So the big statue in the background is a giant pillar from the actual fight in FFVI. Those characters you see engraved in the pillar are what you fight as you move your way up to heaven in each phase in order to get to Kefka. You may notice that the statue moves down for each phase, which is more or less how it worked in the original. Kefka becomes a literal god and is the final phase of the fight, which is what you're seeing when it transitions to the heavenly background and him gaining wings.
In addition, each phase of the pillar are supposed to represent the three afterlives of Christianity: Hell, then Purgatory, then Heaven, where you then fight God.
@@cnkclark Ahh. That's awesome, lol. Yeah, I don't do Savage Raids, I just don't have the time/energy to do the same fight over and over and over and over and over again, so I had never seen it in-game, at least not yet.
Yoshi P and the raid designers: Hey guys, we're putting Kefka into the game. You know what that means. Soken: * bounces off the walls with excitement* The rest of his sound team: Oh god... Can we even do it right?
It astounds me how you can pick apart elements from a song and attribute styles to different composers as the source of influence. I just hear good noise and monkey brain release happy chemicals.
A quote I've heard before "For a composer using the SNES soundchip is like asking a painter to use crayons, Nobuo Uematsu used crayons to paint the Sistine Chapel".
I will never cease to be amazed that the song is so solid there was very little that needed to be changed for FFXIV, even though it was originally created for the Super Nintendo
Nobuo Uematsu actually also has a band that does rock covers of his own songs from the other mainline FF games called The Black Mages, and they have a really sick rendition of this song that ends with a guitar solo in God Kefka's theme
Now that you have a face (or sort of face anyway) to put to the name, I feel like I should talk a bit about who Kefka is and hopefully give some insight into just why the song and character go together like peanut butter and jelly. Originally, Kefka was a scientist tasked with fusing magic and technology to use as a power source for his nation. A task he ultimately succeeded in, but did so through a nebulous process that left him fundamentally broken. Something happened during the process that allowed him to see or know things that mortals shouldn't know or see. In his broken state, all of reality became meaningless and epehemeral. After all, why bother caring about the fragile creatures and nations around him when everything is destined to crumble and die? However, rather than falling into nihilistic depression, he sank into sadism. He created weeapons of war that turned his nation into an empire, and goaded everyone around him into war that culminated in Kefka betraying his emperor and claiming the power of three gods as his own and ripping the world apart and reshaping it in his image; creating a tower of twisted steel at the center of the world, built on the bones of the broken empire he once served. There he reigned over the world, demanding more and more ludicrous sacrifices from the survivors for his own amusement, and when someone got the power and resources to challenge him, that sadism dipped into frustration. Unable to comprehend anyone clinging to life, to hope, to dreams in the face of oblivion, he attempts to simply end everything, himself included.
And that has cemented him as one of my all time favorite villains. I find Zeromus more terrifying, but from a writing perspective it's cheaper. Few antagonists can match Kefka as a driving force for their stories.
@@CaramelsDen Yeah. You replace Magitek infusion with Meteion and you have sort of the same catalyst. Granted, I don't think Hermes was that messed up until he was sundered but very similar
@@temporalwolf7054 Minor correction. Kefka wasn't the scientist in charge. If I remember correctly, that was primarily Cid who helped develop magitek. Kefka was simply a high ranking mage who was in charge of a lot of things but he was still outranked by men like Leo. Kefka was actually supposed to be the first magitek knight to be infused but the process was imperfect. Instead of of making him the perfect magitek knight, it fried his mind and drove him insane. Dissidia gives more info. From the wiki: Kefka is so insane and twisted by Magitek experimentation that he is incapable of understanding love and hope and only feels joy when destroying, and his actions are born out of a continuously escalating need to satisfy destructive urges that are never fully sated. He eventually resorts to destroying himself to see if that will finally be enough, self-destructing in a mournful cackle.
"Dissonant" is the perfect word for Dancing Mad. At points it is genuinely unpleasant to listen to, but in a way that is very intentional and calculated. The notes get warped and distorted, the rhythm gets out of sync with itself, and it feels like you're listening to the thoughts of someone who is genuinely mentally unwell. A masterpiece blend of classic music and modern electronica.
Yeah, that's exactly why this version of Dancing Mad is my favorite. I've heard so many good covers and official versions over the years, but none have quiiiite captured that completely dissonant, distorted, crawly, often-unpleasant and...well...MAD atmosphere that I always felt the song (particularly the final stage) should have.
Can we also just appreciate that this was originally written to be a MIDI in a 32bit SNES game?! Uematsu's genius turned into a MIDI?! Gah. (headcannon). So fucking good.
He customized the sound as well, compare the sounds of ffvi to ffiv and ffv. Very clear that he put so much effort into making the full symphonic orchestra sound into a sound chip that has only 4 channels for music. Listen to the ost, there are only 4 instruments playing at a time but it sounds like 100.
I like that you ramble on about your personal music theory on the pieces after listening to them. What makes your reactions unique is "you". A lot of us enjoy the music, but also enjoy the suggestions you make and the insights you bring that we might not have. Rock on Jesse! 🤘
I have to agree. I've seen some reactors on TH-cam do ff14 music, and while they are excellent in their own way, I find that their pride gets in the way of the enjoyment of the music they are listening to. Often they add to or take away from the music which ultimately defeats the purpose of reacting to it, but Jesse's take on any of the songs he reacts to is filled with insight and thoughtful comments, ways that the songs moved him and what he enjoyed about them. It's really refreshing to watch.
You are correct, kefka was a court jester or sorts... His background is an interesting and good story. He was once a respected knight for the empire of the world and was experimented on and become a very powerful knight after being infused with the power of magical beings (called espers in the original) but it drove him insane... to basically joker level of mentality When many players thought they were reaching the end of the game on a floating continent and fighting against the empires best, including kefka and the emperor... through a twist of fate kefka becomes infused with three god-like beings powers and ascends to becoming a god (who you have already covered one of his songs, being sephirot) His 16 bit laugh has been a literal part of the song and had basically in every rendition of the song.
@@Arrek8585 Yeah, it's crazy to think that an RPG that long ago had the balls to have you on the climatic fight, on a floating continent in the sky against super power enemies, and you think "oh man I can't wait, this ending is amazing!". Only to have the hero party LOSE the battle, and surprise, you're at the HALFWAY point, not the ending, and the villain essentially destroys the world.
The way FFXIV does Savage difficulty is one of my favourite parts of the game. Rather than breaking game balance by giving us higher iLVL gear from Savage compared to Tomestone gear, they give us cosmetic stuff like mounts and cool experiences with Savage-only boss designs and awesome Savage-only music. Sigmascape was the first tier I full-cleared on-content and despite the fact that I've cleared ultimates now, finally killing Kefka after weeks of progression is still one of my favourite moments in this game.
I had to heal this fight and i loved and hated it in equal measures. Later i did it on bluemage and i remebered why i love/hated it. And just how much i missed the music of the fight
@@nesoukkefka1741 All Soken did was modernize the instrumentation. Not gonna give him credit for Uematsu's work. This idolization of Soken is slowly starting to creep into the territory of taking credit for Uematsu's music.
