DANCING MAD, the monumental final boss battle from Final Fantasy VI was your choice for BEST VIDEO GAME SONG OF ALL TIME! Here is my new metal arrangement of the track of all four movements! Thank you all so much for voting in my survey last year to find the greatest video game music of all time. Check out the top 20 songs in the playlist here: th-cam.com/play/PLtVLuItpBoj5hqo8ZrGtgWOrso5OywGz2.html I'll be compiling all of the songs in this series into a full album that will first be available to supporters on Patreon, and then will be releasing to stores as soon as it clears. I'd like to give them all a once over for mixing and mastering so bear with me! Hope I catch some of you at MAGfest this month where I'll be performing on Mainstage with ToxicxEternity! Thank you again!
Not only is Dancing Mad a masterpiece, but the metal version as composed by Uematsu for his (now defunct) metal band The Black Mages was, in my opinion, the best version of Dancing Mad ever. Seeing another fantastic metal cover is just the best gift for the new year. Bliadhna Mhath Ur!
This track is probably the single greatest achievement in video game history. Four movements depicting the travel through hell, purgatory, heaven before meeting 'God,' including various pieces of classical music and remixing them into it, and all of that on the FREAKING SNES.
@@affsteak3530 I remember playing FFIV (2 USA) for the first time and being blown away by the snes sound quality. And that track got blown away by FFVI.
Fun fact about the SNES sound chip is that it came pre manufactured with an entire catalog of synth instruments/sound effects and the notes they were able create, at the basic level at least, so songs like 'Dancing Mad' were always easily possible as the snes just reads a line of code telling the sound chip what to play. This of course saves a ton of Cartridge space and allows for songs like this.
As a 14 year old finally fighting Kefka at the end, this music f*cked me up! I was never so scarred to fight a final boss IN MY LIFE! The music scared me so much I paused the game, it was so overwhelming. You knew you were fighting a REAL GOD LEVEL final boss! 😅😅😅
Dancing Mad was, is, and will be, the definitive 'final battle' music for gaming. Uematsu struck absolute gold. And this is a better remaster than even the Black Mages' version. Bravo.
And let's not forget the ending theme, "Balance is restored." A 20 minute love letter to the characters and series. ON A SNES CARTRIDGE! I recently came across a midi remaster of it and I gotta tell you I was a sobbing mess at the end of it because of how good it was!
@@lvcsslacker The music of FF VI is absolute genius. So many wonderful leitmotifs worked across so much music, easily one of my favourite game OSTs of all time.
@@lvcsslacker To be fair, the midis of an SNES game are phenomenally tiny. It would've been more technologically impressive if FF6 had a soundtrack as long as the ones you find in a modern Final Fantasy game. Although I have no doubt it would be doable.
its my favorite game of all time. If you love classic JRPG's there is no question you will absolutely love it. The pixel remasters from last year were great. And they sold FF4, 5 and 6 as a package that is some of the best spent money on a game you will make (assuming you like classic jrpgs).
ok im serious play the Brand New World mod with the vanilla end Script attached (its kind of dumbly hard in spots but save statesll help) its so fucking peak
Honestly Final Fantasy 6 has, in my opinion, the most powerful and emotion-evoking soundtrack in the series. Dancing Mad is of course a masterpiece, but then there's also a delightfully bombastic recurring villain leitmotif that's also worked into various parts of this track, there's the fact that every playable character gets their own fitting theme song which are all tied together into a large medley during the ending, and then there's even a segment of the game that they literally wrote a whole opera for (which was later performed with a live orchestra and opera singers on the "Final Fantasy VI: Grand Finale" album). Even if you don't end up playing the actual game, you should definitely give the soundtrack a listen.
I know this'll be buried under so many comments on a year old vid... Good shit, sir. I have been a fan of this piece of music for ~30 years. In that time I have heard many 'metal' covers of Dancing Mad that are basically just replacing instruments or swapping to a different soundfont. This track is played with all of the emotion and weight of the original but in a true metal style with the flairs and tropes that go along with that. I don't know him personally but I like to think even Mr. Uematsu would jam to this rendition.
@@PhilMante That's the best part about Dancing Mad: everyone who's ever covered or performed it always has a different take on it while still making it sound amazing. Even Uematsu himself has several different versions of it. By far one of the greatest examples of progressive rock in video games.
i remember seeing the form dropped like a year ago, thinking "i guess my favorite is Dancing Mad, don't think that will go anywhere though" and here I am at the start of this year, where Dancing Mad is declared the best video game song of all time by an apparent landslide. Amazing cover, glad the Kefka nation is still going strong in 2024!
@@mecagoenbb the form dropped on twitter one day sometime early 2023 several months before he started the cover series. that's how I found out about it at least, i have no idea if it was posted on youtube as a community post or not.
Four layers of Kefka's madness: 0:00: Hell 2:43: Underworld 4:51: Sky 6:56: Heaven This is way longer than Sephiroth's theme for story purposes. Mad lad awesome cover!❤
The transition with the opening theme that goes into the baseline with Kefka's original theme always gives me goosebumps, no matter which version. THIS VERSION gave me ultra goosebumps.
Mad respect to the man who wrote this masterpiece for the SNES, he's an absolute genius, but so are you for constructing this. This is the best it will ever be done.
