Weld_E Posted April 13 Posted April 13 On 4/2/2024 at 1:57 AM, Aurora said: 🔎 Aurora's Hints 🔍 While you're all busily working on your country classics and patiently awaiting Round 2's results, I thought it would be fun to share some hints as to my rankings. This is something judges used to do back in the ATRL writing tournaments of yesteryear, and I remember the fun of desperately trying to "crack the code". Please feel free to collaborate in the thread if you want, and remember—your rank from me doesn't necessarily indicate your overall placement or final score! 👍📥🛏️ 💔🙋♀️❤️ 🕴️ 🫂 🥺🙏 😎 🔮💭 🙅🏼♀️🏁👇 🤼♂️📜🐝🤼♂️ 🥰🔁 😵💫 I completely missed this! Can you pm me and tell me my rank for that round? 1
Aurora Posted April 13 Author Posted April 13 Hey Hitmakers, I'm going to have a pretty busy week due to my involvement in the final stages of another tournament (iykyk) so here's some early reviews! Honestly, idk if it's just because I've been drinking or what but... y'all kinda ate this round up? Not a below average song in sight. Keep the hits coming. If you would still like to submit a song for this round please do so ASAP! Like really, really soon! I'll read it and add my review into this post when I can. 🧑⚖️ Spoiler 1. hurricane326 - "Cityscape" (Cyberpunk) I'll be completely honest, I wasn't totally familiar with the concept of cyberpunk so I had to do a little bit of research of my own going into these reviews, but from what I can tell you've done a pretty good job of satisfying the brief. You started this song off very strongly with the brilliant wordplay of, "I see the rising thunderclouds / Cumulative cumulonimbus towers,” so that was a terrific first impression. I enjoyed the combination and juxtaposition of natural weather events with unnatural technology throughout, the former definitely sticking true to you, while the latter almost certainly satisfied what Hug was looking for. This piece honestly feels like the introductory offering to a concept album in this vein, and I kind of stan that. I'm pleased to say that after a couple of rocky rounds, you're well and truly back. 2. @OreGuy - "!!!Cyberspacecutie^-^pie:3" (Cyberpunk) OK so I almost thought this was a PC Music'd type song for my challenge based on this title, but I can also see it fitting the Cyberpunk aesthetic too. Very fun. I was kind of getting Charli XCX "Femmebot" at times here, and I can definitely see this being a whole bop with that kind of sugary, electronic, glitchy production. I like that you went for a very specific aesthetic and stuck to it throughout with the short and sharp, almost robotically executed lyrics. You've been such a concept queen this season and we love to see it. I know you've submitted sporadically over the years but honestly I think this season might have my favorite output from any songwriting tournament you've participated in. You've only missed one round thus far, so you definitely still have a chance to make this your best season end ranking yet. 3. @Kylie Jenner - "Find Some Sun" (Fire Breath) Um, what is this cute ass summer bop? We moved! This very easily had the potential to be quite basic, but I really liked how you incorporated specific details relating to Britain, the Dido song, and even a reference to your own song, "Lost in the Rays". I was already enjoying this song lyrically, but your recording really made everything pop in the best way. It shone a light on all of the internal rhyming you had incorporated, the melody was so strong and catchy, and honestly it really elevated this piece for me. I especially loved your melody in the bridge. Lyrically, moments like, "I want to get burned,” packed an unexpected amount of weight; that you'd rather feel the pain of sunburn than the nothingness of a gloomy, rainy day. You ate this all the way up! 4. @Legend E - "Battery" (Cyberpunk) Ooh I loved this. Honestly I think you completely nailed the cyberpunk angle, it was very clear from the opening verse that this song was taking place in a post-apocalyptic setting. What surprised me most of all was how much human emotion you were able to still pack into this song, from the individual experience to the collective experience of a future which people imagined to be better than their present that never actually came to be. The titular lyric/metaphor was so clever and was such an integral centerpiece to this song. It was quite literally the bridge between human emotion and technological advancement. I can't speak for Hug of course, but I couldn't have hoped for anything more from this challenge. 