OCR00826 - Tetris (GB) 'Gift from Moscow'

[Disco Dan]

Tetris 'Gift from Moscow'

Ok, for those of you who heard McVaffe's last Tetris arrangement, and are expecting something similar or are expecting ANYthing with a big bass funky beat, save djpretzel the bandwidth. BUT, if you're looking for an arrangement that expands upon an original in new and intuitive ways while demonstrating flexibility and an inherent grasp of music theory, get this mix. McVaffe, when not creating danceable masterpieces, has the capability to weave an intricate sonic texture that reminds you that there's more to a good remix than a funky beat and a good bassline. This is an example of the "beatless vaf" as he dubbed it. Take a listen if you want, but don't expect to dance.

DC

[HaasofPain]

Hmm, very interesting.

As always, thank you McV!

[dilbert627]

McVaffe on a harpsichord. HOW COOL IS THAT! Then back to a piano, then the way Tetris music was meant to be played, Russian folk style. Nothing terribly innovative, but an excellent arrangement that fits the music perfectly IMO.

[Kyukei]

Hrm, think this is my first post, figured this was as good a mix as any to do it on. *grin*

Anyway, McV puts out his usual high-quality remix, with some nice variations - I personally like the intro and how it segways oh-so-smoothly into the main theme, nice little build-up - on the theme that we have all come to know and love. What can I say? Kudos bigtime.

[Starblaze]

YOU CAN TOO DANCE TO THIS! :x :evil: :roll:

[kage-chan]

The remix itself sounds great, even if it isn't reall my taste of music. I think what keeps me listening to this is that it is the Tetris music, and not that it's a mix from McVaffe. Well, somebody already said it above:
don't expect the usual McV style in here. If you wanna dance, don't get it. If you like the tetris music, get it :)

[DarkeSword]

Listening to this right now, I'd just like to say, FANTASTIC.

Thanks McVaffe, for giving us a great eastern european sounding piece; a nice departure from the norm of Tetris mixes. You really brought out the essence of the classic Tetris melodies.

Great work!

((HARPSICHORD R0X))

[Metasquares]

Very nice, like all of McVaffe's Remixes. Very different from most of the others, too :)

[Ryan8bit]

Cool, it's yiddish. The piece itself is flawless and cool, but not my favorite type of music. Still, someone had to bring in da accordian. Good job.

[Xenophule]

--Begin Transmission--

Starting out this piece is a little surprising. McV is usually known for really complex, kick-ass songs, but here he's gone simpler--which is very nice. I can see myself drinking tea on the balcany of my high-class house to this song while looking out over the French (or German in this case) landscape. I like the simple sound to it. The samples are high quality (I was surprised to see that it was at 192kbps), so you know it's not going to sound like a cat on crack.

This piece starts out very niceley with what sounds like some sort of stringed duet, like a ballet. Very beautiful duet here. at 0'55", it starts to go into another song, and the duet continues until 1'34", where a piano takes over the melody. Very well done. Very nice piano samples here. At 1"52', it kicks up a notch with an acordian and other such "Ooomp-pah" instruments.

Once again. very well done. This is one of those songs that takes the original to new heights that couldn't be reached then. This is also one of those songs that--if it were on X-Box--I would replace the original song with this one, for it is far superior.

Good job, McVaffe. Glad to hear from you again. Keep up the great work.

--End Transmission--

[matus]

It's very cool.

My dad came in and asked if it was Greek music. :lol:

[OverClockedCritic]

I have to say, it is really good. The only thing I don't really like is the theme in the begining and at the end. The piano solo needs to be longer. I do love 2:38 to 2:52.. this->needs to be longer!

