ReMix:Final Fantasy X "Battle in the Far North" 4:50

By The Griever

Arranging the music of one song...

"People of the North Pole"

Primary Game: Final Fantasy X (Square , 2001, PS2), music by Junya Nakano, Masashi Hamauzu, Nobuo Uematsu

Posted 2012-04-12, evaluated by the judges panel


Newcomer The Griever sends us an exciting orchestral FFX arrangement, our first this year from the game's soundtrack:

"I chose this track because it's really one of my all time favorites, the lovely melodies get me every time I listen to it. I'm a big fan of Final Fantasy and its music. My idea was to turn this rather calm tune into a kind of battle theme, in fact my remix is telling a whole story! It's about two men, formerly been best friends, fighting on the snowy top of a mountain. It's stormy and you can hear the scream of an eagle watching the showdown. They talk to each other about the past, then they pull out their swords and with the beating of the drum at about 1:10 the battle begins! Both of them are very good swordsmen. At 2:06 they interrupt the exhausting fight for a while and talk again. The melody changes, the clock begins ticking and the rivals realize that only one of them will survive. They're tired now, but force themselves to fight further, at about 3:02 the battle continues! Then, suddenly, with an unexpected move, one of them manages to kill the other at about 3:58. The melody starting at about 4:16 expresses the "winner's" sadness. His best friend from back in the days is now gone forever..."

Very narrative approach, here, with the melody actually de-emphasized in favor of suspenseful accompaniment & forward momentum; OA writes:

"Definitely an expanded take on the source, but still keeping the same spirit, this features a lot of subtle differences, mostly by bringing the chords and atmosphere forward and diminishing the melody. The sfx were generally tasteful, and the additional rhythms and counter-melodies were pretty strong. Though the melody is gone for a lot of this, the rest of the track is very apparent, and though the second hawk cry was a bit much, and I'd prefer more melodic sections, this was well put together with good production, pretty nice sequencing, and an overall classy presentation."

Agreed, esp. on the second cry, BUT it clearly plays into the artist's vision, which involved a very specific story he wanted to tell, and I think the decisions made do support that approach. This is definitely great BGM, and it does feel like the setting of an epic, nearly-even battle between badass swordsmen. I'd like to see the ReMixer play around more with solo part-writing and melodic construction in the future, but I also think this is a solid debut that does an excellent job of painting a picture & setting a scene!

djpretzel

Discussion

Latest 14 comments/reviews; view the complete thread or post your own.
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Crulex
on 2013-07-17 11:23:30

Very cool work making this theme pop out and relaying the tense idea of battle into the soundscape. The hawk sounds were welcome. I even liked the second one, honestly. Great arrangement and production, and a pretty good ReMix.

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Bahamut
on 2012-09-07 01:51:18

Funny how I commented on the source a few days ago how when I got up to Mt. Gagazet, the game broke me, and I come upon this mix. Despite that, I still love the source material, and this mix is a unique take on the beautiful melody. It crafts an atmosphere of an impending battle with its forward moving orchestra, only to pull back near the end into a gentle unknown.

This is a well-done piece overall, and I love it!

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evktalo
on 2012-07-24 04:45:53

Cool track. Very good progressions and build-ups, wind-dows throughout. The judges seemed to make note of the mechanical sequencing, but I thought it added to the enjoyment, especially in the beginning.

--Eino

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meccaneer
on 2012-05-16 14:18:03

The FFX soundtrack was already impressive and I feel this remix fits right in. I'm very impressed with the instrumentation. Also, the building of suspense and tension was palpable. Very solid stuff - hope to hear more soon.

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Final Dissonance
on 2012-05-12 12:52:57

2nd bird cry aside, your take on this piece was fantastic. I have to say that I used to listen to this specific piece on my FFX OST all the time. I loved it because it was calming and relaxing and thinking about all the snow really sent me back home for a while.

The way that you remixed this was impressive to say the least. The diminished melody, along with the entire tense feeling the entire piece had me wondering where you were going next. True, a little more variety and subtle changes may have made this more INTERESTING, but at the very least, this song is going in my playlist as well. You've done a fantastic job. Congrats on your debut! I look forward to hearing more!

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audio fidelity
on 2012-05-08 17:55:35

I like how he got a lot of the original sounds to translate in this re-envisioning. Great stuff! Would love to see a video of this drama!

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Perigryn
on 2012-05-08 15:24:02

Wonderful piece, this. Oddly enough, this piece now sounds like it belongs in the Chrono Trigger soundtrack.

You did a great job on telling your story through this song's journey.

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Ranch Doritos
on 2012-04-17 20:38:02

oh my gosh...

Bliss.

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genius11433
on 2012-04-15 19:10:02

Perfect arrangement. You captured the feeling of tension and battle very well. Easily one for my playlist.

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BlackPanther
on 2012-04-13 15:46:20

Damn. Way to match damn near perfectly, the state of my consciousness lol. For me, this brings about a tense, urgent feeling with some sadness behind it. I like the arrangement and the production's nice.

Very solid piece man, thanks and great work!

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Melbu Frahma
on 2012-04-13 12:02:02

This is a great debut mix, especially for orchestral; I can definitely hear the story that the Remixer wanted to tell with it. Honestly, the second hawk cry didn't bother me - I didn't even consciously hear it in there until my third listen. I'm looking forward to more mixes from you!

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Guifrog
on 2012-04-13 10:05:01

What I specially like about ReMixes is when they have a story to tell, one that I can follow by listening to it. I do think the idea was captured pretty well here, where I feel both the action from the battle and a built-in melancholy in its meaning. Quite great stuff indeed, and I'm looking forward to more!

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Magellanic
on 2012-04-13 06:18:28

Its very nice to see an orchestral ReMix. This is very well done, the source is recogniseable and there is significant expansion on the original. The textures make this track very enjoyable. It does sound as though it could be used seemlessly alongside the game's soundtrack. I'd agree that there could have been a little more melodic writing, but great stuff!

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djpretzel
on 2012-04-12 16:23:37

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

Sources Arranged (1 Song)


Primary Game:
Final Fantasy X (Square , 2001, PS2)
Music by Junya Nakano,Masashi Hamauzu,Nobuo Uematsu
Songs:
"People of the North Pole"

Tags (4)


Genre:
Cinematic
Mood:
Suspenseful
Instrumentation:
Orchestral,Strings
Additional:

File Information


Name:
Final_Fantasy_10_Battle_in_the_Far_North_OC_ReMix.mp3
Size:
7,052,925 bytes
MD5:
12d6123ba23929712c07597fb9ddac7e
Bitrate:
192Kbps
Duration:
4:50

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