Rock Band Unplugged

What's that? You haven't heard of Rock Band Unplugged? Not surprising, since it was released on the PSP and who the fuck plays on the PSP or Vita anymore?
Anyway, Rock Band Unplugged was the first handheld title from Harmonix and featured no peripherals or additional purchases to play; just the UMD for the game and the PSP itself. It was actually quite a fun game that required button tapping to either guitar, bass, drums or vocal melodies and effective organisation in the form of musical plate spinning, as it was up to you and you alone to play all four charts for a song. Unfortunately, it wasn't multiplayer which was kind of a big deal for a game in the Rock Band franchise but other than that, it was decent!
However, the aim of this blog post is to look at the setlist and whether they chose the right songs for the Rock Band Unplugged treatment, similar to previous blog posts that are listed in the Guitar Hero 2 write-up. I'll be awarding each song a Thumbs Up or Thumbs Down based on my personal taste of the song, whether it translates well to the Rock Band Unplugged engine and whether it deserved to be in the game over other songs by the same band/genre.
Anyway, let's get...unplugged...yeah, that was shit. Let's just read what I have to say, shall we?

"3s & 7s" - Queens Of The Stone Age
Whilst I'm not a huge fan of this song in general, I do think it's a fine choice for the game. Since the gameplay involves matching button pressing to the guitar, bass, drums and vocals, it makes sense to include songs with borderline erratic rhythms that aren't your typical 4/4 plodfests. Granted that the vocals are a little dull in this track but the guitar and drums more than make up for it. There are several QOTSA songs that could've had challenging melodies to play but if you want one that's well known...well, this or "No One Knows" but I supposed they wanted to hold onto that for an on-disc inclusion, which I'm glad they did. THUMBS UP.

"ABC" - The Jackson 5
As much as I fucking hate this song with a burning passion, I have to concede that it's kinda fun to play in Rock Band Unplugged. The bass and vocals have some fun sections but those after a challenge have a decent drum solo to deal with too. However, you know what else has some funky bass and a great drum chart (complete with drum solo)? "Funk #49" - The James Gang, another 70s song that translates well into Rock Band Unplugged. Granted that song is vastly more challenging and it's not a new song, like "ABC", but I don't care. There are enough easy songs, as we'll discuss later, and this track is terrible. THUMBS DOWN.

"Ace Of Spades '08" - Motorhead
Man, those drum rolls can eat a dick. I always fucked them up when I played this song but hey, at least it's a great song. Unfortunately, it's somewhat of an awkward chart and since "Ace Of Spades" became one of many songs that the GH/RB community joked was in every single game, perhaps a different Motorhead song would've been better. That way, we could've had more Motorhead DLC which, if the GH:WT songs were anything to go by, would've been incredible. It's with a heavy heart that I give this track a THUMBS DOWN.

"Alive" - Pearl Jam
You'll probably notice that a lot of songs on this game are borrowed from Rock Band 2, seeing as how they were made/released around the same time. However, since Rock Band 2 has a banging soundtrack, I don't particularly mind. Besides, this game introduced me to a lot of songs that I hadn't heard because I bought it before Rock Band 2...like "Alive" - Pearl Jam! The song might be quite a long one to sit through on the PSP but hey, you get that beast of a guitar solo at the end and various opportunities to play Eddie Vedder's vocals in the chorus throughout. Those reasons are enough to convince me that this song was the best pick, therefore THUMBS UP.

"Aqualung" - Jethro Tull
Another song from RB2 that this game introduced me to. It took a while for me to get into, probably because the drums and guitar in the faster section don't translate into a particularly fun chart for the inexperienced player, but at least they were cracking to listen to. In fact, hearing the amplified drums and bass in Rock Band Unplugged is awesome in this song, especially if you're only used to poor quality MP3s of this song. It may have been a little too challenging for me but hey, it wasn't a bad choice. There are a bunch of 70s Prog songs that could've been neat but aside from a slightly tricky chart that's easier to master than some of the others in this game, there's nothing bad about this song's inclusion. THUMBS UP.

