Board 8 > [VGMC] d91: Scourge of the Universe vs Apostle's Maraud, TIGAR vs Imbrium

(+) Yeah! (+)

I'm late, so no poll because oh god, the topic has to go up.

Links:
Contest info - https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1VNrPnFRI7nJ4PqFiURBW0NWqxvXiuasoq8Sn_O169ss/edit#gid=320804650
Bracket - http://www.bracketmaker.com/tlist.cfm?tid=473292
Discussion and results thread - https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/boards/8-gamefaqs-contests/78714595
Bracket playlist - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLW9O9mntH1REnVI_W6yELaDP6Zac8b0Wq
ToC playlist - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLW9O9mntH1RE-TQMj19D0k5nm-0zeH12J
VGMC compability sheet - https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1lpX4faqnn_geI0y4i6MrZ2AXpV6SWXoWrIA6_eyx-yM/edit

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 your vote is not based on a fair and impartial preference, it will 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 isnt up by then. (Matches do not begin until at least 10:00 EDT.)
- 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!

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Match 1

Terraria Calamity - Scourge of the Universe
https://youtu.be/-Syn1mJVt7U

Raiden V - Apostle's Maraud
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QPexIZS4V7w

Match 2

Blue Reflection - TIGAR (All Phase Mix)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G9-NsUPcFFU

Neotokyo - Imbrium
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=35WpMHa2Vhs

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Easy vote form:
Scourge of the Universe / Apostle's Maraud
TIGAR (All Phase Mix) / Imbrium

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fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck gotta go Scourge fuck
Imbrium easy lol


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Scourge
Imbrium

hbthebattle votes:
Apostle's Maraud (this one hurts)
TIGAR

...

...

gdi, again?

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Apostle's Maraud
TIGAR (All Phase Mix)

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Scourge of the Universe (38th) vs Apostle's Maraud (32nd)
TIGAR (ALL PHASE MIX) (11th) vs Imbrium (49th)

wow another amazing four pack i wonder how many of these were going to get (spoiler: almost all of them)

Scourge of the Universe (17th) / Apostle's Maraud (1st)
TIGAR (All Phase Mix) (NR) / Imbrium (58th)

Fucking hell.

Scourge of the Universe
Imbrium
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Apostle's Maraud
Imbrium

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Four songs I like. Both matches are very close. Though, If I could, I'd vote both of the match 1 songs over both of the match 2 songs...

Scourge of the Universe
TIGAR (All Phase Mix)

Apostle's
Imbrium
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Scourge of the Universe
TIGAR (All Phase Mix)

goooooooooood this first match. I feel like Scourge is a bit more consistent and I'm feeling that more right now but augh

second match relatively easy but Imbrium is still pretty good

jesus christ this day

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Terraria Calamity - Scourge of the Universe
Blue Reflection - TIGAR (All Phase Mix)
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Apostle's Maraud
TIGAR (All Phase Mix)

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Scourge of the Universe
TIGAR (All Phase Mix)
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Terraria Calamity - Scourge of the Universe
Blue Reflection - TIGAR (All Phase Mix)

second match is evil

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Apostle's Maraud
TIGAR (All Phase Mix)

sorry imbrium

Scourge of the Universe
Imbrium

This first match is tough, because on the one hand, we've got Scourge ~ Purpose, but on the other, we've got a ZUNesque composition without the polarizing Touhou soundfont. In other words, both of them feel like a good "Fuck You Board 8" pick, which given how the Tournament of Champions ended seems like something I want to do! Luckily Apostle's Maraud tails off so it becomes easy.

This second match, on the other hand, is a very different type of "fuck you Board 8." The fact that one of these actually has lost a match already does nothing to allay me because that means it won a fucking 9-way, which is arguably worse than actually having made it to Round 3 legitimately.

Scourge of the Universe > Apostle's Maraud >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Imbrium > TIGAR

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Apostle's Maraud
TIGAR (All Phase Mix)

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Apostle's Maraud
TIGAR (All Phase Mix)

Match 1 is pretty dang close -- enough that when I filled out my 2nd chance favs bracket just a couple days ago I wasn't in much of a mood for Apostle Maraud so I went with Scourge, but between then & now things have reversed very strongly. Apostle seems stronger "musically" than Scourge, though Scourge has the stronger soundscape for me. But again 1:11 of Apostle is So Good I love it. I think match 2 has the potential to be fairly close for me as well but I'd probably go TIGAR even when I'm in a weaker mood for it, and right now I'm strongly in a mood For it instead.

