Here are your rankings from EmKayDeeBee:
Read on for EmKayDeeBee's reviews!
General thoughts…
First off, you all did it, and special kudos to those who felt the fear and did it anyway.
In listening to these songs, it became apparent that key changes often mean that at some point the vocals arrive somewhere that the vocal range doesn’t find comfortable… If you achieved the key changes and still worked well with your own voice ability, I’ve rewarded this.
There are key changes, and there are key changes… my priority was not necessarily how clever or complex the theory was, but how well I felt it sounded and worked as a finished song.
Thank you to those who still wrote an actual song bio as well as giving the chord/key information.
Finally, ranking and reviewing this many in one week on top of the day/night job has been hard time-wise, so I am probably more direct and dare I say it, blunt, in my reviews this week. (I remember feeling devastated by blunt reviews in SpinTunes17; now I’m on the judging side, I get it! So don’t take them personally, they are just a tired person’s way of communicating this week.).
First off, the shadows…
Jon Porobil feat. Cybronica: Couches
This has great contrasts – those opening acappela vocals from Cybronica are stunning, then that transition into band and Jon vocals… structurally brilliant with how you then layer the two parts. You can hear a production difference between you both where it’s clear you recorded them separately and have edited them together. (I mean, of course you did, but it’s ideal for us not to be hearing it.) I love the ‘couch is a couch’ repetition, and the layering following on – superb!
▷ - Bottles
Ah, thank you for this – I really enjoyed it! I love the ripples under the chorus and generally the sound choices are excellent. I’m smiling listening to this – I don’t want to wake up!! Please can you make a multi-track video of you performing this?! (Do you know the Acappela app? That would work…)
And now my reviews for Round 2, in ascending order…
22 – Hot Pink Halo: Shape Shifter
Firstly, congratulations on creating the catchiest song of the round, I am sh-sh-sh-sh’ing around my house. The lyrics with double meanings are clever (though I needed to read them to grasp them - they are not always clear). Some of the lines don’t quite span well, they occasionally feel a little awkward. I do like the delivery on ‘drop’ and ‘scream’. The earlier key changes you do work well and feel quite natural, but I find the ending cheesy – and to fit all these shifts in, you start the song too low for your voice, and end it too high for it.
21 – Brain Weasels: Intervention
I find the choice of emphasis on certain words on the lyrics quite counter to where the natural leaning would be; there are various examples, but in the chorus you emphasise “This is” rather than getting to the key word of ‘not’. (The pre-chorus has similar things going on.) The change on the word “head” nearly works (F# on an E chord), the excessive cymbal (?) here almost works to cover it, and I do like that you use your vocals to take us there. The panning varies too much for me in this song, and overall I’m feeling the vocals are a bit too far back in the mix. I can definitely hear vocal strain on the higher parts with it becoming a bit shouty (perhaps that’s fitting for the nature of the song?) but as we get higher the intonation also starts to vary (sad/fad). I’d have liked more backing vocals audible in the chorus. The ending is very long, very repetitious and I’m not sure what purpose that is fulfilling.
20 – Governing Dynamics: Where’s The Fire
I like how you end the song, and love the guitar solo in the instr.break, especially with it starting high and becoming lower to lead back to the vocals. The key changes unfortunately leave this song feeling like it has lots of different sections, it doesn’t quite flow enough for me (though the ‘and I’m left wondering’ lead into the second chorus helps). This song stretches you vocally, but you make it work for the delivery of the story so you get away with it (and you have a great voice). The underlying distortion behind everything really grates on me – if you gave us a break from it at times it would have more meaning when it was present. I feel like I’d really enjoy this song without that constant distortion, but with it, I want to retune my radio.
19 – The Popped Hearts: Hey Jane
The intro being computer games sound-style really works, the other game noises make me smile, but very quickly gets tedious. The modulation into the chorus is good (thank you for the lovely way you described the key changes in your notes btw, it was nicely done). The change to C# major on ‘walking back’, raising the semitone from E to F, is nice. The total-stop method for returning is okay, but feels a bit of a cop-out. The panning you use doesn’t work for me (it doesn’t add to the song), your vocals feel stretched and start to become pitchy, and I’m grumpy because I feel like you’re just using Jane for her tokens… (to be clear, that last one doesn’t actually affect your ranking!)
18 – iveg: Kara Lost the Keys
You tell the story well, and I like your rhyming scheme. I like the link to the idea of keys (did you guys actually hide the keys?). I like your timing on the chorus, and the nah nah nahs. You have a strong ending (though you cut the sound short, why?!). The shouting in the background part is effective at first, but then becomes tedious. Performance wise this feels like it would benefit from more takes to really nail the vocals; the lifts in key take you out of your comfort zone and we have some tricky pitchiness in places.
