Music Producer Reacts: Return To Oblivion (FFXIV Eden Refulgence)

My Reaction / Analysis of the Eden's Verse: Refulgence (the Final Boss Theme, also known as "Return To Oblivion"), from FINAL FANTASY XIV SHADOWBRINGERS, as a professional Music Producer.
Square Enix is going hard at these FF EDM bangers lately and I'm loving it.
The full song is available at @Mekkah Dee's channel!
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[@AlexMoukalaMusic]

Oh no. The lone hair strand is BACK. I wanted to add some background music to the video this time, so I quickly wrote a FF Lofi Remix to go with it. Let me know if you enjoy it, or if it's distracting!

[@AlexMoukalaMusic]

PS. Special thanks once again to the folks supporting the channel on Patreon, and to 揺光 絵草 for requesting this track over there!

[@diersteinjulien6773]

Quick comment, but as much as I like the prelude, it's so prevalent in FF tracks thats I didn't notice that it was background music and thought it was supposed to illustrate this specific track again. Awesome video as usual though

[@CydonianKnights11]

Read your comment i was like how the hell did he know i had a hair in the corner of my screen... LMAO.

[@hellfire009]

If you watch the savage version of the fight she reunites with Hraesvelgr. They become one. Hraesvelgr and Shiva were lovers which is why this song probably has a 4th voice.

[@tatteredlion9955]

I'm really glad this came up in the recommended videos. I'm enjoying your analysis of the FF games. When you bring up the ice level type melody I was thinking oh... I've heard this before. It's very close to the music from the dungeon Snowcloak (The Warrens). Just glad that it doesn't make you want to fall asleep here like in the dungeon. XD

[@lindawarden5265]

"How many voices am I hearing?" /sweats MORE about how heavily Hydaelyn is also featured in this fight

[@BlueMageDaisen]

It's basically a theme for four people at once Ryne And Ysayle with the inherited mythologies of Minfilia and Shiva being imposed upon them

[@Dreded100]

There's a reason this track is called "Return to Oblivion". The comparisons to the second phase of the Shiva fight, "Oblivion" is quite noticeable. But I didn't notice how much of "Footsteps in the Snow" was also in here.

[@RaxiazRedux]

I feel like that was the 1st thing I noticed my 1st time fighting E8. It definitely took more from Footsteps than it did Oblivion, but I think that's awesome. And in some ways I think, Oblivion takes from Footsteps, so... it's all foiling in on itself!!

[@Zoigification]

Hey, remember who ryne was, at first? yeah its also a pun.

[@Mindlessfun100]

Nernx Ultima Oblivian definitely shares the same Melody from Footsteps, especially the climaxes of both songs have the same melody

[@Numdenu]

in fairness, "Footsteps in the Snow" and "Oblivion" both have some similar bits

[@onioncultistlordoftheonion8315]

Strange, I noticed more of the "Footsteps in the Snow" references then the oblivion theme

[@Sivrn-Val]

I love how in this fight Ryne goofed and became a Shiva/Hydaelyn fusion. And that she nearly caused a second flood of light.

[@LittleSparklingStars]

Sivrn Val it’s the WoL that goofed. He linked ryne as the oracle of light to shiva and then linked the shiva kick to the hydaelyn kick. So we got a shiva hydaelyn merge. In the savage version we see shiva merge with hreasvelgr. It’s all because of the WoL perceptions and memories.

[@repulse7074]

@@LittleSparklingStars Partly wrong. Eden twists everything. We could have perfect photographic memory and still summon something completely unrelated due to Eden

[@darkraimac]

@@repulse7074 Eden also seems to pull on our subconscious and memories, which is probably why in Savage Eden decided adding Hraesvelgr to the fight would be a good idea.

[@1LuvMLPFiM]

Casually undoing the entire 5.0 story during raid lol

[@someclevername8167]

@@1LuvMLPFiM omg imagine if that had actually happened. The Vrandtic people would be so pissed lmao

[@RossMirage]

Anamnesis Anyder theme be like: "do you like underwater jazz?"

