October 2, 201113 yr I am so close to finishing mine! Just need to review two more tracks and write a conclusion at the end ^_^
October 2, 201113 yr HAI. Obviously it's mine. :lol: 1. Chad VanGaalen - Shave My Pussy Cute little song from an amazing album. Can't say anything else. You either love it or hate it, I guess :lol: 2. Nephew - Danmark Man Dark Last year I was obsessed with them, and this is the best song they've done yet. Chorus is incredible, production is amazing. Plus it's in danish indeed and I literally like everything danish! 3. ritualz - GHETTO ASS WITCH (FEAT. GVCCI-HVCCI) [VAGINA VANGI REMIX] My favourite remix of the song, which was oretty much my ANTHEM in the first half of 2011. ritualz released two EPs solely containing remixes of this song. The first one is a lot better btw. Vagina Vangi is a russian witch-house band too. They are quite good for a russian band :lol: BLEED A LOT ANEMIC I'M f***ING BULIMIC. Anthem or WHAT?! 4. Trackshittaz feat. Lukasm Plöchl - Oida Taunz! ACCORDION. The song starts so well but it wears off by the end. I still included it though, as it's amazing and I needed something Eurovision in the compilation :D 5. Owen Pallett - Scandal At the Parkade Owen Pallett deserves to be more popular than Britney Spears. He's infinitely better than the cow and pretty much 96% of all the artists around. AGE OF THE MULTI-INSTRUMENTALISTS BABY. 6. ritualz - MISERY WALK How could I not include this?! Topped my chart for a few weeks and started my obsession with this band. The part with the girl talking is AMAZING. SHE SPEAKS SENSE (although I can't understand what she says half of the time). 7. The Weeknd - Rolling Stone 2nd best song on Thursday. The "I GOT YOU" parts are just mindblowingly beautiful. Especially in the last minute. STUNNING. Artist of the year. I literally have never been SO EXCITED about anyone's next album (except when it's 2 months until Bloc Party's next album comes out of course :lol:). 8. Galgani - Black Butterflies Gurl, this was NUMBER ONE in my chart at some point. So I do definitely like this song a lot. Not surprised you like it haha. I like RiRi too. Where the hell did you get the impression that I don't?! :o 9. Stromae - House'llelujah (Klaas Extended Mix) NOTE: this is not the original, as the original House'llelujah pretty much sucks and is as dull as watching paint dry. This remix has incredible production, that's why I fell in love with it a lot right after the first listen. Stromae didn't deserve to flop with Alors on Danse in the UK as well. :( All Europe did dig that track a lot and UK decided to act all snobby towards the poor french lad. That's the British xenophobic music market alright! :lol: 10. Das Racist - Michael Jackson Almost sent it to one of the previous contests. The music is super catchy. And I love me some good rap. And they ARE f***ing great at rapping. :angry: 11. Valravn - Fuglar It all started with 'Kelling' which I sent to Unknown Pleasures 2. The song finished FOURTH in my 2010 YE chart. As for 'Fuglar' ('Birds' in Faroese - yeah, the song is not in danish, but these languages are quite similar in a way) it finished 13th. Crazily good. Ethnic motives are the way forward! 12. team rockit - första hjälpen A great song from a swedish band closely connected to jj aka the best swedish band around. 13. The Weeknd - Wicked Games So I've included one The Weeknd song from Thursday and this one is from House of Balloons. The video is all kinds of amazing and it was the first time Abel was brought to my attention. This song continues to grow on me with each listen, so does the whole House of Balloons mixtape which was underestimated by me at first. EVERYBODY IS REQUIRED AT LEAST 13 LISTENS OF THIS. 14. Diva - Glow Worm As indie as you can get tbh. :lol: The song is a mess, but a good mess. 15. Stoffer og Maskinen - Indeni #93 in my 2010 YE chart :wub: You'll probably remember this band because I already entered Vi To Er Smeltet Sammen to BJSC and finished Top 10 :D So I decided to remember the incredibleness of this band and include this song too. 16. Clint Mansell - Death Is the Road To Awe Ahhh, this is from the soundtrack to the 2006 movie called The Fountain. As you said, it goes EPIC in the last section and that's exactly why I love the song. So f***ing dramatic, touching and beautiful. 17. The Knife, Mt. Sims - Seeds #83 in my 2010 YE chart <3 This song and Variation of Birds are from the same album too :D One of the true highlights on the record. And the opera part is my favourite tbh. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Full tracklist: 1. Chad VanGaalen - Shave My Pussy 2. Nephew - Danmark Man Dark 3. ritualz - GHETTO ASS WITCH (FEAT. GVCCI-HVCCI) [VAGINA VANGI REMIX] 4. Trackshittaz feat. Lukasm Plöchl - Oida Taunz! 5. Owen Pallett - Scandal At the Parkade 6. ritualz - MISERY WALK 7. The Weeknd - Rolling Stone 8. Galgani - Black Butterflies 9. Stromae - House'llelujah (Klaas Extended Mix) 10. Das Racist - Michael Jackson 11. Valravn - Fuglar 12. team rockit - första hjälpen 13. The Weeknd - Wicked Games 14. Diva - Glow Worm 15. Stoffer og Maskinen - Indeni 16. Clint Mansell - Death Is the Road To Awe 17. The Knife, Mt. Sims - Seeds WOO. Go me. Then again it was a bit obvious it was you :heehee: 2. I KNEW Nephew were in here somewhere, although I forgot what they were called :lol: 3. Cool, well it's definitely an improvement. BTFU witch-house? That's a GENRE? Interesting band name too, I think they should remix track #1 :kink: 6. I'll take your word that she speaks sense, but if she does she's the only thing that makes sense about the whole thing :lol: 8. Honestly, no idea, I just didn't see her as your kind of artist. She's hit and miss with me tbh, but this era is AMAZING. Or are we in a new era now? I don't freaking know :lol: 9. This was the video version though right? :o The UK market is damn xenophobic I agree :( 10. Oh that's how i know it. I used to read your country thread religiously. When we both had one :snif: 11. Oh I see, well the Faroe Islands are near Denmark - right? It does sound a bit like the Corrs - Rich will have to download this :D 13. Fair enough, I must admit I downloaded both at the same time and Thursday has stood out more. I'll give it another few listens. 