Tag Archives: Rock

Review: Tree of Savior – Nostalgic September 2020 OST Collection

Onward to the “Nostalgic” September 2020 music collection from Tree of Savior. This volume features S.F.A artists, Initium, and more soundTemP. You can catch up on all the Tree of Savior soundtrack reviews here.

Perhaps the “nostalgia” in this collections’ title comes from the sort of classic South Korean MMORPG soundtrack that hearkens back to the Vol.1 release, replete with vocals throughout, opening with the amazing opener, “iKURU,” a lovely and warm J-rock track. It’s then onto more grandiose orchestral rock with “Dienos Advento,” the decisive vocal ballad “Through the Forest,” and the beautiful and dark “Guillotina Tristeza,” all with female vocals. There’s the desperate “La Patria,” the funky “The Dignity of Wrath” and “Bodacious definition,” and the sweeping and emotional “Massivity.” The team goes huge with “Vaste Terre,” an orchestral rock track, while “Signs of Penance” goes full electronic, “Even Horizon” gets an adventurous orchestral sound, and “Uno Impetus” is a catchy Megadeth-like tune. SoundTeMP’s lone contribution, “World is Missing You,” is soothing and beautiful with sweetly strummed acoustic guitar and, let’s say, nostalgic woodwinds. The album closes with “Deives Veliava,” a big female vocal performance over piano and strings.

The Nostalgic September 2020 collection is available on Steam.

ACE COMBAT 7: SKIES UNKNOWN ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK (SRIN-1162)

Ace Combat series fans probably found a lot to like with Ace Combat 7. Early in the pandemic, I played through Ace Combat 4, 5, 6, and Zero at the behest of our graphic designer, Connary Fagen. I fell in love with the storytelling, gameplay, and music. I knew I wanted to play through Ace Combat 7 and listened through this six-disc soundtrack release several times before finally doing so, and it is an incredible game and soundtrack.

SuperSweep Records serves up the rock-infused heavy-hitting orchestral soundtrack headed up by series veteran Keiki Kobayashi, alongside DLC and other promotional music to create an expansive and complete package. It comes housed in a study cardboard sleeve with three jewel cases containing booklet text with commentary from each composer in Japanese as well as track and artist breakdowns in English. The design work throughout is impeccable.

And the music? Ace Combat 7 gets a riveting new theme by Kobayashi that is weaved throughout the score in interesting and delightful ways. The album follows the sequence of cutscenes and gameplay with all the ups and downs and drama in tow. Some personal favorites include the twangy guitar and bongo-laden “Dual Wielder,” the driving string stabs, slap bass, and big brass in “Long Day,” my absolute favorite, “Magic Spear I,” with chugging bass, wailing electric guitar, big brass stabs, and rock percussion, the tragically beautiful “Battle for Farbanti,” and epic conclusion, “Lighthouse.” The VR missions are remakes of missions from Ace Combat 4 and the arranged music is incredible, with remixes of “Sitting Duck,” “Tango Line,” and “Blockade,” all of which are a real treat to hear.

The Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown Original Soundtrack is still available to import from CD Japan and is an incredible collection of music.

RXN -RAIJIN- ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK (SRIN-1156)

SuperSweep Records released the soundtrack to the Nintendo Switch anime-flavored shmup RXN -RAIJIN- back in 2018 featuring music mostly by Raito with a main theme by Yuzo Koshiro and remixes by the SuperSweep team. The album features hip and minimalistic electronic music for the most part with Koshiro’s catchy vocal rock track with big band jazz elements to kick things off. The score sports everything from shredding electric guitars and cool piano to funky bass and exotic didgeridoo. There’s lots of shmup-appropriate drum ‘n’ bass, but also rock and even an orchestral fanfare. The second disc includes extended mixes of most of the tracks as well as two remixes by SuperSweep. The packaging features a giant booklet full of credits and interviews in Japanese as well as artwork and a nice cardboard slipcase.

RXN -RAIJIN- is available from CD Japan if you’re interested.

Review: Untempered: FINAL FANTASY XIV Primal Battle Themes

As a special treat for Tokyo Game Show last year, Square Enix released a collection of “primal battle” music. That is, the tracks that play when you battle the summoned monsters. The music has been released throughout the various soundtrack releases to date, although one of the tracks has yet to hit an official soundtrack album. In addition to the battle music, the two-disc set also features some lovely artwork on a sturdy slipcase that covers the DVD-sized packaging.

Lots of fan-favorite tracks are here, including the brooding “Fallen Angel,” the exotic and epic “Ultima,” and the grungy metal tracks “Through the Maelstrom” and “Oblivion.” There’s a version of “Battle on the Big Bridge” here, the iconic The Nightmare Before Christmas-flavored “Good King Moggle Mog XII,” and “Battle to the Death,” a killer arrangement of the Final Fantasy VI battle theme by the same name. “Thunder Rolls” is somber and dreamy with its female vocals, “Footsteps in the Snow” combined beautiful piano and choral work with desperate string stabs, and “Unbending Steel” sports gritty male vocals that would be right at home in a Western film. The memorable Heavensward themes are represented, along with the industrial “Fiend” that will have you thinking of Nine Inch Nails, the pop-flavored “Equilibrium,” and a new track, the majestic and adventure-filled “Beauty’s Wicked Wiles,” which I imagine will make it onto a soundtrack release in the future.

