The 71st SoTF Songtest: Check This Shit Out My Dude

[Fenris]

hey im fen! its been a minute! a minute here means about 7 months. i don't know how to tell time.

THE 71ST SOTF SONGTEST AKA:
CHECK THIS SHIT OUT

here we are, here are the usual rules, i just copypasted them from seven months ago tbh. im a lazy bitch!

[+] da rulez

- submit your song via PM or discord, whichever's easier for you

- songs will be randomly divided into 2 or 3 semifinals depending on turnout. if you're going to be away at some point in the next couple of weeks, let me know and I can try to put your song in a round when you'll be here.

- listen to every song and give points to your top 10 favorites: 12 to your favorite, 10 to your second, 8 to your third, 7 to your fourth, and so on down to 1 point for your tenth favorite.

- if your song is in a given round, you must vote that round or you'll be eliminated. if your song isn't in that round (or you aren't in the contest at all), your vote will be counted as a public vote, which counts for half points.

- the top [x] songs will move on to the final. that number depends on the number of contestants.

- repeat the process for the finals and we get a winner.

- winner gets to hold the next contest, or they can pass the job along to 2nd place if they don't want to. 2nd place can pass down to third, etc, until someone wants to host.

general song rules:
- no eurovision songs
- no reality show/competition covers
- no songs already submitted in a songtest
- there is no penalty for length in this contest. however, if a song goes over 7 minutes, listeners aren't obligated to listen to more than the first 7 minutes of the song. so choose a long song at your own risk!

each semifinal and the final will last for three days. some rules about activity/extensions:
- if you know at the start of your semifinal that you wont be available to vote for those three days, let me know asap and I can move you to another semi, if we aren't on the final one already.
- I'll be posting every 24 hours in this topic as a reminder, as well as pinging everyone who hasn't voted on discord 24 hours before the round ends.
- extensions will only be granted in extenuating circumstances. forgetting to vote until an hour before deadline is not an extenuating circumstance.

more specific stuff: the theme is Check This Shit Out. that means that you'll be picking songs to encourage people to check something out. that something can be anything, and I'm going to be very wide open and accepting with this. obviously songs off of movie or TV show or game soundtracks, or songs from musicals, will count. fan music counts. if you're into some obscure musical genre and you wanna stan for that you can submit a song from that genre. but i'm also willing to accept songs that remind you of stuff. like, if a specific song really reminds you of a trip you took to the grand canyon and you wanna talk about how dope the grand canyon is, sure. go for it. i'm not going to be turning anything down. the people can decide if your decision process is valid, y'know.

(you are legally allowed to pick a song to stan for the artist who made it, but that is very boring and i will be disappointed in you.)

because the point of this songtest is to suggest stuff you like to other people, you are Required to include with your submission 1. the thing that you're recommending and 2. whatever you want to say about it. totally up to you how much you want to say. you're legally allowed to just say "i'm recommending <x> because it's cool and i like it". you're also legally allowed to write a ted talk. whatever makes your soul happy. hopefully people will get some cool ideas of stuff to check out from this songtest!! that's literally the point!!!!!!!!!!

im sure everyone's impatient (everyone here means me) so i'm gonna say we'll start up on friday but if there are stragglers i can wait until saturday. bold = has not yet submitted. let me know if you need to be in a specific round for whatever reason. ok love u goodbye!

1. fen (thats Me)
2. pippi
3. blizz
4. laurels
5. chad
6. ricky
7. jilly
8. tloa
9. brackie
10. ms
11. zetsu
12. mw
13. skraal
14. slam
15. train
16. spindarene
17. paige <3
18. boogs
19. rugga
20. sunny

[Pippi]

Hi it's me I'm pip! I'm joining this! Wow!

[BlizzardeyeWonder]

you know what sure i'll join in

[Laurels]

Enter me please.

[Zetsu]

henlo

[Grand Moff Hissa]

I'll play!

[Skraal]

I'm in!

[Spindarene]

I'm in!

