[Matron]

Originally Posted by Ramza

Matron -- don't be sorry! I'd appreciate more specifics though. What about the review makes it awful? What would you say differently? Is there anything factually inaccurate in the review? I know I'm pretty negative on this OST, and yeah, I think it has everything to do with my expectations being set at a different place than what the product was. So perhaps it's not a fair judgment. Do you feel that it stands apart in terms of composition or sound quality as superior to other of Falcom's peers from that period?

Some of my concerns are:

The Legend of Xanadu never got an original soundtrack during the time of its release: instead, it got a "Super Arrange Version" and a "JDK Special" (which is close to an OST based on sound quality, but is not entirely the same thing as an OST).

This actually isn't completely true. The Legend of Xanadu got:

The Legend of Xanadu JDK Special
The Legend of Xanadu Super Arrange Version
The Legend of Xanadu Super Arrange Version (Falcom Special Box '94, completely different from the other Super Arrange, and much, MUCH better)
Falcom JDK Band 4: Ys IV vs. The Legend of Xanadu

And also The Legend of Xanadu Arrange Album KLEENE, although that one is a fanbased album, but it's IN-CRE-DI-BLE.

Also, be sure to check LoX arrangements on both FSB '93 and '94. RULES.

"the music sounds terrible, because it's a good ten years old."

It's a PC Engine chip generated soundtrack, what you actually expected? And "music sounds terrible"? What the heck? It sounds great for a PC Engine game! Heck, the whole soundtrack is awesome even in the original PCE synth!

"I was very excited about purchasing this three disc set because I was under the (false) impression that the music had been updated along with the game."

Album's title already says it's The Legend of Xanadu Original Soundtrack. Neither it says it's an updated soundtrack (like Dinosaur Complete FM Oscillator Version), a JDK Special or an arranged soundtrack. Original Soundtrack = Soundtrack of X game. Plain and simple.

"This three disc set is the complete OST to a game that is not only a decade old, but one that also did not get treated to the high quality redbook audio that other Falcom games of its time had been given. As a result, what we find here is some pretty bland music."

This one irks me. Just because it didn't get arranged by Ryo Yonemitsu doesn't make it any worse, but I'll say that if it had been given arrangements by Ryo Yonemitsu (like the PC Engine Ys/LoH games) it would probably have commanded the same respect.

Not only that: we also discover that many of these songs are the sort of "filler tracks" people like me are prone to complaining about. You may not recognize it, as I deliberately chose not to sample those sorts of songs: but trust me, they're there. Not only are they there: they are numerous, and they are irritating.

While it's true that there's "filler tracks", all of them are easy and fun to listen, and also fits well in-game. However, I admit that from the 110 tracks of the soundtrack, there's like 25 or so stand-out tracks.

[...] I was able to find a few diamonds in the rough, including a couple of lengthy (four to five minute) tracks on disc three. Both "Dardandis" and "Wings of Darkness" are phenomenal battle themes that I have somehow failed to notice on other Legend of Xanadu albums. Could it be that no decent arrangement exists for these songs?

"Wings of Darkness" actually got a BEAUTIFUL treatment in FSB '94. It's a shame nobody has arranged 'Dardandis', becuase that track rocks too much, ESPECIALLY that synth solo.

I wouldn't know, as I have not followed this series as closely as I have with other Falcom games.

That could explain some of this review's misinformation. It's a shame to read stuff like this, because I consider The Legend of Xanadu to be Falcom's second best franchise right after Ys.

Honestly, it is some of the worst music from Falcom I've heard in a long time: sometimes because of the synths, sometimes because of poor composition, always because there are better Falcom CDs to enjoy.

"some of the worst music from Falcom"? The heck? This is one of best soundtracks by ol' good Falcom! By god's sake, I even uploaded both this and it's sequel soundtrack on YouTube in glorious HD quality.

IMHO, The Legend of Xanadu OST is one of 90s Falcom best works, and with a sound quality much better than many Falcom's PC-88/98 soundtracks. Heck, it even surpasses Ys IV in some places in terms of composition, and that's saying a lot from someone who loves Ys IV's music so much! But what I can say, this comes from someone who thinks that Brandish 3 is Falcom's best soundtrack on the PC-98.

Seriously, check both games' OST everybody. That also includes the Brandish 3 soundtrack