Division A 9 Seed- Harlem Shakes
Division A 8 Seed- Asteroid Galaxy Tour
Votes are due by Friday, June 3rd at 8 pm EST. Play-in matches are done, and that means the moment we’ve all been waiting for has finally arrived. Day 1 of Round 1 of the Round of 256. For your listening pleasure to kick things off, we’ve got everything from the theme song to that Heineken commercial to some good ole’ fashioned
Mississippi Delta blues to Bronx-raised Muslim rapping duo Camp Lo. And five more goodies. There’s been some grumbling about the music thus far, but I think think is a pretty solid octet to get us kicked off.
Grooveshark link is here, votes are due by Friday, June 3rd at 8 pm EST. As opposed to the last tournament, we are slowing down the pace and only keeping one match-up live at a time, so the next match-ups will be posted Friday along with the results of this one (admittedly, I am shocked that even between Nos and I that we stayed on schedule that entire five month period. That said, I know that our places of employment and girlfriends will be happy with this decision.) In addition, we are going to start transitioning Lindsay in to help us with posts, so look for her debut this weekend.
Vote by commenting on this post or by e-mailing LTDdotorg@gmail.com. Best of luck to all songs. Friends, let’s make some f-ing magic.
Division A 12 Seed- The Animals
#1 Dance Yrself Clean (LCD Soundsystem) vs. #16 Ghostwriter (RJD2)
#8 The Golden Age (The Asteroids Galaxy Tour) vs. #9 Strictly Game (Harlem Shakes)
#4 Grits Ain’t Groceries (Little Milton) vs. #13 Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli)
#5 Luchini (Camp Lo) vs. #12 Gonna Send You Back to Walker (The Animals)
Living the Dream 
So, after the play-ins, I was planning on making a 5 an average song, but after listening, I’ve had raise the bar because these songs are fantastic. Great job guys!
(Here’s the basic rubric I used–if this helps anyone new, feel free to use it.)
4=Average
5= Good
6= Really Good
7= Great
8= Simply Fantastic
9= Exceptional
10= Perfect
Dance Yrself Clean (LCD Soundsystem) 8.0
Ghostwriter (RJD2) 7.5
The Golden Age (The Asteroids Galaxy Tour) 6.0
Strictly Game (Harlem Shakes) 8.0
Grits Ain’t Groceries (Little Milton) 6.0
Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli) 5.0
Luchini (Camp Lo) 4.5
Gonna Send You Back to Walker (The Animals) 4
After the play-in I was a little nervous but this round is awesome. Great kick off. I will also use something like Grant’s scale where 4 = average, because the bar is higher. And really there’s not much that’s below average here.
Dance Yrself Clean (LCD Soundsystem) 9.5
Ghostwriter (RJD2) 9
There are times when my reaction to a song on the radio is, “Holy shit, I must know what this is immediately.” And a surprising amount of time it is LCD Soundsystem. This song is a case in point. I don’t know that I’ve heard the RJD2 song but it’s also super solid in a similar way.
The Golden Age (The Asteroids Galaxy Tour) 5.5
Strictly Game (Harlem Shakes) 10
I submitted this Harlem Shakes song, and maybe it’s a little tacky to lead with a 10 for my own horse, but this song, at this time of year, is utterly a 10 for me. The Harlem Shakes are the first band that I got truly excited about in years–in that giddy way that doesn’t happen that much once you’re out of college. And when I hear this song now, on the first day of June… it still makes me a little giddy. I could write an essay about this song and this band, but I’ll just say it’s meant a lot to me in some good times and in some bad. I do also, however, think it’s an objectively great song and I hope you enjoy it.
Grits Ain’t Groceries (Little Milton) 4
Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli) 6.5
Luchini (Camp Lo) 3.5
Gonna Send You Back to Walker (The Animals) 4
awesome song choice
seconded! thanks for the intro…love it
I’m glad you guys like it!