[@7Celestron]

Damn you for making such a good comment XD

[@Abbeel]

The answer is yes.

[@knitetimeteddy2989]

Sastasha jazz cruise fam

[@nateatavares4268]

Yes, please!

[@beerasaurus]

I ask my team that every time it pop this dungeon

[@thorn_lekoh]

It's such a shame that the localization team (in english but also in french) invented that "iceheart" thing, whereas in japanese Ysayle is called "kōri no miko", or "the priestess of ice". With Ryne being called "hikari no miko", the priestess of light (and not Oracle, EN version..), it's a clear indication that the two are the same kind of entity, and it makes more sense then to have bits of Hydaelyn leaking in Ryne's Shiva summoning, because although they both use the same ritual, she already is the priestess of a different element, she's not a blank slate.

[@martinolivera7521]

13:05 the reason why I just subscribed. Dude that's the mentallity. Videogames music is awesome and casual ppl don't even know it or they just think "oh what an akward music you listen". Thanks Alex, Keep up the good work ! Love your videos :D

[@seaverino5346]

The fact that you can nail what’s happening in the story regarding this fight JUST from the music and not playing shows that soken is an amazing producer ! 😄

[@Zayindjejfj]

Seriously, the fact that they tie the lore and context of the story with the music is amazing. That's a lot of thinking and thought being put into the soundtrack.

[@DavidTimothy]

I play these themes for my wife and she's like "uh, they're okay" but for me they're mind-blowing. That's the power of a familiar motif.

[@AniGaAG]

I can't tell you how much I _needed_ a channel like yours. I feel like that sort of "deep and technical" appreciation of music is something that, outside of certain circles, is hard to find people to talk about and appreciate together with you. So... friggin' hell, this channel gives me such intense levels of satisfaction in such a nice way. Looking forward to when you might give the Ruby Weapon a whirl - that remix is intense, and phase two is nuts.

[@TwodeeTwodimensional]

The way you dissect and show the small details of the songs blows my mind.

[@ilakya]

Third voice! Now I see what they did there. I'm more on visual design and story telling side. So, If you listen to the music and see the fight but not noticing this *Spoiler alert* You already know this is Ryne as a vessel summoning Shiva. And you should know that Ryne was Mynfilia, Vessel of light. The Hydaelyn. And she's been choose to have her own life. But yet, Here, She under Shiva influence. That's why the first part seems sad and tormented like she's in pain. And then, The battle phase change. She engolvt by light and transform into white form. Then, Instead of heel click finger snap in original Shiva. If you look forward, It look exactly like the image of Hydaelyn kick. So, From that point on, It seems Hydaelyn joins in and as the music change into multiple voices over each other. The third one that almost inaudible and the most painful may represent Ryne herself. Under both Shiva and Hydaelyn control. Man. This is deep.

[@TigerBrows]

The melody you point out at 2:50 reminds me a lot of Snowcloak's theme - which was indeed an ice dungeon and came right before the original Shiva fight.

[@bswift1991]

Yeah was part of the same patch and I'm fairly sure it shared plenty of musical themes

[@pixelapocrypha]

Literally at that part when he was talking about it sounding like a glacier and space I was thinking the exact same thing.

[@scrwd4568]

The very interesting for me about this track is how opposing it is to itself. Shiva is Ice and Ryne is light, both are suppossed to represent inactivity and passivity, yet the song is both very powerful and serene at the same time. That along with the conflicts you can feel between the vocals makes me feel that its like a fight between the dark and light. It could be the theme of us, the WoD fighting against the mother crystal, or Gaia vs Ryne. I dont feel its questioning the player if they are doing the right thing, but more like the conflict between passivity and action, so its like a war between two different themes.

[@weiss4855]

The section after the "Turn the light on", the "Falling too fast" part definitely screams WoL perspective to me.

[@sniderealism2410]

Or it could be a representation of Ryne struggling to not be engulfed by the Light and Ice aspect overloading her body, which are also in conflict with each other. It's too much for her to handle.

