September Contest: Gossip

[Scoops]

Oddbod does Punk. Knockman does grunge, Offthewall does reggae. EV does New Age

Will you be assigning styles then?

No,

These were just possibilities I was throwing out there.
What you suggest could possibly be something I'm working on for a future contest.

-S

[knockman]

Posting 10 now. More will follow, but I have to take the kids out.

Disclaimer
These might be reviews (I'm not sure). I always like everything and appreciate the creative process above all. I can't offer helpful technical pointers so here are some loose associations that your tracks conjured up. I promise to 'review' them all. If anyone prefers I didn't touch their track, let me know :

rifftrax: Beginning of the End - like early morning sun after a rain shower. light twinkling through raindrops suspended on every branch. clouds dispersing. wet grass and rinsed air. colloidal motion everywhere. a waking up drama to accompany a fresh cup of coffee. (mind you the picture you posted suggests a rather more urgent alarm call. )

mrblitz000: Babushka Baby - the satanic jambouree the authorities tried to stamp out but couldn't. broadcast to you on wavelengths of imaginary numbers. there's a crystal set in my brain! tune in, turn left, veer off.

beanpole: What Time Is Love? - an everyman song! the video: bloke sitting on a bus, geezer pushing a trolley round the supermarket, farmer throwing hay bales onto a trailer, woman feeding ducks in the park, copper plodding the beat - all isolated but united by a common vein of humanity. great sing-a-long - i was from before the first chorus.

farlukar: Islington - Dave runs a fruit and veg stall in Chapel Market (Islington, N1). One day he sees a thief steal some tomatoes. A strong instinct kicks in and Dave gives chase. He is surprised at his own speed and agility as the pursuit intensifies. Suddenly there are flashes - suppressed memories long banished to the subconcious are flooding back - covert operations, infiltrations, assumed identities, foreign secret services. Is it all imagined or was Dave an agent? And who exactly is the tattoed owner of the kitchenware stall? He calls himself John, but why the Eastern European accent? Starring Jason Statham.

offthewall: My Lodging's On the Cold Ground - feeling trapped by the vacuuusness of their existence, a concerned group of hedge fund managers determine to find more meaning in their lives. Eventually they hit upon the idea of redefining what it means to be a hedge fund manager. From now on, they declare, a hedge fund manager shall be anyone providing financial services in the support of the preservation and conservation of rural England! Hip, hip, Hurray!

jenderton: Dragon Fodder - evokes traveling home from work on the subway when you've got the flu. doors open and the air changes. strange sounds being variously piped down tunnels or crackling over tannoys. Are there some gamelan buskers down that way? Seems that guy with the bagpipes has the pitch by the ticket gates again.

folderol: No More Time For Toys - It's the early 80's and Brian, the continuity announcer on BBC2 daytime television is preparing for another day at Broadcasting House. Brian likes his job, he has a particular affection for the schools' programming and countdown for which he adopts an affable, avuncular voice highly regarded in the trade. As he enters studio five, he finds a technician unwiring the old mechanical clock and globe. It seems changes are afoot. Brian's familiar world is slipping....

Echo Voodoo: In the lonely hills - Sergio Leone's The Wicker Man. Sheriff Neil Howie (Eli Wallach) arrives in the remote Mexican village of Summerisle to investigate the disappearance of a young girl. Here he finds the whole population participates in a Mayan neopaganism cult headed by the charismatic Lord Summerisle (Lee Van Cleef). It transpires the villagers have endured a succession of failed harvests and with all hope dwindling now turn to ancient fertility rites in order to appease the forces of nature. As things get more desperate, they decide only one option remains - to sacrifice the Sheriff. As they prepare to do so the arrival of the enigmatic Man from Del Monte (Clint Eastwood) stops them. When the Man from Del Monte says "Yes", the villagers realize the harvest has not failed and the Sheriff is released amid much celebration. Soundtrack by Ennio Morricone.

liqih: Dancing The Dreams - mysterious goods; scrolls, spices, textiles and other artifacts arriving from all quarters. processions of camels, elephants and miscellaneous ungulates converging on a civilisation. glimpses of feasting and festival.

