The Offhand Band – Program aids food stamp users
- cool chord progression
- very complicated changes. nicely done
- reminds me of ben folds 5
- good vocals great song
- 4
Gold Lion - Message For Vivian
- nice voice.
- strong chorus
- nice ending
- I like that you never say explicitly what you are talking about but that the fealing still comes across
- 3
Edric Haleen - What About Love?
- cool backing vocals
- good message
- strong energy
- nice fade out
- Edric I enjoyed your song a lot. You should make an allies for your more controversial songs so that more people can hear them.
- 4
Jutze - Re: Your Oil
- strong stuff
- good chorus
- nice call and response
- great song
- I like the way the chorus has a different feeling to the verse
- 4
Dr. Lindyke - Prayer For Peace
- very pretty intro
- nice chorus almost feels spanish
- beautiful chorus
- 5
Governing Dynamics - Cameras, Streetlights, And Things Worth Fighting For
- cool guitar sound
- nice vocal rhythm in the chorus
- like that you used different lyrics in the chorus
- well done
- 3
Pat And Gweebol - The Story Is Mine: Confession Of An Undocumented Immigrant
- great song
- like the horn stabs
- great story well told
- very tight harmonies
- the statue of liberty bit is my favoret
- absolutely love this song
- 5
Alexa Polasky - Infidelity
- nice melody
- good call and response
- great lyrics
- nice harmony
- nice build at the end
- I feel like I’ve just bin dumped
- 5
Matt Walton - Take Your Placards Down To London
- bagpipes !!!
- this is brilliant
- great lyrics
- clever choice of song style
- well executed
- 5
Godz Poodlz - Independence And Freedom For All
- nice groove
- nice hook
- like the synth tone
- 4
Chris Cogott - Welcome To Kabul
- sounds like the sixties
- nice harmonies
- cool chord progression
- supper pink floyd
- nice guitar solo
- well done
- 5
Inverse T. Clown - Something In The Air
- like the space invader sound
- funny lyrics
- nice break down reminds me of hotel California
- 4
Caleb Hines - Too Soon To Say Goodbye
- like the story good choice of topic
- well written song
- cool arrangement
- like the call and response
- 4
Matt And Donna - A Tight Spot
- like the synth tone a lot
- great story well told
- I love this song!
- nice twist at the end
- great song
- 5
Wait What - Bunny Please Don't Go
- sounds like thriller
- damn
- great chorus
- funny lyrics
- great ending
- 4
Ross Durand - The American Way
- great lyrics
- nice guitar
- strong chorus
- well said, great job
- 4
Steve Durand - When Frankie And Johnny Get Married
- nice horns
- I’m in the roaring 20’s
- “tootsie wootsie” Brilliant
- I love this song
- great song well executed
- 5
Happi - Double The Fetish
- old school
- great rymes
- very funny
- gross but funny
- like that you told the story
- I think it was three min. well spent
- 3
Charlie McCarron - The Mountains Will Not Yield
- interesting chord progression
- good production
- sad but effective
- good piano sound
- nice vocals
- 4
Jon Eric - North Dakota (I. Five Years, II. Fargo, III. Panic, IV. Rain, V. Dry Land)
- cool piano
- interesting melody
- cool change
- nice backing vocals
- I like that you have different choruses
- this is a really interesting idea for a song
- nice whistling solo
- I like your transitions
- great song
- 5
Alex Carpenter - The Last Launch
- I like your choice of topic
- nice energy
- I like the lyric “if we endeavour to continue our discovery” clever
- cool ending
- 3
Glen Raphael - Billion Metal Dollars
- cool choice of topic
- very pretty reminds me of jim croce
Doom SKITTLE featuring Luke Brekke, Esquire - Going Undercover
- intense stuff
- cool guitar
- good chorus
Noah McLaughlin - Fear Drive
- cool guitar solo
Menage’ a Tune - The Furries Are Heading Back To Pittsburgh
- cool choice of topic
- love the chorus
Young Stroke aka Young Muscle - One Dollar Robber
- both hilarious and sad
- great rhymes
- cool chorus
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Saturday, July 9, 2011
SpinTunes #3 Round 2 Review: David Santucci
Edric Haleen – What About Love
Very creative lyrics! Jammed full of content and abundantly clear what this song is about. Good use of syncopation and off-meter rhymes. Perhaps a little monotonous from a musical standpoint but that’s par for the course with most rap song so I don’t know that I would penalize you for it. My only major criticism is that it became difficult to hear the lyrics during the chorus when full instrumentation kicked in. Otherwise, a good clean recording; excellent job. By the way—this has no bearing on my judging of the song, but—I happen to agree with you 100% on this topic. Great job! I think you need to publish this song under a pseudonym on YouTube or somewhere where it can get the exposure it deserves. I understand your need for privacy given your profession, but I hope you will consider putting this out there as a contribution toward helping to reduce ignorance in the world.
The Offhand Band – Program Aids Food Stamp Users
Nice piano work, and you achieved a good, full sound with the instrumentation. I like your lively bass lines too. I liked the transition from the intro into the rest of the song. Clean recording, good clear vocals, no trouble hearing anything. Very optimistic feel, nice chord progressions. And no doubt what the story was about. Good job!
Gold Lion – Message for Vivian
I absolutely love your sound! It’s dank smoky goodness like a cup of hot cocoa, a blanket, and a cozy warm fire on a rainy day. You chose a pretty obscure news story, so unlike some other entries, I wasn’t able to pick out what this was about without looking at the link to the story. However, seeing what it was, your interpretation is awesome. Very mystical. I liked the use of the occasional discordant guitar twang, as if to emphasize the bittersweet aspect of this. Constructive criticisms: Occasionally (actually I think it was twice) the rhythm guitar lagged momentarily, could’ve been tighter. And during the chorus with the harmonies, the lyrics weren’t quite as clear; in the future you might consider turning the ambiance down just a notch on your vocal tracks when you stack them in harmony, just to aid in the clarity. You know what your lyrics are, but the listener doesn’t always, and I’m from the school of “people should never have to strain to understand what you’re singing.” Overall, excellent job! One of my favorites.
Jutze – Re: Your Oil
Hilarious and rockin! I like this a lot. Love the guitar sounds, especially the obnoxious distortion on the solo, went great with the insulting flavor of the song. Great use of stereo to give depth. Great balance on the mix, very clear and easy to understand the lyrics at all times. Creative and funny! Excellent job.
Dr. Lindyke – Prayer for Peace
Beautiful song, but the quality of the recording could’ve been better; undesirable amp/audio buzz was painfully noticeable at the beginning and at every pause thereafter. I found this distracting and had to make an effort to ignore it, and still wasn’t always able to. The song itself is haunting, sad, and forlorn, very appropriate for the subject at hand. Good job stacking your harmonies on the chorus; the lead vocal maintained prominence leading the other harmonies. Would score you much higher if the recording wasn’t smothered with the buzz.
Governing Dynamics – Cameras, Streetlights, and Things Worth Fighting For
I like the sound a lot, very catchy, relaxed and rockin at the same time. Lots of texture! Lead vocal a little too low in the mix when singing solo, and even occasionally when singing in unison; not easy to hear. Your lyrics are obscure, yet poetic. This is one of those songs that people could interpret a thousand different ways, and would then Google the song to try to find out what it was actually written about. The words are filled with so many potential meanings. Overall I liked it a lot, but would’ve liked it a lot more if I could’ve heard the lyrics more clearly.
Pat and Gweebol – The Story is Mine: Confession
Such a crisp, cheery sound! Very clean and clear, good job on the mix/engineering. The confidence projected in this song projects does justice to the courage of the author of the story you chose. Almost so happy it’s cheesy, but I think you found the right balance there. Thoroughly enjoyed it. Nice touch having the female vocals cover Lady Liberty. Can’t think of anything else to say except great job!
Alexa Polasky – Infidelity
The lyrics were good. But while I appreciate the simplicity of the instrumentation—or lack thereof—you chose, and the fact that this emphasized the “bare honest core of me” feeling you were going for here, I think I would’ve enjoyed this a little more if you had used a six string guitar and/or something else to get a slightly fuller sound. The sound of the ukulele in this song (and I hope I’m correct here; I’m not a string instrument connoisseur so that’s my best guess) just sounds a little inadequate to me. I can’t tell if it’s my imagination but at times I felt like one of your strings is just a hair out of tune. More than that though, just the quality of the sound of it seemed… cheap, for lack of a better word. Don’t get me wrong—I like the song itself very much, just wish it had a fuller sound.
Matt Walton – Take Your Placards Down to London
The droning buzz organ sound in the beginning was a big turn-off for me. Even when you added a second note, it didn’t help the monotony much. I was hoping that would be supplanted by something else later, and was disappointed when it wasn’t. It seems this song was intended to have the feel of a bagpipe-based Scottish military march from days of olde, which fits the theme of the teachers protesting well but seemed to make the song just go on too long. I liked your lyrics and the sound of the vocals, but having said that, it just didn’t quite have enough charm to outweigh the monotony of the droning, which made it, for me, not the most enjoyable entry. I would’ve enjoyed this much more if the droning sound would’ve been just for one verse and/or as an intro, and then more varied instrumentation introduced so that the overall sound was less monotonous while still preserving the stark, determined feel of a military march. I know that sounds tricky, and it certainly would be tricky to pull it off, but that’s the best feedback I can give you.
