________SpinTunes

SpinTunes 4: Round 1 Songs

2012-01-30T21:06:00.008-05:00

Unfortunately I had to leave the LP before the official entries even got played. My internet connection was just too crappy to handle a livestream. I did keep the chat window open & it looked like people had fun though. Seemed to hang around the 35-40 viewer mark most of the time. I really owe Tom a big thanks for running the LP. I obviously couldn't do it in my current situation.

The songs are now available for FREE download, and you can vote for your favorite entries as well. Many of you will be asking friends and family to support you in the popular vote. 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.

Until the round 2 songs are posted I will only allow people to download the round 1 album as a whole. But even after that, PLEASE download the entire album vs downloading just a handful of songs while the contest is on going. BandCamp limits how many free downloads I can give away, and 1 album download counts the same as 1 song download.

With 34 entries turned in for round 1, that means there will be 10 elimintions for the first 3 rounds. That would leave 4 finalist for round 4. Good luck everyone.

You can find the album on BandCamp by clicking the image below:

(Album cover by Matt Schubbe)
- You can vote for your favorite songs with the poll in the right sidebar. -->

- Popular vote stays open until 11PM on Feb. 3rd.

- Judges & guest judges have until 11PM on Feb. 3rd to hand in their reviews.

- I will post the Reviews & Eliminations before 11PM on Feb. 4th.

- Feb. 5th 1AM (Sun) - Second Challenge is announced.

Videos:
If anyone wants to make a video for their song, I'll include it here:

Toilet Demons by Wait What (The Band)

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.)

- Caleb Hines wrote a Song Bio.

- Noah McLaughlin wrote a Song Bio.

- Menage A Tune wrote a Song Bio.

- Bian Gray wrote a Song Bio.

Round 1 LP & Deadline News

2012-01-30T00:10:00.003-05:00

34 people managed to turn something in on time. The bad news is of course that 10 people did not turn something in on time. A few people pulled out of the contest, while others just missed the deadline. For those of you that missed the deadline, but have a song (or part of one) finished, get it turned in. Shadow entries are awesome, and everyone in the contest would love to hear your work. Anything else that's turned in will be added to the album, and played at the listening party.

The listening party will be hosted by Tom, and it starts at 8PM TONIGHT! Like always, we're going by my time, not yours. (counter has been updated for you) Tom will play the songs in the order they were submitted. I hope you decide to stop by, and bring friends. The show officially starts at 8PM, but Tom said he'll have a preshow that starts around 7:30PM (maybe earilier). All songs will be available for FREE listen & download shortly after the LP.

Listening Party Location: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/spintunes

So many people pushed the deadline, and didn't turn in a draft early. If you wait until the last 15 minutes to turn something in, there's a good chance you'll end up missing the deadline. Files take longer to upload & send than you think, links may not work, power outages happen, computer crashes, bounced e-mails, etc..etc... I know sometimes waiting until the last second is unavoidable, but it should be avoided if possible. The deadline is as much a part of the challenge as the lyrical/musical prompt.

Deadline Eliminations:
Bram Tant - Elsewheres - Andy Glover - Slow Motion Commotion - Spencer Sokol - Spandex Moose - Godz Poodlz - Ethan Ivey - Mike Falzone - Bryce Jensen

(Details about the round 1 judges eliminations will be posted after the LP in the next blog post.)

SpinTunes #4: Round 1 Challenge

2012-01-18T23:59:00.004-05:00

Night Terrors - Write a song about a childhood nightmare. Include significant use of rubato. (2 minute minimum) (your submission is due January 29th 11:59PM)

Example: "Love Of My Life" by Queen
Definition: Wikipedia

- We of course run things by my time...not yours. The link at the top of the blog may be helpful to you when it comes to deadlines throughout this contest.

- The bold part is just the title of the challenge/album. Everything after that is the actual challenge. "Night Terrors" will be the title of the album & should be included on any submitted album covers.

Submitting Entries:
- Entries must be received by the given deadline. Otherwise it'll be posted as a shadow. Received means that it has to appear in my e-mail inbox by the given deadline. I will be going by the time stamp on the e-mail in my inbox. PLEASE do not wait until the last hour to send me something. If there is a blackout in your area, your computer crashes, or your dog actually eats your thumb drive...I will not care. You are allowed to send in a draft of your song early just in case something horrible happens & you miss the deadline. Then you can add polish to your song & send in a better version closer to the deadline. 1 minute late is still late people.

- Send your file in a format that Bandcamp accepts. (.aiff, .wav or .flac) (at least 16-bit/44.1kHz) You can find the specific requirements for Bandcamp files HERE.

- Name your file the song's title, but without spaces & punctuation.

- Title of the e-mail should be the title of the Challenge & your band's name.

- Include the song lyrics in the body of the e-mail. (If your song doesn't have lyrics...consider yourself eliminated. Instrumentals can be pretty, but SpinTunes does require lyrics.)

- Include information on anyone that needs credited if you collabed with someone.

- If you have a BandCamp account, you can just send me a link to your song on BandCamp if you include all the info I mentioned above. Make sure you have it set as a free download, and have it set so that I don't have to put in an e-mail to download it if you pick this option. THIS IS THE BEST FILE SHARING OPTION!

- Other file sharing options if you need them: YouSendIt, Sound Cloud, Drop Box, RapidShare, ZShare & MediaFire. Please send an e-mail as I already stated, but with the download link if you need one of these services. Please follow directions so your file doesn't wind up in my spam or trash folder accidentally.

Side Notes:
- Good luck everyone. I don't care who wins, but I hope you all have fun & maybe even learn a little something along the way.

- Remember that Dave & Tom have access to my e-mail now. If I'm not available, it's possible that one of them will respond to you.

- Remember that you are allowed to send in a little background about your song. Some people don't like to do that, and you don't have to, but if you want to write a couple sentences about your song I'll post it on the BandCamp page for people to see. Some judges will look at the lyrics & this extra info, but they aren't required to.

- If you didn't sign-up in time to compete in SpinTunes #4, you can still complete the challenge & send in a song. It'll be uploaded with the other entries as a "Shadow Song". Check the FAQ if you don't know what that means. You can even complete past challenges from previous contests.

- If you didn't sign-up you can also do a song for "Single Rainbow Across The Internet". You're song would be played during the LP as well.

- The only other way to get your music played at the LP is to cover "Today's The Day" by Inverse T. Clown.

- Feel free to leave any questions in the comments.

SpinTunes #4: Profiles

2012-01-17T22:57:00.014-05:00

Round 1 Album - Round 2 Album - Round 3 Album - Round 4

SpinTunes #4 Rules - SpinTunes #4 Schedule
Round 1 Challenge: - () () (Results)

Round 2 Challenge: - () () (Results)

Round 3 Challenge: - () () (Results)

Round 4 Challenge: - () () (Results)

(Profile order is based on who sent in their entry form first.)

Edric Haleen: Edric likes writing songs, even though they're often different than others may have been expecting at first listen. Care to know more? Check out the link below to visit his website. (Also, please consider checking out http://happinessboard.com/ to see -- and add to -- the Happiness Board! Guaranteed to put a smile on your face, or your money back!)

Links: Website

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Luke Brekke, Esquire: A 16 year old from Minnesota, Luke Brekke is the co-founder of the record label "MediaRose Records." He plays piano and alto saxophone and sings bass. You just lost the game.

Links: @hamisgood

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Bram Tant: Just a guy who likes to write and play music, I've been participating in songwriting competitions on and off during the past couple of years. If I enter one or multiple songs during this one, you can give them a listen and see whether or not you like it.

Links: Website - @dantesxx - YouTube Channel

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The Orion Sound: My name is Oliver Parsons, aka Emperor Robot Hitler Gandhi Jesus Walrii McPoshtwat . I'm well known for getting all da bitches. Like, ALLLL of them. As friends. I make songs about codes and the murdering of cats because no one likes cats (monkeys are much better) and my hair is pretty awesome. It’s all poofy in the middle. I kind of look like a homosexual hedgehog, with the face of a mouse. It’s wonderful. It’s like a hedgehog and a mouse made sweet love. Sweet, sweet love... (Written lovingly by Bethany L Martin)

Links: Website - @Olirulz_747 - YouTube Channel

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Robert Borden: Robert Borden is a singer/songwriter from Guilford, CT who plays acoustic/ukulele pop music. In 2011 he was featured on the popular YouTube show, What the Buck?!, and released his sophomore album 'How To Move On Except Not Completely.’ With influences ranging from Max Bemis to Ingrid Michaelson to Mumford & Sons, Robert has accumulated and sustained a wide following on YouTube over the past few years.

Links: @RobertGBorden - YouTube Channel

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Wait What (The Band): Made in Germany, What Wait is a machine washable, bleachable towel, chamois, and sponge all in one that washes, dries and polishes any surface. No, wait, that's a Sham Wow. Wait What is a band from Long Beach, Ca.

Links: YouTube Channel

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Ménage a Tune: Possessed of nothing more than cheerful determination, a love of learning and the ability to shamelessly beg for help, JoAnn has only been writing original songs for 2 years. She is still amazed at doing 30 in that time, and appreciates all the help she’s gotten from her fellow Song Fu friends in the past. She is usually one of the first eliminated, but has shadowed every round thus far, and if bumped plans on continuing the tradition just for the fun of it.

Links: Website - @Calliopeva

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Ross Durand: Award winning songwriter Ross Durand hails from Southern California. Classically trained, he cut his songwriting teeth around campfires and the Orange County coffee house scene of the 1990s. Ross specializes in the solo acoustic idiom of the post-Dylan tradition. He has self released three CDs and is a staple of online songwriting contest including Spintunes, Nur Ein!, and Song Fight!, where he currently leads the all time submission list in the Song Fight! archive.

Links: Website - YouTube Channel

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Hazen Nester: Hazen is a two-time veteran in FRED Entertainment’s "Masters of Song Fu" competition. Apart from an album he is developing (and is currently on hiatus), his current musical endeavor is as part of a band that adapts music from a certain misspelled-insect-named band to fit in with a certain pastel-colored equine television program. He resides in central Michigan, plays strange Scottish sports for fun, and is a cyborg.

Links: Website - @qdHazen - YouTube Channel

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Governing Dynamics: Travis "Governing Dynamics" Norris writes music and tries not to take himself too seriously while also trying not to take himself unseriously. He hopes that he will not have to rap in this edition of Spintunes, but will attempt to control his emotions better if that happens. Buckle up.

Links: Website - @travisnorris

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Jon Eric: Based in Austin, Texas, Jon Eric has been churning out his own off-kilter brand of bedroom folk an subjecting the Internet to it for nearly a decade. He currently lives with a dog, nine degus, and one human female, and enjoys writing about himself in the third person, because he thinks it makes him sound more professional.

Links: Website - YouTube Channel

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Elsewheres: Classically trained from a young age, 15 year old pianist and cellist Liz MacDonald is making an attempt to step away from the concertos and sonatas and try something different for a change. She is excited for the challenge of writing songs that actually have words.

Links: Website - @elsewheres - YouTube Channel

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Andy Glover: “Born in the rainy coolness of Washington, Andy Glover brings sunny charm with acoustic pop songs arranged in unknowingly complex fashions— dealing with themes of romance, wisdom, and everyday life, his music is a kind that makes you feel as though you have rose-colored glasses on. It's feel-good, insightful, and always catchy. Despite being from gloomy weather— Andy's walking on the sunny side of life.”

Links: Website - @andyglover - YouTube Channel

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Noah McLaughlin: French professor by trade, songwriter by passion, growly vocals and alt-country vibe by recent predilection. noah mclaughlin is a long-time (if somewhat erratic) contributor to Song Fight! and shadowed the last round of SpinTunes, enjoying himself immensely. He plans to roll up his sleeves and really dig in this time with his full arsenal of three second-hand guitars and array of free MIDI VSTis.

Links: Website

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Dex01: Dex01 is a British, rock based, songwriter who has been writing music for almost two years, which qualifies him as a musician (it doesn’t). Inspired by Jonathan Coulton’s approach to writing and recording material, Dex decided to try and see if he could turn his hand at writing material instead of playing along and jumping up and down. The past two years have seen Dex record an EP turned demo album and acquire a professional mic which makes him some sort of big shot (it doesn’t).

Links: Website - @Dex01 - YouTube Channel

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Slow Motion Commotion: Ian and Shane began playing together in early 2011. Their music has been most commonly described as "transcendent", "ground-breaking", and "the best thing since sex" by mostly themselves and nobody else. They are currently working on their first full-length album, Homeland Obscurity, and are hoping it will rocket them into non-povertyhood.

Links: Website - @SlowMoCommo

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Kevin Savino-Riker: Kevin is the guitarist for the Write Bloody House Party 2 Band, playing monthly at the Lightbulb Mouth Radio Hour variety show and podcast in Long Beach, CA. He is also an unsigned and unknown independent musician on YouTube. Kevin has served as drummer, bassist, guitarist, and lead vocalist in a number of bands over the last 15 years, though never all at the same time. Kevin is the champion of the first Spintunes contest, and he is still uncomfortable writing about himself in the 3rd person.

Links: Website - @RITmusic2k - YouTube Channel

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Gold Lion: Hi there, my name is Mariah. I'm a fifteen-year-old girl with a guitar, a pen, and a brain. I started writing under Gold Lion in April of 2011, and since then released an EP, which can be found here. Aside from being a part-time rockstar and a full-time hooligan, I attend high school in suburban Minnesota. Basically in short, if my life was a potato, it'd be a mighty fine potato. For this contest, I'll be collaborating with my sound guy/percussionist/good friend, Jackie Jansen (A.K.A DoomSKITTLE). If we lose, you can blame it on him. Or, y'know, there's also Heather.

Links: Website - @GoldLionMusic - YouTube Channel

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Trader Jack: Singer/song-writer and producer. I tend to write alternative rock and folk. This'll be my first contest.

Links: Website

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Spencer Sokol: Spencer makes music, but has decided to let someone else be the judge of that.

Links: Website - @spencersokol - YouTube Channel

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Spandex Moose: We do that Nerdcore/Indie Hip Hop stuff that all the hip hop heads hate. Because they're haters. We make dumb rap songs, sometimes they turn out funny, sometimes they entirely miss their mark and are pretty shit.

Links: Website - @happi_mc - YouTube Channel

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Emperor Gum: Moth Rock

Links: Website - @EmperorGumNews

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Chris Tallman: I have been playing the bass guitar for almost seven years, and have been sporadically writing music and lyrics for about two. I enjoy most genres of music, except for country.

Links: @heytallman - YouTube Channel

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Rebecca Angel: Rebecca Angel is a singer/songwriter of geeky themes, but throws in the appropriate amount of sappy love songs. She performs around the Capital District of New York with two bands, The Rebecca Angel Band and The Subs, and has five albums under her crocheted musical belt.

Links: Website

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Jacob Haller: Jacob Haller is a Providence, RI-based musician whose songs (on such diverse topics as love, relationships, substance abuse, robots, and kittens) have been described as fresh, catchy, and quirky. He recently released his second CD, 'Circumstantial Evidence'.

Links: Website - @jwghaller - YouTube Channel

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Chris Cogott: I will try my best to write song(s) to the best of my limited abilities. I will also try real hard this time to not miss the song deadline(s). If anything should happen to go wrong, I will continue to do as I'm told and blame Heather even if I still don't know who she is.

Links: Website - @chriscogott

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Marlon Barnes: Marlon is the late bloomer of a mostly musical family with an affinity for improvising songs, giving instruments names that start with the letter J and planning ways to counteract the oncoming robot apocalypse. He is known most for being lovably awkward and tackling hard-hitting musical topics such as mass extinction, facial hair, and dick jokes.

"I'm probably in well over my head, but I'm excited to be here" - Marlon

Links: Website - @DirtyPiGGuin

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Godz Poodlz: Icon/Rock/Geek/Dad Band! Two neighborz and friendz unite to form “Gödz Pöödlz”! Gödz Pöödlz are Rüss Rögers and Rhöd Dürre!

Links: Website - @GodzPoodlz - YouTube Channel

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David LeDuc: I'm originally a bassist and am breaking all the rules trying to play guitar and sing. I'm currently in the middle of a 100 day challenge to produce a video a day for 100 days. We'll see how that goes.

Links: Website - @davidleduc - YouTube Channel

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Ethan Ivey: Ethan is currently student teaching in Plainfield and hopes to continue his education with graduate study in choral conducting. He doesn't write music often but he does enjoy having the opportunity to do so with so many talented musicians.

Links: @ethanjivey - YouTube Channel

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David Ritter: David Ritter is best well known for his song a week project where he wrote and recorded one song per week and released them on his website, www.MacMufasa.com, in 2010. He is an avid writer of geek music and so far is a cancer survivor after being diagnosed in 2011 (not dead yet suckahs!).

Links: Website - @MacMufasa - YouTube Channel

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Mike Falzone: I make music. I make people laugh. I do neither on purpose.

Links: Website - @mikefalzone - YouTube Channel

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Rosalind: I've been into music my whole life, and written on and off, and even submitted to a few contests, but I've never actually tried to make something of it other than a local karaoke and church star. I'd like to see what I can do If I try.

Links: @girlsaregeeks

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Steve Durand: Steve Durand is a trumpet player and songwriter who likes to infuse his music with swing and jazz stylings.

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Bryce Jensen: Bryce Jensen is a hack musician who is in just enough denial that he hasn't yet come to his senses and given up. He really hopes that he can meet the deadline(s) this time, since he has a bad habit of starting things and never fi...

Links: Website - @psychobman - YouTube Channel

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Caleb Hines: Caleb is a software engineer by day who enjoys pretending to write music on the internet when he gets the chance. A Song Fu and SpinTunes veteran, he is self-trained in classical music theory, and has amassed a small plethora of instruments, though few that he can play well. That hasn't stopped him from trying, though.

Links: Website - @calebhines - YouTube Channel

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The Boffo Yux Dudes: We're humorists. That means we go for the occasional highbrow joke among the necrophilia and genitalia comments. The Dudes managed to reawaken from their coma in 2009, creating music new music for the confused masses. Allan Morgan and Tom Giarrosso head this version of BYD with previous members in the wings, ready to pounce if they make some change out of it.

Links: Website - @BoffoYuxDudes - YouTube Channel

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Jess Scherer: Hi I'm Jess. I'm a Taurus and I drive a Taurus, and I'm not proud of either of those things. I've been writing songs for about five years and have been in a couple of different bands. The band I'm in right now is called Stripes on Stripes, and I'll probably make my bandmate Peter play guitar for me on my tunes. As far as songwriting goes, catchy and original are what I strive my darndest to achieve. I have done a songwriting challenge before but never a contest, and I am mighty stoked.

Links: Website

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Brian Gray: Once upon a time reptilian goliaths roamed the Earth, leaving chaos and destruction in their wake. The close of the Mesozoic era saw a sudden extinction of these terrible behemoths, making room for other types of moths. Sixty-five million years later, Brian Gray began making music.

Links: Website - @BrianGrayMusic

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Common Lisp: Paul R. Potts, aka Common Lisp, is a software engineer, blogger, podcaster, and videographer: a man of many talents, as long as those talents involve nervously squinting at a computer for hours on end. His musical skills are not limited to playing stringed instruments rather badly; he also sings rather badly. His five home-schooled children are driving him insane. He can often be found online, tweeting from the bathroom or posting pictures of his dinner on Facebook. He lives in Saginaw, Michigan.

Links: Website - @paulrpotts - YouTube Channel

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FauX: I'm this 16 year old kid. I've been writing music for ages, but I've only started putting it somewhere now. I think that's about it!

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Felix Frost: I'm a solo musician who makes colorful, schizophrenic music with unusual song structures, styles and subject matter. My music is mostly synthetic, featuring my own voice, and usually involves lyrics that tell some kind of fictitious story. I've released two albums on CDbaby.com under the name Felix Frost, and I'm finished with a third album that should be going up soon.

Links: Website - YouTube Channel

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Jim Holmquist: Jim Holmquist is currently the leader, songwriter, and guitar player for fearless adventure-rock band, the Long Holidays. Whether Jim is with his band, or alone with an eight-sting ukulele and a Guinness, he always delivers a diverse set of story songs. He weaves his improv comedy, science chops, and tall tale telling into unforgettable tunes and party time performances.

Links: Website - @thelongholidays - YouTube Channel

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Drei Viertel Drei: Who knows what to expect when the cultures that brought you Mozart, Burns, Freud, Fleming, Hitler, Haggis, Falco and Wet Wet Wet clash? The Austro-Scot duo of Mick Bordet (The Lunacy Board) and Katharina Maimer (Wiener Blut) aim to find out in their latest collaboration, "Drei Viertel Drei". We cannot guarantee the absence of yodelling or bagpipes.

Links: Website - @MickBordet

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SHADOWS:

SpinTunes #4: Sign Up Page

2012-01-02T16:35:00.007-05:00

The time has come for SpinTunes #4 to get underway. The rules are in place. New judges are in place & they will be working on the challenges soon. Now it's time to see who will be competing in SpinTunes #4.

I will need everyone who wants to participate to copy & paste the following text into their e-mail. Fill in the needed info, and then e-mail it to me at the address I provided below. Make sure you put "Spintown Contest" as the subject of the e-mail so I don't think it's spam. Also use an e-mail that I can reach you at if need be. Don't panic if you don't get a confirmation e-mail immediately after signing up. I'll message you back within 24 hours of getting your e-mail.

I _____________ give Travis Langworthy permission to upload any music I submit into his contest onto his blog (Spintown) & bandcamp. I realize it will become part of an album consisting of numerous other artists, and that it will be available for anyone to download for free. I also promise to give my very best effort in each round to complete the challenges. Providing NEW songs that have not been released before in any form. I also agree that anything that goes wrong during this competition is Heather's fault.

Name: (The name you or your group wants to be referred to during the competition.)

Bio: (Give a brief description of your group/music/history in 500 CHARACTERS or less. I know it's brief, but it's more than Twitter allows. :p Besides, links to your sites will be provided if people want to learn more about you.)

Twitter: (If you got one & want to share. *optional* If there's multiple accounts for multiple band members that's fine.)

YouTube: (If you got one & want to share. *optional*)

Band Website: (If it's different than either of the above. *optional*)

Pictures: (I need a band picture or logo. The image should be 100x100, and if it's not I'll do my best to make it so. Don't forget to actually attach the picture.)

Judges:
Here's a list of the people that will be making the challenges, reviewing your work & of course voting on the songs:

1. Matt & Donna Schubbe - The current champions of SpinTunes.
2. Dave Leigh
3. Peter Coffin
4. Denise Hudson
5. Heather Miller

Schedule:
Sign ups will last until January 17th 11:59PM (T).

The first challenge will be posted January 19th 1AM (R).

My best guess as to what the whole schedule will look like can be found HERE.

SpinTunes #4: Schedule

2012-01-02T16:02:00.001-05:00

This schedule is a bit flexible, but it's my goal to stick to it. If there are any changes made to the schedule, I'll mention it in a blog post & on the @SpinTunes Twitter account.

This schedule is in Cincinnati time. Don't know the time in Cincinnati? Google is your friend....and I usually keep a timer counting down for the important deadlines. You can find a link to that timer right under the SpinTunes banner up above.

January 2nd (M) - Sign ups start.

January 17th 11:59PM (T) - Sign ups end.

January 18th 1AM (W) - Profiles get posted.

January 19th 1AM (R) - First challenge is announced.

January 29th 11:59PM (Sun) - First song deadline.

January 30th 8PM (M) - Listening party will be held HERE, and hosted by Tom.

January 31st (T) - Songs are made available for free download on BandCamp.

*During this gap:
- judges will rank the songs
- judges will review the songs*

February 3rd before 11PM (F) - Judges reviews are due.

February 4th before 11PM (Sat) - Reviews & Eliminations are posted.

February 5th 1AM (Sun) - Second challenge is announced.

February 12th 11:59PM (Sun) - Second deadline.

February 13th 8PM (M) - Listening party will be held HERE, and hosted by Tom.

Feburary 14th (T) - Songs are made available for free download on BandCamp.

*During this gap:
- judges will rank the songs
- judges will review the songs*

February 17th before 11PM (F) - Judges reviews are due.

February 18th before 11PM (Sat) - Reviews & Eliminations are posted.

February 19th 1AM (Sun) - Third challenge is announced.

February 26th 11:59PM (Sun) - Third deadline.

February 27th 8PM (M) - Listening party will be held HERE, and hosted by Tom.

February 28th (T) - Songs are made available for free download on BandCamp.

*During this gap:
- judges will rank the songs
- judges will review the songs*

March 3rd before 11PM (F) - Judges reviews are due.

March 4th before 11PM (Sat) - Reviews & Eliminations are posted.

March 5th 1AM (Sun) - Final challenge is announced.

March 12th 11:59PM (Sun) - Final deadline.

March 13th 8PM (M) - Listening party will be held HERE, and hosted by Tom.

March 14th (T) - Songs are made available for free download on BandCamp.

*During this gap:
- previously eliminated competitors will rank the songs
- judges will rank the songs
- judges will review the songs*

March 19th 12PM (Sun) - Judges reviews are due.
- Eliminated competitors rankings are due.
March 19th 8PM (Sun) - Reviews are posted & the winner is announced.

SpinTunes #4: Official Rules

2012-01-02T14:06:00.013-05:00

These rules are not up for discussion at the moment. That time has passed. If something is confusing, needs clarification, if you just think I made a mistake or forgot something (I am sort of rushing this post) feel free to mention your concern in the comments below. It will be addressed within 24 hours. (a draft of the schedule will be posted shortly)

Schedule:
It will have a similar schedule to SpinTunes #3. There will be 4 rounds. You will have 8-11 days to write, record & send in your song. There will be a short break between each round. During this time the song will be voted on, reviewed & prep for the next round will be made. For more info click: HERE.

Judges Voting:
There will be 5 judges who are not participating in the contest & who will not shadow rounds. Each round they will individually rate all the songs from favorite to least favorite. Then the judges scores will be posted & added up. Here's an example of what the judges scoring would look like:

Popular Vote:
Popular vote will still be a tie breaker, but it will also be a way for people to earn points toward their overall round score. In rounds 1 & 2 the popular vote will be scored like a judges ranking. In rounds 3 & 4 the popular vote only counts as a tie breaker.
If there is a tie in the popular vote in rounds 1 or 2, whoever turned their song in first will rank higher.

Eliminations:
Each round people will be eliminated from the competition. The number of eliminations each round will not be known until after the round 1 songs are turned in. I want the number of people eliminated in rounds 1-3 to be the same (or close to the same), and 4 people left for the final round. So if 25 people submit songs for round 1: 7 people would be eliminated in round 1, 2 & 3....leaving 4 people in the final round. More details to be posted when the round 1 deadline has passed.

This is not a head to head contest, each round the competitors with the lowest vote totals are eliminated. After the eliminations all the point totals goes back to 0. You don't get to keep points from previous rounds.

Ties are settled by a popular vote in the form of a poll I'll start for each round. If somehow that is a tie as well, the point totals from the previous round will decide the winner. If by some miracle everything is tied, the final deciding factor is me.

Final Round:
In the last round, everyone who has been eliminated (who also submitted at least 1 song) will be allowed to rank the songs. This round the judges have no say in matters, but they will still be required to review each song. Rules for a tie are altered just a bit. Popular vote is the first deciding factor, then the judges, and then I am the last deciding factor.

Challenges:
The challenges will be similar to the old Song Fu & "Non Optional" Nur Ein challenges. If you go through the old challenges you'll see that they could be anything. You could be given a theme, restrictions, a technical challenge and hopefully you're forced to do things you've never done before. The challenges will be created by myself & the other judges before the contest even starts.

Submitting Entries:
- Entries must be received by the given deadline. Otherwise it'll be posted as a shadow. Received means that it has to appear in my e-mail inbox by the given deadline. I will be going by the time stamp on the e-mail in my inbox. PLEASE do not wait until the last hour to send me something. If there is a blackout in your area, your computer crashes, or your dog actually eats your thumb drive...I will not care. You are allowed to send in a draft of your song early just in case something horrible happens & you miss the deadline. Then you can add polish to your song & send in a better version closer to the deadline. 1 minute late is still late people.

