Zero raises a character who eventually has to kill her. She’s like a mother to him and she’s had a horrible life before he became a part of it. This song is such a gut punch. It feels like a lullaby, a goodbye, and regret of how difficult her life has been. Ooooof
You know, Zero would be a cool mom. Crass as hell and probably borderline abusive, but she wouldn't directly harm the child unless necessary. Of course, I'm speaking with rose tinted glasses here.
Yeah it's crazy how it ends without closure because its foreshadowing her death I suppose. Final song ends with that motif too, slowing down, like her life ending I guess.
@@AmSerisit’s exactly like that. But in ending D she does smile at the end. She loves Mikhail and she finally did something good in the world by adding him to it.
I knew you'd do this one! Call it lyrical instinct. :D To me, divorced of game context, this song starts off like crying alone in winter, then it develops into this....almost anger, belying that core of wrought sadness. It's like someone crying, then yelling in frustration through tears. Then it fades back into what feels like a haze of sadness, quietness, pensiveness, then an unconcluded silence. Like exhausting oneself after crying for hours. I find myself coming back to this song every now and then over the years.
I love the way it hangs at the end. It reminds me of a music box that ran out of spring, or a clock with a dead battery. Like, if this song had any life left in it, it would have kept going, even though it finished what it set out to do. "Just another note. Let me have just one more."
It's like death, really. Unlike in the movies, we don't always get a nice, neat conclusion, one final song and dance. It just.....happens. And those who survive that person are often left wondering about all that could've been said, what more could've been done and experienced with them. But it can never happen. Not anymore.
Could you listen to "this silence is mine" which is the theme of drakengard 3. The vocals of that theme I think would get you to cry insanely hard based on what I've heard of your impressions in your videos 🤣
'The piano is the thing that ends the song. That sounds like reminiscing, like daydreaming, like saying farewell, reflecting on times gone by' My Drakengard&Nier-loving ass : Well if we consider what might be called the reprised version, you pretty much nailed it...
I know right! He’s awesome, and just to have him know just a glimmer of story from the song really says how awesome he is at his craft and musical analysis! Keep it up!❤️
It's a song about Zero and that she has to end herself as she became a host for worlds destruction (The Flower). She had to endure so much pain but she accepted what she had become and that it had to end. Zero was such a tragic character and it fits her so well.
The breath technique is nice to know! It certainly makes me feel the music in a deeper way. Adds more emotion to it. A little note, when you get to the final music of NieR:Automata: The Weight of the World. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND the Japanese version, as it touches one's Soul more than any song i have ever heard just by the singer's emotions. It's like crying all the time i hear her voice break and fade at the end.
To add to the others, Growing Wings is kinda legendary. The first version from Drakengard 1 (Drag-On Dragoon btw), is in Japanese and has a very war song feel. The second version, in lower quality, is from Drakengard 2 and is in English and is much more melancholic, and the lyrics are very poetic. Both versions are great. The Japanese title of these games, Drag-On Dragoon, is of course a pun in itself, but very meaningful. You can think of a Dragoon as a knight that either kills dragons, or rides dragons, or both. In each game the main character has to deal with seemingly endless suffering, and so they "drag on" and on until the end. I don't know why they renamed it to Drakengard for English release. The Silence is Mine is also in English (Japanese singer), and it's a great song, but I don't really know how it's supposed to tie to Drakengard 3 at all.
This silence is mine is the conclusion of zero journey... as the actual last song gives closure to the game (its not really a happy ending but was what she wanted, and was able to finish her story in her own terms)... lyric wise the words are a composition made by the singer by what she though in the first minutes after she knew the plot of the game.
I think the Japanese audience gets the silly puns but in English it would have been seen as belittling a really serious game and they would have attracted a completely different audience that would have hated the games. May seem weird but it’s an understandable change.
I've been enjoying your NieR song breakdowns a lot, nice to see you giving Drakengard a shot. I'd love to see a reaction to The Last Song/Black Song White Scales from Drakengard 3, It's absolutely infamous to the community due to the boss fight it's associated to
For anyone wondering, the lyrics aren't in Japanese but in something that's meant to sound like Japanese if you "squint" your ears hard enough, like a precursor to the more amalgamated language they use in the Nier series.
The lyrics are meant to be in Japanese, just not grammatically correct, but it has somewhat of an imagery meaning. Some have actually tried to translate it based on the images from the lyrics. The song that's more fit for your description is "Ashes of Dreams Aratanaru" from Nier
@@kago283 There's enough there to try to translate it, but even beyond just garbled grammar, there aren't that many words there either. Again, unless you "squint." Japanese words are relatively atomic, i.e. they're composed of very few phonemes each, so the line between a correct word and an incorrect word is somewhat blurry. There's also a lot of Spanish and French in the Nier language, yet we wouldn't call it any of those languages either. But yeah, I think "imagery" is a good way to describe it.
@@ekadria-bo4962 why no? Its a masterpiece that plays around with tempo in such a unique and fascinating way. It shouldn’t work, but its somehow so appealing
Hey, discovered you last night and I gotta say it's been such a delight hearing your interpretations on the Nier songs. You capture the character's emotional arcs spot on yet also provide fascinating analysis. You seriously deserve more views and subs! Would you consider uploading past performances or some sort of cover of these songs? If you're comfortable ofc!
Thank you for covering this one as well! This song makes me feel that the main character has reached her several final breaths, she is exhausted from the neverending turmoil life has brought her. Her reminiscence was filled with melancholy. And yet she doesn't give up and believed there is a light at the end of the tunnel, she still had hope for humanity, and she gave life another chance on her dying breath (this makes more sense if you know this story). The final piano keys bring her long-awaited peace and the song ends. Or does it? The ending is very thought-provoking.
Jeez, the feels almost took over again lmao Thank you so very much for doing this video, this one means a lot to me The piano at the end always represented the redeeming last breath imo, it really is reminiscing too, a final question if you did ok and/or are you ok with everything at the end. And the intro always gave me a coddling yet somehow loathing vibe while everything in the middle was the rush of a definitive unwavering decision. It feels great to watch you listen to the song tell you its story, even more so because you don't have anything to go off of. Really hope more people see this video and get interested in Drakengard too 😊
Be it with Eir Aoi with the Japanese version, or Emi Evans with the chaos launguage version, I am glad to see your reaction to Kuroi Uta. And it's amazing to see what you glean from listening to these songs despite not knowing the context of the games they come from. Honestly, I found this channel because YT recommended your Souls reaction vids and the one regarding why we listen to game music, yet I end up watching your Drakenier and Ar tonelico vids :p You are hitting me with the nostalgia.
Maaaan some Drakengard love, that made my day, this one is awesome! My absolute fav from this game is "The Upcoming Battle / Battlefield", I really think you should try it, specially for its second impressive vocal part (all battlefield field on this game have a vocal focused part that transitions in when you activate a certain power up mode, I find it very original). I would recommend "the final song" too, also vocal focused.
