[C/H/A/N/E/L]

Originally posted by Katie

I just got home from work about 20 minutes ago. Doing this before I even eat dinner

I asked your husband if you two would adopt me because I hate my parents. He said he'd talk to you. But eat, Katie, then do this.

[DvnR]

I think..........



I'm gonna go play Terraria. Dis ist reediculous. I'm waiting for Beez In The Trap AND the results to this and the suspense is slowly killing me. It's not healthy for me to be like dis.

[KitKat]

Ok. Finished the responses, now just deciding the order

[Matty]

Originally posted by Katie

Ok. Finished the responses, now just deciding the order

What timing, I just got done editing a photo of Sahn for him

[KitKat]

Originally posted by Matty

What timing, I just got done editing a photo of Sahn for him

Just sent in

Now. Do I read back and see how many people complained about me?

[DvnR]

Terraria was taking too long to load

[Matty]

Originally posted by Katie

Just sent in

Now. Do I read back and see how many people complained about me?

If you do, you might ban a few people


Updating now yolks

[Ammer]

Originally posted by Katie

Just sent in

Now. Do I read back and see how many people complained about me?

You should probably eat first!

[C/H/A/N/E/L]

Um...

[Matty]

ATRL's Next
topmember
Cycle 7

---

EPISODE 1: USERNAMES

Guest Judge: Sunderland 4ever



THE COMMENTS

FORGET THE LOVED

Originally posted by mockingjay

ultimately, i felt like you were trying to defend your choices rather than explain why the songs made your list. also, ray of light and dancing queen? i mean i get it if they just recently became favorite songs of yours, but still... a song from the 70s and one from the late 90s on a best of 2012 list? i just don't get it... and your "I guess I tried it, being honest in it all. " ... you need to be confident in your entries or no one else will be. your entry did not stand out to me this round. sorry.

Originally posted by Deuces.

Girl I really want to rank you higher because Ray of Light is one of my favorite songs of all time and I agree with everything you said BUT the challenge was suppose to contain 2012 songs only 2 of your songs are from 2012. Sorry.

Originally posted by Katie

While your entry was well-written, it read more like a typical year end countdown. There was no real connection between you and your song choices. Anyone can list their top five songs, but a Top Member can show a real bond for them.

Originally posted by Childish Redbino

First of all, I want to establish one thing: If you sent in an all-time list, I will NOT punish you for it. That's perfectly acceptable. Now, with that out of the way, I enjoyed your description for "Dancing Queen", as I felt as if I could relate to how you grew to love that song. I had a similar experience with "Good Vibrations" by the Beach Boys. As for the other four descriptions, I think that you described what you like about the songs pretty well, but the descriptions themselves could have been better, particularly for #2 and #3. I also felt as if you were inconsistent somewhat. You made mention of your personal connection with #1, but what about the other four songs? I think that this had the makings of a pretty strong entry, but it was lacking in a few spots.

Originally posted by Sunderland 4ever

Very nice reviews, especially the ones for your number 1 song. I feel somehow identified with it as many of the songs I love are the songs I listened when I was a child as well. Allow me to say: Great Top 2!

Originally posted by Matty

I liked that you mixed the old with the new. My only wishes out of your entry were to have all songs by different artists or groups and explain more back story of how they have touched you this year for them to be your top 5 at the moment. It’s like the ranking could have been in any order besides your #1. What you said about Dancing Queen was beautiful, I was touched, and it’s such a classic song.

DVNR

Originally posted by mockingjay

ah, the man behind the consonants. i really enjoyed your entry. you kept your entries at a perfect length to be telling but also informative. i also enjoyed the addition of the videos so we didn't have to go search for the songs on our own. solid entry, and great song choices as well.

Originally posted by Deuces.

I like the summaries of why you chose the songs. Really nice explanations. I'm pleased this round.

Originally posted by Katie

You showed a good amount of bond between you and your song choices. Your entry was thorough and well-explained, but not very personal. Were you too rehearsed?