[MegaManFan]

McVaffe has both his fans and his detractors, but if you're among the former and not the latter you'll find this another A+ mix from him. It captures that Russian element of the original in a very whimsical yet completely new way. At times it's medieval, at times it sounds like the Tetris Polka. I was very pleased to see that McVaffe is back, fit, and still kicking bottom. :D

[frobnitz]

Pretty good stuff, I liked the uniqueness of it, and as usual for McVaffe - very well mixed and orchestrated. There is a nice solid beat which I loved, I can't tell if i like it more or less than his other tetris remix... Oh well, thankyou McVaffe, very well done

9/10

[Dev]

Brilliant...simply brilliant. Makes me want to get up and dance actually. Glad to hear from McV again, I was gettin' worried for a while :wink: Download this one now.

[SsaiskK]

didnt really fall into my genre =\
normally i enjoy mcv, but i didnt really like this one too much

[JustinShaltout]

I liked it when the piano came in and then it went polka..

but when it first started I was afraid the whole mix would be using only the harpsichord.. brr..

nice.. wish it was dancy from the beginning to end though :P

[Keithius]

Very tasty - I like the style, I like the source material... mmmm yummy.

Very good job on this one, I must say.

[Jugulator]

This one really kicks ass! Perfect russian melodies and harmonies, I simply love it 8)

[neostormx]

I agree, this one DOES sound russian :) Lots of skill here

[Moogle!]

I know this is an old topic, but this song kicks ass. I like it. Of course, I'm easily amused by Russian stuff.

[Jimmy the Lip]

McVaffe's return to OCR was quite a fitting piece to announce his rearrival on All Hallow's Eave of last year. "Gift From Moscow" begins with a harpsichord playing a forty-five second introduction before going into Tetris' unforgettable title theme. The second part is then performed by a lone piano before another short intro sounds and percussion and bass join the mix. A smashing accordion picks up the lead melody from there, playing in a stunningly traditional style that makes the tune sound almost as if it came right out of Eastern Europe itself. The harpsichord picks up again with the bass, percussion, and accordion still in the background until it goes extensively into the tune played during part of the piece's intro. This Slavic-themed gift ends with the harpsichord on its own once again, slowly playing out the very last notes in a pretty, slow-tempo version of the second song from the piece's intro.
"Gift From Moscow" is certainly a great tune at least for me, because I am an avid fan of Germanic and Slavic traditional music and the baroque-to-early-classical themes of that forerunner of the piano, the harpsichord. McVaffe arranged Tetris' main theme so to make it appear as if it may never have been a video game theme at all, but rather a pleasant folksong from Poland or Chzekoslovakia, and used very high-quality sounds to complete the effect. This is a terrifically splendid rendition of that unforgettable block-breaking theme, and I strongly reccommend you at least give it a try. I can almost guarantee that you will enjoy it as immensly as I did.

[JesustheDarkLord]

I know that this song has been up a while, but does anyone else hear influences from Layla? listen to the two back to back and see what you think.

[Novablas]

NOO!! SO close to exactly what I wanted!? The accordian part just turned me off to the song, it was good but I guess not my taste. The beginning piano intro which sounded nothing like the song was very cool! Maybe shorter would've been better and the actualy song played on the piano thingy was EXACTLY MY KIND OF MUSIC. I have always loved this song ever since I first heard it playing the GB Tetris at the dentist's. Good job though! Oh yes, this is also my first review and what a song to do it on, eh? Ahh..... Listening to the song now, the way it seamlessly goes into the music from the intro....Beautiful... but ack... accordian. Overall excellent job!

EDIT

I'm sorry, I just realized that this is a remix and I should listen to the actual song if I wanna hear that. I didn't mean to be mean if that's the way you took it. But I don't think my post is out of the rule boundaries so I'll leave it all in. =D

[DrumUltimA]

I absolutely love this!!!!!!!


But piano and hapsichord were from two verydifferent time periods....

Okay I'll shut up now

[djBOB]

TREAT!! TREAT!!

[Moogle!]

A m/-\d k0mp0z3r is j00.

[MrKoopa]

Hey, decided to finally register so I could comment on the cool songs around here. I just wanted to point something out, since I'm not sure if everyone noticed it, but the part of this piece played in the intro (and the part it goes back to around 3'24") is actually another song that's also from Tetris (I always remember it as the Title Screen music in the Game Boy version, not sure if any other versions of the game had that part) and is probably also a Russian folk piece or something :) I just thought it was really cool that he included that into the mix. Great remix!