- Send your file in a format that Bandcamp accepts. (.aiff, .wav or .flac) (at least 16-bit/44.1kHz) You can find the specific requirements for Bandcamp files HERE. You do not have to send in MP3's.
- Name your file the song's title, but without spaces & punctuation.
- Title of the e-mail should be the title of the Challenge & your band's name.
- Include the song lyrics in the body of the e-mail. (If your song doesn't have lyrics...consider yourself eliminated. Instrumentals can be pretty, but SpinTunes does require lyrics.)
- Include information on anyone that needs credited if you collabed with someone.
- File sharing options if you need them: YouSendIt, Sound Cloud, Drop Box, RapidShare, ZShare & MediaFire. Please send an e-mail as I already stated, but with the download link if you need one of these services. Please follow directions so your file doesn't wind up in my spam or trash folder accidentally.
- If you have a BandCamp account, you can just send me a link to your song on BandCamp if you include all the info I mentioned above. Make sure you have it set as a free download, and have it set so that I don't have to put in an e-mail to download it if you pick this option. THIS IS THE BEST FILE SHARING OPTION!

Hosting:
Each round I'll be uploading the songs onto BandCamp as an album. The songs will be set for free download only. BandCamp will make it easy to download songs, you can share 1 song individually or the album as a whole.
If you want to be entered into the contest, your song must be on the album & made available to everyone for free. Otherwise you are DQed from the contest.

Prize:
I didn't plan on there being a prize. No trophy. No cash. I’ll be happy to mail you a t-shirt that says you’re the new champion, but the real prize is knowing you won & the music itself. If you need gifts & thousands of fans to motivate you to write songs in this competiton...it ain't for you.

The winner will be allowed to be a judge in the next competition, unless they wish to compete.

Listening Party:
Tom Giarrosso will be hosting the listening party for each round (he will also help with uploading). Hopefully much like Song Fu we can all get together in one virtual place while the songs are played for the very first time for people. Usually this took place shortly after the submission deadline, and the songs were posted onto the site after the listening party.

Meet The Judges:
Here's a list of the people that will be making the challenges, reviewing your work & of course voting on the songs:
1. Matt & Donna Schubbe - The current champions of SpinTunes.
2. Dave Leigh -
3. Peter Coffin -
4. Denise Hudson -
5. Heather Miller -
* I am the alternate judge. If a judge is unable to do his/her job, I'll step in and take over. If the judge has to withdraw from the contest totally, I'll fill in until I can find a replacement. If I happen to have a guest judge lined up already, there will be no need for me to step in as alternate. (Buck stops with me, but then I blame Heather.)
* There could be "Guest Judges" who drop by from time to time. A guest judge has to be approved by me ahead of time. I'm not promising anything, but if I can swing something cool for you all I want to leave that open as a possibility. When a guest judge ranks & reviews a round, it does count toward the scores for the round. If a song is disqualified by the regular judges, the guest judge's rankings will be edited to stay in line with the judges decision. There will be 1 or 2 guest judges each round if I can swing it. No promises though.
* If judges want me to post a short bio or links to Twitter, YouTube or a band web site just send me the info and I will. Make it 500 characters or less like the competitors have to do though.

Judge Responsibilities:
- Reviewing entries each round. Shadow entries don't have to be reviewed, but it would be nice if you found the time. You can type up your review or you can vlog it on YouTube. If you decide to Vlog your review on YouTube, it needs to be kept private until after I post the reviews on the blog.
- Making the challenges via a super secret website I set up.
- After the songs get posted each round the judges will be allowed to post their thoughts on who failed to met the challenge. (in the super secret location) 48 hours after the songs get posted we need to have a decision on what songs did or didn't meet the challenge. If you don't speak up in that window of time you'll have to live with a decision I make on my own.

Any judge who does not go along with a decision about a DQ will not have their rankings count for that particular round. However I will post any reviews they provide. Hopefully this does not happen again.

Twitter:
For those of you that don't want to check this blog every day, but also use Twitter, I'll be posting updates on Twitter as well. @SpinTunes was created just for this contest. You can unfollow it right after the contest if you want, my ego can take it. There is a Twitter list that includes all the judges & competitors (SpinTunes List). Well, at least all the ones I know that are on Twitter.

Song Sharing:
You are allowed to share your songs before the LP. In my opinion the songs will be better if you can go to another musician in this contest, share what you've got & get feedback. So if you want to share with a few friends or fellow competitors before the listening party feel free to do so.

However...

I would prefer it if you kept it low key, and not pimp it all over the net (via Twitter, YouTube, etc...) until after the LP, but that's up to you as well. It does take a little excitement away from the LP if people have already heard the songs. Common sense. Just don't try to get feedback from a judge, or from me since I'm an alternate.

Rerecording & Remixes:
In the previous contest some people sent their song in ON TIME, but then after the deadline wanted me to post an updated version onto the album (they added bells & whistles). My response to that is ok, BUT you will be judged by what you turned in before the deadline. So anyone who decides they want to make a better mix of their song, and have it replace the one they sent before...that's fine. Send me the info, and I'll switch the files out. I might not do it instantly, but it will be done. Now I'm not going to have someone send me a new mix every month because they like remixing their own stuff all the time, but I'll allow 1 update of each song down the road. These songs are something you should be proud of, and some people are bugged by not being able to add everything they want in that small window I give them...so hopefully this helps...while still being fair.

Multiple Songs:
You can enter 1 song each round until you are eliminated. There is no limit on how many shadow songs you can enter each round though. If you are still in the contest & have multiple songs you wish to enter, you just have to pick 1 song to be your official entry, while the other is listed as a shadow song.

You are not allowed to enter the contest as a part of more than 1 group. So if you enter as yourself, you will not be allowed to enter again as a part of another band.

Wrap Up:
- Dave will being helping me with uploading, posting & responding to e-mails during this contest. My work schedule will not allow me to plan out the contest so that I'm available during each key deadline that comes up. So don't be shocked if Dave responds to an e-mail you sent to the SpinTunes account.

- If anything does go wrong...it's STILL Heather's fault.

SpinTunes Feedback

2011-08-22T07:08:00.002-04:00

I just sent out surveys to people who signed up & entered a song into SpinTunes. If I missed someone, just send me an e-mail & I'll respond.

If you respond via e-mail I will not be posting your responses or sharing them with anyone. They are just for me to mull over while thinking about SpinTunes #4.

For those of you who just followed the contest, but did not sign up, you can also leave feedback in the comments section below. You can also e-mail me if you want your thoughts kept private. I'm not going to debate things with people right now...this is just your chance to vent. I'll copy & paste the meat of the e-mail below if anyone wants a prompt to use....I hear you like prompts... :p

This post will be deleted in a couple weeks, and when this post gets deleted, I will stop using the SpinTunes e-mail address until it's about time for SpinTunes #4. From that point on...don't expect responses from that account.

1. In general, did you like having more people involved in the judging this time around?

2. Of the 5 regular judges, which did you find to be the most helpful, and why? (Mike, Glenn, David, Mitchell & Ben)

3. Of the 5 regular judges, which did you find to be the least helpful, and why? (Mike, Glenn, David, Mitchell & Ben)

4. If the schedule were to change to allow more time for communication amongst the judges, would you be for adding another week between challenges? Would make communication easier, but that’s a long break between rounds & there could be a loss of momentum & interest that comes with that.

5. Is there anyone you would like to see as a judge in a future SpinTunes? If so, tell me who & why?

6. What did you think of the popular vote being used in Round 1 & 2? Did you hate it or want to see it used in Round 3 & 4 in a similar way?

7. Would you like to see the Molly Lewis Rule brought back? A couple people have suggested having 4 finalist AND keeping the Molly Lewis Rule.

For those that don’t remember, the Molly Lewis stated that:
- If a finalist doesn’t enter a song, the highest ranking musician that was eliminated from Round 3 who also shadows Round 4 will be allowed to compete as a finalist.

It was also suggested that this rule be applied to every single round. So people who fail to enter a Round 2 song, could be replaced by the highest ranking musician that was eliminated from Round 1 who also shadowed in Round 2. This would encourage more people to shadow, but give no promises that the song will be allowed to compete.

8. If we have around 40+ enter a song in round 1 again, would you be against randomly breaking the entries up into 2 different groups & having 2 different sets of judges rank & review each? With the large turn out we had this time, it’s fairly difficult for judges to rank & review that many songs in the first 2 rounds. After the first 2 rounds, the remaining competitors from each group would merge into 1 group for rounds 3 & 4.

9. If you could create a future SpinTunes challenge, what would it be & why?

10. Ok, time to vent. Anything I didn’t mention that you want to bend my hear about do it now. It can be about anything related to the contest so lay it on me.

SpinTunes #3 Champions: Matt And Donna

2011-08-07T00:32:00.001-04:00

Runner Up: Pat And Gweebol
3rd: Ross Durand
4th: Charlie McCarron

Congratulations Matt And Donna! You survived all 4 rounds, and you both are now SpinTunes Champions. I wish I had a big fancy prize to give you, but in SpinTunes it's the musicians who provide the prizes. You've done more than your share with your 4 entries, and along with all the other great songs everyone can enjoy the prizes. Hopefully we can get you a SpinTunes t-shirt in the future, but it may be awhile. We've already got enough money (when Google gets around to sending me a check) to buy Kevin a shirt, and after we get Mitchell one, you're next.

It was great having you involved with the contest, and I hope to see you in SpinTunes #4 as judges or competitors. (expect an e-mail in December about judging)

ALL the finalist did a great job. You all earned your way into the finals, and I could have been happy with any of you being the SpinTunes #3 champion.

Totals & Reviews:
In the end 24 of 40 people sent in their votes/rankings, and the final count was:

Matt And Donna - 71
Pat And Gweebol - 60
Ross Durand - 58
Charlie McCarron - 51

Popular vote totals:

Pat And Gweebol - 19
Matt And Donna - 10
Ross Durand - 5
Charlie McCarron - 2
(36 total votes)

Mitchell Adam Johnson - Glenn Case - Ben Davila - David Santucci

Guest Judge's Review: Walt Ribeiro - Anhayla - Chris Commisso
Alternate Judge's Review: Spin

Thank You
Not only to the finalist, but to everyone that signed up or participated in SpinTunes. Judges, shadows, fans who listened & voted... I'll once again be sending out e-mails to everyone in a couple weeks. It'll be your chance to leave feedback with me that I can take into consideration when planning SpinTunes #4.

I'll be updating the "SpinTunes Hall Of Fame & Records" page sometime this week. In case anyone is interested in knowing more about how the stats have changed from 1 contest to the next.

The next contest will probably start around Jan. Between Song Fight, Frankensong & various other projects, there should be plenty to keep you busy until SpinTunes #4. Keep an eye on my Spintown blog, because I normally post about those type of things there.

SpinTunes #3 Round 4 Review: Walt Ribeiro

2011-08-07T00:19:00.003-04:00

I sure hope you guys are familiar with Walt & his projects already, but if you're not...you have to check out http://ForOrchestra.com. I'm extremely happy that Walt was able to review a round of SpinTunes.
Jonathan Coulton 'Want You Gone (Portal)' For Orchestra by Walt Ribeiro by ForOrchestra
Walt Ribeiro
Composer, Pop Songs Arranged For Orchestra
http://ForOrchestra.com

Charlie McCarron
As you become in tune with the lyrics and grow to know fiona, you really appreciate this piece. It breaks the verse-chorus-verse rule, and that's refreshing. I love the female backsingers at the last chorus, which had me thinking it was fiona entering into the singer's world. a beautiful, not over-produced, and very thoughtful piece. the soft words, polite drum beat, arpeggio'd guitar, and backed male lyrics allow you to relax. You may not be able to fall in love with your first best friend, but you'll surely fall in love with this piece at first listen.

Pat And Gweebol
Getting past the uncompressed audio, MIDI instruments, and unbalance volume of the singers, I actually enjoyed this piece. I liked the theatre-feel of this piece, and how well the arrangement was. If the instruments were 'real' then it'd sound fantastic, and so I understand not everyone has a band at their disposal. I also enjoyed the backup singers, the drum beat, and how everything dropped out at the end. A good composition.

Matt And Donna
The piano was very beautiful, but i wonder if there could have been more to this piece? Maybe a violin passage while the bass drops out? the song grew on me, both for it's soft drum beat, and interesting chord progression, and trumpet section.

Ross Durand
The lyrics seemed odd at times, and didn't spark too much creativity. The production was great, and I enjoyed the singing. However, the guitar strumming seemed a tad off at times, but maybe that was intentional. I really wish the pre-chorus had more 'punch' to it, a common technique to use is that rather than add more punch to the chorus, perhaps 'thin out' the verse, that will create the same effect while also allow the listener to breathe. I liked the hook.

SpinTunes #3 Round 4 Review: Anhayla

2011-08-06T23:57:00.003-04:00

Anhayla is another YouTuber I've followed for a long time now. I've become a fan or her originals & her covers that get posted on her channel: anhaylarene.

I'm really honored to be a judge for round 4 of SpinTunes. When I listen to a song, I want to hear a great melody and an even better story line. Music and lyrics should never compete in a song and they should complement each other in every measure. I appreciate all types of music and love creativity. Please take my comments as words of encouragement and constructive criticism. Let's get down to it.

Ross Durand
This was a great song and it was very easy to follow. I liked how the song had a concrete beginning, middle, and an end. Also, you told a great story through your lyrics. My only advice would be to add either more music or more harmonies to the chorus to make it stand out. I would like to see the last line of the chorus "Cause they don't make em like me anymore" have more of a punch to symbolize the end of that segment. Maybe you could repeat it again or possible adjust the melody. Great song! I could easily hear this on the radio.

Matt And Donna
Loved the melody of the lyrics in the verse. I love that the lyrics weren't predictable and that you said things in a creative way. I would have liked to have seen more variation in the piano to separate the different parts of the song. Also, I was reading the info about the song and noticed it was about "an old car who is on its' last legs and has been abandoned by its' owner." When I listened to the song, I thought it was about an actual relationship between people. I'm not sure if this was the point, however, if you want to get your idea across you should reference the actual word "car" so your audience will understand clearly. Overall, loved the poetry in this song.

Charlie McCarron
The music was really beautiful and it complemented the theme of the song. I really enjoyed the guitar and the subtle drums. This was a great love story about a young relationship. I could really identify with being head over heals for your first love. However, I would have liked to have seen more structure with the lyrics. There weren't any memorable lines that lingered in my mind at the conclusion of the song. It would have been nice to hear the last part "skip stones with me" repeated earlier to create a refrain. Very beautiful song and lyrics.

Pat And Gweebol
I enjoyed the chorus the most. You painted a beautiful picture with the lyrics you chose. Most of all, I think it complemented the music in the chorus. The lyrics in the verse could be developed a little more by describing where the Deville is going. Develop the atmosphere that you and your love share so your listeners will know exactly what to imagine in the chorus. I wasn't the biggest fan of the music, it was a little repetitive. It seemed like the music was over powering the song in most parts. In the end, It was a nice song that the entire family could enjoy and that's what's most important.

SpinTunes #3 Round 4 Review: Chris Commisso

2011-08-06T23:51:00.000-04:00

I've been a fan of Chris on YouTube for awhile now, and when it was time to look for guest judges, he was one of my first choices. I noticed he uploaded a new video today, and his channel is called ThePianoShack. After you read his reviews, you should check him out.

Chris Commisso - Producer, songwriter, singer

Charlie McCarron - Skipping Stones
The laid back vocal fits nice with the sparse production & sweet lyrics. Totally diggin the solo in the middle….fretless bass? Whatever it is, I love it because I wasn't expecting it. The chord changes in spots are unpredictable….which again, I love. In a world of predictable songs this one sticks out in a good way. Sometimes songwriters will choose strange chords to be different but it ends up sounding so weird the listener can't get into it. Not the case here. A nice retro Beach Boys/Jack Johnson vibe going on but still current sounding. Cool also how the title hooks near the end of the song. The only thing I would suggest on this one is possibly a more interesting opening with the guitar. It just strummed the opening chord a few times & didn't really interest me in what was coming. A melody played or a chord pattern that still fits with the song might work. Only a suggestion of course. Overall, I thought this was a great track! Awesome work!

Matt And Donna - Back Down The Road
Very nice vocal on this one. And cool trumpet solo! Overall the song has a great feel & mood to it. And obviously the writer is a strong lyricist. I guess the song started to lose my interest after a couple minutes & my guess is that's because the lyrics didn't really pin down a strong emotion that I could relate to. Again, the words & music created some undeniable emotion but I just stared tuning out after a while. If I were working with this writer, I'd want to know what he/she is crazy passionate about in life then work up a song from that place. I think you can have a passive laid back song & still be reactive in subject matter. An example might be "Fire & Rain" by James Taylor. Very chill song musically but lyrically cuts to the heart. Overall I very much enjoyed this song & it certainly peaked my interest to hear more from this artist.

Pat And Gweebol - In The DeVille
Male & female vocalists have a good blend. The melody was nice & overall the song has a charming quality to it. Everyone can relate to a special place where we all go to get away from the world, so that's a relatable theme. It's also a theme that's been done to death, so I would suggest the writers find ways to write about these kind of subjects from a different angle….a unique one that no one else has touched on yet. I know that's easier said then done, but it's something worth working towards to make your songs stand out. A modern example would be Christina Perri's "Jar Of Hearts" a song about her boyfriend breaking up with her. She could have called the song "He left me" or "I'm alone again" ect. But instead she chose a unique angle & great title. And your title actually is a strong one. The only other thing I would suggest is to work on improving the music production. It sounds like a programmed beat & piano pattern on an old keyboard. True it adds a little charm but it's also very dated & thin sounding. Either network with other producers to help you with your songs or just start watching some "how to" music production videos on youtube. There're tons to choose from these days. And of course none of this is necessary if you're just recording for fun. But if you really want to take things to the next level, the production has to be better. Other than that, I enjoyed your song & think there's a lot of talent here!

Ross Durand - Rusty
Great title & I dig the Tom Petty-ish vocals. I admire the writers honesty & it's easy for the rest of us to sing along because of the strong attitude of the singer. The drums sounded like a pattern played from a keyboard which unfortunately works against the edgy gritty vibe of the song. They really need to be real drums but I understand that's not always easy to make happen. Working with a producer would be a suggestion or if your self-producing, experiment with other ways to do the drums. Possibly a loop from a recording program such as Acid Pro or Propellerhead's Reason. Then you have a sample of real drums. Makes a big difference. Other than that, nice tune!

SpinTunes #3 Round 4 Review: Mitchell Adam Johnson

2011-08-06T23:41:00.000-04:00

All four of these songs are remarkable. And that's why I am going to make remarks about them all. I think 'Back Down The Road' & 'Rusty' are a little more straightforward... whereas 'In The DeVille' & 'Skipping Stones' are a bit more complex. And because of that, it was difficult for me to rank these songs. They are all SO well written. I'm hearing a lot of strong arrangements and tons of poppy melodies. What a good bunch of songwriters!

Anyway, here is my ranking, starting with 1st place:

1. Matt And Donna - Back Down The Road
As usual, your song is really beautiful. Great vocal performances - both on the lead and harmony. There is the perfect amount of vulnerability in your voice - yet it still sounds confident. Fantastic trumpet bridge - especially when the harmony kicks in. Very Belle & Sebastian there. That's probably the best part of this song. Especially the V/ii chord - oh man!!!! And the descending bassline walk there! Heartbreaking lyrics. The harmonies at "but time is kind and terrible this much is true" are gorgeous - wait, maybe that's the best part of the song. Great job on the bassline - love how it's not always on the root! Wow, I absolutely love this song. The production/mixing is professional. The marchy snare - nice call. Really, this is perfect. I think overall, this is the best song you've submitted. You knew I'd love this song, didn't you? I'm giving this song first because it is 100% solid from start to finish - I loved every second of it. The other songs this round have some 'not quite as good' parts... not this song. There was a lot of care put into writing, arranging, and recording this song - and that shines.

2. Pat And Gweebol - In The DeVille
This song just keeps getting better and better. Nice staggered melodic lines - great harmony. Fantastic vocals. Hooks everywhere. Very 'Wedding Bell Blues.' I'm hearing some serious Mamas & Papas in there - in the vocals, the swung rhythm, and the jangly piano (nice job on those octave riffs). Great arranging on the synth string things and the organ. The "lalala" part is my favorite. Whoa, Pat's lala's are perfect - I LOVE IT! The follow-up chord progression is better that time around. Man, you guys wrote like a billion different parts to this song. I think when this song begins it's pretty good, but by the end it just kicks serious ass. The last vocal is wonderful. Like Charlie's song, this one takes a few listens to fully grasp. There is a lot going on at all times. Again, that lala part is so good - wish it happened more often - That is my favorite section of any song this round, without a doubt.

3. Charlie McCarron - Skipping Stones
For some reason this reminds me of the White Album... and Sam Phillips... and early Of Montreal (especially in the chord progression). Great vocal harmonies - creative. Cool how you were able to make a song catchy in an unusual time signature. Great slidey solo. Once the arpeggiated guitar kicks in, it really holds everything together. Wish you had that going on more often. Crazy chord progression - yet your gift for writing melodies has helped you tie it all together, seamlessly. You use the V/vi chord a lot, and it works well - it will hook us all in, without question. Towards the end of the song the progression gets a whole lot poppier - I like that. And those girl backing vocals are fantastic - sounds a lot like something Lennon would've done. That's my favorite part of this song.

4. Ross Durand - Rusty
That is awesome tone on your lead guitar (probably my favorite thing about this song). This is a really well written song - I can see people singing along to this! I hear some Dire Straits in there. Nice hook - very memorable - really - I can TOTALLY see a lot of people really digging this song. Simple and poppy chord progression. A little loose on some of the rhythms, but besides that, it's solid. Clever lyrics - love how it works on two levels.

SpinTunes #3 Round 4 Review: Ben Davila

2011-08-06T23:36:00.001-04:00

1. Charlie McCarron - Skipping Stones
interesting chord progression
I like the 6/8 feel
this is very cute
7

2. Matt And Donna - Back down The Road
strong piano
love the horns
strong rhymes
good analogy's
good backing vox
8

3. Pat And Gweebol - In The DeVille
I like the story
strong chorus
I like the jangly piano
like the backing vox in the last chorus
nice ending
7

4. Ross Durand - Rusty
Like the shaker
good country sound
good harmonys on the chours
like the first person personification
7

SpinTunes #3 Round 4 Review: David Santucci

2011-08-06T23:33:00.000-04:00

I liked all of these entries a lot!! Great job to everyone and congratulations for making it to the final round!!

In my mind Ross’ entry stands out as the clear winner, and after that it was really tough to place the others. I liked them all just about equally. So, after giving them each a few listens and thinking about it quite a bit, I decided that Charlie’s entry, while I love the catchy sound and unconventional structure of it, had to take last place simply because it failed to meet the challenge much more than the other entries. If it weren’t for that, I probably would’ve given it second place because it is much less generic sounding than the two remaining entries. But, the challenge has to count for a lot, so that’s how I scored this.

My picks for #2 and #3 could have been either/or, and I finally, once again, had to let the deciding factor be which one I felt met the challenge the best, and so Matt & Donna get second place in my book.

I think this round, in spite of having the fewest entries, was the hardest to rank. I could barely find anything to criticize or find fault with in any of these songs!! Excellent work. All of you make me feel totally inadequate as a song writer and not worthy to be a judge in this competition, and I say that with complete sincerity.

4. Charlie McCarron – Skipping Stones

Really unconventional meter and creative chord progression… I really like this song! Nice build to the end; really boppin’ tune. I liked it a lot, but felt this was the least relevant entry in terms of the challenge. The connection to the photo was very sweet, but ancillary at best, in terms of how much of the lyrics you spent relating to the car and the scene of the photo. (Relatively little.)

2. Matt & Donna – Back Down The Road

Really pleasant sound. Very easy to listen to. Great job at meeting the challenge! Love the choice of doing this from the point of view of the car as a character with thoughts & feelings. Not sure if there was ever a big climax to this; it stayed relatively the same intenstity the whole way through, although added instrumentation part way through did give it some variation and expanded the texture a little. Great sound on the harmony vocals. I like it a lot!

3. Pat & Gweebol – In The DeVille

Great lyrics! Great sound. Sweet story. Liked it a lot! The synth violin sound at first was annoying but I didn’t mind it as much by the end of the song. Too many instruments during the climactic last chorus though; I wasn’t able to hear the counterpoint lyrics enough to understand what was being said. If you’re going to have counterpoint lyrics answering one another, make sure they’re loud enough in the mix to be heard… or remove an instrument or two so they don’t get lost in the texture. This is a very minor criticism however. I still love the sound. Overall, great job.

1. Ross Durand – Rusty

Like Matt & Donna’s entry, I love that you did this from the point of view of the car. I was hoping someone would do this! I think your song, of all the entries, was the most relevant to the picture. This song was completely about the picture, every single lyric was all about this car and the state it is in. Major points for that. Also, major points for creating the only song in this round that really rocked. The tambourine and happy 60’s rock guitar licks added just the right sounds to make this a classic tune. Excellent job on the mix with your harmony vocals too; the harmonies add subtle texture and don’t overpower the lead vocal. All around, rock solid entry. Love it.

SpinTunes #3 Round 4 Review: Glenn Case

2011-08-06T23:23:00.002-04:00

Matt And Donna - Back Down The Road
Great melody, and it’s probably my favorite I have heard from you to date.
LYRICS – good (2) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – good (2)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – good (2) SCORE: 10 out of 10

Charlie McCarron - Skipping Stones
I enjoy the chord structure and the way you interpreted the photo into the lyrical content.
LYRICS – good (2) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 8 out of 10

Pat And Gweebol - In The DeVille
Good melody and lyrics. The dynamics are flat, and that does the song a disservice. Not wild about the choices of keyboard patches.
LYRICS – good (2) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – good (2)
CONCEPT – okay (1) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 8 out of 10

Ross Durand – Rusty
Lyrics are quite good, as your lyrics often are. I still don’t care for your vocals, but that’s a personal preference more than anything. Is there a bass instrument in there? Song probably would have benefitted greatly from a little more on the low end. Song structure is sufficient.
LYRICS – good (2) STRUCTURE – okay (1) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 7 out of 10

SpinTunes 3: Round 4 Songs

2011-08-02T00:00:00.018-04:00

The album is now available for FREE download, and you can vote for your favorite entry as well.

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.

"In the last round, everyone who has been eliminated (who also submitted at least 1 song) will be allowed to rank the songs. This round the judges have no say in matters, but they will still be required to review each song. Rules for a tie are altered just a bit. Popular vote is the first deciding factor, then the judges, and then I am the last deciding factor." - Rules Page

I'll be going through the list of sign-ups tonight/this morning & sending e-mails to those who are allowed to vote & rank the songs this time. If you don't get an e-mail, but think you should have a vote feel free to contact me. (rumor has it I'm not perfect) Your rankings will not be published on the blog, but I will be posting the names of the people who vote.

I want to thank people for staying at the LP even though there was a 25 minute delay due to tech issues. Tested it yesterday, was fine. Tested it today, it was fine. Broadcasted a Pre-Show for over an hour before the LP, and it was fine. 5 minutes before the LP was supposed to start...shit storm. So thanks for entering great songs & sticking around for the show. Good luck to all 4 finalist.

You can find the album on BandCamp by clicking the image below:

(Album cover by Dr. Lindyke & Photo by Reinfried Marass)

People Who Have Voted:
Luke Brekke, Esquire - The Offhand Band - Gold Lion - Edric Haleen - Wait What - The Boffo Yux Dudes - Ethan Ivey - Caleb Hines - Bryce Jensen - Jutze - Chris Cogott - Spencer Sokol - Dr. Lindyke - Menage' a Tune - Emperor Gum - Inverse T. Clown - Heather Miller - Matt Walton - "Buckethat" Bobby Matheson - Governing Dynamics - Steve Durand - David Ritter - Common Lisp - Godz Poodlz
(24 of 40 votes have been cast.)

- August 6th 11PM (M) - Judges reviews are due & eliminated competitors rankings are due.

- August 7th 1AM (T) - Reviews are posted & the winner is announced.

- You can vote for your favorite song with the poll in the right sidebar. -->

Videos:
(If anyone wants to make a video for their song, I'll include it here.)

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.)

- Sammy Kablam posted a Negative Reinforcement review of this round.

Round 4 LP & Deadline News

2011-08-01T04:56:00.001-04:00

Thankfully, even though a couple tempted fate, all 4 finalist turned in a song by the deadline.

The listening party will be hosted by me on August 1st (THAT‘S TODAY), and it starts at 8PM. I hope you decide to stop by, and bring friends. I’ll start a pre-show around 7PM for those who want to come & hangout early. The album will be available for FREE listen & download shortly after the LP.

I've been having a lot of tech issues lately, so fingers crossed that this LP goes ok.

Listening Party Location: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/spintunes

Deadline Eliminations: N/A

And The Winner Is: I just want to remind everyone that the judges do not decide who wins SpinTunes. The popular vote does not decide who wins SpinTunes. The people who signed up for the contest (who also provided at least 1 entry) decide who wins SpinTunes.