Godz Poodlz – Independence and Freedom for All
Nice sound! I like the use of the 80’s synth violin. Good mix, clean vocal tracks, crisp harmonies, good job. At first that minor third chord in your verses struck me kind of funny, but it grew on my by the end of the song. The only criticism I have is that I felt that maybe the sound was a little too light all the way through, and I would’ve liked maybe a more powerful low bass-filled drum fill here and there sprinkled in for contrast, or maybe even an instrumental section somewhere with more bass end. This is a very minor criticism, however. Overall this is a very well executed tune and a very enjoyable sound. Great lyrics too, and fascinating story you found there. The happy sound of your song only adds to the irony of the story. Good job!!
Chris Cogott – Welcome to Kabul
Wow. Dude. Just Wow. You produce such an amazingly full sound. Great balance between the various instruments, and great job keeping the vocal tracks clean. Your harmonies on the vocals are impeccable and your work with this song is unimpeachable. This gave me the same feeling of wonder that I got when I listened to the “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” album in headphones for the first time. You have so much creativity, inspiration, and talent as a songwriter and musician, and so much skill in execution as a recording artist, I really think you should be famous.
Inverse T. Clown – Something in the Air
I’m not a big fan of electronica in general—you could even say I’m an anti-fan of most of it—but this song is one of the exceptions. I can hear the work that went into this and I enjoyed it very much! The comical tone of your vocals worked really well with your lyrics and your tongue-in-cheek approach to the subject matter (and I’m a believer in UFOs, so don’t give me flack here people—it’s still fun to poke fun at UFO hysteria and this song does it very well). Good rhythms and variety. One of the reasons I don’t like most electronica is that it’s too dang monotonous and redundant. Your song had enough changes and/or unique events in it to keep me interested and entertained the entire way through. Very easy to understand all the lyrics too. Good job!
Caleb Hines – Too Soon To Say Goodbye
Loved it. I wanted to be an astronaut as a kid—who didn’t?—and this song captured that young dream and the sadness of the end of the shuttle program beautifully. Good job on the harmonies on the vocals! Clean, clear recording, very full sound, good job. I liked the use of the radio filter on the voice to take us back to 1969 as if in distant memory, and nice how you brought it full circle at the end. Good catchy sentimental tune!
Matt and Donna – A Tight Spot
Odd combination of the country-like beat & feel with the synth flute/recorder sound, kind of gave the song a little bit of a cheesy and “cheap” feel for me. Would’ve preferred a different instrument for that lead melody part. Cute take on the story though, and otherwise all of your instrumentation and sound were really enjoyable. Creative way to tell the story too.
Wait What – Bunny Please Don’t Go
Very funny choice for the story. I laughed at some of your lyrics! Good driving feel; it expressed the brooding feel of the story from Hugh’s point of view very nicely. There were a couple times where the male & female vocals combined clashed just for a moment when singing in unison – be careful of that in the future. That’s about the only criticism I can think of though, enjoyed it a lot!
Ross Durand – The American Way
As always, your witty, insightful look at things came through brilliantly. Good flow, nice chord changes. Good full sound with minimal instrumentation; this is not easy to do, but you did it very well. (Which means your recording/mixing/engineering is good, in addition to your guitar playing.) It’s hard to do a minimalist and/or folk style without sounding cheap or too “light” in overall texture, and you do a great job at avoiding that common pitfall in this style. Like the sound very much, like the somewhat raw/loose vocal style, and I love the creativity of your lyrics. Good job!
Steve Durand – When Frankie and Johnnie Get Married
Your use of brass is very impressive! (And I’m a brass player myself.) The overall circus/march/oom-pa-pa feel didn’t really thrill me. It was fun, and funny, and as a comic commentary piece it was fine, but the overall style and feel was maybe a bit too silly sounding, for lack of a better description. Your musicianship and songwriting are very skilled though, so I don’t want you to think I didn’t like it. Just maybe a little out of place in contemporary times? I don’t want to sound like a snob and say the sound isn’t “cool” enough, but I guess that’s one way you could look at how this song rubbed me. I liked it overall though.
Happi – Double the Fetish
Very 80’s feel – I like that! During the choruses though, when you had the dual vocals in unison, I found it to be a little discordant; either a harmony, or more on the same pitch, might’ve been a little easier on the ears. However, in the 80’s style this isn’t really a major flaw, maybe I’m being a little nitpicky. Overall, this was a funny choice of stories and your song was pretty funny, but didn’t grab me the way some other entries did. Crude, but funny.
Charlie McCarron – The Mountain Will Not Yield
Great subtle use of backup vocals and brass for lots of texture. I liked this a lot! Your sound went very well with the tragic story. Good clear vocals, great job achieving a balanced mix. Interesting, different chord changes, really well crafted piece all the way around. Good dynamics, very effective use of peaks and valleys in intensity.
Jon Eric – North Dakota
Good mixing/engineering. I like the sound, but not enough for a song this long. Sorry, I just have to be honest. Your voice in this song at times has a somewhat whiny quality, which is fine, and I’m not saying I don’t like your voice, it’s just a little much for a tugging-at-heartstrings song like this to go on for over nine minutes. I loved the fact that you threw some whistling in, and your whistling is better than the average, but to be honest when you did the whistling harmony it wasn’t spot-on. I would avoid doing that in the future. As an avid whistler, I can tell you from experience, being a little off key occasionally is usually not too noticeable, EXCEPT when you do whistling harmonies, and then it sticks out like a sore thumb and it can quickly detract from a song more than it adds. (Your main whistle was good, the harmony part, not so much.) While I enjoy your piano playing, choice of chords, and overall feel, in the future if you’re going to do a multi-part song this long (or over 5 minutes, let’s say) you might want to throw in more variation than you did, and by this I don’t mean so much chord, tempo, and rhythm changes, I mean instrumentation and feel. A song this long has to keep the listener interested the entire way through, and this was a little too much of the same overall sound throughout for a song this long. Big risk going this long, and I give you points for bravery, but in my opinion it didn’t quite pay off. Overall, it’s not a bad song; it’s good but with the important exceptions noted.
Alex Carpenter – The Last Launch
Good head-boppin’ tune! Good full sound with minimal instrumentation. I liked your catchy, memorable lyrics. Not overly cerebral or complicated, just really to the point and catchy. The overall sound of the song did a good job of capturing the angst of saying goodbye to the space program. Good job! Good recording too, very crisp and clear.
Very creative lyrics! Jammed full of content and abundantly clear what this song is about. Good use of syncopation and off-meter rhymes. Perhaps a little monotonous from a musical standpoint but that’s par for the course with most rap song so I don’t know that I would penalize you for it. My only major criticism is that it became difficult to hear the lyrics during the chorus when full instrumentation kicked in. Otherwise, a good clean recording; excellent job. By the way—this has no bearing on my judging of the song, but—I happen to agree with you 100% on this topic. Great job! I think you need to publish this song under a pseudonym on YouTube or somewhere where it can get the exposure it deserves. I understand your need for privacy given your profession, but I hope you will consider putting this out there as a contribution toward helping to reduce ignorance in the world.
The Offhand Band – Program Aids Food Stamp Users
Nice piano work, and you achieved a good, full sound with the instrumentation. I like your lively bass lines too. I liked the transition from the intro into the rest of the song. Clean recording, good clear vocals, no trouble hearing anything. Very optimistic feel, nice chord progressions. And no doubt what the story was about. Good job!
Gold Lion – Message for Vivian
I absolutely love your sound! It’s dank smoky goodness like a cup of hot cocoa, a blanket, and a cozy warm fire on a rainy day. You chose a pretty obscure news story, so unlike some other entries, I wasn’t able to pick out what this was about without looking at the link to the story. However, seeing what it was, your interpretation is awesome. Very mystical. I liked the use of the occasional discordant guitar twang, as if to emphasize the bittersweet aspect of this. Constructive criticisms: Occasionally (actually I think it was twice) the rhythm guitar lagged momentarily, could’ve been tighter. And during the chorus with the harmonies, the lyrics weren’t quite as clear; in the future you might consider turning the ambiance down just a notch on your vocal tracks when you stack them in harmony, just to aid in the clarity. You know what your lyrics are, but the listener doesn’t always, and I’m from the school of “people should never have to strain to understand what you’re singing.” Overall, excellent job! One of my favorites.
Jutze – Re: Your Oil
Hilarious and rockin! I like this a lot. Love the guitar sounds, especially the obnoxious distortion on the solo, went great with the insulting flavor of the song. Great use of stereo to give depth. Great balance on the mix, very clear and easy to understand the lyrics at all times. Creative and funny! Excellent job.
Dr. Lindyke – Prayer for Peace
Beautiful song, but the quality of the recording could’ve been better; undesirable amp/audio buzz was painfully noticeable at the beginning and at every pause thereafter. I found this distracting and had to make an effort to ignore it, and still wasn’t always able to. The song itself is haunting, sad, and forlorn, very appropriate for the subject at hand. Good job stacking your harmonies on the chorus; the lead vocal maintained prominence leading the other harmonies. Would score you much higher if the recording wasn’t smothered with the buzz.
Governing Dynamics – Cameras, Streetlights, and Things Worth Fighting For
I like the sound a lot, very catchy, relaxed and rockin at the same time. Lots of texture! Lead vocal a little too low in the mix when singing solo, and even occasionally when singing in unison; not easy to hear. Your lyrics are obscure, yet poetic. This is one of those songs that people could interpret a thousand different ways, and would then Google the song to try to find out what it was actually written about. The words are filled with so many potential meanings. Overall I liked it a lot, but would’ve liked it a lot more if I could’ve heard the lyrics more clearly.
