ReMix: EarthBound 'See Sixty Funk'
Download MP3
Play Preview
- Game: EarthBound (Nintendo, 1994, SNES)
- ReMixer(s): Mazedude
- Composer(s): Hirokazu Tanaka, Keiichi Suzuki, Toshiyuki Ueno
- Song(s): 'Save the Miners!'
- Posted: 2006-04-10, evaluated by the judges
So, the more observant amongst you may have noticed some visual changes to the site that were made yesterday - detail pages for ReMixes, games, systems, composers, publishers, songs, and ReMixers all now utilize the same ReMix listing/grid, which is paginated and allows sorting by most columns. Though some preferred the old method of listing everything on "one big page", the newer paginated grid not only unifies the site but does present a lot more information than was previously available. To help offset the new need to paginate to find games that don't appear on the first 50 mixes of certain letters, I'm working on a search function in addition. The more controversial change, and sadly the one that somehow provoked enough overreaction and disrespect to warrant a number of bans, however, was the introduction of the site's sidebar to our forums. Keep in mind, this is the same sidebar that's been present on the site for ages, just... not on the forums. While I'll be working on a means for users to selectively minimize it, it will forever remain a mystery to me how 130 or so pixels worth of horizontal space suddenly became jihad-worthy. There'll be a number of additions and modifications as we roll into summer - I'd have to waited to debut everything simultaneously, but maintaining two versions of the site was becoming burdensome, and even without the search and other bits, I feel like the changes pushed yesterday make the site far more consistent and unified, which was the intent.
Switching from controversy to controversy, Mazedude's latest raised a lot of the same questions amongst the judges panel that a mix of Shnabubula's which was rejected did. Specifically, both mixes make heavy usage of "chiptunish" elements that strongly resemble the native sound generation capabilities of the C64 and NES consoles, respectively. Now, OC ReMix hosts MP3 arrangements for a reason: half of the mix evaluation criteria takes into account production, which is understood to include mixing, sample usage, instrumentation, and a whole bunch of things likes panning, processing, etc. that often get lumped into "mixing" or "production" as well. In other words, the sonic side of things, as opposed to the arrangement itself. Happily, and unsurprisingly, both Chris' and Sam's mixes were quite strong in the arrangement arena. But both presented a quandary for the judges panel, as both intentionally utilized a soundset that was quite limited in scope. Ultimately, the only real consensus reached is that I think all of us would prefer ReMixers submit pieces that use a wide palette of appropriate samples, and not attempt to emulate the sound of game systems. I'd tend to think the original composers, had they had more advanced tools to work with, would have taken advantage of those tools, and while emulating the sound of old consoles and computers certainly evokes strong nostalgic currents, such imitation is hard to reconcile with the purpose of the site. That being said, the mix evaluation criteria are still the mix evaluation criteria, and both pieces faired well on one side of spectrum.
In the end, Mazedude's Earthbound mix (from the Bound Together project) played around enough with panning, processing, and manipulation of the SID-like timbres that, when weighed in combination with the menacing arrangement, a thin majority of the panel were persuaded. Yes, we take these things seriously, and yes, had neither mix passed, Chris and Sam BOTH would still be amazingly talented fellas, who knew EXACTLY what they were doing when they put these pieces together. That doesn't change the fact that any submission which intentionally limits its sound palette or aims for a chiptunish feel will most likely face an uphill battle on at least one half of the mix evaluation criteria. But enough context... Mazedude's piece takes Suzuki's almost non-descript original (which doesn't describe many of his works) and turns it into a menacing, ominous, C64-injected synth-funk jam. Shariq gets jiggy with his vocabulary:
"...we shouldn't be accepting mixes that intentionally limit themselves to outdated sound hardware and use that limitation as an excuse. Where is that in this mix? There is no hardware that this particular piece is limited to. Mazedude didn't intentionally set out to write a hardware-perfect C64 tune, or whatever it is. The fact that he is, quite-creatively, using chiptune sounds, should not be the reason that this piece should be rejected. There's filtering, there's panning, signal-processing, etc. The texture is grungy and old-school, and there's nothing wrong with that. It's full, and the balance is right. The sounds work together. There's synergy (my word of the day)."
A debatable statement overall, perhaps, but it'd be quite hard to imagine a stock C64 producing something that sounded verbatim like this piece, that's for sure. It's still not Mazedude's strongest work, but you really need to listen to the original - I think the plodding, evil, overbearing approach to the arrangement he took, regardless of the sounds, was totally appropriate, and there's enough texture and depth that the relatively lo-fi quality didn't strike me as a hindrance. The deal-maker for me personally was the funky and devilish time-signature tomfoolery that starts at 2'21" - this isn't your father's Oldsmobile. Syncopation shenanigans aside, the bass here is gigantic; reminds me of Kelis' 'Milkshake' in that regard. For some reason, a lot of people seem to hate that song, but you just gotta respect the massive, detuned synth bass that the Neptunes conjured up for it, and Mazedude has a similarly girthy low-end presence, here, no euphemisms intended. I don't think this sets a precedent of "chiptune mixes" being posted at OCR any more than rejecting Sam's piece set a precedent that they'd be instantly rejected; rather, I think it illustrates the priorities and criteria at play, how they can be measured against for almost any type of music, and how decisions can be reached as equitably as possible. I'm thinking most people are gonna dig what Chris has cooked up, which is infused with C64play without being confined to it.
