Nur Ein I Round Four "Like A Villain"

[jimtyrrell]

As I heard it in my youth, the word TIGER was used. And: if he HOLLERS, let him go. A peculiar rhyme for sure.

[Spud]

Eenie Meenie Miney Moe
Catch a Tiger by the toe.
If he hollers, make him pay
Fifty dollars, every day.

There are various add-on and addendums in case this does not designate the correct person, such as:

My mother told me to pick the very best one.

If that still doesn't do it, you can add:

And you are not it.

[Ross]

My father growing up in Chicago in the 1930s knew the one with the "n" word. they also used to call brazil nuts, "nigger toes."

[Spud]

they also used to call brazil nuts, "nigger toes."

My mother still does. She grew up in Kentucky.

[Reist]

I probably don't have time to review, but from what I've listened to, I love Calfborg's. It's a really good fight though. Keep it up!

[Ross]

Ross Durand - nice ending. Feels slightly at odds with what went before? maybe not, but the ending was my favourite part ....

I can see how you might feel it's "slightly at odds." The motif book-ends the song and I thought it might serve a function like the menacing music at the beginning of Carmen or Rigoletto, which signals that something bad is going to happen - then opera happens - characters, songs - then, when something bad happens, that music reminds you, "I told you so."

Thanks for the kind comments.

Still listening - reviews to come.

[jack]

calfborg
starts off a bit slow but the vocals really kick this up a notch. production is really good. i've definitely gained a new appreciation for your stuff since the nur ein began. it's got an interesting mix of discordant stuff thrown in. vocals are pretty good too. very solid stuff.

deshead
des goes calypso. nice change-up stylewise, and as always, your production is rock solid. thanks for swiping my lyrics, but even beyond that, thanks more for the awesome cover you gave me of said song once. love that leslie organ, and the creative panning on it. excellent drums too man. is there an instrument that you can't play well?

glenn case
great dynamics on this glenn. you always come up with the most creative arrangements. and this week, you have the drums mixed at just the right level. terrific vocals. nice strong chorus. good job.

jim tyrrell
haha, i was reading the lyrics how you borrowed from "we all need love" and i couldn't see where. duh. i hadn't thought about using the arrangement. except yours is better as you played it and i looped it. nice bridge too man. singing is very strong on this, especially your use of harmonies in the singover parts. man, this just seems to get better as it goes along. it's got a certain melancholy epicness to it, which is just more so with the nice slow fat lead you throw on it. and man, that break down, turn around, keyboard love madness you outro with is friggin awesome. my favorite so far.

ken
man, that is a fat sound you are getting overall. i like the sparse and creative guy and guitar arrangement. vocals are strong and good. i almost wish you'd thrown some delay or sweepy panning over that chorus. but this like all of the others before it this week, is very, very good.

man, you guys are going to make this tough on me.........

leaf
hell yeah on the bonham-like intro. blasting shit right out of the gate. and the first words sound mighty familar! that is hilarious. dude, you rock. you're like mad max and you just blew by the rest of the pack with this. fucking righteously phenomenal. showing the band the door and yellin at the bitch on the ferry might have been the best thing you ever did. that and buying a house and making a studio. this rocks solid. nur ein brother, you ARE the man to beat.

octothorpe
this is so cracking me up man. you are now officially rocktothorpe. love it spud. course i'm pretty biased damn, who is that rockin guitarist? man, you know how to work a judge....

ross durand
the drums are pretty groovy on this. definitely has this epic sort of springsteen feel to it, and the production is really well done. the whispery vocoded vox could maybe be a bit softer but i like the idea, and it works well here. guitar playing is really good too man. it's cool to hear you bust out on the electric. nice job ross.

tex beaumont
this is pretty killer man. i've really been digging alot of your stuff lately. it has this really nice simon and garfunkle vibe to it, and i'm diggin the beach boys harmonies here too. really great stuff. man, i wish i could keep all of you this week. the harmonies on this are stellar dude. killer breakdown. love it.

thornberry
guitar on this is really nice, and again, like your other tunes have this nice floydian style and tone. vocals on this are really excellent. well, it a terrific tune, and i have to say i've enjoyed discovering your music through this little party so even though we bid you adieu, i've enjoyed the ride.

wreckdom
excellent jam man. great fat bass line. not much else to say except i enjoyed it.

well, this is going to be very difficult. really quality set guys.

[Spud]

Well Jack, the part that we didn't steal from you is me. This Nur Ein thing is killing me, I tell you. I had to learn to play guitar for this track, to try to match up with your original. I'm glad you liked it. Fortunately, I still had that organ track laying around, too, so I could pump it to where it belongs!