Pat and Gweebol – The Story is Mine: Confession
Such a crisp, cheery sound! Very clean and clear, good job on the mix/engineering. The confidence projected in this song projects does justice to the courage of the author of the story you chose. Almost so happy it’s cheesy, but I think you found the right balance there. Thoroughly enjoyed it. Nice touch having the female vocals cover Lady Liberty. Can’t think of anything else to say except great job!
Alexa Polasky – Infidelity
The lyrics were good. But while I appreciate the simplicity of the instrumentation—or lack thereof—you chose, and the fact that this emphasized the “bare honest core of me” feeling you were going for here, I think I would’ve enjoyed this a little more if you had used a six string guitar and/or something else to get a slightly fuller sound. The sound of the ukulele in this song (and I hope I’m correct here; I’m not a string instrument connoisseur so that’s my best guess) just sounds a little inadequate to me. I can’t tell if it’s my imagination but at times I felt like one of your strings is just a hair out of tune. More than that though, just the quality of the sound of it seemed… cheap, for lack of a better word. Don’t get me wrong—I like the song itself very much, just wish it had a fuller sound.
Matt Walton – Take Your Placards Down to London
The droning buzz organ sound in the beginning was a big turn-off for me. Even when you added a second note, it didn’t help the monotony much. I was hoping that would be supplanted by something else later, and was disappointed when it wasn’t. It seems this song was intended to have the feel of a bagpipe-based Scottish military march from days of olde, which fits the theme of the teachers protesting well but seemed to make the song just go on too long. I liked your lyrics and the sound of the vocals, but having said that, it just didn’t quite have enough charm to outweigh the monotony of the droning, which made it, for me, not the most enjoyable entry. I would’ve enjoyed this much more if the droning sound would’ve been just for one verse and/or as an intro, and then more varied instrumentation introduced so that the overall sound was less monotonous while still preserving the stark, determined feel of a military march. I know that sounds tricky, and it certainly would be tricky to pull it off, but that’s the best feedback I can give you.
Godz Poodlz – Independence and Freedom for All
Nice sound! I like the use of the 80’s synth violin. Good mix, clean vocal tracks, crisp harmonies, good job. At first that minor third chord in your verses struck me kind of funny, but it grew on my by the end of the song. The only criticism I have is that I felt that maybe the sound was a little too light all the way through, and I would’ve liked maybe a more powerful low bass-filled drum fill here and there sprinkled in for contrast, or maybe even an instrumental section somewhere with more bass end. This is a very minor criticism, however. Overall this is a very well executed tune and a very enjoyable sound. Great lyrics too, and fascinating story you found there. The happy sound of your song only adds to the irony of the story. Good job!!
Chris Cogott – Welcome to Kabul
Wow. Dude. Just Wow. You produce such an amazingly full sound. Great balance between the various instruments, and great job keeping the vocal tracks clean. Your harmonies on the vocals are impeccable and your work with this song is unimpeachable. This gave me the same feeling of wonder that I got when I listened to the “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” album in headphones for the first time. You have so much creativity, inspiration, and talent as a songwriter and musician, and so much skill in execution as a recording artist, I really think you should be famous.
Inverse T. Clown – Something in the Air
I’m not a big fan of electronica in general—you could even say I’m an anti-fan of most of it—but this song is one of the exceptions. I can hear the work that went into this and I enjoyed it very much! The comical tone of your vocals worked really well with your lyrics and your tongue-in-cheek approach to the subject matter (and I’m a believer in UFOs, so don’t give me flack here people—it’s still fun to poke fun at UFO hysteria and this song does it very well). Good rhythms and variety. One of the reasons I don’t like most electronica is that it’s too dang monotonous and redundant. Your song had enough changes and/or unique events in it to keep me interested and entertained the entire way through. Very easy to understand all the lyrics too. Good job!
Caleb Hines – Too Soon To Say Goodbye
Loved it. I wanted to be an astronaut as a kid—who didn’t?—and this song captured that young dream and the sadness of the end of the shuttle program beautifully. Good job on the harmonies on the vocals! Clean, clear recording, very full sound, good job. I liked the use of the radio filter on the voice to take us back to 1969 as if in distant memory, and nice how you brought it full circle at the end. Good catchy sentimental tune!
Matt and Donna – A Tight Spot
Odd combination of the country-like beat & feel with the synth flute/recorder sound, kind of gave the song a little bit of a cheesy and “cheap” feel for me. Would’ve preferred a different instrument for that lead melody part. Cute take on the story though, and otherwise all of your instrumentation and sound were really enjoyable. Creative way to tell the story too.
Wait What – Bunny Please Don’t Go
Very funny choice for the story. I laughed at some of your lyrics! Good driving feel; it expressed the brooding feel of the story from Hugh’s point of view very nicely. There were a couple times where the male & female vocals combined clashed just for a moment when singing in unison – be careful of that in the future. That’s about the only criticism I can think of though, enjoyed it a lot!
Ross Durand – The American Way
As always, your witty, insightful look at things came through brilliantly. Good flow, nice chord changes. Good full sound with minimal instrumentation; this is not easy to do, but you did it very well. (Which means your recording/mixing/engineering is good, in addition to your guitar playing.) It’s hard to do a minimalist and/or folk style without sounding cheap or too “light” in overall texture, and you do a great job at avoiding that common pitfall in this style. Like the sound very much, like the somewhat raw/loose vocal style, and I love the creativity of your lyrics. Good job!
Steve Durand – When Frankie and Johnnie Get Married
Your use of brass is very impressive! (And I’m a brass player myself.) The overall circus/march/oom-pa-pa feel didn’t really thrill me. It was fun, and funny, and as a comic commentary piece it was fine, but the overall style and feel was maybe a bit too silly sounding, for lack of a better description. Your musicianship and songwriting are very skilled though, so I don’t want you to think I didn’t like it. Just maybe a little out of place in contemporary times? I don’t want to sound like a snob and say the sound isn’t “cool” enough, but I guess that’s one way you could look at how this song rubbed me. I liked it overall though.
Happi – Double the Fetish
Very 80’s feel – I like that! During the choruses though, when you had the dual vocals in unison, I found it to be a little discordant; either a harmony, or more on the same pitch, might’ve been a little easier on the ears. However, in the 80’s style this isn’t really a major flaw, maybe I’m being a little nitpicky. Overall, this was a funny choice of stories and your song was pretty funny, but didn’t grab me the way some other entries did. Crude, but funny.
Charlie McCarron – The Mountain Will Not Yield
Great subtle use of backup vocals and brass for lots of texture. I liked this a lot! Your sound went very well with the tragic story. Good clear vocals, great job achieving a balanced mix. Interesting, different chord changes, really well crafted piece all the way around. Good dynamics, very effective use of peaks and valleys in intensity.
Jon Eric – North Dakota
Good mixing/engineering. I like the sound, but not enough for a song this long. Sorry, I just have to be honest. Your voice in this song at times has a somewhat whiny quality, which is fine, and I’m not saying I don’t like your voice, it’s just a little much for a tugging-at-heartstrings song like this to go on for over nine minutes. I loved the fact that you threw some whistling in, and your whistling is better than the average, but to be honest when you did the whistling harmony it wasn’t spot-on. I would avoid doing that in the future. As an avid whistler, I can tell you from experience, being a little off key occasionally is usually not too noticeable, EXCEPT when you do whistling harmonies, and then it sticks out like a sore thumb and it can quickly detract from a song more than it adds. (Your main whistle was good, the harmony part, not so much.) While I enjoy your piano playing, choice of chords, and overall feel, in the future if you’re going to do a multi-part song this long (or over 5 minutes, let’s say) you might want to throw in more variation than you did, and by this I don’t mean so much chord, tempo, and rhythm changes, I mean instrumentation and feel. A song this long has to keep the listener interested the entire way through, and this was a little too much of the same overall sound throughout for a song this long. Big risk going this long, and I give you points for bravery, but in my opinion it didn’t quite pay off. Overall, it’s not a bad song; it’s good but with the important exceptions noted.
Alex Carpenter – The Last Launch
Good head-boppin’ tune! Good full sound with minimal instrumentation. I liked your catchy, memorable lyrics. Not overly cerebral or complicated, just really to the point and catchy. The overall sound of the song did a good job of capturing the angst of saying goodbye to the space program. Good job! Good recording too, very crisp and clear.
SpinTunes #3 Round 2 Review: Mitchell Adam Johnson
This was incredibly difficult. The top three songs were the hardest to sort out. So many well written songs this round - you cats are really stepping it up! It's always difficult to decide how much I'm going to value production/arranging. This is a songwriting contest... Usually the idea of songwriting doesn't focus on these elements... But I think it definitely matters a lot. Clever arranging and instrumentation will help support and strengthen your melody.
There are so many different styles this round... How can some of these tunes even be compared? I did my best to rank the songs at their core. I listened for well written melodies and progressions - even if the production/arrangement wasn't the best. If a melody is truly great, it will cut right through to the listeners ears, regardless of the production value.
That being said, I still took arranging and production into consideration when ranking these brilliant songs. In this round, a lot of the strongest songs (melodically speaking) had fantastic production anyway, so it probably didn't make a huge difference in the end.
Here is my ranking. These are listed in order, beginning with 1st place:
Pat And Gweebol - The Story Is Mine: Confession Of An Undocumented Immigrant
Yes! Holy crap, this is so catchy! "And we gotta work together" - that's a hell of a hook. "Got to try to make it better" - those harmonies are creative and cool. Strong harmonies all around. Gweebol's little bridge is awesome, too! That's probably my favorite part of this song - again, great harmonies. Both Chris and Charlie have stronger production (your production is good, too). But this is a songwriting challenge. And in terms of melodic pop songwriting, I think this one was the strongest. I like how it doesn't really sound like any other artist - it was hard for me to draw any comparisons - it's just a solid little song, and I've had it in my head for days.