5. @Armani? - "Firestarter" (Fire Breath) I have to start my review with a question… why Lorraine? I'm glad you clarified you meant the region in your other information, but it still begs the question… why Lorraine? Was it just to land on a rhyme with "insane", or does this have some personal significance to you that was never elaborated on in the song? It's interesting because the lyrics that follow this in your second verse are perhaps some of your strongest output in the tournament thus far: "You try masking the truth with smiles / Wrapping me in a grapevine's ambiguity / I go on endlessly a sucker for your guile / But there's another light you cherish other than me,” is so good! I've noticed you tend to save your strongest lyrics for the verses and sometimes the other sections don't seem to get as much love or attention. I think this chorus is perhaps one of your stronger ones, but perhaps for your next entry focus a little less on repetition and a little more on making a really strong couplet or two that is bound to leave a lasting impression. From your lyricism in the verses, I can tell you're more than capable of it. 6. @Weld_E - "Holley Hoetal (Cum inside)" (Erotica) I honestly wasn't sure if someone was going to do my challenge at all, so thank you! And let me tell you… I was sufficiently gagged. You really do need to go all in when writing this kind of material, and go all in you certainly did! Before I highlight my favorite lyrics, I just wanted to say I got partway through the third section when I realized what was going on with the structure, and I was just absolutely blown away at the attention to detail. When I read your other information and it tracked, I was just like… in awe. In terms of technique, this is probably the most creative song of the tournament thus far. The way you switched up the flow and rhyme scheme to represent the number of participants… simply genius. I mean, being able to make an extended AAAA rhyme scheme work as you did in the first section alone is impressive enough. The chorus section is a nice bridge tying everything together, and the concept of it being set at what is essentially a brothel was genius. My favorite lyric in the song is actually one of the least sexual: "Like a jigsaw puzzle all the pieces fit.” I love that you didn't just write a random obscenely sexual song, but actually tried to bring a narrative element and contextual setting to this song. I certainly found this enjoyable, so thanks for the entertainment. 7. @Prisoner - "Village Drums" (Fire Breath) This was a really lovely read. It almost felt like a callback to the Reason for the Season challenge at certain moments with the festival setting, natural imagery, and preparation to transition into summer. Your chorus was very strong, it felt almost like a tribal chant of sorts which was fun. The closing couplet of your bridge, "That while the mountains can be a dangerous place / You'll always be welcome into our sanctuary,” was another great progression for this narrative with its themes of finding security in a perilous place, which I suppose can be taken both figuratively and literally depending on the physical location of the village. I really liked this, so thank you for submitting once again! 8. @Ya Ya - "Perfect Match" (Fire Breath) I know this week has been quite full on for you, so I appreciate you finding the time and dedication to submit! I think there were moments of brilliance here, and I really did like how you utilized light and fire in a more metaphorical way, especially during the second verse. I think the references to this other person's dark side (their rage, the devastating blow etc.) introduced an interesting dynamic, however I do wish you'd expanded upon that a bit more by giving some actual examples, because we still don't really know what flaws this other person has, and if they should be overlooked and worked through, or if there is more serious physical and/or emotional abuse going on. There's a fine line between ambiguous and cursory writing, and I hope next round you'll have more time to invest because while this was definitely still a good submission, you've already proven to be capable of such a high standard and I'd just love to see that again! 9. @Invisibility - "Whiff of Whiskey" (Erotica) Not this coming in the SECOND I finished Rotunda's review and was about to close off the submission form… you ate that. And for my challenge too? You double ate that. I love that the two of you who took the plunge and gave this challenge a try really threw your whole ***** into it… or in your case, your whole nose. I- tbh I didn't even really know this was a *thing*, let alone had a name dedicated to it, but whew. It kinda did make me gag a bit at times (in the traditional meaning of the word) but I suppose that's kinda the point, I asked for hypersexual, humorous, and slightly problematic, and that's exactly what you've given. The golfing references took me out and I almost wish there were more of them, if you made an entire verse centered around golf metaphors that would have been such a serve. I don't personally have this fetish (somewhat the opposite, I'd say) so there was a slight disconnect there for me, but I'm going to do my best not to let that take anything away from what you've done here. A gag! 1 3