[jack]

Well Jack, the part that we didn't steal from you is me. This Nur Ein thing is killing me, I tell you. I had to learn to play guitar for this track, to try to match up with your original. I'm glad you liked it. Fortunately, I still had that organ track laying around, too, so I could pump it to where it belongs!

it was huge. loved it. loved it the first time too.

[deshead]

I think most of us who entered nur ein thought there'd be some traditional standard by which our entries would be judged. I suspect the outcome of this round will illustrate that's not the case.

Calfborg
Some of the synch/timing issues threw me off, especially the poor synch between the double-tracked vocals. This song works well as a whole, though. And the buildup at 2:40 is really effective. You create some great moods with your music.

Glenn Case
I get a total Roger Manning/Jellyfish vibe from this. It's a great song, Glenn. One of my favorites by you (notwithstanding the plagiarized lyrics.) FWIW, if I mixed it, I'd make the hard-panned guitars a bit quieter, and the drums a bit louder (especially the kick. Did you have more than 2 mics on the kit?) But that's just FWIW.

Jim Tyrrell
I enjoyed this, especially the extro. It's a good song, but it never punched me in the face like I wanted it to. On reflection, this might be 'cause it reminds me of Jet's "Look What you've Done," but you never throw the same mad breakdown at me .. Heh, I guess that's my issue, not yours.

Ken
Your hook is the best the round. Whether or not you get the vote will reveal a lot about the judges' prejudices.

Leaf 62
Heh, definite wankfest But then, I used to rock out to stuff just like this. Which is to say, I appreciate the craft!

Octothorpe
The drums seem like an afterthought. They should be much louder, or pulled altogether. I'll be honest, too, I had a real hard time finding the "song" in your mix. The judges so far didn't seem to have the same issue, though, so you guys will probably be alright.

Ross Durand
I love the epic arrangement, the way it builds. And the whispering is super creepy. The tension it creates helps set the different parts of the song off against eachother. I'd like to hear the drums louder. They start off nice but quickly get buried. And I'm not sure if it's one of the plagiarized lyrics, but "plam of my hand" is maybe a little too cliche for the song. Like, it distracts me from listening. But just for the chorus. The rest of the song is great.

Tex Beaumont and the Dirty Hearts
Yeah! This is so much fun. The Back in the USSR "ooooo-ooo-ooo" is perfect. Not much else to say, dude. I loved this.

Thornberry
I listened before you'd mentioned your dilemma, and my thought was "hmm, it's kinda long." But knowing what actually happened, I can tell you it's a good song, and I'm sorry to see you go.

Wreckdom
Heh, my first thought was that you'd accidentally ripped off # for the challenge. I had a hard time finding something to grab onto here, but when I got the to end (which is signature WreckdoM, BTW,) I had to go back and listen again. You know, that happens to me more often than not with your tunes.


Glenn, Ken, and Tex had the 3 best "songs". My bet is that the judging will not reflect this. I also think anyone still left in the contest has the talent to write a clone of the entries that have already fared well, and the judges will automatically love it. I can't decide if that's good or bad.

[Niveous]

Deshead....

Don't try and figure out the judges. I can't even do that and I'm one of them. And as for the idea that running carbon copy tunes will save you from elimination, I have one word for ya- Bjam.

[Niveous]

Calfborg: I love the opening of this song. The guitar has a great sound and I like how your vocals came out. Your choice to plagarize Naked on the Meach was a bit odd. I really dig this a lot. The percussion is canned but it works with the style of the song. There are some parts where the song wears a bit thin, like at around 1:55. The repetition from there until about 2:52 is the weakness of this song. But the guitar solo kicking in is the saving grace. I would've liked more the stuff from the beginning but this is still a pretty good song.

Deshead: The music is so Jimmy Buffetty. The synths are just a bit too cheesy. And I'm not that big on when you shoot for the higher octaves on some lines. I think that if you would've went for a more barebones tune with all this, it may have worked better for me. I would've liked to hear a Tori Amos style, Deshead vs. the piano rendition. This is just not coming together with the synths.

Glenn Case: Hmmm. I'm not digging the vocal choice here. The high octave stuff isn't standing up. The way you built the song is very well done. The lyrics are delivered with a lot of skill. You play a lot with the rhythm of the song and where to hit the lines and it works well.

Jim Tyrell: Classic piano ballad. For some reason, I wish there was a big ol' Eric Clapton guitar solo in this tune. It gets a big repetitive but this is a show closer. This is the tune where you pull out your cellphone and put on the light and wave it high over head (lighters are passe). Wow, I totally zoned out at the end. That's not good.

Ken: Now this is stealing. You took the whole rhythm of the tune. Since i don't really play "Put Cindy" much, you can have it. I can't help but like this because it's my riff and you did something different with it. You changed the tone with those ambient tones. It went from a tune about teen angst to this chilling tune. Those ambient tones are great.

