[Ann]

[ursulabear]

i was so disappointed that Erin didn't make it. I was rooting for it.

[doublewuzzy]

Monkey & Bear has always been my least favorite from Ys. I mean, I do like the song, but it has never meant that much to me aside from being a good listen. Oh well!

It doesn't appear to be too skewed based on the votes, but I feel like MEM and HOOM are quite far apart, and I think I expected HOOM to be much more dominant in terms of voting. MEM gets me every time.... more than HOOM ever has. But that is the nature of voting and majorities!

[Headless_Caboose]

Group 1: Easy
Group 2: Monkey & Bear
Group 3: Baby Birch
Group 4: Only Skin
Group 5: Good Intentions Paving Co.
Group 6: Colleen
Group 7: Sawdust & Diamonds
Group 8: Cosmia

Although I love MEM, it seems my voting leans towards her more mature sound. This is probably because I heard Ys before MEM so I don't have that first discovery attachment to it. I am glad though that my favourites from MEM have made it this far in the competition (Swansea, Sadie, Clam Crab Cockle, Cowrie).

I feel torn between the epic complexity of some of her songs (Ys especially) and the timeless power of her more direct and simple compositions (like On a Good Day). But I end up going for the longer narrative-based songs almost every time.

[Headless_Caboose]

Oh yeah. Thanks for explaining the seeding thing Steve. I think I understand it now.

and,

I'm sad there is so little love for Easy

[Steve]

Welcome clamcrab and thank you for your votes. It's a shame that you missed out on voting in Rounds 1 & 2 (I wonder how you would have cast your votes) but I am so gratified that you have made this your very first MilkyMoon post: I think you are the second person to do that, too. (If it's not too 'skewing', may I thank you also for supporting 'En Gallop' ... it's one of my favourites, but then again so is Sawdust & Diamonds, so that's a very hard decision for me to make: someone slipped up placing those two together in the draw!

Thank you, too, to Headless_Caboose, for your votes. I'm glad that my rambling explanation of the seedings made sense: I did go on a bit, didn't I, but I assumed that not everyone in here would have come from a sporty background where such things are common, and so took the liberty of explaining from first principles.

I agree with doublewuzzy's comments re: Monkey & Bear, and in fact would extend them to Colleen, too. However, in the case of Monkey & Bear, I'm going to have to accept that we're in the minority - voting has shown it to be an extremely popular song. As for Colleen, Group 6 (in which it is up against Swansea and Have One On Me) is looking like the closest group yet in any of the three rounds, and each of the three songs is still in with a hout of winning it. I have no doubt where I will be casting my vote between those three, however

[polliwog]

Group 1: - Easy
Group 2: - Sprout And The Bean
Group 3: - Emily
Group 4: - You And Me, Bess
Group 5: - Good Intentions Paving Co.
Group 6: - Swansea
Group 7: - Sawdust & Diamonds
Group 8: - Clam, Crab, Cockle, Cowrie

[beverley]

I changed my vote for group 3. I hope that's ok. Kingfisher is too good to not get my vote.

[milkteeth]

Group 1: - In California
Group 2: - Kingfisher
Group 3: - Emily
Group 4: - Only Skin
Group 5: - Good Intentions Paving Co.
Group 6: - Have One On Me
Group 7: - Sawdust & Diamonds / Peach, Plum, Pear / En Gallop*
Group 8: - Sadie / Cosmia

[Steve]

Thank you to the latest contributors, polliwog and milkteeth.

Beverley - yes it's fine for you to change your vote, but can you remind me which one you originally voted for in Group 2 (Monkey & Bear or Sprout And The Bean), please. I am guessing you have had the 'revelation' that I did when suddenly Kingfisher just seemed so perfect.

[beverley]

I originally voted for Monkey & Bear without thinking about it, because I used to be overly attached to Ys songs. Kingfisher is one of my favorites from HOOM, and in general, so I felt that it deserved my vote.

[Headless_Caboose]

[Wanbli]

[claire]

[madpawn]

[polliwog]

That's me...courageous dude.

[under a CPell]

Group 1: - In California
Group 2: - Kingfisher
Group 3: - Baby Birch
Group 4: - Only Skin
Group 5: - Go Long
Group 6: - Have One On Me
Group 7: - Peach, Plum, Pear
Group 8: - Cosmia

I was very sorry that Erin didn't make it! I had a hard time chosing between Good Intensions Paving Co and Go Long.

[Gerritsón]

[Ann]

Gerritson, you are beyond adorable. I know this is off topic, but you're the cutest thing and though I am well aware this is just my American ignorance -- which involves mashing all of Europe into the same magical place in my mind (I'm not very well-travelled) -- but I imagine being around you is like living in both a Sigur Rós song and also in these pictures of a farm in the Netherlands I used to look at longingly.

Now to say something relevant...

Strangely enough, I questioned my Only Skin vote. I love You and Me, Bess and my Ys favorites are so easily S&D and M&B (gotta thing for the ampersands). But there are so many heartbreakingly beautiful parts of Only Skin and I LOVE that piano pre-version so much, I couldn't do it.

[Steve]

madpawn was right to seize upon polliwog's vote for You And Me, Bess over Only Skin as something remarkable.

In Round One (admittedly up against a couple fo rather obscure collaborations) it came through 23-0-0, making Only Skin one of the 13 songs (out of 90) with a perfect record.

It was the only song to have a perfect record in Round Two, defeating Jackrabbits and another collaboration 22-0-0, so polliwog's vote was the first to be cast against it so far.

I am rather surprised that this honour fell to You And Me, Bess (after all, it doesn't have an ampersand), but in the light of his vote and ann's wavering, I will certainly revisit this song, which I have so far found impenetrable, to do my best to get a handle on it.

Two-and-a-bit more days to vote if you haven't done so already: you'll find the draw listed about 40% of the way down page 7 of this thread (assuming everyone else's display is the same as mine), and the cut-off - which I will stick to owing to the 'tight' nature of at least one group - is 8pm UK time on Sunday.