The Black Mages

[DML]

Well, I'm not fully sure how many of you have heard of 'em, but they have a great sound on them.

The Black Mages (http://www.playonline.com/uematsu/tbm/index.html)

It's official that their cd is coming out February 2003 (as if their main page doesn't give a hint). According to RPGFan (http://www.rpgfan.com/news/2003/7.html), it seems as though a total of 3 new Square albums are being released - The Black Mages being one of them. I've never been huge into purchasing VGM since it's so expensive, but this may be one I need to pick up :)

[TheLastOne]

Everyone knows about this by now. Most people I've spoken to love it, as well.

I however, do not think it is as great as many are making is seem. Sure, it's good, and it's a underused style, but I just don't find it that breathtaking. To me, it sounds like PMM done right - and I personally didn't like PMM.

[Ian Gillseed]

PMM?

[Rince]

Project Majestix Mix.

But: Majestix do DANCE and Techno shit, I find that personally abhorrent. Black Mages is a Rock arrangement, and for people who like that style, it's Heaven. For me, the sample sounds simply great. It's all about taste again.

[TheLastOne]

Some of the Original PMM was an 'attempt' at rock. I don't consider Squaredance to be anything decent whatsoever - now THAT was UTTER crap.

[DML]

I find The Black Mages sample to be quite refreshing - I like it quite a bit, but I'm hoping that the rest of their CD is better than their sample.

As for PMM and Squaredance, I was very pleased with those two personally. Squaredance had a bunch of really solid arrangements, IMO. I don't think PMM was an attempt at true rock, really. I think it's more rock-ish than normal Uematsu stuff, but it was far away from true rock.


Anyways, let's hope this upcoming CD is good. It would be nice to get a new genre entry into the Square music library :)

[TheLastOne]

Hell, I just pre-ordered The Black Mages. It had better not let me down. :)

[Rince]

I did the same, so we're in the same boat there ;)

But mine goes along with "White Music from FFT Advance" - sounds QUITE interesting, this one!

I suggest new age lovers (Mitsuda / Sakuraba style) should take a look at that one:

Catalog No.: SVWC-7172
Media: CDA
Number of discs (or other units): 1
Release Date: 2003/02/26
Price: 2900 Yen (US$ 24.21)

(from cdjapan)

The first print comes in a special "BAG" whatever that means in Japan ;) I believe they mean slipcase.

[TheLastOne]

Mine comes alot with Final Fantasy Tactics: Advance Original Soundtrack.

Looks like we are in similar, but different boats :).

[Rince]

Maybe there were several escape boats on our credit card massacre ;)

[Moguta]

Originally posted by TheLastOne
Some of the Original PMM was an 'attempt' at rock. I don't consider Squaredance to be anything decent whatsoever - now THAT was UTTER crap.
PMM definitely didn't do any *modern* rock, for sure. Nor anything seriously heavy. I thought it was cool though. *shrug*

If you think SQUAREDANCE was all crap, then that's probably because you're not an electronica fan. =P

[TheLastOne]

Originally posted by Moguta
If you think SQUAREDANCE was all crap, then that's probably because you're not an electronica fan. =P

Bingo!! You hit the nail on the head that time. Can't stand the stuff.

[Eriol]

Originally posted by Rince
I did the same, so we're in the same boat there ;)

But mine goes along with "White Music from FFT Advance" - sounds QUITE interesting, this one!

I suggest new age lovers (Mitsuda / Sakuraba style) should take a look at that one:

Catalog No.: SVWC-7172
Media: CDA
Number of discs (or other units): 1
Release Date: 2003/02/26
Price: 2900 Yen (US$ 24.21)

(from cdjapan)

The first print comes in a special "BAG" whatever that means in Japan ;) I believe they mean slipcase.

I don't think Sakuraba should be considered to have a new age style.

Most of the New Age style is either very subtle like Preprimer or Yanni-like.

I'll wait for samples. If the album is too subdued, I won't buy it.

[Eriol]

Originally posted by TheLastOne
Bingo!! You hit the nail on the head that time. Can't stand the stuff.

Maybe because Squaredance is an dance/techno/electronica album. That style of music has certain musical qualities I consider "repetitive."

[Sitorimon]

lol, well i've just ordered SquareDance since it was very cheap so when it arrives for me in the UK, i'll do a lil review of my own!

I didn't know The Black Mages was out yet?!

Sitorimon

[Rince]

Well, I still wait for some definitions of this mysterious "New Age" to be honest, Eriol.

