CHz

Album info: https://vgmdb.net/album/120676

While I've heard quite a bit of the music from this album already through game rips on YouTube, I'm tagging the soundtrack album as a first listen because it contains a lot of music I haven't heard before, and because PSO2's music is heavily dynamic so it's assembled differently on the album than in ripped versions.

Info

Here it is, the first official volume of music from the "reboot" update of the MMORPG that has my favorite video game soundtrack of all time, Phantasy Star Online 2: New Genesis. While there are definitely soundtracks I would say I like more on average, there are absolutely none that come anywhere close to maintaining such a consistently high quality over a truly staggering amount of music (we're approaching 50 hours now with the two PSO2NGS volumes). The works of Hideaki Kobayashi, Mitsuharu Fukuyama, and Hidekuni Horita stand out to me as being particularly incredible, which is great for me because they've been almost exclusively the composers since around 2017, and they've continued in their dominant role here.

What can you expect? Mainly a mixture of chill environmental themes and EDM-y battle/action themes, with tons of electronic sounds mixed with orchestra (largely strings + brass). Beautiful synth textures and a truly illegal amount of harmonic color. PSO2's combination of dance music, jazz, prog, and sound design is one of the most distinctive sound worlds out there, and one of my favorites. Highest recommendation.

Recommended tracks:

• "A World Beyond The Sky" (Kobayashi, vo. Kristen Watts) is the opening theme and establishes a ton of what the soundtrack will do musically

• "Establish Yourself" (Horita) is a warm and fuzzy synth piece to create a character to

• "Imminence" (Fukuyama) has some wacky piano lines

• "Resol Forest - Day - Scenery" (Kobayashi) mixes calming ambience with aggressive synths in a way that I find really beautiful

• "Formidable Gigantix - Counterattack" (Horita) is extremely concentrated Horita, this piece cannot have been written by anyone but him

• "Vanford Laboratory Ruins - Battle" (Kobayashi) is real filthy in its sounds and melody

Album info: https://vgmdb.net/album/122431

Album download: https://triumphant-heroes.wixsite.com/umbra-eques/works-swnvd

(Search for the text "アルバムをダウンロード", which is a free download link. The one for this album is above an image of bottles and jars.)

Info

Another free Renko Maeda album, only five tracks this time. The album title means "assortment," like a gift box, and so this is just some random music. The first track was featured in the mobile rhythm game nanobeat, while the other four look like they were just original tracks posted to SoundCloud and Audiostock (a Japanese stock music website with user-submitted music).

This album is musically similar to Harmonia Horizonte, but more RPG-themed than "healing." This one is pleasant but not super essential, I feel.

Recommended track:

• "Clockwork Cathedral" (track 2) is an alternate version of the "Cathedral" track from the last album and uses a guiro to sound like a clock ticking, which is cute

(track titles are unofficial translations by me)

Album info: https://vgmdb.net/album/121780

Album download: https://triumphant-heroes.wixsite.com/umbra-eques/works-swnvd

(Search for the text "アルバムをダウンロード", which is a free download link. The one for this album is above an image of a sunbeam shining through a forest canopy.)

Info

This is a free album posted online by game composer Rikako Watanabe under the name Renko Maeda. She wrote a bunch of music under this name in 2015 and 2016 before getting going professionally with Basiscape under her real name.

The theme is a "healing-style album to accompany rich nature scenery," which means lots of piano, mallet and hand percussion, light orchestral textures, and triple time, with occasional world instruments and environmental sounds. It's cool seeing early examples of her later harmonic and rhythmic writing here; this album is particularly reminiscent of her work on CARAVAN STORIES Original Soundtrack Vol.6 (see tracks like "Chaktek Great Rift Valley" and "Narupopo Fruit Garden"). I like it!

Recommended tracks:

• "Playing With Nuts and Fluffy Snow" (track 3) predictably sounds like some Christmasy light music

• "Foliage Cathedral" (track 10) has some cool, vaguely threatening synth textures mixed in there

(track titles are unofficial translations by me)

Listening: Bandcamp, YouTube (w/visuals)

aivi's debut solo album after quite a while making music, full of piano, delicate synths, and a joy for life. Very characteristic of their stylings on the spritely and soulful sides of digital fusion.

Recommended tracks:

• "undercurrent" features the artist's sister on vocals and reminds me of Moonchild

• "sweet milk" is the most active track on the album, constantly morphing and moving forward