01) LISA ā to be honest iāve just never really liked these sort of productions which are weirdly pitched and just sound noisy. i wasnāt a fan of that brass hook from the get and then it was put on loop for the entire track. it didnāt really help that her vocal was actually pretty whiney over it too. too obnoxious for my tastes but also a bit of a flatline as it never really took me anywhere.
02) Rebecca Levy ā a bit too twee for my liking. i could draw comparisons with lily allen but she usually has better lyricism and irony involved in her music than this. ultimately this is just a style of music that sounds dated at this point and maybe belongs on an advert or something.
03) Crystal Murray ā i did like this in the lp but upon relistening i have noticed that the production is easily the best part of this product and in a way its kinda the saving grace. iām not sure how i feel about the futuristic vocal effects during this particular chorus and a lot of the song seems to be lacking a melody to me. some solid moments but maybe a bit too incohesive for me?
04) J2 ā production aside, this somewhat reminds me of the style of david guettaās songs from the ālistenā era sonically. itās quite strange how this woman manages to go between sounding like sia and kate bush so effortlessly, but the song itself iām not too impressed by. quite theatrical, sounds like something iād expect to hear in a movie trailer, but a style iām mostly over at this point and this isnāt a great execution of it anyway.
05) PIXY ā this sounds like the mainstream sort of female kpop which has never really appealed to me. i just donāt enjoy these loud styles of production and songs with this kind of attitude really. maybe this is not as offensive as it couldāve been but iām not really warming to it either.
06) Dana Salah ā a bit of a half-assed execution of this eastern sound really. itās a bit too trashy to take seriously, but not campy enough to be fully enjoyable either. the strings sound so quiet and she sounds bored, making the entire product just sound lazy to me. very underwhelmed.
07) Charli XCX ā this song is a friendly reminder that you can deliver camp while actually having good production! the first song of this contest that i actually enjoy. objectively itās probably the least āadventurousā song charli has put out in quite a long time actually, but itās the sort of synth-heavy sugar-rush pop that appeals to me most so iāve had this on repeat quite a lot. very catchy, iām moving!
08) Cacophony ā this was actually pretty good! at the beginning it was something i thought iād respect, but near the end it started becoming something which i genuinely enjoyed. the atmosphere was quite enchanting, it reminded me of watching a dark fairytale. a unique find, i liked it!
09) The Pale White ā this definitely sounds like it was made to be played on an MTV episode. itās not awful but pretty generic for itās genre actually. maybe if it leaned heavier on the indie side i wouldāve liked it more.
10) Priyanka ā while this should not be considered too much of a compliment, i will say that this is better than most drag songs i have heard. the production is generally pretty decent and the chorus is somewhat enjoyable, lyrics aside. itās still too trashy campy for me overall but there were some elements i could appreciate and Lemon did a good job with their verse.
11) OneRepublic ā i just noticed this sounds a lil bit like story of my life by OD doesnāt it? i do find it quite amusing how this is probably my favourite song on their new album but iām still not in love with it. this is fine and listenable, but itās a very safe-sounding pop song that probably wouldāve fit in more in the early 2010s. i think they need to start trying harder again.
12) Jessie Ware ā iāve heard this song quite a few times and i do like it. the first verse and especially the pre-chorus are really solid and seductive, but i do wish the chorus kept up that same momentum. iām maybe not as obsessed with this song in itās entirety as some are, but itās still good and probably one of the better songs on the album actually.
13) Culture Wars ā i do like the retro feel this song has and itās got a memorable hook. the vocalist sounds a bit like nick jonas actually but i would say the overall vibe reminds me a bit more of majid jordan. granted, i donāt think this is as good as either of majidās entries this year, but this is a style of music i generally warm to when itās executed decently, and this is. quite good!
14) Red Velvet ā this is a group that iāve historically struggled to understand the hype for. with the exception of naughty, their music has generally just not done anything for me. this was actually quite a cute listen though.
15) Mothica ā sounds like the typical discover weekly entry of the week, although this manages to be relatively offensive in its attempt to be inoffensive. the melody in the chorus is predictable and the production is quite jarring on my ears. not a very good pop attempt iām afraid.
16) Mariah's Pop ā i still donāt treat this game as tengaged comedy contest but iām sure a certain group of TSC individuals will find this groundbreakingly hilarious or something? to each their own.
17) Colbie Caillat ā the only song i know of colbieās is bubbly, iāve actually never heard of this one before. it probably has a very nice lyrical message but the song was a bit too drab sonically for me to be fully engaged.
18) La Rappresentante di Lista ā not a terrible piece of music but just nothing about this particularly excited me. i wasnāt hugely feeling it at the start and it just stayed at one level throughout.
19) Bre Kennedy ā does this sample bittersweet symphony? this was pleasant and inoffensive, which would probably be more of an insult in a weaker contest, but in this contest i was able to appreciate it more than i typically would. pretty.
20) BATHSHEBA ā the better side of discover weekly, this had a bit more punch than i expected it to have going in. itās quite cheap but the drop at least offered something different and i liked that.
21) Herlander ā songs of this calibre are extremely hit or miss for me so i was quite worried, but this one i actually did enjoy! it did sound like several songs were playing at once, but it surprisingly wasnāt too overbearing for me. the overall melody was good and i enjoyed how quirky and high-impact this was.
22) RIMON ā a very sultry R&B track! definitely seems like it was designed for bedroom activities. it wonāt be hugely accessible for some, but i found this to be a classy and sophisticated listen!
23) TRI.BE ā i suppose this does remind me a little of BOOMBAYAH but this one feels more chaotic and louder from the outset. maybe in 2019 this wouldāve got slightly more praise from me but this cheap style has aged badly for me and this is not one of the strongest executions of it. an alright chorus, but still too chaotic on the whole.