Originally posted by Childish Redbino

Here's the thing about your entry: You didn't REALLY touch on how the song connected with you personally other than with #1, just like Forget the Loved. Despite this, however, your visual style and the impact of your words just feel strong and worthy of being listened to or read. I especially loved the description for STIUTK, particularly the last sentence. It sums up the success of the song perfectly. Almost sounds like something I would say in one of my Best of threads, actually.

Originally posted by Sunderland 4ever

I'm not a fan of reading too much swearing on reviews, but don't misunderstand me, there are moments I find acceptable to use them. Your review was good, you have the spark, but I wanted to see more examples of what memories each song brings to you. Even a tiny one would have helped you stand out.

Originally posted by Matty

I very much liked your entry! From the way you presented it, to the way you spoke about the songs everything was well done. You gave a diverse set of songs that shows your musical taste which I applaud you for doing.

THEGEOKING

Originally posted by mockingjay

i was a bit weary before starting to read your entry because you've been lacking confidence in the thread... but i found myself impressed by your entry. sure, it could have used a little more in terms of delivery and visual stimulation, but your descriptions gave validity to each and every one of your choices. great job. keep it up, and start believing in yourself more. if "born to die" really did give meaning and significance to your life, show us that more often.

Originally posted by Deuces.

I am really impressed. You gave me exactly what I was looking for.

Originally posted by Katie

You probably impressed me the most as far as showing off who you are, but without making it too tryhard. You've made it well known that you are a list person by nature. Your entry was clean and to the point. You took one section to describe the song, and another to describe what it means to you. I hope the other judges saw what you did, because I sure did.

Originally posted by Childish Redbino

As far as actual taste in music in concerned, this was, subjectively, my favorite music taste yet. I wasn't a big fan of the visual representation, and I felt as if you could have done more with the descriptions, but you found a way to make just about every song in your top 5 connect with you in some way. That's huge. I felt that you could have done better, but you touched on one of the aspects that I was looking for in these entries.

Originally posted by Sunderland 4ever

Your reviews were good, but more content would have been appreciated.

Originally posted by Matty

I enjoyed your entry so much! I felt as if I actually got to know you more through the songs you chose. You gave lyric parts explaining how they have touched you and instruments that moved you. Well done!

GIVEMETHATPOP

Originally posted by mockingjay

i truly got lost in your entry... in a good way. very solid. i do wish you would have posted the songs in a way that let us listen without having to open a new page, but that was minor.

Originally posted by Deuces.

Yes! I love it, more personal reasons for some songs would be nice but other than that, yes!

Originally posted by Katie

Unfortunately, you made it more about the songs than about you. A Top Member never lets the spotlight go. There was so little information about yourself and why you made the choices, that it was hard to get a sense of you at all.

Originally posted by Childish Redbino

Love the simple-but-striking style of the presentation. I also liked your descriptions for the songs. Though you didn't touch on the personal aspect too much, if at all, you at least put a lot of effort in describing why the songs are such good ones. You also finally made me realize why I enjoy "Call Me Maybe": It's just such a cheery and catchy song that you can't help but like it. Good work overall.

Originally posted by Sunderland 4ever

What I liked the most about your presentation was how well organized it was. Your use of diverse adjectives to explain how you felt when listening to each song was also something to highlight. Even though many contestants chose "Somebody That I Used To Know" as one of their favorite songs, I think your review about it stands out from the others. Others than your #1, #3 and #5, I didn't feel the same as you on the your description of each song. P.D. I think you have good potential on being the winner of this contest. Don't let me down.

Originally posted by Matty

I like your entry! I like how you gave samples of lyrics that stood out to you in the song. I just wished you would have put a bit more you in the entry instead of just about the production. I also liked that your selection seems pretty diverse and all have different styles. Overall I still enjoyed it.

