So, I just bought the Kingdom hearts 2 ost. Anyone who already got it?

I ordered it back in December, but Lik-Sang apparently hasn't got it in stock. And now they're closed from Saturday to Tuesday because of the Chinese New Year, so I guess I'm gonna use Play Asia or whatever. Damn!

Of course I downloaded the mp3 rip as soon it became available online (not to mention the PSF2 set but it is missing ~10 tracks) and I have to say I've been disappointed by it a few times. First the delay, then the synth programming and now the tracks don't even loop! I'm gonna buy it anyway, because after all I've been waiting for it for two years. And it DOES have many <3 songs!

Yeah, I got it on Wednesday.  Not very impressed with the overral quality of synth compared to the first one.  In fact it's pretty bad .  But the two or three piano / orchestra songs are good.

Estpolis was clearly the better purchase this month.

I'm not terribly thrilled with it. Then again, I didn't think the first KH worked all that well as an album either (better in the game itself). This time, the synth is definitely working against it, especially in comparison to the orchestral tracks.

The string samples are AWFUL.

Not to mention the oboe and piano samples. And I've mentioned this before, but I just can't listen to the KH2 version of Scherzo Di Notte. And it's sad. Even more sad is that Squenix put so much effort into the game otherwise, but the music obviously was far less important.. which is the area we pay the most attention to, right? :P

The Chain of Memories versions of "Sinister Sundown" and "The 13th Struggle" are better. Not in the actual instrument quality, but I feel that the various instrument volumes were better thought out in the COM versions. The piano in 13th Struggle is kind of nice though.

This soundtrack definitely has it's high and low points...

I'd like to see more songs from Shimomura like "Tension Rising".

I was kind of expecting something more interesting for the Gummi Ship themes, too. Louder, certainly.

I kinda wish that the penultimate battle theme from Chain of Memories had been in it. Although I guess "The 13th Dilemma" is kind of close.

Finally, the short arrangement of "Hand in Hand" is a horrible taunt of what Kingdom Hearts could've been and now will never be.

PS: Flexar is insane

Well, honey, if there's a compliment higher than that, I don't know what it is.

Quoted for f---ing truth.  wtf were they thinking when they made this so damn short?  Easily one of the, if not THE best song(s) on the entire OST.

All I know is that I love Hikaru's Passion theme.

They should know better than to cast Shimomura as composer.

I'm still fantasizing over what Kingdom Hearts music would have been with Hamauzu's style.

Watch what you say... there are those of us who think Shimomura is ten times the composer that Hamauzu could ever hope to be. 

I wasn't comparing their composer abilities, but styles. His would have fit more appropriately for the game's style.

And everyone is entitled to an opinion. Even Shimomura-lovers are respectable human beings. ;)

Themeless pseudo-techno with no discernable effort?

You're thinking of Matsueda...

*still sore over FFX-2*

Yeah, I purchased the soundtrack as well and I enjoy it, for the most part. I really like the battle themes, mainly "The 13 Struggle" and "Rowdy Rumble". Also, the orchestrated tracks are really good. "Dearly Beloved" "Hand in Hand" and "Fantasia alla marcia for piano, chorus and orchestra" are my favorites among that crop. Some of the returning tracks have been butchered though. "This is Halloween", "Scherzo Di Notte" and "One-Winged Angel" are complete shells of what they were on the soundtrack for the first game.

Everyone is talking about the bad synth, and yeah I get that, but I don't really care. Overall, it's a sound album but I think it falls a little short from the first score. I look forward to hearing these tunes in-game come March.

The synth programming is terrible... The soundtrack is good but i'm a bit disappointed with it. It has its good moment but some flaws too. Also, why so short tracks? I hope It won't become a trend because it's really annoying to have so many tracks during barely 1:00 - 1:30... ugh!

Does anyone still have the prelimiary PSF2 set? I had the odd feeling when I grabbed it that there would be notable differences from the final version, and while that hasn't exactly been proven to be true (at least as far as my inferior hearing can tell), there's one song that doesn't seem to be on the OST: music0120.psf2

It sounds sort of like a variation of "What Lies Beneath" or an Agrabah battle theme, but either I'm being my usual stupid self or it's not on the OST.

Here's the PSF2 if nobody has it still:

http://s38.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=3RDW … 1TBPO1IMFW

Soundtrack is ok, not sure if I like it much yet or not. But yeah, the passion single is hot. the music video is even hotter.

Ramza

I've actually tagged and timed the PSF2 set, but Amber has yet to upload it.. *cough*

There are in fact 22(!) songs that aren't on the soundtrack or even in the game:
-11 tracks are straight from Kingdom Hearts, I suppose they were used during early stages of development
-3 tracks also from KH, but they use the KH2 synth
-additionally, we have variations of 10 songs, so Dais you were right about "What Lies Beneath" and the Agrabah battle theme, they both have their variations but I guess they're not used in the final version of the game.

