OCR01777 - *YES* Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion 'Pirates of Oblivion'

[Liontamer]

* Your ReMixer name : Prometheus
* Your real name : John Revoredo
* Your email address : yesterdaygeneration1750@hotmail.com
* Your website : none yet.
* Your userid 9896
* Remix name: Pirates of Oblivion
* Remixed music: Elder Scrolls main theme. I'd say Oblivion, since many games of the saga share the same theme, but that's the newest one.
* Comments on the mix: I'm having serious doubts about this. Honestly, I don't like the mix, but had pretty much support, so thought it could be reasonable giving a try.

Please, if this mix is rejected, I'd like the link to the remix to be kept.

Regards,
John

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The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Special Edition Soundtrack - (01) "Reign of the Septims"

The string sequencing opening things up sounded mechanical and exposed, but the track beefed up a fair deal at :11 and then got rid of the strings as the lead at :26, mitigating the issue. I thought the overall volume was also too loud, particularly with stuff like the brass. It wasn't a huge deal, but could have been toned down. The track goes for a pretty bombastic feel, but the separation of the parts could have been better.

Otherwise, there were a lot of cool things to enjoy about the piece, including the percussion from :24-:50. Good wind SFX at :50 as well, showing how important the little touches can be.

The belltone-like sounds that started at 1:56 dragged on for way too long, even as a background player. 2:28 could have been a good moment to either drop them out or introduce them in the first place.

Otherwise, I liked the variations of the source tune throughout. The ending at 2:44 felt like a cop-out, honestly. At the very least, I thought it was a pretty cold, weak resolution. Nearly everything else was clicking well enough though. I can give it a weak pass, which sounds like backhanded compliment. But if I really wanted to cut this down, I'd give it a NO.

Wouldn't mind some revisions on this one to bring out more of its potential, but it's tiptoes on the line. Could still get NOed though, so we'll see how it goes. Even if this doesn't make it as is, this is already in pretty good shape, John. Keep improving!

YES (borderline)

[anosou]

It's too bad about the strings in the intro, they really drags the piece down when exposed like that. The attacks in particular sounds really off. It's also very static and sounds almost like repeating a GM sample over and over. In other words, I agree with Larry here. Since it's 20 seconds of a less-than-3-minutes arrangement and plays such a major part I really think you could've done better.

The rest of the piece is quite good. Full of surprises, twists and turns. Some interesting takes on the original theme, 00:35 had some interesting writing that went well with the percussion. Some of the transitions (1.24) into the glockenspiel-parts are a bit too abrupt for my taste but it's not a dealbreaker.

The general sound quality wasn't bad. I've already mentioned the strings. The percussion was a welcome element and well done. The brass is quite nice too, especially since it can be hard to get brass right. The horn that takes the lead at 2:28 just isn't clicking with me though. It sounds unnatural to have that kind of strength in those long tones. A soft french horn sound would've sounded better and would've given some variation in the brass section. And yeah, the ending was a let down.

I actually really enjoyed this though. Well thought out arrangement, decent enough instrument quality and production. Loud at parts but still very dynamic. The only major weak point is the exposed strings in the intro, they really sound horrible. Though I really want this on OCR, I can't let these strings on the site. Rework them in some way, rewrite the intro or use another sample and then it's good to go. Feel free to fix some of my other issues or Larry's issues too. For me though, the strings will push this borderline baby over the bar.

See below

[Palpable]

Cool arrangement, John. I think it plays well off the original melodies and has a lot of variety for a less than 3-minute orchestral song. The transitions were a little abrupt but I think were still handled decently. I especially love the writing in the section beginning at 1:40.

Production was a little iffier. I think the majority of the sounds are good, but as noted, the strings in the intro were definitely off. It's only for about 20 seconds though, so I feel it's not a huge part of the song and doesn't need to be fixed given the quality of the rest of the song. I also think the levels are off at times too, but again, not majorly. The glockenspiel seemed loud and boomy, especially around 1:25, and at times the percussion too. In all, I think this was solid work and it can go up as is. Good luck getting those last YESes!

YES

[Palpable]

John sent me a remastered version. String intro sounds a little less stiff, though I don't think the instruments have changed any. I think it's just the way it's EQed. You may want to take a listen, Mattias:

http://media.putfile.com/Prometheus-PiratesOfOblivion-FinishedV1

Also, Larry, John changed his remixer name to his real name, John Revoredo.

[anosou]

Okay, the new version had overall better production. Even though it seems the instruments are the same this does help the track and the intro a lot. It certainly puts this baby over the bar.

YES

[zyko]

this one's good to go. has elements of about 3 or 4 different flavors... a little zimmer, a little williams, a little warcraft and a lot of elder scrolls.

the new version is better enough to pass it through.

YES