Game:

Xenoblade Chronicles X (2015)

Duration: 3:51

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72

The theme of a gargantuan sand-worm devouring your entire party before you even see it...

Wow... This one was a lot of work! From arranging to mixing, the challenge didn't let up at all as this project progressed, not that I was expecting it to. Xenoblade Chronicles X has a really wonderful soundtrack, filled with some really cool vocals and, as this particular piece makes evident, guitars. I knew that, while I typically focus on woodwinds, I simply couldn't deviate from what makes this piece was it is. Given that, I contacted some amazing musicians to help out! While I saw most of them perform at MAGFest this year, that event was so hectic that I never got to introduce myself, but that time will come. All four of these amazing musicians did a fantastic job and really brought their best! They're all listed below, and you should check out all of the amazing work that they do!

Guitars: @mahnplaysmusic and @EpicGameMusic
Vocals: @JayhanOfficial
Drums: @game_yk_hml_310

Of course, I knew this song needed a vocalist, and Jayhan did an absolutely wonderful job! Though not much of a singer myself, I took a shot at the male vocals, and while I think they turned out alright, I very happily let Jayhan's vocals take the spotlight and cover mine up anytime we were singing together.

Then, as mentioned, I simply couldn't get rid of the guitars in this piece. I contacted Mahn and Epic Game Music, because I thought that having multiple different tones and takes could add a lot of fullness. Between separately panned rhythm tracks, an acoustic guitar track, and a harmony track I didn't even ask for (but which sounded amazing nonetheless), I ended up having more than enough guitar tracks, and it was a fun challenge to fit them all in and give them their space. Both of these guitarists absolutely killed it!

Lastly, since I figured I'd be going all out with this cover, I also decided to have it be my first arrangement to feature live drums, recorded by Kyana-san. Needless to say, he also played fantastically! Working out the drum part with him also gave me a fun excuse to practice my Japanese speaking outside of the class I've been taking.

After all of that, I can finally talk about the arrangement itself! There isn't much to say, however. I kept it similar to the original, but of course, since I am still a woodwind player, I had to include some kind of wind instrument. At first, I began writing out a tenor saxophone part, but I began to take inspiration from 'Small Two of Pieces' from Xenogears. In this piece, there's a flute that plays behind the main vocals, and while its part may have been written out, it almost sounds akin to short, improvised phrases. I felt that this piece would lend itself well to that same idea, so I pulled out my shakuhachi and didn't write out any of the parts for it. I just did some takes and ended up with some phrases I was happy with. Outside of that, this arrangement pretty much speaks for itself!

Funnily enough, this cover released a day after Xenoblade Chronicles X's 9 year anniversary, which was completely unintended. Xenoblade Chronicles is my favorite video game series of all time, and this installment is a really breathtaking game. This particular song plays when fighting unique monsters, which are typically some of the most daunting (and massive) enemies you'll find. I hope I was able to maintain the intensity one might feel when taking these foes on.

As always, thanks for listening, and please check out all four of the amazing musicians that helped make this cover what it is!

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#Xenoblade #Nintendo #XenobladeChroniclesX #XenobladeX #MonolithSoft #WiiU #NintendoSwitch #VGM #VideoGameMusic #VideoGames #Guitar #Cover #Shakuhachi

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