How much of Kajiura's discography have you listened to?

[YKWorshiper]

I've listened at least bits and pieces of most of YK's major soundtrack albums, but I still have at least a dozen to direct my attention to.

On a related note, and to my regret, I've to say I agree with Moderator George's general point about YK's more recent albums. With some exceptions, they have left me colder in terms of sheer musicianship and brilliance, one could say magic that the composer is able to deliver at her best.

Of her most recent full albums, I've yet to listen "Fena: Pirate Princess" and pretty much the entire "Vanitas no Karte". I do think most of her "Sword Art Online" work (Ordinal Scale... not so much) is on par with her best work, but apart from that franchise, I've only really enjoyed "Fate/Zero" the three-disc standalone complex version. Some others have been more than decent too, but nowhere as good as her best work in the 00s that I can endlessly listen to and enjoy. I've been trying to give a (critical) listen to her efforts this past decade, but usually have walked away disappointed.

Why this perceived trend has happened is open to speculation, but I have noticed that for some reason, track lengths on more recent albums have become exceedingly shorter.

However, I think the shorter track approach undercuts Y. Kajiura's greatest strengths as a composer, which are melody and structural development. She simply often doesn't have the time to work her magic. At the most, one is left with ambient feeling of an atmosphere that feels very short-lived outside the visual medium. An extreme example is SAO OS: only a handful of tracks out of 50 last even two minutes (!).

Personally, I don't know if this approach is imposed on her from without, or if it's her choice as an artist, which she is at full liberty to make of course. However, I think it unfortunately shrinks her magic and causes a seemingly unnecessary "cut" to it.

 

[Sora]

The 2010s were a dark period for Kajiura fans. Of that decade, Hanako to Anne and Zaregoto are the only must listens. There’s no “certified” reason for why this was but the general consensus here is that Kajiura had fallen into a pattern from working with the same studios/sound directors and that’s why everything sounded so samey (also possible Kalafina drama was a distraction)

 

[Decretum]

Ooh, this is a nice question!

Soundtracks: Noir, Aquarian Age, .hack SIGN, .hack LIMINALITY, Xenosaga II, Madlax, Kara no Kyoukai, El Cazador de la Bruja, Mai Hime, Mai Otome, Tsubasa Chronicle, Pandora Hearts, Madoka Magica, The Madoka films, Fate/Zero, SAO & Ordinal Scale, Case Files, Fena, and Princess Principal. I’ve also seen Erased and the Heaven’s Feel films but haven’t done a full listen of their soundtracks. Oh, and also most of Kajiura’s produced albums (Kalafina, Yuuka, FJ, See-Saw, The Fiction Duo, and some miscellaneous other songs). I also miss the days of experimentation, though as long as I like the songs (which I still generally do), then I’m alright with it.

I should really get around to Zaregoto and Hanako to Anne . . .

Personal Favorites: I’ve always loved the way that Noir’s builds up its atmosphere, and it’s just a good soundtrack in general. Aquarian Age also has a ton of good melodies. SIGN’s also really good with arrangement and melody. I’ve got to listen to Tsubasa again soon, but I recall it was solid. Fate/Zero has some epic orchestrations and a generally good use of leitmotifs, alongside stellar instrumentation. Princess Principal and Case Files also have some very good stuff on them, though they do have their occasional setbacks. Oh, and Madoka and Madlax’s are my absolute favorites. There’s a ton of tracks on those that I adore.

 

[YKWorshiper]

The 2010s were a dark period for Kajiura fans. Of that decade, Hanako to Anne and Zaregoto are the only must listens. There’s no “certified” reason for why this was but the general consensus here is that Kajiura had fallen into a pattern from working with the same studios/sound directors and that’s why everything sounded so samey (also possible Kalafina drama was a distraction)

Personally, I didn't care for either. I tried Both just lack emotion and originality for my tastes, they are too bland and incoherent.

But I did like the disc 2 of "Boku dake ga inai Machi (Erased)". Not much originality there, certainly, but I think the emotional and sensitive sides are there. Sadly, this disc is almost impossible to get on FLAC format. As a music listener, I don't want to settle on MP3 quality. So unless I want to invest in the bundle (a stupid practice in my opinion), I've to learn to live without the disc.