After the album is posted, anyone who meets that criteria will be allow to e-mail me their votes. Just like the judges, you will have to rank the 4 finalist from favorite to least favorite. Your rankings will not be shared unless you decide to do so, but I will post the names of everyone who voted in the final round. For bands who have more than 1 member, you only get 1 vote. You'll have to talk it over with each other to decide how to cast your vote. More details about the final round can be found on the rules page.

SpinTunes #3: Round 4 Challenge

2011-07-23T23:57:00.005-04:00

A Picture's Worth A Thousand Lyrics - Write a song inspired by the Reinfried Marass photo below:
(2 minute minimum) (your submission is due July 31st 11:59PM)

You can find more of his wonderful photography by visiting his website: http://reinfriedmarass.com/ Only the picture embedded above is allowed to be used for the contest though.

Submitting Entries:

- Entries must be received by the given deadline. Otherwise it'll be posted as a shadow. Received means that it has to appear in my e-mail inbox by the given deadline. I will be going by the time stamp on the e-mail in my inbox. PLEASE do not wait until the last hour to send me something. If there is a blackout in your area, your computer crashes, or your dog actually eats your thumb drive...I will not care. You are allowed to send in a draft of your song early just in case something horrible happens & you miss the deadline. Then you can add polish to your song & send in a better version closer to the deadline. 1 minute late is still late people.

- Send your file in a format that Bandcamp accepts. (.aiff, .wav or .flac) (at least 16-bit/44.1kHz) You can find the specific requirements for Bandcamp files HERE. You do not have to send in MP3's.

- Name your file the song's title, but without spaces & punctuation.

- Title of the e-mail should be the title of the Challenge & your band's name.

- Include the song lyrics in the body of the e-mail. (If your song doesn't have lyrics...consider yourself eliminated. Instrumentals can be pretty, but SpinTunes does require lyrics.)

- Include information on anyone that needs credited if you collabed with someone.

- File sharing options if you need them: YouSendIt, Sound Cloud, Drop Box, RapidShare, ZShare & MediaFire. Please send an e-mail as I already stated, but with the download link if you need one of these services. Please follow directions so your file doesn't wind up in my spam or trash folder accidentally.

- If you have a BandCamp account, you can just send me a link to your song on BandCamp if you include all the info I mentioned above. Make sure you have it set as a free download, and have it set so that I don't have to put in an e-mail to download it if you pick this option. THIS IS THE BEST FILE SHARING OPTION!

Side Notes:

- PLEASE do your best to send in submissions that BandCamp will allow me to upload. Details about what BandCamp allows are only a mouse click away.

- Remember that you are allowed to send in a little background about your song. Some people don't like to do that, and you don't have to, but if you want to write a couple sentences about your song I'll post it on the BandCamp page for people to see. Some judges will look at the lyrics & this extra info, but they aren't required to.

- If you didn't sign-up in time to compete in SpinTunes #3, you can still complete the challenge & send in a song. It'll be uploaded with the other entries as a "Shadow Song". Check the FAQ if you don't know what that means. You can even complete past challenges from previous contests.

- If you didn't sign-up you can also do a song for "Single Rainbow Across The Internet". You're song would be played during the LP as well.

- The only other way to get your music played at the LP is to cover "Today's The Day" by Inverse T. Clown. This project was started in our little community of friends long before SpinTunes even started.

- Feel free to leave any questions in the comments.

SpinTunes #3 Round 3 Totals

2011-07-23T23:44:00.004-04:00

The challenge for the final round will be posted tonight around 1AM.

Here are the links to the individual reviews:

Official Judges:
Mike Lombardo - Mitchell Adam Johnson - Dave Santucci - Ben Davila - Glenn Case

Guest Judges:
Kari Fleskes - Kevin Nalty
Alternate Judge's Review: Spin

You can listen to all the wonderful songs from this round by checking out the free album HERE.

Judges feel free to check my totals. I rarely make mistakes...but anything is possible. If my figures are correct the 8 people in bold have been eliminated from the contest. I really hope they decide to continue in the contest as shadows, and I thank EVERYONE for their hard work this round.

Notes About Results:
- Caleb Hines was DQ'ed based mostly on the fact that he didn't write the lyrics for his entry. So he was moved to the bottom of all the judges (and guest judges) rankings.

Total Scores: (Glenn) (Mike) (David) (Mitchell) (Ben) (Kari) (Kevin)
Pat And Gweebol - 2 - 8 - 11 - 9 - 12 - 11 - 8 (61)
Charlie McCarron - 12 - 9 - 9 - 12 - 2 - 9 - 7 (60)
Matt And Donna - 10 - 7 - 3 - 11 - 11 - 5 - 11 (58)
Ross Durand - 11 - 4 - 7 - 2 - 9 - 8 - 12 (53)
Steve Durand - 8 - 3 - 12 - 7 - 8 - 10 - 4 (52)
Jon Eric - 7 - 11 - 6 - 11 - 4 - 6 - 5 (50)
Dr. Lindyke - 6 - 10 - 8 - 3 - 3 - 12 - 3 (45)
The Offhand Band - 4 - 12 - 10 - 5 - 5 - 2 - 6 (44)
Edric Haleen - 5 - 5 - 2 - 4 - 10 - 7 - 10 (43)
Wait What - 3 - 6 - 4 - 8 - 6 - 3 - 9 (39)
Jutze - 9 - 2 - 5 - 6 - 7 - 4 - 2 (35)
Caleb Hines - 1 - 1 - 1 - 1 - 1 - 1 - 1 (7)

Glenn's Rankings:
Charlie McCarron - 12
Ross Durand - 11
Matt And Donna - 10
Jutze - 9
Steve Durand - 8
Jon Eric - 7
Dr. Lindyke - 6
Edric Haleen - 5
The Offhand Band - 4
Wait What - 3
Pat And Gweebol - 2
Caleb Hines - 1

Mike's Rankings:
The Offhand Band - 12
Jon Eric - 11
Dr. Lindyke - 10
Charlie McCarron - 9
Pat And Gweebol - 8
Matt And Donna - 7
Wait What - 6
Edric Haleen - 5
Ross Durand - 4
Steve Durand - 3
Jutze - 2
Caleb Hines - 1

David's Rankings:
Steve Durand - 12
Pat And Gweebol - 11
The Offhand Band - 10
Charlie McCarron - 9
Dr. Lindyke - 8
Ross Durand - 7
Jon Eric - 6
Jutze - 5
Wait What - 4
Matt And Donna - 3
Edric Haleen - 2
Caleb Hines - 1

Mitchell's Rankings:
Charlie McCarron - 12
Matt And Donna - 11
Jon Eric - 10
Pat And Gweebol - 9
Wait What - 8
Steve Durand - 7
Jutze - 6
The Offhand Band - 5
Edric Haleen - 4
Dr. Lindyke - 3
Ross Durand - 2
Caleb Hines - 1

Ben's Rankings:
Pat And Gweebol - 12
Matt And Donna - 11
Edric Haleen - 10
Ross Durand - 9
Steve Durand - 8
Jutze - 7
Wait What - 6
The Offhand Band - 5
Jon Eric - 4
Dr. Lindyke - 3
Charlie McCarron - 2
Caleb Hines - 1

Kari's Rankings:
Dr. Lindyke - 12
Pat And Gweebol - 11
Steve Durand - 10
Charlie McCarron - 9
Ross Durand - 8
Edric Haleen - 7
Jon Eric - 6
Matt And Donna - 5
Jutze - 4
Wait What - 3
The Offhand Band - 2
Caleb Hines - 1

Kevin's Rankings:
Ross Durand - 12
Matt And Donna - 11
Edric Haleen - 10
Wait What - 9
Pat And Gweebol - 8
Charlie McCarron - 7
The Offhand Band - 6
Jon Eric - 5
Steve Durand - 4
Dr. Lindyke - 3
Jutze - 2
Caleb Hines - 1

Popular Vote Totals:
Matt And Donna - 26
Pat And Gweebol - 21
Dr. Lindyke - 18
The Offhand Band - 14
Ross Durand - 14
Charlie McCarron - 13
Jon Eric - 8
Edric Haleen - 6
Caleb Hines - 5
Steve Durand - 4
Jutze - 4
Wait What - 2
(135 total votes)

SpinTunes #3 Round 3 Review: Kevin Nalty

2011-07-23T23:38:00.001-04:00

It’s an honor to judge Spin Tunes #3 round-3 rap challenge. I can distinctly recall the day I first met a rap fan in 1986. He was a classmate, and after he played me a few Beastie Boys tunes at his house, he agreed to drive me home. But on route he told me he was going to steal a computer by smashing a store window with a brick. I politely asked to be dropped off at a corner before his crime, and he later told me his theft was a fail… the window display was a prop.

Rap has come a long way since the late 1980s, and is now threaded into the fabric of nearly every musical genre. This collection is difficult to rank, however, because you’ll find yourself see-sawing between assessing the rap song and the artist. In many cases the musicians are gifted but in the wrong genre. In other cases we’ve got a nice rap composition that’s tarnished with an element that doesn’t mix. I like spinach and ice cream, but not together.

To offset my temporal disadvantage (old age) I recruited three teenage girls to help… my daughter and her cousins. I trust the artists will take no offense since we’re a motley crew with various tastes. We listened, debated, and listened again. Some songs shot up the list after a few plays, and others began to grate on us. The lesson is that you can’t underestimate rap artists. A song can crumble with just one odd loop, misplaced singer, or flare that doesn’t match the hip-hop sound. The mix of speech, prose, poetry and song is easier to criticize than master.

Ross Durand - Camp Romance
This was at first just a “guilty pleasure,” but it began to grow on us. The infections chorus chants Kumbaya, which was an African American spiritual song from the 1930s and campfire favorite. It doesn’t technically belong in the rap category but it made us all smile and got the most replays of our judging session. The mix reminds us of Jason Derulo’s “Don’t Wanna Go Home,” which borrows from Harry Belafante’s “Banana Boat.”

Matt And Donna - Anatomy Dance
It’s Beach Boys meets High School Musical in this kids favorite. Was it a pure rap? Nope. But we like the chorus and the melody and it’s got one of the most professional mixes of the pack.

Wait What - Six Years Seventeen Days
He’s lost his girl, Jennifer, and he’s trying to get over this six-year relationship. Even his Netflix cue reminds him of her. Before we get too sympathetic, the singer also has some Fatal Attraction going on: “If you had a rabbit I might make stew,” he warns. This singer is cool and quirky, even though we all agreed he needed a Red Bull. The song has an interesting depth, though, and my opinion seemed to change each time I listened to it.

Pat And Gweebol - Tickitock (Top Tad)
This is a solid rap with some of the best lyrics of the bunch. It’s a bit amateur, but with some better sound engineering you could envision this song leading this round. Is he rapping? I’m not sure, but he’s got great potential if he can get his voice to come less from his throat and more from his diaphragm. The female accompaniment is nice, and the duo has something I’m sure many will like.

Charlie McCarron - Trail In The Snow
We all liked Charlie’s voice even though it’s clearly designed to accompany an acoustic guitar. The song had a “movie trailer” vibe with a very cool choir. It may be a bit too subdued (maybe nasal) for most rap enthusiasts, but it’s definitely getting “Trail in the Snow” an honorable mention.

The Offhand Band - Not Cool
This song made us giggle, and I am not sure that was intended by the creators. It has some nice elements, but it appears to be trying too hard. Still, I have to admit that I’d more likely replay this song than some of the ones that took higher honors. There’s something “earworm” about the chorus, “not cool.”

Jon Eric - The Dance
We really liked this tune – especially the introduction. I’d like to see Jon performing at a piano bar, however. Can he rap? Maybe, and the song has a nice composition. It’s just that he and his female backup singer have definitive chorus voices and theatrical flare, and that just seems to clash with the percussion.

Edric Haleen - Sarah
Edric is professional Broadway material, and “Sarah” was initially my first pick. But like “The Dance,” it’s just out of category here. Edric slips into rap after two minutes, and his song has cool elements. If it didn’t clash with the soul of rap it’d be my favorite.

The Boffo Yux Dudes - It’s All About The Benjamins
I suspect there are some drunk college kids that would berate me for not selecting this as a winner. It’s funny, quirky and the rhyme is good. And while the rapping is actually among the best, the ominous chorus just freaked me out. Sorry.

Steve Durand - A Place For Love
Durand’s song has a “Big Band” and jazz groove. While it’s nice, we couldn’t reconcile the jazz flare with rap music. This song does get points for its clever lyrics (“Can’t make love in an open cubicle”) and hipster vibe.

Dr. Lindyke - Politics And Promises
Does anyone else remember Baz Luhrmann’s “Everybody’s Free (to Wear Sunscreen)”? This song, say the kids, is “not what you normally hear in rap.” It’s like an old dude accompanied by a high-school acapella group. But who am I to speak? I’m an old guy judging rap songs with my daughter and her friends. “Politics and Promises” had a nice beat and it grew on me.

Ethan Ivey - Entry 3
This is a song with strong rhyme and structure, and if it was recorded differently it would take a higher ranking. But the voice pops on the mic, and the recording sounds amateur. Still, it gets cred for its lyrics and the videogame-like loop.

Jutze - My Friend Kay
I thought it was a bit “William Hung,” but the girls felt it was more Will Smith (specifically the Prince Bel-Air). I think in highschool I would have picked this one as my favorite simply for the sampling of the word “penis.” It has a cool scratching, retro vibe with banjo and horn loops.

Caleb Hines - Two Musicians
Two Musicians has a haunted intro that we might play at our Halloween party. In fact we waited eagerly for Vincent Price’s manic laugh. Is this guy 12 or 50 years old? We’re not sure, but there’s an intriguing subtle melody here. We wanted a higher pace of stronger voice. Said my niece, “it sounds like the guy recorded it under a bridge while smoking pot.” I’d put that comment on my musical resume.

Menage’ a Tune - Roman Road Map
This is the “cringer” of the album, and was perhaps recorded by that odd woman down the street… the one that talks to her dog. My daughter urged me, “please say something nice about it.” So here it is… it was nice when it was over.

SpinTunes #3 Round 3 Review: Kari Fleskes

2011-07-23T23:17:00.004-04:00

I invited Kari to guest judge because I'm a fan of her YouTube channel, and she's a talented young lady who I thought could give helpful feedback. Go check the girl out.

Dr. Lindyke - Politics And Promises *****
Bravo! Firstly, GREAT title. Secondly, what a solid message! I bow to you, Dr. Lindyke. This might be my favorite. :) You've got a great vocal tone for the rapping in particular, great rhythm, a nice beat, wonderful verbal flow, and the lyrics are superb. It has a real honest feel to it, very sincere. Definitely pulls the listener in to the message, even if they've got different opinions. They'll still listen. Wonderfully done! I feel that this entry most thoroughly represents this challenge. Highest of high marks from me for whatever that's worth. :)

Pat And Gweebol - TikiTock (Top Tad) *****
I love this entry both as a listener, and as a writer. I absolutely love the way you've structured the rhythm of your lyric with the rhythm of your track. It's a very modern combination that you've executed perfectly. Great hook, and great melody for it. You've got a strong story, clearly stating the conflict as a specific individual. I love that you even took it as far as naming the guy. The perfect placement of the female verses and perspective makes the listener feel as if they're a friend of these people. They feel connected, might even be tempted to take sides. I love this song as a writer too, as I can admire that you've so clearly and smoothly defined three specific personalities, within two perspectives, within one story. It's completely brilliant. Excellent track. Top marks from me.

Steve Durand - A Place For Love ****
I have a very strong opinion of the proper use and proper amount of specific nouns used as descriptions. I feel that oftentimes it's either done really good or really bad. You, sir, have done it wonderfully. You've got a good majority being bold, common nouns used for a specific description, rather than relying on a proper noun to do the describing for you. Yet you've sprinkled even brand names into your lyric, being very descriptive. Extreme contrast. But it's done RIGHT. You've adding just the right amount, allowing your listener to feel as if he's "in on the loop" of the office romance lingo. This makes the listener emotionally interested in hearing the rest of your song. I also love the chorus. At first it felt a little late, but after hearing how it well it rounded out the track, I take it back. :) Expertly done. I also enjoyed the horns on this track, however the horns were very bluesy. I would have liked to hear them in smaller, designated sections. It rather takes away from your rap intention.

Charlie McCarron - In The Snow ****
What good writers here on SpinTown! I really enjoyed your song. I particularly like the contrast of the slow and moody idea of a spooky concept paired with the "harder" idea of a rap. I believe you combined these aspects perfectly. The lyrics were descriptive and suspenseful, and the beautiful singing of the chorus adds to the supernatural feel. I do wish you would have elaborated a little more as to the source of this suspenseful conflict. I think if you'd been a little more particular in defining your antagonist of the lyric, it would have had a little more emotional substance. I know even though a topic like this isn't an emotional one, you want the listener to become a part of your song. Rap in particular is known for invoking strong emotion. Also the background vocals and the melody is metaphorically rather emotional, so I feel a definite reason for this spookiness would have really brought the song full circle. However, overall, nicely done.

Ross Durand - Camp Romance ****
You, Ross Durand, are a genius. In my opinion, you've successfully woven multiple genres into a memorable creation. And your topic is about something your entire audience can understand: a summer love. You've got just enough nostalgia for the song to be relatable. I really commend your restraint on the metaphors; doing this has intensified the tone of memory without distracting from it. My favorite aspect of your piece was your cleverly placed alliteration. The way you've structured it, there's just the right amount of humor in exactly the right places. I think it also adds a rough, or "gravel" kind of feel to the lyric which really compliments the whole feeling of camp. Even though some might not consider this a "rap" at first listen, I really feel like it's a solid entry.

Edric Haleen - Sarah ***
As incredibly cool as this song was in it's structure, the tone for me was just a bit off. I loved how it began, the first two verses were enough. I wished screw it would have been a little more nervous, maybe an octave higher, or tight and tense rather than resigned. The dangling verse after "Screw It" is awkward. It repeats what is implied in the previous section, so you don't really need it. Trust your listener to be intelligent. They will infer in the first two verses what you're stating in that third one. You don't need it. The first little rap was maybe a bit longer than it needed to be since it was a first attempt, but the content is unique so it works. The second rap section (after "try that again") was the weakest link. Make it stronger, a little more confident than the first. It's tricky because it has to be better than the first, but not as good as the third. So it needs to be stronger, but the "mess up" needs to be funnier than your awkward stumbling in the first section. The third rap is great, I just wish it could have either been shortened, or the music changed to enhance it a lot more. Halfway through, it becomes stale, like we're waiting for something to happen. Go ahead and get to the climax of the song, have the guy go as far as confessing he's dreamed of having her babies, or painted pictures of their wedding day, or something really random and weird. You've started the song at a great point, the guy is timid and nervous, he doesn't know what to say and it's funny. At the end of the song when your character becomes different (more confident and honest) you should still have a little more humor. Your "small" character (at the beginning) has "small" humor (i.e. in what's implied and how he stutters), so your "big" character, or contrast character, should have "bigger" humor. And the ending is brilliant but it'll be even more punctuated if he postpones the crazy speech (or the "big" humor) until tomorrow. Have him go all in, he doesn't really say this to her anyway, right? No reason to have boundaries.

Ethan Ivey - Entry 3 (Shadow) ***
I liked the rhythm of the track very much. It's very easy to get into. The lyrics were superb. Great storytelling abilities and you deliver the lyric with a noticeable build in enthusiasm. I REALLY love this detail. In particular, I like the additions of the foul language to impact the panic of the situation. Very genius. As AWESOME as the ending was, it wasn't punctuated quite the way it could have been. Right now, the rhythm of your lyric doesn't change. And that's okay because you're building tension. I feel that's a suitable time to break the rules. However, the song doesn't actually reach a climax in the story. You need a good, strong, simple hook to break up the monotony of the rhythm. Breaking it up with a good hook will keep the rhythm catchy to the listener and also give you an opportunity to really set up a climax with a lyrical twist. Something ironic at the very end before it cuts out. Make the listener sad it ended, but satisfied with it as a whole.

The Boffo Yux Dudes - It's All About the Benjamins (Shadow) ***
Really nice job. I really liked the play on Benjamin, I think this was done absolutely brilliantly! Perfect balance of funny and clever. However, I do wish you'd had more of a chorus. Even if you just changed the beat behind one of the verses. The verses were excellent; though as a whole song, the lack of a hook was obvious. Overall, I really enjoyed listening to it. You're an excellent writer.

Jon Eric - The Dance **
I really liked the male vocal in this. I feel the attitude, tone, and rhythm was pretty spot on. However, the piano at the beginning was pretty cool, but I don't feel it was technically a rap track. You could have broken it up and used the keyboard to carry the rhythm rather than a drum track. I personally like the piano, but I don't think it's a comfortable fit for your rap. The lyrics were very funny, but I'm not sure the chorus was as informative as it needed to be. I wish you'd have written in a little more specifics as to her intentions during her vocal. I do also like the male clarification towards the end of the song. It elaborates more on the extent of this girl's obsession with him (? I don't even really know what her intentions were). In any case, the rhythm was solid, the verses were very funny, but the chorus didn't quite round out the song the way I was hoping.

Matt And Donna - Anatomy Dance **
I don't know how often I can stress the phrase "A little goes a long way." It's definitely a line to keep in mind when you write a song like this. You, as an artist, are responsible for igniting an emotion in your listeners. Now, I know there's a lot of debate about which emotions to focus on for any given genera, but when you draft a composition that's written so specifically, the majority of your listeners tend to feel intimidated, even stupid. And they stop listening. You definitely want to be unique, but you also want to make sure your listener can keep up. So, as educated as you are, you want to remember your audience: are they as knowledgeable? Will they understand the "message" of my track, and feel good because of it? You don't want to lose the connection with your listener. And too many proper nouns is a common mistake. It makes the lyric heavy and flat. However, I sincerely liked the melody of your chorus. It was bright and catchy. And I really enjoyed the perspective of it and how you turned dancing into a math problem. As a listener who can't dance, I thought this was really fun.

Jutze - My Friend Kay *
I can really appreciate the leap of faith here. Not only are you writing in a tricky category, you're writing about a tricky topic.
There are so many definitions and perspectives of what rap really is and what it should be. My focus as a judge is the strength of the lyrics in particular. This song still reads like a first draft. I definitely commend the brave decision to write about this sexual woman. Your intention of humor and descriptive lines were nicely placed. Now, lyrical content like this is either a big YES for a listener, or a big, flat NO. The audience will either find it funny, or stupid. There's not really much room for someone to settle in the middle. It takes a lot of guts to pair this lyrical boldness with the rough and tumbled audio texture that is rap. There's not really a hook, so a listener's head doesn't really know how to feel about this girl Kay. I personally like your way of describing this girl as a sort of sloppy goof. But then she's not? She's just a dumpee? Well that's not nearly as fun. I sincerely wish you would have committed just a little more and pushed yourself to really stick with that negative image. If you're going to write one of these bold songs, you really have to give it all or give it up. You start the song with how much this girl is a dirty mess, then you try to be polite and say it's just because she's been dumped? As a woman, I appreciate this effort to be polite, but you're capable of a really good story here. If she starts out a mess, have the chorus just go over the top.

Wait What - Six Years Seventeen Days *
I see a lot of potential in this piece. I'm a big fan of the sprinkle of proper nouns you've used as adjectives; though be careful doing this--you don't want to make too many specific references unless the majority of them are entirely and completely well-known. You don't want your audience to feel stupid for not getting the joke. They tend to get irritated when that happens. So use the REALLY unique references REALLY sparingly. A little goes a long way. There's a reasonable level of humor in the lyric. You've got a good theme. However, breakups can be hard to write about. It's a big challenge to keep your lyrics from landing too close to cliche. I feel that, even tough your adjective play with proper nouns is really clever, there's not really much of an emotional point to the song. You're so specific in your writing, there's no excuse not to be specific in your story. In fact, I actually feel that it's more important. If you're going to write well, your topic doesn't necessarily have to be interesting or unique--but your perspective on it absolutely has to be. Don't be afraid to go the distance. For example: She broke up with this guy? Okay. Well maybe now this guy hasn't slept in three months because he can't stop thinking about her. Or maybe he sleeps in the backseat of her car at night just so he can smell her? Or what if he can't help himself from urinating on her back door? Just a few examples of what I mean by "go the distance." Take it to a level no one would expect. You've already got a fantastic setup for it. If you're writing is specific, really set a solid point and throw everything in that direction. A good thing to remember is, "Everything has been said a hundred million times. It's how you say it that makes it memorable." Stay parallel and don't hold back.

The Offhand Band - Not Cool *
I definitely admire the use of proper nouns expertly woven into this piece as adjectives. You've done it brilliantly. However, the impact of this will only be appreciated by a listener who comprehends all the references. With the internet now making sharing original music so easy, the artist really has to consider his audience now. I don't feel you've done this in this project. You've obviously got such a skill for creative writing, but I'm disappointed in this entry. The specifics become repetitious and confusing because they occur in nearly every line. I would have loved to see your genius ability to incorporate these clever specifics used in a more productive way. It would be much more effective if you alternated: Use your proper nouns heavily in verse one, but be sure the verse that follows is a little more neutral. Like in the kitchen: "A little spice goes a long way." Well, so do proper adjectives. Even though this is a characteristic of rap, the amount of them in your song takes away from the rhythm.

Menage' a Tune - Roman Road Trip *
You've got a good solid beat in the background. I admire how you were able to take that same beat and use the melody of the chorus to give it a different feel. I really enjoyed the vocal fade out at the end, I think it was done really well. However, it doesn't feel like a finished piece. Also, writer's have to be constantly vigilant of cliches. Some are alright if used the proper way. For example, I feel that your chorus was an acceptable use of a cliche, just don't extend it too long. However the verses were overwhelmed with cliches. I don't really feel that the tone of this song can be quite considered a rap. It's hard to get a sense of you as a writer with such a minimal composition.

SpinTunes #3 Round 3 Review: Ben Davila

2011-07-23T23:15:00.000-04:00

Jutze – My Friend Kay
Like the banjo
Like the intelligent design break down
Cool voice
7

Edric Haleen – Sara
Funny intro
Love the insecure rapping
I like how this tells a story
I like how he makes a better introduction rap each time.
Sad ending but cute
I feel like I was really rooting for Sam by the end
You should write a part 2 Sam’s big date
I loved this
9

The Offhand Band – Not Cool
Very creative approach to the challenge
Like the verse about the Beatles
Cool chorus
I’m impressed by how long this is
7

Ross Durand – Camp Romance
Cool guitar loop
Like the drum loop
Chorus is brilliant
I like that you brought your story full circle
I really enjoyed this
8

Wait What – Six Years Seventeen Days
Slow jam nice
Like the Spanish bit
Great always something there to remind me reference. Well done
Gets dark at the end
Love the hair doll and the bunny stew
7

Pat And Gweebol – Tick Tock (Top Tad)
Cold
Nice back and forth
The chorus is great
Top Tad made me laugh for a long time I had to stop the song.
Brilliant!!
9

Matt And Donna – Anatomy Dance
Like the intro
Cool vocal effect on the chorus
Wow these verses are amazing!
I like all the talking breaks
Well produced
I loved this
9

Caleb Hines – Two Musicains
Cool wind effect
Like the synth tones
Interesting approach to the challenge
Cool voice
Well done
6

Charlie McCarron – Trail In The Snow
Like the voices
Cool vocal delivery
Interesting approach
6

Steve Durand – A Place For Love
Cool bass line
Like the horns
Backside… nice
Very funny
Musak line very good
8

Dr. Lindyke – Politics And Promises
Nice piano
Strong lyrics
Like the verse about religion
Very topical
Brave approach
7

Jon Eric – The Dance
Cool rap style
Fast vocal delivery impressive
Like the story
Interesting twist at the end
7

Ethan Ivey – Entry 3 (shadow)
Cool drum beat
This is awesome
Cool end

Menage’a a Tune – Roman Road Rap (shadow)
Jesus rap
Interesting vocals on the chorus
Good job

The Boffo Yux Dudes – It’s All About the Benjamins (shadow)
Like the hype man intro
Friends with benies… nice
As a Ben I appreciate this

SpinTunes #3 Round 3 Review: David Santucci

2011-07-23T23:12:00.000-04:00

I used to absolutely hate rap. Not all rap, but in general, I hated most of it most of the time. Having a teenage son, I have now grown to appreciate some of it. But I still hate the fact that so many multi-millionaires are made just for being self-absorbed arrogant thugs who can rhyme their words. And I still hate a lot of rap, and dislike the majority of it. I find most of it annoying more than anything. The sound of it just tends to rub me the wrong way.

