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You know you're a geek when you listen to video game music. You know you're REALLY a geek when you know how to play it. So, as per my love of playing music .. and my love of Final Fantasy, I took it upon myself to learn, perform, record, arrange, and remix a pair of medleys of tunes from Final Fantasy VI. After I let one of my Final Fantasy officiantos have a listen, he mentioned to me that Nobuo's band, the Black Mages, does similar renditions of Final Fantasy tunes. Just for clarification, I haven't listened to anything the Black Mages have done, so any resemblence is coincidental.

Anyway, I played all the instruments myself, recording each line individually, then layered the files accordingly. Unfortunately, I could only use the internal mic on my laptop, using a pretty shotty free recording program, so the quality isn't the best it could be (Now it just sounds like I'm making excuses).
Since I don't my own webspace or site to host the files, and the files are far larger than what the attachment option allows, it'll have to be done using the "YouSendIt.com" loophole. Namely, click on the link, download the file, find it on your computer, etc. The link will expire after 7 days OR after it's downloaded 25 times, whatever comes first. But if it expires, I can just do it again.

Without further ado,

Final Fantasy VI - Part Uno

This is the one I did first, back in February. It features "Terra's Theme", "Kefka's Theme", "Epitath" (aka: Darryl's Theme), "Wild West" (aka: Theme from the Veldt), "Slam Shuffle" (aka: Theme from Zozo), and "Shadow's Theme"
Instruments used: lead guitar, rhythm guitar (I used two different guitars), bass guitar, drum set.
The better sounding of the two, in my opinion. "Zozo" was the toughest to play, and it kinda shows. I mess up once or twice. Also, there's a glaringly obvious wrong note played on the bass during the beginning of "Shadow's Theme", but I still think it sounds decent.

Final Fantasy VI - Part Deux

I just completed this one today. It features "Aria de Mezzo Carattere" (the song that Celes sings at the Opera House), "Figaro", "Searching For Friends" (aka: Theme for the Falcon), "the Battle Theme", "Cyan's Theme", and "the Day After" (the song playing in Albrook in the World of Ruin).
Instruments used: lead guitar, rhythm guitar, acoustic guitar, bass guitar, stand-up piano, drum set.
I think I tried to do too much with this one. Sometimes there's too many files during a certain part that it clashes with other parts. I won't point out where because then you'll certainly notice it, but it's there. There's certainly no hiding the blatant mistake I made during "Searching For Friends". I don't know why I just didn't redo that part. I'm a bit mad at the Battle Theme. I only got half a tab so I had to ad-lib the second half of it. That and I couldn't play it as fast as it goes, so I thought I'd try to make more of a garage-y sound by slowing it down and throwing a rock style drumline to it, but it just sounds bad played that slow. Once again, I let my friend listen to this one just barely. He notes that "the Day After" sounds pretty strange, but the ending of it sounds "downright sinister".


Anyway, let me know what you think.

This post has been edited by Sabin on 31st May 2005 23:43

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"When I turn the page
The corner bends into the perfect dog ear
As if the words knew I'd need them again
But at the time, I didn't see it."

~"This Ain't a Surfin' Movie" - Minus the Bear

I might edit this post later to include a mini-review for Part Deux (any reason why you use Spanish for 1 and French for 2?), but I'll give it a shot.

Not bad at all, the recording quality is less than professional (to be expected), but your playing is pretty solid, if not always in perfect time or the cleanest guitar playing. Also, the toms on your set don't sound like they've been tuned very well (they sound sour in Kefka's theme in particular). I like the bass sounds in the low end and most of the guitar sounds, but your high end bass and some of the transitions are less than euphonic. As a percussionist, I found all of your percussion parts extremely boring, except for maybe the Veldt section. I understand that this is a cover and not a remix, but the drummer in me really wishes that you elaborated the percussion parts. The most interesting set part was Wild West, and it really wasn't very clean at all (Use a metronome! Metronome, I tell you!).

Now to leave the critical vibe and say what I liked. Terra's theme at the beginning is solid for a solo effort, probably your cleanest playing in the track. The guitar sounds in Kefka's theme were very good, but I didn't like the percussion. I think Epitaph may have been my favorite. It was clean, there was no boring percussion, and the harmonies worked very well for three guitars. Wild West had that fun and interesting percussion track to it, and while it wasn't always clean (Metronome!), it was a nice contrast coming right after Epitaph and the guitar was very well done on it. Shadow's theme had great bass when it stayed low, and the guitar sounds on it were good with a few lapses.

Overall, very nice. I can only hope that you use a metronome in the future .

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this is a blog mostly about comics and videogames
END SPOILER

Yeah, I used to know how to play part of both Terra's and the Opera theme. I discovered them when my friend was messing around with the piano and I was like, "woah, hold on, I recognize that". It took like ten minutes and I had terra's theme. the opera theme was a little bit reversed, he recognized it, but I again figured most of it out.

those are reaaally cool, good job.
The only music experience I have is a few years of piano waaaay back in the day, so I really admire it when people can pull off stuff like this well :0

Wait, where did you learn to play Shadow's theme on bass?

