Hey, Marco Polo, I found a really, really good Ultrakill song right here Seriously, you need to lend your ear to this, it's called Tenebre Rosso Sangue, and that translates to Blood Red Darkness ua-cam.com/video/MG5L-1pI8bI/v-deo.html
As far as I know, Xenoblade (the numbered series, as X is exclusively/massively Hiroyuki Sawano) is an additive series. Besides the dropping off Yoko Shimomura as composer, they added Kenji Hiramatsu to ACE and Mayaki Kiyota on Xenoblade 2, and now Yasunori Mitsuda to the three others.
@@cyberrb25 everyone you listed has been there since Xenoblade 1 (except sawano who only did X). In Xenoblade 1, Mitsuda did the ending song, Manami Kiyota was the lead composer, and Kenji Hiramatsu was working together with ACE, so they called themselves ACE+. Shimomura did a few early tracks. For Xenoblade 2, Yoko Shimomura wasn't involved, Kenji Hiramatsu worked individually this time, and Mitsuda composed a lot more songs. But they did add 1 composer, Mariam Abounnasr, who primarily seems to be an assistant to Mitsuda. For Xenoblade 3, things mostly stayed the same except Mitsuda composed almost all of the cutscene music this time, and one of MonolithSoft's internal sound engineers, Yutaka Kunigo, got to compose 2 tracks ("Ultimate Enemy" and "Exhausted Victorious, Speechless Defeated"). I'm really looking forward to his future work in particular
one of the coolest things about this song imo is that the symbol of Moebius is the infinity symbol, and the way the laughter pans in this track it sounds like its looping around your ears in the way of an infinity symbol, its such a cool touch
You know, I always thought this before your comment but I thought that I was a musical pleb who didn’t know shit. Shows you that the things done in music are really meant to have a subconscious effect on you
I think it’s not just your opinion but highly attentional, möbius strips have existed long before mathematician August Möbius described it, in ancient cultures around the world. Sometimes illustrating the möbius strip in 2D as an infinity symbol form. Also have a rotated 8 contrasts well against the Ouroboros ring.
I love the contrast between this theme and the “interlink” version. In this version, as you mentioned, there are sections that sound like the choir is laughing at you, straight up mocking you. They don’t take you seriously at all. And that sense of derision infects even the song itself. However in the “interlink” version there are no sections like that. They aren’t laughing anymore. You have turned from a mild annoyance into a massive threat. They are taking you 100% seriously now and they are trying to crush you. Just another example of the spectacular music direction these games have.
Then there is the version that plays during your battle against M. I never noticed this until my 2nd time playing, but it was absolutely brilliant. My first impression was that the flutes are overpowering and in general poorly integrated into the song. Eventually I put the pieces together that the song that plays is not just a matter of "let's add flutes because M is an off seer and off seers play flutes." The flutes in that version being overpowering and out of place are symbolizing M crying out for help screaming at the top of her lungs to get your attention. They feel out of place because M doesn't really belong with Mobius.
@@warpuppy4528and (spoilers) . . . . . . . . . it’s also signifying how the M you’re fighting is actually Mio trying to learn how to be a Moebius in M’s body after the two swapped places so Mio could live on and M could finally find the rest she’s wanted for 1000 years, with the pressure of the destiny of two whole worlds on her shoulders and a neverending cycle of violence and death that will carry on if she can’t fool N into thinking she’s actually M. The flute is shaky because she doesn’t know what she’s doing but she knows she needs to figure it out right now or she’ll lose everyone she loves, and it’s showing how uncomfortable she is with the role and the sheer pressure she’s under. The flute is bad on purpose as foreshadowing, this game is fucking incredible.
@@warpuppy4528 spoilers M is not an offseer. She's likely from a time before offseers existed anyway. The flute is there to indicate the you're fighting (our) Mio.
The Moebius Battle Theme was not written by Yasunori Mitsuda, but rather ACE (Tomori Kudo and CHiCO). The duo is famous for composing many of the bangers across the Xenoblade Chronicles franchise.
Someone once said that if it's a banger it's made by ACE but if it's a bop it's Kenji Hiramatsu (I accidentally mixed up the names of Hiramatsu and Mitsuda)
@@marcusmajarra yeah, if it's a battle theme it's either ACE or Hiramatsu. Mitsuda only does like 1 per game if at all, and only the most recent one was even a banger or a bop. I think the easiest way to tell is, Mitsuda basically never does a gameplay track, but if he does it'll use the same melody as one of his cutscene track
The amazing thing about this theme is it has a number of different "ending" tracks that it blends with after phase 2. This track is designed to loop infinitely like Moebius itself, and the ending to the track will be either Climax (Action) or Climax (Sad), and then that links into two possible closures to the song End (Action), End (Sad). These correspond to the story context of the fights. Secondly, the flute motif in the game is very significant, and there is a version of this theme with a flute overlaying alongside the opera... If you're playing the game and following the story, there's a spoiler attached to it, so I'll let you find it yourself...!
One of my absolute favorite songs of all time. It's such a good example of musical storytelling. Moebius in Xenoblade 3 represent the ruling elite, like a greedy billionaire or evil politician who doesn't care if those less fortunate suffer. And some even enjoy it. That's why I find it genius how they incorporated that sort of sadistic condescension into the song. It sounds like Moebius are laughing at you because they are. The elite loves our suffering. But in the interlink version of the song, there is no more laughing. Moebius is taking you seriously. Towards the end of the interlink version, it sounds like the voices of the chorus are fading, or like they are screaming out in pain. All that proletarian rage being unleashed on the worst people in existence is reflected in the music. Xenoblade is art in every sense of the word.
Additional nuance to the Moebius, they are also a reflection of the people of their world, brought into existence by their fears and representing everyones own capacity for evil. The elites only become elite if they are supported by the society around them.
When this theme dropped I knew this game will be awesome. Was not disappointed. The intensity just kept on going and this theme is just wild as hell and really suits the insanity of Moebius
I'm gonna repeat something that someone else discovered: If you wear headphones and hear laugh you can notice how sound travels like it's drawing infinite symbol - Moebius mark (1:39)
I had never been disappointed with any Xenoblade music. And it never will let me down. Another classic music I would say that is such a great rendition of Opera and modern music is Gurren Lagann's Libera Me. You would be astounded by the sheer audacity that it worked.
