Board 8 > [VGMC] Day 9! (really) C2Forever/Vertex, RftMIS/Gahreesen, Power1/Pragmatism

(+) Yeah! (+)

DoDonPachi Resurrection Black Label - Vertex (Stage 1)
Uru: Ages Beyond Myst - Gahreesen Corridors
Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter - PowerOne

Vertex (Stage 1)
Reach for the Moon, Immortal Smoke
PowerOne

i want to vote for all 6 of these songs fuck this contest who made this contest

(out of 52)
(6th) DoDonPachi Resurrection Black Label - Vertex (Stage 1)
(10th) Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter - PowerOne
(14th) Touhou 8: Imperishable Night - Reach for the Moon, Immortal Smoke
(16th) Arcaea - Pragmatism -Resurrection-
(28th) Uru: Ages Beyond Myst - Gahreesen Corridors
(31st) The Blackwell Convergence - I Can See Into Forever

From Toxtricity:

I Can See Into Forever (Blackwell Convergence)
Gahreesen Corridors (Uru: Ages Beyond Myst)
PowerOne (Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter)

I love dramatic vocals

I love manabu namiki

I wonder how many times i have heard reach for the moon immortal smoke

Gahreesen corridors is...a contender for favorite video game song, i know i ranked all of my favorite songs so recently (and this wound up as 7th fav vgm, and 12th fav piece of music EVER), but things are all very close and tight there. Also more than ever im finding my taste is shifting and those shifts benefit this track particularly to the point i almost would rather this win the contest than rock castle(my current #1). Its weird how deeply embedded this is in my history, and it took this long for it to elevate this high for me. ive been a fan of this game (and this specific area (and this specific song for this area)) since i played this in ~2005, but im not sure i ever suspected that in 2022 i would STILL like it this much, even more than i did then, by magnitudes. Every sound in it is perfect to me, i love metallic timbres, i love slow background pitch bends, and theres a few other songs with an atmosphere akin to this that i really dig too...but nothing quite tops this at being exactly what this is to me. Its like ancient cistern on drugs. I like how it contains a perfectly dosed injection of the natural world too, into this otherwise furiously angular and metallic exterior for the exact balance i seek in this scenario. It is like theres a jungle outside that you can just barely see thru the thin slivers of window to the outside of this oppressive rotating ancient technology fortress (because there is). ((i really dig player0s description of my taste as being really centered around a desire for things that evoke ancient technology--that feels like the best summary of where i land broadly)). I tend to seek new experiences rather than the familiar when it comes to vgm. so for something with a lot of familiarity and repetition in my listening over time for me to STILL hold up, after all this time. Thats saying something about its power to me. Ive probably heard gahreesen corridors far more times than reach for the moon immortal smoke wishes i couldve heard it. And my appreciation for this track has only grown. There was a Kohls in this one place in the middle of nowhere rural michigan like over an hour away from where i actually lived but my family would like to shop there so i would begrudgingly follow along even though i did not like being in Kohls, but i made it more fun for myself because i decided whenever i was there that i would pretend that the Kohls building was the rotating fortress that this song (Hagreesen Corridors) plays in..it definitely made going to Kohls a lot more fun. . . it would be really neat if i could somehow convince some Kohls to play this song on the radio to fulfill my ultimate fantasy

Speaking of songs ive heard a lot of times...both here AND gamingforce. Electric power building was also in my list of top 50, more in like the ~40s, but thats still ridiculously high when you consider how much music exists in the world. It appeals for similar reasons to gahreesen corridors for me, but a bit more of sakimoto epic on top i suppose.

Ive only heard Pragmatism -Resurrection- (Arcaea) like 3 times, on the other hand.

Vertex (Stage 1)
Gahreesen Corridors
PowerOne

alright its been a while since ive voted, lets see what weve got

forever: pretty based. listening to it again i can hear some of the electronic effects that usually capture my interest so maybe it's less of a mystery why this captured my interest so effectively on first listen. the way the vocals layer here is also super duper cool. obviously im biased in favor of vertex, but this might be my second favorite in this entire 16-pack. excellent song.

vertex: namiking i love you. god i remember first listening to this song and being like "HOLY SHIT is THIS what manabu namiki sounds like?" because i kept mixing up namiki and yousuke yasui. OOPS! haven't done that since. fell in love for the crazy computer attack at the start, still in love for the namiki synth on the melody.