As a Japanese who played FFVI in childhood and blown away by this music, your cover is so brilliant! The emotions and tensions in the original are expressed impressively. Thank you for wonderful 12 minutes!
Dancing Mad is without a doubt one of, if not _the_ greatest videogame song ever made, but holy crap, you might have just made it even better. You absolutely outdid yourself on this one dude, this might legitimately be the best cover you've ever made
Literally the -only- thing missing from this, is that screeching laugh. However, this song is still the best rendition of the piece I have ever heard. Truly masterful.
FF6 had a complete OST of generally maddeningly great music with no right to be that awesome and complex on a 16-bit system! I have covered a lot of gaming music and there are so many favourites among players and myself - This game just had the best concentration of them - Also with One Winged Angel, Uematsu definitely drew on his previous style experiments here :)
Nobuo would be proud. As I'm typing I'm only 1 minute in and this is marvelous. A full listen later... I don't know what I like best. The incredibly solid rythm section. The throughout tension. The gasping finale. That's a really, really beautiful piece of work.
This song, Kefka, and Final Fantasy 6 left a mark on my childhood that I never want to forget. This version you've created is everything I could have hoped for and more. It literally brought tears to my eyes.
Dawg. Just...I don't have any words. The group of metal talent that exists on YT currently, between you, Richaad, Jonathan Young, ToxicX, and plenty of other very talented channels is just.... We're spoiled. This was incredible. Seriously. This cover is seriously next level, and maybe that's mostly kudos to the original composition being so incredible, but your arrangement, your personal flair, your percussion choices that kept the song feeling just as uneasy and off-balance as the original. Absolutely amazing. I didnt even have the mental space to rock out to the genre because the musical arrangement itself was so captivating. Thank you.
You know, I rarely leave comments unless I feel I have something unique and worthwhile to contribute. But today I just *have* to give my opinion! Over the course of the years I've heard many, many takes on this absolute beast of a track. Most of them metal, some with a more classical approach (including covers played on a full-size church organ!). And out of all of them, your cover has to be among the absolute best. Holy moly, what a masterpiece. Not only did you play this beautifully (and masterfully), but the arrangement was out of this world. I absolutely loved how you added more of your own personal touch in the repeated parts! It all feels very natural and organic to me, like this is the way the song is supposed to be. And working under pressure no less, I can only salute you for achieving such a mindblowingly awesome result. My hat is off to you! Last but not least: A Happy New Year to you! May 2024 be filled with love, health, success and lots of awesome music!
I was NOT expecting you to come out with this absolute BEAST of a song. People voting on the poll made a good choice. I'm astonished by this project you've completed. Basically, when you've doen top 10s and 20s in the past, you've turned them into Medleys (understandably)... I was not expecting you to come out with a FULL TOP 20 PLAYLIST especially containing so many songs you've already covered. And especially when the algorithm is so cruel to videogame covers specifically - Most artists are moving away from song covers entirely. I think it's also a testament to how much you've grown over time as a musician. Your newest work blows your oldest work out of the water. You've even outmatched covers you made a couple of years ago.
I’m SO glad you extended that part at 4:27!! Always felt that riff went too hard to be so short. Glad to see I’m not the only one who thought so! Banger cover m8!!!
You need to look into 80s Brazilian power metal my guy. Maybe it was the 90s. Either way, they had some awesome stuff out of that country during that time.
6:55 - The Schecter Blackjack SLS does the Omen theme before the final phase. This instrument hasn't been seen in quite a long time, especially when Jules first used it since his tenure at San Diego began nearly nine years prior.
I've been watching this whole Top 20 video series play out and it is an absolute joy to see this selected as the overall #1, because this is something I've been preaching for years: Dancing Mad is the greatest musical composition in video game history. Nothing else measures up. Jules, you did an awesome job with this given the quick turnaround, better than many of your peers could put out there with an extended period of time. If you ever decide to revisit this, here's some things that you could consider: - Even though you absolutely nailed everything on the guitar, there were times where a "voice change" felt necessary. Some vocal pads, the organ in the third movement, etc. Everything you did was executed and arranged very well, but in a four movement piece, the colors need to shift heavier between movements. - I don't think you need to do any repeat of the third movement. Just hit it once and do that badass transition into the fourth. - The small repeat of the fourth movement was unexpected but you did it very well. It would have been nice to hear you solo for longer. You've probably heard the Black Mages version from nearly two decades ago, but the guitar solo in the fourth movement kicks ass. Fantastic job overall, and absolutely commendable given what little time you put into this.
It really is. He starts as someone you can't take seriously and runs from pretty much every bit of confrontation. Then you get to Doma and Zozo and you see how evil he is. By the time you get to the floating island, you learn how insane and dangerous this joke actually is.
I got actual chills while listening to this when this went live. Was not expecting Dancing Mad to be at one, but I'm immensely glad one of my favorite Final Fantasy themes took this spot. You killed it with this cover. Phenomenal work!
I ALWAYS blast covers of this theme whenever I have finals. Now it's Winter vacation for me and one of the best Dancing Mad covers of all time appears. A perfect start to 2024, thanks for everything Jules :)
As soon as I saw the SNES controller shadow teaser, I had the gut feeling it was this. There are few SNES songs that people hold in high enough regard to be better than the big hitters we've been seeing these last few weeks. Bravo, mr. Jules. Hell of a cover, hell of an event. You did amazing work on all of these songs.
