ReMix:Soukaigi "Aftershock" 4:56

By Ziwtra

Arranging the music of one song...

"Quake"

Primary Game: Soukaigi (Square , 1998, PS1), music by Hiroki Kikuta

Posted 2004-12-11, evaluated by djpretzel


Ziwtra sends in our first mix from this Squaresoft PSX RPG that never made it out of Japan:

"First of all, Soukaigi is an obscure Square game for the PSX. It had a stellar soundtrack by Hiroki Kikuta that was performed by many live instruments and had various vocalists. It should be listened to by anyone who can obtain it.

I've wanted to do a remix of Quake for a very long time. When I was still in high school I used to walk to school for about an hour in the morning. And if I'd been working on a remix, I'd hum various parts and try to figure out how I wanted to solve this problem or that problem (Desert Snowstorm and Willed Assault are both products of such walks). And during one of these walks is where this mix began...

I really tried to open up the atmospheric space--hence the deep reverbed "thunder" bass drum, and the delay applied to the bass (something i've never done!). There are some pretty interesting details here and there (perhaps I got carried away), but hopefully they'll be appreciated after the nth listen. My favorite, I think is the set of "warning" synth beeps at 2:20."

Well, Youngjin covered quite a bit, there, so my work is minimal. I personally love Kikuta's style, so hearing Ziwtra cover some of his lesser-known work is a double-treat. Introing with ambient pads and glacial, cutting, cross-panned timbres, a quick break comes in with an analogue filtered bass that pecks around the melody. This is key to the piece - the bass rarely sticks on a note too long, and instead serves as an accentuator that the groove plays over. It's even cross-panned, which is something you don't hear done to a bassline too often. Youngjin layers on the pads, glide leads, bells, and background effects, per usual, creating a shimmering world that seems a bit faster than his usual style but is none the worse for it. Ziwtra's execution works perfectly with Kikuta's general motifs, and everything clicks in a waterfall of brilliant, synthetic drops of melody and rhythm. Effervescent.

djpretzel

Discussion

Latest 15 comments/reviews; view the complete thread or post your own.
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WesternZypher
on 2013-12-29 13:36:03

Another eternal fixture on my playlist of life.

Frenetic chaotic energy of SOMANYTHINGSTOTAKECAREOF is channeled into Doing

When this is on

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Drachefly
on 2013-10-02 11:37:48

Thanks for posting that, bringing this to my attention!

(As for the music itself, it's been said. +1)

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Crulex
on 2013-10-01 13:34:45

Really difficult to describe the enjoyment I get out of this ReMix. It's like something I can leave on for hours and never get bored of. The electronica sound is evenly paced and well-energized to give it enough of a kick to keep the interest, but it's not so overbearing that it requires attention. Pretty good piece, I liked it.

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tweex
on 2010-09-13 20:20:29

Oh wow, probably my favorite intro from Ziwtra here. I love the ambiance it creates. Then the percolating/quick drums underneath. The juxtaposition is simply fantastic. I agree with OA as this is not the most melodic piece we've heard from Mr. Hahn, but my goodness, I'm diggin this something fierce! There is a wonderful balance of fast and frantic movement that is offset perfectly by slow moving chords and pads. The kick deserves some notable praise here. This is really one of the first tracks we've heard where Youngjin really makes a full effort to give it more presence in the mix and I'm liking it! I love that low lead synth. The Jazz fusion drums with the glitch drums is too cool for school! Very nice!

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OA
on 2009-09-28 14:16:44

Melodically this one doesn't grab me as much as some others on the site, but rhythmically and harmonically, this one is completely amazing. Great use of subtle stuff like accents and delays. Nice builds, constantly shifting parts, and some excellent percussion parts make this one really stand out.

Excellent work, this mix is superb.

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metalsnakejuice
on 2009-04-18 05:23:53

This really is a must listen to song. Keep the good work up.

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Polo
on 2009-04-16 11:10:17

After listening to the source, I must say I admire how the melody hidden behind the beats and within the vocals has been brought to the fore. Here, thanks to the glistening, glittering synths, cherubic bells, and fading pads, its tone becomes nectar-sweet. The sensitive strings and the bass drum can be a little overbearing sometimes, but it's nothing major. Due to how most elements don't linger on any one note, as well as how the arrangement evolves, I'm kept in a perpetual state of wanting more, eagerly awaiting the next second/section, even during repeated listens.

Spellbinding.

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evktalo
on 2009-03-10 16:55:32

Thanks for bumping the review thread ChaosPlayer.. this one's really good!

--Eino

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ChaosPlayer
on 2009-03-10 16:38:25

:puppyeyes: Absolutely amazing :puppyeyes:

This was really an awesome find. + Amust listen file!!!

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metaphist
on 2007-06-05 15:14:24

What the hell man. This is the greatest freakin remix on the site. I wasn't even familiar with the source before hand. So masterfull...it just takes you on this journey. All time favorite, right here folks.

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avaris
on 2007-01-23 15:23:01

Wow, def one of those gems I'm glad I found. This is a rare combination of soothing intruments, calm driving beats, and excellent synth design and execution.

This is some hot stuff, it's not only enjoyable and fun to listen to it is also relaxing. Ziwtra did a wicked nice job of building the proper momentum and variation in and throughout the sections. Awesome stuff, this even sounds high quality on crappy headphones.

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Genesis Blue
on 2005-06-30 23:36:17

Okay... everyone needs to listen to this... NOW! I've never played the game or heard the song but this remix still exudes quality. I love the smooth instruments of this mix; quite similar to the Gifts From Mana mix. Well, I really don't know what I'm talking about when it comes to remixing so I don't know how to describe it, but I can't recommend it enough!

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mrjag
on 2005-01-07 05:28:06

It's an amazing work when so many sounds follow in harmonic ways, I know how it is difficult, so I really appreciate these things.

My kudos to the drumline too, sometimes it seems faster than the rest, like it is running away and the synths and the bass are left behind, but they doesn't. Maybe because we can picture a very slow drumline onto it, however it's already good enough.

It's a great unorthodox work, I love this kind of track.

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Bigfoot
on 2004-12-31 15:37:22

I've never even heard of this game, but this remix is awesome. I like it :) Good job.

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PlastikBag
on 2004-12-29 22:59:10

Ok, I figured I liked this song so much that I should write a review for it. Just to let you know, I've never even played the game that this came from so I've never even heard the source material before (for some reason I doubt many of us have)... And this happens to be one of my favorite songs on this site. I love it how your remixes always flow very well and never come off as repetitive. Nothing sounds out of place. This remix is a true representation of Ziwtra's remixing skills. Phenomenal work!

Sources Arranged (1 Song)


Primary Game:
Soukaigi (Square , 1998, PS1)
Music by Hiroki Kikuta
Songs:
"Quake"

Tags (2)


Genre:
Mood:
Instrumentation:
Electronic,Synth
Additional:

File Information


Name:
Soukaigi_Aftershock_OC_ReMix.mp3
Size:
6,000,629 bytes
MD5:
47fd6888bc6e97436fa2a8825821c124
Bitrate:
160Kbps
Duration:
4:56

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