ZombieToyDuck
Josh F.
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Last Active 12-17-18 3:10 pm
Joined 08-25-16

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 Lists
01.27.20 ZombieToyDuck's Belated 201901.07.19 24 Recs to Reach 1000 *FILLED*
12.26.18 Sleep Deprivation Saviors12.20.18 ZTD's 2018 Songs of the Year
12.18.18 ZombieToyDuck's 2018 AOTY list11.08.18 My Tentative AOTY List
10.23.18 2018 Bass Grooves10.08.18 Album Listening To Do List: Part 1
10.05.18 A Star is Born Analysis10.03.18 Just ZombieCasualConversations: October ♦
09.26.18 Convince Me to Cram 201808.06.18 A Guide to Junji Ito (Links Added) ♦
07.05.18 No Expletives! A Rec Competition...FINA06.20.18 Beers of the States
06.19.18 No Expletives! A Rec Competition Round 06.14.18 Future Classic Bands You Should Check
06.06.18 No Expletives! A Rec Competition Round 05.31.18 No Expletives! A Rec Competition Round
More »

POST-PUNK OFF, A COMPETITION ROUND 2

RULES: A sister-competition to the "Con VS Unique Emo Crown". Two competitors rec 30 albums, 1 at a time, to 3 judges. A new round of recs will be presented once all three judges have finished rating/listening to both albums. This will continue until a total of 30 albums will be presented, 15 from each competitor. Winner will be determined by the highest AVG but tie breaker will be whoever had the best rec and each judge gets 1 vote for that.------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------NEW RULE: Competitors who fail to submit their recs within 1 day after each list's creation will have .5 deducted from their score for EACH day late ____JUDGES: Conmaniac, DeadlyNightShade, neekafat_____ COMPETITORS: UniqueUniverse, Tyler.,teamster_______ EMO COMPETITION: http://www.sputnikmusic.com/list.php?mode=1&listid=176039#comments
1Red Lorry Yellow Lorry
Talk About the Weather

UniqueUniverse's rec
CURRENT COMPETITION SCORE: 22.9
2Red Lorry Yellow Lorry
Talk About the Weather

Con: A menacingly hypnotic album, Talk About the Weather trudges by you in a storm of anxious ramblings. While the vocalist is angstily mumbling about mundane conversations with a sense of life and fervor, the rest of the band plays simple yet rambunctious post punk music, gothic in nature yet jittering and distressed in tone. While the album is very coherent, it seemed to lack a breakout track or two that would’ve put this album over the metaphorical edge. 3.8/5
3Red Lorry Yellow Lorry
Talk About the Weather

Neeka: Brash and hard-hitting, Talk About the Weather moves along with purposeful repetition and a seriously dark edge. At first it’s all gloriously appealing, but it isn’t long before the surprisingly short album feels somehow tiring due to this redundant nature. That is of course until the final two tracks come out of nowhere and throttles you around for even thinking such a thing. 3.7/5

Track Ratings: Talk About the Weather: 8 -, Hand on Heart: 8 +, Feel a Piece: 7.5 -, Hollow Eyes: 7.5 +, This Today: 7 +, Sometimes: 7 +, Strange Dreams: 8.5 +, Happy: 8 +
4Red Lorry Yellow Lorry
Talk About the Weather

Deadly: Gripping and edgy, Unique truly put out a rec here which I embrace near and dear to some of my favorite albums I’ve heard. Talk About the Weather embraces the tone of punk music while obviously staying true to a typical post-punk album sound. As you listen to this album, it’s hard not to picture the lead vocalist muttering lyrics with a grimacing expression. The album features some of the most bitter and angsty british vocals I have heard. The punchy and gritty basslines further push you into a feeling of vexation. The atmosphere is intoxicating in a way that it never loses it’s grip. If anything, the grip is at its tightest on closer “Happy” which is an irony in and of itself as it is genuinely menacing. It’s clear to me why someone would consider it a classic especially given its time of release. 5/5
5Elvis Costello
This Year's Model

Tyler.'s rec
CURRENT COMPETITION SCORE: 24.2
6Elvis Costello
This Year's Model

Con: Holy shit Elvis Costello was so cool. I mean, just look at that album cover…
Man-crushing aside, I really enjoyed this record because it’s just so fucking fun. Pump It Up is a classic song that I’ve been jamming for awhile now, but a lot of the tracks on here blew that one out of the water. Elvis is able to incorporate a lot of different genres into this pop gem, (he even gets psychedelic with the intro to Hand on Heart) and ultimately he paves the way for a lot of the modern “pop punk” we hear today (I commented on this doc earlier that this is what Jeff Rosenstock would’ve sounded like if he was born in 1950 haha). Overall really fun rec, even though it’s only slightly post punk. 4.1/5
7Elvis Costello
This Year's Model

