Here lies the collection of world-eating, tectonic-shifting, soul-crushing doom metal songs made by 12 MA users for this special Fall '11 Doom Metal Challenge. This is fucking IT. Download and blast away to your heart's content. At 1:20:08, this is the longest running time for a MA songwriting challenge compilation so far.

Download the compilation HERE.

Reviews by participants and non-participants alike are encouraged and welcome!

As always, the three essential parts to comment on in a review are: songwriting, performance, production.

Because I completely forgot to mention that you should include a readme for your track, participants can write some information about their tracks in this thread.


Track list

Apteronotus : Awerewa - Geophagus
Awblaster : Amaritude - Alignment of the Stars
CorpseFister : The Flesh Remembers
CrustAsFuckExistence : Solitude & Despair
deathprog23 : hvy.wtr
diamondfamicom : Super Famicom - I Will Only Be Yours (Devil Eyes)
Grofweg : Willoos - Vervallen
Haightred : Astral Entities
iamntbatman : Gloaming - The Nightmare of Braddock Heights
kingnuuuur : Stoner Jam
Nightwisher1990 : Ecliptic Dawn - The Black Waterfall
ShaolinLambKiller : Yzordderrex - Crawling

Sweet downloading now, I'll start writing my reviews tonight.

Some really good songs there. My favs are the ones of Diamondfamicom, Batman and Kingnuuur. But yeah, not enough trad stuff .

Good job guys.

Downloading now, really looking forward to hearing everyone's tracks.

pretty good thus far, 4 tracks deep. looking forward to hearing the rest.


Sorry Metant, though I like traditional.... i really don't like playing it.... at all.

Yeah, no problem. There's some solid doom/death stuff there, i also dig this genre a lot.

Downloading now, but I won't be able to listen to it and write reviews until tomorrow. I'm pretty stoked for this one!

Edit: could you edit the OP to list what songs were submitted by each person? Only a couple of people put their usernames in the tags for their songs. My band name is "Gloaming" and the song title is "The Nightmare of Braddock Heights." The .zip included some cover art and a .txt of the lyrics, also.

A lot of these song are pretty sick!!!! Cant wait to write reviews!!

Also, I must confess that I think my song is somehow more DSBM than doom. But I had in mind to write a doom metal song when I started with this, so. Also, I impovised the drums and after that wrote the guitars.

I reaaaaally wanted to do trad, but unfortunately it's the hardest to get vocals done for.


I put the usernames in the file names, if that's what you mean...

Downloading right now, gonna go to sleep and listen at work, I'll come up with reviews tomorrow!

I nominate neofolk to be the theme for the next challenge.

That's a really cool idea, it makes me wish I played guitar as well as bass, so I could write an acoustic piece.

Boom! Some good stuff in here boyos. I'll be listening and writing reviews over the next couple days.

That, or death metal or black metal... or thrash, or grindcore, arghh so many to choose from. I don't know if I can write neofolk without completely ripping off Agalloch though. But it'd be interesting for a change.


Great, looking forward to reading some reviews.

neat. gonna download, definitely participate in the next one.

not downloading :/

They'll sort it out soon.

Here are some reviews for people to read while they wait for dropbox to come back up:

Awblaster - Amaritude - "Alignment of the Stars" - Some nice dreary melodies right off the bat. I wish the lead guitar tone sounded...louder, more delayed and more distant. Sort of a weird anomaly as the rest of the production is pretty good. The rhythm guitar is sort of thin, but it leaves a lot of nice space in the mix for every instrument to shine through, especially the really nice sounding bass. The vocals in this are really well performed, but I couldn't really decide if I liked the double tracking or not. Cool spoken word passage. Kind of lends a Bathory feel to this funeral doom dirge. The only part where I thought the songwriting was a little off was the bridge right after the spoken word part. Sort of some weird melodies in there, somewhat interesting but didn't really gel with the rest of the song, which is nice and miserable. The song was also a little short for the style. Pretty neat song all around, good job!

Aperonotus - Awerewa - "Geophagus" - The guitar needs more distortion, or less clear bass coming through the mix or something. Interesting tone, but I didn't really like it. The bluesy solo feels a little out of place. This song has some cool riffs, but there's not much more for me to say about it; it feels like someone jamming cool riffs along to a drum machine. It might've benefitted from vocals, but I dunno, I think more focused direction would have helped, too. There are definitely a lot of cool ideas for several different songs here, but it didn't really work as a single song. The rest of the production was pretty solid, I guess, but the drum programming was pretty "time keepy" and not much else. To reiterate, though, there are some cool riffs and melodic ideas at work here and I'd like to hear you develop them further.

Corpsefister - "The Flesh Remembers" - Cool synth tone. The guitar is a little buried, though. This intro is prett-ay, prett-ay, prett-ay long. Hmm...it feels like the song proper doesn't kick in until it's 75% over, after the quiet bit when the riff changes up. I think you should've transitioned to that section much earlier in the song, as that riff is just better and I wouldn't mind hearing it repeated for quite a while, unlike the long intro part. The vocals also had sort of an "intro spoken word" quality to them that didn't help me shake the feeling that I was waiting for the real song. The drums are also a bit buried, but the synths are really cool, especially the buzzy, lower-pitched ones. Maybe working with a more powerful vocalist and switching that intro riff sooner would've made this a pretty good track, but as it is, it's just ok. You did say you had some recording troubles and were worried about your performance on the guitar/bass, but it all sounded well-played and clean to me, so props for that!

