Riff-Off 1.1: I Am Not a Number vs. Monie's Ghost

Riff-Off 1.1: I Am Not a Number vs. Monie's Ghost

  • I Am Not a Number

    Votes: 16 23.5%

  • Monie's Ghost

    Votes: 52 76.5%
  • Total voters
    68
  • Poll closed .
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PLEASE READ THE ENTIRE POST BEFORE VOTING!​

You are voting for your favorite riff in Round 1 of the December 2009 Riff-Off. More information about the Riff-Off can be found here. In this round, there are eight head-to-head matches. Be sure to check out and vote for your favorite riff in the other seven Round 1 matches, also found in the Tips and Clips room. To view the bracket for this month's Riff-Off, go here.

Because not all contestants have access to the same quality of recording equipment, your voting decision should be based first on the actual composition, second on the player's execution of the riff. Try to look past recording quality. Some questions you may want to ask yourself while considering which way to vote: What is the emotional impact of the riff? How original is the riff? Does the riff inspire me? Would I want to hear a whole song built off this riff?

Note that each contestant has chosen a battle name for the Riff-Off; their identities have been hidden from all other contestants and the voting public, and will be revealed at the end of the Riff-Off, when a champion is crowned.

Lastly, while comments are strongly encouraged, please realize that each contestant put personal time and creative energy into his or her submission. If you have any critique to provide in this thread, give the contestants the courtesy of making it constructive. This competition is built on the premises of fun and musical growth.

Here are the links to each clip in this head-to-head:

I Am Not a Number

Monie's Ghost

If you run into any technical issues or have other question regarding the Riff-Off, contact me via email (kgmessier at gmail dot com).

Have fun!

- Keith
 
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Re: Riff-Off 1.1: I Am Not a Number vs. Monie's Ghost

No offense to the writer of I Am Not a Number, but I really didn't get it. I listened to it about 20 times and had absolutely no idea what to think of it.
 
Re: Riff-Off 1.1: I Am Not a Number vs. Monie's Ghost

Petrovsk Mizinski said:
No offense to the writer of I Am Not a Number, but I really didn't get it. I listened to it about 20 times and had absolutely no idea what to think of it.
Click to expand...

"If you have any critique to provide in this thread, give the contestants the courtesy of making it constructive. This competition is built on the premises of fun and musical growth."
 
Re: Riff-Off 1.1: I Am Not a Number vs. Monie's Ghost

Petrovsk Mizinski said:
No offense to the writer of I Am Not a Number, but I really didn't get it. I listened to it about 20 times and had absolutely no idea what to think of it.
Click to expand...


Try downloading it and loop-pasting it into an editor. 1 minute is not nearly enough for a slow blues slide riff to settle in, but you gotta get yourself in that frame of mind when listening to it.

Personally I liked it, even though it was sparse. TO me it had more vibe than the competing track, which seemed a bit "busy" by comparison. While that's not a bad thing per se, in this context it doesn't have time to seed IMO.

Then again, catch me tomorrow and I'll probably prefer the busy one more :lol:
 
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Re: Riff-Off 1.1: I Am Not a Number vs. Monie's Ghost

DrNewcenstein said:
Try downloading it and loop-pasting it into an editor. 1 minute is not nearly enough for a slow blues slide riff to settle in, but you gotta get yourself in that frame of mind when listening to it.
Click to expand...

I actually did that. And then tried speeding it up as well. And then slowed it back down and thought, "How would this riff sound if I were to take that bottle of Cointreau..."

Personally, I'm not really into 15 minute slow blues jams and this one kinda sounded like one. I'm also having a hard time imagining other instruments in here other than a freestyle blues/jazz vocalist.

But if it was made in that context, it's hard to say that it's a riff.
 
Re: Riff-Off 1.1: I Am Not a Number vs. Monie's Ghost

I was looking at it in more of a In My Time Of Dying frame. Start off with the bare acoustic slide, go through it twice to set the mood, then add the vocals. May or may not need a full band, depending on your interpretation of Delta Blues (mine goes either way).
 
Re: Riff-Off 1.1: I Am Not a Number vs. Monie's Ghost

with a name like "I Am Not A Number," i was expecting something more along the lines of iron maiden's "the prisoner" :D
 
Re: Riff-Off 1.1: I Am Not a Number vs. Monie's Ghost

While Monie's Ghost's submission sounds excellent, I didn't really hear a riff in there. It was basically a guy playing guitar. Playing guitar really, really well, mind you, but not really a riff.

Thus I voted for I Am Not a Number on this one.

Well done to you both!
 
Re: Riff-Off 1.1: I Am Not a Number vs. Monie's Ghost

Voted. I think 'I Am Not A Number's entry is in the vein of Ry Cooder's version of 'Dark Is The Night', which is haunting. The second riff seemed somewhat garbled, like too many good ideas coming at me all at once. But hey, i'm old, hehe.
 
Re: Riff-Off 1.1: I Am Not a Number vs. Monie's Ghost

this pair was quite the odd couple (in terms of different styles)
 
Re: Riff-Off 1.1: I Am Not a Number vs. Monie's Ghost

Monie's Ghost was a little long, but slayed.

"Not a Number" was cool in that it was the first acoustic entry I've heard, but I couldn't really hear the rhythm in it...
 
Re: Riff-Off 1.1: I Am Not a Number vs. Monie's Ghost

I Am Not a Number
Ha! Acoustic slide. 'Bout time. I was hoping to get some rootsier stuff in this tourney, but I knew it wouldn't come from me! This one might develop a little too slowly for my tastes, but the vibe is there for days.
I have to give credit for the great intonation in the slide playing as well.
While I won't get into the semantics of what makes a riff or what doesn't, I do feel that this submission might have benefited from a tad more urgency, or perhaps a more variation on the 2nd bar.

​
Monie's Ghost
Ha, another slide thing. What are the odds?? Besides that, these two riffs could not be MORE different. Where IANAN's riff was practically falling asleep, this one sounds like potentially the worst case of ADHD in the whole competition.
This submission has a dichotomy all it's own. I like the general feel and power in the performance and it's definitely played cleanly, but the groove that's established at the beginning of every measure is diluted by the extreme "note-y-ness" at the end of every measure.
Overall I think the tone is pretty good - this is another busy-yet-accurately-doubletracked submission so I'll give it credit there too, but I think the player here is hampered by a desire to try to say too much with the riff.
Despite the flaws, this one has just enough to get my vote. I'd like to hear more from IANAN though...
​
 
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