Alright, my thoughts on the top 10. Songs marked with a * are ones that I definitely think should have made it.
Don’t Feed the Animals - DTFA Linkin Park Submission (Josh Dillard): I didn’t think Bruno Mars was eligible to enter a contest like this…haha. Not a BAD song, seems kind of generic though. Also, way to fail at abbreviating your name (“DTFA” instead of “DFTA”), and you couldn’t come up with a song title? I guess I’m being really nitpicky, but the song isn’t good enough to overlook things like that. Has potential, but I’ve heard better.
*Beta State - When I’m Too Weak to Know (adrianrobison): This is actually a VERY good song. Totally okay with this being in the top 10.
Catalyst - One of the Few (cldntthnkofasn): What the FUCK is this garbage!!! The only thing more atrocious than the mix on this song is the band’s timing. The drummer sounds like he’s trying not to fall off his throne, that’s the only reason I can think of for him to be all over the place this badly. This sounds like it was recorded with a single microphone in someone’s garage, one guitar track drowning everything else out…please tell me this band’s only been together for 3 months? I mean the overall composition is somewhat interesting, but this recording is something I’d never consider showing ANYONE, let alone entering in a contest. Not trying to be harsh, but this really just sounds like a group of people who aren’t actually used to playing in a band yet. Keep practicing, the song’s got potential, but you have a LOT to work on.
Sound Detour - Your a Good Welcome (Sound Detour): …Read that song title again. “Your a Good Welcome.” SOMEONE WHO CAN’T EVEN USE PROPER GRAMMAR IN THEIR SONG TITLE MAKES THE TOP 10!!! Seriously? facepalm As if that’s not bad enough, the singing on this track is horribly off-key. I can’t even make it through the first repeat of the chorus. The rapping leading up to it has some potential, but the singing is SO bad I literally can’t finish the song to know what the whole thing sounds like.
*The Lion Oh My - Mayday (Thelionohmy): This is pretty interesting. The rest of the elements of this song have a pretty professional quality, but the drums sound very…demo-ish? Kind of an odd contrast. Good song though! Again, no problem with this being in the top 10, I think the song just needs a good mixing treatment and some new drums.
Soul Set Fire - Hello & Goodbye (xximinabandxx): Another very well-produced track. The clean singing is kind of forgettable, but everything else is solid. Definitely head and shoulders above some of the other submissions.
*Save the Grace - A Man Called Doubt (BGrant7): Interesting folky-sounding song. Really like the violin! This reminds me of some of the stuff my old band was doing before our violin player bailed on us. Very good singer too. This might be the strongest track on here.
*Sun Never Sets - Confession (RKG): This mix sounds VERY over-compressed, but the song itself is really good. Glad to hear there’s at least ONE good instrumental track that made the cut…
*Christy Craig - Des Mechants (Christy): Oh cool, another good instrumental track! Lots of cool stuff going on here…wow. REALLY interesting! This is pretty close to the Save the Grace track in terms of my favorites.
EEK! - Days in March (eek2525): Another great production, and this one probably fits in best with the style of music Linkin Park’s been leaning towards lately. That doesn’t necessarily mean I like it though. It sounds very disjointed with all the stuttering/start-stop stuff going on, especially near the beginning. There are some good musical elements going on here, but they’re frequently interrupted by stuff that sounds out of place. I’m not even a big dubstep fan, and I’ve heard better dubstep than this. Solid, but I question whether it’s top 10-worthy.
So, all told, there are 5 or 6 songs that I think DEFINITELY deserve to be in the top 10 (I’m still on the fence about the Soul Set Fire song), 2 that are mediocre, and 2 that are terrible. And no, I’m not just saying this because I’m mad that I didn’t make the top 10. Just doing a quick Youtube search, here are a couple submissions that are EONS better than the Catalyst or Sound Detour tracks:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCDpUs_3SdU - Mutants & Rockstars - The American Scheme
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kgx5YlfqDuc - Radicalypse - Anthem of Life (I guess this one TECHNICALLY doesn’t follow the “static image” rule? Then again, I thought we were only supposed to use a static image of our name/logo, but there are photo collages all over the entries selected for the top 10)
At the very least, these two should have replaced the Catalyst and Sound of Detour songs. Both are superior tracks in every way. I’m sure I haven’t heard every submission, either.
… however now I check occasionally from work and I’m thinking the list will be posted here: http://lpunderground.com/lpusessions
