The Greatest Metal Song Cup - Part II, Round 4, Matches 82-87
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MrKnickerbocker
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DJMayes
Ancient Mariner
Match 7 - Thin Lizzy - Cowboy Song
Pretty easy round for me. The Girlschool song did nothing for me, whilst the Cowboy Song was the umpteenth reminder that I need to listen to more Thin Lizzy.
Match 8 - Led Zeppelin - Heartbreaker
Both bands have much better songs than the ones here. I usually prefer Queen but went for Heartbreaker for the solo.
Match 9 - Scorpions - Sails of Charon
A great song from one of the best Scorpions albums. My only real complaint is the fluff on the intro.
Match 10 - Angel Witch - Angel of Death
Match 11 - Celtic Frost - Circle of the Tyrants
The less said about any of the songs in either of these two matches, the better.
Match 12 - Guns N' Roses - Estranged
I've surprised myself here; I'd not heard either of the songs before but was fully expecting to vote for the Def Leppard one based on the artists. Big fan of this GNR song though and definitely adding it into my rotations.
Pretty easy round for me. The Girlschool song did nothing for me, whilst the Cowboy Song was the umpteenth reminder that I need to listen to more Thin Lizzy.
Match 8 - Led Zeppelin - Heartbreaker
Both bands have much better songs than the ones here. I usually prefer Queen but went for Heartbreaker for the solo.
Match 9 - Scorpions - Sails of Charon
A great song from one of the best Scorpions albums. My only real complaint is the fluff on the intro.
Match 10 - Angel Witch - Angel of Death
Match 11 - Celtic Frost - Circle of the Tyrants
The less said about any of the songs in either of these two matches, the better.
Match 12 - Guns N' Roses - Estranged
I've surprised myself here; I'd not heard either of the songs before but was fully expecting to vote for the Def Leppard one based on the artists. Big fan of this GNR song though and definitely adding it into my rotations.
Brother there are ~2000 matches. We don't have time to fuck around. Also I'm not NP, only updating whenever I feel like it.Round 2 allready?
Jer
'Til Tomorrow
It's funny, because that's how I've always felt about Blind Guardian. They have a lot of elements that I like, but something about Hansi's shrill heavy voice, the video gamey lead guitar tones, and their seeming inability to weave together otherwise cool musical sections into an actually coherent song keep me from being able to really get into them, even though I've been trying off and on for nearly 30 years. (I actually like BG's softer songs better, including the reworked stuff on The Forgotten Tales.)
This whole "cool musical parts shoddily assembled into an incoherent song" thing also makes me wonder how much overlap Blind Guardian and Iseditionist Earth would have on a Venn diagram of their fandom vs. other bands...
JudasMyGuide
Ancient Mariner
Well, for the record I love Blind Guardian and can't really stand Iced Earth. To me the bands are not really that similar.
I don't find the songs shoddily assembled or incoherent (well, most of them, anyway, I understand why people would dislike And Then There Was Silence for this exact reason) and even if, I'd say it's mostly their problem on ANATO and later on - up to Nightfall, I am often genuinely suprised at how the songs manage to get various part together (to the extent the song have sometimes a comletely different first, second and third verse) with such a magnificent feel of fluency where the various part flow into one another so flawlessly like in Somewhere Far Beyond or Mirror Mirror.
As for Hansi, I agree he might be acquired taste, but I personally find both his deeper, more theatrical approach and his shrills genuinely enticing.
But IRYO.
Anyway, that Blind Guardian - Gamma Ray match was the only one I was really passionate about and I'm glad BG won, even though there are going to be better songs yet in the future.
And hey - @LooseCannon and I have voted completely the same in the first round! I'm not sure, but he might be the only one with whom I agreed 100%. Go figure.
