In honour of my first music review on this blog, I've decided to pit these two groups together and let them battle it out in my second 'Battle of the Band' feature. The song I've selected is Kashmir. Those of you familiar with Led Zeppelin will undoubtedly recognize the song. In fact, I'm quite sure most of you unfamiliar with any Led Zeppelin songs, will still recognize this catchy tune. I hope you enjoy it.
eScala, now know as Escala, is first to do battle.
Now it's time for a little Bond.
So what did you think? I hope you enjoyed at least one of the versions above.
Now comes your job. It's time to vote on your favourite. Which group did you think performed the song the best? Let me know in the comments. It would be nice to know why you feel the way you do. Voting ends on the 8th, when I'll cast my own vote and announce the winner in a separate posting.
Did you enjoy the Battle of the Bands feature? Come back on the 15th when I'll have a new battle. Most likely, I'll return to a more popular song as I know instrumental is not for everyone. I thank everyone who indulged my fancy this week.
Don't forget! Please check out the rest of my friends who have "banded" together to produce more band battles. Follow the links below to enjoy more "Battle of the Bands".
STMcC PRESENTS 'BATTLE OF THE BANDS'
TOSSING IT OUT
JINGLE JANGLE JUNGLE
WOMEN: WE SHALL OVERCOME
ALEX CAVANAUGH
YOUR DAILY DOSE
BOOK LOVER
MIKE'S RAMBLINGS
CURIOUS AS A CATHY
THE SOUND OF ONE HAND TYPING
DCRELIEF - BATTLE OF THE BANDS
THIS BELLE ROCKS
THE DOGLADY'S DEN
CHERDO ON THE FLIPSIDE
ANGELS BARK
FAR AWAY SERIES
NOVEL BREWS
QUIET LAUGHTER
HOLLI'S HOOTS AND HOLLERS
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Jeffrey Scott Facebook Page
I am not familiar with either group, but I have to say that I believe Bond sounds very much like Zeppelin, and for that reason, they get my vote :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for the vote.
DeleteInteresting battle, Jeffrey. I don't know either of these bands and they both had good versions, but Bond sounds most like Led Zep. Put me down for Bond.
ReplyDeleteI did an all instrumental battle as well this week. ☺ Cheers!
P.S. I "liked" your Facebook page for myself and both fan pages (The Doglady's Den and Musical Musings.)
DeleteThanks for liking the page. I'm trying to work with the FB page more. Deciding what more I can do with it.
DeleteAnd thanks for the vote.
Jeffrey, cool battle this showdown! DS introduced Escala to me a few years back and they won me over instantly with their sound. Bond is good. Nothing wrong with them at all, but with this song I felt it was too boomy. I'm giving my vote to Escala!
ReplyDelete#BOTB Star Spangled Banner Showdown ~ Spirit VS #MadisonRising
I immediately liked Escala when I first heard them. They were 'my first' so to speak, so close to my heart. Bond has more music though and I love the group members. This will be a hard vote for me. I have no idea who I'm going to vote for yet.
DeleteHi, Jeffrey! I'm new to your blog and amazed to see posts going all the way back to 1986! You put on a very good BOTB show here. I never heard of either group and I thank you for introducing them. The two orchestral performances of the Zeppelin classic are very similar and therefore, in my opinion, evenly matched. They are both majestic and dramatic and boast superb musicianship and violin virtuosity. I needed to listen a couple of times to each one before making up my mind. To my ears the Bond version allows the violin to breathe and flourish to a greater extent w/o being in competition with or drowned out by the guitar and other instruments.
ReplyDeleteBond left me shaken and stirred :) and Bond gets my vote!
Thank you very much for the entertainment, Jeffrey!
Thanks for stopping by and the vote.
DeleteTo be fair, (regarding my blog posts) anything before 2004 is simply back dated. Uploaded from various hard copies I decided to finally introduce to the world. Anything posted from 2004-2007 was originally seated on a website I once ran, but has since gone the way of the dodo.
This is like torture. I love both of them! I like the strings in the first one and the rock vibe in the second, but...I have to go with Escala. I really liked what they did with it. The strings gave it a classical feel.
ReplyDeleteGlad you stopped in to vote. Looks like I have a real battle this BOTB.
DeleteIts pretty neat when the bond girls in the second video turn into green orion women. Now thats classy.
ReplyDeleteSo, is that a vote for Bond? And yes, crazy video. And I agree, they make lovely Orion Women.
DeleteI knew before the 1:30 mark of the second version that I would be voting for ESCALA. I thought there was far more going on musically that was interesting, and the Bond version began to sound rather tedious to my ears. By about 3:00 or 3:30 they had said all they had to say, except for a little background percussion tossed in toward the end, which didn't really justify two extra minutes of running time.
ReplyDeleteI will add that I like the Escala version better than the Led Zeppelin original, too, but then I wasn't a big Zeppelin fan anyway.
~ D-FensDogG
'Loyal American Underground'
Great justifications. I appreciate the notes and the vote.
Delete"Kashmir" is among my favorite Led Zep tunes. I enjoy Bond--actually own a couple of CD's by them since I'm a fan of string quartet music. Bond's version of this song is cool, but maybe too much like them playing against the original Led Zep track most of the way through so I was not overwhelmed by what they did.