Dance Yrself Clean (LCD Soundsystem) 2.5
Ghostwriter (RJD2) 7.5
I love the little synth solo in the first few minutes of the LCD song. Made me nostalgic for old school nintendo games. If the song stopped at 3:07, I would’ve given it a 6.5 (in fact I did preemptively enter that)…the remaining 6 minutes just went straight downhill and hit a tree. I *think* Ghostwriter is the first instrumental song (i’m not counting the humming and stuff as lyrical) I’ve seen in one of these tournaments. I just got back from a 3 hour meeting and this was a perfect chill song to sit down to. Not sure if fatigue will set in if it makes it for future rounds, but for now me likey.
The Golden Age (The Asteroids Galaxy Tour) 8
Strictly Game (Harlem Shakes) 8
I’m not sure how I would even describe the sound of the golden age to someone, but i love it. Also loving the upbeat, yet sad sound of strictly game. I can’t pick a winner here. Thanks to whoever picked both of these songs!
Grits Ain’t Groceries (Little Milton) 6.5
Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli) 7
Had a little trouble changing gears into the old timey/blue brothers feel of Groceries, but I came around after a minute or so. The beginning of Chemist Suite made me think of Walk This Way, but then it got all funky. Groovy. Kind of made me think of the soundtrack to interstate 76 a bit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VKBXcxL5hc8
Luchini (Camp Lo) 6
Gonna Send You Back to Walker (The Animals) 5
I usually don’t like hiphop/rap. I don’t know if it’s the sophisticated sample they are using in the background or what, but I like Luchini. I think I’m having a similar problem shifting gears to the Animals as I had with Little Milton…good song, but timing was unfortunate.
HOT DAMN that was a great round.
I’m so excited to get into the real songs for the tournament. Today is especially great because I don’t think I’d ever heard any of these songs before.
#1 Dance Yrself Clean (LCD Soundsystem) vs. #16 Ghostwriter (RJD2) 6.5/7
I was really digging the first 3 mins or so of Dance. It lost me for a little bit in the middle. I was leaning towards 8 or 9ish in the first few mins, but I got worn out by the length of this baby.
#8 The Golden Age (The Asteroids Galaxy Tour) vs. #9 Strictly Game (Harlem Shakes) 6/7
#4 Grits Ain’t Groceries (Little Milton) vs. #13 Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli) 5/5.5
#5 Luchini (Camp Lo) vs. #12 Gonna Send You Back to Walker (The Animals) 6/8
Dance Yrself Clean 7.5
Ghostwriter 6.5
Ghostwriter manages to be engaging and tell some sort of story without any words. That’s pretty cool. DYC is new to me and fun but the length drew the margin between these two closer than it started for me.
The Golden Age 6.8
Strictly Game 8.8
Damn I like this song, lyrically, instrumentally, all of it. Golden Age is fun enough but I can roll with these Harlem Shakes guys. This works.
Grits Ain’t Groceries 7.2
Cut Chemist Suite 7.6
Funky funk!
Luchini 5.8
Gonna Send You Back To Walker 7.4
Ugh when I was a freshman in college I used to spend a lot of time hanging out with a buddy in the Hinman river dorm, listening to Luchini, and drinking amaretto straight. What a really cool thing to do- I think that might have messed this up for me. But I like this Animals song! Head boppers are good.
did you live in Hinman? I didn’t remember that. Hinman was awesome and now it is gone.
#1 Dance Yrself Clean (LCD Soundsystem) 5 vs. #16 Ghostwriter (RJD2) 5
Sorry Janos, but I find Dance Yrself Clean to be endlessly frustrating, not because it’s a bad song, but because it’s so similar to, but not nearly as rich as “Home” off the same album. I desperately want this track to be something it’s not, which I realize is unfair, but that’s what James Murphy gets for recycling the ah-AHHHHHH riff along with several other elements from Home.
Ghostwriter is really catchy except that it doesn’t really go…anywhere. It falls into the category of good movie montage sequence soundtrack.
For Home video (which is great to watch as well as to listen to) see:
#8 The Golden Age (The Asteroids Galaxy Tour) 6 vs. #9 Strictly Game (Harlem Shakes) 4
Thanks Heineken for hijacking this otherwise pretty fun song. I just can’t bring myself to give an advertising jingle a good score though.
