Nur Ein 6: Round 0 Review

In the past I have usually ranked the songs I liked from favorite to least favorite. If I didn't do that I would usually just point to some of my favorite songs. Because I am the alternate judge on Nur Ein VI, I will be doing things a little differently. Niveous normally posts the judges scores & the totals over on the Song Fight forums without disclosing who gave what rankings to who. It was up to the judges to then post reviews if they wanted. I already sent my rankings to Niveous, but in the spirit of Nur Ein I will not be disclosing the exact rankings as I normally do. I still reviewed all the songs, so you should be able to get an idea of where you stood with me though.

I will also not be linking to my favorite songs, as I normally would. You will just have to read to figure out which I liked most, and then go download them from the Nur Ein website.

Round 0 songs have been uploaded and are available for free download. Let's review the challenge then get to my reviews:

Title: "First Blood"
Non-optional Challenge: Must Be Educational

Rabid Garfunkel - 1950's educational film meets carnival barker. Granted, being educational is part of the challenge, but it wasn't a good combo for me. Mostly because a carnival barker or announcer would have a lot more energy than this.

Embers Of Autumn - Congrats! All the boredom of a 5 minute song condensed into 2 minutes. I read your explanation though, and expect better from you in round 1. Bring it.

Jon Eric - K'inich Yax K'uk Mo'....Siyaj Chan K'awill II...Uaxaclajuun Ub'aah K'awiil...I can't read this shit, and have no idea if you're saying it right. So on top of a good song that fully meets the challenge, I have to give you bonus points just for trying to sing this...and doing a good job of it as well.

Billy's Little Trip - Dug the music, but didn't really feel it was all that educational. You're not the only one this round I felt that way about, and I didn't really take it into consideration much since nobody was getting eliminated this round. However...in future rounds where there will be eliminations...this sort of thing would have hurt you greatly. Oh, and I KNOW your vocals could have been better.

Frankie Big Face - This is the first song I listened to that really created a problem for me. I personally have a weak stomach for blood. Some people can't look at it...well I can't even talk & think about it without getting sick sometimes. I won't be explaining all this for each song that causes my stomach to churn...yours was just the first I happened to listen to (lucky you) & I felt I should explain it at least once. The music was a little slow for me personally, but it was good. The lyrics...well they turned my stomach. I'm not saying they're bad, but that's just my reaction to the topic. I'm trying not to hold that against you, and with time my rankings usually change a little. Allowing a song to sit, and coming back to it is generally a good thing. Nur Ein doesn't give the judges that opportunity though.

Merisan - I felt like using my pillowcase as a cape, and dancing with my broom. Fun & smart lyrics performed wonderfully by the vocalist. I expected vampire songs, but this exceeded expectations.

Adam Adamant - Nothing about this worked for me. You said it was rushed, and it really sounds like it. Lucky for you, everyone goes to round 1. Hopefully you're less rushed next round. Good luck.

Popmachine - As an alternate judge, I don't feel the need to follow the beaten path. I'm making my own rules... Rule #1 have lyrics. Rule #2 post lyrics in forum. Breaker of rules gets no reviews other than ranking.

Wreckdom - Mixed feelings here. It made me laugh, and I was hoping someone would do Rambo. But, until the end when the spoken parts came in it wasn't educational. I'm not saying you didn't meet the challenge, I'm just saying I didn't like how you decided to go about it. I think I'm harping on everyone who ended up using this approach.

Bram Tant - 3rd person I know of this round using the, "I found out late..." or "I didn't have time..." excuse. These excuses may all be valid, but I hope everyone knows the same excuse doesn't hold water in round 1. Like most people who were rushed...this didn't do much but depress me. Sorry Bram....now get started on round 1. Now, not in 5 minutes...right now. EVERYONE!

Ross Durand - During the first 2 verses I was starting to think that you're not such a nice guy. Then the 3rd verse started & I realized I'm a sick individual. I laughed, and this song is better than every Twilight movie that will ever be made. How do I know that? The same way I know Twilight sucks, but I haven't seen any of the movies.

Worldly Self Assurance - Read the Popmachine review up above.

DJ Ranger Den - Was reminded of computernerd01 parodies because a few lines were just so random. Overall I thought it was great that you tried something different, and it made me laugh.

John Kloberdanz - I enjoyed the harmonica. The music is a little more cheery than one might expect with this dark history lesson, but I still liked it a lot.

Boffo Yux Dudes - At first I didn't really get the first blood connection, but then read your comment on the board, and looked at the lyrics again. You clearly did have a connection, and it's a good thing because I liked the song. Have to admit I didn't care for the bridge or the ending, but this made me laugh while still being catchy.

Paco del Stinko - "To Virginia went" Aside from channeling Yoda in that line, this is another history lesson I found entertaining. This could have been a great song for a past SpinTunes challenge as well. (Secondary Historical Figures)

Glen Raphael - Really dug the music...felt funky. The hook was catchy, but in the end the spoken parts didn't do it for me.

Abbott & Hines - I like piano... More? Well...ok... The idea is alright, but it might not be a good topic for a contest like this. Let's face it, a lot of people could say it's fiction & not educational. I didn't really care for the vocal performances, and really had a tough time getting into this. I struggle to pay attention to my choir in church...but they probably would have held my attention more than this.

Manhattan Glutton - Forgive me for not knowing the difference between various types of drums, but the deeper sounding one I enjoyed while the other just annoyed me. I think you did an alright job in writing about something deeper while sticking to the educational bit.

Luke Henley - I got bored with the music, and looked to see how long was left around the 2 minute mark. I was shocked to see this had more than another 2 minutes to go. I wasn't a fan of the performance for the most part, especially when you sang "First comes blood"...but there were plenty of moments where I thought you needed some vocal help.