TOASTY

Originally posted by mockingjay

the two paragraphs after your 5 song choices (and bonus ) were a bit much. i'd have liked to see you focus more on crafting a visually appealing and meaningful entry without having to write an essay. given that, i do like how you pointed out that each and every song can be meaningful given the context. you'll have to bring the complete package harder next time, though... i hope you make it through because i think you can do it.

Originally posted by Deuces.

Informative but sloppy. And that last part was a mess. I do appreciate the creativity.

Originally posted by Katie

You honesty at the end was appreciated, but I don't know if that makes up for an entry that is...less than impressive. What did impress me, however, was the bonus of your own single. A Top Member can promote themselves in any format, and you proved you're capable of doing just that.

Originally posted by Childish Redbino

I could have immediately downvoted you for voting for Chris Brown and the "Birthday Cake" remix, but, since I didn't judge DvnR any differently for including a Chris Brown track, I won't judge you any differently for your choices. I can appreciate your honesty when you say that the songs that you enjoyed so much did not really impact you on a personal level beyond just being enjoyable experiences. And you're right that you don't HAVE to have a diverse taste to be a top member. This is definitely true. I can feel the passion for your entries as well, and that's HUGE, even without the personal element. The presentation could have been better, though.

Originally posted by Sunderland 4ever

I didn't notice a deep connection between your songs and yourself on your reviews. Even though you said they reminded you happy moments, some examples would have been great. I loved the last two paragraphs you wrote.

Originally posted by Matty

Your entry just oozed with personality and showed us your non drunk crazy side (though your drunk side is basically yourself x10 lol). I loved how you gave a Matty style “just because I didn’t show this doesn’t mean I’m not a top member”, that is basically what I did quite a few times during Cycle 2 and I appreciate that in your paragraph. This is entry was all in all you with your music taste. Great job!

JWOWW

Originally posted by mockingjay

your descriptions weren't too long this time, and you chose great songs. i do wish you'd have given a bit more thought to how you formatted your entry and perhaps included a way for us to hear the songs without having to search for them, but you did a good job. will it be enough to get you through to the next round? i'm not sure, but if it does, you need to bring it harder. so far you're being overshadowed. in a competition like this you really have to stand out.

Originally posted by Deuces.

Much improvement from your last week entry. Good job.

Originally posted by Katie

Start big and end big. Your opening paragraph made me think you were going to tell us your story, and that we would see what you stand for in life. But then when it came time for the songs, there was hardly anything about YOU in there. Like I've said with others, it reads like a basic countdown.

Originally posted by Childish Redbino

Some good choices overall, and I can feel a personal connection between you and the songs, but I felt that you could have expressed it better, both through the presentation and through the descriptions. I thought it was interesting that it seemed as if you had more passion for #4 than you did #1. Perhaps #4 is actually your favorite song of the moment? I don't know. But, in any case, I think that you did some things right and some things not-so-right.

Originally posted by Sunderland 4ever

"Love doesn't hurt what it hurts is the stupid people that doesn't know how to love.","Love the spines or do not accept roses." Great sentences; so full of truth.

Originally posted by Matty

I liked how your top 5 thus far this year had a clear meaning to you all about love and falling out love. Each one met a lot to you and how it has affected your love life. Having a Spanish song gave it a special touch for you. Good job!

VULPS

Originally posted by mockingjay

very diverse song choices. the matter of fact descriptions you gave really worked. you had one VERY OLD song, but you clearly explained why you included it so it fit. this entry was great because it showed off how wide your musical tastes are.

Originally posted by Deuces.

Nice explanations although you chose a song from the 60's and this challenge is about songs from 2012. But still nice explanations.

Originally posted by Katie

This was surprisingly not creative, especially coming from you. I was expecting something unique and fresh, but ended up with a standard "here are the best songs" kind of entry.