#4 Grits Ain’t Groceries (Little Milton) 7 vs. #13 Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli) 4
#5 Luchini (Camp Lo) 6 vs. #12 Gonna Send You Back to Walker (The Animals) 6
Dance Yrself Clean (LCD Soundsystem) 4
Ghostwriter (RJD2) 7.5
The Golden Age (The Asteroids Galaxy Tour) 7.5
Strictly Game (Harlem Shakes) 6.5
Grits Ain’t Groceries (Little Milton) 4.5
Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli) 5
Luchini (Camp Lo) 4
Gonna Send You Back to Walker (The Animals) 4.5
#1 Dance Yrself Clean (LCD Soundsystem) vs. #16 Ghostwriter (RJD2) 10/6
#8 The Golden Age (The Asteroids Galaxy Tour) vs. #9 Strictly Game (Harlem Shakes) 7.5/6.5
#4 Grits Ain’t Groceries (Little Milton) vs. #13 Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli) 7/6.5
#5 Luchini (Camp Lo) vs. #12 Gonna Send You Back to Walker (The Animals) 4.5/7.5
4=Average
5= Good
6= Really Good
7= Great
8= Simply Fantastic
9= Exceptional
10= Perfect
Dance Yrself Clean (LCD Soundsystem) 4
Ghostwriter (RJD2) 5
I can’t figure out when I’d listen to this LCD track. It’s fine for me but nothing special, so…average on this scale. If I could cut out the first 3 mins then it would be much more repeatable. Ghostwriter is funky but still ‘just’ ‘good’.
The Golden Age (The Asteroids Galaxy Tour) 6
Strictly Game (Harlem Shakes) 9
First time I’ve heard Golden Age…liked it right away which is unusual. Also my first time hearing Strictly Game (this is getting even more unusual…) and I REALLY loved it. Such a great track…I was hoping this tournament would be good for finding new music…awesome. I just bought the album.
Grits Ain’t Groceries (Little Milton) 2
Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli) 3
Neither of these do anything for me at all.
Luchini (Camp Lo) 3
Gonna Send You Back to Walker (The Animals) 4
Hmmm…..neither do these, unfortunately. I think I’ve been blinded by Harlem Shakes…
DYC is great running music! Especially for kicking off a long run. I was considering trying it in place of my established race kick-off song, which is You! Me! Dancing! by Los campesinos, because it has a similar slow build to an awesome beat, which helps you reign yourself in but is still motivating. But it’s a little too chill.
I’m glad you like that Harlem Shakes song. It’s a great record, too, one of my favorites and especially great for summer.
You’re my new hero.
Also love that Los Campesinos track…
Budweiser commercial…wondered who that was. los campesinos is now in my library 🙂
Dance Yrself Clean (LCD Soundsystem) 5.5
Ghostwriter (RJD2) 6
I like DYC but its too just too damn long. Plus, it makes me think about how much I would have LOVED to see a song by the Foals in this tournament. Ghostwriter is a great driving song, but not much beyond that. This was a weird matchup for me….both are cool ideas that got boring after a couple minutes and would likely be 10 times better live than sitting at your desk with cheap-ass ipod headphones.
The Golden Age (The Asteroids Galaxy Tour) 8.5
Strictly Game (Harlem Shakes) 8
I was most excited about this tournament because it meant getting to picture all the people voting (who I don’t know) grooving to these songs and why they shared what they did. Listening to the music someone loves, without knowing them really, is an awesome way to learn about someone. And I want to be friends with the people who submitted these two songs because they are probably just as fun as the songs are. I’m giving the edge to TAG, but only because I like the girl’s voice a little bit more, but I definitely plan on checking out the Harlem Shakes. What a great matchup!
Sidenote: I love how all these songs are current…The last tournament was awesome but I felt like Nostalgia was taking precedent over actual song quality sometimes.