"Oh man, number 1, what's it going to be what's it going to be - okay yeah that tracks." I got chills listening to this!! This whole series has been a treat to listen to, and I can tell that you've worked extremely hard on each track, especially this one!! Fantastic job, fantastic series!! You definitely deserve a nice break.
Let's take a moment to appreciate the descriptions of Jules' videos! Also, amazing work, my man!! I finished the game just a week ago, so that's a great present for me!
I am in awe.... you nailed this a 100%! Even tiers 3 and 4, which in my view are the hardest to "get right" sound absolutely spectacular and overwhelming in your version. This version has me banging my head and wanting to crank up the volume on the stereo ... only to find it is already at the max :D Thank you so much for this wonderful rendition of the best song in the best game I have ever known :)
Jules, the first song I found of yours was Frog's Theme. A song special to me. It's been amazing seeing your growth as an artist over the years since. And to see another song from that era top off this whole thing? Just the best.
A proper finale for the series! The arrangement was phenomenal! Damn shame you had some issues with Bury the Light; I can only imagine how hard you must've worked to fit this behemoth of a song into the timeslot!
I've been your fan for years, always appreciating your fantastic covers. But holy cow, you made your best one yet, with the best boss theme ever. Hats off, you did an amazing job.
This is TREMENDOUS. Does every bit of justice the beauty and urgency of Nobuo Uematsu's masterpiece while making it entirely your own. As a fan of this game perhaps beyond no other than Earthbound, thank you.
It couldn’t have been anything else. It had to be Dancing Mad. And I’m so glad it was, you did an amazing job. I’m honestly floored by how incredible this sounds, and being able to put it out so quickly (less time than any other song on this top 20, due to the Number 2 song having issues) is an amazing feat. I think this is some of the best work you’ve done ever. Kudos, Jules.
The biggest takeaway from this top 20 is that you should play explorers so you can appreciate Dialga's Fight to the Finish more after your cover of it.
The bigger takeaway is that Jules’s fans all have extraordinary taste, since main series Pokémon does have some bangers yet DFTTF was the only Pokémon song to make the list
Holy...damn. That was a straightup masterpiece of a cover, of a masterpiece of a song. I had to go back multiple times, just to process what i heard. You are an amazing artist Jules, definetly my favorite musician i heard of through TH-cam, together with FalkkonE.
I've been a fan of yours since 2013. I remember listening to your zelda covers while I did my math homework. I even got to see you San Diego in November 2021. The show was was sick and we spoke for a little bit afterwards when I bought a shredventure shirt. It's crazy looking back and seeing your improvement. It's inspired and motivated me to play my guitar every day. Regardless of any direction you take your music I along with your other fans will always be supportive. Thank you Jules.
Great job on this and all of the songs in the series. The transition into the final part of the song gave me chills, just like the original. You nailed it, man. Well done!
Nah thanks, I'll stay with 90% of DM Dokuro's Calamity Mod's soundtrack... *_The air is getting warmer around you._* *_THIS IS MY MEEEESSAAGEEEEEEEE TOOOOO MYYYYY MAAAASTEEEEEER_* *_THIS IS A FIIIIIGHT YOUUU CAAAANNOOOOOOT WIIIIIIIIIIIIN-_*
I love how everyone who does this song has individually agreed to end it on a dark, sad note. Like, the good guys never win at the end of this song; not even the Black Mages version. Kefka brings despair to all!
Oh man! What an awesome cover, you now leave me with an impossible choice to make: Which FF6 Dancing Mad I keep in my Final Fantasy Metal Cover Playlist. This is going to be a very tough choice! Cheers!
What a fitting end for such a stacked top 20. I wouldn’t have it any other way. Phenomenal work as always Jules, you keep surpassing you own limits each time.
Hell yeah! This is a fantastic way to end this series out! Twelve minutes of anything in this vein is a lot to dedicate toward, so very well done! Also nice to see the Blackjack SLS again. I know why you used it, probably, but it's still really cool to see it in a video again haha
You knocked it out of the park! Very well crafted Jules. You handled this beast so very well. Dancing Mad is the perfect encapsulation of Kefka, with how manic and unhinged it feels at points, while also having moments of quiet power. The joke that becomes a god.
Fair enough. This track always rules and I've been waiting impatiently for you to do it since I came across this channel. I don't agree with all the choices or placements on some but all twenty of them have been absolute bangers. Keep up the awesome work you spoony bard (wrong Final Fantasy but whatever).
The great thing about this Song is that you don't necessarily need to like it. But definitely have to respect the sheer amount of power. Much like with Kefka. Which is why that is arguably one of the best representations of any character by any theme ever. And you did WAY more than just do it justice. Way to fucking go. Super impressive.
And so it comes to an end. And a good end at that. Thank you so much for this content Jules, i was excitedly waiting every weak for the new song the last 20 weeks and it was a LOT of fun, it was exciting seeing songs i knew and loved, and the ones i didn't served as a chance to get to know more banger tracks Thanks for everything and hoping for new interesting projects!!!
This is the best cover of this song I have ever heard. I just listened to all of the other Final Fantasy music you have covered also and they all blew me away, especially Man With The Machine Gun! I think it was in your top 10 battle themes.