15. Oh yeah I do, and I loved that :o What's the album like, must check it out :wub: 16. Well I knew it was soundtrack at least. If it was the last 45 seconds over and over again I would have loved it tbh :lol: 17. Well, I have to say, compared to Variation Of Birds it was really quite listenable so, chapeau :lol: Since when did Alors On Danse flop in the UK? It had barely any airplay (Radio 1 b-list and that's it - wow!) and next to no video play and stayed in the top 40 for two months! Of course it flopped compared to every other country (apart from Norway, who apparently just didn't like it :lol:) but that's because it got massive exposure in every other country! Blame the UK radio stations, TV channels and record companies, people would buy foreign language songs in the UK, if only there were ever played here :( Gasolina and Dragostea Din Tei were EVERYWHERE when they came out and were huge hits, stayed in the top ten for ages! One day we'll have another UK #1 with foreign lyrics, perhaps in one hour from now :P Again, Loca People has been EVERYWHERE, so it's hardly a shock... I guess that's true, but exposure or no exposure, it flopped :lol: Sak Noel did go to #1 after all, but really it only has about 3 words in Spanish, The Ketchup Song had more :heehee: I am so close to finishing mine! Just need to review two more tracks and write a conclusion at the end ^_^ Good to hear ^_^
October 2, 201113 yr Complete review – ”Party Hearts”! Track 1! That introductory voice does set the right mood to the compilation title, but the general feel of the song does feel a bit too rock for my kind of party. I did not expect this tbh, and I don’t have the slightest idea which band this is (although I can guess on a finnish origin :heehee: ), but it’s very energetic with big guitar dominance. In fact, this dominance fits perfectly with it being the first track as it’s very one track minded. Though I like that cheesy lyrics, that passion for partying and that altogether going-insane feel so I’d like to give this a 6+/10. Track 2! From something rocky to something more electronic, but still with a male vocal taking the lead. I think this song could suit better as the first track musically though. But yeah, initially from the title of the compilation, I thought perhaps someone with a poppy musical taste made this compilation – like Silas or Liam. But tbh seeing those “<3” symbols behind the album title tags I’m starting to think that person was joking somehow :heehee: So I’m gonna take my next guess at Johnkilometre or Dandy*. For the second time I can’t take a guess at who the band are, but this song is pleasant to listen to. It’s slightly funky and slightly indie. Discreet sounding, but could fit well as background music when mingling with people. Very repetitive structure too, but not in a bad way. I give it a 7+/10. (That plus got in there because I should’ve gotten bored with it, but I’m not. I actually enjoy it.) Track 3! HAHA! J-pop! And I know this, I know this one! :D The group is called Perfume and the song is One room disco. So now I’m going to take a guess that the person behind this CD is Tom. It HAS to be him! Although the first two songs isn’t quite like him… :thinking: Loving the song though. It’s my favorite of theirs and I can recommend watching the music video for it. Cute, charming Japanese girls singing to a catchy, quirky tune. It lasts for about five minutes, but it never feels that way. I award this song with a 9/10. :wub: Track 4! I liked that cute instrumental introduction in this song. It reminds me of another song, but I can’t recall which song. Either way it builds up very carefully, and the chorus is as carefully catchy. Still, the melody reminds me of something I’ve heard of before - but I like everything about it though. Slightly schlager, slightly dance. Also, I like how the vocals are produced like a whole choir. I love choirs :kink: The french part in the song still doesn’t give me any clues about who this is, as it’s probably not by an artist I’ve heard of before. Which is good! From my second listen I notice the growing quality of the track as well. Hence I give it an 8/10 :D Track 5! Male led tune with funky rhythms; this reminds me of Cee Loo Green, though I think it’s by someone else. He sings in a very passionate manner, but that chorus does not click with me at all. A bit too “whiny-sounding”, if you get my drift? Even the clean production doesn’t stimulate me that much, but I guess the genre seems to be made to be like this. I give it a 4/10. (Later update: I recently heard a song called “Fight” by an artist called Tyson. His voice is quite similar to this, so could the artist behind track 5 be that very same artist?) Track 6! This is a charming track. I really like that female vocal and she sings the song quite happily. The melody is dreamy, and the beats have a nice, soft heaviness of bass to it. Oh my, this might be my favorite discovery in this compilation as of yet! I have no idea who sings this song, but I am definitely going to check out some more of her. If she’s still alive, that is :heehee: as something makes me think it’s an old track. I’m not that good with tracks from before the 90’s so I won’t say anything if the song is from an era before that, but it certainly doesn’t sound like it’s from 2000 onwards. I honor this song with an 8/9 (basically an 8, but it’s crossing over to a 9) out of 10. Track 7! This is an edgy french pop song; a lot like something Tom would’ve appreciated :kink: She reminds me of Myléne Farmer, but it could well be someone else, although Myléne is the closest female french pop artist I can think of. The production of it is unpredictable and unstable, but very mechanical and heavy electronic sounding. I like how the song seems so unstructured, yet having a seemingly fluent dynamic feel. I give it a 7+/10. Track 8! This was a bit interesting. If I were to give a general overview of the entire track, I’d say 1) this is a girl group. 2) The genre is Pop/RnB. 3) My first impression of it made me think it was made in the 90’s. 4) My second impression made me go “hmm, they probably tried their success that decade, but failed somehow.” 