Grits Ain’t Groceries (Little Milton) 6
Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli) 6.5
I have a soft spot for blues like Little Milton’s. The horn lines are sweet too. I guess just like slow blues more though and found myself wanting this song to have a little more mmph behind it, rather than rushing through (see Bill Withers for a counter example http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qv5pagal-ls and yes that is where No Diggity comes from)
Love Ozomatli, love cut chemist, but it sounds like a song in a Vince Vaughn movie (which is probably not their fault). Chali2Na (is it him?) does save this song though with that voice
Luchini (Camp Lo) 4
Gonna Send You Back to Walker (The Animals) 3
This Camp Lo song has a good loop, but as any Outkast song proves, you need more to make a good hip hop song. Plus, Camp Lo’s best thing they’ve ever done was joining Will Smith’s Big Willie Style on the track Yes Yes Y’all. Pure 90s Genius.
Dance Yourself Clean (LCD Soundsystem): 5
Ghostwriter (RJD2): 9
This race would have been a nail-biter if DYC weren’t soooo long. There’s a reason most songs are 3-5 minutes. Also, yes, there is such a thing as too much synthesizer. Ghostwriter – that whole RJD2 album really – is still one of my alltime favorites.
The Golden Age (The Asteroids Galaxy Tour): 8
Strictly Game (Harlem Shakes): 5
Wow. I LOVE the Golden Age. I’d heard it on the radio a bunch but never downloaded it. The Harlem Shakes song was a little schizophrenic for me. I kept wanting to like it more, but then I’d lose the rhythm and it would annoy me.
Grits Ain’t Groceries (Little Milton): 4
Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli): 6.5
Luchini (Camp Lo) 4
Gonna Send You Back to Walker (The Animals) 4
Neither of these was doing much for me.
#1 Dance Yrself Clean (LCD Soundsystem) vs. #16 Ghostwriter (RJD2) 7.5/2.5
#8 The Golden Age (The Asteroids Galaxy Tour) vs. #9 Strictly Game (Harlem Shakes) 9.3/5.5
#4 Grits Ain’t Groceries (Little Milton) vs. #13 Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli) 6/8.6
#5 Luchini (Camp Lo) vs. #12 Gonna Send You Back to Walker (The Animals) 10.0/3/5
Mark B, you listen to this LCD song any time, but it’s especially perfect when you’re trying to rally for a Friday night out after a long work week, or a Saturday night after a bruising Saturday morning hangover. It eases you into its energy, and then it explodes. And the eight minutes give you time to get your things together. Where’s that cellphone? Did you remember your keys? Vitamin Water bottle full of red wine? Ok, out the door!
The great artists of all time knew when to exhibit patience in their songwriting- think “Won’t Get Fooled Again”, “Time”, “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” or “Patience”.
Dance Yourself Clean: 10
Ghostwriter: 4 It’s a pretty song, but come on. This is a tournament.
The Golden Age: 9.2 I am jazzed someone nominated this, and I have to take the opposite tack from Jacob. I don’t like Heineken, but the combination of this song and that stellar commercial almost made me want to drink it. Almost. Do you know that beer distributors have a self-regulating pact to not show people actually drinking beer in their commercials?
Strictly Game: 7.3 I went back and listened a second time after an initial 6. This song could grow on me.
Grits Ain’t Groceries: 5
Cut Chemist Suite: 8.3 First of all, “The members of the band met through their affiliation with the Peace and Justice Center of Los Angeles, and their first performance was for picketers during a strike. ” That is pretty rad. Second, I had no idea multiple Jurassic 5 members were in a previous group. Great nomination.
Luchini: 2.5…make it stop…
Gonna Send You Back to Walker: 6 Not the best Animals song, but considerably better than its opponent.
I did the same thing with Strictly Game, going back and listening to it another 2 times…a tournament first for me.
I’ve relistened to it too, and would like to raise my score (though not as high as Golden Age, which is just great)… but vote is bond
Dance Yrself Clean (LCD Soundsystem) 4.5
Ghostwriter (RJD2) 8.9
DYC is fun, but not 9 minutes fun.
Pandora has been playing Ghostwriter for me alot lately. I heard this song quite a few times before I realized it was RJ from Soul Position, which is one of my favorite hip hop duos. Instrumental hip hop is one of my favorite genres, even though most people would consider it an oxymoron. If you like this, check out Cut Chemist, Thievery Corporation, Random Rab or Gare du Nord.
