WALRUS SQUARED (feat. me and hellbooks)

[tris]

yeah . sorry i forgot to aknowledge what you were saying to me earlier. i wouldnt want to do it without you

[MUSHSHAGANA]

FWIW, I expect PMs about any new WALRUSes. I have my external now, I have realized I have typecast myself, and I'm going to fix it.

[shaft.ed]

So I think I'll be moving WALRUSMASTER into signups some time next week

in case people needed more WALRUS

I did the thing

https://forum.mafiascum.net/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=87108

come on over if you wanted to send more music links out into the ether

[tris]

sure

[tris]

NOON SATURDAY PDT

[tris]

(expired on 2021-07-10 11:59:59)

[shaft.ed]

aw, don't think I can make it

[hellbooks]

Closest I can recommend in sheer quality would be In Quantum - Memory 417, which is practically an hour long audio drama with less than a dozen lines, and is absolutely THRILLING for its entire runtime, but it's very much cyberpunk, not space.

listened and absolutely liked btw. thank you

[hellbooks]

i said it multiple times but over half of the points have yet to be given out so don't get too comfy in the lead over there schadd!

[tris]

i keep giving you second

[MUSHSHAGANA]

Judging by the scores, I either maximized enjoyment or maximized the catfit by succeeding in my attempt to come at it from a non-obvious direction.

[shaft.ed]

oh this was the piano one
sucks to miss it

[Cheetory6]

your submission fucking ruled, shaft.ed

[hellbooks]

Judging by the scores, I either maximized enjoyment or maximized the catfit by succeeding in my attempt to come at it from a non-obvious direction.

you struck fairly accurately at both for me at least

[shaft.ed]

your submission fucking ruled, shaft.ed

Taraf de Haidouks is awesome
I think I got a little carried away with hellbooks comment that 'it doesnt even have to be a real piano' though

[PJ.]

I put my weirdo piano entry here and my traditional piano entry in a different category cause I was told weird is better. Seems to have worked

[Chevre]

Judging by the scores, I either maximized enjoyment or maximized the catfit by succeeding in my attempt to come at it from a non-obvious direction.

gosh i loved your entry!

[Sirius9121]

damnnnnn

[shaft.ed]

Got a listen of the entries over discord. Really great breadth

don't know if it's my left earbud only, but the mixing on maison book girl is super overbearing on the drums. I think i'd really like it if it were more balanced
liked the king crimson a lot
really enjoyed how Mush's started piano and drifted into synths

i love the old tinny piano vibe where you can really hear the sound of the hammers hitting the strings.

cimbaloms rock like that

[tris]

oh hey, i should get the post up

[MUSHSHAGANA]

The intent of mine was to pick a song that used piano sparingly but which leaned on it so hard it totally changed the tone of the song.

[tris]

this one is ordered reversly from precident,

Spoiler: 12th Tori Amos - Icicle

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GI7hopIxzI
(hellbooks: 9th)
6.8

hellby

LIKE: 5.2 (4.1/5)
CATFIT: 1.8
UNFAMILIARITY: -0.1
SUSPECTED USER: if this isn't tris i'll eat my shorts
ACTUAL USER: BAM shorts safe -0.1

6.8

i like the piano quoting some wintery tunes and then veering rapidly into dissonance town and then just as suddenly back into calm. a single melodic line fluttering back and forth like the first snowflake of the season blowing back in forth by the wind. i like tori amos. this is a really patient song and it asks the same of me -- i think it took about the third listen until i was really appreciating it.

Spoiler: 11th maison book girl - karma

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzM1sKgk43E
(tris: T2nd)
10.6

hellby

this is my song

trish

2nd (tie) 9.3 cheetory? (oh its hellbooks) +1.3 = 10.6
epic percusiveness with this piano type instrument. and then other instruments act more like pianos than the piano is LOL.

Spoiler: 10th Roselia - 約束

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQS0LZfXRCs
(tris: 10th // hellbooks: 11th)
13.5

hellby

LIKE: 4.8 (3.9/5)
CATFIT: 1.2
UNFAMILIARITY: -0.2
SUSPECTED USER: sirius9121
ACTUAL USER: BAM -0.1

5.7

i like the piano as a solid supporting character here but i think it doesn't go too much beyond solid. i do like the symphonic character that it lends itself to. i like this band. i think if you submitted the song louder by them i would give you like a ridiculously high catfit like maybe even 2.6 and also a fairly high unfamiliarity penalty like maybe even -0.7. unfortunately that's all hypothetics

trish

7.9 is this sirius again? -.1 = 7.8
i liked the other one better, but also there were just so many good submissions in this, and this one was only decent.

