SpinTunes #11 Round 2 Reviews: Zoe Gray

Jon Eric - Candy Cigarette

Guilty pleasure: you.

This is really cute and fun. The melody is incredibly catchy, and not only in the chorus! The lyrics are good, and the imagery keeps in line with your candy theme. The first line of the chorus takes a lot from “I Want Candy”, but the rest of it is different enough that I don’t worry about it. It could do with some vocal harmonies in the chorus, maybe. I was literally bouncing in my seat during this song! The clapping was great, the piano bridge was exceptional, and the lyrics were… sweet!

Governing Dynamics - Ireland Day

Guilty pleasure: U2.

Well, I can see straightaway that you’re wrong about one thing: it is so totally cool to like U2! Don’t feel guilty. Alright, first off, you do an amazing job of making this sound like… U2. The melody is great, the guitar is wonderful, and the echoing synths really evoke an 80’s feel. I’d love more variation of the melody to separate the feels of the chorus from the verse, and the song goes on a little long, but this is really good. You really take a page from U2’s playbook with the whole feel of this song, and I love it!

Jailhouse Payback - Watching “Lockdown”

Guilty pleasure: “Lockdown”

The guitar in banjo is this are great! The song has a full instrumentation and the vocal harmonies are SO good for this type of song. I really like this; nice melody and chord progression. And it made me physically move because of the great beat! The guitar licks and solos are really well done. Altogether, this is fun, and the banjo and harmonies really make it unique.

Ross Durand - Uh Oh!

Guilty pleasure: spaghettios. 

This is super catchy and funny, and the melody is fun to sing along with. The tambourine+guitar combo is great, and the electric guitar kicks in at just the right moment. The guitar in the bridge is good but it’s a little shrill, and louder than the rest of the song. The harmonies in the second chorus are totally on, though, and this whole thing is bouncy and fun.

Megalodon - Exact Change

Guilty pleasure: paying for things with exact change.

This is fun and the instruments are really interesting. The kind of “clinking” drums in the beginning really evoke a “metallic” feel. This reminds me of Jonathan Coulton in some ways. The instrumentations is really good: all the instruments cut in and out just at the right times. The vocal echoing also makes me think of Morrissey. The bridge is good, I like the vocal separation from ear to ear, and I like how you end on a major 7.

“BucketHat” Bobby - Ode To Internet Explorer

Guilty pleasure: Internet Explorer.

This chord progression is simple but sweet. This is really cute and bouncy, and the rhyme scheme is really good, with a lot of internal rhymes. Is that a xylophone in the background? It’s great. The chord progression is actually kind of subversive: you think it’s gonna go somewhere and it goes somewhere else. This is altogether really cute and great.

James Young - Love (Actually)

Guilty pleasure: “Love Actually”

This is super funny. I actually am not the hugest fan of Love Actually but this is really fun and the lyrics are super good. I LOVE the rhymes and background instrumentals in the verses. This is incredibly funny, with great lyrics.

Mark Humble - Secret Desire

Guilty pleasure: internet cats.

Whoo! Here we go with heavy metal. Super fast guitar and drums and intense guitar riffs, which are great in contrast with the subject matter… internet cats. This is really funny (I love your falsetto) and it’s hella hardcore. The bridge made me literally laugh out loud.

Glen Raphael - Cadbury Shanty

Guilty pleasure: Cadbury eggs.

This feels like an old folk tune from Britain or something, and I totally feel you on the Cadbury egg dilemma, bro. The rhymes and lyrics tell a hilarious, florid story… and there are a LOT of lyrics. I really love the vocal layering and harmonies that kick in during the second chorus. The shakers are a nice touch, and whatever that percussion is int he background of the last chorus is great. Are those spoons? I don’t know, but I like it, and I like the ending.

Emperor Gun - Electricity

Guilty pleasure: technology.

The instrumentals in this song are incredibly good. They sound futuristic and tech-y. The vocals need to be a little louder, though, I can’t always hear what you’re singing very well. After reading the lyrics, however, they’re great! I like a lot of the metaphors and vocabulary, they make our world sound like a dystopian wasteland.

Adadm Sakellarides - Guilty Pleasure

Guilty pleasure: “Judge Judy”.

I like the chord progression in this. The rhymes are really good and I love the harmonies in the chorus, but the vocals could be a little louder. I really like the effects on the background vocals in the chorus, and the transitions from the major choruses to the minor verses and really good. You make me wish I’d seen Judge Judy.

Edric Haleen - My Dear Wife

Guilty pleasure: playing video games with your wife.

This starts off incredibly strong and, well, intense. The piano is fantastic, and your vocal range is really good. There could be more fluidity in the transitions between sections, and the vocals are a little loud compared to the instrumentals, but the whistling is a great touch. (And weirdly in tune, how do you whistle so well?) I’m interested in what game you and your wife play together. This is funny and relatable.

Rob from Amersfoort - Girls in Leggings

Guilty pleasure: girls in leggings.

The instrumentals in this are great, and I love the separation of instruments to each ear. This is very evocative of the Beatles, with the vocals and chord progression and melody— but like, later, trippier Beatles stuff. I like the vocal doubling and effects, and the bridge is really cool. This is funny and psychedelic.

Ellie Sparrow - Bathe In Media

Guilty pleasure: social media.

This has a really cute melody, and although it has a minimalistic arrangement, the bass really fills it out, and the cowbells add that spark of interest. However, the other background instrumentals are a little brash and don’t blend quite as well as they could, and they tend to overpower your voice. This is sweet, and it has a nice ending.

Ominous Ride - Cheap Wine

Guilty pleasure: cheap wine.

The bass/guitar intro to this is really good, but I was surprised when the vocals kicked in so quiet. The chorus is really catchy and the harmonies are good, but the lead vocals are really far back during the verses and I can’t hear you as well. The rhyme scheme varies from verse to verse; some consistency might be nice. But I like the bridge a lot, and the woodwind in the background I caught near the end was a nice touch.

Pigfarmer Jr - I Like p0rn

Guilty pleasure: porn.

The guitar part for this is really cool, and both the riff into the verse and the riff in the bridge are rather catchy and nice. The lyrics are to the point, and the melody is pretty fun. It’s another hard punk song.