From the recording Reptiles and Monsters
Another Giantslayer inspired track, "The Other Side" is the partner song to "Bloodmarch". The book mentions a bard by the name of Rodrick Grath, who wrote "The Ballad of the Bloodmarch" and also a more controverial song "The Other Side of Contempt", which tells the tale of a half-orc child of war, who grew up on a frontier town populated by humans and half-orcs who live together in community.
This song explorers some inner conflict the protaganist feels. He has pledged to serve the militia in times of war, but he is very much against war, especially since it took the life of his father. His hope is that even though his patriotism will result not in war but in peace. I pray that people in the real world share this hope and will work to see it come true.
I think this might be my favorite song on this CD, and I think it's a good way to close out the ablum. However, if you decide to pick up the physical CD, there is a fun bonus cover track of a Scooby Doo song after it :)
vocals and instruments: Cool Nerd Mark
Lyrics and music composed by John Mark Orr copyright 2025
Giantslayer is a trademark of Paizo Inc. This and Bloodmarch are fan works and a love letter to a company that has and continues to provide me with countless hours of entertainment.
Lyrics
The Other Side (2018)
The battle is over…my people have lost.
Our warriors fought bravely, but oh what a cost.
Those who live by the falchion will die by the sword,
And to some, a brave death is a kind of reward.
I am a half-orc child of war, not exempt
From sorrow or pain on the other side of contempt.
My father has fallen…or so I’ve been told,
And now I’m a captive…and just eight years old.
Well, perhaps as a warrior he got what he was due,
And you can't find peace if it’s conquest you pursue.
But he was my father, and now I must lament,
For now I have no one on the other side of contempt.
The other side of contempt, the other side.
So I made a home here on the streets of Trunau.
Now I’m grown up, I’ll take the Standing Vow.
I will stand, I will fight, never yield, never flee,
And I swear by my hopeknife I will always live free.
I feel a bit strange about what that represents,
But I must be loyal on the other side of contempt.
The other side of contempt, the other side.
Sometimes there's a price we must pay to live free.
I hope there’s a chance that we can live in harmony.
An end to conflict, a peace we can attempt.
Let’s work together on the other side,
The other side of contempt.
The other side, the other side, the other side of contempt.