@@TheRazzmatazz24 All he did was orchestrate and arrange this new version of the song you mean ? If you are not going to give Soken credit for Soken's version of the song who are you gonna give it to lol. Of course its shared credit with Uematsu as the melody is by Uematsu but trying to act like Soken has no credit for a version of the song he arranged is just being salty. I'm pretty sure that if FFXIV version of this was horrible no one would say it was Uematsu's fault, so what exactly is the point you are trying to make ?
@@DakonBlackblade2 It wasn't rearranged. It's the same song, note for note. Even then, the 4th act is scuffed due to lack of staccato. Neither was it "orchestrated", lmao.
@The Outlaw Absolutely! Such an awesome song. Seeing the trailer for FF8 when I was 14 and hearing that song during it made me try that game and I've been hooked on the Final Fantasy series for close to 25 years now.
@The Outlaw I'm glad it had a big impact on you because that game was important to me also and sometimes I see online it doesn't get the love it deserves unfortunately...
I do recommend FF9's - Dark Messenger next, as FF9's entire soundtrack was Nobuo's last FF as a sole composer for the series. After 9, multiple composers made up the soundtracks for future titles. FF9 is also Hironobu Sakaguchi's (Creator of FF) favorite main series title.
I would definitely recommend listening to the Distant Worlds version of this piece, even if it's just in your own time. Distant Worlds is a Orchestral production of Final Fantasy songs some of which inclusive of Choir. Dancing Mad is one of my favourite songs to hear them play in concert, even though it's about a 11 minute piece start to finish.
There is one more final version you have not heard yet! If you search "Distant Worlds Dancing Mad" on youtube you will come across my personally favorite version. There's just something about hearing it finally done by a full orchestra and choir. It's very powerful and the fact that the more challenging parts are being played by humans live is just so incredible. Cheers!
My favorite bit for the fight is that the Dancing Mad's four movements are used in this fight as a way of pacing the fight and a hard time limit. The fight opens using the standard FF6/Sigmascape boss theme for a little under a minute (A Battle Decisively, which is why the video starts in the middle of the action), then fades into the first movement of Dancing Mad as the Statue rises. Then each of the first three phases ends in time with the ending of the first three movements, and if you weren't able to do enough damage by the end of the third movement the boss enrages and instantly kills the party, try again. Meanwhile, if you do enough damage by the end of the third phase the transition occurs right on time with the song and the hard part begins...
You should definitely check out the "Distant Worlds" version of this. Studio, not live (sadly). The arrangement is SICK, it's a lot less "loopy" and feels more natural in its progression. Nobuo Uematsu himself supervised it, because he considers this particular piece as an unfinished work. He's been rewriting it for the last 3 decades, changing the arrangement, rythm, added lyrics ... he even once said he could die full of regrets, because he can't let it go, as he will never be satisfied by the result.
for extra background kefka is a prototype supersoldier that went mad after his magic infusion and finds joy in nothing but destroying specifically all that has a meaning. he was then made court jester/mage/general by the expansionist emperor and finally betrayed the emperor to obtain god like power and erradicate all existance. some of his quotes include "it's only fun because it is senseless" and "I'll destroy everything, there will be nothing left to dream of!" the piece illustrates his ascension from broken weapon to power figure to divinity to psychotic clown god.
It would be fun to see you react to Dancing Mad by The Black Mages. They are a Rock Cover Group that Uematsu has played with and they have certainly done justice to his masterpieces. It's a shorter arrangement, but still grabs the essence of the song.
I ran the normal raid solo recently as a PLD, just for gigglyshits. You get to that third phase music, and since it just takes a hell of a long time to kill anything like that as a tank..... I just went into this zen mode of the same 4-5 mechanics over and over again to the third phase music and I have never been so relaxed and "in the zone" soloing a raid like that before. That third phase is beautiful.
To throw a suggestion into the hat (and a game not yet covered here) PSO2 - Profound Darkness Theme, PSO2 is a very "rule of cool" game and the song and fight are absolutely an excellent example of it.
Oooh! That's a great suggestion. Aside for the Profound Darkness theme, I also found myself really liking the Mining Base Defense Themes (esp TD4) but those are really long.
Amazing suggestion. Mining Base Defense is long but some of the most despairing sense of fights in music. It's kinda chaotic but it does chaotic well for a sci-fi game
Life-long Final Fnatsy fan here. Guy who wrote this on chiptune MIDI is self-taught. Nobuo Uematsu is a firemind of music, and the video game industry is insanely fortunete to have had him during the golden age of RPGS in the late 80s-00s. 30 years of mastermind leadership of composition. He's the John Williams of videogames. Final Fantrasy is his Star Wars.
Yeah there's a Distant Worlds version and a Black Mages version. You're down quite a rabbit hole! Loved this reaction. I also second the Dark Messenger from FF9 requests. Though I think Immoral Melody is a good pick to listen first. You hear them at different times but its like a natural progression.
I actually love the Black Mages version of this song. Mostly cause of the killer outro solo that just fits so well with that final denouement. In most other ways its very similar to Soken's version here.
Found your Dancing Mad videos tonight after wanting to re-listen to it, and it was fun listening to it with you and hearing what you thought about it. If you DID want to hear another great rendition of Dancing Mad, the channel GaMetal has done an INCREDIBLE metal cover of it, and he even sings the 'opera' parts of it. The more recent version (2019 version I think) is the one to hear. You don't have to make a reaction video about it, just listening to it on your own time is enough for me.
The extra bass in this version makes it feel so much darker, it fits perfectly. That's really the only thing the FF6 version was missing. 9:18 God that's so Dream Theater lol. Edit: Had a listed to Toccata and Fugue and yeah that had to be heavy inspiration for this piece.
This song gave me King Crimson vibes. Definitely had that prog rock vibe that Yes and King Crimson delve into. It was absolutely beautiful art. This song would be SOOO fun to drum too!
The Classical/Rock fusion is one of the hallmarks of Final Fantasy that spread throughout RPGs and games as a whole like wildfire. Its such an amazing combination that has so many possibilities.
The whole orchestral package of this is just unbeaten to me. The sound is so full and enhances the epicness of Dancing Mad so strongly! The fight is lots of fun, of course, but the music alone is just worth it so much! I also feel that the phase changes are musically handled more seamlessly in this remix. I do wonder, how ancient is Uncle, though? :D
Tipsy Reactions 🤘 Glad you gave both versions a listen, especially back to back. A treat for the ears. 😉 Fun fact! It's called "Wild Dance of a Calamitous Star" in Japanese. Kefka is an iconic villain not just in Final Fantasy but in gaming in general. He's a court mage with a taste for destruction, no morals, and a bit of insanity. Spoilers for the endgame of FF6: He's underestimated in the beginning, but he's a villain that actually WINS. He becomes the god of magic and literally destroys the world and the protagonists have to take him on after the end has already happened. Dancing Mad absolutely encapsulates the madness and grandiosity that is Kefka Palazzo.
