R&M Cover Competition - Voting Thread! [Archive]

Jom

01-31-2006, 09:43 PM

PLEASE READ THIS ENTIRE FIRST POST BEFORE YOU EVEN THINK ABOUT POSTING. READ EVERY SINGLE LETTER, PERIOD, AND WHITE SPACE OR I WILL ENLIST BOBOTHERAGINGHOBO TO TAKE A GIANT STICK TO YOUR KNEECAPS.

IN SHORT: READ THESE RULES AND MAKE SURE YOU UNDERSTAND THEM. IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS, ASK THEM IN THIS THREAD AND I WILL ANSWER THEM. NO HARM, NO FOUL :)

FAILURE TO FOLLOW THE RULES WILL RESULT IN YOUR VOTES BEING IGNORED, AND I WILL NOT BE A HAPPY CAMPER. EVERYONE DOES A GOOD JOB WITH THIS, SO PLEASE, KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK!

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Alright, welcome to the voting thread!

The following users have submitted their songs as requested:

1. Reflections - Thrice Medley
2. Mr. Squiggles/TasteMyScythe - Ensiferum - Token of Time
3. pate - Cream - Sunshine of Your Love
4. Shattered_Future/paranoid923 - Dark Tranquillity - Wonders At Your Feet
5. Lord of Sword - Love Psalm from Silent Hill 2
6. killabees77 - The Leper Affinity
7. Cain - Voodoo Chile
8. Rounder and Matter - Bleak
9. Joe - Fade to Black
10. MetalOz - Devil Went Down to Georgia
11. JMann - Orphaned Land - Ocean Land
12. toaster135 - Cryptopsy - Crown of Horns
13. Got the Goods - Meshuggah - Soul Burn
14. ATC - Cranberries (?) - Zombie

These are the users whose submissions you will be voting on.

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THIS SECTION OUTLINES WHERE TO GO TO LISTEN TO THE SONGS AND HOW TO VOTE.

STEP 1: GO TO THE SOUNDCLICK THAT IS HOSTING THE SONGS:

THIS LINK TAKES YOU TO THE SOUNDCLICK (http://www.soundclick.com/bands/pagemusic.cfm?bandID=321770).

STEP 2: EITHER A) DOWNLOAD OR B) STREAM EACH SONG FOR AS LONG AS YOU CAN. IT IS MANDATORY THAT YOU LISTEN TO EACH USER'S ENTRY. YOUR VOTE WILL BE IGNORED IF YOU DO NOT VOTE FOR EACH SONG, AND BOBO WILL TAKE AWAY YOUR ABILITY TO WALK.

STEP 3: LIST EVERY SINGLE (yes, this means you have to listen to EACH SONG, if you haven't picked up on this by now) AND WRITE A SENTENCE OR TWO EACH ABOUT WHAT YOU LIKED ABOUT IT, WHAT YOU DISLIKED ABOUT IT, AND ANY OTHER GENERAL COMMENTARY. HELL, IF YOU WANT TO MAKE YOUR PARAGRAPH IN OUTLINE FORM, I WON'T COMPLAIN. THREE SENTENCE MINIMUM, PLEASE!

An example of the outline:

1. I liked [this this this].
2. I didn't like [this this this].
3. Overall, I give you a x/10.

REMEMBER TO GIVE THE USER'S SONG A SCORE RANKING OUT OF 10 FOR EACH ENTRY.

NOTE: YOU CANNOT VOTE FOR YOURSELF. HOWEVER, IT IS STRONGLY RECOMMENDED THAT EVERYONE WHO PARTICIPATED THIS MONTH VOTES FOR THE OTHER CONTRIBUTORS TO SHOW GOOD FAITH (AMONG OTHER THINGS).

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THIS SECTION OUTLINES SOME GENERAL LOGISTICS OF THIS MONTH'S COMPETITION

I. THE PERSON WITH THE HIGHEST AVERAGE SCORE WINS THE COMPETITION. I CALCULATE THE MEAN AND STANDARD DEVIATION, AND POST THIS IN A TABLE IN THE RESULTS THREAD.

II. SONG QUALITY IS NOT, AND I REPEAT, NOT AN ISSUE. DO NOT GIVE A USER A LOW SCORE BECAUSE HIS RECORDING SOFTWARE IS NOT AMAZING. IF I SEE A VOTE THAT TRASHES THE QUALITY OF A RECORDING, YOUR VOTE WILL BE DISQUALIFIED. THIS CANNOT BE EMPHASIZED ENOUGH.

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THIS SECTION PROVIDES AN EXAMPLE OF HOW YOU ARE TO VOTE.

EXAMPLE:

1. toaster135's entry:

I liked this, this, and this, blah blah blah, and some more blah blah blah. I didn't like your blah blah bling bling bloobly. Overall, I think blee blue bloo blah bling blang.

Score: 8/10

2. metaloz's entry:

I liked bingo bango bongo, you people better be getting the idea of this by now. I didn't like eenie meenie miney moe, you people better be getting the idea of this by now. Overall, if you people don't get the idea of this by now, please unplug your Internets.

Score: 9/10

DO THIS FOR EVERY SINGLE SUBMISSION, PLEASE, OR I WILL ASK YOU TO STICK A PAIR OF SCISSORS AND/OR KNIVES INTO AN ELECTRICAL SOCKET.

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SOME PARTING THOUGHTS

RULES:

1. NO SPAM IN THIS THREAD, PLEASE.
2. YOU MUST FOLLOW VOTING GUIDELINES. SEE ABOVE (Do you get this yet, or am I going to have to get Bobo to beat you with a stick?).
3. DO NOT ASK WHAT THE NEXT COMPETITON WILL BE, IT IS UP TO THE WINNER.
4. VOTING WILL END IN... TEN DAYS. THAT SOUNDS PRETTY GOOD.
5. READ THE RULES. IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, PLEASE ASK THEM IN THIS THREAD, AND I'LL BE HAPPY TO ANSWER THEM.

AGAIN, THE LINK TO THE SOUNDCLICK THAT IS HOSTING THE SONGS:

SOUNDCLICK (http://www.soundclick.com/bands/pagemusic.cfm?bandID=321770).

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Thank you, please, PLEASE, do not post until you've read this entire post. Remember, Bobo has the power to take your ability to walk away through the Internets.

GOOD LUCK TO ALL THE PARTICIPANTS! THANK YOU FOR SUBMISSIONS AND PARTICIPATION!

HAPPY VOTING!

Storm In A Teacup

01-31-2006, 09:55 PM

I finally got my speakers fixed today. :) Time to get crackin.

Guitar_fool202

01-31-2006, 09:58 PM

page 1

Cain - Voodoo Chile

I really like how he got the notes of the of the singing down at some parts though is wasnt consistent. i dont like the intro too much forcing the wah and the rakes there. Also alot of overkill with the wah and trills and such.

Score: 7/10

Got The Goods - Soul Burn

I like the fact he got the tone almost near the original. i didnt like the volume of it and it being alittle low.

Score: 7/10

Toaster135 - Crown of horns

Keept it in time most of the time didnt really miss alot of spots. i didnt like that is was repetitive at times not alot of challenge their.

Score: 8/10

JMann - Ocean Land

i liked the acoustic intro alot. i didnt like the repetitiveness of it almost the same riffs over and over again.

Score: 7/10

Metal0z - Devil went down to georgia

I like the fact that he had to figure out the parts that didnt have guitar in it and then play it. i didnt like the singing so much the parts with alot of ppl are supposed to say stuff. couldve made it seem like more people were their.

Score: 9/10

Joe - Fade 2 b

I like the fact that he got all the clean and lead parts down. not so much with the rythm though. The end got real quiet. also no solo or finish of the bridge.