[Sunnybunny]

/baseball slides in

[Fenris]

whos ready to CHECK SOME SHIT OUT!!! i hope its you. or else this songtest is kind of pointless isnt it. huh. wow.

so we have 20 entrants for this songtest so far (anyone who wants to come in last second is welcome!!!) im going to be a JERK and say we're gonna do 3 eliminations per round for a slim and sexy 14-man final. the only option is to fight to the death. pls enjoy.

our entrants this round are:

BlizzardeyeWonder
Buko
dmboogie
Jilly
Maraoone
MethodicalSlacker
MurderWeasel
Ruggahissy
TheLordofAwesome
Zetsu

and our songs this round are:

With Renewed Hope We Continue Forward - Garoad

[+] check this shit out

va11 hall-a is a game about bartending in a cyberpunk dystopian future where you can influence the story with what drinks you choose to serve your clients. The characters are all v good and friend-shaped, there are lots of points of intrigue but it's a pretty relaxed game overall with a lot of humor in it. No explicit content per se, but characters talk about their sex lives quite a bit. Also one of the characters is an android sex worker, and while mentally she’s in her 20’s, she looks 13. The game actually does a pretty good job of navigating that situation imo, but that doesn’t really make it less uncomfortable. Also there’s vague mentions of body horror and a suicide attempt is quietly alluded to (I swear the game is lighthearted most of the time).

Cannon Ball - Ippo Yamada, Luna Umegaki, and Tsutomu Kurihara

[+] check this shit out

you know how some fools had hamilton as their teen year's coping media despite never seeing it on stage? i had megaman zero. and much like some hamilfans i am currently Questioning if the story was as good as I thought it was, but fuck it. I found it good, lowkey wild fun.

Ixode - Zola Jesus

[+] check this shit out

idk how this show's gone in its latest season but the first 4 or 5 seasons i've seen are super super solid the acting is phenomenal viola davis is phenomenal the plot is phenomenal the soundtrack is phenomenal pls watch

I Am An Imaginary Living Body - J. A. Seazer & Shinkichi Mitsumune

[+] check this shit out

Everyone watch Utena. Every battle has its own song and this one is when the protagonist is sword fighting a bisexual ghost.

Untitled Song 11 26

[+] check this shit out

The song was generated through a website called algorithmictrap.com, which is free for anyone to use and which generates instrumentals algorithmically. In effect, this does something vaguely akin to Kermit's robots (though not using AI) but for music, then allows anyone to use that music for whatever they like—soundtrack stuff, backing tracks for raps, remixing, etc. It's a cool resource that can create interesting music and that outputs something unique every time. They're not all winners, but when it spits out something fun the results can be quite nice indeed. That's the case here, where nobody outside of songtest has ever heard this before as it was just generated randomly fifteen minutes ago.

Static Between Stations - Junebug

[+] check this shit out

Kentucky Route Zero is one of the best video games I have ever played. KRZ melds the point and click adventure genre with magical realism to tell a story of debt, memory, and American decay set against a backdrop various stops along highways and tunnels. Five acts and five intermissions cross the medium boundaries between video game, short fiction, theatre, art exhibition, public television, radio, and telephone self-service help lines. You can get the PC Edition on Windows, MacOS, and Linux, and the TV Edition is available on Switch, PS4, and Xbox One.

Disappearing - Theodor Bastard

[+] check this shit out

Varsity Blues - Wale

[+] check this shit out

Something I am very passionate about (to the point of getting a mascot tattooed on me) is college sports and the young men who fuel that billion dollar industry. My Saturdays are often spent patronizing and praising boys who put their bodies on the line for no compensation and it is tough for me to reconcile the moral stance of contributing to that industry while also contributing to the continued exploitation of underprivileged young men (often of color) playing a game that causes brain damage. This song here is two-fold, it’s meant to provoke people (this particular audience on SOTF) to think of the struggles of the athlete in a more complex and nuanced way--while also advocating for a way of compensating those who are fueling this billion dollar, uniquely American industry. Through allusion to past events and entendre and metaphor mixed with deliberate news clips to prove his point--Wale makes a point that I fully believe in the core of my heart. College athletes should be paid--it’s not a sports issue, it’s a labor issue.

Johnny No More - Atsunori Namba

[+] check this shit out

My entry is Johnny No More, the opening theme to Rising Zan: The Samurai Gunman. It's not one of my favorite PS1 games, but it's a God Hand/Devil May Cry-ish action game that's stuck with me for years because it somehow ends up being just a bit better than the sum of its parts, especially with its soundtrack. Plus it has Charles Martinet cameo'ing in the opening sequence so it is basically art.

The Fine Print - The Stupendium

[+] check this shit out

It is a fansong that I think really slaps and just wanted to share it even though I know it will lose.

aaaand thats It. round ends at 10 PM EST on Wednesday, November 2nd! send votes by then or die. ideally by discord pls. no playlist for this songtest because almost none of this shit is on spotify anyway

[Fenris]

[+] you should still check this shit out

10th: Untitled Song 11 26, submitted by MurderWeasel, which received 47 points, including one 8.
9th: Cannon Ball - Ippo Yamada, Luna Umegaki, and Tsutomu Kurihara, submitted by BlizzardeyeWonder, which received 55.5 points, including two 10s.
8th: Ixode - Zola Jesus, submitted by Maraoone, which received 57 points, including one 10 and one 8.