YAYYYY THANK YOU SO MUCH THANK YOUUUUU!!!!!! I really appreciate you listening to this song it really means a lot to me! Keep up the amazing work!!!! :>
While there are dragons in Drakengard 3 (or Drag-on Dragoon 3 as it's known in Japan) they are not the thing the game is about. First one was similar though the name was in reference to the battles on dragonback that were half of the combat system. They're also in 3 but they're the weakest part of the game and not really what it's about. Same goes for NieR, actually. Nier was the name of the main character in NieR (be it Gestalt or Replicant) but is now the name of the series with NieR Automata and NieR Reincarnation being around and mostly unrelated. Nier's entire species (both of them) is extinct by the time of Automata. So we see here Yoko Taro putting in use a grand baiting technique that we mortals usually refer to as "brand recognition" to good effect. As for what Drakengard 3 is about, it's about finding out how many tears Yoko Taro can force out of you sitting through a slideshow at ~10-20 FPS watching a foul mouthed girl's life descending more and more into tragedy as she seeks to murder the remains of the only people she could call her sisters, then herself in order to save the world and failing in the most miserable ways possible while chopping GIGANTIC quantities of onions interspersed with some odd bits of comedy. Rest of the time is struggling with the combat system. Also stabbing. And blood. And framerate issues. I know I'm repeating that last one but it bears repeating. Also... funny thing you should mention "silence" there. Might wanna take a listen to "This Silence is Mine" from Drakengard 3. It's... effective. And great music.
We got a dragon that asks for permision to go pee in a bush, sings silly childish tunes and seeking aproval of his tiny mother figure Zero, only to suddenly see him killed on ending A like "that". Some games play with your feelings. This one staright steps in them
Finally a good reaction to this song. You nailed the value in the voice and the intentions behind aspects of it. Your comment about the breath being left in was something I thought but I am not qualified to say it with confidence. Though I do think you should have maybe listened to The Final Song and compared the two to see how the mood changes between both instances of the song being sang. I would love to talk more on this.
@@MarcoMeatball You hit the nail on the head with your video. I'd be interested then to talk about game music of something we both enjoy at some point since context always made the experience better :D
This silence is mine is the ending to everything related to drakengard 3... final song (black song white scales) is also a good one to react as the whole story of the game (the empty tone and the fallen gods are good slow themes)... and everything in drakengard 3 is sad (the sisters themes are really interesting and different... even though theyre all a lie), zero (this game protagonist) must have the saddest and injust past (this one is only actually explained in her novella, which explain that she had nothing in life, and when she would finally would get something it would be denied to her by the world).
You don't know how happy I felt when I found out that you reacted to this song! I really love it, I don't know how many times I listened to it. It's so beautiful, so sad, so bittersweet. Whenever I listen to it, I get distracted and sing along or be completely drowned by the sheer emotions in it. Needless to say, I really love listening to your analyses of the songs you listen to. You're so amazing.
There's magic about the medium of music. With the human machine being based upon pattern recognition and the way music plays with the same systems and gives us an emotional response. It's basically cheating the way music can influence a person. this channel has been a wild ride, where i'm slowly starting to understand the hows and why of music messes with my brain and the brilliance and manipulation that goes in to evoking those emotions. Thanks for teaching me all this. I'm never going to be able to listen to music the same way again!
It's blowing my mind how close you are to the many interpretations you recieved throughout the song to its meaning in-game with the main character, especially with her journey from beginning to end. Shout out to you for being able to identify the heart of the song, how do i not subscribe after seeing this 😁
What I love is that your body language, expressions, and slight lip syncing is my reaction whenever I listen to this song 😂 for the longest time I didn’t know the context or translation, yet Kuroi Uta still got across the message and emotions it was trying to portray.
I like Kuroi Uta a lot, and hearing your thoughts on it was really interesting! Drakengard 3 has a lot of good songs, so hearing your thoughts on some of the others would be interesting, like The Final Song or Exhausted 3. I think hearing your thoughts on Cold Steel Coffin and Temple of Drifting Sands from NieR: Gestalt/ Replicant would be interesting too!
Wonderful analysis! Cool to hear how the vocalist used exaggerated breaths and a “cry” to accentuate the emotionality of the song. Many people have brought it up already, but I would LOVE to see your reaction to “This Silence is Mine” and “Growing Wings” also from the Drakengard series. Thanks for sharing!
This is so raw!! I love your interpretations and notes on why songs are sung in certain ways. I’ll never hear this song the same way again, Keep it up!
Your channel popped up recently on my recommended page so I might as well comment as I've been enjoying your content so far. I remember hearing you talk about how classical music and video game music are essentially the same (or at least very similar) and there are two tracks that immediately popped into my mind when you said this. They are "The Nexus Gazes Into the Darkness" (it has a bunch of different names on UA-cam) from Bravely Default II and "Daughter of the Dark God" from Octopath Traveler. I'm sure these two songs are right up your alley - you will know what I mean should you decide to give them a listening - but hey, you are probably getting a ton of requests each day so I'm looking forward to whichever song you'll pick next. Greetings from Germany!
Oh, so I'm going to suggest a few songs from all three Drakengard games since all three games bring something different. Especially Drakengard 1, as some of the "music" might as well just be called complete and total chaos and madness, given what they do in the soundtrack as a whole, and what you can glean from said music. Drakengard 1: "Weapon Select" "Eighth Chapter Final" "Thirteenth Chapter Final" and "Rout B Staff Roll - Exhausted" Drakengard 2: "The Plains of Pity" "Exhausted on Holy Lands" "Exhausted on Broken Earth" and "Growing Wings" (this one you can listen to English and I suggest it because of the lyrics and what it can mean/interpret from what's being sung) Drakengard 3: "This Silence is Mine" "The Final Song" and "Exhausted 3" Now, you've probably noticed I've given the name of a song four times, (technically five since Growing Wings is the song as well but hits differently than the others) but all of them are vastly different in tone and I think you'd find it interesting since it shows up in all three games and can give a different meaning depending on the tone being played. But yeah, I know I suggest different music in the past, but it's really cool that you're checking out the music from another Yoko Taro game (since he directed Drakengard 1 and Drakengard 3) and Emi Evens has been in a vast variety of projects, be it games or anime. One, in particular, she sang in the Star Wars Visions anime, for the episode The Villiage Bride. And was composed by Kevin Penkin, an Australian Composer, the same man who composed the music for Made in Abyss anime and many more. I don't know if you do anime music reactions, but I want to suggest the song "Composer Diaries: Childen of Magina" from The Village Bride episode. It is beautiful, it is sad, but it is also hopeful in the face of doubt and uncertainty with the desire to triumph against a foe. At least that's my take on it.😅😊
This song was also used in one of the DLCs where you play as the characters you fight as bosses. One of them, unlike the others, is actually a really nice person who even has a bunch of adopted orphan children. During a battle with a monster after a lot of horrible stuff happens, the boss music over time fades into the slower first half of this song as she has a mental breakdown and by the time she's put the orphans out of their misery, she's catatonic and never recovers.