[@scrwd4568]

@@sniderealism2410 That depends, i feel. Ryne was taken over almost immediately and sprouted stuff about Light for the whole fight. Added with the appearance of Gaia at the end to break her out makes me think that its a fight between the Light in Ryne and the Darkness in Gaia

[@apharys8921]

One great thing about music is how it can have multiple meanings depending on your perspective.

[@Zakading]

There being a third voice in the climax besides Shiva and Ryne went completely past me so far, but it makes a lot of sense in the context of the fight itself. This song is seriously so fucking sick and it's a joy seeing you have such a blast analyzing it!

[@NessaWyvern]

Ah, But are the voices Shiva, Ysayle and Ryne? Or is it Shiva, Hydaelyn and Ryne? Since she is being taken over by the light at the same time. Maybe it's all of them! Ysayle was also touched by Hydaelyn, she had the echo and a crystal of light, which lead her on her path to becoming Shiva.

[@MrNicko555]

@@NessaWyvern There was always that deep conflict within Ryne throughout Shadowbringers of who she is, whether she was Ryne or Minfillia/Hydaelyn/Oracle of Light. That was sort of resolved at the end of the main story of 5.0 but I believe in this fight it started to resurface again with the dissonance from becoming Shiva, as well as all the outside interactions with Gaia and her role as the (maybe) Oracle of Darkness. This song went so much deeper than I originally thought though!

[@EikoHarvey]

@@NessaWyvern Or, in the context of Savage, is it -Redacted-

[@ancova1183]

@@MrNicko555That's an interesting observation. The composers did a lot of remixing of old boss songs for this game, and now they are adding this dissonant melody that is new. A part of me wonders if the new melody is a part of the final boss soundtrack that we will hear in the future (approx. 3 months from now). I'm looking forward to see what it will be. If we go with the standard story trope that there is someone possessing someone and that causes the dissonance, we can probably infer that the dissonance in refulgence is actually incorporating the shiva melody and a yet-to-be-released Hydaelyn (or Ryne) melody. It might be interesting to try to predict what that soundtrack will sound like based off the snippet we have here.

[@ByronAndOnAndOn]

I'm late to this party, but in the climax, three of the voices are doing harmonies, while one lone voice is singing this requiem-esque sounding thing. I think the three voices represent Shiva, Hydaelyn and Hraesvalgr, the three bosses you actually face in the fight, and the one caught up in it, wishing she could stop it, is Ryne. So cool.

[@Rinienna]

"You know, deja vu-" me: "is this man referencing the eurobeat...??? wait square enix wtf?" later: "deja vu, from twewy" me, not expecting any sort of TWEWY love from anyone in the year 2020: "HELL YEAH"

[@Null_Experis]

This comment has not aged well. And that's a good thing.

[@someclevername8167]

And we ended up getting a sequel reveal. 2020 was good to us TWEWY fans

[@jooko91]

When you mentioned Deja Vu, I initially thought you meant the eurobeat song and got VERY confused. Then as you said it's from a SE game I tried figuring out what that could have been wrong. And then you played it and now I know the name of that TWEWY song I'd heard while playing the game! Interesting analysis/reaction, it's great to hear what musicians find and like about pieces of music, as my own analysis is on the level of "music sound good" and "I think this is a reference".

[@remarus]

I got massive TWEWY vibes from this whole track, it felt very much like Sokken was trying to pay homage to it, especially when the chorus kicks in and it's super discordant.

[@darkarcher2076]

"So many things happening, what the hell" Sums up the fight nicely.

[@syris1952]

The thing with this track that absolutely blows me away is how it uses the motifs of Oblivion and Footsteps in the Snow while never using their chorus’ melody. It just feels like it’s only partially Shiva, like it’s the echo of the Shiva we know and not the real one because we never hear the full melody? It’s so good.

[@hungrychad]

"We are talking about Japanese composers. That's what they do. They're SUPERIOR." Can't agree to this more lol. They just have a unique and very deep take in everything- not just in music. Anyway, cool new vid! Really appreciate the insightful breakdown.

