Overview

Among the numerous arranged versions dedicated to Mieko Ishikawa's wonderful Ys III: Wanderers from Ys score is a Super Arrange Version. This features arrangements of the score in a range of styles, from chiptune to orchestra to rock to jazz, though the latter two styles provide the focus and highlights. While diversity is often a good thing, this album doesn't come together well as a whole.

Body

The album takes some time to get going since the first two tracks — labelled 'super mix versions' — are actually more rehashes of the original material. "Dancing on the Road" is a silly folk song a little reminiscent in both style and synth to the Tetris main theme. It does feature some elaborations from the original, but they're minor ones and the whole track sounds very gimmicky overall. "A Premonition = Styx =", on the other hand, is considerably more mature with its ambient chord progressions. However, it's still going to be slightly dull for those expecting hard rock renditions of their Ys III favourites.

The true experience begins with "Trading Village of Redmont" and "The Boy Who Had Wings". Both are given jazz arrangements that suit the originals quite well. The former is a little too much like smooth jazz for my tastes, but the latter is a fine taste of Hiroyuki Namba's jazz fusion style and also benefits from studio performances. However, the performances of "Snare of Darkness" and "Beat of Destruction" are a more to my tastes. They're reminiscent of Motoi Sakuraba's live concerts with their dissonant chord clusters and use of the trio of keyboard, bass, and drums.

There are several rock arrangements on the album. "A Searing Struggle" gets the rhythm going with its thrashing guitars and firm drum kits. However, the highlight is initially the distorted lead guitar, which gives an unusual timbre to the whole piece. Thankfully, "The Strongest Foe" also rocks hard, while still keeping the motivating rather than oppressive sound of the series alive. The album closes with orchestral renditions of the game's ending themes, "Morning of Departure" and "Wanderers from Ys". While colourful orchestrations, the actual implementation is tinny and leaves much to be desired.

Summary

The Ys III Wanderers from Ys Super Arrange Version is a mixed bag. The book ends of the opening synth recollections and closing orchestrations are highly dubious. However, the central jazz and rock arrangements are generally good, yet there are too few of them. This album is ideal for hardcore collectors, but most others can safely leave it from their collections.