Manly Songs: Kamen Rider Birth (Instrumental)

Okay, I know that this is supposed to be a feature shaped by visitors and readers, but I’m going to have to hijack the Repository for a moment.  Just a moment.  Because it’s kind of important.

As noted, I’ve been getting a lot of mileage out of Kamen Rider OOO recently.  I can’t speak for anyone’s preferences besides my own -- especially since I’m a Rider greenhorn -- but for what it’s worth, I think OOO is pretty freakin’ great.  (Then again, I watched the first episode of Fourze recently, so we’ll just have to see which one retains top honors.)  In any case, part of the allure of OOO is the music, and how it weaves into the series at large.  The way it works is that the titular Rider uses a combination of three medals to mix and match parts for his suit’s weapon loadout.  As long as he has one head medal, one body, and one leg, he can freely choose between parts.  But if he puts in three matching medals, he gets an even stronger form…and said form brings with it a swanky tune.  (“Power to Tearer” is as godlike as its title is Engrish-y.)

What I didn’t expect was for there to be a hidden gem on the soundtrack.  Two hidden gems, in fact.  That’s because they were tied to a certain character I didn’t even know existed until I’d gotten knee deep in OOO.  But now I feel ashamed for not getting into the series sooner -- because not only is the music amazing, but the character in question is just as incredible.

Now then.  It’s time for a manly henshin…unless you’re wary of spoilers, which there WILL be.  Then again, the title of the post is a spoiler in its own right, so go nuts.

Manly Songs: The Tyrant

Hoo boy.  Playing The Last of Us has really been taking it out of me.  Especially with these posts I’ve been doing.  I mean, it’d be all right if I was having the blast with the game, but right now it just feels like I’m forcing myself to play it.  Not a good situation to be in…

Whatever.  I’ll just use this post as a break.  It’s been too long since there was a Manly Song post.  Too long, actually.  It’s true that there were those other posts from a while back with video game and anime songs, and the official post with Jin’s theme, but…I don’t know, it feels like there’s something missing.

I guess I haven’t thrown anything up into the Repository since I started this thing, but that feels a little dishonest.  This is supposed to be about others contributing.  Then again, I can’t get others to contribute UNLESS there are posts, so it’s only fair that I pop in every now and then, right?  But on the other hand, those posts have some other songs listed; it’s just a matter of listening to those and giving proper attribution.  But I wonder if it’s all right to count those…well, they probably are, but…

Ugh.  There I go, over-thinking things.  I think I’d better go take a break; cooling my head could do some wonders.  Besides, I could sure go for some hot dogs.  So I guess I'll switch off for now.

…Oh?  What’s this?  “Cross-Up”?  Well…this sounds like fun.

The Volties: My Top 10 Video Game Songs

Blessed are the gamers, as I often say.  Well, not out loud.  Or in my head.  Or ever.  But I thought it once, I swear.

I may love video games, but I don’t need anyone telling me that there are things that they can and can’t do.  I’m more than aware of the flaws and faults of the medium.  That said, it IS interesting -- and harrowing -- to hear the words of someone who’s gotten in deep with game development, like this interview with game writer Susan O’Connor.  She outlines a few problems with the business, but in spite of that -- and in light of her work on several notable games, like BioShock, Far Cry 2, and the recent Tomb Raider -- I can’t help but think that she’s done good work, and it IS possible to get something more out of games with a little elbow grease.  In spite of that, I can’t help but think that she brings up a lot of legitimate points.  (I haven’t played the new Tomb Raider, but from what I’ve heard via TomBadguy’s review is true -- and there’s no doubt that it is -- the issues therein are proof enough of the problems.)

So let the records show: videogames have something very near or equal to ninety-nine problems, but more often than not music isn’t one of them.  So without further ado, these are my favorite video game songs.  (Though really, you can’t go wrong with just searching YouTube for Guilty Gear songs.  And on that note, how awesome is it that a new game is on the way?  Rashousen time, baby!)

Manly Songs: Theme of Jin

You know, I’ve always found iTunes to be a little redundant.

Admittedly, this is coming from someone who’s always at least two years behind on the latest tech trends (ask me about my cell phone!), but I have to say I don’t see the point behind some of these music services.  Don’t get me wrong, I’m not advocating pirating music; I’m just saying that if you’re out for good songs, you won’t be left wanting -- and you don’t have to spend a cent.  I’ve made a couple of full CDs out of songs from Newgrounds composers, and gotten some great satisfaction out of them.  OverClocked Remix is absolutely packed to the brim with high-quality, high-impact tunes, and can applea to your sensibilities whether you know the game songs each remix handles or not (pro tip: go download EVERYTHING by Sixto Sounds).  Artists will occasionally offer entire soundtracks online for free, whether they’re by game composers or not.  And that’s ignoring the existence of YouTube.