MindRuler
Ancient Mariner
Yeah for fuckin´around we have the couch.
srfc
Ancient Mariner
Thin Lizzy - Cowboy Song vs. Girlschool - Yeah Right
One of my favourite, if not my favourite, Lizzy tracks. Lyrics are a bit nonsense at face value but it's really just Philo letting his love for Americana show. It's a shame that live versions aren't allowed as the definitive version of this track is the live one from Live and Dangerous that segue's into the Boys are Back in Town, I suggest checking that out afterwards if you've enjoyed this version. Girlschool is okay enough, NWOBHM with a bit of a Ramones feel. Never voting for it over Cowboy Song, there's not many tracks in this competition that I would vote for over Cowboy Song Cowboy Song
Led Zeppelin - Heartbreaker vs. Queen - Stone Cold Crazy
I like Led Zeppelin, have all the albums except ITTOD and Coda, but I'm not a huge fan. Heartbreaker is a classic riff, but never been too fond of the unaccompanied solo, I know it's seen as landmark, but to be fair it's a bit shit. Stone Cold Crazy just rocks hard. Stone Cold Crazy
Scorpions - Sails of Charon vs. Black Sabbath - Trashed
Sails of Charon is just an Uli Roth masterclass, off the wall riff plus probably his best solo. Trashed is a good track, one of the better ones from that album, but it's not in the same league Sails of Charon
Angel Witch - Angel of Death vs. Diamond Head - Sucking My Love
I'm only really familiar with their title song and another track that's on a compilation I have, this track is pretty good and I might make an effort to get the album but it's not beating Diamond Head. The only flaw with Sucking My Love is that even AC/DC would probably shy away from that single entendre of the title
Sucking My Love
Cattle Decapitation - Death Atlas vs. Celtic Frost - Circle of the Tyrants
Think I might be getting another red face from @Night Prowler It's actually not anywhere near as bad as I feared, the blast beats and the vocals are the big issues for my tastes but I think the riffs are quite good and athmospheric at times, and the sound is really clear, it's far too long though but the quiet breakdown came in just when it was needed. Taking two minutes to fade out tested my patience, please say it's at least the last track on the album? Not too familiar with Celtic Frost, I know this songs name alright and thought it would be a track I was familiar with but I'm not, it's not great, or to be fair, I think there may be a decent track there if it was played by better musicians with a better sound, as the riffs are ok and the arrangement is good. Really not sure how to vote on this one, Celtic Frost is more in my usual ball park but it's not good, so I'm going with Cattle Decapitation as it was better than I expected. Death Atlas
Def Leppard - Satellite vs. Guns N' Roses - Estranged
I like Leppard, and On Through The Night is a great album, Satellite is a great track from that album, but obviously I'm not voting against my own nomination, and to be honest I don't think Leppard have any tracks that can go up against Guns best tracks, never mind my favourite one. Why is it my favourite? It's quite unusual arrangement wise, I love the way it starts off straight into the vocal and then into that soulful guitar line. One of my favourite tropes is when verses don't match the previous one, and another one is leaving out a chorus and having the riff serve that role of the main hook instead. The breakdown section, where it rises and falls to set up two of Slash's best solos is fantastic. Estranged
One of my favourite, if not my favourite, Lizzy tracks. Lyrics are a bit nonsense at face value but it's really just Philo letting his love for Americana show. It's a shame that live versions aren't allowed as the definitive version of this track is the live one from Live and Dangerous that segue's into the Boys are Back in Town, I suggest checking that out afterwards if you've enjoyed this version. Girlschool is okay enough, NWOBHM with a bit of a Ramones feel. Never voting for it over Cowboy Song, there's not many tracks in this competition that I would vote for over Cowboy Song Cowboy Song
Led Zeppelin - Heartbreaker vs. Queen - Stone Cold Crazy
I like Led Zeppelin, have all the albums except ITTOD and Coda, but I'm not a huge fan. Heartbreaker is a classic riff, but never been too fond of the unaccompanied solo, I know it's seen as landmark, but to be fair it's a bit shit. Stone Cold Crazy just rocks hard. Stone Cold Crazy
Scorpions - Sails of Charon vs. Black Sabbath - Trashed
Sails of Charon is just an Uli Roth masterclass, off the wall riff plus probably his best solo. Trashed is a good track, one of the better ones from that album, but it's not in the same league Sails of Charon
Angel Witch - Angel of Death vs. Diamond Head - Sucking My Love
I'm only really familiar with their title song and another track that's on a compilation I have, this track is pretty good and I might make an effort to get the album but it's not beating Diamond Head. The only flaw with Sucking My Love is that even AC/DC would probably shy away from that single entendre of the title