Leaf 62: I'd buy an album of the Leaf rock stuff. This is the new grune and I'm frickin' all over it. The guitar is wild and dirty. The vocals are good. The delivery is what gives this song such kick. I want this song to have a big wild Samuel Bayer music video. I wish there would have been a guitar solo in there. But this really rocks. Great work.

#: This would work for me, if the vocals would have had more of a delivery. I want this song to have that loud wild "Skyline" delivery. This is almost monotone and it's very cold. I appreciate the guitar licks on this tune. There's a 50's rock meets 60's beach-rock thing going on here. But I want that boisterous Octothorpe vocal style. I'm going to have to listen to "That's not what I need". Damn I love that song. "That's not what I need for a PQB!" I don't know what that means but I love it.

Ross Durand: Winner of most unexpected stealing, Ross Durand! A surprise appearance by Nataly K. Your tunes have been great during the Nur Ein. If anyone would've asked me at the start if I thought you'd be doing this well, I would've said no. You have been the welcome surprise. The tunes have been excellent and this is just another great one. I don't know if I'm big on the guitar solo in this tune but the chorus is great and catchy. This is the song for the end of the 80's flick when the film is in slow-mo and the kids are celebrating the end of the dramatic plot (or at least frolicking in popcorn).

Tex Beaumont: More handclaps huh. There are some cheesy sounds in here like that horn. Some of the lines are weak and essentially just talked. There is a definite style to the Tex Beaumont songs. I prefer the Happy Mondays style than this. But then again I love the Happy Mondays. Yippie-Yippie-Ki-yi-yay-yay-yay. This just isn't for me this tune.

Thornberry: Sorry to see ya go. This song has great guitars, good vocals and it really shows off what happens when those big dreams of yours really come to fruition. I dislike the keys during guitar solo though. Big heavy dislike. It's like when I listen to the Dixie Dregs and T. Lavin throws down a synthesizer solo. But other than that, this is a powerful and excellent tune. But it's not Nur Ein and I'm sorry, you are disqualified.

Wreckdom: Nice steal of the Scissor Kick. The laugh at the Statue of Liberty line killed it for me. But the ending is great. This is the octothorpe tune that I wanted. An interesting take on Like a Villain. But then again, should I expect anything else from Wreckdom. And let me state again, the Wreckdom guitarist is awesome

[Spud]

I think most of us who entered nur ein thought there'd be some traditional standard by which our entries would be judged.

Man, I sure hope not.

Octothorpe
The drums ... should be much louder, or pulled altogether.

I tend to agree. Will push the drums up to match up better with Jack's original before we put this on our next CD.

I also think anyone still left in the contest has the talent to write a clone of the entries that have already fared well, and the judges will automatically love it. I can't decide if that's good or bad.

Interesting observation, but I can't agree with it. I believe that we have stayed in so far by showing the judges something new each round. At least, that has been our strategy.

[deshead]

Don't try and figure out the judges.

Heh, ya I realize that's pointless.

FWIW, re-reading my post it looks snarkier than I intended. I just meant to observe that there are some obvious biases on the part of the judges. An enterprising Songfighter could play to those biases, and clean up. That's probably just the nature of contests like this, though, for better or worse.

Interesting observation, but I can't agree with it.

I think this is the first round where there are no objectively *obvious* eliminations. Heh, so we'll know in an hour or so which one of us is right!

[Ross]

Thanks to those who reviewed. Here are my comments:

I enjoyed all of these songs, as I reread my comments I realize that they seem to be focussing on the things I found wanting in the songs, but there's so much going right in them, too.

Great fight,– proud to be among you. As others have said – I’m glad I’m not the one who has to make the call.

Calfborg – While the sounds as usual are cool, the song structure feels a bit sprawling to me.

Deshead – More midi? Been listening to Sufjan? Sounds good, performed well, and carefully put together, but not grabbing me like your usual. I guess I’m not feeling pulled into the story. (but the piano riff is stuck in my head)

Glenn Case – I like your chord choices. Solid, but again, not really grabbing.

Jim Tyrell – I don’t know the original. This has an overall nice sound and I like your vocal performance. Even so, the song feels a bit long to me, not enough arrangement build to support the repeats, IMHO

Ken – solid, but lacking the orchestration I’d like to hear. I know that’s the arrangement, but my ear is asking for more.

Leaf – Damn! Pretty great all around, I can’t explain why the lyrics are working, but they are.

# - Is it the opening riff that you stole? Chuck Berry’s a juror? I find the overall connection to the title a little weak and too referential to the fight for me to feel that this is a successful song in it’s own right.

