MIDI Week Singles: Black Mage Village - Final Fantasy IX (PSX)

"Black Mage Village" from Final Fantasy IX on the Playstation (2000)

Composer: Nobuo Uematsu

Released: Aug 30th, 2000

Developer: SquareEnix

Final Fantasy IX is very much about throwbacks to earlier games in the series.  The presence of Black Mages in the classic style is one such example.  The soundtrack is full of these callbacks as well, and I would say that 'Black Mage Village' is one of these callbacks.

There is a tradition in Final Fantasy games of songs I can only describe as 'quirky.'  Chocobo Songs, the Dancers from FF II (IV), Dwarf Village, and many more are examples.  I think Black Mage Village fits into this tradition, and I think it is very effective.  A lot of this comes from the arrangement, the choice of instruments, particularly in the background.  I also love the second part with its plodding forward momentum.  There are a few others songs I might choose from this game, but this one is my favorite.
-D