The Greatest Metal Song Cup - Part II, Round 3, Matches 61-66

[srfc]

Symphony X - Through the Looking Glass vs. Twisted Sister - We're Not Gonna Take It
I gave Symphony X abut 7 mins, they've had better stuff in this game, but even the better stuff is not to my tastes. We're Not Gonna Take It is great. We're Not Gonna Take It

Machine Head - Davidian vs. Queensrÿche - Eyes of a Stranger
I like Davidian, I remember how Machine Head were suddenly ,from out of nowhere, the hottest flavour of the month in metal, and I saw them open for Slayer on that tour, but Eyes of a Stranger is leagues ahead of this. Eyes of a Stranger

HammerFall - Templars of Steel vs. Scorpions - Rock You Like a Hurricane
Templars of Steel is an average enough Hammerfall track, whereas Rock You Like a Hurricane was in The Simpsons. Rock You Like a Hurricane

Gamma Ray - Valley of the Kings vs. Savatage - Gutter Ballet
Valley of the Kings was pretty nondescript power metal, Gutter Ballet is a good track, that album is the only album I have of Savatage, I would have nominated When the Crowds Are Gone if I was to pick a track from that album Gutter Ballet

Megadeth - Countdown to Extinction vs. Metallica - Battery
2 big hitters from 2 of the biggest in metal, but my gut reaction was Battery, and then when I had a proper think about it, it was still Battery Battery

Disturbed - Down With the Sickness vs. Judas Priest - Painkiller
Stop, stop. he's already dead Painkiller

 

[LooseCannon]

No rage bunkers required, MrK, as Symphony X beats Twisted Sister. Machine Head has learned to avoid the eyes of Queensrÿche's stranger. The templars of steel were rocked by a hurricane, as Scorpions foretold. This was a close one, but what is exploring the valley of the kings but a gutter ballet? Savatage. In the thrash-off Metallica batters about extinction. And finally, a rare but deserved shutout as Judas Priest's Painkiller thrashes Disturbed.

---

Part II, Round 3, Matches 31-36​

Group Stage - Round 3	Match 31​	The Evil That Men Do Division​
Children of Bodom - Needled 24/7	vs.​	Judas Priest - Breaking the Law​
@KiDDo	Nominators​	Popoff 500, Rolling Stone 100, DigitalDreamDoor 100, Radio EHS 100, Rate Your Music 100, VH1 40, Best Music Art 100​
0-1-0, 0 pts, -4	Record​	1-0-0, 2 pts, +23​
Youtube | Spotify | Amazon	Links​	Youtube | Spotify | Amazon​

Group Stage - Round 3	Match 32​	Dream of Mirrors Division​
Stone Temple Pilots - Plush	vs.​	Dream Theater - Octavarium​
@Diesel 11	Nominators​	@Shmoolikipod, @Spambot, @JudasMyGuide​
0-1-0, 0 pts, -12	Record​	1-0-0, 2 pts, +16​
Youtube | Spotify | Amazon	Links​	Youtube | Spotify | Amazon​

Group Stage - Round 3	Match 33​	Dennis Wilcock Division​
Black Sabbath - Computer God	vs.​	Ghost - Square Hammer​
@KidInTheDark666	Nominators​	@MindRuler, @MrKnickerbocker, @LooseCannon​
1-0-0, 2 pts, +4	Record​	1-0-0, 2 pts, +3​
Youtube | Spotify | Amazon	Links​	Youtube | Spotify | Amazon​

Group Stage - Round 3	Match 34​	Paul Di'Anno Division​
Judas Priest - Metal Gods	vs.​	Faith No More - Epic​
Popoff 500	Nominators​	Popoff 500, Radio EHS 100, VH1 40​
0-1-0, 0 pts, -2	Record​	1-0-0, 2 pts, +11​
Youtube | Spotify | Amazon	Links​	Youtube | Spotify | Amazon​

Group Stage - Round 3	Match 35​	Michael Kenney Division​
Blood Star - Going Home	vs.​	Candlemass - Solitude​
@Wogmidget	Nominators​	DigitalDreamDoor 100, Rate Your Music 100 @MindRuler, @Magnus​
1-0-0, 2 pts, +2	Record​	0-1-0, 0 pts, -8​
Youtube | Spotify | Amazon	Links​	Youtube | Spotify | Amazon​

Group Stage - Round 3	Match 36​	Dave Lights Division​
Uriah Heep - Easy Livin'	vs.​	Ozzy Osbourne - Crazy Train​
Popoff 500 @Diesel 11	Nominators​	Popoff 500, Rolling Stone 100, DigitalDreamDoor 100, Rate Your Music 100, VH1 40, Best Music Art 100 @Jer, @The Sentient, @DJMayes​
0-1-0, 0 pts, -2	Record​	1-0-0, 2 pts, +7​
Youtube | Spotify | Amazon	Links​	Youtube | Spotify | Amazon​

 

[MrKnickerbocker]

Mostly easy votes this time:

Breaking The Law is a clear winner against Bodom.