Score: 7/10

Rounder and Matter - Bleak

I like the complexity of the piece. I liked everything till the vocals came in oof da.

Score: 8/10

Killabees77 - LeperAffinity

I like the lead melody its catchy. i dont like the drums with its constant bassing.

Score: 8/10

Lord of Sword - Love Psalm

I love the melody and lack of death metally backing rythm. i also like the tone you have and the sound. i dont like the drums high hat ugh.

Score: 9/10

SF/p923 - The wounders at your feet.

Are those words your trying to say. sure doesnt sound like it. Too much bass every in your voice in your guitar in your drums.

Score: 4/10

Pate - Sunshine on your love

YOU DO NOT NEED TO DEATH METALIZE THIS WORK OF ART!!!

Score: 3/10

Mr. Squiggles/TasteMyScythe - Token of time

I like the guitar in general the acoustic could use some work.
I dont like the neverending ness of it token of time i do not have.

Score: 8/10

Reflections - Thrice Medley

I already like the fact thats its a medley meanding you have to put some work in it besides playing and recording :thumb: . I dont like the fact that the music seemed more about the drumming then the guitarring.

Score: 7/10

there and it only took me 25 minutes W00T!

Storm In A Teacup

01-31-2006, 10:02 PM

:( I don't know what my conection is for it to optimize the sound. Is this neccesary for it to sound good, or is it not much of a difference?

Rounder

01-31-2006, 10:13 PM

Jom, there is something wrong with my song. It cuts off at the end, and there is something funny about the way it sounds.

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/songInfo.cfm?bandID=175879&songID=3422216

There is the exact same version, but it sounds different and the end is there.

If its easier for you, just DL that version on my soundclick and reupload. (same version I promise.)

Jom

01-31-2006, 10:19 PM

I was worried about this. Yours and killabee's versions were over 10MB, so maybe Soundclick cut them off early.

I just linked people to your Soundclick in the first post.

Rounder

01-31-2006, 10:26 PM

I was worried about this. Yours and killabee's versions were over 10MB, so maybe Soundclick cut them off early.

I just linked people to your Soundclick in the first post.

ok thanks..not sure why it did that, its under 10 according to my file, but either way thanks.

Jom

01-31-2006, 10:29 PM

The version I received from the YSI was something like 10.8MB, killabee's was 10.5MB. It sounds like his cuts off, too :upset:

If he sees this, hopefully he has a suggestion as to what to do.

JMann

01-31-2006, 10:38 PM

CRAP! FIXED.

-Jom

Thanks, man!

pate

02-01-2006, 12:04 AM

ATC - Cranberries - Zombie

I don't like the male vocals, but I do like the female ones. Most of the guitar playing is just strumming the same three chords softly.

5/10

Cain - Voodoo Chile

I love the guitarwork. Vocals might have put it over the top. I really like the feel of it; it matches the rawness of Jimi and SRV's versions.

9/10

Got The Goods - Soul Burn

Very good drums. I didn't like the repetitiveness; there were no variations to make it more interesting. The midi or synth solo is rather good, though.

6/10

Toaster135 - Crown of horns

Very good drumming and guitarwork. A lot of it sounded like the real thing. No vocals, though.

8/10

JMann - Ocean Land

I really liked the drums. Good melodies. I didn't really like the solo.

7/10

Metal0z - Devil went down to georgia

Really good guitarwork, doing all the violin parts. I liked the verse vocals, but I did not like the chorus ones.

8/10

Joe - Fade 2 b

I don't like the second lead part, it would have been better left as the original. I don't like the gallops in the bridge. No solo.

4/10

Rounder and Matter - Bleak

Amazing. The guitars are incredible, hitting every note the whole song. The clean vocals might not be "pretty", but I like them.

10/10

Killabees77 - LeperAffinity

Pretty solid all around. Everything is pretty well done. Not completely tight in some spots.

8/10

Lord of Sword - Love Psalm

Some nice melodies. I really like the clean tones. It just gets boring at times.

6/10

SF/p923 - The wounders at your feet.

I really enjoy the synth. The guitars are very good, I like the rhythm tone. I don't like the pitch-shifted vocals.

7/10

Pate - Sunshine on your Love

My entry

Mr. Squiggles/TasteMyScythe - Token of time

The tones are too fuzzy for my taste. The drumming gets annoying very fast. Some of the melodies are enjoyable, though.

5/10

Reflections - Thrice Medley

Some good moments, a few mediocre ones. I really like the last 2 or 3 minutes of it.

7/10

Slapping Penguin

02-01-2006, 02:30 AM

I will edit this post in too a review later. Firstly Jom, is there any way I can my hands on Nostalgia (or what ever it was) winning Melodic Death entry?

Rounder

02-01-2006, 05:27 AM

Joe-Fade To Black. Nice clean playing, good intro solo. I missed the vocals but I've been guilty of that. I liked the slittle improv additions you made, but some of the editing you did was a little off, and some of your notes were a little out of key.

6/10

ATC-Zombie. I like the cranberries. I really enjoyed the female singer, she has a pretty voice. The male singer took away from it imo. The male is over-emoting the song too much. I would have given a much higher score if the male was in the backround more. She should have been the lead singer there. The drummer was not able to play smoothly that slow, but an ok job.

7/10

Cain-Voodoo Chile. Great soloing. Good timing, and nice licks. Overall a great Performance. I assume this is a backing track right? My biggest problem with this song is that you do not breath at all. There is no space in the song where you were not playing. i only noticed this because this is something I am extremely guilty of in my own soloing. Other than that Excellent job

9/10

Got the guds-Soul Burn. I have never heard the original But I like the polymeter stuff alot. It did get a little repetitive, but maybe because there were no vocals. The keyboard solo was...interesting. Nice job programming the drums if you did it on your own. could not hear any bass guitar so I don't know if there was one. Good overall. Good editing too btw.

8/10

Toaster135- Crown of Horns.

Again I have never heard this song, but there are no vocals here either, so the song dragged on a tad. Guitar playing was flawless, and killer solo. Great editing job, though im not a fan of the drums. It was so fast it was almost rediculious. You have some great speed on that guitar. The only things detracting from this are the things that are missing, vocals, bass.

9/10

more tomorrow, 14 hr day. /me pooped.

jmann: I liked the intro with the bongos, a little bad timing in there. I've never heard this song either, so I can't comment on how accurate it is. Is that an electronic kit? Solo was a bit too loud, but overall nice job.

8/10

metalOz. Devil went down to Georgia. lol awesome. + for vocals. minute timing problems, but my fav so far. I like the southern rock/metal combo.

10/10

kilabees77- Leper Affinity, Nice, you record track one and I do track 2 from same record. :p Nice guitar work. No bass guitar :( no vocals, i can understand, i was hesitant myself. I know that took a lot of effort, Bleak is probably one of the easier ones, and it was hard as hell to record.

8/10

Lord of Sword- Love Psalm: clean timing, which I always find important. Nice solos. Reminds me of my own soloing at parts. good track.

9/10

Sf/p93 Shattered future. Nice playing, vocals too quiet, good timing, couldnt hear any bass if there was one.

8/10

Pate-Sunshine Of your love: The intro playing is off, and as much as I loathe my own vocal prowess, I must admit the vocals made me turn the music way down.

7/10

mr.squiggles/taste my scythe. As much as your playing was in time, and solid, the drums kinda through me off, I give you credit for experimentation, but it was a little rough on the ears. and it made listening to the music itself a challenge.

7/10

Reflections Thrice medley. I would have rather heard this on real equipment (don't worry i didn't hold it against you, I understand the limitations.
Good playing, rhythm playing, and props for the medley, the solo guita in the third part was a little to loud but excellent job. Timing is everything to me.

