Chart Championship Week 9 RESULTS

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

byebyepride pronounces! (I also have the Pop Prem results - want me to post them after I get back from lunch, or tomorrow?)

"Well like most competitors, I was absolutely thrilled to get the tracks, and amazed by how accurately most people had managed to gauge my taste. Obviously some of my track choices over the competition have been a giveaway, but I suspected my blurb last week wouldn't have been particularly useful. So thanks to everybody, and sorry I couldn't give all your tracks top marks! On first listening I think I liked all of them immediately -- except for one -- although a couple aren't standing up to repeated attention. A few stood out, but the middle and lower grounds were tough to pick apart. Anyway, over to the hotline in the newsroom where the results are coming in…

01. Jans Jelinek - "Lithiummelodie1": This was a great start, atmospheric and moody, building nicely over its six minutes something, and there are some good noises in here. But the rather plodding guitar line started to get on my nerves quite quickly - the melody is rather basic, and reminds me of post-rock bands like Slint and Mogwai, even M83, who seem to mistake playing obvious melodies very loudly and slowly for emotional drama. I have pals who love that sort of thing, but it's a bit of a turn-off for me. I even wondered whether this was an arty remix of some indie thing, but I'm guessing it's in the post-rock/electronica realm. 9th place - LOSE - bright start but epicharmus loses momentum as match progresses.

02. Ivana Brkic – “Njezno, Njeznije”: My notes say 'Eurobosh, yes!' and for instant thrill-power alone this was an obvious winner for me. I love the plinky-plonky noise in the chorus, and some of the metallic-sounding swooshes were ace too. I'm not sure the song reaches the point of absolute lift-off I'd like to see, perhaps because it goes for the traditional instrument infusion when what I fondly imagine to be a balalaika comes in towards the end. Is this Greek? Or from the Balkans? 7th Place - DRAW - some bright moments but lockedintheatti can't find the net.

03. Lindstrom - "Fast And Delirious": Someone ought to be gutted, since the first few turns through the CD this was easily my favourite. I like the re-tooled electro sound, and it feels as if there are a dozen synths improvising together, no people. I also love the way the track seems to mutate several times on the way through, as if the record is evolving rather than simply revolving. However this is pretty distinctive: and I knew I knew this instantly, although it took me a while to place it as Lindstrom's 'Fast and Delirious'. 2nd Place - DRAW - jeff_worrell so unlucky to draw high-scoring match.

04. Future Bible Heroes - "Losing Your Affection": This is a strange one. The backing sounds sounds to me like an almost perfect recreation of an early 80s synth-pop single. One of those really stately OMD B-sides or China Crisis. And the way the slightly bouncier stabs and arpeggios in the chorus respond to the verses is great. But the voice throws me - it sounds like it ought to be Frazier Chorus, something feyer, more indie. Actually I find the voice a bit cloying, lacking in bite: I think I prefer my ladies a bit feistier. And the lyrics are just a little bit too clever, as if someone's sat down to try and rhyme 'vivisection' and 'bloody insurrection' with affection (I even had 'Chumbawumba' in my notes, thinking of their lost synthpop classic 'Someone's Always Telling You How to Behave'). So if I had to put money on it I would say this is retro pastiche/homage rather than vintage. 6th Place - WIN - lisa_go_blind scrapes late winner to keep summit in sight.

05. Lordz Of Brooklyn - "Saturday Nite Fever": Boom! Late 80s (I guess) party-rap, hovering somewhere between beer-fuelled boasting and just revelling in the play of local references and sounds. This is great. Although I consider myself more of a Queens man myself, one of my favourite beers comes from Brooklyn, as do (I assume) The Lordz of Brooklyn (? They don't make much of a secret of it). Feels like the missing link between Licensed to Ill and Cypress Hill. I think this is probably Frank replying to the 2 Live Crew track I played on his home game, in which case his run of hits continues… 5th Place - WIN - koganbot claims close-fought victory to hold on at top.

