Final Fantasy

Final Fantasy is the name used by two different acts in the input: a German trance duo made up of Ralph Fritsch and Detlef Hastik, and the former stage name of Canadian singer and violinist Owen Pallett from Toronto, Ontario. The German project is active through the 1990s and ends with the double A-side release “You’re My Angel / The Moon Is Shining” in 2003; “You’re My Angel” is later covered by the UK duo Styles & Breeze.

Owen Pallett’s Final Fantasy

Owen Pallett uses Final Fantasy as a solo project name while also being credited as the principal member of the band. Leon Taheny is also credited as drummer and engineer. Pallett is a violinist and singer from Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and his live set-up is notable for using violin lines fed into a sampler controlled by foot pedals, creating loops and layered parts. He also performs with more traditional string quartets as backing musicians.

His first album under the name, Final Fantasy Has A Good Home, is released on 12 February 2005 by Blocks, a Toronto-based cooperative label he belongs to. His second album, He Poos Clouds, is released on Tomlab and is based on the eight schools of magic from Dungeons & Dragons and their relation to modern times. He wins the inaugural Polaris Music Prize for best Canadian album in 2006.

Pallett’s earlier projects include Les Mouches, a three-piece Toronto band that is now defunct, and he remains a member of Picastro, another Toronto band. He also records and tours with The Hidden Cameras and The Arcade Fire. One of his songs, “This Is the Dream of Win & Regine”, is inspired by Win Butler and Régine Chassagne of The Arcade Fire, as well as Dntel’s “This is the Dream of Evan & Chan”. He also co-writes the orchestral arrangements for both of The Arcade Fire’s albums with Régine Chassagne.

In December 2009, Pallett stops using the Final Fantasy name and begins releasing music under his own name, Owen Pallett, in part because he plans to release his third album in the Japanese market, where the name conflicts with the video game franchise. The earlier albums are also due to be re-released under his own name. He has said that his work is influenced in part by his sexuality, and that he is gay, while also stressing that the music is not simply about identity.