Spoiler: 9th Fire Emblem Three Houses - Funeral of Flowers

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JdxDUGHp34Y
(tris: 4th // hellbooks: 10th)
15.7

hellby

LIKE: 5.2 (4.1 w.d.)
CATFIT: 1.5
UNFAMILIARITY: -0.2
SUSPECTED USER: caled jun
ACTUAL USER: BAM jun -0.1

6.5

kind of heartbreakingly i find myself weighed down by comparisons that i subconsciously make to the piano playing of the puzzle & dragons ost, behind which the piano in this song is much more obviously synthesized. that isn't to say it's bad in the slightest and i love the way i find it melodically interacting with the rest of the musical ideas in the soundtrack (you benefit from me having played this game here)

in addition you also dodge the additional unfamiliarity point because i think this seems to be from a route i haven't played (yet?)

trish

9.2 chevre (this is caled)
i'm not actually sure why im giving this as many points as i am.

Spoiler: 8th C418 - Mice on Venus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T5-faDLv1Vs
(tris: 11th // hellbooks: T3rd)
15.9

hellby

LIKE: 6.0 (4.5/5)
CATFIT: 2.4
UNFAMILIARITY: 0
SUSPECTED USER: schadd [i say furiously, pissed off beyond belief]
ACTUAL USER: CHEVRE ?!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

8.4 + 0.5 = 8.9

this is a 0 unfamiliarity with distinction: in particular i've played the game but just like Dont Listen To The Music Ever and am also rather broadly unfamiliar with anything past the foundations of the game. anyway the way it sort of drips in and then the piano suddenly scampers and it's like the cautious adventurousness of a little creature suddenly peeking into the light. it feels like being in a cozy underground safety place that then opens into this little underground city where everything is lit by candles and there's not snow on the ground but more like cave dust. this is fantastic. i would say most of my enjoyment is literally from the introductory section which i would place as just a totally beloved piece of music for me now.

catfit here owes a lot for the way the sound is placed under like the damper pedal -- i feel like i've never thought so deeply about the evocative potential for that sound and i think it's just like so huge. i'm literally emotional to this.

trish

7.0 caled (no it's chevre which would have been my first guess if i hadnt guessed elsewhere)
this is really good but i know it way too much im sorry ;(

Spoiler: 7th King Crimson - Cat Food

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmnqX4iNBpI
(tris: 7th // hellbooks: 7th)
16.1

hellby

LIKE: 5.4 (4.2/5)
CATFOOD: 2.4
UNFAMILIARITY: -0.1
SUSPECTED USER: davsto
ACTUAL USER: BAM -0.1

7.5

me 0 seconds in: oh great it's these guys again. me 3 seconds in: oh no this is like insanely good. me 13 seconds in: oh god that voice is a blast of cold air. a horse named cold air. anyway with that rollercoaster behind us, i think the severe panned frantic electric (in energy not in material) piano sounds should go without saying to be extraordinarily catfittously interesting. the piano literally dominates my attention here to the song's great benefit. even though i've listened to like four of their albums this is not really like anything i remember from them so i'll limit to -0.1 and even consider 0

trish

8.5 davsto -.1 = 8.4
i like it! it's a bit long. i like how the piano dinks around.

Spoiler: 6th Puzzle & Dragons BGM - Mion Descended

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0t2WkcqcXk
(tris: 8th // hellbooks: 6th)
16.2

hellby

LIKE: 5.7 (4.3 w.d.)
CATFIT: 2.2
UNFAMILIARITY: 0.1
SUSPECTED USER: hi isis!
ACTUAL USER: i still checked whether it was you out of respect -0.1

7.9

it feels like we're kind of eavesdropping on some enemy's normal life. like we're overhearing the person you're about to fight playing the piano and having fun because they don't know you're here yet. there's this idea where a lot of video games have electronic/synth based/clearly artificial instruments in their soundtracks (maybe sort of an acknowledgement that it's all a crafted experience) while my perceived authenticity of the piano sound here goes so far as to shatter that milieu and place me in a location as real as it is vivid. i really like this hesitant but resolute vibe here. i really like when the hands move into contrary moving chords and it feels like it adds conflict and tension to the narrative. as you can see by the length of this review this song was kind of hugely thought generating for me and that ended up factoring into the liking of it

trish

8.4 this has to be isis -.1 = 8.3
its cool; veers a little bit into territory of my brain being annoyed with it but not fully

Spoiler: 5th Taraf De Haidouks - Suita Maskarada

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywH1ethDv18
(tris: 5th // hellbooks: 8th)
16.4

hellby

LIKE: 5.5 (4.2 w.d.)
CATFIT: 1.8
UNFAMILIARITY: 0.1
SUSPECTED USER: shafted
ACTUAL USER: BAM -0.1

7.3

i love the old tinny piano vibe where you can really hear the sound of the hammers hitting the strings. catfittous for sure. it feels like the song is kind of rolling around and gathering slow shuddering momentum and then it just sort of pushes it out in one long but forceful breath. really exciting to experience every new instrumental presence which is almost counter catfitting because it kind of overwhelms my brain

trish

9.1 maybe this is hellbooks (this is shaft.ed)
this is just really cool and fun

Spoiler: 4th Haujobb - Nature's Interface

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95fXVuEVF0c
(tris: 6th // hellbooks: 5th)
16.9

hellby

LIKE: 5.4 (4.2/5)
CATFIT: 2.4
UNFAMILIARITY: 0.1
SUSPECTED USER: mushshagana
ACTUAL USER: BAM -0.1
PLAYLIST POINTS: 0.3

8.1

the piano does a really good jobb of opening up this vast space through which the evil noise bounces through like a tumbleweed in a long-since-ruined city.