-nothing about this struck me as you being drunk, keep talking because I always want to hear your technical input on music as music -they really just dropped JS Bach into the middle of this and I love it. Yes, I realize it's not actual music that JS Bach wrote, but it 1,000,000% sounds like just some slight (very slight) inversion of Toccata and Fugue in D Minor that Oematsu did just, you know, kinda remind us whose house we were in. This wins hand-over-fist over lame repetitious "spooky vampire music" (you know, whenever some unholy creature or devil or vampire appears now, you have to hear church organs because it was ironic the first 3 times somebody did that but now we're well over 250k) -that killer distorted bass line, I cannot get over it. That movement has such incredible panache and "Batman energy" (whatever that means) and it has this awesome anti-hero modern punk-rock attitude to it. I was about to compare this to Symphony of the Night but of course FFVI came first, and so if anything it would be Michiru Yamane in some way following in the footsteps of Nobuo Oematsu--that's what's happening here. I'm not quite saying that right because Michiru Yamane is an absolute titan of composition and Symphony of the Night (not to mention the entire Castlevania series) is equally a legend in the history of video games that have music in them--easily one of the best, most enjoyable, most significant video game soundtracks ever. The fact that these two show up in the same conversation--both are massive and I love this cover so freaking much. I have no idea if Yamane specifically owes anything, inspiration-wise or in other ways, to Oematsu but I just wanted to clarify that both of these individuals are godlike composers in their own right.
Please just listen to the DISTANT WORLDS II version of this! It's the best rendition of them all, fully orchestrated with choirs, and some cool guitar for the fourth movemnt
I know he's reacted to different two versions of this song already, but the Distant Worlds version really is so good it deserves a listen to. If he's reading this, please give that version of this song a chance, I promise you won't be disappointed. I bet a sizable portion of people who have heard all three versions would say the one played by Distant Worlds is the best. Well.. I know I would, and I always enjoyed this song ever since I first heard it in FFVI.
I love your reaction videos. Especially when there's a drastic change (like around the 8:20 mark) and you get a blank look for a second as your brain is trying to process the craziness of what's going on. Every time we see that we all think.. "Yep, been there!" This song is really fitting for Kefka too because he's completely insane, so this music reflects that pretty well I think. Sidenote, I appreciated your assessment of classical. I grew up playing the piano and violin. And we did a lot of Bach, Pachelbel and mozart. And I always remember teachers and composers at the concerts I performed in commenting about how Mozart for example had all his music mathmatically perfect. There's so much thought and feeling and emotion that went into it.
If you know of the Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri, then the movements in the piece represent this. The first phase representing Inferno or Hell, second phase representing Purgatorio or Purgatory, the third being Paradiso or Heaven, the last being the main characters meeting and encountering God. In this case, being Kefka.
If you like Dancing Mad, you have to listen to the version Nobuo Uematsu did with The Black Mages. As the Primals are to Soken, The Black Mages are to Nobuo. The are his band and the Dancing Mad they did has one of the best guitar solos ever, imo.
I will recommend FFXIV OST Wanderer's Palace HM Theme (Tricksome), if you want to listen to the original, it's called (A Tonberry's Tears). If you will listen to them both, I'm sure you can see why people recommed listening to the originals first. :)
I was wondering if you'd be interested in checking out the new song that dropped for the newest expansion of the game called "Footfalls". Its a brilliant theme that encapsulates a lot of what FFXIV has led up to till this point. Keep up the great videos my man! Keep on keepin on!
Thanks for the Heart my dude! Just wanted to clarify, I'm just finding your channel today and still discovering what you have and have not reacted to. I saw you did react to the Endwalker trailer version of Footfalls, but now the clean version is available, without the trailer editing, voiceovers, and sounds. Its a fantastic track, and I'm probably not the only one who thinks that you should hear the actual version of this song, unedited. Again, Keep on keepin on dude!
He already did a reaction to it, just before there was a clean version of the song, so he instead reacted to the trailer song that had to voice lines in the background.
I fully recommend listening to the Black Mages cover of this song. And honestly any of their covers. Its a band formed by Uematsu and a few other SE composers.
Hey man, just found your channel and loving the content! If you're interested, It would be cool to see you listen to "Trouble shooting star" from Yakuza 0, it never fails to get the adrenaline pumping and it deserves *way* more attention from the Yakuza community. Same game that did "Pledge of a demon" that you've listened to. But like I said it's pretty short, so if you want to back to back it with another song, there's this song that goes *hard* , it's from the Killer Instinct soundtrack called "Type 03" by Mick Gordon. It's about 7:00 but damn is it a ride! Either way keep up the great content man, glad to finally see someone so dedicated to giving game soundtracks the attention they deserve.
If you wish to know more about Kefka himself, look up the Fiery Joker. I don't know what his Twitch name is, but yeah, he went all in on this character. And he can even do a VERY convincing voice-over of him as well.
Thanks to everyone for the request! Songs mentioned in this video; Scarface (Tony's Theme) Giorgio Moroder (Dissonant chords everywhere) th-cam.com/video/j7kQ1HFVsGQ/w-d-xo.html Vivaldi - Four Seasons th-cam.com/video/GRxofEmo3HA/w-d-xo.html J.S Bach - Toccata & Fugue in D Minor th-cam.com/video/ho9rZjlsyYY/w-d-xo.html Warmen - Beyond Abilities th-cam.com/video/idchGwnfyso/w-d-xo.html
This raid (the savage version) took me ages to clear. It drove me half mad (the song represented that quite well as kefka is quite mad too lol)! Incredible fight with crazy mechanics but music was epic af!
I just found this channel and have been really digging seeing the reaction to all these songs I love. I hope he sometime gets to 'Fate of the Unknown' from Kingdom Hearts.
Jesse my man, you have to check out Distant Worlds, it's a semi-regular Final Fantasy orchestra tour and their performance of this song is mind-blowing.
My favorite version of this (with a dash of One Winged Angel thrown in) is "Prince uf Darkness" (Tony Dickinson, now bassist in Trans-Siberian Orchestra!) insane symphonic metal arrangement "Prancing Dad". It is SO well done and goes _ridiculously_ hard. th-cam.com/video/8xsbTlrpkg4/w-d-xo.html
I love how even the fight mechanics lean into the madness theame you learn all the way up to here over hundreds of hours possibly to not stand in certain markers but he turns it on its head for some of them you need to stand in them now.
Your music dissection rambling is always fun to listen to! I would consider Dancing Mad to be Nobuo's best work. On it's own, it's a masterpiece, but what really sets it apart for me is the context from a musical perspective. Since it's clear you enjoy listening for "music nerd" stuff as much as I do, and if you want this piece to seem even better, I have a huge recommendation (not a request or anything). The main villain is Kefka, and he has a main theme outside of his epic boss battle. Starting in the 3rd movement of Dancing Mad, Uematsu really starts sneaking the motif from Kefka's theme in the piece (specifically during the really pretty heavenly church organ part where the lower notes come in and you heard all those tri tones). Just listening to like the first 30-60 seconds of Kefka's Theme is all you need to hear the motif built upon in Dancing Mad. I love music nerd stuff. Playing FFVII back when I was a kid was what really opened my ear for music and led me on the path to start learning and even teaching it. Basically reliving my first experience with these pieces through your reactions has been a treat.
