zircon

everyone is entitled to their opinion, but have you played FF6? most of the other remixes on this site don't even come close to this remix. i don't know; maybe i just love ff6 so much that i really like this track, but i still think it's one of the best ever. Yes, I've played and beaten ff6 countless times. It's my all time favorite RPG. I strongly disagree with your statement that the other remixes on the site don't even come close to this. In fact, I would go so far as to say this is one of the dumbest things I've yet read here. Spekkosaurus' Trial in Concert remix far surpasses this remix in all technical aspects. This is an undisputable point, as any thinking person should easily be able to hear the differences in complexity. From a listener's standpoint, I also find the Trial in Concert far more enjoyable to listen to. Changing dynamics and full use of the piano, along with an arrangement style similar to that of Liszt, make it completely interesting. I could go on to detail other remixes that, in my opinion, are far superior to this one. However, I believe that would be redundant.

Did I miss something? Am I listening to a different remix than everyonee else here? All I hear is basic, boring acoustic guitar, simplistic piano, and a minimal layer of drums/accompaniment and occasional effects. If anything, this sounds like something you might hear as background music in a movie. I was really hoping for more after reading all the reviews, but this seems very bare. I believe that any feeling of tragedy or sadness comes from the theme itself, not from the interpretation of it in this remix. There are innumerable piano themes that are hauntingly beautiful that I have heard, and this remix simply doesn't compare with them to me. Granted, there are no real technical problems that I can detect, but my bottom line is still this; too simplistic, too shallow, doesn't go anywhere, boring. Flame me if you want. Ban me if you want. I'm not playing devil's advocate, either, this is my actual opinion.

Spekkosaurus, I'm a classical pianist who has been playing for about eight years now, striving to attain a level of mastery in all aspects of the instrument. Listening to this remix, I must say you are truly a genius that has gone far beyond that level of mastery. This interpretation, from a musical and technical standpoint, is flawless. It brings to mind the Hungarian Rhapsody no. 2, the first and third movements of the Pathetique by Beethoven, and the style of Rachmaninoff. I am especially astounded at your accuracy and mastery over the instrument- dynamics, tempo, and all. I'm working on a dramatic FF piano battle medley that I am trying to record live, and it is extremely difficult. However, you have done a more difficult arrangement (dare I say) perfectly. I have but three questions. First, did you use sheet music while playing this? Or did you have it all planned out in your head? Second, what was the kind of piano you used, and what recording software/hardware did you use? Again, I cannot get over the beauty of this masterpiece.

Whenever I hear this song, I think "a nice, solid little mix". It has no major technical or musical flaws, and it is enjoyable to listen to. Despite the fact that it is not very creative or 'above the bar', I see nothing wrong with it.

Hey, it's really not fair to the artist to not listen to the entire song. Think about Stairway to Heaven if you only listened to the first section.

Man, this RULES! It blew me away the first time I listened to it. I actually just discovered it today, this morning. I've been listening to it nonstop all day since. I'm a huge fan of 'heavy' audio that sounds like your ears are being attacked, but remains melodic at the same time, and this song really did it. Plus, the Veldt theme is one of my all-time favorites, and no mix out there had done it for me except this one. I'm not big on pauses most of the time either, but again, you did a great job with them.

But I did explain my extreme bias at the beginning. (This is getting a bit obsessive-complulsive, isn't it? ) Still, not a great excuse.

I like this song, but I don't think it's "incredible" in it's current form. Some of the harmonies sound off, like at about 5:00, and though the guitar playing is good, it's still a bit drab. I like being blasted with flowing audio, and though the song gets heavier later, it still just doesn't quite cut it. It's pretty amazing that you recorded a lot of this stuff in one take, but I'm really sensitive to off key notes, so a lot of your singing bothered me. Not to say that your voice isn't good, it sounds like you have talent. But at the moment, I would give this song a 6 out of 10. If you rerecord the vocals trying to stay on key, and spice up parts in the song here and there with synths or another guitar/drum layer, I think it would easily be a 10/10.

