OCR00096 - ActRaiser "Lord PROTEKTOR"

[Marmiduke]

ActRaiser given djpretzel's hip-hop treatment. Now there is a fine combo.

This has a lot in common with a pretzel mix released just a little earlier called Ghetto Recursive, and while I think the elements in that mix came through much stronger, the sound lends itself to this tune as well.

However, it is loud. And not in a hardcore complimentary sort of way. It's overwhelmingly loud and disrupts a few of the aspects that would have benefited from a clearer sound. Whereas the formulae had a little more equilibrium in Ghetto Recursive. But this isn't a contest between the two.

There was also a touch of repetition; a sense of the mix folding onto itself to extend its length, which I'm never a fan of.

But still, there's an impressive arrangement here that cuts through the gripes, and that's mainly what I'm interested in. It's an inspired blend of urban and folk music bound together with that unmistakable pretzel style, and for that it gets my highest regards. It's taught me to never let a few flaws get in the way of a great song.

[WesternZypher]

is a pretzel that never gets stale, apparently, and neither do his mixes. Whether it's copious amounts of salt, or some secret ingredient, even the oldest of his works sound great to me. This makes nice work out music.

[Polo]

Sunny vibe + punchy beat = YES. Love this mood changeup to the delicately holy feel of the source. I can easily picture that angel avatar jammin' with his (its?) own kind, sayin', "screw your petty development hurdles, it's time to ROCK!"

The screechy synths at 0:19 and elsewhere (1st and 3rd bars, then 2nd bar) aren't my cup of tea, but their varied placements keep them from getting too irksome. Plus there's that goofy "dope puh-duh-dope" vocal quip, which I guess acts as a buffer/tradeoff to them.

The way the melody kinda "slurs" its way up the scale along its route of homage (0:48 - 0:55 and later) feels like it trades finesse for groove. I could go either way on that - sometimes I groove along, sometimes I think it's a bit lazy, but at the end of the day I view it as an integral section that you can't throw away (cuz it works).

On the whole, listening to this lifts my spirits. Can't go wrong there.

[Drakenwolf]

I'm not a fan of hip-hop at all, Mr. Pretzel, but I really love the bass and the kicks you've put in here as I feel they stand out the most.

I give this ReMix a 6/10.

[Crulex]

For an early hip-hop ReMix, this really has the feel of some early in-game hip-hop I've heard, so in a way, it really fits as a bit of an upgrade to the ActRaiser source. The voices working in and out of the mix were a nice touch.

[Tables]

This is a very odd little remix but I do think I'm a fan! There's something weirdly satisfying about those chopped up voice samples and turntable scratches backing up an otherwise standard funky synth tune. Also interesting how it starts sounding like electric guitar at points. I also appreciate that the hip-hop is distributed at key points throughout, usually in a song like this it would run acrosst the whole thing. But having it primarily be in choruses is a pretty good choice; it makes it even more special when it shows up.