Sucking My LoveCattle Decapitation - Death Atlas vs. Celtic Frost - Circle of the Tyrants
Think I might be getting another red face from @Night Prowler
It's actually not anywhere near as bad as I feared, the blast beats and the vocals are the big issues for my tastes but I think the riffs are quite good and athmospheric at times, and the sound is really clear, it's far too long though but the quiet breakdown came in just when it was needed. Taking two minutes to fade out tested my patience, please say it's at least the last track on the album? Not too familiar with Celtic Frost, I know this songs name alright and thought it would be a track I was familiar with but I'm not, it's not great, or to be fair, I think there may be a decent track there if it was played by better musicians with a better sound, as the riffs are ok and the arrangement is good. Really not sure how to vote on this one, Celtic Frost is more in my usual ball park but it's not good, so I'm going with Cattle Decapitation as it was better than I expected. Death AtlasDef Leppard - Satellite vs. Guns N' Roses - Estranged
I like Leppard, and On Through The Night is a great album, Satellite is a great track from that album, but obviously I'm not voting against my own nomination, and to be honest I don't think Leppard have any tracks that can go up against Guns best tracks, never mind my favourite one. Why is it my favourite? It's quite unusual arrangement wise, I love the way it starts off straight into the vocal and then into that soulful guitar line. One of my favourite tropes is when verses don't match the previous one, and another one is leaving out a chorus and having the riff serve that role of the main hook instead. The breakdown section, where it rises and falls to set up two of Slash's best solos is fantastic. Estranged
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Jer
'Til Tomorrow
"Cowboy Song" is pleasant enough, with memorable melodies and guitar bits, though I'm not really a fan of the chorus, and the song seems to drag on a bit. "Yeah Right" is punchier and punkier, though it's a bit vapid and has that weird spoken bit in the middle. Not really a fan of either track, and the Lizzy song is certainly more interesting musically, but the Girlschool song was just more viscerally enjoyable to me. Winner: Girlschool - "Yeah Right"
"Heartbreaker" has an undeniably classic riff, and Robert Plant sounds great as usual. The initial solo is surprisingly sloppy, though, and I'm not really sold on the overall songwriting here. "Stone Cold Crazy" has great energy and some sweet riffage, and the thick delay on the solo is pretty cool. I don't love the vocal harmonies, but otherwise there isn't much fault to find with the song, which makes this choice easy. Winner: Queen - "Stone Cold Crazy"
"Sails Of Charon" is full of cool riffs and solos and it flows really well. It briefly treads water for a bit in the middle, but otherwise it's great. "Trashed" has good energy, but the lyrics are really stupid and the solos are a bit of a mess. Another easy call here, and a reminder that I really need to check out more early Scorpions. Winner: Scorpions - "Sails Of Charon"
"Angel Of Death" has some cool, sinister riffage and a strong pre-chorus, but the singer is uneven and the chorus is pretty terrible. It has a cool outro, though. "Sucking My Love" has consistently solid riffs with some cool harmonization, but the singing is uninspired and the song is pretty repetitive through its first third until it opens up into some much more interesting and atmospheric instrumental parts. Not big on either track, but @____no5's nominee has more going for it overall. Winner: Diamond Head - "Sucking My Love"
On to the Pepto Bismol match. "Death Atlas" has technically adept but aesthetically awful drumming through most of its runtime, and for the first time that I can recall, I get "treated" to a Cookie Monster and Gollum duet (two horrible tastes that taste worse together!). The synths and sporadic clean vocals are the most interesting things going on here, though there's some cool rhythm guitar slipped in occasionally between all the nonsense, and I must note the well-crafted and complex structure of the song even if I don't like most of its constituent parts. "Circle Of The Tyrants" has pep, but not much else going for it. The singer is bad, though not as bad as an extreme vocalist. The songwriting is borderline incoherent here, and I don't know WTF they were thinking with the weird pitch-dropped backing vocals that sound terrible. I'd rather not have to listen to either of these songs ever again; and while I find the Celtic Frost track to be less immediately grating on the ears, I have to acknowledge that @Night Prowler's nominee has more craftsmanship and merit to it. Winner: Cattle Decapitation - "Death Atlas"