In all, this is a solid collection of music for people who don’t already own the various soundtrack releases. Those who do own them may be interested for the artwork and the in-game items that Square Enix is serving up for buying it. Grab it on CD Japan or the North America merchandise store if you’re interested.

Review: Dissidia Final Fantasy -Arcade- Original Soundtrack vol. 2

Dissidia Final Fantasy -Arcade- is back with more arrangements of Final Fantasy tunes from Takeharu Ishimoto. We thought the first volume offered a nice compilation of Final Fantasy battle music, even if the arrangements were somewhat straightforward, and that doesn’t change much with Volume 2.

After a dreamy orchestral/rock version of “The Prelude,” the opening track, “Title,” brings back the Dissidia main theme with big choir and orchestra. It’s then on to Final Fantasy arrangements with an uplifting ska-flavored take on the overworld theme from the original Final Fantasy and an orchestral/metal take on the Final Fantasy II overworld. “Crystal Tower” from Final Fantasy III gets into more ska territory, while “Within the Giant” from Final Fantasy IV gets thumping bass and dreamy guitars and synths. “Final Battle” from Final Fantasy X pairs Hamauzu-style piano with rock elements, while “Fighters of the Crystal” from Final Fantasy XI offers a nice blend or orchestral and rock that feels laid back despite the instrumentation. “Struggle for Freedom” from Final Fantasy XII also offers a measured rock/orchestral arrangement, while “Boss Battle” brings in glitchy electronic elements and rock to the original with a nice uplifting gallup. “Ultima” from Final Fantasy XIV gets a nice Celtic rock spin with some really driving metal moments, while “Servant of the Crystal” from Final Fantasy Type-0 gets female choral singing of the main theme with some excellent electric guitar work. Final Fantasy Tactics gets a metal version of the ominous battle theme, “Battle on the Bridge,” a bumpin’ dance version of “Unit Selection,” and a dance-y electronic/folk spin on “Ultema.”

It’s certainly a mixed bag, but there are some cool arrangements among the two discs of music featured. Grab the album on CD Japan if you’d like!

Review: Battle on the Big Bridge: Bombastic Bonanza

That’s some great use of alliteration! When it comes to the chocobo theme, Final Fantasy fans know there are too many versions to count out there, but did anyone know that “Battle on the Big Bridge” was so widely covered that it’d fill an entire album? Well, now we do, and there’s actually a decent selection of arrangments to choose from.

You might opt for the classic SNES version, or go with Hitoshi Sakimoto’s live orchestral version from Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age. There was a wonderful “Oriental Mix” version from Final Fantasy XIII-2 that worked in traditional Japanese instruments, and a large number of versions to rock out to with rock organ and metal guitars. I particularly enjoyed the variation Mitsuto Suzuki snuck into the mix with his Record Keeper versions and the spacey electronic one Masashi Hamauzu whipped up for World of Final Fantasy. On the sillier end (Gilgamesh is comic relief, after all), you get a kazoo version and electronic silliness with marimbas in another.

In all, here’s the “Battle on the Big Bridge” compilation you never knew you wanted. It was an event exclusive at Tokyo Game Show this year, so it might not be widely available, but keep an eye out at used CD shops!

Review: Sengran Kagura Peach Beach Splash Original Soundtrack

Right at the tail end of summer in North America, XSEED released the latest Senran Kagura title, Peach Beach Splash. An arena-style shooter featuring anime girls in swimming gear equipped with water guns, there’s of course a goofy and over the top story to go along with it all, and thankfully, for those who splurged on the limited edition, a soundtrack CD with over an hour of Japanese pop and rock music. Fitting with the summer theme, expect lots of surfer rock and tropical vibes!

The opening theme, “RAINBOW KISS,” is your typical bubbly upbeat anime rock, but things quickly take a turn with the nostalgic rock tune, “Sound of Lonely Waves,” the chillout funk track, “The Beach Soaking up the Horizon,” and retro-tinged and super fun “Water Drop and Dance of Cherry Blossom Flowers.” There’s winter bells in “Water Battle IN THE SNOW,” killer guitar solos in “Beyond the Rainbow,” and sweet and smooth with “Heart Vessel, one of my favorite tracks. There are a ton of catchy themes found throughout, including in the short looped tracks at the end of the album.

In all, the sound team does an excellent job with the source material, bringing authentic pop and rock that perfectly accentuates the summer fun. It’s also great that the entire soundtrack is included here as well, rather than just a sampler with the full soundtrack available as a separate purchase. You can still get the limited edition “No Shoes, No Shirt, All Service” edition which also includes with an art book, blu-ray, and all sorts of in-game content on Amazon.

