EXCALIBUR: A Tribute to Secret of Mana

Thank you Scarlet Moon Promotions for sending us this album to review!

As someone who grew up into the SNES era, I became a huge RPG fan with the NES and SNES, and all but collected RPGs from that time when I could afford them. Of course, I had to have all of the Squaresoft titles from that era, and Secret of Mana was no exception. I loved its prequel, a Game Boy game known in the US as Final Fantasy Adventure. The second title in the 'Seiken Densetsu', or 'Mana' series, is perhaps the most popular and iconic game, Secret of Mana. I absolutely adored that game, and even played it enough to unlock the hidden level nine on a few weapons. Even if the gameplay perhaps didn't age as well as other titles from the era, it was a truly epic adventure that stayed with me long after its heart-wrenching conclusion.

In some ways the Secret of Mana soundtrack is all over the place, but it's quite iconic regardless. When I was young, I would start the cartridge while doing homework or some other thing, and just listen to that incredible title screen music over and over. I loved it, and it still gives me chills as it crescendos into that lovely overture that sets the tone for the amazing work that is to come. Secret of Mana as a game and musical set is nothing short of epic, and quite memorable for those who take the time to plumb its depths.

EXCALIBUR: A Tribute to Secret of Mana was released on the day marking six years since the release of the 2018 HD remake, on February 15, 2024. It starts off with a pretty good reinterpretation of that iconic opening, which is honestly pretty hard to do well; even Square Enix's own version in the 2018 release, while good, had mixed results. This version, called Fear of the Heavens, is performed with an orchestra, and outside of the difficult to reproduce digital howl, is done with remarkable care, with an orchestral and choral arrangement that easily puts Square Enix's version to shame if you are a fan of the original SNES soundtrack, as certain of the layers from that piece, that my mind grabbed onto while listening, were missing from the remake's opening.

There are forty-eight tracks here, so unfortunately I can't go through them all. But what I can say is that some songs are close, faithful renderings that could easily be on a remastered soundtrack. Others are interpretations, offering synthesizer or lo-fi renditions of classic songs. My favorites by far are those performed by real players; some are simply stunning. Some highlights include 'Late One Evening at the Morning Star', which seems to take place in a pub and does a wonderful job reproducing that atmosphere. Another is 'A Baroque Tale', which has absolutely incredible flute playing, making a really neat interpretation of that classic track.

Some of the more unique tracks include a well-done FM synthesis version of 'Phantom and a Rose' called 'Echoes of the Lost'. I am of a mixed mind on this track, because on the one hand, it's a truly excellent rendition of the song, ironically on a more primitive sound processor than what the SNES had. On the other hand, I also would have preferred that song in a more acoustic format, since my favorite songs on this album are the acoustic ones. Nevertheless, I can't deny it sounds great given what it is.

Some songs take a source song that at first seemed a bit strange in the game, and understood them better than I did as a player, and interpreted them to excellent results. For example, the song 'Distant Thunder' took a rather odd song in the soundtrack, and turned it into a jazzy number, and it's great. Another took one of the somewhat annoying battle themes and turned it into a fusion jazz arrangement, in 'Triple Threat!'. This song is truly amazing, easily one of my favorites.

Another jazz arrangement that I really like is one from one of the more unique songs later in the game. 'Steel and Snare' is an amazing, almost Chick Corea-like arrangement of one of the later tracks that is almost hard to listen to since it repeats itself so much. But this arrangement is genius.

Not to be left out, there are also several rock and metal arrangements as well, including 'Meister der Magie' and 'Secret of the Arid Sands'. One of the most annoying songs in the game is one of the late-game boss themes that quickly repeats a certain rhythm over and over. But their rendition, 'The Oracle', turns it into a metal banger that somehow captures the spirit of that song well, while being far less annoying. Fantastic!

The album itself is available to listen to and purchase in several places, but I recommend here, since it's available in lossless FLAC in 48kHz@24-bit quality:

https://scarletmoonrecords.bandcamp.com/album/excalibur-a-tribute-to-secret-of-mana

Scarlet Moon Records and their artists really knocked it out of the park with EXCALIBUR: A Tribute to Secret of Mana. If you loved this game and want songs to bring you back to an earlier and perhaps simpler time, this album is fantastic and a must listen (and hopefully buy!). I have heard many great tribute albums, but this is definitely one of the best I've heard.

As an aside, if you're an insatiable Mana fan, there is an older tribute album out there called 'Spectrum of Mana' that is also worth looking up. It is of similar length, though that one has a lot more metal pieces. It's another take you might enjoy (and it's free!), but I do like EXCALIBUR: A Tribute to Secret of Mana a lot more.