I’m a music guy. Always have been. Even when listening to non-rap music, I tend to pay much more attention to the music than the words. To this day you could recite (not sing, but recite) a lyric from some of my favorite songs ever and I might not even recognize what song it came from. I’m unusual that way… I listen to the music and don’t pay much attention to what the lyrics are saying most of the time. Probably the thing I dislike most about rap is that a lot of it is sadly deficient in the music department. And a lot of the catchy songs with any decent music in them STOLE the music! So I just don’t have much respect for the artists who can’t even create their own music and have to sample other people’s work to create a catchy song. Music aside though, the anger and arrogance in rap is a real turn off for me. So much rap out there is just this vile, vulgar vibe being spewed.

Now, having said all that, I have to say I was really impressed with all of these entries. I gave points first and foremost for what sounded good to me. The sound, and the way it grabs me, is of prime importance to me, in this and every round. I tried to be as objective as possible though and gave importance to the quality of the rapping. (I don’t hate all rap, and I can enjoy and appreciate some of it if the sound of it doesn’t completely turn me off.) I tried to keep in mind that the challenge this round was to write a rap, so I tried to focus on the rapping at least as much as the overall musicality of the songs.

In all, I actually enjoyed all of these songs very much. I think I can safely say I like rap a little more now than I did before this contest.

Jutze – My Friend Kay

Inventive rhymes, very odd flavor for a rap with the use of the banjo. Good humor. Unconventional meters used here and there were kind of an acquired taste for me. Wasn’t sure I liked them the first time through but the second time decided I did like them. I didn’t like the use of the audio faltering/stuttering effect in the first chorus; I assume that was deliberate and done for effect, but I didn’t like that. The song was catchy. One thing to be careful of—a couple times you didn’t quite finish the word at the end of a phrase and it was kind of “clipped” in your delivery. Overall, I liked this song.

Edric Haleen – Sarah

Intro much too long. After the second time you sang “Sarah” the rap should’ve kicked in. When that didn’t happen, then I thought for sure it was going to kick in after “screw it.” Then it still didn’t. I generally don’t listen to hip hop, but if I did—you would’ve lost me long before the rap portion ever started. Much too much music and not enough rap for a rap song.

When the rap finally did kick in, I appreciate the humor of the awkwardness and the multiple attempts to say and be cool. But again, by the time you got to the part where you were “nailing it,” if I was a hip hop listener you would’ve lost me long ago in the first two rap portions because they didn’t have any conviction, no balls. I know that was the point, but from a listening standpoint that makes for substandard rap.

As a comedy piece, this was great. Good music during the musical portions. The lyrics and presentation was funny. As a rap though, it was pretty weak for all the reasons already noted. It’s a real shame your entry last round occurred one round too early; that would’ve dominated this round in terms of being a rock solid rap song.

The Offhand Band – Not Cool

Really inventive lyrics and great flow! Good humor too. Like many of the competitors in this contest, the sound of your voice doesn’t scream “rap,” but you overcame this limitation very nicely because your skill, talent, and creativity with your rhymes and lyrics really took me on a journey. I was only thinking “this guy doesn’t have a rapper’s voice” for a couple lines and then the rest of the time I was thinking, “Wow, this guy can rap!” Great job!! I liked the chorus too. I didn’t notice the length of it until after it was over, and I was surprised because I didn’t feel like it was too long. Kept me very entertained.

Ross Durand – Camp Romance

I enjoyed this very much because of the musicality of it. And it conjured up fond memories for me. Funny, and good flow. Really creative, especially the use of campfire songs and other camp clichés. I wasn’t too keen on the sound of the lead vocal at first (having it stacked in unison and/or I couldn’t tell if that was a lot of reverb or what), but it grew on me by the end of the song. Good balance in the amount of rapping and the amount of music. For me, rap is like a lobster with a hard shell that you can’t eat. Your song has helped me crack the shell and get past it to the good soft tasty meat inside. Good job!

Wait What – Six Years Seventeen Days

Fun tune. Clever use of the little elements like the flipping page scratching sound effect, reference to the Naked Eyes song, the car horn, bunny boiling stalker reference, etc. During some of the choruses the female vocal seemed off key on several notes here and there and this was really distracting for me. Like some of the other entries I think maybe more focus could’ve been on the rap itself and a little less on all the music going on; this would’ve made it stronger in my opinion. Overall though I found it enjoyable.

Pat and Gweebol – Ticki Tock (Top Tad)

True hip hoppy feel right from the beginning, that stayed all the way through. Great attitude in the rapping. Good flow, great rhythm. I don’t think I’ve ever heard a yuppie white girl voice that kicked so much ass at rapping. Great caricature by the female vocalist, great performance by both. Very high marks! This had everything. Humor, attitude, an authentic rap “feel” to it, and great execution. You guys made this sound easy!

Matt And Donna – Anatomy Dance

This almost seemed like a song designed to help teach medical students anatomy but with little other point to it. From a musical standpoint I found it very listenable, but halfway through I realized that all the medical terminology was just going in one ear and out the other and this wasn’t really taking me on a journey because it was, for lack of a better explanation, a bunch of blabbering that went above my head. I usually enjoy cerebral lyrics but I found that I was completely tuning out what you were saying. I was still boppin’ along to it, however, so it wasn’t terrible. Good flow and skillful rapping, but I think this concept just didn’t work in the actual execution of it. I enjoyed the music of it, and it was well put together, but it relied on so much medical/anatomical terminology that I ended up not following along with the rapping.

Caleb Hines – Two Musicians

I enjoyed this very much and it’s a shame that you didn’t write or even perform any of the rap. Because this challenge was for you to write a rap. From a creative standpoint I’m impressed and I love what you did with this. For purposes of this competition though, I feel you avoided the whole point of the challenge. The challenge didn’t say “create a rap” or “produce a rap,” it said “WRITE a rap.” The very first word of it was “Write.” Even if you didn’t perform the lyrics yourself, you were at least supposed to write them yourself. You didn’t do either… I still love what you did with this and it makes me sad to have to score you basically a zero.

Charlie McCarron – Trail In The Snow

Love the haunting intro. I liked the chill feel of this a lot. Really unconventional feel for a rap. I liked the slightly odd beat and all of the instrumentation. Your voice isn’t typical for rap, but you took lemons and made great lemonade by making the whole song work together with the subdued quality of your voice. Maybe relied a little too heavily on music and not enough focus on the actual rapping, but the whole thing turned out so listenable that this is a pretty minor criticism and that’s the only one I can think of. I liked this a lot.

Steve Durand – A Place For Love

Funky, groovy, smooth, and jammin’, this absolutely kicked ass. Great use of the horns! Really creative and humorous lyrics. Had me chuckling at multiple points from the great visuals. You really took me on a complete journey with a story that had me hooked from beginning to end. My only criticism would be that you could’ve used just a touch more soul in the execution of a couple of key lyrics—you could’ve nuanced the timing and emphasis in the pronunciation of “cuBICLE” and “maintenANCE” so the rhymes there were more flawless. This is minor, however; the difference between an excellent rap and a practically perfect one. I loved the fact that it sounded like you had absolutely zero use of any electronic instruments. All natural, all organic, real instruments. Good old school funk!! Loved it!!!!

Dr. Lindyke – Politics And Promises

Knowing the style of your previous entries, I have to say you surprised the heck out of me with this! Great attitude & conviction in your rap, good rhythm, all around very good execution. Very creative lyrics with an intelligent but easy to follow message about government abuse of power and hypocrisy. On a couple of notes the female vocal was a little off key but this didn’t occur so much that it was a major problem for me. Very impressed with your versatility… I wasn’t expecting this at all! No extra points for exceeding my expectations though; this was a solid entry with good musicality but anchored in a well executed rap.

Jon Eric – The Dance

Good groove. Grabbed me right away. Good fast flow with the rapping, very fluid. At first I wasn’t sure I liked the over-the-top silly expression in your voice, but it grew on me very quickly. Musically I liked this a lot. I feel like this would’ve been better if the female vocal was just one single track, or perhaps harmonized. Just not in unison. Whenever you stack a unison vocal like this, any slight variations between the two really stick out and, for me anyway, it kind of detracts from the quality of what I’m hearing. It distracts me. It’s fine with rapping (assuming your rhythms are precise, with yours are) because you’re not producing notes per se, but with singing it magnifies any inconsistencies between the two if they’re note exactly on key together at the same moment, and this can make these moments sound like off-key mistakes. Overall I liked this though. I think your rapping was excellent.

SpinTunes #3 Round 3 Review: Mike Lombardo

2011-07-23T23:09:00.001-04:00

This round's reviews are once again brought to you from the tour van, this time between Austin and Dallas.

Jutze - My Friend Kay
Rather interesting and offbeat subject for a rap. The banjo loop was funny, but I'm not sure if that's the reaction that you want because it doesn't fit with anything else. A commen method of rap production is to use 2 vocal tracks, overdubbing every other line so you have room to breathe in between. You might want to give this a shot as sometimes you're struggling to get the lyrics in. The additional section at the end adds nothing and is clearly there to make the time requirement. I'm not sure about the odd measure lengths in the chorus section - odd time is generally a no-no in rap and I don't think it adds anything here other than some confusion.

Edric Haleen - Sarah
Another interesting approach here. The intentionally off-kilter and awkward beats work well under the 'failed' sections of the rap. The opening non-rap section is just a bit long for my taste, if only by two lines or so. There is a healthy amount of variation in the rhyme rhythm.

The Offhand Band - Not Cool
This song is LOONG. The chorus could be trimmed down a bit without losing any impact. There are some very good internal rhymes and rhythmic variation, particulary in the andrew lloyd weber stanza. The bridge is waaaaaaaaay too long. A bridge is generally one or two lines that change the pace and summarize the song. The musical development in the track behind the bridge does keep it from being too tedious, however.

There are a handful of awkward settings but overall it's very good. Despite a need to have some fat trimmed, this is one of the best constructed entries.

Russ Durand - Camp Romance
This is probably the creepiest thing I've ever heard in my life. Technically, it is constructed well... I wish the loop was longer than one bar. I'm not sold on the chorus. I think there are some better options but it doesn't hurt the song. The length is good and the last verse is particularly solid.

Wait What - Six Years Seventeen Days
Construction-wise, this is solid stuff. Almost all of the pacing and rhymes work well. The ending seems a bit abrupt, but that's minor. My biggest complaint is that it feels too long. There's a lot of good material here, and thinning out some of it might make this song a lot more effective. Right around the last verse I found myself checking the timer, amazed that it was still under 4 minutes. Relatively little new information is added at this point in the song, but it's just elaborating on the situation that the listener already clearly understands. Thinning this down and shortening it up will turn this into a really great number.

Pat And Gweebol - TickiTock (Top Tad)
+5 points for use of "ass-clown" in a song.
Not a huge fan of the three-phrase chorus section. 2 or 4 would sound much more natural. "McFly" is mis-stressed pretty badly to the point of being a distraction but for the most part the rhymes are pretty solid and interesting. The female part did a particularly good job of staying in time but also sounding somewhat like normal speech patterns, which is a nice effect for the particular story element of this song.

Matt And Donna - Anatomy Dance
I really like the 2 major chord at the end of the chorus. This has a Justin Timberlake feel to it, especially with the doubled vocals and the great harmonies. This is a great idea. The verses look much more meaty on paper than they are in performance because they go so fast. For greater effect I'd recommend considering combining some or all of the verses together to make one big long cluster of anatomical terms. I think that would really drive home the 'gimmick' so to speak of this song. All in all this is a pretty solid execution of a pretty solid idea.

Caleb Hines - Two Musicians
While this is a cool idea, it doesn't really contain original content as far as it was explained to me, and it is definitely not a rap. A beat poem is probably the best way to categorize this. It's a neat concept but it does not fulfill the challenge.

Charlie McCarron - Trail In The Snow
Some great imagery in the lyrics here. Stylistically it's quite unique. There's not a ton of variety in the rhyme layout but there's enough to keep it consistently interesting. I don't have a ton of criticism for this piece; I think it pretty appropriately fit the challenge while maintaining the personal style of the artist.

Steve Durand - A Place For Love
This is slipping into beat-poem territory because the only rhythmic alignments are the end-rhymes, and it seems like a free-for-all up until the end of the line, but it's still rap enough for me, barely. Because of the mainly end-rhyme structure, there's not a ton of variety or internal rhyme. I would really like to see the entire phrases actually set to the beat rather than just recited, and some more rhyming internally or through-written through the lines would be pretty cool but this is a good start and fulfills the requirement humorously.

Dr Lindyke - Politics And Promises
This is a pretty compelling entry from Dr Lindyke. They've done an excellent job of finding the middle ground between telling your story as straightforward as possible in a naturally worded way, and using word choice to create interesting and engaging rhymes. This rap really pulled me into the message and had some great imagery as well. The only line that caught my ear as a distracting mis-setting was "If it's ok to you then you're on the wrong track." The pause was unexpected and I think that line could have been worked out a little more smoothly.
Recommended listening: "vultures" by five iron frenzy

Jon Eric - The Dance
This is very well done. The line "Share a glance over a couple of color copies" is precisely the type of internal rhyme variation that I was looking to see from entries in this round. I don't have much criticism of this entry other than the narrative's pacing seems a little off kilter and and female vocal doubles on the chorus are a little sloppy. Over all, very good.

SpinTunes #3 Round 3 Review: Mitchell Adam Johnson

2011-07-23T23:07:00.001-04:00

This was so difficult. I honestly really enjoyed every single one of these. You guys are brilliant. Even the people at the bottom of this list wrote fantastic songs. It was fun hearing so many catchy melodies on the choruses, too. Some of you make great rappers. Here is my ranking. These are listed in order, beginning with 1st place:

Charlie McCarron - Trail In The Snow
Nice - one of the only people who didn't take the comedy route. Great use of melody in your rap - makes it a lot more interesting to listen to. The rhythms are SO COOL. "Glowing green, Shining like the edge of a dream," - those lyrics are incredible. Man, when the chords start changing it fits so perfectly. The female singers make this sound like Evanescence if Evanescence was actually cool. What a fantastic music track - great drum beat. Love the single repeating note on that electric keyboard type thing.

Matt & Donna - Anatomy Dance
This one gets the award for the best chorus. Ridiculously catchy!!! I love the last chord - the V/V - great how it doesn't resolve. Reminds me of "Move This" by Technotronic. Love the deleted bits in your voice at the end of the chorus - sounds professional. Fantastic vocals. I've had this chorus in my head for days. Nice lyrics - Anatomy is a common theme in rap music... although it's usually focused on the "ass" and "tits" of the human body. It's great to hear someone rap about the other body parts, the ones doing all the work, the ones behind the magic. You think an "ass" could "shake" without a little "semimembranosus" action?

Jon Eric - The Dance
Haha this is wicked. Like Old School Rap. Great music track - those chords are really strong. Love how it's not just the same four chords over and over - you treated this like a pop song. I appreciate that. "Share a glance over a couple of color copies" is the best rapping I've heard all round. Super catchy chorus - really - this is fantastic. Love the line "Everybody's got skeleton closets, I had a skeleton key, but I lost it."

Pat & Gweebol - TickiTock (Top Tad)
The lyrics are awesome. I love how the intro goes from aggressive speaking into soulful singing. Great trading of raps. Pat has a strong rapping voice. Nice "put it on the pizza" reference! Hahaha. This sounds like The Lonely Island. And Gweebol sounds like Bizzy Bone. Love the speed! Wish her raps would last a bit longer. Really solid rhythms - both of you. This round there are a lot of sloppy rapping rhythms - you guys are right on time. Another chorus I've had in my head for days - even though it's super weird.

Wait What - Six Years Seventeen Days
Love the tone of your voice - very laid back with a touch of resentment. Cool scratches - surprised I didn't hear more of that this challenge. HAHAHAHA "FM" and F Them!" That is brilliant. Such a creative backing track to a rap. The beat really helps push this song along. The singing parts are filled with gorgeous melodies. Geez, there are so many good hooks in this song. "Mistake" and "Mix Tape" - nice one. Love the Fatal Attraction reference (assuming it is one, unless you're just actually really, really creepy).

Steve Durand - A Place For Love
Love the track. Your chorus is so strong! And it's nothing like the rest of the tune - it somehow seamlessly evolves from James Brown to Boys II Men. Great harmonies. Love the slight vibrato. Great work romance lyrics. "I can't make love with toner on my boner," HAHAHAHAHA! Probably the funniest line I've heard.

Jutze - My Friend Kay
Wicked record needle sounds at the beginning. This is the best Old School Rap this round. Man - that banjo is awesome - reminds me of Beck. I think the bit with the banjo is the coolest music I've heard all round. Nice Stevie Wonder style horn section. Your voice is awesome - it keeps the energy high - nice and gritty. Very cool song. The time signature changes in the chorus keep the song fresh - throw in a measure of 3, then make up for it a bit later by adding a measure of 1.

The Offhand Band - Not Cool
Man, the lyrics really kept my attention. Love all the shout outs - you listed like all of my favorite musicians (Beatles, Beach Boys, Carole King, Burt Bacharach, TMBG, Andrew Lloyd Weber, XTC, ELO.... wow). Great job on the rhythms of your rap. Really solid time. The chorus actually kinda reminded me of They Might Be Giants.

Edric Haleen - Sarah
Definitely one of the most creative formats for a song I've ever heard. Such a good idea to have you running through things you'd say to Sarah - and changing up the beat and the lyrics. That's not something that you hear very often. I really dig this song. The music part is like McCartney meets Andrew Lloyd Weber. Love all the talking to yourself. The hi-hat is awesome once the beat gets kickin.

Dr. Lindyke - Politics And Promises
Your voice is a breath of fresh air. It's nice to hear a unique tone rapping. Excellent lyrics. Cool chords backing you up. Catchy girl chorus (there are a lot of those this round). Great to hear someone taking the lyrics seriously.

Ross Durand - Camp Romance
That harmonica is perfect. This really sounds summery. Interesting topic for a rap. Never thought I'd hear finger picking guitar and rap together. Beautiful, sweet, innocent, romantic lyrics. Really enjoy this. Makes me wanna watch Wet Hot American Summer.

Caleb Hines - Two Musicians
This is so cool! Man, it sounds like Dracula spittin' some rhymes. Produced perfectly... The music track is one of the strongest this round. I really love this. Incredibly creative. Bummed that you got DQed - I think this tune is brilliant. Definitely would've made my top five this round.

SpinTunes #3 Round 3 Review: Glenn Case

2011-07-23T23:03:00.001-04:00

Charlie McCarron - Trail In The Snow
You have been consistently great thus far. Excellent hook in the chorus, the lyrics are tremendous, the delivery and performances are great. This sounds like a professional recording in every conceivable respect.
LYRICS – good (2) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – good (2)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – good (2) SCORE: 10 out of 10

Ross Durand - Camp Romance
Brilliant song concept and I started cracking up hysterically when I heard the “Kumbaya” chorus. I would have liked to have heard a little more personality in your rap delivery, but this is an undeniably great track.
LYRICS – good (2) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – good (2) SCORE: 9 out of 10

Matt And Donna - Anatomy Dance
Super fun concept! The verses are expertly crafted, but the delivery could use a little more energy (or personality). I like the chorus hook a lot.
LYRICS – good (2) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 8 out of 10

Jutze – My Friend Kay
I did not think I was going to enjoy this, but it is actually quite charming and enjoyable. The banjo sample rocked my world when I heard it. The rhythmic switches in the chorus are great. I could have done without the fake horns at the end.
LYRICS – good (2) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – okay (1) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 7 out of 10

Steve Durand - A Place For Love
This has a tremendous beat and the lyrics are very clever, but the vocal performance is lacking. Bonus points for “I can’t make love with toner on my boner” which made me laugh out loud.
LYRICS – good (2) STRUCTURE – okay (1) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 7 out of 10

Jon Eric - The Dance
Your participation in the Frontalittle Squad has served you well. The structure of your rap verses is impeccable. Music is a bit quiet in the mix, and I am not feeling the chorus hook at all.
LYRICS – good (2) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – okay (1) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 7 out of 10

Dr. Lindyke - Politics And Promises
I like the piano part a lot. Excellent topic choice and lyrics to match. Rhythmic structure of the rap verses is good, but the delivery is lacking and it sounds like the music is being drowned out a bit.
LYRICS – good (2) STRUCTURE – okay (1) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 7 out of 10

Edric Haleen – Sarah
I have to admit that I was worried for a minute. “Where is the rap?” became “I bet he’s leading up to it.” This was a clever way to blend the rap challenge with the theatrical style that seems to be your bread and butter.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – okay (1) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – good (2) SCORE: 7 out of 10

The Offhand Band - Not Cool
The “7-Up, Uncoola” line cracked me up. The 5:46 length shows that you really took the challenge and ran with it. A very good concept, but I think you could have used a little more personality in your vocal delivery. The pop culture references are fun.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 7 out of 10

Caleb Hines - Two Musicians
I actually enjoy this. Some of my favorite hip hop tracks take pieces of difference sources and combine them to form something new. I like the beat, but I think the lyrics work better as a poem than they do as a rap. This is oddly reminiscent of “Fire Coming Out of the Monkey's Head” by Gorillaz, ‘though I’m fairly certain that they asked Dennis Hopper to read the poetry, rather than sampling him.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – okay (1) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 6 out of 10

Wait What - Six Years Seventeen Days
Good placement of syllables for the verses. The chorus hook struck me as forgettable at first, but it started to grow on me on the second listen. I like the stereo split during the chorus. “The security guard there is quite a jerk” is an example of one of the lines that is delivered in an awkward manner.
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – okay (1) DYNAMICS – okay (1) SCORE: 6 out of 10

Pat And Gweebol - TickiTock (Top Tad)
Male lead vocals are far too loud in the mix, drowning out the music and destroying the dynamics. There is plenty of personality in the vocal deliveries. LOVE the way that the female rapper threw together the syllables for lines like “that-I’m-gonna-date-you after you’ve been hatin’”
LYRICS – okay (1) STRUCTURE – good (2) PERFORMANCE – okay (1)
CONCEPT – good (2) DYNAMICS – bad (0) SCORE: 6 out of 10

SpinTunes 3: Round 3 Songs

2011-07-18T21:52:00.006-04:00

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. 3 people have already eliminated themselves by missing the deadline, so only 8 people will be cut by the judges this round. That will give us 4 people left for round 4. 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 23rd.

- Judges & guest judges have until 8PM on the 23rd to hand in their reviews.

- I will post the Reviews & Eliminations at 11PM on the 23rd.

- July 24th 1AM (Sun) - The Final Challenge is announced.

Videos:
(If anyone wants to make a video for their song, I'll include it here.)

Not Cool by The Offhand Band

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 wrote a Song Bio for his entry (The Offhand Band).

- Edric Haleen wrote a Song Bio for his entry.

- Dr. Lindyke wrote a Song Bio for their entry.

- Jon Eric wrote some Reviews for this round.

- Sammy Kablem posted another Negative Reinforcement Review for this round. This time it's on video.

Round 3 LP & Deadline News

2011-07-18T05:06:00.002-04:00

15 people were left heading into this round, and 12 of the 15 managed to turn in a song by the deadline. Only 3 fell victim to the mighty #TickTock, and so far there have been 3 shadow songs turned in.

The listening party will be hosted by me on July 18th (THAT‘S TODAY), and it starts at 8PM. I hope you decide to stop by, and bring friends. I’ll start a pre-show around 7PM, and it’ll consist of past songs from SpinTunes as well as other selections. The album will be available for FREE listen & download shortly after the LP.

Listening Party Location: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/spintunes

Deadline Eliminations: Chris Cogott, Inverse T. Clown & Gold Lion.

SpinTunes Store:
If you hadn’t noticed, there’s a link to the SpinTunes Store up in the left sidebar now. 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. So if you want a SpinTunes coffee mug, coasters, t-shirt, sweater, thong, or some other type of merch…go check out the store.

So far, between my blog ads & the store, we’ve earned enough to buy Kevin (Champion of SpinTunes #1) a t-shirt. Mitchell (Champion of SpinTunes #2) will be the next person in line for a t-shirt. Of course whoever wins SpinTunes #3 would be after Mitchell.

SpinTunes #3: Round 3 Challenge

2011-07-10T01:12:00.002-04:00

Top That - Write a rap. For anyone who has any experience rapping, you get the added challenge of making your rap about a work romance. That added challenge doesn't apply to those who have never rapped up until this point. (2 minute minimum) (your submission is due July 17th 11:59PM)

Many of you know I tried to get this approved as a challenge in SpinTunes #1 & #2. I was overruled in both cases by the judges. This time...a couple others actually agreed with me. (bout time) I know many of you just felt your stomachs hit the floor, but part of being challenged is getting out of comfort zones. (this should do the trick for most of you) I thought about trying to define "rap" myself so people don't try to wiggle out of the actual challenge, but you know what's being asked of you. We're not asking for a song about gift wrapping, and how head on you take this challenge could very well effect your rankings. So...wiggle at your own risk. If you need a definition, I guess we can use this:

"Rapping refers to "spoken rhyming lyrics". The art form can be broken down into different components, as in the book How to Rap where it is separated into “content”, “flow” (rhythm and rhyme), and “delivery”. Rapping is distinct from spoken word poetry in that it is performed in time to a beat. Stylistically, rap occupies a gray area among speech, prose, poetry, and song."

Those who want to be a finalist this year, will have to attempt to write the next "Bo Fo' Sho'" & hope they don't end up more like "Top That". (I answered some questions about the challenge in the comments...might want to read them.)

Mike Lombardo's Thoughts On A Rap Challenge:
I interviewed Mike last year on YouTube, and he gave his reasons for wanting to see a rap challenge in "Masters Of Song Fu".

(Spintown Interviews...Mike Lombardo)
I'll be listening to lots of MC Frontalot, Young MC & Fresh Prince this week...just to get in the mood for an all rap listening party.

Submitting Entries:

- Entries must be received by the given deadline. Otherwise it'll be posted as a shadow. Received means that it has to appear in my e-mail inbox by the given deadline. I will be going by the time stamp on the e-mail in my inbox. PLEASE do not wait until the last hour to send me something. If there is a blackout in your area, your computer crashes, or your dog actually eats your thumb drive...I will not care. You are allowed to send in a draft of your song early just in case something horrible happens & you miss the deadline. Then you can add polish to your song & send in a better version closer to the deadline. 1 minute late is still late people.

- Send your file in a format that Bandcamp accepts. (.aiff, .wav or .flac) (at least 16-bit/44.1kHz) You can find the specific requirements for Bandcamp files HERE. You do not have to send in MP3's.

- Name your file the song's title, but without spaces & punctuation.

- Title of the e-mail should be the title of the Challenge & your band's name.

- Include the song lyrics in the body of the e-mail. (If your song doesn't have lyrics...consider yourself eliminated. Instrumentals can be pretty, but SpinTunes does require lyrics.)

- Include information on anyone that needs credited if you collabed with someone.

- File sharing options if you need them: YouSendIt, Sound Cloud, Drop Box, RapidShare, ZShare & MediaFire. Please send an e-mail as I already stated, but with the download link if you need one of these services. Please follow directions so your file doesn't wind up in my spam or trash folder accidentally.

- If you have a BandCamp account, you can just send me a link to your song on BandCamp if you include all the info I mentioned above. Make sure you have it set as a free download, and have it set so that I don't have to put in an e-mail to download it if you pick this option. THIS IS THE BEST FILE SHARING OPTION!

Side Notes:

- PLEASE do your best to send in submissions that BandCamp will allow me to upload. Details about what BandCamp allows are only a mouse click away.

- Remember that you are allowed to send in a little background about your song. Some people don't like to do that, and you don't have to, but if you want to write a couple sentences about your song I'll post it on the BandCamp page for people to see. Some judges will look at the lyrics & this extra info, but they aren't required to.

- If you didn't sign-up in time to compete in SpinTunes #3, you can still complete the challenge & send in a song. It'll be uploaded with the other entries as a "Shadow Song". Check the FAQ if you don't know what that means. You can even complete past challenges from previous contests.

- If you didn't sign-up you can also do a song for "Single Rainbow Across The Internet". You're song would be played during the LP as well.

- The only other way to get your music played at the LP is to cover "Today's The Day" by Inverse T. Clown. This project was started in our little community of friends long before SpinTunes even started.

- Feel free to leave any questions in the comments.

SpinTunes #3 Round 2 Totals

2011-07-10T01:04:00.006-04:00

The round 3 challenge will be posted tonight. The schedule says 1AM, and I'm already a little late. Won't be much longer though.

Here are the links to the individual reviews:

Official Judges:
Mike Lombardo - Mitchell Adam Johnson - Dave Santucci - Ben Davila - Glenn Case

Guest Judges:
Hazen Nester - Rebecca Brickley - DxDutch
Alternate Judge's Review: Spin

You can listen to all the wonderful songs from this round by checking out the free album HERE.

