Fanmix - Better Days (Saiyuki Gaiden)
I have a fanmix for you! :D
Saiyuki Gaiden - Better Days
Warnings: lyrics that imply violence; some angst and depressing music; contains instrumental tracks (well, actually one instrumental track, one almost-instrumental track with some whispering and one track with roughly five minutes of instrumental intro)
Notes: A fanmix dedicated to Saiyuki Gaiden, therefore it is mostly rather sad; consists out of 11 tracks; image-heavy post! Will also be posted to fanmix
I'd like to say something about the songs before coming to the rest, but first, here's a track list for you.
Track List
01. A Perfect Circle - Annihilation
02. Bat For Lashes - Seal Jubilee
03. Ali Helnwein - Greed
04. Billy Talent - Red Flag
05. Elsiane - Final Escape
06. Phoenix - Love Like a Sunset
07. Depeche Mode - Better Days
08. M83 - In the Cold I’m Standing
09. Bat For Lashes - Wilderness
10. The Cure - To Wish Impossible Things
11. Placebo - Sleeping With Ghosts
I'm sorry in advance for talking so much about the individual songs, but I felt the need to explain myself a little; also, nobody is forced to read this, so feel free to ignorel it :>
[about the song choices]
1. A Perfect Circle - Annihilation
Actually - I don’t really know why I even chose this song, and especially I’m not sure about putting it right at the beginning of the mix.
But then again, to me it seems to be very fitting considering the state Heaven is in in Gaiden.
2. Bat for Lashes - Seal Jubilee
To me this song is about humanity destroys the earth, but I guess you can see it from a Gaiden-point-of-view, since their world is also somehow falling apart. The mood of the song is sad but beautiful, and this is what Gaiden is to me.
The love-issue in this song, by the way - I don’t see it as that; I rather had to think of Konzen and Goku when I listened to the lines “I lay quiet, next to you
/Transformed a whole/ Transformed anew/ No longer diving into/ But lying quiet next to you“, since Goku definitely did something to Konzen - besides, „and so the ocean lost its depths/ and boredom rained as the ocean wept“ made me think of the latter as well. It may seem far-fetched, but aside from that personal thoughts of mine, the mood and feeling of the song stay and fit pretty much in my opinion.
03. Ali Helnwein - Greed
When I first listened to this song, I had to think of Gaiden, but didn’t know why; I still don’t know, but now that I know the title of the song, I can imagine it as some kind of leitmotif for Li Touten, perhaps together with Nataku, since it‘s mostly a rather soft tune.
04. Billy Talent - Red Flag
One of the two songs I had the most trouble with, the other being Annihilation; the title is controversial, I guess, and I want to state that I don‘t see any kind of communism in the Gaiden-group. However, I wanted a more upbeat song that pushs forward, and so I chose this one which obviously questions the system as the guys in Gaiden do and is less depressing than most of the other songs here. This is the reason why I picked a rather funny image to go with this song as well.
05. Elsiane - final escape
Gaiden is about living and standing up to your beliefs, I guess, and this song corresponds with that. It was difficult to pick some lyrics, since there are so many lines that seem to fit spot-on. “You always want me to be a part of you/You always taught me to be alive with you“ of course reminds me of Konzen and Goku, but the song itself is in my opinion not necessarily just for the two of them.
06. Phoenix - Love Like a Sunset
There is a short version of this song, and the longer one, which I chose; there is a long instrumental intro that I really like - some of you will probably do so as well, others won‘t.
I picked this song because it‘s less depressing than others that made it into the mix, and especially the instrumental intro builds up some kind of tension I find relatable to Gaiden - it feels a bit like there is some kind of change and new departures ahead. When the vocal-part starts, it feels somehow warm and cozy for me, and the lyrics are fitting as well, the whole sunset-image is; there is something beautiful going on, actually it just started, and like a sunset it is about to end soon after. …which is quite sad again .__.
07. Depeche Mode - Better Days
This, well - actually, I like the song pretty much, and it definitely does remind me of that scene with Tenpou and Kenren on that balcony, talking to Li Touten and his men. I can‘t say that much more about it, it just has to speak for itself, I guess.