Even though I remember Marco bringing up that it’s hard to do anime songs on UA-cam due to copyright and stuff, if he ever does I wholeheartedly agree for him to look at “Libera Me from Hell”. The other I’d recommend that has heavy operatic themes is Shiro Sagisu’s “Cometh the Hour” (both Pt. A and Pt. B), his music never fails to impress too.
That’s good if true hopefully, I dunno how Aniplex is about compared to some studios and companies who will try to strike down videos if they have even 5 seconds of one of their songs.
I love this theme ever since I first met the huge Moebius. Ever since, I go and fight the other Moebius specifically to get this track playing even when Lucky Seven was straight up shredding through their health. It's something you really never get tired of. Maybe because of how all over the place this track is in terms of the instrumental and vocals.
I remember reading a comment from another video that perfectly summed up the feelings this track invokes: Awe. Fear. And Resolve. You can feel the shock of being confronted by Mobius. Something so imposing and strong. Only to be followed by the sheer terror of seeing it start ripping people apart while looking over at you. And finally, you get the last part of the track. The will of the protagonists to overcome the fearful adversary they face and survive. Tbh, it sounds like a final boss track. But it's basically just team rocket's theme song.
If the soundtrack is officially released someday, hope comes with extra content like the backstage. I really need to watch how this theme was recorded.
8:51 if you listen to where the "hahaha" is coming from, you can imagine a moebius strip, which makes sense since the song is the moebius battle music. (Moebius = Xenoblade 3's main villain group)
I love the chaos between the opera voices and the music essentially fighting each other at times. representing not just the conflict between you and mobius, but the fact that it sounds off at times and makes it seem like there is more going on that isn't good behind the scenes. fits the game super well.
I think one of the best parts of the Moebius theme that you can't really appreciate outside of the context of Xenoblade 3 is how this theme gets built upon by Phase 2. With the vocals changing to reflect Moebius going from being the ones in control to panicking a little while the instrumentation sounds a lot less dark as the end of the fight draws near. Really hope to see you cover more Xenoblade 3 tracks! Especially Weight of Life, definitely a fan and personal favourite
The Weight of Life is amazing because it’s such a banger and they only use it like twice in the entire game, but it’s specifically BUILT for the tiny number of cutscenes it plays in, crafted so that it perfectly matches the emotional flow of those scenes. It’s that restraint with such a fantastic song that really elevates it for me, they had something so good and still had the wisdom to use it better instead of using it more.
I've listened to this track a fair number of times and I'm not sure I've ever noticed just how crazy the bass guitar is going. They bass is always moving around.
This theme conveys distress. But who's distress? That of the player facing the hulking authoritatian Moebius? Or that of Moebius, terrified of losing the Endless Now they hold on to desperately? Someone is afraid. But ouroboros isn't afraid to fight.
It's 100% designed to be US since the first time we fight them is the first time we hear the theme. The game wants you to remember how threatening Moebius is. Most of them don't care about the Endless Now.
So what I love about the spectacular music of Xenoblade 3 is that when you hit around 50% of the bosses health they get stronger and tougher to the point the music has its own phase 2 which sadly most uploads of the song don't have included with phase 1. With my own general idea on how the song could be taken is that the music is basically the enemy realizing you're winning and they're getting desperate which throughout the theme, the chorus is getting drowned out by the instruments. Ultimately that this theme has a victory theme of like 15 seconds that occurs after you beat the boss where it is purely instruments. Sadly most people miss these phase 2 themes since its best to Chain Attack before the boss awakens so they don't nuke the party and the Chain Attack theme (while good) overtakes the battle theme which hurts some fights in vibe cause its a very joyous theme compared to the intensity. Then there is the spoiler versons of this theme against a certain boss which has an amazing story tie in, but obviously, spoilers for maybe one of my favorite stories of any game.
Oh. Amazing to see such video. This track was the reason to buy switch and XC3 - the greatest musical journey for me. I was so sad then finished this game cuz i was extremely attached to the characters and their stories.
I would love more operatic music here, like obviously Marco knows his stuff in music in general but there is just something about a professional talking shop about their work.
This Moebius battle music really is very intense! Especially in the moments in the story where it is used! And even in the Archsage gauntlet, when Moebius bosses arrive, this music certainly make things intense! I always remember FF7's One Winged Angel here but better.
I know I am late to the party here but what impressed me massively back with this track when you hear it are three little facts: The first one: The composers, developers and producers here worked in perfect harmony since at an iconic key moment in the game when you fight against a very certain Moebius Boss whose name I will not say due to spoilers, the music build up from 0:00 to 0:49 is all cutscene and the battle, when the player starts taking over control again is timed at the EXACT MOMENT at 0:49 when the beat drops, making it SO MUCH MORE freaking intense and awesome! The second fact: It is varied all throughout the game with different parts and at two very specific bosses has different ending parts called "Climax Action" and "Climax Sad" AND there is a special version at another certain Moebius Boss which includes a seemingly totally off-beat flute which in the end though was relevant to what was going on behind the scenes. It's musical storytelling on a matser craftsmen level that I have not seen anywhere else yet. The third fact: In the music there is this passage that sounds as if the sentence "Please Don't Kill Me" is repeated constantly which could be interpreted reflecting how every Moebius is afraid of dying. In the case of that one special Moebius with the flute there is a passage that is even emphasizing on it in a very strong manner, whilst all other Moebius themes are still accompanied by the beat and / or instruments during that section, the theme of that certain Moebius has this passage almost void of any instruments with just the Chorus chanting it, which in the end is another keypoint that you will only understand after a good while, but when these realizations hit, they hit like a damn truck! Xenoblade Chronicles 3 for sure is a shining example of how awesome something can be when everything comes together in perfect unision. A masterclass shining example of a more than stellar JRPG.
FIRST!! also, the moebius themes are my favorites, phase 2 and especially the spoilery version is my favorite. The composer gave us absolute masterpieces it's quite incredible.
The best part about the Moebius Battle track is that there are so many layers to it, streatching far & beyond your typical cutscene, low health, & victory fanfare music. For instance, in Chapters 5 & over, you'll fight Moebius critical to the story & world structure of the game, you'll hear flutes & somber low-health music & a Moebius battle that melds all the motifs of Ouroboros, Moebius, & Offseers, all of which depict that in the game through sheer musical justice. Monolithsoft never slacks when it comes to music, Xenoblade 3 has around 13 hours of music to back this up 👆
The rest of Xenoblade Chronicles 3's soundtrack is awesome. The Consol M version of moebius theme, Keves battle, Kaleidoscopic Core, and You Will Know Our Names are my favorites.