Part of the tragedy of course, is that even if all of them were that nice, were actually good people... Zero would still have to kill them. I wish Drakengard 3 could get a good remaster, so more people could understand why I have 'some number' as the most tragic character of all time.
Ooh! Love to see someone else noticing and appreciating the audible breaths. I've always love this aspect of the song. It does highlight the burdens and pains of the character, making us feel the struggle ourselves. It really feels like she's crying this song out.
I love your critique on all of these songs and am glad that others adore Keichi Okabe's works paired with Emi Evan's vocals. Been in choir and orchestra while growing up so am a huge music fanatic along with wanting to learn and grow more with these subjects! 2 songs I really suggest would be the new one for Nier Replicant "Fleeting Words"(Another edit version) and Drakengard 3's Black Song White Scales(Final Song). These songs bring out so much emotion and I'm sure you'd notice and critique them well!
Awesome take on this one! A really beautiful theme that hasn't been mentioned by almost anyone is *Descendeus* (can also find it as *The* *Fallen* *God* ). I heard it first by chance when I left UA-cam one time on auto-play. When that song suddenly came I was surprised even from the first few seconds. Later on I even teared up actually. And having known nothing about that game or song I think it's pretty awesome that just the music by itself managed to do that!
Love your vids. I've never played any Drakengard games but I got addicted to this song so much. Such an emotional piece. If I may, I suggest you give a listen to "City of tears" from Hollow knight. Both with and without Marissa singing are good but different vibe to them.
Marco you know I always love your many Face Journeys™ and I've been here since the beginning. Love ya so much bro💙💚 BTW all of your videos are so entertaining but also hella informative and educational too
Can I also second the others who suggested you react to This Silence is Mine and The Final Song(from the final boss of Drakengard 3) as well as the Yuki Kajiura songs? Yuki Kajiura is also one of my favorite composers/singers. Some of my favorite songs are: A Song of Storm and Fire(they actually a live studio reprise version just last year, highly recommended you listen to that one!), from Puella Magi Magica Madoka: Sis Puella Magica!, Sand Dream, Take Your Hands(the whole Puella Magi Magica Madoka and Dream Port albums, are really such magical songs), then from Pandora Hearts: Parting Song, Preparation, A Shadow. Basically Yuki Kajiura just has a knack for creating songs that take you to a while different magical place. Been a big fan of their work for years and they are well immortalized in their albums as well as animes. No need to record videos for all of them, just wanted to share with you some lovely OSTs.
I know this one might be a little out of your field yet I feel this one will be something you'd really enjoy and emotionally experience. I honestly don't expect ya to make any videos on it, i just want to share it with a bro that feels and experiences music. It's an album made for a movie series by Yuki Kajiura called "The Garden of Sinners" or "Kara no Kyoukai" in Japanese. You can find it on the Yuki Kajiura - topic profile page. I recommend the song "In the Garden of Sinners" since it's one of the shorter pieces that gives you a good taste of Yuki's composition style, and the wonderful musicians she worked with!
Hey, Marco. Love your music reviews. You definitely have some unique insights as a former opera singer, and the DrakenNieR OSTs are perfect for you. I see in the description that you acknowledged that Kuroi Uta has two different performances, the international version being by our familiar and beloved Emi Evans, and the JPN version being by J-pop artist Eir Aoi. I'm curious if you have any opinions on Eir Aoi's version (I have a preference for Emi's, but they're both good. It's just a great song.), especially since her version has a slightly different arrangement.
I literally commented on your video two days ago to react to something from Drakengard and you did! Can you react to The Final Song next? Can’t wait to see more :D
I love your videos man! There's a chance of you reacting to last song? As far as I know it's a smash of 6 themes together from the protagonist and the "villains" of Drakengard, and as I love all Yoko Taro music carrer last song if my favorite of him, amazing video man!
This song is very special to me. At that time I just completed Drakengard 3 and it was probably at my top 3 despite all it flaws. I don't want to sound dramatic, but I was also having a very shitty time and I was literally about to kill myself, but I opened YT to listen one last song and this one with spanish subtitles appeard (I'm chilean). So I press the play button and when the song "explodes" says something like (based on the translation I watched): "Cruel cold song, I will not dance at your rhythm, I'll get out of this nightmare of Ice I manage to escape from death I get out of the forest, covered in blood No more weaknesses No more doubts... of destroying you" I cried like a bitch and then I felt better. Later that year I had my first tattoo, and of course it was an illustration from this game. Love your channel man, I discovered you today because of the DMC OST videos. Srry for my english
Oh, an opera singer, that's an unexpected and fairly random recommendation from youtube. It's probably because I was listening to some Lea Salonga a week before. Would recommend some songs made by Machikado-Mapoze, a touhou music circle that specializes in world music. Specifically, ones with Roverta as the singer, as she basically has the voice of an opera singer/disney princess, and most of the songs she sings on the circle reflect that. "Revolving Factory" would probably be the best one to react to, and it's one of the best Touhou arranges out there.
Man, I know I just commented that you are in the rabbit hole of nier music, but now you've gone D E E P. This Silence is Mine is also another really good one from Dg3. I really can't say much more, because #NierSimp4Lyf. The music, even in drakengard 3, has been my favorite in almost any game series.
Drakengard 3 has a bunch of great peices! The Final Song being my favorite! Besides my reccomendation of Daughter of the Dark God, i would like to see your thoughts on "Answers" from FFXIV!
As much as I want you to, reacting to/breaking down 'Final Song, Black Song - White Scales', the theme of the final boss, is going to be hard. Instrumentally, it is consistent through its phases, but while it uses Black Song (kuroi uta in English) to cap the beginning and ending, the phases themselves are reprised versions of previous boss themes (SPOILERS; who are sisters to the main character). Drakengard 3 as a game is inseparable from its music ever so slightly more than other games in the series, which it achieves by entrenching its music into the gameplay with unexpected rhythm games, and even going so far as to revere the main character and her sisters as goddesses, calling them the 'Intoners.' If you don't plan on playing it, I recommend you watching the final boss of Drakengard 3. 9:22 That open note is the bane of everyone who almost reached the end of the game for the 1st time. You will hear people praise the music of that battle and rage in equal measure over the sneaky rug pull by Yoko Taro. On second thought, maybe you should do a reaction to the music and boss fight altogether. It is uniquely esoteric, eccentric, & beautiful all at once. Also have a look at 'Yoko Taro t shirt.' This is the man making these weird & wonderful games and commissioning all these beautiful songs.
