Badass piece

(disclaimer: AIM judge review here! these are just my opinions and thoughts, you can take from them whatever you like! music is subjective and all that. <3)

woohoo, this kind of super melodic oom-pah rhythm music is something i've surprisingly not really heard in the compo, and i'm really happy to run across it. starting out feeling a bit of that quirky banjo-kazooie/grant kirkhope type harmony and lilt, but then it picks up into full metal mode too, which is delightful; and the way those two things interweave is excellent and convincing. this tune has so much character, it's hard not to smile while listening. not only is the 'sea shanty' idea obviously well-fitting to the artwork you chose, but giving it a dark, heavy, stormy bent seems fitting to the atmosphere around this grizzled shark seafaring veteran. i'm very much picking up those decisions you put down. the melody and phrases have great shaping, and sections build into one another in a smooth way. great work, wow!

AIM 2023 Judge Review

A metal pirate shanty is exactly what I was expecting when I saw this art and this entry did not disappoint. I find this entry very easy to enjoy - it's just got the right energy to hook me in and convince me that this is the right sound and approach to bring this goofy, menacing shark to life. Not only does the guitar sound great, but I love how the other instruments work in this track compositionally to paint the scene fully. At one point, I noted that at around the 0:58 mark, it sounds like the shark is dancing and stomping around on the deck. He definitely doesn't own this ship but you'll gladly and fearfully give it up to him in the hope that he spares your life.

While I like the use of the non-guitar instruments in terms of their composition, I think their sound and mixing didn't quite make them as effective as the guitar parts. Perhaps this is in part to the guitar being played live while the other instruments are not and that couldn't be more evident than in the choir. To me, the choir was barely audible (but from what I could hear, I loved the way in which it was used as a layer) and it was where I really felt like the synthetic nature of its sound was most evident. When it changes notes, it just seemed like a program in a DAW moving step by step. I would have definitely loved to hear less MIDI sounding instruments as I think it would have enhanced the piece a lot more, especially against the awesome guitar.

Overall, this entry does a great job at blending fun with a razor sharp intimidating edge. It sounds to me like the structure paints this clear image of a shark rising out of the water then jumping onto and scaring everyone off a ship. Then he destroys everything and it seems like at the very end, with the organ outro, he slowly sinks back into the deep. That's quality musical storytelling right there.

This is literally so awesome!

Hell yeah!