The first time this track played in game I fell in love with it and have yet to grow sick of it. I feel like it perfectly encapsulates how the suffering the Kevsei and Agnian people is nothing more than a sadist show to Moebuis (Late chapters spoilers beyond the read more) And then you have the fight against consul M that incorporates the flutes that only till that point were associated with off-seeing to make something sound so beautiful yet heartbreaking as the entire fight has the party fighting each other unwillingly after spending the whole game going from blind hatred to being a found-family. I swear the entire end of the prison segment is a masterclass in making the player feel all the suffering that the people of Aionios go through with how all the scenes after purposely drag on.... which worked because it wound up being the first game to make me actually cry because of it.
What I love about the singers melding and matching the melody of the mainly mechanical instrumentation is that it represents the souls of humanity that wish to preserve the systematic, mechanical looping system that is the endless now, that is the land of eternity, Aionios. It is a cacophony of voices that you understand is the apathy and wish for beautiful times to last forever, but know must be destroyed so that we can move on and change.
@@MarcoMeatball Yeah but for 3 you've only done a life sent on and the main theme. The fight themes in this game are amazing so I was hoping to see those.
One of my favorite boss themes of all time. It has such a unique soundscape, and it’s absolutely intimidating hearing this theme for the first time just an hour or two into the game.
I finished Xenoblade 3 yesterday so it is a pleasant surprise to see an analysis of this banger. I love your videos btw, it is amazing to see how passionate you are for music and how you share your feelings.
I loved your commentary for this, thank you! This track hit me like a truck the first time I heard it, and every time after similarly continued the dire understanding of the predicament XC3’s characters are trapped under and hooked me every time! I just wanted to add onto this a bit with some interpretations of my own that I have not seen others say here. The vocals for me elicit at multiple times in the track the rhythm of a beating heart: specifically, during a period of fight or flight, panic, and dread. After the initial buildup, what you described as “breathless” also makes me think of a panicked heartbeat. As the tension (and panic) builds, and the characters fight on for survival, there comes that moment in the track that ALWAYS tears me out of the game when the music (and vocals) outright stop for 1-2 seconds. Then it descends into the chaotic cycle of dread and mockery you mentioned. For me, this exactly encompasses one of Eunie’s pivotal character arc moments where she comes face to face with D and stops dead, steeped in dread and panic, just to have him mock her and strike. So in a way, the vocals in that part of the track for her are like her panicking heartbeat suddenly stoppping due to overwhelming dread, just to be mocked and treated like cattle. The entire track perfectly encompasses everything about the lore and personality of Moebius, but I always pause at this part of the track to remember that I am fighting a sadistic sociopath who intends to harvest us for their sustenance, and even amusement. Then no matter how grueling the fight had been, I like the characters get that adrenaline boost to persevere over them. I love Xenoblade’s music to no end!
Let's GO I was hoping so much for you to react to this! Very interesting hearing your take on the "Hahahahaha"-parts. I always saw these parts as Moebius mocking the player as it basically sounds like laughter. The voices changing their position through dynamic panning makes me feel the supernatural powers that they possess, defying the laws of physics since singers can't possibly move from left to right so fast. Edit: Oh, I just arrived at 07:45 and you're now saying just that. :D Just goes to show how well the language of music works and how well Mitsuda knows to use it.
I saw some people wondering if a choir actually sang this song or if the voices are synthesised. Well, the OST just arrived and confirms the vocals were performed by a choir named Barzz. Here's the message they included with the soundtrack. Barzz: "I still remember the recordings by ACE and Hiramatsu. Among those cool songs, "Moebius Battle" is especially memorable. (Laughs.) We were pretty busy before recording. When I received the score, the lyrics were all vowels, but I was asked to write the lyrics on short notice, and I wrote the lyrics by hand in roman characters (I remember it was midnight the day before recording...). On the day of the recording, I wrote the words "ah" in Roman alphabet. On the day of the recording, I changed the "ah" in this part to "ah!! I managed to sing the whole song. Another song, "Nia~ Toward the Heavens," is a personal favourite of mine. I asked all the Chorus members to sing it gently, tenderly, lovingly, and in a roundabout way. I can't write about all the songs, but the most important thing for us is to see how close we can get to the composer's image and exceed it." And here's the composer Tomori Kudo's liner notes for the track: "Since this was a battle song against an unprecedented enemy called Moebius, I started with the idea of creating a challenging song that had never been done before. In the chorus, I tried to create the atmosphere of a madman's banquet, and in the synthesiser, I tried to express the lustre and might of Moebius. We want people to think that we are invincible!" We can only imagine the exhilaration of performing a song like this...
THIS WAS EXACTLY THE SONG I WAS THINKING OF LIKE I WAS THINKING WOW I WANT MARCO TO REACT TO MOEBIUS THEME OR XC3'S OST AND THEN THIS POPPED UP IN MY RECOMMENDED WOW (my apologies for the caps lock i am just excited as xc3 was my ost of the year for 2022)
Hey Marco, just wanted to point out that this track was not actually composed by Mitsuda but rather TOMOri Kudo from ACE (who are long time Xenoblade composers). Great vid!
5:00 I just got this way of seeing it: It's the equivalent of one long inspiration and a bunch of quick ones. They take the same air, but one imprints more agitation than the other.
And that's just the _base_ version. There are _several_ more variants, including the interlink version, multiple climax versions, and then an entire set that adds a whole additional instrument to the mix that takes center stage, and it's not one that I think would normally be associated with _rock opera._
@@shutup1037 I recommend Engage the Enemy Keves Battle Counterattack Colony 9(XC1) Incoming! Torna Battle theme Mor Ardain ~ Roaming the Wastes Zanza the Divine Showdown against Z Phase 2 Words that couldn't reach you The Power of Jin You will Know Our Names Mechanical Rhythm You Will Recall Our Names Uncontrollable Future Connected Battle theme (Bionis's shoulder) Drifting Souls Drifting Souls Battle A Moment of Eternity Where we Belong Tantal Theme Xenoblade Chronicles Main Theme Erythia Sea A Tragic Decision Afther Despair and Hope Fogbeast Battle Weight of Life And at last i'd recommend the whole soundtrack of the Three Games + Xenoblade Chronicles X
this is giving me damned flashbacks to a boss fight that used this piece that I was NOT prepared for. went on for a good 20 minutes sicne I could barely keep my party alive manually controlling a healer. all the while this piece of bombastic stress is wailing in the background. its interesting too, i havent beaten the game either but the three mobeus fights that I had were all in-universe very high stakes for the characters. do or die situations.
