Opera Singer Reacts: A.B.A.'s Theme || Guilty Gear Strive OST 

knowing Daisuke, the pink floyd reference is *absolutely* intentional.

"This couldn't be played on the radio society isn't ready" So instead of reflecting on themselves, they chose to blame the beasts...

Her name is meant to be read as "Abba" You know Like THAT ABBA

Fun fact her husband (Paracelsus) is named after Philippus Aureolus Theophrastus Bombastus von Hohenheim the guy who wrote a lot about homunculus.

"How many instruments you want?" "Yes" "Ok... and what tempo you want?" "s p e e d."

Honestly "Symphony" is one of those songs that you listen to the first time and go "wow that was interesting." But with every successive re-listen, it draws you in more and more. You notice a chord progression here, another instrument playing it's heart out there, and before you know it you're screaming "I'm not here to fit in this world. I just want to make a difference," at the top of your lungs with tears streaming down your face. I love it

I wonder what it says about me that these lyrics made perfect sense to me right away, even without knowing anything about the character. Those lists of virtues are delivered in a tone that's not just serious and dramatic, it's overblown and mocking. Then they're followed by an exhortation to "break out" and the assertion that "life is a maze woven with words." The words that form the walls of that maze are things like "Wisdom; Patience; Empathy; Kindness; Serenity; Clarity" - expectations placed on us to control our behavior and keep us from rebelling against the injustice of this world. That idea is stated twice, with an added line of "words weave a stealthy chain" for good measure. To be clear, I'm not saying we shouldn't try to live with wisdom, patience, empathy, kindness, serenity, clarity, etc., but when we allow those in power to turn those virtues against us by preaching them in bad faith, we absolutely do need to "break out" and "turn the key to a world untold" - i.e., the *better* world that can happen when we stop trying to do as we're told and start trying to create the world they tell us is impossible. "Normal or not; no big deal" is only part of it. "Symphony" is, from start to finish, a rallying cry for those beaten down or discarded by society. Thanks for coming to my TED Talk.

The Organ Part at 5:20 is a reference to her old theme, Keep in Gates

That part with the organ give me drift levels of “fuck it switch up time” and I’m all for it

Marco I know you have had moments of “what is this” or “oh that’s cool” at music shifts but this is the first time I think I’ve heard you say “What the fuck!?” to a shift in music and of course it would be guilty gear lol, gotta love it. 😂 5:30-5:36

That key is her husband.

Just wanted to say real quick. the lyrics aren't nonsensical, they are just all metaphors. "life is a maze woven with words, blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah" refers to societal norms and her disregarding them in favor of her own "armor of words". took me like three or four listens to catch on to this, and its quite incredible how many neat lines there are.

The pink floyd reference is actually real since Daisuke does that a lot. In fact in Elphelt's theme, "All I want for Christmas is you" and "Amazing Grace" were referenced.

If there's anything that really carries this song, it's the tempo. It is downright _insane_ , and that's sort of reflective of A.B.A as a character as well. Her thoughts and emotions are so complex and volatile, it's like her brain is going at a mile a minute. She can flip from sickly lovestruck to violently jealous at the drop of a hat, which is actually a game mechanic she has! More than anything, this relentless tempo is being juxtaposed against what's actually a blissful, happy melody. The chorus of this song is kind of victorious, a declaration of joy riding a wave of madness. It's *manic* , and I don't think anything expresses A.B.A. better than unfettered, _aggressive_ glee. At the same time it's also reflective of her character development in Guilty Gear Strive. This song is a MESS of words, a sea of concepts and thoughts that A.B.A runs though at blistering speed, a _maze_ . Even what she calls 'love' is more of an obsession, a twisted possessiveness that grants the emotion she craves to her and only her. But at the end, when the chorus rings out, there's only one thing she truly wants; to be free. Free from this storm of meaningless thoughts, free from judgment, free from her own mind. "Break out! Break out! Turn the key to a world untold!" The end of her Arcade Mode story sees A.B.A. and Paracelsus opening up to one another for the first time, admitting that their relationship was just mutual parasitism where they both manipulate and use one another. The moment A.B.A finally begins to think outside of herself, she gains empathy and the ability to truly understand someone, so she and Paracelsus work on building their relationship from the ground up. The shift in lyrics from "I'm just a quirky note" to "We're just quirky notes" reflects this as well, as A.B.A. has finally let Paracelsus into her heart, to truly share herself with. There's even a visual irony to it all, where a character who is themed around keys is herself a lock that cannot be opened, until now.

Symphony is the kind of song that only gets better the more you listen to it, specially with context. A.B.A's theme is just as crazy as her and I wouldn't have it any other way.

