Rate the Song Above You

Okay, so the idea for this topic is simple (and also a blatant ripoff, but whatever).

Numerically rate the song posted above you, and give a brief reason for your rating. Then put a song (i.e. its name, you can't append an actual song) at the end of your post, and the next person will rate that one.


If the song you post is particularly obscure, it's recommended you suggest where to look for it. Also, no reposting a song you've posted before unless it's been 5 months or more since you last posted it.


So off we go. I'll start: "Sticky Thread" by Local Natives.

(Yes, that is a song. If you don't get the double meaning I suggest thinking about how it relates to a forum. )






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31.5/10, I guess. Not too distinctive. Routinely upbeat, deftly generic, if I'm going to be polite.

"How We Operate" by Gomez.

EDIT: I'm done being charitable to songs like that, so I'm slashing my original rating by half. It doesn't deserve a 3 really.



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5/10. The electronic instrument (great description, right?) and drums were incongruous, and the style/tone of the voice was not something I particularly appreciate. Normally I wouldn't make a point out of this, and maybe I'm biased, but I can't take this song as seriously as it seems to want to be taken. It almost kind of wants to be a soundtrack, and it might've made it there had it not been for that voice and the slight tinniness of the guitar(?). Nice enough in some ways, I guess, but probably not something I'd go back to.

[/walloftext]


"Hard Road" by the Shore.



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5/10. The vocals kind of need to be drawn out more - with the distortedness/screamed-ness, they sound way clipped, but the drums in the beginning are pretty great. I can't totally get into this song, and I'm not sure why - I feel like it needs some element of richness to balance the vocals. It's almost too simple in composition, though I know those guitars aren't the simplest thing out there (and I appreciate them).


Here's a semi-related segue from those distorted-sounding vocals: "We're Not Gonna Crack" by Longwave. (Link.)



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Stargazer wrote:

[...] novel at first, but got annoying[...]

I know that feel.

Anyway...

7/10. I like Dire Straits, but every quieter instrument (including voice) is drowned out by the lead guitar when it appears, and the random guitar bursts over top of the beginning singing are unhelpful. It's an oddly tranquil song despite the above, and it reminds me of something or another, but I wouldn't say it's one of their better songs. Also, a bit overlong.


"A&E" by Morning Parade.



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3.5/10. I can appreciate the piano despite its simpleness, and the guitar where it appears, but not particularly the incredibly synthesized-sounding long vocal intro. The entire piece feels like a scattershot of songs (or even genres) that they decided to crumple together and release. It's obviously worked very well for them - this song is incredibly popular - but it doesn't work very well for me. Parts are okay, but as a whole... nah.


"Skeleton" by Bloc Party.



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^ No kidding, not one of their better songs. Ah well.


Anyway, 7/10 or something like that. I remember I used to like this song... now his voice just seems kind of weird. There's not all that much to comment on for me, I guess. Simple but fairly enjoyable, if not nearly enough of a standout to reach the highest tiers out of 10.


"Spirit Party" by Airship.



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4.5/10. Great guitar, if a bit one-dimensional, but man that voice is just awful. I'm not impressed by the vocals at all, and the lyrics are silly - is this considered hero metal, by any chance? It's reasonably listenable, but it's hard to look past the voice.


"Misplaced" by the Boxer Rebellion.



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8/10. Very agreeable, it sounds like a lesser-played track of someone I'd know. Maybe a little too laid-back to reach a higher rating, but if the maker isn't completely variable like some bands/artists, certainly something worth checking out.


"Hands on Fire" by the Stills.



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5/10, with a margin of error of 2. Not entirely sure what my opinion is, but the song is probably enjoyable enough to reach 6/10. My main complaint is that the relative loudness of each component in the song seems off - the vocals start out at a volume that overpowers the other instruments, but at various points the brass instrument(s) (I can't tell how many or if there's just one ) blare out alone. Again, probably more enjoyable than a "mere" 5/10, but I'm not certain.


"Repeater" by the Helio Sequence.



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6.2/10. Mellow and fairly neat with the Beatles' usual stereo effects, but I wouldn't say it holds a lot of interest for me. But I've heard it a fair number of times before, and though it hasn't grown on me any more, it hasn't really lost any appeal.

Well, now it's time to get my mainstream on. THIS BEGINS NOW


"Meccano" by Red Light Company.



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Man, I forgot about this topic. Pretty sure I didn't mean to click through to here in particular, but here I'll post anyway.


I'll go from memory here 'cause I'm not going to bother loading that song... 4/10, I guess, 3/10 or lower if I'm in a bad mood. Certainly nothing great or special, almost as certainly not her best. The raspy vocals take over, and I know that's intentional, but the lyrics are too predictably weak in theme to bother making them that loud.


Continuing the MAINSTREAK: "Monsters" by Hurricane Bells.