5) But my third impression makes me go “oh I must be wrong! It’s quite good and they do sound modern actually!" Because as the song goes on it does improve greatly; its catchiness and modern feel increases from the first chorus. Also, it’s probably electropop as well by now :heehee: Anyway, I like it a lot. The grade I give it is 8+/10. (If I were to guess the name of the group - I’d try Stooshe. I don’t know, they just remind of them!) Track 9! I’m on the fence with this one. On one hand it seems like some unimaginative, cheap schlager pop hybrid from an elderly woman with an eastern European origin. Actually, make that an elderly version of Silvia Night from ESC 2006. (Anyone?) But on the other hand it’s quite glamorous, happy and care free. In addition to the cheesy lyrics like ”fly me over the rainbow!”, “baby, I wanna feel it!” and “make me a star of your late show!” That is usually my cup of tea - with a great amount of sugar :kink: But this feels a bit too simple. Almost like a reject to.. well.. any song contest. I’m not a fan of that production either; cheap electronic devices and instruments bought from the nearest, local garage sale or something. She is charming either way though which is a bonus, and the track IS quite fun in its own way, and I have no problems enjoying it. 7-/10. Track 10! This is The Pet Shop Boys, definitely. Haven’t heard that much from them tbh, but I have heard at least a handful of songs. Between 5-7, I think :P This song has some nice little quirks with what sounds like children’s choir singing and men shouting in between the lines in the verses and what I think is the chorus. The song is slightly bizarre in a way, but also beautiful and exotic and this one actually sounds more Central European than everything else I’ve heard from them. You can say it’s less electronic and more organic. Not something I’d listen to, but I like the track. 7+/10. Track 11! Wow. From what I can gather this is some form of eurodance, I think – which is a genre I enjoyed greatly early on. But there is something quite surprising to this particular track; the choir. That impeccable, beautiful choir! Just fantastic! Love it! So much raging electronics contrasted with pure, untouched, blissful human voices does absolute wonders to my musical heart. Listening for the second time now and right from the start you’d never ever guess they’d be going for a choir based chorus, but I’m so looking forward to it even before playing the track. It’s so great. So perfect! 9+/10. Track 12! OK. Explaining the track from the beginning; I can hear something quirky. Something experimental. Something developed - yet adolescent and inexperienced. I can hear them singing in both english and japanese, so I guess there is that as well. The production and the voices gave that away either way though. It builds up to the chorus unenthusiastically, so my hopes weren’t that high, but it’s sort of catchy now. And in some ways it sounds like a childlike Oh Land, twee Fallulah or like an immature Kimbra throwing their toys out of the pram just for fun – aiming innocently and carelessly, but ambitiously at well placed, enlarged, electronic circuit card targets, hitting each and every one of them. And in some way it doesn’t sound like this at all. Charming all the same and I can find myself in a future not far from here listening to this track many times without ever getting tired of it. 8-/10. Track 13! The beginning reminded me of Britney Spears, and the verses remind me of Madonna. The melodies tune me into Margareth Berger somehow, though. But it’s a very cautious track methinks. It sort of wants to be all out there, although it doesn’t quite get there. Not that I think it’s trying to be anyway - but it’s catchy, like in a rave brain dead sort of way. Dreamy too, yet fully awake with robotic beats and rhythms, accompanied by elegant, sweeping vocal abilities by the singer – who I can’t guess the name of. This song works equally as a lullaby as it works as a song to dance to. I’m not sure if I like the contrast in that, but it is an interesting combo, so it does get some bonus points because of this. 7+/10. Track 14! Ooh some more asian pop! Fine by me! This time in Korean though. It’s got that call and respond thing in the first verse which is something I’ve always enjoyed in pop music. I must comment on how this song is different to other k-pop songs as well. It’s sort of theatrical and a whole lot of whimsy! I tend to appreciate creative ways of unpredictableness, and this is no exception. Makes for a more interesting listen and demands me to listen more carefully. Wait; have I heard this song before? I actually think I have, but I’m not sure what the name of the group is. All I know is the facilities in the music video – which is in a circus. Quite fitting. And fun. Yeah, exactly – this track is fun. Nothing more to it! ^_^ 8/10. Track 15! I don’t know what to say about this track, really. In the beginning it honestly sounded like a sound recording made to basically teach people – step-by-step – how to sleep, walk, speak Italian or be nicer to oneself. Like a self educational program. Or it could sound like a radio rip from an erotic radio show with an old and retired target group in need of some affectionate night whispers. But it isn’t like that at all – at least the rest of the song. I’m not that familiar with this genre tbh, as it seems to be something Caro Emerald is playing with. You may disagree on that, but it’s the closest artist I can relate to in this manner. It seems a bit old, as do the woman singing. Either that or it is just made to sound like that. The production is very.. acoustic, I think. I can hear the trumpets, the piano, drums etc etc very naturally. The tempo is fast, and I never really get a chance to enjoy the song. I don’t feel there’s much to enjoy anyway, as its structure is so much like in track number 1. I guess I’m just not in tune with this tune :( 6/10. Track 16! This track definitely has that indie vibe. The guitars are heavy and the bass is thick, and in that aspect – even if the woman singing sings ever so brightly – she sometimes gets a bit overpowered by the instruments. In a way I like how this sounds, as her voice is like a light in the darkness - a beautiful creature in the dark woods. More people joins the party and sings along with her and the song gets better as it goes on. It never really reaches that climax I want it to, but it certainly makes for a pleasant listen. They remind me of a Finnish electronic/pop group called Kemopetrol, but that’s all I can give in terms of references. It got a decent “ooh-oooh” bit towards the end as well which obviously makes it a better song. 7-/10. Track 17! This song takes its time to build up – and all it seems to do is exactly that. Like techno, it starts real slow, and progresses with one type of dance beat until it reaches the next stage and then adds a different beat or percussion along the way. If I were to describe this song in one