Jam of the Day: Theme of Valkyria ~Guitar ver.~ by Yoshimi Kudo (Senjou no Valkyria 3 -Unrecorded Chronicles- Original Soundtrack)

I was very pleasantly surprised when I found out that the soundtrack to the third Valkyria Chronicles features four guitar arrangements of songs from the series. To make things even better, the first of the four is one of my all time favorite tracks from the first game, Theme of Valkyria.

All four of the bonus guitar tracks are by different artists. Theme of Valkyria was handled by Yoshimi Kudo and he really did wonders on Hitoshi Sakimoto’s already stellar track. All four of the bonus tracks impress, but Theme of Valkyria takes the cake.

Jam of the Day: Tank Corps by Jeremy Soule (Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker Original Soundtrack)

I finally got to try out the co-op mode in Peace Walker last night and I have to say it is quite fun. I remember when I first heard Peace Walker’s soundtrack, I was very surprised to see that Jeremy Soule did one of the tracks. It’s just not terribly common to see non-Japanese composers featured on Japanese games.

Jeremy Soule’s done a lot of things, but I first was introduced to him on the Secret of Evermore soundtrack. More recently, I saw him at an orchestral game concert (from a distance) at which music from his Guild Wars score was featured.

Jam of the Day: Final Vanitas Battle by Yoko Shimomura (Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep Soundtrack)

I haven’t posted in awhile. I was out of town 2 weekends in a row and had guests staying over throughout 2 different weeks. Things have been crazy.

I started up Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep the other night. I’m liking it so far. It feels nice to play a Kingdom Hearts game that isn’t a total rehash. I’ve been listening to the soundtrack a lot too.

I’m not far in the game, so I am just going to have to assume that this track is named appropriately (the YouTube video and the music rip have it labeled differently). What I can guarantee is that it sounds awesome. A great mix of previous character themes that I’m sure will have some sort of complicated significance when I get to that part of the game. Enjoy!

Jam of the Day: A Tragic Marionette by Tenpei Sato (Makai Senki Disgaea Arrange Soundtrack)

The context behind this song is incredibly odd. Here we have a beautiful, five and a half minute track by Tenpei Sato, complete with vocal work by Yayoi Yura, and what is it used for? A “Game Over” screen. That’s right, this song is used in a situation that most people skip past before the music even BEGINS!

It’s really a shame, because I love this song. The first time I ever heard it, I had already reached Disgaea’s “Game Over” screen numerous times before. It wasn’t until I set the controller down after losing that I realized what lay in store for me. Letting the screen sit there for a full five and a half minutes, I listened to the song, fell in love with it, then immediately began to wonder how many Disgaea players even know it’s there.

While this is technically the “Arranged Version”, it is almost exactly the same as the in-game version. It’s even the same length. The only substantial difference is that this version uses slightly better sounding instruments.

Jam of the Day: Vacant Interference by jdk Band (Ys Seven Original Soundtrack)

I don’t think I’ve ever played a Ys game in my life. In fact, I couldn’t tell you the right way to pronounce it (I’ve heard much debate on the subject). What I do know is that the soundtracks (at least the modern ones) are a great source of heavy rock with a bit of a symphonic twist.

Prepare yourself, because this song is so rocking that it has been known to melt faces.