Dancing Mad, Nobuo Uematsu's magnum opus, and the GREATEST BOSS THEME OF ALL TIME, just got even more metal. Kefka is one of the greatest villains in video game history and the greatest Final Fantasy villain, he needs a theme to encompass that, and this is it.
![Dancing Mad (Final Fantasy VI) - GaMetal [75th Song Special!]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/nqPP9tp6PKo/mqdefault.jpg)
![Dancing Mad (Final Fantasy VI) - GaMetal [75th Song Special!]](/img/tr.png)
![HADES - God of the Dead [Guitar Cover]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/5Hh6cAy5zN8/mqdefault.jpg)
DANCING MAD, the monumental final boss battle from Final Fantasy VI was your choice for BEST VIDEO GAME SONG OF ALL TIME! Here is my new metal arrangement of the track of all four movements! Thank you all so much for voting in my survey last year to find the greatest video game music of all time. Check out the top 20 songs in the playlist here: th-cam.com/play/PLtVLuItpBoj5hqo8ZrGtgWOrso5OywGz2.html
I'll be compiling all of the songs in this series into a full album that will first be available to supporters on Patreon, and then will be releasing to stores as soon as it clears. I'd like to give them all a once over for mixing and mastering so bear with me! Hope I catch some of you at MAGfest this month where I'll be performing on Mainstage with ToxicxEternity! Thank you again!
Not only is Dancing Mad a masterpiece, but the metal version as composed by Uematsu for his (now defunct) metal band The Black Mages was, in my opinion, the best version of Dancing Mad ever.
Seeing another fantastic metal cover is just the best gift for the new year. Bliadhna Mhath Ur!
I still find this game one of the most ground breaking games
It is an absolute honor to be like #69 on such an important and beautiful comment. Well done, Jules!
Yeeeeah, I would choose this battle theme too 🙂 FFVI had most awesome music in all of SNES FF's
@@XanatrixEverything that needed to be said, you nailed it perfectly.
This track is probably the single greatest achievement in video game history. Four movements depicting the travel through hell, purgatory, heaven before meeting 'God,' including various pieces of classical music and remixing them into it, and all of that on the FREAKING SNES.
The SNES sound chip was produced in secret by Ken Kutaragi at Sony. It's amazing it exists at all. 😁
@@affsteak3530 I remember playing FFIV (2 USA) for the first time and being blown away by the snes sound quality. And that track got blown away by FFVI.
Fun fact about the SNES sound chip is that it came pre manufactured with an entire catalog of synth instruments/sound effects and the notes they were able create, at the basic level at least, so songs like 'Dancing Mad' were always easily possible as the snes just reads a line of code telling the sound chip what to play. This of course saves a ton of Cartridge space and allows for songs like this.
Hell yeah
Word.
Decades later FFVI still getting the love it deserves.
Still the best game in the series by a wide margin
As a 14 year old finally fighting Kefka at the end, this music f*cked me up! I was never so scarred to fight a final boss IN MY LIFE! The music scared me so much I paused the game, it was so overwhelming. You knew you were fighting a REAL GOD LEVEL final boss! 😅😅😅
Kefka was already a villain as a normal guy, then he went God tier Thanos level villain on the world.
It got a good bit of love in FF14 too. This song's even in there, Kefka's a raid boss.
Tie between this one and FFVII, this one was dark as hell. Only person who was happy was Realm thru "ignorance is bliss" factor.
Dancing Mad was, is, and will be, the definitive 'final battle' music for gaming. Uematsu struck absolute gold. And this is a better remaster than even the Black Mages' version. Bravo.
And let's not forget the ending theme, "Balance is restored."
A 20 minute love letter to the characters and series. ON A SNES CARTRIDGE! I recently came across a midi remaster of it and I gotta tell you I was a sobbing mess at the end of it because of how good it was!
@@lvcsslacker The music of FF VI is absolute genius. So many wonderful leitmotifs worked across so much music, easily one of my favourite game OSTs of all time.
@@lvcsslacker To be fair, the midis of an SNES game are phenomenally tiny. It would've been more technologically impressive if FF6 had a soundtrack as long as the ones you find in a modern Final Fantasy game. Although I have no doubt it would be doable.
The extended solo in the Black Mages version automatically puts it above both this one and any other cover lol
He struck again with Dark Messenger from FFIX
_Life... Dreams... Hope... Where'd they come from? And where are they headed...? This banger... I am going to upvote!!_
I read this comment right as the transition to the final movement hit. So this was perfect. 7:08 is the time for anyone who wants to do the same.
I've never heard this song before, but after listening to 1 minute of this video, I think I need to play FF6.
God yes you do
I can safely say that FF6 is one of my favorite games of all time. I would 100% recommend though it is very sad at some parts.
its my favorite game of all time. If you love classic JRPG's there is no question you will absolutely love it. The pixel remasters from last year were great. And they sold FF4, 5 and 6 as a package that is some of the best spent money on a game you will make (assuming you like classic jrpgs).
ok im serious play the Brand New World mod with the vanilla end Script attached (its kind of dumbly hard in spots but save statesll help) its so fucking peak
Honestly Final Fantasy 6 has, in my opinion, the most powerful and emotion-evoking soundtrack in the series. Dancing Mad is of course a masterpiece, but then there's also a delightfully bombastic recurring villain leitmotif that's also worked into various parts of this track, there's the fact that every playable character gets their own fitting theme song which are all tied together into a large medley during the ending, and then there's even a segment of the game that they literally wrote a whole opera for (which was later performed with a live orchestra and opera singers on the "Final Fantasy VI: Grand Finale" album). Even if you don't end up playing the actual game, you should definitely give the soundtrack a listen.