Charlie McCarron - The Mountains Will Not Yield
Such a beautiful chord progression. Those trombones are gorgeous. Love those backing harmonies. Haunting melody. Nice job on the arrangement - seriously. God - when you sing "there were six of us"... that is terrifying. A little Elliott Smith vibe in those "hahh" type things. Hell of a production. This is easily the most creative song this challenge... Such a hard call.
Chris Cogott - Welcome To Kabul
White Album!!! Man, you really know how to play to this judge. Impressive vocal harmonies - they remind me of ELO. That louder part in the middle was very McCartney in the early 80's. You are the master of tone. I love this song. Your production is solid and professional. Great placement of the shaker. Brilliant ending. This could have easily been my first or second choice...
The Offhand Band - Program aids food stamp users
This is a fantastic song. Such an intricate chord progression!!! Fantastic diminished chord. Your modulations are brilliant. From E Major to G Major - that was so cool. Brilliant use of inversions. And the melody is so surreal and magical. You wrote a great song. What is that chord at the very end? Is it am9? Whatever it is, it is gorgeous. And it serves as a great modulation chord when you used it earlier in the song.
Caleb Hines - Too Soon To Say Goodbye
The strings holding the fifth at the beginning is magical. Cinematic - I think that word sums up your composition. Brilliant. Another full and gorgeous arrangement. Love the chorus - Especially the V/ii chord (C major) and the Bb augmented chord. Nobody uses augmented chords these days - Nice placement! Such good dynamics in this piece.
Matt And Donna - A Tight Spot
Matt - the tone of your voice is heartbreaking. No matter what you are singing, it's gorgeous. Such a simple and beautiful arrangement. The bridge is my favorite part - perfectly written. Great job on this song!
Jon Eric - North Dakota
Sounds like a musical - like the introduction of a character. Awesome! Great use of kazoos. I like the change of tempo - smooth transition. Love the IV with a dominant 7, and your melody around it. Nice piano work at the end - would work well for the score of a movie. Oooh minor iv chord! It takes guts and musical talent to write a song with multiple movements - clearly you have both. Incredible that you were able to do this with such little time. Flat VI to Flat VII to I. So cool and fitting for the end of your song.
Steve Durand - When Frankie And Johnny Get Married
Such good arranging! Like a county fair! Fantastic trumpet playing. Aw, when those flutes kick in, it's perfect! What a solid ending - nice turnaround. Love it.
Gold Lion - Message For Vivian
The music sounds like the score for a cop show in the early 90's... That is awesome. Your voice is beautiful - really beautiful. The rhythm guitar riff thing is wicked. The acoustic guitar is a little distracting at places.
Wait What - Bunny Please Don't Go
Creative start to your melody - I like it. Great use of autotune. The octaves add a lot. Really funny lyrics. What a cool hook - I'll have this in my head for a long time.
Ross Durand - The American Way
Love well written cynical lyrics - like Randy Newman. Your voice captured my attention completely. Great folky song. Love when the guitar walks down the scale.
Inverse T. Clown - Something In The Air
Cool production / arrangement. Those synths sound awesome - kinda like The Cars at parts (Moving In Stereo). Oh man - the bridge is incredible. I like this song because it keeps getting better as it goes on.
Dr. Lindyke - Prayer For Peace
Expressive. Classical. What a strong melody. It's nice to hear someone who knows there way around a minor melody. The music definitely reflects the lyrics perfectly. Nice use of rests.
Jutze - Re: Your Oil
Very cool! Old school Punk Rock! You nailed the style. Right when that guitar kicks in... perfect! Great transitions - all parts of this song are equally catchy. You can handle different styles of music effortlessly - well done.
Godz Poodlz - Independence And Freedom For All
Really catchy song. I like the chorus a lot more than I like the verses. The chord progression in the verse is a little too cliche. Overall, nice pop song.
Governing Dynamics - Cameras Streetlights, And Things Worth Fighting For
Those drums sound wicked. Like the octaves on the vocals. My favorite part of this song is the rhythm of the melody - like at "not looking for a fight in the least." Great use of rests. Could've used a little more variation, perhaps.
Alex Carpenter - The Last Launch
There is a lot of energy in this melody and guitar part. It keeps driving. Great rhythms in the lyrics. Really kept my attention. Could have used something more in the instrumentation.
Alexa Polasky - Infidelity
Pretty melody right off the bat. "So many years ago," - That part is beautiful. I like your harmonies. I really dig the tone of your voice. The accompaniment is a little rough, perhaps - but it's kinda charming.
Edric Haleen - What About Love?
Powerful lyrics, man. Equal rights and the importance of love. Great backing track to your rap - It's well arranged, and I'm glad that it evolves. Really cool chords. That choir/synth type thing is epic. Too many rap songs just keep the same track on loop. A very passionate song.
Matt Walton - Take Your Placards Down To London
Nice revolutionary melody. Sounds like something from Pocahontas. The pedal tone fits with this song perfectly - but in a songwriting challenge, it doesn't show off your abilities very well. The melody is great though. Very traditional.
Happi - Double The Fetish
Hahahaha! "Do it for my dong." These lyrics are so hilarious. Definitely not a waste of three minutes! There are some really cool rhythms in the rap. A little sloppy here and there.
There are so many different styles this round... How can some of these tunes even be compared? I did my best to rank the songs at their core. I listened for well written melodies and progressions - even if the production/arrangement wasn't the best. If a melody is truly great, it will cut right through to the listeners ears, regardless of the production value.
That being said, I still took arranging and production into consideration when ranking these brilliant songs. In this round, a lot of the strongest songs (melodically speaking) had fantastic production anyway, so it probably didn't make a huge difference in the end.
Here is my ranking. These are listed in order, beginning with 1st place:
Pat And Gweebol - The Story Is Mine: Confession Of An Undocumented Immigrant
Yes! Holy crap, this is so catchy! "And we gotta work together" - that's a hell of a hook. "Got to try to make it better" - those harmonies are creative and cool. Strong harmonies all around. Gweebol's little bridge is awesome, too! That's probably my favorite part of this song - again, great harmonies. Both Chris and Charlie have stronger production (your production is good, too). But this is a songwriting challenge. And in terms of melodic pop songwriting, I think this one was the strongest. I like how it doesn't really sound like any other artist - it was hard for me to draw any comparisons - it's just a solid little song, and I've had it in my head for days.
Charlie McCarron - The Mountains Will Not Yield
Such a beautiful chord progression. Those trombones are gorgeous. Love those backing harmonies. Haunting melody. Nice job on the arrangement - seriously. God - when you sing "there were six of us"... that is terrifying. A little Elliott Smith vibe in those "hahh" type things. Hell of a production. This is easily the most creative song this challenge... Such a hard call.
Chris Cogott - Welcome To Kabul
White Album!!! Man, you really know how to play to this judge. Impressive vocal harmonies - they remind me of ELO. That louder part in the middle was very McCartney in the early 80's. You are the master of tone. I love this song. Your production is solid and professional. Great placement of the shaker. Brilliant ending. This could have easily been my first or second choice...
The Offhand Band - Program aids food stamp users
This is a fantastic song. Such an intricate chord progression!!! Fantastic diminished chord. Your modulations are brilliant. From E Major to G Major - that was so cool. Brilliant use of inversions. And the melody is so surreal and magical. You wrote a great song. What is that chord at the very end? Is it am9? Whatever it is, it is gorgeous. And it serves as a great modulation chord when you used it earlier in the song.
Caleb Hines - Too Soon To Say Goodbye
The strings holding the fifth at the beginning is magical. Cinematic - I think that word sums up your composition. Brilliant. Another full and gorgeous arrangement. Love the chorus - Especially the V/ii chord (C major) and the Bb augmented chord. Nobody uses augmented chords these days - Nice placement! Such good dynamics in this piece.
Matt And Donna - A Tight Spot
Matt - the tone of your voice is heartbreaking. No matter what you are singing, it's gorgeous. Such a simple and beautiful arrangement. The bridge is my favorite part - perfectly written. Great job on this song!
Jon Eric - North Dakota
Sounds like a musical - like the introduction of a character. Awesome! Great use of kazoos. I like the change of tempo - smooth transition. Love the IV with a dominant 7, and your melody around it. Nice piano work at the end - would work well for the score of a movie. Oooh minor iv chord! It takes guts and musical talent to write a song with multiple movements - clearly you have both. Incredible that you were able to do this with such little time. Flat VI to Flat VII to I. So cool and fitting for the end of your song.
Steve Durand - When Frankie And Johnny Get Married
Such good arranging! Like a county fair! Fantastic trumpet playing. Aw, when those flutes kick in, it's perfect! What a solid ending - nice turnaround. Love it.
Gold Lion - Message For Vivian
The music sounds like the score for a cop show in the early 90's... That is awesome. Your voice is beautiful - really beautiful. The rhythm guitar riff thing is wicked. The acoustic guitar is a little distracting at places.
Wait What - Bunny Please Don't Go
Creative start to your melody - I like it. Great use of autotune. The octaves add a lot. Really funny lyrics. What a cool hook - I'll have this in my head for a long time.
Ross Durand - The American Way
Love well written cynical lyrics - like Randy Newman. Your voice captured my attention completely. Great folky song. Love when the guitar walks down the scale.