The tradeoff for this is that I’m severely limited in my knowledge of current music stars and trends; IIRC when asked about what the difference was between the music of Katy Perry and Taylor Swift, my response was “Maybe they’re isn’t one, and they’re both robots out to conquer the world with audio-based brainwashing for their villainous overlords.”  I don’t know what a Nicki Minaj is supposed to be, but it sounds unpleasant.  Even meme-tastic songs like “Gangam Style” and “Call Me Maybe” (I think that’s what it’s called) are lost on me.  Then again, the tradeoff for that is an intimate connection with video game music -- and when that music is firing on all cylinders, man oh man is it something else.

Which brings me to today’s post -- and the Repository’s first video game-themed song.

Manly Songs: Path of Glory

It’s back!  It’s back!  Snap back!  Nice slacks!  Snack attack!

Yeah, I know it’s been a while since I’ve added anything to the Repository, but I’d say it’s about time for a change…and to write a post that isn’t thousands and thousands of words.  (I’m nothing if not accommodating to others.)  So, let’s have some more manly songs.  Because if there’s one thing I’ve noticed, it’s that I have this habit of saying “Time to be a man!” when I’m about to play video games.  But I can think of worse habits to have, and certainly far less endearing ones.

But enough talk.  Let’s have some rockin’ tunes.  And magic.

Why Anime is Amazing: Because DAT MUSIC

I’m pretty sure I’ve said this before -- both online and in real-world conversations -- but just so it’s on the record I’ll go ahead and say it again.  In my opinion, no character (least of all my own) is complete without a theme song to call their own.

Not being much in the way of composition or technology, I can’t say I’ve made my own songs to blast in my headphones (though I have a couple of melodies in mind for certain heroes).  So in exchange, time and time again I find myself relying on the glory of YouTube and the music stocked there -- not necessarily from bands like Gamma Ray or Stratovarius…not always, at least.  No, I find myself making full-on Word Documents full of links to music from games.  The lack of lyrics in most songs is a boon in a lot of ways; I’ll give my characters theme songs (game-related or not), but it’s downright natural for me to look for a certain song to help me write a certain scene.  How well it works out for me is up for debate, but I’d like to think it at least makes the process easier.

And really, the same can be said for the music from anime.  So let’s take a moment to extend some praise -- yet again -- to that sacred medium yet again, shall we? 

And by sacred I mean stuffed to the brim with speedlines and mechs.  Not that that’s a bad thing; if anything it just makes the medium more legitimate.

Manly Songs: Highway to Hell

Wow.  Been a while since I’ve done one of these.

In my defense, I have a good reason why.  I’m coming up on the final chapters of the current I Hraet You story arc and while I’m glad to have made the progress that I have (in the sense that I’m starting to feel like this is a project with some real potential), I know it’s about time to put it up on the shelf and work on something else for a little while.  So I’m motoring towards the arc’s climax, and between that and other themed posts -- the Looper post, the Tales of the Abyss posts, and the Spirit Showdown posts, all of which are a bare minimum of four thousand words -- I’m firing on all the cylinders I can.  You would think that I’d rather work on shorter posts and save the longer stuff for later, but…well, I can’t say I’m always the most logical person.

But enough chatter about internal affairs.  You’re here to listen to some manly songs, and use the lyrics to drone out the incessant rabble of a thousand-word post trying to rationalize it and subsequently take out all the magical elements.  Or if you’re from Bizarro World, you’re here to studiously imbibe every word I offer in my analysis and digest it, in the hopes that you’ll be able to offer your own thoughts and deductions, and hope that the stream of words flowing from your brain is enough to blanket the harsh sounds of soul-enflaming music and reality itself.  But then again, if you’re from Bizarro World, I wonder if you can even read in the first place.

So with all that said, let’s talk about a little-known, under-appreciated Australian band that has long since faded into obscurity and will never ever be referenced again after this post.

Manly Songs: Now You're a Man

You know, I’ve always wondered what it would be like to be a songwriter.

I’ve entertained the thought a couple of times.  I used to play the violin, and my mom taught me how to play the piano (and by “taught” I mean “gave me a lesson and I never bothered to ask for another one”), so I know a little bit about music.  And as a writer, I’d say I’d fare a bit better than if I were the one singing.  What is a song but a poem set to music -- an assembly of lyrics with meaning, rhythm, and a catchy chorus that’ll likely be the only part of a song somebody remembers?  In theory, it seems entirely possible.