"Buddy Holly" - Weezer
Meh, I never really got into this song. I kinda missed out on Weezer when growing up, although there are a couple of belters that I still listen to. Sadly, this isn't one of them. The guitar is mostly just chords over and over (which aren't tremendously fun to play or good for your thumbs) and the vocals are probably the highlight to play, even if drums and bass have some variety in the charting. I'd argue that "Troublemaker" probably would've been a more fun Weezer track for this game, although there'd be that guitar section later on where it's just strumming over and over again. I dunno, my instinct tells me to give it a Thumbs Down...so that's what I'm going with. THUMBS DOWN.

"Carry On Wayward Son" - Kansas
Another rhythm music game staple, although I knew this before Rock Band used it. Arguably one of the most iconic Classic Rock songs of all time (along with another well known hit that also appears on this game a bit later on) and with good reason; it's fucking awesome. Thankfully, this belter translates beautifully to Rock Band Unplugged with multiple vocal solos, cracking drums and fun riffs on bass and guitar. THUMBS UP.

"Chop Suey!" - System Of A Down
I fucking hate this song in Rock Band but my God, it is great in Rock Band Unplugged. The rapid alternation between two notes across all instruments works brilliantly, as do Serj's usually annoying vocals. The timing and rhythm of the note alternations stop it from being just another thumb-buggering tune and the softer sections in between allow for some great charting too. Definitely not a favourite from this game but I wouldn't mind when I had to play it, even if it did mean sitting through this godawful song. THUMBS UP.

"Come Out And Play (Keep Em Separated)" - The Offspring
OK, I'm in two minds about this one. On the one hand, it's a great song and the chart starts off really fun on each instrument. On the other, there's not an awful lot of variety to this one. Once you've played all the instruments, it's basically the same riffs until the end. Plus, there are a bunch of great Offspring songs that could've made the cut instead of another RB2 song. I'm gonna give it a THUMBS UP again because it's still one you can have fun with, especially on drums.

"De-Luxe" - Lush
Somebody at HMX must've really liked this song. It's OK, I suppose; a decent chill-out song with some catchy sounding vocals. Not too bad to play on Rock Band Unplugged either, although maybe a different 90s Alternative song with some fun charting could've been good. "There's No Other Way" - Blur might have been a good one or maybe "Heavy" - Collective Soul? Yeah, this probably should've been DLC and one of those on-disc. THUMBS DOWN to account for the generous Thumbs Ups I've been dishing out.

"Drain You" - Nirvana
Oh fuck, this one. Nirvana at their blandest. Dull song, dull to play. Why they had to use this song from Rock Band 2 instead of one of the other fun but easy songs, I don't know. As for a Nirvana song that could've been a better alternative...I mean, pick one at random? "Heart Shaped Box", "Come As You Are", "Lithium", "Mr Moustache", the list goes on. THUMBS DOWN.

"Everlong" - Foo Fighters
I've talked about how mediocre this song is way too many times on the blog before so I won't go into that again. What I will discuss is the chart and how average it is. It's not good, it's not bad. It's just a chart, much like the "Everlong" chart on GH/RB. It's as bland as it comes and takes up the space that a better Foo Fighters song could've occupied. "All My Life", "This Is A Call" or "Monkey Wrench" would've been preferable to this crap. THUMBS DOWN.

"Float On" - Modest Mouse
Jesus, this really is portable Rock Band 2, isn't it? I'm not a big fan of this song but as far as early tier introductory songs go on Rock Band Unplugged, this track's kinda perfect. It's got some challenging sections but it's mostly straightforward stuff; a wide range of button variety all to the song's basic rhythm, making it manageable and fun to play for beginners and skilled players alike. THUMBS UP.

"Gasoline" - Audioslave
Oh thank fuck, a new song! I feel like giving it a Thumbs Up for that alone but let's treat this fairly. It's a great tune by Audioslave that I'm glad got a Rock Band DLC release after this game's release, although I'm not certain that it was the best choice for this game. It's mostly fun on each instrument although the guitar in the verses is annoying as fuck to play. I suppose I can forgive one annoying section if the rest of the chart is great, which it is...apart from the post-solo guitar. OK, TWO annoying things. THUMBS UP.