06. Go Mental - "Died In Your Arms Tonight": Another bust!! This was one of the first mp3s I downloaded when I first got broadband and typed Happy Hardcore into the p2p interface. I was looking for versions of Jane Wiedlin's 'Rush Hour' and then moved onto all the other 80s hits I can find. Now having checked, my mp3 isn't actually labelled with the artist (the interweb suggests Go Mental) but I think this has to count as 'recognised' so sorry to someone. The bad news out of the way, this is still a cracking track - definitely a reworking rather than a remix (there have been several other versions I think), and very similar to the version of 'Like A Dream' I played a couple of weeks ago in that the boshed up chorus from the Cutting Crew original is just pasted into a cacophony of old-school rave sounds. Invigorating, and lots of thrill power! 3rd place - DRAW - martinskidmore gutted by last-minute equaliser.

07. Fall Out Boy - "The Takeover, The Break's Over": Well, this is the only one I didn't like instantly - in fact I went 'what the hell is this' - but even this one's grown on me a little. I figure someone was going for the 'metallic pop' thing in my blurb, or my like of the Ark, but this sounds too much like haircut indie (is that the right phrase, the kids) and not enough like Judas Priest, for me. It certainly sounds very now, so I wouldn't be surprised to find out this had been in the charts this year. The stereo-panning guitar riff is just irritating, although I like the point at which the chords plateau in the chorus (the piano licks there are a bit rub though) and the guitar solo is nicely synthetic-sounding. I'm guessing this is from Jessica, which would prove we are musical matter and anti-matter! 11th place - LOSE - infov0re crashes to heavy loss.

08. The Sharades - "Dumb Head": This sounds like original rather than retro-fashioned girl-group. The farty electronic sounds are great, and I love the 'do-do-do-d-d-d-do' bits. Its probably the most emotional of all the performances, but somehow I can't quite connect with it. At first I mistook the self-recrimination of the singer for plain misogyny, and I wonder if that's what makes me uncomfortable with it - I hear it now as genuine confusion and frustration and self-distrust, but perhaps it just feels a little slight. I reckon this is from Martin - I definitely like it, but not as much as the others, and I don't seem to be able to love it. 10th place - LOSE - skillextric aghast as team throw away precious points.

09. Diskoteka Avariya - "Hardcore Rap": As of a couple of minutes ago, this has just overtaken track 3 in my affections, but only by virtue of the total riot that seems to break out in the chorus. I've no idea what language this is in, and I won't embarrass myself by guessing (one of the Slavic family?), and it sounds like it's been patched together from a million old records, without wearing it's eclecticism as a badge. I realise I haven't tried to describe what it sounds like at all - it's horn-powered, euro-hop, with a swinging, swaggering feel to it, alternately light and dark. I wonder what it means! 1st place - WIN - there'll be dancing in the streets of blue_russian tonight.

10. Kate Havnevik - "New Day": I spent the longest time pondering this one, and realising how hard I find it too judge without even a little bit of context. It could be some arty electronic thing but it could just as easily be a Dido remix. The strings at the start reminded me of one of the moody soundtracks my better half buys from miserable films that have made her sad, but with a swelling optimism in human endurance which comes in with whatever that wind instrument is (I can't even tell if it's supposed to be brass or woodwind). The skittering beats seem a little prissy, but I like the throbbing synth-bass a lot. Then that VOICE!! For some reason the singer really irritates me: it sounds really familiar as well, so I might well kick myself when I discover who this is. The way the structure develops is fine - the glitchy bits from 4.50 are neat, the drums and synths building like a Beloved track or something Balearic (blimey I hadn't thought of Salt Tank for years, did they sound like this?). I'll be keen to see the reveal on this one. 8th place - LOSE - cruel defeat sees piratemoggy in relegation spot.