match 2: don't really love either of these, but gahreesen corridors is "more interesting" so sure have vote

powerone: i always group this with kimera ii. both very "atmospheric" pieces that really didn't speak to me much on first listen but keep on rising in my rankings with every re-listen. powerone has pretty much stabilized in ranking i think, but it definitely earns the title of "one of my favorite atmospheric vgm".

pragmatism: ohhhh this is really co-- EHWWWWW WHAT IS THAT TONE. honestly a very good song (possibly wins this match) otherwise but these high tones (are they supposed to be violins) clash HARD. yikes.

overall rankings:
Vertex > Forever >> PowerOne > Pragmatism >> Gahreesen = RftM

votes:
Vertex
Gahreesen
PowerOne

Vertex (Stage 1)
Reach for the Moon, Immortal Smoke
PowerOne

Weak day where Reach for the Moon is the best and Bring Me to Life by Evanescence is the worst.

I Can See Into Forever
Reach for the Moon, Immortal Smoke
PowerOne

I Can See Into Forever
Gahreesen Corridors
PowerOne

PowerOne >> Gahreseen Corridors > Pragmatism -Resurrection- > I Can See Into Forever > Vertex (Stage1) > Reach for the Moon, Immortal Smoke

I Can See Into Forever
Gahreesen Corridors
PowerOne

DoDonPachi Resurrection Black Label - Vertex (Stage 1)
Touhou 8: Imperishable Night - Reach for the Moon, Immortal Smoke
Arcaea - Pragmatism -Resurrection-

switching votes once again11!!!??? The Blackwell Convergence - I Can See Into Forever

DoDonPachi Resurrection Black Label - Vertex (Stage 1)
Touhou 8: Imperishable Night - Reach for the Moon, Immortal Smoke
Arcaea - Pragmatism -Resurrection-

so many of my obsessions today lol

I Can See Into Forever
Gahreesen Corridors
Pragmatism -Resurrection-

I Can See Into Forever bangs

I Can See Into Forever
Reach for the Moon, Immortal Smoke
PowerOne

I Can See Into Forever
Reach for the Moon, Immortal Smoke
PowerOne

I Can See Into Forever
Reach for the Moon, Immortal Smoke
Pragmatism -Resurrection-

I Can See Into Forever
Reach for the Moon, Immortal Smoke
Pragmatism -Resurrection-

Vertex (Stage 1)
Reach for the Moon, Immortal Smoke
PowerOne

Vertex (Stage 1)
Gahreesen Corridors
PowerOne

re: Electric Power Building
b2

I've probably told this story before. EPB was a track that first appeared in VGMC2 and was a perennial entrant until VGMC7, after which it did not appear again until, well, today. My interest in this recurring track was distinctly lukewarm to the point where I defined what I called the 'EPB line'-- the line between a track I felt was decently enjoyable and one I felt pretty ambivalent towards, which I thought EPB straddled precisely at the time. (this probably equates to the line between b3 and b4 today) Times change, and tastes change. EPB is now pretty far away from the EPB line! Sometimes I wonder what takes its place.

other notes:
-in honour of Pragmatism -Resurrection-'s match day I replayed (poorly-- not very good at rhythm games) through, well, the original Pragmatism in Arcaea today. (I haven't unlocked the Resurrection version!) it was the Present version; pretty fun note chart. I definitely like the Resurrection version better-- it hits harder in ways I think significantly enhance what the original was trying to do

8.6 - The Blackwell Convergence - I Can See Into Forever
7.2 - DoDonPachi Resurrection Black Label - Vertex (Stage 1)
7.2 - Touhou 8: Imperishable Night - Reach for the Moon, Immortal Smoke
4.0 - Uru: Ages Beyond Myst - Gahreesen Corridors
4.4 - Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter - PowerOne
7.8 - Arcaea - Pragmatism -Resurrection-

Well, this probably gets across my taste more obviously than a lot of days. All I can say is I hope ICSIF wins. Some of A3 sure is stacked, I really hope Forest doesn't retire there

Vertex (Stage 1)
Reach for the Moon, Immortal Smoke
PowerOne

I Can See Into Forever
Gahreesen Corridors
Pragmatism -Resurrection-

I Can See Into Forever, isn't really my preferred style of vocals, but it is a very good example of that style. I'm not that big on the start but as it picks up I really like the back half of the song. Not really a fan of Vertex. I don't really find the melody engaging, and this approach to create a high-energy-feel with repetitive bass basically never works for me.