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Terraria Calamity - Scourge of the Universe
Blue Reflection - TIGAR (All Phase Mix)

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TIGAR (All Phase Mix)

Scourge of the Universe
TIGAR (All Phase Mix)

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Apostle's Maraud
Imbrium

I gave Apostle's Maraud 4th out of 192. It is my favorite song in the contest I didn't give a 10/10 to; in a rating system that's fairly arbitrary...basically all that means is Apostle's Maraud is my favorite song in the contest that isn't already a long-time favorite. It's a more recent discovery that hasn't had the chance to sink in as a non-temporary obsession with certainty to me. I think I would vote for Apostles Maraud over Thermosphere & Tong Nou Theme if their matches actually happened, despite ranking it below them. Still does not beat Dungeon~Geofront 4 though!!!! No song in the world does! (yet) I'm really happy that I chose to nominate/introduce Apostle's Maraud to the community and see it be so well-received! Year of Yoshimi Kudo (!???!)...between this and the 13 sentinels reps hahaha

Imbrium : )

I don't hate the opponents here but these two songs made me so happy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Today's pairings are interesting patterns for me. Match 1 is between multiple very melodic Epic Dramatic songs, which is a thing I can like, but Apostles Maraud does it in like basically my favorite way any song in the world has ever done that in for me. Match 2 is between 2 less "memorable" and less melodic, well-produced EDM-adjacent things, with lots of minimalist desynchronization/polymeter/etc elements (or at least that's the element i'm personally geared to focus on); but Imbrium is like a top tier example of how to do that to me in comparison (and also just has a much darker atmosphere that's more my vibe)
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Scourge of the Universe
Imbrium
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Scourge of the Universe
Imbrium

Apostle's Maraud
Imbrium

47.Terraria Calamity - Scourge of the Universe
vs.
49.Raiden V - Apostle's Maraud

What I had:
King Noah > Tonitrus

Scourge of the Universe goes on a bit too long for my tastes. I don't necessarily mind long songs, but Scourge just sort of...does the same thing throughout its run. Even this wouldn't necessarily be a problem, but what it does isn't very interesting to me. It does pick up around 4:00, which I think is the loop point (there are lots of times in songs where a good loop point can really make a difference for me). Of the Calamity songs I've heard, the ones I like are Infestation and Outcast of the Sulpherous Seas; the others aren't really my thing. Also, why do so many of these Calamity songs have undulating worms in their videos?

Apostle's Maraud is tricky for me. I like the BREAKING NEWS WEEWOOWEEWOO segments but most of the rest is just sort of there. It reminds me of my reaction to some Phantasy Star Online songs, where there's a lot happening at once (instruments, melodies, etc.) and it's hard for me to grab onto any one particular aspect. I don't know why I react that way to certain songs and not others; maybe it has something to do with the lead instrument. At any rate, there are other parts of this song I like, like the melody after the WEEWOOWEEWOO breaking news, but there are also parts I'm not a fan of, like the parts after that, where the song moves around at breakneck speed. Again, normally this isn't an issue, but here it is, and I suspect it might be because I'm not in love with the lead instrument. That makes a big difference!

This isn't my least favorite match by the numbers, but it's up there! Voting here is tough. Both have elements I enjoy and elements I dislike. Thinking I'll pick Apostle's Maraud, as it has higher highs than Scourge of the Universe and is generally more interesting, even if I do get lost a bit along the way.

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26.Blue Reflection - TIGAR (All Phase Mix)
vs.
6.Neotokyo - Imbrium

What I had:
Imbrium (wildcard) > TIGAR (heyyyy!)

TIGAR has a lot to offer. I love the slow buildup to the frenetic EDM beat around 0:40, and then the plateau onto the quieter piano section around 1:00. Then the breakbeat kicks in again, and it's this nice interplay between the instruments and styles. This is easily my preferred Blue Reflection song of the two remaining: it flows and swells so nicely, and it really lifts me up as I listen. For being an "All Phase Mix" everything is pretty seamless! Oh and then there are strings that come in, and then there's a dubstep part that I don't like as much. Comparing this to my opinion of Apostle's Maraud is interesting because the songs probably do roughly the same amount of "stuff," but I like TIGAR much more probably because it feels more varied. Apostle's Maraud is more melodically and rhythmically complex, whereas TIGAR is more "instrumentally complex" (is that a thing? Sure why not), and that generally appeals to me more. Honestly if I had to rerank everything again, TIGAR might get even higher. It's real good.

...and yet I'm still not voting for it! When I nominated Imbrium, it was a result of my dismay at seeing Scrap I/O get nominated again. Looking at VGMC history, there have been three Neotokyo entrants, and Scrap I/O always seems to get in, and I don't know why. I nominated one of my favorites from the soundtrack and I was very pleased that it got in! And I was extra pleased Imbrium won the wildcard, especially given its rough draw in round 1. Imbrium is just a delight to listen to. Somber, but with these dark "New Super Mario Bros. going through a goth phase" "ba"s noises that pop out of the song and do really nifty audio panning. The piece is very atmospheric; there is very little melody, yet I wouldn't call it sparse, as there's a lot to sink into, from the backing violin to the rapid-fire percussion to the big synth chords. Imbrium is one of my three remaining nominations and I hope it goes far! (That said, I have it eventually losing to a totally different song. I wonder what that could be...?)