I know this'll be buried under so many comments on a year old vid...
Good shit, sir. I have been a fan of this piece of music for ~30 years. In that time I have heard many 'metal' covers of Dancing Mad that are basically just replacing instruments or swapping to a different soundfont.
This track is played with all of the emotion and weight of the original but in a true metal style with the flairs and tropes that go along with that. I don't know him personally but I like to think even Mr. Uematsu would jam to this rendition.
Make no mistake, _Dancing Mad_ was always a little "rock opera", however, sir, that was, without question, the MOST *ROCK OPERA*
There's really nothing rock about Dancing Mad until you reach the last phase though. It's more of a classical piece.
Yeah, especially this arrangement really reminds me of earlier Haken stuff lol
"A little"?
Cogman, is that you?
Without a doubt, this is easily the best cover of this song that's ever been created. This track was so f*ckin metal that it cured my iron deficiency.
GaMetal's version is epic as fawk too.
@@PhilMante That's the best part about Dancing Mad: everyone who's ever covered or performed it always has a different take on it while still making it sound amazing. Even Uematsu himself has several different versions of it. By far one of the greatest examples of progressive rock in video games.
Give a try to the Symphonic Arrange version, it does a great job and the 4th movement is sincerely terrifying 😎
i remember seeing the form dropped like a year ago, thinking "i guess my favorite is Dancing Mad, don't think that will go anywhere though"
and here I am at the start of this year, where Dancing Mad is declared the best video game song of all time by an apparent landslide. Amazing cover, glad the Kefka nation is still going strong in 2024!
That reminds me. I used to have a mailing list called Cult of Kefka. I should send this to them, see if anyone is active.
Glad to see it at the top of the heap where it belongs.
Where was it declared the best? Here im this channel? I agree it is, but where was it?
@@mecagoenbb the form dropped on twitter one day sometime early 2023 several months before he started the cover series. that's how I found out about it at least, i have no idea if it was posted on youtube as a community post or not.
Thank God the Seph simps didn't stuff the ballots and get "One Winged Angel" in instead. It's a good song, but it is _not_ "Dancing Mad".
It has to be a re-cover of Hyrule Market (Night). That's one of the best video's you've ever done.
Yoooo Dethraxx fancy seeing you here! Still listening to your Octopath 2 covers
Man I don't know he nailed the first cover. it would be hard to top. Then again maybe it was too perfect perhaps a little more expression.
Lmao he could have a metronome in the back so the audience can follow along
Four layers of Kefka's madness:
0:00: Hell
2:43: Underworld
4:51: Sky
6:56: Heaven
This is way longer than Sephiroth's theme for story purposes. Mad lad awesome cover!❤
There's five layers, cause there's five parts to this song. You missed one.
@@deathbykonami5487 8:48 is the musical transition in the Heaven layer, not the next layer/phase transition.
It's also heavily inspired by the Divine Comedy
The transition with the opening theme that goes into the baseline with Kefka's original theme always gives me goosebumps, no matter which version. THIS VERSION gave me ultra goosebumps.
Kefka > Sephiroth
Mad respect to the man who wrote this masterpiece for the SNES, he's an absolute genius, but so are you for constructing this. This is the best it will ever be done.
Nobuo Uematsu. The man, the legend himself. Responsible most famously for the greater portion of the Final Fantasy franchise soundtrack
@kathymarch3653 His body of work just in Final Fantasy alone is incredible. There are too many tracks to name. Uematsu truly is a legend.
Argueable on best ever, because Uematsu also does Hard Rock. th-cam.com/video/bSvW_w-5rWQ/w-d-xo.htmlsi=i6mwfdhC6-X8vnSJ
As a Japanese who played FFVI in childhood and blown away by this music, your cover is so brilliant! The emotions and tensions in the original are expressed impressively. Thank you for wonderful 12 minutes!
you seriously did the ENTIRE cover of Dancing Mad?.....major props to you bro.
HOW DID I MISS THIS RELEASE THIS IS INCREDIBLE
Dancing Mad is without a doubt one of, if not _the_ greatest videogame song ever made, but holy crap, you might have just made it even better. You absolutely outdid yourself on this one dude, this might legitimately be the best cover you've ever made
Covering Dancing Mad is a serious undertaking. Well done!
Aw man, I was waiting for you to do a riff for Kefka's laugh!
Awesome job dude.
Literally the -only- thing missing from this, is that screeching laugh. However, this song is still the best rendition of the piece I have ever heard. Truly masterful.
It's such a gift that people are still making covers of Dancing Mad
Take a bow, Jules. That was freaking epic, a masterpiece even! Thank you.
A SNES song? Dancing Mad, perhaps? A song that ambitious and impressive stands out among every other track on the console I can think of.
The obvious and correct answer! Video game heaven would be livestreaming a 100% playthrough of FF6 and Jules playing this live as you finished out.
FF6 is alright, but the soundtrack is an S-tier
but what about Thunder Force IV's OST? The Sega Genesis counterpart of top-tier music
@@LavaCreeperPeoplethank you. FF4 holds most of the A-tiers OST from the whole franchise.