My recommended songs to react to: Growing wings from drakengard 1 or 2 (there's two versions, both give off very different feelings) Song of the Ancients from Nier Replicant Kiss me sunlights from zone of the enders
The games uses an awesome remix of this song during its final boss. Much more somber but also layered and really epic. I'd give it a listen. Also yes to silence is mine. Another banger from this weird, weird game.
I would love to see you react to Weight of the World, there's multiple versions that play in this order with each ending A-E English, Japanese, nouveau-FR, and End of Yorha ver. My favorite version is either the Japanese version or the Yorha version which I think hits even harder after listening to the other versions in my opinion.
You should also check out Fleeting Words - Another Edit from Nier:Replicant, probably my favorite piece out of all the NierGard games, second place being Kuroi Uta
Drakengard 3 is full of good stuff for you to listen to. Every level in the game has an instrumental version and a vocal version of the music that is played when you activate Intoner Mode, and song as a source of magic and power is a central theme to the game. The vocal portions of the tracks themselves are diagetic, being sung by the main character or her opponents as part of them using their magic, and if you attempt to "intone" during a fight against and enemy who is singing, the main character instead sings in Chaos Language in an attempt to disrupt their song, and it just sounds dissonant and great. It's a really great narrative touch using music. You can hear an example of it here at 2:25: ua-cam.com/video/BhHrFfT-Xxs/v-deo.html
@MarcoMeatball Thank you for listening to Drakengard/Nier's wonderful music! Might I interest you in a song from Drakengard 2? It's called "Forbidden Prelude". VERY curious to hear your thoughts on that one...
Drakengard 3 has many great tracks just like NieR (not including Drakengard 1+2 bc their OSTs are not composed by Keiichi Okabe, so very different than what you are familiar with from NieR. You can give it a try if you're interested, but brace yourself for D1 OST). Notable tracks from Drakengard 3 are: Those Long Forgotten, The Descent of God, Vacant Noise, Exhausted (also known as Growing Wings from the previous 2 games, this one is an arrangement of Growing Wings), Kuroi Uta (Black Song, the one you covered in this video), Final Song and This Silence is Mine. If you have access to the entire OST, this game has pretty good battle themes as well, like Leap Wishes or Comrade's Song.
Drakengard 3 music is like no other game. Stands without fear against Nier Automata. But since they are actually part of the same story i can just take both
drakengard series has many good piece like fate from drakengard 2 that is very prideful yet pitiful nuance, also breakthrough and plains of pity. From drakengard 3 I recomend black song white scales (which is the final boss theme), aethervox/empty tone, descendeus, also I prefer emil evans version of EVERYTHING in drakengard 3. Drakengard 3 has the most harrowing, pitiful tone in every aspect of it, yet the story still able to make a dark jokes out of them. It feels sweet in a dark way. The pieces themselves mostly sang in solo sopranos since the Protag and the antag are all females has "power of voices" and their song can bring ruin and salvation. hence the songs are sung by sopranos. also if you read their back stories..............it's very dreadful.....as this is the "begining" of how the modern world became the "nier gestalt/replicant"
By the females, you mean the intoners. Yeah, their songs have power, but with each of their personalities, that makes them fragile, volatile or even self-destructive. They bring ruins to themselves and others, the most emotional for me was the Final Song, when all the sisters and zero began to their dance (hand dances/gesture patterns? I don't know), every movements that the sister shown to us reflect their desires and nature as Intoners (I learnt this from a commenter who notices their particular hand movements).
you probably gonna do this at some point but i'll leave the comment anyway, if you liked this one you should definitely react to the last song also from drakengard 3
the story IS extremely dark it's song of her life that was The worst and the Kuroi Hana (Dark Flowr) is pretty much her in this song as she sing it's like Good bye at the same time salvation for her
Zero raises a character who eventually has to kill her. She’s like a mother to him and she’s had a horrible life before he became a part of it. This song is such a gut punch. It feels like a lullaby, a goodbye, and regret of how difficult her life has been. Ooooof
You know, Zero would be a cool mom. Crass as hell and probably borderline abusive, but she wouldn't directly harm the child unless necessary. Of course, I'm speaking with rose tinted glasses here.
Yeah it's crazy how it ends without closure because its foreshadowing her death I suppose. Final song ends with that motif too, slowing down, like her life ending I guess.
@@AmSerisit’s exactly like that. But in ending D she does smile at the end. She loves Mikhail and she finally did something good in the world by adding him to it.
damn.. not me accidentally getting spoiled from top comment 😔
Wow thanks for the spoiler, literally didn’t even open the comments it’s the top comment and the first sentence.
I knew you'd do this one! Call it lyrical instinct. :D
To me, divorced of game context, this song starts off like crying alone in winter, then it develops into this....almost anger, belying that core of wrought sadness. It's like someone crying, then yelling in frustration through tears. Then it fades back into what feels like a haze of sadness, quietness, pensiveness, then an unconcluded silence. Like exhausting oneself after crying for hours.
I find myself coming back to this song every now and then over the years.
Whoa! I can dig it.
I love the way it hangs at the end. It reminds me of a music box that ran out of spring, or a clock with a dead battery. Like, if this song had any life left in it, it would have kept going, even though it finished what it set out to do. "Just another note. Let me have just one more."
I really like your way of describing the ending. It's perfect, as it's also the exact same way that The Final Song ends.
It's like death, really. Unlike in the movies, we don't always get a nice, neat conclusion, one final song and dance. It just.....happens. And those who survive that person are often left wondering about all that could've been said, what more could've been done and experienced with them. But it can never happen. Not anymore.
That’s pretty much Kenji Okabe’s bread butter. Amusement Park is peak music box. I love it so much.
there is the last note... its there.....
@@fuckugplus It is, and it murdered me.
Drakengard is really good the music just tells its own story
Could you listen to "this silence is mine" which is the theme of drakengard 3. The vocals of that theme I think would get you to cry insanely hard based on what I've heard of your impressions in your videos 🤣
I'd rather wish that more composers reacted to Drakengard 1's OST but UA-cam keeps nuking it...
i thought this song kuroi uta is drakengard 3 theme
@@Lolleman255 yea, I think that person is just mentioning 1 cuz they like it
@@AngraMainiiu drakengard one deserves more attention but so does 3!
@@till5871 game needs remake by platinum games, so it will be played by more people I really hope it happens
'The piano is the thing that ends the song. That sounds like reminiscing, like daydreaming, like saying farewell, reflecting on times gone by'
My Drakengard&Nier-loving ass : Well if we consider what might be called the reprised version, you pretty much nailed it...
Your comments on the stories that each song is portraying are almost always spot on, and it's a testament to your and the composer 's musical skill!
