[b]Mansun - Wide Open Space[/b]

Unusual sounding acoustic guitar opens it, sounds like something Korn might do.
The singer starts.. is it a guy or girl? It's hard to tell... probably a guy. The song goes on in the fashion of alt rock, the opening riff is still going with fairly straightforward drums, some minor variations. It goes a bit harder in the chorus, but it sounds very similar to the verse music.

There's a little bridge with swirly guitar, the next verse has some dissonant strings for a bit, and some extra vocals going "ba ba ba" for a variation.. but the main bit is still the same as before.

The line "wide open space" is repeated a lot throughout. The music is repetetive too, the music never lets up. I actually feel uncomfortable listening to it.. closed in, so much for the wide open space. Lucky it's only 4 mins long.

I don't think I've felt such a feeling from a song before.. even though it was a bad one, I'll give it points for being able to do so. The singer should have taken more breaks, he(?) was there nearly every second of the way, and it got to me. The music did much the same thing, and the slight variations weren't enough to make much of a difference for me.
4/10


__________________________________

[b]A Chorus Line (the musical) - At The Ballet[/b] - theater music. The characters went to the ballet to escape their crap lives.

[b]Alchemist - Worlds Within Worlds[/b] - really weird metal. close to 8 minutes

[b]Conjure One - Center Of The Sun[/b] - laid back dance

[b]Custard - Nervous Breakdance[/b] - alt-pop-rock

[b]Electric Light Orchestra - Yours Truly, 2095[/b] - 80's synth rock

[b]Goldie Lookin' Chain - Half Man/Half Machine[/b] - rap/comedy

[b]Karnivool - C.O.T.E.[/b] - prog/technical nu-metal

[b]Thyrfing - Dryckeskvade[/b] - viking metal, very piratey sounding!

[b]TISM (or T.I.S.M.) - The Last Australian Guitar Hero[/b] - alt-pop/comedy, language warning

Bump, and an [url=http://www.comcen.com.au/~caracarol/T.I.S.M.%20-%20The%20Last%20Australian%20Guitar%20Hero.mp3]Upload for the T.I.S.M. song[/url]

[QUOTE=Iai]Tori Amos - Me And A Gun
(A capella song about her rape. Arguably the heaviest song of all time.)[/QUOTE]

hmm. Upload this song please so I can listen to it.

stump

[QUOTE=manuscriptreplica]hmm. Upload this song please so I can listen to it.[/QUOTE]
Okay. I'll take blue's choice (when I get home), and I'll upload that song as one of my picks.

Bump. Still planning on doing this one? Go ahead, if you are.

****, forgot. Just downloading it to my mp3 player. If anyone else wants it, they can have it - otherwise I'll do it at college tomorrow.

[b]TISM - The Last Australian Guitar Hero[/b]

Starts with what I thought would be a spoken word interlude, but a hip-hop beat comes in after a while, and it turns out that's his rapping voice.

It's a rap song about music without guitars not being real music. Nice. It must be a pretty old song, though, because it namedrops Elastica. Man, I haven't heard them in years. The music is pretty similar to something the Dust Brothers might do, except more stripped back.

Hmm.....it goes on for too long, and it's not really all that funny. Wait....they just slagged off the NME. That's it, it gets a 10/10 now. :D

[B]10/10[/B]

Only took me......8 days......:upset:

[B]The Afghan Whigs - Blame, Etc.[/B]
(Funky soul-grunge)

[B]Tricky - Black Steel[/B]
(Punky, electro cover of Public Enemy's Black Steel In The Hour of Chaos, with female vocals)

[B]Bill Bailey - Cockney Medley[/B]
(A melody of hits, rendered in a cockney style by Bill Bailey and his piano.)

[B]The Pogues - Fiesta[/B]
(Irish folk. Really upbeat. Used on about a million adverts.)

[B]Suede - Animal Nitrate[/B]
(Glam, proto-Britpop.)

[B]Tori Amos - Me And A Gun[/B]
(A capella song about her rape. Arguably the heaviest song of all time.)

[B]Diamanda Galas - How Shall Our Judgement Be Carried Out Upon The Wicked[/B]
(Recommended if you fancy a challenge. :) )

[b]The Zombies - Beechwood Park[/b]
(Psychedelia.)

[b]Basement Jaxx - Bingo Bango[/b]
(Progressive house. Shpongle meets Daft Punk, I guess.)

[b]Curtis Mayfield - Pusherman[/b]
(What's Goin On-esque political blaxploitation soul.)

Are you able to upload songs?

