|
     |
Drag-on Dragoon Original Soundtrack Vol. 2 :: Review by Z-Freak
 |
Album Title: | Drag-on Dragoon Original Soundtrack Vol. 2 |
| Record Label: | Marvelous Entertainment | |
| Catalog No.: | MJCG-80137 | |
| Release Date: | November 21, 2003 | |
| Purchase: | Buy at eBay |
Overview
The Drag-On Dragoon Original Soundtrack Vol. 2 features the best music of the two volumes, as Takayuki Aihara and Nobuyoshi Sano continue striving to make their own brand of unusual music. The tracks of this volume are far more distorted and twisted (especially those from Sano) with more choirs.
Body
Aihara starts off the soundtrack with the secondary character's warring themes — Leonard, Arioch, and Seere respectively. Leonard's themes are comprised of quick violins and loud sporadic orchestral bursts that also have this slightly mischievous feel to it. Those from Arioch feature an unpleasant sample, which is looped constantly (it sounds like some sort of trumpet, but whatever it is, it almost ruins the tracks). Those from Seere are a lot more enjoyable, featuring the most orchestral loops thus far, and sound like something that might come from an action-packed medieval film.
The Ninth and Tenth Chapter tracks feature Sano's most creative work, as he lets himself loose completely. "Ninth Final Chapter" starts off with a smooth strings passage but is quickly swallowed by repetitive trumpets and odd electronic effects that sound like old trains moving slowly across rail tracks (don't ask, just listen to understand what I mean). "Tenth Chapter Sky" has to be the weirdest track on the entire disc; it starts off with thundering drums and violins followed by those weird electronic sounds, and by the end, we have a choir, but it's distorted. not just slightly, but to the point that it's actually freaky to hear. This goes on backed by drums, SFX, and trumpets; MY GOD, what an unsupportable cacophony! This lasts for nearly a minute, and it left me just awed at Sano's unique approach to music.
One piece that needs to be mentioned is the ending vocal theme, "Road B Staff Roll Exhausted." Eriko Hatsune's voice seems to float above the pulsing music and helps bring beauty to this repetitive piece. Sano has taken the liberty of playing with the volumes and distorting her voice every so often, creating an interesting effect to this overall decent vocal piece.
Summary
To conclude this review, I must warn again about how experimental this soundtrack is. You will likely be disgusted if you are either not open-minded enough or are not familiar with the composers' background. But, if you feel adventurous, this is a sure winner in my book.
