São Tomé and Príncipe (State of Mind) - Makes good use of its length despite not ever changing things up in any major way.
Mid points.
Greenland (Marika Hackman) - Good, calming vibes. The guitar and vocals compliment each other well.
Mid points.
China (Powerman 5000) - None of the instruments do anything particularly interesting outside of the brief interlude, and I don't care for the vocal delivery.
No points.
Korea (Clara Rockmore) - Very cool and impressive. The melody is nice and incredily well-executed.
Low points.
Nauru (The Scary Jokes) - Something about the vocals is very charming and genuine.
Low points.
Gibraltar (Will Ryan) - This is written as if based on an ordered list of rhyming words. Rhymes for the sake of rhymes. The piano is not used tastefully and I'm tired of this bassline. Backing vocals poorly mixed.
No points.
Ireland (Jockstrap) - I'm here for the vibe and the minimalist aesthetic, although I think some parts could be flowing better. That being said I do love the instrumental break right as the vocals come in at the start of each verse, and the repetitive sounds are used well.
High points.
Tatarstan (Vintersorg) - Excellent composition. The layered vocals sound fantastic.
High points.
United States (From Autumn To Ashes) - This has some catchy parts but I'm not a fan of either vocalist. The last section feels unnecessary.
No points.
Pallet Town (Zhou Shen) - Enchanting, impressive vocals, but the song doesn't do anything for me.
No points.
Gothika (Mono Inc.) - Goes in circles without arriving anywhere.
No points.
Flavortown (Cytotoxin) - Not very interesting beyond the intro.
No points.
Gabon (Abhi the Nomad) - Pretty good and low-key, and doesn't try to be anything it's not.
Low points.
Switzerland (Falling In Reverse) - Corny lyrics and vocals, and none of the instrumental transitions work.
No points.
Japan (RD-Sounds) - Never feels stale but lacks cohesion.
No points.
Hinamizawa (Danny Brown) - Danny proves over and over again that he can rap over any instrumental frequent collaborator Paul White throws at him, and this is notably one of their most mind-boggling examples. The subject matter here is a brutal reminder to Danny's fans to not ignore the serious warnings about the dangers of drug abuse he weaves into every party-fueled album, and to reflect on how Danny's cries for help are often overlooked by listeners for his comedic wordplay and outlandish metaphors.
High points.
Anguilla (Gorillaz) - With the album out, I might still have chosen this song. Most of my spins have gone to the new tracks (which are just as good for the most part as the episodic singles) since it dropped, but even still this one grows on me more and more. My favourites remain Désolé and Pac-Man, while this and Pink Phantom have grown on me a tonne since the album dropped, and I have a new appreciation for the apparent title track within its album context. My favourite new tracks are the one with St Vincent and the one with Peggy, and Dead Butterflies stands out to me as sounding nothing like anything Gorillaz has made since maaaybe The Fall.
meme (Rasmussen) - Backing vocals are cool, but the main melody is too simple.
No points.
Norway (Ocie Elliot) - Doesn't amount to much.
No points.
Poland (flumpool) - Good instrumental all throughout, and the vocals are clean.
Mid points.
Burkina Faso (One True Pairing) - Attention grabbing, and the stripped down synths compliment the echoey brooding vocals very well.
High points.
Bolivia (The Cramps) - I dig the vocals but I'm not really feeling this.
No points.
Greece (Escala) - Cool but could have benefitted a lot, I think, from more variation in its intensity.
No points.
Armenia (Iveta Mukuchyan) - Nice energy. I wish more pop songs with dancehall-influenced drums sounded like this.
Low points.
Sudan (Taking Back Sunday) - I wouldn't describe this as generic necessarily but I feel extremely neutral about it.
No points.
Bhutan (Burial) - Great use of empty space. This has a phenomenal atmosphere.
Mid points.
my personal favourites are desole and pacman but this one just makes me feeeeeeeeeel so much and I've been listening to it the most of all of them recently