Here we are again with round two of Battle of The Songs. We are getting closer to the final four which will be announced at the LocalPalooza tomorrow by OneTake. This was so much fun to be a part of, and I myself found so many new artists to add to My Favorites Playlist, which you can find at the bottom of this once the blog is finished. As a judge these are my honest opinions and doesn't discredit anyone as a musician. With that being said lets dive into our first battle of the night!
GridIron - Wretched Earth VS TRENCHRAT - Encrypted
GridIron 1st Listen: I absolutely love the opening to the song, it has such a strong transition into the first verse. The guitars start off pretty solid then slowly the impact of the drums hits you which then thrusts you into the lyrics. It is honestly such a good song, and one that I have to add to My Favorites playlist. Be a perfect song to jam to when you are working out!
TRENCHRAT 1st Listen: On the first listen I had a really hard time trying to distinguish each individual artist. It seemed to be drown out by the drums, and I focused solely on the quality of the mix. I thought it wouldn't be my cup of tea, because I was more concerned of the quality.
GridIron 2nd listen: This song definitely goes hard! It starts off beautifully like an A Day To Remember song, but as soon as the drums comes in you know it's going to be much, much more heavier. It has strong harsh vocals (still distinguishing the different types of vocals) that match perfectly with the instrumentals. It's a song that I would blare while making some chocolate chip pancakes. Phenomenal breakdown and just an overall BANGER!
TRENCHRAT 2nd listen: This time around I was able to focus solely on the capability of each musician. The drums immediately set the tone for the song, and it was pretty epic. The thrash of the guitar really made a statement that led into the vocals. Now I want to say this was a mid vocal fry? It honestly isn't my taste in music, like at all but I have mad respect for the musicians. I do believe the song could have been done a lot better, and that I could actually understand the lyrics.
WINNER OF ROUND 2:
GRIDIRON- WRETCHED EARTH
I chose this song, because this is my kind of music. This is a song that I could jam daily, doing the most mundane things. GridIron is just one of those bands that I truly love to listen to and Wretched Earth is a BANGER!
Who do you think won????
Tea With Titans - Serenity VS LABOR XII - Phoenix Dark
Tea With Titans 1st Listen: Wow!! Great vocals, with outstanding instrumentals that flow into the story of the song. The opening is like the start of a fight scene in one of the animes I am currently watching. Ezra vs Ezra, who will overpower the other? If you haven't watched Fairy Tail you wouldn't know what I'm talking about. It's an epic fight scene that seems to lead into Serenity.
Labor XII 1st Listen: Alright I think we are going with the anime fight scene theme tonight lol. This song starts off smoothly with perfect harmony from the Lead and Rhythm guitar. This song fits Natsu's persona like to a T. This fight scene is unfolding in front of my eyes as I listen to the lyrics, the beautiful harmony of each musician. I rather enjoy this song, and the visuals it's giving me.
Tea With Titans 2nd Listen: Alright, lets focus on the actual music at hand and not the anime scenes that come to mind. I love the way the clean vocals hit as the first verse approaches. The story that they have to tell just completely unfolds, and those vocal frys (right?) are on point as the song progresses. The instrumentals begin to become heavier and then slowly eases up as the lead vocals transitions back to cleans. You can feel the emotion just radiating through the music.
Labor XII 2nd Listen: Focusing on the MUSIC! Seriously in love with the first initial riffs at the start of the song, it just sets the entire tone for the music. The more I listen to this song the more images that dance in front of my eyes, causing a whole music video to unfold. The imagery in this song is just insane and it sends me back to when I was younger. The music we use to blast while playing Runescape. Just this song goes hard, and it is definitely one of my favorites.
WINNER OF ROUND 2:
LABOR XII - PHOENIX DARK (DIRK)
Argh! This was a really difficult one! Considering I love both of these bands and listen to them every chance I get. Let's just say in this round Natsu finally beats Ezra, he has fully become a dragon that was born from the ashes. The imagery was phenomenal in each song, and both had their strong points, but Phoenix Dark spoke out more to me. The imagery wasn't just from me watching an anime before writing this, but it was there when I wrote the original.
Who do you think won??