In practice?  Who’s to say, really?  Lyrics and music are a package deal, I’d wager.  Give me a tune, and I can probably put lyrics to it (I’ve done it before, back in the days of Cross-Up’s infancy), but a full-on song?  Well…maybe I could swing a couple of tunes, but they’d likely be pretty cheesy.  And while I have some MIDI software, it has gone untouched on the grounds that it’s “really hard” and/or “too much work.”  And if you asked me to make a song out of the blue with zero preparation beforehand, I guarantee you a song so clumsy and atonal that it’d make Urkel sound like an angelic chorus.

Which brings me to the latest addition to The Manly Song Repository.  Because you see, I’ve learned something today:

A real man can make his own song, no matter what it takes.

Manly Songs: I’ll Make a Man Out of You

…Really?  Do I really need to say anything?

All right.  Let’s pretend you’ve never heard this song.  If you weren’t a child of the nineties (or you childhood was just kind of blah in general), then that’s possible.  And let’s pretend you don’t know which movie the song is from -- also possible if you have an aversion to movies in general…and happiness.  And let’s pretend you don’t spend an inordinate amount of time on the internet.  No Facebook, no Twitter, nothing; while we’re at it, let’s assume that you’ve never watched The Disney Channel, ABC Family, ABC whenever they show certain movies, Toon Disney (or whatever it’s called now), certain movie channels on extended cable, have no contact with anyone who is either a child of the nineties or has access to all of those things, and have an unspoken ban against anything related to China in your home.  Fair enough.  I’m not here to judge.

Even with all that in mind -- even with a hypothetical embargo against any number of informative outlets -- there really is nothing more I need to say about this song.  I could end this post right now without even embedding the video, based solely on the title and an implication of “take my word for it.”  In fact, I’m probably doing you a service.  If you have heard the song, you know that there’s no need for words explaining why it’s manly.  If you haven’t heard the song, then even the slightest dosage -- even a half-second of the chorus -- is lethal.

Still, I suppose I wouldn’t be much of a webmaster if I didn’t entertain the thought and threaten my readership’s well being.

*sigh* All right.  Let's get down to business.

Manly Songs: Go the Distance

You know, they say the first step is always the hardest.

It’s hard to change.  It’s hard to get out of a rut.  It’s hard to do anything in the face of difficulty, or convention, or reason, or even in light of one’s own mind.  Hard, but not impossible; as you know, the right song can make all the difference.

So it was that I decided to take the first post of Cross-Up’s brand spankin’ new Manly Song Repository.  It’s a side project that’ll likely bring with it plenty of unforeseen problems, but it’s one that I’m willing to undertake if it means building manly bonds between us all -- and of course, creating THE MANLIEST PLAYLIST IN THE UNIVERSE .  The problem was that I needed the right song to start things off.  I needed a song that said, “Hey!  This is what being a man is all about!”

It would have been too easy to post a song from Gamma Ray or Stratovarius or Hammerfall, or any number of metal bands (though I will eventually).  It would have been too easy to post a guitar-heavy track from an RPG (though I will).  It would have been too easy to dip into any one of Daisuke Ishiwatari’s shredding masterpieces (though I will).  I needed something unexpected.  Something that would raise eyebrows.  Something…godly.

And I think I might have found it.

Introducing…The Manly Song Repository!

Did you know that I like music?

Well, under the circumstances, who doesn’t?  The only ones who don’t -- to my knowledge -- are Dr. Robotnik from The Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog and that one evil maestro dictator guy from long-defunct animated series Oscar’s Orchestra (which I remember mostly because it starred a talking piano and had an episode paying homage to The Lord of the Rings.  And again, a talking piano).  So chances are that if you’re a living human being, you’re likely a fan of music in one form or another.  Unless you’re planning on becoming some sort of wig-wearing fascist ruler.

Come to think of it, in a universe full of talking instruments, wouldn’t that effectively make you some sort of genocidal monster?  Was that a sub-textual issue the writers were aware of?  Is it possible that I blocked out the memory of on-screen instrumental murder?  I mean, the opening has the bad guys detonating all music-related paraphernalia in a treble clef-shaped burst of smoke; who’s to say how many lives were lost, or how many panicked, pleading screams were heard?

…Then again, it does have a triangle-man who opened a portal to the past.  So maybe I’m taking the source material too seriously.

At a glance, it DOES lend itself to philosophical discussion.

So I’ll go ahead and switch gears -- and proudly announce a new feature here on Cross-Up.