Board 8 > [VGMC] d3: Scourge of the Universe vs Waterworks, Tonitrus vs SEISMIQ

(+) Yeah! (+)

Scourge of the Universe
Tonitrus
Dead Neon Hell City

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Team Rocket Elite posted...

Terraria Calamity - Scourge of the Universe
Gahkthun of the Golden Lightning - Tonitrus
Atelier Shallie - Flying Clouds, Drifting Haze

wait this vote format is aesthetic af I should've done this

Pyromide posted...

Scourge of the Universe
Tonitrus
Dead Neon Hell City

my account finally got activated pog, i'll introduce myself for the people that don't know me yet

i'm a moderator on the silvagunner fan server and i've been participating in the video game music guessing games there from the start and have met a ton of
b8 people in the process, i've known about this for a while now but you guys got me to participate this time through just the overall quality of all of the songs that got nominated!

i looked through the playlist and was blown away at how many songs are in this that i genuinely love
so yeah im gonna participate in this too, didn't end up nominating anything but hey you guys somehow nominated like a big chunk of songs that i would have nommed anyways so yeah good job, banger time

Hi Pyro! Glad to have you here, you should join us in the Discord channel which might be a more comfortable format for you (and there's more discussion beyond just people posting their votes and write-ups)

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PIayer_0 posted...

wait this vote format is aesthetic af I should've done this

For what it's worth, when I count the votes, I like to be able to do so quickly simply by glancing at the first letter of each song a person voted for. I tab between the forums and the spreadsheet, thinking "hb, STD. GBA, WSD. sceptile, STF."

That's a lot harder to do when people format their responses differently or hide them in spoiler tags.

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Scourge of the Universe
Tonitrus
Dead Neon Hell City

Tonitrus lyrics

Gazing up at the black, heavy sky, I embrace my desire
To search on and on until I find you
How does the sky look to your eyes?
At where stares that gold dwells a darkness

Like a sword of lightning
I stretch out my arm, I scream, I call to you
Just you
Even if that makes everything my foe
Or costs me everything
I'll do it for you, the only one for me

From your lips sounded the song
Its melody made the clouds tremble, pulsing through their gaps
I remember you, and your first smile on the day we met
And how fell from that gold those tears

Akin to a sword of lightning
My arms will link with those warm hands of yours
Your heart's frozen
But I'll embrace all of it
You wipe your eyes, trapped in the prison of time
I'll do it for you, to save you from there

Like a sword of lightning
I stretch out my arm, I call, I call to you
These tears run dry, or it costs me
All of my voice, to the ends of the earth
I'll go for you, in search of the splendor

(not super happy with this but~)
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Scourge of the Universe
Tonitrus
Flying Clouds, Drifting Haze

first match is much closer than I initially figured. like the "cool rhythm" stuff in Waterworks but the retro fly-through-space-blasting-stuff feel of Scourge is a hard thing to top even if Servants did it better

Tonitrus is cool anime

FCDH still holds the distinction of being my favorite VGMC discovery ever (at least since I started participating but probably even considering past contests) - maybe it's just the suggestive title but it always makes me feel like I'm flying (good day for that, apparently) and I love it. DEMON TRUCK is honestly pretty solid but I sort of hate it for beating things I love

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Scourge of the Universe
Tonitrus
Flying Clouds

No writeups today; not really up for it. Scourge was pretty decent, nothing else stood out one way or another.

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Scourge of the Universe
Tonitrus

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Waterworks Area
SEISMIQ
Flying Clouds, Drifting Haze

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Waterworks Area
SEISMIQ
Dead Neon Hell City

Scourge of the Universe
Tonitrus
Flying Clouds, Drifting Haze

Oh neat it's the better version of Servants of the Scourge. Both Scourge songs are pretty good but I really like the gong part and the more epic sound in this one. (Yes I know there's a 3rd that uses the same motif but I don't really remember what it sounds like in comparison.) Waterworks Area is not my thing at all I'm sorry.

Yep this is an anime game OP all right. A pretty good one to. I almost supported this during noms but turned out it didn't need my help. SEISMIQ reminds me a bit of elevator music. Like it sounds like music that is meant to play while someone is stuck waiting for something with the mindset that totally inoffensive and yet unambitious music must naturally be preferable to silence. And to be fair they aren't wrong--it is quite a pleasant song to listen to! But it isn't enough here. Definitely would have taken this over some things though.

Might be the first day the TOC doesn't have my 2 favorite songs, but they're both reasonably good at least.