but then we kind of zoomed in this seemingly abandoned location and in the cracks there's a small but thriving post-apocalyptic cyberpunk backdrop where all this dark machinous action is happening. i think the piano is especially interesting and memorable even though it takes a backseat for the rest of the song because of the huge contrast that it sets up. this seems like an album i'd really like. that's a really excellent and well executed take on the cat that i want to give a lot of points to!

playlist points first for making me add it to a playlist but for also making me want to start a new playlist with that as the centerpiece. (this is a task to revisit)

trish

8.9 MUSHSHSH -.1
cool!!! and wow, this is only getting 6th????? i love the meloncholy of this piano. really cool combos of sounds. like the ones that sound like something phasing in and out of reality.

Spoiler: 3rd Dan Deacon - Become a Mountain

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65Azywx1TfI
(tris: 9th // hellbooks: 1st)
19.2

hellby

LIKE: 6.2 (4.6/5)
CATFIT: 3
UNFAMILIARITY: -0.1
SUSPECTED USER: chevy
ACTUAL USER: KEELY??????????
MEDAL FOR GRAND SLAM: this is a grand slam.

9.1 + 2.0 = 11.1

i've listened to dan deacon before but this one's new despite being on an album that was vaguely on my radar around when it came out. this song is fantastic. the piano both feels like challenging this massive verticality which makes me visualize a mountain, like it's piercing upwards. i think the enormous visual and narrative power of the piano here demands a grand slam. especially the building section "right here is right now (?)" feels so different when it's the piano bouncing around in the beginning vs this really tight vibrating building line where the song builds. when it starts buzzing and getting louder i literally get chills up my spine.

then those electric string and bleeding brass noises make it feel like we've breached the peak and can see for miles. this is absolutely gorgeous. i loved this submission. this was literally amazing. i loved this.

trish

8.0 shaft.ed (this is cheetory6)
kinda sounds like the davsto submission from wandering lol. something isn't clicking here but its good.

Spoiler: 2nd Midori - かなしい日々。

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_mkzT0TPSQ
(tris: T2nd // hellbooks: T3rd)
19.5

hellby

LIKE: 5.6 (4.3/5)
CATFIT: 2.8
UNFAMILIARITY: 0
SUSPECTED USER: pj
ACTUAL USER: BAM -0.1
PLAYLIST POINTS: 0.1

8.4 + 0.5 = 8.9

the closely and flatly mixed piano (it sounds very "upright") provides a tight, thudding lifeline to grab onto to while you swing through this dense foliage of sound. it also provides a lot of melodic forward momentum and it works in perfect tandem with the bass line. it's phenomenal. uh this is really good btw. this definitely hits the awestruck feeling of witnessing a really great and creative? interpretation of the cat. i would say it's just like a better version of my attempt at scrounging up an interesting take on it. i was kind of taken aback by the way it ends (sorry that just soudns like i'm dissing TWIE the scummer) but it's still all really really good

i added this to a playlist for staying awake

trish

2nd (tie) 9.4 pj -.1 +1.3 = 10.6
slam on that piano YEAH!! the energy is great and its all good.

Spoiler: 1st Luedji Luna - Lençóis

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37Cz6Xe9HMQ
(tris: 1st // hellbooks: 2nd)
21.4

hellby

LIKE: 6.5 (4.7 w.d.)
CATFIT: 2.0
UNFAMILIARITY: 0
SUSPECTED USER: keely maybe
ACTUAL USER: SCHADD!!!!!! [shakes fist] if it werent for the MINECRAFT MUSIC i would have instaclicked you

8.5 + 1.4 = 9.9

i think the darkly instrumented vibe is so powerful that i was shocked when the singer came in, like the instrumental intro already felt to me like 100 percent of the components to a song. this is phenomenal. this has a really sleek bite to it. i mean all of the instruments are openly brilliant and thickly sentimental. the drums are so pleasantly and tightly mixed. the brass continues to shock me multiple listens in. this is an URGENT listen. absolutely brilliant submission.

i'm going to give you a respectably high but not groundbreakingly high catfit here -- i think like it provides a strong and consistent foundation for which other instruments arrange themselves around very evocatively.

trish

1st 9.6 schadd -.1 +2 = 11.5
good!

[tris]

oh no i left out the neat colorful banners

[MUSHSHAGANA]

For Hellbooks:

If you liked that general style, check out the Haujobb album New World March alongside Solutions for a Small Planet. In hindsight, NWM feels like a response to SfaSP.

And don't listen to Blendwerk until you've fallen in love with everything else under the Haujobb name (there's a lot to love), it's a very emotional album that will be wasted on you if you don't already appreciate the fuck out of the band.

[tris]

this weekend will be skipped