Assuming this is all live guitar, I'd say it's good. But the ending IS abrupt, and the sound quality isn't really all that great. Those things aside, this is a good, solid remix.

Obviously. How else could you judge any work of art? You didn't say "in my opinion", however. This remix is a good song, but I believe if you asked a random sampling of one hundred musicians, you would find that a very small percentage (or a zero percentage) would say this it is the best song ever.

Whoa. It's a bit much to say it's better than any other music. Maybe in your opinion, perhaps.

Yes, this is DEFINITLY breakbeat. I have some breakbeat drumsets, and the samples sound exactly the same. The song overall is on the minimal side, but the crisp quality of the sound and the high quality arrangement really keep the listener's attention. Just when you might start getting bored with it, a drum solo comes in; the one at 2:30 is purely awesome.

Hey, great stuff! I like the change in rhythym on the melody, the drums are cool, as are the accompaniment. The Veldt theme rocks also. If I could change one thing about this remix, however, I would have to say that the last repeat of the melody is not necessary. We've heard it several times already, why play it again? I thought the artist was going to do something cool with it, like incorporate the Veldt theme or instruments into Kefka's theme, but it just didn't happen.

For techno or trance, this is exceptional. I actually liked the intro and ending very much, despite how minimal they were. I only have two real problems with it, and they're not very big. The first is that the lead instrument doesn't stand out much, and the first time I listened to it with headphones, I could barely hear it at all. The second is that there's a bit of the melody missing. The melody thing is more of a personal preference; I like to hear the whole original in a remix, but the lead volume issue is easily fixed. Out of ten, I would give this an 8.5.

This is definitly a very good remix, but I agree with some of the others here that it is a bit overrated. The intro is not very good, nor are the trumpets. It's predictable, except for the solo, which is slightly irritating. When you have this much talent and potential, do something with it! You know, change tempos, change the drumline, spice up the background, anything. Besides the intro, everything /sounds/ fine, but considering the length, it doesn't hold my attention. Again, I'm not saying the melody was anything less than excellent, I'm saying that more could have been done.

I don't like the drums either. The piece is so close to being perfect, it's a shame he didn't use less piercing drums and instead went with trance or techno style drums, like Gadien said. However, it doesn't detract much from the overall arrangement and instrumentation, which appears to be flawless.

To me, this sounds like more of an update of the original theme rather than a remix of it. And I mean that in a good way. It's well arranged, lively, and high quality; I would have liked this on the FF Anthologies soundtrack. Variations don't always have to be ground breaking to sound nice, either. Mozart's "12 Variations", 12 variations on "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" include bars that sound similar to the piano variations in this remix.

Two thumbs way up. Every time I finish listening to it, it leaves me wanting more. My only complaint is the screaming is a little loud, I wouldn't mind if it was toned down a bit. But then again, it DOES add to the insanity

(wow, I was extremely stupid in 2003!)

I agree with orkybash here that the actual melody is a bit drab, and the voice sample is redundant. While all the rest of the piece is good, the theme could have been at least completed rather than just looped at a slow pace (which is very annoying). I would say, 5/10, 8/10 if you like trance.

I don't think this is McVaffe's best work. The original is used too much, with not enough improvisation. It really shines at the part where the in game sounds are used as percussion, and the piano section is nice as well. Other than that though, it sounds like it was slapped together fairly quickly.

Great overall, the blaring problem I see is the volume level. Way too loud..

I really don't like this one. The original theme isn't all that great, but the remix doesn't do anything to it. It literally sounds like a midi with the instruments changed.

Although I remember most of MQ's music vividly, I couldn't recall this track. The sample quality is very good, and the entire piece is well-arranged. While I don't find it interesting enough to listen to by itself, it works very well for background music, or music while my attention is partially diverted. For some reason, that makes it more enjoyable for me.