Overview

Senko no Ronde: Dis-United Order (aka Senko no Ronde DUO) is the follow-up to G.rev's fighting game Senko no Ronde, originally released for arcades. Once again, Yasuhisa Watanabe returned to create a range of music. Offering a variety of electronic tracks, how does the overall soundtrack turn out?

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While there are many quality tracks on the album, many with extremely long play times, I'm going to go through and highlight some of the more memorable tunes. "Highway Rose" is an infectiously catchy melody with a very shooter type vibe. I love the trance elements in the accompaniment and, as the theme progresses, there's a nice jazzy synth interlude that really manages to provide a nice contrast to the more upbeat, focused melody. One of my favorite pieces is "Invulnerable Satellite." In a way, it reminds me of an electronic version of Hirota's signature dark style combined with the early Zuntata sound. There is distorted vocal work, thumping bass, and some trance elements in the accompaniment, which all combine to create a lovely atmosphere. In addition, the synth accents and the industrial nature of the piece are definitely reminiscent of the Darius series, providing a very chilling, ominous atmosphere.

"CUCU" is a bouncier electronic piece that has a very ethereal atmosphere. The crystalline and spacey synth provide for a very uplifting tone, while the vocoder sections had a bit of a robotic touch to the piece. The rhythmic aspects of this piece are also done quite nicely and really manage to provide a driving determination that contrasts wonderfully with the more upbeat melody. One of the more intriguing pieces is "Travelers into the Shadow." The percussion helps give the overall tune an ethnic flair. The rest of the piece has a very mysterious sound to it and the crystalline synth and ethereal synthesizer sections really give this a peaceful atmosphere as well. In the end, this is a very beautiful piece and manages to serve as a nice variation to the more upbeat, energetic themes on the soundtrack.

One of my favorite pieces on the soundtrack, "Attackers Blues" is a wonderful jazz piece capturing Watanabe's signature style. There's tons of brass, deep bass grooves, light jazz percussion, and some beautiful synth harmonies that provide a very relaxing sound. As the theme progresses, a lighthearted piano tune is thrown into the mix serving as a nice bridge from the jazzier aspects of the track, but is eventually incorporated as part of the accompaniment. Another favorite of mine, "Anti aliassing Garbera" incorporates classical elements, almost gothic in nature, with some trance harmonies and some drum n' bass accompaniment. It makes for a very intense theme, to start, before tapering off into a calmer B section that utilizes the strings to create a very heavenly sound. In addition, there are some trance sections that sound like they would fit wonderfully in a Maximum Tune game right before the loop.

"AZ-Lefty" is another great theme on the soundtrack and demonstrates the diversity in Yack's music. It's a grungy rock track featuring deep bass hits, quirky electronic tones and vocoder usage, as well as a variety of synthesizers in the melody line. It ends up being a very powerful track with a very motivating melody, when featured, combined with a driving rhythm and powerful rock riffs. "Raven Candle" is a beautiful piece that focuses on lovely combinations of trance and piano. It has a bit of a mysterious nature to it, particularly during the sections that focus more on synthesized orchestra and piano. In the end, it's one of the best pieces on the album, although the length may turn some away.

"Aria" is another fantastic addition to the score. It features beautiful, contemplative electric keyboard work, emotional synth melodies, groovy bass guitar and piano work, and an ethereal electronic accompaniment. It's one of the more "laid-back" tracks, but still manages to give off a great energy. "Empowered Torch" features a very unique rhythm, compared to most of the soundtrack. It has a very industrial sound and it's done in an off-tempo, making it an intriguing listen. As the theme progresses, more trance elements are thrown into the mix as well as more mysterious synthesizer passages, both in terms of melody and accompaniment. It has a very relaxing soundscape, but it doesn't put you to sleep, thanks to its unique take on the rhythm.

"Cavaliers Note" opens up with some unique, almost Scottish sounding strings work, before incorporating some heavier electronic tones. Eventually, the initial instrumentation is replaced with some trance elements that serve as the main melodic driver for most of the track; however, as it nears the loop, some beautiful acoustic guitar work is thrown in, creating a nice contrast of organic and electronic components. "The prime rage" has a jazz soundscape, particularly in the accompaniment. The percussion is a bit uptempo, but reminiscent of jazz drums, there are some slick bass grooves, and some jazzy piano chords. The melody itself is quite frenetic, providing a whirlwind of synthesizer soundscapes, and the ethereal nature of the piece's harmonies are quite wonderful in contrast with the more in-your-face melody. Lastly, "DUO" is a funk rock track mixed with trance and synthesizer making for a very intriguing combination. It's an energetic, octane-fueled melody that manages to really capture the essence of the soundtrack.

Summary

In the end, I think that the Senko no Ronde DUO Soundtracks manages to surpass the first game's soundtrack. The tracks are of high quality, feature long playtimes through loops, and feature a lot of styles fused with the core electronic nature of the soundtrack. Fans of Watanabe's music are definitely recommended to pick up this soundtrack. There's also a second volume of this soundtrack, dedicated to the Xbox 360 version, which is similar to the layout of the first game's soundtrack; while it serves as a nice complement to this album, it features shorter tunes in a variety of styles. For those short on cash, this is the more substantial and fulfilling album.