I declare this day "Final Fantasy Friday"
I'm going to spend the day (while at work) listening to the soundtracks to Final Fantasy(ies) 4 - 9 (excl. 5). I listened to FF4 on the way to work this morning (long commute, some 65 minutes) and was brought back to some awesome memories in the process. My work computer is firing up FF6 as we speak, where I'll start. FF6 - FF9 should take all the time until I get home this evening around 6 PM, and anything that's left over, I'll work into FFX (of which I actually have the official soundtrack to, not just MIDI renditions as the predecessors.
Check back throughout the day, as I'll be keeping my blog window open and posting my thoughts and updates throughout the day, as listed below...
8:15 AM (Had to get set up with work): Final Fantasy VI begins--Crystal theme and Opening Scene. Crystal theme on this MIDI has a nice left-right panning effect; since I'm wearing headphones, it's like Uematsu's right here in the room, dancing around my head.
- I've listened to these soundtracks a hundred times each, but never with headphones. The surround effects are really good. I keep looking around for a hidden orchestra in this room.
- Listening to the world theme in the World of Balance. Just looked at the total time--almost two and a half hours for this whole soundtrack. I'll be listening until almost 11 AM! Good thing I love the music to this game, huh?
- You know, for being one of the most evil villians in a Final Fantasy, or any game really, Kefka has a very goofy theme... I think it's good that (on this compilation at least) the Empire's eerie music follows...
- The Mountains east of South Figaro, where you fight Vargas. Ugh, the first annoying stage of the game, because of all of the enemies that can poison you... lots of them 'Bats' talked about on the VG trope website. (I'm posting a lot I've noticed... Don't worry, about 30 seconds every 10 minutes should be alright.)
9 AM If you're coming across some sad/serious information during the course of your job, I highly recommend listening to Celes' theme while reading it... Very effective mood music.
- The intro to the Ghost Train music actually sounds like a 1940's cartoon--kinda like that one Popeye cartoon where he rescues his pappy from the island with the weird ogre looking guys. Actually, the whole song does... (I know it seems like I'm doing a lot of typing on here, but in actually, I'm getting a lot of work caught up today--it's been rather really productive.)
- Ugh... the ragtime 'Teach Me' screen... Just... ugh...
- - Saved by the next song - The Serpent Trench.
- Ah, the opera house. I've been listening to a track from 'Dear Friends' that plays the actual opera that gets interrupted during the course of the game. It's called "The Dream Oath" and just furthers the evidence in my case that Nobuo Uematsu is the greatest composer of any field of music for all times. Hearing the MIDI now, though, is more nostalgic than anything, but it makes me want to listen to the Dream Oath live. Perhaps on the way home from work...
- 2nd Ugh of the day - Magitech Factory. Full of some REALLY annoying enemies. At least my workmate ran to the store and brought back a Zero candy bar for me. Thanks, Becky.
10 AM - Relm's theme is such a favorite of mine. Can't listen to it enough... I think she's one of my favorite characters in the game, too. I mean, it's certainly not Umaro...
- Heh, 'The Seal is Broken'... escaping the Floating Continent... This is music (I've learned from experience) you do NOT want to listen to loudly in the dark. (I love playing video games late at night with no lights on except the TV, but this is freaky. Like 'Silent Hill' freaky)
- - But is immediately followed by Celes' theme (or a reasonable facsimile - 'Alone on the Island')
- The town music for the World of Ruin always makes me sad-faced. I know they're ficticious people, but that scene where the city gets ripped in half by Kefka's ray is pretty atrocious, even for a 16-bit graphics game.
- Hoo boy, another potential tear-jerker. Rachel's theme. I swear, I am a man among men, but every time I get Locke's flashback conerning Rachel (in the world of Balance), I just about lose it. The music... it's all the music's fault...
- Already to 'Dancing Mad'?! Wow, time sure flies by. I guess it has been almost 2 1/2 hours. (And yes, I'm still staying productive. I'm quite pleased with myself actually)
- - My, this song is long. Only half-way done after like 4:30. Then there's a 11-minute epilogue. Guess I'm not as close to being done with this as I thought.
- - Then again, the rock organ part just started. Black Mages do a great job with this song.
- Uematsu writes Ending/Epilogue music better than even John Williams. Yes, I said it.
10:40 AM - Wow. It's been awhile since I heard that whole soundtrack. Well, the memories will linger, but the heart and ears move on to Final Fantasy 7, starting now...
- I'll just take a few minutes here real briefly to explain my position on Final Fantasy 7--as the Prologue plays on in my ears... I used to hate it, mostly because I was upset about Sony picking up the rights to Final Fantasy. I refused to even acknowledge it as a game... until I actually played it. I still had a deep love for the SNES games and considered them the best, but the more I played 7, the more I liked it. Then I started to really listen to the music. FF7 is by far the best soundtrack to a Final Fantasy, and perhaps the best compilated album of songs ever recorded--and yes, even though it was written in MIDI format!!!!! You'll hear a lot of praise in this section of the blog...