Never tried, but I don't see why not. What would you like?

Whichever you feel like uploading/would be easiest to upload. The only one I've heard before that I'm aware of is The Pogues, so not that.

Okay. I'm uploading the Tori Amos track, since it was on my PC anyway, and manu asked for it.

[url]http://s9.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=36UPXKQ8QPALP2FQAAGYM26ZN3[/url]

There ya go. :) It's a wma, but that shouldn't cause a problem.

My uploads are usually wmas themselves :) Thanks.

Dibs.

What I've heard by her is minimal, though I've liked most of it. Heard lots about this song though, so like the Whigs, high hopes. A capella might make it difficult to review, though.
[b]Tori Amos - Me and a Gun[/b] - 3:44

Okay, here we go. You understand this review is probably going to suck though, right?

...

*3:44 later* My usual practice in writing reviews is to write them as I listen through the song. Listening to this it soon became apparent that wouldn't work, since I had to pay attention to what she's singing. So this is all written post-song, and I apologise for the quality of my recollection.

I could guess from the name of the song that it probably wasn't going to be a particularly happy affair, but I suppose I underestimated exactly how little happiness there would be. This is a pretty bleak song (unless you want to consider her determination to see Barbados a ray of hope or positivity). I won't just spell out the whole thing - it'd be both pointless, and annoying for anyone who hadn't heard it yet might be strange enough to read this in detail.

I will say that her voice is good throughout, but then that's not really news. She manages to keep the levels in her voice and such consistent with each other (barring interesting little flourishes here and there) for the most part, and the actual tune of the song (ignoring the lyrics) is a good one. And heavy is a good word for it. What's more, she kept my attention (rigidly) throughout the whole thing, which can only be a good thing for an a capella song. And that's about all I can say about it. Told you this would suck :-/

10/10. I've been in a very 10/10ey mood today.

[b]Songs;[/b]
[url=http://s8.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=3RQFK8OO694053F6I1EKG9U8Z6]Nomeansno - The End of All Things[/url] (rock)
[url=http://s13.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=3GN3PZCBSK2JL3K1OHWBCUD6WT]Talking Heads - Slippery People[/url] (post-punk?)
[url=http://s10.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=36022016GLYZC0QX9TQCW3NDKA]Solomon Burke (w/the Blind Boys of Alabama) - None of Us Are Free[/url] (soul - a civil rights/protest song, in the vein of A Change is Gonna Come)
[url=http://s21.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=0HKIO9VI1INNU16DU1BCHUAGQN]Mr Bungle - Vanity Fair[/url]

Sorry for the delay.

EDIT: There seems to a bit of a gospel-influence theme here.

All except the Mr Bungle, naturally.

<_< >_>

Dibbers.

I've never heard of Solomon Burke, but I am familiar with the Blind Boys of Alabama, I have their CD with Ben Harper.

Opens with some nice acoustic guitar work with some church organ-ish type of sound in the background, there's drums and a piano too. Voila, music! Powerful Black man's voice singing the song...the lyrics are pretty deep. The Blind Boys have a minor part in the song, just chiming in at the chorus and more towards the end. Solomon Burke has a really strong voice, it sends chills down my spine. Actually it doesn't but it's still very nice. The lyrics don't single out any specific events, just kind of generalize about struggles of blacks, although this song could be meant for any race easily.

The song is straight up Gospel music which I don't listen to much, but this song was really good. The chorus was addictive, song doesn't get old after listening to it a few times, no parts I want to skip through.

9/10



My Reccomendations:

Ted Lennon - "Water & Bones"
(folk acoustic/ukuele awesomeness)

G. Love - "Front Porch Loungin' "
(if you don't know who G. Love is or what he's like check him out you're way overdue)

Jack Johnson feat. Ben Harper on guitar - "Flake"
(an awesome Jack song...altfolk)

Ornella Vanoni - "L'Appuntamento"
(found most commonly on Ocean's 12 Sountrack, unbelievably awesome song, musical ecstasy always cheers me up...I think it's about love it's in Italian)

G. Love & Special Sauce - "Numbers"
(another awesome G. Love song)

Bump.

Dibs.

I like Ben Harper, but I've not heard Jack Johnson. Heard mixed reports of him, too.
[b]Jack Johnson - Flake[/b] - 4:07

Starts off with some nice, light acoustic strumming - always a good start when I'm in the mood for Ben Harper - and what sound kinda like steel drums in the background. When the song starts up properly though, the presence of regular drums makes me think I either imagined the steel drums, or they were just an intro. Whatever it was, it was a good start to the song.