Inverse T. Clown - Something In The Air
Cool production / arrangement. Those synths sound awesome - kinda like The Cars at parts (Moving In Stereo). Oh man - the bridge is incredible. I like this song because it keeps getting better as it goes on.
Dr. Lindyke - Prayer For Peace
Expressive. Classical. What a strong melody. It's nice to hear someone who knows there way around a minor melody. The music definitely reflects the lyrics perfectly. Nice use of rests.
Jutze - Re: Your Oil
Very cool! Old school Punk Rock! You nailed the style. Right when that guitar kicks in... perfect! Great transitions - all parts of this song are equally catchy. You can handle different styles of music effortlessly - well done.
Godz Poodlz - Independence And Freedom For All
Really catchy song. I like the chorus a lot more than I like the verses. The chord progression in the verse is a little too cliche. Overall, nice pop song.
Governing Dynamics - Cameras Streetlights, And Things Worth Fighting For
Those drums sound wicked. Like the octaves on the vocals. My favorite part of this song is the rhythm of the melody - like at "not looking for a fight in the least." Great use of rests. Could've used a little more variation, perhaps.
Alex Carpenter - The Last Launch
There is a lot of energy in this melody and guitar part. It keeps driving. Great rhythms in the lyrics. Really kept my attention. Could have used something more in the instrumentation.
Alexa Polasky - Infidelity
Pretty melody right off the bat. "So many years ago," - That part is beautiful. I like your harmonies. I really dig the tone of your voice. The accompaniment is a little rough, perhaps - but it's kinda charming.
Edric Haleen - What About Love?
Powerful lyrics, man. Equal rights and the importance of love. Great backing track to your rap - It's well arranged, and I'm glad that it evolves. Really cool chords. That choir/synth type thing is epic. Too many rap songs just keep the same track on loop. A very passionate song.
Matt Walton - Take Your Placards Down To London
Nice revolutionary melody. Sounds like something from Pocahontas. The pedal tone fits with this song perfectly - but in a songwriting challenge, it doesn't show off your abilities very well. The melody is great though. Very traditional.
Happi - Double The Fetish
Hahahaha! "Do it for my dong." These lyrics are so hilarious. Definitely not a waste of three minutes! There are some really cool rhythms in the rap. A little sloppy here and there.
SpinTunes #3 Round 2 Review: Glenn Case
#1 - Charlie McCarron - The Mountains Will Not Yield
Exceptional chord structure, story choice, and lyrics. Second week in a row where I was ready to dislike the lead vocal, and the repeat listen changed my mind.
LYRICS – good (2) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – good (2) SCORE: 9 out of 10
#2 - Matt And Donna - A Tight Spot
Fantastic choice for a topic and the lyrics are extremely clever. Not wild about the vocal performance, but this is a tremendous song that is unquestionably one of the best I have heard in this round. I don’t even mind the keyboard sounds.
LYRICS – good (2) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 8 out of 10
#3 - Pat And Gweebol - The Story Is Mine: Confession Of An Undocumented Immigrant
I like the concept and the vocal harmonies are fantastic. The horns are also a nice touch. Overall, this is one of the most enjoyable songs of the round for me.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – good (2)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 8 out of 10
#4 - Steve Durand - When Frankie And Johnny Get Married
Flat vocals aside, this is a very fun, clever song that tackles a hot button topic that is probably the most timely of the bunch. Lyrics made me laugh out loud on at least one occasion. You have a habit of making me think that I am going to hate your song, and then I don’t.
LYRICS – good (2) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 8 out of 10
#5 - Jon Eric - North Dakota (I. Five Years, II. Fargo, III. Panic, IV. Rain, V. Dry Land)
NINE minutes and TWENTY-TWO seconds?! Do you hate the judges, Jon? What did we ever do to you? It’s one thing to have a long song like this in a later round, but I have 20 other songs to listen to and review! On top of that, I try to listen to the songs at least twice to make sure I am really giving the composition a chance to sink in. I do like the “Panic, panic” hook. Vocals are flat in many places, and I would point out their locations if it wouldn’t require a road map to find the instances. All joking aside, I believe you’ve actually composed a piece that justifies the extra song length. This isn’t a 4 minute pop song that has been stretched into an unnecessary length, it is a composition that uses it’s sections wisely in the same way that “Scenes From an Italian Restaurant” does. Well done.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – good (2) SCORE: 8 out of 10
#6 - Chris Cogott - Welcome To Kabul
Lead vocals sound pretty good, but the harmonies sound absolutely amazing. Some nice chord changes in there, too. Great topic choice, but the lyrics didn’t particularly grab me.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – good (2)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 8 out of 10
#7 - Governing Dynamics - Cameras, Streetlights, And Things Worth Fighting For
Vocals threaten to go off pitch in a few spots, but they don’t stray far enough to be a problem. I am enjoying this song, and that’s a good thing because I was starting to become fairly irritable after listening to some of the other entries. I liked the couplet “Gathered close beneath streetlights. Vancouver is not safe tonight.”
LYRICS – good (2) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – okay (1) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 7 out of 10
#8 - Gold Lion - Message For Vivian
The female lead vocals are absolutely stellar. Good backup vocals, too. The same rhythm issues that plagued the band’s round one entry are present here and are actually more noticeable (Example: the rhythm guitar stumbles and falls out of rhythm at :15, 1:16 and 2:13.) I greatly enjoy Gold Lion’s sound, but they would benefit from taking a little more time in the studio to tighten up the recordings a bit. I hope they survive the round, because I hear great potential.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – okay (1) DYNAMICS – good (2) SCORE: 7 out of 10
#9 - The Offhand Band - Program Aids Food Stamp Users
The chord structure goes to unpredictable places and many of the changes are a pleasant surprise. Vocals aren’t necessarily off key, but they sound uninspired, nasal and almost (but not quite) grating.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 7 out of 10
#10 - Dr. Lindyke - Prayer For Peace
Background vocals are mostly sharp. Lead vocals are also sharp on occasion. A strong melody, and the sparse arrangement compliments the composition.
LYRICS – good (2) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – okay (1) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 7 out of 10
#11 - Ross Durand - The American Way
Lyrics grabbed my attention right away. Bonus points for tackling more than one story and bringing them together into one bigger topic in a way that doesn’t seem forced.
LYRICS – good (2) STRUCTURE – okay (1) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 7 out of 10
#12 - Caleb Hines - Too Soon To Say Goodbye
Vocals are mostly flat, but the melody is strong. A good topic. The flashback approach works well here.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 7 out of 10
#13 - Jutze - Re: Your Oil
Fun concept. Not wild about the shoehorning of extra syllables in the line “there will be fewer complications“. Vocals are off-key in the slower spots, but that sounds like that was the intent.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – okay (1) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 6 out of 10
#14 - Matt Walton - Take Your Placards Down To London
Maybe the droning notes in the background are meant to create a bagpipe effect, but I don’t like it. Having expressed that, I can’t deny that the lyrics are clever and I love your choice of topic.
LYRICS – good (2) STRUCTURE – okay (1) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – bad (0) SCORE: 6 out of 10
#15 - Inverse T. Clown - Something In The Air
Good song structure with a fairly catchy chorus. Harmony vocals are often flat.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – okay (1) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 6 out of 10
#16 - Alexa Polasky – Infidelity
Instrument is not in tune, and is grating on my ears to the point of making this song nearly unlistenable. That is a definite shame, because the composition itself is actually pretty freaking good. Lead vocal is pleasant, but the harmony vocals are occasionally flat.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – okay (1) PERFORMANCE – bad (0)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 5 out of 10
#17 - Godz Poodlz - Independence And Freedom For All
The keyboard part sounds completely out of place to me, but I’m thinking it might just be the tone of the patch that is to blame. It’s actually a relief to my ears when it’s gone. Vocals are often flat, harmony vocals are spot on. Not a bad song, but there’s nothing that particularly stands out for me to make it better than okay.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – okay (1) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – okay (1) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 5 out of 10
#18 - Wait What - Bunny Please Don't Go
Superb topic choice, but the lyrics aren’t quite clever enough to take full advantage of it. I do not like the arrangement at all. I particularly dislike the keyboard slap bass, cowbell and the auto-tuned lead vocals.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – okay (1) PERFORMANCE – bad (0)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 5 out of 10
#19 - Alex Carpenter - The Last Launch
Nasal timbre of the vocals is grating. Good topic, but nothing in the lyrics really takes advantage of it.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – okay (1) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – okay (1) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 5 out of 10
#20 - Happi - Double The Fetish
The chorus is atonal and grating. Decent story choice, but I find the delivery (and many of the lyrics) to be annoying. Appropriately enough, my knee-jerk response to the spoken admission of “That was a waste of 3 minutes of your life” was “Yes, it was.” Thing is, it’s more like a waste of 6 minutes because I try to listen to these entries at least twice so I can attempt to give honest feedback.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – okay (1) PERFORMANCE – bad (0)
CONCEPT – okay (1) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 4 out of 10
#21 - Edric Haleen - What About Love?
With all due respect, I am not reviewing this song. I empathize with the reasons for keeping the composition private, but I strongly disagree with the idea of including private entries in a competition where the songs are made available to the public. I feel that allowing such an entry would be the equivalent of playing a game and changing the rules midway. I’m not okay with that.
SCORE: 0 out of 10
Exceptional chord structure, story choice, and lyrics. Second week in a row where I was ready to dislike the lead vocal, and the repeat listen changed my mind.
LYRICS – good (2) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – good (2) SCORE: 9 out of 10
#2 - Matt And Donna - A Tight Spot
Fantastic choice for a topic and the lyrics are extremely clever. Not wild about the vocal performance, but this is a tremendous song that is unquestionably one of the best I have heard in this round. I don’t even mind the keyboard sounds.