"Satellite" is generally OK but mostly forgettable, and the chorus sucks. The softer break in the middle is nice, though, and the solo section has its moments. "Estranged" for me has always been the worst, most annoying single from GNR's classic era. That terrible breathy soft vocal, the song just treading water with barely one melodic hook through all of its vocal parts, Axl trying to pretend he's Elton John and utterly failing, and that boring-ass interlude through the middle. Even Slash's solos are trite, stock bullshit. Everything about this song reeks of a phone-in, and yet its competitor is so weak that I actually have to think about this one. Nothing in the GNR song is as bad as the chorus of the Def Leppard song, but if I had to suffer through one of these tracks again I guess I'd rather put up with @Mosh's nominee. Sorry, @srfc. Winner: Def Leppard - "Satellite"
"Heartbreaker" has an undeniably classic riff, and Robert Plant sounds great as usual. The initial solo is surprisingly sloppy, though, and I'm not really sold on the overall songwriting here. "Stone Cold Crazy" has great energy and some sweet riffage, and the thick delay on the solo is pretty cool. I don't love the vocal harmonies, but otherwise there isn't much fault to find with the song, which makes this choice easy. Winner: Queen - "Stone Cold Crazy"
"Sails Of Charon" is full of cool riffs and solos and it flows really well. It briefly treads water for a bit in the middle, but otherwise it's great. "Trashed" has good energy, but the lyrics are really stupid and the solos are a bit of a mess. Another easy call here, and a reminder that I really need to check out more early Scorpions. Winner: Scorpions - "Sails Of Charon"
"Angel Of Death" has some cool, sinister riffage and a strong pre-chorus, but the singer is uneven and the chorus is pretty terrible. It has a cool outro, though. "Sucking My Love" has consistently solid riffs with some cool harmonization, but the singing is uninspired and the song is pretty repetitive through its first third until it opens up into some much more interesting and atmospheric instrumental parts. Not big on either track, but @____no5's nominee has more going for it overall. Winner: Diamond Head - "Sucking My Love"
On to the Pepto Bismol match. "Death Atlas" has technically adept but aesthetically awful drumming through most of its runtime, and for the first time that I can recall, I get "treated" to a Cookie Monster and Gollum duet (two horrible tastes that taste worse together!). The synths and sporadic clean vocals are the most interesting things going on here, though there's some cool rhythm guitar slipped in occasionally between all the nonsense, and I must note the well-crafted and complex structure of the song even if I don't like most of its constituent parts. "Circle Of The Tyrants" has pep, but not much else going for it. The singer is bad, though not as bad as an extreme vocalist. The songwriting is borderline incoherent here, and I don't know WTF they were thinking with the weird pitch-dropped backing vocals that sound terrible. I'd rather not have to listen to either of these songs ever again; and while I find the Celtic Frost track to be less immediately grating on the ears, I have to acknowledge that @Night Prowler's nominee has more craftsmanship and merit to it. Winner: Cattle Decapitation - "Death Atlas"
"Satellite" is generally OK but mostly forgettable, and the chorus sucks. The softer break in the middle is nice, though, and the solo section has its moments. "Estranged" for me has always been the worst, most annoying single from GNR's classic era. That terrible breathy soft vocal, the song just treading water with barely one melodic hook through all of its vocal parts, Axl trying to pretend he's Elton John and utterly failing, and that boring-ass interlude through the middle. Even Slash's solos are trite, stock bullshit. Everything about this song reeks of a phone-in, and yet its competitor is so weak that I actually have to think about this one. Nothing in the GNR song is as bad as the chorus of the Def Leppard song, but if I had to suffer through one of these tracks again I guess I'd rather put up with @Mosh's nominee. Sorry, @srfc. Winner: Def Leppard - "Satellite"
No red face because you (and Jer) voted for itThink I might be getting another red face from @Night Prowler
Magnus
currently discounted
As an Aussie mate of mine used to say, "we're not here to fuck spiders".
I enjoy a lot of Girlschool and respect what they were able to accomplish in a very male dominated genre, I can't say they have a lot of material I go back to though. They are often a highlight in a NWOBHM playlist but, like many of those bands, the albums don't go that deep. Yeah Right was a mostly forgettable track and I struggle to see how that is the Girlschool pick for a greatest Metal song game. On the other hand, Cowboy Song is just an all time classic with a great riff, melody, and pretty solid lyrics. Just Thin Lizzy at their best and the heavy southern rock styling with tight guitar harmonies really showcases what made Lizzy stand out from other rock/metal bands of their period. You can hear a young Steve Harris rocking out to this.