word, it would be minimalistic. Also, the singer reminds me of Ultra Nate. Other than that I have nothing more to say about this track. Sorry. It.. really doesn’t give me much :( 5/10. Track 18! Aahh, a beautiful piano melody invites me to a great italian pop song sung by Tiziano Ferro. This version isn’t completely in Italian though, as this is the version featuring Kelly Rowland called Breathe gentle. The original version is called Indietro and I highly recommend listening to that as well. Actually I do prefer that and have charted the song before in my personal chart. At that point I actually googled the lyrics and tried to sing it myself. I managed in the end to sing the chorus without looking :heehee: But yeah, it’s a great song. I prefer his voice tbh, and I think he carries the song mostly, but I do think they work well together and Kelly do not disappoint. She adds a nice, feminine touch to things, but I didn’t feel it to be as necessary as the song is quite romantic on its own. 8/10. Track 19! A new instrument makes its debut on this track. The flute. And a pretty little, flute too, which gives off a natural odor, so to say – and makes me imagine something like a flourishing garden. That’s actually how the track progresses; the female voice sings ever so blissfully and when the orchestration comes in, everything about this track makes me think of ABBA. But it’s nothing in particular than how I make out the general expression off the track, although I do guess it’s the elegantly composed harmonies. This is almost like a classical musical love adventure featuring a young, hopeful woman dancing positively in a dreamy forest, flying through a rainbow and ultimately falling to sleep in a bed full of red roses. Beautiful! 8+/10. Track 20! The beginning (i.e. up until 01:41) of this song is so mysterious! It’s got those creepy sounds, the swooshing wind noises and the trolling bass. This is like the complete opposite to that enchanting, forest utopia in the previous track. This forest contains scary monsters, sneaky shadows and mischievous insects. If this is too abstract for you, then I’m really sorry! There’s no other way to describe it for me. Everything about the production/instrumentation of this track is so vivid! The people (or is just the one?) singing this track sounds Afro-American for some reason. Actually they remind me of Boney M! At least that’s the closest I can get. Unfortunately, overall I don’t think I like this track that much at all, as it is a bit too shady for my liking. 3/10. ------------------ Who made this CD? Track 1 caught me off guard (I still don’t get what it’s doing there :lol: ) , but I am really getting into the idea that Tom has made this compilation. Mainly because of that Perfume track. Yeah, and other J-pop/K-pop tracks naturally, but also because of those french women in track 4 and track 7, plus the old sounding retro feel of track 5, 6, 15, 17, 19, 20 and The Pet Shop Boys addition of track 10. Tom also mentioned in some thread that his CD is mostly pop, but more indie then you’d think – which does fit quite right with the general feel of the tracks. What was the quality like? The overall quality was all over the place. My lowest mark being 3/10 and my highest being very close to perfect with a 9+/10. Other than that I did rank something 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 too – which probably prove that the compiler covered all ground – at least for me. The average grade has to be 7, I think. So that’s great! :D When it comes to genre and expression there were the cute, charming tracks. The female led poppy tunes. The dreamy and blissful songs - and the darker, mellow, shady and even monotone outlooks. There were also a group of songs in the “schlager hybrid” category as well as a group of songs heavily “influenced” by older music. Several languages were accounted for too, so I think the variety was quite decent. What good came out of it? I only knew track 3, 18 and possibly 14 so I’ve made some great discoveries because of this. My favorite discoveries being track 4, 6, 8, 11 and 12. Definitely keeping the whole album though even if I didn’t like every song. I enjoyed listening and reviewing as well as reading everyone else’s reviews. Both an interesting and enriching experience altogether! :D Bonus question: Why did the compiler choose to call his CD “Party Hearts”? Oh and I am still not sure where the title inspiration comes from. The only thing I can slightly see as its origin is the introductory voice in track 1, spoken robotically; “When it’s time to party we will party hard!” I’m stumped otherwise! :heehee: Edited October 2, 201113 yr by Freeze
October 2, 201113 yr OMG PERFUME :wub: I have to hear that CD - if whoever made it has put them on it, it must be good!
October 3, 201113 yr HAI, SO DESU. Mine indeed. I will do a full write up later (I have to go to work sorry) but here is the tracklist: 1. Party Hard - Andrew W.K. 2. Hearts On Fire - Cut Copy 3. ワンルーム・ディスコ (One Room Disco) – Perfume 4. L.M.L. - Nu Virgos 5. What Am I Fighting For? (Radio Edit) - Unklejam 6. Eyes on Me (Almighty Mix) - Faye Wong 7. Berlin - Christophe Willem 8. Make Up Your Mind (Original Radio Edit) - City Girls 9. Fly me over the rainbow (Karleksikonen) - Lena Philipsson 10. To Step Aside - Pet Shop Boys 11. Stars - Roxette 12. EVERYDAY AT THE BUS STOP (Single Version) - Tommy february6 13. Time – Therese 14. Midnight Circus - 써니힐 (SunnyHill) 15. Mon Amour Tokyo (English Version) - Pizzicato Five 16. Clutch - Shea Seger 17. Feel What You Want [Our Tribe Vocal 12' Mix] - Kristine W 18. Breathe Gentle - Tiziano Ferro Feat. Kelly Rowland 19. Story Of A Heart - Benny Anderssons Orkester BONUS TRACK 20. Supernature - Cerrone As for the title, I was kind of stuck for that, so I fused the names of track 1 and 2, and there should have been a "<3" at the end of it, suggesting all the cutesy pop stuff in there, mixed with more edgy stuff. I'm glad you enjoyed it to an extent anyway, and made some discoveries. And yes Perfume wa daisuki desu :wub:
October 3, 201113 yr Aww. I should have included 'Breathe Gentle' on my CD. Such a beautiful, classy song. Adding Kelly was a really nice move. :wub:
October 3, 201113 yr Aww. I should have included 'Breathe Gentle' on my CD. Such a beautiful, classy song. Adding Kelly was a really nice move. :wub: Yeah it's one of my faves too (obvs :lol:) Shame it wasn't promoted here at all (though it did get released on iTunes).
