The Final Fantasy X soundtrack album from Tokyopop is a collection of Uematsu's picks from the game, as opposed to a full soundtrack. 17 tracks and 70 minutes of music are here for the discriminating listener, taken from the game and accompanied by lyrics for the vocal numbers in the liner notes. Uematsu shares compositional and arranging credits with Junya Nakano and Masashi Hamauzu, but the spirit of the music is directly connected to every Final Fantasy game to come before X, and obviously draws most from Uematsu's imagination. Fresh ideas permeate many of the tunes on this collection, and the scope of the music is greater than in any previous Final Fantasy game, but fans of Uematsu's style need not worry about too much change. Most of the musical themes that were present in the first game are still here in some form.
There has always been, to my ear, a strong martial component to Uematsu's music for Final Fantasy. Even in very subtle ways, the upbeat songs are accompanied by rhythms that recall a marching beat and melodic lines that swirl back on themselves like some space-age Sousa. In other ways, Uematsu is as far away as anyone could be from sounding martial, with his rich harmonies and stylistic forays into rock or jazz. The Final Fantasy X collection finds Uematu in territory that explicitly leans toward modernity. Right away, with Track 2, we find the heavy-metal rock music that sets the scene for Tidus' first appearance in a blitzball game. More parts WWF than anything else, the screaming guitars, crunchy bass lines and thumping drum beats sound like the set up for a huge sporting event, which of course they are. This style may not be to everyone's liking, but the message is clear. Final Fantasy X is not your daddy's RPG.
Recording quality is excellent, especially in busy pieces where less than stellar studio savvy could leave a song sounding amateurish or garbled. Each track is clean and clear, with production quality that enhances the composers' wonderful musical visions and doesn't distort them in the least. Far and away from simple synth or piano renditions, we have the full orchestral recordings in all their glory. Many times, orchestral textures are interspersed with synth sounds or more modern instrumentation. Whatever your tastes in music, as a fan of the game you owe it to yourself to have this in your library, but this soundtrack doesn't want or try to be mere accompaniment to the events of the game. The music stands on its own. Buy it for the game, but enjoy it and come back to it for the music. Uematsu would be a treasure with or without Final Fantasy, and we're lucky to have him on our side.