Plus, Red Wings, Boss Theme and Theme of Love are S-tier.
@@retrolaf7755 nice :D!
FF6 had a complete OST of generally maddeningly great music with no right to be that awesome and complex on a 16-bit system! I have covered a lot of gaming music and there are so many favourites among players and myself - This game just had the best concentration of them - Also with One Winged Angel, Uematsu definitely drew on his previous style experiments here :)
You know the Video's fucking gold when the Most replayed moment is the entire thing LMAO
This is my favorite Dancing Mad metal cover. This slaps! Hell yeah!
Nobuo would be proud. As I'm typing I'm only 1 minute in and this is marvelous.
A full listen later... I don't know what I like best. The incredibly solid rythm section. The throughout tension. The gasping finale. That's a really, really beautiful piece of work.
What a great way to start the new year. Snes covers are the best, especially FF
This song, Kefka, and Final Fantasy 6 left a mark on my childhood that I never want to forget. This version you've created is everything I could have hoped for and more. It literally brought tears to my eyes.
Dawg. Just...I don't have any words. The group of metal talent that exists on YT currently, between you, Richaad, Jonathan Young, ToxicX, and plenty of other very talented channels is just....
We're spoiled. This was incredible. Seriously. This cover is seriously next level, and maybe that's mostly kudos to the original composition being so incredible, but your arrangement, your personal flair, your percussion choices that kept the song feeling just as uneasy and off-balance as the original. Absolutely amazing. I didnt even have the mental space to rock out to the genre because the musical arrangement itself was so captivating. Thank you.
Of course it’s Dancing Mad! It couldn’t be anything else honestly. Such an amazing piece of music.
First GaMetal does Serpent sting the horizon,
Next FamilyJules does Dancing Mad,
2024 is already going strong! 💪🔥
You know, I rarely leave comments unless I feel I have something unique and worthwhile to contribute. But today I just *have* to give my opinion!
Over the course of the years I've heard many, many takes on this absolute beast of a track. Most of them metal, some with a more classical approach (including covers played on a full-size church organ!). And out of all of them, your cover has to be among the absolute best. Holy moly, what a masterpiece. Not only did you play this beautifully (and masterfully), but the arrangement was out of this world. I absolutely loved how you added more of your own personal touch in the repeated parts! It all feels very natural and organic to me, like this is the way the song is supposed to be. And working under pressure no less, I can only salute you for achieving such a mindblowingly awesome result. My hat is off to you!
Last but not least: A Happy New Year to you! May 2024 be filled with love, health, success and lots of awesome music!
I was NOT expecting you to come out with this absolute BEAST of a song. People voting on the poll made a good choice.
I'm astonished by this project you've completed. Basically, when you've doen top 10s and 20s in the past, you've turned them into Medleys (understandably)... I was not expecting you to come out with a FULL TOP 20 PLAYLIST especially containing so many songs you've already covered. And especially when the algorithm is so cruel to videogame covers specifically - Most artists are moving away from song covers entirely.
I think it's also a testament to how much you've grown over time as a musician. Your newest work blows your oldest work out of the water. You've even outmatched covers you made a couple of years ago.
This is insane. I literally cannot fathom the amount of work that went into this, from the song itself to the video completion. Just fantastic.
6:55
THAT. DAMN. PART.
Goosebumps, every time. Exactly as that intro should be for God Kefka. ❤️
I’m SO glad you extended that part at 4:27!! Always felt that riff went too hard to be so short. Glad to see I’m not the only one who thought so! Banger cover m8!!!
I actually gasped out loud when I saw this, and god damn you absolutely knocket it out of the park and into orbit. Amazing job as always!
NO SHOT YOU COVERED KEFKA'S THEME!!!!!!! WHAT A WAY TO START OFF THE YEAR WITH THIS PERFECT, MADDENING, JAM!
Thank you for not skipping the organ cadenza
it's my favourite part of the song, we need more baroque guitar
You need to look into 80s Brazilian power metal my guy. Maybe it was the 90s. Either way, they had some awesome stuff out of that country during that time.
6:55 - The Schecter Blackjack SLS does the Omen theme before the final phase. This instrument hasn't been seen in quite a long time, especially when Jules first used it since his tenure at San Diego began nearly nine years prior.
The way the guitar just wails in sorrow during that final solo. Oh man. I felt that in my soul.
"There's nothing like the sound of hundreds of voices screaming in unison"
I've been watching this whole Top 20 video series play out and it is an absolute joy to see this selected as the overall #1, because this is something I've been preaching for years: Dancing Mad is the greatest musical composition in video game history. Nothing else measures up.
Jules, you did an awesome job with this given the quick turnaround, better than many of your peers could put out there with an extended period of time. If you ever decide to revisit this, here's some things that you could consider:
- Even though you absolutely nailed everything on the guitar, there were times where a "voice change" felt necessary. Some vocal pads, the organ in the third movement, etc. Everything you did was executed and arranged very well, but in a four movement piece, the colors need to shift heavier between movements.
- I don't think you need to do any repeat of the third movement. Just hit it once and do that badass transition into the fourth.