October 3, 201113 yr ACOUSTICA Let me start by thanking whoever made this CD. I did know a lot of the songs beforehand, but had forgotten many of them and it's been a nice reminder of quite a few of them so thanks for that. I have no idea who made it though, I probably should given there's only a short list of people left to pick from but I shant embarrass myself by trying. I gather the artwork is made by the compiler too, it's rather nice and gives a good idea of what to expect from the CD. 01 - Beth Gibbons - Mysteries A track I'm very familiar with. The intro is a fairly good pointer for the direction the CD is going to take, quite mellow. As for the actual song itself its essentially an acoustic guitar led love song with some lovely vocals from Beth, as per usual. 02 - Radical Face - Welcome Home I think everyone knows this song, or at least the melody/harmonies from various adverts. That's certainly how I discovered it anyway. Again it's a fairly laid back number, this time with a male vocal but a much more striking chorus of Welcome Home complete with some lovely melodic oohing and aahing. It's always nice to be reminded of this, even if it probably did get a little annoying hearing it about 20 times a day on adverts. (Yeah I watch a lot of TV) 03 - James Yuill - No Pins Allowed Another male vocal now and a slightly different style of song too. It's a bit more upbeat. I'm not entirely sure where I know this one from but I had it on iTunes already. The breakdown after the chorus isn't exactly the most enjoyable part of the song, but the chorus itself is quite lovely as are the verses, if a little difficult to distinguish from each other. 04 - Beth Orton - Stolen Car Now times for a song I know VERY well and indeed LOVE. I'm not very familiar with the work of Beth beyond this, but it popped up on Last.fm radio once upon a time and I was hooked instantly. She has a lovely voice, reminds me a little of Tina Dico who I included on my own CD. Musically it's quite similar too, very radio friendly MoR/late 90's fare. 05 - Alex Winston - Locomotion Another artist I included on my own CD in the form of the wonderful Alex Winston who has now actually appeared in BJSC this month with, for my money, her best song to date Velvet Elvis. Locomotion is from her first EP, I think, and is a good example of what she does very well. Perfectly beautiful melodic indie pop. She has such a gorgeous voice, it might be a little jarring at first but it has a gorgeous tone to it when she's singing at the top of her range. As you can imagine the Locomotion in the title is a metaphor for a relationship moving along apace, it's a lovely simple song and one of my top 5 Alex choons. 06 Fionn Regan - Be Good Or Be Gone Male vocal time again and this time we travel a little back in time to 2006 I believe. It's still firmly in the same vein as the previous tracks though, a near acoustic number. I can't say this is one of my favourites on the CD or indeed by Fionn, who I only recently discovered on one my random wiki jaunts looking at work by producers I like. It's a nice enough song, listenable, but quite forgettable. 07 - Monkey Swallows The Universe - Bloodline And on to track 7 we move and it's another one I know and probably my 2nd favourite on the whole CD. Love love love her voice, again I can't remember how I discovered them, but the name certainly stuck in my mind, unsurprisingly. I had a name in my head of who the vocal reminded me of but it's completely gone, it was a good comparison though I know that. It's still well within the realm of 'Acoustica' but there's a few added instruments and layers in there that lift this to something quite special. 08 - Fiest - I Feel It All Time for some more female VOX then, I have to admit I am enjoying this CD rather a lot thus far. I'm only a casual listener to Feist but I instantly recognised this song thanks to her voice, which I've always found to be the strongest thing about her. 09 - The Dodo's - Black Night I probably would have enjoyed this slightly more had I made a few more discoveries along the way, but nonetheless it's enjoyable. Track 10 is back to the male vocals again and I've always rather enjoyed the singers voice on this track. It's quite an interesting track too, especially the production on the middle 8/instrumental middle section. I love the percussive beat running throughout, like it's keeping time or something. 10 - Track 10 It's time for yet another male led Indie band, something which I am quite the fan of, despite not posting much to the effect. As this review is probably proving, I find it harder to talk about such music as it tends not to be quite as simple as judging the production/middle 8/money note. Anyway back to the song, it's once again a guitar led mid tempo number love song. It's pleasent enough, but not something I would rush to listen to I don't think. 11 - Kathleen Edwards - Buffalo A change DOWN in pace now with a nice piano led ballad. It does make a nice change after the past stretch of tracks. I think this was another last.fm discovery from my singer songwriter discovery phase of early 2010. I am a sucker for a ballad, especially one which grows as the song progresses, as all good ballads should. Kathleen's voice is the real star here, it's beautiful and vulnerable and compliments the lyrics perfectly. 12 - Track 12 Another track I don't recognise and back to the acoustic midtemponess again. This time with a female vocal back in play. I really like the girls voice, she sounds quite fragile, yet the voice has some power behind it too, when needed. The lyrics are probably the saddest on here, at least they got to me most. Probably a combination of singer and lyrics more than anything. 13 - Track 13 The third and finale unknown on the CD for me. It starts off quite beautifully with a nice twinkly intro, I do think I recognise the male vocal on this. I thought it might be Owen Pallet, but he appears later and I don't recognise it as one of his songs. Anyway it's all about the rather hypnotic repeated melody in the production with this one for me, it hooked me from the start and it certainly didn't feel like 5 and a half minutes passed when it was over. 14 - Sufjan Stevens - For The Widows In Paradise, For The Fatherless In Ypsilanti When I started this CD and saw the direction it was going I did expect to encounter some Sufjan and so I have. Not one of my favourites, I've always found the production a little too sprase, not that that's really the point but I'm still a pop fan at heart. His voice is, of course, the star as always on na Sufjan song. It sounds very country-esque which is nice, not in the shit Gaga You & I style way either. 15 - Laura Veirs - Wide-Eyed, Legless Oh another female vocal and another track I recognise. Again her voice reminds of someone but I can't quite place who it is. This is another slight change in pace, it's a little more uptempo yet still sounds totally right in the context of the CD. It's also rather short, I wouldn't mind it being a little longer. 16 - Imogen Heap - Glittering Cloud Another artist I'm not too surprised to find included, the wondrous Imogen Heap. Thank you whoever made this because I never paid this enough attention before and I really cannot see why. It's glorious, the slight electro influences in the production are quite a nice change too. She always reminds me of a more poppy Sarah McLachlan which is a very big compliment I guess. 