8/10

Jom

02-01-2006, 06:57 AM

reserved for voting. have to work. I'll vote tonight. guys dont forget my version is posted in a different spot than the others. You'll have to read the rules to see where. (It looks like someone already skipped doing that).

I went back and fixed everything, don't worry :)

Joe

02-01-2006, 05:23 PM

Ok cool

still another double post!

Here's what I've got so far, the rest is coming

ATC- Zombie
The recording is pretty good. I wasn’t really a big fan of either of the vocals. The guitar and drums both sounded really good, but kind of drowned out the female vocals and were too low during the male; then again I haven’t heard the original.
6/10

Rounder and Matter – Bleak
I like this entry. The intro guitar sounds a little too quiet. I like the guitar tone. The drums and all of the effects are pretty cool, and the vocals are pretty good.
8/10

Cain – Voodoo Child
Excellent. As I said a few days back, this is extremely interesting. Great drums and bass, but especially the guitar sounded excellent. I like the way you do the guitar as the vocal bit for the verse. I also like how its SRVish how its mostly a guitar solo. It sounds like you’re only doing one guitar track, great editing. There was one part of the solo, around 4 minutes, where it sounds a bit off time. In general you have great guitar tone! And, you make my entry look like ****. :lol:
10/10

Got the Goods – Soul Burn
I think it’s a little bit too distorted but overall it’s not too bad. I don’t really like the tone for the lead in the beginning but it’s ok. The drum work is pretty good
7/10

toaster135 - Crown of Horns
The intro is pretty cool. Great screaming in the beginning. You're guitars sound pretty good, but a little slow in the beginning. The drums are excellent. Overall, it's pretty good throughout. Good mixing. Didn't like some of your tone in various places though.
7/10

JMann - Ocean Land
I didn't really like the way the intro sounded. It sounded a little bit off beat and I think the guitar could have used a little bit more reverb. The distorted tone is really good and the drums sound very good. Overall, very solid entry
8/10

MetalOz- The Devil Went Down To Georgia
This was pretty cool, it was very well mixed. I liked your guitar tone and the drumming was pretty solid. I didn't really like the singing, but the talking was good
8/10

killabees77 - LeperAffinity
Your tone in the beginning is pretty cool. The drums sound pretty good too. Everything sounds pretty in time, as in it was a good mixing job. Some times it sounded like you had a little too much reverb. This solo at 2:17 is pretty cool. The clean tone is very good too.
9/10

Lord of Sword - Love Psalm
I really like your tone in the beginning. The intro solo has good tone too. I don't really like the drums as it starts to speed up. You're guitar tone is very good throughout.
8/10

SF/p923 - The Wonders At Your Feet
The intro sounds pretty good. The vocals are way to quiet, but I've never heard the original. I like your tone in the intro. The drums and keys sound good. Around 1:44 sounds really cool. I don't really like the solo tone, maybe a little bit more reverb and some more distortion and bass?
7/10

Pate - Sunshine of Your Love
Ok, well first off the intro seems a little off time. I didn't really like the vocals, but it was creative I'll give you that. I don't know if you did that on purpose, but the timing of the vocals L/R in the chorus is off too. I think you could have added some reverb and I think if you were going to make the vocals Death you should have added heavier distortion, just an opinion. The solo tone is very awesome :thumb:
6/10

Mr. Squiggles/TasteMyScythe - Token of Time
It sounds like you guys either had your instruments way to loud, exported it way to loud, or Soundclick just can't handle it. The drums don't sound very good. The guitar tone is ok. Overall it's not bad but needs some improvement
5/10

Reflections - Thrice Medley
The intro is pretty cool, the drums and bass both sound good. I haven't heard any Thrice so I don't know any of these songs. This was pretty creative, I like it. It sounds very cool around 50secs. Overall, you did a pretty good job.
7/10

Ok I am REALLY done. I get to keep my knees, Bobo.

Shattered_Future

02-01-2006, 05:28 PM

Joe - Fade To Black
Starts off somehow like I remember the song...haven't listened to it in a while. Guitar tone is kinda irritating, but I'll look past that. Drums/bass come in. What's up with the drums? The cymbals sound really messed up, I think. Distortion fades in, better distorted tone than the solo. Second solo sounds off at first with the rest, but comes in again. And goes on. Drags on a bit without vocals, I think

Pros
Few good guitar licks here and there

Cons
Drags on
Cymbals sound weird
No vocals, which leads into problem one.

Overall - 7/10. Solid entry, but drags on quite a bit.

More to come.

Lord of Sword

02-01-2006, 07:08 PM

I'll edit in the other 2 tomorrow

Mr. Squiggles/TasteMyScythe - Token of Time

The drums more than anything let this down, especially the cymbals. Playing seemed ok, although the tone sounded strange. I liked some of the melodies though, reminds me of Running Wild for some reason.

5/10

pate - Sunshine of Your Love

I don't like the vocals, but besides that, this is a decent entry. The guitars especially sounded good. Vocals let it down though.

6/10

Shattered_Future/paranoid923 - Wonders At Your Feet

The whole song just sounded too weak for DT, especially the drums. Guitar work wasn't bad, tone sounded ok but could have maybe been a bit louder. The main thing I didn't like though were the vocals.

7/10

killabees77 - The Leper Affinity

Tone sounded ok, playing was good also. I liked the drums too. It does drag on a bit without the vocals though.

8/10

Cain - Voodoo Chile

Nice tone and playing, didn't notice any mistakes until right near the end. Backing sounded good too.

10/10

Rounder and Matter - Bleak

Playing was flawless, along with the tone it sounds virtually identical to the original. I liked the growling vocals. Clean vocals didn't sound as good, besides in the verse after the solo, but still better than nothing.

10/10

Joe - Fade to Black

Tone was alright, could have done with some reverb though which you should've been able to add through audacity. No solo, as others have said. It also gets repetitive, especially without vocals. Good overall though.

6/10

JMann - Ocean Land

Overall this sounded very similar to Orphaned Land, judging from the one album I've got (in terms of tone/mixing). Nice playing in the solo also. It got a bit repetitive early on though, and I didn't really like

the cymbals.

8/10

toaster135 - Crown of Horns

Playing was very clean. Tone and drums were very good aswell. Might have been better with vocals, even though I don't particularly like that style.

9/10

Got the Goods - Soul Burn

I liked the tone in this. Backing sounded good too. I thought it was slightly repetitive though, but that's really the only problem with it.

8/10

ATC - Zombie

Like pate said, the female vocals were alright but I didn't like the others much. Couldn't hear the guitar that well but it sounded a simple. Overall a bit too repetitive.

5/10

Reflections - Thrice Medley

Tone and playing seemed good throughout. Drums didn't sound great in parts, but in others they sounded fine. I liked the last few minutes especially, but the rest was slightly boring.

8/10

MetalOz - Devil Went Down to Georgia

Everything sounded good in this, nice tone, and the drums sounded very realistic. Vocals were ok for most of the song too.

8/10

Cain

02-01-2006, 07:08 PM

Cain – Voodoo Child

Excellent. As I said a few days back, this is extremely interesting. Great drums and bass, but especially the guitar sounded excellent. I like the way you do the guitar as the vocal bit for the verse. I also like how its SRVish how its mostly a guitar solo. It sounds like you’re only doing one guitar track, great editing. There was one part of the solo, around 4 minutes, where it sounds a bit off time. In general you have great guitar tone! And, you make my entry look like ****. :lol:
9.5/10

Yep. Only one guitar track for me. Thanks for your compliments!

Voting coming soon.