- The small repeat of the fourth movement was unexpected but you did it very well. It would have been nice to hear you solo for longer. You've probably heard the Black Mages version from nearly two decades ago, but the guitar solo in the fourth movement kicks ass.
Fantastic job overall, and absolutely commendable given what little time you put into this.
One of the most satisfying boss fights in FF history, with one of the best songs!! Amazing job, as always!!!!
Ah, the blessed return to Final Fantasy’s Opera phase. Great rendition of Dancing Mad!
Instrumental storytelling doesn't get much better than this. No words needed to take us through Kefka's journey from mad clown, to god, to nothing.
It really is. He starts as someone you can't take seriously and runs from pretty much every bit of confrontation. Then you get to Doma and Zozo and you see how evil he is. By the time you get to the floating island, you learn how insane and dangerous this joke actually is.
You didn't have to go this hard... holy shit my guy
I got actual chills while listening to this when this went live. Was not expecting Dancing Mad to be at one, but I'm immensely glad one of my favorite Final Fantasy themes took this spot. You killed it with this cover. Phenomenal work!
This is truly the magnum opus of Nobuo Uematsu. It always gives me chills to this day.
this is outstanding!! incredible work as always, absolutely CRUSHED the solo at the end!!!
first thing I checked after clicking the thumbnail was the length of the video- thank goodness! and thank you for putting in the work for this
One of the best songs of the best FF! Uematsu on his peak during SNES era! Awesome work!
Son of a Sandworm! This cover absolutely slaps the sand off my boots!
In all seriousness, this cover is just perfect. 10/10 no notes
12 minutes of goosebumps! The best FF for me, and the best boss fight song ever composed! Simply amazing!
I ALWAYS blast covers of this theme whenever I have finals. Now it's Winter vacation for me and one of the best Dancing Mad covers of all time appears.
A perfect start to 2024, thanks for everything Jules :)
As soon as I saw the SNES controller shadow teaser, I had the gut feeling it was this. There are few SNES songs that people hold in high enough regard to be better than the big hitters we've been seeing these last few weeks.
Bravo, mr. Jules. Hell of a cover, hell of an event. You did amazing work on all of these songs.
Hats off to Kefka for being one of the main inspiration behind one of my favorite villains ever.
Now I'm curious who your favorite villain is!
"Oh man, number 1, what's it going to be what's it going to be - okay yeah that tracks."
I got chills listening to this!! This whole series has been a treat to listen to, and I can tell that you've worked extremely hard on each track, especially this one!! Fantastic job, fantastic series!! You definitely deserve a nice break.
i feel like you accomplished what so few covers of this song need. the sheer power at the intro.
Let's take a moment to appreciate the descriptions of Jules' videos!
Also, amazing work, my man!!
I finished the game just a week ago, so that's a great present for me!
Dancing Mad so early into the new year? I don't know if that's a good omen or a bad one, but I'm always happy for a good cover of it.
That was an amazing cover of dancing mad, holy crap!! Really well done, and it was so epic with the changed repeats and extra length.
I am in awe.... you nailed this a 100%! Even tiers 3 and 4, which in my view are the hardest to "get right" sound absolutely spectacular and overwhelming in your version. This version has me banging my head and wanting to crank up the volume on the stereo ... only to find it is already at the max :D Thank you so much for this wonderful rendition of the best song in the best game I have ever known :)
Jules, you have outdone yourself
Jules, the first song I found of yours was Frog's Theme. A song special to me. It's been amazing seeing your growth as an artist over the years since. And to see another song from that era top off this whole thing? Just the best.
A proper finale for the series! The arrangement was phenomenal! Damn shame you had some issues with Bury the Light; I can only imagine how hard you must've worked to fit this behemoth of a song into the timeslot!
Love the genuine smiles happening when the 2nd part comes in at the 5 minute mark.
I've been your fan for years, always appreciating your fantastic covers. But holy cow, you made your best one yet, with the best boss theme ever. Hats off, you did an amazing job.
Acceptable #1. Some of the list was surprising but Dancing Mad sitting at the top is fitting.
This is TREMENDOUS. Does every bit of justice the beauty and urgency of Nobuo Uematsu's masterpiece while making it entirely your own. As a fan of this game perhaps beyond no other than Earthbound, thank you.
It couldn’t have been anything else. It had to be Dancing Mad.
And I’m so glad it was, you did an amazing job. I’m honestly floored by how incredible this sounds, and being able to put it out so quickly (less time than any other song on this top 20, due to the Number 2 song having issues) is an amazing feat.
I think this is some of the best work you’ve done ever. Kudos, Jules.
Could've been a lot of better things actually but to each their own I guess
The biggest takeaway from this top 20 is that you should play explorers so you can appreciate Dialga's Fight to the Finish more after your cover of it.
The bigger takeaway is that Jules’s fans all have extraordinary taste, since main series Pokémon does have some bangers yet DFTTF was the only Pokémon song to make the list
Holy...damn. That was a straightup masterpiece of a cover, of a masterpiece of a song. I had to go back multiple times, just to process what i heard. You are an amazing artist Jules, definetly my favorite musician i heard of through TH-cam, together with FalkkonE.
I've been a fan of yours since 2013. I remember listening to your zelda covers while I did my math homework. I even got to see you San Diego in November 2021. The show was was sick and we spoke for a little bit afterwards when I bought a shredventure shirt. It's crazy looking back and seeing your improvement. It's inspired and motivated me to play my guitar every day. Regardless of any direction you take your music I along with your other fans will always be supportive. Thank you Jules.
