather Beatlesque, while the recording is totally DIY.
Glockenspiel, fun. I like that quiet little gliss at the end of the solo.
The vocal has a rawness that conveys a good deal of feeling. Nice vocal slides!
The timing is a little loose, and I wouldn’t mind hearing a little more polish in the production, but it’s some great writing and I look forward to hearing more from you.
Melody Klein - Just
The instrumental textures here are very cool. I particularly like that catchy bass synth line.
Compelling intro -- sets a dark, trippy mood. Great production! Love the ear candy in the outro.
Vocal effects make the lyrics hard for me to make out. I suppose that contributes to the effect of it being a secret. (The “secret” aspect of the lyrics seems like an afterthought, though.) I wish it were easier to understand the words, though. I had to refer to the written version. It does raise some good points.
Night Sky - Secret Society
Love the keyboards on this, and those wah sounds.
Nice chord progression.
Like the call-and-response vocal.
Love the organic-sounding saxophone break!
It’s a touching sentiment, to want to heal the “you” of the song with love. I’d like to hear more feeling in the vocal to really bring that across. (And the vocal being louder in the mix would help too.)
Nice take on the prompt; I like the play on “secret” as noun and adjective.
Ominous Ride - Don’t Say Anything
Possibly my favorite opening of these entries. So tight and dramatic! The break is surprising and super cool too.
Very thoughtful and catchy.
Love how it picks up too.
Nice full-band sound, heavy drums.
That’s an interesting direction to take with the prompt -- the list of torturous attempts to elicit secrets is pretty gnarly.
I usually like more harmonic variation than this, but there’s so much other sonic variation in this I hardly miss it.
Phlub - Extrasensory
The lyrics are really thought-provoking and enjoyable. That said, the lyrics are a bit hard to hear clearly, and that’s a shame because they’re so cool!
Trippy sound, intriguing and disturbing at the same time
There’s more warping than my ears really like, although it’s obviously done intentionally.
Pigfarmer Jr - Sitting Silently
A strong, focused story with a pointed response to the challenge.This is utterly believable.
Nice clear acoustic sound, driving rhythm guitar and nice melody. I like that little bass lick on the guitar.
Gets right into the story at the moment of crisis. I like that.
Great use of dynamics.
I really liked the one piece of dialogue we get from the woman, “Go to hell.” Then I can picture the attitude of her silence. I’d like more of that kind of thing, and fewer restatements of “they asked her and she wouldn’t talk”. I want to be shown a moving, changing scene, even when she’s not moving or talking.
Quazimodo’s Balls - Limited Time Offer
There’s some fun humor and sarcasm here. Love the line “void where bullshit is prohibited”. It’s hard to hear the vocal enough to make out a lot of the lyrics, though.
There’s some interesting use of samples.
There is some weirdness with the timing which may or may not be intentional.
I was not crazy about the amount of distortion.
rackwagon - Articles
The overall rhythm and the vocal rhythm in particular are so so catchy!
The word choices are yummy - love the starts of verses with “classified”, “ostracized”, “crucified”. And rhyming “cyanide” and “bullseye”.
It’s an ambitious story to sum up in a pop song. I like the perspective taken, and of course it’s a great response to the prompt.
Nice changeup in the bridge.
Regis - Three Can Keep A Secret
The chorus is catchy and memorable.
Nice uptempo feel and energy, while moving the story along
Good upfront lead voice, and I like the performance.
Pretty bass playing.
Quiet verse, cool
Really nice use of dynamics
I appreciate a short guitar break like this in a pop song.
It’s a pretty jaunty tune for all the murder and mayhem in the lyrics!
Richard Shakespeare - Oh No
It’s a short lyric set, but the restrained emotion in the words and chord changes really makes it work. This is how I’ve seen these things happen, simmering under the surface. The matter-of-fact details looking over decades together are effective. It explodes a little in the bridge, and simmers back down - poignant.
I like the jazzy chord sequence, the clear vocals and the guitar solo too.
Roman Numeral Orange - Don’t Pour It Out
The weirdness is entertaining, and the drums are cool.
I’m kind of torn about this one. The vocals are unintelligible to me even when they’re not backmasked - and yet that is kind of the point in a song about talking in code. That said, I want some sort of musical variation here that never really comes.
See-Man-Ski - Our Little Secret
I’ve been singing this song in my head all week! That’s one helluva peppy, memorable chorus.The overall vibe of the song is so catchy, and the music is so well put together and performed.
I love the lift into the chorus.
The idea of the “secret” being illiteracy, and the teacher helping to overcome it, appeals to me a lot - I just wish the idea wasn’t muddled with the suggestion of a sexual relationship.
Sober - Can’t Take It With You
I like the rhythmic twists and turns this takes, the dark mood and the strong, sparse lyrics. This is by turns traditional and proggy.
The lead vocal is beautiful. I like the slides and the slight raspiness.
The harmonies are gorgeous.
Lovely use of dynamics and tempo changes.
Love the instrumental. And the ending.
Star Bear - A Foreign Language
The lyrics are meaningful and poignant. This honestly brought a tear to my eye.
A little unpolished vocally, and occasionally awkwardly phrased, but that kind of adds to the emotion and character depiction for me!
Nice picking and orchestration
Good chorus, really compelling central idea.
I love how deeply the lyrics go into the different feelings that the narrator has difficulty both interpreting and expressing.
Steven Weigel - What’s Your Secret, Hermit?
The lyrics are interesting, with a provocative question and some nice turns of phrase (isolation insurance, indeed.) And the wordless backing vocals are cool. My ears are having a very hard time tolerating this microtonal tuning, though! I really have tried but I’m afraid I just have a terrible aversion to it.
SunLite - Secrets
Very pop vibe. This is jam-packed with melodic hooks. The multiple near-rhymes are ear candy too. Fun use of rhythm. Fun use of auto-tune. I like the vocal slides.
Lyrically it makes good use of sound too, with multiple near-rhymes and fun use of rhythm. I think sound is emphasized over meaning in the lyrics, which is consistent with the genre.
Thanks, Brain - I Should Have Told You
The storytelling is excellent. I appreciate the way it’s done by implication. Love the telling details. The dog. The ashes.The play on “cold”.
The pretty melody and the gentleness of the singing bring a softness to the story and tinge it with regret, while the words show a harsher dimension. Really effective and believable.
I dig the overall vibe of the music. Nice build with the organ, and tasteful bass playing.
Concise - I like that!
The Dutch Widows - What Does It Matter?
Catchy percussion from the start. I like the hushed, understated vocal delivery. It really fits the mood of the lyrics. I do wish the lead vocal were less buried in the mix. It’s hard for me to make out most of the words without referring to the written version. Turns out they’re really good lyrics, too! I really like this psychological angle here. Great refrain, and that last verse is killer.
With Joe - Somebody Knows
Very contemporary pop sound. The production is full of radio-ready ear candy.
The lyrics go by a little fast to catch all the details the first time, but reveal themselves nicely on repeated listens. I appreciated the clearness of the vocals -- even with all the synth lines swirling around them. The panning at the end is very fun. The chorus is catchy, and I like the breakdown too.
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