23:04 I know Uncle Jesse may not read this, but this point reflects strongly in season 2 of Log Horizon anime, the game world becomes a living breathing thing, and the NPCs are alive as well, but they're limited to these original 42 songs of the game's sound track, and that's highlighted / touched on. They are unable to come up with a 43rd+ song on their own due to their existence, and having players be bards coming up with new songs, no matter how trivial, is an absolute blessing.
I also recommend you to look up a video of this fight with soundeffects on just for the soundeffect that plays when he does a transition in his final phase alone. (like 12:45) It's most likely the most terrifying soundeffect in any fight of FFXIV and it sends shivers down my spine everytime. (...and I hope that isn't just me)
I think a lot of people misunderstand Kefka as a character, He is indeed probably one of the most psychopathic characters of Final Fantasy, Being a jester, but also with the name of some of his moves with magic. For example, Wibbly Wobbly Firaga, or Scitter Scatter Blizzaraga (Something like that, Sadly don't remember them.) I feel chills when listening to his original theme, just hearing this one made this even more chilling, I still recognize the different movements- I hate that I still remember them.. But overall good song. I'll be checking out your reaction to the original after this. But still omg.. 😥
To be honest as much as i like this song specially the second phase, i cant help but feel frustrated from not being able to enjoy the 4th phase tho not all of it just the parts that its sounds like a Nokia/motorola old school ringtones. Beisdes that everything is wonderful to me. Keep up the good work man just discovered your channel last week and been having a blast with your content💪 Hope you listen one day to Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze - Busted Bayou!🙌 a game that cured my depression with its soundtrack only to make me want to be depressed to let it cure it all over again, masterpiece of a game.
I totally agree at Movement 4 sounding off. I don't know what it is, but the distortion of the organ rubs me the wrong way. It doesn't feel nearly as climactic as the FF6 version. Though I guess that's by design. Kefka is only 2/3 of the way through the raid series.
That discordant mess at the end fits the tone perfectly. Kefka, the mad clown that became a god of Nihilistic destruction.... totally off his rocker, the only method to his madness being enough coherence to destroy all meaning. This song is meant to be discordant, uneven, and unsettling.
I think you should check out the Mechanicus soundtrack by David Guilluame. It's a very interesting combination of industrial drones and beautiful pipe organs and chant-singing. If you do decide to check it out, I would recommend starting with Children of the Omnissiah, Noosesphere and Overlord. (Caestus Metalican is also a good song to start with.)
Nobu was and still is held in high regard for his music from the first 10 Final Fantasy games. Those who did the FF14 version that was a MMO JRPG, when they brought back classic villains as bosses in the MMO quests, they knew to never mess with the original music yet only make the small adjustments that don't mess with the main theme of the classic.
Seriously, if you truly want a treat and a wild ride, listen to the Distant Worlds version of Dancing Mad. Get that real organ, the drums, the choir, it's amazing.
This isn’t a reaction request, but I think you would really like Prancing Dad by Prince of Darkness. It’s an amazing remix/cover of both Dancing Mad and One Winged Angel.
The best part of the savage fight is that during certain parts, it makes a creepy laugh-screech during phase change. Too bad it wasn’t reflected in the video!
*shows up to one year late with Starbucks and subscribes* Listen, I love this song in it's entirety. Might I recommend listening to this played on the Pipe Organ. It's AMAZING and it will give you chills. Look up Final Fantasy VI - Dancing Mad cover by Grissini Project. Love your videos and I have a lot of catching up to do on them.
So the big statue in the background is a giant pillar from the actual fight in FFVI. Those characters you see engraved in the pillar are what you fight as you move your way up to heaven in each phase in order to get to Kefka. You may notice that the statue moves down for each phase, which is more or less how it worked in the original. Kefka becomes a literal god and is the final phase of the fight, which is what you're seeing when it transitions to the heavenly background and him gaining wings.
One of the best villains out there because he got what he wanted.
@@RaveSault ya he's my favorite because he actually wins lol
In addition, each phase of the pillar are supposed to represent the three afterlives of Christianity: Hell, then Purgatory, then Heaven, where you then fight God.
@@chrys_stone8716 He isn't the only FF villian to win, but man he did it with the most style lol
@@TemLightKiBlade wait what's the other one?
My favorite part is that they kept the iconic Kefka laugh in its original form. It's an immediately recognizable sound bite for anyone who's played 6.
I get nostalgia chills every time it plays. It always underscores that we're fighting KEFKA.
Is that laugh actually in the game? I always thought the person who recorded it added it in post.
@@Dhalin That is 100% in-game, it is one of my favorite things about the fight/music.
@@cnkclark Ahh. That's awesome, lol. Yeah, I don't do Savage Raids, I just don't have the time/energy to do the same fight over and over and over and over and over again, so I had never seen it in-game, at least not yet.
@@Dhalin I'm pretty sure he does it once or twice in normal mode as well, but it's been a while so I might be wrong.
Yoshi P and the raid designers: Hey guys, we're putting Kefka into the game. You know what that means.
Soken: * bounces off the walls with excitement*
The rest of his sound team: Oh god... Can we even do it right?
Just Imagine the day if they ever let Soken tackle One-Winged Angel.
@@richt9954 Dude, I want Sephroth/Jenova to be a raid battle in FFXIV SO FRIGGIN' BAD!
It astounds me how you can pick apart elements from a song and attribute styles to different composers as the source of influence. I just hear good noise and monkey brain release happy chemicals.
That's cuz he's been training his ear for long
A quote I've heard before "For a composer using the SNES soundchip is like asking a painter to use crayons, Nobuo Uematsu used crayons to paint the Sistine Chapel".
I've used this quote so many times since seeing it here. It's just so apt.
I will never cease to be amazed that the song is so solid there was very little that needed to be changed for FFXIV, even though it was originally created for the Super Nintendo
Nobuo Uematsu actually also has a band that does rock covers of his own songs from the other mainline FF games called The Black Mages, and they have a really sick rendition of this song that ends with a guitar solo in God Kefka's theme
I think it's the ultimate version of this song, it's so good...
The Black Mages disbanded back in 2010. Uematsu’s current band is called the Earthbound Papas.
I was just thinking about this too! It's by far the BEST version of Dancing Mad, ever!
Now that you have a face (or sort of face anyway) to put to the name, I feel like I should talk a bit about who Kefka is and hopefully give some insight into just why the song and character go together like peanut butter and jelly.
Originally, Kefka was a scientist tasked with fusing magic and technology to use as a power source for his nation. A task he ultimately succeeded in, but did so through a nebulous process that left him fundamentally broken. Something happened during the process that allowed him to see or know things that mortals shouldn't know or see. In his broken state, all of reality became meaningless and epehemeral. After all, why bother caring about the fragile creatures and nations around him when everything is destined to crumble and die? However, rather than falling into nihilistic depression, he sank into sadism. He created weeapons of war that turned his nation into an empire, and goaded everyone around him into war that culminated in Kefka betraying his emperor and claiming the power of three gods as his own and ripping the world apart and reshaping it in his image; creating a tower of twisted steel at the center of the world, built on the bones of the broken empire he once served. There he reigned over the world, demanding more and more ludicrous sacrifices from the survivors for his own amusement, and when someone got the power and resources to challenge him, that sadism dipped into frustration. Unable to comprehend anyone clinging to life, to hope, to dreams in the face of oblivion, he attempts to simply end everything, himself included.
tl;dr, he's basically Heath Ledger's version of The Joker, just given godlike cosmic power.