CrustAsFuckExistence - "Solitude & Despair" - Nice and dreary. That upper-midranged noisy synth was a bit much, though; I was watching those frequencies dominate the mix, and they sort of cover up your pretty grindy, nice guitar tone. The vocals were also nice 'n' ambient, but it was sort of weird how the clean/spoken vocals were a lot louder than the harsh vocals. Man, I wish that noise synth would go away, or change, or something! What I really think separates the men from the boys in this kind of doom, where there's really not a room for flash, is making good use of the drums without overstepping the genre's boundaries. Your drums were just sort of...there, plodding along, keeping time. Some little accent cymbal splashes or snare hits or slow fills would have gone a long way in improving this track. As it stands though, it's pretty good minus the harsh synth. I'm not sure I'd listen to a whole album of it though, if each song were over ten minutes of essentially one(ish) riff. That lead line that comes in after 8.5 minutes or so was a welcome change of scenery. The winding-down at the end was well done, until the speaker abuse at the very end. Beware, folks, this might blow your system up.

deathprog23 - "hvy.wtr" - The production on this one is a little clean, and the guitar would have benefitted from multi-tracking. I really dig the synth bass, though. It's rare to hear someone use a synth in place of a "real" instrument and actually have it sound cooler than if you had used a bass guitar. (At least, I assume that's a synth bass, otherwise it's some cool effects pedals). The vocals were a pleasant surprise. Maybe a little too effects-drenched, but they were performed pretty well and fit with the sort of shuffling-feet, desert road vibe of the song. The drum programming wasn't bad, but the samples used could have been better, which was most noticeable during the fast parts with the double bass rolls. The harsh vocals weren't really for me. During the second half of the song, it sort of loses direction...the fast parts just weren't as good as the slower parts, and the guitar sort of sounds like it's falling off the rails sometimes. The clean vocals at the end also weren't really for me. So, while I liked the first half of the song, the second half wasn't really my thing.

Nightwisher1990 - Ecliptic Dawn - "The Black Waterfall" - Your riffs are...half good. Some of them are all the way good, but other times I feel like the chord parts at the first part of the riff are a lot better than the single-note second halves. The riff that's going on at around 2:00 is just...I dunno, I'm not a huge fan. The vocals are really good throughout the whole song, and you make excellent use of some creepy choir synths. The drums also sound pretty good throughout. I liked the clean vocals. They weren't like, pitch-perfect professional, but I dug that about them. The guitar tone in the song also sounds really good, especially considering you said that this is in standard tuning. Some of your melodies give me distinct Melechesh vibes. Overall, this was pretty good, but definitely would have benefitted from more consistent riff-writing.

Haightred - "Astral Entitites" - Man, right away I wish you had some better production. The snare and cymbals just sound quiet/far away, but the bass drums sound like a pencil tapping on a desk. The guitar tone is also sounds like it was cool "live" but was muddied up during the recording process. I'm not a fan of the vocal style at all, and it sort of lends a cartoonish quality to it. I think it would have been better without the higher pitched vocals doubled along, and with the growls a bit lower in the mix. Some nice melodies in this one, and I liked how the synth followed along with them, but the synth was a little quiet. In this style I think it could stand to be a little higher in the mix. Some of the guitar leads were a bit meander-y and generally don't keep up the same high quality as the more basic melodies, and also, they feel more "positive" and less depressing than the rest of the song, which is a weird contrast. So yeah, for me, mainly production and the choice to double the vocals throughout in a way that I don't really like much is holding this one back from being better than it is.

kingnuuuur - "Stoner Jam" - Sleeeeeeeeeeeep! I really dig the main riff in this song. Really simple and straightforward, but leaves tons of room for cool little variations and flourishes. Really excellent drum programming, too. Your guitar tone is really great; your bass tone is even better. This *might've* been improved with vocals, but it's hard to say. My real gripe is that you kind of lose the trail a bit in the second half of the song (before bringing it all back home, that is), like maybe you felt like it was getting boring so changed things up a little too dramatically. That main riff is the sort where you could just jam on that shit for twenty minutes and I'd enjoy every second of it. If you say your "real" song is better than this, I'd certainly like to hear it! Did I mention how good your drum programming is? So yeah, minor gripes with that psych break in the middle sort of ruining the flow of the song a bit, but it's probably the best recorded song in the contest and definitely has my favorite riff.

diamondfamicom - Super Famicom - "I will Only Be Yours (Devil Eyes)" - Haha, I've just gotta say, those gang shouts are crazy. Almost more like the armies of orcs at Helm's Deep than a gang of dudes. Overall, this is a pretty weird song. Certain parts of it are really dreary, especially helped along by the really good vocals, but other parts of the riffs sound pretty, uh, happy? to my ears. Sort of a strange contrast, but it doesn't ruin it or anything. The production is pretty good, though I might've liked the guitar to have more tracks or something. I like the Satanic Neutral Milk Hotel break in the middle. It really shouldn't work, but it does somehow, so congratulations for pulling that off! The lead guitar during the last third is also really good and probably takes the cake for best guitar lead of the contest. One of the better songs of the contest for sure, despite being pretty weird and some of the riffs seeming a little...off.

Grofweg - Willoos - "Vervallen" - Hehe, nice black (err, uh, doom!) metal! I like the guitar and drums throughout this song, and the low growls and more tortured screeches are good, but a lot of the time the black metal vocals sort of sound just like a dude moaning or wailing somewhere in the distance. Shrieking in the distance is great, but the moaning just lacked aggression and power. Not too common to hear stop-start type riffs used in this style, so that was neat. I think I'd like this one a lot more if the vocals were more consistently good throughout the song. Lame thing to stumble over, I guess, as the song was well-written and performed and had cool riffs. I don't really know what else to say about it, as it was pretty far from doom metal. Interesting take on DSBM though, for sure.

Shaolinlambkiller - Yzordderrex - "Crawling" - As is usual for me, I like your high vocals a lot more than the low ones. I guess it's nice that there's a mix, but I think I would've preferred just the higher ones used throughout. I'm not sure that I really "like" a lot of your riffs in this song, but I like what they do, if that makes any sense. That spirally riff from the beginning, for example: it's not really very...catchy? But, it does work well in the context of the song. The slow bit in the middle went on for too long, I think. Maybe halfway through it I was waiting for it to go back to some weird mid-slow riffery, but instead it slowed down into drone/torture doom territory. Your production is steadily improving, but I did notice my EQ max out a bit a few times and it sounded a bit clippy when that happened. Not my favorite song of the contest, but it will no doubt appeal to those with more interest in that sort of weird, twisted funeral doomish stuff.


Sorry if those reviews sounded a bit harsh, they weren't meant to be! Every song submitted had at least something really cool going for it and just a few things like production issues or choices or weird pet peeves of mine like riffs not sitting well with me held things up a bit in some cases. So, I hope I was somewhat constructive!

For a little info about my song: it's an ESP LTD EC-401 tuned down to A through a Line Six UX1. Bass was a Dean Edge 4 through the UX1. Vocal mic was an SM58 also through the UX1. All guitar and bass tone came from Pod Farm 2. Drums were Metal Foundry for Superior Drummer, programmed in Guitar Pro initially and tweaked in Reaper. All recording, production, mixing and mastering was done in Reaper.

Lyrics and artwork reference the Snallygaster, a bit of local mythology concerning a winged beast that supposedly killed a bunch of people just north of me around the turn of the 20th century.

As I said in the submission thread, I wasn't super pleased with my vocals. I don't really like my voice too much and I'm also not very good at pacing the delivery in an interesting way. I kind of rushed those, though, so if the song gets a good reaction I might try re-recording the vocals a little better.

Apteronotus: Geophagus-
I was liking the weird intro a riff... till i realized that's the actual distortion for the rest of the song. everything is very
echoy buy not in a very good way. There is no CRUSH, NO OPPRESSION. When it gets around the min mark... it
really reminds me of old grunge bands like Mudhoney but minus some awesome messy distortion. Like the solo and
that weird 'ahhh sound thing' Not really a fan of some of the drum programming, almost like a hodown is about to
happen. This would be pretty good with some nice thick distortion grimming it all up. It's just way too pretty and weak
sounding. It would be a great grunge/alternative song.

Aweblaster: Amaritude- Alignment of the Stars-
I can live with the programing here though I'd appreciate something more lively/roomy feeling. I like the vocals, they are
a bit monotone but it gives it an almost primal chant feel to it. Again this would been great some nice thick ass guitars.
The atmosphere is great but the guitars are as if an afterthought. They need to be more upfront and crushing. I like how
the bass kinda goes off and does it's own thing in parts... hate the tone of it though. kinda I don't know... 8-bit-ish it
sounds like. Somehow this reminds me of Amorphis, i think it's the melody that goes throughout. Would be more
interested in hearing this with some live miced up guitar amps blasting.

CorpseFister: The Flesh Remembers-
I know you didn't have any instruments on hand to record, with that being said this is pretty much what I would expect
a good ambient doom sound to sound like. It's also nice and thick which is hard to achieve without some real guitars
smashing faces in. If this was redone as I would see it... it would be all the more hypnotic and trance inducing. I even
like the keyboard tinkling towards the end. If I was to do it I'd even leave that instead of transcribing it to guitar.

CrustAsFuckExistence: Solitude & Despair
First off fuck m4a. Hate the fucking format. Second off really like the ultra nasty fucking distortion, though it's almost
pure hiss, or something is. I like the anguished screams in the background those were very cool and when the real
gurgling came up I just loved that. The song totally nails the title, entire atmosphere is bleak as fuck. the mix seems a bit
off, kinda like i'm hearing everything in layers, not really as a whole. like the drums are way far back and dropped over
is the bass and guitar and hoovering high above all is the vocals. The droning keys are a nice add. I usually like long
trance enducing songs but this one is kinda long in the tooth... basically it could've been stopped at the 5 min mark.
Like it's played and then just totally repeated to make it longer. oh the organ sounding ebow was a surprise to come
back though. I like how the end noise feedback kinda reminded me of being drowned.


deathprog23: hvy.wtr
Nice sound to the drums though it's kinda just tapping away with no real power. I hate the tone of the guitars. It sounds
more like a grunge song... something like Dinosaur Jr. and when I think about it like that... I don't mind the tone I just
wish for J Macis to come over and sing in his high warble. Your vocals actually fit for it in the context I've mentally put
myself in. Now when the pace picks up it does remind me of Discouraged Ones-era Katatonia which is my favorite
release from them. the kicks are way too punchy for what you set forth already. and I like the screaming vocals... just
not the way they are shouted along at the same tempo when there is plenty more space for them to be drug out over.
Oh I hate that vocals double thing around 6:20. and after that the drums are just not appropriate for what else is going
on. Not really a fan of the sorta viking flavored open moan vocals. yea the drums change so much in vol and
production it sounds like.. I really am not digging. Overall... i like the first part more than anything. the second part was
a mix bag of good and meh.

