I like music. I really do. However, I'm really picky about my music.
I have downloaded many MP3's over the years. However, I've noticed something about my music. I have downloaded, at last check, 1127 MP3's. Of course, those are only the ones I keep. I noticed most of my music, of the music I've downloaded anyways, falls under one of four categories:
It is Final Fantasy music.
It is Dragon Quest music.
It is Chrono music.
It is Sonic the Hedgehog music.
Yeah, most of my downloaded music is from 3 RPG franchises, and a once-respected platformer franchise. Tallying up all four of those categories yields 647 MP3's.
647 divide into 1127.
57.4 percent of my downloaded music comes from FF games, DQ games, Chrono games, and Sonic games. This is all the music I know. Sure, some of my music is other background music: a Cowboy Bebop score here, a Xenogears piece, there, a Fullmetal Alchemist opener here, a Wild Arms 3 MP3 there. But it's the only music I know.
Of course, I have more than that. My older brother left behind 12 gigs of MP3's on my computer when he was still using it, and I have access to all of that music as well. All of his music is a little more mainstream than mine. And I like some of it. I mean come on, who doesn't like Van Halen, Sublime, Gun N Roses, and Michael Jackson's Thriller album? Then again, he also left a lot of rap albums on my computer, but I'm not really fond of rap.
Yeah, you can imagine what it's like when I'm driving. Just about all the music on the radio sucks to me. There's only one (decent) rock station where I live, and 95 percent of its music is crap. Sure, you might get lucky every once in a while, "Hey! Led Zeppelin!" But the good songs don't last forever. Good thing I have an MP3 player though. Then again, I only listen to my music when I'm driving by myself. And there's no way I'm playing my music with the windows rolled down. I don't want people staring at me when I'm driving thinking, "What the fuck is he listening to?" When I'm playing music from Star Ocean 3. And, also, I don't want to attract the off-chance individual who could recognize my music. You may think that, because I know a lot about about 21st century nerd culture, I can get along with modern nerds very well. That, with few exceptions, couldn't be farther from the truth.
{Idiot nerd} Hey, are you listening to music from Final Fantasy? I love Final Fantasy! Especially Final Fantasy 7! That game has the best storyline ever! And . . . I think I might be gay for Cloud . . . . and Sephiroth . . . and . . .
{Me} For God's sake, would you please just leave me the fuck alone!?!?!
(By the way, that's not much of an exaggeration of the nerds where I live. EVERY-FUCKING-BODY THINKS FF7 IS THE VIDEOGAME COUNTERPART TO THE LORD OF THE RINGS. AND NONE OF THEM. FUCKING. SHUT. UP. ABOUT SPIKEY BOY AND GREY LOCKS. I SWEAR, I AM NOT MAKING THIS UP. I AM GRITTING MY TEETH RIGHT THIS SECOND AS I WRITE THIS.)
Now, let's touch on that subject from yesterday. I don't have much vacation time left, so I'm spending all my time on youtube listening to more music, particularly music sung by Vocaloids. Some Vocaloid compositions are better than others. However, I've detected a fatal flaw about all of them.
None of them sing with passion.
No matter if it's Hatsune Miku, Rin and Ren Kagamine, Sweet Ann, or whatever other programs they have, they all lack . . . emotion. I swear, it's like a bad plot from a phoned-in epsiode of a Star Trek show. ("These . . . Vocaloids you call them . . . their singing, is . . . phenomenal." "Be that as it may, Jim, I find their manner of singing to be . . . illogical.") That doesn't mean they sound bad. No, some of the pieces are great. It's just that, unless if they can make a Vocaloid mimic human emotion while singing, it won't match the best human singers I know.
Then it hit me. My disdain for most music, that is. The Vocaloids, regardless of their versatility and kawaii appeal, are soulless. "But, xm, you already think most professional singers are soulless anyway! What difference does it make!?" I was amused with myself.
But regardless of what you think about Vocaloids, you have to listen to this one J-rock piece I found. A piece performed by Rin Kagamine, if you will.
Rock on.
P.S. Linkin Park is not one of my favorite bands. However, they are not completely worthless either. "ZOMG! xm defended a band popular with 'normal people'! Is there no stopping his rugged individuality!?"
