Rate The Song Above You

A pleasant solo harp piece, apparently soundtracking a game I... have heard of but am not familiar with? That's a minor bother - when it comes to rating OST pieces, the context in which they are used is as important as the music itself. As it stands, it's still well composed and performed; I like the way it manages to be at turns sombre and sweet. 7/10

Frank Zappa - Zoot Allures (live rendition from the Does Humour Belong In Music? DVD)

65/100 - Pleasant if meandering jazz fusion number; the instrumentation on display is impressive in terms of the raw finesse required. Unfortunately it comes off as a meandering guitar solo stuck to a few spacey chords. Now I love guitar solos as much as the next person but in this case it's a little too much of a good thing.

Whore - Whore Flesh

6/10. It's has some pretty cool riffs but the production is not very good and thus it loses some impact for me.

Smokey Robinson & The Miracles - Tears of a Clown

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4heHLbchPKk

Edited by pointless233 on Dec 14th 2018 at 11:56:25 AM

A very upbeat early rocker with a tinge of sadness to it, 4/5.

Муслим Магомаев - Синяя вечность (Muslim Magomayev - The Blue Abyss)

Tranlation from Russian here

Edited by Millership on Dec 15th 2018 at 5:05:09 PM

6/10. I would find this song to be quite generic if it weren't for the vocalist's magnificent operatic voice and the wrenching melancholy of the lyrics.

Melody by Serge Gainsbourg

(The video is unavailable but that's not a problem for me)

9.5/10. There are very few (if any) openers like these, which set the stage for the whole Histoire. Serge Gainsbourg being the great composer and songwriter he was (at least for the most part), he very accurately describes the sexual obessions of dirty old men. And even though the Melody in question is, at the end of the day, Jane Birkin playing the role of Lolita (same nationality, for starters, plus her guesting later on in the album), this is the kind of album that would've caused more controversy, if it was released today, compared to how it was received back then. With that amazing bass and the orchestral arrangements of Jean-Claude Vannier, it's one of those tracks whose only flaw is that it didn't went on a bit longer (the alternative mix in the second CD of the 40th anniversary edition prolongs the track and puts a lot of emphasis on said orchestral arrangements in constant climax).

If it was released today, it would've killed a young artists's career. But it works with Gainsbourg, perhaps because he ultimately shows that these are fantasies (and this is even more true in the closing track of the album), not the real life thoughts of a dirty old men going after young girls. And there aren't many fantasies more daring and provocative than this one.

The "Sweetest Girl" by Scritti Politti.

Edited by Quag15 on Dec 15th 2018 at 3:39:30 PM

A strange reggae/ska/electronic mix with production not doing any honors to the concept: the sections, instead of synergizing, fight for the listener's attention, drowning the best parts of the track. It's also somewhat inconsistent in its mood, started out relaxing and ends, jarringly on a Last Note Nightmare, 3/5.

Kelaptari - Orovela

53/100 - I legit thought this was the opening to an Isihia track at first. The singing is amazing as you'd expect but the problem is that it doesn't really change or develop a whole lot for the song's length and it falls into the issue of sounding like an overlong introduction.

Weaponlord - Whisper in Darkness

8/10. Pretty good Power Metal song. The singing is quite good and the musicianship is quite good as well.

Queens of The Stone Age - How to Handle a Rope

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PwTg7S_YQrY

Edited by pointless233 on Dec 15th 2018 at 1:41:39 PM

7/10. Early Queens/Josh had a rugged sort of feel to them/him. Not that they/he hasn't ever had that vibe. But over time their/his "robotic" aspect they have mentioned before overtook it. I am not saying that that is a bad thing necessarily. But I do miss that dusty, gruff, desert rock they initially made themselves known for.

Love is the Drug by Roxy Music

Edited by KeironCioran on Dec 15th 2018 at 2:59:46 AM

A very 70's funk, 5/5.

Oemir tolgawy (Contemplating Life), by Bejilhan Kalijakparuly

The instrument is called sybyzgy.

