A. Wang Wen - Escape From Mother Universe: https://genjingrecords.bandcamp.com/track/escape-from-mother-universe
A hasn't been good in the polls so far. I've skimmed this before for that reason. I recall that it is some sort of chinese post-rock. Never did get post-rock as a genre. It just means "rock instruments but played in an unusual way." Yo, that also applies to shoegaze. From what I've been able to tell, post-rock usually refers to slow, reverber-y, ambient, instrumental stuff with rock instruments. Usually crescendos as well.

Not unpleasant. Sort of dull, really. Basic drum beat, tremolo-picked clean guitars. It's built up to a crescendo like I thought. It doesn't feel earned. I don't get any payoff because the song did not engage me during the buildup. Oh, now there's a guy screaming. Way to ruin a song, eh?

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	B. Jardin de la Croix - Intermareals: http://y2u.be/cw1o3Dv6034
This opens interestingly. I've heard A and B are both post-rock, but this sounds a bit heavier than what I normally associate with the usual post-rock fanfare. Quite clean production. I would consider this to be prog rock, though the site where you can buy the album says that it's math rock. I've always had a stigma against progressive rock and especially progressive metal because a lot of it seems to exude this air of pretentious intellectualism. Oh, we're so much better than you regular rock musicians, we play in 18/5 time signature. I wonder if math rock is extra intellectual.

Not bad so far. I don't feel as though there is anything here to engage me. I can hear that all the musicians are good at what they do, but I don't find myself attached in any way to it. I forget how the song goes five seconds after it goes. It sounds nice enough in the moment, but I won't remember if it sounds nice when it's over.

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	C. Black Riot - A Day in the Life: http://y2u.be/09L0l9ygLZM
I assume this is not a cover of the Beatles song. Discogs defines this song's genre as house. It's leaving me with very little to say. I suppose it's not bad, but it's also not really that good, either. It's certainy music of some sort. I'm really more interested in the snooker match that's taking place at the moment, and it's not even a particularly interesting match.

All of a sudden, the song changes up, which is nice. It hadn't changed at all up to this point. But now it's back to where it was. Finally some more variety as the synth stops playing the same melody over and over. You'd think it would have happened sooner. The drum machine has remained more or less identical for the whole song. Then just as suddenly as anything else, it ends. I don't think so.

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	D. Show Me A Dinosaur - Wojan http://y2u.be/-W3ChSBV_7s
First off, great name. This is another long song that opens all atmospheric-like, so one has to assume it's yet more post-rock. The bandcamp description says this of the band: "Four-piece formation from north-western coast of cold Russia. Flooding guitar sounds with hurricane of drums and desperate screams." So already, I'm concerned about the scream bit, unless it's screaming in a black metal sorta way. Perhaps this is the black metal/shoegaze song I've heard about.

The atmosphere is slowly building up as the clean guitars overlap one another. The drums have come in, but it's not really sounding like a hurricane or a flood yet. And there it is! Wall of sound as usual. I never know how to feel about this type of sound, where everything is just flooding in as they so rightly say. Perhaps something a little more contained and less awash in ambiance would be nicer. Not bad at all though. The screams are strange, but they're not screamo or post-hardcore so they're not unpleasant. The sound is deteriorating into droning noises. We have returned to the clean, atmospheric sound of before. And now we are back to the wall of sound. I didn't really feel a flood or a hurrican there. More like a drizzle and a light wind. Decent enough though.

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	E. Trio Lescano - Maramao Perchè Sei Morto: http://y2u.be/529JyJ7K6UQ
I know this band. They're Italian, although I think the all-female trio may be of Danish origin or something like that. I looked it up, it's three sisters of Hungarian and Netherland origins. This isn't a particularly striking example, but sometimes their vocal harmony makes it sound like old-time Disney music. It can be quite pleasant. They're from the 40s and 50s, so it's a case of Italian swing and "musica leggera," or "light music."

This song is delightfully pleasant. By no means a great track, but it's very hard to dislike. I suppose that's where the name "light music" comes from. It's over before you know it.

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	F. Ebo Taylor - Come Along: http://y2u.be/f11cJLtirZI
I've heard this is the good song. As has been the case, the standout song in the polls is usually a funk-inspired track. We're looking at some afro-beat here which is very nice indeed. There's the classic "wah" guitar panned heavily to the right. I'm semi-conversing on the Discord, so it's hard to focus, but this is the best song so far. Lovely sax solo, now followed by a trumpet. Trumpet over sax, any day of the week.

In comes the guitar as well. Something about this type of music is intrinsically enjoyable. It just makes you want to move. Lovely vocals as well. There's not a lot to say, this song really speaks for itself. Great tune.

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	G. Vola - Inmazes: http://y2u.be/Qrc9BWbuaUo
Frightening cover art. I believe this is the djent track. Tense synth chords in the background give way to that classic 8 string sound. Not as chugga-chugga as you'd expect djent to be, but I'm sure we'll get to it. Oh boy, here's vocals. Murmuring with the tense chords in the background, but I'm sure when the guitar and drums kick in again we'll hear some screaming. Just when I thought the chugga-chugga would begin in full, we get a guitar solo. Surprisingly pretty nice.