The Golden Age (The Asteroids Galaxy Tour) 7.8
Strictly Game (Harlem Shakes) 7.9
Love that Swing Hop!
Harlem Shakes are solid too! Super contemporary sounding, dig their drumwork.
Grits Ain’t Groceries (Little Milton) 7.2
Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli) 10
Solid song from Little Milton. Dig those horns. Lots of energy.
Cut Chemist Suite is the song that got me into hip hop. , and I’ve been a b-boy ever since. They’re so LA, so talented, so funky, they give me the chills, and they just make me want to dance.
Luchini (Camp Lo) 6.7
Gonna Send You Back to Walker (The Animals) 5.9
Finally putting the names to these artists and songs. Enjoyed both, not blown away by either.
Wow, REALLY enjoyed the music today. I’m looking forward to this tournament so much more now after we got past that painful play-in round…
Dance Yrself Clean (LCD Soundsystem): 9
Ghostwriter (RJD2): 6
The Golden Age (The Asteroids Galaxy Tour): 5.5
Strictly Game (Harlem Shakes): 5
Grits Ain’t Groceries (Little Milton): 5.5
Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli): 6.5
Luchini (Camp Lo): 5
Gonna Send You Back to Walker (The Animals): 6
Glad to be part of the voting public:
Dance Yrself Clean (LCD Soundsystem): 6
Ghostwriter (RJD2): 4
The Golden Age (The Asteroids Galaxy Tour): 6
Strictly Game (Harlem Shakes): 5
Grits Ain’t Groceries (Little Milton): 5.5
Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli): 5
Luchini (Camp Lo): 4
Gonna Send You Back to Walker (The Animals): 4.5
Dance Yrself Clean (LCD Soundsystem) vs. Ghostwriter (RJD2) = 3 to 5
LCD, sorry, I prefer my minimalist music to be truly minimal, not just repetitive.
RJD2, nice turntableism, but didn’t evoke any emotions for me.
The Golden Age (The Asteroids Galaxy Tour) vs. Strictly Game (Harlem Shakes) = 5.5 to 5.5
Gotta say, I enjoyed this song in the Heineken commercial. I hadn’t heard it before.
Harlem Shakes, pretty good lyrics.
Grits Ain’t Groceries (Little Milton) vs. Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli) = 4 to 3
Luchini (Camp Lo) vs. Gonna Send You Back to Walker (The Animals) = 9 to 6.5
Quite a stomper from the Animals, unfortunately it had to go up to a superior song.
#1 Dance Yrself Clean (5.5) vs. #16 Ghostwriter (9.5)
I feel like I need to see Dance Yrself Clean played at a party before I can properly evaluate it. A lot of LCD feels emotionally distant to me. And they’re minimalist but don’t really let the emptiness of their tracks *do* anything (compare to, say, Burial or Kraftwerk). I wish they’d return to the liberating excess of “Daft Punk is Playing at My House”.
Ghostwriter is from the soundtrack to an imaginary movie about a blues musician who enters a haunted saloon where the zombie outlaws challenge him to a game of poker followed by a rap-off. Our blues musician, who goes by the name Rocky St. Valentine, saves the life of the hooker-with-a-heart of gold who had been imprisoned there… only to learn that she was dead all along when he carries her out of the ghost town and she turns to dust. The entire thing is a choreographed musical.
#8 The Golden Age (6.5) vs. #9 Strictly Game (8)
I want to love Golden Age because it’s catchy and totally weird. I already have a love-hate relationship with the vocals. I wish they would tease me a little more- this song gives it all away and I don’t have to put any work in. (Expect the song=a woman theme to repeat itself throughout my votes).
Strictly Game is one of the songs that manages to instantly capture nostalgia while still sounding fresh. It’s densely layered, which I love and it gets me to smile.