You should definitely listen to the ost in the Xenosaga trilogy some day, especially Xenosaga 1 if you're really into Yasunori Mitsuda's stuff. Xenosaga 3 had some other really great music but that was done by Yuki Kajiura so it's a little different. Xenosaga 2 tho, we don't really talk about that ost much...
When I was first getting into this game, I didn’t really enjoy the Moebius themes as much as others. However, I do appreciate how dire it sounds, which mirrors the gameplay well (playing on hard mode, pray for me 😂)
I love this track! It always gave me chills whenever a Moebius battle would start since i knew i would be in for a good time :) Its sadly also the only track that has stuck with me outside of the game, the rest of the music is great, but this one really sticks out to me. Gods! i can't wait for the expansion!
I would love for him to react to more Xenoblade songs, like Carrying the Weight of Life or Counterattack. It's been a while since he's done one, and the DLC for XC3 released after this last video. Future Awaits and New Battle!!! are great songs from it that I would love for him to talk about
I know youve learned this multiple times by now but for the future i really recommend you pay attention to this: Yasunori Mitsuda does not compose anything that sounds like a battle theme in Xenoblade. If it's a battle theme and sounds very actiony and intense, you should think ACE looooooooooooooong before you even consider Mitsuda. When you think of Mitsuda, you should think Corridors or Time from Chrono Trigger. That's not his only style but in Xenoblade his songe are MUCH less intense, MUCH more cinematic. Hope you can remember this for the future.
Hey Marco! Great reaction and analysis as always :) Just wanted to share this with you. A lot of the UA-cam uploads of the Xenoblade 3 soundtrack are rough when it comes to looping or audio quality (basically every upload of the Moebius theme has those weird cuts or audio pops) but there's a gamerip soundtrack released recently that is very well organized and AMAZING quality. Might be useful for future Xenoblade 3 reactions! There's even download links and an info sheet too in the comment section by the uploader. ua-cam.com/video/8zg96jxfUOY/v-deo.html
People who didn't play Xenoblade Chronicles 3: "Wow what a great final boss track, so epic" People who did play Xenoblade Chronicles 3: "Final Boss? Its just the first boss there m8.. Welcome to Xenoblade"
@@MarcoMeatball I feel it's pretty important that you play 1 and 2 before 3. The characters, story, and exploration are directly from Xenoblade 1 and 2
Hi Marco! Are you dying to listen to Shenhe's or Ayaka's theme for the upcoming rerun? I think that I am not the only one who wants to hear your impression😅
@@MarcoMeatball Hahaha) Yes, you watched the trailer. I remembered after writing, sorry🥲 BTW I really adore your videos. Your explanations of every melody, every tune, every mood change in the music are cool. It's so exciting to watch
TOMOri Kudo from ACE is the composer of this particular track!
Hey, Marco Polo, I found a really, really good Ultrakill song right here
Seriously, you need to lend your ear to this, it's called Tenebre Rosso Sangue, and that translates to Blood Red Darkness
ua-cam.com/video/MG5L-1pI8bI/v-deo.html
Pls check out the new deepwoken songs that came out
The mastermind behind a good chunk of the Xenoblade bangers
As far as I know, Xenoblade (the numbered series, as X is exclusively/massively Hiroyuki Sawano) is an additive series. Besides the dropping off Yoko Shimomura as composer, they added Kenji Hiramatsu to ACE and Mayaki Kiyota on Xenoblade 2, and now Yasunori Mitsuda to the three others.
@@cyberrb25 everyone you listed has been there since Xenoblade 1 (except sawano who only did X).
In Xenoblade 1, Mitsuda did the ending song, Manami Kiyota was the lead composer, and Kenji Hiramatsu was working together with ACE, so they called themselves ACE+. Shimomura did a few early tracks.
For Xenoblade 2, Yoko Shimomura wasn't involved, Kenji Hiramatsu worked individually this time, and Mitsuda composed a lot more songs. But they did add 1 composer, Mariam Abounnasr, who primarily seems to be an assistant to Mitsuda.
For Xenoblade 3, things mostly stayed the same except Mitsuda composed almost all of the cutscene music this time, and one of MonolithSoft's internal sound engineers, Yutaka Kunigo, got to compose 2 tracks ("Ultimate Enemy" and "Exhausted Victorious, Speechless Defeated"). I'm really looking forward to his future work in particular
one of the coolest things about this song imo is that the symbol of Moebius is the infinity symbol, and the way the laughter pans in this track it sounds like its looping around your ears in the way of an infinity symbol, its such a cool touch
You know, I always thought this before your comment but I thought that I was a musical pleb who didn’t know shit. Shows you that the things done in music are really meant to have a subconscious effect on you
I think it’s not just your opinion but highly attentional, möbius strips have existed long before mathematician August Möbius described it, in ancient cultures around the world. Sometimes illustrating the möbius strip in 2D as an infinity symbol form. Also have a rotated 8 contrasts well against the Ouroboros ring.
I'm glad a guy named Moebius discovered the strip. Would've been weird if some guy named Richard did. Richard strip.... Eugh
I love the contrast between this theme and the “interlink” version. In this version, as you mentioned, there are sections that sound like the choir is laughing at you, straight up mocking you. They don’t take you seriously at all. And that sense of derision infects even the song itself.
However in the “interlink” version there are no sections like that. They aren’t laughing anymore. You have turned from a mild annoyance into a massive threat. They are taking you 100% seriously now and they are trying to crush you.
Just another example of the spectacular music direction these games have.
Damn I never noticed but you're right! O.o
I read this exact comment in the original video...
Then there is the version that plays during your battle against M. I never noticed this until my 2nd time playing, but it was absolutely brilliant.
My first impression was that the flutes are overpowering and in general poorly integrated into the song. Eventually I put the pieces together that the song that plays is not just a matter of "let's add flutes because M is an off seer and off seers play flutes." The flutes in that version being overpowering and out of place are symbolizing M crying out for help screaming at the top of her lungs to get your attention. They feel out of place because M doesn't really belong with Mobius.
