Changes in Uematsu's style

Well like you said, Lolman, it's subjective, but I find plenty of the FF6 soundtrack to drag on disc. I probably have a different definition of filler though; I think 30 songs is the highest amount of songs I've enjoyed on their own from any one soundtrack, and I've only gone past 20 with a few FF's, SaGa Frontier 2, and Wild Arms 2.

And even with those, I doubt I'd have enjoyed that many if I'd listened to the soundtrack without playing the game. The effect of our emotional attachments can't be underestimated in how it affects our enjoyment of the music. I think this is the real reason why many people don't like the OSTs of FF9+ (or 7+ in some cases); people are older and don't have the capacity to attach to games in as deep and innocent a way as we could when we were children.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Well, regards to his ratio of filler tracks to notable pieces, I definitely fall on the side that agrees his work has gotten worse as of late. Of course, I am also a sucker for fast-paced songs where a lot is going on (which is probably why I like his work in FF8 the most, by far). FF 9 and 10 both had more "mellow" pieces in them, most of which I would consider filler.

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Originally Posted by Klondike

And even with those, I doubt I'd have enjoyed that many if I'd listened to the soundtrack without playing the game. The effect of our emotional attachments can't be underestimated in how it affects our enjoyment of the music.

Couldn't have been said better. Game soundtracks mean almost nothing to me if I haven't heard them in their original contexts (playing the game). I've had nearly all of the FF scores for a very long time, but never listened to them until recently, when I actually started playing the games. Now I can't stop listening to VII and VIII, while I never listen to IX or X (having not played IX or X yet). It's a very interesting psychological effect.

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Originally Posted by Cellius

It's a very interesting psychological effect.

That would be nostalgia. I had a huge thread on it before the crash, but I don't think it's on the GFF archive board.

I was speaking idiomatically.

I'm far from an FF fanboy, but I LIKE FFVII-X, particularly IX and X. I've always thought they were just as good as IV, V, or VI. Fuck nostalgia. But that's just my opinion.

I stopped liking Uematsu once he started composing for FFXI. If people really want to talk about him losing his touch, this is where it really started. He changed his style to orchestral, and his contributions to the soundtrack were crap, and nothing he's produced since, even in FFXII, has been any good.

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He produced a lousy pop song in FFXII. That's hardly enough to judge his later works.

His stuff in FFXI was forgettable... but so was the rest of the music so he hardly stood alone.

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Originally Posted by jb1234

His stuff in FFXI was forgettable... but so was the rest of the music so he hardly stood alone.

Agreed...Although I really did like the Airship theme from FFXI.

Uematsu's problem comes when he tries to write too much music. All of the PS1 soundtracks were loaded with filler, which I feel took away from the really great tracks that surfaced on each one. All of them should be 2-3 discs at most. Sort of like FF4, but on a MUCH larger and offensive scale. Compared to FFVI, where each composition felt deliberate and useful. Also, he never quite got a real comfortable sound down with the PS1 entries...The dull synth in FFIX annoys me after listening to maybe 10 tracks in a row (in comparison, I'm not thrilled with FF7's synth, but I don't find it anywhere near as dull and I can listen without having a good number of the tracks blending together). Never sounded quite as rich as his SNES scores to me.

I have to say, I'm actually pleased with the Hanjuku Hero 3D OST. It's not overly long and does have a number of tracks I really lean towards. Overall, I don't consider Uematsu a powerhouse anymore, but I am looking forward to his upcoming works moreso than several well-known composers that have taken over the FF series, some I respect, but rarely listen to (Hamauzu, Nakano) or simply don't want to see more of (Mizuta, Tanioka, Sakimoto). His melodic style clearly gives him an edge in those situations, he almost never disappoints when it comes to battle themes and his last major solo composing project was FFIX six years ago, so I'll be interested to see what he's got.

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you forgot the stuff he done for Final Fantasy I, II, III. I could listen the affection of Sugiyama's style in his earlier composition. I havent listened FF XI though, so I couldnt say much.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Edit: :lolsign: My original post was a false statement for I mistaken the composer. Thanks Lolman for correcting me.
On the side note : Reading the above replies of this page reminds me of the topic "Ralationship between the Video Games and the OST itself" was posted a while ago, which the idea of "have to play the game in order to love the music" was not so popular there. I'm happy to see some folks here have the same thought as mine.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Um... Nobuo didn't compose Vana'diel March.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Originally Posted by Free.User

That would be nostalgia.

Meh. I suppose. But if so, that's a pretty broad definition of the term, since no real substantial amount of time has passed since completing the game and then listening to its music out of context.

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Originally Posted by Cellius

Meh. I suppose. But if so, that's a pretty broad definition of the term, since no real substantial amount of time has passed since completing the game and then listening to its music out of context.

Some people like to go on about how nostalgia blinds people from seeing "the truth" (usually their truth), but it's all BS. People like what they like, and nostalgia is a part of that. Once any event has passed, it's possible to become nostalgic when you're reminded of it later. It's not anything one can measure or prove and thusly not a valid argument towards discrediting an opinion.

I was speaking idiomatically.

So you're saying that nostalgia is the only reason VGM outside of the game is meaningful?

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

I took that to read "nostalgia coincides with musical tastes...thus, both can have an effect on how one views the music." I'm personally not afraid to use either in the process of enjoying music, though I try to balance the two. For the purposes of this thread, I gravitate towards rock/synth rock/more upbeat tracks, so I tend to favor Uematsu's battle themes above anything else he's done (and while most find "Otherworld" downright offensive, I thought it fleshed out the FFX OST rather nicely). On the same hand, his brand of sappy pop ballads can be attached to a game I actually really like and I'd still hold my neck whenever they came up on my Ipod.

Plus remember that VGM is soundtrack music...It's intended to go with the game. If people listen to it out of context (or even *gasp* buy the music) it's a bonus for the composer.

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Uematsu's styles are quite good, imo. I feel that he will rise again because of his departure form Square-Enix. I loved his orchestral Opening Theme in XI, Ronfaure, and the Airship theme by the wau . My fav FF OSTs are FFVII, VIII, and IV. He will rise again... it is just a question of when.

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