I know right! He’s awesome, and just to have him know just a glimmer of story from the song really says how awesome he is at his craft and musical analysis! Keep it up!❤️
Absolutely love this game! "The Final Song" is pretty awesome too.
I like your thoughts and reactions. I raccomand you "This silence is mine", "Empty Tone" or "growing wings" always from Drakengard
It's a song about Zero and that she has to end herself as she became a host for worlds destruction (The Flower). She had to endure so much pain but she accepted what she had become and that it had to end. Zero was such a tragic character and it fits her so well.
The breath technique is nice to know! It certainly makes me feel the music in a deeper way. Adds more emotion to it.
A little note, when you get to the final music of NieR:Automata: The Weight of the World. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND the Japanese version, as it touches one's Soul more than any song i have ever heard just by the singer's emotions. It's like crying all the time i hear her voice break and fade at the end.
To add to the others, Growing Wings is kinda legendary. The first version from Drakengard 1 (Drag-On Dragoon btw), is in Japanese and has a very war song feel. The second version, in lower quality, is from Drakengard 2 and is in English and is much more melancholic, and the lyrics are very poetic. Both versions are great.
The Japanese title of these games, Drag-On Dragoon, is of course a pun in itself, but very meaningful. You can think of a Dragoon as a knight that either kills dragons, or rides dragons, or both. In each game the main character has to deal with seemingly endless suffering, and so they "drag on" and on until the end. I don't know why they renamed it to Drakengard for English release.
The Silence is Mine is also in English (Japanese singer), and it's a great song, but I don't really know how it's supposed to tie to Drakengard 3 at all.
This silence is mine is the conclusion of zero journey... as the actual last song gives closure to the game (its not really a happy ending but was what she wanted, and was able to finish her story in her own terms)... lyric wise the words are a composition made by the singer by what she though in the first minutes after she knew the plot of the game.
It's because of the "Drag" part of Drag-On Dragoon sounds somewhat offensive to Drag Qweens and perhaps Angelus themself.
Yes! Growing Wings is such a strange but amazing track like no other!
Drakengard 3 also has a version of 1’s growing wings called “Exhausted”; it’s the credits theme for 3’s Branch C
I think the Japanese audience gets the silly puns but in English it would have been seen as belittling a really serious game and they would have attracted a completely different audience that would have hated the games. May seem weird but it’s an understandable change.
I've been enjoying your NieR song breakdowns a lot, nice to see you giving Drakengard a shot.
I'd love to see a reaction to The Last Song/Black Song White Scales from Drakengard 3, It's absolutely infamous to the community due to the boss fight it's associated to
True, best Drakengard song
For anyone wondering, the lyrics aren't in Japanese but in something that's meant to sound like Japanese if you "squint" your ears hard enough, like a precursor to the more amalgamated language they use in the Nier series.
The lyrics are meant to be in Japanese, just not grammatically correct, but it has somewhat of an imagery meaning. Some have actually tried to translate it based on the images from the lyrics. The song that's more fit for your description is "Ashes of Dreams Aratanaru" from Nier
@@kago283 There's enough there to try to translate it, but even beyond just garbled grammar, there aren't that many words there either. Again, unless you "squint."
Japanese words are relatively atomic, i.e. they're composed of very few phonemes each, so the line between a correct word and an incorrect word is somewhat blurry. There's also a lot of Spanish and French in the Nier language, yet we wouldn't call it any of those languages either.
But yeah, I think "imagery" is a good way to describe it.
Oh yeah! Try out the final boss theme of this game as well. It's soooooo good as well!
Please no 🤣
@@ekadria-bo4962 why no? Its a masterpiece that plays around with tempo in such a unique and fascinating way. It shouldn’t work, but its somehow so appealing
Hey, discovered you last night and I gotta say it's been such a delight hearing your interpretations on the Nier songs. You capture the character's emotional arcs spot on yet also provide fascinating analysis. You seriously deserve more views and subs! Would you consider uploading past performances or some sort of cover of these songs? If you're comfortable ofc!
I am definitely going to!
I think you would also enjoy "Aethervox" from Drakengard 3 as well. Love your takes on the music of some of my favorite games!
Thank you for covering this one as well! This song makes me feel that the main character has reached her several final breaths, she is exhausted from the neverending turmoil life has brought her. Her reminiscence was filled with melancholy. And yet she doesn't give up and believed there is a light at the end of the tunnel, she still had hope for humanity, and she gave life another chance on her dying breath (this makes more sense if you know this story). The final piano keys bring her long-awaited peace and the song ends. Or does it? The ending is very thought-provoking.
Bro, you should definitely check out "this silence is mine" from Drakengard 3, one of the most emotional singings ever, it could blow your mind 😱
Jeez, the feels almost took over again lmao
Thank you so very much for doing this video, this one means a lot to me
The piano at the end always represented the redeeming last breath imo, it really is reminiscing too, a final question if you did ok and/or are you ok with everything at the end.
And the intro always gave me a coddling yet somehow loathing vibe while everything in the middle was the rush of a definitive unwavering decision.
It feels great to watch you listen to the song tell you its story, even more so because you don't have anything to go off of.
Really hope more people see this video and get interested in Drakengard too 😊
Be it with Eir Aoi with the Japanese version, or Emi Evans with the chaos launguage version, I am glad to see your reaction to Kuroi Uta. And it's amazing to see what you glean from listening to these songs despite not knowing the context of the games they come from.
Honestly, I found this channel because YT recommended your Souls reaction vids and the one regarding why we listen to game music, yet I end up watching your Drakenier and Ar tonelico vids :p You are hitting me with the nostalgia.
Glad you’re here!!!
Maaaan some Drakengard love, that made my day, this one is awesome! My absolute fav from this game is "The Upcoming Battle / Battlefield", I really think you should try it, specially for its second impressive vocal part (all battlefield field on this game have a vocal focused part that transitions in when you activate a certain power up mode, I find it very original). I would recommend "the final song" too, also vocal focused.
Interesting insight on the breaths, never thought of that
I just adore the strings here, they go so hard!
Just a fantastic song
I'm so happy you've listened to Kuroi Uta, it's one of my favourite melodies.
YAYYYY THANK YOU SO MUCH THANK YOUUUUU!!!!!! I really appreciate you listening to this song it really means a lot to me! Keep up the amazing work!!!! :>
While there are dragons in Drakengard 3 (or Drag-on Dragoon 3 as it's known in Japan) they are not the thing the game is about. First one was similar though the name was in reference to the battles on dragonback that were half of the combat system. They're also in 3 but they're the weakest part of the game and not really what it's about.
Same goes for NieR, actually. Nier was the name of the main character in NieR (be it Gestalt or Replicant) but is now the name of the series with NieR Automata and NieR Reincarnation being around and mostly unrelated. Nier's entire species (both of them) is extinct by the time of Automata.
