Search - Hollywood Symphony Orchestra, Nobuo Uematsu :: The Best of Final Fantasy 1994-1999

STAY AWAY!

Orkybash | Seattle, WA USA | 10/18/2000

(2 out of 5 stars)

"As an avid fan of game music, I was looking forward to listening to this CD. That was my first problem. Although the CD says "hollywood symphony orchestra", 99% of it is performed by the "Electronic Sounds Ensemble." The first track wasn't that bad, and the second is listenable. The third just plain sucked. After that, the CD goes downhill with a horrible Prelude and a hollow rendition Main Theme of FFVII. Then comes Cosmo Canyon, which isn't all that bad. After that, its Shinra Wages a Full Scale Attack, with brass that sounds better on my MIDI synth. Then comes the worst part of the CD: Liberi Fatali. It starts out with a horrible soprano who doesn't even sing the right words. That soprano is replaced by a synth shortly afterwards. God help us. After that, its a lifeless version of My Mind, an OK version of The Spy, and an flat, boring version of Mods de Chocobo. Bottom line, do yourself a favor and avoid this CD."

It's really not worth it to buy

Joshua Kaufman | Cincinnati, OH | 11/13/2000

(1 out of 5 stars)

"Despite the title and rating of the review and the others reviews, I would say that this is *NOT* a bad CD. Except for two tracks, Liberi Fatali and Mods de Chocobo, it's actually pretty decent. Unfortunatly, it's more that the CD itself is pointless, and not worth owning. It's simply a cash cow that mooches off the Final Fantasy name and popularity. This CD is 'performed' by the Hollywood Symphony Orchestra, but don;t be fooled by the name, it's really one guy with a synthesizer. I'm not quite sure how he got access to the original music, but the pieces aren't arrangements. Except for Final Fantasy 7's Main Theme, and the chorus part of Liberi Fatali, the tracks are basically the originals run through his synth. The instruments are all basically the same, and there's no changing of the material whatsoever. The sound quality isn't that advanced, but it's not really bad. It has a 'soft' sort of sound to it, so it's not offensive to the ears. It's also interesting to note that the tracks he chose happen to be the first track of each CD from the three original soundtracks, furthur commenting on how it's merly a cash cow. So don't buy this CD. Get the originals, get the arranged CDs, wait for the upcoming Project Magestic Mix, or even go without. It's not worth buying, even for the hardcore."

"A Musical Tribute" In Name Only

Mustin | Fayetteville, Arkansas | 09/27/2000

(1 out of 5 stars)

"I picked up that new "Final Fantasy" CD that came out today!That was my first mistake...The first track seems promising, aside from the fact that it's a synth. Then, after the little "bells" thing, I realized this:I just wasted my money.The beginning of the "scary part" sounds like it's gonna be sweet, but then the "bass" rushes and these HORRIBLE synth horns come in. Hold on. I think I'm gonna cry.Okay, sorry. Overall, the original sound versions of ALL of these songs, are much MUCH better than what we have here, folks. What really gets me is that the CD says: "Performed by: The Hollywood Symphony Orchestra & Chorus." But where are they? 98% of this CD is performed by "The Electric Sound Ensemble." Who are they?!? What I don't understand is why they bothered to even put "Liberi Fatali" on this CD. They're not even singing the correct words (if Square says 'no' why bother), and the music is SOOO below par of the song they are trying to recreate it makes me want to crawl into a hole and die. Now, I gotta admit, "The Spy" sounds cool, but come on. It sounds the SAME as the original. Can we PLEASE get a better muted trumpet sound here? I'm not even gonna bring up "Mods De Chocobo." I don't have any more tears left. So. There you have it. I'm glad I signed on the "Project Majestic Mix" bandwagon. VP Candidate Lieberman and Martin Sheen are right:"Most of the stuff that comes out of HOLLYWOOD is sleaze.""