Maybe it's the same as with Mitsuda's "World Music" printed on the Brink of Time. ;)

[TheLastOne]

Originally posted by Sitorimon
lol, well i've just ordered SquareDance since it was very cheap so when it arrives for me in the UK, i'll do a lil review of my own!

I didn't know The Black Mages was out yet?!

Sitorimon

It's not out yet.

[Grass-eatin'me]

New Age is flowing, relaxing music, like Ys Healing. Sakuraba is DEFINETLY not a New Age composer, as most of his songs are rocked (the opposition of New Age). I guess square tried to make some New Ages with their Potions too, but it ended as crap.
Yasunori Mitsuda is a New Ager, but I don't know about anyone else with so much of that genre.

[Eriol]

Mitsuda's music is world music and new age music. Yanni is classified as new age music. World music is what I called "ethnic music." It basically has strong cultural ties to the music of a particular race or culture. Much of Mitsuda's latter music is inspired by Celtic music. That's why I don't like him anymore. He almost makes no other style of music. I liked his Chrono Trigger music, even though he felt the music was immature.

Sakuraba's music is mostly described as progressive rock. He has done some lighter pieces as well.

I expect a game composer to be talented enough to make music in several different styles, not all in one style, which Mitsuda has pretty much become. I don't like Uematsu's choice of instruments, but at least he can still compose varied musical styles.

[Rince]

Ah, thanks - I slept in music class it seems. Although I'm sure when I went to school, New Age was still the future ;)

Well, Mitsuda's "Sailing to the World" is a great piece of work in which style he should continue.

Still, Sakuraba's upbeat tunes are my favorite. And let's not forget he also does GREAT orchestrations, and that's why I'm so eager to get those Star Ocean III CD's... There shall be 4 as far as I can see... dang expensive.

[Grass-eatin'me]

Star Ocean III will rock, no doubt. But I'm not so positive to the choice of using Orchestra to play his pieces. His better with his synth and guitars, if you ask me.

I'm very much into celtic music myself, and Mitsuda don't use it so much, it's about the nature of the music. Mitsuda's more of a Blues and Jazz man. And there's only one VGM composer using strictly one genre, and that is of course: Koichi Sugiyama, with classical music.

[Eriol]

I don't consider Xenosaga or Sailing to the World to be blues and jazz. What game music of his do you consider blues and jazz?

[Avaxx]

Interesting that you would say Mitsuda's not much of a celtic man. To me anyway, Tsugunai and Chrono Cross were pure celtic as was his work on Legaia DuelSaga. Granted he can also make non-celtic music as seen in Xenosaga and Chrono Trigger but most of his roots seem to come from celtic based music.

[Rince]

Well, he had some very jazzy pieces on "Brink of Time". That's the only work of him I can remember being jazzy. And it's right that Tsugunai is Celtic in origin, it's instrumentations speak volumes.

[Grass-eatin'me]

Most of his work (Duel Saga, Tsugunai, Chrono Cross, and even Chrono Trigger) are mostly blues, in my opinion. I'm not so concerned about him, so I haven't heard Xenogears. And I don't consider Xenogears: Creid to be so much Celtic as other game music fans does.

[Rince]

Well, Brink of Time is surely a lot of things with Blues being one of them. So yeah, he IS diverse for sure ;) The ambivalency is that he once stated in an interview that he doesn't even LIKE doing music for games very much (huh?).

But he said that it's better than starving... I don't know how true this is but it was a little shocker back then when I read it.

[Grass-eatin'me]

I don't think that is so true, Rince :)
Considering he first worked as a sound engineer for Square at several projects before he finally entered the VGM scene with Chrono Trigger.

[Eriol]

Grass, your categorization of music is very strange, considering Mitsuda himself classifies Xenogears Creid as an expression of his Celtic/World music influence.

You take your Chrono Cross, Tsugunai, and Xenogears Creid to various music listeners, not just game music fans, and I think most of them will say Celtic/World over blues and jazz.

[Grass-eatin'me]

I guess you're right.

His work are much more Blues than Jazz though.
Hehe, as previously stated, his a New Age composer.

[Moguta]

You can't very well accuse Xenosaga of being celtic, though. =P

And, IMO, there ain't nothin' wrong with celtic.

[Sitorimon]

Theres nothing wrong with Celtic at all!!!

To me Jazz is the saxophone solo in a either low key sultry, or big ole brassy number hehe...