17 – Cavedwellers: Don’t Take It Lightly
You get straight into the story, and I love the subtle changes that alter the moment from wedding to funeral, along with the different meanings ‘taking a life’ can have. I don’t quite get the bridge in this context, and musically the bridge also takes a while to settle. The key changes generally leave this song a bit sectiony, and it sometimes feels uncomfortable – I’ve been trying to put my finger on why, and I think it’s to do with the thuddy not quite clear-pitched bass which clashes for eg with the guitar solo notes (something to do with the F# in the bass I think?). The chorus vocals are a little bit of a stretch for you, though you use the backing vocals to help cover this, and it’s great that you have more than one harmony in the backing. Your second verse is in a major key, though the moment you describe is less so – you could have used the key choice to highlight this. I love the layered vocals near the end (though you do go on a bit).
16 – Phlub: In Memory
You make some interesting texture choices, which really work and this is a well produced song. Your vocals are clear, and I like the choice backing vocals. I like the way the lyrics span and love the climbing mandolin chords when they happen. Unfortunately your clever modulations takes the song far too low for your voice by the end, and you lose strength and clarity; the style of your singing where you slide to and away from notes doesn’t help this.
15 – Glennny: No Fool At All
This is thoughtfully structured. I love the upbeat backing do-do-doos, but does it need the repetition in the intro? It could have been nice to leave it on the lift rather than the conclusion. You have a big vocal range and you work within it well. I really like the final line of the choruses. The transition to the outro at the very end jars a bit, but maybe it works with the storytelling? This is another song that changes key so much that I feel the bridge loses its place as a contrast moment. Overall, this song did grow on me, and the subject matter made me want to like it more, but it still didn’t keep me engaged enough throughout.
14 – chewmeupspitmeout: you don’t belong to me
I love the opening texture and drive that you create. The production pulls this song together well, and I like the electric arpeggios. Ab to F major is a nice move. The switching to falsetto for the high verses is a great way to deal with it moving out of your normal vocal range, well done, and the space you create is a lovely contrast. I like the 3-line chorus, but I’m not sure about your bridge – lyrically does it work? The minor key for it does work however given the lyrics. The drop-out to leave the percussion at the end is a pleasing textural change, but you then just do a fade – what’s the purpose of the ending?
13 – Mandrake: Chaotic Thought Process
I love the intro and the positioning of the sounds are well thought through. I feel like you set out to convey an unsettling emotional state, and you achieve that so well. Better yet, you achieve it in a way that lets the audience appreciate it without being subjected to it. Well done. The backing vocals are nice, and you create variety with your different vocals overall. I love the ‘I’m pacing *pause* *can-opening*’ part, it’s really effective. Overall this has a clever vibe and the key changes work. I would like your vocals to be higher in the mix, they are often behind the accompanying sounds. Good, intentional ending.
12 – The Pannacotta Army: No For An Answer
First off, you do have key changes (not quite the ones you think, but it is there and it still meets the criteria). Your opening chord progression is very “Blackbird singing in the dead of night” and generally you have a very Simon&Garfunkel sound in this song. It works, though I would prefer you to have more of your own sound like you did in round 1 - but this is, no question, a fantastic performance, with beautiful lyrics. You haven’t overdone the key changes, they are simple but comfortable (the change to C# for the ‘No sign of’ is the least smooth, which stands out as the others moved so well). This is a very pleasant listen, but sadly doesn’t stay with me beyond the here and now each time.
11 – Sober: The First Will Be The Last
Lyrically you achieve the story you set out to, and as we always expect from you, this is phenomenal playing and quite a performance. The First/Last and cycling through to the original key is a pleasing touch. The key changes suit the Johnny Cash vibe, but I do find them very cheesy, and it effectively means we get the same music five times over. (I do like the breaks pre verses 4 and 5, they’re a welcome breather.) You just get away with the stretch to your vocals on this – that verse 5 is a close-run thing - you stay on pitch well but we can just hear the strain. (By heck, you’re a good singer though!)
10 – Ominous Ride: Drift Asunder
I found this song really hard to rank… The 44 second intro is loooooong, does it serve a purpose? The layered vocals initially are really effective, but then there’s no let-up, and so they lose their value. I like the lyrical direction you take, it works well, and the whispered ‘get back up’ part. You make some interesting panning choices (eg the beginning? You had me checking my headphones with that initial hard left pan!) You do achieve key changes in this piece (not the ones you wrote down, eg you actually move from Em to Gm and later to G+) but they work naturally. I love the guitar solo and how it almost sounds like a violin when it first starts. You also kept the song in a good vocal range for yourself. Nice shift down on the word ‘down’ and up on ‘up’. The final chord at the ending was reminiscent of Queen, and works.
9 – Siebass: Turn the Key
The story really kept me engaged. I love the texture with what I would describe as ‘xylophonic pizzicato’ under the verses (random info - a harp can make this sound, it’s really cool). The pre-chorus, with its contrary-motion chromatic movement starts wonderfully, but then feels uncomfortable on the third line with some pitch-issues in the backing vocals. Generally the delivery on this song is great with nice-spanning lyrics. It occasionally goes too low for you, and it would be interesting to hear you sing without the slides. Having the key change on the bridge is a perfectly natural place for it and using the handclaps to cover the return also works well in tying the piece together. (The bridge is indeed in A+ but not quite the chords you think – you possibly labelled your bass note, which isn’t the same as being the chord name? Happy to share what chords I think they are if interested, but not relevant here as the key change is the challenge and you achieve that.) I love the ending, and found myself singing along generally to the choruses and adding yet further harmonies.
