Song Contest 156 (Results posted!)

[Vi]

Also, uh, never look up the original of that song because boy will you hate those vocals!

I've been told it sounds rancid.

I hope we can agree on tastes at some point

[PJ.]

lmao

[Raya36]

Switzerland - I was gonna call this a Linkin Park knock off, then I saw Chester in the pic. I guess it's an official knock off.

It's actually Chester's first band. I believe that particular song was from when he was 18. Before he died they were working on re-recording some of the more popular songs including this one. These are still his original vocals, just remastered.

[Drench]

temporary secretary unironically ruled

[Hiraki]

ay-oh

[tris]

temporary secretary unironically ruled

[Elbirn]

okay I was going to keep silent because no one deserves to have their song trashed but I must put my foot down here

temporary secretary is impressively awful. i wouldn't ask my worst enemies to listen to it let alone my ms dot net friends. stop it

[tris]

i enjoy it

[Raya36]

I mean it's not thaaaat bad. I gave it points

[SnowStorm]

Switzerland - I was gonna call this a Linkin Park knock off, then I saw Chester in the pic. I guess it's an official knock off.

It's actually Chester's first band. I believe that particular song was from when he was 18. Before he died they were working on re-recording some of the more popular songs including this one. These are still his original vocals, just remastered.

I wouldn't have guessed. It reminded me more of later Linkin Park, I was thinking side-project.

[Scigatt]

I didn't give it points, but it wasn't bad. IMO there was worse in this contest. In other contests I've given points to worse.

[Song Contest]

Reminder: Votes are due at midnight Pacific Time tonight!

[Song Contest]

Whoops, looks like I forgot to add the "N/A" option when I re-made the voting ballot.

If anybody who doesn't have an entry in this contest wants to vote, please choose a random country from the drop-down list and PM me to let me know.

[Davsto]

i am a staunch defender of paul mccartney's often-derided solo career

but temporary secretary is an absolute embarrassment of a song

[Davsto]

also wow is the christian pop song incredibly recognisably christian pop. i wasn't paying the slightest bit of attention to the lyrics but the vocal rhythm patterns and the melody of the chorus once it kicked in (i know you're able) just rang all sorts of christian bells in me and i checked the comments and yep

[Cyril]

temporary secretary is a good meme song because it's not a song intentionally designed to become a meme but it became one organically

[Hiraki]

i will admit that the top 9 that i have in this contest is probably the best top 9 i've seen in awhile

also the fact that you guys will rabble for 3 pages about temporary secretary but won't even mention lion of love once? that song is a joke but it SLAPS

[AGar]

I hope we can agree on tastes at some point

Eventually.

Maybe.

*shrug*

I appreciate the candid thoughts regardless.

[het]

Anguilla (Deltron 3030) - This album is a childhood favourite that I have been revisiting a

lot

in the past few months. Any track I could have chosen would have done a good job at capturing the concept of the entire album (probably even the skits, which I did briefly consider). Del's voice as always is like warm butter as he spits effortlessly over the Automator's ever-complex genre-defying instrumental.

It's so funny because the MC Paul Barman skit is one of the most memorable things on that album, which is not to discredit the album at all, which is packed with great tracks and production.

To respond to het again, honestly most of my exposure to music that humans listen to has been through these Contests. With that in mind, I appreciate reading others' comments so I can better understand the material presented and how people respond to it.

Yeah, no, I get it, I hope that wasn't too rude. The thing is, literally nobody involved in that track at any point thought it was cheesy at all. Also calling it a "sex song" seems offbase since while it does of course reference sex, the theme of the song is explicitly about these players looking to find a committed partner if not "settle down", and I think it's really interesting to hear all four MCs' different takes on that theme.

Spoiler: various thoughts largely written on first listen

Norway - Paul McCartney - I dislike this less than one might expect but it definitely has the feel of an established artist itching to use new technology and maybe seem Out in a way. ends up verging on novelty music. It's funny that a Paul McCartney track got submitted when I submitted a track that namedropped him.

Ireland - Jazz Party - It's okay? I'm kind of allergic to this sort of throwback jazz/soul. Like I don't care for Postmodern Jukebox and its ilk and that's kind of the vibe I get here, like the audience is supposed to be like faux nostalgic for an era they didn't live in. the drums are cool.

Uganda - Nihiloxica - cool atmospheric beginning. when the song kicks in, it's definitely cool. Ideally this would be a bit more active/faster. the pads that come in at 3:50ish round things out nicely. This reminds me a little of an artist I was considering submitting and probably will in the future. This is definitely my shit though.

Russia - Tori Amos - great, I love Tori's piano work and she's a talented lyricist

Masada - The Airborne Toxic Event - I actually enjoyed this, it's not normally my thing but it's fun, energetic, the lyrics are good

Hinamizawa - fhána - I'm always in for a high energy high production track, this isn't bad at all. A whole lot of fun.

Denmark - Snail's House - it's fun enough until 1:40. I don't feel like people using the "future bass" descriptor actually like or appreciate or even understand bass

Cyprus - Cloudier - Aspects of this are similar to music I like but it doesn't work for me? I really don't care for the little girl vocal tone, and the "drops" seem unnecessary and they're unpleasant. I could see a Carly Rae Jepsen or Little Boots interpretation of this being pretty fun

Colombia - Hoodie Allen - Every time I see this guy brought up I just don't understand why you would choose a rap name that's a pun on a child molester's name? Was Flowin Polanski taken? Like I get it, he probably picked it before #metoo or whatever but jesus christ just change your name, fuck. The verses are like, Standard Issue White Rapper, the hook is better.

