VGMC11 day 6: Another Winter vs Birth of a God, I'll Face Myself vs EXEC_LINCA/.

Welcome to today's topic for Video Game Music Contest 11, a tournament of the best tracks from games, as decided upon by you, the voters.


Links:
Bracket - http://www.bracketmaker.com/tlist.cfm?tid=466312
Contest info - https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1d-N92Sis_Ghh-QYE2cQqClPP5H3T-idwlk0CUHOv2ew
Discussion and results thread - https://www.gamefaqs.com/boards/8-gamefaqs-contests/75120003
Main bracket playlist - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLW9O9mntH1RFteVUCpIsmLHRwqLStaQJD
Side bracket playlist - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLW9O9mntH1RE35F2S4u6Ie8w1o0jHPKXB

Rules:

- Listen to both of the songs. Links have conveniently been provided for both songs. Even if Song A is your favorite of all-time and Song B is from a series you hate... Listen. To. Both. (If I have suspicions you are not doing this, your vote may be disqualified.)
- Obvious contest rules apply (no alts, one vote per person, no rallying, etc.).
- Please make your voting options clear, rather than burying them in text.
- Each set of matches lasts 24 hours, even if the new one isn’t up by then.
- Always vote on the versions of the song provided, not versions from different sources.
- If you know ahead of time that you're not going to be around and you want to vote in advance, post your choices in the discussion/bracket topic.
- Please do NOT post tallies/score updates in the middle of the match, as this has a tendency to directly influence matches.
- You don't have to vote in all the matches, but it'd be cool if you did!

Match 1:

Scott Pilgrim vs. The World - Another Winter
https://youtu.be/Wqv5wxKDSIo

Final Fantasy VII - Birth of a God
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQwQnEfbh0U


Match 2:

Persona 4 - I'll Face Myself
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dpzbr3vCBjw

Ar tonelico - EXEC_LINCA/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAGCObDKOtM


VGMC Masters side bracket:

Assassin's Creed II - Ezio's Family
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FSVHx23ByhM

Sekien no Inganock - Right Hand from Behind
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2D5QhxcYls


Easy vote form:
Another Winter / Birth of a God
I'll Face Myself / EXEC_LINCA/
Ezio's Family / Right Hand from Behind

Scott Pilgrim vs. The World - Another Winter
Ar tonelico - EXEC_LINCA/
Sekien no Inganock - Right Hand from Behind

Birth of a God
EXEC_LINCA/
Ezio's Family

good day

Another Winter
I'll Face Myself
Right Hand from Behind

Hand > Winter > Face > God > Ezio > LINCA

s*** day

Another Winter
I'll Face Myself
Ezio's Family

Scott Pilgrim vs. The World - Another Winter
Ar tonelico - EXEC_LINCA/
Assassin's Creed II - Ezio's Family

man, such confidence in my punctuality from the early vote ><

Birth of a God
I'll Face Myself
Right Hand from Behind

Birth of a God is a pretty solid boss theme (I think that's when it plays?), and I really do not like Another Winter. The melody is already too generically alt-rock for my tastes, and something about this instrumentation really irritates me for reasons I won't elaborate on, since it's probably a horrifically unfair judgment on my part.

Second match is sort of hard. There's a part of me that really wants to vote EXEC_LINCA here. I really like a lot of the individual melodies in the song, and then on the other hand I think I'll Face Myself is not all that special as far as Persona songs go (though that still means it's pretty good). I think the deciding factor here is cohesiveness though. Like there's a lot of individual parts of EXEC_LINCA which are great, but I think it would have served them better to just do one of those things. As is, it just feels purposeless and jumping from place-to-place to me. In contrast, Persona music is generally very good about this, and this song in particular is a great example of that.

Bonus match is far and away the best match today. Both songs pretty great.

Right Hand from Behind > I'll Face Myself > Ezio's Family > Birth of a God > EXEC_LINCA >>> Another Winter

Another Winter
Linca
Ezio's Family

Birth of a God
EXEC_LINCA/
Right Hand from Behind

First match turned out easier than I expected. Second too, though to a lesser extent since I more or less expected I'd still pick it. Aaaaaaand third match I suppose would've also proved surprisingly easy too had I not already established that I consider RHfB to be fun and stuff during "predictions"... now it's just to be expected

Birth of a God
EXEC_LINCA/
Right Hand from Behind

Pretty easy choices today

RHfB > BoaG > LINCA >>> Another Winter > I'll Face Myself > Ezio's Family

Another Winter
-
Right Hand from Behind

omg mycro you're so cool

can you teach me? What does angular mean

Another Winter
I'll Face Myself
Right Hand from Behind

Another Winter
I'll Face Myself
Right Hand from Behind

Birth of a God
EXEC_LINCA/
Right Hand from Behind

Birth of a God
EXEC_LINCA
Right Hand

i'm voting for ffvii music

what is going on here

MycroProcessor posted...

I wonder if Azuarc put this one against EXEC_LINCA just so that I wouldn't vote for it this time just for having a tiny mixed meter section in it.

Curses, he's on to me.