Plus laszlow, I'll have you know some people don't need metronomes to keep a steady beat, they can do it in their heads and by feel.

This post has been edited by Zephir on 3rd June 2005 01:44

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~Status Report~

* Completed... Dragon's Head
* Completed... Soldiers of the Empire: Disciples (release pending)
* In Progress/Undecided... Of Love and Betrayal
* Planning/Assembly... Where it all Began

Quote (laszlow @ 31st May 2005 18:44)

As a percussionist, I found all of your percussion parts extremely boring, except for maybe the Veldt section. I understand that this is a cover and not a remix, but the drummer in me really wishes that you elaborated the percussion parts.

Yeah, I can relate. The reason I didn't have any more exhilirating percussion, aside from Wild West, is because percussion isn't the main focal point on any of the songs. I didn't want to try to draw the attention away from the main parts. But I could've jazzed up the general lines a bit more, that's true.
And as for what you think may be my toms out of tune. That may be the case, but it's probably the way it was recorded. Since the drums are air-born instruments (as opposed to electric like guitar and bass), then the sound is kind of off kilter. It's the same reason why the piano during the Day After sounds weird.
Once I get a better sound recording program that has no weird side effects, and get an effects-pedal for my guitar so each song doesn't sound the same, I'm going to completely re-do these two.

Zeph: You should know. I had a Shadow guitar tab, but there wasn't a bass tab in existence until I remember you did it once.

--------------------

"When I turn the page
The corner bends into the perfect dog ear
As if the words knew I'd need them again
But at the time, I didn't see it."

~"This Ain't a Surfin' Movie" - Minus the Bear

Quote (Zephir @ 2nd June 2005 20:40)

Plus laszlow, I'll have you know some people don't need metronomes to keep a steady beat, they can do it in their heads and by feel.

Not only am I sure that I have rhythm (concert percussion for seven years, five seasons of marching band, four seasons of winter drumline, three years of chamber percussion quartets, and one summer of drum corps training staff), I am also sure that EVERYONE that doesn't practice with a metronome is not practicing the best way. If you want to learn how to play well (especially sightreading), then you absolutely MUST practice with a metronome with multiple pieces and multiple exercises at multiple speeds. I could tell Sabin didn't use a metronome by listening to his percussion (and the slower guitar music, to a lesser degree). And if you're self recording something, using playovers and not samples, not using a metronome is folly.

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this is a blog mostly about comics and videogames
END SPOILER

I was just kinda saying something just to say something, Drummer Man, no need to get all offended...

But never have I needed a metronome. Not even when I was playing in middle school band.

Besides, I don't ever practice... ... ... ... ...

*ahem*

Quote (Sabs)

Zeph: You should know. I had a Shadow guitar tab, but there wasn't a bass tab in existence until I remember you did it once.

Heh, just curious.

This post has been edited by Zephir on 4th June 2005 04:45

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~Status Report~

* Completed... Dragon's Head
* Completed... Soldiers of the Empire: Disciples (release pending)
* In Progress/Undecided... Of Love and Betrayal
* Planning/Assembly... Where it all Began

Good stuff Sabin! Just a comment on the quality issue, you could have plugged into the line-in port of your laptop (assuming it has one - I've seen some laptops without em). You will need a 1/4" to 1/8" adapter in order to plug it in but with it you can connect your guitars/bass directly to the sound card for recording. Kudos on the drums, you're quite multitalented! Overall, wow you know a lot of FF3 songs! I know about 2 of the above and I'm always forgetting how to play them...

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Lou: There's a couple of guys fighting down at the aquarium, Chief.
Wiggum: Do they still sell those frozen bananas?
Lou: I think so.
Wiggum: Let's roll.

Bah, hate working with the adapter plug myself 'cause it never works.

Anyway, Sabs, ring me up on AIM some day, Yousendit seriously doesn't like me.

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~Status Report~

* Completed... Dragon's Head
* Completed... Soldiers of the Empire: Disciples (release pending)
* In Progress/Undecided... Of Love and Betrayal
* Planning/Assembly... Where it all Began

I just managed to get it (...yousendit...) and I must say I like what I hear for the most part. Specially on the Epitaph--the overdub sounded awesome. Maybe it's just the audio, but I personally think it could have sounded a bit better. The distortion was okay, but it tends to not sound as good on computer eh.
But I really wanted to point out that weird sound the drum kit has (btw, kudos for having patience to edit them together). It was okay on the Veldt, but in other places it sounded a bit odd, mainly Kefka's. And in that and Shadow's Theme the guitar and bass sounded off key. I still liked them though

Edit

( I like the little 'Ktulu' thing you had going on Terra's)

I'll get back to you on the other one.

This post has been edited by Sherick on 6th June 2005 22:00

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I fear my heart and fear my soul
Life goes on, it surely will,
Without me and I wonder:
Will I ever see light again?

Life goes on...