OK, I have a heart from the walrus master so I’m going with it. I’m just not sure when I’ll have time over the next several days, so I’d rather get it done now than make y’all wait.
Category host name: skydiver8 Category: A song that is mostly about, invokes or heavily references a specific place. It doesn’t have to be happy or exotic, just interesting. Musical tastes: Anything but screamy metal. Modern country-pop is probably gonna rank low, as well, but I highly doubt anyone would submit that anyway. Any other judging notes: Since most of us are prisoners right now, let’s travel via music! Note: When I travel, I like to get real. Sure, I’ll see the touristy stuff, but I also want to get to know the real people and food and soul of a place, even if it’s not all good. Take that for what you will.
Let’s go traveling…for the most part.
You guys, I’ll be honest, I think you really don’t know me that well. It’s ok though, I made the best of it.
I have to go to bed but godspeed. Just know you have the power to hit right back in the feels as my submission for yours was one of my top 2 or 3 personal favourites.
Maybe I’ll stay for the nodium just to possibly give satisfaction.
The satisfaction of seeing me fail twice in a row, I presume? I wasn’t happy with my entry here either but I’m less sure of a last place finish than I was with yours.
Ok, this first group is the obvious nodium, because these three songs didn’t really fit the category. If the song title contains the name of a place and it has lyrics, it means nothing if the song itself isn’t actually about that place and is instead about love or whatever. This is unfortunate, because these songs aren’t necessarily bad, and I don’t hate them…they just don’t fit.
In 13th place with 1 point:
Albuquerque – Weird Al Yankovich
Its only 12 minutes! At least it is interesting that entire 12 minutes.
Is it, though? Look, you got really unlucky with this pick. I understand that it’s a Weird Al classic, but the fact is, of all the people you could have submitted this to, you picked the one who has actually lived in Albuquerque and this song does not in any way describe, invoke, or even heavily reference ABQ, other than the name. You could replace the title and chorus (which is only sung 3 or 4 times in the entire TWELVE MINUTE song) with any 4-syllable place name and it would all still work, which means the song isn’t about a specific place at all. Winnemucka! Cincinnati! Tallahassee!
I like the music part of the song, but the lyrics just aren’t that funny to me. Maybe I just really wanted to hear jokes about the real ABQ, because it can be a very silly place and they could easily fill a 12-minute Weird Al song.
I don’t dislike this. It’s kinda catchy. But it isn’t about Rome, or any place at all…it’s about love and harmony and happiness, which are all great things that can be found anywhere. I mean, if they had been strolling through the Forum or the Sistine Chapel and discovered they were “meant to be” at that moment and sang about that, sure, but they don’t.
rounding out the nodium, In 11th place with 3 points
Travelling Alone – Passenger
This is another one that I don’t dislike. It’s pretty and thoughtful and deep…but if it invokes a specific place, that place is “the depths of despair and loneliness,” which isn’t what I meant when I defined the category so maybe I should have been more specific? However, it’s closer than the previous two, and at least it mentions a hotel room, so it’s not last. It’s also a nice segue into the next group.
Here’s a little preview of the next group of songs:
Well, I wasn’t going to listen to 12 minutes of Weird Al, so…
Yeah, that’s pretty mind boggling. It may have had to win. I’ve definitely heard that before but not really listened, probably an advert or some such nonsense. The first minute or two are particularly great.
Moving on to the section I had the most trouble ranking because a bunch of you submitted the same song! Just kidding. They only sound the same. Just kidding…sort of. It seems many of you have, as @cassette so eloquently put it, typecast me as the IndigoGirl, when in reality, I find this type of music mostly unremarkable.
With a few exceptions, coffee house acoustic folk pop is not really my jam at this point in my life, boys. I don’t hate these. I just wouldn’t ever choose these. Four of the five in this group were mostly interchangeable, and only one stood out because frankly, it elicited more of a response than “ho hum” (and that response was slight laughter). Anyway, onward with open mic night at the Unstuck Student Center Cafe.
Southern California Wants to be Western New York – Dar Williams
Well, at least we’ve hit the mark on the category now. She does do a decent job of describing both places metaphorically, I guess. I understand the idea behind this song, but I just find it kind of musically boring and the lyrics slightly pretentious. One venti triple latte with half soy milk half 1% milk and a dash of cinnamon for “Dar”!
Yeah still alive but assuming my song is coming up in this grouping lol. My choice was less “I think skydiver will like this” and more “OK I think this fits the category so I’m submitting it”, if it makes you feel better.