The Gods Have Failed - Atomic Death VS Divided Me - Void
The Gods Have Failed 1st Listen: The opening of this song reminds me hardcore of Street Fighter. The speed metal feel to it mixed with that vocal fry.....low vocal fry? Okay enough of that terminology until I can fully learn the right terms for it. I loved that YEAH that threw us right into the first verse. It's a pretty nice thrash metal feel to it which goes well with the overall aesthetic of the song.
Divided Me 1st Listen: This band always has the most unique openings to their songs. The harsh vocals set the entire vibe of the song with the cleans coming in with perfect harmony. They just harmonize so well, and the instrumentals give this like BIG BOSS feel to it. I absolutely love this song!
The Gods Have Failed 2nd Listen: I rather enjoy those riffs that start the song off! This song is definitely one of my favorites from these guys! It's a song that you want to blast on your Bluetooth speaker rather then have it in headphones, you can't appreciate it as well. I'm also a person who prefers to listen to their music louder so that's just my preference. I think some things that could set it apart a little more would be to maybe make it a wee bit heavier in some parts.
Divided Me 2nd Listen: I don't know exactly what it is with my obsession of fight scenes tonight, but holy hell would list be a good one! Maybe it's the instrumentals that is setting the tone of the music and then the way the harsh vocalist is coming in. The female vocals just ties it in together like in a Nightwish song. It is mystical and just beautiful! The lyrics are powerful with the emotions seeping through each artist. The instrumentals are just insane! Just picture the void with me, what do you see? The escape from something that is impossible to leave. It's as if you are fighting against your own demons, your own past. We can either drown or push through its clutches. It's a powerful song with LOTS of imagery, and can I say that BLEGH is a chef's kiss?
WINNER OF ROUND 2:
DIVIDED ME - VOID
Both artists were great and had their strengths, but Void took the cake on this one. Those visuals on this one song alone were just beyond powerful. I personally LOVE Divided Me and this song has become one of my favorites. The emotion that this song invoked in me, is enough for me to crown them as the winner.
Who do you think won??
Soothsayer - T.I.O.F VS Horrid Demise - Bludgeoned
Beyond Recognition
Soothsayer 1st Listen: The opening is melodic and calming even as the vocalist comes in with the first verse. Then BAM! it gets super heavy creating this very unique and distinctive sound. You can feel the emotion as the song continues, it just pours out of them and into the music. I also love the fact you can hear the distinctive vocal of their feature Matthew Reese.
Horrid Demise 1st Listen: This song has a very strong opening that goes straight into the guttural vocals. These guys give me major horror movie or riot vibes. I love the BLEGH that they throw in there and the guitars are sick!
Soothsayer 2nd Listen: That melodic opening is just so appeasing to the ears and they way that it transitions into the first verse is just perfection. Then that drop in the rhythm and lead guitars fully plumbite you into the song. The drums are incredibly powerful which correlates into the vocals that radiate with raw emotion. The lyrics have such a powerful meaning! This is another song that has powerful imagery. You can also tell the transition from one vox to the other. Beautifully done!
Horrid Demise 2nd Listen: Zombie apocalypse anthem? Like I can see myself blasting this when we are head to head with gnarly looking zombies. The guitars and the vocals are insane!! They are super heavy and the visual is strong. I do rather enjoy this song, but I have to be in a certain mood to jam it. It is not my type of music to have on repeat whenever I'm working or being a mom. It doesn't really invoke the right emotions for me. Maybe to kick some ass or workout too.
WINNER OF ROUND 2!
SOOTHSAYER - T.I.O.F
This was honestly another hard battle, because I do enjoy both bands. I loved finding my new zombie fighting anthem, but Soothsayer hit a home run with T.I.O.F. Metalcore is definitely more up my alley, when it comes to the music I listen to, but it also comes down to the lyrics. The way the lyrics spoke to me in T.I.O.F is basically something that I'm saying to myself and to the world. Between the unique instrumentals, the tone of the song, the lyrics, it was easy to say who was going to win here. Soothsayer invoked the right emotion from me.
Who do you think won??
If you enjoy reading these please leave a comment about what you want me to write about next. Soon there will be blogs about the places I traveled to this summer and the amazing people I have met along the way. As always I appreciate the support! Till then I will catch you on the flip-side :)
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