MIDI Week Singles: "Song of Wings -As One-" - ACE COMBAT 8: Wings of Theve (PC)

 

"Song of Wings -As One-" from ACE COMBAT 8: Wings of Theve on Windows, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series S/X (2026)
Composers: Keiki Kobayashi, Ryo Wantanabe, Mitsuhiro Kitadani
Album: ACE COMBAT 8: Wings of Theve Original Soundtrack
Label: Bandai Namco Entertainment Inc.
Publisher: Bandai Namco Entertainment Inc.
Developer: Bandai Namco Aces

This song is going to require a bit of context, but even then, I don't think I could fully get across the impact unless you play through the campaign for ACE COMBAT 8: Wings of Theve.  I know that's kinda gatekeepy, but it would be like trying to explain the significance of Sam holding Frodo at the end of all things in a single paragraph.

This song, "Song of Wings," was composed by the in-game character, William Coster, a musician and one of the pilots in Joker Flight (the squadron your character Rex joins up with after an undefined crash in the beginning of the game).  The song is first performed by a band made up of refugees and military personnel from Usea (Usea had been invaded by the nation of Sotoa about two months prior) after the mission where Joker Flight had taken out one of Sotoa's massive Land Battleships.  Immediately after that mission, the refugees and civilians disembarked from The Endurance, the aircraft carrier that had doubled as a home for the past 2-3 months, believing that the war was coming to an end.  By the end of the game, the song, as well as live video recordings from that performance, had made their way off of the ship and circulated among the populace of Usea by the time of the events at the end of the game, about four months later.

During that final mission, one of the civilians on The Endurance tries to drum up popular support online (there's a lot more to it than that, but we'll heavily tl;dr that bit) by live streaming the attack from the overarching BBEG.  So while Joker Flight picks off cruise missiles aimed at The Endurance, the civilian pipes audio from various live feeds into the pilots' cockpits, with the citizens of Usea singing "Song of Wings" across the country.  So this song, sung by the citizens of Usea, is played through your headsets while you're flying around, taking out missile after missile after missile after missile; your crewmembers are calling out with their own actions and reactions to the attack, and then the orchestra comes in.  It's absolutely bonkers in all of the best ways possible.

Now let's get to the lyrics.  Before I looked them up, I couldn't understand what was being sung.  And what's being sung doesn't feel particularly well written for it to be a call to hope and victory over an oppressive force.  The stanzas are in a weird meter that doesn't seem to be at all consistent.  It's almost as if William Coster loves music (we know he does since he often ends up playing music from his favorite band, Purple Magic, which is also a band made up of FCU Air Force pilots) and can play the guitar, but maybe isn't necessarily good at writing lyrics, and ends up just writing everything down.

... ... ...
somewhere is a free sky

So we will rise above
In a world where evil is replaced by love
And we won't regret it
And even if we lose this fight
We will emerge into the light again
Rise up again

And when we rise above
No beginning and never ends
Infinite blue sky
From the dark into the light
Against the odds we'll do what's right again
We have the wings to rise

Now we know, 

In a moment that we can't deny
We can show, what we need to help us touch the sky
I believe, the light of hope out there will show the way
We've always known
That light burns for freedom

Some people deceive us with lies
Divide us, deride us, and feed our confusion
But all we believe in is on the line
There's a light that leads us all into the future

So we will rise above
It may feel like we will lose
But after fighting, we won't regret it
Voices joined in unity
Standing for the truth we will defend
Until the end

And when we rise above
No beginning and never ends
Infinite blue sky
From the dark into the light
Against the odds, we'll do what's right again
We have the wings to rise

Flying high, knowing it will surely help someone
Moving on, to survive the chaos in this world
I believe, a single light is seen from miles away
But my heart knows, somewhere is a free sky

Some people may speak down to you
Some people accuse you of being a liar
But if there is nothing we can believe
Could it be the wings to fly are my imagination?

So we will rise above
In a world where evil is replaced by love
And we won't regret it
And even if we lose this fight
We will emerge into the light again
Rising up again

And when we rise above
No beginning and never ends
Infinite blue sky
From the dark into the light
Against the odds we'll do what's right again
We have the wings to rise

~JWfW/JDub/The Faceplantman/Jaconian
I Listen in Sympathy