The guitar is getting cleaner, as are the vocals. It's taken on an Animals as Leaders-esque vibe, though a bit simpler and with vocals. The guitars are amping up, but not chugging. It feels like a teaser. I don't even really like that classing djent chugging, but surely it's gotta be here. Not really feeling these vocals. This sounds strangely cheerful, particularly now that this tonky-ish piano sound has kicked in. I'm not sure how to feel. I was expecting something more aggressive and dark, but it ended up being quite a nostalgic sounding track. Feels a bit out of place. But at least there was no chugging.

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	H. Neon Blonde - Chandeliers & Vines: http://y2u.be/_SN1CgM4rQE
H has been a regularly high-voted feature on the polls so far. This doesn't sound bad. There's what I believe to be an 80s pop rock-esque instrumental backing some very exuberant vocals, perhaps more exuberant than what the song calls for. Oh, that took a turn. All of a sudden it's an almost John Zorn-esque passage excepting for the lack of a saxophone. This vocalist is exaggerating like an actor in a movie who is far over the top in his portrayal of a charater.

I'm very confused by this. It sounds rather nice in its calmer moments, but the rest of the song is a constant imbalance between the vocal delivery and the instrumental. Cognitive dissonance made music. But I can't say it was a bad song, not at all, it just felt a bit meandering and unsure of what it wanted to be.

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	I. Big Blood and the Bleedin Hearts - The Birds and the Herds: http://y2u.be/LBQwQnLmHak
This is another one that has been talked about. Sounds interesting. There's something of a folk vibe to the vocal performance, and it sits atop an understated instrumental awash with reverb. It makes me think that this could be a modern rendition of some imaginary traditional song. It must be said that there is no great level of production here, especially if that sound--which I think is meant to be a distorted guitar--is anything to go by.

Something about the vocals gets a bit strange in the second half. It's as if the singer is about to cry, but not in that shit screamo way. I'm still not charmed by that wavering, unsteady sound. It doesn't make the song sound any sadder, if that's the goal, it just makes it slightly annoying. The song isn't particularly sad to begin with. It's by no means bad, but I feel like there's something holding it back from being as good as it could be. Chief point being that it has no business being seven and a half minutes long. Could have happily been half that length.

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	J. Ray Charles Singers - This Is My Prayer: http://y2u.be/s8EXz4pAti0 Not the "Ray Charles"
No relation to the little known musician Ray Charles, I understand. I know so little about Ray Charles, I could probably have been convinced that this was a song of his. Apparently an adaptation of an Italian song. Sounds like pretty pleasant, easy-listening music from the 60s.

This song, unlike the previous, knows the virtue of brevity. It was such a short song, there isn't much time to say anything major about it. Just like E, it's a very decent tune that's hard to dislike, but nothing exceptional.

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	K. Nobukohori - Nuine: https://myspace.com/nobukohori/music/song/nuine-26671077-26472262
This is a noise song that has been talked about. Many have said it's the worst song on here. It's certainly the most musically challenging here, I should think. Maybe not quite as hard to appreciate as Merzbow at his worst (best?) but still quite tricky. I don't mind it though. It's a very song, and it's very situational, in that I would very rarely find myself in the mood to listen to it.

There's something about these noises that is frightening in an pleasant way. I've listened to it before. I described it as "the screams of the souls burning in hell trapped in a glitch/IDM song". Part of me wants to rate it higher than I would for the sake of spiting the others. Fuck it!

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	L. Obsequiae - Until All Ages Fall: http://y2u.be/p7N_k8ns4rM
This title screams metal. Indeed it is metal. These vocals are interesting. They remind me of black metal vocals but with a hint of Lemmy and Cronos added to them. This is nice. Not quite black metal, or certainly a very melodic example of black metal. Not gonna lie, I've always loved the medieval aesthetic. The album cover looks lovely.

The song itself is a bit basic, but I like it well enough. Not really blowing my socks off, so to speak, but I hear enough good in it that I'd back these guys to make a real banger of a track if they put their minds to it.

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	M. The Godsin Brothers - Hangin' On 1967: http://y2u.be/zK4rM8sTI_c
Sounds like folk/country. Always had a soft spot for country, I won't lie. The acoustic guitar in the background is doing some almost bluegrassy twiddles, but the song itself is certainly closer to traditional country. I don't normally enjoy cheerful/lighthearted songs very much, but this kind of sound can be the exception. This is not a stunning example, but like I said, soft spot.

Ends before you know it, so I'm left without an awful lot to say, but it wasn't bad at all.

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	N. Ellen Says No - Nobody: http://y2u.be/JMx0e3Ek7ik
N hasn't been good so far in the polls. This doesn't sound as though it'll be very good, either. That snare drum sounds like it's way too loose for its own good. Some basic acoustic guitar strumming in the background, some basic indie/alt vocal delivery. I'm just waiting for the annoying as fuck screams.