17 - Patrick Wolf - Bluebells Ahh, it's the unmistakable sound of Patrick Wolf. I have to admit I didn't know this song but knew it was him from the first word he spoke so did a little wiki for a song of the right length. I'm not much of a fan beyond Lupercalia and The Magic Position, but this has convinced me that I should probably explore further again because this is a wonderful song. It's lovely and dramatic and reminds me of Damaris, although it's not quite that good. 18 - Owen Pallet - E Is For Estranged The intro to this followed by that lovely piano melody had me hooked from first listen. It is something a little outside my normal comfort zone, but it's such a beautiful song I couldn't not love it. Owen has a lovely, melodic, soft voice which compliments the rich sound of the music perfectly. I can imagine the instrumental being used in the soundtrack for a movie, it's amazing. 19 - Polly Scattergood - Other Too Endless The closing track is something I wasn't really expecting to find here, Polly Scattergood is a very recent discovery for me. This time not through last.fm but through thr advice of a friend. I am most greatful to said friend, because she is marvellous. She manages to sound vulnerable and in control all at once singing this and it builds up so nicely. It's perhaps not what I would have chosen for the closer though. Overall as you can see I very much enjoyed the songs although I think that I'd probably cherry pick tracks rather than listen to it as a whole because it's a bit MUCH, although on my initial listen I did enjoy it very much so perhaps I just need to be in the right MOOD. Good job whoever made it, my first guess was Dandy* because of Alex Winston and it does seem like the kind of thing he would do, but then he got mine, so I doubt we had a direct swap.
October 3, 201113 yr Acoustica. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v369/DandyHighwayman/BETHGIBBONS.jpg One: Beth Gibbons & Rustin’ Man ‘Mysteries’ God knows how I adore life http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v369/DandyHighwayman/RADICALFACE.jpg Two: Radical Face ‘Welcome Home’ Like a row of captured ghosts over old dead grass http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v369/DandyHighwayman/JAMESYUILL.jpg Three: James Yuill ‘No Pins Allowed’ Sharks that bite, struggle and fight http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v369/DandyHighwayman/BETHORTON.jpg Four: Beth Orton ‘Stolen Car’ Some may sing the wrong words to the wrong melody, it’s little things like this that matter to me http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v369/DandyHighwayman/ALEXWINSTON.jpg Five: Alex Winston ‘Locomotive’ I wish I cared about the things you care about, but I don’t http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v369/DandyHighwayman/FIONNREGAN.jpg Six: Fionn Regan ‘Be Good Or Be Gone’ I have become an ariel view of a coastal town that you once knew http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v369/DandyHighwayman/MONKEYSWALLOWS.jpg Seven: Monkey Swallows The Universe ‘Bloodline’ Oh stop needing my eyes to follow you around http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v369/DandyHighwayman/FEISTTR.jpg Eight: Feist ‘I Feel It All’ Oh I’ll be the one to break my heart http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v369/DandyHighwayman/DODOSNO.jpg Nine: Dodos ‘Black Night’ You had it all, you had it all, you had it all http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v369/DandyHighwayman/WHYALOPECIA.jpg Ten: Why? ‘Fatalist Palmistry’ I know a psychic that reads her own palms and her findings are personal http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v369/DandyHighwayman/KATHLEENED.jpg Eleven: Kathleen Edwards ‘Buffalo’ Have you ever seen lightning and snow http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v369/DandyHighwayman/MEGBAIRDEAR.jpg Twelve: Meg Baird ‘Do What You Gotta Do’ I’ve loved you better than your own kin did http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v369/DandyHighwayman/BONIVERBONIVER.jpg Thirteen: Bon Iver ‘Holocene’ And at once I knew I was not magnificent http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v369/DandyHighwayman/SUFJANMICHIGAN.jpg Fourteen: Sufjan Stevens ‘For The Widows In Paradise, For The Fatherless In Ypsilanti’ I’ll do anything for you. I did everything for you http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v369/DandyHighwayman/LAURAVEIRSJF.jpg Fifteen: Laura Veirs ‘Wide Eyed, Legless’ Will we ever more kiss on the boardwalks fading red in the light of the waves and comet’s waning tail http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v369/DandyHighwayman/IMOGENPLAGUE.jpg Sixteen: Imogen Heap ‘Glittering Cloud’ The artist’s impression looks just like me, only better http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v369/DandyHighwayman/PATRICKWOLFBLUE.jpg Seventeen: Patrick Wolf ‘Bluebells’ And you were my husband, my wife, my heroin http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v369/DandyHighwayman/OWENPALLETTH.jpg Eighteen: Owen Pallett ‘E Is For Estranged’ If pathos is borne, borne out of bullshit in formal attire http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v369/DandyHighwayman/POLLYSCATTERGOODAL.jpg Nineteen: Polly Scattergood ‘Other Too Endless’ So do you think I should end this? You did indeed receive mine John so your gut instinct was spot on... I thought it was weird that we got a direct swap too. You're spot on also with the fact that you probably had to be in the mood for this, I most definitely make compilations to try and fit certain moods and always try and make them flow and fit a certain theme. This one was designed to accompany me on the cliffs of Cornwall as I made it for the swap just before I left for a week away, it served it's purpose well as it was well suited to gazing out into the sea - I thought it would probably be a good introduction to this type of music for any of the pop fans too and maybe introduce someone on Buzzjack to some male vocals (SHUDDER), although it ended up with you and it seems that you know pretty much everything (I'm sure you'll have heard Holocene before now too, it was supposed to be the centrepiece of the compilation as it's my favourite song at the moment). I didn't realise just how varied your taste was, when I saw you had received it I did hope you may like it and thought at least the likes of Monkey Swallows The Universe, Laura Veirs, Dodos etc may be new discoveries for you but it appears not - I'm impressed by your knowledge sire! I knew I should have gone with a majorly alternative disc but was too scared to send something most would hate - ah well! :D
October 3, 201113 yr Oh yes indeed I am very much aware of Holocene, I knew it was going to be a total facepalm moment! I would have been quite pleased to have recieved a majorly alternative CD, but as it was it ended up being very enjoyable and reminded me of various songs/artists I haven't paid much attention too recently so it was well worth it.