@@warpuppy4528and (spoilers)
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it’s also signifying how the M you’re fighting is actually Mio trying to learn how to be a Moebius in M’s body after the two swapped places so Mio could live on and M could finally find the rest she’s wanted for 1000 years, with the pressure of the destiny of two whole worlds on her shoulders and a neverending cycle of violence and death that will carry on if she can’t fool N into thinking she’s actually M. The flute is shaky because she doesn’t know what she’s doing but she knows she needs to figure it out right now or she’ll lose everyone she loves, and it’s showing how uncomfortable she is with the role and the sheer pressure she’s under. The flute is bad on purpose as foreshadowing, this game is fucking incredible.
@@warpuppy4528 spoilers
M is not an offseer. She's likely from a time before offseers existed anyway. The flute is there to indicate the you're fighting (our) Mio.
At 1:38, the chorus literally makes the infinity symbol with the sound. It's so good
I never noticed that, holy shit.
Yet Xenoblade lost to the God of War in TGA in soundtrack
I don't care about these awards but that's just disrespectful
@@renren47618 yep Xenoblade should hace won Best ost
Oh fuck
@@renren47618 yeah game awards truly hates epic songs. They almost always award it to a game that is just silence for most of the game.
The Moebius Battle Theme was not written by Yasunori Mitsuda, but rather ACE (Tomori Kudo and CHiCO). The duo is famous for composing many of the bangers across the Xenoblade Chronicles franchise.
I corrected myself
Someone once said that if it's a banger it's made by ACE but if it's a bop it's Kenji Hiramatsu
(I accidentally mixed up the names of Hiramatsu and Mitsuda)
@@nefylia4037 if it's a banger, it's ACE; if it's a bop, it's Kenji Hiramatsu
@@marcusmajarra yeah, if it's a battle theme it's either ACE or Hiramatsu. Mitsuda only does like 1 per game if at all, and only the most recent one was even a banger or a bop.
I think the easiest way to tell is, Mitsuda basically never does a gameplay track, but if he does it'll use the same melody as one of his cutscene track
@@dugtrioramenI'm pretty sure Mitsuda does more than 1 track after XC1.
The amazing thing about this theme is it has a number of different "ending" tracks that it blends with after phase 2. This track is designed to loop infinitely like Moebius itself, and the ending to the track will be either Climax (Action) or Climax (Sad), and then that links into two possible closures to the song End (Action), End (Sad). These correspond to the story context of the fights.
Secondly, the flute motif in the game is very significant, and there is a version of this theme with a flute overlaying alongside the opera... If you're playing the game and following the story, there's a spoiler attached to it, so I'll let you find it yourself...!
One of my absolute favorite songs of all time. It's such a good example of musical storytelling. Moebius in Xenoblade 3 represent the ruling elite, like a greedy billionaire or evil politician who doesn't care if those less fortunate suffer. And some even enjoy it. That's why I find it genius how they incorporated that sort of sadistic condescension into the song. It sounds like Moebius are laughing at you because they are. The elite loves our suffering.
But in the interlink version of the song, there is no more laughing. Moebius is taking you seriously. Towards the end of the interlink version, it sounds like the voices of the chorus are fading, or like they are screaming out in pain. All that proletarian rage being unleashed on the worst people in existence is reflected in the music. Xenoblade is art in every sense of the word.
Additional nuance to the Moebius, they are also a reflection of the people of their world, brought into existence by their fears and representing everyones own capacity for evil. The elites only become elite if they are supported by the society around them.
Two Xenoblade songs i really recommended are "God slaying Sword" and "Zanza the Divine"
When this theme dropped I knew this game will be awesome. Was not disappointed. The intensity just kept on going and this theme is just wild as hell and really suits the insanity of Moebius
Would you evensay that its a wild ride
I'm gonna repeat something that someone else discovered: If you wear headphones and hear laugh you can notice how sound travels like it's drawing infinite symbol - Moebius mark (1:39)
I had never been disappointed with any Xenoblade music. And it never will let me down.
Another classic music I would say that is such a great rendition of Opera and modern music is Gurren Lagann's Libera Me. You would be astounded by the sheer audacity that it worked.
Even though I remember Marco bringing up that it’s hard to do anime songs on UA-cam due to copyright and stuff, if he ever does I wholeheartedly agree for him to look at “Libera Me from Hell”. The other I’d recommend that has heavy operatic themes is Shiro Sagisu’s “Cometh the Hour” (both Pt. A and Pt. B), his music never fails to impress too.
@@Genjiiro from what I know, Libera Me from Hell is not copyrighted. But if it is, I am sorely disappointed that we can't see his reaction
That’s good if true hopefully, I dunno how Aniplex is about compared to some studios and companies who will try to strike down videos if they have even 5 seconds of one of their songs.
I love this theme ever since I first met the huge Moebius. Ever since, I go and fight the other Moebius specifically to get this track playing even when Lucky Seven was straight up shredding through their health. It's something you really never get tired of. Maybe because of how all over the place this track is in terms of the instrumental and vocals.
The fact that this plays in the first few HOURS of the game is what let me know I was in for a wild ride.
The M version of this track is soo good, i feel it adds an extra layer of emotion to it
I remember reading a comment from another video that perfectly summed up the feelings this track invokes: Awe. Fear. And Resolve. You can feel the shock of being confronted by Mobius. Something so imposing and strong. Only to be followed by the sheer terror of seeing it start ripping people apart while looking over at you. And finally, you get the last part of the track. The will of the protagonists to overcome the fearful adversary they face and survive. Tbh, it sounds like a final boss track. But it's basically just team rocket's theme song.
If the soundtrack is officially released someday, hope comes with extra content like the backstage. I really need to watch how this theme was recorded.
The previous games' soundtracks have been officially released so it'd be odd if they don't release XC3's
@@ZeroMH after the dlc is out i assume
@@obba40 They announced the soundtrack release date before the story dlc gets a release date. Lol
we don’t have backstage details, *but* we do know because of the credits the group that actually recorded the vocals: barzz
8:51 if you listen to where the "hahaha" is coming from, you can imagine a moebius strip, which makes sense since the song is the moebius battle music. (Moebius = Xenoblade 3's main villain group)
"Fuck it-fuck it, fuck it-fuck all fuck FUUUUCK" is the best opener to a boss battle theme of all time.