The music being all over the place and unusual really fits with the lyrics being about not fitting in and being free

8:48 that is definitely not an accident. Daisuke knows exactly what he's doing 😄

when Bohemian Rhapsody first came out, the entire music industry wasn't really appreciating it since it was so out of the box at the time it was created. Daisuke is a big Queen's fan, I'm sure he's doing something similar.

Strive songs are basically lore and character development. I like how A.B.A's theme basically talks her being alone, wanting to go out and be free, how she doesn't fit in but doesn't care. But then she finds Paracelsus, and the lyrics change from "blah blah blah" to "Let's shout shout shout." From "I'm just a quirky note" to "WE'RE just quirky notes" There is more energy and excitement in the latter part of the song because while she's still weird and doesn't fit in with the world, she fits in with Paracelsus now and that's enough. They're just weirdos together now. Really speaks to people that feel like outcasts until they find their best friend or partner who is just as weird as they are.

I also really like the fact that her name alone is a reference A.B.A. = ABBA

The reference to [Brick in the Wall] is likely very purposeful. The virtues listed in the beginning are traditional greek virtues, greek equivalent to an 'education'. The virtues listed later reference the philosophical British sentamentalists. One british sentamentalist, hated 'education' as it stopped people from feeling, causing them to act without feeling. Both these seem relevant to the Pink Floyd reference. My Bachelors in Philosophy being put to good use 😂.

"Ive waited an eternity for this"

Elphelt's theme has a lot going on for it, including fact that Molly sings all of it, but i think A.B.A's theme is just really really fun to listen. It took me couple repeats to figure out whether i like it more than other themes, but now i think it's one of the best just to listen, especially when you are in the mood for something upbeat.

Symphony may not be my favorite Guilty Gear song, but the “I'm not here to fit in this world, I just want to make a difference” verse is the single best line of lyrics from all of the songs in my opinion.

5:55 well, isn't bongos often used in lounge jazz? and lounge jazz and bossanova found their way into japanese music after the era of prog ended(first example that comes to mind is catherine's ost, but there's a quadrillion examples really) and given how fusion jazz and prog are inextricably interwoven with one another and both found a resurgance in today's musical landscape... yeah, i can see that, it may not be "normal" but that's exactly what those genres do and it's exactly why it fits the character theme :V

The Wall was ingrained in me as a teen when I was in band as we would play that at every football game during the halftime show

The guy playing the piano, the organ guy, and the drummer better get a raise after this one.

Dude I love this!! Somehow the musical analysis just makes it even more interesting, like no wonder it fits A.B.A so much, I might as well just start playing the just for the music too

Thinking about this song as a fan since the original game, its really incredible to think on how much Daisuke has grown as an artist and a developer. He went from a dude who did a little bit of everything (but especially the music) to the guy with the vision and became the director, to now being a high rank in the same company and composing these bangers woth not only instrumental depth but lyrics that reflect the characters and themes of the series incredibly well.

i love this song so much, glad you reacted to it Marco

IVE BEEN WANTING TO SEE YOUR REACTION TO MY FAVORITE THEME!! 🤩

I've been waiting for this! Aaaaa

This reaction was an absolute delight to start of my friday with. Your reactions and laughter to the way A.B.A's song progresses and changes were just sweet to see. I don't know if you do this for every GG song, but i liked the looking up of her backstory to get a greater understanding of this confusing and difficult woman, for whom I'm really glad the writers ended up putting her and Paracelsus on the road to betterment instead of an extreme, destructive yandere. She's still got the dangerous, jealous side of her, but within her and Paracelsus' symphony, more hopeful notes are being learnt.

I was WAITING for this episode!

Always love when you dive into Guilty Gear's music! Hoping we get some more GG soon, maybe Baiken's theme?

amazing music as always

So glad Marco loves Strive's OST xD Slayer is coming out on May 30th, so here's hoping to see a reaction for Ups and Downs! 🤞

"BLAH, BLAH, BLAH! BLAH, BLAH, BLAH! BLAH! BLAH! BLAH!!" Does not need to go so hard and yet it does

Oh shit its happening! More guilty gear please lol. This OST is so good I watched a 2 hour lore video for a series I dont even play 😂

"Nonsensical lyrics" little did you know they make perfect sense for the character who is very autistic coded as she struggles to express her emotions in a "human" way (since she's a homunculus) and is prone to emotional outbursts lol There's lyrics telling her she's creepy and bothersome, telling her that she's suffering from depression but she's brushing them off until the frustration bursts forth. She's frustrated with how these words are thrown at her and is throwing them away with the "blah blah" part despite words making up what life is...then the church organ comes in and she's found her husband which is the sentient key-shaped axe named Paracelsus lol She loves him with all her being and he loves her (albeit sometimes in a reluctant way as he finds her emotions to be overwhelming sometimes too, but he still tries to make her happy). She's not here to fit in to the world like society wants her to with their words, but she won't stand idly by and let the world flow on without her either.