And that has cemented him as one of my all time favorite villains. I find Zeromus more terrifying, but from a writing perspective it's cheaper. Few antagonists can match Kefka as a driving force for their stories.
Holy shit that's just Fandaniel
@@CaramelsDen Yeah. You replace Magitek infusion with Meteion and you have sort of the same catalyst. Granted, I don't think Hermes was that messed up until he was sundered but very similar
@@temporalwolf7054 Minor correction. Kefka wasn't the scientist in charge. If I remember correctly, that was primarily Cid who helped develop magitek. Kefka was simply a high ranking mage who was in charge of a lot of things but he was still outranked by men like Leo. Kefka was actually supposed to be the first magitek knight to be infused but the process was imperfect. Instead of of making him the perfect magitek knight, it fried his mind and drove him insane.
Dissidia gives more info. From the wiki:
Kefka is so insane and twisted by Magitek experimentation that he is incapable of understanding love and hope and only feels joy when destroying, and his actions are born out of a continuously escalating need to satisfy destructive urges that are never fully sated. He eventually resorts to destroying himself to see if that will finally be enough, self-destructing in a mournful cackle.
I wasn't feeling this version quite as much as the original at first, but that last movement is so amazingly disgusting and distorted, it's perfect.
"Dissonant" is the perfect word for Dancing Mad. At points it is genuinely unpleasant to listen to, but in a way that is very intentional and calculated. The notes get warped and distorted, the rhythm gets out of sync with itself, and it feels like you're listening to the thoughts of someone who is genuinely mentally unwell. A masterpiece blend of classic music and modern electronica.
👌👌👌
Also quite fitting for Kefka
Yeah, that's exactly why this version of Dancing Mad is my favorite. I've heard so many good covers and official versions over the years, but none have quiiiite captured that completely dissonant, distorted, crawly, often-unpleasant and...well...MAD atmosphere that I always felt the song (particularly the final stage) should have.
Can we also just appreciate that this was originally written to be a MIDI in a 32bit SNES game?! Uematsu's genius turned into a MIDI?! Gah. (headcannon). So fucking good.
16-bit actually, but Nobuo really pushed that game so hard....
He customized the sound as well, compare the sounds of ffvi to ffiv and ffv. Very clear that he put so much effort into making the full symphonic orchestra sound into a sound chip that has only 4 channels for music. Listen to the ost, there are only 4 instruments playing at a time but it sounds like 100.
I like that you ramble on about your personal music theory on the pieces after listening to them. What makes your reactions unique is "you". A lot of us enjoy the music, but also enjoy the suggestions you make and the insights you bring that we might not have.
Rock on Jesse! 🤘
Always appreciate your insight David! 🤙
I have to agree. I've seen some reactors on TH-cam do ff14 music, and while they are excellent in their own way, I find that their pride gets in the way of the enjoyment of the music they are listening to. Often they add to or take away from the music which ultimately defeats the purpose of reacting to it, but Jesse's take on any of the songs he reacts to is filled with insight and thoughtful comments, ways that the songs moved him and what he enjoyed about them. It's really refreshing to watch.
Now we must push him down the rabbit hole that is all the different versions of "Clash on the Big Bridge"
V, XII, XIII-2, XIV and XV
XIII-2 is my favorite rendition, i friggen love japanese instruments
I love the XV version, it was done by the guy from Nier.
You are correct, kefka was a court jester or sorts...
His background is an interesting and good story.
He was once a respected knight for the empire of the world and was experimented on and become a very powerful knight after being infused with the power of magical beings (called espers in the original) but it drove him insane... to basically joker level of mentality
When many players thought they were reaching the end of the game on a floating continent and fighting against the empires best, including kefka and the emperor... through a twist of fate kefka becomes infused with three god-like beings powers and ascends to becoming a god (who you have already covered one of his songs, being sephirot)
His 16 bit laugh has been a literal part of the song and had basically in every rendition of the song.
Also note, Kefka is the only Villain in FF lore to have actually won and completed his primary goal.
@@Arrek8585 Yeah, it's crazy to think that an RPG that long ago had the balls to have you on the climatic fight, on a floating continent in the sky against super power enemies, and you think "oh man I can't wait, this ending is amazing!". Only to have the hero party LOSE the battle, and surprise, you're at the HALFWAY point, not the ending, and the villain essentially destroys the world.
@@Arrek8585 Hate to be the actually guy, but Mordegon (DQXI) also "won" and the heroes have to deal with the consequences.
@@MaxinRudy DragonQuest is a different game and lore.
@@Arrek8585 Actually Ardyn completed his main goal too
The way FFXIV does Savage difficulty is one of my favourite parts of the game. Rather than breaking game balance by giving us higher iLVL gear from Savage compared to Tomestone gear, they give us cosmetic stuff like mounts and cool experiences with Savage-only boss designs and awesome Savage-only music. Sigmascape was the first tier I full-cleared on-content and despite the fact that I've cleared ultimates now, finally killing Kefka after weeks of progression is still one of my favourite moments in this game.
I had to heal this fight and i loved and hated it in equal measures. Later i did it on bluemage and i remebered why i love/hated it. And just how much i missed the music of the fight
What? Savage gives higher iLvL gear, though.
@@TheRazzmatazz24 by the end of that patch the gear catches up and the IL can be gotten by casuals
@@TheRazzmatazz24 doesnt means its BiS but its still the same IL
@@ismaelj2804 Uh, no, it isn't. Only towards the end of a tier, do "casuals" get to upgrade to same ilvl
It's not a masterpiece, it's Uematsu's Magnum Opus
Well true but let's give credit to Masayoshi Soken who is the composer who did this specific version.
@@nesoukkefka1741 All Soken did was modernize the instrumentation. Not gonna give him credit for Uematsu's work. This idolization of Soken is slowly starting to creep into the territory of taking credit for Uematsu's music.
@@TheRazzmatazz24 All he did was orchestrate and arrange this new version of the song you mean ? If you are not going to give Soken credit for Soken's version of the song who are you gonna give it to lol. Of course its shared credit with Uematsu as the melody is by Uematsu but trying to act like Soken has no credit for a version of the song he arranged is just being salty.
I'm pretty sure that if FFXIV version of this was horrible no one would say it was Uematsu's fault, so what exactly is the point you are trying to make ?
I think One Winged Angel is his Magnum Opus and I also prefer The Extreme over Dancing Mad, but I still love Dancing Mad.
@@DakonBlackblade2 It wasn't rearranged. It's the same song, note for note. Even then, the 4th act is scuffed due to lack of staccato.
Neither was it "orchestrated", lmao.