Aurora Posted April 13 Author Posted April 13 🧑⚖️ The Songs of Round 4 🧑⚖️ hurricane326 - "Cityscape" OreGuy - "!!!Cyberspacecutie^-^pie:3" Kylie Jenner - "Find Some Sun" Legend E - "Battery" Armani - "Firestarter" Weld_E - "Holley Hoetal (Cum inside)" Prisoner - "Village Drums" Ya Ya - "Perfect Match" Invisibility - "Whiff of Whiskey" Thank you to the nine wonderful writers above (...so far?) for facing their judgement day, be it for erotic crimes, cyberpunk dystopia, or soaking up too much sun! The judges now have your entries and reviews will be posted over the next few days. If you still wish to submit a last minute entry, please try to do so ASAP. 🧑⚖️ Spoiler @Jack!@beatinglikeadrum@punisher@Jackson@AccioMiley@worldwide angel@helpthomas@stupidjock@Nashe@Julia Fox@blastoisebaby@fountain@Lana Banana@Lorenzo22@JonginBey@Forestboy@djcalpal@Augmented 2
ATRL Moderator Legend E Posted April 13 ATRL Moderator Posted April 13 Oh wow, quite shocked tbh. Thank you so much, Aurora 2
Aurora Posted April 13 Author Posted April 13 1 hour ago, Weld_E said: I completely missed this! Can you pm me and tell me my rank for that round? Oh yes, I was going to elaborate on those but kind of forgot. 🫠 The emojis referred to song titles from Dua Lipa's 2020 classic, 'Future Nostalgia'. They were listed in song submission order (which can be found in The Songs of Round 2 post), where the track number of the song the emojis are referencing was my personal ranking for that song. For example, 👍📥🛏️ refers to "Good In Bed", which is Track 10. This means the first submission (hurricane326's "Twenty-three") was ranked 10th out of 11 by me in Round 2. 1
ATRL Moderator Legend E Posted April 13 ATRL Moderator Posted April 13 The way I am still confusion regarding which song mine is supposed to be 1
Prisoner Posted April 13 Posted April 13 Omg how time flies. I just need a verse 2, will be submitting very soon
OreGuy Posted April 13 Posted April 13 (edited) On 4/6/2024 at 3:42 PM, Aurora said: Rank Writer Song Title Score 1 @Legend E Baby Cherry 9.5 2 @Ya Ya Heavenly Father 9.417 3 @Kylie Jenner I Went To A Party 8.833 4 @Weld_E April's Fool 8.667 5 @Invisibility Flavors of Life 8.167 6 @OreGuy A Regretful Son 8.117 7 @Prisoner Mount of Calvary 7.75 8 @helpthomas Hey Mom 7.25 9 @AccioMiley Best friends 7.083 10 @Armani? Mother Earth 6.75 11 hurricane326 Twenty-three 6.583 WAIT A MINUTE MY LAST ENTRY GOT #6? admittedly, i ignored this thread like a plague and wasnt able to do the country theme because i felt so embarrassed with my round 2 submission. It was just a feeling, but finally reading them bc i had the courage nnn and seeing you guys liked what I was going for makes me so relieved. i'll do better next round Edited April 13 by OreGuy 2 1
Prisoner Posted April 13 Posted April 13 1 hour ago, Legend E said: The way I am still confusion regarding which song mine is supposed to be Future 🔮 nostalgia. Which is 1st on the tracklist 2
ATRL Moderator Legend E Posted April 13 ATRL Moderator Posted April 13 1 hour ago, Prisoner said: Future 🔮 nostalgia. Which is 1st on the tracklist I'd like to notify Ms. Host that that is the emoji for Magic (by Kelly Clarkson) 1
Armani? Posted April 13 Posted April 13 I kind of rush wrote this within the last hours & procrastinating so I'm surprised it ended up being as good as it is 2
Aurora Posted April 14 Author Posted April 14 14 hours ago, Aurora said: 7. @Prisoner - "Village Drums" (Fire Breath) This was a really lovely read. It almost felt like a callback to the Reason for the Season challenge at certain moments with the festival setting, natural imagery, and preparation to transition into summer. Your chorus was very strong, it felt almost like a tribal chant of sorts which was fun. The closing couplet of your bridge, "That while the mountains can be a dangerous place / You'll always be welcome into our sanctuary,” was another great progression for this narrative with its themes of finding security in a perilous place, which I suppose can be taken both figuratively and literally depending on the physical location of the village. I really liked this, so thank you for submitting once again! 