[Nixs]

this is such a good piece (1:52 :D ) i like that bit. This brought back those memories of playing for 2 hours and then finally beating level 9 high 5... nostalgia so good *weeps*

[bouncerboy15]

Great mix. Good beats that are great to hum along. This piece brings me back some good memories playing this game on my Gameboy and NES. And there is some nice Russian theme to this mix. Recommend.

[The Womb]

I like it alot
The start definetly feels barouqueish escpecially with the harpiscord

[RimFrost the Tourianist]

this one really has great style ..a classic :)

[FinalGamer]

I can't believe such a brilliant piece of music could be made from all the musical piece of Tetris. It truly is a gift from Russia, with its baroque tunes and folk-style backgrounds. Superb!

[Jabberbox]

A m/-\d k0mp0z3r is j00.
for those who need a translation:
McVaffe, you are a very skilled composer, and contribute much to the video game remixing community.

[TheDro]

I just had to get up and dance while snapping my fingers:P transition 0:56 is so cool :D

[Red Light District]

very creative.

[Nah!]

Da! Da! I could really see and smell a russian wedding when listening to this brilliant remix!

Bet a russian senior would dig this :D

*hepp hepp hepp*

[Frictional Antidote]

Thank you for the transition at 3:30. It keeps the track alive. The instrumentation choice on this song is wonderful. Sorry if I am not giving props where they are due, but if you are the first to use the harpsichord, very original choice. Perhaps a few more bpm faster would have given the song a bit more umph. Anyway, wow, awesome, very simplistic remix. Thank you McVaffe.

[Liontamer]

Cool stuff, but I've always wonder what, if anything, if being arranged from 3:23 until the end. Didn't hear it anywhere in the GBS or NSF sets. Pretty seamless original writing if that's in fact what it was, but I wish Mike or someone else could give more information.

[Harmony]

It's Halloween!! Candy, ghouls, and goblins aside, today I celebrate the 5th anniversary of the posting of my favorite harpsichord-centered remix! Love it Mike!

3:23-end sounds very familiar to me. Can't place it right now, but if it's not from Tetris, I'd be willing to bet it's VG related in one way or another.

[Teh Mick]

This remix is one of the best I heard in some time. I'm a fan on baroque music and the harpsicord :)

[42]

I really love how this is broken into about three/four sections and how it progresses through each.

It's as if someone's starting a game of Tetris and listens to the title theme.
Then at 0:55 they actually begin a round.
At 1:52 (where the mix really begins), reality fractures and the player is at some obscure, romantisiced Eastern European village at festival time.
Then at 3:54, its time to go home.

Great mix and worth listening to.

[smeggy]

This is so good I hunted through the internet to find where this came from, and here it is! Massive kudos to McVaffe.

My only feedback is that the piano part between 1:33 to 1:51, whilst tuney, is soft compared to the rest of the piece and seems quite out of place. I would pay to have that adjusted - no kidding. Are you still around McVaffe?

The harpsichord is such a nice touch! All of a sudden I have a hunger for Polka :-P

Edit: I've just cross/fade edited it out, now I'm happy :D

[metalsnakejuice]

Awsome mix and definaly worth listening too.

[OA]

Pretty decent, but I think that it would have been more solid without the modal shift that Korobeiniki included. The transitions were a little weak, and the arrangement wasn't groundbreaking, but it was definitely pleasant. :-)

[SubNormal J3]

I feel gypped. I wasn't around when Tetris was huge on the Game Boy; so recently, I bought it for my phone, but what the heck? It only plays music on the intro to the title screen; then it stops for the rest of the game. What a scam. Oh well. I still have a blast playing it.

This is a much more 'authentic' reproduction of the theme than McVaffe's last Tetris mix: there are lot's of traditional sounds. I like how the intro transitions to the main theme with that short chromatic line. Great piece, especially for anyone that has this song engrained in their mind after hours and hours of Tetris gameplay.