Woah Gahreesen Corridors is great. The reverb background and the sharp metallic sounds create a really distinct and engaging atmosphere. The muted more traditional percussion/winds in the back half is also a nice touch. Reach for the Moon is still fine.

Electric Power Building doesn't do a whole lot for me, which is a bit weird since it seems pretty similar to Gahreesen. I guess in comparison this one feels more repetitive and less distinct. Pragmatism is pretty good. Nice mix of pretty piano parts and high-energy electronic parts, and it manages to keep the energy throughout. There are parts that feel too scattered, but yeah.

Gahreesen > I Can See Into Forever > Pragmatism > RftM > PowerOne > Vertex

The Blackwell Convergence - I Can See Into Forever
Uru: Ages Beyond Myst - Gahreesen Corridors
Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter - Electric Power Building

Vertex (Stage 1)
Gahreesen Corridors
PowerOne

I Can See Into Forever
Reach for the Moon, Immortal Smoke
PowerOne

--
I Can See Into Forever [8.6]
Vertex (Stage 1) [7.9]

I Can See Into Forever is a really cool song that was regrettably lost in time for quite a while it seems. I'm LOVING the mid-late 00's rock vibes this is making me relive, I'm so here for the voices and neat guitar I'm feeling here, really good stuff.

Hmm, I am liking the synths and beat for this schmup song, but it's not hitting me in the way I really want it to. Think I'll need more time to let this song sink in before I can figure out why I'm so lukewarm on it for the time being.

Reach for the Moon, Immortal Smoke [7.8]
Gahreesen Corridors [7.6]

My ignorance about the majority of Touhou aside, I generally do like this track thanks to the synths and the piano even if it sounds a little fake. I was, however, reminded that I'm not really a fan of ZUNpets for the most part, which does hamper my enjoyment a little bit. I do wish the melody was a little more creative in its approach, but I can still appreciate this for what it is.

Gahreesen sounds pretty intense for what's presumably background music for a Myst game. The clanging definitely calls my attention and I like the "dark jungle" vibes this gives me, but I can't help but want a stronger melody to be present for this. Part of me thinks I'm being unreasonable since the atmosphere kinda warrants not going in that direction, but I know I'd prefer it more if there was a base song that the harsh elements could be built on top of/around on.

PowerOne [9]
Pragmatism -Resurrection- [8.3]

Electric Power Building (I like calling it that way, sue me) is a weird song for me in retrospect; it showed up in a Supracord contest that was running alongside VGMC last year that I thought only sounded 'alright' (to be fair, I unknowingly decided to listen to the entire contest field the entire night before the contest properly, starting in the very early hours of the morning). From the contest then till now, it's grown on me considerably to say the least. I'm giving it the credit of "awakening/re-awakening" an interest in trance music/mechanical rhythms for me. When the synths pick up around 1:40 is when I feel the song is truly at its best. Everything just comes together wonderfully and my mind explores the mechanical landscape my imagination is coming up with, with this great song as the source of inspiration.

Complete bias here speaking, but Pragmatism just feels like a MRD song to me. The upbeat rhythm and synths (combined with violin) certainly contribute to that, as well as the aggressive dubstep thrown into the mix. The dubs are a little much here, but I do like how the rest of the song sounds to my ears.

Vertex (Stage 1)
Gahreesen Corridors
Power-Supply Building/PowerOne/Electric Power Building

PSB (/P1/EPB) is another of my all-time favorite tracks (right up there with Passing through the Forest). Very happy they're in different brackets.

I Can See Into Forever
Reach for the Moon, Immortal Smoke
PowerOne

I Can See Into Forever
Reach for the Moon, Immortal Smoke
Pragmatism -Resurrection-

tough match as there weren't really any songs here i fell in love with. sorry!

I Can See Into Forever 6.5 The bitcrushed beats in the background were my favorite part, i wish those were mixed more in the focus than the vocals. Still, I enjoyed the contrast of the heavier BGM against the softer, emotional lyrics. When the vocals harmonized, i felt something swell within me.

Vertex (Stage 1) 5 Dodonpachi has some good music. I like flotage a lot more to be honest. I wish that had got into the contest. The soundfont of this is both mechanical and airy at the same time. The echoey notes around :33 are my favorite. This had a neat progression but lacked a strong enough climax for me.