Judges feel free to check my totals...I'm tired...mistakes are possible. However if my figures are correct the 6 people in bold have been eliminated from the contest. I really hope they decide to continue in the contest as shadows, and I thank EVERYONE for their hard work this round.

Notes About Results:
- Inverse & Alexa tied, but Inverse had more popular votes, and that was the tie breaker.

- There will be a new rule added to the rules page tonight. I hadn't expected someone to want to enter a song, and not have it go public when the release clearly mentions the songs are meant to be on BandCamp. Nothing on the official rules page addressed the situation, and Edric was almost DQed. Judges had a chance to give input, and it was close, but Edric was allowed to compete. In the future, if you want to enter a song...it will go on BandCamp or you WILL be DQed.

- There were a few sources that didn't meet the stated requirement of the challenge this round. They were also up for possible DQ's. They were allowed to compete ONLY because when I searched for their story online, I was able to find the same story in an acceptable source. In the future, you might want to be more careful or get your source approved by me before you write the song. Don't be afraid to e-mail me questions about stuff like that.

Total Scores: (Hazen) (Ben) (Glenn) (Mitchell) (Mike) (David) (Rebecca) (DxDutch) (Popular)
Charlie McCarron - 16 - 10 - 21 - 20 - 20 - 18 - 21 - 20 - 16 (162)
Chris Cogott - 21 - 16 - 16 - 19 - 17 - 21 - 10 - 17 - 21 (158)
Matt And Donna - 14 - 21 - 20 - 16 - 21 - 2 - 11 - 16 - 18 (139)
Pat And Gweebol - 19 - 20 - 19 - 21 - 1 - 14 - 5 - 15 - 19 (133)
The Offhand Band - 13 - 12 - 13 - 18 - 19 - 15 - 9 - 19 - 15 (133)
Steve Durand - 17 - 18 - 18 - 14 - 15 - 7 - 17 - 5 - 8 (119)
Jutze - 9 - 13 - 9 - 8 - 9 - 19 - 19 - 14 - 17 (117)
Ross Durand - 15 - 11 - 11 - 11 - 16 - 17 - 14 - 10 - 11 (116)
Dr. Lindyke - 18 - 15 - 12 - 9 - 10 - 6 - 16 - 8 - 13 (107)
Jon Eric - 20 - 17 - 17 - 15 - 12 - 3 - 3 - 4 - 5 (96)
Gold Lion - 2 - 1 - 14 - 13 - 11 - 20 - 7 - 11 - 10 (89)
Wait What - 5 - 6 - 4 - 12 - 8 - 13 - 12 - 7 - 20 (87)
Caleb Hines - 10 - 5 - 10 - 17 - 2 - 11 - 8 - 12 - 9 (84)
Edric Haleen - 3 - 9 - 1 - 3 - 5 - 12 - 20 - 18 - 14 (84)
Inverse T. Clown - 6 - 8 - 7 - 10 - 7 - 10 - 4 - 21 - 7 (80)
Alexa Polasky - 7 - 19 - 6 - 4 - 14 - 4 - 18 - 6 - 2 (80)
Governing Dynamics - 8 - 4 - 15 - 6 - 6 - 8 - 13 - 3 - 12 (75)
Godz Poodlz - 11 - 7 - 5 - 7 - 3 - 16 - 6 - 13 - 4 (72)
Alex Carpenter - 12 - 3 - 3 - 5 - 18 - 9 - 2 - 9 - 3 (64)
Matt Walton - 4 - 14 - 8 - 2 - 13 - 1 - 15 - 1 - 1 (59)
Happi - 1 - 2 - 2 - 1 - 4 - 5 - 1 - 2 - 6 (23)

Hazen's Rankings:
Chris Cogott - 21
Jon Eric - 20
Pat And Gweebol - 19
Dr. Lindyke - 18
Steve Durand - 17
Charlie McCarron - 16
Ross Durand - 15
Matt And Donna - 14
The Offhand Band - 13
Alex Carpenter - 12
Godz Poodlz - 11
Caleb Hines - 10
Jutze - 9
Governing Dynamics - 8
Alexa Polasky - 7
Inverse T. Clown - 6
Wait What - 5
Matt Walton - 4
Edric Haleen - 3
Gold Lion - 2
Happi - 1

Ben's Rankings:
Matt And Donna - 21
Pat And Gweebol - 20
Alexa Polasky - 19
Steve Durand - 18
Jon Eric - 17
Chris Cogott - 16
Dr. Lindyke - 15
Matt Walton - 14
Jutze - 13
The Offhand Band - 12
Ross Durand - 11
Charlie McCarron - 10
Edric Haleen - 9
Inverse T. Clown - 8
Godz Poodlz - 7
Wait What - 6
Caleb Hines - 5
Governing Dynamics - 4
Alex Carpenter - 3
Happi - 2
Gold Lion - 1

Glenn's Rankings:
Charlie McCarron - 21
Matt And Donna - 20
Pat And Gweebol - 19
Steve Durand - 18
Jon Eric - 17
Chris Cogott - 16
Governing Dynamics - 15
Gold Lion - 14
The Offhand Band - 13
Dr. Lindyke - 12
Ross Durand - 11
Caleb Hines - 10
Jutze - 9
Matt Walton - 8
Inverse T. Clown - 7
Alexa Polasky - 6
Godz Poodlz - 5
Wait What - 4
Alex Carpenter - 3
Happi - 2
Edric Haleen - 1

Mitchell's Rankings:
Pat And Gweebol - 21
Charlie McCarron - 20
Chris Cogott - 19
The Offhand Band - 18
Caleb Hines - 17
Matt And Donna - 16
Jon Eric - 15
Steve Durand - 14
Gold Lion - 13
Wait What - 12
Ross Durand - 11
Inverse T. Clown - 10
Dr. Lindyke - 9
Jutze - 8
Godz Poodlz - 7
Governing Dynamics - 6
Alex Carpenter - 5
Alexa Polasky - 4
Edric Haleen - 3
Matt Walton - 2
Happi - 1

Mike's Rankings:
Matt And Donna - 21
Charlie McCarron - 20
The Offhand Band - 19
Alex Carpenter - 18
Chris Cogott - 17
Ross Durand - 16
Steve Durand - 15
Alexa Polasky - 14
Matt Walton - 13
Jon Eric - 12
Gold Lion - 11
Dr. Lindyke - 10
Jutze - 9
Wait What - 8
Inverse T. Clown - 7
Governing Dynamics - 6
Edric Haleen - 5
Happi - 4
Godz Poodlz - 3
Caleb Hines - 2
Pat And Gweebol - 1

David's Rankings:
Chris Cogott - 21
Gold Lion - 20
Jutze - 19
Charlie McCarron - 18
Ross Durand - 17
Godz Poodlz - 16
The Offhand Band - 15
Pat And Gweebol - 14
Wait What - 13
Edric Haleen - 12
Caleb Hines - 11
Inverse T. Clown - 10
Alex Carpenter - 9
Governing Dynamics - 8
Steve Durand - 7
Dr. Lindyke - 6
Happi - 5
Alexa Polasky - 4
Jon Eric - 3
Matt And Donna - 2
Matt Walton - 1

Rebecca's Rankings:
Charlie McCarron - 21
Edric Haleen - 20
Jutze - 19
Alexa Polasky - 18
Steve Durand - 17
Dr. Lindyke - 16
Matt Walton - 15
Ross Durand - 14
Governing Dynamics - 13
Wait What - 12
Matt And Donna - 11
Chris Cogott - 10
The Offhand Band - 9
Caleb Hines - 8
Gold Lion - 7
Godz Poodlz - 6
Pat And Gweebol - 5
Inverse T. Clown - 4
Jon Eric - 3
Alex Carpenter - 2
Happi - 1

DxDutch's Rankings:
Inverse T. Clown - 21
Charlie McCarron - 20
The Offhand Band - 19
Edric Haleen - 18
Chris Cogott - 17
Matt And Donna - 16
Pat And Gweebol - 15
Jutze - 14
Godz Poodlz - 13
Caleb Hines - 12
Gold Lion - 11
Ross Durand - 10
Alex Carpenter - 9
Dr. Lindyke - 8
Wait What - 7
Alexa Polasky - 6
Steve Durand - 5
Jon Eric - 4
Governing Dynamics - 3
Happi - 2
Matt Walton - 1

Popular Vote Totals:
Chris Cogott - 28
Wait What - 23
Pat And Gweebol - 21
Matt And Donna - 21
Jutze - 15
Charlie McCarron - 15
The Offhand Band - 12
Edric Haleen - 12
Dr. Lindyke - 12
Governing Dynamics - 12
Ross Durand - 12
Gold Lion - 11
Caleb Hines - 11
Steve Durand - 11
Inverse T. Clown - 9
Happi - 8
Jon Eric - 8
Godz Poodlz - 7
Alex Carpenter - 4
Alexa Polasky - 3
Matt Walton - 1

Popular Vote Scores:
Chris Cogott - 21
Wait What - 20
Pat And Gweebol - 19
Matt And Donna - 18
Jutze - 17
Charlie McCarron - 16
The Offhand Band - 15
Edric Haleen - 14
Dr. Lindyke - 13
Governing Dynamics - 12
Ross Durand - 11
Gold Lion - 10
Caleb Hines - 9
Steve Durand - 8
Inverse T. Clown - 7
Happi - 6
Jon Eric - 5
Godz Poodlz - 4
Alex Carpenter - 3
Alexa Polasky - 2
Matt Walton - 1

SpinTunes #3 Round 2 Review: DxDutch

2011-07-10T00:36:00.003-04:00

Before I start, I’d like to say some things.

I’m a guest judge for a reason. I’m just a young singer/songwriter on youtube (Here's her Channel Link) and I honestly do not have much knowledge of music theory. I will be judging your songs from an average listener’s point of view. Whether the song is catchy, if the lyrics make sense, if the lyrics fit the melody well, if the song can be seen as a whole. Simple things like that but hopefully they will be helpful to you. I’ll try not to focus too much on singing ability, unless it’s just really, really bad. If it’s off I might say so but I won’t hold it against you in rating the songs.

Also, english is my second language. I’m trying my best to write everything as understandable as possible but forgive me if there’s any (grammar) mistakes. If you’re not sure what I meant with a certain sentence, I’m sure there’s a way you can send me an e-mail or post a comment.

Oh, and I haven’t been keeping up with the news lately, so I’m going to assume all of you stuck to your challenge. If you have an article linked to the song or a little bit of information why and how you wrote the song, I will read it because I think it adds to understanding the song and songwriting process better.

The Offhand Band - Program aids food stamp users
I like the concept of the song, making it look like it could’ve been a newspaper article. I know that must’ve been hard to write and props to you for doing it. I like the overall melody, you’ve got some unexpected chords you hit which make it sound interesting and keeps the listener focussed. The lyrics, melody and the instruments sound like it’s a ready made song for a musical. Couple of things that I didn’t really like are in the chorus; the part when you’re singing ‘Johnson said’, kind of sounded like you wanted to add it but you didn’t really know how, therefore you just.. added it. I’m not sure how to explain it because in my head there’s a way where it would’ve sounded better. If you would’ve made the gap between ‘big for us – Johnson said’ a little smaller and chosen a chord that ends the sentence, instead of the chord you’re using that’s creating this feeling as if there’s more to come after this line, it would feel more like it’s actually part of the chorus and would put more emphasis on rhyming with ‘well fed’. Also the transition from the verse to the chorus didn’t feel very strong to me. I would’ve started the chorus higher (as in a higher note) to make the difference between chorus and verse bigger, therefore a little catchier. The last little thing you could’ve changed is something I think you meant to do but just didn’t execute very well (or maybe it’s just the way I received it, I personally just think it would fit much better). The timing of the start of a new chorus, going from verse to chorus, or of a new verse going from verse to verse (in town – health bucks) should’ve been a little later. There is definitely some room to play with the timing, just try it yourself and see if you like it! In the chorus I would like to hear more of a “when-there’s” instead of “when__ there’s”. I’m a fan of the bridge, it’s a perfect build-up but not in a cliché way. At the end of the bridge it builds a little more, then you drop it and then you have a perfect transition to the chorus, I love that! Also, I like the chord you end the song on. It kind of leaves me hanging, wanting more.

Gold Lion - Message For Vivian
That’s a beautiful article you chose to write a song about! But we’re not here to talk about that, let’s get on with the song.
I like that you wrote the lyrics from the perspective of “mr. Precise”. I’d say the lyrics are ok, the concept is good but you could’ve done a lot more. It seems like you’re still too focussed on rhyming the words instead of coming up with a line that is very strong and will draw more emotion. The article you chose almost made me cry when I read it, so I got really excited when I started listening to your song. Right now I kind of feel neutral again, as if the song washed away my emotions. Next time you write a song from someone’s perspective, spend a couple of minutes with your eyes closed, truly thinking about what you would feel if you were in his shoes. Wouldn’t you miss your wife? You have looked at her crying, mourning over you. How would that make you feel when you see the one you love hurt so much? That would make the lyrics come across stronger and would draw much more emotion than the now objective-feeling lyrics you’ve written. I do really like the intro to the song and the overall mood of the melody. It does fit with the article and subject.

Eric Haleen – What about love
I feel that you did this song so well that I’ve got to get into the discussion and questions that you’re asking in the song. I’m not here to do that ofcourse and thus I’ll try and stay as objective as possible.
That’s a very sensitive subject you chose to write about but it’s something almost everyone has an opinion on and it’s always in the news. I think you did a really good job in showing emotion in both your lyrics and the music. The passion you’re singing with definitely gave me goosebumps. I like how the song sounds as a whole. You’ve come up with strong lyrics, original rhyming, good rhyming and it all still makes sense if you take away the music. I wouldn’t call it catchy but it’s a song that can be very emotional to some people and therefore be a very meaningful song. Ofcourse not every song has to be catchy but if it’s not, you’ve got to compensate that, which I think you did great. I like the beginning of your song, with a little talking. I love the bass and the strings in the background. You built up the momentum of the song very well to the ‘love’ part, which I think was very original and creative. Instead of a clear cut chorus you chose to use the momentum to get your message out. I think that is great and I love the way you did it. There are some parts where your voice is too soft and I can barely hear what you’re saying, so you’ve got to be careful with that because that’s a waste of all the work you’ve put into coming up with the lyrics. One other thing you could maybe change is the last ‘Love’, where you’re singing the “if they say..”- parts. I would’ve preferred if it was a little louder, perhaps more instruments, make it sound bigger, more impressive. After all, this whole song is about building momentum, use this last piece to scream out your last messages and then have it fade away like you did.

Jutze - Re: Your Oil
Wow. Of course, at first I never know what to expect, so I kind of read the article and thought to myself, what are you going to write about and how are you going to do that? I think you did it very well. You got your message out in a sarcastic and funny way and also from the perspective from the countries that only care about the oil. Your song kind of reminded me of an amateur version of Bohemian Rhapsody, which is actually kind of cool and fits the sarcastic lyrics pretty well. The slower parts are almost like the countries pretending like they care and then the rock parts is them getting more aggressive and saying, hey, all we want is your oil. That’s a nice way to play with the lyrics in your music and I like it. If you break down the lyrics they didn’t take much thoughts or effort but it works well in this setting and to get your message across. The thing that I found kind of weird is the way you started out the song. It doesn’t seem to fit with the rest of the song at all (and I’m talking about just lyrics). I can kind of see why you may think it would fit but.. no. It sure is very catchy though because after writing this whole piece, it’s still stuck in my head!

Dr. Lindyke - Prayer For Peace
First off, I really like the guitar. I love the chords you’re using and also a beautiful chordprogression. It sounds like a beautiful lullaby, which is a nice choice because you’re singing about peace. Your song is about contradiction, I like the sentence “pray for the peace of the City of Peace”, it’s a strong line that gets people thinking, it’s a good way to get your message across. I love the Hebrew phrases you used, it fits the subject and also adds to the mood of the song. Now, I do have to say, the harmonies were horrible. I won’t hold the singing against you in the contest because it’s a songwriting contest but it did take away from me fully enjoying the song. I understand what you were trying to do though, you just had a particular sound in mind but you’ll need to work on the melodies of the different harmonies. I know it’s not easy because you added two different ones and sometimes one harmony sounds great with the main melody but not with the other harmony. So if you’re wanting to add several harmonies, make sure every single note sounds good with áll the other notes. Furthermore, the overall mood is nice and sweet and it’s a simple sounding lullaby that needs not much more added.

Governing Dynamics - Cameras, Streetlights, And Things Worth Fighting For
I read the title and at first I thought “that’s too long”.. Then the song started and I pictured cameras, lights, driving through a city etc. so the title fits really well with the intro of the song, it kind of tickles your imagination, I like it. I love the instrumentals, the song could be really good but unfortunately, that’s not what I thought of it. I’m not a fan of the melody line at all. It felt like you recorded an awesome instrumental song, with beautiful sounds, chords and bells and whistles and then you were thinking “oh right, now I need to add some quick vocals”, so you just grabbed the microphone and sung everything exactly timed with your instrumentals. It makes the song sound really choppy and very long. Make your lines a little longer-sounding (and with that, I don’t mean, add more words) and flowing. You added harmonies everywhere that were just overpowering the main vocals which was kind of weird sounding. If you wanted to go up in the main vocals then remove the lower vocals because they’re kind of confusing. Also, I’m not sure how to explain it but I’m kind of missing the catchyness in the chorus. I’m not even sure if there really is a chorus. So your instrumentals are awesome and the base is there, just work a little more on your melody line!

Pat And Gweebol - The Story Is Mine: Confession Of An Undocumented Immigrant
That was a short, cute and fun song. Very clear cut. I like the subject you chose. You could’ve gone a lot of directions with it but you chose to make it into a happy song. It’s not very emotional, which it could’ve been and I’m still deliberating in my mind if I would’ve preferred to hear a more emotional, dragging, sad song but I basically like the way you did it. You chose to sing from the perspective of the reporter which is fine but the reporter made the article about himself to bring national attention to the plight of undocumented workers. Your lyrics seemed to miss that message. You were basically telling the story but it’s as if you forgot to explain why. Because the song is so short there was definitely still room to get into that. The chorus is very catchy, I especially like the way the last line sounds with the harmonies, great job. Good use of instruments. It’s a happy song and the trumpets and ‘choppy’ piano sound adds to the overall mood of the song. The bridge is too short though, it’s not like there’s a rule to how long a bridge is supposed to sound but the reason I’m saying it’s too short is because it sounds rushed. The transition from “breathe free- I’m lifting” could use a little more space. So I’d say work a little more on the depth of your lyrics and spend some time on ‘relaxing’ the bridge. The rest was good.

Alexa Polasky – Infidelity
I like the verse, the lyrics and melody go well together, it flows very nicely. It all sounds interesting and makes me want to listen to the rest of the song but then, the chorus comes around. Honestly, I’m not really sure what to think about it. There are a lot of songs that just repeat one line but for some reason this one just doesn’t really work for me. I think it’s the ‘everyday’ that is just kind of .. random sounding. It’s just not like it’s a great addition to the sentence, as in; without it, it wouldn’t have made sense or without it, it’s not as great. It’s just ‘people lose their love’ oh.. and they lose them everyday. I’m sorry, I’m not trying to sound mean I’m just trying to explain what I think, I hope you understand that ‘people lose their love everyday’ is just not an interesting enough sentence to hear on repeat. The repeating after every sentence thing too is cool but you overdid it. Next time just add it to the second verse for example or just the third sentence in every verse. You want it to be something special and catchy, you don’t want it to sound like you’re playing the song in a tunnel. Other than that, I like the song, the lyrics are ok, the chordprogression in the verse is very easy on the ears. I know it’s kind of hard for you to do because you only used a guitar but the song gets a little boring at the end. Perhaps you could add harmonies or ‘oohs and aahs’ to get the last bit of attention and then nicely fade out or finish it with an outro. And tune your guitar.

Matt Walton - Take Your Placards Down To London
The melody line is pretty good. I think you tried to make it sound like an irish sounding song with the drums. The idea? Great. The execution? Hurts my ears. When your song first started I was thinking: is this just a mistake in your microphone or something? Then the noise in the background finally changed notes and then I thought: oh, it would’ve been better if it was just noise that your mic picked up when recording.. I do like the whole idea of the song and it fits perfectly with the lyrics but I just couldn’t listen to the full song, I’m very sorry. The bagpipe sounds very harsh and just one note all through the verse is going to make it sound very boring. Try adding other instruments and changing notes/chords every once in a while. Your voice sounds good and the melody too, it really is good but the instrumentals are not.

Godz Poodlz - Independence And Freedom For All
Your song started out really good. I love the lyrics, you chose to write the song from the guy’s perspective and the article is perfect for that. There are some sentences in the verse that don’t really flow as much as the others so that was a little let down but not too bad. Rhyming was good and you integrated some lines from the article really well into your song. The chorus on the other hand was a little disappointing. I just don’t really get the sentence “independence and freedom for all”. The whole article and your song was about the guy that planned his own crime and punishment and he says he’s not a political man, yet you sing from his perspective as if independence and freedom for everyone was his goal. The difference in melody between the verse and the chorus isn’t very big either. The verse is very uptempo sounding and is much better compared to the kind of slow sounding chorus. That’s what you’ve got to work on. If your verse is so uptempo, make sure your chorus takes it to that next level and lifts the song, that it makes me want to get up and dance, or at least makes me think of wanting to dance because it is a happy message after all, the guy got what he wanted.

Chris Cogott - Welcome To Kabul
I love your title. It’s very welcoming (ha-ha, get it?) and it draws me in. I haven’t heard the song yet, writing this first sentence down so I’m curious and looking forward to hearing it.
I love the guitar, it’s a good intro and it sound very crisp. When you started singing it sounded like you were disconnected from the instrumentals and the lyrics though. I’m not exactly sure why but based on the guitar and the sound quality I think I expected a little bit more. The lyrics are okay, they’re very simple sounding and of average length. Then you make it all up again with the chorus. It’s catchy sounding, I like the harmonies. You could play around with the harmonies a little more because right now they kind of sound like they were generated by a computer. The lyrics of the chorus are simple but they are strong, the message comes across very well that way. Then, the ‘slip away’-part. That is awesome! It takes me away to the world where everything is slipping away and it sounds very haunting. Your transition to the chorus sounds perfect too, don’t change anything about that. The last verse sounded a little better than the first, you seemed to be more ‘in’ the song but then the song ended very abruptly, it felt like. I would’ve preferred more of an outro but that’s just personal I guess. I do feel like the song in the beginning maybe sounds a little too happy for the lyrics but it does make the transition to the solo part very beautiful.. It just feels so weird to listen to you sing “bombs explode” all happily. So next time, try to connect more to your lyrics and maybe spend some more time on writing lyrics, especially because your guitar sounds very clean without much emotion, then it all kind of depends on your melody and singing.

Inverse T. Clown - Something In The Air
I love your song! It’s absolutely amazing. I love the instrumentals, it sounds very space-y, which is very appropriate because of the subject your song is about. Your lyrics are well thought –out, I can see you spent quite some time on them, not only rhyming them but also making sure the lyrics flow in the sentences and sound catchy. The balance between your verse and chorus is very good too. I like that you changed the lyrics of your chorus everytime but you kept the catchphrase “there’s something in the air”. It’s echoing in my head right now. I would definitely listen to this song again. The production quality could use a little more attention though. Your voice was a little too overpowering compared to the music. I would turn up the instrumentals a bit more so your voice kind of blends in with the music but make sure it’s still understandable.

Caleb Hines - Too Soon To Say Goodbye
That is a happy, cute sounding song with a little bit of sadness in it. I like it! I think the melody and instrumentals would’ve fit better in a musical/movie about a little kid singing she’s going to sleep and everything will be okay tomorrow, it just kind of reminds me of a situation like that and therefore I’m going to say that I don’t think the lyrics entirely fit the song but overall you did a good job. The singing could’ve been better but that’s ok, just make sure you want to be a songwriter, not a singer- I won’t hold it against you in rating the songs though. I like the recording, it sounds professional and I think there are a lot of people that would like this song. The harmonies were off but from what I could tell you wanted it to sound like, it was good and at the appropriate places.

Matt And Donna - A Tight Spot
When the song first started out it reminded me of the old games I played on a gameboy. I think that’s good though because I knew your song is about two children so it’s cool to involve a little children’s association with your song. I think the intro and the inbetween solo are a little too long but that’s personal, I’m just not a big fan of long intro’s and solo’s. I do, however, have a weak for funny endings and I love the ending of your song. The lyrics are very good, they flow nicely and they all fit into the song. I actually like your voice too, it’s not the best but it’s pleasant to listen to. It’s an original way to write your song too, from a hypothetical brother’s perspective. I would turn up the drums a little more in the verse because the difference in dynamics between the verse and the chorus is a litte big to me. And I’m definitely missing the bass, I don’t know if you have the resources to add a bass but I think it would fit the song really well! And erhh, maybe change your title…

Wait What - Bunny Please Don't Go
I like your song. It’s catchy and well put together. Kind of a funny subject and goes well with the music. Not a fan of the autotuned sound but maybe I would take that back once I hear the untouched version, so I won’t say anything about it, haha. I can’t get the cowbells out of my head though, they are a little overwhelming, maybe you want to turn them down a bit next time. There are some spots in the song that feel a little empty, for example right after the bridge. It kind of feels like you had to start the chorus but you missed it so you just started it the next measure. I especially like the verses and my favorite line is “I just don’t know no better”. It just sounds so unexpected (to hear ‘know no’) yet it’s totally right. Things like that stick out to me and I love it. Good job!

Ross Durand - The American Way
I really like the way the song starts out with the guitar and also the way you keep it going throughout the whole song. You’re playing some nice chordprogressions and it’s very easy on the ears. It sounds like a fun and cute song simply to get the message across. I like the ‘less-is-more’ feeling of your song. I like your melody and voice too, it sounds good and works well with the guitar. You’ve got a good chorus, just listening to it once doesn’t get it stuck in my head but you’re repeating it just enough times to make it catchy but not annoying. One thing I wasn’t crazy about was the bridge. It starts out good but then it just feels like it kind of goes somewhere without much thinking. I’m talking about the part between “rise above it – State’s wrongs” and then you end it as if it were a verse or a chorus. I’d like the bridge to be a little more daring and exciting sounding and to go back to the chorus with which the listener’s comfortable with now. Don’t have much more to say about it, except for I would’ve liked to hear more.

Steve Durand - When Frankie And Johnny Get Married
Your song sounds like a mix between a folksong and a nursery rhyme and a wedding song. It’s a pretty nice mix and I like it. I really like when it started out, you started the first four lines of the verse and then the second four lines had a different melody line, that was quite a pleasant surprise. They seem to fit and go well with eachother so I was happy when I heard that. Then I got really curious to what the rest of the song would sound like because so far I really liked it. Then it just went downhill for me. The instrumentals stayed the same, no exciting chord changes or melody changes, it sounds like this song has no chorus at all. It drags and drags on and get just really boring. I know there is a chorus but it blends in so well with the whole rhythm and progression of the song that it sounds like there is none. I do like the interlude, it’s a nice change. I know you tried to change up the song by changing the key but the first time I listened to it it just went by me, I was so hypnotized by the ‘boom- cha- cha’ rhythm that I missed it. Try and maybe add a bridge that breaks up the whole song, don’t use the choppy lines but make them a little longer to get the listener focussed again and quit the draggy feeling of the song towards the end.

Happi - Double The Fetish
Starting out the song with the chorus was a bad, bad idea. I listened to it and honestly I was thinking Oh My.. That’s bad. Anyway, thankfully it got a little better but you need to work on your singing or let someone else sing. It’s not like you made it any better by harmonizing. Weirdly enough though, I walked away to get something to drink and now it is stuck in my head. It’s actually pretty catchy but that’s probably because it sounds better in my head. Anyway, your rapping isn’t too bad. There are some lines that you kind of played with, probably because you couldn’t find the right (amount of) words to make a nicely flowing sentence so that was a little weak sounding. On the other hand you did have some lines that I really liked and actually sounded really nice. So your song to me is kind of hot and cold. It’s simple, nothing too fancy, it’s not good but not bad either. Just get someone else to sing the chorus for you and I think you’ll make a lot of progress.

Charlie McCarron - The Mountain Will Not Yield
The song sounds very haunting. It’s got a very different feel to it, something I don’t feel a lot with songs and it’s good. It’s making me crave more of the song. The verses are very exciting sounding, I love the combination of your melody line together with the chords. You’re building up to the chorus very nicely, I like the chorus too, love the instrumentals. I honestly don’t have much advice to give you to do it better next time. I guess the one thing I would’ve liked is more space after ‘through the clouds’. You kind of drop all of the instrumentals and there is a little bit of a silence. I think it’s a little too short though, it sounds very nice and I love it, but I’d like more time to realize what’s happening and then you can kick the song back in.