They're saying "chop chop chop chop chop chop AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH"!
ゼノブレイド3のメビウス戦のBGMはイントロから大好きです！
取り上げて頂いてありがとうございます！嬉しいです！！
メビウスの戦では多くのパターンのコーラスが使用されており、この点に関しても「メビウスとは画面の前にいる我々である」という事を示すメッセージのように感じました。
I love the chaos between the opera voices and the music essentially fighting each other at times. representing not just the conflict between you and mobius, but the fact that it sounds off at times and makes it seem like there is more going on that isn't good behind the scenes. fits the game super well.
I never knew the ways the body needed to be involved in the vocals of this! It fits so well with Moebius, especially after you've finished the game.
I think one of the best parts of the Moebius theme that you can't really appreciate outside of the context of Xenoblade 3 is how this theme gets built upon by Phase 2. With the vocals changing to reflect Moebius going from being the ones in control to panicking a little while the instrumentation sounds a lot less dark as the end of the fight draws near.
Really hope to see you cover more Xenoblade 3 tracks! Especially Weight of Life, definitely a fan and personal favourite
The Weight of Life is amazing because it’s such a banger and they only use it like twice in the entire game, but it’s specifically BUILT for the tiny number of cutscenes it plays in, crafted so that it perfectly matches the emotional flow of those scenes. It’s that restraint with such a fantastic song that really elevates it for me, they had something so good and still had the wisdom to use it better instead of using it more.
I've listened to this track a fair number of times and I'm not sure I've ever noticed just how crazy the bass guitar is going. They bass is always moving around.
This theme conveys distress. But who's distress? That of the player facing the hulking authoritatian Moebius? Or that of Moebius, terrified of losing the Endless Now they hold on to desperately? Someone is afraid. But ouroboros isn't afraid to fight.
It's 100% designed to be US since the first time we fight them is the first time we hear the theme. The game wants you to remember how threatening Moebius is.
Most of them don't care about the Endless Now.
It's the big bad boss! Boo!
If you look up "Moebius Medley," you get the best possible combination of all the Moebius theme variations.
So what I love about the spectacular music of Xenoblade 3 is that when you hit around 50% of the bosses health they get stronger and tougher to the point the music has its own phase 2 which sadly most uploads of the song don't have included with phase 1.
With my own general idea on how the song could be taken is that the music is basically the enemy realizing you're winning and they're getting desperate which throughout the theme, the chorus is getting drowned out by the instruments. Ultimately that this theme has a victory theme of like 15 seconds that occurs after you beat the boss where it is purely instruments. Sadly most people miss these phase 2 themes since its best to Chain Attack before the boss awakens so they don't nuke the party and the Chain Attack theme (while good) overtakes the battle theme which hurts some fights in vibe cause its a very joyous theme compared to the intensity.
Then there is the spoiler versons of this theme against a certain boss which has an amazing story tie in, but obviously, spoilers for maybe one of my favorite stories of any game.
With this song, this particular version doesn't have a Climax version, but the Interlink theme _does._
Oh. Amazing to see such video. This track was the reason to buy switch and XC3 - the greatest musical journey for me. I was so sad then finished this game cuz i was extremely attached to the characters and their stories.
I would love more operatic music here, like obviously Marco knows his stuff in music in general but there is just something about a professional talking shop about their work.
This Moebius battle music really is very intense! Especially in the moments in the story where it is used! And even in the Archsage gauntlet, when Moebius bosses arrive, this music certainly make things intense! I always remember FF7's One Winged Angel here but better.
I know I am late to the party here but what impressed me massively back with this track when you hear it are three little facts:
The first one: The composers, developers and producers here worked in perfect harmony since at an iconic key moment in the game when you fight against a very certain Moebius Boss whose name I will not say due to spoilers, the music build up from 0:00 to 0:49 is all cutscene and the battle, when the player starts taking over control again is timed at the EXACT MOMENT at 0:49 when the beat drops, making it SO MUCH MORE freaking intense and awesome!
The second fact: It is varied all throughout the game with different parts and at two very specific bosses has different ending parts called "Climax Action" and "Climax Sad" AND there is a special version at another certain Moebius Boss which includes a seemingly totally off-beat flute which in the end though was relevant to what was going on behind the scenes.
It's musical storytelling on a matser craftsmen level that I have not seen anywhere else yet.
The third fact: In the music there is this passage that sounds as if the sentence "Please Don't Kill Me" is repeated constantly which could be interpreted reflecting how every Moebius is afraid of dying. In the case of that one special Moebius with the flute there is a passage that is even emphasizing on it in a very strong manner, whilst all other Moebius themes are still accompanied by the beat and / or instruments during that section, the theme of that certain Moebius has this passage almost void of any instruments with just the Chorus chanting it, which in the end is another keypoint that you will only understand after a good while, but when these realizations hit, they hit like a damn truck!
Xenoblade Chronicles 3 for sure is a shining example of how awesome something can be when everything comes together in perfect unision.
A masterclass shining example of a more than stellar JRPG.
FIRST!!
also, the moebius themes are my favorites, phase 2 and especially the spoilery version is my favorite. The composer gave us absolute masterpieces it's quite incredible.
First because this is unlisted :D
I LOVE THIS OST SO MUCH ! You analysing it is always a joy
The best part about the Moebius Battle track is that there are so many layers to it, streatching far & beyond your typical cutscene, low health, & victory fanfare music. For instance, in Chapters 5 & over, you'll fight Moebius critical to the story & world structure of the game, you'll hear flutes & somber low-health music & a Moebius battle that melds all the motifs of Ouroboros, Moebius, & Offseers, all of which depict that in the game through sheer musical justice. Monolithsoft never slacks when it comes to music, Xenoblade 3 has around 13 hours of music to back this up 👆
The rest of Xenoblade Chronicles 3's soundtrack is awesome. The Consol M version of moebius theme, Keves battle, Kaleidoscopic Core, and You Will Know Our Names are my favorites.
The first time this track played in game I fell in love with it and have yet to grow sick of it. I feel like it perfectly encapsulates how the suffering the Kevsei and Agnian people is nothing more than a sadist show to Moebuis (Late chapters spoilers beyond the read more)
And then you have the fight against consul M that incorporates the flutes that only till that point were associated with off-seeing to make something sound so beautiful yet heartbreaking as the entire fight has the party fighting each other unwillingly after spending the whole game going from blind hatred to being a found-family. I swear the entire end of the prison segment is a masterclass in making the player feel all the suffering that the people of Aionios go through with how all the scenes after purposely drag on.... which worked because it wound up being the first game to make me actually cry because of it.
