Written by Narz.
I fell in love with Kingdom Hearts’ battle
system, story, characters and graphics, but what really stirred me to the core
was its awesome music; never have I been so moved to shed a tear to a tune. Yoko
Shimura , composer and writer for first three Kingdom Hearts games says, “When I create, music, my approach is to
put things together to see hot is feel, and then go with what works. That’s my
style.” In the Japanese version of Kingdom Hearts, its theme song, “Hikari”,
was the pre-intro movie to the English version but not its theme song. However,
it didn’t change the fact that it was a magnificently compelling piece that did
so much more than just open the game.
Opening with a subtle
but beautiful serenade as the lyrics begins with “thinking of you, wherever you
are” and ends with “there are many worlds, but they share the same sky- one
sky, one destiny” that stimulated a reflective sensation as it brought me back
to a the warm fuzzy feeling when you watched a Disney classic like Beauty and the Beast or Cinderella. As the orchestra exploded in cymbals, violins,
and drums it instilled a meaning that you are on a mission to do something fun,
exciting, and liberating as the scenes of all the worlds are shown before you.
The violins gave a profound rendition of the harsh trials and as the melody
marched along until its climax to a high unison octane that exploded in cymbals
until it suddenly stopped and transitioned into “Dearly beloved.”This in turn
begins with the same notes that “Hikari” ended as the cellos and violins play
croon to the sound of ocean waves until the piano solo began softly as if
hypnotizing you to forget to press the start button and become lost in the
moment. Never did you play a game that stimulates the beginning of a mysterious
adventure so fantastic by simply using music.
When first opening
the game, “Simple and Clean” written and performed by Hikaru Utada was a techno
pop tune played with the opening credits that threw you into the world of the
characters foreshadowing the events that would transpire in the entire game. The
music represented the characters’ persona so much so that it seemed to
complement their clothing styles and mental state of mind. Just the beginning of
the tune, as you hear the heartbeat to the percussions until it explodes in a
fast pace melody was so exhilarating to hear that it stamped a profound
experience in gaming for me.
Listening to the music
of the new additions in the series, Dream
Drop Distance and Birth by Sleep,
Square has not lessened on the depth they portray in their music accompanying
their games. With songs attributed to another Square Enix games called The World Ends with You, it is a relief
to know that the urge to produce exhilarating music hasn’t been changed but
added to. With the new additions we get more bop to our beats. Most of the
songs are originally composed by Takeharu Ishimoto who remixed them for Dream Drop Distance. The interesting
aspect of these songs is the introduction of lyrics to the music which at first
seems to defy the laws that made KH
spectacular, but ingeniously the vocals almost uplift the music to newer
heights. The punk and magical tune of “Calling-Kingdom Remix”, gives an almost
eerie mysterious connotation to the KH
series that is highly embraced. Had I been told the next installment would
include vocals into the music, I would laugh and outright demand it to be
removed, but after hearing the songs it seems almost too artistic.
“Twister- Kingdom Mix”
is another track from The World End with
You remixed for KH. The melody is
such a hip hop country amass trip that I started bopping to the female rapping
and was quite stunned to the psychedelic “Beatles” like interlude that was
followed by an imaginative guitar solo with more female rapping. It reminded me
of something I’d hear from Cowboy Bebop
and with that I was sold! By the end of the song, I was almost converted but it
wasn’t until I heard “Someday- Kingdom Remix” where I was given a heartwarming
euphoric serene feeling and let go to become a fan. The song reminded me of my favorite Asian
band Asobi Sekusu mixed with the same serene meaningful music connotations
“Dearly Beloved” and “Simple and Clean” gave. With that, I accepted the
innovative transformation Kingdom Hearts
became and remain a devoted fan of its music.
If you’re a fan of Kingdom Hearts, are
you content with the new additions? What’s your take on the old ones versus the
new?Let us know on our facebook or twitter.
Kingdom Hearts Dream Drop Distance set to release July 31st, 2012.