Actually, steel drums seem kind of like a metaphor for the song; light, airy, upbeat, etc. The guitar is awesome, both the steady strumming and the occasional, higher picthed twiddling. His (I'm assuming Jack's, though I don't know) voice is pretty good. Nothing technically amazing, but fitting the music well. Backing vocals are minimal, and half the time I get the idea I'm mistaking another layer of guitar for lyricless vocals.

3:20 or so, and this is the bit I was looking forward to; the vocals drop away, the song gains a bit more of a groove, and an awesome little instrumental section ensues. Very nice. Unexpectedly (in my limited experience, anyway) the vocals return before this is fully over, and the song carries on with this instrumentally-awesome, somewhat groovier idea through a variation on the chorus, and a fade-out.

8/10 Pretty good. Good guitar, decent vocals, pretty good song. And the bit from around 3:20 onwards was just great.

[b]Songs;[/b]
[url=http://s8.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=3RQFK8OO694053F6I1EKG9U8Z6]Nomeansno - The End of All Things[/url] (rock)
[url=http://s13.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=3GN3PZCBSK2JL3K1OHWBCUD6WT]Talking Heads - Slippery People[/url] (post-punk?)
[url=http://s10.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=36022016GLYZC0QX9TQCW3NDKA]Solomon Burke (w/the Blind Boys of Alabama) - None of Us Are Free[/url] (soul - a civil rights/protest song, in the vein of A Change is Gonna Come)
[url=http://s21.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=0HKIO9VI1INNU16DU1BCHUAGQN]Mr Bungle - Vanity Fair[/url]

I noticed that this thread started off with a lot of Cynic threads.
Well this guy isn’t Cynic but he is one cynical mofo.
Check the pic on his Yahoo group.
He looks like bad *** fat *** conservative real estate selling goon.

[url]http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Tor_Hershman/[/url]
He’s got full music files there too.

Now look at his pic on his music page.
He looks like bad *** fat *** freaked out hippie warrior.

[url]http://www.ic-musicmedia.com/TOR[/url]

Describe Tor’s music.
Some parodies that everyone will laugh at.
Other comedy that’ll drive small rodents and large religious fanatics away from your house.

His XXCS is totally experimental avant garde.
Part eight about hypnotizes you to sleep than part nine BLASTS you back to reality.
Parts two and three, Rhythm Hymn and Meadow Moon, are my favorites.
The first is freaked out drumming and the other an industrial swamp.

I don’t know if Tor is so bad that he’s good or so good he can be that bad and still be cool.

:eek: [COLOR=Indigo]You won’t believe it unless you are forced, by yourself, to listen.[/COLOR] :eek:

So..why'd you post that here?

dibs

Talking Heads - Slippery People

I think i got a live version.

It starts off with a shuffle drum beat and synth, the basic Talking Heads sort of thing. Vocals come in and then they harmonize with another set of vocals. More synth sound effects come in.

The chorus consists of the band singing a line, then the lead singer coming in alone between every line.

This pattern continues, until an oriental-sounding sound :p comes in and does some stuff, then the singer comes in and goes "bep, bep, bep, ba, ba, ba...." and then they go into the chorus. They do the chorus many times without intruments, and the song ends.

decent, 6/10. nothing special

requests:

Secret Chiefs 3 - Exterminating Angel
Sleepytime Gorilla Museum - FC: The Freedom Club (if your lazy, just do the first 5 minutes)
Secret Chiefs 3 - Welcome to the theatron animatronique
The Beach Boys - Caroline, No

mubp

Bump 2!

dibs.

[B]Secret Chiefs 3 - Exterminating Angel[/B] 3:10

Alright, I'm going to find this song interesting becuase I haven't remembered you rating a song that you ever liked. Besides I have no idea what to expect.

Starts on a really fast snare hits and weird synth sounds. The drums remind me of Napalm Death but it doesn't really sound like a metal song. Alright, this song is some sort of spacey avant garde thing with echoey screaming everywhere. I'm not sure what to think right now.

At 1:20 a heavy guitar plays a chunky power chord and things go quiet, yep this is likley to be a grindcore song from here on. I'm so right. The only thing I reconized the satanic singer say is "DARKNESSSS" creeeeeepppy.

After the ricdiculious grindcore stunt, the band return to the avant garde spacy vibe at 2:30. I'm enjoying the delayed guitar. A monk like choir joins in for a short bit but it doesn't last long as they go back into thrash mode. This would be so much better without the death metal vocals and more ambient parts. The grindcore parts can stay they make the mellow parts more dramatic

[B]Rating 6/10[/B] I feel the urge to check at lest two more songs though.

