LogFAQs > #969758335

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#693: VileDriver - Gnaw Your Tongue (3:29):
https://youtu.be/hMcdzIio9xM

Nominator: Snake [30/32 Remaining]

Initial Score: 60.11
Revised Score: 53.61
Final Score: 53.776

(First Reaction: *before listening to anything* I know the band name is a play on Piledriver, but every time I see Piledriver written, I immediately get Koko B. Ware's Piledriver song stuck in my head:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZfMsBitPIQ

I swear that song is better than it has any right to be. Also, did you know the Piledriver Album had a VHS release? I actually owned the tape growing up, we bought it from some video rental place at some point which... feels kinda odd now that I'm thinking about it... all the videos in the world and they had an old copy of WWF music videos lying around? I mean, I guess that's a thing that could have happened and we definitely did own the tape, but I suppose my memory of when/where we bought it might have gotten mixed up at some point.

....Aaanywho, I guess I should play the song I'm supposed to be listening to, which I'm sure will be quite the tonal shift from novelty wrestling songs.:

Yep, that was definitely a shift. Can't say I made out many words or remember much about the song itself, but I think I somehow liked it anyway.)

!Actually looking back, I recall "Wrestlemania: The Album" had a VHS with a couple music videos on it & I got that video from a different rental place when they went out of business. *insert Doofenshmirtz "If I had a nickel for everytime my family bought a VHS of WWF music videos from a local video store that was going out of business, I'd have two nickels" meme here*.

Aaaaanywho...., the drumming is a bit too much for me tonight.... I do like the intro part, before the song really gets started & I obviously enjoy the song when I'm in the mood for something more intense, but this is unfortunately not what I'm looking for at this exact moment.

[Final Thoughts: Probably one of the better examples of this type of intense brand of metal, but still a bit heavier than I'm currently looking for. Could definitely go up a tier or two on the right day though. I still really like that intro though.]

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-wow-

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#692: Franchouchou - DEAD or RAP!!! (2:22):
https://open.spotify.com/track/3TOEZRQfgPydsgzuMOeiZK?si=5ac408b0501a417e

Nominator: Player_0 [27/33 Remaining]

Initial Score: 24.16
Revised Score: 38.74
Final Score: 38.74 [Upgraded to 53.78]

(First Reaction: A rap battle between zombie idols is a great idea and I love some of the lines ("You're not even trying to hide it! What kind of idol's head comes off?!"), but the backing music is well below average and I don't think this song style suited either of their voices. This is a pretty big miss from what, on paper, should have been one of the highest scoring songs.)

My opinion hasn't changed, but I do feel the scoring was too harsh. It's a fun idea with good lyrics (the next-to-last verse is oddly inspirational) and I don't have a problem with either of the performers... while I still find the music a little unappealing, I think the concept is solid enough that this is more of an "I didn't like this" song than one I actively disliked.

*an undefined amount of time later*

Alright, alright, I need to put more effort in than that. First, I'm using the Wiki to get lyrics for these songs:

https://zombieland-saga.fandom.com/wiki/DEAD_or_RAP

I'm unsure if the "English" or "English Dub" tab is the most faithful, as there are points where the translations are rather opposite of each other: Compare:

Who cares if you've got memories in your head?
You won't see your friends
And your Tamagotchi's long dead!

to

I don't care about no memories before some swan song
It's not like I can see my friends, my Tamagotchi's long-gone

Pronouns make it difficult to describe, but the first has Saki telling Sakura that Sakura won't see [Sakura['s friends from her previous line again, while the dub has Saki lamenting that Saki won't see [Saki]'s friends again. They're similar lines, obviously, but I find the first makes more sense in context. Angrily shouting at someone that they can't see their friends ever again feels like the more logical translation than the sadder "I can't see my friends" verse from the dub.

Anyhow, it's the next-to-last verse that interests me, as simple as it is (it's also not part of the dub, making the above paragraph rather irrelevant):

Quit coming up with excuses about why you can't win!
If you got a little chance, try to do that then!
Even a zombie can do it if she tries,
And when you prove it, it shows dead souls can rise!

I'm not saying that I identify as undead, but that verse actually resonates with me more than traditionally inspirational words do. And it's awfully close to being enough to propel this song to a high tier... but there's still something missing. It could just be that I wish there were a better backing track to accompany the verses, or that the more comedic earlier verses don't accentuate the feelings, or some third thing, or all of the above. But while that verse almost makes me want to jump this towards the top of the list, it's just not enough by itself.

[Final Thoughts: The lyrics aren't quite enough to save this track from the 30 point tier, though they're definitely a good attempt.]

[Later: Okay, I refuse to let anything with these lyrics fall below the 50 point tier. It's too close to being a 90 point song to not make it into the positive half of the scoring system. That being said, I'm still not into the backing music & this isn't the best use of their voices, so I'm hesitating to move this up any further... ehhh... let's try putting this at the early 50's for now and see if I decide to save it at the last minute again.]

[Later: Been a long time since I moved this one up the list... in direct contrast to [REDACTED] that kept getting little nudges over specific songs, this one was just thrown several tiers away with one large point increase. Conveniently, I think this is a fine place for its elimination, so that score actually worked out in the end.

Also, this does work a bit better in context with the video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XOcERX0MzCE

The way the manager/director/whatever starts beatboxing to pretend this is part of the show is actually funny, and blue haired girl helping by reattaching someone's severed head is actually kinda cute.]

[Sidenote: There is one specific song that's kept getting very minor point increases to save it every day for... like, about a week now? Where listening to it and deciding not to eliminate it, while also not feeling strongly enough to give it a lot of points, has become part of the morning routine. It was *supposed* to be finally eliminated immediately before this song, but... well, obviously it wasn't, and I'll just REDACT that part to leave some mystery about what the undying song is.]

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