Square Enix concludes their “SQ” series with Last SQ, a two-disc compilation of tracks from the eleven previous “SQ” entries. Fortunately, it does contain some new tunes as well. Four new arrangements, to be exact!
As I write this, I should acknowledge that Last SQ is eclipsed in concept and in completeness by the recently released, digital-only SQ Music Collections, containing all 119 tracks in the series. However, because there are four tracks unique to this album, I wanted to take a moment to put the spotlight on these tracks for RPGFan readers’ consideration!
These Last SQ exclusive tracks bookend each disc in the two-disc collection. All four tracks are arranged by Megumi Shiraishi and can loosely be defined as “symphonic rock,” though each also features a solo performer.
First up is a Chrono Trigger medley mixing the final battle music “World Revolution” and the title theme “Chrono Trigger.” This track features an impressive performance by Akihisa Kominato on shakuhachi flute. His performance might be my favorite of the bunch; Kominato carries the melody deftly from the fast-paced battle music to the epic theme in a way that captures the intensity of both of Mitsuda’s classic tracks.
At the end of disc one, we find the boss battle music “Battle 2” from the first Seiken Densetsu, aka Final Fantasy Adventure. The featured performer in this case is vocalist Mika Kobayashi. This track is one intense burst of energy, with Kobayashi’s non-lyrical vocals taking the listener on a roller coaster of melodic prowess (think Kyoko Kishikawa’s “Passionate Rhythm” in Romancing SaGa -Minstrel Song-). This probably would be my favorite of the four new tracks, but it comes as something of a tease. The entire track is under two minutes in length. I barely get a taste of the intense Final Fantasy Adventure action, and suddenly the music is gone.
The opener for disc two suffers from the same problem as the track before it. Clocking in at just over the 90 second mark, Shiraishi’s arrangement of “Reaching Wings” from LIVE A LIVE could have been glorious, if only it were more fleshed out. As it stands, it feels like an impressive demo track for something that could have been a full-length arrangement. The featured soloist here is violinist Ayasa Shimamura, who also appeared on Battle SQ years prior. I love her violin work here, and only wish this piece were part of a longer LIVE A LIVE mix.
The concluding track is a beast of a medley. Not only does it grab from two separate Final Fantasy titles (FFI and FFVI), it features a new soloist plus all the prior soloists, and it comes in as a decently-sized arrangement, clocking over five minutes! This is “Chaos’ Temple ~ Dancing Mad ~ Opening Theme,” a track that leaves me wondering what Megumi Shiraishi and crew could have done with more time and money. I would have loved a full album with music like this track.
The new soloist, guitarist Kei Hirosue, comes in hot over a thunderous orchestra and percussion backing that sounds like something straight out of Halo (even though it is, in fact, just an epic arrangement of the FFI “Chaos’ Temple” music). With absolutely no transition, not even a moment of silence, the Chaos theme switches over to the FFVI final battle music “Dancing Mad.” Specifically, the last of the four sections, when the party is actually fighting Kefka. The tempo runs slower, with the benefit being that Hirosue can really take advantage of the time signature (15, alternating 8 and 7) to add embellishment and décor to his solo.
In the final section, we hear Uematsu’s classic Final Fantasy main theme. Ayasa Shimamura leads the melody on violin, then trades with Hirosue’s guitar. Both continue to perform, and as the melodic theme repeats, Mika Kobayashi takes the melody on vocals while the other instruments harmonize. Finally, as a descant harmony in the song’s B section, Kominato arrives on the shakuhachi. It’s a brilliant take. Four musical heroes with their four instruments bringing light to the darkness.
Lovely as these songs are, they only make up about twelve minutes of the two-CD set (which clocks in at just under 2.5 hours). If I had it my way, Last SQ wouldn’t have been a compilation album. It would’ve been a whole album of music in the style we hear from Megumi Shiraishi. In any case, these songs do help make for a nice “last” hurrah for the SQ music series.