Edited by Millership on Dec 15th 2018 at 10:09:51 PM

Like the other Kazakh instruments I've heard via your postings in this thread, this has a very interesting tone. There's a very neat contrast between the powerful, bassy drone reed and the bright, gentle treble melodies. I can't say I really got into the melody itself, but hey - it's my first time ever hearing this instrument, I'm hardly an expert on what a good sybyzgy piece should sound like. 6.5/10, I suppose?

The Smashing Pumpkins - Today

Edited by DubhKafkaesque on Dec 16th 2018 at 3:58:19 PM

8.5/10. The Pumpkins had hit it big with this track. Using mellow dream pop verses and upendeing them with grungey, distorted choruses about self mutilation. They had coasted the wave of Alternative Rock (back when the term still had a relatively succinct distinction from "regular rock") into mainstream popularity. It's a classic, is what I mean.

Jitterbug Waltz by Fats Waller

Edited by KeironCioran on Dec 20th 2018 at 1:42:34 AM

Very calm and relaxing jazz piece, 4/5.

Terry Scott Taylor - Klogg's Castle (The Neverhood OST)

3/10 Dissonant, but not really in an appealing or creative way, honestly. I feel the track's trying too hard to emulate the whole RIO aesthetic.

2 tracks.

Amusement Parks On Fire - Road Eyes

Django Django - In Your Beat

7.5/10. Pretty catchy song. It's does feel a little repetitive though(I'm referring to the second song).

Genesis - White Mountain

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4SeEHSKZL8

Edited by pointless233 on Dec 17th 2018 at 4:48:04 AM

Heavily influenced by medieval folk, prog rock piece that is ornate but at the same time scattered all over the place in its composition. Tries to squeeze too much into its relatively short time without properly developing its themes, 3/5.

HasSak - Samaltaw (Windy Mountain)^note Also probably a reference to Saratov's original Kazakh name

A (very) rough translation from Kazakh:

Chorus:
We're on a march not on horseback
Moving slower than a walk
Fifteen days in
We're close to Omby^note Omsk's original name

Windy Mountain, my homeland of vast lakes I long for
What my life would be when I become a soldier?
I recall you again and again
The land where I was born in

Chorus.

I am twenty-five years old
The cruel fate has sent me astray
My homeland, the Windy Mountain is left behind
We're desperate lot who lost their way

Chorus.

I had a mother and a father
They were very old
They were the parents of sixteen
Who sung of their loss like me

Edited by Millership on Dec 17th 2018 at 10:53:46 PM

9/10 This song makes me feel like I'm in the crowded market scene of a wuxia movie.

Health X Perturbator - Body/Prison

5/10. This song really wasn't interesting. The music video was more memorable than the song. The vocalist was boring and the music barely caught my attention.

Nomeansno - Oh No! Bruno

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2hoxPIfC8o

Edited by pointless233 on Dec 18th 2018 at 4:18:18 AM

7/10. Hardcore guitars combined with some exceptional lyrics about a NEET piece of shit and we have an exceptional hardcore punk track.

Pithoprakta by Iannis Xenakis

What I like about this 11-minutes long piece is its deceptively amorphous cacophony. What I don't like is that it's used just to unnerve the listener without palpable overarching narrative present, 2/5.

Akira Yamaoka - End of Small Sanctuary (Silent Hill 3 OST)

Edited by Millership on Dec 19th 2018 at 1:48:26 AM

9/10

Somber tune, very typical of silent hill. Guitars are great and remind me of early 90s Lush.

Desert Mountain Tribe - It's All Good

Edited by YouSitTightBuddy on Dec 20th 2018 at 3:51:26 AM

6/10. Pretty decent garage-esque metal piece.

Eternal Rhythm by Don Cherry

6.2/10 I guess it was good for what it was, but the sheer length probably doesn't make me want to seek it out. Also, the flutes hovered dangerously close to cacophony.

Peter Green - Loser Two Times

Smooth and funky Blues Rock piece, 5/5.

Dhafer Youssef - Fly Shadow Fly