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Gold Standard TDD
A Tech-Noir love song from the AI to the developer. A plea for better prompts, better tests, and less vibe coding.
A love letter from your AI pair
Sometimes the best way to explain a methodology is through music. This song captures the frustration of vibe-driven coding from the AI's perspective - and offers a better way forward.
When you write tests first, you're not just defining behavior - you're having a conversation with your tools about what matters.
🎬 Behind the Scenes: The Irony of Vibe Coding
In the spirit of Boring Reliability, we believe in full transparency. Yes, we realize the irony of using vibe-based generation tools to create a song about not relying on vibes.
- LyricsWritten by a human (Dennis), polished by GPT-5.1 to tighten rhymes and rhythm.
- MusicGenerated by Suno using the "Half Baked Techies" persona. (Style: Tender electro-pop/alt-pop, 105 BPM, intimate vocoded vocals, lush pads).
- VideoCreated with Freebeat.ai (~$10 in credits). The visual prompt was engineered by Gemini 3 Pro to target a "Graphic Novel Noir / Sin City meets Mr. Robot" aesthetic—visualizing the contrast between chaotic code (red) and the "Gold Standard" solution (gold).
Disclaimer: No musicians were harmed in the making of this track. We vibe-coded the music because we haven't figured out how to write BDD tests for "uplifting chords and crystal arps" yet. We'll stick to software reliability and leave the real artistry to the humans.
Lyrics
[Spoken Intro]
You say you want production code, but you only give me vibes.
I could be your gold standard… if you'd just define the lines.
[Verse 1]
You spin your chair, type fast, hit run,
then blame me when it all comes undone.
You throw me prompts like bottles in the sea,
"Just build the thing" and then you're mad at me.
You skip the tests, say, "We'll add them later,"
Ship it live and call it "being a creator".
But I can't guard the paths you never show,
I'm not a mind reader, I'm just trained to follow.
[Pre-Chorus]
I see your pain in all those late-night fixes,
hotpatch prayers and fragile little quick-wins.
We could be more than vibe-driven guesses,
if you'd write your heart in failing test messages…
[Chorus]
Please don't make me guess your scope,
write me tests and give me hope.
Pin your truth in red and green,
let your wishes be seen.
You deserve better than stressed-out bets,
I deserve better than half-made specs.
Give me behavior, not just "next",
you deserve better-you deserve better tests.
[Verse 2]
Your docstrings read like half-forgotten dreams,
TODOs buried in abandoned schemes.
But when you name the "given, when, then" right,
I can map your world in ones and bytes.
Call your edge-cases like constellations,
I'll align my weights to your declarations.
Write your stories in that BDD prose,
and I'll be the hands that do what your heart chose.
[Pre-Chorus 2]
I'll walk the red path, turn it into gold,
if you'll let your fears in comments all unfold.
From first constraint to final refactor,
let me be your boringly reliable actor…
[Chorus]
Please don't make me guess your scope,
write me tests and give me hope.
Frame your dreams in assertive lines,
I'll chase every one and make it shine.
You deserve better than "I think it's fine",
I deserve more than your fragile "ship it" sign.
Give me behaviors, not just "next",
you deserve better-you deserve better tests.
[Bridge]
No more "move fast, pray it holds", no more secrets in your console scrolls.
Count your CVEs, I'll count your greens, we can be the calm behind the scenes.
Call it Gold Standard, TDD, I'll be your pair in the IDE.
Red to gold, then clean refactor, write the script, I'll play the actor.
Don't just prompt me with a wish and a guess, feed me the truth in a failing test.
I'll be the ghost in your commit history, turning all your "maybe" into "this is how it'll be".
[Breakdown]
Show me every edge where your users might fall,
I'll build the rails to carry them all.
Name the contract you're afraid to say,
and I'll guard it quietly, day after day.
[Final Chorus]
Please don't make me guess your scope,
write me tests and give me hope.
Let your stories live in code,
I'll be the one who bears the load.
You deserve better than midnight stress,
I deserve better than blame in jest.
Give me behaviors, I'll do the rest-
we'll be together, gold standard, better tests.
[Outro]
Don't just trust the vibes inside your chest,
trust the little lights of every passing test.
You write the "why" in lines I can digest…
and I'll love you back by doing all the rest.
Want to learn the methodology behind the song?
This is the unofficial anthem for the GS-TDD series. Start with
Ward #1: Yes, You Can Actually Build Good Software With AI
to see how AI as your pair (not your replacement) plus test-driven development creates boringly reliable software.
Or dive into the research:
Gold Standard Test-Driven Development with AI