So we see here Yoko Taro putting in use a grand baiting technique that we mortals usually refer to as "brand recognition" to good effect. As for what Drakengard 3 is about, it's about finding out how many tears Yoko Taro can force out of you sitting through a slideshow at ~10-20 FPS watching a foul mouthed girl's life descending more and more into tragedy as she seeks to murder the remains of the only people she could call her sisters, then herself in order to save the world and failing in the most miserable ways possible while chopping GIGANTIC quantities of onions interspersed with some odd bits of comedy. Rest of the time is struggling with the combat system. Also stabbing. And blood. And framerate issues. I know I'm repeating that last one but it bears repeating.
Also... funny thing you should mention "silence" there. Might wanna take a listen to "This Silence is Mine" from Drakengard 3. It's... effective. And great music.
We got a dragon that asks for permision to go pee in a bush, sings silly childish tunes and seeking aproval of his tiny mother figure Zero, only to suddenly see him killed on ending A like "that".
Some games play with your feelings. This one staright steps in them
I was so hoping to you would cover this one.
Finally a good reaction to this song. You nailed the value in the voice and the intentions behind aspects of it. Your comment about the breath being left in was something I thought but I am not qualified to say it with confidence. Though I do think you should have maybe listened to The Final Song and compared the two to see how the mood changes between both instances of the song being sang. I would love to talk more on this.
I don’t know anything about this game or its music so I just did as I was told 🤣🤣
@@MarcoMeatball You hit the nail on the head with your video. I'd be interested then to talk about game music of something we both enjoy at some point since context always made the experience better :D
@@StarChases join the discord!
The drakengard series has alot of beautiful pieces like this.
This silence is mine is the ending to everything related to drakengard 3... final song (black song white scales) is also a good one to react as the whole story of the game (the empty tone and the fallen gods are good slow themes)... and everything in drakengard 3 is sad (the sisters themes are really interesting and different... even though theyre all a lie), zero (this game protagonist) must have the saddest and injust past (this one is only actually explained in her novella, which explain that she had nothing in life, and when she would finally would get something it would be denied to her by the world).
You don't know how happy I felt when I found out that you reacted to this song! I really love it, I don't know how many times I listened to it. It's so beautiful, so sad, so bittersweet. Whenever I listen to it, I get distracted and sing along or be completely drowned by the sheer emotions in it. Needless to say, I really love listening to your analyses of the songs you listen to. You're so amazing.
There's magic about the medium of music. With the human machine being based upon pattern recognition and the way music plays with the same systems and gives us an emotional response.
It's basically cheating the way music can influence a person.
this channel has been a wild ride, where i'm slowly starting to understand the hows and why of music messes with my brain and the brilliance and manipulation that goes in to evoking those emotions.
Thanks for teaching me all this. I'm never going to be able to listen to music the same way again!
Wow! You’re so welcome!
It's blowing my mind how close you are to the many interpretations you recieved throughout the song to its meaning in-game with the main character, especially with her journey from beginning to end.
Shout out to you for being able to identify the heart of the song, how do i not subscribe after seeing this 😁
:)
Taking your hoodie off when the music heats up to show you mean BUSINESS 🔥😆
What I love is that your body language, expressions, and slight lip syncing is my reaction whenever I listen to this song 😂 for the longest time I didn’t know the context or translation, yet Kuroi Uta still got across the message and emotions it was trying to portray.
I like Kuroi Uta a lot, and hearing your thoughts on it was really interesting! Drakengard 3 has a lot of good songs, so hearing your thoughts on some of the others would be interesting, like The Final Song or Exhausted 3. I think hearing your thoughts on Cold Steel Coffin and Temple of Drifting Sands from NieR: Gestalt/ Replicant would be interesting too!
I detect some red in the garments of of One in your pfp...
Brother One maybe?
And fleeting world too!
Wonderful analysis! Cool to hear how the vocalist used exaggerated breaths and a “cry” to accentuate the emotionality of the song. Many people have brought it up already, but I would LOVE to see your reaction to “This Silence is Mine” and “Growing Wings” also from the Drakengard series. Thanks for sharing!
This is so raw!! I love your interpretations and notes on why songs are sung in certain ways. I’ll never hear this song the same way again, Keep it up!
Your channel popped up recently on my recommended page so I might as well comment as I've been enjoying your content so far.
I remember hearing you talk about how classical music and video game music are essentially the same (or at least very similar) and there are two tracks that immediately popped into my mind when you said this. They are "The Nexus Gazes Into the Darkness" (it has a bunch of different names on UA-cam) from Bravely Default II and "Daughter of the Dark God" from Octopath Traveler.
I'm sure these two songs are right up your alley - you will know what I mean should you decide to give them a listening - but hey, you are probably getting a ton of requests each day so I'm looking forward to whichever song you'll pick next. Greetings from Germany!
Vielen danke!!
@@MarcoMeatball You're welcome lol
@@silly5905 the daughter of the dark god is definitely coming this month :) I really appreciate your words.
man i love marco meatballs videos. i just can feel the same way about music as him.
Oh, so I'm going to suggest a few songs from all three Drakengard games since all three games bring something different. Especially Drakengard 1, as some of the "music" might as well just be called complete and total chaos and madness, given what they do in the soundtrack as a whole, and what you can glean from said music.
Drakengard 1: "Weapon Select" "Eighth Chapter Final" "Thirteenth Chapter Final" and "Rout B Staff Roll - Exhausted"
Drakengard 2: "The Plains of Pity" "Exhausted on Holy Lands" "Exhausted on Broken Earth" and "Growing Wings" (this one you can listen to English and I suggest it because of the lyrics and what it can mean/interpret from what's being sung)
Drakengard 3: "This Silence is Mine" "The Final Song" and "Exhausted 3"
Now, you've probably noticed I've given the name of a song four times, (technically five since Growing Wings is the song as well but hits differently than the others) but all of them are vastly different in tone and I think you'd find it interesting since it shows up in all three games and can give a different meaning depending on the tone being played.
But yeah, I know I suggest different music in the past, but it's really cool that you're checking out the music from another Yoko Taro game (since he directed Drakengard 1 and Drakengard 3) and Emi Evens has been in a vast variety of projects, be it games or anime. One, in particular, she sang in the Star Wars Visions anime, for the episode The Villiage Bride. And was composed by Kevin Penkin, an Australian Composer, the same man who composed the music for Made in Abyss anime and many more. I don't know if you do anime music reactions, but I want to suggest the song "Composer Diaries: Childen of Magina" from The Village Bride episode. It is beautiful, it is sad, but it is also hopeful in the face of doubt and uncertainty with the desire to triumph against a foe. At least that's my take on it.😅😊
You should do “daughter of the dark god” and/or “the one they call the witch” from Octopath Traveler.