#4 Grits Ain’t Groceries (4) vs. #13 Cut Chemist Suite (8.5)
Little Milton was obviously insanely talented but I’m sort of bored with this track. I guess I need more coherent songs. I agree with Sam that blues is better at a slower tempo.
Cut Chemist Suite- these verses are *insane*. My head nearly exploded. The accompanying beat (especially for the verses) is fantastic- putting it in minor was genius.
#5 Luchini (6.5) vs. #12 Gonna Send You Back to Walker (4)
Rappers like this always make me wish Kanye had some flow. It’s a really well constructed song and the lyrics are great.
The Animals song isn’t anything special.
That might be the greatest movie story I’ve ever heard.
Hope things improve from here on. Not overly impressed. Distinct lack of musicality, hooks and a sound or beat that remains with you after the song is over.
Dance Yourself – 3.0 – At least 5 minutes too long and someone should have a doctor check on the vocalist on those high notes; he truly sounded in pain.
Vs.
Ghostwriter – 4.0 – Basically an instrumental and tough to judge against vocals but in this case it was marginally better and more listenable than Dance.
Golden Age – 4.5 – Barely OK; pretty simple melody such as it is.
Vs.
Strictly Game – 5.0 – Annoying buzz in many places (undoubtedly the electronics that take the place of instruments); music overpowers vocals in too many places as well.
Grits – 6.5 – Fun; listenable; good tempo.
Vs.
Cut Chemist – 3.0 Not a fan of the genre; sound and beat would have been OK without the wrap.
Luchini – 2.5 – The sad chemist was a notch better.
Vs.
Gonna Send – 5.0 – This is no “Rising Sun” but a damn shade better than Luchini.
Hoping for some real music in the days ahead!
gotta give hip hop (rap) a chance 😉
I’m trying!!!!!!!
that might take a miracle – and we don’t have that kinda time. He’s just waiting to give a 9 to Randy Travis.
Be careful how thou speaks. I know where the antiseptic spray is hidden.
#1 Dance Yrself Clean (LCD Soundsystem) 3
#16 Ghostwriter (RJD2) 5.5
Dance Yrself Clean was 5 minutes too long for my taste. Ghostwriter, I liked a lot (especially those intermittent moments of crackling that sounded like an old record player). But… I would probably only listen to it when checking FB or cleaning my room or while walking through the city pretending I am the main character in a movie and it’s opening credits.
#8 The Golden Age (The Asteroids Galaxy Tour) 8
#9 Strictly Game (Harlem Shakes) 9.5
Golden Age started out like an iPod nano commercial (and I mean that as a compliment) and finished like something else entirely (also in a good way). Strictly Game was a really happy surprise. Loved it!
#4 Grits Ain’t Groceries (Little Milton) 5.5
#13 Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli) 5.5
These are songs that have a time and a place, and that’s Soul-le-lu-jah at ZuZu (so fun!)… but for some reason, in my bedroom, alone on a Thursday night… it didn’t come together for me. I’m probably just tired.
#5 Luchini (Camp Lo) 4
#12 Gonna Send You Back to Walker (The Animals) 4
I wanted Luchini to be better than it was, but instead I found myself daydreaming about my favorite Italian rap duo instead of focusing on the song at hand (for the curious: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=601Z_K-GEGo). Gonna Send You Back to Walker… heard it once, heard it a million times.
Dance Yrself Clean (LCD Soundsystem): 4.5
Ghostwriter (RJD2): 8
The Golden Age (The Asteroids Galaxy Tour): 8
Strictly Game (Harlem Shakes): 6
Grits Ain’t Groceries (Little Milton): 7.5
Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli): 5
Luchini (Camp Lo): 4
Gonna Send You Back to Walker (The Animals): 9
Dance Yourself Clean – 4.0 vs Ghostwriter – 4.5
Golden Age – 4.5 vs Strictly Game – 6.0
Grits – 5.0 (James Brown meets Audrey II) vs Cut Chemist – 3.0
Luchini – 1.5 vs Gonna Send – 5.5
Dance Yrself Clean vs. Ghostwriter 4 /5 – much like everyone else, I thought Dance Yrself Clean was far too long, otherwise it would have had the win.
