LogFAQs > #936461635

Final Fantasy XIV - Ink Long Dry
Ciel nosurge - LastPandemic
Umineko no Naku Koro ni Chiru 8 - Ricordando il Passato

Another year, another VGMC! Feels good to have another contest underway. I still remember how hyped I was during VGMC13 and hopefully this year will be just as enjoyable if not more! But anyway, without further ado, let's get into the contest! And also the writeups because those are fun to do, even if they're not all that spectacular.

MATCH 1

One Final Effort's a classic video game song. It's a nice song, but it doesn't quite fit into my music tastes. Feels a little too "epic battle music" for me, which is where strings in music, like in this song, don't end up being a big selling point for the song but instead just sort of feels like it doesn't stand out. Perhaps I'm not describing it too well, but I view this in a similar way that I view many orchestra songs. With orchestra, I don't usually find anything that draws me into the song, which is sort of the case with One Final Effort as well. Granted, the piano and percussion give this song something to make it a little more interesting and better than the average orchestra song, but it still doesn't feel like anything special, even if I don't dislike it.

Ink Long Dry's not really the kind of song I tend to like either with all the dissonant piano chords everywhere, but something about it actually makes it sound pretty cool. Those opening chords are pretty dark and mysterious, and the rest of the song has this neat soft jazz feel that I can get behind. I think it's pretty fitting that this song plays in a library! It does feel like a song that would be a theme for a grand, dimly-lit library.

MATCH 2

Speaking of dark, mysterious introductions, LastPandemic also gives off those cool vibes. It's pretty different from the other EXA_PICO songs in the bracket, but it still has a lot to offer that interests me. As I mentioned, those opening chords before the vocals set a neat mood for the song. Not quite as dark as Ink Long Dry, but a little bit. Enough to give it that kind of mood. Other stuff like that soft backing synth at around 0:38 and the chords at 0:54-0:59 helps continue that feeling. The part right after the latter portion of the song is probably my favorite part. I really like the powerful, triumphant feeling that comes from the "ADJUSTING NOW" and the rest of those lyrics. This is a pretty long-winded way of saying that this song is great all-around, but yeah, I really like it!

Arguably more of a classic than One Final Effort is the Legend of Zelda theme! That said, though, once again, this is unfortunately the case where being a classic doesn't necessarily equate to being a good song. One Final Effort's a fine song, but this song is noticeably less good. This original version is something that I think is overly long and drawn out compared to other versions, and even in the case of these better versions, I don't think it's the most interesting song out there. I would say that this is another variant of the "epic music" style that I don't find particularly appealing. This time, in the form of "epic adventure music." Once again, it's not something that sticks out to me in any way. Pretty plain, average song.

MATCH 3

I think End of All (Land) has become my favorite song that uses the Lost in Thoughts All Alone motif. Maybe I'm focusing a little too much on that intro, though, because it's great and definitely my favorite part of the song. I really like how 0:06-0:35 sounds. It's a nice sound on its own and when the vocal harmonizing comes in, this just adds to it. It kind of lulls in the middle before the strings start to pick up again and harmonize with the vocals, but other than that, it's a great song!

Ricordando il Passato is a great emotional song! The impact of the chorus is fantastic in a similar way to what I like about that part of LastPandemic that I mentioned. Man, I feel like I've said so much about this song in the past when it's appeared that I don't know what new things I can say. It's just really great melodically and harmonically and another example of good Akiko Shikata music (and certainly not the last appearance of a song of that variety that we'll see in this contest).

Ricordando il Passato > LastPandemic > End of All (Land) > Ink Long Dry > One Final Effort > Title