 | Album Title: Atelier Escha & Logy -Alchemist of Dusk Sky- Vocal Album: Twilight Sky |
| Record Label: Gust | |
| Catalog No.: GUSTCD-10011/3 | |
| Release Date: June 26, 2013 | |
| Purchase: Buy Used Copy |
Overview
With the release of Atelier Escha & Logy: Alchemists of the Dusk Sky, Gust Inc. has also released two albums containing the instrumental and vocal music of the game, with this review focusing on the performances given in the vocal album. Similar to its soundtrack, we have guest composers such as Hideyuki Kinoshita and Hiroki Kikuta showing off their talents alongside vocalists like Haruka Shimotsuki and Rurutia. However, how does it compare to its predecessor, the Atelier Ayesha vocal album? And are these songs enjoyable on their own?
Body
In contrast to Ayesha’s Twilight Hour vocal album, Twilight Sky opens with an instrumental track composed by Hayato Asano titled “Intro -Towards the Twilight-”. This is a light piano piece accompanied by the chirping and singing of birds, which puts the listener into a peaceful state as strings are introduced into the song. While it could stand to be a bit longer, it does a good job as an introduction, getting the listener ready for the rest of the album. However, it has something of a jarring sound at the end as it transitions into the next song.
The next song is the full version of the game’s opening theme “Milk-Colored Ridge.” I can only describe it as a slow rock song; I feel it’s somewhat out of tune not only with Ayesha’s opening (“Flower Marks”) but also with those of previous Atelier games due to its musical style. Yuu still does nice work with the singing, as do the other members of Chirinuruwowaka. This extended version adds a bridge with clapping sounds, but overall it’s not very different from the game-size version recorded on the soundtrack.
Next, we come upon a rather interesting combination, to say the least, as “Laws of the Heavens and Earth” was composed by Hiroki Kikuta and sung by Haruka Shimotsuki. I was pretty curious about how this would turn out, and I wasn’t disappointed. The opening, with a Bulgarian-styled chorus, tolling bells, and orchestra, signals we’re in for a treat. The melody has an elating quality and works as an excellent scene-setting piece, while Shimotsuki’s performance, both as a gentle main voice and as a majestic backing chorus, is splendid as always. It all works marvelously together with Kikuta’s melodies, the song ending as it began. That said, I’m curious what an independent collaborative work between them — like what she did with Noriyuki Iwadare for her Tindharia series albums — would sound like if she ever made one…
Then we come to a much less serious song, titled “Apple Gibberish – Ring on one, go to…”. Sung by Yunca Amamoto and composed by Kazuki Yanagawa, it begins with singing over piano and harp lines accompanied by synth sounds, giving the impression of observing a humorous or foolish situation. It also features some nice piano interludes and a warm feeling at the end of its refrains. It adds instruments like flutes and strings as it goes on, giving more complexity to its arrangement. While it isn’t the best song on the album in my opinion, it’s an enjoyable listen, even though the final reprise of the refrain could have used better mixing—the choruses are a bit too loud.
The following “Scars of the Sky” is more of a return to the classical vocal sound of the Atelier series. This piece, sung by Annabel and composed by Daisuke Achiwa, brings back many reminiscences of “Precious Words” from Atelier Iris 3: Grand Phantasm and is a very warm and beautiful ballad that features electric and acoustic guitars, as well as flutes. It doesn’t bring anything new in composition or arrangement, but as the song is nice to listen to, it does its job.
Next we have “The Migrating Fishes’ Earliest Memorable Scene”, which was entirely made by Asaco Nasu. This song begins with a solo piano arpeggio before pausing and then mixes a calming piano line with wood percussion and Nasu’s voice, giving a very relaxing feel. Given it doesn’t have surprising changes throughout its duration, it might seem boring to some, but I find it could serve as a good listen before going to sleep, as there are parts that resemble a lullaby. However, like the introductory instrumental, it creates a rather jarring contrast with the next song…
That song is titled “Revere Me! I’m a Fierce God”, composed by Yu Shimoda and sung by Haruka Shimotsuki. It has a rather unusual choral intro that changes tempo between slow and fast before settling into a fast-paced melody composed of synth, percussion, electric guitar, and voices. The song has a distinct Japanese flavor, in keeping with its title, but it gives off an unsettling feeling between the noises and the background choruses, as well as Shimotsuki’s higher-register singing. However, it’s a bit repetitive, and for a more action-oriented theme it has a severe lack of variation in arrangement and structure, ending after repeating up to the refrain once.
