The challenge of this competition was to make a song that blends elements from both Funk and Hard Rock/Metal and that switches the genre clearly several times. For voting, that was my main criterion. The task was clear, and rules are rules. Although I personally failed to match the task, I still take it into account in my points.
BOTH GENRES AUDIBLE AND SWITCHED
The submission that filled in my mind both criterions:
DocJon, becsei_gyorgy, gruskada
The submission that had only other element:
TrojakEW&Jilliam, AFutureInNoise
One submission had neither style in my opinion:
Benedict Roff-Marsh
THEME: MADNESS RISING
Clearly in these
gruskada, TrojakEW&Jilliam, AFutureInNoise
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SWC033_gruskadaCanary_Release_rc27.wav
Funk and rock influences found, actually very nicely incorporated into rap. Surprising result.
Rap works very fine to my ears. Maybe articulation could be clearer and more rhythmic, but that's not a songwriting issue. Maybe a mixing or performance problem. On the other hand, the "not so perfect rapping" gives this song a strong and needed human aspect. It puts the focus nicely to the message, as it's not coming from "another trained rap machine", it comes from a human being.
Nice slowing effects with the vocal. Bonus points for that.
At the later part of the song, the band doesn't play together that well. As if everybody is trying to do something unique, without listening others. So the band's playing as a whole is a bit messy. But that's more an arrangement problem, not a songwriting issue. On the other hand, the result is a bit messy chaos, but it fits perfectly the madness theme.
Madness: 100%. But yes, it couldn't be anything else as the topic is American politics. So perfect match to theme of competition, and I'm not taking any responsibility at all of my comments.
Overall, I think you hit the nail perfectly every time you step outside your comfort zone. You manage to add a human aspect and imperfections nicely into your music. Technically it's not perfect yet, but the song is there, the task is fulfilled, and that's main point.
BTW, I would love to try do a rap someday, but not voluntarily, only under compulsion.
Genre match: 5
Madness: 5
Song: 4
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SWC033_becsei_gyorgy_Legend_of_an_angel.wav
You have both metal and funk influences clearly in your submission. I love the fact you typically manage to blend your own style naturally to the changing genres of these competitions. Unlike me, you most of the time really try to match the task.
I like the way you add oriental influences to this song. Those solo guitar lines are cool and very convincing, although I suspect that you programmed them.
I think the song part is very good. Although after 2:00 song starts to repeat itself, but that's more an arrangement issue, I wouldn't say it's a problem of songwriting.
Genre changes happen quite fluently and rapidly, extra points for that.
Compared to last months submission, this time you have nice focus all through the time. It makes it easy to listen, at least to my old time mind, as the leading element is picked by ear automatically.
Madness? This one is not so strongly evident to me in your submission. I find it to be a melancholic song with a bursts of anger, but not so much madness to me.
I like the epic ending. It suits your style perfectly.
Genre match: 5
Madness: 3
Song: 5
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SWC033_TrojakEW&Jilliam_Crawl.wav
I didn't find clear funk influences but certainly some hard rock influences at the end.
As a composition, this is very cinematic. And very good on that area. On the other hand, I couldn't expect anything less from you. To me you're a master on that area.
This song would work nicely on a theatre stage. Somehow it needs to be part of something visual and physical event. Piano part would suit perfectly to some Jacques Brel cabaret song. (When I was in high school, I studied French by listening Jacques Brel.)
Love the vocal part. There's a pain, madness and humanity present very strongly. But I wonder if the mix is too polished and perfect to match the fragile vocal part.
If this was a quick process from you, amazing results. But if you plan to finish it, I would probably go more to the fragile direction that is introduced by the vox. Now everything is in perfect control. Maybe this way it's too safe for the listener to hear the despair of the fragile singer. Maybe you could add a "listen at your own risk" -aspect to it.
Genre match: 2
Madness: 4
Song: 5
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SWC033_DocJon_Fastlife.wav
With this one I can hear clear funk and metal parts.
From my perspective truly great playing. I wish I could be so versatile player as your submissions has proven you to be.
You have nice development all throughout the song. But like you said it yourself, it clearly lacks the vocal part or the lead part. So it's a bit difficult to evaluate it as a song from that point of view. But the riffs are very cool. If you had had the time to add a vocal part, you probably would have been the winner in my evaluation. Especially if you had managed to add a vocal line like "Eye of the Tiger". The guitar sounds is asking for that.
Cool solo part.
But what about madness? The current version sounds quite positive. Maybe slightly more arrogant mix could fix that, but that would be a mixing issue, not a song-writing issue. One must also remember that the real mixing can't be done without the missing lead element.
If you plan to finish this one, I would forget the madness-theme (as competition is already over) and take it to the direction you've chosen, or wherever it naturally goes. If you add a vocal line to this and match the mix to the mood of it, I'm sure it will be superb.
Genre match: 5
Madness: 3
Song: 3
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SWC033_AFutureInNoise_DrAndrew.mp3
Some funk influences found, not so much hard rock.
I like those bass lines. There are not too many songs where the melodic bass line creates a nice counterpart to the vocal lines.
1.30 starts a part where I can hear some funk influences. It's a bit chaotic, but maybe with purpose.
The fragile situation, madness comes through very nicely with your voice.
On the whole, I don't think this matches so well the genre task of this competition. But from the point of view of the song, I think it's better this way, by not forcing it artificially to some given format. I think that a smaller arrangement would serve your song better. Without strings and synths and reverbs, maybe just "man and a guitar".
Genre match: 2
Madness: 4
Song: 4
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SWC033_Benedict Roff-Marsh_The Shifters.wav
In this submission I don't find any funk nor metal/hard rock influences.
The first minute has very strong cinematic atmospheres. It would be perfect audio background for some film scene. I like those visual audio effects very much. Very well done. There's a madness in them.
Around 1:00 starts the melody line, the song part. Probably very good as such, but I think it belongs more to classical composition area. Classical music is totally outside of my listening skills, so I try not to evaluate that part. It's too abstract to me.
Later around 2:30 comes in electric drums and guitar sounding synths. It feels like an accompaniment to ultramodern pop, where the lead or the vocal part is muted. But I don't find any connection to metal/hard rock nor funk.
Somehow I don't consider this as a song, I would say it's a composition.
I get a feeling that this was made for some other purpose than for this competition.
Genre match: 1
Madness: 4
Song: 3
► Show Spoiler
01 (10 pts) - gruskada
02 (9 pts) - becsei_gyorgy
03 (8 pts) - TrojakEW&Jilliam
04 (7 pts) - DocJon
05 (6 pts) - AFutureInNoise
06 (5 pts) - Benedict Roff-Marsh
How do we go from there?
If you got an idea for a theme and genre for a future Songwriting Competition, please let me know in the following thread: