Overview

2004's Shining Tears has been described as a shining example of flawed and generic RPG. Focusing on cute anime-styled characters and action RPG gameplay, the title was in many cways closer in style to Tales games than the Shining Force series. Kaoru Okada and Takeshi Miura complemented the game with a range of organic setting themes and military action tracks. But the soundtrack, while effective, is also as generic as the game itself.

Body

The album opens and closes with vocal themes featuring vocalist Soichiro Hoshi. The opening theme, "Shining Tears (Opening Version)," composed by Go Takahashi, sounds like a very sappy love ballad that you may have heard on the radio during the 1990s. There are some R&B rhythms that accompany piano and strings harmonies to create the opening theme. However, it does feel out of place with the rest of the soundtrack. The closing theme, "Silhouette of Light (short version)," composed by Masaki Iwamoto, sounds more like cheesy 1980s rock/pop. It is definitely more classic in nature, at least given the genre it is trying to emulate, with its choral accents, simple drumpad, and piano harmonies. Throw in some guitar work that is used to add to the atmosphere, rather than be flashy, and you end up with a rather generic ending theme. There are audiences that will love such tracks, but they're too dated and cheesy for me.

Moving to the background music, "Minstrel's Melody" is a peaceful theme for harp, strings, and woodwind. It creates a very inspiring sound and is a vast improvement over the opening vocal theme. It's simplistic, but powerful and refined, and manages to instill a sense of calm in the listener. The track also receives an arrangement for solo harp later in the soundtrack."And Then, The Story Begins" is a peaceful orchestral theme that really creates a beautiful "storybook" sort of atmosphere. The writing isn't particularly novel, but it is ideal for the in-game context and charming on a stand-alone basis. Other organic highlights include "Forest of Spirits" with its charming melody, "A Moment's Peace" with its calming vibes, and "The Spinning Theads of Fate" with its tinge of sadness. These tracks tend to be quite simple and predictable, but they're composed well enough to leave an impression on listeners.

Among other highlights, "A Place You Must Protect" has a bit of a jazz influence with the simple jazz percussion, bass guitar, and woodwinds. However, the majority of the piece has more of a pop influence overall, especially once the drum pad and strings harmonies are thrown into the mixture. "Complications of Fate" has almost a bit of a calypso vibe going on. The acoustic guitar and tambourine create a very unique combination that goes well with the woodwind melody. It's not quite calypso, but reminds me of that style. I also really enjoy the whimsical strings work; however, I do think the name is a bit of a misnomer. "The Dragon God and the Shrine Maiden" features a mix of organ and uplifting woodwind, piano, strings work. For the most part, the theme is rather peaceful, but the organ does add a slight sinister nature to the entire piece. The ethereal synth is also quite nice as it adds a beautiful texture to the theme.

The action themes on the album, however, aren't particularly memorable. "Sortie" is a generic militaristic theme that sounds like something you might here as a prelude to battle. There are some heroic and ominous tones in the theme, but there is very little in terms of melody that captivates the listener. "Bloody Battle", on the other hand, inspires images of hope, despite its name. It features a very uplifting melody amidst the martial percussion, though arguably is a misfit in context. "Raid" is another martial theme with some ominous tones. The harmonies are nice, but I find some of the accompanying percussion to fall a bit flat. "Black Sacred Treasures" initially strikes listeners with its brooding operatic vocals, but it's a bit on the generic side and, like many of the series' more recent soundtracks, seems to have been composed to a formula.

"Violent Assault" is one of my favorite battle themes. I really like the inclusion of the harpsichord with the ominous orchestral work. The strings accompaniment feels a bit flat in the A section, but the brass in the B section manages to redeem and the harpsichord solo sections are also quite nice. "Light Force of the Gods" is a theme that focuses on both male and female operatic vocal work. It develops quite nicely and I really like the harmonies between the male and female vocal samples. There is a strong sense of tension in the B section, where the female vocal work is prominently featured. In the end, it's a wonderful theme and one of the highlights on the album. Presumably the last battle theme, "Advent of the Demon Beast" manages to falter. It's an ominous orchestral theme with sinister choral tones. However, I think it's rather flat. The accompanying brass and drum work is rather pitiful, with little variation, and while the strings do add tension, it doesn't redeem the rather simplistic and one-toned melody.

Summary

In the end, Shining Tears is quite an inconsistent album. Some of the more calming themes are quite lovely, similar to Shining Wind, with their intimate arrangements and beautiful highlights. Likewise, a few of the action themes are genuine highlights and there is a decent amount of diversity of the album. Unfortunately, many of the tracks sound like uninspired militaristic offerings and both vocal themes feel out of place. While better than Shining Force Neo and Shining Force Feather, it's still not up to the standards of the classic Shining soundtracks. I'd only recommend this album if you've played the game and enjoyed the music. It's not something I plan to revisit anytime soon.