[@Alpacnologia]

I don’t want to say that Japanese composers and musicians are *superior* - just that they generally have a certain perspective in their music that western music never picked up (likely due to cultural influence) and that we’re not used to hearing. It’s why Japanese musicians sometimes take western influence - because we have perspectives in our music that interests them.

[@shinkamui]

Funny I've seen the same thing being said about western composers from japanese musicians. Each of us is used our own regular perspective and it's refreshing to see the other's takes on the songs.

[@IWantToStayAtYourHouse]

For some reason most OST from western media is not that great as japanese OST imho

[@Luxai]

Not sure I'd agree with that. However, the final fantasy series have a proud history of outstanding music, and square have kept their best composers onboard while getting the best talents. This isn't the result of Japan, it's the sound of loving the series you work for.

[@tabhamma4451]

​@@Alpacnologia I think japanese artists are better at encapsulating themes into their music compared to the west, I feel the west suffers from being a little too traditional in its composition

[@Venoix]

"How many voices am I hearing?" Are you Elidibus?

[@EMalachi]

10:53 I think that vocal represents Ryne as she's being subsumed by Shiva/Ysayle. This whole section of overlapping voices coincides with the fight as mechanics begin to overlap and Ryne loses control as she is overwhelmed by the power.

[@Oceanstalker]

11:27 I think it's also that those note's reflects the Warrior of Light remembering Ysayle.

[@NessaWyvern]

Yeah, I swear I've heard that tune before, I swear it's from something to do with the WoL, so I am with you there! I can't think of where it's from though, just that it's infuriatingly familiar. I feel like we've either heard it in previous boss music, or a cinematic trailer somewhere, if you figure it out for me, please respond :D

[@SirBeanTheJust]

@@NessaWyvern Not saying this to be snide, but it sounds familiar because that same melody is what's playing under the Prelude during the crystal phase of the fight when the group gets split. To my ear, it sounds close to the piano part of the Midgarsormr/Hraesvelgar theme, but with notes removed or something, but I'm probably way off. Could be wishful thinking on my part.

[@dunnejos8423]

Also I love dissonant tones In music. Like the Innocence theme which is full of dissonant choral notes that clash and feel chaotic and I LOVE IT

[@Velock85]

I literally replay this fight just for the music lol great video been enjoying your coverage of the Final Fantasy XIV music.

[@arcanerune9134]

This song is so good we were freaking out in voice when we got in there last week. It's so nice to get to hear it like this and have time to have the emotions with out worry of being destroyed. Thank you so much.

[@rexxel8867]

wow this reminds me all lyrics and the song theme itself from all of the bosses in FFXIV represents them it reminds me because, you don't know the story and guessed it only based on the song and you guessed it right with Ryne being possessed by shiva in this fight because the song has two voices XD man you're cool, keep it up

[@nyvira]

YEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSS I'm so glad your videos popped up in my suggestions. I'd be eternally grateful if you did an analysis of the best girl to ever exist, Lady Maria's theme. Follow the hauntingly beautiful theme ;)

[@AlexMoukalaMusic]

That's one of my favorite tracks from the game! It surely deserves a video. One day!

[@kailler9217]

seconded for each part, really good dissection, and the little additions at the end (the percussion and solo sounded spot on). One i'd also love to see is Garuda or Ifrit's, potentially in a direct comparison to their Eden version, since there's so much to talk about with how the eden version mixes the two together while still adding its own elements.

[@HDREconomist]

"It's like Shiva in the Disco." Perfection. Also, having played the 5.2 Eden series, you aren't far off.

[@robro33]

11:12 Funny thing about that. when a fight has a song change between phases mid-fight that doesnt loop on a wipe you end up with certain parts of the fight being synced up with certain parts of the song. during that part of the fight in savage shiva is doing a mechanic called "Wyrm's Lament" and every time that part of the song starts on its first loop she will always be doing it at that time

[@T8-TR]

If this man's does a video on the music in DMC5, I'll go nuts. Also, TIL that one of the covers for the FE:TH themes I'm listening to on Spotify is from you! Hella well done!

[@bramenmaud]

You better give us a Ludwig, the holy blade analysis!!