Tonitrus > Scourge = FCDH > Dead Neon Hell City > SEISMIQ > Waterworks
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change from DEMON TRUCK to Flying Clouds, Drifting Haze

it appears i like writing DEMON TRUCK too much
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Scourge of the Universe
SEISMIQ
Flying Clouds, Drifting Haze

Scourge of the Universe
SEISMIQ
Flying Clouds, Drifting Haze

-every time I hear scourge's bell chime and that tense string chord I'm like 'oh it's hardcore to the brain from sh2' but hardcore to the brain has a lot more strange sounds going on. anyway this track really has its ups and downs like that worm wriggling in the video. intro is really cool-- never fails to grab me. chimes add awesome flavour. then 0:32 comes in and I don't dig it until it does a little swerve at 0:50 which I like. from here it's reasonably solid until it goes back to the well at 1:23, and so on. quick call out-- I like what the bass does at 2:38. from here to the loop point is cool.
-waterworks area is kinda the opposite-- pretty neat but I never really say 'wow'. best moment is probably when the shiny stuff kicks in at 0:22. the percussion-- especially the kick-- is a little overbearing and kinda congested and I wish it were less so. this track could use a little more air. I guess it's the waterworks after all

-tonitrus-- pretty, but straightforward and somewhat plodding melodically focused vocal track. (I think the 'feels slower than it is' impression I get from it is its very four on the floor feel with its kick drum rhythm. unsurprisingly the moment the track seems to have the most energy is when it breaks that pattern.) accordion list eligible, though-- that's a plus.
-seismiq-- actually echo waterworks area's faint praise here. lays down a nice groove and breakbeat but kinda sits on it. small elements to maintain variety throughout track doesn't quite do enough to vary it sonically; too short to claim it's a slow build track (and, for that matter, what is it building to?).

-fcdh is just cool enough for me to stay engaged. it does something like break out that electric guitar and I'm like 'oh no it's going to be rote electric guitar battle theme' but it does stuff like 1:07 to keep my attention, and knows to switch up the lead instrument before it gets too boring. I'm constantly ready to condemn it for taking uninspired decisions but it doesn't quite. I always walk away grudgingly thinking "this is better than whatever initial impression I had". my interaction with this track is weird.
-nothing can save you from the DEMON TRUCK. this one kinda does the opposite-- I think the way it opens at 0:16 is real cool but it loses a bit of steam for me as it goes along. the thick layer of percussion and fm synth keep it going but melodically it never quite hits that same high as the intro.

Waterworks Area
Tonitrus
Dead Neon Hell City

Terraria Calamity - Scourge of the Universe
Gahkthun of the Golden Lightning - Tonitrus
Atelier Shallie - Flying Clouds, Drifting Haze

Despite my extreme procrastination i vow to not miss a vote

2nd one was really close, FCDH is the best new listen for me so far, and i regret supporting waterworks area

I like to imagine kaonashi starts his write-ups really early and then forgets about them before realizing at 9:30 PM and frantically finishing everything like a procrastinating college student

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this is correct except for the 'starts his write-ups really early' part

Terraria Calamity - Scourge of the Universe
Gahkthun of the Golden Lightning - Tonitrus
Atelier Shallie - Flying Clouds, Drifting Haze

MATCH 1

I prefer Servants of the Scourge to Scourge of the Universe, but the latter is a perfectly fine song. I think it's just that Scourge of the Universe doesn't feel as rich, and thus, it's easier for me to get bored of listening to it. That said, though, DM DOKURO does some great composition work overall. I generally enjoy his flavor of electronic music, especially when it combines rock elements like guitars and real drums. Scourge of the Universe is no exception.

Waterworks Area is just very meh. There's nothing that really interests me at all about this song. I think there's a certain flavor of Kirby music that I enjoy. Generally, it's lighthearted and happy music. This one, by contrast, is very glitchy in a way that doesn't really align with my tastes. Feels like a very Zoom/missadelyn kind of song (and other people with that kind of taste, I suppose).

MATCH 2

Tonitrus has had an interesting journey for me throughout the nomination period. When I first got to it, I was like "it's good, but Dorchadas and probably Rosa Morada are better, and it's probably not good enough to support." Then, the very next day it was in my head all day so I thought "yeah, okay, I'll add it to my prospective supports list." Then, I did end up supporting it, and not only that, but I have it as a finalist in my favorites bracket. Needless to say, I really like this song. As others have noted, Rita's a great singer who's put out a lot of great songs including the other two I've mentioned as well as various Little Busters songs, etc. The instrumentation in Tonitrus is super cool with the mixing up of violins and accordions. More about Rita's voice, I love that particular vocal inflection at 1:16 when she says "subete ga." Of course, the rest of her singing's great as well, but that part right there is just aaaaaa (translation: very good).

SEISMIQ, to me, is a better example of glitchy electronic stuff (as in something I like more) than Waterworks Area. I guess mainly because of some melodic component added to it, even if it's just chopped up chords. Definitely not among the bottom songs in the bracket, but there's still a great deal of songs I'd take over this, including Tonitrus. Overall, SEISMIQ isn't quite my thing, but it's not bad either!

MATCH 3

Flying Clouds, Drifting Haze is probably one of my favorite songs in the Atelier series! Though, there's plenty of competition with how many songs from these games I love haha. That intro is so good! The violins are just so powerful, it really just makes you stop for a second and go "whoa, this is amazing!" The electric guitar is great as well and it's a cool balance between the softer strings, flutes, etc. and the heavier guitar.

Dead Neon Hell City wasn't my preferred retiree for that part of the bracket, but it's still a good song. Neat dark FM synth stuff. Not too much to say about it, though.

Flying Clouds, Drifting Haze > Tonitrus > Scourge of the Universe > Dead Neon Hell City > SEISMIQ > Waterworks Area

PIayer_0 posted...

I like to imagine kaonashi starts his write-ups really early and then forgets about them before realizing at 9:30 PM and frantically finishing everything like a procrastinating college student

This described me exactly for today's matches lol.