ReMix: Ninja Gaiden II: The Dark Sword of Chaos 'InTheAtrium'
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- Game: Ninja Gaiden II: The Dark Sword of Chaos (Tecmo, 1990, NES)
- ReMixer(s): silent
- Composer(s): Mayuko Okamura, Ryuichi Nitta
- Song(s):
- Posted: 2003-11-06, evaluated by djpretzel
I really like what Jason Merrill, alias silent, is bringing to the game arrangement world; his combination of original vocals and extensive rock/ballad rearrangement basically turns the source material into entirely new pieces of music, but if you listen, sure enough, the original game melodies are there in full force. The vocal parts he writes for himself are pretty difficult, and there will be occassional falters or areas that aren't as polished, but this arrangement of the Atrium theme from Ninja Gaiden 2 does more to compensate for that than his previous 'Tororian Love Song', which was a more spartan mix that gave the vocals less company. Here, we get a more energetic arrangement that also branches out sonically a bit more, with layered solo and rhythm guitar, nice B3 organ, and an appended section that goes into acoustic Extreme 'More than Words' territory (as in, get your lighters out and start wavin' em) - great stuff. He's also a good lyricist, and manages to come up with words that flow perfectly in context and sound very natural, which is always the trick. There's some rockin' guitar soloing as well, and even some synth backup at 2'52" that gets thrown competently into the mix. Recording is cleaner than before, and the stereo imaging is very intimate and powerful - the acoustic section towards the conclusion in particular. At the very end some vocal self-harmony is introduced that doesn't really work; this would be the one primary beef I have, and would have preferred he ended on the really rather beautiful high note hit just moments before. Ending criticism aside, this is really quite a unique and creative thing to have done with a piece of Ninja Gaiden 2's BGM, and Jason's style produces a very singular type of ReMix you won't find from other artists. This is the logical 'next step' beyond what he did with Tororian in terms of arrangement, and the extra bits only add to the effectiveness of his style. Recommended; this is pretty much the type of mix you'll either be into or not, like its predecessor, but has some truly great musical ideas that are very well executed.
Discussion: Latest 15 comments/reviews; view the Edit: The second version really grew on me. The introduction has a lot more character and the drums are just a lot better.
- PlastikBag on July 21, 2006
secondly, Your Second mix sucked - the More raw first version was AWESOME - So much emotion, less bullshit.
It makes me tingle every time I hear you hit those high notes. This is easily one of my favorite songs, ever.
Please become famous, so you get the fame you deserve.
- Br0 on August 23, 2005
The parts where you sing "and maybe someday both of us will see" and the one from 5:02 to 5:24 are sung with so much feeling I can seriously consider you one of the singers with the best potenital I've ever heard. There are still things you need to polish, but with time you can become a huge singer.
- Larryboy on August 21, 2005
- djpretzel on February 27, 2005
First of all, I have know idea what Wicked was talking about when he said the original was relaxed and the tempo felt rushed. I think you nailed the feel of the original, while upping the quality quite a bit.
Intro [b]rocked[/b]. I loved it, sounded 100% better from the original.
I love your voice, but I gotta agree with Wicked about the effects; I like it better when it was raw and dirty and not effects laiden. Same for the accoustic guitar at the end. But the whole effects thing is really a minor complaint.
Your (sorta clean) rhythm guitar that you're strumming on the off beats needs to be turned [b]way[/b] down on the verses.
Also, the acoustic guitar seems to just completely drop out at the end of the song. Leaves you hanging, in a bad way. Needs an ending, even if it's just a singe diamonded tonic chord.
That annoying miditechnocrap thing that comes in at the climax (2:50-3:02) needs to die. This is my only major complaint. I'd rather chew and swallow a sardine flavored glass grenade than listen to that again. This is the kind of thing you use to interrogate prisoners. Delete it completely. The ending has enough energy on its own to sustain itself. Sometimes less is more.
Honestly, this has always been one of my favorite songs. I always hoped you go back and re-record it, and it seems today is my lucky day. It probably seems like I'm railing on this song a lot, but that's only because it's almost perfect. Good job.[/b]
- Sinewav on February 27, 2005
I'm stunned. And I mean that in a bad way.
Man, I hate to be offensive because I love the older version so much and this...I can't think of what to say other than something mean. It's a pile of shit. First off, your voice is much better when it was raw and natural, not effects laden. Not only that but it sounds like the tempo of this was raised and it makes it sound really rushed. The original sounded relaxed, like there wasn't a care in the world any more. Plus certain instruments are way too loud and some way too far in the background, like the guitar right before the vocals start.
Now, as we transition into the soft part, I start to dig it again. It sounds like you're singing from maybe a bathroom or somewhere dark and damp, lonely and the like. Then your voice goes severely off-key several times and I want to shove sharp objects into my ears. However, the revamped ending with just the guitar rubs me the right way and is one of the few good things I like about it.
I don't mean to sound like a complete hardass but I think this is sort of the same deal that was with the remake you did of Tororian Love Song (Over and Under). Your original recordings of both are so many levels above the remakes because they concentrate more on YOU and YOUR playing rather than on trying to be fancier and sounding more like say, a more well-financed effort by a more upscale musician. I think that's your strongest point is your ability to completely expose yourself and come out completely strong. If you were signed onto a label, I think your live show would be so much better than your CD. Get the picture?
I miss the organ. :(
- Wicked on February 27, 2005
http://www.sectionzmusic.com/detail.asp?SZID=18384
free download, no signup. tell me what you think :D
- Silent on February 26, 2005
Lutej wrote: Any Chance of getting Lyrics? I'd really like the lyrics to this song! It is one of my favorites on OC Remixes.
DITTO. At 100%
- Sefy on October 29, 2004
- Lutej on October 15, 2004
- Goldeneye on February 1, 2004
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