Barnadine: The End of the World - an atmospere like one of the characters set aloft in a Marc Chagall painting - fleeting over people, houses and events on some enigmatic dream mission.

regards

[AlienXXX]

LOL LOL LOL

I don't know if the rules allow for extra points for the most original reviews.
Reading yours... I think they should!

[folderol]

LOL LOL LOL

I don't know if the rules allow for extra points for the most original reviews.
Reading yours... I think they should!

Well, seeing as you're going to be one if the voters...

[AlienXXX]

And here we have reviews 12 to 17... (again, by order of submission)

12
JacK_SoliuM
"Au bon vieux temps (valse musette)"
No details given about toy instruments

My review
Although no details are given, the toy piano is obvious in the composition. It integrates perfectly with the flow of the track. This is perhaps one of the best examples of the integration of the toy instrument: the transition is seamless when the toy instrument comes into play, and yet it has its own separate part.
------------------------------------------------

13
nikp2000
Cookie Cutter
used a sampled toy piano.

My Review
This is a composition that blends many different instruments and styles.
The track is prety original and varied for a 2min piece and keeps the listener guessing where it will go next.
Having said that, I don't like some of the sounds and instruments used in some parts, for example the buzzing sound at the start which turns in to a feedback tone which lasts about 10s.
--------------------------------------------------

14
t_riddy
No Escapin'
toy xylophone (vst) and a sampled kazoo

My review
I can hear the toy piano, but I had to listen hard to identify the kazoo. It just blends so well! For some reason, I enjoyed this track much more when I listened to it on headphones.
A very good job on this submission.
----------------------------------------------------

15
oddbod
"Sequence of Events"
Toys used - Stylophone & Toy Piano

My review
Reading the discussions in the gossip forum, only the toy piano is acceptable as a toy instrument. That is fine since the rules state "at least one child instrument".
This is a very jazzy track. Really like the lyrics.
Everything in this track works very well. Great snare sound, by the way!
---------------------------------------------------

16
Max el Belga
Get Down
-no mention of the toy instruments used

My Review
Very good quality vocals on this track. In fact, so good they outshine pretty much everything else on the track. I had to try to concentrate to focus away from the vocals and listen to the music behind them as well which, of course, is flawless.
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17
Laguna Rising
Dark Waves On A Deep Blue Sea
toy xylophone

My review
Interesting distorted sound on the guitar. Strange mellody and arrangements.
At times sounds jumbled up and confusing. As the author himself pointed out "Out of focus here and there", but some parts and some of the guitar riffs are really excellent.
I think this track has not reached its full potential yet. Some touching up on the arranjement of parts and mixing could help declutter some sections and bring the required focus.
---------------------------------------------------

That is it for now.
I need to give my ears some rest, and most of all, I need to do some house chores.
Still committed to review all the tracks... Not many left...

[folderol]

Hmmm, still 4 people wearing booties
Come on guys, shift yer arris

[oddbod]

Xylophone - No

Next!

Stylophone?

No

Due to AlienXXX's review comment, I only just noticed this "ruling" from Das Boot-meister and I must admit I'm quite flabbergasted.

The Stylophone not a toy instrument? Shurely shome mishtake?!! I wish to lodge an official complaint sir!

Fortunately I also included toy piano in me entry so it makes no odds..... but I'm still shocked ( look -> ) by this statement.

[offthewall]

In support of young Oddbod ....
being a self-confessed 'old geyser' who was around at the time of it's inception, the Stylophone was produced and marketed as a 'children's instrument'. It has only been in recent years that it has reached 'cult status', probably because of the college circuit promotion of Mr R. Harris, bringing it more endearingly back into the public eye.
In truth, if you were there in it's heyday of popularity you would not be able to argue over it's seriousness

Definitely 'child'


James

[Patrick9]

