OCR01174 - Final Fantasy 'AfterLife'

[djpretzel]

What did you think? Post your opinion of this ReMix.

[Garde]

Ah yes... "The" GrayLightning is back with an excellent Final Fantasy OC ReMix...

The intro to this song is incredible, in my humble opinion. I've heard several versions of this song, and I must say that this is a huge improvement over the previous version's intro. GrayLightning is a master at making songs that build up, and that's what this intro does, and then goes right into the "main" theme. Excellent transition work here. But to go back to the intro, it sounds exotic, sort of like egyptian or something like that. I think of walking through a pyramid and looking at hyroglyphs and painting of pharoahs when I hear the intro to this song, I have no idea why, but it's probably due to the sound of the intro and the title, since Egyptians believe in the "After Life."

Anyways, onto where I left off... The transition quickly awakes me from imagining pyramids and all that stuff, since the style changes quite a bit, although it's not jarring. The synth just doesn't fit the exotic tone, and that's what I'm referring to when I say it ends that little imagination wandering off... The strings come in and then the song picks up tempo, along with that cool drum (can't be more specific because I'll confuse you, but it sounds sort of like a frog, as Gray put it). I really enjoy that part, the beat is fresh, especially during the time where it's playing alone.

After the beat goes off on a tangent, the song comes back to a more instrumental approach and after a short re-introduction, picks up the "main" theme again. Ah yes, the piano comes in and dominates this portion of the song, near the end... This is a great way to pick the song up and end it. The piano you used gives a very satisfying sound on that last note.

Overall, this song is pretty darn good. GrayLightning strays from his traditional new age style to deliver us a more techno-ish sound. Very daring, and I think it's pretty successful in its execution. GrayLightning does an excellent job in orchestrating this song, as he does with all of his songs ;). Everything transitions pretty smoothly also... This mix is definitely GrayLightning quality stuff, though there's much more in store for you avid GrayLightning fans ;). I won't ruin any surprises, but you'll love what's he's got hidden up his sleeve! ;)

[Navi]

GrayLightning does it again. His recent works (including his DK mix for the DKC project ) have shown an excellent level of musical maturity that has only increased from his previous mixes. This mix does not disappoint; it features some extremely cool ethnic vibes and manages to sound ice cold (what's cooler than cool?) without sounding arrogant and loud. His vibe is subtle and beautiful. The plucked instruments add a feel of realism to the mix, and the piano is vibrant and emotional. The back beat is subtle but complements the mix very well, pacing it just right. I would count this mix amongst my favorites from GL. Nice work!

[Sleepy Emp]

Unique "GrayLightning" style, excellent composition and presentation. Download the mix now, you won't be disappointed.

[Bruk]

This song rocks my planet.

[Fray]

It seems almost like a guilty pleasure to be excited to see that Gray Lightning did an electronic dance style piece. I always feel like a bit of a poser for gravitating towards that sort of music, and I feel like I can hold my fairly large collection of GL tracks up as if to say, "I'm not completely lame! I enjoy something cultured and challenging!"

Actually, I should better clarify my tastes -- My favorite kind of music is that which takes the electronic dance style and does something new and innovative with it. When I saw that GL had made a more electronic piece, I expected to find just that; hence my excitement.

I was not disappointed :) "AfterLife" is a wonderful and unique blend of GL's tried-and-true new age style and electronic dance. The result is something akin to newer (read: last decade or so) Tangerine Dream music -- it has groove and punch like dance music, but the structure and general aesthetic are decidedly classical.

Production quality is excellent. Both the synths and the "real" sounds are great; they're well-chosen and mix together smoothly. I this is particularly laudable considering it's the author's first foray into a different style of music. It sounds effortless -- as if he's done this sort of thing before. One of my favorite tidbits is an odd little synth that enters around 1:36 -- it sounds sort of like a guiro with a filter sweep. I can honestly say I've never heard a synth guiro before :P

I love how the piece is structured. There are two big tempo changes -- something you don't see every day. They're definate attention-getters -- the shifts from slow to fast and back again are quite drastic -- but they don't sound jarring or unnatural. The tempo shifts are a major contributor to the complete, epic feel of this piece. I didn't actually look at the total time until after a couple of listens, and I was quite surprised to see that it was only 4:10. So much happens musically that I felt like I had listened to something considerably longer; I was expecting something in the 5-minute range. It's not just the tempo changes that create such a sense of completeness in such a short time; there's a lot of musical action packed into every moment and detail. Just like a great classical piece :)

I love the percussion. I know so little about percussion that it's hard for me to say much more than that... It sounds great and it's not repetitive.