Review: Gunslinger Stratos 1&2 Original Soundtrack

While I haven’t played or even seen Square Enix’s Gunslinger Stratos series, gameplay videos look pretty awesome. It’s an anime-style third-person shooter with some amazingly well produced pop rock and metal. There’s everything from heavy metal and J-rock to pop ballads and vocaloid. This compilation album includes the soundtracks to the first two games in the series (there’s a third now), featuring a wide variety of talent from within Square Enix and without.

It all begins with the catchy and upbeat metal track, “Choose Your Way,” which sets the stage for the vocaloid-heavy “DAYS,” the explosive metal-meets-dubstep “Isolated Clash,” the Gothic rock “Boquet de Fleurs Neige,” the Japanese-infused “Golden Dolphins” with rapid-fire koto, the spacey pop-rock “Beyond the Azure,” and the infectious Genki Rockets-flavored “Kimi no Ita Ano Hi ni.” Gunslinger Stratos 2 gets arrangements of several of the tracks from the first game, but also a number of originals including the desperate and spacey rock track “Inferiority Complex” (my personal favorite), the dreamy “Soul Evolution,” the bumping dubstep “9Elements (Nine Elements,” and a beautiful “unplugged” version of “Ending” with piano, strings, and layered vocals.

Fans of J-rock will get a kick out of this soundtrack. There’s some wonderful tracks and great production values throughout. Unfortunately it’s sold out on CD Japan , but keep an eye out on the used market if you’re interested.

Review: SaGa SCARLET GRACE ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK

I’ve admittedly not completed a single game in the SaGa series, but that hasn’t stopped me from appreciating Kenji Ito’s sweeping and majestic orchestral scores. In fact, I’ve reviewed a number of them and their arrangements on this very blog. After hearing a sample on the Square Enix Music sampler last year, I was looking forward to the Scarlet Grace soundtrack in particular, and I’m not disappointing upon hearing it now. There’s all the wondrous orchestral beauty, chugging metal, and more that you’ve come to expect, and then some.

Starting with sweeping and joyous overture and the contemplative and regal and uplifting “Scarlet Dark Star,” it’s then on to the spunky guitar and string ballad, “When Flowers Bloom ~ Urpina Theme,” the upbeat rock battle, “Trampling Petals ~ Urpina Battle,” and the swaying lullaby-esque “In a Quiet Forest ~ When Hearts Are Tested.” “That’s Cute, Right” is an infectious bubbly electronic track, “Graveyard ~ Siegfrey’s Theme” is dark and ominous, and “Devil – The Fallen One” is epic synth rock in classic SaGa fashion.

Some of my favorites include “Guardian of Martial Arts ~ Divine Star Marigan,” a determined march with rolling snares and a regal tone, “Ever Near to Sorrow,” a somber and tragic piece with harp and slow strings, “Quietly ~ Taria Theme,” a fantasy pop ballad with woodwinds, strings, and bells, and “Grassland ~ The Wind and One Who Presses Forward,” a hybrid Western/Asian-flavored track with spunky Western bass and galloping percussion. The album closes with all the explosive vigor you’d expect, with wailing guitars, rock organ, romantic violins, and epic strings.

In all, Kenji Ito has done another wonderful job, showing once again that he may be the man to take up the Dragon Quest mantle someday. His orchestral work is getting that good.

Pick up the album on CD Japan if you’re interested.

Review: FINAL FANTASY XIV: Duality ~Arrangement Album~

I rather enjoyed the first Final Fantasy XIV arrangement album, From Astral to Umbral, so I was pleased to see them give it another go with the amazing music from Heavensward available to draw from. It’s once again an even split between a piano collections album featuring Keiko and a rock set by THE PRIMALS.

The album opens with the piano half, starting with “Imagination,” a slow and measured track that will gently sway you to sleep. “Painted Foothills” is contemplative and sparse, featuring some lovely piano runs, while “Borderless” takes turns between subdued and more energetic sections, sporting some wonderful piano playing. “Ominous Prognostiks” is ominous as the title would suggest, with slow and more mysterious sections follows by tense explosions of sound. Both “Heroes” and “Night in the Brume” include some of my favorite thematic material from Heavensward, with the former coming as epic and the latter as tender and sweet.

The band portion begins with “Unbreakable,” complete with wailing electric guitars and a badass vibe. “Revenge Twofold” is a new track that hasn’t been released yet and is more adventurous and upbeat, while “Ubending Steel” provides classic rock stylings with guttural male vocals in a silly but effective manner. “Imagination” appears again with lots of reverb and heavy metal thunder, “Fiend” (another new track) comes as an alternative rock track with dark vocals, and “Heroes” getting some great guitar work and male choir. “Locus” features dancing piano, electronics, and male and female vocaloid, while “Oblivion (Never Let it Go Version)” comes as a surprise with acoustic guitar, glassy pads, a small string ensemble, and bag pipes. I’d love to hear an entire album in this style!

Not only are there wonderful arrangements in both piano and rock styles here, but there are new tracks not released on a dedicated soundtrack album yet. Pick the album up on CD Japan if you’re interested!