8 – GFS: Ready
Great storytelling, and the lift into the first chorus as the mood in your words also lift works well. Generally, your delivery of your early verses feels a bit clinical somehow, and the ‘fucking’ jars as you lean into it. As we get to choruses 2 and 3 I start to hear the emotion in the voice which better suits the song. Generally you build the textural variety through the song with a strong and meaningful ending. Your vocal placing high in the mix seems to be your style, but I think it could do with being further back. It’s interesting that there are no harmonies in the vocals, just doubling, so you have a line that says ‘breaking through the monotone’ but you don’t…
7 – Jealous Brother: Time Has Its Orders
Okay, first off, what’s with the silence pre starting the actual song? Cybronica pointed this out in round 1, so I really don’t get why you would do it again when it’s such an easy fix? You may not care, but that would be a shame when you obviously work hard to create well put-together songs. We also hear a hangover of a chord you’ve strummed, presumably to help you pitch the vocals – fine to do, but then cut the sound dead and then start the song, then edit the final recording to start at the actual beginning of the song. Okay, rant over!
This song is actually a great example of how to incorporate key changes without labouring it (such a pleasant contrast to your round 1 song!). You keep it in your comfortable vocal range whilst still using your full range well. The harmonies are lovely, I’d like more of these in the mix please. The melodic descent on ‘still sinking’ is nice. I like that the title only appears in the bridge. Lyrically there are some breaks I’d have liked smoothed over, so it works okay on ‘the eyes / see’ but then starts to feel laboured on ‘what they want / to see’. The ending is grand, and overall this a good job.
6 – nightingale’s fiddle: Chicago
This is a brave and effective song, making brilliant use of space. The enharmonics are clever, and using them to cover your pedal changes is nicely done (I only hear a couple in the middle). I would try not to pause just pre the 2nd verse, and I’d have considered making the 2nd verse half its length, but generally the structure works well. I love the contrast between the hands and voice in this song, thank you for this; the harp supports but is interesting in its own right. I love your high notes, especially on ‘lingers’. I get why you stress the ‘fucking asshole’ and it’s a fab contrast to the gentle verse. Have you considered that there would also be great power in delivering that line (maybe nearer the end of the song) with a softer edge too? I’ll leave general production notes to other more knowledgeable judges, but if you could let the notes ring out under your last vocal rather than damping them that would be a better ending for me.
5 – The Dutch Widows: A Moderate Alligator
I can hear your lyrics, nice one! (Amusingly, I thought the ‘can I… cure my’ sounded Welsh at first…) The key changes feel comfortable, I like the vocal and guitar harmony, and the variety and space you create eg. on ‘I still like…’. You took the alligator idea and ran with it – the outro is hilarious (though a bit lengthy for me).
4 – Jim Tyrrell: The Fall
This is very Ben Folds (which is right up my street). A great performance – it feels like I’m watching you live. I like the change on ‘alive’, it’s really effective. The delay fx on the vocals in the chorus also work well (great that you don’t just apply it to the whole track). The ba-ba-baas are a nice breather, and overall your delivery has emotional content and works with your vocal range brilliantly. The key changes in general flow well. A brilliant, well-rounded song, thank you.
3 – Stacking Theory: Sea Change
This is really nicely done – good lyrical clarity, simple but effective. I like how it circles back (as, of course, does the key). I love the lowering on ‘I haven’t got’ then the lift to ‘sea change’. The key changes are natural feeling but add to the lyrical meaning. The textures you include, with lovely subtle backing harmonies present but with a light touch. Be careful on your diction in places (wave becomes way, place becomes play and sometimes sea change becomes sea-chain). On the ending, I’d have let it hang on that final lyric without the fade-out backing. Overall a well thought through song both lyrically and on production, you perform it well without stretching your vocals. Great job.
2 – Tunes by LJ: Modulate Me
Lyrically this is brilliant, clever but not silly or forced. Being really picky, when the C reclaims you you’re actually on Am… You keep the vocals comfortable and the key changes actually tell the story, which is a marvellous meeting of the challenge. You have great space within the song and the texture choices work well. Well produced and just the right length, bravo.
1 – Pigfarmer Jr: Say Goodbye To The River
I love the heartfelt topic, which you deliver with emotion without overdoing anything. You have clear vocals and the mix/production is excellent. I love the lift (then fall) in the melody on ‘the reason that you cry’, it happens elsewhere too but on that particular line it gives me goosebumps. The key changes work so smoothly and vocally you don’t stretch beyond your capabilities (you do make good use of your actual range though). I like that you met the challenge but also achieved a brilliant and meaningful song – one to be proud of.
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