Liberi Fatali! Great reactions buddy I just can't wait for you to do that song I love it
@The Outlaw Absolutely! Such an awesome song. Seeing the trailer for FF8 when I was 14 and hearing that song during it made me try that game and I've been hooked on the Final Fantasy series for close to 25 years now.
@The Outlaw I'm glad it had a big impact on you because that game was important to me also and sometimes I see online it doesn't get the love it deserves unfortunately...
Final fantasy 8 is my absolute favorite game and ff and the soundtrack is what still moves me to tears such utter joy
I adore all iterations of Dancing Mad but the solo at the end of the Black Mages rendition never fails to send a chill up my spine.
I do recommend FF9's - Dark Messenger next, as FF9's entire soundtrack was Nobuo's last FF as a sole composer for the series. After 9, multiple composers made up the soundtracks for future titles. FF9 is also Hironobu Sakaguchi's (Creator of FF) favorite main series title.
Yes, it is confirmed th-cam.com/video/dKBz1KsQY1Y/w-d-xo.html
I would definitely recommend listening to the Distant Worlds version of this piece, even if it's just in your own time. Distant Worlds is a Orchestral production of Final Fantasy songs some of which inclusive of Choir. Dancing Mad is one of my favourite songs to hear them play in concert, even though it's about a 11 minute piece start to finish.
It's SO good! I love their version of Cloaked in Darkness.
Thank you for pinning the mentioned songs. That's the sort of thing I really look forwards to. These are great ways to be introduced to new music.
There is one more final version you have not heard yet! If you search "Distant Worlds Dancing Mad" on youtube you will come across my personally favorite version. There's just something about hearing it finally done by a full orchestra and choir. It's very powerful and the fact that the more challenging parts are being played by humans live is just so incredible. Cheers!
Cantata For Dancing I & II are incredible fan versions of, respectively, Pass 1 and 2, then pass 3 and 4.
That is one of my favourites too, although I prefer the one from The Black Mages, I love the guitar at the end.
The last phase of this battle/song is exclusive to the savage difficulty version of the fight in FFXIV (when Kefka assumes his god form).
The statues are also the Warring Triad, Sephirot the Fiend, Sophia the Goddess, and Zurvan the Demon
My favorite bit for the fight is that the Dancing Mad's four movements are used in this fight as a way of pacing the fight and a hard time limit. The fight opens using the standard FF6/Sigmascape boss theme for a little under a minute (A Battle Decisively, which is why the video starts in the middle of the action), then fades into the first movement of Dancing Mad as the Statue rises. Then each of the first three phases ends in time with the ending of the first three movements, and if you weren't able to do enough damage by the end of the third movement the boss enrages and instantly kills the party, try again.
Meanwhile, if you do enough damage by the end of the third phase the transition occurs right on time with the song and the hard part begins...
You should definitely check out the "Distant Worlds" version of this. Studio, not live (sadly). The arrangement is SICK, it's a lot less "loopy" and feels more natural in its progression. Nobuo Uematsu himself supervised it, because he considers this particular piece as an unfinished work. He's been rewriting it for the last 3 decades, changing the arrangement, rythm, added lyrics ... he even once said he could die full of regrets, because he can't let it go, as he will never be satisfied by the result.
FXIV got some of the most lit remixes from amazing themes so far. like record keeper does. so amazing. especially this one here
for extra background kefka is a prototype supersoldier that went mad after his magic infusion and finds joy in nothing but destroying specifically all that has a meaning. he was then made court jester/mage/general by the expansionist emperor and finally betrayed the emperor to obtain god like power and erradicate all existance.
some of his quotes include "it's only fun because it is senseless" and "I'll destroy everything, there will be nothing left to dream of!"
the piece illustrates his ascension from broken weapon to power figure to divinity to psychotic clown god.
The world's most nihilistic clown.
If you like organs please do Force Your Way from 8. The original and FFXIV version.
Your reaction to the shift in the song was great. The look on your face of just not knowing what to think for feel for a moment was perfect.
It would be fun to see you react to Dancing Mad by The Black Mages. They are a Rock Cover Group that Uematsu has played with and they have certainly done justice to his masterpieces. It's a shorter arrangement, but still grabs the essence of the song.
Wooooah the drums in that second phase are going OFFFFFF, I need to do this fight.
Just wait until the Pixel Remaster version comes out. Nobuo Uematsu did the remaster for that version.
I ran the normal raid solo recently as a PLD, just for gigglyshits. You get to that third phase music, and since it just takes a hell of a long time to kill anything like that as a tank..... I just went into this zen mode of the same 4-5 mechanics over and over again to the third phase music and I have never been so relaxed and "in the zone" soloing a raid like that before. That third phase is beautiful.
11:07 Jesse starts Dancing Mad. It's such f'ing - chaos - but you are Right. There. With it.
Giga banger. Definitely one of the best songs from FFXIV, my favorite savage raid that they've made.
To throw a suggestion into the hat (and a game not yet covered here) PSO2 - Profound Darkness Theme, PSO2 is a very "rule of cool" game and the song and fight are absolutely an excellent example of it.
Oooh! That's a great suggestion. Aside for the Profound Darkness theme, I also found myself really liking the Mining Base Defense Themes (esp TD4) but those are really long.
Amazing suggestion. Mining Base Defense is long but some of the most despairing sense of fights in music. It's kinda chaotic but it does chaotic well for a sci-fi game
The Black Mages version is my definitive version. The end guitar solo brings a tear to my eye every time.
Life-long Final Fnatsy fan here. Guy who wrote this on chiptune MIDI is self-taught. Nobuo Uematsu is a firemind of music, and the video game industry is insanely fortunete to have had him during the golden age of RPGS in the late 80s-00s. 30 years of mastermind leadership of composition. He's the John Williams of videogames. Final Fantrasy is his Star Wars.
Yeah there's a Distant Worlds version and a Black Mages version. You're down quite a rabbit hole!
Loved this reaction. I also second the Dark Messenger from FF9 requests. Though I think Immoral Melody is a good pick to listen first. You hear them at different times but its like a natural progression.
I actually love the Black Mages version of this song. Mostly cause of the killer outro solo that just fits so well with that final denouement. In most other ways its very similar to Soken's version here.
Found your Dancing Mad videos tonight after wanting to re-listen to it, and it was fun listening to it with you and hearing what you thought about it.
If you DID want to hear another great rendition of Dancing Mad, the channel GaMetal has done an INCREDIBLE metal cover of it, and he even sings the 'opera' parts of it. The more recent version (2019 version I think) is the one to hear. You don't have to make a reaction video about it, just listening to it on your own time is enough for me.
The extra bass in this version makes it feel so much darker, it fits perfectly. That's really the only thing the FF6 version was missing.
9:18 God that's so Dream Theater lol.
Edit: Had a listed to Toccata and Fugue and yeah that had to be heavy inspiration for this piece.
I didn't say it in the video, but in the premiere chat i said the same thing lol. That part is very DT
This song gave me King Crimson vibes. Definitely had that prog rock vibe that Yes and King Crimson delve into. It was absolutely beautiful art. This song would be SOOO fun to drum too!
I definitely caught Dream Theater & Electric Light Orchestra
The Classical/Rock fusion is one of the hallmarks of Final Fantasy that spread throughout RPGs and games as a whole like wildfire. Its such an amazing combination that has so many possibilities.