Rounder

02-01-2006, 08:04 PM

ii. song Quality Is Not, And I Repeat, Not An Issue. Do Not Give A User A Low Score Because His Recording Software Is Not Amazing. If I See A Vote That Trashes The Quality Of A Recording, Your Vote Will Be Disqualified. This Cannot Be Emphasized Enough.

Thanks for fixing my song Jom.

I thought I did?

-Jom

you did mang...thanks...The above post was in reference to some of the other voters....

I wasn't bein a dick. :smash: You ve done a kick *** job on this contest.

Mr. Squiggles

02-02-2006, 08:09 AM

I'm going to vote later, reserves spot...

Joe - Fade to Black - 8/10

I really like the tone of the solos, they sounded great. The lead guitar in the second verse I think it is, just kinda poped out of no where... there were a few slight mistakes on some of the clean parts, but nothing too bad... over all, it sounded good...
__________________________________________

ATC - Zombie - 7/10

The chick vocalist sounds cool... The male vocals weren't too bad either... I don't know, something just seems missing, I have never heard the original version, but it just sounds like something was left out... but it still good.
_________________________________________

Rounder and Matter - Bleak - 10/10

That was amazing... you guys did an awesome job... for a little while I thought I was listening to the original version, the growled vocals kicked ***, the clean were a little of, but atill sounded good. I don't really know what else to say, it was about perfect...
_________________________________________

Cain - Voodoo Chile - 10/10

Dude, you did a great job, everything sounded supurb. You played the **** out of that song... it was great... there was nothing I didn't like about it
__________________________________________

Got the Goods - Soul Burn - 9/10

I think it sounded awesome, your playing was right on... vocals would have helped to make it sound a little less repetitive. Other then that the solo was really cool, I liked it alot... good job.

more to come...

Drunken Viking

02-02-2006, 05:10 PM

Cain - Voodoo Chile
Very good entry, the guitar sounds great but it is put very high in the mix. The bass was not put to high in the mix, and the drums were quiet. The guitar was clean for the most part

Score: 9/10

Got The Goods - Soul Burn
This song was very quiet on my computer. The guitars sounded pretty good, I couldn't hear the bass very well though at parts. The cymbals sounded kinda weird too.

Score: 7/10

Toaster135 - Crown of horns
Another very good entry, I liked the way the drums fit with the song, they didn't sound to mechanized like on other tracks. I couldn't really hear the bass though, and that seems to be a problem with music today. The guitars kicked *** though, very very nicely done.

Score: 10/10

JMann - Ocean Land

The intro was pretty cool, the drums sounded odd though but I haven't heard the original to compare it too. The rest of the song sounded solid, the drums sounded very authentic.

Score: 8/10

Metal0z - Devil went down to georgia

Again haven't heard this song before but it sounded pretty good. The bass was really well heard on this song. The drums sounded very authentic, I didn't like the vocals but I don't now how the original has it compare to. The chours backing vocals were lacking.

Score: 8/10

Joe - Fade To Black
I haven't heard the original for a very long time, but this one sounded very good, I didn't like how the drums sounded very mechanized at parts and they were kinda faded, like they were hard to hear at parts. But you nailed the guitar parts.

Score: 8/10

Rounder and Matter - Bleak
One of my favorite Opeth songs, I really liked the bass on this song, they were put prefectly in the mix. I couldn't hear the vocals that well, but from what I heard they sounded off. Still, a good cover.

Score: 8/10

Killabees77 - LeperAffinity
My favoite Opeth song. You nailed the guitar parts, not having vocals didn't really take away from the song like I expected. The drums double bass got kinda annoying.

Score: 9/10

Lord of Sword - Love Psalm
This song sounded pretty good, I liked the guitars, they sounded amazing. I could hear the bass somewhat on this track. The only thing I had a problem with on this track was the drums, the high hats got really annoying.

Score: 7/10

SF/p923 - The wounders at your feet.
I didn't really like the guitar tone, they were played great I just didn't like the tone. And the vocals sounded really ****ed up, I'm guessing that was the mic though. That was all I had a problem with though.

Score: 6/10

Pate - Sunshine on your love
The intro sounded weird, the drums were what I had a big problem with, it sounds just like there is constant double bass thoughout, the cymbals sounded off mostly. The death grunts were very out of place. I liked most off the guitar work though.

Score: 5/10

Mr. Squiggles/TasteMyScythe - Token of time
I haven't heard this song before, the drums sounded bad though, I'm sure they were done right, but they just sounded off. Everything else was solid though.

Score: 6/10

Reflections - Thrice Medley
This sounded like it was more about the complexity of the drums then the guitars, they sounded distant at parts, and the drums really were put high in the mix, too high. The guitars also changed from being put very high in the mix, to very low.

Score: 6/10

comptonassrobert

02-02-2006, 07:55 PM

Joe-Fade To Black

Nailed the intro pretty well, guitars and stuff sound pretty good so far. The drums kinda killed it for me, they sound way too unrealistic and I realize that they are programmed but still. Not having vocals really left the song empty too. Wow, nice job on the solo section, it was really well done. Really nice job overall, it just would've been a lot better with vocals and the drums a little better.

7/10

ATC-Zombie

Nice to see a song that hasn't been overdone to death in the competitions. Pretty cool so far, I like how the whole sound is turning out. Did you do the vocals? Gets boring after awhile with the acoustics, a distorted chorus would've brought it up a bit. Overall nice job.

6.5/10

Rounder and Matter-Bleak

Wow. This was really awesome, how'd you get the intro sounds? Really cool and interesting stuff. Awesome quality too. The guitars were amazing, although I think you should've made the lead part in the beggining a little higher in the mix. Also the clean guitar's tone seemed a little weird to me, I don't know. Although I didn't fancy the vocals much, it was a lot better than most of the vocals I've heard in the competitions. Overall really cool stuff.

9/10

Cain-Voodoo Chile

You've got chops, man. Had a very nice tone and the solo was friggin' cool. Not much else to say but that I think it would've been much better with vocals because it got repetitive at times.

8.5/10

Got the Goods-Soul Burn

Ugh. I honestly couldn't stand it, sorry. You had a really good tone and you pulled it off pretty well, just the 4 minutes of ChuggaChugga really overshadowed the nicely done lead parts.

5/10

Toaster135-Crown of Horns

This was pretty cool man. I think you nailed the tone and went through the song pretty flawless. Once again, no vocals made the song drag on after a little while. The solo was friggin' cool though, nice job!

8.5/10

Jmann-Ocean Land

I've never heard the original I don't think, though it sounds familiar, so I can't really judge on how well you replicated it. But I think it was pretty well done. A little meh for the first minute or two, and I didn't like your guitar tone very much, but the solo section was excellent. I really liked the solo guitar's tone and it was nicely executed.

7.5/10

MetalOz-Devil Went Down To Georgia

Dude, this ****in rocked. Kudos for even trying the vocals, and executing them pretty well too. The guitar tone was kickass and you pulled off all the licks like a badass. Yeah, just really nice job.

9.5/10

Killa Bees77-The Lepper Affinity

At first I didn't really like the guitar tone, but as the song progressed and the rhythm guitar stood behind the lead it turned out pretty badass, man. The first solo kicked *** too, very nice job on that. The transitions were nice and the whole thing turned out pretty awesome.

9/10

Lord Of Sword-Love Psalm

Pretty cool stuff, I'd like to hear the original. Nice guitar tone and everything was done pretty clean, the drums however got pretty annoying, where they programmed or real? All of the solos were really nicely done and had nice tone.

8/10

P932/SF-Wonders At Your Feet

Another song I haven't heard the original of, that I'd like to hear. Overall pretty well done, the guitar tone was kindofa buzzkill though, and the vocals seemed a little too "throaty"(for lack of a better word) and low in the mix, other than that pretty nice job.

