Analyzing Harmony EP 02: Valkyrie Profile's The Counterfeit Self (Chromatic Mediants, Music Theory)

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Welcome to the second installment of Analyzing Harmony. This is a series that focuses on, predominantly, the element of Harmony in music with additional commentary on melody, counterpoint, and form when directly related. This series will look at a variety of musics but mostly various periods of the Common Practice Period (Baroque, Classical, Romantic), early 20th century musics, and retro VGM (NES - PS1).
In this particular installment we'll be looking at The Counterfeit Self from Valkyrie Profile on the Playstation. This short theme was composed by Motoi Sakuraba and will act as a starting point a discussion on the use of Chromatic Mediants in a particular manner. As a result, this episode will extend beyond only analyzing a written piece of music and consider the creative process. So if you've ever wanted to get into using Chromatic Mediants or learn how they can be used (and expanded) for creating interesting progressions and loops then this episode is for!

[@valandes1861]

What a hidden treasure, even as a piano player this feels quite useful

[@SwollFullReady2Roll]

I never thought anyone would hit on valkerie profile music theory. Some of the more melancholic songs are so awesome. Always loved the song that plays during the really long beginning section of cut scenes.

[@GUIM1797]

Thanks for the comment! And yeah, it's a shame that we're not seeing more music theory dedicated to Motoi Sakuraba. Hopefully I can help alleviate that by doing more of his works.
I have a number of tunes already transcribed from Valkyrie Profile that I intend to do, one of which is All is Twilight which is one of the more melancholic tunes. As much as I love the crazy prog rock infused themes (like The True Nature of All), these slow melancholic tunes are my favorites.
In the next installment of this particular series though, we're going to be checking out Final Fantasy VII's Anxious Heart!

[@caterscarrots3407]

I happen to be composing a piece in the key of E minor that has a lot of third related motions between local key areas. So far, this is what I have in local key areas:
Em, Am, C, Em, A, Cm
And all of these chords can be related via mediants, both chromatic and diatonic, with some added parallel relations as well.
Mediants to Em: C, Cm
Mediants to Am: C, Cm
Mediants to C: Em, Am, A
So C seems to be the center right, since it has mediants in both directions? But it isn't because as I stated before, the key is E minor, making E the center. I would consider C and Cm to both be a dominant-like functioning chord here. Only dominant-like since while it leads into E, it doesn't really resolve to E in the same way that say F#dim would. This helps get across the feeling of being lost and all the complexity that lies within such as the emotional drama of not being able to find your way back(Cm fits that perfectly), the hope that you do find your way back(A and C major), and the bitter realization(Em).
Now of course, there are chords in between these local key areas, such as D major in between E minor and A, which helps make the transition smoother, but overall, I would say that my piece, at least so far is based around this concept of mediant relations.