The Witch and the Hundred Knight 2 Arrange Soundtrack
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Album Title: The Witch and the Hundred Knight 2 Arrange Soundtrack |
| Record Label: MissKissDisc |
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| Catalog No.: MKDS-0007 |
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| Release Date: November 24, 2017 |
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| Purchase: Buy at Amazon Japan |
Overview
Like with the previous game’s arrange soundtrack, The Witch and the Hundred Knight 2 Arrange Soundtrack is self-published under Tenpei Sato’s label, MissKissDisc. How does this arrange album compare to his past arrange efforts and if you aren’t able to obtain the original soundtrack, is it a suitable substitute to capture the overall feel for the album?
Body
Like the original soundtrack, the arrange soundtrack opens up with “Despairful Catharsis,” albeit the full version. While I certainly thought that the original was one of the weakest opening tunes in some time, the full version helps to rectify some of the main problems I had found with the OP size version. The repetitive chorus is still present, but it isn’t as impactful this time, due to the expanded and new verses not present in the original. As with the original, the melody is still fantastic but the changes in tempo and mood throughout the full version really help elevate it over the in-game version. The other vocal themes, “End of the Rainbow” and “Say Good-by,” offer different approaches. Whereas the latter doesn’t really dramatically alter the original version, the sound overall is a bit crisper. The former, on the other hand, is nearly double the length of the original, features new verses, and even a violin solo that really helps add some more emotion to the original.
As for the non-vocal themes, for the most part, they feature live instrumentation where appropriate, and it really helps accentuate them in the end. “White Witch” expands upon the original by adding a section played by woodwinds that give it a bit more mystery. “Chelka,” on the other hand, features live violin and an expanded flamenco solo, which only helps to amplify the piece by adding a ton of energy. Similarly, “Mystic Zone” features vocal samples, live violin, and beautiful piano to help expound upon that mystical sound while also adding more accordion into the mix. “Romantica” features live violin and a subsequent solo that adds to the piece while “Durga” adds cello, quirky percussion, and accordion. Like the original, it still serves as one of the weaker links on the album.
“Milm” features an expanded mallet section that is upbeat and playful while “A Maiden’s Prayer ~ forever” features a Renaissance-like section with woodwinds, violin, and accordion. “Shadow of Witch” retains the same elements of the original, but expands upon them and doubles back to the mysterious nature heard in the original, while “End of the Rainbow ~ Pf” is a romantic piano and strings rendition compared to the piano-only original. The action oriented themes, “Scramble Cross,” “Third Eye,” and “Mr. BIG,” all benefit from their treatment on this album. “Scramble Cross” features excellent guitar and violin solos, in a way that appear to be dueling with each other, making for a piece full of energy. “Third Eye’s” use of live violin adds even more romanticism to the original while still retaining the energy of the original. Lastly, “Mr. BIG” features a rock/violin approach with an expanded violin section that has a very classical sound to it. The end result is beautiful and makes it one of my favorite transformations on the album.
Summary
Compared to The Witch and the Hundred Knight Arrange Soundtrack, the The Witch and the Hundred Knight 2 Arrange Soundtrack is a much better representation of the original soundtrack compared to past arrange efforts. While the vocal themes trend similarly, providing the full versions as compared to the shortened in-game versions, the instrumental themes really benefited from their editions. More of the tunes, compared to previous arrange efforts, feature live instruments, largely violin, that make for a more exciting listen and perhaps the strongest arrange effort to date from one of Tenpei Sato’s Nippon Ichi based arrange soundtracks.
Do you agree with the review and score? Let us know in the comments below!
4.5
Posted on February 14, 2018 by Don Kotowski. Last modified on February 13, 2018.
About the Author
Don Kotowski Currently residing in Philadelphia. I spend my days working in vaccine characterization and dedicate some of my spare time in the evening to the vast world of video game music, both reviewing soundtracks as well as maintaining relationships with composers overseas in Europe and in Japan.
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