Golden Age vs. Strictly Game 1 / 6 – I seem to be in the minority here, but if I never hear Golden Age again, I’d be ok with that.
Grits vs Cuts Chemist 3 /4 – Now I feel like I am being overly critical, but neither song did it for me.
Luchini vs Walker 7 / 4 – I usually don’t like rap but this was the pick in the bunch, very catchy.
Dance Yrself Clean (LCD Soundsystem): 2
Ghostwriter (RJD2): 3
The Golden Age (The Asteroids Galaxy Tour): 5
Strictly Game (Harlem Shakes): 6.5
Grits Ain’t Groceries (Little Milton): 6
Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli): 6.5
Luchini (Camp Lo): 5
Gonna Send You Back to Walker (The Animals): 6
I’m not rushing out to buy any of these choices. But most of them were solid songs. Other than those first two. No thank you.
Dance Yourself Clean (LCD Soundsystem) – 4
Ghostwriter (RJD2) – 5.5
LCD electronics OK, vocals poor
Ghostwriter sounds a bit like the background to solid, slow, hip-hop session. It would be great with Common laced over top…
The Golden Age (The Asteroids Galaxy Tour): 5
Strictly Game (Harlem Shakes): 6.5
Golden Age chorus is too much…and too often
Strictly Game – would be better if focus more on instrumentals vs electronics
Grits Ain’t Groceries (Little Milton): 4
Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli): 7
Grits Ain’t….got my vote
Cut Chemist Suite – Chali 2na! love this guys flow
Luchini (Camp Lo): 4
Gonna Send You Back to Walker (The Animals): 7
Luchini was ok, but doesn’t rank highly on my hip hop scale
Gonna Send You Back has good rhythm. Gotta love background singers.
#1 Dance Yrself Clean (LCD Soundsystem) 5
#16 Ghostwriter (RJD2) 6.7
Didn’t really love either of these songs however I enjoyed RJD2 much more. There was just something about LCD’s lead singers voice that kept on reminding me of Kermit. It reached a point where I found myself more annoyed than intrigued.
#8 The Golden Age (The Asteroids Galaxy Tour) 7
#9 Strictly Game (Harlem Shakes) 9.9
Always enjoyed the upbeat manner of “The Golden Age,” but there is just something about the Harlem Shakes that makes me euphoric (crazy I know). If anyone on this site is new to their music I would encourage you to at least preview their CD. It’s amazing stuff.
#4 Grits Ain’t Groceries (Little Milton) 6
#13 Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli) 4
Honestly “Cut Chemist Suite” just annoyed me for some reason and “Grits” well…it was passable…
#5 Luchini (Camp Lo) 5
#12 Gonna Send You Back to Walker (The Animals) 6.5
Gotta go with The Animals…all there is to say
Have to say, as someone new to the voting: I’m shocked by how different the opinions are.
I second it – early on in the last tournament we had matchups with only 10-12 voters at times… and mostly the hard cores, so you had a feel for what would win. With this many? All kinds of entertaining. Gambling on this tournament might have to be revisited!
Dance Yrself Clean (LCD Soundsystem) 6.5
Ghostwriter (RJD2) 4.5
The Golden Age (The Asteroids Galaxy Tour) 4.0
Strictly Game (Harlem Shakes) 5.0
Grits Ain’t Groceries (Little Milton) 7.0
Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli) 6.5
Luchini (Camp Lo) 4.5
Gonna Send You Back to Walker (The Animals) 7.0
Dance clean (6.25)
Ghostwriter (6)
Golden Age (6)
Strictly Game (7.5)
Grits Ain’t Groceries (6.5)
Cut Chemist Suite (7)
Luchini (6)
Gonna Send (6.5)
Solid six and seven listening. Strictly Game sticks out; I want to hear it again.
so many horns this round! yay!
