Is the Kenji Yamamoto score worth it?

[90sDBZ]

I was just curious if people here think the Yamamoto score in Kai is worth the extra price. How does it compare to his Budokai series and Raging Blast 2 music? I'm a guy who really enjoys Yamamoto's work in the games. I also like Faulconer and Levy but I'm not a massive fan of Kikuchi's Z work but I do love his DB work. I guess I have very specific tastes. Do you think the Yamamoto Kai score would appeal to me? I've read lots of mixed opinions about his Kai score online. Some say it's epic while others say it's repetitive and lacks variety. I can't help but feel interested in it as it was the way Kai was intended to be experienced before they had to do a rush job on the Kikuchi replacement music. I've even seen some compare it to Faulconer although I don't really see it based on the few Youtube clips I've seen. Basically what I'm asking is does it really improve the show to the point that it justifies spending so much on it?

[TheGmGoken]

Go just go and play some of his scores and see

Yes. It is. I see people who hate the original score but prefer Bruce F. say this is their favorite or second favorite. Many like you(In terms of opinions btw) think the score is great and that it fits the series.

So yes.

[Ajay]

I'm lucky enough to have all the episodes broadcast with Yamamoto's score and I have to say, it's absolutely worth it.

I find it very hard to watch Kai with the Kikuchi replacement now.

[Storm]

It's a more modern sounding OST than Kikuchi or even Faulconer, but I rather enjoy it, especially the post-Freeza music. I appreciate the insert songs, as well.

Music however is one of the most subjective mediums in existence, so none of us can really tell you better than your own ears.

[Roland_ELoG]

If you feel comfortable supporting PLAGIARISM! Then go ahead.

[TheGmGoken]

If you feel comfortable supporting PLAGIARISM! Then go ahead.

Didn't Bruce steal the Boo theme?

[Fionordequester]

No, that song was not stolen...although Scott Morgan's Grand Kai theme was, reportedly, pretty heavily ripped from another song.

[Fulicer]

If you feel comfortable supporting PLAGIARISM! Then go ahead.

Didn't Bruce steal the Boo theme?

I think Yamamoto may have stolen more tracks -- seems to hold a record here for plagiarism. Even the great Battle Power Unlimited...*shakes head*

[dbboxkaifan]

It's the originally intended music and the one that had its tunes created for the episodes, whereas the lame replacement is just a rushed job with a very small amount of tracks from the DBZ score.

I love Kikuchi music but in Kai it's just awful, though it's not Shunsuke's fault at all anyway.

[Blade]

It's purely a matter of taste - but for your collection and the sake of future rarity, there's an argument for picking up the Yamamoto score episodes.

Personally, I find Yamamoto's score to be equal measures of overblown and underwhelming. It has the slick production quality of something that has clearly been well budgeted, but I prefer the remastered Kikuchi tracks. Yamamoto's score mostly goes over my head to begin with during a series re-watch, but by the time Freeza appears it really grates on me.

[sangofe]

I'm lucky enough to have all the episodes broadcast with Yamamoto's score and I have to say, it's absolutely worth it.

I find it very hard to watch Kai with the Kikuchi replacement now.

Too bad the last two episodes were never scored with it.

[Ajay]

Yeah, it absolutely kills the completionist side of me

[Blade]

Yeah, it absolutely kills the completionist side of me

I'm surprised that fans haven't done versions of those two episodes!

[TheGmGoken]

Yeah, it absolutely kills the completionist side of me

I'm surprised that fans haven't done versions of those two episodes!

. Yes they have. Some people use "The Lone Warrior" for Trunks killing Cell. Some have full episodes(Up for download. Won't link though) with a original score(Kenji Yamamoto)

No, that song was not stolen...although Scott Morgan's Grand Kai theme was, reportedly, pretty heavily ripped from another song.

http://www.kanzenshuu.com/forum/viewtop ... 12&t=10410(Topic about how the song sound a like)

Hey guys. Firstly, I apologize for the acronym... For those not in the know, S.O.A.D. is System of a Down, an American nu-metal band that's been around since the '90s. I don't know if this has been brought up in the past... do delete if it has been... but I wanted to know... why do these two songs sound almost identical? I first discovered this when one of my closest friends told me about it back in '04. I believe that most of you might have heard of this somewhere, as well. Also of note is that "Marmalade" by System of a Down was recorded in the late '90s... (1997, I believe)

Here's a video demonstrating the resemblance between the two musical compositions:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6AoH6wgqO5o

My theories are that:

1. Bruce Faulconer asked permission from S.O.A.D. to create a variant of "Marmalade" for use in the FUNimation dub of Dragon Ball Z.