The song itself by the way shall not mirror the mood of the fanmix or anything, it‘s just that „Better Days“ was a good title with a melancholic feeling to it, but this very song isn‘t really the showpiece of the mix.
08. M83 - In the Cold I’m Standing
I don’t want to say much about this one; in my opinion it’s a very emotional song, and actually when I first listened to this I thought it had an almost unbearable…sad and somehow lonely feeling to it.
09. Bat for Lashes - Wilderness
I don‘t even know what to say about this one, it is actually a song that makes me cry - and to be honest, I don‘t even know what exactly it is about. Perhaps it‘s to poetic to be understood completely, perhaps I just don‘t see the real meaning, but Í do have very strong feelings when listening to this.
Especially the first verse has this imagery that makes me connect it to Gaiden - with the „queen in the sky gently revealing the treasures of her crowns“ obviously comparable to Kannon and stuff. But also and especially the lines „in the darkest night/ I call out to my brothers/ come join me in flight“ - this practically needs no further explanation.
10. The cure - to wish impossible things
This is so sad! Really. Not much needs to be said about this, I guess. Just listen, and you will understand why I picked this very song. „Remember how it used to be/When the sun would fill up the sky /Remember how we used to feel/Those days would never end“
11. Placebo - Sleeping With Ghosts
Actually,I listened to this song a lot while reading the manga, I guess because I found the mood fitting; and so every time I listen to the song now, I immediately have to think of Gaiden.
The lyrics are quite fitting in my opinion, and especially this whole soumates-never-die-thing makes me want to cry, since it’s obviously true when talking about Saiyuki as a whole.
And the lies that are mentioned make me think of Li Touten, but I never realized when I just listened to the song while reading; I payed closer attention to the lyrics later, so it may be that I am strongly biased when it comes to this particular song.
To me, it will always be my personal Gaiden-song.
You can get either a zip containing the music, a larger version of the cover and a back as well as all the images out of this post here,
or a zip with just the music, a larger version of the cover and a back over here.
The art on the cover is from Salty Dog V, the back from freefoto.com.
The booklet-pages are all from the Gaiden-manga, if you want to know which chapters exactly, feel free to ask :>
I'm always very happy about comments <3
Saiyuki Gaiden - Better Days
Warnings: lyrics that imply violence; some angst and depressing music; contains instrumental tracks (well, actually one instrumental track, one almost-instrumental track with some whispering and one track with roughly five minutes of instrumental intro)
Notes: A fanmix dedicated to Saiyuki Gaiden, therefore it is mostly rather sad; consists out of 11 tracks; image-heavy post! Will also be posted to fanmix
I'd like to say something about the songs before coming to the rest, but first, here's a track list for you.
Track List
01. A Perfect Circle - Annihilation
02. Bat For Lashes - Seal Jubilee
03. Ali Helnwein - Greed
04. Billy Talent - Red Flag
05. Elsiane - Final Escape
06. Phoenix - Love Like a Sunset
07. Depeche Mode - Better Days
08. M83 - In the Cold I’m Standing
09. Bat For Lashes - Wilderness
10. The Cure - To Wish Impossible Things
11. Placebo - Sleeping With Ghosts
I'm sorry in advance for talking so much about the individual songs, but I felt the need to explain myself a little; also, nobody is forced to read this, so feel free to ignorel it :>
[about the song choices]
1. A Perfect Circle - Annihilation
Actually - I don’t really know why I even chose this song, and especially I’m not sure about putting it right at the beginning of the mix.
But then again, to me it seems to be very fitting considering the state Heaven is in in Gaiden.
2. Bat for Lashes - Seal Jubilee
To me this song is about humanity destroys the earth, but I guess you can see it from a Gaiden-point-of-view, since their world is also somehow falling apart. The mood of the song is sad but beautiful, and this is what Gaiden is to me.
The love-issue in this song, by the way - I don’t see it as that; I rather had to think of Konzen and Goku when I listened to the lines “I lay quiet, next to you
/Transformed a whole/ Transformed anew/ No longer diving into/ But lying quiet next to you“, since Goku definitely did something to Konzen - besides, „and so the ocean lost its depths/ and boredom rained as the ocean wept“ made me think of the latter as well. It may seem far-fetched, but aside from that personal thoughts of mine, the mood and feeling of the song stay and fit pretty much in my opinion.