6.5/10

Pate-Sunshine Of Your Love

Haha I liked the idea, just didn't quite pull it off. The instrumental was pretty nicely done and the vocals were better than no vocals, so kudos.

6.5/10

Mr.Squiggles/TasteMyScythe-Token Of Time

Sounds like it could've been interesting and pretty cool, but I couldn't hear anything over the Crash symbol, yikes. It was pretty unlistenable, but just for the poor mixing, other than that it has a lot of potential.

6/10

Reflections-Thrice Medley

I like the medley idea, because it shows you had to take some time and make each song fit and transition to/from the other. The drums left a lot to be desired and the playing was a little sloppy, but I enjoyed it and I think you did a nice job on it.

7/10

Crap that took a long time.

Crysiss

02-02-2006, 11:40 PM

What if someone doesnt like the son yet they judge solely on the music and not how close the entry is to the original?

I dont really like guitar fools review or w/e it just seems like hes saying stuff about the songs.

comptonassrobert

02-02-2006, 11:42 PM

Jom

02-02-2006, 11:43 PM

I read and look over the votes closely, as outlined by the rules of this competition.

I'll leave it at that.

Crysiss

02-02-2006, 11:48 PM

NO im saying like it seems as if hes talking about the songs in general and not the recording by the individual. Or are u SUPPOSED to record a song everybody likes?
Cuz that wouldn't be any fun. Know where im getting at?

Also, i wasn't bashing on the guy if it seemed that way

Toaster135 - Crown of horns

Keept it in time most of the time didnt really miss alot of spots. i didnt like that is was repetitive at times not alot of challenge their.

are people supposed to pick technically challenging songs?

Jom

02-02-2006, 11:55 PM

No, they're not/don't have to. Again, read the post above yours, please.

JMann

02-03-2006, 12:30 AM

Cain - Voodoo Chile
I cannot find a single flaw in this song. The drums and bass are both strong and support the song well. And, of course, the guitar takes the limelight. Man, you can really play. Although there is a lack of vocals, I think with your approach to the song, vocals would have only taken away from your guitar playing, which easily kept my attention throughout.
9.5/10

Got the Goods - Soul Burn
Nice tone, maybe a little bass heavy but I imagine that was just to make up for a lack of an actual bass. The riffs get a bit repetitive, but that’s Meshuggah for ya. The song could have definitely used some vocals. The synth solo caught me by surprise and I love it.
8/10

toaster135 - Crown of Horns
Nicely done. You really captured the brutalness (is that a word?) of the original. I love the scream at the beginning. The original is vocal heavy, so naturally the song will sound repetitive without vocals. I didn’t hear any bass, I think some bass would have helped out the song a lot, but there’s still plenty of crunch and bass drum to keep it heavy. The solo is short but sweet, nice chops.
9/10

metaloz - Devil Went Down to Georgia
Amazing. I hate most metal covers of songs that weren’t originally metal, but you did a very respectable job. The guitar mimicking of the violin is awesome. For as well as I can recall the original song, the riffs match up perfectly. The drums sound pretty good as well as the bass. The vocals are okay, a bit bland especially during the chorus, but listenable.
9/10

Joe - Fade to Black
You played the solo's well, but they need some vibrato and maybe some reverb to spice them up a bit. There are a few mistakes in your playing, but overall it's solid. Your guitar sounds out of tune during the clean sections which may be your guitars fault, not yours. The heavy parts sound very good, nicely done. I really like some of the little melodies you threw in there yourself, they fit the song well. The outro solo sounds good, though different than I remember.
7/10

Rounder and Matter - Bleak
Mad props. The heavy parts could easily be mistaken for the real thing. You practically dialed in their exact tone. I don't like the clean tones, although the playing is great. The growled vocals don't sound too bad for what they are. As for the clean vocals, you are slightly off key, but they still sound very good and I commend you for doing vocals. With some practice I think you could be a pretty good singer.
10/10

killabees77 - Leper Affinity
OMG two Opeth entries, I <3 you guys. The guitars sound somewhat distant, possibly due to the reverb, but other than that you have good tone. Everything is played very well, I just think you went overboard with the reverb. The only other flaw that I noticed was a couple of noticeably flat bends during the solo. Some vocals would have been killer, but this is a very good cover.
8.5/10

Lord of Sword - Love Psalm
I like this cover a lot. I was hooked right from the start with the haunting clean guitars. The soloing isn't very technical but it sounds awesome, I love the melodies. The drums get pretty repetitive with the constant hi-hats. The bass mostly sticks to the rhythm, but does its own thing in a couple instances which is cool. I think with better drums your cover would have been near perfect.
9/10

Shadows Fallen/p923 - The Wonders at Your Feet
The synthesized parts sound perfect. The guitar riffs are pretty basic and repeat a lot, but they do the job. The vocals are too…grumbled? They just need some clarity to give them a little edge. The solo started out really well, but then the sustained notes at the end hurt it. I love the snare-snare-cymbal at the end. :lo l:
6.5/10

Pate - Sunshine of Your Love
I really, really hate the vocals. I think they hurt your cover, it would have been better without any at all. Other than that it sounds alright. One of the guitars sounds out of tune though. I don’t hear any bass and the drums are too far in the background, there’s isn’t anything to really hold down the rhythm. I don’t remember how the original solo sounds, but it probably would have sounded better without the wah.
5/10

Mr. Squiggles/TasteMyScythe - Token of Time
I like the guitar hooks, they do a pretty good job of making up for not having any vocals. Some sections sounded off time. I had to adjust the volume a lot because here’s a lot of shifting in volume on the guitars. Despite that, I still enjoyed the actual song.
6/10

Reflections - Thrice Medley
I’d say you captured Thrice’s sound quite well, although I don’t actually recognize any of the riffs. The drums get repetitive, too many cymbals and some of the riffs sound pretty similar. I’m curious as to how many different songs they are from. I like the bass playing a lot, it really stands out. The song suddenly gets ten times louder in the middle of it, which was kind of annoying. The best part was easily the interlude you played towards the end followed by the clean guitar. Great job, but you didn't play the "Under a Killing Moon" riff. >=[
8/10

ATC - Zombie
Not bad, the original version is a great song. You mellowed it out considerably but it's still a good job. The female vocalist has a good voice, but it left something to be desired. The male vocals would have been a lot better if they were lower in the mix. The instrumentation sounds somewhat empty. I think that what the song mostly needed was some kind of build up.
6.5/10

Rounder

02-03-2006, 08:41 PM

Jomm, I realize we are not to use recording quality as a criteria, but what about mixing? if something is too loud or obnoxious is that ok?

Jom

02-03-2006, 08:58 PM

Jomm, I realize we are not to use recording quality as a criteria, but what about mixing? if something is too loud or obnoxious is that ok?

I lump that under overall quality. You can give critical feedback, if you'd like, but don't completely trash the score. If you take a point or two off, I don't mind... but don't be like, "The guitars were too high in the mix: 2/10."

Does that make sense?

Toaster

02-03-2006, 09:06 PM

Level mixing is something everyone can control, unlike guitar tone, drum sound etc.

Rounder

02-03-2006, 09:12 PM

I lump that under overall quality. You can give critical feedback, if you'd like, but don't completely trash the score. If you take a point or two off, I don't mind... but don't be like, "The guitars were too high in the mix: 2/10."

Does that make sense?

Gotcha, I didnt really use it in the rating, I was just giving some feedback.

Jom

02-03-2006, 09:14 PM

Ah, didn't know that, toaster.