(Note: another song also received 57 points; the tie was broken by the other song having two 12s.)

[+] gonna keep checking this shit out

Johnny No More
I Am An Imaginary Living Body
The Fine Print
With Renewed Hope We Continue Forward
Varsity Blues
Static Between Stations
Disappearing

[Fenris]

time to check some more shit out woo

turns out we actually have 21 entrants bc we got an extra person last second Woo anyway im still only gonna do 3 eliminations so everyone in this round technically got lucky. that means 15 songs in the finals which seems reasonable

our entrants this round are:

Brackie
Emprexx Paige
Fenris
Laurels
MK Kilmarnock
Pippi
RC
Skraal
Slam
Spindarene
Sunnybunny

and our songs this round are:

Where Is Your Spirit - Hall Stars

[+] check this shit out

I picked this song because it's a Blaseball song that is awesome even if you've never heard of Blaseball. So I like the song itself, but I also like the Blaseball context, and I love how fan made Blaseball songs can be really cool on multiple levels.

In The Next Life - Kim Petras

[+] check this shit out

Kim Petras has a Halloween pop album and it's full of bangers, and this is one of my favorites off it.

Downpour - Falk

[+] check this shit out

Why I want this to be checked out: Because fangame soundtracks slap and this song makes me feel good! It's very danceable! Hashtag Salty Bet brought me here, they stay playing bangers lol

Vienna - Ultravox

[+] check this shit out

I am recommending Vienna, the city, and the story is that Toben sent me this song right around my trip to Vienna which I absolutely loved so now I associate the two. And because Vienna is a truly truly beautiful place.

Ночь - Конец Электроники

[+] check this shit out

I'm not sure what to write to properly shill this, but in the last couple of decades the Russian-speaking world has managed to put out an impressive catalog of gloomy and atmospheric post-punk-inspired albums. I thought it would be cool to invite people to check out a sphere of music that they might otherwise had never heard about due to the language barrier.

Champions of Red Wine - The New Pornographers

[+] check this shit out

plz check out Monster Camp, now available wherever you can play games

Mike Townshend (Knows What He's Gotta Do) - The Garages

[+] check this shit out

While Blaseball is largely AI generated, sometimes it seems like the AI is reading the fanfic so that it can inflict the maximum amount of pain on the community with its decisions. Nothing sells that like the story of Mike Townsend, the best worst pitcher ever to take the Internet League mound. Fan band The Seattle Garages have written four to six (depending on how you count them) songs about the community's collective rivals to lovers relationship with Mike, with Mike Townsend(Knows What He's Gotta Do) detailing how the simulator took his career to return a teammate, and how Mike came to peace with that decision. It's Blaseball storytelling at its best. Stay Gold, Mikeyboy.

The Executioner - zts

[+] check this shit out

do you like mysteries? do you like suffering? do you like wild dissertations on logical fallaces and paradoxes and like the nature of fiction itself? do you want to be extremely confused but also like really really compelled to figure out whats going on? do you want to watch rich people die??? please play Umineko no Naku Koro Ni. don't watch the anime it's really bad. thank you for your time

Full Confession - LudoWic

[+] check this shit out

I bought Katana Zero on Christmas Eve and I finished it less than a week later and even though it's not a very long game I am infamously bad at taking ages to finish games which is a testament really to how damn good this game is. It's got a very Hotline Miami feel to it in both the neon aesthetic, the music (which slaps, every single track slaps), and in many places the violence (but done in such a stylish pixel art style that it doesn't even affect me which is again a major point in its favour), and it's also got a really incredible usage of a time slowing mechanic, where during gameplay you can slow down time to dodge or deflect bullets and stuff (which is useful because you die in one hit!!!!!) but after you complete each level it plays the security cam footage of your attempt at normal speed, because Zero is so damn good with a sword he's swatting them out of the air in real time, also he adopts a little girl and my heart is so weak for 'badass stoic man with tragic past adopts a young girl who he will protect from all harm at literally any cost', also this track is the song that plays during the final battle of a regular playthrough, and I won't spoil anything more because I want you to play this game right now, but it is the perfect blend of an intense, action-packed fight sequence and an incredibly sombre moment that caps off a story that does 'grey and grey morality' very very well, please play Katana Zero

Acid Rain - Liquid Tension Experiment

[+] check this shit out

I discovered Liquid Tension Experiment way back in my college days so like, 2007-2008, and it led me to try and learn more about them. This song's actually seen some exposure ever since it was used in an episode of Death Battle. I recognized it immediately and marked out over it. They're basically like, three guys from Dream Theater and a dude from King Crimson. They're really fucking good.