One minor gripe:

Also, the tremolo strings at the end sound like they could use a little polish. It sounds like it's not quite on the beat when it drops to the lower note at 3:47. Maybe that was an intentional human touch?


If it's not already clear from what I said, or if you're just skimming the review:

This is excellent, and I highly reccomend it to anyone. For techno fans especially, it's a great way to expand your horizon a little bit in the new age/classical direction without giving up too much of the style you know and love.

Like a lot of Gray Lightning's work, it's not as instantly accessible as your average remix. I liked it the first time I heard it, as I imagine anyone will, but it took a couple of repeats before I loved it. So I suggest giving this piece at least three listens before moving on.

[Veovis]

I always download work by GrayLightning because I always know it is quality work. Once again, I was not let down. Excellent. A great and memorable track redone flawlessly.

[Nigel Simmons]

Nice work, GrayLightning!!

[bakemaster]

very nice, very nice indeed :D

[Trenthian]

Sux! :)


:roll:


I dig the groove it lays... excellent use of synths, and the texture... geeze man. complete suprise. You somehow manage to keep it playful even though it is a very serious peice. i was dissapointed with the way some of the mid stuff is so stiff.... but its okay... a few listens later and all was set right, and it felt more natural. Excellent work.

[Freemind]

An experimental work by Gray..again a proffesional work with new age and dance elements..Gray you rock the house..!!!

[nostalgic gen]

:) Always look forward to hearing new stuff from Gray. The first 1:37 of this has a real Vangelis feel about it, especially when the melody kicks in. If you have it Gray, check out "Wait for Me" in the Bladrunner ost and you'll see what I'm talking about.

I'm really not too keen on the transition at 1:37. That cymbal sounds like it's trying to mask the change to me. Really liked the percussion from about 2:20 to 3:00 (the part of the track I most attributed to arabic music) but again, the cymbal hits didn't really do it for me. I think the transition might have been smoother without them.

Aside from that I thought it was excellent. Lots of really nice touches in it.

[Sir Harmony]

Incredible mix. I love the transitions in this, how the beat picks up in the beginning and changes style. I also like the bass a lot and the piano (drool)... I was amazed at the creativity in this, Gray Lightning took a 40 sec piece and did a 4 minutes one that never leaves you bored and always lets you wanting more. Real nice stuff! Download it now!

9.5/10 :)

[xamgis]

Excellent piece! Nicely done GrayLightning.

[SnappleMan]

I heard this song a while back when it was on VG mix, so you get the copy and paste of my VGMix review:

"Interesting... experimental shit done right, for once.

PROS
- The percussion here is superb (the tribal/ethnic shite)/
- The synth at the beginning is BOSS. Pure 80's!
- The equally 80's bass is rocking also!
- Good choice of musac to mix.
- The piano section at the end is really awesome, you we gotta talk about hooking me up with them piano samples.
- You seem to have fixed the gripes I had with the first version you sent me, always cool.
- This song has an old school feel to it, late 80's early 90's stuff goin on. I like.
- Techno-ish drums that don't piss me off... for a change.

CONS
- Needs cheesy 80's guitar to take some of the main melody on occasion.

Overall, you surprised me with this one, when I first heard it, I was a bit "..the fuck...?" but it's grown on me and I like it! ALOT...!!!

This is my personal example of electronic music done right. Very nice synths, very well done percussion, and nothing that pisses me off. The mixing itself is very well done, and all the levels seem perfect. You've got yourself a winner dude, tis very rare that I give a score this high... so savor it whilst it lasts.

