Being a huge fan of the Final Fantasy series and almost every composition by Nobuo Uematsu, I was really excited when I heard about Knight Of The Round. This four-piece instrumental project from Indiana draws influence from several bands in the math metal genre as well as thrash. They have combined these styles to create a 38-minute album entitled Gaia’s Bane that was released on October 11th. Gaia’s Bane is essentially a tribute to one of the most well-known video game composers, Nobuo Uematsu, as Knight Of The Round covers ten different masterpieces heard throughout some of the most recent Final Fantasy games (VI-XIII). The entire album is solid, but there are a few tracks that stand out much more than the others. “Heavy Mako”, “The Ancient Scourge”, “Legion Of Terror”, and “Gaia’s Bane” are the strongest tracks for a few reasons. The riffs are very groovy and thrashy (like the rest of the album) but there are quite a few impressive guitar leads on the aforementioned tracks which really makes them more appealing. The drumming is particularly strong on these tracks as well, especially on “Legion Of Terror”.
Gaia’s Bane is very groovy and thrashy, but most of the songs are easy to pick up on and if you’re a fan of the Final Fantasy franchise, you may be able to figure out all of the compositions that Knight Of The Round has re-worked. Most of these compositions are no longer beautiful because they have been metalized, but there are a few that have maintained their beauty. One in particular is the track that I would classify as an interlude, “The Inquisition”. “The Inquisition” is the sixth track of the album and it is much calmer and relaxing than the other songs. It really surprised me too because I was expecting the entire album to be full of grooves and thrashy riffs, but I was obviously proved wrong.
If you’re a fan of video game music and metal, this is definitely an album for you. On the other hand, if you’re not a fan of video game music, you probably won’t dig Gaia’s Bane too much. It puts off a strong video game vibe (obviously) and it brings some extras to the table, but most likely not enough to captivate someone who is not familiar with the tunes heard in the Final Fantasy games.
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For Fans Of: After The Burial, Meshuggah, Testament, Nobuo Uematsu