Jon Eric - North Dakota (I. Five Years, II. Fargo, III. Panic, IV. Rain, V. Dry Land)
I gotta give you props for writing that much music and lyrics. It’s a cool song but when I realized how long it was I had to blink a couple of times to see if the computer really said 9 minutes and 22 seconds. Anyway, it’s a nice song and I can’t get around it, it’s very long. Too long if you ask me. Not because I think every song has to end at 4 minutes because all of the songs do but because there just wasn’t much interesting happening. You did stay nicely within the chords that sounded well with your song, used an interesting change here and there but other than that, it stopped. There wasn’t a huge instrumental change or big change in chordprogression, it just all sounded the same but a little different. And if you have to listen to that for 9:30 minutes, it gets old. Overall, your lyrics are ok, you have really good instrumentals and chordprogressions and some nice melody lines so it’s definitely not a bad song. Just do me one favor, don’t ever whistle anymore.

Alex Carpenter - The Last Launch
I don’t know if you’ll take it as a compliment or not but the first thing that popped into my mind is that your song kind of sounds like a Taylor Swift song. The opinions about her vary but fact is, she’s rich and famous because of her songs. I really like your guitar playing in this song. I love the chords, it sounds very pop-like, just catchy and quick. The song is a little short but that’s okay. I’m not crazy about the chorus either but that’s okay too. I’d just say your song is a little average sounding. It sounds like you rushed the whole process of writing this song and maybe you were in a hurry. I just see a song with the potential to be good but still needs quite some work. Maybe you should take a look at your song again and add some more lyrics, perhaps make the chorus a little longer. I think it would make the song a lot better. For now, it’s ok.

SpinTunes #3 Round 2 Review: Rebecca Brickley

2011-07-10T00:23:00.002-04:00

(For more Rebecca, check out her YouTube Channel)

First of all, just let me say I’m so honored that Travis asked me to be a guest judge this round. I have so much respect for all of you and I’m always happy to be involved in SpinTunes in whatever way I can. This round was really excellent – a lot of diversity in both topic and style. It wasn’t easy judging at all. I just want to say that I was really impressed with everyone, including the shadows. Pats on everyone’s backs. Go on. Pat yourself on the back. There you go.

Now, I’m just a young musician myself so I don’t consider myself any kind of professional or expert. But I do know what I like in songwriting and what is expected in a competition like Spintunes, so I approached my judging style with those things in mind. First, I listened through all of the songs without looking at the lyrics, to get a feel for them. I was listening for two major things:

Do I understand what the song is about? Can I get a feel for the article by listening to the song? Is the song memorable? Do I want to listen to it again?

After this dry run, I re-listened to the songs several times with a more critical ear, and I took a closer look at the lyrics. Production quality is not that important to me, as I know well the woes of writing and recording something in a one-week time period. Since this is a topical challenge, what matters most is to me that you were able to convey a clear message and make me feel emotionally connected to the song.

Things that go a long way with me:
- Clever rhymes
- Understanding your musical style (and being able to pull it off)
- Approaching the topic in a creative way
- Quality of lyrics over quantity

Things that don’t go over well with me:
- Vagueness about the story
- Wordiness
- Excess length
- Overcomplication of the backup track

In the end, I ended up ranking some songs much lower than I expected and some higher than I expected - it’s hard to rank songs when they are all so good. But they must be ranked. In the end, I went with the songs that were the most memorable to me and that seemed to meet the challenge effortlessly. Please know that it wasn’t easy!

Program Aids Food Stamp – Offand Band
Sounds like a contemporary Broadway musical – I love it. Great chord changes – not too predictable. Natural rhymes, didn’t feel forced – although it was a little wordy at times. Unique topic – definitely not what I was expecting. The song focused more on the struggles of Ms. Johnson rather than the actual article, but it may have been a smart choice because it added heart to the story. Loved the instrumental ending. A strong song, for sure.

Message for Vivian – Gold Lion
Nice mix. Very beautiful, haunting voice – and this style is perfect for it. I like the melody in the verses, but it’s definitely on the simple side. I’ll confess - the first time I listened to the song, I couldn’t figure out what it was about. But after reading the lyrics. I realized how touching the story was. I think it just moved a little too slowly for me to really grasp it all – in the end the song felt a little long. But definitely a very sweet. My favorite part was the chorus.

Edric Haleen – What About Love?
Edric, this song is freaking fantastic. The complete opposite of what I expected. I immediately thought of Eminem while listening to this, haha. I’m impressed with how well you can rap. Your rhymes are fantastic. You put a lot of emotion into it. I sound like a silly white girl critiquing rap, but seriously, I really wish I could share this song with the whole world (I won’t though!) Really good.

Jutze – Re: Your Oil
I had such a smile on my face the first time I heard this song. I loved the snarky voice and the dark humor of it. I really liked the repeated phrase in the chorus and the rises and falls in the energy. And the final line was perfect. Good mix. The message of the song was clear. The lyrics were clever and you have a good sense of musicality. As soon as I heard this song, I immediately wanted to relisten. Great job.

Dr. Lindyke – Prayer for Peace
This song gave me chills. The harmonies during the chorus were truly haunting. I love the simplicity of the guitar and how bare the song is. It had the feel of a folk song that might have been passed down for generations. A touching subject. The lyrics, while repetitive, suited the style and helped to drive the message home. Very well done. Stuck in my head for days!

Governing Dynamics – Cameras, Streetlights, And Things Worth Fighting For
As always, Travis, your mix is great and you really know how to pull off this style. I was really impressed. Though the chords in the guitar are simple, you were able to keep it fresh. I wasn’t sure what the song was about until you said the word “Vancouver” but once I got the idea, I fell in love with the song. Fantastic lyrics - they really made me think of the chaos in the streets of Vancouver that night. The melody was a little repetitive, which made the song feel a little long. But I think you chose an excellent topic and pulled it off really nicely.

Pat and Gweebol – The Story is Mine: Confession of an Undocumented Immigrant
I love the bouncy feel! Another song that reminds me of contemporary Broadway, as far as musical style. Felt a little short, but the production quality is fantastic. Absolutely loved the horns and how you used them to accent the ends of lines. Your voices go together nicely. The story behind the song was a little vague, but a very catchy melody. I had it stuck in my head for a long time!

Alexa Polasky – Infidelity
What a heartwrenching song, wow. Definitely a song that could stand on it’s own to legs outside of this competition. I love the simplicity of your voice and the ukelele. I think the simplicity of this song is what makes it great – you don’t have many lyrics, but you chose them well and they carry a lot of emotion. Clear message, great musicality, good length – nothing feels forced or rushed. One of my favorites songs this round.

Matt Walton – Take Your Placards
I want to hug you for choosing this style. Risky, simple - but you pulled it off nicely. It lends itself to a very strong melody. Another song I had stuck in my head for a long time. You have a lot of lyrics but they don’t feel wordy – you told the story well, and you were able to keep it musical and interesting. The refrain held the song together liked the use of multiple voices. Fantastic job.

Godz Poodlz – Independence and Freedom for All
Great mix. My favorite part of the song was the chorus and your use of harmonies. I was able to understand your lyrics and the message, and the line “Independence and Freedom for All” was a great hook – it brought heart to the long. Great length. Chords are a little predictable but work well. Your message was clear. Definitely a strong song.

Chris Cogott – Welcome to Kabul
The guitar drew me in – very refreshing and I loved the way you used the electric over the acoustic. I like the doubling of the voices, it adds to the style nicely. The message was touching and you expressed it well with your lyrics, your use of harmonies, and your energy. A song that could easily stand alone outside of this competition.

Inverse T. Clown – Something in the Air
And now for something completely different! A lot of lyrics, wow. My initial instinct is to say that the song feels a little long and wordy. However, you are one of the few who really told a detailed story that connected clearly with the article. Since that was the challenge, I applaud you for that. Your musical style suited the topic very well! Your rhymes are right on target, the music was fresh, and your article was definitely unique. The song definitely stands out among the rest.

Caleb Hines – Too Soon to Say
The strings and the piano at the beginning were a great opener – drew me into the song immediately. The rhymes were a little easy but I was able to understand the story clearly. Your voice is fantastic. The rises and falls in the energy really added emotion that was the heart of the song. Some clever chord changes, nice musicality. A great balance of story and emotion, and pulled off very well.

Matt and Donna – A Tight Spot
When I first heard this song, I wasn’t sure I understood what it meant – is this really a song about a boy getting stuck in a banister? But I went and read the article and the lyrics, and I laughed. A very unique topic - way to go for having fun with this challenge! Your mix was great. You were very creative approaching it from the view of the older brother. The song was catchy and I liked the energy. The lyrics felt natural and easy in a good way. Great job with this challenge.

Wait What – Bunny Please Don’t Go
You get a high five for the lyrics in this, seriously! I’m a sucker for these clever rhymes (I actually clapped at million/Brazilian). Really smart. Your story was definitely unique and you pulled it off in a way that was both funny and catchy. I was able to understand the story the first time I listened through. The melody and the instrumentals were naturally suited for the song, nothing felt out of place. Your final line was hilarious. I’m just so happy this song exists in the world.

Ross Durand – The American Way
I’m trying really hard not to let my personal music preferences sway my opinion, but I absolutely love the style of this song. And your voice is just so perfect for it. I feel like I’m listening to Bob Dylan. The song has a great dry humor and your message is very clear. I like your lyrics. It felt a little wordy at times, there are a few phrases that probably could’ve been made more singable – but you pulled it off and it suited the protest-song style. I wanted to keep listening to it over and over. Well done.

Steve Durand – When Frankie and Johnny Get Married
This song put such a smile on my face. I was hoping someone would write about this! And in the style of a march – I wasn’t expecting that! But you pulled it off effortlessly. The horns, the flutes, the clarinet, the snare – just absolutely fantastic. I can see people performing this onstage at a pride festival. And ending with the phrase “a gay old time” – perfection. Excellent musicality. Smart, cute lyrics. Great use of style. Clear message. Definitely memorable. One of the best songs this round.

Happi – Double The Fetish
Let me tell you - I was not expecting a rap, but it was an awesome surprise! I have to give you props on several things. One, you told a very clear, unique story that came directly from an article. Two, your song definitely stood out among the rest. And three, your style was perfect for the story. Some of your rhymes were a little awkward, and your harmonies weren’t very clear at times, but you told the story well and your refrain held the song together. Props for writing a song about an article like this!

Charlie McCarron – The Mountain Will Not Yield
Your harmonic structure was the first thing that stood out to me. Refreshing, creative. I fell in love with it immediately. Your music told the story as much as the lyrics did. A lot of emotion in your voice, it really drew me in. Very smart production – nothing was overdone, all the pieces fit together great. Your article was unique and your approach was right on target. I want to just keep on gushing about this song, seriously - I will definitely be listening to it long after this competition is over. Really, really well done.

Jon Eric – North Dakota
A song in movements! Wow, you definitely put a lot of thought and effort into this song! I like the contrasts between each movement and the ease with which you tell the story. It is a very long song, but that’s not necessarily a weakness if you can pull it off. Some parts felt a bit repetitive and I feel like it lost focus in some places, but you did a really great job with it overall. Your lyrics told the story well, you clearly demonstrated your musicality, and you showed an emotional investment in the song. I would like to hear a mix with more instruments involved to see if you would have done more with it. But you were really ambitious and you get major points from me for that.

Alex Carpenter – The Last Launch
Another song about the final launch! I love the energy, I definitely caught myself dancing this! The song is a little shorter than I expected - but sometimes less is more, and your lyrics definitely told the story in a way that was both catchy and emotional (the geek in me smiled at “the final frontier”, not going to lie.) I like the simplicity of the chords. Great style, great vocals. A little wordy in places, and a few of the chord changes felt a little off, but you pulled if off easily. Nice job!

Glen Raphael – Billion Metal Dollars (Shadow)
I LOVE the acoustic guitar picking. Your lyrics and your rhymes are smart and very appealing. I’m impressed that you were able to write such an emotional song about golden dollars, really. If this wasn’t a shadow, it would definitely get a high ranking from me. Simple, clear, musical, and poetic. Congrats on your everything!

Doom Skittle featuring Luke Brekke, Esquire – Going Undercover (Shadow)
Your guitar picking was the most refreshing part of this song – however, sometimes it was too prominent. Your vocals could’ve been a bit higher in the mix – it’s hard to follow the story when I can’t hear you! However, your lyrics clearly told the story presented in the article and you met the challenge very well. Great story song.

Noah McLaughlin – Fear Drive (Shadow)
Fantastic energy! Another great story song. Your rhymes were refreshing and smart. The song was a little long but you kept my attention through the whole thing. One of the few songs this round that told a very detailed story. I like your voice and your attitude - you have a distinct attractiveness to your vocal style, it’s great. Good job!

Menage’ a Tune – The Furries are Heading Back to Pittsburgh (Shadow)
I’m having a hard time coming up with a word to describe this song that isn’t “adorable”. Really, it’s great! So cute! And catchy. I could sing this while driving along in the car. Great job ladies.

Young Stroke aka Young Muscle – One Dollar Robber (Shadow)
You know your style, I’ll give you that. You can rap, man. You rhymes feel really natural and this song has great hooks. You told the story in the article clearly and your lyrics had a great voice to them. Definitely something I could hear on the radio!

SpinTunes #3 Round 2 Review: Hazen Nester

2011-07-10T00:03:00.003-04:00

I was asked to provide a guest review of this round of Spintunes and, in some ways, I barely feel qualified. My only music credentials of note are the six songs I produced as a competitor in FRED Entertainment’s Masters of Song Fu (both as a solo artist and as part of the short-lived band His Name is Legs) and even though I am currently working on a proper album, I’ve been out of the game for so long, I’ve forgotten how difficult songwriting can be for me. Never mind producing a completed record in a week’s time. For that alone, respect to these competitors and shadow songwriters must be given.

For my reviews, I shall endeavor to judge as objectively as I can while recognizing the various budgets, production skills, and production values that our artists have to work with. That can only go so far, though. In the end, de gustibus non est disputandum; it must not be disputed regarding tastes. While I’m certain that my critiques and individual ratings will indicate who the cream of the crop is, there will probably be a few discrepancies in the rankings. No critical offense is intended. Now, then, let’s begin with the Shadows.

SHADOW ENTRIES

Glen Raphael – “Billion Metal Dollars”: The notes for this song indicates that, due to being on vacation, this is basically a demo. If that’s the case, don’t change a thing; just rerecord. I love the singer-songwriter vibe and the image of $1 billion worth of coins being kept out of circulation presents a wonderfully innocuous image that’s perfect for Glen’s aesthetic.

Overall Rating: 9/10

Doom SKITTLE (featuring Luke Brekke, Esquire) – “Going Undercover”: I have to admit that I’m surprised that Doom SKITTLE was the only one who used America’s Finest News Source for the germ of their song. Pity, though, that I can barely hear anything he’s singing. Also, the recording seems a bit sloppy with seemingly random percussive effects.

Overall Rating: 7/10

Noah McLaughlin – “Fear Drive”: Georgia’s ramping up immigration enforcement and the debate is presented in this entry. While it’s rocking and driving, the vocals exist in this nebulous area between Johnny Cash and Van Morrison that doesn’t really work that well. The guitars also seemed to be a bit too present in the mix.

Overall Rating: 7.5/10

Menage' a Tune – “The Furries Are Heading Back To Pittsburgh”: A furry convention is taking place in Pittsburgh and that demands a theme song for the year. If I was organizing the con, though, I’d get it rerecorded. The synch issues stick out like a sore thumb. The tune is cute, though, and it was a nice little touch quoting Doctor Doolittle.

Overall Rating: 6.5/10

Young Stroke a.k.a. Young Muscle – “One Dollar Robber”: What a fantastic opening. And then the rapping began. I’m not sure if the hick voice was intentional, but it was distracting. Also, including the news music in the middle of the second verse destroys the feel that YS established in the first. Also, a lot more creativity could have been done with the remix to keep things interesting rather than having two separate grooves.

Overall Rating: 6/10

COMPETITORS’ ENTRIES

The Offhand Band – “Program aids food stamp users”: Although bonus points aren’t technically awarded in my judging, it’s fairly inspired thinking to go with a local news story as opposed to the major news headlines. Furthermore, I was surprised that the lyrics were of the artist’s creation and not taken from the article itself. To say that I was fooled would be an understatement.

There’s also something about the 70’s folk band vibe (think Eagles or America) that works well with the song’s aesthetic. For me, it denotes a folksy, down-home feel where everybody works together and is happy. In other words, and I mean it in the best way possible, Sesame Street. The Offhand Band may not exactly have an ideal studio set-up or training, but in my book this song strikes a chord that more than makes up for it.

Overall Rating: 8/10

Gold Lion – “Message For Vivian”: The song hinges on a poignant photograph of a bald eagle perched on a tombstone in a military cemetery. While the article that the song is based on is a compelling human-interest piece, it didn’t seem to get translated well into final mix. Without the context of the article to compare the song to, it can leave one confused about what this song is even about. I certainly felt that way on first listen.

I really like the muted rock vibe that the song uses. Unfortunately, whether it’s lack of resources or production value, I feel it’s incomplete. I would have preferred to have some sort of bottom end present, even if it was just whole-note MIDI bass guitar that played only the root note of each chord. Also, I think that with a bit more time to work on the guitar solos, they could have been honed to an amazing point. Sadly, they sound a bit sloppy. Bear in mind that this comes from a guy whose own guitar solos are somewhat lacking. There’s a lot of potential; keep working on it.

Overall Rating: 6.5/10

Edric Haleen - “What About Love”: Before I begin on this, I must give kudos to Edric for doing a piece outside of the musical niche that he fills and fills well. Hip hop has been a vehicle for bringing awareness to social wrongs ever since the days of Public Enemy and N.W.A. so it’s a very appropriate genre choice when addressing same-sex marriage and New York’s recent legalization of same. Of the myriad of topics that could have been addressed, I’m glad that Edric took this issue.

Execution, though, could have been better. While I can’t find any fault in Edric’s always-stellar lyricism, the Eminem-esque groove feels haphazardly constructed and bland. While having the bassline be just one tone on the eighth notes allows the synths to develop around it (and develop well they do), it gets boring quickly and a boring hip hop song is a bad hip hop song. I can’t pretend to know why Edric chose the monotonous bass, but I get this niggling feeling it was to give the song some rhythm in the absence of percussion, save for a few accents in the form of cymbal hits. Even the most socially conscious rap songs have a strong backbeat established and without a regular snare and kick drum laying it down, Edric’s song is neutered.

Overall Rating: 6.5/10

Jutze – “Re: Your Oil”: The ongoing civil war in Libya (and NATO’s involvement in it) provides the impetus for this Led-Zeppelin-meets-Jonathan-Coulton rocker. Quick note: I feel that similarities with the refrain and the title to the latter’s “Re: Your Brains” are no accident. It’s certainly a cynical take on NATO’s intentions in the region and understandably so given the past history of Western intervention in the region. Also, much like a great deal of Jutze’s catalog, it was fun to listen to.

Not that it’s without its own set of flaws, though. Thick accent aside, the vocals are a bit on the pitchy side in the parts that are sung (the intro, outro, and refrain). Also, the piano parts are somewhat jarring when compared to the driving hard rock of the verses. All in all, “Re: Your Oil” is not a bad entry from our Teutonic Titan.

Overall Rating: 7.5/10

Dr. Lindyke – “Prayer For Peace”: Solo guitar and vocals are the order of the day in this mournful ballad about Israel and its continuing struggles in the region. The empty sonic space invites contemplation and that only helps this entry.

The only criticism musically I have regarding this song stems from ignorance. The harmony parts that come in sound more like a mariachi band than Hebrew folk music to my ear. Then again, I don’t listen to Hebrew folk music at all and if it does normally sound like that, mea culpa.

Overall Rating: 9/10

Governing Dynamics – “Cameras, Streetlights, And Things Worth Fighting For”: As an unabashed hockey fan, I must say that I enjoyed the 2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs and especially the Finals which pitted the Boston Bruins against the Vancouver Canucks. For our non-sports fans, the series was decided in the seventh and final game in a lopsided victory for the Bruins. Vancouverites didn’t take it well and they decided to party like it was 1994 (when the Canucks lost the Finals to the New York Rangers in game seven). In this background of chaos, the famous picture of a couple sharing a kiss in the middle of the riots was taken. The adage that a picture is worth a thousand words is certainly on display with GD’s entry as it analyzed not only the common perception of the events of the photo, but also what others testified to what happened.

The start of the song seemed promising with the guitars and the drum groove, but when the vocals began, I felt somewhat disappointed. They were buried in the mix and I could barely make out the words. Furthermore, I was at a loss in trying to discern a melody. It as if it was an afterthought as the words were crammed into an awkward meter to make the rhyme scheme work. It’s not terrible, but it could have been amazing.

Overall Rating: 7.5/10

Pat And Gweebol – “The Story Is Mine: Confession Of An Undocumented Immigrant”: Oh, the egg on peoples’ faces when a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist admits his past as an undocumented immigrant. Pat and Gweebol then adopted this story and converted it into a song of empowerment and hope for reform. The result is catchy and fun.

Great pop construction and instrumentation is the foundation of this song. Successfully channeling the feel of other piano pop artists like Ben Folds and Mike Lombardo, P&G gives a virtually flawless song. Whatever bugaboos I have are minor (I feel it’d benefit from a brisker tempo).

Overall Rating: 9.5/10

Alexa Polasky – “Infidelity”: I really hate to pick nits for a song like this, but I wonder exactly how well this song fits with the criterion “topical.” The inspiration was a piece about sex-advice columnist Dan Savage and it included tangential reference to Weinergate. The final product is very open-ended, though, and could easily have been a run-of-the-mill break-up song totally divorced from the context.

On the other hand, I am hard-pressed to find a fault with it musically. The vocals may sound a bit weak and fragile, but it fits in quite well with the ukulele and the song as a whole. It needs that fragility to help illustrate how delicate the relationship was. In the end, it took a great deal of deliberation to see if how I should rank this and I decided that it does meet the criterion...barely. As such, it does take a few hits in the rankings.

Overall Rating: 7.5/10

Matt Walton – “Take Your Placards Down To London”: The song doesn’t focus as much on the event covered but, rather, how it was presented. One can easily imagine thousands of English public-sector workers arriving on time, stating their case, and tidying up after themselves after they leave. It is certainly a unique take on the challenge.

Musically, it tries to channel into the folk vein with the unchanging drone, the sparse bodhrán, and the simple melody. While I can live without any chord changes or modulations, the harmonies jarred me out of the listening experience. Although tonally sound, they just didn’t seem to fit with the melody.

Overall Rating: 7/10

Godz Poodlz – “Independence And Freedom For All”: In the time that I’ve known the individual members of Godz Poodlz, I’ve seen their clear senses of right and wrong and as far as I know this is the first time they’ve done something overtly political as GP. Their inner Minnesota liberals comes to the fore as they craft a song around the story of an old man who robbed a bank to get the medical care he needs in one place where he could get it: prison. It was the perfect bone for the Poodlz to gnaw on.

The chord changes are simple, straightforward, and catchy – a must for political songs. Unfortunately, the mix seems a bit off for me. While the vocals aren’t buried in the mix, they are a bit deeper than they should be. Also, the quality of the vocals isn’t as assertive as the subject matter demands. Still, it was a good effort.

Overall Rating: 8/10

Chris Cogott – “Welcome To Kabul”: The improbable story of American Saiz Ahmed, who was trapped in the middle of a significant battle at the hotel he was staying at, is retold by Chris Cogott in a very intimate manner. It immediately sucks you in and paints a fantastic sonic picture.

Did someone tell Chris that I was going to be judging this round? Because it sure sounds like it was tailor-made for my personal music preferences. In any case, it’s clear that Mr. Cogott knows how to produce a record because it sounds exquisite. Even without a bass guitar or a drum kit, the sonic palette presented is perfect for the mood Chris created. Bravissimo.

Overall Rating: 9.5/10

Inverse T. Clown – “Something In The Air”: The International MIDI Master of Mystery takes an otherwise banal story of an increase in UFO sightings in Kansas City, Missouri and turns it into the beginnings of an alien invasion, otherwise known as ITC’s wheelhouse of nerdy electronic rock. It’s a pity that I feel like this song has been done before. In fact, the similarities I see with his song “Devastator” are a bit too close for my liking.

I can’t fault Inverse’s sequencing or lyrics. There’s something I can’t quite put my finger on that rubs me the wrong way. The singing (or rather how the vocals sit in the sonic spectrum) isn’t the whole of the problem; that much I’m sure of. I guess I’ll file this rating as a matter of taste. I really don’t like having it boil down to that, though, as it makes me seem like a douche.

Overall Rating: 7/10

Caleb Hines – “Too Soon To Say Goodbye”: The launch of Space Shuttle Atlantis hits close to Caleb’s home as someone who grew up in his hometown will be on board the program’s final flight. I participated alongside Caleb in his first competition (Masters of Song Fu #4) and I have to commend him on his progress as a songwriter; he’s come a long way in roughly two years’ time.

As a farewell to the shuttle program, Caleb does a good job tugging at the emotional heart strings with, appropriately, synth strings. The vocals, though, seem a bit muddy sounding and buried a bit in the mix. In any case, good job.

Overall Rating: 8/10

Matt And Donna – “A Tight Spot”: Let’s face it, we’ve all seen pictures and videos of kids who’ve gotten stuck in chairs, banisters, swings, and other sorts of gaps and whose parents had to call emergency personnel to free them. If you’ve laughed at those images, you’d probably sympathize with the hypothetical mischievous sibling that M&D have introduced to this story. It’s a clever way of adding another dimension to the original story.

While the instrumentation is great, the drum mix is really unbalanced with the open hi-hat nearly drowning out everything else. Mix issues aside, it is well constructed and well performed.

Overall Rating: 8.5/10

Wait What – “Bunny Please Don’t Go”: We all know that it happens, but we never EVER speak about Hugh Hefner having sex with any of his bunnies. The only exception is when there’s humorous material and, even with an auto-tuned Hef, this song comes up short of being funny. Instead it turns out kind of disgusting. Not unlike Hef, actually.

I won’t lie; “Bunny” has a great, danceable groove. My greatest bugaboo is that the lyric choice, while certainly reminding us that this 80+ year old man manages to get 20-somethings into bed with him, seem gratuitously shocking and disgusting and if Andrew Dice Clay has taught us anything, dirty words without a solid joke are not funny.

Overall Rating: 7/10

Ross Durand – “The American Way”: In this Dylan-esque ditty, Ross covers three separate news items and the apparent lack of equality in each instance. Ross certainly made good use of a rule loophole for creativity’s sake; no one said it had to be a single issue. While he wears his political feelings on his sleeve, it’s still quite entertaining.

As I mentioned before, this song borrows heavily from the Bob Dylan School of Songwriting and Recording. Sometimes the simplest ways of doing things are the best and descending basslines with simple chord changes are among the simplest tricks in the pop music book. Ross knew exactly what he was making and how to achieve it.

Overall Rating: 9/10

Steve Durand – “When Frankie And Johnnie Got Married”: Given how recent it was when the challenge was issued and the implications as a result of it, New York’s legalization of gay marriage has proved to be one of (if not the) most popular topics for this challenge. While some were more overtly political, Steve went the novelty route and did this as an old-timey sing-along.

Between the oompah-pah of the brass band accompaniment, which I’m having difficulty trying to determine if it’s synthesized or not, and the tenor singer, the only thing that was missing was both the surface noise of the wax cylinder it would have been recorded on and the use of a megaphone by the singer. Had those two been employed, it probably would have made this song reach a perfect ten.

Overall Rating: 9/10

Happi – “Double The Fetish”: The last thing you hear in this rap is, “Well, that was a waste of three minutes of your life.” I couldn’t agree more. Upon seeing the article that this song was based on, I had to admit that I was curious to see how one could make a song out of voyeurs hiding out in the receptacle of port-a-potties. And then the chorus began and two out-of-key people sing-spoke, almost making me turn off the song then and there.

Not that it’s all bad. The verse sections show a decent sense of flow from Happi. With that being said, there were a couple parts where some of the rhymes seemed to be crammed in to fit with the meter. Still, it’s as if Happi wants to get eliminated in this round. If the cause was hopeless, then a piss take like this would be understandable, but the competitors have a clean slate each time; there’s still a chance.