Reviews ( or rather impressions) part 1

Mr Blitz - wild Beefheartish track. The toy piano seems arbitrary but a good song anyway.
Beanpole - Love the song, the melody and arrangement work well and the vocal fits perfectly. I'm not sure that the recorder is a toy instrument but it fits well in the song.
Farluker - I like the build up on this track . Lots of atmosphere and nice use of the child instrument.
Offthewall - A very nice and beautifully recorded arrangement. The harmonies work well and the playing is confident and fluent.
Jenderton - Atmospheric soundscape with talking toy. Works well but seems to end too abruptly.
Folderol - I like everything about this except the guitar tone which seems to be at odds with the other instruments.
Echo Voodoo - A trek in the high Andes. A well played and coherent tune. - this works nicely. (I tried an ocarina once and found the fingering too weird)
Liqih - The percussion is great and creates a nice ethnic feel. Towards the end, I felt that the synth was sort of out of place.
Barnadine - A gem. Nuff said.
Mvrasselli - Not bad for free! Fun tune and variations. Nice playful , childlike atmosphere
JackSolium. - Great playing though the child instrument seems somewhat incidental.
nikp2000 - I like this, the second half especially - the drums are also well done.
triddy - Excellent song, fully realised and produced.
Alienxxx - Good song and use of the kitr - maybe a different mix would bring all the elements out and let the whole thing gell .
ChuckEJesus - Fun in the playroom. Love the bass and the harmonica and I bet the little Demons always win.
Shrikant - Perfect use of the toy piano as an integral part of the composition. Excellent.

More to come...

[Scoops]

Xylophone - No

Next!

Stylophone?

No

Due to AlienXXX's review comment, I only just noticed this "ruling" from Das Boot-meister and I must admit I'm quite flabbergasted.

The Stylophone not a toy instrument? Shurely shome mishtake?!! I wish to lodge an official complaint sir!

Fortunately I also included toy piano in me entry so it makes no odds..... but I'm still shocked ( look -> ) by this statement.

Opps...

Overwhelmed by shock are we?
Perhaps I should turn back the clock.
I'll show you some shock ( )

As I am human, and not capable of making 100% true and accurate decisions/answers 100% of the time, I default to my existence as said human as a means of quelling your flabbergastedness.

-Scps

[knockman]

Planned to do another 10 tonight but the kids won't go to bed, so here's 4 more (completing the first page). Again mostly exercises in visual association:

mvrasseli: Balada do Alfredo - Alfredo drives the delivery van for his uncle's bakery serving a rural community. Though he has done this for almost twenty years, during which time very little has changed in the locality, he still gets lost, frequently taking wrong turns or getting waylaid by such events as puddles after the rain. On this particular day a small child has been chased up a tree by a goose. The waiting customers forgotten, Alfredo has pulled his van over and is now attempting to drive the goose back to its farmyard.

JacK_SoliuM: Au bon vieux temps (valse musette) - a large beetle has stumbled into a hollow and is now rummaging among the fallen beech leaves, heady and intoxicated. What he doesn't know is a council of woodlice gathers here at the new moon and his rummaging about is displacing intricately set markers and ornamentations. There will surely be repercussions.

nikp2000: cookie cutter - Conjures the image of a mysterious domestic appliance running through its cycle - shaking, tumbling, turning and spinning. complex, vibrant and fascinating.

t_riddy: No Escapin' - Since you state what the song's theme is in the submissions thread, my mind is somehow 'pre-tuned' so no wild flights of fancy here. But that said, the song's mood and 'opening out' structure makes me imagine some film to accompany it - jittery, grainy footage of a game of pass the parcel - played backwards.

Cheers

[Echo Voodoo]

The obligatory reviews:

1009_rifftrax_BeginningoftheEnd.mp3 - Nice build-up. Lovely atmosphere. Enjoying the flow and movement. I'm finding some of the pads a bit too glassy for my tastes. Nice piece overall.

1009_mrblitz000_Babushka-Baby.mp3 - Your vocals are always my favourite part of your songs. This one is the usual barely-controlled chaos. The toy piano bits break the flow in a jarring way; doesn't really fit with your style.

1009_beanpole_What_Time_Is_Love.mp3 - Steady, clean pop. Not much to say, 'cause you've got this stuff down solid. Good stuff.