diamondfamicom : Super Famicom - I Will Only Be Yours (Devil Eyes)
Oh nice and thick sounding guitar. Finally. I was wondering if I had downloaded the wrong folder for awhile there. This
isn't really doom but I'm digging it nevertheless. I think the vocals are too high. and I'm not a fan of that high fucking
howl thing that keeps popping up. I like the mix overall of the instruments. Good guitar, good plodding bass. the drum
samples work for me though a bit of reverb or echo on them would've been nice. This is more of a march than
anything, and I can appreciate that and the layering of melodies right before the 3min mark is very nice...i don't like the
clean singing. it sounds like too much like a little boy... and I can't even over the line "he will come(cum?) in my bed" It
made me laugh. the follow up riff makes up for that goofiness. but I really wish the clean vocals didn't carry on further.
With them and how the rest of the melody on guitar and bass add up it reminds me of very old metalcore back when it
wasn't a dirty horrid term. Whole solo section is tits, really dig.

Grofweg: Willoos - Vervallen
A good follow up to diamondfamicom's cause it's along the same lines... not doom. But I'm liking it. I like the messy
rawer tone of the guitars. I like the sampled drums, they work for me, I wish the bass was up a bit, and I actually think
your vocals could come up a tad more. But it's not enough to ruin it for me. I think you and Nw should collaborate
quite honestly. I really love the deep lows. and when everything crushes down around 2min whatever. just wonderful
and sorrowful. Parts of this remind me of Barghest for some reason. loving it 4mins on. reminds me a tad of katatonia
as well. hell almost wished the end went on another minute.

Haightred: Astral Entitites
Guitars sound monsterous which is awesome, the drums sound weak and sad. I'm not sure if I like the doubled vocals,
it might be cause i would want them back further with some slight echo. made me think of cradle of filth how he
doubles his vocals like that. That's a synth used for bass as well? I actually like it and i dig the melodies and whatnot.
Id' really like to hear this song with some real instruments/amps/distortion. Damn I wish that the vocals would trade off
much more not just doubled constantly. The leads close to the 6min mark seem to be more powermetalish to me. kinda
has an early Novembre vibe towards the end musically.

iamntbatman : Gloaming - The Nightmare of Braddock Heights
First off..like the artwork and the font for the band... kinda wished you went with a darker red. I like there is some real
weight in the drums. Guitar tone sounds pretty good...but for some reason made me think of korn with their early
distortion. Anyway some of the chugging doesn't quite match up in my ears at the begining. I like the placement of
everything in the mix. though I would like some more bass. I think the korn thing popped into my head with the held out
notes... are you in drop tuning? Oh yea vocals are good, I like the gruff 'oomph' to them. This song kinda has an
Autopsy/Coffins vibe which I really like. yea as it gets on I like it even more. I'm sorry I even thought korn earlier. I'd
def like to hear more of this. make some more songs, I'd eat it up.

kingnuuuur : Stoner Jam
I can get behind the nasty sound tone of the guitar. Immediately made me think of Sourvien... just not as nasty and epic
sounding. I can really see someone puking their guts out overtop of this. if you added some nasty bass to it... that
would be some top notch scum there. I like the programming. Very life like. I appreciate that. and I like the tone and
the mix of the drums to the guitars. makes me think of weed and whiskey and all that shit even though I don't partake of
either. around the 4min mark... not liking it. ruins the whole mood to me. Now it's acid mother's temple tripout time. It's
like I should be taking hits of acid or something. and then you go back into the crushing? just doesn't fit well to me too
sudden a change from one to the other.

Nightwisher1990 : Ecliptic Dawn - The Black Waterfall

That lead sounds rather painful. and the riffs. It doesn't sound like it's even in tune properly. I'm not sure what's going
on if that's the tone or it's just off. I like the vocals and the programming fit. the more it goes on I'm not sure if you
meant for it to sound so off or not. it's just not working much for me. nor the bass popping out during the 1:40- on. This
doesn't really sound like doom either. Maybe it's the bass that's off. damnit I really can't appreciate anything else till I
figure out what's off. i really think it's the bass that's out of tune. Not the biggest fan of the choir and piano esc section.
it was well done, I just don't care for it.

ShaolinLambKiller : Yzordderrex - Crawling

Bullshit used: recorded using reaper on my laptop, shure drum mic kit/shure 57 for guitars/bass/vocals/snare

Dean flying V tuned to G standard...i would've liked to use my 7 string Dean but the strap broke while I was playing
and sheered off the vol knobs... so it's in the shop.
Fender Jazz Bass tuned to G.
Sunn Enforcer Tube Head/ Krank Krankenstien
Ampeg SVT Pro4/ Ampeg 8x10/ original Green Big Muff


A few things I'd like to change about my song... more weight to the toms for example which i'd probably go back and
fix later when i compile this together for something. I think i'd like to had mixed my vocals up a bit more. and maybe to
me i think my lows are ...lower in the mix than i would've liked, I would've wanted them to be more evened with the
high. there is a bit of lag in the drums when the end ritualistic march kicks in that really pisses me off.
What i was setting out to do with this project is explore more of a ritualistic funeral doom in my mind. basically a riff or
chord that gets stuck in my head that's so awful and disgusting that bares that I repeat it over and over.

I actually have an ep of material I recorded back in April that I'm finalizing vocals on this week that'll be released
shortly thereafter. The artwork/layout is still in progress as well. But I might have it by the end of the year/begining of
next.