I've kinda grown to like the OST after all
I have many favourites, especially from disc 1. The second one has its hightlights as well, but overall I think I prefer the first.

Btw, I STILL haven't got my copy. I pre-ordered it at Lik-Sang, but because they didn't get their stock even after a week after the release I moved to Play Asia. They already had it in stock on the 24th. It's on its way now, I'm hoping to get it this week.

sorry... uploading it right now, it'll be done in about an hour.

I removed all of the streamed tracks in the interest of conserving bandwidth.  davironica sent me a few more streamed tracks a few days ago, but I haven't tagged/timed those yet, and probably won't release them.

I picked up the soundtrack last weekend and while I agree that the sound quality is a little bit lower than the first game, I'm rather enjoying the music overall.  I don't think it's nearly as bad as I expected it to be based on the whining that showed up here right before I picked the set up.  The voice tracks from the Atlantica rhythm game are a little jarring and unexpected, but it's sort of amusing hearing Sora singing parts of Andaa Za Shii in Japanese.  Is Ursula voiced by a man in the J-version?  O.o

Also, the Utada song sounds relatively pleasant, but it's one of the most least memorable or melodic things I've ever heard from her.  I've heard it works spectacularly in the game, but I was expecting something more similar to the original game's theme song.

Since I still had the prelim set, I went ahead and tagged the four that were already in there.

And I can understand that you'll want to save bandwidth by keeping the big guns off of the website. But are there plans to release them elsewhere, such as RapidShare, YouSendIt, etc?

Thanks to you and davironica!

I have heard a bit of it so far.  The soundtrack is overall better than the first.  Sure there are a few set backs like some of the synth but no soundtrack is perfect.

I finally listened to this.  I have to say, from a composition standpoint, the OST is definitely superior to the first.  That said, I agree with all the complaints about track length and especially audio quality (whether this is a synth problem or mastering problem is not obvious to me, but there's no doubt that something's wrong).

Late to the party, I realize, but having invested a fair amount of time in the game proper, I have to say, this is the best Shimomura's done since Legend of Mana.

The original KH didn't hold my interest for very long, mainly because the battle themes were terrible (outside of Hand in Hand) and much of the rest was just whimsical filler without end. Didn't like Kairi's theme, hated the vocal...it just wasn't as good as I've come to expect from her.

KH2, on the other hand, brings it back to the table. Even at this (relatively) early point, there's more variety, the vocal doesn't suck, the character themes are stronger, and the battle themes in particular are just flat-out awesome. It's not all good news, of course - the Land of Dragons theme was annoying after about 2 minutes, and if the OST is indeed non-loop it's a crying shame* - but I feel confident in saying Square's best composer has sufficiently got her groove back.

* - no complaints about the synth, though. Talk about a tempest in a teapot.

I'm in the same boat as SonicPanda, getting my first exposure of the music by playing the game.  Just bought the OST, and gave it the once-over, even if I'm only about three worlds into the actual game.

Regarding the synth, it isn't in the least objectionable on its own, but comparing it to the first KH score, yes, there's a very noticeable contrast.  On the other hand, I like this version of Scherzo Di Notte more, instrumental wise, and Reviving Hollow Bastion for its new arrangement style. 

The battle themes are indeed flat-out awesome, with my absolute favorite being Working Together.  ^_^  The darker stuff, such as Tension Rising, Dance To The Death and Vim And Vigor has a stylishly-intriguing edge that makes them a great listen as well.

Asteroids Away! has become one of my more favorite tracks, due to in-game association.  Gummi Ship sequences are pretty damned fun!

The vocals are what surprised me the most, and I'm not talking about Passion/Sanctuary.  The Atlantica set, Swim This Way, Ursula's Revenge, A New Day Is Dawning, Under The Sea and (especially) Part of Your World are all superbly done.  There's something about VGM vocals not being restricted in the straight "pop" suit, and being more "event" driven, that make it refreshingly appealing.  I can't wait to hear what I presume will be English versions of the songs in the game itself; Im certain that I'll be recording them. ;)

I've been playing the English version, and they've surprised me as well (especially considering TLM is NOT one of my favorite Disney movies). Even after all these years Jodie Benson (Ariel's VA) still has it. Correct me if I'm wrong but "Swim This Way" is a completely new song, right? Because I liked it either way. Only downside being they couldn't get Sebastian's original VA for some reason.

Gummi Ship sequences DO rock, both Gameplay and Music wise.