Neeka: While some of the songs are simply too short to get into, Costello is adept at switching genres like a snap of the fingers. His vocals are great too, adding his own personality to each of the styles he wades through, adding to the easygoing and upbeat nature of the album. That being said, it does often drift into cheesy or even annoying territory, what with the female backing vocals and sugary sweet keyboard riffs. More often than not however, This Year’s Model proves to be an enjoyable slice of pop music. 3.5/5

Track Listing: No Action: 7 -, This Year’s Girl: 6 +, The Beat: 7.5 +, Pump it Up: 7.5 -, Little Triggers: 7.5 +, You Belong to Me: 7 +, Hand in Hand: 7.5 +, (I Don’t Want to Go) Chelsea: 8 -, Lip Service: 6.5 -, Living in Paradise: 6.5 -, Lipstick Vogue: 8 -, Night Rally: 7.5 +, Radio, Radio: 7 -
8Elvis Costello
This Year's Model

Deadly: Listening to This Year’s Model, you can’t help but love the infectious nature of so many of the tracks on this album. Elvis Costello brings in so much to love, from vocals loaded with personality, entertaining instrumentation and just flat out catchy music. I would be amazed if someone didn’t find something to enjoy here. You would be lying if you said there wasn’t at least one song that you aren’t humming along with or tapping your feet to. Elvis is the epitome of charismatic vocal delivery with his tremulous vocals that stand out like a sore thumb in the best way possible. Song structures typically feature bumping bass beats and quick drum patterns which carry songs in an upbeat and funky manner. Truthfully, I found it hard to find many flaws in this, but I would say there are a few grating parts, primarily the end of “Hand in Hand.” Overall, I really enjoyed this rec. 4.5/5
9Vaura
The Missing

teamster's rec
CURRENT COMPETITION SCORE: 22.1
10Vaura
The Missing

Con: This one was closer, Teamster, as The Missing was able to flash moments of brilliance within it’s sludgy, metal-inspired atmosphere. Whether it was the vocal melody in Incomplete Burning, the bass in Pleasure Blind, or the raw, visceral yelled vox on Braced for Collapse, Vaura is able to prove their worth. However, the repetitive and sometimes offensively annoying drumming takes this down a notch and hinders the band from truly coming into their own on this album. I dig these shoegazey, post-punk recs but I’ve yet to be blown away by this niche of a subgenre. 3.7/5
11Vaura
The Missing

Neeka: I'm even more confused on the definition of post-punk now, as this is clearly more metal influenced than anything. That being said, there’s some excellent musicianship going on here. Despite the heaviness of the music and atmospherics, the band does an excellent job of delivering sweet melodies with some incredible guitar work and vocal delivery. Like teamster’s previous rec this album is incredibly consistent, but this one proves to be more memorable than After the Day Before. While it may also cram some perhaps-too-similar songs together in some spaces, they are quickly broken up by tracks such as the genre-blending powerhouse closers “Abeyance” and “Putting Flesh to the Bone.” 4.1/5

Track Rankings: The Missing: 8 +, Incomplete Burning: 8.5 -, The Fire: 8 -, Mare of the Snake: 8 -, Pleasure Blind: 8 +, Passage to Vice: 7.5 +, The Things That We All Hide: 8.5 -, Braced for Collapse: 8.5 -, Abeyance: 8.5 +, Putting Flesh to Bone: 9 -
12Vaura
The Missing

Deadly: Have you ever had an itch and can’t quite scratch it? If so, you can probably understand where I’m coming from with my opinion of ‘The Missing’. Vaura showcase potential for brilliance on this album as much of the instrumentation is impressive. You may ask next, what keeps this from excelling in every way? The answer to this is simple, dull and lifeless drums. There are many opportunites for this record to astonish but always seem to be watered down by overly repetitive and simple drum work. A prime example of flawed and repetitive usage of drum technique can be heard in both the opening drum lines on tracks “The Fire” and “Pleasure Blind”, which if you played both introsin unison, there would be virtually no difference. Often times, it leads you to wonder, how much better would this be with a more creative drummer?
13Vaura
The Missing

Vaura seem to be stuck in a hard rock style of drumming when it’s clear these songs would be more properly suited to a heavier, metal approach due to their black metal tendencies. In an attempt to look past this “itch” I would be hard-pressed to avoid seeing the pros in this album. The atmospheres are often times quite successful and it seems, in general, that all members of the band have their showcasing moments. The guitar opening riffage in “Incomplete Burning” are some of the most entertaining on the album, the basslines that fill the empty spaces in “Pleasure Blind” and the exploding vocals that breakthrough the somber atmosphere on “Braced for Collapse”. All in all, this was an enjoyable listen that although MISSES its mark, shows a promising future for the band. 3.5/5
(sorry not sorry for the pun or the verbose write up)
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