Originally posted by Childish Redbino

LESLEY ****ING GORE! There are just not enough people here who go THAT far back in music's illustrious history, and that is greatly appreciated. Okay, with the shameless pointing out of how much I love the oldies, let's get on with the actual critique. I think that you relied a little TOO much on the videos to make your point for you. I especially feel this way about the Asher Roth description, where you basically told us to go check out the lyrics for ourselves, instead of pointing out exactly what makes the lyrics so powerful. There were some genuinely enjoyable aspects to your entry, particularly the "It's My Party" description. You definitely had some positives in this entry. But I think that you let the YouTube clips do too much of the talking.

Originally posted by Sunderland 4ever

Interesting selection of songs I must say. My favorite review was number 3 (such a catchy song, I like it too.)

Originally posted by Matty

Like Forget the Loved and DvnR, I loved how you mixed the old and the new and kept it diverse showing what your music taste is about. I also liked the personality you gave in your entry, making it more about yourself. Great job!

PART 2 coming...




Fierce and Love
- Matty

[KitKat]

Originally posted by Childish Redbino

Still earlier than Katie.

Oh?

[C/H/A/N/E/L]

From the "mixed" reviews here, I'm landing myself in the middle, I'm assuming.

[Matty]

ATRL's Next
topmember
Cycle 7

---

EPISODE 1: USERNAMES

Guest Judge: Sunderland 4ever



THE COMMENTS

AMMER

Originally posted by mockingjay

brilliance. your entry was long, but it didn't feel long while reading it. i feel like we got a deeper look at you than any of the other contestants. absolutely incredibly storytelling, and the songs you chose helped move the story along. my personal favorite of this round.

Originally posted by Deuces.

Wow. So much history so much story. You did it again. Another great week. You provided me EXACTLY what I wanted. Thank you.

Originally posted by Katie

There is something to be said about concise reasoning. If you have to take 8937589237458174 words to explain yourself, then you're doing it wrong. While your entry was great, it went on to other topics that didn't even matter for this. Short and sweet.

Originally posted by Childish Redbino

Whoa. You want to talk about a ****ing essay? Holy crap. It almost resembles how much I write for my year-enders, but without the presentation to go along with it. But there's a difference between writing an essay that drones on and on and an essay that actually ensnares the reader right off the bat. Your description for "Dark Paradise" COMPLETELY won me over. It was the perfect combination of feelings of the song itself and personal experience. You kept the momentum up with each subsequent entry and related EVERY song to a personal experience and how the song affected you personally. Some may see this as a long, LONG entry. I see it as a strong reflection of the self.

Originally posted by Sunderland 4ever

I felt completely identified with this part:

This month I'm teaching an pre-intermediate course of English and I used to feel very nervous as I still commited some mistakes when I spoke. Nevertheless, I realized that if I show them confidence, that wouldn't be much of a problem as long as they know that I know about the language.

You could easily make a book with all your favorite songs from all year - a BIG book. Most of the times, quantity doesn't mean quality, but it's nice to see exceptions like this one. I enjoyed reading this. First place without a doubt.

Originally posted by Matty

WOW! To be honest, when I first received your first draft before you said you were editing a few things, I saw the length and subtly hinted to you in my reply to shorten it… I’m glad you didn’t catch the hint. Maybe it’s my psychology passion coming out, but I thought your entry was beautiful and perfect. Yes it was very lengthy, but I enjoyed every word! Fantastic job!

OWL

Originally posted by mockingjay

there was a lot of advertising in your entry. it was kind of distracting for that reason. also, i feel like you focused mostly on why you feel the songs are good. i wish you'd have talked more about why the songs are important to you. your entry wasn't terrible, but it wasn't great either.

Originally posted by Deuces.

A little more personal info in the explanations would have been nice. Decent job. I love the promo though.

Originally posted by Katie

Was this a challenge for the musical artists or for Owl? You talked about them more than you did about your own self.

Originally posted by Childish Redbino

The presentation was solid, and the descriptions told me why you thought the songs were enjoyable to you. I didn't feel how you personally connected to the songs, though. I just see what the songs are about and why they're good songs. I also thought that, like Vulps, you let the majority of the songs do the talking. #1 and #3 both felt like solid descriptions, and, if all of the entries had been of that quality, we'd be talking about a top entry. I just felt that the overall package could have been a little better.