[@AlexMoukalaMusic]

I guess someone's gotta talk about that dissonant choir interlude in between the two Ludwig Phases. :D It's definitely on the list

[@Daemonpool65]

This was awesome. I got chills on every breakdown realizing just how intricate the track was. Great work as usual Master Moukala. Can't wait to see the next !

[@shadders43]

Some of the best lyrical work in FFXIV. The entire song is so sad, but the chorus really gets me every time. Makes me want to cry if I think too hard about it. Turn the light on And let her in. Won't you Turn the light on Turn the light on You'll never win 'less you Turn the light on Turn the light on The pain won't end 'till you Turn the light on

[@azureforest]

thank you again for your insight on the track! ive been obsessively looping this for days on end, yet theres still so much i missed- the conflict in the chorus being equated to bloodborne bgm? delicious! im also in love with that solo you added in... it sounds so much like torn from the heavens, thank you..... overall, this is amazing! the shiva in the disco remark also made me smile- i know why im cryin in the club now lol someone once noted the lyrics could also be read from the warrior of light's perspective, and the thought's been haunting me ever since. please get around to playing the patch soon, its utterly fantastic!

[@XieronDraxin]

I so wish you had played the fight before the video so that you knew Hydaelyn was in here too. This is my FAVORITE song in the FFXIV soundtrack as a person who is very deeply into the lore. Like note that when you broke down the singing into it's notes, it was exactly THREE notes making each chord. Ryne, Shiva, and Hydaelyn, all together, all trapped in their own specific cycles. Doomed to repeat this again and again and again and again.

[@dorrianbrooks9408]

I just realized that Rane and Ysayle are VERY similar. I think the song is their journey as people with Shiva's voice being the catalyst that brings them together in this song, hence the three voices you can make out. Both are 'reincarnations' of someone they've believed they were once they glimpsed that person's truth; Ysayle with her Echo, and Rane with being the Oracle of Light constantly being reminded of the true Minfillia. They both go through an identity crisis(that conflict you hear in the song) and eventually coming to terms with themselves and using the power they gained from it to help the WoL.

[@dane676]

The Ramuh theme from Eden is my favorite one too! I've had it on loop during my commutes this week, haha. I'm looking forward to hearing your thoughts about that song whenever that happens! Love your videos Alex!

[@rayhatesu]

As someone who likes both FFXIV and JoJo, I loved the indirect parallel with the start of E5 Ramuh's theme and Awaken

[@pounypoki7209]

@@rayhatesu Hearing the techno ramuh theme, i couldn't help but having a picture of big bearded ramuh and techno vicking mix together @_@

[@JinzoMask656]

God damn so good, that added stuff you put at the end was great!

[@drummermg131]

I just got to this raid boss encounter last night, and boy is there nothing better than searching for the music on KZbin and coming across one of these analysis vids for it!

[@miraocelot]

I want him to bloody review Sophia's theme. >.> The lyrics are crazy amazing and honestly the song is so good and has aged well in my opinion.

[@zhan6355]

Thank you again for another incredible review of a great song, it really helped clarify a lot of that underlying dissonance and conflict I felt like I was hearing but couldn't fully grasp, and now fully understand thanks to the context of the lore combined with the music elements I was missing. Even more than that though, I really, REALLY love what you did with your own take on that last motion of the piece, the cinematic tones and extra depth you added with references to different motifs. You're probably a very busy person and possibly prefer to spend your time on the analysis side of things lately, but if you ever wanted to make some more of your own takes on themes like those others on your channel, I'd be overjoyed to see your style on this in particular. Thanks again for a great video either way!

[@RaySolus]

I thought i could not love this specific track anymore, but hearing and feeling all these little notes and themes makes me appreciate this EVEN MORE!

[@CleverKnight777]

It's so cool how he can totally nail what's going on in the story just by listening to the tunes. They did such a good job making everything thematic and cohesive!

[@ekv.magnaye]

Omg I was hoping you'd do this at some point but I wasn't expecting it to be so soon! Thanks for another great analysis!