I'll write reviews for this soon once I absorb the tracks. I just need to record vocals and my track will be done, sorry for it being so late.

No worries, I'll still listen to it if you post it up.

And thanks for the feedback thus far guys. I'm gonna write up a bit about my song in the next day or so and then do the reviews shortly thereafter. I want to give them all 3 or 4 listens first.

PLEASE let's do thrash!!!! And I can actually get it done this time (done with school) but now I have Skyrim to distract me jk jk in all seriousness I would love to do thrash. Or heavy. Anything other than extreme metal, not there's anything wrong with it, but it would definitely be a good challenge. Just a suggestion.

Ok, I'm listening to the comp in separate parts to give myself time to digest each properly, here's the first set:

Awerewa - I didn't like the song when it began playing, but after the first part it turns in what sounds like a pretty nice grunge song, even though it's a genre I don't listen to, with some more work it could be quite amazing. Didn't like the use of voices though, they felt out of place to me. Drums do need some reworking also, they're kind of just there, working as a metronome and get boring after a while.

Amaritude - If you were going for an alien vibe, you definitely nailed it, there's something strange about the vocals and the overall tone of the instruments that I enjoyed a lot; only complaint is the way it ends, I feel like it needs some proper outro instead of just fading the riff, but other than that I can see myself listening to this again in the future and would love to hear more of your stuff.

Corpsefister - Interesting, but kinda dragged too long for me, the first part is like a spoken intro that just takes too much to lead into the song, which by the way I liked, but was kinda tired already by the time it started. Seems to me also like some extra layers of keyboards playing something different to add depth would have worked great.

CrustAsFuckExistence - There isn't much I can contribute with here, DSBM (at least that's sorta what it sounded like to me, only funeral-ier) is a genre I never liked so my opinion wont bring anything useful to the table.

deathprog23 - It starts good, liked the first half, but it got a bit too repetitive to me, could have used some variation; however, after it starts speeding up I lost the interest, it felt like the song lost direction and it didn't really fit with what had been played until then.
On the sound: the guitar could use more distortion and punch, but it's not a bad tone. The drums are very shy also, they're way too far behind.


I would like to clarify, that though my reviews might seem mostly negative it's not out of spite, but rather to point out what I didn't like in order to improve it (subjectively, of course), just to make sure noone gets offended by what I say, it's not my intention.

Also, regarding the topic for the next challenge, some mixture of genres would be cool, like death with neofolk or black with noneruopean folk, I'm looking forward to join it regardless of the genre* anyways, only reason I didn't join this one is because I didn't come up with any decent idea and was kinda busy, but damn I wanted to.

*Unless it's thrash, damn I hate thrash haha

haha

oh additionally like was said... I would've mixed and rendered my track down at a lower vol to avoid any peaking, something which I'll address later as well.

Super Famicom - First, let me say, I love the overall sound of the song, it has a soft and warm thing going about it that would work great for some laidback stoner.
Music-wise, you got me pretty confused here, I'm still not sure wether I like this or not, I've listened to it several times and I can't say I actually dislike it, but I feel there's still something missing there for me to wholly embrace it. Something I'm sure about though, is that I want to hear more of your stuff in the future.
On the voices: didn't like the howling, it sounded unnatural, like you were hurting your voice and it just didn't match with the music style in my opinion. Can't say I'm too fond of the cleans either, they're kind of one-dimensional.

Willoos - Well, same case as with CrustAsFuck.

Haighred - Production puts me off, it's all too muddy and messy to me. Music ain't really in the alley of what I listen to, so can't criticize much being that is not something I truly enjoy.

Gloaming - Quite an interesting song, simple yet effective and in your face doom, only thing I disliked was the use of vocals, they don't add much to the song, and I feel like this could have worked great with a clean more trad/epic oriented singer singing across the riffs a la Dio. Some slight variation on the drumming could work too, but it's not bad as it is. Would have shortened it a bit too, but not too much, perhaps 30 seconds or a minute shorter.

kingnuuuur - This needs some doubling guitar or whatever to give more depth and body to the main riffs; everything you need is right there, the riffs that make you feel you're high to the point of walking like an astronaut, the plodding drums that set your neck to bouncing mode, it just lacks that extra power that makes you feel you're being washed by waves of sound, great stuff nonetheless.
Would change the sound on the solo too, it sounds awkward.

Ecliptic Dawn - Hm, I'm joining the criticism towards the sounds of the lead guitar, it sounds just... bad, like painful but not in a good way, and the tone of the rythmic is odd.
Keyboards are nice, but I would have them down on the volume. It's a matter of choice though, seems to me like you're a fan of the 90s wave of death/doom, which has never really been my cup o'tea, which is also why I can't speak much about the music, this is not really the style of riffs I enjoy.
Nice vocals though, I actually felt like there should be more usage of them in the song.

Yzordderrex - Now this is more like my kind of doom, I usually love pretty much every variant of it, but heavy, dark, powerful and ugly is what calls for my attention the most.
The riffs need some working in my opinion, the atmosphere is right, you've got the whole aspect of feeling covered, but a second guitar harmonizing with different rythmic patterns, or maybe breaking the chords into odd arpeggiation every now and then would assure my interest is kept in the song all the way thru.
Also, more volume and participation to the high vox! It sounded great but kinda got eclipsed by the lower growls, and in this style higher screeches roaming over the sludgey wall of noise always work.

Having listened to the song on a different sound system, I definitely agree with the reviews. The guitars were doubled, but I think the problem was that I used too much stereo widening and maybe a little too much conservatism with the bass EQ to avoid boominess. I'll keep that in mind for the next challenge.