The Most Mysterious Song On The Internet

[+] check this shit out

i searched in my library for songs with the word check out and this was my only search result

and thats everything! songtest will end on Saturday, December 5th at 11 PM EST, or earlier if all the votes get in. thank u v much and have fun

[Fenris]

ok we're well past time now

[+] out

DQ: The Most Mysterious Song On The Internet, submitted by RC, which received 50.5 points, including two 10s.
11th: Downpour - Falk, submitted by Sunnybunny, which received 46 points, including one 10 and one 8.
10th: Vienna - Ultravox, submitted by Slam, which received 46 points, including two 10s and one 12 in the public vote. This song received the same number of points as the previous song, but received more 10s, breaking the tie.

[+] in

Full Confession
Mike Townshend (Knows What He's Gotta Do)
Ночь
The Executioner
Acid Rain
In The Next Life
Champions of Red Wine
Where Is Your Spirit

finals will be up tonight or tomorrow idk im tired

[Fenris]

its songtest

players:

Brackie
Buko
dmboogie
Emprexx Paige
Fenris
Jilly
Laurels
MethodicalSlacker
MK Kilmarnock
Pippi
Ruggahissy
Skraal
Spindarene
TheLordofAwesome
Zetsu

songs:

Acid Rain - Liquid Tension Experiment

[+] check this shit out

I discovered Liquid Tension Experiment way back in my college days so like, 2007-2008, and it led me to try and learn more about them. This song's actually seen some exposure ever since it was used in an episode of Death Battle. I recognized it immediately and marked out over it. They're basically like, three guys from Dream Theater and a dude from King Crimson. They're really fucking good.

With Renewed Hope We Continue Forward - Garoad

[+] check this shit out

va11 hall-a is a game about bartending in a cyberpunk dystopian future where you can influence the story with what drinks you choose to serve your clients. The characters are all v good and friend-shaped, there are lots of points of intrigue but it's a pretty relaxed game overall with a lot of humor in it. No explicit content per se, but characters talk about their sex lives quite a bit. Also one of the characters is an android sex worker, and while mentally she’s in her 20’s, she looks 13. The game actually does a pretty good job of navigating that situation imo, but that doesn’t really make it less uncomfortable. Also there’s vague mentions of body horror and a suicide attempt is quietly alluded to (I swear the game is lighthearted most of the time).

Full Confession - LudoWic

[+] check this shit out

I bought Katana Zero on Christmas Eve and I finished it less than a week later and even though it's not a very long game I am infamously bad at taking ages to finish games which is a testament really to how damn good this game is. It's got a very Hotline Miami feel to it in both the neon aesthetic, the music (which slaps, every single track slaps), and in many places the violence (but done in such a stylish pixel art style that it doesn't even affect me which is again a major point in its favour), and it's also got a really incredible usage of a time slowing mechanic, where during gameplay you can slow down time to dodge or deflect bullets and stuff (which is useful because you die in one hit!!!!!) but after you complete each level it plays the security cam footage of your attempt at normal speed, because Zero is so damn good with a sword he's swatting them out of the air in real time, also he adopts a little girl and my heart is so weak for 'badass stoic man with tragic past adopts a young girl who he will protect from all harm at literally any cost', also this track is the song that plays during the final battle of a regular playthrough, and I won't spoil anything more because I want you to play this game right now, but it is the perfect blend of an intense, action-packed fight sequence and an incredibly sombre moment that caps off a story that does 'grey and grey morality' very very well, please play Katana Zero

Mike Townshend (Knows What He's Gotta Do) - The Garages

[+] check this shit out

While Blaseball is largely AI generated, sometimes it seems like the AI is reading the fanfic so that it can inflict the maximum amount of pain on the community with its decisions. Nothing sells that like the story of Mike Townsend, the best worst pitcher ever to take the Internet League mound. Fan band The Seattle Garages have written four to six (depending on how you count them) songs about the community's collective rivals to lovers relationship with Mike, with Mike Townsend(Knows What He's Gotta Do) detailing how the simulator took his career to return a teammate, and how Mike came to peace with that decision. It's Blaseball storytelling at its best. Stay Gold, Mikeyboy.