October 3, 201113 yr Gutted that mine wasn't reviewed :( Shall post the track info tomorrow I guess but it's a shame as there's nothing to reply to... Still, if I don't post it there'll be no incentive for anybody to download it!
October 3, 201113 yr There must be quite a few left that haven't been reviewed. Poor really after people put the effort into compiling them. :( Gutted that mine wasn't reviewed :( Shall post the track info tomorrow I guess but it's a shame as there's nothing to reply to... Still, if I don't post it there'll be no incentive for anybody to download it! I'll happily listen if you PM me a link - although I'd rather listen blind than know the tracks...
October 3, 201113 yr Wondorous Wall Of Sound Sorry that not all of my comments are that in-depth, hope that doesn't matter too much. Some tracks had odd titles and were in a different order so I've sorted by number and put those without a number at the end. Track (1) - A very good start, my sort of track, poppy, catchy. Couldn’t enjoy it as much as I would’ve liked due to the quality, but I don’t know if that’s due to the production on the track or maybe just my silly computer. 8.5/10 Track (2) - More alternative with female vocals which are slightly haunting. I really like it but it’s just over five minutes long and I think it would work being a minute shorter as I was losing interest towards the end. 8.0/10 Track (3) - Not as keen on this one. It isn’t indie or rock, and it has female vocals, but her vocals seem shouty at times and I’m not keen on the melody at all. That said, I think it does improve and I am starting to enjoy it by the end. 5.0/10 Track (4) - Poppy, catchy and female vocals once again. I’m really enjoying this but for some reason find it slightly annoying and don’t know exactly how keen I am on the hook. 8.0/10 Track (5) - This track seems to be in both English & French. The hook is pretty good if a tad repetitive (is the chorus anything other than ‘never wanna leave you’ repeated over?), and by the end of the song it is very annoying. Other than that it makes a nice change, and I especially like the parts in French. 7.0/10 Track (6) - Parts of this track remind me of Ke$ha because it starts with a tiny amount of talking, and name checks both Facebook & Twitter. A couple of parts are also sung quite fast. The rest is pretty different though, and it’s catchy but I can’t quite tell what the title/main part of the hook is meant to be, which leads me to believe the title might not be English? 8.5/10 Track (7) - Hmm, I wouldn’t say I was bored during this track but it isn’t the sort of thing I’d rush back to, despite being very poppy. The hook just seems OK, but I got slightly more interested from the middle 8/breakdown part onwards. 7.5/10 Track (8) - Alex Metric ‘End Of The World’ as given away by the end of the track, as it seems to be a Radio 1 rip. Just the standard Alex Metric production as far as I can tell, the same sort of thing I always hear at night on R1. I did quite like it, but slightly too repetitive for my liking. 8.0/10 Track (9) - Some J-pop/K-pop track. I normally don’t care for the style and this is no different. Pleasant enough but not something I’d normally listen to out of choice. 7.0/10 Track (10) - Male vocals this time and it seems very annoying. At times I can’t understand a word of what is being said, and I’m very fed up by the time it ends. 3.5/10 Track (11) - At one point I thought this was a J-pop/K-pop song but then I listened closer and think it was just her accent, and it was actually English. Pleasant enough, just hard to understand unless you really focus. 7.0/10 Track () - The first one I actually recognise, ‘Betty’ by Brooke Fraser. Probably my favourite so far, really like the tune and it’s got an enjoyable catchy hook that makes you want to sing along. 9.0/10 Track ()() - Quite moody, rocky. I’m not sure whether I like it or not, the vocals seem OK and it isn’t horrible to listen to, but it isn’t my usual thing. 6.5/10 Track. - This seems to be country in style, and although I don’t mind the genre I normally prefer my country to have more of a pop edge (ie. the sort of thing Taylor Swift) does, so I find this a bit boring really. 5.5/10 Track_ - Very poppy, very catchy, a brilliant hook. The chorus is quite MASSIVE. Exactly my type of track. The only downside is that it is a tad repetitive, but still my favourite track up until now. 9.5/10 Traack - Now this one does seem to be in a foreign language but I’m not certain as to what it is. Easy enough to listen to, I like her vocals, and I’m not normally put off songs because they aren’t in English but I don’t think I enjoyed this as much as I could because of the language barrier. 7.5/10 Traack! - Another song that isn’t in English and I don’t know what to say really. Guess I just found it boring, didn’t draw me into paying enough attention. 5.0/10 Track - Finally we have another country song. Nothing special. I wouldn’t call it terrible, but there isn’t anything to make it stand out. 4.5/10 Average: 7/10 (rounded up) Overall I enjoyed my CD, and my stand-outs are indicated by the higher scores. Cut out the few duff tracks and it could make the perfect 12-track album. As far as I can tell, it has to be either GD, Liam, Freeze or Vulker? I'd be inclined to say Liam because of the country tracks and the J-pop/K-pop & Brooke Fraser, but I wouldn't have said the title or different style of track titles are really him, so maybe not? I wouldn't have thought it was GD, and I don't know a lot about the other two's musical taste so it's hard to judge.
