Best Original Soundtrack and Arranged Album of 2006 Discussion

As the thread title implies, we are to name the top original and arranged works and explain why we liked them so much. There are no limits on how many releases you wish to mention and discuss. I know the year isin't quite over, but there isin't really anything hype-worthy IMO (aside Gradius Tribute in a few days) until next year.

So to start things off, here's my picks.

Original Soundtracks

1. Ibara

No really, you don't know me all that well if you couldn't predict this one popping up in my list of notable releases. It's so simple, for the ROCKIN' lovers, the basic formula of "Hosoe + ROCKIN' & SYNTHIN' = Ibara" just works :P

Honorable mention to "Show Time", "Endless Train" and "Rose of Zeal"

2. Under Defeat

See Ibara's description. Seriously though, it has it share of amazing stage theme and intense boss themes. Not as ROCKIN' as Ibara, but still very solid. A great album from Hosoe to start off the year with a BANG! (It came out 15 days or so before Ibara)

Honorable mention to "Can't come back", "way back that was shut" and "storm of fine weather".

3. Tobi Tsukihime

Masashi Yano on ROCKIN' mode was definitely interesting. Aside a couple of electronic tracks, the rest was a fine mix of synth and guitar. Unless you hate hard rock, it's hard to hate the majority of this album.

Honorable mention to "Boss -Enraged-", "Stage 2 -Rampage!-" and "Stage 5 -amVirus : Avatar of Nightmare-".

4. ESPGaluda II

The first taste we got out of Manabu Namiki this year if I'm not mistaking. Solid trance tracks as usual from him, and Mitsuhiro Kaneda's sole contribution on the album was simply "fun". A great album to pick you up when you're feeling down, if you like trance, at least.

Honorable mention to "Mutiny - Fate is with the Girl", "Aerial - Sadness Bathes in Dust" and "Galuda - Becoming Complete".

5. Metal Slug Complete Sound Box

While the majority of the material was released several years ago, the new material on this set made it worthwhile. That being Namiki and Kaneda's Metal Slug 6 music and Toshikazu Tanaka's Metal Slug 4 (previously unreleased on disc) and Metal Slug 3D. MS6 was a great mix of military, epic, electronic and synth-rock music while MS4 and MS3D were more along the lines of synth-rock and heavy metal(mostly for MS3D) for the most part.

Honorable mention to "Main Theme from MS6", "Asian Impact", "Snowy Road (Stage 3)", "Final Madness (Final Boss Second Half)", "Desert Town (Stage 3)" and "Out of Control (Stage 11 -Lugus-)".

6. Carnage Heart Portable

Another of my blind purchases that really paid off, having a great mix of piano/guitar/jazzy event themes and downright awesome techno-rock battle themes.

Honorable mention to "Title (Prologue)", "Reminiscence (Adventure Part 1)" and "Pulse of Sympathy (Battle Bgm 8)".

7. Bullet Witch

Yet another blind purchase. This one shows Masashi Yano's orchestral side, which is really enjoyable as his tracks develop plenty and it's easy to grow on you.

Honorable mention to "Dusk", "Geist" and "Insane".

8. Pink Sweets

The latest Cave release had a lot to live up to and as far as I'm concerned, it surpassed my expectations by a good deal. It's mostly peppy techno, but it's easier on the ears than ESPGaluda, for one.

Honorable mention to "Drago Blu (Boss ~ Sky Battle)", "Svolta! (Stage 4)", "Ale che non cadono (Stage 6)" and "Uccello rosso (True Last Boss)".

9. Radirgy

Fresh from Chaos Field in 2004, Hayashi and Nagata of Milestone had more of the good stuff in Radirgy. This time, they took a diffrent approach with their unique flair. Instead of bombarding the listener with loud samples, they've made not as loud and the melodies develop a bit more.

Honorable mention to "bitcrush -Character Select-", "a day in the park -Stage 02-" and "asagiri -Final Boss-".

10. Blue Dragon

I was expecting a lot out of this one, and once more my expectations have been surpassed largely. I love the abundance of guitar-driven tracks, it does give the impression of a spiritual sequel to Final Fantasy Mystic Quest in music style. There are little to no "filler" tracks here, which says alot of Uematsu's newfound freedom by being free of corporate control.

Honorable mention to "Dragon Fight!", "Nene's Paradise", "Mechat Takes Off!" and "Release The Seal".

Whew ! That's pretty much it for the original stuff. Onto the arranged albums now.

Arranged Albums

1. Ibara REMIX Tracks

I will not lie, even tho it is very short, this is a candidate for best arrange album of the year for me. Hyakutaro Tsukumo and Tatsuya Uemura's remixes of "Rose Garden" and "Show Time" respectively stood out the most to me.

2. Under Defeat -Extended Tracks-

The OST tracks with the added live guitar were the best part of the album for me, but I also enjoyed the arrangements of "Toward a mistake" and "Huge dead end".

3. iFUTURELIST

I'll count this one technically as an arrange album as it has some extended versions of some of Yamaoka's vocal tracks from various Bemani titles. I enjoy especially "LOVE ME DO", "INJECTION OF LOVE" and "bitmania".

4. ESPGaluda II Arrange Disc

Oh come on, you had to expect that. This is some hardcore electronic stuff, they tend to move away too much from the original compositions. Not for everyone, but I enjoy the novelty.

5. Pink Sweets Arrange Disc

At least this one is easier to take in. The arrangements are more faithful to the originals. Koshiro, Abe, Hosoe and SSH's remixes stood out the most to me.

6. Ridge Racers 2 Direct Audio

Remixes of Rave Racer, Ridge Racer 4 and 5. Pretty crazy but awesome stuff, as usual, Hosoe, Saso and Sano entertained me the most.

7. Rogue Galaxy Premium Arrange

One of those all-stars remix projects, I always enjoy these. This one is no exception. Aihara, Hirota, Sakuraba and Hosoe hooked me the most here. Great stuff all around.

8. Wild Arms -The Rocking Heart-

Two words: Ryo. Yonemitsu. That is all. The rest were also good, but I feel that Yonemitsu did the best arranges.



That's pretty much my picks. I believe I'll be adding Gradius Tribute eventually.

Anyways, post your picks and discuss.

Here's to a great 2007 of VGM Releases

Jam it back in, in the dark.