This was written over two listens.

I may have heard the song before last night, but I’m not entirely certain. Regardless, I wasn’t too familiar with the song when I started writing about it; something I think was a good thing as I wasn’t overthinking what I was writing.

Once more I was trying to strike some sort of balance and I don’t think that happened until the last few sentences.

Mitsuto Suzuki’s (鈴木光人) “Shadow of Valhalla” (“ヴァルハラの影”) is from the soundtrack for Final Fantasy XIII-2, Final Fantasy XIII-2 Original Soundtrack. The soundtrack was composed by Mitsuto Suzuki, Naoshi Mizuta (水田 直志) and Masashi Hamauzu (浜渦 正志).

I hope you enjoy.

—

Fade in. Perhaps wobbly, quiet, calm, unnerving slightly and cold, though also warm. Massive and distinct, yet in a sense formless.

Piano plays careful keys with a sense of fragility. More sounds appear whilst the piano twinkles around. Not quite shimmering sounds, but they do seem as though they are appearing, then disappearing as they move somewhere. The sounds shift into other places, creating something that vaguely feels both melodic and amelodic. The piano seems to counter and follow, but soon drops away.

Perhaps it is night. Perhaps this is in an oddity somewhere. Maybe things aren’t as they are perceived as they are meant to be. It is possible that all is as they are believed they are meant to be perceived, but something remains off.

Among it all is a melancholy threading itself through. The sounds remain constant and yet seem to warp, gradually flowing and spreading out whilst remaining linear.

Something new enters for a brief moment and the piano returns. It is a slow dance, steady and brief, and everything seems to wrap around itself as the song ends.