ReMix:Dark Cloud 2 "Fishing Spirit" 3:36

Moomba (Joe Griffith) follows up his debut FF7 medley from 2012 with an upbeat, orchestral arrangement of Dark Cloud 2! He writes:

"A while ago I did an extensive write-up on MMORPGs and one of the subjects I'd intended to bring up - but never actually did - was fishing. Whenever I think of fishing in games I always inevitably fall back on Dark Chronicle as my example of the game with what I consider to be the best fishing system. I'm pretty sure at least some of that can be chalked up to the fantastic (and highly underrated going by the fact there's only one related remix on OCR) music that went along with it. This ReMix was actually conceived while planning out some sketches for a trailer track I've been writing for a client. While putting ideas together, Peace of the World began to worm its way into stuff and so 'Fishing Spirit' was born. The title may be a terrible pun, but it's grown on me since a friend first suggested it!"

Tomohito Nishiura definitely writes some great music, and I've love to hear more of it represented on OCR. This is a great start, as Joe really creates the right atmosphere - comfortable, positive, & active without being frenetic - for a village/fishing type motif. Excellent use of winds and brass, and I especially like the shorter, staccato articulations on the latter. The rolling drums underneath give things an earthy feel, and the metallic percussive addition (anvil?) @ 1'49" was a nice way of dialing things up without going overboard. I admire the restraint behind the entire piece, actually; things definitely develop, dynamically, but it always retains a very affable, almost humble disposition. Tempo fluctuates nicely as well; some of the ritardando work could have been a little more deliberate, but the overall effect really helps make things more cinematic & avoids stagnation. Palpable writes:

"Love the source tune, one of my favorites from the game. I love how Joe took this and made it so much more dramatic. He totally sold me based on the strength of the arrangement and the intricacy of the part-writing, but the production was also solid."

Deia adds:

"Great source! I really enjoyed how Joe expanded this one; the feel of the original is definitely kept and expanded on well here. The lightheartedness is expressed well in the staccato writing, and I definitely liked the expansion in the different instrumental parts. While I agree with the comments above (key change, some of the muddier sections), I don't think they are enough that this should be held back. Hope to hear more from you, Joe!"

This is a really easy mix to like, and it just kinda makes you feel... good. Perhaps good enough to go fishing... although I've never actually been much of a fan, so we'll go with hiking... or at a bare minimum, let's just say "being outdoors and enjoying the planet" - that's pretty universal. I'm glad to hear more from Moomba, and I like the single-source focus that this mix provides that contrasts with his debut medley, even though he did a great job there of blending everything together. Great, pleasant stuff that's a perfect pick-me-up & very well-crafted!