Have to speak about SB ost

[Emstidor]

OP:
https://youtu.be/jG2KMkQLZmI?t=2

Everybody else:
https://youtu.be/ASMpIlGRHI4?t=3

[CorbinDallas]

I'll second that I'm also musically inclined and have been involved in the art for almost two decades and to be frank, like others have said, this is just one big opinion. Heavensward is my favourite expansion and I love love love the music in it too, but saying Stormblood's music is trash is just ludicrous at best.

Not just ludicrous, but downright disrespectful. I'm not musically inclined (never studied it), but the fact that 14 is the first ever MMO that I've played where I've never had the music turned off speaks volumes. Sure there are differences in taste here and there, but in terms of quality, Soken is getting better and better. To deny such a thing would be foolish.

[Enla]

Not just ludicrous, but downright disrespectful. I'm not musically inclined (never studied it), but the fact that 14 is the first ever MMO that I've played where I've never had the music turned off speaks volumes. Sure there are differences in taste here and there, but in terms of quality, Soken is getting better and better. To deny such a thing would be foolish.

Hell the brief clips they previewed of his work for Shadowbringers at the last fanfest just goes to show that he's /still/ getting better as time goes on. The two songs we heard were phenomenal, with the Rak'Tika Greatwood theme being perhaps one of Soken's greatest musical achievements to date. The man has a rather scary ability to keep on improving - and given how nervous he was to show that song at fanfest because he had kept making last minute improvements to it shows he's dedicated to providing us with the best music possible.

[Gwenorai]

I didn't know Hanz Zimmer played FF14.

[CarnivalNights]

SB objectively has the best music of all of FFXIV. Soken has placed himself among icons as a composer and gets better with each new track.

I wouldn't go that far. He's great and his work has matured after each expansion, but the trio of Uematsu, Shimomura and Hamauzu is still the standard for RPG OSTs.

[briarth0rn]

I love all the original music in Stormblood, but I was sort of disappointed that the Omega raids were mostly just instrumental, orchestral versions of songs from previous games that I found a bit boring, and all the music in the Ivalice raids were direct rips from other Ivalice games. The Alexander and Mhach raids in Heavensward had some of my favorite tracks in the game, so I hope Soken's creativity and ability to work in so many genres besides generic orchestral fantasy fanfare will shine through in the next expansion.

[CarnivalNights]

I love all the original music in Stormblood, but I was sort of disappointed that the Omega raids were mostly just instrumental, orchestral versions of songs from previous games that I found a bit boring, and all the music in the Ivalice raids were direct rips from other Ivalice games. The Alexander and Mhach raids in Heavensward had some of my favorite tracks in the game, so I hope Soken's creativity and ability to work in so many genres besides generic orchestral fantasy fanfare will shine through in the next expansion.

I always make the joke that Yoshida told Soken he can do whatever he wants with a specific tracks when you hear stuff like lyrics and guitars in it, which is basically almost all of the Primals.

[Mansion]

I wouldn't go that far. He's great and his work has matured after each expansion, but the trio of Uematsu, Shimomura and Hamauzu is still the standard for RPG OSTs.

Soken's career is quite more recent than the monuments you mentioned though. It's not easy to compare them. Especially because these older games have been labelled as "classics" on many aspects and we look at them that way.
I'm a big fan of Shimomura, and I enjoy most of Uematsu's work on older FF titles (6 and 8 namely). But I think Soken's Heavensward is far superior than Uematsu's Dragonsong.
Although that could be because I can't stand Susan Calloway.
Regardless of personal opinions, I think Soken can compete with those great artists.

[CarnivalNights]

Soken's career is quite more recent than the monuments you mentioned though. It's not easy to compare them. Especially because these older games have been labelled as "classics" on many aspects and we look at them that way.
I'm a big fan of Shimomura, and I enjoy most of Uematsu's work on older FF titles (6 and 8 namely). But I think Soken's Heavensward is far superior than Uematsu's Dragonsong.
Although that could be because I can't stand Susan Calloway.
Regardless of personal opinions, I think Soken can compete with those great artists.

Personally, I want him and Hamauzu to corroborate because there's just so much similarity IMO between the FF13 set of OSTs and all of the Primal tracks.

I think Soken has a good base for his work in FF14, but I would love him to venture out of FF14 and do something else to really see his range. Stormblood gave us a preview IMO of how huge his range just off Beauty's Wicked Wiles. I was just WOW'd that he went full Indian pop on us there and it was fresh and exciting. Loved it to bits.

[Mansion]

Personally, I want him and Hamauzu to corroborate because there's just so much similarity IMO between the FF13 set of OSTs and all of the Primal tracks.

I think Soken has a good base for his work in FF14, but I would love him to venture out of FF14 and do something else to really see his range. Stormblood gave us a preview IMO of how huge his range just off Beauty's Wicked Wiles. I was just WOW'd that he went full Indian pop on us there and it was fresh and exciting. Loved it to bits.

Yes exactly. Comparing eScape, Beauty's Wicked Wiles, Wayward Daughter or Suzaku's Theme, I think Soken can be really versatile and that's what I enjoy in his work. The few bits we got from Shadowbringers (Rak'Tika for istance) have me so excited for 5.X