For our second round, Popoff again delivers two songs that really don't need to be in this game (I get that it's important to talk about influences, but do we really need so many proto metal examples when we can instead celebrate 50+ years of actual metal?). Ten years ago I would've gone with Zeppelin no question, I've cooled on them quite a bit recently though. The lyric writing and vocal delivery of Robert Plant sometimes borders on obnoxious and I'm less impressed with Jimmy Page's sloppy blues imitations. I still very much enjoy what they were able to achieve later on in their career and love their rhythm section, but these early tracks are a bit difficult for me to listen to these days. Heartbreaker is a cool track though and probably the best representative of those first couple albums. On the other hand, I've never felt like Queen was at their best when going for the more heavy/punk side. Stone Cold Crazy is a classic but if I'm being honest I don't think I've ever really connected with that track. I'm not super enthusiastic about it, but I'm gonna give it to Heartbreaker.
Scorpions are such a weirdly underrated band. Their popular albums (Lovedrive, Blackout, Love At First Sting) are really top tier arena rock/metal albums, but the early krautrock-y stuff is also somehow amazing too. Sails of Charon is a great representation of the latter part of that era with awesome guitar shredding and riffs that hint at the hooky prowess to come. Just an awesome early Metal track. As for Trashed... ugh. Born Again is definitely in the bottom tier of Black Sabbath's discography and the fact that Trashed is probably the best song on there really shows how far they fell on that album. It's such a great collaboration on paper, Ian Gillan and Black Sabbath? Sign me up! It's just a disastrous result that doesn't do Gillan or Sabbath justice. It's like a bad Deep Purple knock off.
Angel Witch is among my favorite early NWOBHM examples. One of those bands that I think could have been a much bigger deal and with label support could have evolved into something similar to what we got with Maiden. You can really hear how they influenced a lot of what came later - bands like Metallica owe a lot to this first album. The occult themes are pretty ahead of their time and they delivered it better than a lot of their contemporaries. You can say basically the same thing about Diamond Head, which makes this a pretty appropriate matchup. Diamond Head definitely reaches higher in their track but it gets way too noodly for me by the end. The track really starts to overstay its welcome. Angel of Death is a tight amount of NWOBHM riffing with solid vocals and the occult themes also put it over the edge for me. What can I say? I like my Metal a bit satanic.
For our second round, Popoff again delivers two songs that really don't need to be in this game (I get that it's important to talk about influences, but do we really need so many proto metal examples when we can instead celebrate 50+ years of actual metal?). Ten years ago I would've gone with Zeppelin no question, I've cooled on them quite a bit recently though. The lyric writing and vocal delivery of Robert Plant sometimes borders on obnoxious and I'm less impressed with Jimmy Page's sloppy blues imitations. I still very much enjoy what they were able to achieve later on in their career and love their rhythm section, but these early tracks are a bit difficult for me to listen to these days. Heartbreaker is a cool track though and probably the best representative of those first couple albums. On the other hand, I've never felt like Queen was at their best when going for the more heavy/punk side. Stone Cold Crazy is a classic but if I'm being honest I don't think I've ever really connected with that track. I'm not super enthusiastic about it, but I'm gonna give it to Heartbreaker.
Scorpions are such a weirdly underrated band. Their popular albums (Lovedrive, Blackout, Love At First Sting) are really top tier arena rock/metal albums, but the early krautrock-y stuff is also somehow amazing too. Sails of Charon is a great representation of the latter part of that era with awesome guitar shredding and riffs that hint at the hooky prowess to come. Just an awesome early Metal track. As for Trashed... ugh. Born Again is definitely in the bottom tier of Black Sabbath's discography and the fact that Trashed is probably the best song on there really shows how far they fell on that album. It's such a great collaboration on paper, Ian Gillan and Black Sabbath? Sign me up! It's just a disastrous result that doesn't do Gillan or Sabbath justice. It's like a bad Deep Purple knock off.
