Sunday, March 20, 2011

Round 2 - The Results

With 18 total responses, this round saw twice the votes of round 1. Unfortunately for me, there were numerous ties so I had some tough decisions to make. Here are the results:

Avenged Sevenfold vs. Them Crooked Vultures
I was really hoping this wouldn't turn out to be a tie, but it was. The supergroup known as Them Crooked Vultures could prove to be a powerful force that's here to stay if their rumored second album comes out at the end of the year as expected. Until then, however, I have to give it to the higher seed.
Winner: Avenged Sevenfold

Arctic Monkeys vs. Wolfmother
It was a close race, but Wolfmother's tough to beat even with an almost entirely new lineup of musicians.
Winner: Wolfmother

LCD Soundsystem vs. Calvin Harris
Surprisingly one-sided, James Murphy's LCD Soundsystem takes this contest easily. After his shows at MSG, however, LCD Soundsystem will apparently be no more.
Winner: LCD Soundsystem

The Darkness vs. Justice
Apparently rumors of The Darkness reuniting were enough to catapult them over Justice.
Winner: The Darkness

Deadmau5 vs. Priestess
Another tie! I love Deadmau5, but with Calvin Harris and Justice already out of the tournament, it seems as though Priestess has the better shot at continuing on past this round.
Winner: Priestess

Audioslave vs. Airbourne
Although Audioslave has split up, the collective fanbase of Rage Against the Machine and Soundgarden was enough to give Audioslave the majority.
Winner: Audioslave

The Sword vs. The Raconteurs
With almost 70% of the vote, Jack White's only remaining horse in the tournament moves on.
Winner: The Raconteurs

The Black Keys vs. Band of Skulls
I'm shocked this came out as a tie, but despite the media over-saturation, The Black Keys are, in my opinion, the frontrunner for this region.
Winner: The Black Keys

Elbow vs. Local Natives
60% voted for Local Natives. A 16 seed knocks the first 1 seed out of the tournament.
Winner: Local Natives

Band of Horses vs. Beach House
With over 70% of the vote, Band of Horses are the clear winners of this match.
Winner: Band of Horses

The Decemberists vs. Fleet Foxes
Rough matchup for Fleet Foxes. They may have been able to take a lot of the bands in this region, but not The Decemberists.
Winner: The Decemberists

The National vs. Paper Route
Another difficult tie. While I love The National, I see an immense potential for Paper Route moving forward. They have a rough matchup against The Decemberists in the next round, but I urge all of you to give them a listen before making any hasty decisions.
Winner: Paper Route

The Postal Service vs. Vampire Weekend
60% of voters are hoping The Postal Service eventually releases a second album.
Winner: The Postal Service

The Strokes vs. Florence & the Machine
The Strokes have a new album coming out this week which is the only thing that could have made Florence & the Machine old news. With 70% of the vote, however, The Strokes won easily.
Winner: The Strokes

Bloc Party vs. Angus & Julia Stone
It's hard to get used to Julia's voice which may be part of the reason Bloc Party took 78% of the vote. One of the most one-sided matches in this round.
Winner: Bloc Party

The Shins vs. Mumford & Sons
Unfortunately for me, this turned out to be a tie. Two of my favorite bands in this region going head to head in an early round is tough to pick, but I am rarely as impressed by a band's debut as I was with Mumford & Sons'. Let's see how they do against Bloc Party.
Winner: Mumford & Sons

Alicia Keys vs. James Vincent McMorrow
Alicia Keys has significantly more time in the spotlight which was enough to rocket her to victory in this round.
Winner: Alicia Keys

Ingrid Michaelson vs. Rihanna
Rihanna had the early lead, but Ingrid Michaelson pulled through in the end and lived to do battle with Alicia Keys in the next round.
Winner: Ingrid Michaelson

Sara Bareilles vs. Taylor Swift
Taylor Swift is the better songwriter, but Sara Bareilles is the better performer. Since this came out as a tie, I'm going to tip the hat to Sara and see how she does in the next round.
Winner: Sara Bareilles

Amy Winehouse vs. Bon Iver
Amy Winehouse hasn't released anything in a while, but then again, neither has Bon Iver.
Winner: Amy Winehouse

Kanye West vs. Aloe Blacc
83% wanted Kanye to move on. I can't possibly argue with that.
Winner: Kanye West

Justin Timberlake vs. Lady Gaga
Another tough tie. Although Lady Gaga's latest single, "Born This Way," is disappointing, I've gotta give her credit for being the Madonna of the 21st century.
Winner: Lady Gaga

Tristen vs. Alexi Murdoch
It was a close race, but fans of Alexi Murdoch pulled through in the end.
Winner: Alexi Murdoch

Cee Lo Green vs. Jonsi
Another very close race, but perhaps there are enough Sigur Ros fans familiar with Jonsi's work to keep him alive.
Winner: Jonsi

Gorillaz vs. Foster the People
Foster the People is the newest band in the tournament, but their catchy beats weren't enough to beat out Damon Albarn and company.
Winner: Gorillaz

Arcade Fire vs. Kaiser Chiefs
Kaiser Chiefs are incredibly catchy, but even at an 8 seed, Arcade Fire is the band to beat in this region.
Winner: Arcade Fire

TV On the Radio vs. Hard-Fi
I'm actually surprised at the support for Hard-Fi. Often compared to The Clash, Hard-Fi is working on their 3rd album currently, but it won't be out in time to have an impact on the rest of this tournament.
Winner: Hard-Fi

Franz Ferdinand vs. Gnarls Barkley
Over 70% took Franz Ferdinand. Cee-Lo Green is officially knocked out of the tournament.
Winner: Franz Ferdinand

Keane vs. Editors
With Keane handling Editors easily, it looks like Interpol is the last remaining hope for Joy Division fans.
Winner: Keane

Kings of Leon vs. MGMT
A solid victory for the boys from Nashville, TN.
Winner: Kings of Leon

The Killers vs. The Bravery
Although they have been around a similar amount of time, The Killers significantly more popular worldwide and that helped them to victory here.
Winner: The Killers

Interpol vs. Empire of the Sun
Empire of the Sun is often compared to MGMT And if MGMT couldn't even make the next round, how is Empire of the Sun expected to?
Winner: Interpol

1 Comments:

Blogger Unknown said...

Definitely harder this week than last.

Toughest match this round - The Raconteurs v. The Black Keys. Had to go with The Black Keys.

Easiest - Bloc Party v. Mumford & Sons. Easily goes to Mumford & Sons.

March 22, 2011 at 12:18 PM 

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