[@moogle890]

I love this analysis. I learned things I didn't know about this song at all, and you do a wonderful job of explaining it in an easy to understand format. I'd love to see you tackle the theme for Titania's boss theme, What Angel Wakes Me. Also from FF14 of course. It's...different XD

[@xKALLx1]

I liked how you analysed the song without having the full context of the fight, was great to see you pick out the correct themes and connotations of what's happening from the fight alone, especially with there being more than two voices.

[@cyphi474]

You're right about electronic music and games. When i first arrived to Amh Araeng, i was surprised they used pretty modern and non-usual music theme for the zone. Music in FF games is typically very instrumental and orchestrial, but suddenly theres this very modern sounding song(Sands of Amber) and i thought "Oh wow, we are going this way now?" But after listening it a bit, i've realized its actually pretty amazing and FF doesnt really have to be affraid using modern electronic music, because it can fit situation same way more complicated arrangement would. And i often go there while waiting, just to listen it. Its simple theme, but nice.

[@avyuir]

I love that you are doing these videos for FFXIV! Soken is a music god and it seems all the tracks in FFXIV are amazing!

[@xSiynClairx]

Dude, I really love these musical breakdowns! Seriously enjoyable to watch

[@Christian_The_Ram]

I'm binge watching a lot of your videos and I gotta say man your work is awesome, keep it up!

[@maceofbass9295]

I love when the track goes full Tropical House as the pseudo-steel drums kick in. It's an incredibly intense track, and the vocal layering is 100% thematic in it's representation of the characters involved (and the forces working behind these characters). Also, I love the bass. It's such a throwback to the Eurobeat/techno I started listening to as a teenager in the early 2000s.

[@lukasprince]

This song always feels like powering through a fight that you do not want to have. Like the beat is like you going through the beats of the fight, but you are fighting against someone or something you do not want to defeat, but you have to.

[@tabhamma4451]

It's one thing I love about shadowbringers is its a consistent theme in the music and yet it never gets old

[@SekaiNoMaster]

here's what i like about reaction that educates audiences, learning something new every video, thanks man.

[@ignasdamijonaitis8629]

holy shit I looked up the Spotify that you showed at the start of the vid and I saw tracks I had already clicked heart on!! highlight of the week, for sure!

[@Ventreel]

Amazing! Footsteps and Oblivion are my favorite tracks from HW and when i heard Eden version I just lost it. FF XIV composers are crossing the avenues of genres that many MMOs don't ever dare to explore. I feel a tremendous appreciation to art of game design via every possible sense it moves and how much information and feeling a musical track can hold. The analysis as always on point, I've learned something new again. Thank you for your work, Alex!

[@SMNtheNight]

This was my favorite track from 5.2, closely followed by new Ramuh. Thank you so much for doing these analyses, they're super entertaining and insightful!

[@nabila7115]

Wow. Very cool video and the parts you added at the end there? I felt that! It resonated and just felt right as the finale of the piece. Good stuff, looking forward to more to come :D

[@D-Walker]

The way you compare melodies and chords to a car and a path is actually pretty genius, not stupid. It does help people like me who are not musically educated (if that's a term) to understand. I can get it quite easily because I love to imagine and since I aboslutely love video games music too, I have taken my time to actually try to interpret feelings from it. Oh and before I forget, I did watch your other videos and I found it super educational and learned a lot of new things in terms of music and relating it to storytelling, feelings and what-not in times when I can't travel for a vacation. You have my thanks and my subscription. Stay safe and well. PS: You also have my friend's thanks for some suggestions to metal music.

[@Soulofjazzman]

Amazing work explaining this!! I hope someone picks you up in paying you to make this a full production series. Awesome job!

[@ladydarkangelyuki]

10:30 we'll it's kinda funny because one of the forms looks like Hydaelyn, as if not only did Ryne summon and embodied Shiva but accidentally also did the same with Hydaelyn. So in a sense Hydaelyn is not supposed to be there.

[@matathedragon223]

Ryne is the oracle of light, being the closest element of light (ice) basically transformed her into a lesser hydaelyn.

[@guymanjoni]

The is the first of your videos ive seen/heard and i immediately subscribed once we got to the end. These analysis are great!