Definitely! The version of the song that mixes both would be great!
Daughter of the dark god would be great yeah!
It’s on the list. Next week I’d say !
@@MarcoMeatball Looking forward to it! :D
@@MarcoMeatball Octopath traveller‘s ost is epic， really looking forward to it！
This song was also used in one of the DLCs where you play as the characters you fight as bosses. One of them, unlike the others, is actually a really nice person who even has a bunch of adopted orphan children. During a battle with a monster after a lot of horrible stuff happens, the boss music over time fades into the slower first half of this song as she has a mental breakdown and by the time she's put the orphans out of their misery, she's catatonic and never recovers.
Part of the tragedy of course, is that even if all of them were that nice, were actually good people... Zero would still have to kill them. I wish Drakengard 3 could get a good remaster, so more people could understand why I have 'some number' as the most tragic character of all time.
Ooh! Love to see someone else noticing and appreciating the audible breaths. I've always love this aspect of the song. It does highlight the burdens and pains of the character, making us feel the struggle ourselves. It really feels like she's crying this song out.
I love your critique on all of these songs and am glad that others adore Keichi Okabe's works paired with Emi Evan's vocals. Been in choir and orchestra while growing up so am a huge music fanatic along with wanting to learn and grow more with these subjects!
2 songs I really suggest would be the new one for Nier Replicant "Fleeting Words"(Another edit version) and Drakengard 3's Black Song White Scales(Final Song). These songs bring out so much emotion and I'm sure you'd notice and critique them well!
Awesome take on this one! A really beautiful theme that hasn't been mentioned by almost anyone is *Descendeus* (can also find it as *The* *Fallen* *God* ).
I heard it first by chance when I left UA-cam one time on auto-play. When that song suddenly came I was surprised even from the first few seconds. Later on I even teared up actually. And having known nothing about that game or song I think it's pretty awesome that just the music by itself managed to do that!
Drakenguard has some great music in it, if you haven't heard it yet you definitely should give Drakenguard's "The Final Song" a listen.
Love your vids. I've never played any Drakengard games but I got addicted to this song so much. Such an emotional piece.
If I may, I suggest you give a listen to "City of tears" from Hollow knight. Both with and without Marissa singing are good but different vibe to them.
Marco you know I always love your many Face Journeys™ and I've been here since the beginning. Love ya so much bro💙💚
BTW all of your videos are so entertaining but also hella informative and educational too
Hello my friend! ❤️
YAY!! love this theme!!
You should try and listen to Song of TRIANGLE STRATEGY the version with the vocals, I bet you would love it !
Love the insights you have on the vocals of Nier music!
I like how the dlc version has a version of this song that reminds me of the way you sung it
"this silence is mine" is great too
Can I also second the others who suggested you react to This Silence is Mine and The Final Song(from the final boss of Drakengard 3) as well as the Yuki Kajiura songs?
Yuki Kajiura is also one of my favorite composers/singers. Some of my favorite songs are: A Song of Storm and Fire(they actually a live studio reprise version just last year, highly recommended you listen to that one!),
from Puella Magi Magica Madoka: Sis Puella Magica!, Sand Dream, Take Your Hands(the whole Puella Magi Magica Madoka and Dream Port albums, are really such magical songs),
then from Pandora Hearts: Parting Song, Preparation, A Shadow.
Basically Yuki Kajiura just has a knack for creating songs that take you to a while different magical place. Been a big fan of their work for years and they are well immortalized in their albums as well as animes. No need to record videos for all of them, just wanted to share with you some lovely OSTs.
I know this one might be a little out of your field yet I feel this one will be something you'd really enjoy and emotionally experience. I honestly don't expect ya to make any videos on it, i just want to share it with a bro that feels and experiences music.
It's an album made for a movie series by Yuki Kajiura called "The Garden of Sinners" or "Kara no Kyoukai" in Japanese. You can find it on the Yuki Kajiura - topic profile page. I recommend the song "In the Garden of Sinners" since it's one of the shorter pieces that gives you a good taste of Yuki's composition style, and the wonderful musicians she worked with!
Please check out 'This Silence is Mine' from the same game. It's such a unique piece that often gets overlooked.
Hey, Marco. Love your music reviews. You definitely have some unique insights as a former opera singer, and the DrakenNieR OSTs are perfect for you.
I see in the description that you acknowledged that Kuroi Uta has two different performances, the international version being by our familiar and beloved Emi Evans, and the JPN version being by J-pop artist Eir Aoi.
I'm curious if you have any opinions on Eir Aoi's version (I have a preference for Emi's, but they're both good. It's just a great song.), especially since her version has a slightly different arrangement.
I will listen side by side :)
Ahh, then "The Final Song" is a must then... a genius in elevation
Just listening I wanted to state the words that came to mind as the song persisted for me.
Forlorn
Pensive
Dazed
Regret
Raw
I literally commented on your video two days ago to react to something from Drakengard and you did! Can you react to The Final Song next? Can’t wait to see more :D
I love your videos man! There's a chance of you reacting to last song? As far as I know it's a smash of 6 themes together from the protagonist and the "villains" of Drakengard, and as I love all Yoko Taro music carrer last song if my favorite of him, amazing video man!
Hhaha I did it yesterday ;)
@@MarcoMeatball omg I didn't know! Thanks a lot for telling me haha
This song is very special to me. At that time I just completed Drakengard 3 and it was probably at my top 3 despite all it flaws.
I don't want to sound dramatic, but I was also having a very shitty time and I was literally about to kill myself, but I opened YT to listen one last song and this one with spanish subtitles appeard (I'm chilean).
So I press the play button and when the song "explodes" says something like (based on the translation I watched):
"Cruel cold song,
I will not dance at your rhythm,
I'll get out of this nightmare
of Ice
I manage to escape from death
I get out of the forest, covered in blood
No more weaknesses
No more doubts... of destroying you"
I cried like a bitch and then I felt better. Later that year I had my first tattoo, and of course it was an illustration from this game.
Love your channel man, I discovered you today because of the DMC OST videos.
Srry for my english
Oh, an opera singer, that's an unexpected and fairly random recommendation from youtube. It's probably because I was listening to some Lea Salonga a week before.
Would recommend some songs made by Machikado-Mapoze, a touhou music circle that specializes in world music. Specifically, ones with Roverta as the singer, as she basically has the voice of an opera singer/disney princess, and most of the songs she sings on the circle reflect that. "Revolving Factory" would probably be the best one to react to, and it's one of the best Touhou arranges out there.
Man, I know I just commented that you are in the rabbit hole of nier music, but now you've gone D E E P. This Silence is Mine is also another really good one from Dg3.
I really can't say much more, because #NierSimp4Lyf. The music, even in drakengard 3, has been my favorite in almost any game series.
Drakengard 3 has a bunch of great peices! The Final Song being my favorite!
