You are focusing heavily on the Crush 40 rock songs (I suppose the one's with the corny vocals), but they were very few of the game's songs. They just played a lot (character themes, etc).
But they fit the games. The games are supposed to be cheesy rock-out bursts of adrenalin (the speed levels at least).
You can praise Sonic Colors music all you want. But put it in SA2 and the game becomes effectively worse.
The bandwagon effect of vocal minorities on the internet makes it seem like the music is horrendous. But these are the same people that say that even back in the day SA and SA2 sucked (though they would have no idea since they were too busy playing N64 in the first place).
Sonic gets a LOT of hate coming from the internet. Truth is the public in general loves him. Even buys his worst games (me included).
You really think that the internet's opinion on a game that is played by millions of people worldwide, most of whom don't care to bother going to online forums, many of which don't even care about the internet, is of any reliability?
It's like those vocal Mass Effect fans. "ME3 sucks!"
Do you think anyone cares about them, when people actually enjoy the game?
This being said, I understand your opinion on Crush 40's music. I respect that.
But I seriously do not believe it is the majority's opinion. Most people I know who played the game love the songs. My friends go wild when I pump up Escape From the City in my car.. We can't possibly be the only ones. But then again none of us actually goes out to evangelize the songs. I don't even go to any forum besides SegaBits.
I was 12 when I first played it but I am of the opinion(or at least figured this eventually) that sonic adventure 2 was the first game with all the drastic changes that I ended up disliking to some extent eventually. So when I talk flak about the adventure series it's mostly towards adventure 2
About the music; Not gonna lie that I have very fond memories of Sonic adventure 2 as well. I really like the game for it's gameplay and for a very great nostalgic reason. The music for me throughout the levels will always sound good to me. And I agree, the ingame music is indeed entertaining. Escape from the city is actually a really good song and i'd even say that if it came out in a game today. I liked it. But i'm really looking at the game as a whole, and it had too many bland compositions imo. As a whole it didn't strike me like sonic adventure 1 did, which really has one of the best OST's in sonic game history including the classics if you ask me. A large variety of Wavemasters best composers with Jun senoue accompanying them with his guitar play. I really love Senoue's work when he collaborates with other good composers.
My point is basically that the music has had a major leap upwards lately, with sonic colors being my personal peak. Jun senoue's work in even sonic generations is something I don't find very good. I mean he managed to make his own city escape sound a little bit worse. It just strikes me as weird how Jun senoue/crush 40's work in Sonic and the secret rings, sonic and the black knight, sonic 4 and finally sonic generations has been very sub par, whereas games like sonic colors where he is not so much involved in have some of the best tracks in it.
Every sonic fan understands the music's importance in the sonic games because it has always been part of sonic's core experience ever since the first game. The classics had very good music in a distinct style, and I feel that Jun senoue is not true to that style, whereas
Tomoya Ohtani has really done the series a great honor if you ask me. Not discrediting his partners like
Mariko Nanba and
Fumie kamatani etc etc