Originally posted by Sunderland 4ever

Same reasons as TGK's. It was not spectacular. Come on Owl, I know you can do it better!

Originally posted by Matty

You and your promotions… I thought your entry was truly nice and it showed me you listen to other people thank Bjork. Though a lot of the songs seem foreign to me, minus Kerli, I could still see a sense of diversity. My only critique, in some of the songs you started to touch on why you related to the song but never fully got there. I wish you would have gone there to connect more with your choices.

QUIQUI

Originally posted by mockingjay

fun song choices, but something was missing... and that something was your soul. i applaud you for including bon qui qui, since that stays true to your username, but i just didn't get a feeling for why these 5 songs are so important to you right now.

Originally posted by Deuces.

Cute entry. Yasss for End of Time. Although I would like more personal insight.

Originally posted by Katie

You had some points where you would take a song and really put yourself into it, but then you had times when you totally ignored yourself and focused on the artist.

Originally posted by Childish Redbino

Let's get one thing out of the way: This is not a "personal experiences" kind of entry. What this IS, however, is an entry that gives me a description of the songs and their high points. I don't even have to listen to the songs to get an idea of why the songs are such great ones to you, and that's always a plus. The presentation itself was a little lacking, but you did a great job of describing the songs, while also adding something different to the equation with your actual descriptions. I will admit, I laughed a little when I read the final description. In a good way, don't worry!

Originally posted by Sunderland 4ever

Your reviews had a lot of attitude, but still I felt you didn't show a strong connection between them and you. I feel you could have done a better job, especially describing your Bon-Slay-Slay favorite song.

Originally posted by Matty

Just like Toasty, yours oozes with your personality and you have a distinct style of music. You like music that is a lot of fun and has had attitude. I do wish we could’ve seen a more different side of you. We got this feeling of who you were from your username entry, but are there other sides to you? I enjoyed the dedication to your boyfriend though

EVUN

Originally posted by mockingjay

i applaud you for going with song choices that most of the members on this site have never heard of (including myself). my favorite part of your entry was when you said, about patrick wolf's "time of my life," "every few weeks, it's new to me." that one phrase helped me connect instantly to your entry.

Originally posted by Deuces.

Very descriptive descriptions. Nice.

Originally posted by Katie

Look at how many times you used "you" in there. Now look at how many times you used "I" or "me." Exactly.

Originally posted by Childish Redbino

I liked this entry! Some of the descriptions were better than others, but all of the descriptions incorporated at least one thing that I was looking for in each entry: Personal relation, describing the song, describing why the song was such a good one, in your eyes...and you also included a simple-but-nice-looking presentation that wasn't too distracting but also wasn't messy. Solid entry all the way around.

Originally posted by Sunderland 4ever

Your review was well organized; short but straight to the point. It also generated me the interest of checking them, which I did afterwards. I liked your number 1. It was exactly as you wrote it, plus a very simple but captivating video. Well deserved second spot on this round.

Originally posted by Matty

A very unique list like Owl’s and I’m gonna have to critique it like his. I appreciate the non-mainstream, typical songs because it shows me that you are being yourself and not trying to get an in. I just lost a bit more of a personal touch, I saw it in one song but I wish I saw it throughout.

JOSH

Originally posted by mockingjay

it's interesting to me that you describe yourself as "super straight." i'm curious what your friends think of your musical tastes. not that i think it's bad. you're fully open to appreciating pop music without caring what other people think, at least that's what i got from your entry. it was simple and i wish you'd given us a better look at why the songs are important to you, but overall i think you did a nice job. loved the single covers.

Originally posted by Deuces.

Cute descriptions. This is a nice entry.

Originally posted by Katie

There was almost nothing about you in here. Little to no reasoning about each of the entries.