"Holiday In Cambodia" - Dead Kennedys
Again, this song probably deserves a Thumbs Up just for the fact that it's not the shitty GH3 cover. However, it also helps that this song is great to listen to...even if it isn't so fun to play, unless you're up for a challenge. Lots of alternating notes over and over and over again. It was probably picked to be one of the more challenging songs although it's a shame they couldn't find one that was challenging and fun. Hmmm, tough call. I'm gonna give it a THUMBS UP just because it's still good to listen to, a decent choice to highlight challenging charts and even if it's not a barrel of laughs to get through, at least it's not boring.

"I Was Wrong" - Social Distortion
Whilst I didn't much care for this song in RB2, I really liked it in Rock Band Unplugged. The song translates well to the Unplugged gameplay and it's a good little tune to listen to. They should've used it in Rock Band Unplugged and picked a different Social Distortion track to be in Rock Band 2, something like "Ball And Chain" or "Story Of My Life"...mind you, their "Story Of My Life" chart is pretty dire. I'm still giving this a THUMBS UP though.

"The Killing Jar" - Siouxsie And The Banshees
I genuinely couldn't remember anything about this song until I reminded myself of the chart. I'll probably forget it again shortly after finishing this blog post, it's that ordinary. I'm not overly familiar with this band although I do know their song "Spellbound" and would've easily preferred that song to this cruddy one. Ordinary chart for a dull as fuck song. THUMBS DOWN.

"Kryptonite" - 3 Doors Down
Whilst these guys have revealed themselves to be tremendous cunts in recent years, they did give us one great song before outing themselves. It's got a decent guitar chart but it's the guitar AND drums that help this song stand out. The distinct rhythm separates it from other charts and gives it that edge, even if the vocals and bass do let it down a bit. However, it's a solid modern track (is the year 2000 still considered modern?) and it's getting a THUMBS UP.

"Laid To Rest" - Lamb Of God
Damn, this one's intense. It's also a lot of alternating buttons, translating pretty poorly from the great chart that this song has as Rock Band DLC. Drums provide a pretty tough challenge, as do guitar and bass, although vocals are a piece of piss. I guess this song makes sense for a challenge, although I bet other tracks with a little more charting variety could've been better. It's a tough call but I'm gonna say THUMBS DOWN as I doubt I would've missed this song were it not included.

"Less Talk More Rokk" - Freezepop
Another difficult song, another alternating notefest. The one advantage this one has is some musical variety, as it's not straight forward Rock/Metal. It's Electronic Pop with a decent riff that translates horrifically to Rock Band Unplugged. It may be good to listen to and be a welcome addition to Rock Band if only because it meant "Get Ready 2 Rokk" would get a DLC release but as far as Rock Band Unplugged additions go, I'm afraid it's another THUMBS DOWN.

"Livin' On A Prayer" - Bon Jovi
Back to easy Rock Band 2 tracks then. The guitar and bass may be identical at first but at least they have some note variety, along with the drums. Plus, it's hard to think of a better Bon Jovi song to get the Rock Band Unplugged treatment. I'm OK with this being an early tier track to help players get used to the feel of the game with an Arena Rock classic. THUMBS UP.

"Message In A Bottle" - The Police
This song's been in quite a few games too but not enough to reach "Ace Of Spades" or "Free Bird" territories. It's a decent chart, not a huge amount going on but the guitar in the chorus is something different. It's also probably the best choice for a song by The Police, as they're not the strongest band when it comes to rhythm music games. Other than that, it's a bog standard affair so the rating depends on whether or not you enjoy listening to this song...and I do! THUMBS UP.

"The Middle" - Jimmy Eat World
I don't think I've ever heard this song being used anywhere other than a rhythm music game from 2008 or 2009. It's a cute song but man, is it a crappy one to play in Rock Band Unplugged. Alternating notes, dull vocals and pain-in-the-arse drums. I don't know many (or any) other songs by Jimmy Eat World that would work and you all know that 2000s Pop Rock isn't exactly my wheelhouse but I'm pretty sure we could've had a better song choice than this. Hell, I'd even accept Paramore. THUMBS DOWN.