The whole orchestral package of this is just unbeaten to me. The sound is so full and enhances the epicness of Dancing Mad so strongly!
The fight is lots of fun, of course, but the music alone is just worth it so much! I also feel that the phase changes are musically handled more seamlessly in this remix.
I do wonder, how ancient is Uncle, though? :D
Tipsy Reactions 🤘 Glad you gave both versions a listen, especially back to back. A treat for the ears. 😉 Fun fact! It's called "Wild Dance of a Calamitous Star" in Japanese.
Kefka is an iconic villain not just in Final Fantasy but in gaming in general. He's a court mage with a taste for destruction, no morals, and a bit of insanity. Spoilers for the endgame of FF6: He's underestimated in the beginning, but he's a villain that actually WINS. He becomes the god of magic and literally destroys the world and the protagonists have to take him on after the end has already happened. Dancing Mad absolutely encapsulates the madness and grandiosity that is Kefka Palazzo.
-nothing about this struck me as you being drunk, keep talking because I always want to hear your technical input on music as music
-they really just dropped JS Bach into the middle of this and I love it. Yes, I realize it's not actual music that JS Bach wrote, but it 1,000,000% sounds like just some slight (very slight) inversion of Toccata and Fugue in D Minor that Oematsu did just, you know, kinda remind us whose house we were in. This wins hand-over-fist over lame repetitious "spooky vampire music" (you know, whenever some unholy creature or devil or vampire appears now, you have to hear church organs because it was ironic the first 3 times somebody did that but now we're well over 250k)
-that killer distorted bass line, I cannot get over it. That movement has such incredible panache and "Batman energy" (whatever that means) and it has this awesome anti-hero modern punk-rock attitude to it. I was about to compare this to Symphony of the Night but of course FFVI came first, and so if anything it would be Michiru Yamane in some way following in the footsteps of Nobuo Oematsu--that's what's happening here. I'm not quite saying that right because Michiru Yamane is an absolute titan of composition and Symphony of the Night (not to mention the entire Castlevania series) is equally a legend in the history of video games that have music in them--easily one of the best, most enjoyable, most significant video game soundtracks ever. The fact that these two show up in the same conversation--both are massive and I love this cover so freaking much. I have no idea if Yamane specifically owes anything, inspiration-wise or in other ways, to Oematsu but I just wanted to clarify that both of these individuals are godlike composers in their own right.
Please just listen to the DISTANT WORLDS II version of this! It's the best rendition of them all, fully orchestrated with choirs, and some cool guitar for the fourth movemnt
Seconding
I know he's reacted to different two versions of this song already, but the Distant Worlds version really is so good it deserves a listen to. If he's reading this, please give that version of this song a chance, I promise you won't be disappointed. I bet a sizable portion of people who have heard all three versions would say the one played by Distant Worlds is the best. Well.. I know I would, and I always enjoyed this song ever since I first heard it in FFVI.
I love your reaction videos. Especially when there's a drastic change (like around the 8:20 mark) and you get a blank look for a second as your brain is trying to process the craziness of what's going on. Every time we see that we all think.. "Yep, been there!"
This song is really fitting for Kefka too because he's completely insane, so this music reflects that pretty well I think.
Sidenote, I appreciated your assessment of classical. I grew up playing the piano and violin. And we did a lot of Bach, Pachelbel and mozart. And I always remember teachers and composers at the concerts I performed in commenting about how Mozart for example had all his music mathmatically perfect. There's so much thought and feeling and emotion that went into it.
If you know of the Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri, then the movements in the piece represent this.
The first phase representing Inferno or Hell, second phase representing Purgatorio or Purgatory, the third being Paradiso or Heaven, the last being the main characters meeting and encountering God. In this case, being Kefka.
If you like Dancing Mad, you have to listen to the version Nobuo Uematsu did with The Black Mages. As the Primals are to Soken, The Black Mages are to Nobuo. The are his band and the Dancing Mad they did has one of the best guitar solos ever, imo.
I will recommend FFXIV OST Wanderer's Palace HM Theme (Tricksome), if you want to listen to the original, it's called (A Tonberry's Tears).
If you will listen to them both, I'm sure you can see why people recommed listening to the originals first. :)
I was wondering if you'd be interested in checking out the new song that dropped for the newest expansion of the game called "Footfalls". Its a brilliant theme that encapsulates a lot of what FFXIV has led up to till this point. Keep up the great videos my man! Keep on keepin on!
Thanks for the Heart my dude!
Just wanted to clarify, I'm just finding your channel today and still discovering what you have and have not reacted to.
I saw you did react to the Endwalker trailer version of Footfalls, but now the clean version is available, without the trailer editing, voiceovers, and sounds. Its a fantastic track, and I'm probably not the only one who thinks that you should hear the actual version of this song, unedited. Again, Keep on keepin on dude!
He already did a reaction to it, just before there was a clean version of the song, so he instead reacted to the trailer song that had to voice lines in the background.
@@Firestar0513 I mentioned that in the comment above. I had found that after writing this, but thanks for the heads up regardless.
As the prominence of the organ might suggest, Nobuo Uematsu (the composer) is quite the keyboardist.
I fully recommend listening to the Black Mages cover of this song. And honestly any of their covers. Its a band formed by Uematsu and a few other SE composers.
This was indeed composed by Nobuo Uematsu with the XIV version arrangement done by Masayoshi Soken
The fight is 10/10, but the music makes it 20/10 easily. I would pay for that piece in concert.
Uematsu making this track with an SNES is like creating Mona Lisa with an etch-a-sketch.
Oh hell yeah, I was about to make a request but it's already been filled
Hey man, just found your channel and loving the content! If you're interested, It would be cool to see you listen to "Trouble shooting star" from Yakuza 0, it never fails to get the adrenaline pumping and it deserves *way* more attention from the Yakuza community. Same game that did "Pledge of a demon" that you've listened to.
But like I said it's pretty short, so if you want to back to back it with another song, there's this song that goes *hard* , it's from the Killer Instinct soundtrack called "Type 03" by Mick Gordon. It's about 7:00 but damn is it a ride!
Either way keep up the great content man, glad to finally see someone so dedicated to giving game soundtracks the attention they deserve.
Yay! Another one I mentioned! Excited to hear your reaction! :)
If you wish to know more about Kefka himself, look up the Fiery Joker. I don't know what his Twitch name is, but yeah, he went all in on this character. And he can even do a VERY convincing voice-over of him as well.
Thanks to everyone for the request!
Songs mentioned in this video;
Scarface (Tony's Theme) Giorgio Moroder (Dissonant chords everywhere)
th-cam.com/video/j7kQ1HFVsGQ/w-d-xo.html
Vivaldi - Four Seasons
th-cam.com/video/GRxofEmo3HA/w-d-xo.html
J.S Bach - Toccata & Fugue in D Minor
th-cam.com/video/ho9rZjlsyYY/w-d-xo.html
Warmen - Beyond Abilities
th-cam.com/video/idchGwnfyso/w-d-xo.html
Oh, good, you caught the references!