Overall Rating: 6/10

Charlie McCarron – “The Mountains Will Not Yield”: I’m not sure what that was, but I liked it (which happens to be the name of my Primus cover band). There seemed to be a great amount of musical depth in this first person telling of what may have been the last thoughts of a mountaineer who died in the French Alps. One of the risks of complexity is that the artist loses their audience. I don’t feel that has happened here.

I imagine mountaineering is an activity where there’s constant tension. Charlie maintained musical tension throughout the piece with an eerie upright piano and unorthodox chords and changes. What I don’t think was effectively communicated, though, was the sense of the narrator’s life slipping away.

Overall Rating: 9/10

Jon Eric – “North Dakota”: It takes real courage to do multi-part suites. It doesn’t make for popular singles and it requires a more attentive ear to fully appreciate what has been done. The fact that a song of this length and this complexity was completed on time is praiseworthy. The narrative may be unclear at times, both lyrically and musically, but the journey through it was still a fantastic trip.

Apart from periodically pitchy vocals, the production of the song was well done. The weakest movement of the piece was the fourth movement “Rain” because musically it seemed far too benign to be the great tempestuous storm and flood that was implied in the rest of the narrative. Warts and all, this was one of my favorites in this round. Bravo.

Overall Rating: 9.5/10

Alex Carpenter – “The Last Launch”: I was surprised that Alex Carpenter of The Remis Lupins submitted what amounts to a demo for competition, knowing the quality of recordings he is capable of. Then I remembered that he currently is on tour. Certainly, the pressures of schlepping from gig to gig put a hamper on writing and recording and I certainly sympathize with him.

Sadly, that still leaves us with an unpolished record. I have no doubt that with more time to refine it this song would have been great. As it is, it’s only the beginning of a tribute to Atlantis and the rest of the shuttle program. And a good beginning it is. I hope a proper finish will be released in the future.

Overall Rating: 8/10

SpinTunes #3 Round 2 Review: Ben Davila

2011-07-10T00:00:00.002-04:00

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

SpinTunes #3 Round 2 Review: David Santucci

2011-07-09T23:46:00.001-04:00

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.

SpinTunes #3 Round 2 Review: Mitchell Adam Johnson

2011-07-09T23:37:00.001-04:00

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.

SpinTunes #3 Round 2 Review: Glenn Case

2011-07-09T23:20:00.001-04:00

#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

SpinTunes #3 Round 2 Review: Mike Lombardo

2011-07-09T23:02:00.002-04:00

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.

SpinTunes 3: Round 2 Songs

2011-07-05T22:33:00.023-04:00

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.

Round 2 LP & Deadline News

2011-07-04T00:10:00.003-04:00

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.

SpinTunes #3: Round 2 Challenge

2011-06-26T00:54:00.002-04:00

BREAKING NEWS! - You‘re writing a topical song. The challenge is pretty wide open, but there are some restrictions. Topical is going to be defined as something from a headline in a newspaper no older than 2 weeks from today. You can use your local newspaper or a major publication. You‘re even allowed to use the online versions of major publications. You will be required to include a link to the story that inspired your song, or attach a scan from the newspaper. (2 minute minimum) (your submission is due July 3rd 11:59PM)

If you have a question about a source, just send me an e-mail. What we’re looking for is a headline from a newspaper that is, or has been in print at some point. If the online version is something you have to subscribe to, I will allow you to submit screen grabs of your computer screen.

Submitting Entries:
- Entries must be received by the given deadline. Otherwise it'll be posted as a shadow. Received means that it has to appear in my e-mail inbox by the given deadline. I will be going by the time stamp on the e-mail in my inbox. PLEASE do not wait until the last hour to send me something. If there is a blackout in your area, your computer crashes, or your dog actually eats your thumb drive...I will not care. You are allowed to send in a draft of your song early just in case something horrible happens & you miss the deadline. Then you can add polish to your song & send in a better version closer to the deadline. 1 minute late is still late people.

- Send your file in a format that Bandcamp accepts. (.aiff, .wav or .flac) (at least 16-bit/44.1kHz) You can find the specific requirements for Bandcamp files HERE. You do not have to send in MP3's.

- Name your file the song's title, but without spaces & punctuation.

- Title of the e-mail should be the title of the Challenge & your band's name.

- Include the song lyrics in the body of the e-mail. (If your song doesn't have lyrics...consider yourself eliminated. Instrumentals can be pretty, but SpinTunes does require lyrics.)

- Include information on anyone that needs credited if you collabed with someone.

- File sharing options if you need them: YouSendIt, Sound Cloud, Drop Box, RapidShare, ZShare & MediaFire. Please send an e-mail as I already stated, but with the download link if you need one of these services. Please follow directions so your file doesn't wind up in my spam or trash folder accidentally.

- If you have a BandCamp account, you can just send me a link to your song on BandCamp if you include all the info I mentioned above. Make sure you have it set as a free download, and have it set so that I don't have to put in an e-mail to download it if you pick this option. THIS IS THE BEST FILE SHARING OPTION!

Side Notes:
- PLEASE do your best to send in submissions that BandCamp will allow me to upload. Details about what BandCamp allows are only a mouse click away.

- Remember that you are allowed to send in a little background about your song. Some people don't like to do that, and you don't have to, but if you want to write a couple sentences about your song I'll post it on the BandCamp page for people to see. Some judges will look at the lyrics & this extra info, but they aren't required to.

- If you didn't sign-up in time to compete in SpinTunes #3, you can still complete the challenge & send in a song. It'll be uploaded with the other entries as a "Shadow Song". Check the FAQ if you don't know what that means. You can even complete past challenges from previous contests.

- If you didn't sign-up you can also do a song for "Single Rainbow Across The Internet". You're song would be played during the LP as well.

- The only other way to get your music played at the LP is to cover "Today's The Day" by Inverse T. Clown. This project was started in our little community of friends long before SpinTunes even started.

- Feel free to leave any questions in the comments.

SpinTunes #3 Round 1 Totals

2011-06-26T00:08:00.009-04:00

The round 2 challenge will be posted tonight. The schedule says 1AM, and I'm hoping to stick to that, but it could be a little later.

So here are the links to the individual reviews:

Official Judges:
Mike Lombardo - Mitchell Adam Johnson - Dave Santucci - Ben Davila - Glenn Case

Guest Judges:
Kevin Savino-Riker - Blue - Randy Parcel - Dante Cimadamore (no rankings)

Alternate Judge's Review: Spin

You can listen to all the wonderful songs from this round by checking out the free album HERE.

Judges feel free to check my totals...I'm tired...mistakes are possible. However if my figures are correct the 11 people in bold have been eliminated from the contest. I really hope they decide to continue in the contest as shadows, and I thank EVERYONE for their hard work this round.

Total Scores: (Blue) (Mike) (Mitchell) (Glenn) (Randy) (Kevin) (David) (Ben) (Popular Vote)
Chris Cogott - 32 - 32 - 35 - 36 - 35 - 26 - 36 - 34 - 31 (297)
Charlie McCarron - 26 - 27 - 37 - 37 - 37 - 25 - 37 - 16 - 32 (274)
Edric Haleen - 37 - 34 - 30 - 29 - 34 - 37 - 27 - 9 - 34 (271)
Ross Durand - 35 - 22 - 27 - 31 - 19 - 33 - 25 - 33 - 25 (250)
Godz Poodlz - 28 - 19 - 32 - 26 - 33 - 34 - 33 - 15 - 30 (250)
Alex Carpenter - 30 - 37 - 25 - 28 - 32 - 22 - 21 - 5 - 37 (237)
Pat And Gweebol - 33 - 21 - 36 - 27 - 30 - 32 - 8 - 13 - 36 (236)
Byron Blocker And The Offbeats - 36 - 24 - 22 - 16 - 31 - 36 - 34 - 1 - 35 (235)
Jon Eric - 15 - 33 - 23 - 21 - 28 - 30 - 35 - 35 - 11 (231)
Jutze - 10 - 26 - 12 - 33 - 36 - 35 - 31 - 21 - 22 (226)
Matt And Donna - 29 - 18 - 34 - 25 - 29 - 14 - 18 - 28 - 28 (223)
Dr. Lindyke - 8 - 25 - 18 - 23 - 27 - 29 - 32 - 25 - 26 (213)
Governing Dynamics - 9 - 12 - 21 - 30 - 22 - 27 - 30 - 26 - 33 (210)
Caleb Hines - 17 - 35 - 33 - 13 - 20 - 24 - 23 - 20 - 13 (198)
Jason Morris - 27 - 36 - 11 - 32 - 23 - 28 - 9 - 4 - 24 (194)
Inverse T. Clown - 21 - 28 - 31 - 14 - 24 - 21 - 14 - 2 - 29 (184)
Steve Durand - 13 - 23 - 20 - 24 - 26 - 20 - 29 - 12 - 14 (181)
"BucketHat" Bobby Matheson - 23 - 31 - 9 - 15 - 21 - 15 - 16 - 29 - 19 (178)
Tally Deushane - 24 - 14 - 17 - 17 - 9 - 9 - 12 - 36 - 21 (159)
Gold Lion - 34 - 17 - 14 - 18 - 7 - 3 - 28 - 10 - 17 (148)
Happi - 12 - 30 - 3 - 2 - 10 - 31 - 5 - 27 - 27 (147)
The Offhand Band - 16 - 8 - 13 - 8 - 25 - 19 - 17 - 32 - 9 (147)
Alexa Polasky - 7 - 29 - 29 - 34 - 8 - 5 - 20 - 3 - 10 (145)
Matt Walton - 22 - 5 - 15 - 9 - 16 - 17 - 26 - 31 - 3 (144)
Brian Daniell - 3 - 11 - 19 - 35 - 13 - 18 - 7 - 30 - 7 (143)
Wait What - 19 - 6 - 28 - 5 - 1 - 13 - 24 - 37 - 4 (137)
Young Stroke aka Young Muscle - 31 - 20 - 7 - 3 - 3 - 2 - 22 - 23 - 20 (131)
Emperor Gum - 20 - 15 - 26 - 19 - 11 - 8 - 10 - 8 - 1 (118)
The Boffo Yux Dudes - 25 - 10 - 5 - 12 - 14 - 12 - 15 - 22 - 2 (117)
Spencer Sokol - 11 - 13 - 10 - 20 - 15 - 16 - 13 - 11 - 8 (117)
Ethan Ivey - 6 - 9 - 24 - 22 - 12 - 6 - 4 - 17 - 16 (116)
Bryce Jensen - 14 - 16 - 4 - 7 - 17 - 11 - 6 - 14 - 12 (101)
Menage’A Tune - 4 - 4 - 16 - 11 - 18 - 10 - 1 - 19 - 18 (101)
Glen Raphael - 18 - 7 - 6 - 6 - 4 - 23 - 3 - 18 - 6 (91)
Luke Brekke, Esquire - 5 - 3 - 8 - 4 - 5 - 7 - 11 - 24 - 15 (82)
Hudson And Day - 2 - 2 - 2 - 10 - 6 - 4 - 19 - 7 - 23 (75)
Doom SKITTLE - 1 - 1 - 1 - 1 - 2 - 1 - 2 - 6 - 5 (20)

Mike's Rankings:
Alex Carpenter - 37
Jason Morris - 36
Caleb Hines - 35
Edric Haleen - 34
Jon Eric - 33
Chris Cogott - 32
BucketHat Bobby Matheson - 31
Happi - 30
Alexa Polasky - 29
Inverse T. Clown - 28
Charlie McCarron - 27
Jutze - 26
Dr. Lindyke - 25
Bryon Blocker And The Offbeats - 24
Steve Durand - 23
Ross Durand - 22
Pat And Gweebol - 21
Young Stroke aka Young Muscle - 20
Godz Poodlz - 19
Matt And Donna - 18
Gold Lion - 17
Bryce Jensen - 16
Emperor Gum - 15
Tally Deushane - 14
Spencer Sokol - 13
Governing Dynamics - 12
Brian Daniell - 11
The Boffo Yux Dudes - 10
Ethan Ivey - 9
The Offhand Band - 8
Glen Raphael - 7
Wait What - 6
Matt Walton - 5
Menage’A Tune - 4
Luke Brekke, Esquire - 3
Hudson And Day - 2
Doom SKITTLE - 1

Glenn's Rankings:
Charlie McCarron - 37
Chris Cogott - 36
Brian Daniell - 35
Alexa Polasky - 34
Jutze - 33
Jason Morris - 32
Ross Durand - 31
Governing Dynamics - 30
Edric Haleen - 29
Alex Carpenter - 28
Pat And Gweebol - 27
Godz Poodlz - 26
Matt And Donna - 25
Steve Durand - 24
Dr. Lindyke - 23
Ethan Ivey - 22
Jon Eric - 21
Spencer Sokol - 20
Emperor Gum - 19
Gold Lion - 18
Tally Deushane - 17
Bryon Blocker And The Offbeats - 16
BucketHat Bobby Matheson - 15
Inverse T. Clown - 14
Caleb Hines - 13
The Boffo Yux Dudes - 12
Menage’A Tune - 11
Hudson And Day - 10
Matt Walton - 9
The Offhand Band - 8
Bryce Jensen - 7
Glen Raphael - 6
Wait What - 5
Luke Brekke, Esquire - 4
Young Stroke aka Young Muscle - 3
Happi - 2
Doom SKITTLE - 1

Mitchell's Rankings:
Charlie McCarron - 37
Pat And Gweebol - 36
Chris Cogott - 35
Matt And Donna - 34
Caleb Hines - 33
Godz Poodlz - 32
Inverse T. Clown - 31
Edric Haleen - 30
Alexa Polasky - 29
Wait What - 28
Ross Durand - 27
Emperor Gum - 26
Alex Carpenter - 25
Ethan Ivey - 24
Jon Eric - 23
Bryon Blocker And The Offbeats - 22
Governing Dynamics - 21
Steve Durand - 20
Brian Daniell - 19
Dr. Lindyke - 18
Tally Deushane - 17
Menage’A Tune - 16
Matt Walton - 15
Gold Lion - 14
The Offhand Band - 13
Jutze - 12
Jason Morris - 11
Spencer Sokol - 10
BucketHat Bobby Matheson - 9
Luke Brekke, Esquire - 8
Young Stroke aka Young Muscle - 7
Glen Raphael - 6
The Boffo Yux Dudes - 5
Bryce Jensen - 4
Happi - 3
Hudson and Day - 2
Doom SKITTLE - 1

David's Rankings:
Charlie McCarron - 37
Chris Cogott - 36
Jon Eric - 35
Bryon Blocker And The Offbeats - 34
Godz Poodlz - 33
Dr. Lindyke - 32
Jutze - 31
Governing Dynamics - 30
Steve Durand - 29
Gold Lion - 28
Edric Haleen - 27
Matt Walton - 26
Ross Durand - 25
Wait What - 24
Caleb Hines - 23
Young Stroke aka Young Muscle - 22
Alex Carpenter - 21
Alexa Polasky - 20
Hudson And Day - 19
Matt And Donna - 18
The Offhand Band - 17
BucketHat Bobby Matheson - 16
The Boffo Yux Dudes - 15
Inverse T. Clown - 14
Spencer Sokol - 13
Tally Deushane - 12
Luke Brekke, Esquire - 11
Emperor Gum - 10
Jason Morris - 9
Pat And Gweebol - 8
Brian Daniell - 7
Bryce Jensen - 6
Happi - 5
Ethan Ivey - 4
Glen Raphael - 3
Doom SKITTLE - 2
Menage’A Tune - 1

Ben's Rankings:
Wait What - 37
Tally Deushane - 36
Jon Eric - 35
Chris Cogott - 34
Ross Durand - 33
The Offhand Band - 32
Matt Walton - 31
Brian Daniell - 30
BucketHat Bobby Matheson - 29
Matt And Donna - 28
Happi - 27
Governing Dynamics - 26
Dr. Lindyke - 25
Luke Brekke, Esquire - 24
Young Stroke aka Young Muscle - 23
The Boffo Yux Dudes - 22
Jutze - 21
Caleb Hines - 20
Menage’A Tune - 19
Glen Raphael - 18
Ethan Ivey - 17
Charlie McCarron - 16
Godz Poodlz - 15
Bryce Jensen - 14
Pat And Gweebol - 13
Steve Durand - 12
Spencer Sokol - 11
Gold Lion - 10
Edric Haleen - 9
Emperor Gum - 8
Hudson And Day - 7
Doom SKITTLE - 6
Alex Carpenter - 5
Jason Morris - 4
Alexa Polasky - 3
Inverse T. Clown - 2
Byron Blocker & The Offbeats - 1

Blue's Rankings:
Edric Haleen - 37
Bryon Blocker And The Offbeats - 36
Ross Durand - 35
Gold Lion - 34
Pat And Gweebol - 33
Chris Cogott - 32
Young Stroke aka Young Muscle - 31
Alex Carpenter - 30
Matt And Donna - 29
Godz Poodlz - 28
Jason Morris - 27
Charlie McCarron - 26
The Boffo Yux Dudes - 25
Tally Deushane - 24
BucketHat Bobby Matheson - 23
Matt Walton - 22
Inverse T. Clown - 21
Emperor Gum - 20
Wait What - 19
Glen Raphael - 18
Caleb Hines - 17
The Offhand Band - 16
Jon Eric - 15
Bryce Jensen - 14
Steve Durand - 13
Happi - 12
Spencer Sokol - 11
Jutze - 10
Governing Dynamics - 9
Dr. Lindyke - 8
Alexa Polasky - 7
Ethan Ivey - 6
Luke Brekke, Esquire - 5
Menage’A Tune - 4
Brian Daniell - 3
Hudson And Day - 2
Doom SKITTLE - 1

Kevin's Rankings:
Edric Haleen - 37
Bryon Blocker And The Offbeats - 36
Jutze - 35
Godz Poodlz - 34
Ross Durand - 33
Pat And Gweebol - 32
Happi - 31
Jon Eric - 30
Dr. Lindyke - 29
Jason Morris - 28
Governing Dynamics - 27
Chris Cogott - 26
Charlie McCarron - 25
Caleb Hines - 24
Glen Raphael - 23
Alex Carpenter - 22
Inverse T. Clown - 21
Steve Durand - 20
The Offhand Band - 19
Brian Daniell - 18
Matt Walton - 17
Spencer Sokol - 16
BucketHat Bobby Matheson - 15
Matt And Donna - 14
Wait What - 13
The Boffo Yux Dudes - 12
Bryce Jensen - 11
Menage’A Tune - 10
Tally Deushane - 9
Emperor Gum - 8
Luke Brekke, Esquire - 7
Ethan Ivey - 6
Alexa Polasky - 5
Hudson And Day - 4
Gold Lion - 3
Young Stroke aka Young Muscle - 2
Doom SKITTLE - 1

Randy's Rankings:
Charlie McCarron - 37
Jutze - 36
Chris Cogott - 35
Edric Haleen - 34
Gödz Pöödlz - 33
Alex Carpenter - 32
Byron Blocker & The Offbeats - 31
Pat And Gweebol - 30
Matt And Donna - 29
Jon Eric - 28
Dr. Lindyke - 27
Steve Durand - 26
The Offhand Band - 25
Inverse T. Clown - 24
Jason Morris - 23
Governing Dynamics - 22
"BucketHat" Bobby Matheson - 21
Caleb Hines - 20
Ross Durand - 19
Menagé a Tune - 18
Bryce Jensen - 17
Matt Walton - 16
Spencer Sokol - 15
The Boffo Yux Dudes - 14
Brian Daniell - 13
Ethan Ivey - 12
Emperor Gum - 11
Happi - 10
Tally Deushane - 9
Alexa Polasky - 8
Gold Lion - 7
Hudson And Day - 6
Luke Brekke, Esquire - 5
Glen Raphael - 4
Young Stroke aka Young Muscle - 3
Doom SKITTLE - 2
Wait WHAT - 1

Popular Vote Totals:
Alex Carpenter - 55
Pat And Gweebol - 33
Byron Blocker & The Offbeats - 30
Edric Haleen - 25
Governing Dynamics - 24
Charlie McCarron - 23
Chris Cogott - 21
Godz Poodlz - 19
Inverse T Clown - 15
Matt And Donna - 15
Happi - 15
Dr. Lindyke - 14
Ross Durand - 14
Jason Morris - 13
Hudson And Day - 12
Jutze - 10
Tally Deushane - 10
Young Stroke aka Young Muscle - 9
"Buckethat" Bobby Matheson - 8
Menage A Tune - 8
Gold Lion - 7
Ethan Ivey - 6
Luke Brekke, Esquire - 5
Steve Durand - 5
Caleb Hines - 5
Bryce Jensen - 5
Jon Eric - 5
Alexa Polasky - 4
The Offhand Band - 3
Spencer Sokol - 3
Brian Daniell - 2
Glen Raphael - 2
Doom SKITTLE - 2
Wait What - 2
Matt Walton - 1
The Boffo Yux Dudes - 1
Emperor Gum - 1

Popular Vote Scores:
Alex Carpenter - 37
Pat And Gweebol - 36
Byron Blocker & The Offbeats - 35
Edric Haleen - 34
Governing Dynamics - 33
Charlie McCarron - 32
Chris Cogott - 31
Godz Poodlz - 30
Inverse T Clown - 29
Matt And Donna - 28
Happi - 27
Dr. Lindyke - 26
Ross Durand - 25
Jason Morris - 24
Hudson And Day - 23
Jutze - 22
Tally Deushane - 21
Young Stroke aka Young Muscle - 20
"Buckethat" Bobby Matheson - 19
Menage A Tune - 18
Gold Lion - 17
Ethan Ivey - 16
Luke Brekke, Esquire - 15
Steve Durand - 14
Caleb Hines - 13
Bryce Jensen - 12
Jon Eric - 11
Alexa Polasky - 10
The Offhand Band - 9
Spencer Sokol - 8
Brian Daniell - 7
Glen Raphael - 6
Doom SKITTLE - 5
Wait What - 4
Matt Walton - 3
The Boffo Yux Dudes - 2
Emperor Gum - 1

SpinTunes #3 Round 1 Review: Dante Cimadamore

2011-06-25T23:35:00.000-04:00

Dante ran out of time before he could finish ranking the songs. His letter grades can give you an idea of where you would have placed, but since he didn't finish the rankings Dante's reviews will not be factored into the outcome of this round. They are simply here to give you another perspective on your song.

I invited Dante to be a guest judge because he is from outside of our little circle of friends, and I enjoy his work on YouTube. You can find out more about Dante by visiting his YouTube Channel & he's also on Twitter.

Governing Dynamics - A- - I like prod, voice, and the chorus (lyrically) is universally applicable. Clever. Enjoyed.

Gold Lion - C - Song lacked creativity and solid rhythm. Loved voice.

Dr. Lindyke - B - Great piano work... voice... style is something I enjoy. Could have tightened up rhythm section entrance.

Alexa Polasky - A- - Great style, voice... etc.

The Offhand Band - B- - I appreciate what they're doing. Good organ work.

Matt Walton - C+ - Yea ukulele! Could have taken more time to tune it though. Rhythm goes off. Lyrics need a bit more creativity.

Brian Daniell - A- - This track is alive. I love live recordings. Is a happy song about death.

Byron Blocker & The Offbeats - A- - Great style, voice... etc.

Edric Haleen - A - Style makes me giggle, but what a stage voice. Lyrics and everything. wonderful.

Charlie McCarron - A - Great guitar work. Love lyrics and voice.

Spencer Sokol - B - He's gotta be more confident when he hits those notes. Music/lyrics could use more creativity.

Luke Brekke, Esquire - B - Made me chuckle.

"Buckethat" Bobby Matheson - B+ - I like the voice and style from the top. I like his perspective. :)

Alex Carpenter - B - HOLY MASTERING/COMPRESSION! Could use more guitars at second verse for this kind of production... and cymbals. Has a lot more potential for the kind of song it is. Needs more guitars.

Inverse T. Clown - B - Great voice/harmonies. Made me chuckle. I enjoy the ELO/Supertramp style.

Jutze - B+ - Clever. I enjoy the production.

Godz Poodlz - B - Good production/songwriting.

Tally Deushane - A- - I want to put her in my pocket. Enjoy voice and melody. I like the chorus a lot.

Ethan Ivey - B - Yea live piano! More confidence when singing!

Matt And Donna - B+ - This reminds me a bit of Ethan Ivey haha. "I kissed a drunk girl" Great production, voice(s).

Ross Durand - B+- Yeehaw! Great songwriting. Although I'd argue that heaven has taxes they're most likely paying a crew to keep it running and functional and beautiful. That money should come from the people who get to go. Sorry, Ross.

Menage a Tune - B- - Nice voice. Was a bit too "bad commercial" for me.

Glen Raphael - C+ - Cool production/arrangement. But a solid foundation of chord function was a little too slippery for me. The harmonies didn't solidify any chord ideas. Not very lyrical.

Doom SKITTLE - Not feeling it from the top.

Wait What - C+ - What's up karaoke? Makin me laugh. A little too self aware of the task at hand.

Steve Durand - B+ - I like style at top. I like the message. Well done.

Jason Morris - B - Whats up late 90s? Lighthouse, etc. Didn't seem to fit death motif though.

Caleb Hines - B - I laughed when chorus hit. Good chorus/lyrics/arrangement.

Bryce Jensen - C+ - Too self aware of task at hand.

Pat And Gweebol - A- - Like vocal stylings... and both voices.

Boffo Yux Dudes - B+ - I enjoy the style. Fuck'all!

Young Stroke aka Young Muscle - B- - my oh my mastering. Raps are a bit too statement like. Could use a more lyrical element. Still clever though.

Chris Cogott - A- - Enjoy this production/ chord progression/ etc. Well done.

Happi - B- - Very distinct guitar tone/mic placement. Gandalf! Interesting mesh of sounds. a little out of rhythm though.

Emperor Gum - B+ - Cool sounds. Harry Nilsson-esque. I enjoy.

Jon Eric - B+ - Cool song. Interesting take on task.

Hudson And Day - C+ - Room noises! (I love room noises). The arrangement idea is a bit scattered though. Didn't need as many voices as it has. Cluttered.

Mick Bordet - B - Interesting perspective on task. Death as the meat you're eating and being happy about it. Clever.

Noah McLauglin - B- - Rhythm is off at top. Did not appreciate rhythm change. Sucks that you're towards the end of a 45 song list.

David Ritter - B+ - Good song structure and arrangement. I enjoy.

Heather Miller - C - If you're gonna do a song like this you have to own it. And mean it. I don't believe a word you're saying.

Anna P - meh.

Donutworthy - C+ - Cool up until the vocals. Too much delay for me.

Green Mama Bathsalts - Too much chorus. Too much chorus. Cheesifies everything.

Common Lisp - Rhythms are off on snare. Bumming me out.

SpinTunes #3 Round 1 Review: Randy Parcel

2011-06-25T23:33:00.000-04:00

I asked Randy to judge because he's been a big SpinTunes supporter, and because I thought some of the people from "Masters Of Song Fu" would enjoy getting a review from Randy again. He was known in that community for doing reviews of Song Fu rounds on YouTube. You can connect with Randy on YouTube & Twitter.

Governing Dynamics - Alive Again
Travis seems to like writing lyrics that walk the line between descriptive and vague, and for the purposes of this challenge, it's better that way. GD's creepy stalker song initially sounded more like a vampire or frankenstein perspective than from a serial killer, but after reading Travis' inspirations for the song, it's easier to steer my brain in the more realistic direction (which is decidedly less humorous). I like most of the lyrics, and the variety in the chorus keeps it from feeling too repetitive. The guitars, bass and drums sound good and are mixed well. The vocal melody fits with the music, and most of the background parts work with the lead (they clash a bit in the chorus). The bridge in general just works for me.

Vocals are breathy and pitchy in places, and some parts dip below the audible threshold (fortunately all artists are required to submit lyrics with each song). The parenthetic 'inside' vocals don't sound different enough from the 'outside' voice to be easily distinguished as a seperate 'character'. Though not necessary, I feel the intro could be lengthened. Alive Again may not have a high replay value, but it fits the challenge nicely.

Verdict: 7.5/10

Gold Lion - In The Afterlife
While Danny Elfman, Bobby 'Boris' Pickett and I agree that the premise of a party with the deceased is a good one, I also agree with Paul and Storm that some parties can be lame. Gold Lion started with the first and ended up with the second. For the most part, I feel that the lyrics and atmosphere weren't pushed far enough to get the desired result. Hardly any effort was put into describing things lyrically, and the bass-heavy vocals don't express happiness. The melody's fine and the harmony's good, but the vocals get off-key at times. There's a lot of feedback and seemingly-unintentional resonance in the dull party section. The talking is boring, unrelated to the theme and seems like it was used as filler to cover for the lack of a second verse. Yawn. Fortunately, the guitar and drum parts sound alright and were recorded better than everything else in the tune.