What I love about the singers melding and matching the melody of the mainly mechanical instrumentation is that it represents the souls of humanity that wish to preserve the systematic, mechanical looping system that is the endless now, that is the land of eternity, Aionios. It is a cacophony of voices that you understand is the apathy and wish for beautiful times to last forever, but know must be destroyed so that we can move on and change.
Ah yes my favorite game, emotional damage. Anyways this song is an absolute banger and goes so hard.
Finally. I'm so glad your finally getting some xeno 3 fight music in here!
i mean theres like 5 already!
@@MarcoMeatball Yeah but for 3 you've only done a life sent on and the main theme. The fight themes in this game are amazing so I was hoping to see those.
One of my favorite boss themes of all time. It has such a unique soundscape, and it’s absolutely intimidating hearing this theme for the first time just an hour or two into the game.
I finished Xenoblade 3 yesterday so it is a pleasant surprise to see an analysis of this banger. I love your videos btw, it is amazing to see how passionate you are for music and how you share your feelings.
im glad you enjoyed it!!!!
I loved your commentary for this, thank you!
This track hit me like a truck the first time I heard it, and every time after similarly continued the dire understanding of the predicament XC3’s characters are trapped under and hooked me every time!
I just wanted to add onto this a bit with some interpretations of my own that I have not seen others say here.
The vocals for me elicit at multiple times in the track the rhythm of a beating heart: specifically, during a period of fight or flight, panic, and dread. After the initial buildup, what you described as “breathless” also makes me think of a panicked heartbeat.
As the tension (and panic) builds, and the characters fight on for survival, there comes that moment in the track that ALWAYS tears me out of the game when the music (and vocals) outright stop for 1-2 seconds. Then it descends into the chaotic cycle of dread and mockery you mentioned.
For me, this exactly encompasses one of Eunie’s pivotal character arc moments where she comes face to face with D and stops dead, steeped in dread and panic, just to have him mock her and strike. So in a way, the vocals in that part of the track for her are like her panicking heartbeat suddenly stoppping due to overwhelming dread, just to be mocked and treated like cattle.
The entire track perfectly encompasses everything about the lore and personality of Moebius, but I always pause at this part of the track to remember that I am fighting a sadistic sociopath who intends to harvest us for their sustenance, and even amusement. Then no matter how grueling the fight had been, I like the characters get that adrenaline boost to persevere over them.
I love Xenoblade’s music to no end!
Robbed of game of the year :( Thank you for reacting!
Let's GO I was hoping so much for you to react to this!
Very interesting hearing your take on the "Hahahahaha"-parts. I always saw these parts as Moebius mocking the player as it basically sounds like laughter. The voices changing their position through dynamic panning makes me feel the supernatural powers that they possess, defying the laws of physics since singers can't possibly move from left to right so fast.
Edit: Oh, I just arrived at 07:45 and you're now saying just that. :D Just goes to show how well the language of music works and how well Mitsuda knows to use it.
Bro couldn't even finish the full video before commenting
@@octavia8836 Too much excitement lmao
@@CritsVG no that's so real though, I love this dude
I saw some people wondering if a choir actually sang this song or if the voices are synthesised. Well, the OST just arrived and confirms the vocals were performed by a choir named Barzz. Here's the message they included with the soundtrack.
Barzz:
"I still remember the recordings by ACE and Hiramatsu. Among those cool songs, "Moebius Battle" is especially memorable. (Laughs.) We were pretty busy before recording. When I received the score, the lyrics were all vowels, but I was asked to write the lyrics on short notice, and I wrote the lyrics by hand in roman characters (I remember it was midnight the day before recording...). On the day of the recording, I wrote the words "ah" in Roman alphabet. On the day of the recording, I changed the "ah" in this part to "ah!! I managed to sing the whole song. Another song, "Nia~ Toward the Heavens," is a personal favourite of mine. I asked all the Chorus members to sing it gently, tenderly, lovingly, and in a roundabout way. I can't write about all the songs, but the most important thing for us is to see how close we can get to the composer's image and exceed it."
And here's the composer Tomori Kudo's liner notes for the track:
"Since this was a battle song against an unprecedented enemy called Moebius, I started with the idea of creating a challenging song that had never been done before. In the chorus, I tried to create the atmosphere of a madman's banquet, and in the synthesiser, I tried to express the lustre and might of Moebius. We want people to think that we are invincible!"
We can only imagine the exhilaration of performing a song like this...
I will never get tired of marco's expressiveness, HOW CAN YOU NOT LIKE THIS GUY!?
Finally! It’s so great to finally see you react and breakdown this track! I’m still so amazed at the composition of this piece.
THIS WAS EXACTLY THE SONG I WAS THINKING OF LIKE I WAS THINKING WOW I WANT MARCO TO REACT TO MOEBIUS THEME OR XC3'S OST AND THEN THIS POPPED UP IN MY RECOMMENDED WOW (my apologies for the caps lock i am just excited as xc3 was my ost of the year for 2022)
The second part of this theme is even crazier!
Wow, i love getting perspectives on things. Especially from experts. Thank you :)
Glad you enjoyed it!
I'm jealous with that beard, wonder when will it grow anyway stay strong Marco 💪
Wait till you hear moebious interlink and moebious M also when those boss are at 15 to 10% of hp the song get a variation
Ngl it honestly makes me happy he listened to it before he made the video its a great song
I think everyday on how the heck this game lost best soundtrack at the game awards...
Holy cow, was just thinking on the way home from work how much I wanted to hear your thoughts on this track, and here I find it. Time to hit play!
I love your reviews of Xenoblade music I would always love to see you review more xenoblade
Freeing colonies was great because I got to fight Moebius and hear this song again
Hey Marco, just wanted to point out that this track was not actually composed by Mitsuda but rather TOMOri Kudo from ACE (who are long time Xenoblade composers). Great vid!
oopsie.
And just for that theme alone the game deserves an award!
Oroborous Awakens is a lot like this, and is so epic!
One thing I heard is the key vocalists of the two songs are SIBLINGS!
