
Fate stay/night is such an incredible series. Each route has such an interesting story and tackles interesting ideas and concepts.
But one of the main themes that is explored across the board is how people stand on their convictions, and the way that it’s handled in UBW certainly presents it with all its faults and maybe even a bit of an inconclusive answer.
In a sense, Brave Shine seems to encapsulate that unwavering drive that Shirou has towards what he believes is right. The heaviness of the guitars, along with the dramatic strings and Aimer’s top-notch vocals, create a deep sense of resounding power. Even the punchiness and the constancy of the snare sticks out to me as such a driving force in this song.
Then Animenz’s arrangement takes so many of those elements and reimagines it into an incredibly pianistic format. Everything from the variations to the little added elements makes it such a joy to play; even the runs at the end seem to just roll off the fingers.
I worked on this piece on and off for almost a year, but I finally got around to finishing it in January this year. I originally tried to record it over the summer last year, but to say that I wasn’t in the mood to play this piece would be an understatement.
However, pulling out of that season of life, it suddenly became a piece that I could play to almost feel the power of my existence and remember why I feel as though life is still good and worth living. Every time I play this, the chorus sparks such intense joy; I feel as though I can hold on to my brave shine and weather any storms that come my way.
Maybe that’s a bit cliche, but hey, I can’t deny how I feel haha.
Recording it was an interesting experience. I somehow ended up forgetting a different part each time, which was unusual since I’ve played it on stream from memory fine before. It made me realize that I’ve gotten pretty bad at playing under pressure, so it’s something I’m looking to remedy in the future.
But anyways, a much shorter description this time because I’m writing this right before a big trip to Asia. In fact, when this goes live I’ll likely be in Japan. Or Hong Kong. Who knows.
Thanks so much for listening, and I hope this song inspires you just as it does to me!
Until next time,
- Watt
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