Yeah I would've liked to jam for longer, like half an hour at least, but then the file size would've killed me. Sort of mixed things up just to avoid it feeling like it's ending prematurely.

As for my guitar tuning, I've had my E string cut while recording, so I tuned the rest 5 steps down to achieve an E standard, so extremely loose strings seems like not give correct notes, I don't know If there's something wrong with bass, still, I am glad that reviews were positive towards my post.
i'll write my reviews as soon as i give the songs a good listen.
Edit: I forgot to mention, that was my first time to record guitars ever, I've had some difficulties setting up a tune out of vst's, anyway, I'll definitely re-record the song with correct tuning and better distortion tone.
Thanks for reviews written so far.

By the way, about my original song, if anyone's interested in providing me with some sludgy as shit harsh vocals, send me a PM and we might just work it out before next week.

My reviews. I'm no producer so find it hard to comment on that for the most part. I really enjoyed checking out all the efforts here though - a very interesting mix, if not quite what I might have expected!

Apteronotus : Awerewa - Geophagus

The guitar tone grated at first, but after I got used to it, I liked the lo-fi vibe it gives. Made me think deathrock perhaps? Love the main sludgy riff and the variation in vibes throughout. Drums didn't seem full/interesting enough for me, but otherwise a solid performance. Short and sweet!

Awblaster : Amaritude - Alignment of the Stars

Nice tempo, like the incessant bass drum and layered vocal sound, not too keen on the change around 3:00. Good wallowing vibe and solid production.

CorpseFister : The Flesh Remembers

Nice full mix sound, not too keen on the guitar tone though, it doesn't bite.
Finishes a bit abruptly, though coupled with the strangled scream it sort of works!

CrustAsFuckExistence : Solitude & Despair

The sound is great and really fits the title, though perhaps a bit too hissy? The song didn't really seem to go anywhere, but I suppose that's fitting The minimal outro fading to noise was a nice touch.

diamondfamicom : Super Famicom - I Will Only Be Yours (Devil Eyes)

Nice crunchy guitar sound, bit fast for a really doomy feel, but catchy as hell and a nice transition to the chilled bit, which makes a great contrast. Again, it could have been slowed down here. The performance captures a nice tension and woeful vibe that I really like. More doomy at the end where the echo works to great effect.

Grofweg : Willoos - Vervallen

Not too keen on the stop-start trick, better when the double bass continues over it at least. Love the harmonising and vibe of the sludgy middle section. Nice full sound and well played. Not sure about DSBM though, reminded me more of slow dirty hardcore like some of Lack's stuff.

Haightred : Astral Entities

Like the time-signature but think more could have been made of it, some more varied drums that emphasise the departure from 4/4 perhaps? Maybe a bit overused though, some variety would have kept it more interesting. The lead around 5:30 gets a bit lost in the mix, drums/vocals too high there I think. Nicely played and a good sound though.

iamntbatman : Gloaming - The Nightmare of Braddock Heights

Great sludgy doom sound here, played a little loose but that doesn't hinder the vibe which is dark and dirty. Didn't feel inspired by the riffage, song could have done with some more variety I feel, but that’s probably just my taste.

kingnuuuur : Stoner Jam

Got the sound nailed here, like how the second guitar swells in, in fact the whole build up is great. Tasty riffs and nice drum fills, but not enough going on to make up for the lack of vocals. After the change at about 4:00, everything sounds killer in a totally different, space rock way, then the crash back is done just right. Great stuff.

Nightwisher1990 : Ecliptic Dawn - The Black Waterfall

Not keen on how the bass and guitar sound together, like they're not in tune.
I like the structure and variety in the riffs, but it lacks punch, I'm not experienced enough to say what that could be due to I'm afraid.

ShaolinLambKiller : Yzordderrex - Crawling

Great fat low sound all round here, with just enough noise and variety in the beats to keep things quite nicely hypnotic rather than monotonous. Great job.


deathprog23 : hvy.wtr

Inspired by listening to a load of contemporary doom this summer, a song about being cast adrift in the ocean at the mercy of the waves. Stops being so doomy from about 5:00 where the tempest gets the better of the protagonist, leading to a rather rocky epiphany.
It's a rough cut, only one take for most of the parts. We're novice producers so any tips/suggestions are much appreciated! Many thanks for the feedback so far.

The bass is real – I’ll have to look up what pedal my friend uses; it does sound good. He does vocals too and I’m guitar. Playing an ancient Fender Squire, so that probably contributes to the grungy sound (I do like a lot of grunge - Soundgarden’s 4th of July would have fit here nicely I think). Drums are a mixture of BeatMonkey and Logic samples. Really need to look into learning to program some ourselves, bit lost there at the moment to be honest.

If we’d written this specifically for the challenge, would have probably dirtied it up a bit more. Will look forward to a more dedicated go at the next one!


Lyrics:

verses

long upon the waves
have seen their ebb and flow
have known the spray and squall
have had my fill of all...

must bring in this old boat to shore
tomorrow will bring a new dawn
these weather-beat lips crack a smile
lost on the wind and the brine...


chorus

dragging back my limbs through viscous...treacle-washed incumbent tempests...swamped and broken by this master...slowing tides now hold me faster


end bit

i've had my fill
had enough
quite enough of this

incessant, grey masquerade

pull the shades down

Oh man, that explains it all about the guitar tone, shame that happened to you, the sound would change a lot with a properly tuned guitar.

