ReMix: Final Fantasy VII 'Crying Planet'

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Final Fantasy VII

Newcomer Akira Wing not only has a really cool name, he does film composition, film editing, motion graphics, AND teaches Aikido. So, basically, he could kick your ass, film and edit the beating, come up with some catchy intro graphics, and set the whole thing to music, by himself. Pretty impressive, eh? Visit his website if you don't believe me... he writes:

"Composed in Sonar Cakewalk, East West sound libraries. I love what you're doing and have enjoyed all the great work others have offered and I have been wanting to contribute for some time. Hope you enjoy."

Awesome. I actually checked out his site and samples of his work before I listened to this FFVII mix, so I had high expectations, and was not disappointed. Well... I was a little disappointed, because I wanted this arrangement to keep going - at 2'23", it's pretty dang brief. What's here is great, though, and really sets a tense, cinematic mood. Vinnie put it well:

"Great pacing and use of silence and tension. This is pretty much what I'd expect to get used in the film version of FF7. The original theme is simple, but you added a lot of spice while keeping the basic structure. Thought the execution was a little sparse but otherwise, bang on. I really would have liked to hear something longer because there's a lot more directions you could have taken this in, but I can roll with it as a short but sweet nugget of goodness."

Great use of tremolo, pizzicato, sforzando, pianissimo, crescendo, and fettuccine alfredo. Well, maybe not that last one; I haven't had dinner yet and it's late. Choral elements are a welcome surprise, as was the sudden crescendo-yelp; for such a short runtime, Akira packs in quite a rich variety of instruments and textures, and there's plenty of development. Great debut from Mr. Wing - hope to hear more, either here on OC ReMix, in an upcoming game, or up on the big screen!

― djpretzel

Discussion: Latest 14 comments/reviews; view the complete thread or post your own.
I like what's there, even though it's not much (speaking in terms of length). If the remix had been longer, it would've needed a real climax, IMO, or it would've drifted too much into BGM territory; the kind of BGM that's nice in the background but not particularly interesting to listen to on its own.
Also, I, for one, liked the synth.

- Martin Penwald on October 19, 2009
have you ever worked with X Ray Dog Wing? This sounds a lot like the music they put out. Not to say it's bad, it is not! Short yes. Bad, no.

- LostChronos on October 13, 2009
This has a great atmosphere, and as mentioned by others the cinematic feel strikes me as something that would be used in a movie or game--in fact, unless you object I may use this to set the mood in a DnD game sometime. It does seem to be lacking something though--others have mentioned lack of length, but if one tries to extend a piece longer than one wants, one risks dragging things out unnecessarily instead. I think what this needs is a better conclusion--the ending left me thinking, "So, wait, that's it?" A stronger, firmer ending would've helped more than a bit more length I think (hurr hurr double entendres).

- Proven Paradox on October 4, 2009
Reminds me of a dungeon exploration scene in an RPG just before a big boss fight. Personally, I like the very dramatic, deliberate percussion you've got going on, but I don't like the synth that came in during the first part of the song. I've heard synth pulled off well in an orchestral arrangement before, but it kind of sticks out like a sore thumb here, in my opinion.
And yeah, a climax would have been excellent here; what you've got feels like about half of a (quite excellent) song that didn't quite get enough time in the incubator. It's clear that you're a competent remixer though, I look forward to hearing more from you in the future!

- Emunator on October 4, 2009
What's awesome about this is that it's subtle in it's arrangement, but the sense of urgency remains hovering as you listen. I could easily see this building into some awesome cut scene, or something where the suspense keeps building. Nice work, but it would be great to have this have a real climax somewhere (I found that to be what was lacking).

- DragonAvenger on October 2, 2009
This was so good to listen to but it was to short which was a bummer.

- metalsnakejuice on October 1, 2009
I am definitely liking what I am hearing here, but dang is it short.
I'd love to hear what you have in store next, but this one is not enough for me to really get into. :-(

- OA on September 30, 2009
It's a good piece. I like the atmosphere it creates and the general feel of it. As mentioned by others though, I was a little let down by how short it was as I felt it could go on for a while longer. Otherwise though a good track.

- _heartilly_ on September 30, 2009
There's a nice foundation here but I'm definitely not a fan of how short it is.

- Bahamut on September 30, 2009
Well, overall, nice work on this memorable piece.

I think the intro sounded a little clunky (i.e: not well thought-out/put together).

At 1.07-1.14 and at 2.06-2.10, I can almost swear that I can hear 'Wutai' in the upper strings. Intentional or not, it made for a good surprise.

The use of a Grand Pause (circa-0.20) was very dramatic. But, because of its use at the beginning, the end left me wanting (read: expecting) more.

As I said, nice work overall and I truly hope you make more mixes like this, but with some length to them.

- sefirosu on September 29, 2009
A very cinematic remix. I feel like this should be put in a suspenseful movie or other. Anyway, good job--it sounds nice!

- Kruai on September 29, 2009
Agreed - there's some missed kickass opportuniy, but I do think the way you have it is pretty good all the same. Very suspenseful. Good job!

- windkirby on September 29, 2009
I'm not entirely sure why, but I'm reminded rather heavily of the soundtrack for either Ghost in the Shell (2, I believe) or Akira (though, not because of the artist's name). Either way, I think this track is pretty rockin'. I agree with djp and the judges, in that I would like to hear more. It's just feels like it could grow into some super epic territory with a few more minutes. Anyway, nice work. I hope to hear more of your stuff on OCR. :D

- Abadoss on September 29, 2009
What did you think? Post your opinion of this ReMix.

- djpretzel on September 29, 2009

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