Witch "Key" is the music on? It must be a really big one, for sure!

5:23 i haven't seen any comments about this, but the chords are the same here as the beginning of her old theme Keep In Gates from previous games

Me gesturing to an entire whiteboard covered in newspaper clippings and article printouts covered in a mess of red string: No no no the lyrics make sense. Look, it's all in the context of the character and it actually paints a very good depiction of their story. Look, look at this, they make sense I swear.

I feel pretty confident in saying this is my favorite character theme in the game. This character had literally zero presence in the story of Guilty Gear before now, she was just doing her own thing and even then she only appeared in Isuka and in the later XX updates, so not as much to work with as even the characters that were both in XX and Xrd. She's still pretty disconnected from the plot for now but that's ok because who in Guilty Gear really is besides like 6 guys. But they really gave her the red carpet into this game they treated her so well after her being absent for so long that whether she existed was called into question. The emotional section in this song I think might be the longest emotional section out of the songs in the game that do that, and that drummer at the end is just holy shit. The lyrics are absolutely perfect for her. In her arcade mode in Strive after some encounters with Testament and Elphelt her and Paracelsus finally had an open dialogue about their relationship and they've vowed to eachother to work on themselves rather than end the relationship because they can't bear to be apart. The final cutscene in her arcade is literally just an adult mature conversation between a struggling couple it's crazy how human they can write a pair of characters like this. The parts about love in the song, and when the "I'm just a quirky note" turns into "we're just quirky notes" is talking about Paracelsus. Also yes the Pink Floyd reference is 1000% intentional that's crazy.

I was fearing you wouldn't find the "The Wall" reference. Phew.

I love this videos Marco, I still want to see you hearing Baiken's theme from GG Strive

When marco reacts to GG music, I will always be here o7

Personally Symphony is my new favorite Guitly Gear Song. Its so beautiful but still packed full of frantic energy that I really like in music. Also I recommend "ABA's Symphony" by Uzelac. Its a fun animation that goes along with the music.

I love Strive's ost, just when you think it can't get better Daisuke throws out another banger. I can't wait for Slayer's theme to hit, hopefully we get hit with that Jazz goodness.

The song makes more sense than you might think, but it's contextual on her Strive story. Paracelsus, the key/axe, is her husband, and Strive is them going to couple's counseling. ABA is worried that her possessiveness is hurting her key husband, so maybe they should separate. But Paracelsus convinces her to stay by telling her he doesn't mind so long as she keeps trying to change for his sake. And that's where a lot of the weirder lyrics come from - it's about Paracelsus validating her and the two of them taking what is an unhealthy relationship and working it into something functional, together. And THAT is why life and love are mazes woven with words.

This has to be one of my favorites so far. They went so hard with this one, and I don’t even play her in the game

thanks for the proffesional breakdown for one of the best in-game music in the industry period man

Just a few hours ago I was wondering why you haven't published any video referring to this song jajajajaja, what a coincidence

I love how bongos are just a part of Guilty Gear’s musical arsenal now.

Bro looks like SF6 up Zangief face in the thumbnail

Btw the organ part in the song is a reference to her old theme song "Keep In Gates"

The church organ halfway through the song I'm sure represents her meeting her 'husband' Paracelsus, because after she changed the lyrics to LOVE is a maze woven with words, and that WE'RE just quirky notes in the synphony

Not many people catch this but in the beginning the lyrics are "I'm just a quirky note in the symphony" and "life is a maze woven with words" but in the midpoint after the organs it changes to "We're just quirky notes in the symphony" and "Love is a maze woven with words". This represents A.B.A finding Paracelsus and her love for Paracelsus who she considers her husband

Marco the part where they say love is a maze woven with words I think they are talking about A.B.A and her axe

This one was so nice, can't wait for Slayer to come out

1:40 There really is tons of artistic expressions in Guilty Gear's soundtracks ; for example it took someone pointing out the references in Extras to notice them because it meshed so perfectly, but once I realized them I appreciated the song even more.

Pink Floyd being in this song absolutely wasn't an accident. Guilty Gear on the whole is one giant love letter to metal and rock, so I'm not surprised Daisuke would sneak a Pink Floyd reference into the game somewhere.

The Organ section is a throwback to one of A.B.A.'s previous themes called Keep In Gate. You should give that a listen in your spare time, it hasn't got any vocals or lyrics but the difference between that track and Symphony is interesting, despite both being heavy.

YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW HAPPY I AM

Hope to see you do more Guilty gear music

I'm ready for guilty gear strive music in radio!

Something I wanna point out is that the riff itself is "The Wall" riff yes, HOWEVER, how it's played reminds me more of its iteration in the song "Hey You". Thematically, Hey You is VERY MUCH SO related to A.B.A. if you really connect the dots. Much love

I hope one day Marco you play the "character's first theme Vs character's current theme" because WHOO BOY is that wild for guilty gear maybe even funnier to think about how the song's themeing and style has evolved as the character has over its quarter century existence

Damn it, now I cannot unhear another brick in the wall in ABA's theme

I’m almost positive The Wall reference is intentional. Did you catch Extras referencing All I Want For Christmas Is You (I just want you for my own = I’m scared of the laughter but) and Amazing Grace? (But then I realized)?

"That's not normal" No, that's A.B.A.!

Would love to see axl low's theme too 🙏

Footsteps in the Night Sky

His genuine reaction to the jazzy part of ABA's theme makes me so unbelievably excited for his reaction to Slayer's theme. I've been here a while, Mr. Meatball, and I'm proud to say I've enjoyed every second. Thanks for the content you provide, and hope you have a great rest of your day, to anyone who reads this comment.

one day, dream upon a star, armor clad faith

I really loved this song. Aba's personality shines through really well. Also now that the FFXVI DLC rising tide is out, maybe we could take a look at Cascade, leviathan's boss theme which is actually the original Game's reveal music expanded into a full track

It's called avant garde, that kinda the genre of music that guilty gear is, check Diablo swing Orchestra in their first album they use opera singing and swing and metal and other stuff

1:11 - 1:42 The world is just a small part of the world

heck yea c:

as a personal reaction request I'd love to hear your thoughts on Full Confession and Mind Parade by Ludowic from Katana Zero. the whole soundtrack for that game is incredible but those 2 are standouts for me. Mind parade isn't even in the game yet cause the DLC isn't out

From my understand of Aria from Sideways the youtuber. ARIA is a song in a opera moves the story character pieces or story moments. As he says it goes way deeper but i see Guilty Gear Strive character tracks as I want songs in a musicals.

Marcoooo!!! Armorclad Faith next plz

thanks for the vid as always! Marco please check out "Ricordando il passato" from Umineko no naku koro ni!! This visual novel has absolute bangers and especially this one is so incredibly beautiful

LETS GOOOOOOOOOOO

The church organ is a reference to her earlier theme in xrd, also her "marriage" to her new "husband" (she's quite insane), thats why the lyric changes to love in the last verse, i think. Daisuke be daisuke

cool

another great video listening to Guilty Gear music Marco. another cool thing they did for ABA in this iteration of her is that both she and Paracelsus have straps that say Hohenheim on it. Which is neat since it is referring to Theophrastus von Hohenheim (AKA Paracelsus), a Swiss Physician and Alchemist of the German Renaissance. Alchemist stands out (as well as his given nickname Paracelsus) as it often includes study of Homunculi (Homunculus) which Paracelsus wrote about and Aba is a Homunculus. Also Daisuke is a fan of all sorts of bands so ABA is read like the band named Abba the Pop group. (here are links if anyone wanted to check: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paracelsus ; en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homunculus)

Organ Jazz hits like a flashbang

can you do slayers theme (ups and downs) next?

Another new video of Marco reaction to more music, but I'm still here kindly waiting until we have the video of Marco reacting to Zero from Granblue Fantasy. 🙂

I hadn't looked at the lyrics for Symphony yet but _damn_ if they don't represent ABA's arc in Strive perfectly, huh?

0:51 Piano 😳

"Society is not ready for Guilty Gear music" is SO true. No one actually would understand the genius of these songs, which saddens me so much... but also I love that it's a rare gem for those who can enjoy it.

Here hoping he reacts to Leo's theme hellfire next

Everytime I see your videos in my recommended I get jumpscared for a second cause I keep mistaking you for Matt Walsh

Aba before baiken? I’m so hungry for the demon!

Guilty Gear is basically one giant music reference, so if something looks like it could be one, it is one. Therefore, A.B.A. is pronounced like the pop group ABBA. Some other characters with musician's/band names: Testament (same as band), Venom (same as band), Slayer (same as band), Millia Rage (Meliah Rage), Goldlewis Dickinson (Bruce Dickinson from Iron Maiden), Axl Low (Axl Rose from Guns N' Roses). And of course since it's all a reference, the Pink Floyd melody is absolutely intentional.

I was hoping you'd pick out that Pink Floyd reference!

"What genre is it?" Guilty Gear. "Oh whats that like?" Everything "Im sorry?" Everything.

bro Hes GOTTA hear armor clad faith