5:00 I just got this way of seeing it: It's the equivalent of one long inspiration and a bunch of quick ones. They take the same air, but one imprints more agitation than the other.
And that's just the _base_ version. There are _several_ more variants, including the interlink version, multiple climax versions, and then an entire set that adds a whole additional instrument to the mix that takes center stage, and it's not one that I think would normally be associated with _rock opera._
I havent played any xenoblade, this music alone make me want to buy switch so i can play it
@Decidueye6 what is other XB music that you listen to?
Buy and play it now
@@shutup1037 I recommend
Engage the Enemy
Keves Battle
Counterattack
Colony 9(XC1)
Incoming!
Torna Battle theme
Mor Ardain ~ Roaming the Wastes
Zanza the Divine
Showdown against Z Phase 2
Words that couldn't reach you
The Power of Jin
You will Know Our Names
Mechanical Rhythm
You Will Recall Our Names
Uncontrollable
Future Connected Battle theme (Bionis's shoulder)
Drifting Souls
Drifting Souls Battle
A Moment of Eternity
Where we Belong
Tantal Theme
Xenoblade Chronicles Main Theme
Erythia Sea
A Tragic Decision
Afther Despair and Hope
Fogbeast Battle
Weight of Life
And at last i'd recommend the whole soundtrack of the Three Games + Xenoblade Chronicles X
Well, awesome work as always !
Still a blast to hear you analyze all those OST, and now you are doing Xeno 3 !
Glad you enjoy it!
I still can't wait until you get into Homeworld 1's Adiago for Strings. I really think you're going to be blown away by that one
this is giving me damned flashbacks to a boss fight that used this piece that I was NOT prepared for. went on for a good 20 minutes sicne I could barely keep my party alive manually controlling a healer. all the while this piece of bombastic stress is wailing in the background.
its interesting too, i havent beaten the game either but the three mobeus fights that I had were all in-universe very high stakes for the characters. do or die situations.
You should definitely listen to the ost in the Xenosaga trilogy some day, especially Xenosaga 1 if you're really into Yasunori Mitsuda's stuff. Xenosaga 3 had some other really great music but that was done by Yuki Kajiura so it's a little different. Xenosaga 2 tho, we don't really talk about that ost much...
When I was first getting into this game, I didn’t really enjoy the Moebius themes as much as others. However, I do appreciate how dire it sounds, which mirrors the gameplay well (playing on hard mode, pray for me 😂)
That's a cool analysis of the vocals
I love this track!
It always gave me chills whenever a Moebius battle would start since i knew i would be in for a good time :)
Its sadly also the only track that has stuck with me outside of the game, the rest of the music is great, but this one really sticks out to me.
Gods! i can't wait for the expansion!
This ost should have won best ost at the game awards and idc what anyone else says xD
Been waiting for you to do this one since the game came out
This song is among the greats. It belongs right up there next to One Winged Angel
6:18 : Really looks like maleficent laughs. Like Evil himself laughing at you.
I JUST MOEBED
this rly does sound amazing wow
It sounds like the beginning is saying "Suck it, Suuuck it! Suck it suck cool sock COOOOOOOOOCK"
I Still want to recommend you Shadows of the lowlands from Xenoblade 2. It's very beautiful with the Choir video Nintendo made to accompany it.
*Hay risas en la canción*
Los jugadores: se están burlando de nosotros
I would love for him to react to more Xenoblade songs, like Carrying the Weight of Life or Counterattack. It's been a while since he's done one, and the DLC for XC3 released after this last video. Future Awaits and New Battle!!! are great songs from it that I would love for him to talk about
Please do a breakdown of Weight of Life from Xeno 3 as well.
Reminder that this OST did NOT win best soundtrack during the game awards. I consider that a horrible crime.
I know youve learned this multiple times by now but for the future i really recommend you pay attention to this:
Yasunori Mitsuda does not compose anything that sounds like a battle theme in Xenoblade. If it's a battle theme and sounds very actiony and intense, you should think ACE looooooooooooooong before you even consider Mitsuda.
When you think of Mitsuda, you should think Corridors or Time from Chrono Trigger. That's not his only style but in Xenoblade his songe are MUCH less intense, MUCH more cinematic. Hope you can remember this for the future.
Hey Marco! Great reaction and analysis as always :)
Just wanted to share this with you. A lot of the UA-cam uploads of the Xenoblade 3 soundtrack are rough when it comes to looping or audio quality (basically every upload of the Moebius theme has those weird cuts or audio pops) but there's a gamerip soundtrack released recently that is very well organized and AMAZING quality. Might be useful for future Xenoblade 3 reactions! There's even download links and an info sheet too in the comment section by the uploader.
ua-cam.com/video/8zg96jxfUOY/v-deo.html
OMG I loved this song so much
Marco. You'll have a fun time as you spend more time playing Xenoblade Chronicles 3.
You should do the Weight of Life
People who didn't play Xenoblade Chronicles 3:
"Wow what a great final boss track, so epic"
People who did play Xenoblade Chronicles 3:
"Final Boss? Its just the first boss there m8.. Welcome to Xenoblade"
Plot twist: Marco was one of the people in the song.
i havent seen the full vid yet but i hope he listens to the version that plays at the end of chapter 5
I don't think i did!
BRO YOU GOTTA LISTEN TO IT
LET'S FREAKING GOOOOO!!!
Maybe is not the right video to comment this, but still, i want to see you reacting "Ace Combat 7 - Diapason"
Shoutout to badass flesh mecha
This song is amazing
Finally!!!
I fought the first boss today man It was awesome !
Did you analyze phase 2 of the song? This is when the mocking superiority of phase 1 is drop and gets serious.
Will you please play Xenoblade? These games honestly changed me, and I want you to understand the meaning behind these songs!
I will work my way through Xenoblade 3!
@@MarcoMeatball I feel it's pretty important that you play 1 and 2 before 3. The characters, story, and exploration are directly from Xenoblade 1 and 2
Please submit your reactions to the theme song "Lilium" from the anime "elfen lied(2004)"!
no anime
Hi Marco! Are you dying to listen to Shenhe's or Ayaka's theme for the upcoming rerun? I think that I am not the only one who wants to hear your impression😅
Ayaka i did!
@@MarcoMeatball Hahaha) Yes, you watched the trailer. I remembered after writing, sorry🥲
BTW I really adore your videos. Your explanations of every melody, every tune, every mood change in the music are cool. It's so exciting to watch