ReMix:Final Fantasy VIII "Devotion & Deception" 6:40

The "Deception" part of this song is absolutely unbelievable... WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I had goosebumps... I turned the speakers up... by the end of this song it almost brought me to tears of joy from the brilliance

To both remixers, just wow... This is something people would happily pay to listen to

Chuck this one on repeat, and enjoy

Loved it!

This one's a little different compared to the FF6 remixes the did previously, but still very impressive. When the song picks up, I can definitely hear an okami sound to it, and the choir is as amazing as usual. I can't wait to hear the next remix they do together, if they do one. Great work you two.

How is it that I have not found this piece earlier? It's very good! I admit the first half had me bopping along, but when the second half busted out, I was hooked.

Starts off with one of the most memorable melodies of FFVIII (probably because you get to hear it over and over and over in the game), which is a good way to start off a remix IMO. I do agree that it sounds somewhat fake, though that is not too much of an issue.

Fairly relaxing first part that picks up a bit at 2:25. Still radically different from what follows at 3:15. The latter half is much more dramatic, and the choir samples definitely add a lot. Digging the instrumentation here.

Well I've applied the update to the version on my website. It's as good as it's going to get so if you've been waiting to download or comment you can do it now. Thank you all for your support and also look for the 3rd movement of the "Cantata For Dancing" series in the WIP forums very soon.

Musically yours,

-Derek-

Love the arrangment guys )) PLacing on my mp3 player now

First half does sound kinda stifled compared to the rest of the piece, perhaps second half has better samples . . idk

This piece is incredible. This is my favorite track put up since bLiNd's "Jade Catacombs".

It seems your intention at contrast was carried out very nicely and provides a greatly epic experience, and I would hope that a good orchestral piece like this could set the tone for more work from FFVIII like it. The source material in that game is incredible, and you guys did it great justice.

Pretty nice stuff, good variations and lots of interesting bits throughout. Some of the early parts seemed to be lacking in modulation and felt a little bit overly synthetic, but this is enjoyable listening.

Yeah the 1st half was difficult with samples. I'm still trying to focus my talents in that area. It's definitely the hardest area to sample in.

Since I love to hang around in the WIP forums (oh wait, guess that's the "Workshop" now), it's really nice to see something that was kicking around there for months, if not the better part of a year make it to the front page.

I actually hadn't listened to too many WIPs of this particular track and have to say that I'm really impressed with the finished product. It certainly starts innocently enough, not veering a whole lot from the course of the original, but once it turns to the dark side, this track gets very interesting, suddenly we have an "evil" version of Blue Fields topped off with some always-welcome "FLWV" chants. Those chants were one of my favorite parts of FFVIII's soundtrack, and including them here definitely helps to give the piece some more power.

I've loved this piece ever since it was a WIP, but I have a confession to make: when I listen to it, I skip ahead to about 4:00 so that I can enjoy the truly excellent second half. The reworking of Blue Fields at around 6:10 is just amazing. "Deception" indeed -- a decent-enough piece in the beginning hides a truly perfect piece after!

I got the abrupt transition idea from listening to the 3x3 Eyes OST. I wanted to get a soundtrack-ish feel without having to make two separate tracks, but that's kind of what it is in the end.

I thought the transition into the second part was too abrupt. I think it probably could have flowed better than it did.

Thanks for your comment. If you read Jeremy's rundown in the summary you'll see that we didn't transition it on purpose. It was suppose to feel like the end of the piece after the first half. Hence the "Deception" in the title.

-Derek-

This here is some good stuff. Couple of things threw me off - the first part sounded a bit too fake for me. The Japanese sounds were a nice touch, but they didn't sound very authentically Japanese, you know? Once I got past that though, the arrangement sounded nice. The other thing was that I thought the transition into the second part was too abrupt. I think it probably could have flowed better than it did. Again, minor issues, and overall it's a very enjoyable piece. Keep up the good work!

Pretty nice stuff, good variations and lots of interesting bits throughout. Some of the early parts seemed to be lacking in modulation and felt a little bit overly synthetic, but this is enjoyable listening.

Once again, another stellar arrangement from the Dream Team, the Two-o Duo, the Power Hour, the I-Can't-Think-of-Another-Flattering-Nickname-for-Derek-and-Jeremy!

The Cantatas blew my mind--this did the trick quite nicely as well.

I have to admit, the source tune was one of my favorites in the soundtrack because I felt like it had so much potential as a great orchestrated piece, and you two have just about hit the proverbial nail on the head with this one. Great job.