The Executioner - zts

[+] check this shit out

do you like mysteries? do you like suffering? do you like wild dissertations on logical fallaces and paradoxes and like the nature of fiction itself? do you want to be extremely confused but also like really really compelled to figure out whats going on? do you want to watch rich people die??? please play Umineko no Naku Koro Ni. don't watch the anime it's really bad. thank you for your time

I Am An Imaginary Living Body - J. A. Seazer & Shinkichi Mitsumune

[+] check this shit out

Everyone watch Utena. Every battle has its own song and this one is when the protagonist is sword fighting a bisexual ghost.

Ночь - Конец Электроники

[+] check this shit out

I'm not sure what to write to properly shill this, but in the last couple of decades the Russian-speaking world has managed to put out an impressive catalog of gloomy and atmospheric post-punk-inspired albums. I thought it would be cool to invite people to check out a sphere of music that they might otherwise had never heard about due to the language barrier.

Champions of Red Wine - The New Pornographers

[+] check this shit out

plz check out Monster Camp, now available wherever you can play games

Static Between Stations - Junebug

[+] check this shit out

Kentucky Route Zero is one of the best video games I have ever played. KRZ melds the point and click adventure genre with magical realism to tell a story of debt, memory, and American decay set against a backdrop various stops along highways and tunnels. Five acts and five intermissions cross the medium boundaries between video game, short fiction, theatre, art exhibition, public television, radio, and telephone self-service help lines. You can get the PC Edition on Windows, MacOS, and Linux, and the TV Edition is available on Switch, PS4, and Xbox One.

Disappearing - Theodor Bastard

[+] check this shit out

Where Is Your Spirit - Hall Stars

[+] check this shit out

I picked this song because it's a Blaseball song that is awesome even if you've never heard of Blaseball. So I like the song itself, but I also like the Blaseball context, and I love how fan made Blaseball songs can be really cool on multiple levels.

In The Next Life - Kim Petras

[+] check this shit out

Kim Petras has a Halloween pop album and it's full of bangers, and this is one of my favorites off it.

Varsity Blues - Wale

[+] check this shit out

Something I am very passionate about (to the point of getting a mascot tattooed on me) is college sports and the young men who fuel that billion dollar industry. My Saturdays are often spent patronizing and praising boys who put their bodies on the line for no compensation and it is tough for me to reconcile the moral stance of contributing to that industry while also contributing to the continued exploitation of underprivileged young men (often of color) playing a game that causes brain damage. This song here is two-fold, it’s meant to provoke people (this particular audience on SOTF) to think of the struggles of the athlete in a more complex and nuanced way--while also advocating for a way of compensating those who are fueling this billion dollar, uniquely American industry. Through allusion to past events and entendre and metaphor mixed with deliberate news clips to prove his point--Wale makes a point that I fully believe in the core of my heart. College athletes should be paid--it’s not a sports issue, it’s a labor issue.

Johnny No More - Atsunori Namba

[+] check this shit out

My entry is Johnny No More, the opening theme to Rising Zan: The Samurai Gunman. It's not one of my favorite PS1 games, but it's a God Hand/Devil May Cry-ish action game that's stuck with me for years because it somehow ends up being just a bit better than the sum of its parts, especially with its soundtrack. Plus it has Charles Martinet cameo'ing in the opening sequence so it is basically art.

The Fine Print - The Stupendium

[+] check this shit out

It is a fansong that I think really slaps and just wanted to share it even though I know it will lose.

ok go listen now

(songtest ends wednesday 12/9 at 11 PM EST)

[Fenris]

whos ready for results !!!!!!!!!!! i sure am maybe

[+] 15th aka the Kermit Memorial Last Place In The Finals Award

Where Is Your Spirit - Hall Stars, submitted by Spindarene, which received 34 points, including one 12.

[+] 14th

Ночь - Конец Электроники, submitted by Skraal, which received 41 points, including three 8s.

[+] 13th

The Fine Print - The Stupendium, submitted by TheLordOfAwesome, which received 42 points, including one 10.

[+] top 12

In The Next Life
Johnny No More
Disappearing
Mike Townshend (Knows What He's Gotta Do)
Static Between Stations
The Executioner
With Renewed Hope We Continue Forward
Varsity Blues
Acid Rain
Champions of Red Wine
Full Confession
I Am An Imaginary Living Body