Switzerland - Grey Daze - It's funny, I looked at the 2020 upload date and was like "wow someone's maklng music that sounds like it would fit in on 90s alt rock radio in 2020?" and no, that's just the upload date. Linkin Park was a little bit after my time but this is very true to form for the style that just predated them

Burkina Faso - Antti Paalanen - the accordion intro made me think this was going to be gypsy punk, the four on the floor beat changed that perception, but then nothing actually happened? The whole track felt like an intro

Canada - mouse on the keys - okay great start. this is really good. I realize I commented earlier about not being into jazz revival but this feels much more modern while still retaining some appreciation of earlier jazz improvisation. I think the drumming gives it a very dnb kind of vibe, even if it's obviously live and not sampled

Greece - Noname - I'm very into it, the MC is very talented, I think she has a good sense of her own voice and how it fits into the music, and the lyrics are smart, flow well, and work great

Anguilla - Deltron 3030 - not my favorite Deltron track but I'm here for it, classic album and Del's always a fun MC.

Poland - Younger Hunger - not bad, I enjoy the lyrics, the music is fine, the vocals are fine. Is "you ask me when" supposed to melodically evoke Gotye? There was a moment when I thought we'd get a guitar solo which actually would have improved it a lot with some effort but it was sort of a false start

Runeterra - WaqWaq Kingdom - okay promising beginnning, but transforms into something less so.

[Tatsuya Kaname]

Again I am seeing an hour delay for my rankings probably because I have a game opening with thw songs so...uhh, I'm trying.

[Tatsuya Kaname]

...uhh maybe two.

[tris]

voted 9 minutes late

[tris]

lot of good stuff

[Tatsuya Kaname]

This list go down by the exact order as post 1. The tier list coming below.

Spoiler: The 2-Hour Overdue List of Comments

Norway - While the vocal is fine and all, this song hurts my ears, yet somehow I think this is becoming an earworm. HELP! God I need to skip this.
Ireland - I forgot the name of a song style like this... Spanish? I like the chorus quite a bit. No, actually I can dance on this. The jazz is also nice.
Uganda - The intro is a bit too long so I skipped towards the middle and it still feels like an intro until the end. The comment was half joke. Actually, this is exactly what it looks like; a some kind of south african ritual(? can't find a word) music. Nothing wrong but nothing to write home about.
Flavortown - Kinda reminds me of singers with similar voice-type. Smooth and cool.
Central African Republic - Pretty nice. The vocal is pretty. The slow pacing of the song is fine.
Russia - There are some parts that sound a bit off for me. Not really into this song. Gotta say the instrument is fine, though. Oh okay, the bridge to last chorus is good. Overall the scream is what blocking me from giving it higher tier.
China -Oh this is good. I like the duet vocals. Pretty good acoustic song, gives that pretty country feeling. And she got some dope guitar skills. This is one for listening on the road.
USSR - Oh an actual Eurovision submission, okay (first time ever watching a Eurovision clip, actually). No doubt why this is a Eurovision submission. The song is pretty nice. Reminds me of a certain Shrek OST.
Gloomhaven - I don't know the Banana Splits. I reckon it's a kids show, but this song is like taking a kids show theme and add some tweaks to it that makes it fun to listen. This is pretty cool.
Masada - Starts off like an acoustic, then there's some rock added into it. I like the whole feel I get from the song.
Hinamizawa - Everyone can guess where this is going, right? LOL I dig the chorus, with that pitch change. The song feels very lively. Also I get rhythm game vibes more than anime vibes from this. I actually think I have to check out more about this group.
Denmark - Snail's House! I can never get tired of these type of music (is there a genre name for this). Good song!
Tuvalu - Pretty generic, but who's to say it's bad? Sounds pretty fine and emotional.
Belgium - The background music and rap combination threw me off a bit. Still a good rap, nothing to complain about.
Cyprus - Oh wow. I wasn't expecting this to be so good. I really get all happy beats from the song. And the drops are dope too. Awesome!
Columbia - Another hip hop song. Pretty fine, I guess.
Switzerland - I sometimes feel that this is pretty okay (pun intended). Rock song with good chorus. Nothing to complain.
Burkina Faso - Accordian based song with uh... vocals that I find a bit weird. Other than that it's an okay-ish song... yeah.
Armenia - The vocal is okay, the guitar is okay, the combination of the two is pretty nice, though. The bridge to the final part is cool.
Canada - Pretty sure I have heard this before. The drumbeats with piano are cool. Gives some mystery vibe which I like.
Tanzania - Zelda music! What's more to say? Zelda generally has some fine OSTs anyway.
Greece - Girl Rap? Okay? This lacks something, music wise, though. The rap is pretty fine.
Anguilla - 4 rap songs in a single contest is rare, IMO. I liked the first two more, TBH.
Poland - Quite an indie approach for this one. Pretty fine.
Australia - MY ENTRY! I chose this one simply because I like the chorus parts, you know, with the drumrolls, which feels emotional to me. And I personally like this unit the most out of the others from the same francise (that is not really popular compared to say Love Live or one I submitted earlier).
Runetella - If not by the video thumbnail I couldn't tell this is Japanese. Also the song sounds pretty weird.

Spoiler: Tierlist (Picture & TierMaker link)

Tiermaker Link

Another fun contest! Thanks for all the submissions!

[Tammy]

Sometimes I’m in a mood where I prefer music by women, or at least songs sung primarily by women. I’ve been in such a mood lately, and my scores reflect that. This was a good contest overall though, and I liked quite a lot of songs.

Vi - I even enjoyed your christpop. That caused a bit of a wistful “I wish bands like this were either around or allowed when I was young.” Growing up in a strict fundamentalist home meant music options were very limited.