Brett McLaughlin (EMI Publishing) Critique of “Say No More” Composed by THPMusic & Never A Hero
Production: The production quality is great. For this genre of music, the production quality is what is going to help you stand out from other bands. Also, it takes amazing musicians to pull this off and I appreciate that I can hear all the instruments and can tell that every member in the band is holding their own. I really like how the drums were recorded. They sound great.
Since the recording is already done, when performing this live, I would experiment with the guitar in the verses not playing through each chord, and chopping it up a bit with a rhythm. Thus, when the chorus comes in, it is more powerful. I love the dueling guitar melodies in the post after the second chorus. Really great musical effect.
Melody: The melodies are great! Even though this genre of music is not my expertise, I appreciate all styles and know a good song when I hear one. The chorus melodies do a great job of building and leading to the pay off, which is the end of the chorus.
I have a friend at ASCAP Los Angeles who specializes in this kind of music and would love to pass this along to him.
Mickey Thin (Never A Hero)
I’ve written many songs with many different people in my musical career. I’ve worked with control freaks, I’ve worked with close-minded people. Then I met Tom Povall. From working with Tom for Never A Hero, I’ve experienced how relentless he is when he gets an idea. When most people grab a guitar and write it down, Tom’s straight to the studio to record it, mix it and get feedback within no time at all. From listening to other members of the band’s ideas, with his keen ear for harmonies, he really filled the atmosphere for our tracks which gave us the epic sound we have today from writing piano parts and capturing the emotional tones using orchestral instruments and with his own voice.
As a wordsmith, Tom brings out the darkest depths of his moods into our lyrics as well as making it mean something to the listener and not just himself.
If we are ever in need of material and have only a concept Tom is the go-to guy, he makes your ideas a reality and always with the best results!
I’ve never worked with such an easy-going, compatible composer before and it’s such a breath of fresh air to know he’s always got an idea just screaming to be let out.
Leslie J. Bialik Critique of “From Heroes to Angels” Composed by THPMusic
“well-written, well-performed” “should be on the radio”
Leslie J. Bialik Critique of “Say no more” Composed by THPMusic & Never A Hero
“passionate vocals” “superior musicianship” “hard driving”
“Well, this is certainly a metal song. It was hard-driving, and with enough parts to keep the song interesting. The vocals were delivered with passion, and the musicianship was superior. The little guitar riff part at about the 2:00 minute mark was a nice distinctive touch. The drummer kept the pace up during the whole song, allowing the other instruments room to be dynamic and carry the listener through an emotional journey, while never stopping the head-banging. I like this song. Keep up the great work!”