Angel Witch is among my favorite early NWOBHM examples. One of those bands that I think could have been a much bigger deal and with label support could have evolved into something similar to what we got with Maiden. You can really hear how they influenced a lot of what came later - bands like Metallica owe a lot to this first album. The occult themes are pretty ahead of their time and they delivered it better than a lot of their contemporaries. You can say basically the same thing about Diamond Head, which makes this a pretty appropriate matchup. Diamond Head definitely reaches higher in their track but it gets way too noodly for me by the end. The track really starts to overstay its welcome. Angel of Death is a tight amount of NWOBHM riffing with solid vocals and the occult themes also put it over the edge for me. What can I say? I like my Metal a bit satanic.
Magnus
currently discounted
Confeos
Game time started.
This is my very first time hearing Girlschool; a decent track, but nothing too exciting. I was 99 % sure beforehand what I was gonna vote, as Thin Lizzy is one of my all-time favourite bands, though I didn't nominate anything from them for the cup (I would just never classify them as metal). "Cowboy Song" is actually one of the lesser songs on Jailbreak in my opinion, but it's still a fantastic tune. Voting for Lizzy.
The second round is between another two bands that I won't consider metal - for some perhaps a controversial take regarding Zeppelin, but at best they're metal-adjacent. I like the instrumental in "Heartbreaker"; the unaccompanied solo is silly, and the rest of the song is average. "Stone Cold Crazy" might indeed be the closest Queen ever got to metal, but it never really takes off - I feel it's underbaked and way too short. Gonna vote for Zeppelin.
"Sails of Charon" is a brilliant track - dark and mysterious, and reminding me a bit of Rainbow's "Gates of Babylon". While I like "Trashed", I don't think it's the best song from Deep Sabbath. Scorpions.
"Angel of Death" has a cool, sinister vibe, but those falsetto screams sound pretty bad. Still, I could definitely see myself listening to more of Angel Witch. "Sucking My Love" starts and ends well, but that middle section is such a bore. The riff and harmonization is great, though. It's a tough choice, but my gut tells me to vote for Diamond Head.
"Death Atlas" was better than I had expected. I quite liked the atmosphere and the vocals, actually. "Circle of the Tyrants" simply didn't do anything for me. Voting for Cattle Decapitation, despite them having the worst bandname I've ever heard.
I've never been much into Def Leppard, but "Satellite" must be one of the better songs I've heard from them. The middle part is especially good. "Estranged", while not my favourite G'n'R-song, still blows it out of the water though. Guns N' Roses.
The second round is between another two bands that I won't consider metal - for some perhaps a controversial take regarding Zeppelin, but at best they're metal-adjacent. I like the instrumental in "Heartbreaker"; the unaccompanied solo is silly, and the rest of the song is average. "Stone Cold Crazy" might indeed be the closest Queen ever got to metal, but it never really takes off - I feel it's underbaked and way too short. Gonna vote for Zeppelin.
"Sails of Charon" is a brilliant track - dark and mysterious, and reminding me a bit of Rainbow's "Gates of Babylon". While I like "Trashed", I don't think it's the best song from Deep Sabbath. Scorpions.
"Angel of Death" has a cool, sinister vibe, but those falsetto screams sound pretty bad. Still, I could definitely see myself listening to more of Angel Witch. "Sucking My Love" starts and ends well, but that middle section is such a bore. The riff and harmonization is great, though. It's a tough choice, but my gut tells me to vote for Diamond Head.
"Death Atlas" was better than I had expected. I quite liked the atmosphere and the vocals, actually. "Circle of the Tyrants" simply didn't do anything for me. Voting for Cattle Decapitation, despite them having the worst bandname I've ever heard.
I've never been much into Def Leppard, but "Satellite" must be one of the better songs I've heard from them. The middle part is especially good. "Estranged", while not my favourite G'n'R-song, still blows it out of the water though. Guns N' Roses.
Diesel 11
As you scream into the web of silence...
I think it’s a pretty gripping name, especially since the founding lineup was entirely comprised of vegans.
Confeos
Game time started.
I know, and I respect their views, but that doesn't make it any less ridiculous to me. Kinda like if a band founded by meatlovers called themselves "Beheading Broccoli".
MindRuler
Ancient Mariner
JudasMyGuide
Ancient Mariner
I love the band (post Karma.Bloody.Karma at least) and I even used to be a vegan for a while and yet I don't find the name to be particularly well-wrought.
Especially when connected with the obnoxious skit at the end of Human Jerky.