dance yrself clean – 6
ghostwriter – 7
man, i liked both of these, but they’re just too long for their own good. the intro to dyc got me wondering where the hell this song was going & why people like it, and finally after 3 min (yes, the length of a full song), i was like “oh, ok, yeah.” i feel like it’s good “music”, but not necessarily a good “song”, if that makes sense. even though the composition of the song is quite interesting – it’s just too damn long is what it comes down to. ghostwriter is great, but considering its repetitive nature, also could stand to be a bit shorter. i’m really glad some rjd2 made it into the tourney though… i thought about nominating something off that album, mostly just to disguise myself as someone with “eclectic” tastes. : )
the golden age – 8
strictly game – 9
what happy songs! i love the spirt of the golden age. it has the potential to be horribly annoying, but yet it almost always puts me in a good mood. and strictly game is a new one to me – i’ve never even heard of harlem shakes, but i totally dug it on first listen.
grits ain’t groceries – 8
cut chemist suite – 9
oh man, these are both really good too!! i’m giving ozo the edge for the more unique sound (and i’m hoping familiarity with the song isn’t biasing me).
luchini – 5
gonna send you back to walker – 7
#1 Dance Yrself Clean (LCD Soundsystem) [7]
#16 Ghostwriter (RJD2) [6]
#8 The Golden Age (The Asteroids Galaxy Tour) [5]
#9 Strictly Game (Harlem Shakes) [6.25]
#4 Grits Ain’t Groceries (Little Milton) [5.5]
#13 Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli) [4]
#5 Luchini (Camp Lo) [5]
#12 Gonna Send You Back to Walker (The Animals) [6.5]
Dance Yrself Clean: 2. I think the only reason I liked the synthesizer was because it was a break from the rest of the song.
Ghostwriter: 9.5. The only reason it’s not a 10 is because I want one more round of the chorus. I love – LOVE – that song.
The Golden Age: 9.
Strictly Game: 6.5.
Grits Ain’t Groceries: 6.5
Cut Chemist Suite: 6
Both of these are solid songs, but they didn’t make me want to drop everything, strip naked, and run around my house with glee.
Luchini: 3. I really needed a big, sexy hook.
Gonna Send You Back to Walker: 6
So to start with, i’ve only heard 2 of these songs before (that I know of), and not more than once, so lots of first impressions.
#1 Dance Yrself Clean (LCD Soundsystem) 5.8
#16 Ghostwriter (RJD2) 5
The first 3 minutes of Dance suck, but definitely dig the cool nintendo-ish electronic rhythms in the middle. First time I’ve been thankful a song has been that long. Ghostwriter is a really cool rhythm and beat – but I’m a lyric guy unless you do something over the top awesome, so less love than it probably deserves.
#8 The Golden Age (The Asteroids Galaxy Tour) 8.3
#9 Strictly Game (Harlem Shakes) 6.5
Oooh Golden Age has some cool lyrics. That was fun and a definite pick me up! Also a fan of the light touch piano in the background – great feel. Definitely downloading this one later this evening. More fun lyrics in Strictly Game, but it just doesn’t grab quite as well as Golden Age. Best matchup so far though.
#4 Grits Ain’t Groceries (Little Milton) 7.5
#13 Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli) 4
Hot number by Little Milton. Maybe I’m just in the mood for it, who knows, but that was tons of fun. Just not in a rap mood. Sounds like it’s actually a pretty good track, but just not doing it for me today. Will definitely listen again at some point though.
#5 Luchini (Camp Lo) 3
#12 Gonna Send You Back to Walker (The Animals) 5.5
Not digging Luchini, plain and simple. As for the one song here I actually knew, thoroughly mediocre performance, but the Animals’ energy is effective enough to win this one.
Dance Yrself Clean (LCD Soundsystem) 5
Ghostwriter (RJD2) 4
I like the “present company excepted” line but that’s about it for LCD and it’s definitely too long. Ghostwriter just didn’t seem like much, but I liked the last 5 seconds or so. Wish they incorporated more of that into the song.
The Golden Age (The Asteroids Galaxy Tour) 6.5
Strictly Game (Harlem Shakes) 5.5
Grits Ain’t Groceries (Little Milton) 6
Cut Chemist Suite (Ozomatli) 5
Luchini (Camp Lo) 4
Gonna Send You Back to Walker (The Animals) 7