Discussion: Latest 15 comments/reviews; view the Anyways, Mazedude is awesome. This mix is awesome. Anyone who downloads it is awesome. Anyone who listens to it, even if they don't like it, automatically become awesome.
- Jaybell on November 8, 2007
- meccaneer on December 19, 2006
- Dhsu on June 1, 2006
- RushJet1 on June 1, 2006
- jorgandar on May 26, 2006
I've registered for the sole purpose of letting a message about that "controversy" : personnaly, I enjoyed that last remix from Mazedude, as I prefer any mix with genuine and/or enhanced chiptune sounds than any mix like "techno-dance crap that does nothing but repetitive boom boom sounds all along". I didn't find it "SUPER GREAT!!!", but I did find it interesting, and it seems to me there was some good work done on that one.
- John Nada on April 25, 2006
Took me a bit to place the song, but once I did, it made perfect sense. Keep up the great work, this song rules. *Puts it on stereo and hits repeat*
- kittyanya on April 22, 2006
- Sam Ascher-Weiss on April 20, 2006
THIS is an exception.
Though I'm a huge old-school nintendo fan, I STILL haven't played through Earthbound successfully.
I LOVE the sound, beat, and everything, even though its original tune I wouldn't recognize. Bravo!
9/10!
- CG2 - KSK on April 19, 2006
And here's my opinion of chiptuning: they are absolutely valid as remixes. That is, of course, assuming that the instrumental 'quality' has decreased substantially (chiptunes remixed as other chiptunes = less cool). Why are they valid? Because chiptunes have the incredible potential to sound [b]really bad[/b]. This remixes doesn't; it sounds great. I gave it a 5 at Ormgas. And, Mazedude, if you're reading, you should consider getting this on the Kohina Stream for real.
- meccaneer on April 17, 2006
- Bobwillis on April 17, 2006
The site's mission is pointing in the direction of mainstream - who else is it trying to prove itself to? While many of the people who carry out that mission are here because of a musical enjoyment that is very much not mainstream. Icecap isn't a popular pick because of its production potential.
As for the mix, it doesn't strike me either way. The problem is, I can't judge this objectively. I know its trying to be an Earthbound mix and that the remixer is expressing something in that context. I also know that I don't hear anything in it that sounds like its been done badly, so I imagine that this must be pretty cool to those that understand and enjoyed the original tune. I am happy to see that it was accepted.
I can understand OCR trying to keep the standards of production that it does, but I think its important to tell the difference between deliberate low level production, and low level skill. Rejecting something regardless of its merit to those that understand it, and regardless of the skill the remixer exercised in creating it, and simply because of the angle he or she took in producing it... is stifling. It would be limiting creativity.
If that is in line with the site's mission, then fair enough.
- Defend on April 16, 2006
Zipp wrote:spellman wrote: I think peoples expectations are far to high these days. This is a video game remix, and video game sounds are relevant. Not only that, but the sheer nature of the game Earthbound makes me believe he meant for it to be this way, and that's a-okay with me. The music in Earthbound is made up of highly eradic tunes. It's arranged well, and it's a great tribute to the game Earthbound.
It's not a matter of expectations. It's simply a matter of taste and opinion. This is a certain style that I'm just not down with. If I were a judge, I wouldn't vote against it, as I can recognize that it is not a bad song, but I haven't downloaded it onto my itunes either.
Alright, fair enough. This is true, it'd be criminal of me to try and change someone's opinion, because if you genuinely cannot listen to something, then someone can't throw points at you as to why you should listen to it, because that's - yeah. However, I got the impression that alot of people wouldn't vote to have it on the site, and that'd be unfair. Thasall. x]
- spellman on April 14, 2006
- Monobrow on April 13, 2006
spellman wrote: I think peoples expectations are far to high these days. This is a video game remix, and video game sounds are relevant. Not only that, but the sheer nature of the game Earthbound makes me believe he meant for it to be this way, and that's a-okay with me. The music in Earthbound is made up of highly eradic tunes. It's arranged well, and it's a great tribute to the game Earthbound.
It's not a matter of expectations. It's simply a matter of taste and opinion. This is a certain style that I'm just not down with. If I were a judge, I wouldn't vote against it, as I can recognize that it is not a bad song, but I haven't downloaded it onto my itunes either.
- Zipp on April 13, 2006
Content Policy
(Submission
Agreement and Terms of Use)
Page generated Sun, 08 Nov 2009 05:52:39 -0500 in 0.0562 seconds
All compositions, arrangements, images, and trademarks are copyright their respective owners. Original content is
copyright OverClocked ReMix, LLC. For information on RSS and JavaScript news feeds, linking to us, etc. please refer to resources for webmasters. Please refer to the Info section of
the site and the FAQ available there for information about the site's
history, features, and policies. Contact David W. Lloyd (djpretzel), webmaster, with
feedback or questions not answered there.