Originally posted by Childish Redbino

First, let me say that the single covers were a great touch and made the presentation all the better for it. There were a couple of faults to be found here, however. The first has to do with basic music knowledge. One thing that I like to do when planning my own year-ender is doing background checks on artists, just to make sure that my info is correct. It's not something that just anyone can do, admittedly, but it's a great asset. Why do I bring this up? Because Gotye is not a band. He's a solo artist. Admittedly, that's a minor quibble, though. What isn't as much of a minor quibble is that I also thought that the first two descriptions were a bit too similar. "So-and-so is the follow-up/second single. What I like about this is that...", etc. But you did describe why you liked all of the songs, so that's a positive. Not great, but not terrible, either. Be glad that I wasn't judging you for opinion statements, though, because I go apoplectic when someone says that the Glee version of ANY song was "better than the original".

Originally posted by Sunderland 4ever

Good use of smileys. I expected a little bit more from you. "Plus the story is almost all about what she did to me" Had I seen the reason, you would have probably been 7th or 6th. Cool reviews on numbers 2 and 3.

Originally posted by Matty

It was a nice entry and you explained why you liked the songs well, I just missed the you part of the entry. The only sense I got of you was in song #3 where you talked about your ex. I understood why you connected and why it’s there.

MONKEY

Originally posted by mockingjay

i'm sorry, but i just CANNOT at you not choosing even one song from 2012 (or even 2011). if you'd explained why you chose these songs as your "best of 2012" it'd have made sense. but sadly, i'm lost... good songs, but i think you're in trouble this round. big trouble.

Originally posted by Deuces.

None of the songs are from 2012. But you included Gee! I like your personal drescriptions.

Originally posted by Katie

Where is Monkey? Because I barely saw any of him in this entry Make sure you always show off who you are, because that person is fabulous and wonderful.

Originally posted by Childish Redbino

I found a couple of flaws in your entry. The first is that you, like some of the other entries this go-around, started off fine and then got progressively less detailed as you went along. The descriptions went from solid-in-length (#1 and #2) to about two lines (#5). Admittedly, it can be hard to keep up that momentum all the way through, but that's why I try to recommend that people start from the bottom and then work their way to the top. Momentum is key. And while you said that you tend not to get emotionally connected to music, I also, for the most part, didn't see anything that told me why one of the songs was such a good song, or what the song was about, or what the song sounded like. I got none of that. There were a few personal notes, but that was about it. Okay, but unspectacular.

Originally posted by Sunderland 4ever

"I miss the good ol' days where I would just watch Power Rangers and Pokémon." I miss those days too. Very good review. Your reasons were convincing enough and were what I expected from a review as important as a review of favorite songs from all time. Nice numbers 1, 3 and 4.

Originally posted by Matty

You explained yourself well with your entries… but this isn’t what I asked for. This looked like a top 5 all time favorite song list. Did you start loving these songs again this year? There Is a difference of how, say Robbie did his and Vulps. Robbie explained his entry was his top 5 of the year and all time so far. Vulps had an old song on there but he rediscovered it recently and has been loving it this year hence why it was in his top 5.

Now it's time to figure out who is going home... in the next post




Fierce and Love
- Matty

[KitKat]

Was every review mixed?

[C/H/A/N/E/L]

Originally posted by Katie

Look at how many times you used "you" in there. Now look at how many times you used "I" or "me." Exactly.

I feel bad for laughing here.

[Red]

Originally posted by Katie

Oh?

Was a lie told there?

[Ammer]

Wow, I really appreciate all the comments. Thank you guys so much.

[Monk]

Oh, man.

I got this challenge all wrong.

[DvnR]

3 positive and 3 with criticism. Good enough for me. Thanks for the comments everyone.

[C/H/A/N/E/L]

This moment reminds me when I was in a play in school, and I was supposed to cry for the scene, so I took a case of mint gum that was just emptied and smelled heavily of the mint, and blew in it. The air rushed back up to my eyes and I started crying just before I went on stage.