Battle of the beats 2006 - I: reviews by Contayjen

Dark Side by Terra-Rise: 67 - Interesting sounds,

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Submitted by Contayjen on Sat, 2006-03-04 16:04.

67 - Interesting sounds, good atmosphere.  Ahh, I recognise that reece from the last BotB.  Waiting for the drop...seems to be taking ages.  Hmm,
that drum fade in seemed to take the power out of the drop.  Maybe if they were hp'd before they would drop better.  Drums seem a touch too in
the back.  Great dark vibe though, nice selection of sounds and melodies and that is one evil sounding bassline.  The first track I am listening too
and I can see its a contender.  Production and arrangement are pretty good except for the drums imo.


Analog Vibe by DOME: 59 - Cool intro, and it

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Submitted by Contayjen on Sat, 2006-03-04 16:05.

59 - Cool intro, and it kicks off hard, liking this already.  Heavy old skool groove.  Good atmospheres in the back.  The arrangement keeps it
interesting, though it could have ended 45s earlier.  Phat sounds overall though, production is pretty sweet.


cryptic by crank: 68 - Melodic drumfunk, there

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Submitted by Contayjen on Sat, 2006-03-04 15:46.

68 - Melodic drumfunk, there is only one person this can be.  Tight drumwork as usual, top notch production too, I always admire the tone of your drums, especialy the snares.  Hats are crisp and its all punchy.  Track gets better from half way though.  Great to chill out and drift away to...


Voice club by DMJ A.K.A Jossi: 71 - Starts like its going

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Submitted by Contayjen on Sat, 2006-03-04 16:08.

71 - Starts like its going to be a hip-hop tune...but that drop is massive.  Certainly a huge sound, voice is cool.  Lots of cool elements but I feel some parts don't work melodically together.  Powerful groove though, and original.


Gooness knows by King_Louis: 66 - Cool intro to this one

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Submitted by Contayjen on Sat, 2006-03-04 16:08.

66 - Cool intro to this one too.  Drums seem too filtered for me at the start, they leaving some space in the mix.  They sounds alright later on though when the other sounds come in though.  I like the groove and the bassline, good changeups and fills too, lots of cool sounds. Great track, I liked it.


stalagtitus by Moonbird: 61 - Nice atmospheres, snare

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Submitted by Contayjen on Sat, 2006-03-04 15:48.

61 - Nice atmospheres, snare seems a bit clappy, interesting use of woodblock sounds for atmosphere, works though.  I like the extra percussion
hits.  The basic drum pattern doesn't really change much though, I reckon some more variation would help it.


migraine (remix) by mabus: 65 - Mixed emotions in the

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Submitted by Contayjen on Sat, 2006-03-04 15:53.

65 - Mixed emotions in the intro, a dark throbbing sound and some mellow pads, cant tell if it'll be dark and heavy or a chillout tune.  When the
drums kick in fully it has a tight and heavy groove but the melody is lacking.  Better when the synths come in.  Cool filtered bass sounds.  Ripped
or home made?  That rhythm again, the groove sounds very rigid, like quick marching, rather then dancing.  Sounds and production are solid
though.


The Harmony by Vex: 64 - Hmm, trip-hop start,

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Submitted by Contayjen on Sat, 2006-03-04 15:52.

64 - Hmm, trip-hop start, sounds cool, good strong sub there.  Quite freaky jazz vibe....ah, the drop.  Thats a nasty reece, backed up by a jungle
rhythm section...lol, why the sudden breakdown?...lol..ah, back in again.  Interesting arrangement, maybe some buildups are needed to announce
the different sections.  Gets a bit samey going back and forth between the same 2 sections, perhaps adding another instrument into a couple of
them would make it better.  Lots of good ideas, but needs a little bit extra to sound finished.


Troddin to Cha by ManFromZion: 69 - Jazzy drumfunk.  Bass

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Submitted by Contayjen on Sat, 2006-03-04 15:57.

69 - Jazzy drumfunk.  Bass is very heavy on the sub in this mix, it all seems to be at the bottom end.  Nice solid chilled jungle feel.  Not too sure about the bass riff starting at 3:55.  This tune seemed to lack direction towards the end.


The new world by Dj Obscure: 72 - Hmm, I really don't

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Submitted by Contayjen on Sat, 2006-03-04 16:08.

72 - Hmm, I really don't like this style at all.  Those clashing jazzy chords don't do it for me and the bass melody is quite clownsteppy.  Solid groove and production but maybe a bit too much like speed garage for my liking with the old skool reece.  I don't like the vocals and they seem to clash with some of the pads. Carries on a bit too long.


Nightmare Sonata by Tedd-Z: 62 - Not too keen on the

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Submitted by Contayjen on Sat, 2006-03-04 16:03.

62 - Not too keen on the choice of circus synth in the 1st section.  The drum loop needs more variation as it repeats without changing.  The bass
sound is heavy but the melody is simplistic and it gets a bit muddy.  Some more control over the release would help tighten it up I think.  The
vocoded voice sample is cool.  The piano adds an interesting melodic touch which I like.  There is a gritty sound in there too which I like.  Some more music variation wouldn't go amiss as it is very simple with one melody for almost all the parts.  This shows a 'copy and paste' form of composing.