An Interview with Verses Mode - The Final Fantasy Guitar Duet

Verses Mode - who are they you might ask? Well they're none other than two brothers geeking out through their love of video game music. They've recently released a Final Fantasy guitar duet that features the two mainstay tracks of the series - Prelude and Theme of Final Fantasy. But beyond a gorgeous video, Verses Mode are quite an interesting duo! They were kind enough to sit down with us for a small interview.

Before you have a read, though, take a gander at the video!

If you have any questions you'd like to put to Verses Mode then be sure to leave them in the comments below!


Q. Tell us a bit about yourselves. How long have you been playing the guitar etc?

Paul: I started playing when I was 14 years old. It was Seattle in the 90s and it seemed like everyone was learning guitar. After learning every single Nirvana song on electric guitar, I started getting into classical guitar when I first heard Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata... on level 4 of Earthworm Jim 2 of all places.

Don: So, doing as younger brothers do, shortly after Paul picked up the classical guitar I pretty much wanted to be just like him. I know that sounds lame, but his passion for Moonlight Sonata was infectious and—honestly, what we’re doing today started then and there.

Q. What was the idea behind the name Verses Mode?

Paul: This was a tough one! We wanted a name that gamers would get, but would also be musical at the same time. When we started talking about using Verses Mode as a name, Don drew up a logo concept that we both liked and it was settled.

Don: Yep. Something gamers would get, but also bridges the gap between music and games a bit. Thus the play on words with the intentional misspelling.

Q. When did you get into Final Fantasy and which Final Fantasy is your favourite?

Don: My first fond memories would’ve been with Final Fantasy III (Locke was so rad!), but I’m not certain it’s my favorite. I played X quite a lot, but XII had some of my favorite gameplay. That said, thematically, I was always fairly attached to VII which is probably why that musical theme resonates so strongly with me. I don’t pick favorites

Paul: I was quite young, but actually the original NES Final Fantasy was my first. I spent the most time playing FFIV, so I would say that was my favorite.

Q. How did the duet come about, was it something planned or did it just happen one day? Did you use any existing tabs?

Paul: We got talking about it after seeing a few videos on Youtube of video game music covers. Pretty soon we were sitting down with our guitars doing our own arrangements. There are a lot of great solo tabs out there for video game music, but not so many duets.

Don: I think I was walking around our parent’s house a few months ago, playing a cover of [redacted] I had arranged a few years prior. That’s when I recall the first conversations starting. So it wasn’t planned, but certainly felt long overdue. As far as tabs, not really; I think we both enjoy arranging things ourselves, so we never really seek out existing tabs/arrangements. It takes the fun out of it!

Q. Where was the video filmed?

Southern Utah, about 20 minutes from where we live.

Q. Do you plan on doing duets of any other Final Fantasy tracks?

We are pretty big fans of Square Enix and will definitely be doing more Final Fantasy music. We have also had quite a few requests for Kingdom Hearts and the Mana series.

Q. Have you done any other covers? Or do you have any original pieces you've composed?

Paul: We have a Zelda Medley over on our Youtube Channel, and a few more on the way.

Don: As far as original pieces, I don’t think that’s a goal of this project—at least not short-term. Who knows where things will go in the future! It would all tie back into games in some way, so I suppose I would throw the word ‘tribute’ out there as a possibility. No current plans, though.

Q. What's the best part of playing the guitar for you?

Don: I seem to be drawn to creative activities in general. And to me—even when playing a song that someone else wrote—I feel like performing it is an act of creation; each interpretation has infinite potential for nuance and emotional expression. I enjoy that from both sides—performing just as much as listening to and appreciating the emotion someone else conveys.

Paul: I also love the creative side of the guitar. It’s such a unique challenge taking a piece of music from one instrument and adapting it for the guitar. Solo guitar has its limitations when adapting a piece of music, but with two guitars the creative possibilities seem endless.