- Getting distracted by work with this case, but Aeris' Church theme (with the tubular bells harmonizing) brought me right back to the music. Ahhhh....
- - Alright, back to 'automatic' mode, where I can do the work without a lot of deep research into what i'm doing, all to the tune of 'Underneath the Rotting Pizza'.
- And now to Tifa's theme. This is a character (and song) that has increasingly grown dear to me over the 10 years (since I played FF7 the first time... actually, 10 years ago last month was the first time I went through it.)
- (Music break, phone call to the Misses. Besides, I gotta get up and stretch)
- (And now on to lunch...)
12:35 PM I have just a little bit left of lunch, but i'm back to my station listening to music. Getting up the Shinra tower. Great music throughout the game.
- 'Ahead on our Way', leaving Midgar after the Motorcycle + boss. Ahhhhhhhh..........
- - Which of course is followed by the heavenly 'Main (World) Theme'. I could loop this for 10 straight hours and not be tired of it...
- And don't forget 'Farm Boy'... geez, all of these songs make me wanna play 'Chocobo's Dungeon' again...
1:00 PM Already getting to the Gold Saucer. Boy there are some memories and good tunes here. "Interrupted by Fireworks" is both.
- 'Sandy Badlands' - We learn a little bit about Barrett. This music kinda turns my heart, much like Rachel's Theme from FF6. Kind of a sad history with him, playing it out in my head how it goes in the game...
1:35 PM - It begins. The music for the 'Forgotten City'. Beneath the city... towards the altar. J-E-N-O-V-A, and the final piece of music to end Disk 1. It's perhaps the greatest 7 minutes of music I own..
- - And then to couple the beginning of Disk 2, wandering
- - - (Edit: The music I'm listening to is not wandering around the snow, but prior to that, when still in the city. It's called 'Anxious Heart')
- Just looked at the time, a little over half-way done with this particular soundtrack, meaning I'll be starting FF8 shortly after 3, which will make 8 the last one I listen to today! (I'll only be able to get 4 soundtracks in... what a disappointment!)
- Ah yes, 'The Countdown Begins' - Weapon is first released. Fast bloodpumping strings, anybody?
2:00 PM - Hmm, the music where the team is captured by Shinra. (You know, right after the whole 'Cloud falls into the Lifestream' incident...)
- Oooooohhh... 'Who am I' and 'Who are you'. While Cloud has his 'freak-out' in-his-head event. Love the music here. Eerie...
- What? Already at the end? J-E-N-O-V-A's final form and One Winged Angel. As mentioned above, however, the Epilogue is some of Uematsu's best work, yet again.
- - A great ending to a great game.
2:45 PM - Starting our last soundtrack for the day, and I don't even believe I"m going to get all of it before I leave work. At least the best music of this game is within the first half of the soundtrack...
- Much like with FF7, I've been distracted with some research, but i'm back to paying attention. Missed 'Balamb Garden' and 'Blue Fields'--two great songs, but I was kinda listening. I can always hear them again later.
- FF8 does not use MIDIs in the game--however, I downloaded the MIDIs online to form my soundtrack. The composer of these MIDIs did a great job in compiling them; however, the bass note resonates a full 4 seconds passed the end of the song. It's weird and annoying, especially in tracks like this one: 'SeeD'.
- Although you do have to give it to FF8--catchiest battle music in the series. 'Force Your Way.'
- Squall meets Rinoa at the dance. Nice music.
- - Squall disses Quistis after the dance. Nice music.
- Julia/Eyes on me. Always makes me feel bad I don't play as much piano anymore.
- Familiar tune: 'Succession of Witches'. It's when FF8 starts to go off the deep end with "Huh?" moments....
- 'The stage is set': Preparations for the assasination of the Sorceress at the end of Disk 1. Kind of a cool 'hunting' theme of music for, like, playing a FPS.
- (You starting to notice my lack of enthusiams with my updates? Yeah, it's late on a Friday. They're going to be less... impacty.)
- Heh, but just as I say that... 'Fithos Lusec Wecos Vinosec'. The chant during the Squall-Edea encounter that ends Disk 1. Gotta love the drama that Sagaguchi builds in his games.
4:00 PM - This Final Fantasy Friday has sure made the day go by quicker. A lot of mood music, really uncertain where in the game it should be. Supposedly these tracks should be in chronological order that they're encountered in the game, but that's not always true. I got the actual track listing from the site as it reflects the OFFICIAL soundtrack listing. They could just be off on the listing (for instance, the ending 'Slide Show' songs are in the middle somewhere).
-Mmmm, 'Ami'. Pretty music... right up there with Julia earlier...
- Got 45 minutes of work left, but I'm going to wind down and just listen casually to the music--getting into a batch of cases with no info in them--lots of research. Thanks for reading.
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