[B]Selections[/B]
Blur - Caramel (Experimental Alternative?)
[URL=http://s41.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=3AUB799OLPF75195CO692KJ6SK]The 5am Event - Hungry (Garage Rock)[/URL]
[URL=http://s41.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=1BABGDZ317SQ721TIY1WKN5IDW]Blur - Trailer Park (Trip Hop?)[/URL]
The Pretty Things - Defecting Grey (60's Pysch)

Two yousendits up.

Blur - Trailer Park

Good song, but I would have liked it better without the vocals. They weren't *bad*, and they do fit with the song to an acceptable point, but they didn't help the listening experience either, and I think I would have had a better time with the song if it were just the music. The music here knows how to take it easy; my only complaint about that is the discordant sampling that pops up in the second half - it's too far up in the mix.

7/10

Choices:
Takako Minekawa - Maxi On!
Kraftwerk - The Hall of Mirrors
Mike Patton, Ikue Mori, John Zorn - Skin Eruptions
Yellow Magic Orchestra - Rydeen

[QUOTE=Well_Respected_Man]

[B]Rating 6/10[/B] I feel the urge to check at lest two more songs though.
[/QUOTE]

ya man the album is meant to be like a story, listened to as a whole

dibs

[B]Kraftwerk - The hall of mirrors[/B]

I was going to do the patton song, but I'd probably give it a 10, so i stayed away.

The songs starts off with a noise a nintendo or a pinball machine would make. Id does it for a while. Then some echoey banging comes in from behind it. Some more electronic video game sounds come in, and im-a-likin' it. Another electonic noise that sounds like a nylon-stringed guitar somes in and then some brit starts talkin gin rhyme. oh great.

He sounds like Morrissey. I want to puke. Another verse comes in, and this pattern continues. That pinball noise keeps going on. Now the brit is talking about falling in love with himself. I just threw up in my mouth a little bit. The pinball noise gets a little louder and wierder. A few choruses continue.

The same pattern continues. How bland can you get as a songwriter? The nylon strings do a little solo. Now that i think about it, they dont sound like nylon strings at all...

He comes back talking again. I keep picturing some cheesy morrissey looking dude. :upset:

welp he does another verse / chorus set, then another chorus, and then it fades out.

no. the song was the same repetetive crap over and over. And it doesnt help that the singer reminded me of that Morrissey flamer

4/10, for that pinball sound.

[I]secret chiefs 3 - welcome to the theatron animatronique
Beach Boys - Caroline, no[/I]

[QUOTE=deejuks2]
They're both over 10 minutes. get used to it.

[/QUOTE]

No; you always suggest at least one under about six minutes. For 56Kers, if nothing else.

well i just did a near 8 ninute song so i figured i deserved something, but i changed them. (bump)

another bump

Sorry, I didn't mean you weren't allowed songs over six minutes, just that if you force a song or two over six minutes, you should also give a couple under.

Beach Boys - Caroline, No *One second, let me get in the mood and part my hair to the side, rar*

I really dig the intro, with the tambourine or moraccas or whichever instrument they have. This gets my really psyched for some experimentality!!!

And aha! This song reveals itself, yet another timeless bridge between blue-eyed, teen idol music and rock'n'roll that we know now! The lyrics start off telling of Caroline getting a hair cut... and she's a different person. I assume this is about her changing.

Rightfully so... the relationship seems to be at an end with the changing character of Caroline! There is a light jazz feel to the song I dig alright as well. Brian Wilson is singing some pretty high notes in this song that is enjoyable.

I also would like to point out something that sounds like a harpsichord, it's somewhat foreshadowing of the psychadelia era soon to unravel! Percussion echo, harpsichord, is this not the structure of the late 1960's psychadelia?! +1 for this influence Beach Boys.

That's about where this song ends for me, the sound of the Beach Boys is a little bit too dated for me. It's very nice to know of, and hear occasionally, somewhat like a museum! You love seeing ancient pictures, but if you have a very modern house, you wouldn't wanna bring home Civil War paintings.... just something nice to look at sometimes.

For sake of history, and my appreciation for their contributions I will rate this song 7.5/10! I like the lyrics, just a little hard to swallow.

I suggest one of the following in order of highest recommendation!

1) Traffic - Freedom Rider
2) Queens of the Stone Age - The Blood is Love
3) Velvet Underground - I'm Set Free
4) Velvet Underground - I'm Beginning To See the Light
5) Neurosis & Jarboe - Erase