AVCD-55040~1: FANTASY LIFE ORIGINAL SOUND TRACK

[eduhunter]

This album will be a solo work from Uematsu?

[Zanasea]

Normally, yes, but an arranger is probably involved too.

[Guitarist500]

... ... ... ... ... ... .. .. .. .. .. . . . .

[Zanasea]

It reads "Iwasa Ki". I have never heard of this person before so I assume it's an alias... Plus Iwasaki is a common Japanese name.

[Cedille]

Itsuki is a commonsensical reading for one's name.

[_if]

According to the Mini Soundtrack, 2.25 is the one arranged by ACE and sung by Yanase, not 2.14. Titles and track times (nearly) match up.

[strugglepoo]

I quite like this soundtrack, and I'm not big on Uematsu. I was surprised to find it doesn't seem to be well received, or perhaps it just got buried along the way. Excellent arranging and sound quality.

I swear though, 219 "キグルミ族のテーマ" reminds me a lot of something, but I can't quite put my finger on it. Like a black 70's sitcom theme or something.

[dissident93]

Originally Posted by strugglepoo

I was surprised to find it doesn't seem to be well received, or perhaps it just got buried along the way.

because it's not Final Fantasy. the majority of the people who idolized Uematsu couldn't name you three non FF games he worked on.

and haha yea, you're thinking of the Sanford and Son theme.

BTW, could anybody take a shot and translate the titles?

[strugglepoo]

Yeah, that much is clear, haha. But I mean even around these parts; only 4 other ratings with an average score. I wasn't able to find any reviews from the usual suspects or around the net either. I guess it doesn't help that this has only been released in Japan.

Originally Posted by dissident93

and haha yea, you're thinking of the Sanford and Son theme.

Yes, that's the one!

[Cedille]

It doesn't help post-FFXI Uematsu is so bad, and even on the latest numbered FF game he was just below an average. Although I still respect his past achievement and know he still has a fanbase, I completely stopped caring about him after The Last Story.

[_if]

I don't hate The Last Story but I place responsibility for its sound on the shoulders of Yoshitaka Suzuki's arrangement work though. He apes the Hans Zimmer & co. sound to a shameless degree and I think took what were largely good tunes in the wrong direction. I say good tunes because, despite all odds, I can remember the melodies Uematsu wrote. Uematsu has done melancholy and atmospheric music in the past better than that. There are some places I think Suzuki's handling worked very well, like in "Timbre of the City" and "Toberu mono", but someone else could have done a better job with most of the rest.

Final Fantasy XIV sorely needed some themes, I think. There's all this music that just goes by without much in the way of connection. Part of what makes The Last Story hold up for me is that it is at least thematic and had some good usage of its themes. I don't think Tsutomu Narita is the best arranger either.

I think Fantasy Life is pleasant, I just have two main wishes: first, that it was more thematic again, since there is little reuse of melodies which I think would have tied it all together better; and secondly, no offense to 岩佐樹, who handled many arrangements very well (particularly the soft stuff), ACE should have done all the arranging. They handled their song well (I would have liked CHiCO to have sung it as well), as they did with 10 Short Stories and the playful theme song companion to Fantasy Life. They seem quite suited to Uematsu's style.

I really think while Uematsu's post-Blue Dragon BGM may sometimes lack in vivacity, he really has been delivering in the vocal stuff. Lost Odyssey's cheesy vocal themes aside, from "Toneless" and "You From a Distance" to "Lord of Vermilion" to "If I Run With You I'll Cry" to "Toberu mono" and now Fantasy Life's lovely song, he's been writing the best vocal material of his career. "Answers" is the only one I don't care for. "My Tears From Above" from Blue Dragon is also great and the Hanjuku Hero VS 3D songs are good, fun tunes as well.

[dissident93]

Originally Posted by Cedille

It doesn't help post-FFXI Uematsu is so bad, and even on the latest numbered FF game he was just below an average. Although I still respect his past achievement and know he still has a fanbase, I completely stopped caring about him after The Last Story.

I agree that he hasn't done anything (really) good in 10+ years, but I blame it on him having other people arrange his stuff. The 90s Roland MIDI synth stuff he arranged himself for the FF series is where he made his mark.

This album is actually his best in years though (Blue Dragon had a few good tracks, but I can't even remember Lost Odyssey or Lord of Vermilion)

[_if]

I think Blue Dragon is some of his best stuff - thoroughly enjoyable, classic Uematsu. Henmi ad Nakayama did a mostly-great job with the arrangement too. Lost Odyssey couldn't have the same type of soundtrack because of how different the game is, so it's not as fun but it is still pretty good. For example, I think "The Gun Barrel Battle" is one of his best battle themes ever, a field he used to excel in from FFVIII and back, but after that he started writing less them less melodically. It does seem he doesn't try as hard with his main theme melodies anymore though, Lost Odyssey's being very simple compared to most main themes from his Final Fantasy soundtracks. Henmi and Nakayama didn't do as great here as on Blue Dragon either. In particular, I often feel that Nakayama's orchestrations sound like something is missing, but I can't quite put my finger on it. It could even be the recording/mixing quality making it sound thinner than it should though.

I don't even remember what most of his stuff on Anata wo Yurusanai sounds like right now besides the two excellent vocal songs. Lord of Vermilion is good and Michio Okamiya did a good job on arrangement, but it's short and I just think RPG soundtracks tend to be more satisfying. Plus, Hitoshi Sakimoto and the Basiscape crew made a soundtrack twice as good with Lord of Vermilion II. Guin Saga I think has some decent material but the arrangements don't bring it to its fullest. I think if someone like Shiro Hamaguchi had handled it, he would have brought it to life. Even though Sakura Note was arranged by Uematsu himself, I don't think it was his best work.

In short, I feel on the one hand like the bad rap Uematsu has been getting for years is partially exaggerated and on the other hand partially justified. He's a composer whose style was very suited to the sounds older consoles made and I don't think he's always gotten the best arrangers to handle the transition to higher quality music for him. I bet Fantasy Life would be even more enjoyable if it used SNES or Playstation synth (an idea I find quite intriguing the more I think about its potential). But sometimes, as with Fantasy Life and Final Fantasy XIV with their need of themes, or Sakura Note with its middling composition, the issue is with him. I don't completely write off any of his music, but I'm not always as happy with a soundtrack as I think I could have been if pretty much just one factor been altered.

[dissident93]

Originally Posted by _if

I bet Fantasy Life would be even more enjoyable if it used SNES or Playstation synth (an idea I find quite intriguing the more I think about its potential).

That's exactly what I think too. Uematsu's music is just meant for MIDI synths haha.

[eduhunter]

I think the soundtrack to Final Fantasy XIV is very good. Anyway, what I see out there in more recent work of Uematsu music [post-Blue Dragon] is the transformation of his compositions in much more orchestral pieces than before. We know that Uematsu did a few songs in this style [like Final Fantasy IX], but nowdays these arrangers seem that threw their personal styles in Uematsu compositions, make the music change.

Fantasy Life really has a great audio work, but I miss the "catchy tunes" or "synth tunes" of the past in the most of the recent albums.

P. S.: It's just my opinion.

[Mac_Tear]

Is anyone able to translate the tracklist into English?

[Dag]

Tracklist now with 100% less moonspeak.

[Mac_Tear]

Thank you!

[dissident93]

Tracklist updated with the official English localized names from the in-game music player.

BTW, Aridian Desert Theme and Tortuga Archipelago Theme have more instruments and slightly different arrangements here on the OST, and it also seems like the Mount Snowpeak theme plays slightly faster in-game.