[@keybladesrus]

Great video as always. I love a lot about XIV, but honestly, one of the things I get the most excited about with any new content is the music. It's just so good!

[@ivoryfalcon5494]

finally! new vid

[@Sacrengard]

I love these videos, I cant stress that enough

[@Er404ChannelNotFound]

Awesome analysis as always! Also, you keep hyping me for potential Bloodborne music analysis by referencing it here and there, you better deliver in that regard!

[@AlexMoukalaMusic]

I swear it on the Great Ones, that is bound to happen. :D

[@erisiannightmare2250]

@@AlexMoukalaMusic Ohhh, I hope so. Bloodborne is one of my favorite games of all time and I may have screamed a little when you mentioned it in this video. Fear the old blood!... And keep making these awesome videos.

[@Lalanthe]

Just want to say that I'm so happy when I see your analysis of ffxiv tracks! Keep up the good work!

[@Userdoesnotexit]

I learn something every time I watch one of your videos. Keep up the good work :-)

[@Anddroiden]

I have been waiting for this, the song is amazing

[@Rhomagus]

9:11 is probably my favorite part of the track. Very conflicting and moving. It churns.

[@ColdIronCoyote]

Nice--- thanks again. I love how you seperate the different parts of the track, didn't even notice some of the layers while jamming thru the fight, and you help make me appreciate the songs overall even more

[@MadokaTokisaki]

Personally I'd love for him to go back and Analyze "Answers"

[@NaRii]

Random Rupies YES

[@Fyokx]

Man your analysis is on point. I love how you appreciate the slapping base cause a lot of people take it for granted while base and drums are the true foundation of every song. One thing I want to personally add - at 11:47 you bring up the part of the song that I personally believe is the pest part of the whole track. You suggest they could've added something to it, which I agree with from a music perspective. Yet, in the savage raid with this theme, this part lines up with a kind of "do or die " mechanic at the very end of the fight, basically the last one. Here's a link to the timestamp in my own POV (i hope you don't mind me linking, if you do feel free to delete the comment no hurt feelings kzbin.info/www/bejne/h5nai6aZlqihd9k - That moment combined with that part gave me so much energy and made me pump my dps and and and... if you know what I mean? I think from that POV it wasn't missing anything as the song was perfectly lined up with the last mechanic of the fight basically as a do or die theme again. I just wanted to mention this because I feel like since you have not done savage raids (I assume so by what you said) it is something you missed out on for now! Overall love the video, didn't notice many of the references you noticed which was surprising to me.

[@Sllandre]

Watching Dworim's video of the phase as well, I'm astounded by just how well the Savage fight lines up with the music as well. The way the music and the mechanics line up is just... I love when mechanics line up with the music.

[@BenkaiDebussy]

I like how this video points out probably the main thing that gives FF14's soundtrack a distinctive and memorable sound - the way leitmotifs are used throughout in such a way that you get a clear sense of what different music is associated with.

[@mukakruda8474]

You NEED to do Floundering in the Depths next! I was so upset at first to hear that Sastasha theme but once that jazzy swing kicked in whew my heart

[@LoLFeVerry]

I always say FFXIV savages is like a dance but I cant explain why. And most of the time the music ties in with the time of the fight it self. The way you explained it is so good that I share to people so that they can understand what I meant through you.

[@TheCorstinSephari]

Hearing things you would do differently or what you would add is what I'm watching for. That's fantastic man, keep it up!

[@Tarutokun]

One thing I will say, and it's probably a 'Captain Obvious' moment, is that the new versions of the themes for the Eden's Raid tier give a better sense of 'urgency' to the mission at hand, in comparison to the previous versions from A Realm Reborn where it just sounded like a cool theme song to just put to the fight and didn't heavily put it towards telling that story like was stated in the video.

[@arbiterally101]

Could watch ya jam out to music forever mate. Ya get right in there and just enjoy it. And that’s not even catching all the insightful commentary and breakdown of music. Fantastic video, keep up the good work.