8. @Ya Ya - "Perfect Match" (Fire Breath) I know this week has been quite full on for you, so I appreciate you finding the time and dedication to submit! I think there were moments of brilliance here, and I really did like how you utilized light and fire in a more metaphorical way, especially during the second verse. I think the references to this other person's dark side (their rage, the devastating blow etc.) introduced an interesting dynamic, however I do wish you'd expanded upon that a bit more by giving some actual examples, because we still don't really know what flaws this other person has, and if they should be overlooked and worked through, or if there is more serious physical and/or emotional abuse going on. There's a fine line between ambiguous and cursory writing, and I hope next round you'll have more time to invest because while this was definitely still a good submission, you've already proven to be capable of such a high standard and I'd just love to see that again! 9. @Invisibility - "Whiff of Whiskey" (Erotica) Not this coming in the SECOND I finished Rotunda's review and was about to close off the submission form… you ate that. And for my challenge too? You double ate that. I love that the two of you who took the plunge and gave this challenge a try really threw your whole ***** into it… or in your case, your whole nose. I- tbh I didn't even really know this was a *thing*, let alone had a name dedicated to it, but whew. It kinda did make me gag a bit at times (in the traditional meaning of the word) but I suppose that's kinda the point, I asked for hypersexual, humorous, and slightly problematic, and that's exactly what you've given. The golfing references took me out and I almost wish there were more of them, if you made an entire verse centered around golf metaphors that would have been such a serve. I don't personally have this fetish (somewhat the opposite, I'd say) so there was a slight disconnect there for me, but I'm going to do my best not to let that take anything away from what you've done here. A gag! @Prisoner@Ya Ya@Invisibility added your reviews to my original post, but also posting them again here for convenience! Let me know if you have any questions/comments etc. Invi just snuck in as I was about to wrap things up! 2
Aurora Posted April 14 Author Posted April 14 12 hours ago, OreGuy said: WAIT A MINUTE MY LAST ENTRY GOT #6? admittedly, i ignored this thread like a plague and wasnt able to do the country theme because i felt so embarrassed with my round 2 submission. It was just a feeling, but finally reading them bc i had the courage nnn and seeing you guys liked what I was going for makes me so relieved. i'll do better next round Yes, we loved your entry! The good thing about this season though is that come the final round, we will only be taking the average score of your top five best submissions when determining your final season averages. So although you will receive a "0" for not submitting in Round 3, if you continue to submit for the remainder of the game, that score won't even factor into your average! 12 hours ago, Prisoner said: Future 🔮 nostalgia. Which is 1st on the tracklist 10 hours ago, Legend E said: I'd like to notify Ms. Host that that is the emoji for Magic (by Kelly Clarkson) Prisoner is taking it... your clue was 🔮💭 (crystal ball and thought bubble). The crystal ball was a hint at seeing into the future, and the thought bubble was a hint at being nostalgic. I figured if someone cracked a few of the more obvious ones, some of the more ambiguous ones would be worked out. Maybe I'll do hints again another round if y'all promise to actually try to solve them! 2
ATRL Moderator Legend E Posted April 14 ATRL Moderator Posted April 14 Just now, Aurora said: Prisoner is taking it... your clue was 🔮💭 (crystal ball and thought bubble). The crystal ball was a hint at seeing into the future, and the thought bubble was a hint at being nostalgic. I figured if someone cracked a few of the more obvious ones, some of the more ambiguous ones would be worked out. Maybe I'll do hints again another round if y'all promise to actually try to solve them! This is not Let's Spoon, sister 1 1
Rotunda Posted April 14 Posted April 14 Thank you @Aurora. Sorry yeah things have been kinda hectic but didn't want to skip the round! 1
Invisibility Posted April 14 Posted April 14 1 hour ago, Aurora said: Invi just snuck in as I was about to wrap things up! Not me giving you sloppy seconds. We stan my round finisher arc as of late! (promise I'm trying to submit on time for the final next 2 weeks ansjdkd) 1 1
Hug Posted April 16 Posted April 16 Round 4's reviews are finally here. Hope our kinky pyromaniac robots had a great time with this challenge <3 https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ZiRXf5lVgSVUtI1iVfr_PKh5q1EWNgjtaIzAiALPcL8/edit?usp=sharing hurricane326 @OreGuy @Kylie Jenner @Legend E @Armani? @Weld_E @Prisoner @Ya Ya @Invisibility 2 2
Weld_E Posted April 16 Posted April 16 Thank you judges for your critiques. Are we skipping a round this week? We have not received a challenge.