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Votes:
Apostle's Maraud
Imbrium

I just realized I have Imbrium making it to round 4 in A1 and also somehow retiring from A2 wildcard. Oops. If I redid the bracket, it would be:

What I had (sort of):
Rude Buster (wildcard) > TIGAR

EDIT: OH never mind. It looks like the bracket was actually changed as it went along, which affected the way predictions were displayed. I don't remember what I originally had as wildcard.

Apostle's Maraud
TIGAR (All Phase Mix)

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Raiden V - Apostle's Maraud
Blue Reflection - TIGAR (All Phase Mix)

Match 1 is great, not keen on match 2

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Apostle's Maraud
Imbrium

Very easy match ups today


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Scourge of the Universe
TIGAR (All Phase Mix)

Had to be careful in match 1, Scourge loops but Apostle's doesn't! (second half is superior btw)

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Raiden V - Apostle's Maraud
Neotokyo - Imbrium

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Terraria Calamity - Scourge of the Universe
Neotokyo - Imbrium
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scourge
tigar

don't judge me.
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Scourge of the Universe
Imbrium
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Scourge of the Universe
TIGAR (All Phase Mix)

First match was a pretty straightforward decision but god that second match... Both those songs are just sooo good.
I think I might go for TIGAR because while Imbrium is one of the best songs on this whole thing (hell, I used it on a list on siivacord) I'd also say it switches up less often, it's less dense and more... flat. TIGAR sounds like an ever increasing crescendo while Imbrium is more of a constant song. Both are completely valid but I guess I'm more biased towards what TIGAR does.
Though... I really love how the break restarts on Imbrium at 2:49-ish. It's just so hard to pick.
Yeah, I think I'll go TIGAR, for the reasons stated earlier, but it's a very very close pick (though I am confident in my answer).

TIGAR (All Phase Mix) > Imbrium > Scourge of the Universe >> Apostle's Maraud

Scourge of the Universe < Apostle's Maraud
TIGAR (All Phase Mix) < Imbrium

wow, this really is the retirement round, huh...wait, it's not? who rigged the brackets like this?!
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Apostle's Maraud
Imbrium

Apostle's Maraud
TIGAR (All Phase Mix)

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Scourge of the Universe
TIGAR (All Phase Mix)

Apostle's Maraud
Imbrium

scourge of the universe - first encountered: bost5 for a focused listen, though I probably listened to it on some random occasion before this - trend: up
-this got stuck in my head for a while between its appearance in the first round and today. I've professed how much I like the vibe and the bass in the section starting at 2:24 in prior writeups. another thing I like about this track is the way the two lead synths play off each other with little countermelodies (like at 0:48-- I love how one of them goes up, then they both descend, and then the other one goes up. pretty fun).

apostle's maraud - first encountered: Toxtricity DMs - trend: slightly up
-breathless as usual. there was a period of time where I enjoyed the 'first part' of the track (the part that opens with the news bulletin) a little more each time I heard it. the drum fills right at the intro of the section are real cool. the section starting at 1:11, really awesome. I get super hyped about that little skip of the downbeat at 1:19. the way it moves effortlessly between 7/8 and 8/8. while the track's escalating pace is part of the point of the track, I do still wish I could catch my breath a bit.

TIGAR - pre-vgmc12 soundtrack listenthroughs, following up a remark by Mac in the pre-vgmc12 topic - trend: slightly down
-NFUN describes BR music as 'saccharine'. I get where he's coming from, I think-- it's relentless in its particular aesthetic, especially in the all phase mixes, to the point where it can feel like an overdose. it's very, well, shiny. I like shiny things (this track included) but sometimes I need to look away for a bit. of this set, this track is the least likely to evoke a mood in me.

imbrium - first encountered: looked up the soundtrack sometime in 2010 after Ed Bellis talked about tin soldiers - trend: steady
-in this set this is an absolute island of calm in an ocean of turbulent waves-- not because it's subdued, exactly, but because it's controlled. I discussed this track at length in round 1, what it means from my perspective, and there's no real way my impression of this changes much after ten years of listening to it. so a quick aside-- I don't talk about track rankings much, mostly because ranking tracks tires me out, but this is one of a very small selection I'd call 'bucket zero' in my head. this is the only bucket zero track in the contest. (scourge is in bucket two. apostle's maraud is bucket one. TIGAR is bucket three. how descriptive, right? see, this is why I don't talk about my rankings.) anyway, I enjoy this track to this day thanks to two Eds.

Apostle's Maraud
Imbrium

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Apostle's Maraud
TIGAR (All Phase Mix)

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Raiden V - Apostle's Maraud
Blue Reflection - TIGAR (All Phase Mix)

First match would've been closer if it was Servants instead of Scourge of the Universe.

TIGAR (All Phase Mix) > Apostle's Maraud > Scourge of the Universe > Imbrium