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7/10. Not bad, really, but it feels a little dated. Enjoyable if a little generic-feeling... plenty fun though.


"Stars" by HUM.



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2/10. I think I'd have to be in a certain state of mind to appreciate this song more, but I'm not in it - and I don't know when I would be in it. It's sort of straightforward rock with the intro bagpipes-ish sound laid over top, and then something akin to a fiddle... yeah. It's a style; I'd give it more merit for being different (sort of), except it ends up being different from things I like. The weird thing is that I can actually see myself revisiting it someday, just to reevaluate, 'cause I can't imagine not liking it all the time.


"Dead American Writers" by Tired Pony.



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@Stargazer, how is a guy staring back out of the screen not an interesting high-concept video?


6.5/10. Excellent instruments in general; they don't sound annoyingly grandiose but actually grand. One important instrument is a different story, though - the first set of vocals in the song. I think a lot of metal seems like this: they're just a limp, garbled vehicle for the lyrics, and they don't even feel well-timed. Also, the lyrics for this particular song aren't very good anyway. They do improve in places once they start making the effort to sing and harmonize, but then it kind of gets into an odd high-orchestral feel (which is logical in context, but in some ways I could do without). If I got used to it, I think it might merit a 7/10 though, maybe.


"Take Everything" by Greg Laswell. (Careful, he's played two songs by that name - here's a link to his own song, but if you want you can rate the other one. )



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5/10, I guess. It's hard to give this one a rating because I don't dislike it enough to lower its rating too much, but I in no way like it enough to give it a positive-ish rating. The vocals are actually not bad, he puts a bit of effort into it. The other instruments just give a pleasantly outdated feel to the song and add nothing special. No special rhythm to it either.


I guess I'll break the mainstreak and go with the obvious choice, the song in my signature: "Secrets Are Sinister" by Longwave.



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Yeah, I know, but I feel like I should say so in a full review of the standalone song.

Anyway, 8/10. The vocals are great, the lyrics at least suitably mysterious. That's enough to carry the song along. Unfortunately the percussion and bass line do trip up the natural flow a bit.


"Navajo" by Ponderosa.



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1.5/10. The beginning percussion was a good choice, but the high-pitched noise leading into the vocals was grating, and the percussion quickly morphed into an incredibly boring stamping. I guess the lone vocals are alright - the voice isn't anything special. Eventually they achieve some rudimentary layering of the instruments, but that can't obscure the fact that they're not really interesting.


"99th Dream" by Swervedriver.



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5.7/10. It's actually not too bad, I prefer this style of growling to some types of screaming. The percussion is rapid and interesting enough, though sometimes flat. The song itself never soars, though; even in the occasional gaps of guitar soloing, it sort of undulates along, if instruments this crunching and distorted can be called "undulating". Probably worth another listen, but I wish it was more concise time-wise - four-and-a-half minutes isn't long, but it's probably longer than this needs to be.


"Hexagram" by Deftones.

5.5/10. It's probably pretty good, but it's hard for me to tell - it just seems generic. Reminds me a little of Year of the Rabbit. Distorted guitars, but it doesn't seem like there's anything for innovative effects; the lyrics get a bit repetitive too.


"Birth of the Economic Hit Man" by Circa Survive.



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(^I'm tempted to do a sped-up cover of that song.

As for yours...)


5/10, I'm fairly indifferent to this song. It feels dated... The intro piano gives off a classical feeling, even. Vocals are competent, mostly mid-tempo, but I don't know that they're great or anything. There is some variety throughout the length of the song, but rather than that giving it bursts of life when needed, it just makes the whole thing seem scattered.


"Take Me Somewhere Nice" by Mogwai.


EDIT: Irae, I rated "Her Ghost in the Fog". WHY DID YOU CHANGE THE SONG BEFORE I POSTED.

6/10. The acoustic guitar is very calm, but the vocalist's voice is a tad thin, and the echoing percussion and electric guitar are peculiar. Nor does the song really go anywhere, though it's never bad; it sort of rides on one feeling and that's about the end of that.


"You Can't Be My Girl" by Darwin Deez.



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4/10, it's not so bad but I'm terribly indifferent to it. The vocals have a nasal-ish quality, and for some reason they don't feel very professionally-done. Most of the sound in the song is the piano, though, and that only makes use of fairly uninteresting repeating riffs. I did detect a good amount of something ethereal in the background that I couldn't identify immediately, and I wish that had been brought up more to give the song a more unusual texture.


"Speeches" by Faded Paper Figures.



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6/10. I don't even know how many times I've heard this on the semi-mainstream radio - i.e., a WHOLE LOT. The vocals seem quite generic and sappily delivered, but I do like the arpeggiated guitar. Percussion is uninteresting but tastefully understated in spite of that.


"Gun-Shy Sunshine" by Silversun Pickups.



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