Love 4th of July by Soundgarden. it's fucking doom as fuck. I can't remember who I think November's Doom did a cover of it or These Are They did. Now that's going to drive me up the wall.

And yea no wonder the tuning sounded wonky as fuck. tuning the rest of the strings lower won't create the same results. it's the same if you hit notes that are the same.. as in the 5th fret or open on the string higher.. it's going to ring and sound just different enough to notice.

Found a couple of nice covers by Rosetta and Where She Wept - don't know if you were thinking of either, but I enjoyed them so thanks for that!

hahah I might have been thinking of Rosetta perhaps. Where she wept I had never heard before. I'll check em out.

I recorded in Drop D tuning and E Standard for the middle part, with a Kramer Striker played through a Crate GFX 2x12 combo. For bass, a Washburn through a 10" Fender Rumbler. My acoustic is a Durango. I'm glad you all liked my solo at the end. I kind of made it up on the spot and used a reverb envelope on the sloppier parts.
Can't wait for the next challenge!

Despite having not participated to this contest, would it be acceptable for me to review the submissions?

This isn't a closed doors event. Anyone can review, and the more the merrier.

And full support for the neofolk challenge idea.

I'm going to be harsh (or rather, honest) here I'm afraid as I'm not giving extra points because many of the participants are amateurs. I will review you pretty much as any music on the archives. Do not be offended. If you feel I'm being unfair, you may point it out.

Don't think my ratings have anything to do with the idiotic US school grade system.
10 = incredibly good, an instant classic.
9 = very, very good. I will listen to this again!
8 = quite good, shows lots of promise
7 = promising, but quite lacking in some areas
6 = lacking in many important areas, but not without remeeding values
5 = not good at all, but not terrible either
I didn't rate anything below 5, but anything below it would be really bad.

Awerewa – Geophagus

Atmospheric, dark doom metal with some rather peculiar touches. The guitar solo reminded me of Bolt Thrower's early solos. The riffing is competent and delightfully Sabbathy at times. The major problems in this song are the following: drumming and songwriting. The drums are extremely boring and monotonous and lack so much punch that this song would've worked better without them. Another problem is in the song's pacing. Riffs come after another without any sense of increasing tension or even the most elementary sense of flow. The riffs are really good and well played, but in other fields the song is very lacking. The guitar tone is interesting, but I'm more keen on a basic bread and butter guitar tone for this kind of music; stranger sounds should be used occasionally, but not extensively. 7.0/10

Amaritude – Alignment of Stars

A melodic doom metal song somewhat reminiscent of what some modern doomish black metal bands are doing. The chord progressions give that impression. Here the drum machine works quite well, although you insisted on using a fast snare roll for a fill at one point which hardly ever sounds good with drum machines. Overall, this song is pulled off fairly well. The vocals fit the song's lethargic atmosphere, but it would've benefitted from a much slower tempo to further enhance this atmosphere. For doom metal of this kind, it sounds too agitated and not heavy enough. I was not that impressed with the riffs in this song either. Other than that, a good performance. 6.6/10

Corpsefister – The Flesh Remembers

This is definitely a dark one, somewhat reminiscent of Shape of Despair's first full-length, although less melodic and more gloomy and desolate. It could be described as what Xasthur would sound as a funeral doomish band. The vocals are almost as if spoken, but in a gruff, guttural tone, and near the end is a very anguished scream - nice. Haunting keyboards sit tastefully in the background. The guitar tone seriously lacks vitriol and power, but on the other hand since guitars, too, are almost merely a background element, and the music is more driven by bass and vocals. A rather nice piece. 7.9/10

CrustAsFuckExistence – Solitude and Despair

A very plodding, dark funeral doom song, quite like Corpsefister's, but this one is even darker and more desolate. The tempo is truly funeral doom slow. Again reminiscent of Xasthur. The vocals are really, really far away somewhere. I'm not sure I enjoyed this one that much, although being so incredibly gloomy and hopeless, the point of the music may not be in bringing enjoyment. Whereas Corpsefister's song lacked vitriolic guitar tone, here it is even too harsh: extremely distorted and treble-heavy, but also thick and all-encompassing. A monolithic slab of doom metal of the darkest order, a very drery piece. Too dreary for my tastes, even. A song like this requires more variety. 7.4/10.

deathprog23 – hvy.wtr

This one is a more traditional spirited doom metal piece. Nice, pleasant riffing, although quite unevoking, starts the song, but it takes a more melancholic turn soon. When the melancholic riff kicks in, I must say, the song also makes a turn for the better. It's quite underwhelming though: the drum sounds are dry and poor and lack power. The vocals, clean singing reminiscent of earlier Anathema's clean sung parts, could use some improvement. The pitch is off, and the tone is a bit weak. The tone might be due to poor recording more than singer's lack of ability, of course. When the fast part kicks in, it doesn't really manage to put any strength into the song's progress. The slow, plodding beat just suddenly changes into a fast one with one drum fill, and everything else stays quite the same. The screamed vocals are quite good, I would've liked to hear more of them. The riffs are, after that one great riff early in the song, not very good. Overall, this one leaves a lot to be desired. It wasn't at all horrible at any part, however; instead, there were some good parts. 5.8/10

