The Challenge Thread

General music discussion.
eumaas
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Re: The Challenge Thread

Post by eumaas »

Heston wrote:
10 May 2018, 12:45pm
Sorry Gene and Maj, I'm going to have to do the challenge tomorrow instead of tonight.

Tomorrow will probably be better though, as I will be imbibing liquor and an exotic cigarette.
Too bad. It was shaping up to be the highlight of my day!
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Re: The Challenge Thread

Post by Kory »

JennyB wrote:
09 May 2018, 11:38am
HUGE influence on DM - I would say their influence changed the course of the band's direction. Solid choice, Gene.
And Nick Cave as well, obviously.
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Heston
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Re: The Challenge Thread

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Here I go with Einstürzende Neubauten...

Tanz Debil - This sounds like 3 songs playing at once with a Nazi guard shouting out angry orders over the top. No discernible tune to speak of, this is the opposite of music I like.

Kalte Sterne - This is blocked in my country. If the first song is anything to go by it should be blocked everywhere. I tried searching for alternate versions without any luck.

Armenia - This sounds like I'm actually in hell. It makes the end of "Life Is Wild" sound like The Carpenters.

Yu Gung - A bit more commercial but at one point it sounds like someone is vomiting milk. Yet again no real melody to speak of.

Z.N.S. - I can here some vague melody creeping in here but it's still nearly unlistenable. You can hear a bit of Depeche Mode influence in the rhythm track. Some sounds like they're shouting for cigarettes in German. Give him one please!

Seele Brent - What's this? Is this melody I hear? Oh wait, someone is just whispering for 15 seconds while nothing else happens. Now someone is starting to squeal and it feels like I'm at the bottom of a body-filled pit in the Gulag.

Haus der Lüge "Der Kuss" - This is sounding more like what I recognize as "music", yet it still sounds like Satan is ordering for 14 people in a restaurant whilst hitting a gong.

Salamandrina - Could only find a live version as the studio version was blocked. Sounds like a macabre sea shanty but I'm starting to hear normal song forms and structure.

Blume - This comp is getting slightly more commercial as it goes along. This could actually be their version of "Death Is a Star", it has a similar vibe. The woman's voice helps.

Interim Lovers - Right, we're in normal song territory. This kind of reminds me of New Model Army which isn't necessarily a great thing. I could imagine this sounding quite good if Matt Johnson/The The had performed it. The hook is still in my head as I'm playing the next song, this is the best one yet.

Stella Maris - This kind of just drifting over me. If I were German this might have more resonance, it feels like I need to understand the lyrics to appreciate the vibe.

Sabrina - Again, this kind of reminds me of The The at their most doomy. Some of these later songs are kind of okay but not zippy enough for my personal tastes, just kind of meandering.

Grundstuck - This just sounds like there's builders around at my house.

Nagorny Karabach - This sounds like 70's Pink Floyd in one of their more ponderous moments, not my bag at all. I keep expecting an alarm clock to go off and I jump up, spilling the joint board all over.

Weil Weil Weil - This sounds like "Da Da Da" by Trio was rewritten by an agitated goblin.

Blixa Bargeld is cooking risotto - This is the best song on the playlist, the relaxed rapping is chill. The percussion on the saucepan is a bit more focused than on previous songs.
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eumaas
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Re: The Challenge Thread

Post by eumaas »

Excellent.

They do have some more upbeat and melodic stuff too.

Too bad about Salamandrina. That’s my favorite song by them. I don’t know how live versions stack up.
I feel that there is a fascistic element, for example, in the Rolling Stones . . .
— Morton Feldman

I've studied the phenomenon of neo-provincialism in self-isolating online communities but this place takes the fucking cake.
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Heston
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Re: The Challenge Thread

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If anyone wants an entry level Stranglers challenge, here it is. Mostly singles but I would be interested to identify the reason the Stranglers never caught on in America.

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Heston
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Re: The Challenge Thread

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Maj, I will have to delay the Dubliners Challenge, I need to give it my full attention. I also plan on buying some whiskey to listen to it with. Hopefully one night next week.
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Re: The Challenge Thread

Post by Silent Majority »

Heston wrote:
11 May 2018, 4:45pm
Maj, I will have to delay the Dubliners Challenge, I need to give it my full attention. I also plan on buying some whiskey to listen to it with. Hopefully one night next week.
No worries, man, no rush.
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revbob
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Re: The Challenge Thread

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I want to thank muppet for choosing these songs for me. Im doing stars as well as a blurb this time.
"The Blue Mask - 5 stars, far and away my favorite. Loud and aggressive. I'd prefer more like this if it existed.

