5.5/10. Honestly, this did nothing for me. I didn't really care for the beat and the verse was way too short to make any impact on me. Overall, I didn't care for this.
Illogic - Day by Day
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8fEFSdoCXE
Edited by pointless233 on Jul 26th 2018 at 7:00:16 AM
Nice atmospheric beat, the voice sampling blends in nicely, but the song's a bit dragged out, 3/5.
Hozier - In the Woods Somewhere
6/10: I'm a little surprised by how people seem to think of Hozier as this forest-dwelling mystic when he's always seemed like your average late-night blues act. Decent, but nothing exceptional.
7.5/10. Pretty nice song. It's quite soothing, if a little repetitive. I also really like their voices. It reminds a bit of Cocteau Twins.
Silverchair - World Upon Your Shoulders
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hdpQ3K0Qr0M
Edited by pointless233 on Jul 28th 2018 at 7:41:00 AM
Alt-rock Power Ballad that is a tad bit too melodramatic for my tastes, 2/5.
Декабрь - Дубинушка (Dekabr' - Little Wooden Club)
An old Russian folk song, which became closely associated in the late 19th - early 20th century with the revolutionary movement.
The (now) classic Fyodor Shalyapin's version, for reference. The latter recording is more than 100 years old.
I listened to the Dekabr version. It gets an 8/10 from me. I like the lyrics and the riffs are pretty good. The singer has a nice voice.
King's X - Prisoner
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUBDkk6fDSI
Edited by pointless233 on Jul 29th 2018 at 6:19:03 AM
Atlas
Once upon a time, in the early 90s, grunge and its relatives were moderately interesting. This is a clear product of its time, but it's aged pretty well, all things considered, with raw yet punchy production and riff-based songwriting that holds your interest all the way through. 7/10
Iron Maiden - Fear of the Dark
This song made me realize that I might be doing the whole "getting into metal and its subgenres" thing wrong. Despite exploring the more underground-leaning kinds of heavy metal music pretty thoroughly I've managed to completely ignore the classics. This is the first Iron Maiden song I've listened to in my whole life, Metallica is limited to "Nothing Else Matters", Blind Guardian to "Nightfall in the Middle-Earth" and some compilation albums, etc. "Fear of the Dark" sounds exactly as I've imagined an Iron Maiden song would sound like: mostly instrumental, folk-ish song, with nice chord progression and impressive mixed vocals, though a bit repetitive and thin-sounding, 4/5.
Spiral out, keep going.
7.5-8/10. Pretty cool black metal song with some decent vocals, a good drummer and a nice little solo. I normally don't like this genre but this was good.
Death - Lack of Comprehension
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Go64Oauc8-8
Edited by pointless233 on Jul 31st 2018 at 10:00:26 AM
45/100 - The meatiest production and some of the best musicians of the American death metal scene joining forces with the guy who should have started Control Denied after 1993 to play incredibly tame prog/thrash fare almost unbecomingly pop like in its simplicity and hookiness that mostly sounds like Helstar lite with a bit more aggression.
8/10. Pretty good progressive rock. Not original, but very well played.
The Mars Volta - Aberinkula
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_8vBLHHCKU
Edited by pointless233 on Jul 31st 2018 at 6:30:11 AM
There's something about the chorus that makes the song really grating to the ear, despite it being pretty interesting proggy track with Middle Eastern influences. I'm biased, obviously, but damn, 2/5.
Ellen McLain - Want You Gone (Portal 2 Ending Song)
Spoilers, I guess.
Spiral out, keep going.
plant
9/10. Still a wonderful ending song that I would honestly claim is better then Still Alive. It's more melodic sound fits perfectly with Portal 2 being a more story focused game, while still having elements of the black humour the Portal series is known for.
" I'm the princess! Everyone has to do what I say!"
7/10. Decent enough song, though a bit repetitive.
Van Halen - Jump
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bq-potK_7Ts
Edited by pointless233 on Aug 1st 2018 at 7:20:32 AM
This is Van Halen??? It's like the cheesiest bits of an already cheesy enough decade distilled into one song. And it's kind of fun? 4/5.
Jeremy Irons (and Jim Cummings) - Be Prepared
8/10. A nice, nostalgic little song. It has a pretty catchy chorus.
Emi Evans - Kuroi Uta (Drakengard 3)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrOUCJay_7U
I don't normally post soundtracks, but I felt like posting this song because I really like it.
Edited by pointless233 on Aug 1st 2018 at 12:22:34 PM
Atlas
Not a game I've played, but this song is nonetheless an effectively haunting ballad with a strong lead vocal. It feels like the kind of song which would play after a tragic apocalypse has befallen the story's world - something Youtube comments I have no context for suggest is not too far from the truth. 8/10
The Velvet Underground - I'm Waiting For the Man
While the track possesses enough dynamicity to not bore you in its near five minute run, it sounds rather tame, its delivery lacks the intrepidness required to pull of such a song, 3/5.
Alec Holowka - The Traveler (Aquaria OST)
Edited by Millership on Aug 1st 2018 at 10:30:05 PM
Spiral out, keep going.
6/10. It's a pretty piece of music but it feels kind of repetitive. It's okay but I'll probably forget about it.
The Allman Brothers Band - Whipping Post
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wqg4taiLRRE
Edited by pointless233 on Aug 2nd 2018 at 2:38:30 AM
85/100 - Southern-fried proggy virtuosity; essentially more technically capable dad rock but avoiding hoary old troping with an amazing sense of timing, articulation, and harmony. It's rare to see this level of finesse attached to so called "southern" bands but they pull it off to such an extent to to be on the level of the classic British progressive rock bands of their time.
Ooooooooh... Gentle wind instrument and barely-there string sections provide an understated, subtle yet intricate arrangement, culminating in a showcase of skillful playing of harmonica and violin that is nothing short of heart-wrenching, 5/5.
Stuart Chatwood - Attack at Sea (Prince of Persia Warrior Within OST)
Edited by Millership on Aug 4th 2018 at 1:27:05 AM
Spiral out, keep going.
Atlas
A dumb, chunky nu-metal riff barely more complex than slapping a single chord, occasionally letting a bit of atmospheric pseudo-Arabic noodling leak through before starting up again. Not my thing at all - I'd probably find this irritating after a while even if I was playing the game. 5/10
Tastes better on the way back down.
5.5/10. Honestly, I don't care for this. I can't vibe to it. I like me some Death Grips but this is one their songs that I don't really like.
Pink Floyd - See Emily Play
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4M_aksX11A
Edited by pointless233 on Aug 8th 2018 at 3:11:41 AM
Structurally very similar to songs from British Invasion era, with strong psychedelic presence, 4/5.
Spiral out, keep going.
Largely a very standard alternative rock track. There's not much in the way of dynamics - it can be easy to miss the verses turning into choruses because it's all just a wall of sound. Also, those yodeling vocal parts are really obnoxious. Props must at least go to the violinist, who sounds like he's having the time of his life. 5/10
Denzel Curry - Hate Government
Tastes better on the way back down.