"Miss Murder" - AFI
Remember this song from GH3? Yeah, another song that got a hell of a lot of mileage from rhythm music games in the late 2000s. It's a decent track, definitely not as annoying as many other 21st Century Emo bands (like Paramore) and the rhythm allows for fun guitar, bass and drum charts that are different from the majority of songs on this list. Plus, it was a new song for Rock Band so it's a win-win-win. THUMBS UP.

"More Than A Feeling" - Boston
This is the OTHER iconic Classic Rock song I was talking about earlier. I love Boston and I love this song although I'm not convinced that it was the best choice for the game. Bass aside, the chart's a little dull and it could've been a good opportunity to introduce players to one of Boston's other great songs off their debut. Sure, "Foreplay/Long Time" was in Rock Band 1 and most of the others were released as DLC but "Peace Of Mind" or "Smokin" could've been fun, even if the latter almost certainly would've had alternating notes in the organ solo. I'm still giving this a THUMBS DOWN for being a bit of an obvious choice.

"Move Along" - All-American Rejects
I don't care for this song, even if the guitar chart isn't too bad. It also features a lot of alternating notes and that whiny American style of singing that I fucking despise. I accept that they needed some modern songs for teens to enjoy but come on, they should've set their standards a bit higher. THUMBS DOWN.

"Mr. Brightside" - The Killers
The Killers are one of the shittest "Rock" bands in recent years. Consequently, their music needs to be as far away from these games as possible, even if the guitar chart is kinda fun here but that's the only bright side to "Mr. Brightside"...I apologise for that pun. THUMBS DOWN.

"My Own Worst Enemy" - Lit
To this day, I still love making fun of the vocals during the chorus for this song. As for the translation to this game, it's not bad! It's a good song to help introduce you to alternating notes and chords without throwing too many at you, not to mention a short Pop Punk track to enjoy. All in all, it might be yet another Rock Band 2 song but this is one of the more appropriate songs they picked. THUMBS UP.

"Our Truth" - Lacuna Coil
Whilst I prefer playing this in GH:WT over RB2, I love the translation onto Rock Band Unplugged. Every instrument is fun to play for various reasons, from the great guitar/bass riffs to the catchy vocal melodies and challenging drums (not to mention the opening drum solo). Another great pick from Rock Band 2! THUMBS UP.

"Painkiller" - Judas Priest
The final song in Rock Band 2 and Rock Band Unplugged. For that reason, it's a little uninspired even though it is an incredible song. But hey, if you want a challenge, this is the song for you...apart from the vocals, they're easy to play on this but everything else is tough. However, rewatching the guitar solo play out on Rock Band Unplugged, I can't help but feel like this is wasted potential. Sure, "Painkiller" will always be tricky to master but reducing the solo to just a series of alternating buttons is a little bit shit. At least you get a chance to play the drum solos in the intro and outro. Meh, what the hell. THUMBS UP.

"The Perfect Drug" - Nine Inch Nails
I don't particularly care about Nine Inch Nails but if you have to use one of their songs, this seems like a decent choice. The alternating notes in the drum chart are fast enough to make them slightly more fun than others in this list and the general sound of the song is different to your typical Rock track on the setlist. For these reasons, I give it a generous THUMBS UP even though I probably wouldn't care to play or listen to this song again.

"Pinball Wizard" - The Who
I don't really like this song but I can't say I object to it being in Rock Band Unplugged. The fast paced guitar is quite fun to play, as are the drums and bass. Thankfully, vocals aren't dull so there's a solid balance between all instruments. However, despite the song sounding unfinished and a bit shit at the end, it doesn't make too much of a difference when the rest of the track is fun to play. I didn't care for this in Rock Band 2 but it gets a THUMBS UP for Rock Band Unplugged.

"Rock Your Socks" - Tenacious D
I'll always welcome Tenacious D in Rock Band but...really, this song? I mean, it's good but hardly a standout track on the album. "Wonderboy" would've been good although I'm guessing this was chosen due to the nature of the chart. There are guitar and vocal solos and semi-interesting melodies on guitar/bass, along with a few fancy drum fills. Plus, it's fun to play on console and the inclusion of Tenacious D meant we got "Tribute" as DLC. THUMBS UP for The D.

