Summer Psychosis: Results for the Preliminary Round

We've been talking and talking about making decisions for Summer Psychosis, and it turns out that we were actually able to! The Preliminary Round is over and the results are in. If you didn't hear about who's matched up against who, now's the time to find out: http://frogsonaloginabog.blogspot.com/2012/06/summer-psychosis-preliminary-round.html

A quick disclaimer. The artists were pitted against each other randomly within the context of eligibility for a given seed. For instance, the 14th seeds were all 14th seeds, but were not destined to play anyone in particular. Needless to say, there were some interesting results.

14th Seeds:

Little Richard 3, Run-D.M.C. 2

"This was the toughest decision of the round by far…for me, the birth of rock and roll just beats the birth of modern day hip-hop." - John

My Bloody Valentine 5, Blondie 0

"I’m not a huge shoegaze fan, but if you like any shoegaze at all it’s these guys. Not only did they really bring this type of music into the light, but have created the most tried and true example of the genre." - Mark

Grateful Dead 5, Pearl Jam 0

"My dad was a Dead Head, so I feel like it would bring great shame and dishonor to my family if I didn’t vote for them at least once. Besides, Pearl Jam is responsible for Creed and Nickelback, so they lose by default." - Eric

Pet Shop Boys 3, Charles Mingus 2

"I've always loved early synth new wave. It perfectly walks the line between competence and camp. There is something so original about that sound, and Pet Shop Boys had it for sure." - Steve

Paul Simon 3, T. Rex 2

"I LOVE this guy’s music! I been listening to the Graceland LP as well as Simon and Garfunkel since I could remember and he never disappoints. Sorry Steve." - Mark

Randy Newman 5, M.I.A. 0

"While Paper Planes is one of the few pop songs that I actually like, Randy Newman wrote the music of my childhood. He wrote the music to Toy Story for god's sake! He is absolutely incredible and his voice sounds like pure velvet. M.I.A. might be an amazing activist and artist, but Newman wrote a song about how short people suck. Nuff said." - Elliott

The 14th seed matchups were an all-or-nothing deal. Either you were swept or took it down to the wire. Sorry M.I.A, Blondie and Pearl Jam, I can't explain that.

15th Seeds:

Cream 4, Peter Gabriel 1

"I’m a huge Clapton fan, thanks to my parents (they named me after him). I don’t care what Mark thinks or says about him; he’s one of the best guitarists and songwriters of past half century. And while Gabriel’s career with Genesis was fantastic, his solo career was a bit lackluster, which is only made more apparent by the fact that all of his hits came over a significantly longer time span than Cream had." - Eric

The Jesus and Mary Chain 4, Missy Elliott 1

"When an album opens with a song as good as 'Just Like Honey', you know you are in for a good time. The Jesus and Mary Chain were the masters of deadpan delivery. It was like the Velvet Underground had been reincarnated twenty years after they had broken up." - Steve

The Stone Roses 5, The Replacements 0

"Stone Roses. Though one album contains most of their success, that album was a major influence on Britpop." - John

Crosby, Stills, Nash (& sometimes) Young 4, Thelonious Monk 1

"Thelonious Monk seems like the kind of guy that gets idolized and turned into a larger than life figure in the jazz scene, like Louis Armstrong. Not to say he doesn’t deserve it. But CSN has such amazing lyrical and songwriting ability, and they just sound so good together, like God told them they had to play together if they didn’t want to be aborted. Shame that jazz just isn’t as popular anymore, but Monk is a damn fine pianist." - Eric

Duke Ellington 3, Deep Purple 2

"Ellington. He set a high bar and was incredibly prolific. You get quite an appreciation for him after playing his songs in Jazz Orchestra." - John

Muddy Waters 3, Eagles 2

"Tough, but Muddy Waters is just too influential and musically gifted to lose here. But I do love me some Eagles, like everyone middle-class suburban white kid should." - Eric

The Chemical Brothers 4, Big Star 1

"My vote basically came down to Big Beat versus power Pop. I am a huge fan of Big Beat as I demonstrated with my review of Fatboy Slim. The Chemical Brothers make some dirty music." - Elliott 

Aerosmith 3, The Specials 2

"Okay, these guys may have had their lamer points, but very few people got as funky, bluesy and rocking as these guys have." - Mark

There was a good smattering of everything in the 15th seeds. Duke Ellington over Deep Purple is probably the biggest upset. On the other hand, The Stone Roses crushed The Replacements in the battle of Name-that-80's band.

16th Seeds:

Nine Inch Nails 3, Elliot Smith 2

"Anyone who records under the name heatmeiser is alright by me, but lets face it. Nine Inch Nails were brilliant. On The Downward Spiral, Trent Reznor ripped his brain out and and showed you what was inside of it. He painted a picture of a man who fell farther than anyone before, and in turn showing us a dark side of ourselves that we never knew we had." - Steve

Jefferson Airplane 5, Depeche Mode 0

"Jefferson Airplane. Have to pick one of the defining bands of the Summer of Love." - John

The Temptations 3, Television 2

"I am sorry, but I need to stick up for Motown against the hordes of Punk bands on this list. The Temptations are legendary and sing straight into my soul, while Television doesn't do anything for me." - Elliott

Curtis Mayfield 3, De La Soul 2

"Man, both these groups are funky... But the funk man out funks the funky non-funks any funking day." - Elliott

Janis Joplin 3, Roy Orbison 2

"A beautiful and short life filled with even more beautiful music." - Mark

Rod Stewart 4, Coldplay 1

"I didn't actually have to think about this one. I went to an underground cage fight in north Philly some years back and watched Rod Stewart cage fight Coldplay. The man was a beast. If you ever see him brandishing a chair, run far away; he knows how to use it. Coldplay stood no chance. I actually felt bad for them." - Elliott

Smokey Robinson and The Miracles 3, TV On The Radio 2

"I’m torn. Smokey Robinson is the man. I mean, come on, just like The Temptations, he’s a solid pick. But TV on the Radio just has that intangible something that I love in my indy rock. It’s tough choice, but Smokey has the edge due to that unmistakable voice and fantastic Motown sound." - Eric

The Everly Brothers 3, Sigur Ros 2

"Sigur Rós are great, but they are a little to ambient for my taste. Got to go with the very influential and fun 50’s rockabilly brothers." - Mark

Who knew that the lowest seeded matchups would be the closest? Other than Jefferson Airplane and Rod Stewart's advancing, everything came down to the last vote. Also, who thought someone would vote for Coldplay? 

So, there you have it! The bracket of 128 is now ready to go. The updated version is here, with the 'artist or artist' matchups conspicuously absent: http://www.bracketmaker.com/tlist.cfm?tid=428801

Some of these artists have to play right away, while others you won't see again for weeks. But the bottom line is they're all moving on. A preview for the first part of the first round is on Monday!