Rockman ZX Soundtrack: ZX Tunes [INTIR-008~9]

Track List (pasted from VGMdb.net, also viewable on The Mega Man Network)

Disc 1 - Aile Disc

01 Innocence 5:29
02 Awake 3:38
03 Fragments 3:05
04 Green Grass Gradation 2:58
05 En-trance Code 3:03
06 Brilliant Show Window 3:07
07 Cinq Ville - c`est notre espoir - 2:55
08 Wonder Panorama 3:33
09 Industrialism 3:09
10 Ultramarine Meditation - Blessed Pop - 4:26
11 Sky High - Grand Nuage - 2:54
12 Metallic Soul 2:33
13 Danger Attraction 2:59
14 Misty Rain 2:53
15 Ultramarine Meditation 3:10
16 Babel Tower 3:08
17 Fate - deep-seated grudge 3:33
18 Black Burn - Electpital Dance - 4:45
19 Innocence - karaoke Version - 5:29
20 Innocence - PV Version - 1:45

Disc length 68:32


Disc 2 - Vent Disc

01 High-press Energy - Super Aniki Edition - 4:36
02 Crisis Zone 3:09
03 Mountain Rider 2:49
04 Trinity 3:06
05 Ogre Claw 3:02
06 Dance-macabre 3:05
07 Rockin' On 3:10
08 High-press Energy 3:22
09 Gauntlet 3:08
10 Brilliant Show Window - Shooter Trance - 5:12
11 Onslaught 3:18
12 Trap Factory 3:04
13 Doomsday Device 3:13
14 Black Burn 3:17
15 Phalanx 2:51
16 Snake Eyes 2:33
17 Pallida Mors 2:57
18 Dream Weaver 3:13
19 Cannon Ball - Hard Revenge - 3:13
20 (Hidden Track) 0:47

Disc length 63:05


I actually had a rip of the actual in-game music of Rockman ZX before I got this album. Then when I wanted the ZX Advent soundtrack, I picked up the ZXA Tunes album instead of an actual rip. So when I was made aware of a remastered music album in existence like that of ZXA Tunes but for the ZX music, I was quite eager to obtain it with how I got a great impression from ZXA Tunes. So, bear with me if my reviews are a little bit by way of comparison to the in-game music for those tracks that apply.

So, on to the review. The ratings of the individual tracks are not so much based on terrible-awesome as they are from least-most favorite, as I think the album in general is quite good. (I'll say why at the end of the review.)

Track-by-track Review

Disc 1 - Aile Disc

01 Innocence - The game's image theme, according to TMMN. Notwithstanding that I don't know Japanese, it makes a decent song. The fast talking at each refrain sounded kind of nice too. 7/10

02 Awake - The prologue/epilogue theme of the game. A soft, mellow tune that reminds me of the ending music of the first Rockman game on the Game Boy. I think the two could medley pretty fairly well and easily. 6/10

03 Fragments - The 'sad' theme of the game. Nothing memorable but ok. 5/10

04 Green Grass Gradation - The game rip labels this as the Area A music and also as the theme of Rockman ZX. More specifically, it is the music that plays as Rockman Model X is introduced in the beginning of the game. Not my favorite, but still a decent track. 6/10

05 En-trance Code - The save/load theme. 5/10

06 Brilliant Show Window - The Area C music. I admit that I didn't really like this track much at first, but when I actually got to play Rockman ZX (I had the music before the game), it grew on me. Nice and upbeat. 8/10

07 Cinq Ville -c'est notre espoir- - Area D music. An alright track, though I wish I could make out what was being said, even if it's not English. 6/10
(The nerd in me must needs point out that the stage this music plays to has a large section of it with a practically identical layout (the stage itself and even the enemies that come at you) to that of the intro stage of Rockman X. One of those moments I had to laugh at Capcom for subtle inserts like that. )

08 Wonder Panorama - Okay, for starters, the in-game version of this, the Area F music, was basically the "wedge" track that I liked upon hearing the first time enough to explore the rest of the music. So even before acquiring ZX Tunes this was one of my favorite tunes from the game. And it only got better with this rendition. With the exception of the..well...screeching at 2'06", I LOVE the vocal melody. 10/10

09 Industrialism - Another of the tracks that caught my fancy, the music to Area E. The melody's catchy, and the remastery was a good job as well. 8/10

10 Ultramarine Meditation - Blessed Pop - - A rather interesting spin on the Area J music. I wasn't a huge fan of the original track, but this could almost get away as elevator music and none would be the wiser. Might even get a foot-tap to the beat out of somebody. 7/10

11 Sky High - Grand Nuage - - The theme of the Guardian ship was another of my favorites prior to getting this album, and it still remains as such. The electric guitars are a nice addition, especially with that little flourish (or whatever the term for that is) near the end of the track. I just wish they'd inserted that more in the middle than near the end. 10/10

12 Metallic Soul - The Live Metal (or Biometal in NA) theme. I thought it okay in-game, but I'm a sucker for ambient-sounding music and this version has a little more of that, which I like. 7.5/10