[@CloudedPeach]

I'm so happy you loved the Ramuh theme as well!! It absolutely blew me away, with the high speed percussion and Tekken style synths. This video was absolutely fantastic, music theory and Final Fantasy in one are like a dream come true!

[@yourbuddyben4854]

I love this. I love the song so much and heard what you were pointing out but you put it into words allowing me to understand it and what I was exactly feeling more. :3

[@reevesmagoo7738]

I could listen to this man talk about music forever. I know next to nothing about music, but it's so enthralling to hear someone who knows their stuff talk about it. Here's hoping that he'll take a look at Tekken 7's soundtrack and give some perspectives on that

[@mabdam3799]

Very awesome breakdown of the song. Could you do a breakdown of Sophia's theme 'Equilibrium' from FFXIV? The melody is beautiful but the lyrics had some sorrows behind it

[@amsaa91]

“What? That part is perfect!” *adds cinematic percussion* “Oh… OOOH”

[@hakaiuchiha4515]

Man.... me and you would be such good friends. Good lord. I appreciate music just as much as you. The feeling and the story that music tells within the cords and such. Its great and im a sub for life

[@Arlacent]

Alex! My favorite part about your videos is I feel like someone out there is listening to my favorite game music with as much attention to detail as I like to give. My friends will say, oh wow that's a great track and maybe a slight comment of comparison but I blab on about the inspiration of the music, the emotion and themes and all the fine little ingredients put in to make it so tasty to our ears. Keep bringing more videos! I'll be watching!

[@shrapnel5204]

Another one here who saw this in KZbin's suggestions. Really like the amount of depth in your analysis of the song, showed me even more reasons to love this tune. :D

[@DavidTimothy]

Hopefully you get to play it soon! The song in context has so much weight and seeing the progression of the whole fight and the cinematics and the story that builds up between Ryne and Gaia... I was so shaken at the end of Refulgence, I had a real hard time just pulling myself together to give out a comm and roll on loot. More feels in Refulgence than any game I've played since I was a kid and the feels were closer to the surface...

[@nathannguyen7624]

I love that you brought up The World Ends with You, I thought this song really felt like it could be in that game too!

[@ShirokamiHichino]

We did not summon Shiva... The hair, the dress, the double voice... We summoned Ysayle... And that is almost as sad as the reveal that we fought Haurchefant, Artoirel, Emmanellain and Honoroit in the Cosmos Coruscent...

[@Sargas-wielder]

That turn to the camera for "it's like Shiva in the disco!" killed me

[@ZycheCiorre]

What you first said about the song sounding mystic I immediately thought of phendrana drifts, and not a minute later you referenced it. We're on the same wavelength the whole time.

[@yukizuri]

Great content, thanks for the analysis :)

[@NLgnz]

YASSSSSSS That's what I was waiting for. Keep up them good work !

[@matathedragon223]

I wanna be the vessel for Shiva! 2 minutes later We get a prototype hydalaen fight

[@someclevername8167]

I feel like we’re gonna get a proper Hydaelyn fight at some point in the story. It’s just a feeling I have

[@1986Hikaru]

WoD: Fuc!ing OOPS!

[@khonamoshr1771]

Absolutely love your analysis of music, I definitely feel like I know more about music everytime I watch one ofnyour video's

[@ArceusShaymin]

I think part of the reason there's so much space closer to the end of the loop is specifically because it's a somewhat busy fight even on Normal. In-game there's (presumably) going to be both the party's and boss's voice and sound effects going off at the same time as the music, which kind of serve the function of filling some of that space - any more from the music side and it might risk becoming legitimately distracting.

[@Bakyugan33]

Your videos are eye opening about ff14 music. Usaually, I do recognize some of the main themes but your analysis is pushing so much further ! Great stuff, i can't wait to see more :)

[@meetmeonmars]

Your music commentary is PHENOMENAL. Keep up the good work!

[@Nagantios]

I absolutely love this track. Soken and the music team behind XIV nailed it with this particular piece. Reminiscent of the original Shiva while also managing to make it extremely unique. It's emotional, it's powerful, and it fits so damn well with the plot.