LYRICS – good (2) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 8 out of 10
#3 - Pat And Gweebol - The Story Is Mine: Confession Of An Undocumented Immigrant
I like the concept and the vocal harmonies are fantastic. The horns are also a nice touch. Overall, this is one of the most enjoyable songs of the round for me.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – good (2)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 8 out of 10
#4 - Steve Durand - When Frankie And Johnny Get Married
Flat vocals aside, this is a very fun, clever song that tackles a hot button topic that is probably the most timely of the bunch. Lyrics made me laugh out loud on at least one occasion. You have a habit of making me think that I am going to hate your song, and then I don’t.
LYRICS – good (2) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 8 out of 10
#5 - Jon Eric - North Dakota (I. Five Years, II. Fargo, III. Panic, IV. Rain, V. Dry Land)
NINE minutes and TWENTY-TWO seconds?! Do you hate the judges, Jon? What did we ever do to you? It’s one thing to have a long song like this in a later round, but I have 20 other songs to listen to and review! On top of that, I try to listen to the songs at least twice to make sure I am really giving the composition a chance to sink in. I do like the “Panic, panic” hook. Vocals are flat in many places, and I would point out their locations if it wouldn’t require a road map to find the instances. All joking aside, I believe you’ve actually composed a piece that justifies the extra song length. This isn’t a 4 minute pop song that has been stretched into an unnecessary length, it is a composition that uses it’s sections wisely in the same way that “Scenes From an Italian Restaurant” does. Well done.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – good (2) SCORE: 8 out of 10
#6 - Chris Cogott - Welcome To Kabul
Lead vocals sound pretty good, but the harmonies sound absolutely amazing. Some nice chord changes in there, too. Great topic choice, but the lyrics didn’t particularly grab me.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – good (2)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 8 out of 10
#7 - Governing Dynamics - Cameras, Streetlights, And Things Worth Fighting For
Vocals threaten to go off pitch in a few spots, but they don’t stray far enough to be a problem. I am enjoying this song, and that’s a good thing because I was starting to become fairly irritable after listening to some of the other entries. I liked the couplet “Gathered close beneath streetlights. Vancouver is not safe tonight.”
LYRICS – good (2) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – okay (1) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 7 out of 10
#8 - Gold Lion - Message For Vivian
The female lead vocals are absolutely stellar. Good backup vocals, too. The same rhythm issues that plagued the band’s round one entry are present here and are actually more noticeable (Example: the rhythm guitar stumbles and falls out of rhythm at :15, 1:16 and 2:13.) I greatly enjoy Gold Lion’s sound, but they would benefit from taking a little more time in the studio to tighten up the recordings a bit. I hope they survive the round, because I hear great potential.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – okay (1) DYNAMICS – good (2) SCORE: 7 out of 10
#9 - The Offhand Band - Program Aids Food Stamp Users
The chord structure goes to unpredictable places and many of the changes are a pleasant surprise. Vocals aren’t necessarily off key, but they sound uninspired, nasal and almost (but not quite) grating.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 7 out of 10
#10 - Dr. Lindyke - Prayer For Peace
Background vocals are mostly sharp. Lead vocals are also sharp on occasion. A strong melody, and the sparse arrangement compliments the composition.
LYRICS – good (2) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – okay (1) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 7 out of 10
#11 - Ross Durand - The American Way
Lyrics grabbed my attention right away. Bonus points for tackling more than one story and bringing them together into one bigger topic in a way that doesn’t seem forced.
LYRICS – good (2) STRUCTURE – okay (1) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 7 out of 10
#12 - Caleb Hines - Too Soon To Say Goodbye
Vocals are mostly flat, but the melody is strong. A good topic. The flashback approach works well here.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 7 out of 10
#13 - Jutze - Re: Your Oil
Fun concept. Not wild about the shoehorning of extra syllables in the line “there will be fewer complications“. Vocals are off-key in the slower spots, but that sounds like that was the intent.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – okay (1) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 6 out of 10
#14 - Matt Walton - Take Your Placards Down To London
Maybe the droning notes in the background are meant to create a bagpipe effect, but I don’t like it. Having expressed that, I can’t deny that the lyrics are clever and I love your choice of topic.
LYRICS – good (2) STRUCTURE – okay (1) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – bad (0) SCORE: 6 out of 10
#15 - Inverse T. Clown - Something In The Air
Good song structure with a fairly catchy chorus. Harmony vocals are often flat.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – okay (1) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 6 out of 10
#16 - Alexa Polasky – Infidelity
Instrument is not in tune, and is grating on my ears to the point of making this song nearly unlistenable. That is a definite shame, because the composition itself is actually pretty freaking good. Lead vocal is pleasant, but the harmony vocals are occasionally flat.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – okay (1) PERFORMANCE – bad (0)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 5 out of 10
#17 - Godz Poodlz - Independence And Freedom For All
The keyboard part sounds completely out of place to me, but I’m thinking it might just be the tone of the patch that is to blame. It’s actually a relief to my ears when it’s gone. Vocals are often flat, harmony vocals are spot on. Not a bad song, but there’s nothing that particularly stands out for me to make it better than okay.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – okay (1) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – okay (1) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 5 out of 10
#18 - Wait What - Bunny Please Don't Go
Superb topic choice, but the lyrics aren’t quite clever enough to take full advantage of it. I do not like the arrangement at all. I particularly dislike the keyboard slap bass, cowbell and the auto-tuned lead vocals.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – okay (1) PERFORMANCE – bad (0)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 5 out of 10
#19 - Alex Carpenter - The Last Launch
Nasal timbre of the vocals is grating. Good topic, but nothing in the lyrics really takes advantage of it.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – okay (1) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – okay (1) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 5 out of 10
#20 - Happi - Double The Fetish
The chorus is atonal and grating. Decent story choice, but I find the delivery (and many of the lyrics) to be annoying. Appropriately enough, my knee-jerk response to the spoken admission of “That was a waste of 3 minutes of your life” was “Yes, it was.” Thing is, it’s more like a waste of 6 minutes because I try to listen to these entries at least twice so I can attempt to give honest feedback.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – okay (1) PERFORMANCE – bad (0)
CONCEPT – okay (1) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 4 out of 10
#21 - Edric Haleen - What About Love?
With all due respect, I am not reviewing this song. I empathize with the reasons for keeping the composition private, but I strongly disagree with the idea of including private entries in a competition where the songs are made available to the public. I feel that allowing such an entry would be the equivalent of playing a game and changing the rules midway. I’m not okay with that.
SCORE: 0 out of 10
SpinTunes #3 Round 2 Review: Mike Lombardo
This review is brought to you from the back seat of a Ford E350 on I90 East between Buffalo NY and Boston MA. Downtime on tour is somewhat of a rarity so I'm sure you'll understand the cause of my brevity. Onward.
The Offhand Band - Program Aids Food Stamp Users
Very strong vocal performance and great piano performance as well - the mic needs a bit less gain and some compression to smooth out those loud parts without clipping the preamp. The arrangement and instrumentation was pleasing, and the melody is very cohesive - using repeated motifs and sections to make a lyrically scattered piece sound tight. (I realize that the lyrics are the article text.) Recommended listening: Cigarette by Ben Folds.
Gold Lion - Message for Vivian
Another strong vocal performance here as well, and it's mixed very pleasingly - the lyrics are clear and understandable. I commend you on your conservative use of vocal reverb on the verse - the chorus section seems a little too cloudy and cluttered. The sizzle cymbal is an often overlooked effect and is put to good use here. At 2:12 when the harmonies come in, they should all be compressed through a bus so it doesn't become overwhelmingly loud in comparison to the single lead vox earlier on in the song. I like the groove and the lyrics are set very well to the melody. I'm not 100% clear on the story here. That could be because I don't have the lyrics in front of me, but listeners sometimes don't. This is a really great entry!
Edric Haleen - What About Love
I award major points for "balls" and "approach" here. The rap lyric is overall very well constructed and flows pretty well. My main bit of critique after listening is that the rhythm of the lyrical delivery seems a bit stilted - not quite a full swung eighth feel ("Lose Yourself") but not quite a strict straight eighth pattern either. This really is a tiny, tiny, distinction, but it really kept me from completely relaxing into the groove.
Jutze - Re: Your Oil
This song presents a much-welcomed scathing view of United States foreign policy. I actually don't have a lot to say about this song - the tempo changes are a bit abrupt but they seem perfectly appropriate for the song. This is the best work I have heard from Jutze yet.
Dr Lindyke - Prayer for Peace
I really wish I were able to have the lyric in front of me for this song. I can tell I'm missing some of the beautifully constructed lines in the tour van. I recognized what sounds like traditional Jewish prayer text in the chorus, supported by rich harmonies. The delivery is very good, although the harmonies could stand to be a bit tighter. Props for pulling off that considerably difficult acoustic guitar part.
I would consider losing the last verse, or changing the order - the "rabbi prays for violence" line is quite stunning and is probably the strongest ending for this song.
Governing Dynamics - Cameras, Streetlights, and Things Worth Fighting For
Some full, lush guitar production here combined with the spacey drum loop creates a unique indie feel. The vocal double in octaves is a great effect for an edgy sound, although I feel it's used a bit too much in this song, and perhaps a better use of it would be to differentiate between the different sections of the song, especially when working with a drum loop which lacks fills to differentiate your sections. This song also lacks dymanic contracts - it's basically the same volume and intensity all the way through. This is a good example of when some arrangement and production decisions can greatly affect the listener's perception of ths song.