Reach for the Moon, Immortal Smoke 5.5 Ah the meme song. I'm not sure how I feel about touhou music. Part of me wants to reject it, but at the same time, some tunes are very catchy and i can't help but jam along. I enjoyed the middle part of this song (1:20ish) where several instruments built on top of each other in a increasing crescendo of complexity and brilliance. Unfortunately this song doesn't go hard enough for me to really enjoy it.

Gahreesen Corridors 3 This song has a memorable intro for sure. Like a child taking a long rod and swinging it across rows of metal bells in a dissonant yet striking cacophany. I can see how some find enjoyment in this song, and there is something special here, it's both peaceful and tense. But i find it too grating and obnoxious to properly enjoy.

PowerOne 5.5 Timber! The song of trees cracking and breaking. It's such an odd sound that it took me out of experiencing the rest of the song. The second part where the bass picked up was very good, however. It had a regal and determined energy about it.

Pragmatism Resurrection 6 A dance of Hellfire and bullets rain down on a magical girl, deftly avoiding them all and firing back with her own weaponry, a stone cold expression on her face. It descends into Error.exe glitch territory , with blacks and purples spreading across the screen before launching up into the pure stratos once again.

The Blackwell Convergence - I Can See Into Forever
Touhou 8: Imperishable Night - Reach for the Moon, Immortal Smoke
Arcaea - Pragmatism -Resurrection-

MATCH 1

I really like I Can See Into Forever! The melody in the vocals is really nice, and the duet works well here with how both singers compliment each other. I like the drumming pattern at 0:35 before the chorus kicks in. Speaking of which, the chorus is really cool too, especially the brief harmonizing on the last "into forever." This is a bit of a tangent, but I really enjoy seeing where I overlap with people whose tastes I don't typically share, so it was nice to see that this is a Taffer nomination that I like quite a bit, since Taffer and I were at like 20-something percent in the compatibility chart last year throughout the contest.

Vertex was never really one of the Dodonpachi songs that I liked a whole lot. It's not bad at all; in fact, it's pretty decent. But compared to other Daifukkatsu Black Label songs like Flotage and Vertigo, it just doesn't hold up. That aside, it does do some general melodic stuff that's reminiscent of Dodonpachi songs I do like, so that's worth mentioning. It's easily strong enough to beat some of the weaker songs that have been voted on so far.

MATCH 2

Reach for the Moon is never a bad song to listen to. It's not at the top of the rankings for me in terms of Touhou songs, but it's good enough that I always end up taking it to round 2 or 3 at least when filling out the favorites bracket each year.

Gahreesen Corridors is just not my thing, unfortunately. Not really much else to say.

MATCH 3

Electric Power Building/PowerOne is also not my thing. It has more of a melodic structure than Gahreesen Corridors in my eyes, so that gives PowerOne some points over that song, but I just don't really find this engaging. Like nothing in particular stands out to me here.

Pragmatism does quite a few things that I enjoy, but at the same time, I feel like those things have potential to better suit my tastes. Songs like this with violin and piano melodies are always a positive for me. Though I can't help but think that something feels off about the violin at 0:35. Feels like it has this hint of sounding artificially different or synthy or something where I'd prefer it sound like a natural violin. And I've typically been more neutral on dubstep-esque parts in rhythm game songs and the like as opposed to actively enjoying them. But I don't want to make this writeup sound negative because I do think it's a decent song! And it's a clear winner for me in this match.

I Can See Into Forever > Reach for the Moon, Immortal Smoke > Vertex (Stage 1) > Pragmatism -Resurrection- >> PowerOne > Gahreesen Corridors

I Can See Into / Corridor / One

I Can See Into Forever: Eyeliner streaming down your face, you silently mourn a world that you easily imagine never remembering you.

Vertex (Stage 1): Extraterrestrial invasion imminent, humanity scrambles to assemble a task force to understand and tackle the danger ahead of them.

Reach for the Moon, Immortal Smoke: Dodging a constant flurry of bullets, the phoenix brings its wings close to its chest, spiraling downwards in freefall.

Gahreesen Corridors: Your footsteps echo for miles around you in the dark tunnel, the telltale clank of your shoes resonating on the steel construction.

PowerOne: Mechanisms that have laid dormant for years slowly come to life, animating themselves and beginning to provide energy once more.

Pragmatism -Resurrection-: Uploading its consciousness to an external server, the divine being, on its dying breath of life, sees a new light.

Gahreesen = See >= Vertex = PowerOne > Reach > Pragmatism

strong day