I don't say what my scores are in my reviews (unless I am somehow motivated too... usually in a negative way), so if you're interested in knowing what it is, ask me in a PM or instant message or something. "

[Kaleb.G]

Some of this reminds me of a song from a Klonoa game.

GrayLightning, you need to remix some Klonoa songs; they have a lot of cool New Age-ish sounding stuff! :)

Klonoa 2 OST: one of my favorite soundtracks ever.

Anyway, great work, GL! :D

[ella guro]

Wow, nice. This is a very good arrangment - no complaints there. But I do have a few things I've noticed:

I really think the lead that comes in at :28 is kind of weak and not a good selection for that particular part. I do like when you speed things up around 1:36 and the piano/violin part is nice, but it again could use more variation in the dynamics and make slight changes in rythm to make it sound a little more musical. I also like where the build up after that goes to, but it takes too long to get back to the melody. I like that last section, though.

Anyway, those comments aside, I did really enjoy the arrangement. Keep it up!

[Rychan]

Wow, this is exceptional. This plays like a movie score. Especially around 2:40 with the vocals coming in, it sounds like one of the vocal interludes in Mona Lisa Overdrive on the Matrix reloaded sountrack. You've done so much with so little, kudos!

[GrayLightning]

Thank you for all the comments and reviews. I'm glad that many of you are enjoying it. I have several new mixes on the way that I think is even better. One of my newer ones will be posted this month for the OCR 4 event.

I should mention if you have an older version of this mix from somewhere, you should get this new version. The version I submitted to OC is an extended, longer and better version.

Thanks for listening.

[Iced Earth]

Wow I really love this version I have had the vgmix version for some time now and loved it but this version is much better great job GrayLightning I can't wait to here those seven new songs. :D

[cyangaramonde629]

AWESOME I LUVS IT

[Shhteve]

Hey Grey :D I remember when you posted this on the WIP boards. Hearing this sounded very familiar, and it's no wonder. This was one of my favorite works on the boards for quite some time. I'm glad you finished it up and submitted it; more glad to see that it passed the judges. Good stuff. :D

Edit: Actually I don't think I'm too sure if I got it from the WIP boards.. Did you ever post it there? I think I might've gotten it elsewhere. Can't remember.

[GrayLightning]

Yeah, I posted an older version of this mix on the OC WIP.

[Anonymous]

Wow, this is excellent. Definitely a keeper.

[Scuba]

Are we all listening to the same thing? The guitar was bland and annoying, the transitions were out of place, the synths were random and went against the whole grain of the style. It was overall just repetitive and boring. The area around the drum solo was boring... Why is this getting such good reviews? The same tune is played over and over again too... Sheezus.

[Fray]

Are we all listening to the same thing? The guitar was bland and annoying, the transitions were out of place, the synths were random and went against the whole grain of the style. It was overall just repetitive and boring. The area around the drum solo was boring... Why is this getting such good reviews? The same tune is played over and over again too... Sheezus.

Give it a few listens, see if it grows on you.

Other than that it could just be differences in taste.

[pixlz]

out of all honesty. awesome beat and stylings, beyond well done. not my poison of choice though. ^^;

great job though.

[tgfoo]

I must say, I really enjoyed this. At first I didn't really enjoy GrayLightning's unique and different style. But as I listened to more of his stuff, I grew to love it, and that's exactly how I feel about this one. I love it.

[Enigmatic Magus]

Damn, this song gets better and better the more I listen to it.

I didn't realize it untill I felt the need to hear a song that I couldn't quite place.. like having a song stuck in your head but you're missing a couple notes...

After I realized this was it, I kept finding myself coming back to it, and it's always just... kickass.

If I had to complain, it's a slight complaint that the faster part of the song somewhat detracts from this song's ability to reside on a "while-I-sleep" playlist.

I'll be keeping an eye out for more.

[TSZelda]

I have no clue why.... but this song makes me feel nostalgic and longing for all the things long past. A good download, even if the death theme isnt the first thing you wish to hear in any FF game...

[Corporal Eschebone]

I'm a big fan of GL's work, and this mix is an excellent example of why.