Aurora Posted April 17 Author Posted April 17 9 hours ago, Weld_E said: Thank you judges for your critiques. Are we skipping a round this week? We have not received a challenge. Not skipping, no—but potentially posted at a different time than usual, with a longer deadline duration. We've noticed a bit of burnout this season with the drop in submissions between the most recent round(s) and the start of the season, and I too am feeling the strain with other games that I and other writers have been participating in. We'll most likely see Round 4's results before moving onto the penultimate round of the season, which is sure to be a really fun one but might need a bit of extra thinking and research! 1
Hug Posted April 17 Posted April 17 Round 4 💿 Results Hey hitmakers, it's the host with the shorter name here! What we weren't short on were great entries for each of the judge's challenges this week: 4 for Fire Breath, 3 for Cyberpunk, and 2 for Erotica -- It's finally time for the results for the forth round! I'm going to order this a bit differently this week. We're doing Fire Breath, then Erotica, and last (not least!) Cyberpunk! (Aurora worked hard on these banners so I'm going to use them, okay?!) We're coming in hot with these entries, but where did they place? Here's our Fire Breath results this week~ Spoiler In 9th place we have @Ya Ya with "Perfect Match" In 8th place we have @Armani? with "Firestarter" In 5th place we have @Kylie Jenner with "Find Some Sun" and now, drum roll please... In 2nd place, earning a Silver Hit Token, we have @Prisoner with "Village Drums"! You being a force to be reckoned with is a tradition in its own right. Congratulations on another smash entry! We're...coming in hot with these entries? I really didn't mean for it to work so well when writing this. Anyway, here's the climactic ending for our Erotica writers this week! Spoiler In 6th place is @Invisibility with "Whiff of Whiskey" In 4th place is @Weld_E with "Holley Hoetal (Cum inside)" ...and how are my little dystopian robots doing? Thanks to everyone who submitted for my challenge <3 let's get to our late-stage results for the Cyberpunk challenge: Spoiler In 7th place, we have hurricane326 with "Cityscape" In 3rd place, earning a Bronze Hit token, we have--wait, I'm receiving word that we have a TIE FOR SECOND! Also in 2nd place, earning a Silver Hit token, we have @Legend E with "Battery"! Your entry charged us up and had us ready for the digital apocalypse. Congratulations on your continued success in this season! For those of you who are keen eyed, you may realize this means we have... In 1st place, earning a Golden Hit token, we have @OreGuy with "!!!Cyberspacecutie^-^pie:3"! You don't know how happy it made me to see that you got the #1 this week. Without spoiling too much, this scored my second 10 of the whole season! With you being one of our most consistent contributors to GH it was LONG overdue. Congratulations on taking the top spot on the Judges Challenge! and with that, we draw Round 4 to a close. Keep an ear out for Round 5, I bet you'll love the sound of it! 1 1
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