Super Famicom – I Will Only Be Yours

A faster song, one I wouldn't classify as doom if it weren't for the claustrophobic, anguished atmosphere. In some ways this is like some so-called post-sludge (or post-metal or whatever) music, and the acoustic break with clean singing reminds me of Neurosis (although the singing itself reminds me of Rob Halford ). Very cool riffs in this song, shame that the guitar tone is quite muddy, as if in a poor-quality mp3. Harsh vocals are pretty alright shrieks, but the clean singing leaves a lot to be desired in terms of pitch. Some vocal lessons, and you'd be a most promising tenor. The musicianship is otherwise competent, although the drum beats could use more variation. 8.1/10

Willoos – Vervallen

Wow, the intro really blew me away. Probably the best riff so far in the competition. Man, I wish the vocals would make justice for the music – some kind of far-away chants, I dunno man. Why not harsh vocals or melodic singing? The riffs are fantastic, the production is fantastic, everything is played really well too. Awesome song! Shame about the vocals... Get someone to scream like a bastard over this and it'll be one hell of a song. Really intensive. It doesn't really get doom metal until about halfway in, which also marks a notable shift in quality from awesome to fair. Still not bad. The lead guitar doesn't play anything very interesting and doesn't sit well in the mix. After that, back to epic excellence. Did you get Drudkh to teach you songwriting? It's a black metal song with a doomy break, but hey, it's fucking fantastic. 9.5/10

Haightred – Astral Entities

Another dark piece. A really nasty guitar throne with loads of lows and trebles and practically no middles. Like Metallica tone, but on steroids. The music itself is not quite as impressive, but quite competent anyhow. The vocals are a duet of higher rasps and low gutturals; not bad at all, but I would've reserved the duet thing for a special effect and used either-or for the most part. Not any very memorable riffs here, but decent enough. A cool melodic break like a respite from the heavy, gloomy Disembowelment-esque doom bombardment. The lead guitar is somehow a bit grating though, it needs to be subtler both in terms of melody and tone. It needs a counterpoint, or it needs to be a counterpoint to the underlying theme or riff. 7.0/10

Gloaming - The Nightmare of Braddock Heights

Batman here really understands the meaning of doom. This is some fucking doom alright. Incredibly downtuned guitar riffs, drumbeats that implement different kinds of cymbals, and really dark-sounding chord progressions make this sound like a fucking steamroller juggernaut of death heading your way while you're stuck in wet concrete. Despite the very low tuning of the guitar, the tone is crystal clear, and the bass manages to hold its own against the huge guitar by being even huger. Bass and guitar tones complement each other perfectly, and the drums sound organic and real and stand out in the mix without being loud (they could be louder even). Very cool, if a bit lacking in variety. 8.6/100

kingnuuuur – Stoner Jam

A stoner jam indeed! Like a lethargic, laid back, plodding version of Clutch. How can music sound so sure of itself? Very doomy, very heavy and very catchy. Excellent tones and a cool mix aside from the drums which are slightly powerless. Again, incredibly low tunings. I liked this one, although it was too plodding for my tastes. Lack of dynamics and variety. It does sound very jam oriented indeed, both in a good way in that it sounds flexible and free, but also in that like in jams, the guitarist will go and forget that one really great riff he was planning for some part. 7.7/10

Ecliptic Dawn – The Black Waterfall

For this one I can't think of much to say for some reason, it simply rubs me the wrong way. It starts with a horribly out of tune guitar lead, which is then accompanied by power chords for the exact same notes. Never a good way to go. The melodies are vaguely oriental-sounding, a bit like Amorphis. The growls sound very similar to early Amorphis, how did you achieve such a similar voice? The keyboards are much too intrusive, since they don't really do anything anyway. No good riffs, no atmosphere other than the irritation it creates in me. It sounds almost like a metal parody or something; as if no passion was put into it at all. Too much shit is going on, but nothing goes anywhere. 5.2/10

Yzordderrex – Crawling

Not Linking Park. The song really crawls. This is incredibly twisted, dark and heavy doom metal. The best mix of all participants: magnificent guitar tone lets bass show through it despite how heavy and low-tuned it is, the drums sound very clear and powerful. If anything the vocals could be louder. No reason to hide them in the mix since from what I can hear they're pretty amazing. If anything, the riffs could be a little .. more. The first riff is good enough, but the second riff doesn't have a lot to it, and it goes on forever. Then, for almost half of the duration of the song, almost nothing happens. Don't leave your song halfway finished, this one has incredible potential. To indulge in such megalomanic doom breakery, you need to have at least three great riffs before it for at least twice the duration of the break itself. You had one for half the break's length. Great work in every other field though. I almost gave you a much lower score, but I didn't, because the great sounds alone make this song interesting to listen to despite the fact that half of the song you have only one damn power chord. 7.9/10

Damn Willoos and the vocals. Well, Willoos wins despite the vocals. Hooray!

Just downloaded a bit ago, looking forward to listening to soon.

iamntbatman, I must say, I was quite surprised to see a song about the Snallygaster in this compilation. I assume you live near Braddock Heights, Maryland? If so that's pretty cool, I actually used to live less than a mile away from Braddock Mountain. That's a very cool subject for a doom metal song!

Thanks! and lol I didn't even know about Linking Park having a song of the same name... now I want to change the bastard :/

thanks for the review, I'll definitely have to find a good lead tone (actually I've used rhythm tone to play lead) in addition to proper strings and tuning, the whole thing will be re-recorded (except for vocals).
As for my vocals, I am really no fan for amorphis, you might laugh at this, but my vocals are inspired by Mark Jansen, i consider his recent voca ls one of the best, as for achieving it i really don't know, just normal growls with a dynamic mic that's connected to a mixer with some heavy compression to make it cut through the whole mix.