I've never heard the original, but this is some very high-quality music. Excellent attention was given to percussion and reverb, and a perfect combination of instruments was chosen. This is my favorite of the remixes that have come out over the past few weeks, even surpassing the OCR4 redesign celebratory mixes. Of course, with the stuff that's been on the front page since the redesign, that says a lot about this mix.

[Transdecimal]

Gah! This is REALLY bugging me...

Was this tune used in any other games? I recognise this music from somewhere else other then FF1 but I can't remember where else I've heard the melody before.

Somebody tell me before it drives me mad?

Hehe.

[GrayLightning]

Could Uematsu have lifted some ideas from a familiar classical piece? :wink: The theme sounds like it's from another piece also, but I can't quite put my finger on it.

[Lithium]

I don't know if the similarities are that great, but the intro to this feels a lot like the intro to Wizards and Warriors.

[Transdecimal]

It reminds me of something from a fantasy film, like Legend or Labirynth...

I'm sure I've heard it in a film before...?

[RimFrost the Tourianist]

Great job with this one ! ethnic mix and everything ..i wonder if GL played Turok Dinosaur Hunter right before making this :)

[Captain_Video]

I know I have heard this song in an Asian film. Probably a Hong Kong one. The melody is something that would play during the credits or something. I've heard this theme in another medium then games.

[Something Else]

Great mix. I love the sound used for the main tune, and the way the intro moves into it so smoothly... Just like the pretzel man, I think it's great how at 1'36 it speeds up the pace without losing the great feeling. It really adds to the song and makes sure that the song doesn't start to grow repetitive.

But like everyone else, I have to say that I know I've heard this tune from somewhere else.. My Dad knows this song (or something like it) by heart on the keyboard, and that's probably where I recognized it from. I don't think he said he got it from Final Fantasy, but he mentioned the name "Arthur" when I asked him about it.

[zircon]

The original this is based on wasn't written for a film or game. It was actually ripped from a piece of classical music; I know because I was listening to it, and my dad (who can identify almost any piece of music ever written) came up and said, hey, that's (such and such)! Of course, I don't remember the exact name now, but I can find out a little later today.

oh, and excellent mix :D

[GrayLightning]

Zircon that would be great. Let us/me know when you find out.

[zircon]

Zircon that would be great. Let us/me know when you find out.

Oops, my memory failed me. It's not a classical piece - it's the theme from the movie "Arthur". I think someone mentioned that.. sorry to throw you off :(

[zircon]

Arthur's Theme, by Christopher Cross:

http://www.soundtempest.net/Christopher%20Cross%20-%20Arthur's%20Theme.mp3

You should be able to hear the similarities pretty quick; the opening progression being the most obvious one. Sounds like Uematsu simplified the melody, though, almost de-remixing it :P The chorus of the song, though, is a different progression, so it wasn't really a complete copy.

Remix of a remix!

[Captain_Video]

The John Woo flick A Better Tomorrow uses this melody as well.

[Bummerdude]

Are we all listening to the same thing? The guitar was bland and annoying, the transitions were out of place, the synths were random and went against the whole grain of the style. It was overall just repetitive and boring. The area around the drum solo was boring... Why is this getting such good reviews? The same tune is played over and over again too... Sheezus.

Hey, show some respect, a whole party has just died.

I felt it sounded beautiful with the piano and that stringinstrument, very respectful and some real good strings in the back along with those drums that gave this one a teenie weenie oriental touch. Trés bien,
Graylightning.

[Dhsu]

Wasn't really feeling the solos towards the beginning (a bit too plodding and repetitive), but as a whole a very enjoyable piece. I do feel bad for indirectly making him go back and manually edit the velocities of every single note, though. :<

[OA]

Very nice arrangement, and cool similarities to a previous song. The different emphasis sections help keep things interesting without losing sight of the original, and the percussive textures were really strong.
Some nice crescendos, and good transitions.

A very pleasant remix, I like it. :-)

[Melbu Frahma]

Just listened to this for the first time a day or two ago, exceedingly impressed with the quality and feeling in it. Definitely a treasure, worth listening to.