Doesn't sound as if any screams are gonna take place. It's instead gonna choose to be dull as hell and remain the same thing beginning to end. I suppose if I read the super relatable emotional lyrics, it would be better, but I don't care. Fuck relatable songs. My life is trash. I don't want to relate to what I listen to, I want to separate myself from my life and daydream of what might be. This is why I hate cheerful songs. They sound dishonest. This song isn't cheerful, and for that I respect it a little more. But it sure as hell hasn't made me any more cheerful.

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	O. Stillwater Giants - Ingredients: http://y2u.be/vLcaeMQ2JmE
Stillwater Giants could have been the name of a metal band as well, but it doesn't sound like much of one. Pretty decent guitar riff, to be honest. This band was described as surf/indie rock on their soundcloud. Indie rock is usually a bad sign for me. This is not charming me, but it's not putting me off either. It's sort of a bland in-between.

Pretty basic pentatonic guitar solo taking place. It's strange how a three minute song can sound repetitive--you wouldn't think it would be long enough for that. I think it may be the vocals. They've been pretty unchanging throughout, and from what I've been able to hear the lyrics have been repeated quite a lot as well. Not a terrible song, but not really anything to write home about.

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	P. My Epic - Lower Still: http://y2u.be/XCnlpZfVD4c
The comments under this video make it seem as though this is a song with religious undertones/messages. I don't mind. I'm not religious, but I find religion fascinating as a concept, especially the culture and art that surrounds it. This isn't striking me as particularly cultural or artsy though. This guitar sound sorta reminds me of the mid-2000s, like a heavier Linkin Park.

The vocals are not winning me over by any standards. They also sound 2000s. I still can't quite put my finger on it, but this strange vocal delivery that you hear so often in indie rock, some alt rock, virtually all post-hardcore, it just grates on my nerves. Oh, a female vocalist all of a sudden. And now the male vocalist is pretending to scream. I'd say shut up, but that would draw more attention to the boring as fuck instrumentals.

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	Q. Forest of Fog - Feuersterm: http://y2u.be/i_jV1O6UEYM
Let's see... forest, fog, some mysterious sounding name. This is surely black metal. The acoustic guitar kicks off the song, so perhaps black metal with folk presence. The electric guitar and drums are building up. They sound kvlt. And there's the black metal kicking in. Blast beats, tremolo picking, proper fucking screams for once. That's the good shit.

It must be said that this is not really reinventing the wheel. It's pretty standard black metal. It's also not as folky as I may have expected it to be given the intro. Exactly as I say it, we receive a clean interlude. This sounds nice. Something is quite reverberated; I think it may be the drums. The electric guitar kicks in again, but it follows the interlude. Now we are back to the black metal, but using a different riff. This is a pretty good song, but it would benefit from being slightly more daring. It even conforms fo the classic Burzum production value. Not bad though.

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	R. Jeremy Irons & the Ratgang Malibus - Fog by the Steep: http://y2u.be/afpyk2rRHi0
Ten more minutes. God damn! This is starting quite atmospheric-y and spooky. Just wonder where this atmosphere will lead. Psych rock is the answer! Wah guitar straight out of the late 60s/early 70s. In come the vocals. Actually pretty okay so far. Could this be definder under a stoner-something description? I don't know, and I also don't really think I care that much.

I wonder if perhaps this kind of music feels a bit like hanging on to the past in the year 2017. The production value has been modernized, it all sounds huge and all-encompassing, but the music itself may be a bit stuck in its ways. Except for the vocals, those are certainly not a callback to the 60s. This is decent enough, but it's not amazing me. This bluesy, fuzzy, wah guitar sounds like it's there to continue an old trend, rather than because it really fits the band's vision for this song.

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	S. Jacky Bastek - No Exit: https://jackybastek.bandcamp.com/track/no-exit-3
Another seven minute song. Acoustic fingerstyle with a female vocalist. Not a huge fan of--you guessed it--the vocals. I won't talk any more about it. There's something about this whole whispering/mumbling/singing-but-really-mellow thing that doesn't win me over at all. Tommy Emmanuel acoustic guitar percussion. I hate that sound, to be quite frank.

This is boring me to tears. It's so unremarkable in every way. I skimmed the last three minutes to ensure that I wasn't missing anything, but luckily, I wasn't. Really, I wouldn't have missed anything if I had stopped after the first twenty seconds.

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	T. Bethany Curve - Door 2416: http://y2u.be/NJgcmUhoGaA(edited)
Distorted guitar playing very dissonant intervals. Sounds a little bit a unison bend, but without actually being a bend. Some ghostly vocals have kicked in, and they have now given way to a guitar riff so awash in atmospheric effects that it doesn't sound like much more than a wall of noise.

These vocals fit right in with what I was saying early. The delivery sounds so passionless, so dull, so bored. Almost as bored as I am listening to it. It's as if the singer doesn't particularly want to be doing this. I'll be honest, I don't either.