Birth of a God
EXEC_LINCA/.
Ezio's Family

Both main bracket matches are basically by default. Another Winter has outstayed its welcome, and the other match has a Persona track in it.

Birth
Face
Hand

Another Winter
LINCA
Right Hand

Birth of a God
I'll Face Myself
Right Hand from Behind

Ex-Ed votes for:
Another Winter
I'll Face Myself
Right Hand From Behind

Final Fantasy VII - Birth of a God
Ar tonelico - EXEC_LINCA/

Sekien no Inganock - Right Hand from Behind

Another Winter
EXEC_LINCA/
Ezio's Family

Birth of a God
I'll Face Myself
Right Hand from Behind

Pretty solid 4-pack in the main bracket, and then we get Ezio's Family

Birth of a God
EXEC_LINCA/
Right Hand from Behind

Another Winter isn't bad, but I'm really f***ing tired of it. Birth of a God I've always liked, but I dunno if I'd rank it in the top 10 for FFVII tracks (it'd be right on the brink, but yeah). I'll Face Myself is low tier for Persona, and Exec Linca is quite possibly my favorite Gust song, which is saying a lot for me. Ezio's Family is alright but is basically a worse version of Venice Rooftops so I'm not sure why it's gotten in the contest so much. RHfB is great and I'm sure I'd love it if not for its overuse in the game <_<

Scott Pilgrim vs. The World - Another Winter
Ar tonelico - EXEC_LINCA/
Sekien no Inganock - Right Hand from Behind

Scott Pilgrim vs. The World - Another Winter
Persona 4 - I'll Face Myself
Sekien no Inganock - Right Hand from Behind

Birth Of A God
I'll Face Myself
Ezio's Family

Birth of a God
EXEC_LINCA/
Right Hand from Behind

Birth of A God
EXEC_LINCA/
Ezio's Family

That masters match is legit garbage, y u makin us vote for jobbers azuarc

second regular bracket match is just cruel too - put I'll Face Myself on the other match and I take it. Hell, put in the Reincarnation version from P4G and I maybe take it in this match too. Having to pick between this and LINCA in round 1 is just cruel.

Birth of a God
I'll Face Myself
Right Hand from Behind

Another Winter
EXEC_LINCA/.
Right Hand from Behind

I tire of Another Winter pretty easily-- it hits hard and fast but then gets kinda dull after a couple of repetitions-- but I also get this weird sense of VGMC nostalgia listening to it, since this contest was the first time I was introduced to it and I thought it was great the first time I heard it. All that aside I think this track is all right-- it's fun and spirited and I think it represents the general feel of Scott Pilgrim pretty well.

I can't remember the last time I listened to Birth of a God. Revisiting it now it's, uh, pretty decent? It does have a bunch of special boss theme tropes (that classic FF boss bass line, the rising action at 0:26-0:31 which shows up in FFV I think and even something like Lufia II's boss theme, that rock organ Nobuo can't seem to resist using, a not-at-all subtle interlude that weaves in one of the boss character's motifs, etc.). I think there's a few interesting stuff it does despite all of that other stuff though-- I just seem unable to elaborate on them meaningfully.

I'm not really big on Persona battle themes but I have a bit of a soft spot for I'll Face Myself. The way it introduces its main figure-- that nifty hiccup of a mixed meter-- is pretty stylish, before it goes into a much less interesting take on it. The chorus is not terribly unique but it sticks in the head-- it's got a bit of an earworm quality that I think this series' music is good at.

Speaking of VGMC nostalgia-- it's great to see the first hymmnos ever to make it into VGMC make its triumphant return. I think I first encountered this track in one of Ed Bellis's VG music topics, thought 'wow this is really cool', decided to listen to the Ar tonelico soundtrack, and promptly fell deep into the Ar tonelico music rabbit hole. LINCA's my favourite AT1 hymmnos by a country mile (I'd struggle to even name a 2nd place-- RIG=VEDA, maybe?). It's not just because it does some cool stuff with 5/4 and 6/4 time-- though that certainly helps-- but also because of its remarkably unpredictable melody and the way in which the different vocal parts each have a different texture and progression. I think it was Brayze who remarked about the way in which this (or was it METHOD_METAFALICA? I forget) handled the vocal parts like the voices were just more instruments, as opposed to the permanent focal points that every other instrument had to take a backseat to. It's a thought that I think describes one of the reasons I enjoy a number of hymmnos tracks so much.

Ezio's Family has been in enough contests that I feel like I've worn out all the things I can say about this track. It doesn't have a lot of ideas. It's made to be prominent in one very short scene, inoffensive background music otherwise, and it shows.

Right Hand from Behind isn't the most unique piece of music either-- a somewhat martial-sounding opening drumbeat that gives way to a gallop, some obvious cues taken from classical music pieces-- but it's lively enough and moves quickly enough that I can have some fun listening to it.

Another Winter
EXEC_LINCA/
Ezio's Family

I hate AC2 but that song is alright

change from Ed:
EXEC_LINCA => I'll Face Myself

Birth of a God
I'll Face Myself
Ezio's Family

really did not want to vote for either in that second match but my desire to anti-vote linca was too strong