11. Becca - "You Make Me Feel (More And More)": Oh yes, as promised in the blurb, I'm a total sucker for this sort of thing. It both beeps and boshes, it's far too cheesey to be British sophisto-house so must be Euro. Beyond that - who knows? I hope this is relatively recent, since it feels like this sort of music has been around forever, and will one day be playing out across the ruins of post-holocaust civilization while the insects build a new post-human world. 4th place - WIN - poptasticuk gets tactics spot on for classy win.

I am not exactly awash in Week 10 tracks, so keep them coming!

Comments

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

I won't reveal too much but I think NINE players are either in or within 1 win of the play-off places. Squeaky bum time.

[martinskidmore.livejournal.com]

Damn, mine was actually your 3rd place song - I feared it might be one you knew and nearly sent something else.

[byebyepride.livejournal.com]

Well it was a great choice, but the Trigger-massive's unceasing pursuit of bosh had taken me there already. The fact that it was one of the first ever mp3s on my computer made this feel like an odd mind-meld.

[jeff-worrell.livejournal.com]

I haven't listened to the Pop Prem tracks yet, so results tomorrow would be my preference. But if necessary, I will simply avoid the thread until tonight.

Damn, there was plenty of much more obscure space disco stuff I could've picked instead if I'd known I was def. on the right lines with Lindstrom. How much of this stuff do you know, Alex?

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

Yes, I'll do it tomorrow. Mustn't glut the friendslists.

[byebyepride.livejournal.com]

I think you were dead unlucky, since I don't know *that* much. I picked up on Lindstrom because of katstevens and (I think) catsgomiaow raving about it. It reminded me a lot of the I-Robots Italo-disco compilation from a few years ago, but updated with modern tech and pacing; and it reminded me of Booka Shade type things which I know a bit more about, but I am really a total dilettante in this area.

[katstevens.livejournal.com]

Yes! I knew it v well indeed but couldn't remember exactly from where! I thought it was off Rick's Kelley Polar album at first, but him and Lindstrom are almost indistinguishable anyway :-)

Woo-oo!

[blue-russian.livejournal.com]

(I think!) Video to come after the reveal.

Hardcore rap (longform video :)

[blue-russian.livejournal.com]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76njyTeistw

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

Oh bum. I knew over seven minutes was probably not a good idea.

[lisa-go-blind.livejournal.com]

Week 2 of me just scraping a win that probably should have been a draw. Oh well, a win's a win, and hopefully I'll bounce back better in the weeks to come.

[koganbot]

Sally, you and I seem to keep racking up these bare victories/draws.

[infov0re.livejournal.com]

Oh man I got completely boned there.

[martinskidmore.livejournal.com]

As for not being awash in tracks for next week, Frank is hard to choose for! I have ideas, but mostly when I think "I bet Frank would like this!" I then think "I bet Frank already knows this." I will obviously send something, though.

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

Interestingly one vague trend I have noticed (but cannot be arsed to correlate) is that the people doing well in each league tend also to be among the people who get their tracks in quickly.

(So are the people who do badly in each league, though. Obviously decisiveness is a double-edged sword.)

[blue-russian.livejournal.com]

Frank has been one of the easiest to come up with good candidates for, but what to settle on was harder. I had something picked out weeks ago, and I then changed my mind at the last moment. (But at least I'm not keeping Tom waiting again.)

American Woman, Get Away From Me

[koganbot]

type fast type fast type fast type fast type fast only had time for one listen, mine was TRACK FIVE as Alex figuered out. Guess who did the sample? (Well, there were two samples, one was Schoolly D, the other was _____?) (Alex, I haven't played my home game yet, although in my heart I think of every game as a home game, home being where the heart is.)

Only listened once.

Winners:
--TRACK NINE: These wacky Eastern Europeans (interesting that they do tend to go for wacky, and they score big with me). The rhythm almost reminds me of "Cool Jerk." This is where Alex and I converge.
--TRACK SEVEN: This is where Alex and I diverge. Great guitar-slinging, a slashing riff style that goes back to "Susie Q" and has been used recently by Franz Ferdinand and John Shanks (on Ashlee's "Boyfriend"). One of the few good examples of males singing well in this style, which I'd call post-Britney/post-Savage Garden. (Maybe it is even Darren Hayes.)
--TRACK SIX: Is this what in your language you call the happy hardcore? Good car-shriek rhythm, lots of fun, though the "Died In Your Arms Tonight" bit makes me wish I were listening to "Died In Your Arms Tonight."
--TRACK TEN: Not sure what all that weird sliding-up-and-down thing from the orchestra is for, but it's a very nice orchestral track that actually loses something when the skillful singing enters.
--TRACK TWO: In a dead heat with TRACK ONE for may last win spot. What poptimists tend to be calling bosh, which seems to mean it's from the clompier end of Europop. Problem with these, and with this one, to some extent, is that way too often the melody isn't as melodic enough to carry the track. (A message to Celine haterz: she'd have sung this far better, found all the juice in the melody.) I prefer more standard Europop, by which I mean the line from "Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep" to Baltimora to Fun Fun to Aqua/Toy-Box/"Mambo No. 5," which is just brimming in tuneful hooks and melodies.

Re: American Woman, Get Away From Me

[infov0re.livejournal.com]

So I'm not totally boned in the Koganleague, hurrah!

That said: I'm really, really looking forward to the reveal on that if only for people's reactions. I would definitely point out that the singer's voice has come on leaps and bounds since their first album; there's some really quite astonishingly good singing on the album my track (number 7 - so not Jessica, alas) is from.

I knew I'd play a track by this band at some point; just not sure who I was going to play it for.

Re: American Woman, Get Away From Me

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

I agree about the disappointment of the vocals on track ten- they were what nearly made me send something else because otherwise it would probably be a really stunning orchestral glacial track and the vocals rather annoy me by being a bit blunt about the whole thing.

[koganbot]

Ha. Just changed my mind. Good thing my ratings don't count. Very good week for the Chart Championship.

New winner (fourth place):
--TRACK EIGHT: She's a dumbhead. Can't tell if this is meant as a girl-group parody, though the theme is classic girl group (I'm a fool; I had his love but treated him cruel). The whole thing was recorded in

My losers (though in a less good week any one of these could have earned a fifth-place win):

--TRACK TWO: Discussed above.
--TRACK ONE: Very strong electro-throb, in clave; about two minutes in the pulls in an English folk feel in the chords. (Which means this is secretly goth or metal, right?) Unlike reggaeton, say, this is willing to disrupt its propulsion, which hinders it for me.
--TRACK ELEVEN: Good technofied Hi-NRG track, but once again it needs a better melody on top.
--TRACK FOUR: Really nice melody here, lush synth background with a kind of indie-songstress up front. "I would rather be the dog food in front of the dog than lose your affection." Well said, but ew! Not sure why this doesn't quite ring my bell. Maybe the sound is too big and fuzzy, so the track obscures it's own strong points. But it's good.
--TRACK THREE: This is good too. Lots of novelty and variety, never loses my interest, though given all the stuff going on, it's rather low-key. Too low-key.

This week the Chart Championship trounces the Pop Premiership; last week the Pop Premiership cleaned the Chart Championship's clock. They seem to alternate.

[koganbot]

--TRACK EIGHT: She's a dumbhead. Can't tell if this is meant as a girl-group parody, though the theme is classic girl group (I'm a fool; I had his love but treated him cruel). The whole thing was recorded in

Hmmm, I must have stopped typing in the middle! The whole thing was recorded in tunnels of reverb.

[umlauts.livejournal.com]

Ah, that Ivana Brkic song was totally my soundtrack of winter 2004. Then it got bloody hot in December and I left it out of my top 100 that year. Stupid idiot me, it's immense.

[lockedintheatti.livejournal.com]

Yes, you're where I got it from in the first place. It's amazing.

[poptasticuk.livejournal.com]

I can't believe you thought I'd give you Fall Out Boy, I'm seriously offended! They are one of my most hated bands in the world.