03. Ali Helnwein - Greed
When I first listened to this song, I had to think of Gaiden, but didn’t know why; I still don’t know, but now that I know the title of the song, I can imagine it as some kind of leitmotif for Li Touten, perhaps together with Nataku, since it‘s mostly a rather soft tune.
04. Billy Talent - Red Flag
One of the two songs I had the most trouble with, the other being Annihilation; the title is controversial, I guess, and I want to state that I don‘t see any kind of communism in the Gaiden-group. However, I wanted a more upbeat song that pushs forward, and so I chose this one which obviously questions the system as the guys in Gaiden do and is less depressing than most of the other songs here. This is the reason why I picked a rather funny image to go with this song as well.
05. Elsiane - final escape
Gaiden is about living and standing up to your beliefs, I guess, and this song corresponds with that. It was difficult to pick some lyrics, since there are so many lines that seem to fit spot-on. “You always want me to be a part of you/You always taught me to be alive with you“ of course reminds me of Konzen and Goku, but the song itself is in my opinion not necessarily just for the two of them.
06. Phoenix - Love Like a Sunset
There is a short version of this song, and the longer one, which I chose; there is a long instrumental intro that I really like - some of you will probably do so as well, others won‘t.
I picked this song because it‘s less depressing than others that made it into the mix, and especially the instrumental intro builds up some kind of tension I find relatable to Gaiden - it feels a bit like there is some kind of change and new departures ahead. When the vocal-part starts, it feels somehow warm and cozy for me, and the lyrics are fitting as well, the whole sunset-image is; there is something beautiful going on, actually it just started, and like a sunset it is about to end soon after. …which is quite sad again .__.
07. Depeche Mode - Better Days
This, well - actually, I like the song pretty much, and it definitely does remind me of that scene with Tenpou and Kenren on that balcony, talking to Li Touten and his men. I can‘t say that much more about it, it just has to speak for itself, I guess.
The song itself by the way shall not mirror the mood of the fanmix or anything, it‘s just that „Better Days“ was a good title with a melancholic feeling to it, but this very song isn‘t really the showpiece of the mix.
08. M83 - In the Cold I’m Standing
I don’t want to say much about this one; in my opinion it’s a very emotional song, and actually when I first listened to this I thought it had an almost unbearable…sad and somehow lonely feeling to it.
09. Bat for Lashes - Wilderness
I don‘t even know what to say about this one, it is actually a song that makes me cry - and to be honest, I don‘t even know what exactly it is about. Perhaps it‘s to poetic to be understood completely, perhaps I just don‘t see the real meaning, but Í do have very strong feelings when listening to this.
Especially the first verse has this imagery that makes me connect it to Gaiden - with the „queen in the sky gently revealing the treasures of her crowns“ obviously comparable to Kannon and stuff. But also and especially the lines „in the darkest night/ I call out to my brothers/ come join me in flight“ - this practically needs no further explanation.
10. The cure - to wish impossible things
This is so sad! Really. Not much needs to be said about this, I guess. Just listen, and you will understand why I picked this very song. „Remember how it used to be/When the sun would fill up the sky /Remember how we used to feel/Those days would never end“
11. Placebo - Sleeping With Ghosts
Actually,I listened to this song a lot while reading the manga, I guess because I found the mood fitting; and so every time I listen to the song now, I immediately have to think of Gaiden.
The lyrics are quite fitting in my opinion, and especially this whole soumates-never-die-thing makes me want to cry, since it’s obviously true when talking about Saiyuki as a whole.
And the lies that are mentioned make me think of Li Touten, but I never realized when I just listened to the song while reading; I payed closer attention to the lyrics later, so it may be that I am strongly biased when it comes to this particular song.
To me, it will always be my personal Gaiden-song.
You can get either a zip containing the music, a larger version of the cover and a back as well as all the images out of this post here,
or a zip with just the music, a larger version of the cover and a back over here.
The art on the cover is from Salty Dog V, the back from freefoto.com.
The booklet-pages are all from the Gaiden-manga, if you want to know which chapters exactly, feel free to ask :>
I'm always very happy about comments <3