"Show Me The Way" - Black Tide
Again, I'm all for the inclusion of any Black Tide from their Light From Above album but I can't say I particularly care for this track. It's good but it's one of the album's weaker "good" tracks, if that makes sense? Ah well, it's still a solid track and it pisses all over a lot of modern American Metal so I suppose it's a decent track to include. Plus, the backbeat on the drums is decent to play when combined with the faster guitar/bass riff so I give it a THUMBS UP.

"Spoonman" - Soundgarden
Damn fine Soundgarden song and one of the more fun guitar charts in Rock Band 2 (which is saying something). It's also quite fun to play until you get to the guitar solo but at least there's a good drum solo and bass riffs afterwards. There could've been many fun Soundgarden tracks to choose from for Rock Band Unplugged like "Rusty Cage" or "Fell On Black Days" but I'm OK with this song making the cut, even if it is yet another RB2 song. THUMBS UP.

"Today" - The Smashing Pumpkins
I often forget that this song was in Rock Band 2, probably because I'm so used to it from GH:WT. Either way, it was dull as fuck in RB2 but it works pretty well here. It's not challenging on any instrument but it makes for a solid chart across all fronts, provided you don't mind a slower tempo 4/4 rhythm. RB2 should've got a more interesting Smashing Pumpkins song like "Rocket" or "Bullet With Butterfly Wings" and "Today" should've been released as DLC. THUMBS UP.

"The Trees (Vault Edition)" - Rush
All praise the sacred Vault! I previously gave this song shit for having terrible lyrics that even English Literature students would cringe at but hey, it's pretty damn fun on Rock Band Unplugged. There's a fun little drum solo and the guitar is decent too. Bass is always fun on Rush, even on Rock Band Unplugged, so there's no surprises there. There are many Rush songs that could've been picked but I'm glad they took a weaker one of there's and made it better through this unique gameplay. THUMBS UP.

"What's My Age Again?" - Blink-182
Back to the new songs. It's funny how the most fun sections of this song are some of the most dull in an actual instrument chart and vice versa. Usually, the song's main riff on guitar is fun to play but it sucks here, whilst the chorus and guitar solo are pretty damn great in this game. If a Blink-182 song had to be picked for the game, I'm glad they went with one of the more fun ones on guitar that has a proper riff instead of just chords and strumming so THUMBS UP, although maybe a Sum 41 song would've been better.

"Where'd You Go?" - The Mighty Mighty Bosstones
Back to Rock Band 2 songs. This one's pretty fun on guitar in RB2 and that does not translate into this chart in the slightest. The main reason to play this in Rock Band Unplugged is for the vocals, although they only really pick up after the halfway point. The other instruments are alright but nothing you haven't played already. This probably should've been DLC and a different Alternative song picked for the game, maybe even "The Impression That I Get" so we wouldn't have had to wait until Rock Band 4 to play it on RB. THUMBS DOWN.

"White Wedding, Part 1" - Billy Idol
The last Rock Band 2 song in the game; they probably should've called this game Rock Band 2.5 with all the repeats but hey, at least there were tracks that translated well...like this one, sort of. It's a basic chart across all instruments but I like how the bass isn't just the same repeated note; they tried to do something fun with it. This is an acceptable RB2 repeat, although maybe "Dancing With Myself" would've been fun too...or "Rebel Yell". Still gets a THUMBS UP though.

"Would?" - Alice In Chains
The final song of the game (alphabetically speaking). Not a big Alice In Chains fan but hey, at least it isn't "Man In The Box" from RB2. Sadly, this song isn't much better. The bass is kinda fiddly and the drums are annoying as hell. Guitar's pretty good but vocals are as dull as they come. I couldn't tell you a better Alice In Chains song as I'm unfamiliar with most of their work although Stone Temple Pilots may have had better Grunge or 90s Alternative songs. THUMBS DOWN.


Out of all 41 songs, there were 26 Thumbs Up and 15 Thumbs Down; another success for the Rock Band franchise! Looking back over previous charts, I'd love to play this game on Nintendo Switch but I don't see that happening any time soon. Shame as it was actually pretty fun.