Besides my reccomendation of Daughter of the Dark God, i would like to see your thoughts on "Answers" from FFXIV!
I would recommend you the "Final song" but I dont wanna get PTSD again.
man, how can you never miss?
This is my favorite song , ALL TIME! Legit it goes Kuroi uta, Revolving Lantern (God eater), God and Man (God eater)
As much as I want you to, reacting to/breaking down 'Final Song, Black Song - White Scales', the theme of the final boss, is going to be hard. Instrumentally, it is consistent through its phases, but while it uses Black Song (kuroi uta in English) to cap the beginning and ending, the phases themselves are reprised versions of previous boss themes (SPOILERS; who are sisters to the main character). Drakengard 3 as a game is inseparable from its music ever so slightly more than other games in the series, which it achieves by entrenching its music into the gameplay with unexpected rhythm games, and even going so far as to revere the main character and her sisters as goddesses, calling them the 'Intoners.'
If you don't plan on playing it, I recommend you watching the final boss of Drakengard 3. 9:22 That open note is the bane of everyone who almost reached the end of the game for the 1st time. You will hear people praise the music of that battle and rage in equal measure over the sneaky rug pull by Yoko Taro. On second thought, maybe you should do a reaction to the music and boss fight altogether. It is uniquely esoteric, eccentric, & beautiful all at once.
Also have a look at 'Yoko Taro t shirt.' This is the man making these weird & wonderful games and commissioning all these beautiful songs.
I love this song, and ur videos that you for this
❤️❤️❤️❤️
This Silence is Mine
Awesome video! Makes me wonder how you’d react to drakengard 3’s “The last song”
This silence is mine
Emi Evans still awesome in this song ❤️❤️❤️
Parts of it is in the final boss music named "Final Song". Hope you react to it.
My recommended songs to react to:
Growing wings from drakengard 1 or 2 (there's two versions, both give off very different feelings)
Song of the Ancients from Nier Replicant
Kiss me sunlights from zone of the enders
Song of the ancients next week for sure!
3 versions of growing wings actually, in the form of drakengard 3’s “exhausted”
@@elith6930 ah okay I just remembered drakengard 1 and 2 version
@@snipertheladiesman exhausted is a banger, i prefer it more personally lol
“I don’t even know what this game is about. I assume it’s about dragons…and…stuff.”
AM I WRONG?
We are going the reverse order, we started at the Automata went to Replicant and now drakengard
And a bunch of stuff in between
The games uses an awesome remix of this song during its final boss. Much more somber but also layered and really epic. I'd give it a listen.
Also yes to silence is mine. Another banger from this weird, weird game.
"There's no joy in this. There's reflecting on what came before and saying I wish it had been different"
Are you sure you didn't play Drakengard? 😭😭😭
Well now you HAVE to listen to "The Final Song" (black song white scales)
the nier music is always the best. love listening to it before bed
I would love to see you react to Weight of the World, there's multiple versions that play in this order with each ending A-E English, Japanese, nouveau-FR, and End of Yorha ver. My favorite version is either the Japanese version or the Yorha version which I think hits even harder after listening to the other versions in my opinion.
This is reminding me of Phantom Brave OST
amazing this song is really masterpiece but is another version, for me the better is what is on the game
You should listen to the Final Song of Drakengard 3
You should also check out Fleeting Words - Another Edit from Nier:Replicant, probably my favorite piece out of all the NierGard games, second place being Kuroi Uta
Drakengard 3 is full of good stuff for you to listen to. Every level in the game has an instrumental version and a vocal version of the music that is played when you activate Intoner Mode, and song as a source of magic and power is a central theme to the game.
The vocal portions of the tracks themselves are diagetic, being sung by the main character or her opponents as part of them using their magic, and if you attempt to "intone" during a fight against and enemy who is singing, the main character instead sings in Chaos Language in an attempt to disrupt their song, and it just sounds dissonant and great. It's a really great narrative touch using music.
You can hear an example of it here at 2:25: ua-cam.com/video/BhHrFfT-Xxs/v-deo.html
@MarcoMeatball
Thank you for listening to Drakengard/Nier's wonderful music! Might I interest you in a song from Drakengard 2? It's called "Forbidden Prelude".
VERY curious to hear your thoughts on that one...
Drakengard 3 has many great tracks just like NieR (not including Drakengard 1+2 bc their OSTs are not composed by Keiichi Okabe, so very different than what you are familiar with from NieR. You can give it a try if you're interested, but brace yourself for D1 OST). Notable tracks from Drakengard 3 are: Those Long Forgotten, The Descent of God, Vacant Noise, Exhausted (also known as Growing Wings from the previous 2 games, this one is an arrangement of Growing Wings), Kuroi Uta (Black Song, the one you covered in this video), Final Song and This Silence is Mine. If you have access to the entire OST, this game has pretty good battle themes as well, like Leap Wishes or Comrade's Song.
Drakengard 3 music is like no other game. Stands without fear against Nier Automata.
But since they are actually part of the same story i can just take both
drakengard series has many good piece like fate from drakengard 2 that is very prideful yet pitiful nuance, also breakthrough and plains of pity. From drakengard 3 I recomend black song white scales (which is the final boss theme), aethervox/empty tone, descendeus, also I prefer emil evans version of EVERYTHING in drakengard 3. Drakengard 3 has the most harrowing, pitiful tone in every aspect of it, yet the story still able to make a dark jokes out of them. It feels sweet in a dark way. The pieces themselves mostly sang in solo sopranos since the Protag and the antag are all females has "power of voices" and their song can bring ruin and salvation. hence the songs are sung by sopranos. also if you read their back stories..............it's very dreadful.....as this is the "begining" of how the modern world became the "nier gestalt/replicant"
By the females, you mean the intoners. Yeah, their songs have power, but with each of their personalities, that makes them fragile, volatile or even self-destructive. They bring ruins to themselves and others, the most emotional for me was the Final Song, when all the sisters and zero began to their dance (hand dances/gesture patterns? I don't know), every movements that the sister shown to us reflect their desires and nature as Intoners (I learnt this from a commenter who notices their particular hand movements).
Ah I also forgot the symphonic poem: forbidden prelude from drakengard 2
Would it be a waste of time to review Growing Wings from Drakengard 1?
you probably gonna do this at some point but i'll leave the comment anyway, if you liked this one you should definitely react to the last song also from drakengard 3
Definitely going to do it soon :D
Oyasumi… Zero T-T
Final. Song.
the story IS extremely dark it's song of her life that was The worst and the Kuroi Hana (Dark Flowr) is pretty much her in this song as she sing it's like Good bye at the same time salvation for her
Can you do the final song next from the same game it's beautiful
Not next but absolutely :)))
Hope you would react to more Drakengard 3 and Nier's soundtracks.