Pat and Gweebol - The Story Is Mine
Not sure what's going on with the hard-panned piano intro, it's a bit confusing when listening with headphones. Nice "joy shuffle" feel, although the piano part that's being played would really fit better when it's supporting other instruments - look more towards a solid quarter note style like "Love Song" for more fullness. The vocal performance, though a bit unbalanced at times, is very solid, and the statue of liberty text is a nice addition.
Infidelity - Alexa Polasky
Ukulele! This is a good solid entry, it tells the story clearly and it's pleasing to the ear. My only comment is that it's a bit longer than it needs to be. After about 2 minutes we've heard basically all of the story and the last repetition of the chorus doesn't really add anything.
Matt Walton - Take your Placards Down to London
The 'bagpipe' needs some reverb so we know it's not a really bad recording buzz. This tells the story well, and the form is very appropriate for the style. This is pretty well done and I don't have much non-technical negative feedback. Recommended Listening: Furry Old Lobster by Jonathan Coulton
Godz Poodlz - Independence and Freedom For All
Musically this is pretty cohesive and one of the better GP arrangements to day, with exception of the second bar of the opening riff: the chord is three major with the 5th in the bass (or 7 diminished, functionally similar.) This chord contains the sharp five of the key, but the lead synth melody is playing the natural 5. This clashed heavily to my ear.
The form is good, the structure is good, it's a good length and it's not too repetitive. Some good work from the GP here.
Chris Cogott - Welcome To Kabul
This is a really interesting vintage style recording and it is delivered very well. Great harmony and guitar work. The mix seems just a tad overcompressed. Not much negative feedback here, this is a very enjoyable entry.
Inverse T Clown - Something In The Air
My lack of internet really makes me wonder what news article this song was based on. Aliens always a good choice though.
Caleb Hines - Too Soon To Say Goodbye
I like the theatericality and the cinematic feel of this entry. Compositionally it's probably the best work I've heard from Caleb so far. It's a comfortable length and the form works well. I'm not feeling the hand claps on the last chorus, they seem too 'happy' for the tone of the song.
Matt and Donna - A Tight Spot
Is that lead patch a Yamaha HandySound?! This entry hits an excellent balance between clearly revealing the article the story is based on, and creating a stand alone enjoyable song. This is a funny tune that could be performed well at an open mic night. I like the piano on the last chorus but the ride cymbal is unneccessary - take it out and listen to how much more space there is. Good closing line as well.
Wait What - Bunny Please Don't Go
For me, the story wasn't clearly revealed until the last verse section. Saying "penis" in a song makes me laugh for some reason. I'm super-mature. There's not much substance here but it makes me laugh and it's fun.
Ross Durand - The American Way
Despite some legal innacuracies in the first verse (M rated games aren't sold to <18 either) , this song makes its point and makes it well. The length and form are great here, the only thing that felt a little out of whack was the "bridge" line "states rights, states wrongs." That line can go completely and leave a two-line bridge which would flow much better back into the last verse.
Steve Durand - When Frankie and Johnny Get Married
This is well written and well-arranged. I'm a big fan of the style, although lyrically the 'joke' factor seemed a bit low. The "gay old time" pun is funny but it feels like the entire first few sections are working really hard just to set that up. I think there are a few more "ha" moments that could be fit into the lyric here.
Happi - Double The Fetish
This was entertaining and funny, and although I'm a big fan of swearing in music, the "just fuck off and die" line seems a bit too forceful given the subject matter of the song. The verse line "to tackle me down he's not prepared to commit" is what one of my professors referred to as "shakespeare speak" - flipping a line abnormally to make the rhyme work. We're all guilty of it but it's best to rework things when you notice them.
Charlie McCarron - The Mountains Will Not Yield
You again, Mr McCarron with your "serious songs." How dare you release something that's not a novelty! I'm digging the interesting compound time feel even though it's really a simple 3/4. You have stellar vocal harmonies as usual. Very cool chord progression and brass orchestration as well. This is a very radiohead-esque piece and it's very well done. The backgrounds around 2m are excellent as well.
Jon Eric - North Dakota
This is an epic ten minute musical-theater-style entry that I definitely can't do justice to inside a tour van without the lyrics in front of me. I could have gone for a little more stylistic / harmonic / metric variation between the sections but this is a solid foray into the style. I wish I could say more but I really need to give this a few listens to appreciate the whole entry.
Alex Carpenter - The Last Launch
Surprisingly good production quality for a one-take back-of-tour-bus recording. I am a fan of the money line containing homages to past shuttle names. And I like platter stops.
The Offhand Band - Program Aids Food Stamp Users
Very strong vocal performance and great piano performance as well - the mic needs a bit less gain and some compression to smooth out those loud parts without clipping the preamp. The arrangement and instrumentation was pleasing, and the melody is very cohesive - using repeated motifs and sections to make a lyrically scattered piece sound tight. (I realize that the lyrics are the article text.) Recommended listening: Cigarette by Ben Folds.
Gold Lion - Message for Vivian
Another strong vocal performance here as well, and it's mixed very pleasingly - the lyrics are clear and understandable. I commend you on your conservative use of vocal reverb on the verse - the chorus section seems a little too cloudy and cluttered. The sizzle cymbal is an often overlooked effect and is put to good use here. At 2:12 when the harmonies come in, they should all be compressed through a bus so it doesn't become overwhelmingly loud in comparison to the single lead vox earlier on in the song. I like the groove and the lyrics are set very well to the melody. I'm not 100% clear on the story here. That could be because I don't have the lyrics in front of me, but listeners sometimes don't. This is a really great entry!
Edric Haleen - What About Love
I award major points for "balls" and "approach" here. The rap lyric is overall very well constructed and flows pretty well. My main bit of critique after listening is that the rhythm of the lyrical delivery seems a bit stilted - not quite a full swung eighth feel ("Lose Yourself") but not quite a strict straight eighth pattern either. This really is a tiny, tiny, distinction, but it really kept me from completely relaxing into the groove.
Jutze - Re: Your Oil
This song presents a much-welcomed scathing view of United States foreign policy. I actually don't have a lot to say about this song - the tempo changes are a bit abrupt but they seem perfectly appropriate for the song. This is the best work I have heard from Jutze yet.
Dr Lindyke - Prayer for Peace
I really wish I were able to have the lyric in front of me for this song. I can tell I'm missing some of the beautifully constructed lines in the tour van. I recognized what sounds like traditional Jewish prayer text in the chorus, supported by rich harmonies. The delivery is very good, although the harmonies could stand to be a bit tighter. Props for pulling off that considerably difficult acoustic guitar part.
I would consider losing the last verse, or changing the order - the "rabbi prays for violence" line is quite stunning and is probably the strongest ending for this song.
Governing Dynamics - Cameras, Streetlights, and Things Worth Fighting For
Some full, lush guitar production here combined with the spacey drum loop creates a unique indie feel. The vocal double in octaves is a great effect for an edgy sound, although I feel it's used a bit too much in this song, and perhaps a better use of it would be to differentiate between the different sections of the song, especially when working with a drum loop which lacks fills to differentiate your sections. This song also lacks dymanic contracts - it's basically the same volume and intensity all the way through. This is a good example of when some arrangement and production decisions can greatly affect the listener's perception of ths song.
Pat and Gweebol - The Story Is Mine
Not sure what's going on with the hard-panned piano intro, it's a bit confusing when listening with headphones. Nice "joy shuffle" feel, although the piano part that's being played would really fit better when it's supporting other instruments - look more towards a solid quarter note style like "Love Song" for more fullness. The vocal performance, though a bit unbalanced at times, is very solid, and the statue of liberty text is a nice addition.
Infidelity - Alexa Polasky
Ukulele! This is a good solid entry, it tells the story clearly and it's pleasing to the ear. My only comment is that it's a bit longer than it needs to be. After about 2 minutes we've heard basically all of the story and the last repetition of the chorus doesn't really add anything.
Matt Walton - Take your Placards Down to London
The 'bagpipe' needs some reverb so we know it's not a really bad recording buzz. This tells the story well, and the form is very appropriate for the style. This is pretty well done and I don't have much non-technical negative feedback. Recommended Listening: Furry Old Lobster by Jonathan Coulton
Godz Poodlz - Independence and Freedom For All
Musically this is pretty cohesive and one of the better GP arrangements to day, with exception of the second bar of the opening riff: the chord is three major with the 5th in the bass (or 7 diminished, functionally similar.) This chord contains the sharp five of the key, but the lead synth melody is playing the natural 5. This clashed heavily to my ear.
The form is good, the structure is good, it's a good length and it's not too repetitive. Some good work from the GP here.
Chris Cogott - Welcome To Kabul
This is a really interesting vintage style recording and it is delivered very well. Great harmony and guitar work. The mix seems just a tad overcompressed. Not much negative feedback here, this is a very enjoyable entry.
Inverse T Clown - Something In The Air
My lack of internet really makes me wonder what news article this song was based on. Aliens always a good choice though.
Caleb Hines - Too Soon To Say Goodbye
I like the theatericality and the cinematic feel of this entry. Compositionally it's probably the best work I've heard from Caleb so far. It's a comfortable length and the form works well. I'm not feeling the hand claps on the last chorus, they seem too 'happy' for the tone of the song.
Matt and Donna - A Tight Spot
Is that lead patch a Yamaha HandySound?! This entry hits an excellent balance between clearly revealing the article the story is based on, and creating a stand alone enjoyable song. This is a funny tune that could be performed well at an open mic night. I like the piano on the last chorus but the ride cymbal is unneccessary - take it out and listen to how much more space there is. Good closing line as well.