I don't always vote for Octavarium, but when I do it's up against 90's grunge rock.

The only difficult match is Computer God vs. Square Hammer. On one hand, Computer God is an exceptional track that helped revitalize Black Sabbath and features an always amazing performance from Dio himself. On the other hand, Square Hammer is just a perfect song through and through. It hurts, but I must vote Ghost.

Metal Gods is a clunker from a band I generally like a lot, while Epic is a stellar song from a band I generally do not like at all.

Going Home is fine, but Solitude is great doomy fun and Candlemass are awesome.

Easy Livin' isn't very metal, but it does have much better vocals than anything Ozzy-related.

 

[Jer]

“Needled 24/7” vs. “Breaking The Law”: The CoB track has some musical appeal, but let’s get real, it’s totally outclassed here. Sorry, @KiDDo, but the list nominee takes this one easily. Winner: Judas Priest - “Breaking The Law”

“Plush” vs. “Octavarium”: An uncharacteristically very good STP track vs. a bloated mess of a Dream Theater track? Sorry, ShpoojikiMyBiden, but @Diesel 11’s nominee takes this one for sure. Winner: Stone Temple Pilots - “Plush”

“Computer God” vs. “Square Hammer”: The Sabbath track is uneven at best, while the Ghost track is consistently very good and has a great chorus. Sorry, @KidInTheDark666, but MrKinderDrooler’s nominee is the clear winner here. Winner: Ghost - “Square Hammer”

“Metal Gods” vs. “Epic”: The Priest track mostly blows while the FNM track puts on a good show. No contest here. Winner: Faith No More - “Epic”

“Going Home” vs. “Solitude”: The Candlemass song is ai-ight, but the Blood Star track is dynamite. Sorry, MacGruber, but @Wogmidget’s nominee takes this easily. Winner: Blood Star - “Going Home”

“Easy Livin’” vs. “Crazy Train”: HAHAHAHAHA, let me just step over @Diesel 11’s corpse and vote for The SentiDjent’s monster of a nominee here… Winner: Ozzy Osbourne - “Crazy Train”

 

[srfc]

Children of Bodom - Needled 24/7 vs. Judas Priest - Breaking the Law
Bodom had some decent parts and some parts on my dealbreaker list, Breaking the Law is a bit overrated but is still great Breaking the Law

Stone Temple Pilots - Plush vs. Dream Theater - Octavarium
STP was decent enough, I got about 9 mins of DT, up to where the bass player started to play a different song to the rest of the band, it was basically a rip off of Shine on You Crazy Diamond/Wish You Were Here with nothing of interest happening in those 9 mins. Plush

Black Sabbath - Computer God vs. Ghost - Square Hammer
Dehumanizer is a good album, certainly a few deep cut contenders for a nomination, I might have gone with "I" myself, but I don't think anything would be troubling the final shake up of a Sabbath game, never mind this one. Square Hammer is a great pop song, nothing wrong with metal bands having a catchy hit, all the big guns had them back in the day. Square Hammer

Judas Priest - Metal Gods vs. Faith No More - Epic
The Real Thing was one of the first albums I ever had, it's not my favourite FNM album, I think some of it hasn't aged well, no least the rapping sections of Epic, it's still pretty good though. Metal Gods has a great groove, and the first time I ever heard it I was expecting Manowar style lyrics about "we are the gods of metal" etc. so kudos for gaining all the metal bravado points from having such a song title without having to write the cheesy guff. Metal Gods

Blood Star - Going Home vs. Candlemass - Solitude
I still have to pick up that first Candlemass album after threatening to after every round a track appears in, but I did pick up the Blood Star album and thought they aren't the finished article yet, they are the find of the game so far. Going Home

Uriah Heep - Easy Livin' vs. Ozzy Osbourne - Crazy Train
Probably both artists biggest hits, Crazy Train a lot the better track. Crazy Train

 

[KidInTheDark666]

it was basically a rip off of Shine on You Crazy Diamond/Wish You Were Here with nothing of interest happening in those 9 mins.

You should try the last 9 minutes the next time...

 

[____no5]

I'm not clear about the point system. For example, Crazy Train

1-0-0, 2 pts, +7

1-0-0 first is victory, second is loss, the third is draw? And what +7 is supposed to mean? Difference of votes that it won in the previous round?

 

[srfc]

You should try the last 9 minutes the next time...

I don't mean to sound disrespectful when I post that I only listened to X amount of a song, it's because I'm at work listening on a break and the break is over before the song. If I haven't made my mind up about the tie I'll go back and listen again later.