Kill Your Sons - 3 stars. Lyrics are kind of dark probably what I like most, the music works for me too.

There Is No Time - 3 stars. I liked this one, the lyrics are kind of fun and the music more upbeat.

Kicks - 2 stars. This song kind of meanders and never quite gets me anywhere.

Dirt - 2 stars, too laid back for me.

Warrior King - 3 stars, the music is a bit "rock song like" almost Springsteen like but it kind of works for me. Lyrics about snapping necks help.

Waves of Fear - 4 stars, yeah like this. Loud and the lyrics give me a reason to pay attention 2nd best song.

The Gun - 2 stars. Like a few of the others this song doesn't go anywhere.

Something Happened - 2 stars, just kind of a generic rock tune, was this big in anyway? I could see that being the case.

Like a Possum - 2 stars, starts off promising with the guitar intro, but that never changes this song is too long.

Overall I like it and should do a little more digging into his catalog. I like his guitar and his lyrics for the most part but I'd be a bigger fan if his music was less laid back and more aggressive, more urgent. His vocal style takes some getting used to as it is more talking than singing and executed seemingly without passion at times. Its the delivery that doesnt always work for me. Thanks again muppet.

On to the Stanglers and Dubliners

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Re: The Challenge Thread

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As for me, I'm becoming an obsessive Chumbawamba fan thanks to this thread.
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revbob
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Re: The Challenge Thread

Post by revbob »

Silent Majority wrote:
15 May 2018, 2:16am
As for me, I'm becoming an obsessive Chumbawamba fan thanks to this thread.
This makes sense.

Ive started my Dubliners challenge not much of a challenge for me but there's a few there that I don't know.

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Re: The Challenge Thread

Post by Kory »

Alright, here's my response to Marky's Stranglers challenge:

The Raven—This song would be better a bit faster. Not a lot, just needs a tad more energy which I think would fix some of its meandering qualities toward the end. I quite like the plinky guitar parts in the bridges and the keyboard fanfare at the end. Interesting sound overall.

In the Shadows—This descending guitar part is pretty cool. Vocals are a little bland for my liking, and the bass is humorously farty. I like the drums a lot. Seems to meander a bit at the end again. Wondering if this will be a theme for them.

The European Female—Digging this. Really tight articulation of the bass in the pre-choruses. The mood of the chorus reminds me of The Wake a little bit, which is quite appealing. I do find myself wishing the band would take some chances with song structure.

Bear Cage—I like the guitar tone, but I've never been a fan of arpeggiators on keyboards. They always just sounded cheap to me. It gets points for being lower in the mix and acting as atmosphere but it just reminds me of my grandma's old organ. This song needs a little extra something to make it interesting.

Tramp—This song has a bit of power, I find myself wishing the drums were a bit more forward in the mix to muscle it up a bit more. Really like the bassline. A little more melody in the vocals is welcome here. I'm no melody warrior but so far the band has been a little lackluster and the deadpan vocals don't help. I also like that this one's a bit shorter which curtails any temptation for them to meander.

Sometimes—Digging the gravel of the vocals on this one, good to hear some more energy to shake the cobwebs off some of the previous plodding songs. I think sometimes the key man chooses the wrong tones. The keys often seem like they should be in softer songs, and I think the band could really pack a punch if the keys were married to the trashier tone of the rest of the band a bit more. More meandering in the middle here. I don't think the key man is an interesting enough player to warrant the instrumental passages they seem to like to pad their songs with. Still, along with Tramp and European Female, one of my faces so far. A bit of a Doors vibe.

No Mercy—A little slick, but not without its charm. Lots of interesting little passages here and there, but I think it's a bit handcuffed by the drum tone. A bigger snare and kick sound could have pumped this one up a lot. Reminds me of Simple Minds circa Sons and Fascination in spots, which is a bonus for me.

Fools Rush Out—Really unified production on this one, I like it a lot after some of the other songs having seemingly incongruous instruments. They keys were good until their showcase in the middle when they pushed up front and revealed that they sound a bit like a toy. Nice length overall though.