In that case, make it a judgment call. Disregard my previous answer, then.

comptonassrobert

02-03-2006, 10:52 PM

Well, like for my review of Taste My Scythes entry, the drum volume was just obnoxiously loud and pretty much drowned out the guitars for me, so there was no way I could really give it a decent score.

Jom

02-03-2006, 10:53 PM

That's okay, man - judgment call is fine with me. I don't know much about recording and mixing as well as others do - I'm more of a MIDI composition person.

Crysiss

02-04-2006, 12:39 AM

Sorry about that, Ill write a review soon.

Crysiss

02-04-2006, 01:13 AM

Joe - Fade To Black

Dont really like the tone of the first solo at times, but you played
it pretty much spotless.The Cleans are played good and you mixed everything pretty good.
The drums are ok, even though it sounds midi.

8/10

ATC - Zombie

Nice choice. Everything sounds pretty good. mixing is awesome,
Can hold a note pretty good but i dont really like the 2nd voice
that comes in. Dont really like the song but awesome!!

9/10

Rounder and Matter - Bleak

Dude, This is pretty much like the original, awesome guitar tone.
I think you nailed it. Awesome singing, though mixed too low
but not a problem. Thats pretty much my only complaint.

9.5/10

Cain - Voodoo_Chile

The delay during the intro annoyed me abit but its really good.
You have great tone, and the wah is great.
The drums are awesome, dont sound like midi too much.
Solo is freakin' great

9/10

Got The Goods- Soul Burn

Theres alot of great entries this month and your included in there.
I never heard the song your playing but it sounds meshuggah. [checks]
An im rite. Gets to repetitive after awhile buts its sick after the
two minute mark. Awesome tone, awesome drums, awesome bass. that
synthesizer type solo annoyed me though.

8/10

Toaster 135- Crown Of Horns

Nice to see someone had balls to record screams even if its
just one lol. As most of the other entries reviewed so far,
you've got awesome tone. The solo is pretty good too.
Heaviest song so far

8.5/10

JMann Ocean Land

What can i say, most interesting song i've heard so far. Sounds
Pretty odd at times that it goes heavy than soft, than heavy and
soft. Interesting

8/10

MetalOz- Devil went down to Georgia

sickenly funny. I dont know why but its funny, great choice of a song
and the string scratches are great lol. The bass is awesome too.

7.5/10

Killabees77 - LeperAffinity

Its just not the same without the vocals and your tone isnt too good.
But yea, your playing it pretty good

6.5/10

Pate - Sunshine of your love

I dont know if you were serious about this, the drums are no good,
the vocals are just wrong, you could've death metalized the instruments
instead of just the vocals but i dont know if that would've been against
the rules.

4/10

TasteMyScythe - Token Of time

The drums. :| Gets pretty damn annoying. Your lead tone is almost like
the one in rainmaker, just thought id say that. the playing is good
though.

7.5/10

Reflections - thrice medley

The beginning just sounds like something from guitar pro, awesome tone
coming from the guitar, The song is awesome. WOuld've been good to hear
vocals.

7/10

Vegetaman

02-06-2006, 12:27 AM

JMann - Ocean Land

Not too standout, but the solo was kinda cool.

6/10

Metal0z – The Devil went down to Georgia

I don't know how you figured out the violin parts, but I give you high praise for that. The vocals are a bit... Well, you did decent with them at least.

8/10

Got The Goods - Soul Burn

Wow, that's some great synth you rolled in there!

7/10

ATC - Cranberries - Zombie

Didn't care too much for the vocals, but I liked the basic strumming rhythm pattern.

6/10

Cain - Voodoo Chile

Wow, this was quite impressive. The only thing I count off for is that it has no vocals.

8/10

Toaster135 - Crown of Horns

As before, the only major countoff is the lack of vocals...

8/10

Joe - Fade To Black

I’m sorry, but I’ve jammed this track better only rehearsing it for a few hours, and I am not that great of a guitarist. But you do get points for trying, but I think you’d be better off trying to sound more like the original.

3/10

Rounder and Matter - Bleak

You are a godly guitarist. You pretty much match the whole song note for note, as well as the feel. Your vocals seemed too buried, but you did too awesome of a job overall for me to deduct for it.

10/10

Killabees77 – The Leper Affinity

You did a really good cover of a difficult song to ply (IMO), except I think you needed some vocals to top it off. It held close to the feel that Opeth had though, but I am sad I can’t hear any bass!

7/10

Mr. Squiggles/TasteMyScythe - Token of time

Never heard it before, but I give you points for effort. Poor drum sound though.

5/10

Reflections - Thrice Medley

It manages to hold my attention really well, and I like how complex the drums are. Could use to be mixed a bit better though.

7/10

Pate - Sunshine on your Love

I like how you death-metalized this song. A bit of a timing issue here and there, but that’s an awesome use of a wah-pedal for the solo. Reminds me of how Clapton plays it live.

9/10

Lord of Sword - Love Psalm

Wow, those are some sweet solos.

7/10

SF/p923 - The wounders at your feet.

Whoa, step back from the microphone buddy! Though I admit, you had some sweet guitar playing.

7/10

Joe

02-07-2006, 05:18 PM

Joe - Fade To Black

I’m sorry, but I’ve jammed this track better only rehearsing it for a few hours, and I am not that great of a guitarist. But you do get points for trying, but I think you’d be better off trying to sound more like the original.

3/10

Really now? I would enjoy listening to it. Maybe I could give you some constructive criticism

Drunken Viking

02-07-2006, 06:11 PM

I thought Joe did his part amazingly well, but the tone was off at parts.

Joe

02-07-2006, 09:22 PM

See that's constructive criticism. I've gone back and listened to it and edited it several times since I submitted it.

And seriously Vegetaman, all you're dissing is my recording. You've never heard me play it in person. And sticking more to the real version, would you like me to tune it up half a step and change a few notes in the middle? I'm confused by your point

pate

02-07-2006, 09:53 PM

But isn't your recording what we are supposed to be rating?

*Not trying to start arguement*

Drunken Viking

02-07-2006, 10:31 PM

Yes the recording, but not the recording quality.

pate

02-07-2006, 10:34 PM

Where did Vegetaman discuss the recording quality?

He only mentioned the quality of playing.

Vegetaman

02-07-2006, 10:34 PM

That's right, all I'm dissing is your recording. I don't know if you're a good guitarist or not, but all I'm saying is that it isn't your best work.

Drunken Viking

02-07-2006, 10:39 PM

Where did Vegetaman discuss the recording quality?

He only mentioned the quality of playing.
I know, I was just saying. This whole argument kinda confused me.

pate

02-07-2006, 10:54 PM

Oh, ok.

Joe

02-08-2006, 03:27 PM

That's fine that you don't like the actual recording part of it but you haven't given me anything else. You say you can do it much better after just a few hours and I'd like to hear. You also said to stick more to the real version and aren't giving me any ideas as to what you mean.

Jom

02-08-2006, 03:32 PM

I really don't think there is anything to worry about here. Everything is going to be explained in a behind-the-scenes thread I will be writing sometime in the near future.

That is all I will comment on at this point.