 

[srfc]

I'm not clear about the point system. For example, Crazy Train



1-0-0 first is victory, second is loss, the third is draw? And what +7 is supposed to mean? Difference of votes that it won in the previous round?

Goal difference equivalent I think

 

[JudasMyGuide]

I'll go with Bodom over Priest, not even sure why, but BtL is more overplayed (British Steele was among the first metal albums I've ever heard)

Octavarium, duh

Sabbath over Ghost. I'd take herpes over Ghost.

That Priest song is nothing special, very cheesy, very mid-tempo, but it has a drive and besides, it's better than Patton & Co. trying to ape Red Hot Chili Peppers.

Candlemass, 'cause band bias (though the other song is nice)

Crazy Train, because it's catchier, better and it has an actual guitarist. And yeah, I've always loved this song and always will even if for the guitar alone.

 

[Shmoolikipod]

British Steele

 

[Confeos]

I love COB, I'm a huge fan of Alexi Laiho, and I dig everything about "Needled 24/7" - easily one of their very best songs. But even so, I cannot justify voting for it over "Breaking the Law" - finally a Judas Priest tune that well and truly deserves to be in this game to the very end.

I'm not that big on "Octavarium", but it does have some good parts. Dream Theater gets my vote here, as I'm utterly indifferent to STP.

"Computer God" is a menacing behemoth of a track, and it wipes the floor with any Ghost song every day and twice on Sundays. Sabbath.

Faith No More ain't my thing. "Metal Gods" is silly, cheesy and fun - I don't expect it to go far, but it's damn enjoyable. Priest again.

Easy vote for Candlemass, but I do think "Going Home" is a strong tune. This time I'm definitely checking out more of Blood Star.

The final match is the toughest; I belong to the group that finds "Crazy Train" just a bit overplayed, but that riff is just timeless. "Easy Livin'" is a wonderful, romping tune that does exactly what it needs to do and doesn't overstay its welcome. I'm really torn, and I'm totally fine with either outcome here, but since Uriah Heep are currently behind, they get my vote.

 

[Detective Beauregard]

Breaking the Law is one of the few Priest songs in the game that deserves to be here. Metal Gods is not.

Octavarium is one of Dream Theater’s most overrated songs and also from one of their worst albums, but it’s the clear winner here.

Ghost may be pop metal, but Square Hammer is insanely catchy.

I don’t really care about the others, except I’ll always vote against Ozzy if the competition is even remotely solid.

 

[DJ James]

When I was younger than I am now, I loved Octavarium. I thought it was the most epic thing ever, and I loved the “trapped inside this Octavarium!” part. I still kind of get chills thinking about it. But now my taste has devolved into (almost) strictly Motörhead and hair metal (I think this is actually a pretty enlightened way of listening to music), and I don’t really like this kind of music anymore. That is all to say: Octavarium is really good. Like really fucking good.

 

[DJ James]

also Ghost beating out Black Sabbath? BOOOO!!! LAME!!!!

A great Sabbath song too, Dehumanizer RULES

 

[MrKnickerbocker]

also Ghost beating out Black Sabbath? BOOOO!!! LAME!!!!

A great Sabbath song too, Dehumanizer RULES

I agree with these statements. And yet, I still voted for Ghost.

 

[Shmoolikipod]

I Like Needled 24/7 a lot, but it's Breaking the Law this time.

Always Octavarium.

Ghost Hammer is fantastic.

Difficult one, Epic wins for style points.

Going Home is a good metal track, while Solitude is quintessential.

Crazy Train ain't bad, though I've heard better bridges. Easy Livin' is succinct (what a horrendous word), and that's "in", you can tell because I voted for Octavarium, and by the length of my sentences. Every word I add helps discredit my poin-

 

[Jer]

it's better than Patton & Co. trying to ape Red Hot Chili Peppers

Disingenuous, since RHCP didn’t really get noticed until Mother’s Milk, which came out the same year as The Real Thing.

 

[Diesel 11]

I like "Needled 24/7" but "Breaking the Law" is fucking awesome.

I nominated STP but they aren't metal. I included them in my list to diversify the grunge inclusions and now that we're past that stage I'm okay with seeing this song (one of my all-time favorites) bow out of the game. In spite of my DTphobia "Octavarium" is really cool and I was even humming the big motif a couple days ago so I'm not mad about giving it the vote.

I'm on the square. I'm on the level.

"Epic" is fun. It's silly. It slaps. It's "Epic".

"Solitude" for its iconic status.

I nominated "Easy Livin'" as a proto-metal classic. Very fun song. That said, Randy Rhoads ends it all right here. A vote against Randy Rhoads is a vote against guitar as an artform.

 

[____no5]

I just realised I voted for B option in every single match this round.