DragonAvenger Posted October 24, 2010 Share Posted October 24, 2010 Remix title: Koopa Nova Remixer name: diotrans Real name: Amy Hsieh Website: www.amyhsieh.com UserID: 21446 Game: Super Mario Kart, Super Mario 64 Platform: SNES, N64 Song: Koopa Beach, Starman/Invincibility theme Composer: Koji Konda, Soyo Oka, Taro Bando Super Mario Kart was one of those games I played the crap out of as a kid, so this soundtrack is very nostalgic for me. I don't remember exactly how the idea for this remix came about. I just know that I've had in my head a bossa nova-style starman theme for a long time, and a bossa nova-style Koopa Beach for an even longer time. I guess I finally put it together and combined the two ideas. I'm playing flute, acoustic guitar, and keys in this one. This is a totally new and different style for me, so I didn't really have a clear image of what the song would be like when I started it. There was a lot of exploring and learning new things, and the remix took me a long time to finish. But I had a ton of fun with it. I also want to mention that I was partly inspired by the Austin Powers soundtrack (which is surprisingly good, probably my favorite movie soundtrack). Shout out to my OCR buddies Arcana, sixto, and others who encouraged me and gave suggestions, and especially Palpable who heard the WIP in various stages as it evolved and gave helpful advice along the way. --------------------- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZt0hYAO8ow - Koopa Beach - Star Theme Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fishy Posted October 28, 2010 Share Posted October 28, 2010 That is one lovely flute sound. Guitar is not bad either. The themes both fit the style and each other well. Drums are fairly simple but can't argue stylistically with that. The live guitar and flute make up for the slightly static drum/bass sequencing. The guitar improv works well. Not too much else to say about it. Overall a bit on the simple side but it flows well, with a nice (if a little repetitive) groove. I like it. YES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OceansAndrew Posted November 2, 2010 Share Posted November 2, 2010 Production-wise i think a little panning on the guitar would have been nice, and maybe a touch more volume on the flute, but otherwise I really dig it. It feels really fresh and airy, and everything is nice and clear, with strong performances all around. I liked the slow fade but think it could have gone even slower, and there's enough interpretation for it to feel unique to the original - the meshing of the sources worked very well, and I also really liked the guitar improv. I think a flute solo would have been great to help it get even more personalized, and maybe a little bit more variation in the drums, but it's still pretty nice as-is. Yes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DragonAvenger Posted November 10, 2010 Author Share Posted November 10, 2010 Very little I can add to the votes above. I love the control you have over your sound on the long notes (and there are a lot of them!) on the flute. My very amateur playing lets me know just how hard it is to hold a steady tone on a flute on passages like that. The two sources go very well together, although I wish there'd been some melodic variation here and there. I do wish there'd been a flute solo to really let you shine, but the guitar solo does help in that aspect. As mentioned above, a little panning would have helped, but it's very minor. The production is pretty solid otherwise. YES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Palpable Posted November 14, 2010 Share Posted November 14, 2010 I didn't help Amy with this one too much apart from telling her I liked the direction it was going in and adding one fill, so I think I can judge it objectively. I love the buildup of the song, starting with some very basic melodies pulled from the original, and by the end, morphing into a far more complex interplay of flute and guitar with heavier drums. While there's a lot of layer change-ups in the drums, it might have been cool to hear more volume adjustment and ghost notes so that the playing was more humanized. The live guitar and flute add a lot and the drums aren't quite at that level of realism. Regardless, this is a really enjoyable, laidback blend of the two themes. YES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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