XIII Cheers for Sweet Revenge: Kingdom Hearts Goes Emo

Thank you GameGrooves for sending us this digital album to review!

XIII Cheers for Sweet Revenge Kingdom Hearts Goes Emo features fifteen tracks from Kingdom Hearts 1 through 3. If you never played those games, you may still recognize the multiple Disney song covers that have been given the "emo" treatment.

Here is the song list:
1. Caitlin Ayala - Dearly Beloved (from "Kingdom Hearts II") 01:12
2. LongestSoloEver - This Is Halloween (from "Kingdom Hearts") 03:11
3. Ro Panuganti - Don't Think Twice (from "Kingdom Hearts III") 03:28
4. Pheller - A Pirate's Life for Me (from "Kingdom Hearts III") 01:16
5. Fuzz Pixels, Todd Barriage - A Whole New World (from "Kingdom Hearts: Melody of Memory") 02:49
6. Press Start - Under the Sea (from "Kingdom Hearts") 03:29
7. V-Ron Media - Treasured Memories (from "Kingdom Hearts") 01:38
8. Todd Barriage - Let It Go (from "Kingdom Hearts III") 03:20
9. Treyt - Chikai (from "Kingdom Hearts III") 04:12
10. Ian Martyn - Hikari (from "Kingdom Hearts") ft. Denver Dale, Carrie Wood, and V-Ron Media 04:54
11. CeLilly - Passion (from "Kingdom Hearts II") 03:47
12. Chernabogue - Another Side (from "Kingdom Hearts") ft. Ian Martyn 01:24
13. Bobson Dugnutt Jr. - Sanctuary (from "Kingdom Hearts II") 04:38
14. Lucas Guimaraes - Simple and Clean (from "Kingdom Hearts") 04:41
15. Studio Nicktendo - Face My Fears (from "Kingdom Hearts III") 03:27

There's a wide variety of artists and the only one I was familiar with was Ro Panuganti after reviewing multiple of his albums including Fallen Hero, Metal Trainer, and Return to the Wild. His track, Don't Think Twice, does not disappoint. While I discovered I'm not into emo music, there is only one song that I had to keep skipping past due to the excessive screaming. The only track I didn't like was Hikari which featured shouting in Japanese.

I enjoyed the remakes of This is Halloween, Under the Sea, A Pirate's Life for Me, and A Whole New World. Like many people I got sick and tired of hearing Let it Go as it was way over-played when it first came out. The emo version is refreshing and I don't feel ashamed singing along to it. On the Kingdom Hearts songs, I enjoyed Face My Fears, but I'm still partial to the female vocals on the original.

All in all, this is an interesting album. I think it's an acquired taste and may not be for everyone. XIII Cheers for Sweet Revenge Kingdom Hearts Goes Emo is available on Bandcamp. You can purchase this album digitally and lossless formats like FLAC are supported. Alternatively, this album is also available in physical CD and cassette formats. The asking price of $10 is reasonable if you enjoy this kind of music. If you're on the fence, I highly recommend giving it a listen before purchasing.