Wait What - Bunny Please Don't Go
For me, the story wasn't clearly revealed until the last verse section. Saying "penis" in a song makes me laugh for some reason. I'm super-mature. There's not much substance here but it makes me laugh and it's fun.
Ross Durand - The American Way
Despite some legal innacuracies in the first verse (M rated games aren't sold to <18 either) , this song makes its point and makes it well. The length and form are great here, the only thing that felt a little out of whack was the "bridge" line "states rights, states wrongs." That line can go completely and leave a two-line bridge which would flow much better back into the last verse.
Steve Durand - When Frankie and Johnny Get Married
This is well written and well-arranged. I'm a big fan of the style, although lyrically the 'joke' factor seemed a bit low. The "gay old time" pun is funny but it feels like the entire first few sections are working really hard just to set that up. I think there are a few more "ha" moments that could be fit into the lyric here.
Happi - Double The Fetish
This was entertaining and funny, and although I'm a big fan of swearing in music, the "just fuck off and die" line seems a bit too forceful given the subject matter of the song. The verse line "to tackle me down he's not prepared to commit" is what one of my professors referred to as "shakespeare speak" - flipping a line abnormally to make the rhyme work. We're all guilty of it but it's best to rework things when you notice them.
Charlie McCarron - The Mountains Will Not Yield
You again, Mr McCarron with your "serious songs." How dare you release something that's not a novelty! I'm digging the interesting compound time feel even though it's really a simple 3/4. You have stellar vocal harmonies as usual. Very cool chord progression and brass orchestration as well. This is a very radiohead-esque piece and it's very well done. The backgrounds around 2m are excellent as well.
Jon Eric - North Dakota
This is an epic ten minute musical-theater-style entry that I definitely can't do justice to inside a tour van without the lyrics in front of me. I could have gone for a little more stylistic / harmonic / metric variation between the sections but this is a solid foray into the style. I wish I could say more but I really need to give this a few listens to appreciate the whole entry.
Alex Carpenter - The Last Launch
Surprisingly good production quality for a one-take back-of-tour-bus recording. I am a fan of the money line containing homages to past shuttle names. And I like platter stops.
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
SpinTunes 3: Round 2 Songs
The album is now available for FREE download, and you can vote for your favorite entries as well. With the new addition of the popular vote, many of you will be asking friends and family to support you. That's great, but when you do, please ask them to listen to all the songs & vote for their favorites. You can vote for up to 5 different people, so they might as well listen to everyone.
For the time being, in an attempt to save on the free downloads, you can only download the album all at once. I will make individual songs available for free download in the near future.
There are supposed to be 11 people eliminated this round. 5 people have already eliminated themselves by missing the deadline, so only 6 people will be cut by the judges this round. That will give us 15 people left for round 3. Good luck everyone.
You can find the album on BandCamp by clicking the image below:
(Album cover by Dr. Lindyke)
- You can vote for your favorite songs with the poll in the right sidebar. -->
- Popular vote stays open until 8PM on the 9th.
- Judges & guest judges have until 8PM on the 9th to hand in their reviews.
- I will post the Reviews & Eliminations at 11PM on the 9th.
- July 10th 1AM (Sun) - Third Challenge is announced.
Videos:
If anyone wants to make a video for their song, I'll include it here:
The American Way by Ross Durand
Re: Your Oil by Jutze
Billion Metal Dollars by Glen Raphael
Bunny Please Don't Go by Wait What
Friday by Bryce Jensen (Rebecca Black cover)
Edric Haleen was telling people he was going to rap for round 2. Byrce Jensen was so sure that Edric was full of shit, he said he would cover "Friday" if Edric did in fact rap. Well...this is Byrce...covering "Friday".
Reviews & Links Of Interest For This Round:
(If anyone writes any reviews or song bios please send me the links & I'll link to them here.)
- Mark posted a Song Bio for The Offhand Band.
- Dave posted a Song Bio for Dr. Lindyke.
- Jon Eric posted a Song Bio for his entry.
- Ross Durand wrote some Reviews for this round.
- Dr. Lindyke posted some Thoughts about round 2.
- Chris Cogott posted a short Song Bio for his entry.
- Sammy wrote another Negative Reinforcement Review.
- Mark of the Offhand Band got himself & the contest a little Press.
- Jon Eric posted some Reviews of this round.
- Jutze posted some Reviews of this round.
- Randy Parcel posted some Reviews of this round on his blog.
For the time being, in an attempt to save on the free downloads, you can only download the album all at once. I will make individual songs available for free download in the near future.
There are supposed to be 11 people eliminated this round. 5 people have already eliminated themselves by missing the deadline, so only 6 people will be cut by the judges this round. That will give us 15 people left for round 3. Good luck everyone.
You can find the album on BandCamp by clicking the image below:
(Album cover by Dr. Lindyke)
- You can vote for your favorite songs with the poll in the right sidebar. -->
- Popular vote stays open until 8PM on the 9th.
- Judges & guest judges have until 8PM on the 9th to hand in their reviews.
- I will post the Reviews & Eliminations at 11PM on the 9th.
- July 10th 1AM (Sun) - Third Challenge is announced.
Videos:
If anyone wants to make a video for their song, I'll include it here:
The American Way by Ross Durand
Re: Your Oil by Jutze
Billion Metal Dollars by Glen Raphael
Bunny Please Don't Go by Wait What
Friday by Bryce Jensen (Rebecca Black cover)
Edric Haleen was telling people he was going to rap for round 2. Byrce Jensen was so sure that Edric was full of shit, he said he would cover "Friday" if Edric did in fact rap. Well...this is Byrce...covering "Friday".
Reviews & Links Of Interest For This Round:
(If anyone writes any reviews or song bios please send me the links & I'll link to them here.)
- Mark posted a Song Bio for The Offhand Band.
- Dave posted a Song Bio for Dr. Lindyke.
- Jon Eric posted a Song Bio for his entry.
- Ross Durand wrote some Reviews for this round.
- Dr. Lindyke posted some Thoughts about round 2.
- Chris Cogott posted a short Song Bio for his entry.
- Sammy wrote another Negative Reinforcement Review.
- Mark of the Offhand Band got himself & the contest a little Press.
- Jon Eric posted some Reviews of this round.
- Jutze posted some Reviews of this round.
- Randy Parcel posted some Reviews of this round on his blog.
Monday, July 4, 2011
Round 2 LP & Deadline News
We started with 60 competitors, then the first deadline cut it to 37. The judges further cut the number down to 26 by eliminating 11 in round 1. Of those 26 that still had a shot at SpinTunes glory, 21 turned in a song by the deadline tonight. We also had 4 shadow entries turned in before the deadline. The listening party was pushed back 1 day because of the holiday, so if anyone wants to finish a late shadow entry, you have plenty of time to get it in before the LP.
The listening party will be hosted by me on July 5th, and it starts at 8PM. I know you're used to the LP's being on Monday, so don't forget...it's TUESDAY this time. I hope you decide to stop by, and bring friends. I'll probably get there 15-20 minutes early, but the SpinTunes songs won't start until 8PM. The album will be available for FREE listen & download shortly after the LP.
Listening Party Location: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/spintunes
Deadline Eliminations: Byron Blocker & The Offbeats, "BucketHat" Bobby Matheson, Jason Morris, Tally Deushane & Brian Daniell.
SpinTunes Store:
I'll probably post a link to the new SpinTunes store in the next 24 hours or so. The items for sale all include the new SpinTunes logo made by Happi, and Dr. Lindyke also helped get the graphics ready for Cafepress. I'll probably tweet the link today, then include it in the next blog post here. Whatever small profits are made will go towards getting shirts for our past & future champions. They will also go towards other costs of running the contest & blogs. For instance, we ran out of free BandCamp downloads last month. For $20 I could have bought 1,000 free downloads to insure the music is always available to download.
Geeky Pleasures Radio Show:
Julia "Jules" Sherred wants to interview a bunch of SpinTunes musicians, past and present, on the Geeky Pleasures Radio Show. So if you classify yourself as a 'geek', and would be available the first Friday in August, you might want to drop her an e-mail at jules@thelook247.com. She can give you more details when you contact her.
The listening party will be hosted by me on July 5th, and it starts at 8PM. I know you're used to the LP's being on Monday, so don't forget...it's TUESDAY this time. I hope you decide to stop by, and bring friends. I'll probably get there 15-20 minutes early, but the SpinTunes songs won't start until 8PM. The album will be available for FREE listen & download shortly after the LP.
Listening Party Location: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/spintunes
Deadline Eliminations: Byron Blocker & The Offbeats, "BucketHat" Bobby Matheson, Jason Morris, Tally Deushane & Brian Daniell.
SpinTunes Store:
I'll probably post a link to the new SpinTunes store in the next 24 hours or so. The items for sale all include the new SpinTunes logo made by Happi, and Dr. Lindyke also helped get the graphics ready for Cafepress. I'll probably tweet the link today, then include it in the next blog post here. Whatever small profits are made will go towards getting shirts for our past & future champions. They will also go towards other costs of running the contest & blogs. For instance, we ran out of free BandCamp downloads last month. For $20 I could have bought 1,000 free downloads to insure the music is always available to download.
Geeky Pleasures Radio Show:
Julia "Jules" Sherred wants to interview a bunch of SpinTunes musicians, past and present, on the Geeky Pleasures Radio Show. So if you classify yourself as a 'geek', and would be available the first Friday in August, you might want to drop her an e-mail at jules@thelook247.com. She can give you more details when you contact her.
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