You've just elevated a masterpiece to something we don't even have a word for.
Couldn't say better. Words are escaping.
Great job on this and all of the songs in the series. The transition into the final part of the song gave me chills, just like the original. You nailed it, man. Well done!
No Jules you can't play Megalovania on you channel AGAIN
For context this comment was made before the video title was revealed
I mean, if he were to be playing the best video game song of all time, then he'd be playing Bury the Light twice in a row and third time overall.
That's an odd way to spell Gerudo Valley...
Nah thanks, I'll stay with 90% of DM Dokuro's Calamity Mod's soundtrack...
*_The air is getting warmer around you._*
*_THIS IS MY MEEEESSAAGEEEEEEEE TOOOOO MYYYYY MAAAASTEEEEEER_*
*_THIS IS A FIIIIIGHT YOUUU CAAAANNOOOOOOT WIIIIIIIIIIIIN-_*
This is a strange rendition of the moon theme from Duck Tales, but I like it.
That's weird, he played You will know our names from Xenoblade Chronicles a few days ago. Why would he make another video about it?
It's so wild to see you still making this magic, watching your stuff through entirely different ERAS of my life
One of the best final boss songs of all time. All hail kefka.
Truly one of your bests works ever Jules!
This melody is such a masterpiece.
I love how everyone who does this song has individually agreed to end it on a dark, sad note. Like, the good guys never win at the end of this song; not even the Black Mages version. Kefka brings despair to all!
Oh man! What an awesome cover, you now leave me with an impossible choice to make: Which FF6 Dancing Mad I keep in my Final Fantasy Metal Cover Playlist.
This is going to be a very tough choice!
Cheers!
What a fitting end for such a stacked top 20. I wouldn’t have it any other way. Phenomenal work as always Jules, you keep surpassing you own limits each time.
After listening, I understand why this was number 1. Damn. Now I need to play Final Fantasy 6 just for Kefka.
Kefka is literally The Joker *who won*
Which of course makes him one of the best villains of all time
@andrewdorsey1237 So I heard. He never faced punishment for his actions, right?
@xanderscookingschool1497 not until the party gets to him no. And even then he's just a nihilist
@@andrewdorsey1237he still lost since he wanted to eradicate hope, which the heroes had as they killed him.
Go with the pixel remaster. It's way better
Dancing Mad. An audio distillation of opposing nihilism, Dantes Inferno and killing a false God rolled into one epic soundtrack. Beautiful.
Hell yeah! This is a fantastic way to end this series out! Twelve minutes of anything in this vein is a lot to dedicate toward, so very well done!
Also nice to see the Blackjack SLS again. I know why you used it, probably, but it's still really cool to see it in a video again haha
Meilleur thème de boss de fin de tous les temps.
Avec le rire de Kefka cela aurait été parfait !
9:53 !!! (+ quelques secondes)
Frissons tout du long en tout cas!
Oui, un passage qui rappel un des moments de génie de la team Squaresoft. @@retrolaf7755
Tout à fait ça manque juste du rire mais ça reste excellentissime
Thank god someone covered the theme for the greatest villain in FF history.
Dancing Mad never gets topped. Pushing yourself to the top here.
You knocked it out of the park! Very well crafted Jules. You handled this beast so very well. Dancing Mad is the perfect encapsulation of Kefka, with how manic and unhinged it feels at points, while also having moments of quiet power. The joke that becomes a god.
Glad to see you're still doing these. You look so happy when you play...don't ever stop.
Hot DAMN. What a sensational cover, you've really outdone yourself on this one. Really amazing effort. Favourite cover of this track I've heard.
Fair enough. This track always rules and I've been waiting impatiently for you to do it since I came across this channel. I don't agree with all the choices or placements on some but all twenty of them have been absolute bangers. Keep up the awesome work you spoony bard (wrong Final Fantasy but whatever).
The great thing about this Song is that you don't necessarily need to like it. But definitely have to respect the sheer amount of power. Much like with Kefka. Which is why that is arguably one of the best representations of any character by any theme ever. And you did WAY more than just do it justice. Way to fucking go. Super impressive.
Wow! An amazing rendition of the best end-boss theme ever composed.
This is an absolute behemoth of a piece of music to cover dude, incredible work.
And so it comes to an end. And a good end at that.
Thank you so much for this content Jules, i was excitedly waiting every weak for the new song the last 20 weeks and it was a LOT of fun, it was exciting seeing songs i knew and loved, and the ones i didn't served as a chance to get to know more banger tracks
Thanks for everything and hoping for new interesting projects!!!
Abridged "One Winged Angel" but full length "Dancing Mad" okay I see you
This is the best cover of this song I have ever heard. I just listened to all of the other Final Fantasy music you have covered also and they all blew me away, especially Man With The Machine Gun! I think it was in your top 10 battle themes.
Dancing Mad, Nobuo Uematsu's magnum opus, and the GREATEST BOSS THEME OF ALL TIME, just got even more metal. Kefka is one of the greatest villains in video game history and the greatest Final Fantasy villain, he needs a theme to encompass that, and this is it.
Wow Jules, this one was especially phenomenal! I've loved watching you over the last several years just cranking out banger after banger :)