Ross – Fun to incorporate Nataly K. She was a strong presence during my first few fights. The original is at 108 bpm and this song is 104, so I got to learn about time stretching and stuff. The opening and closing motif is also plagiarized. I feel I accomplished what I set out to do.

Tex – (Lots of organs this week.) Not as strong as your others. Interesting blend of styles. Losing me by the end, though. Layering the parts at the end is cool.

Wreckdom – yeah, right in its pocket! Where did Wreckdom come from during Nur Ein? This sounds like a different Wreckdom. Usually I’m impatient listening through your tunes for the sake of listening to every song in a fight I’m reviewing, but your stuff here has been much more satisfying. I love this.

Hoping to see you in round five.

Nur Ein!!!

[Niveous]

The judging is over on the Like A Villain fight.

Leaf does it again! The Stage 2 winner takes Stage 4.

Deshead, Ross Durand, Tex Beaumont & Thornberry have been eliminated.

Judges' Scores:

Total Points (out of a possible 44):
Leaf 62 - 40
Octothorpe - 30
Wreckdom - 29
Calfborg - 28
Ken Mahru - 24
Jim Tyrrell - 24
Glenn Case - 24
Deshead - 22
Ross Durand - 20
Tex Beaumont - 19
Thornberry - DQ

Juror #1's scores:
11: WreckdoM
10: Calfborg
9: Leaf 62
8: deshead
7: Octothorpe
6: Glenn Case
5: Tex Beaumont & The Dirty Hearts
4: Ross Durand
3: Ken
2: Jim Tyrrell
DQ: Thornberry (too bad)

Juror #2's scores:
11 Calfborg
10 Ross Durand
9 Leaf 62
8 Ken
7 Jim Tyrell
6 Glenn Case
5 Wreckdom
4 #
3 Deshead
2 Tex Beaumont
DQ Thornberry

Juror #3's scores:
11 - Leaf
10 - Tex Beaumont
9 - Octothorpe
8 - Jim Tyrrell
7 - Deshead
6 - Glenn Case
5 - Ken
4 - Wreckdom
3 - Ross Durand
2 - Calfborg
DQ - Thornberry

Juror #4's scores:
Leaf - 11
# - 10
Wreckdom - 9
Ken - 8
Jim - 7
Glenn case - 6
Calfborg - 5
Deshead - 4
Ross Durand - 3
Tex Beaumont - 2
Thornberry - DQ

[ken]

I'm suprised by the results. I am very sorry to see these folks go.

Good game all around.

Two, Four, Six, Eight, Who do I appreciate... Deshead, Ross Durand, Tex Beaumont & Thornberry!! High fives gentlemen, high fives. I would be honored to buy you drinks.

Nur Ein!

Ken

[Mogosagatai]

These results are so all over the map that it really could've been anyone, given just a different mood of a juror.

[Spud]

# - Is it the opening riff that you stole? Chuck Berry’s a juror? I find the overall connection to the title a little weak and too referential to the fight for me to feel that this is a successful song in it’s own right.

We stole the last four bars of lyrics in every verse, writing the first four as a prelude to each stolen section. These were stolen from various sources:

http://songfight.net/forums/viewtopic.php?p=54193#54193

In addition, we stole the music from Jack Shite, recording as "La Playa Caballeros" in the "Gonna Be Your Man" fight. All of the guitar solos are from that original recording, but I sliced out out everything in between and replaced it with our own tracks, including drums, bass, guitar, and vox. Since I provided the organ track for the original, I highlighted that track to give it a more Octothorpe feel.

Anyway, good game all - see you in the next round.

[Geoff WreckdoM]

Whoah! Holy Crap. What a surprise. I thought we were gone for certain.

Ross's was my 2nd pick just under Leaf (who was sick and wrong this week, killer stuff)

In fact I started assuming it'd be Leaf vs. Des or Ross in the final. Now it all seems really up in the air. What if it were us and Octothorpe in the last round? That would be sweeeeeet. and weird.

Bummed to see who's leaving but I guess someone has to. This is tough, and this has turned out to be a more educational experience for us than pretty much anything else we've done on Songfight. It's really been a difficult and entertaining challenge. Thanks to everybody! Nur Ein!!!!!

[Niveous]

These results are so all over the map that it really could've been anyone, given just a different mood of a juror.

Definitely and it was going to be a shock no matter what. That's how good the competition has been. It would have been just as shocking if we announced #, Glenn & Calfborg eliminated or Jim, Leaf & Wreckdom. Everyone brought their A-Game. Ross, Des, Thornberry & Tex may have been eliminated but they all did a great job in this competition and deserve our kudos.

[Reist]

I honestly think those results are crap, but I guess everybody has different opinions ... Great job to everybody though.