MetalOz

02-08-2006, 10:06 PM

Joe - Fade to Black
The guitarwork is all pretty good, some of the transitions could be cleaned up a bit and the programmed drums are a bit annoying. The song does drag on without vocals.
6/10

ATC - Zombie
The snare doesn't seem to be quite in time everywhere. The female vocals are really good but the male vocals aren't so good. I don't know if the original is like that but the song doesn't really go anywhere... same drums and same 2 chords over and over..
5/10

Rounder and Matter - Bleak
All the instruments are right on. The tone, the mix, the playing note-for-note. How did you record the drums? Is that a kit and a dozen mics or an electric set? The only negative I can give is the vocals aren't so great...
9.5/10

Cain - Voodoo Chile
Great guitar playing, it just sounds like you are a great player having a good time. The wah-wah is great.
8/10

Got the Goods - Soul Burn
The tone and the mix is all pretty good. The programmed drums sound bad in a few places. The lack of vocals makes it drag on. The synth solo doesn't quite fit in like the original...
7/10

toaster135 - Crown of Horns
I'm impressed with the complexity of the drum programming and the guitar playing. Points off for no vocals (except the scream at the beginning which was great)
9/10

JMann - Ocean Land
There was one guitar track that was too buried in the mix. It wasn't quite polished but still very good and no vocals... The guitar palying was real good.
8/10

killabees77 - Leper Affinity
A lot of time was apparently put into this. The tone wasn't quite there and it seemed empty without the vocals but the guitarwork was excellent.
8.5/10

Lord of Sword - Love Psalm
Everything was played pretty well but it wasn't anything memorable. A few notes that were out and a little timing difficulty at the very end
7/10

ShatteredFuture/paranoid923 - The Wonders at Your Feet
The programmed drums sound very mechanical. The keyboards are played real well, not exactly the right patches. The guitar are played pretty close to the original but the tone isn't so great. At least you tried the vocals but they aren't so good.
7/10

pate - Sunshine of Your Love
The programmed drums are real bad. The guitars aren't exactly tight. The death metal vocals are a novel idea but not real well executed. The solo doesn't even sound like it's in the right key.
4/10

Mr. Squiggles/TasteMyScythe - Token of Time
The guitar playing is sloppy in a lot of places. The mix is dreadful with those awful programmed drums blasting my speakers to bits.
5/10

Reflections - Thrice Medley
The mix is pretty bad but the playing is actually very good. It sounds very disjointed because one riff might be mixed completely different from the next. Vocals might've made it less noticable.
6.5/10

I feel like I am being a dick, slamming stuff you guys might've worked hard on but I have to give you my honest opinion :confused:

One side note, a couple people said that killabees' song had no bass - listen again cuz I sure heard bass unless the soundclick was updated in between or something...

Rounder

02-10-2006, 06:49 AM

[quote=metaloz]
Rounder and Matter - Bleak
How did you record the drums? Is that a kit and a dozen mics or an electric set? The only negative I can give is the vocals aren't so great...
9.5/10

The drums are real, Matter played a Mapex Orion, with Paragon cymbals, and yes they are close mic'd. Bass drum, snare and toms. If im not mistaken the tom mics also picked up the cymbals. I don't think he had overheads on this one.

MetalOz

02-10-2006, 07:32 AM

The drums are real, Matter played a Mapex Orion, with Paragon cymbals, and yes they are close mic'd. Bass drum, snare and toms. If im not mistaken the tom mics also picked up the cymbals. I don't think he had overheads on this one.
Did you mix the drums separately through a board and record onto a single track or different tracks for bass, snare, etc? I really like the drum sound, very professional sounding

Rounder

02-10-2006, 07:36 AM

Did you mix the drums separately through a board and record onto a single track or different tracks for bass, snare, etc? I really like the drum sound, very professional sounding

Well, Matter recently moved to NC, so now we have to do things seperately, So, I sent him the guitars with a click track, he recorded his drum parts, (close mic's to a board, 6 tracks, 1 for each mic, then he bounced to a two track) then sent it to me where I mixed the song together and mastered it.

MetalOz

02-10-2006, 07:43 AM

Rounder

02-10-2006, 08:21 AM

Did you already say what software you use? I thought I remeber you saying the guitars were thru a PodXT, is that right? I am using Cakewalk Home Studio but I just got Sonar. I do my guitars through a Johnson J-Station (Pod competitor) but I was considering getting a Pod or a GNX4...

recording wise, yea I have the XTL, and an EBJPMM. I run that straight through to cubaseSX. I have an Audigy Platinum 2 soundcard with the bay drive, I run stereo output of my XTL and go RCA in with RCA adapters. I run my bass through the XTL as well.

Jom

02-10-2006, 08:28 AM

/wishes he knew how to do this :upset:

Joe

02-10-2006, 04:46 PM

/wishes he knew how to do this :upset:

/wishes same as Jom :upset:
/wishes that he knew what they were talking about :upset:
/wishes he had money to buy that stuff... :upset:

Rounder

02-10-2006, 04:55 PM

Jom, I got cubase for free. All you need other than that is a soundcard and your instrument. Audigy's are fairly inexpensive. For guitar, you could also find Amplitube, a great software amp modeler. You just gotta know where to look.

MetalOz

02-10-2006, 09:08 PM

I am really disappointed with how many people have voted. If you look at the incredible number of posts and all the chatter in the Competition thread, now it's time to vote and you can't get anyone to post... A lot of the people that submitted stuff haven't even voted..WTF? I know it's time consuming to sit down and listen to all the songs but I'm sure everyone spent a lot of time working on their entries too :(

Jom

02-10-2006, 09:14 PM

pate

02-10-2006, 09:57 PM

I think that a lot more people were in the process of voting, but then they got to my cover and either passed out from laughing or just keeled over and died, leaving their votes unsubmitted.

Kage

02-10-2006, 10:07 PM

Adaway to be modest!

I'm going to be voting this weekend.

Shattered_Future

02-10-2006, 10:15 PM

CRAP! I knew I forgot something. :mad:

I'll finish my voting this weekend. Much sorry for that. :angry:

Rounder

02-11-2006, 03:17 AM

Personally I think your asking alot of the people around here to take the time out of their day like we did making the songs. Most of the posts on this board are comprised of

123

lol

amiritekthz.

They can't even bother with proper punctuation and grammar, much less a coherent, thoughtful paragraph. I think maybe it would have been better to just have a poll, or make a certain group of people judges, like mods only.

Jom

02-11-2006, 09:43 AM

Haha, nice play.

But seriously, it takes hours for you guys to write and record a song, and it should take these guys no longer than an hour. I just think it's bullshit.

Cain

02-11-2006, 01:17 PM

The problem may have more to do with the idea of "covers." I like them just as much as the next person, but for a bunch of users the general yardstick for quality are the covers posted in places like the Guitar forum, which suck more often than not. I think user psychology would indicate that as long as we're not operating with too wide a scope (which I think this one might, as it allows covers of anything--it's a little jarring to go from Hendrix to Metallica to Cryptopsy and keep your taste and your voting consistent), and not working with at the same time too selective a genre (for instance, the jazz metal competition was just totally blah, as next to no one even owned any examples of the genre), you'd have both more participation and more voting.

This may be a case of "easy for you to say" as I haven't voted yet, but I plan on doing so ASAP, and in the meantime it might be relevant to consider those points. It's not just an issue of what type of genre will elicit participation in the form of submissions, it also depends on what precisely a majority of users will be interested in hearing so that they vote, especially when it comes to about an hour spent listening to music of widely varying quality both in sound and in composition. Limiting the degree to which people can critique the recording also proves a hinderance to enthusiasm, because quality is a huge bone of contention for a lot of listeners, which is why the Pit's composition threads only allow pure MIDI submissions.

But just as a purely aesthetic matter, I believe people enjoy listening to original music more than covers. There was a certain degree of enthusiasm in the metal comps back when Ramsey was running them up through prog-metal, and I fully saw the budding of a community there...then came jazz metal which was a bust due to the idiosyncratic nature of the genre, then came pure death metal which bored some of the folks who already did melodeath stuff, then there was the metal cover comp, which was okay but did little to pump enthusiasm. On the whole the whole timbre of the participants and the organization of the comps sort of slagged off, as the organizations of the comps changed hands from Ramsey to Bobo to Berner to Jom, and it just got a little tired, I think. Having the winner be the one to select the next genre was problematic as well, since they got to choose whatever they wanted to play as opposed to having other people vote on what they wanted to play.

Cain

02-11-2006, 01:55 PM

Jom: delete this post if you saw my edit. :)

Nah, too lazy.

-Jomtastic

comptonassrobert

02-11-2006, 01:58 PM

Nooooo keep the competitions going! I think it's really interesting to see users that I see post/talk to submit their own works of art, whether it be a cover or an original. It's cool to see how creative some of you guys really are. And it's a really fun way for me to get feedback on my own playing/recording skills when I have time

Toaster

02-11-2006, 03:57 PM

I would have put in my scores already, but I find covers a lot harder to mark. I'm almost done anyway, they should be up by tommorrow night. Sorry if I caused any inconvenience.

Toaster

02-11-2006, 04:35 PM

Joe- Fade To Black

Good cover. Your drums were programmed nicely, the clean parts had some really nice embellishments that made them very nice to listen to. Your playing was off in a few parts, you were behind the beat a bit, and a few of your guitars were slightly out of tune. I would have mixed the drums higher as well. Vocals would have made it a bit more interesting, but I know about vocalist troubles myself. Overall, an accurate cover with only a few problems. Good work.

8/10

ATC – Zombie

This is interesting. I liked the vocal duet for the most part, the female vocals sounded strange but that’s a production issue. The guitar playing wasn’t that interesting, nor was the drumming. The monotony of the song was enhanced by the fact that the entire thing was acoustic, but I commend you for going for it.

5.5/10

Rounder and Matter – Bleak

Being a huge fan of the original song, I find it hard not to rate this song high. However, even if I didn’t know the song I’d be impressed with your cover. The drums sound great, very well performed and recorded. The guitar playing sounds great as well, a lot of attention to detail and atmosphere. I’m not too sure how you did the growls, but they don’t sound too great to me. The clean vocals are pretty good at points, but a lot of the time you drift off-key. Overall you did the song a lot of justice (aside from the computerized growling).

9/10

Cain – Voodoo Chile

I’m impressed that you tried a song that’s so closely associated with Jimi Hendrix. The guitar and bass are completely overpowered and simplistic on this song, but I guess that’s the nature of the original. From a guitar playing standpoint, very good performance. You didn’t really break out of the pentatonic scale at all, but again, that was Jimi’s style. Nice use of the wah and delay, your guitar sounded awesome, not much else to say. I guess it was pretty repetitive, but for an improvised guitar performance it was great. Good work.

8.5/10

Got The Goods – Soul Burn

This is very well done. Your timing’s good, the drums were programmed almost exactly like the original, the only thing I would have liked to hear would have been vocals. Your use of midi during the second solo was great. Even if the production is pretty bad, this is still a great cover.

9/10

JMann- Ocean Land

I haven’t heard the original so I’ll have to go by what I’m hearing now. The song was very uninteresting to me, most of the riffs were just power chords with a bit of lead overtop. Pretty good solo, the drums weren’t that exciting. Overall I was pretty bored with this cover.

5/10

MetalOz- Devil Went Down to Georgia

Nice upbeat song here. I liked the vocals during the verse, but they definitely lacked something during the chorus. The cool lead breaks were nice, a bit sloppy but they added colour. The first solo sounded pretty sloppy, but the next harmonized one was quite well performed. Mostly, the singing vocals brought this down, along with some of the guitar playing.

7/10

killabees77- The Leper Affinity

I think you played this at too slow a tempo, it seems to drag quite a bit more than the original. The drums sounded great, the guitar tone was harsh but I won’t mark you on that. Well played guitar, the solos were more or less dead-on. With a faster tempo, some vocals and a bit cleaner playing this would be perfect.

7.5/10

Lord of Sword – Love Psalm

This sounds pretty good. The drums, although obviously from the DKFH, don’t sound very good, you could have picked better samples. I liked the emotional guitar playing, it really fits in with the mood. The drums were also a bit loud in spots. Some of the chords during the bridge/solo sounded off, but that might be what the original is like. A great cover.

9/10

ShatteredFuture/p923 – The Wonders At Your Feet

I like the keyboards in this song, they fit well. You guys stayed true to the original, and it sounds good. The vocals sound very off. I don’t know if it’s your mic or your technique, but something’s wrong there. The solo sounded nice, well played. Good cover overall.

8/10

Pate – Sunshine of Your Love

Hilarious. The guitars were pretty sloppy, and the drums were pretty much the same beat over and over, but the growling TOTALLY fit. For pure entertainment value, this song was the best here. However, for the reasons I mentioned earlier, this doesn’t deserve such a high score.

6.5/10

Mr. Squiggles/TasteMyScythe- Token of Time

This was pretty cool. The drums were obviously mixed too high, so high that they distorted a great deal. A lot of the guitarwork was nice, but the solo sounded a bit odd. Also, I don’t know if you put an octave effect on the rhythm guitar or just doubled it an octave lower, but it ends up sounding strange.

7/10

Reflections- Thrice Medley

Sounds good. A lot of riffs I liked, but at points the guitar switched from one track to two tracks, and it the single-tracked riffs sounded thinner. Also, at the clean break, the solo was far too high in the mix. The riff right after is quite nice, though. Overall I liked this quite a bit.. almost makes me want to get into some Thrice.

8.5/10

Good work guys, best of luck to you all.

Joe

02-11-2006, 05:37 PM

Yeah, this has been really, really disappointing. I don't even know if it's worth it to keep the voting period extended through the weekend, because this just sucks.

I think this signals the death of this competition, because only twelve or so users submitted entries, which is less than half of the first cover competition, and now with such few votes, it's like people don't care.

So, what do you guys want? Me to make a new competition, or just make a new thread that says, "Post your original songs/covers here?" But, isn't that what Audio Arena would be for, anyway?

This just sucks. This is really unfortunate.

I agree. Maybe we could have a competition in the Audio Arena but let people know about it here. That way you'd get the people that hang out there and the people that like doing it here.

Jom, I got cubase for free. All you need other than that is a soundcard and your instrument. Audigy's are fairly inexpensive. For guitar, you could also find Amplitube, a great software amp modeler. You just gotta know where to look.

Musician's Friend gave me Amplitube with my Cubase a few months back and I hated it. Is there anything to make it sound really good and clear? Mine sounds awful.

Rounder

02-11-2006, 07:19 PM

I agree. Maybe we could have a competition in the Audio Arena but let people know about it here. That way you'd get the people that hang out there and the people that like doing it here.

Musician's Friend gave me Amplitube with my Cubase a few months back and I hated it. Is there anything to make it sound really good and clear? Mine sounds awful.

It seems to me anytime anything ever is subforumed, it decreases the amount of visitors exponentially.

I have a song with Amplitube on it.
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/songInfo.cfm?bandID=175879&songID=2282118

not the greatest recording, but I really liked the lead tone.

Cain, I agree with you, you make some great points. Honestly it is frustrating for me at times, because im a little older and most of these guys are really just getting started recording music. Ive been at it for 10 years. Not that I am great, there are some younger guys here that blow me away producing wise, (ahem; chimp spanner), but this is the only forum on this magnitude worth the time and effort that has cool people who are into the same things I am. I agree and think competitions should be limited a lot more, and we should be doing more originals. There is a competition in the Jam Session that has themes- blues, seeing your own tombstone in a graveyard-, maybe we could adopt something similar. I also think that to challenge our younger cats, recordings should play a small roll in voting to encourage remixing and getting things right. I'd be willing to bet no one made more mixes of their song than I did. Somewhere around 50 total mixes were made before I sent my version in.