1009-Farlukar_-_Islington.mp3 - The strangled cry caught me off guard. Nice switch-up. I like the pitched percussion thing with the guitars. Cool stuff.

1009_offthewall_Lodgings.mp3 - The title refers to cold ground, but it makes me feel like Christmas around a roaring fire, the warmth of the flames extending to friends and family. Lovely tune, well-performed.

1009_jenderton_dragonfodder.mp3 - Some lovely sounds floating through. The speak-and-spell-ish sample feels a bit weird, takes me out of the mood (probably because I was thinking fantasy-dragon-world based on the title, whereas speak-and-spell-ish sound would fit better with dystopian-future-world, which is okay, but I was misled by the title).

1009_Foldererol_No_More_Time_For_Toys.mp3 - Like the rhythm a lot, nice clockwork feel to it. Distorted lead feels a little out of place, everything else fits in nicely. Nice work.

10_09_Liqih_Dancing_The_Dreams.mp3 - Very wobbly, flow-y sound, feels like I'm floating in the water. Could be a soundtrack for a Disney movie with animated fish, when they show you the breadth and beauty of the undersea world. Some lovely sounds, though the floating feel does make me a little sea sick.

1009_Barnadine_EndOfWorld.mp3 - When the apocolypse comes, please do the soundtrack. I think it'll help keep me calm enough to accept my doom. Just lovely.

1009_mvrasseli_balada_do_alfredo.mp3 - Gentle, pleasant piece. The sounds of children playing felt a little distracting, doesn't really fit with the flow of the piece at all.

1009_JackSolium_-_Au_Bon_Vieux_Temps.mp3 - The accordion never sounds so sinister as when it is in one of your pieces. Nice dark tune, perfect accompaniment for an evil carnival.

1009-nikp2000-cookie_cutter.mp3 - Interesting mix of sounds; that sinus-y lead sound in particular surprised me. They work for me. Nice work.

1009_triddy_no escapin.mp3 - Nice vocals. I like the instrumentation, flow, and energy. Nice production. Good stuff, kept me hooked all the way through.

1009-oddbod-sequenceofevents.mp3 - Nice beat. Nice to hear your vocals going to the lower end of your range. Lovely sounds. Excellent.

1009-MaxelB-GetDown.mp3 - Digging the reggae-ish rhythm and style. As always, rich and dense with lovely sound and production.

1009_LagunaRising_DarkWavesOnADeepBlueSea.mp3 - Interesting percussion. Like the sound effects, the waves blend nicely with the semi-chaotic click-and-clank instruments, nicely evocative. I can almost feel the wind building and the rain coming. Nice work.

2010-09_emeraldtablet_toy.mp3 - Dang, that ringing sound had me checking for my phone. I have the urge to go toy shopping now (I want a ray gun).

1009-knockman-i_saw_an_owl.mp3 - Really like the guitar with that wobbling bass. Nice trippy feel. Love that synth sound for the solo. Cool tune, nicely done.

1009_Jerru_Bad_Cat_Boogie.mp3 - My cat's too busy napping to swing like this. As usual, some great licks. Good job with the toy piano; works really well. And there isn't enough boogie in this world.

1009_thomekk+mona_throughthescrub.mp3 - Nice rhythm, interesting sounds. Lovely vocals. Enjoying the offbeat feel of this; nicely mischevious and fun.

1009_spirulence_playtimeOver.mp3 - Digging the feel, some lovely sounds. I guess we have to level up to hear more?

1009_milkshake_thespinningoftheearth.mp3 - I know you've heard it, but the vocal really needs to be louder. I like the rhythm of the vocal and the minimal arrangement; it's appealing for reasons I can't quite articulate.

1009_shrikant_ Prison Diary.mp3 - Some nice sounds. I'm liking the flow here - it's got a mystery-suspense soundtrack feel. Nice work.

1009_Patrick9_ToyBoy.mp3 - Whoa! Loud is right. The resulting distortion is a bit hard on the ears for me, unfortunately, and it overwhelms everything else. Sorry.

1009_ChuckEJesus_ROCKPAPERSCISSORS.mp3 - Nice percussion sounds. The background vocals are great. Nice work.