A bad cut is audible at the end of the first verse, and it messes up the rhythm of the song. The way it's sung in the chorus, it sounds like the vocalist is singing 'until you believe' instead of 'do you believe,' but I prefer the former anyway. Maybe it was a last-minute change. Whatever. Editing at the beginning and end of the song should be tighter, too. ITA has the foundation of a good song, but feels only halfway there.

Verdict: 6/10

Dr. Lindyke - Wake Me When It's Over
It's clear that Leigh & Hoover work hard to craft their lyrics in a way that's not only appropriate for the challenge, but also for the characters and their situation. As Dave wrote on his blog, they imparted three additional constraints to the mix: to make the song less than 3 minutes, to make the mood go from sad to happy and NOT to make it funny. What can I say? Some people work better under special conditions (I don't think I'm one of them...).

I like the optimistic and hopeful lyrics, and the vocal melody expresses the feelings sweetly. I lke Mr. Leigh's voice, but it sometimes gets too quiet to hear over the piano. Some of the deeper meanings may be vague to younger listeners, but that also shows that songs about death can be family-friendly. The chorus reminds me of Suicide is Painless, the M*A*S*H theme. I could use a litte more guitar and a little less shaker.
I may not want to play this all the time, but WMWIO is definitely appropriate for a wake or funeral.

Verdict: 8/10

Alexa Polasky - You Will Never Die
Alexa's submission has a 90s alternative sort of feel to it. I like the sound, but it feels basic. The two syllable phrasing of the lyrics in the verses can be easy to write for, but doesn't always make for an interesting song, and it doesn't feel particularly happy. For the most part, the lyrics don't describe the person Polasky's singing about enough and I end up feeling confused. Something about the phrasing of 'it only gets better' in the chorus doesn't feel right, and the usage of the phrase is currently owned by the LGBT community, so that's all I can think about... The vocals are pretty good, and the reverb and delay effects are restrained and properly used sparingly. The instruments are played and recorded fine, but their parts are not complex or varied enough, especially for a 5-minute song (the longest official entry - nearly a minute longer than Wait What). The bass does get louder than the drums at times, though, and the resonance distracts me a bit. In the end, YWND is too simple to be as long as it is.

Verdict: 6.5/10

The Offhand Band - All Over
Starting off philosophically and evolving into an alternative concept of a Beatles song (or two), the writing process for All OVer is more complicated than a listener could glean from the tune alone. Initially, I thought the usage of elements from Get Back felt more like parody or tribute than a reinterpretation, but after reading the song bio I can see how much effort was put into getting the story right. Though they were just fine before, I like the lyrics more after the extra info. The melody, instruments and chord progression were altered just enough to give the listener the feel of the influential song but ensure that no copyright infringement will arise.
Something about Mark's singing makes me think of Bobby Matheson, but Mark has more control over his voice. The keyboard solo at the end is very good, and it's clearly Meritt's strong suit. The production sounds good, but the vocals are a bit loud and the drums are a little quiet. All Over may not be an instant classic like Get Back, but it's got its own qualities that keep it out of the classic's shadow.

Verdict: 8/10

Matt Walton - We're All Going To Die
Lots of entries this round involve some philosophy in their songwriting, and I like the creativity that comes from it. Matt approaches the subject in an optimistic way, but I don't know if it's really happy. The lyrics are pretty good, and the vocal melody is fine. It sounds like Matt recorded everything in one take, which is fine for rough drafts or tight deadlines, but it better be a good take if you're going to represent yourself with it. Most of Walton's recording is pretty good - everything is clear and nothing competes to be heard. The ukulele's rhythm is off in spots, and it would be nice to have another instrument to help flesh out the sound. I don't even know why the ominous creepy laugh is in the song - it doesn't fit, it's the loudest thing in the song and doesn't increase happiness.

Verdict: 7/10

Brian Daniell - Cubbies Will Win
There's only one good baseball team in Chicago, and that may not change until we've all passed on. Brian's character is unaware that he shuffled off, and needs an angel to tell him. The composition sounds happy, but there's not a lot of happiness in the lyrics. There's no description of how the guy died (I bet he died from boredom watching the Cubs suck) or even his interest in baseball until the third chorus, and that feels sloppy to me. This is another entry that sounds like it was recorded all at once, in one take. Daniell's trio sounds good together, but the vocals and claps were not recorded with their own microphones, and the song suffers from inaudible lyrics. Maybe time got the better of them, but re-recording these elements are a requirement before they can call it good.

Verdict: 6.5/10

Byron Blocker & The Offbeats - She's Dead
Like the main concept behind Dexter, The Offbeats agree that the world can be a better place wihout some folks. I was skeptical that I would enjoy this song at first, but it grew on me pretty quickly. The singer's Tom Waits quality is enjoyable and appropriate for the character. I like the arrangement - the instruments sound good and are mixed well. The subtle inclusion of horns is very welcome. The 'ding dong' bit at the end of the first chorus is a good line, but it sounds like he singing 'dig down there' instead, which also works. She's Dead is at the right length for what they had to present, but I'd also like to heart a second verse to expand on why the awful woman deserved to buy the farm. This isn't my favorite song this round, but it's one of only a handful that could go on tour as is.

Verdict: 8/10

Edric Haleen - I Hope You Die
Leave it to Edric to combine polka with his trademark broadway style. The character in Haleen's death song is actually not happy, and doesn't get the satisfaction that he so badly craves. Nobody dies in the piece, either, and that's the sort of juxtaposition I've come to expect from his witty songwriting (and yet it's still surprising). Edric does a great job of setting up the scene at the very beginning, and the mood is expressed exuberantly throughout the syncopated romp. I hear an influence from 'Weird Al' Yankovic's Your Horoscope For Today in the bridge, and it works nicely with the rest of the tune. The yell at the end of the bridge steps all over the lyrics at the start of the fourth verse, though. I was kinda hoping there would be a bit more melodic variation in the numerous times the title is sung, but it's a nitpick. It's too bad that the subject matter limits the song's replay value (I'm sure Weird Al can relate).

Good heavens, did I hear Edric Haleen curse? In a song, no less? I never thought I'd see the day... Not a big deal, but still...

IHYD skirts along the boundaries of the round's rules, and turns out to be a more enjoyable ride than expected.

Verdict: 8.5/10

Charlie McCarron - Grandma And Grandpa
I didn't like this song the first time I heard it. Maybe there was something I didn't hear correctly, maybe I had to be in the right mindset. Anyway, This is the only song this round that completely turned around for me. Charlie's got a Christpher Cross quality to his voice that I appreciate in this mellow style. McCarron's lyrics are descriptive and paint a scene in my mind, without depicting any people other than the adventurous elders. The voices aren't perfect, but they blend sweetly in this tale of endless love, and the haunting ending moves me more than the lyrics do. While I like the simplicity of the layered guitars with occaisional orchestra assistance, I'd also like to hear some subtle rhythm along with it - maybe some brushes on a snare. As it is, though, Grandma and Grandpa is the most emotionally powerful entry, and one of my favorites this round.

Verdict: 9/10

Spencer Sokol - Keeping Calm
Sokol's lyrics, though sometimes nonsensical, are creative and interesting, but they don't describe the situation enough for me to imagine much, and they don't sound that happy. The melody is okay, but some small changes could make big improvements. The vocals are expressive, and I like Spencer's voice when he sings at full voice, but he needs to spend time training it. Currently, he sings with his throat and not his diaphragm (a common issue with untrained singers). The support he's lacking makes notes sung quieter than fortissimo harder to hit and increases the nasal sound that we don't want. Fixing this alone will greatly improve the tune. Next, we'll work on enunciation...

What doesn't need work is the guitar(s), which sound very pretty together. Knocking on the body to represent a heartbeat is a nice touch. The overall production sounds good, though the full-voice vocals get a bit loud in the mix.

Verdict: 6.5/10

Luke Brekke, Esquire - Cannibal
Hall and Oates, Ke$ha and of course, the Fine Young Cannibals can tell you that human flesh tastes sweet in the form of record sales. As creepy as the subject is, it can be approached in a way that makes you look like a rockstar... or you can look creepy. Comedy/Novelty songs allow for such behavior, but it's got to be listenable or funny. Sadly, Luke's horror tune falls short for me. Some of the lyrics are pretty creative and certainly creepy, but there's no humor to speak of and the delivery is bland. Luke's voice reminds me of Darrell Maclaine's - both have a nasal, slightly dark timbre that ends up sounding bass-heavy. It's a small problem that can be fixed in numerous ways, but it doesn't sound pleasant unaddressed. Unlike Maclaine, Luke gets off-key frequently and has diction issues. The background vocals are louder than the lead most of the time, and cover up the lyrics that matter. Not changing the name in each chorus is not only a missed comedy opportunity, but it's also overly-specificreepy (...or is Annabelle like Jennifer where you live?). The last line of each chorus makes me want to skip to the next track. Some chords on the organ are painful. This song desperately needs a rhythm track to hold it together. Oh, goody: another spooky laugh at the end that's louder than everything else by a lot. Nice try, Luke. Maybe next time.

Verdict: 4.5/10

"BucketHat" Bobby Matheson - No Worries
It's unclear exactly why Bobby's character is dying, but he doesn't mind that the reaper is around the corner. The guitar/accordion/bass combo is cool and gives a positive feel to go with Matheson's optimistic lyrics, and the electric guitar in the choruses provides a quiet but enthusiastic bed of support. I like how Bobby's improved over the course of his songwriting competition career. He's gradually gotten proficient at arranging, lyrics, instrumentation, production... The only thing that hasn't improved much is his singing. (I know, I know, this isn't a singing competition. Keep in mind, I have to judge based on what's submitted - record execs do too, when considering a song to be performed by their hot new act. If you know you're weak at something, there's no shame in getting somebody to help you!) His voice is expressive enough, but has the support problems I mentioned earlier. Overall, No Worries fits the challenge, is full of character and would sound great with pro singers.

Verdict: 7.5/10

Alex Carpenter - The Day I Died
Surprisingly the only song involving zombies, Alex brings us a rocking number about suicide without that unsavory emo aftertaste. The lyrics are appropriate for the character and phrasing works with the driving rhythm and mostly-bouncy guitar nicely. I wish the final version of the lyrics was provided, as half the chorus was left out, along with punctuation and capital letters (they don't cost extra, honest!). The vocals are pitchy in places (parts of the last verse hurt my ears), but I like the melody. The instruments are arranged and produced well, and there's variety in each part. The rifle reload effect is properly timed, but I don't feel it's truly necessary. I'm not at all against having zombie noises throughout the song, especially near the end (think of it as an audience). With a new vocal track, this will be a hit. With a little practice, TDID will be ready for tour.

Verdict: 8/10

Inverse T. Clown - Caroline Is Dead
Inverse made a song of great fortune for a materialistic dude at the end of a relationship. Caroline is the same one people may be familiar with from Mike Lombardo's Masters of Song Fu 3 Round 1 submission (the challenge was to write a happy song). According to Mr. Clown, things turned quite sour after the original song, though we are not privy to what actually unfolded. Long story short, she's dies before the divorce is final. It's a funny situation for this character to be in (especially in the bridge) and Inverse made plenty of smart lyric choices, but there aren't any parts that make me laugh. While I admire the diverse and verbose selection of words, some words are hard to hear and the large lexicon is only sometimes the culprit. The vocal phrasing is rigidly maintained, which may have a negative influence on some pronunciation. On a nitpicky note, the silences between lines in the a capella intro are jarringly audible, and can be fixed easily by recording the room when it's silent and filling the gaps. BTW, 5 seconds of silence at the start? Srsly? Lame. Anyway, Caroline Is Dead is a really good song for the challenge. As a comedy tune, I can imagine hearing it on Dr. Demento, but it lacks the replay value or relatability that grants some novelty music financial success.

Verdict: 8/10

Jutze - I Love The Dead
People say there's a perfect job out there for everybody - something that fulfills and satisfies. Jutze says he made this song "with Christopher Walken’s character from Plots with a View (Undertaking Betty in the US) in mind." I haven't seen the dark romantic comedy, but Schult's piece about an undertaker is perky, catchy and uncharacteristically happy. ILTD is the minimum length required in the challenge, and yet it still feels complete. Jutze describes the occupation with the positive attitude you'd expect from the title, and the lyrics have humorous bits and make me admire the gravedigger's outlook. I enjoy the instruments and like their production. Jutze still has a hard time pronouncing 'j' and 'sh' sounds, but he's also one of few contestants whose primary language isn't English. His voice isn't the strongest, but he hits the notes and he brings life to his character.

I keep wanting to use another word, but I can't help it: this song is Cute.

Verdict: 8.5/10

Gödz Pöödlz - Wake At The Sunnyside
Rhöd and Rüss love songwriting competitions so much, they recently submitted a jingle for a local grocer's contest. This inspired them to make an extended-length jingle for a fabricated fueral home. The lyrics are full of double meanings and tongue-in-cheek humor, and the melody and harmony are just what the embalmer ordered. Rhöd's voice is pleasant, but sometimes his singing is pitchy (the key change works, but his note - ouch), and sometimes he takes too long to portamento up to the note - both things that can be polished up later. Until I read the lyrics, I though the words "Infused with finest formaldehyde" were actually "If you can find us formaldehyde." My bad, I guess.

After a thorough examination, I detect only minor adjustments to the audio of the Judges Mix. I appreciate the extra attention to detail, but the changes are barely perceptable and cause me to theorize it was some sort of trick to make the judges listen to their song more (it worked, dad gummit). If I were to make changes, I'd bring the lovely organ track up in the mix, maybe consider opening with it, too; bring the rhythm section in in layers; and make the backgrounds quieter, remove the bass and perhaps add a light reverse echo.

Wake at the Sunnyside is a fun idea executed well, though it doesn't have a lot of replay value. I'd love to see a local commercial-style music video for this.

Verdict: 8.5/10

Tally Deushane - My Dead Goldfish
Deushane brings us a tale of a pet with a will to live that's longer than the owner's interest in caring for it. The lyrics don't particularly grab me. The character isn't very likable because of her uncaring nature and her subsequent satisfaction that her pet's time had come.

This sounds like yet another one-take recording, but this take sounds pretty good... for what it's worth. I like Tally's voice - she's proven to me that she can hit a small set of notes. I don't I don't like the melody, however. I'd like to increase the overall treble of the recording. There's only so long I can listen to the same small set of notes sung to the same set of ukulele chords, much less in the same freaking order ad infinitum. If she can prove to listeners she knows a few more notes, a couple more chords and a lot more variety in the near future, she could be one to watch.

Verdict: 6.5/10

Ethan Ivey - The Four-Year Itch
The subjects for this challenge are more varied and less constrained than many others, and therefore there are fewer duplicate ideas. One interesting and completely unexpected coincidence is the usage of previous songwriting challenges as inspiration. It seems that Ethan used the challenge from MoSF 6 Round 2, where nothing was allowed to rhyme. It's not a decision I would force upon myself. Anyway, the concept of a male black widow is a good start, but the lyrics aren't good enough without the missing rhymes and the melody could be made to sound happier. I like the piano (except for one ugly mistake in the last verse), and though the vocals aren't that strong, they're fine for the range he wrote for himself. Not much replay value here, and not very happy, but ok for the challenge.

Verdict: 6.5/10

Matt And Donna - Lady On The Gray
This duo created a light pop number that doesn't make me think of death, but it feels pretty happy. All the vocalists involved are enjoyable, and they seem to belong together. I really like the piano, trumpet and and vocal melodies, and how sweetly they play together. The backgrounds are pleasant as well, and nothing competes to be heard. The lyrics sound nice, but I can't envision much aside from the rather eloquent discovery that the character has become a ghost. I may not put this on heavy rotation on a portable media device, but LOTG is pretty enough to keep around.

Verdict: 8/10

Ross Durand - No Taxes
Much like Bobby Matheson's, there are lots of things that Ross' character finds to be positive about kicking the bucket. The lyrics are plenty happy, and I like the Monty Python reference. The folk style seems appropriate for the subject matter and Ross' vocals are reminiscent of Dylan and match the mood well. Harmony vocals are good, though they could be a little bit quieter. Everything sounds like it was played and produced with skill.

I wish the 'four' was edited out of the beginning. Going to such lengths to fit 'erection' into the chorus isn't worth it if it's paired with a non-rhyme like 'again', much less having to say 'erection' every time the chorus comes around. With a couple changes, No Taxes could be pretty successful.

Verdict: 7.5/10

Menagé a Tune - Isn't It Nice
Though not explicitly involving death, one can assume that something seriously bad happened to the bullies in Jo Ann's song of revenge. It isn't made clear, but the listener is led to believe that the flashing lights she referred to are from an ambulance or police car. Jo Ann's vocals may be pitchy at times and she can't quite reach the low notes, her singing is sweet and likeable. Considering the content, the song still feels family-friendly. After mentioning that it it's nice to have or be a friend, it would've been nice to hear Jo Ann describe or involve a friend in the song. I like the melody, the keyboard accompaniments are pretty and things sound like they're mixed alright. I don't hear any bass in Abbott's vocal track at all, and it also could use a little reverb to make it sound less sterile. Too bad the end got cut off...
Since this is a story based on real events, I'm interested in hearing the rest of this moral anecdote.

Verdict: 7/10

Glen Raphael - When You're Dead
It's pretty gutsy move to make a song using almost solely your voice, even if you've trained to use it for most of your life. Unfortunately, Glen's voice isn't in control enough to be considered trained. My ears get confused as to which off-key vocal track I should follow, and parts of it are hard to listen to. The lyrics may be slightly optimistic, but they're not very interesting and not funny.
It's a shame the beginning got cut off, and the end faded out when it should've just stopped - the motivator behind the fade is the fact that the drum kit keeps going. Sorry, but nothing really works for me in this one. When You're Dead is a dud.

Verdict: 4.5/10

Doom SKITTLE - A Better Place
I know it's very challenging to make a complete song and record it before a deadline - that's most of the reason why we call them challenges. The rest of the reason is that even if you create something, it may not be something that people will like or appreciate. Doom had enough time to record a ROUGH draft, and rather than wait to submit a less rough draft as a shadow song with dignity, he submitted this ugly thing. I like the concept, where the character reaches the afterlife and meets his ancestors. Nothing is explained about how he died, or even the description of the family member he meets. The passable acoustic guitar doesn't make up for the awful vocals. Some parts of A Better Place are painful and others are disjointed, but all of it is not ready to be released.

Verdict: 4/10

Wait WHAT - Death: Everyone's Doing It!
While one could say this submission is less tragic than the last couple entries, that doesn't mean this Death isn't a tragedy, or a travesty, or both. I'm not pleased with the singing or phrasing, and even if the vocal melody were performed by someone that could sing it in key, I still wouldn't like it very much. Sure, I can see that some humor could exist in trying to convince listeners to kill themselves, but none is to be found. I suppose the music is okay, but the completely unenthusiastic vocals kill all enjoyment for me. ...And then there's the rap, if you could sleep at night after calling it that. Unbeknownst to me, by signing up to judge this set of songs, I agreed to subject myself to more torture than most people should allow themselves to willingly inflict upon one's self before being considered a threat to society. ...And yet I'd gladly do it again, to save the general public from hearing bad creations like this.

Verdict: 4/10

Steve Durand - Die Happy
I know, another philosophy song. You're probably tired of hearing about them, and I'm sparing you my own. The horn section is my favorite part of the song. The lyrics are positive and pretty happy and as inspiring or moreso than the other philosophical songs. Steve's singing is pretty good. He could benefit from practice, but his voice fits the style of the song. The vocal melody isn't amazing, but I like the overall sound, and the lyrics could pass for 40s-era songwriting. It seems that Durand managed to simulate a decent medium-fidelity warmth. I'd like the bass to be louder in the mix, but I understand if the artistic method intentionally limits the sound. The instrumental portion is cool and really drives the swing feel home. Die Happy another I would play on occaision at most, but I appreciate the strong effort to replicate an old-time sound.

Verdict: 8/10

Jason Morris - Burning For You
Anybody that's able to make it to the final round of any songwriting competition has what it takes to make a song worth listening to, and Song Fu 2 finalist Morris tends to satisfy more than disappoint. His song involves a shy guy who takes a drastic approach to get the attention of the one he loves. There's a pretty long list of things I'd do to get a girl to see me before I willingly conflagrated, but it doesn't sound like the character tried anything before he jumped to the brilliant idea of suicide.

It's kinda creepy, a little disturbing and not very happy, but the lyrics are descriptive and the vocal melody is good stuff. I enjoy Jason's voice and performances of the lead and backgrounds. The music is catchy and upbeat, and Jason does a great job on instrumentation and production. The bridge really works for me, in general. What doesn't work for me is the chorus - I wish that it were more than the same note and the same four words done to death, if you'll pardon the pun (I think I've behaved myself so far, as far as puns are concerned, yeah? Meh, what do you care). Jason did change up the melody in the last chorus, but if the unimaginitive lyrics are to remain the same I'd prefer to hear variations that increase in complexity and intensity over the four choruses. Any kind of lyrical variety in the chorus is still heartily welcomed. It may also be a missed opportunity not to change 'mind' to 'heart' in the second pre-chorus, even if it is cliché. Some reworking could make BFY a hit.

Verdict: 7.5/10

Caleb Hines - Haven't You Ever
Caleb's happiness from death comes in the form of an inheritance. A sound starting point, he describes the fun, adventurous events and opulent purchases the happy character spends the assets on. There are some silly things mentioned, but the lyrics don't succeed in making me laugh (don't feel bad - none of them did). The vocal lead and harmonies are good, and the music backs them appropriately. Caleb's another throat singer, and his voice sounds kinda scrawny and weak, but it's acceptable for a comedy/novelty tune. There is a distinct improvement in his diction, though, and evidence of a lisp is virtually gone. The elements sound mixed well, except the drums are a little quiet. Just like the other InheriTanCe song this round, I can imagine hearing it on Dr. Demento, but it lacks the replay value to be an appealing iTunes purchase.

Verdict: 7.5/10

Bryce Jensen - Thank You
Bryce's character is happy in the way ITC's and Caleb's are, but not because of a will. It's not clear what sort of relationship is being described or what went wrong, but this person is experiencing happiness due to the relief that he no longer needs to murder them. Creepy? sure. Disturbing? Just enough. There isn't much to them, but I like the lyrics and how they portray the delusional would-be killer as an optimist. There are some humorous bits (doesn't everybody need a wood chipper?), but, as I mentioned before, no lulz. Bryce's lead vocals are tolerable and the melody is pretty good.The background vocals don't sound as good, and it seems they're pitchier, too. The piano part's pretty good, even if it's a bit repetitive. Using only two mediocre two-beat drum loops is a disappointment. Thank You is pretty good, but has plenty of room for improvement.

Verdict: 7/10

Pat And Gweebol - Baby Go To Sleep
This seemingly simple number ended up growing on me. Normally I don't appreciate the countless Romeo and Juliet references in songs, because they usually don't utilize the story's plot. Sure, things are vague and veiled in obscurity, but the lyrics are effective, and both vocalists perform their parts well. All the vocal parts are written nicely. I like the doubled leads, and the backgrounds are used the right amount and at the right volume. The keyboard part in the intro and instrumental isn't amazing but it isn't bad either, and contributes to the overall sound of the song more than it detracts. BGTS has more replay value than most of the songs this round. Pat and Greebol are some pretty talented puppets, and they made a likeable song.

Verdict: 8/10

The Boffo Yux Dudes - Marked For Death
These comedy veterans bring us a 60s-style rock song about someone running from his inevitable end. The lyrics sometimes make me think the character is a spy or arent of some sort, but there's no proof of that being true. They may be enthusiastically spoken, but I feel I'd like the lyrics more if they were sung (though they still won't impress me). The vocals have a bit of reverb applied to them, which I wouldn't have a problem with if the track it was manipulating was properly equalized. There's not enough midtone or treble in the recording, and it sounds too fuzzy prior to the processing... or at least that's what I hear. The guitars and bass parts are okay, albeit a bit quiet. I don't like the drum track much. The claps at the end could've been cut out - they don't fit.
Unfortunately, MFD doesn't quite get where it needs to go.

Verdict: 6.5/10

Young Stroke aka Young Muscle - My Name Is Death
Before I start, I just want to state my belief that artists should be required to get well known as two names before you should be allowed to use an AKA, much less use multiple names simultaneously in the first place. Sean Combs has a ton of different names, but he's too cool to use more than one at a time, and we can all learn a valuable lesson from that, and that is: Pick ONE stage name and stick with it until it stops being cool. Moving along...

Apparently Death is a rapping redneck. When I was growing up, I used to think that rap was a half-made song, but soon I found out that rapping is tough to do right (Rapping Duke, anyone?). There's nothing really entertaining or funny about the lyrics or the rapping. Most of the words feel uninspired and boring. The loop is too simple and repetitive to help the song climb out of the grave. At least the Metal Gear Solid communicator sound was used effectively. This may be one of the first three SpinTunes submissions to feature rapping, but being first doesn't mean best.

Verdict: 4.5/10

Chris Cogott - Drag Me Down
I hear a large number of similarities to the Beatles' classic style, and that's fine - it's a sound that's worked for plenty of bands over the decades. He made an upbeat ditty about a seafarer that becomes enamored with a mermaid, and he must make the ultimate sacrifice to be with the aquatic beauty. It's not necessarily the best choice to leave the word 'mermaid' out of the piece, but anybody that follows along with the lyrics should be able to figure it out. The music is very nice, effectively capturing the 60s rock and roll style with every element. Good performances and recordings, and the mixing is high quality. Though it's not a funny song, I could still imagine hearing it at least once on Dr. Demento (I usually don't refer to his show this much, honest!). DMD is a good fit for the challenge, and will be one of the better reasons to revisit this round in the future.

Verdict: 8.5/10

Happi - The Next Part Of Life
Man, rap songs are tough to get right.

Half of comedy duo (that's the intent, right?) Spandex Moose, Happi makes a philosophical jam, and while it's the best song including rap this round, that's not saying a lot. I can tell there's plenty of effort that went into the lyrics, and they're mostly happy, but the execution doesn't work for me. Some phrasing is too tightly-packed to work in every verse and reading along is practically a requirement, at least if you want to understand some bits. Sometimes the vocals rush the beat and the backgrounds aren't synchronized enough. Perhaps the rhythm instruments come in too late. The hardcore section in the second half might be too hardcore for the theme. I don't like the end of each chorus: the sustain after 'DEATH!' is too long, and the 'is the next part of life' bit is so much quieter that it's like taking a dynamic and emotional plummet into a crevasse of blah. I see the potential in the artist, but the song just doesn't satisfy me like it should.

Verdict: 6.5/10

Emperor Gum - Frequency
Emperor submitted a story of a child who gets revenge upon her overprotective parent that kept her under lock and key. Initially, I thought this song was based on yet another movie I didn't watch (what a relief). It's kinda hard to envision the character Gum's describing, but it's clear she's not happy until the end. Some lyrics are pretty good, but this 'sometimes rhyming, sometimes not' business isn't appealing. The music is simple and childish, and gets excited and intense at the right time. The vocals aren't very expressive, and sometimes get off-key a bit. Listening to Emperor sing 'again' is unpleasant. The transition to the bridge is uncomfortable. Come to think of it, I don't even get the title. Frequency is more depressing than it is happy.

Verdict: 6.5/10

Jon Eric - Birthday
Jon brings us a cool folk tune, with smart, descriptive lyrics that successfully express the last moment of life and the events thereafter. I like the imagery and the positive attude portrayed by Jon's character. Mr. Eric's voice is good for the song, and i like the melody and harmony.

The background vocals feel buried, and need to be brought up in the mix to support the lead better. Guitar, bass and shaker are a simple, yet effective combo, and they don't need a lot of improvement (shaker rhythm sometimes gets shaky in places, though). Pausing for effect is fine, as long as everybody comes back in at the same time. I don't feel like Birthday has a lot of replay value, but it's worth keeping around.

Verdict: 8/10

Hudson And Day - Silly Baby
The Dixie Chicks made it fashionable to be vengeful murderers and Country lovers (or haters) at the same time. H&D's song about a philanderer and the women he did wrong is is good idea, but it's executed poorly. Most of the vocals sound like they were recorded with an old webcam, presumably to simulate a phone. Maybe it was a filter on a good recording. Regardless, most audio is too quiet in the mix to understand and most of it doesn't sync with the rhythm of the song. The lack of a rhythm track may be a large cause, and it certainly could improve the listening experience. The submitted lyrics are incomplete, and it's a damn shame I won't be able to get the whole thing... Oh well.

Nothing really feels complete about Silly Baby.

Verdict: 5/10