October 3, 201113 yr There must be quite a few left that haven't been reviewed. Poor really after people put the effort into compiling them. :( I'll happily listen if you PM me a link - although I'd rather listen blind than know the tracks... According to the first post only Silas himself (I'm sure it's coming in the next 44 minutes!), Pavel (:o) and Le Vulker haven't reviewed yet, I know who got mine because they posted the title and I haven't seen them in this forum since so it's pretty obvious who it is! I'll PM you a link Dandy, don't feel obliged to review it though, you already did yours! The fact that somebody's going to listen to it is good enough for me and hopefully others will too when the link gets sent out because basically if you like my BJSC entries in general then you'll like my CD :lol:
October 3, 201113 yr Author A Variety Of Colours Causing Frenzy Tranquility Track 01 || 02/10 || The start to this CD is just not to my taste in the slightest. The male vocals grate on me, the intro is odd and then the backing track becomes more of a mess of competing drums and guitars to the extent that it's just noise. Track 02 || 09/10 || Such a contrast from the noise! This song is wonderfully piano lead to the extent that it sounds almost delicate at times. The female vocal compliments this perfectly and has such a beautiful tone to it. Whoever this is, I want to hear more from this voice. Track 03 || 09/10 || Back to males and guitars this time, but from the start it's all a bit more happy and summery and upbeat. Far from the worlds best vocalist but this does have a female vocal in there. There is something about this song that endears you to it and I just want to drive around on a perfect summers day with this blasting and the windows down. This is all in spite of the lyrics being about finding a way to "let you go". Track 04 || 07/10 || A guitary intro here, with a female vocal not in English. Can't quite identify the country but a safe bet would be Scandinavia. The song has a light feel to it, almost Disney. Like an early Hilary Duff track before the electro really kicked in to her material. It's lovely but underwhelming after two brilliant tracks. Track 05 || 08/10 || This is more what I was expecting when I saw who's CD random.org threw my way. We have a properly trashy dance backing track here with a male vocal. The bass isn't as strong as I'd like but it's highly enjoyable none the less. Track 06 || 03/10 || Starting off with another male vocal and a building instrumental as the vocal turns to rap. But not a heavy rap and it's joined by the female chorus. It feels like a 21st rate Stuck In My Head, I'm bored. :( Track 07 || 08/10 || A little more country pop this time, the vocal sounds familiar to me but I can't quite put my finger on who it is. I do rather like this track though. Track 08 || 09/10 || Slightly more quirky this time, but in a very good way. Another female vocal, this track makes me want to click my fingers and bop my shoulders along to it. Love it, so feel good. Track 09 || 04/10 || This is half good and half utter shit. The superb verses are let down by the diabolical chorus where the synths and guitars and god only knows what else are turned up to 12 and the vocals down to 3. The middle 8 is also odd. Track 10 || 10/10 || Oh hell the fuck YES. This is what I really wanted to find on here. This is a trashy ANTHEM, think KaraMel but more dancy and Britney (lyrically and production wise) than purepop. Bloody glorious. Track 11 || 02/10 || Such a let down after that last track. A faceless Kaiser Chiefs/Franz Ferdinand track. Track 12 || 03/10 || Two in a row. The vocalist(s?) sound Canadian like KaraMel, but this song is just not for me. I feel bored again. Track 13 || 07/10 || A slice of more country pop now. An improvement on the last two tracks but far from the best on the CD. Track 14 || 08/10 || A nice pop track this time, very pleasant female vocal. It bounces along quite nicely and is an easy listen. Track 15 || 09/10 || I'm about 98% certain I actually know this track. Either that or I am familiar with the vocalist. I just can't put my finger on it. The track itself is a bit dancy and really good. Ooooh look at me loving a male vocal. Track 16 || 07/10 || This is a J/K-pop track (guessing by Sistar given the amount of name dropping it got at the start). As asian popo goes, it's no Nu Abo but it's pretty good. Would be a 8.5 without that rent-a-mong Track 17 || 07/10 || A track that I should dislike on paper (Male vocal + guitar) but it's rather nice. Track 18 || 02/10 || I don't know how to describe this. Terrible might just cut it. Track 19 || 08.5/10 || This started very poorly then built up through a good verse and then just grew on me like a toxic mold from there. I really want to hate this, but it's got something that makes me love it. Don't quite know what it is. The synthesisers help, the male vocal doesn't and the female has an odd quality to her voice. Track 20 || 08/10 || I adore the backing track to this, it's really good. Don't think the song suits the vocalist though, I think it'd be better by a female or a male with a vocal more akin to Mans Zelmerlow. The song gets 8 because the vocal is alright and the rest of the song is properly good. Track 21 || 07/10 || Another foreign language track, very synth heavy and some lovely production on the vocals. Track 22 || 04/10 || Once again a faceless 'Indie' band track, this time a poor man's Snow Patrol/Coldplay Track 23 || 08/10 || Saving the longest track to last! There is some good production here, the guitar heavy instrumental could do with being turned down a notch through some of it, but the vocal is really the attraction for me. It's superb. Overall I really liked this CD and it was just about what I expected from Freeze. A mix of some trashy epicness, Asian pop with some of the generic indie I can't abide. Will be keeping it whole for now and perhaps losing a couple of tracks in the future. For sure going to be looking up a couple of artists for more though.
October 3, 201113 yr Author Seconds! I hit Post when my Laptop still said 11:59pm :lol: It's good though because the only person likely to comment on that hasn't reviewed and thus hasn't a leg to stand on ^_^
October 3, 201113 yr With Pavel's massive and frequent presence in this thread as a whole, I'm shocked that he didn't review his :o Mine not getting reviewed was a pain but $hit happens, I'll post the tracklist/individual youtube links tomorrow - when are the links going out for all of the CD's Phil?
October 3, 201113 yr Author With Pavel's massive and frequent presence in this thread as a whole, I'm shocked that he didn't review his :o Mine not getting reviewed was a pain but $hit happens, I'll post the tracklist/individual youtube links tomorrow - when are the links going out for all of the CD's Phil? Sometime tomorrow. I'm tired and kinda just want to curl up and watch my Parenthood Season 1 DVD :lol: If you could hold off on your tracklist I'd quite like to do a unseen review of your CD.
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