ReplyDeleteEscala on the other hand seemed to add some more original riffs to the arrangement and I liked the addition of the electric guitar.
My vote here goes to Escala's version.
Lee
Tossing It Out
Thanks for the vote. I agree with you. I don't think this is Bond's best work. But I felt it was important to use as the song is well known and also done by eScala.
DeleteEscala for me since they seemed more original in the set up. I liked Bond also but after a while it just seemed repetitive to me.
ReplyDeleteA valid point. Thanks for stopping by and casting your vote.
DeleteThose strings in The Bond version were interesting, but not interesting enough to get my vote. I liked the version by Escala better, so for me they win.
ReplyDeleteNow I'm wondering are these two 'girl bands' or is that just eye candy for the album covers?
Certainly not eye candy. These girls play their own instruments and have performed live numerous times. One of my favourite DVD's is Bond performing live at the Royal Albert Hall.
DeleteI like the second one better because it sounds more like the original song.
ReplyDeleteI'll score a vote for Bond.
DeleteI see why you like them, both. They are truly awesome; I'd like to add both to my music collection. I love rock/metal mixed with orchestra music.
ReplyDeleteBond has a slightly darker quality to it, don't know why, perhaps it is the violin, but I liked it. Escala is so classical, and catchy, though there really isn't much difference between the two. I'm going with Escala, and maybe only because I heard them first.
If you decide to collect their music, you'll notice Bond is relatively easy to find. eScala not so much. Even still, I'll tally your vote for eScala. Thanks for stopping by.
DeleteBoth of these sound like they could be used in the action sequence of a movie. That said, I preferred the first one by Escala better. I can't even tell you why, but it felt a bit less repetitive (and more interesting).
ReplyDeleteBoth of these were new to me. Good battle!
I may be repeating myself in this comment, But it seems many people felt the second song was too repetitive.
DeleteWhere did you find these? Great choices.
ReplyDeleteBOND gets my vote; I like the percussion in that version.
eScala I found watching Britain's Got Talent. When I mentioned to a friend how much I liked their music, I was told Bond was just like them. I had never heard of Bond either at the time. Now, several years later, I own all their CD's and and a DVD of them performing at the Royal Albert Hall. They are great musicians.
DeleteI liked Escala best. Bond definitely sounded like Zeppelin and so I appreciated what Escala did with the song. Love the strings! My vote is Escala. Thanks for the introduction to these bands: I was unfamiliar with both of them.
ReplyDeleteMichele at Angels Bark
Thanks for your vote. And if I've introduced you to some new music you enjoy, then I feel I've done my job.
DeleteI entered into this BoTB expecting that I'd pick Bond. It's a song I listen to often, and I love how hauntingly the violin sings throughout the song. This song is INTENSE... And honestly, I thought to myself 'how much different can two instrumental versions of the same song actually be?' BUT... With Escala, the addition of that wicked guitar and the percussion really set the song apart from the Bond version. I felt like it lost a bit of that hauntingly beautiful quality that the Bond version has with the violin, but Escala sounded more explosive and dynamic. . . so mark one down for Escala
ReplyDeleteI was curious how you'd vote. I know you are familiar with Bond. Glad you enjoy eScala as well. I'll lend you the CD sometime.
DeleteJeffrey - I definitely know this song and it amazes me - so unusual. Escala has more metal, but Bond is like a runaway with an Indo-China sound. Guess I'm watching too many martial arts movies lately. Ha! Escala has what they used to call the, 'wa-wa' pedal on that guitar - that's nice. The versions are very close sounding to me, so it's tough to decide... (which is a good thing).
ReplyDeleteAfter a couple of listens, I vote for Bond. I like their delivery and it's certain softness. Tough battle.
Nice to hear another vote for Bond. Sorry for making this so difficult for you. :) (Not really)
DeleteTough choice! I'm going to go with Bond, but this wasn't easy. Kashmir is a great, great song, and both bands do it justice in their way. I think I like Bond's version better because it sounds more cohesive musically, if that makes any sense. Perhaps that's because Escala is more creative or more daring and Bond more traditional? I'd never heard of either band before, so it's hard to judge their styles based on one song--but I think it's more than that. The Bond version seemed clearer, truer somehow... Not necessarily to the original (ha!), just... to itself, maybe. To the music.
ReplyDeleteOk, I'm going to stop now and go get a cup of coffee :) Thanks for the visit over at Quiet Laughter , Jeff, and for the welcome and words of encouragement on my first BoTB -- I've had a blast so far :)
Glad you are enjoying it. Looking forward to your next battle.
DeleteI liked Escala the best, didn't really like the violin in the Bond version.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the vote. One more vote for eScala.
DeleteEscala for me. Though I enjoyed the violins in Bond. I really appreciated the Robust sound of Escala.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the vote. Glad you placed your vote in time.
DeleteThis one was hard for me. I had to listen to both of them a couple times. While I like that Escala puts their own twist on it, I have to say I like the violin sound better in Bond. My vote goes to Bond even though I enjoyed both!
ReplyDeleteIf I made the decision tough, I did my job. LOL Thanks for voting.
Delete