2. Bruce Faulconer "stole" bits of the melody from "Marmalade"...

3. Just a coincidence.

I thought it would be interesting to bring up. It would be cool if Scott Morgan would be kind enough to resolve this, since he used to work for Bruce Faulconer. (If Scott Morgan quit composing before the series ended its airing in America, then I deeply apologize for the confusion.)

Holy crap, they sound really so similar! That's crazy!

Personally I believe they are far to similar to be "just a coincidence". But it is a cool find for sure.

I've heard some pretty strikingly similar tracks that I know were by chance....some of them I wrote myself and later heard stuff that sounded exactly the same to my dismay... Sometimes its just a matter of who gets published\known first rather than who invented what.

So maybe he didn't steal it. But he sure in hell was inspired by it.

[kei17]

Yeah, it absolutely kills the completionist side of me

I'm surprised that fans haven't done versions of those two episodes!

. Yes they have. Some people use "The Lone Warrior" for Trunks killing Cell. Some have full episodes(Up for download. Won't link though) with a original score(Kenji Yamamoto)

The former is my video: http://youtu.be/lu4efVm-Zkc

[dbboxkaifan]

It's purely a matter of taste - but for your collection and the sake of future rarity, there's an argument for picking up the Yamamoto score episodes.

Personally, I find Yamamoto's score to be equal measures of overblown and underwhelming. It has the slick production quality of something that has clearly been well budgeted, but I prefer the remastered Kikuchi tracks. Yamamoto's score mostly goes over my head to begin with during a series re-watch, but by the time Freeza appears it really grates on me.

The Kikuchi tracks in Kai sounded better than from Dragon Box's audio quality but that's due to the muffled noise it has otherwise it wouldn't really be any different, and it's not remastered they just specifically picked the ones that were in stereo.

For remastered Kikuchi tracks this is what it sounds like, and modernised - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSuigl0vlxY

If they had used the synthesised Kikuchi tracks as the replacement, I would've loved it but unfortunately they didn't and it's one big fuck up. Thanks Toei Animation.

[Fionordequester]

To get back to GmGokuden, personally, I don't think it's plagiarizing if you just take some instruments and progressions from a song, and then make it your own thing. If that were the case, it seems to me that you might just as well call this...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Z9ajd3UFTU

A rip off of this...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhbdpBCnVh8

Cuz you know, the tempo is different, and of course the background instruments are different, but the main melody is still pretty similar. And while the Super Buu theme and that other one linked are a LITTLE more similar than that...it's really only one progression that they share. Otherwise, they're entirely different songs.

EDIT: Or how about 1:48 of this...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tFwchRiGsqA

And 2:27 of this?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=daYbUkilYY8

[kei17]

For remastered Kikuchi tracks this is what it sounds like, and modernised - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSuigl0vlxY

Remastering means enhancing the quality of something old. That's a remake instead. It's the same as why you don't consider Ultimate Tenkaichi's cutscenes as remasters.

Also, technically speaking, the Kikuchi tracks used for Kai are all from 3 disc set DBZ BGM Collection, which means that they're all remastered.

[KentalSSJ6]

Ill take the Yamamoto score over any other score for DBZ. I find it better than Kikuchi and Faulconer by far. I personally dont give a damn about the whole plagiarism scandal, I liked his score and thats all there is to it for me.

[G1GACANN0N]

If they had used the synthesised Kikuchi tracks as the replacement, I would've loved it but unfortunately they didn't and it's one big fuck up. Thanks Toei Animation.

Ew.

I'm pretty sure the Kikuchi tracks used in Kai were remastered in some way, they sound perfect in lossless on Blu-ray. There are some glaring emmisions though, like M1311. They used damn near every track off Return of Cooler except that one, which was arguably the best besides M1308.

I do wish they would've used more Kikuchi in Kai to this point, and continued to use Kikuchi in Buu Kai (with one or two BGM's already used in Kai per episode + the rest new Kikuchi).