Uematsu and Williams (Score 1)

Well, I'm about to start college (if all goes as planned) studying aesthetic composition specifically, and I think there's a happy medium; it's what I strive for in my music. A great composer can accomplish both "lisenability on its own" and enhancement of gameplay at once--that is to say, he or she can convey a mood or intensify an emotion without masking his or her personal style or hindering the music's ability to stand on its own. If this is what you're looking for, try Yoko Kanno or The Dust Brothers. However, John Williams' and Uematsu's goal (and probably Square's as well) is to write music specifically for the visual work which it is to accompany. Our friend Nobuo does an awesome job of this, and Project Majestic Mix only gives him the recognition and remixation he deserves. I have heard many of the songs that will appear on the final editions of the disc, and all of them have turned Nobuo Uematsu's spectacular, boring, looped, emotional, or scene-driven pieces and made them into pieces that can stand on their own. So, if you're pi**ed (can I say that here?) that Uematsu writes only for the game, here's your chance to hear some of his music rearranged in crazy ways that will make your ear lobes dance about. Maybe Project Majestic Mix is your gateway to find the possible "lisenability on its own" you've been missing in Uematsu's music. It gives new perspective to the area where some of you think his music lacks--the hip, hop, and happenin' individual tracks. Most of this stuff is great even if you've never played the games or heard the music before.