Next we have the full vocal version of “Sky of Twilight”, which was featured only as an instrumental version in the soundtrack. Sung by Kanako Ito and composed by Shade, it is a progressive rock song that begins slowly, then explodes in guitar riffs filled with excitement. This same energy persists throughout the song, and though at times it slows down a bit, it is very invigorating, featuring some nice guitar interludes. One could say it describes well the attitude both protagonists have towards alchemy and discovering why their world is in its state, as it is heard during the second-to-last boss battle necessary to obtain the true ending. This version is a more enjoyable listen than the instrumental one, as the synth used there to fill in for Ito’s vocals is somewhat jarring to my ears.
Luckily, the next song allows the listener a bit of breathing room: it’s “Promise”, essentially the full version of the “Promise (Piano Version)” and “Promise (Dusk Hill)” tracks featured on the soundtrack; like them, it was composed by Yu Shimoda. This time it is a vocal arrangement performed by the Suginami Junior Chorus, which adds their voices to the piano line of the other versions. The piano arrangement here is more complex, making the melody richer. The addition of the chorus also makes it far more emotional than the other versions, which, while beautiful, felt like they lacked something. Its only downside is that it is very short, clocking in at only 1:58. However, I must also say it makes the scene where it is heard very poignant: it accompanies a rescue—one character saving another as a floating ruin collapses—then shows a group of ruins and glowing flowers, setting up the confrontation with the final storyline boss.
However, we’re in for a rude awakening with “Colony Collapse Disorder”, which is the next song. With the same combination of performers and composer as the previous song, it’s hard to describe due to how chaotic it sounds whenever the staccato-like opening chorus repeats. In general, it is a dark song that swings back and forth between slow and fast, with sweeping piano parts joining a constant electric guitar background every now and then. The chaos gets a little rest during the bridge, where piano and guitars take center stage, after which the song repeats itself. This song is heard during the final storyline battle, so players who hear it are likely on the right track to get the true ending. And while the title might seem odd, it relates heavily to the story of the final boss, who is inspired by bees.
Next, the pendulum swings in a rather different direction with “Infinity Chronicle.” This is the full version of the “FJ: Infinity Chronicle” song that was recorded on the soundtrack and serves as the character Arwin’s finisher move theme. As the FJ version was just an extract from this one, it doesn’t change much, and overall we could describe it as a typical upbeat J-Pop song, though a very catchy one. Composed by the ACRYLICSTAB duo and sung by their vocalist UYU, it opens with some bells, piano, and strings, and UYU’s vocal part begins softly; it soon reveals itself to be a quite energetic piece incorporating some distortion effects. Despite everything, it comes off as a nice listen that makes me want to get up and get something done.
And now for something calmer, we come upon the song for the aftermath of the final boss battle, which we could say is an ending theme itself: “Pluie.” It is composed and sung by Rurutia, and I have to say that it’s incredibly beautiful, a ballad that makes excellent use of her soft and strong voice, starting with just a piano as accompaniment and adding the rest of the instrumentation during the refrain. I really loved it because it reminded me greatly of the song she made as the opening theme for the Popolocrois: Hajimari no Bouken anime adaptation, “Träumerei”, and because despite being so slow, it has a very emotional feeling that makes the listener feel as if they had really achieved something, as is the case when they hear it in the game.
Closing off the vocal part, we come upon the ending song “Sweet Reward”, also performed by Yuu and the rest of Chirinuruwowaka. While it’s a nice song, I feel it doesn’t fit the ending, as it’s somewhat heavy and dark in tone for its name and for the kind of endings the Atelier games tend to have, despite fitting well with the way the credits roll. I should point out it’s interesting how they fake out the listener by making it seem to end near the halfway point, then continue. Also, unlike “Milk-Colored Ridge”, the version recorded here is identical to the one recorded on the original soundtrack.
However, there is one more track to listen to: it is titled “Outro – Dreaming of the Green Lands –”, composed by Hideyuki Kinoshita. While it initially seems to be an instrumental extension of “Sweet Reward” due to the tone, a minute in it becomes more cheerful and energetic, with an orchestra coming in to support the melody. The piece then gradually slows until it ends in a soft arpeggio, bringing a feeling of closure to the album.
Summary
While I have to question one decision in the track ordering and feel that one of the songs needed more work, I can say this album is every bit as good as the Twilight Hour album from Atelier Ayesha. The vocalists do a good job, and the composers have put together some marvelous melodies that fit the game world and the contexts in which they are used, even though two of them are somewhat out of tone with what was established in the previous game. Therefore, I have no problem recommending this album to anyone who likes any of the artists involved or who likes the Atelier series.