1009_AlienXXX_Not Kids Play (version7).mp3 - Kitr sounds pretty good here, like the way that turned out. Guitar's maybe a bit too far back for me. Nice.

[knockman]

apologies as my 'reviews' are getting even less coherent

here are 4 more. can't say what tomorrow will bring:

oddbod: Sequence of Events - slinky fluids sliding down sluices turning a giant water wheel. zooms out to reveal a multitude of interconnected systems.

Max el Belga: Get Down - A mellower side to Max, but I'm still getting an image of "The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test" that an el Belga track delivers - only here a can of Lilt is substitued for the Kool-Aid.

Laguna Rising: Dark Waves On A Deep Blue Sea - an ancient cactus, centuries old, is boasting of his water retention prowess. some of the younger cactii are notably impressed, though a few, tiring of his self-aggrandisement, have begun making snide remarks. Oblivious, the ancient one carries on.

Emerald Tablet: Toy - Alan left school at 15 going straight into an apprenticeship. After a brief spell in the RAF, he returned to the world of lathes, milling machines and drill presses spending the next few years in the employ of BSA. He started his own buiness in 1954 operating out of a cramped workshop he'd rented under some dank railway arches close to London Bridge. With post war prosperity came an increased demand for precision parts. Alan's business grew. By the mid-60's, as the rest of London was swinging, Alan was winning lucrative defence contracts.

thanks for bearing with me

[Barnadine]

Quick half-arsed notes on the final beverages:

laguna rising - love the sea-shanty-flavoured opening. main lead sprawls quite a bit - dominates the piece and doesn't leave enough space for the other elements. detailed journey. swimming in champagne with your clothes on.

emerald tablet - 'remco', eh? makes sense. loud chime hurts a bit. becomes more interesting once the voice stops, and at its best when fading beautifully away at the end, feels like it's opening into something else. cup of coffee while staring out onto the street.

knockman - great singing and lyrics (though sadly no nose-pixies, as i first thought). beautifully full production with tasteful use of child labour. a bottle labelled 'drink me' and a puff on the caterpillar's hookah.

jerru - love the stilted rhythms of the toy piano. guitar break less distinctive, but its groove contrasts nicely with the stumbling piano. scotch and coke.

thomekk & mona - excellent sparse mood, well sung, lovely sound touches: the muted mellotron thing, the claps, the insect strings. dew on a venus fly trap.

spirulence - good sounds, satisfying contrast between the kid stuff and chunky stuff. too short to leave a strong impression, but a solid intro. tiny bottle of rum nicked from a minibar.

milkshake - great cyclical lyric. apart from vanilla snare, perfect match between form and content. excellent stuff. lying drunk and disconnected on the floor after a long night.

shrikant - soothing. your production is a step forward here, elements in harmony rather than competing. either your stuff is getting more structured, or you've trained us to identify your train of thought. meditative cup of tea.

patrick9 - yikes! through the bloody holes where my ears used to be, i can make out some nice synth and drum work, and a great blend of sounds, but to be honest the distorting over-compression makes this almost impossible for me to listen to. red wine and broken glass.

chuck e. jesus - casio muppetpunk. love the smug kid choir and harmonica rock-out. maybe a bit long, but very likeable. 'lemonade stall: 10c or else'.

alienxxx - satisfying contrast between the sparse and the chunky. the fake guitars are a little anaemic, though (esp. @ 1:12 etc.); could do with more oomph. the koto figure underpinning the piece is nicely judged. more variation and sonic meat mightn't hurt. first beer in a new pub.

Good month, all.

[Barnadine]

Some great reviews this month. Cheers, folks.

The only thing I would like to know is if the lyrics where pre-existing or if they were also developed specifically for this contest.

Yeah, written for the contest. For me, lyrics nearly always come after (or, when I'm lucky, at the same time as) the music. The only pre-existing bit was the line 'when did you know?' which had been kicking around in my head from a songfight a few weeks ago, and which I used as a bit of a crowbar to help myself into the chorus.

Remco: here you go, though they don't bear much scrutiny.