Thrown Away—A really unified production on this one too, but in completely the opposite direction. All the instruments sound really cheap, which is appealing in its own way. I think some of my problem getting into them heavily so far is just that it seems like 3/5 of the band will be sounding like a band with some interloping instrument or vocal thrown over the top. A fault of production rather than the of the band itself, perhaps. I'd be interested in hearing some live recordings.

Cruel Garden—I'm a major sucker for hot club music and this hits that button for me. Would have been a good opportunity to swing a bit, but overall quite good. They show some really tasteful restraint with the keys which I appreciate.

Overall an interesting band that I'd really only heard one album of before. I'm intrigued to check out a live show and also a full album, but I will say that by and large, they seem to be missing some key element to make them something really special for me. I can't put my finger on it precisely (I'd have to hear it to know it), but it seems that it could be either production or more risk-taking in arrangements/structure. I like the prominence of the bass overall but those keys really stick out to me on a number of tracks as seeming incongruous. I'm going to continue to look into them, so thanks Marky, the challenge has inspired.
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Re: The Challenge Thread

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Hey that's great Kory. They are a band with many facets to them. I found your comment about "Thrown Away" very interesting as you say "unified production" and cheap sounding instrumentation was because they had all their equipment stolen the whole truck with all their gear was taken just prior to recording the album that contains "Thrown Away".
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Re: The Challenge Thread

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revbob wrote:
14 May 2018, 7:06pm
I want to thank muppet for choosing these songs for me. Im doing stars as well as a blurb this time.
"The Blue Mask - 5 stars, far and away my favorite. Loud and aggressive. I'd prefer more like this if it existed.

Kill Your Sons - 3 stars. Lyrics are kind of dark probably what I like most, the music works for me too.

There Is No Time - 3 stars. I liked this one, the lyrics are kind of fun and the music more upbeat.

Kicks - 2 stars. This song kind of meanders and never quite gets me anywhere.

Dirt - 2 stars, too laid back for me.

Warrior King - 3 stars, the music is a bit "rock song like" almost Springsteen like but it kind of works for me. Lyrics about snapping necks help.

Waves of Fear - 4 stars, yeah like this. Loud and the lyrics give me a reason to pay attention 2nd best song.

The Gun - 2 stars. Like a few of the others this song doesn't go anywhere.

Something Happened - 2 stars, just kind of a generic rock tune, was this big in anyway? I could see that being the case.

Like a Possum - 2 stars, starts off promising with the guitar intro, but that never changes this song is too long.

Overall I like it and should do a little more digging into his catalog. I like his guitar and his lyrics for the most part but I'd be a bigger fan if his music was less laid back and more aggressive, more urgent. His vocal style takes some getting used to as it is more talking than singing and executed seemingly without passion at times. Its the delivery that doesnt always work for me. Thanks again muppet.

On to the Stanglers and Dubliners
Good review, man. I can see where you're coming from in almost every blurb (though I don't necessarily agree ;) ), but you clearly listened. Not surprising that the two songs with the highest ratings feature the late, great Robert Quine on second guitar. And yeah - Lou has a lot of flavors, some very slow, sweet, laid-back, all kinds, so you may not get into a lot of his stuff. But you're a good sport for playing (and a good guy anyway). And sorry again for dropping the ball on your Sabbath challenge :disshame:
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Re: The Challenge Thread

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muppet hi fi wrote:
20 May 2018, 8:41pm
...
Good review, man. I can see where you're coming from in almost every blurb (though I don't necessarily agree ;) ), but you clearly listened. Not surprising that the two songs with the highest ratings feature the late, great Robert Quine on second guitar. And yeah - Lou has a lot of flavors, some very slow, sweet, laid-back, all kinds, so you may not get into a lot of his stuff. But you're a good sport for playing (and a good guy anyway). And sorry again for dropping the ball on your Sabbath challenge :disshame:
I was starting to think maybe you were annoyed with my review. And no worries on the Sabbath review, hopefully you found something in there that sparked some interest. Again if you want to point me towards any Lou material similar to the ones I pointed out that would be cool.

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Re: The Challenge Thread

Post by Kory »

Marky Dread wrote:
17 May 2018, 6:34am
Hey that's great Kory. They are a band with many facets to them. I found your comment about "Thrown Away" very interesting as you say "unified production" and cheap sounding instrumentation was because they had all their equipment stolen the whole truck with all their gear was taken just prior to recording the album that contains "Thrown Away".
I guess more bands should have that happen.
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