12 Danger Attraction - The Area H music. One of my less favorites, though I did have an episode of being unable to get it out of my head once. I might have another if I keep listening to it. 6.5/10

13 Misty Rain - I didn't like the instrumentation of the Area I music in-game, so this was another of my less favorites. The vocal melody at the beginning was a big improvement in my opinion, making the track actually decent. 7.5/10

14 Ultramarine Meditation - A lot truer to the Area J music in-game, which is to be expected. Not my favorite, but still a good track. 7/10

15 Babel Tower - At first it sounds like your traditional "bad guy theme/dialogue" track, but it gradually changes as the track goes at about 47". The piano with the changing keys is a nice touch. A nice improvement from the in-game. 7.5/10

16 Fate - deep-seated grudge - The game's "boss intro" track. Not really much of note goes on it. 4/10

17 Black Burn - Electpital Dance - - A nice spin on the Area O music. Can't think of much else to say about it aside from that it reminds me of some other pop track I can't put my finger on. 8/10

18 Innocence - karaoke Version - - Just like Innocence above but without the vocals. 7/10

19 Innocence - PV Version - - A shortened version of the song. I like how they break into it, though. 7.5/10


Disc 2 - Vent Disc

01 High-press Energy - Super Aniki Edition - - I think of this as a fast 'dance' version of the Area K music. I like it, though I can't help but wonder if the guy you hear screaming now and then has a voice anymore. 9/10

02 Crisis Zone - The crisis theme of the game (as well as in ZX Advent, I might add). I actually kind of like its fast and only slightly repetitive pace. Makes a good track for a long but intense fight. The title theme is also based on this track, and it shows as the track ends in pretty much the same manner. 8/10

03 Mountain Rider - The music to Area B. Not great, but not that bad either. 6.5/10

04 Trinity - The fusion theme that plays as Model ZX is formed for the first time. A little repetitive, but the remastering offsets that somewhat by adding or changing instrumentation after the first loop or so. 5/10

05 Ogre Claw - The music to Area G. The in-game music wasn't that notable, though it probably didn't help that a lot of the time during play the crackling sound of fire was noticeably louder than the music. The track is actually pretty good, and I like the electric guitar that takes over the melody at about 1'19". 7.5/10

06 Dance-macabre - The miniboss theme. At first it actually sounds reminiscent of the Copy X theme from the Rockman Zero series. 6/10

07 Rockin' On - The standard boss theme. The name "Rockin' On" is of some significance as a play on the words "Rock On", which Vent or Aile shout when they change to any of the models from human form. This persisted in the NA release of ZX and in the JP release of ZX Advent, but was changed to "Mega Merge" when ZXA was released in NA. As for the music itself, it didn't catch my fancy all that much. 4/10

08 High-press Energy - No surprise that it doesn't sound too different from "Super Aniki Edition", though I think I do like that version just a tad more, actually. 8.5/10

09 Gauntlet - The Area L music. I like the groove to this one, but the instrumentation doesn't significantly change much until toward the end. 7/10

10 Brilliant Show Window - Shooter Trance - - I like the regular version of this track, but this one is a good spin. Not as fast as the original, but it still keeps the upbeat feel of its parent. I think I like this one more between the two. 9/10

11 Onslaught - Another crisis-type theme. It's alright. 5/10

12 Trap Factory - The battle theme for when you fight Prometheus and Pandora. I admit I think it's only "okay", but that's most likely because I was spoiled by hearing "Trap Phantasm" on ZXA Tunes before hearing this. 5.5/10

13 Doomsday Device - The Area M music, the first of the final areas in the game. This was another of the in-game tracks that I liked prior to getting this album, so I like the improvement in the remastery. 9/10

14 Black Burn - I like the "Electpital Dance" version more than this one, but it's still pretty good. 7/10

15 Phalanx - Another boss dialogue track. What more can I say? 4/10

16 Snake Eyes - The real "final area" music. Nothing too notable about it, though. 6/10

17 Pallida Mors - The final boss music. Pretty intense-sounding, but it's still kind of meh to me. 6.5/10

18 Dream Weaver - The staff roll music with the traditional protaganist running on a seemingly endless road as you watch the credits roll. Both Rockman and Rockman X did that during their staff rolls too. But this track is actually among my more favorites. I like the happy and upbeat sound of it. 9/10

19 Cannon Ball - Hard Revenge - - A remake of "Cannon Ball", the final battle theme from Rockman Zero 3. Supposedly there was a secret battle you could access where you'd get to fight Zero from the Rockman Zero series, and this was probably meant for that. Nothing really stuck out to me about it. 5/10

20 Hidden Track (unlisted) - Just as the name implies, this was not listed on the track list on the album art for some reason. It's simply a shorter version of "Snake Eyes" with a clip of "Innocence" thrown in. 5/10

Overall Review: 8/10
The album has a nice share of good tracks, and the repetition was nicely offset by adding to the flavor of the tracks with some additions or changes to the instrumentation as the tracks progressed. Definitely worth the listen.

Jam it back in, in the dark.