I think your gonna love this song I'm excited to hear what you think 🤔
This raid (the savage version) took me ages to clear. It drove me half mad (the song represented that quite well as kefka is quite mad too lol)! Incredible fight with crazy mechanics but music was epic af!
Always loved Dancing Mad but this rendition is pure Prog, almost could be a King Crimson track. So good
I just found this channel and have been really digging seeing the reaction to all these songs I love. I hope he sometime gets to 'Fate of the Unknown' from Kingdom Hearts.
I particularly like "The Black Mages version of Dancing Mad" for the guitar solos.
It gets to me.
My number one song i'd love to see Jesse react to is the Tales of Zestiria opening
Jesse my man, you have to check out Distant Worlds, it's a semi-regular Final Fantasy orchestra tour and their performance of this song is mind-blowing.
My favorite version of this (with a dash of One Winged Angel thrown in) is "Prince uf Darkness" (Tony Dickinson, now bassist in Trans-Siberian Orchestra!) insane symphonic metal arrangement "Prancing Dad". It is SO well done and goes _ridiculously_ hard. th-cam.com/video/8xsbTlrpkg4/w-d-xo.html
30 minute video? yes please more of these haha, especially with the insights on music
I love how even the fight mechanics lean into the madness theame you learn all the way up to here over hundreds of hours possibly to not stand in certain markers but he turns it on its head for some of them you need to stand in them now.
Someone's gotta hear Battle on the Big Bridge and all its variants now.
What an amazing job they did on kefka in the fight. Looked amazing.
Your music dissection rambling is always fun to listen to!
I would consider Dancing Mad to be Nobuo's best work. On it's own, it's a masterpiece, but what really sets it apart for me is the context from a musical perspective. Since it's clear you enjoy listening for "music nerd" stuff as much as I do, and if you want this piece to seem even better, I have a huge recommendation (not a request or anything). The main villain is Kefka, and he has a main theme outside of his epic boss battle. Starting in the 3rd movement of Dancing Mad, Uematsu really starts sneaking the motif from Kefka's theme in the piece (specifically during the really pretty heavenly church organ part where the lower notes come in and you heard all those tri tones). Just listening to like the first 30-60 seconds of Kefka's Theme is all you need to hear the motif built upon in Dancing Mad.
I love music nerd stuff. Playing FFVII back when I was a kid was what really opened my ear for music and led me on the path to start learning and even teaching it. Basically reliving my first experience with these pieces through your reactions has been a treat.
23:04
I know Uncle Jesse may not read this, but this point reflects strongly in season 2 of Log Horizon anime, the game world becomes a living breathing thing, and the NPCs are alive as well, but they're limited to these original 42 songs of the game's sound track, and that's highlighted / touched on. They are unable to come up with a 43rd+ song on their own due to their existence, and having players be bards coming up with new songs, no matter how trivial, is an absolute blessing.
Honestly Jesse, if you did a 1 hour video going off about composition and music theory, I absolutely would watch that. Probably repeatedly.
It is called classical for a reason and they are so good, they won't be forgotten
The music, like the name of the song, is "Dancing Mad". That is all I can utter while listening to it the first time
I'm so glad Soken didn't cut out Kefka's iconic 8-bit laugh. That just has to be in it, to make it feel like Dancing Mad. ^^
I also recommend you to look up a video of this fight with soundeffects on just for the soundeffect that plays when he does a transition in his final phase alone. (like 12:45) It's most likely the most terrifying soundeffect in any fight of FFXIV and it sends shivers down my spine everytime. (...and I hope that isn't just me)
I think a lot of people misunderstand Kefka as a character, He is indeed probably one of the most psychopathic characters of Final Fantasy, Being a jester, but also with the name of some of his moves with magic. For example, Wibbly Wobbly Firaga, or Scitter Scatter Blizzaraga (Something like that, Sadly don't remember them.)
I feel chills when listening to his original theme, just hearing this one made this even more chilling, I still recognize the different movements- I hate that I still remember them..
But overall good song. I'll be checking out your reaction to the original after this. But still omg.. 😥
To be honest as much as i like this song specially the second phase, i cant help but feel frustrated from not being able to enjoy the 4th phase tho not all of it just the parts that its sounds like a Nokia/motorola old school ringtones. Beisdes that everything is wonderful to me.
Keep up the good work man just discovered your channel last week and been having a blast with your content💪
Hope you listen one day to Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze - Busted Bayou!🙌
a game that cured my depression with its soundtrack only to make me want to be depressed to let it cure it all over again, masterpiece of a game.
I totally agree at Movement 4 sounding off. I don't know what it is, but the distortion of the organ rubs me the wrong way. It doesn't feel nearly as climactic as the FF6 version. Though I guess that's by design. Kefka is only 2/3 of the way through the raid series.
@@Lancun im talking about both versions, ff14 sounds less bad for me but just by a little, still dont like either one
Glad to see these past 2 reactions! The song is sooooo good 🔥 If you're looking for more organ goodness, check out The Castle from FF8
Dude you HAVE to hear The black Mages version, It's Uematsu's rock band. You will love how they use guitars in it.
I really love the way the music lines up with what's happening in the battle.
I feel like the repetition doesn't bother me much because it helps to solidify the theme and you learn to respect it.
The transition from Bach to Emerson Lake and Palmer is so incredible to listen to.
I'm really glad that you listened to Mimic from AC7 first, because Kefka's God phase is one of the OG "controlled chaos" music.
That discordant mess at the end fits the tone perfectly. Kefka, the mad clown that became a god of Nihilistic destruction.... totally off his rocker, the only method to his madness being enough coherence to destroy all meaning. This song is meant to be discordant, uneven, and unsettling.
I think you should check out the Mechanicus soundtrack by David Guilluame.
It's a very interesting combination of industrial drones and beautiful pipe organs and chant-singing.
If you do decide to check it out, I would recommend starting with Children of the Omnissiah, Noosesphere and Overlord. (Caestus Metalican is also a good song to start with.)
Nobu was and still is held in high regard for his music from the first 10 Final Fantasy games.
Those who did the FF14 version that was a MMO JRPG, when they brought back classic villains as bosses in the MMO quests, they knew to never mess with the original music yet only make the small adjustments that don't mess with the main theme of the classic.
Seriously, if you truly want a treat and a wild ride, listen to the Distant Worlds version of Dancing Mad. Get that real organ, the drums, the choir, it's amazing.
This isn’t a reaction request, but I think you would really like Prancing Dad by Prince of Darkness. It’s an amazing remix/cover of both Dancing Mad and One Winged Angel.
The best part of the savage fight is that during certain parts, it makes a creepy laugh-screech during phase change. Too bad it wasn’t reflected in the video!
I was not prepared for the Giorgio Moroder drop
Now you just need to hear the black mages version (nobuo’s band)
Shout out Goose!
*shows up to one year late with Starbucks and subscribes* Listen, I love this song in it's entirety. Might I recommend listening to this played on the Pipe Organ. It's AMAZING and it will give you chills. Look up Final Fantasy VI - Dancing Mad cover by Grissini Project. Love your videos and I have a lot of catching up to do on them.