ReMix: Gun.Smoke 'Space Cowboy'
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- Game: Gun.Smoke (Capcom, 1988, NES)
- ReMixer(s): ilp0
- Composer(s): Ayako Mori, Junko Tamiya
- Song(s):
- Posted: 2009-04-02, evaluated by djpretzel
While I'd like to think that OCREMIX.ORG *is* actually "The fastest and easiest way to get what you want!" in at least a couple ways, yesterday's homepage was - as some of you quickly surmised - an April Fools' shenanigan. It had an excellent effort-to-reward ratio, taking us only a couple hours, so we figured rather than show up empty-handed (like last year), we'd make 2009 the year we got our domain cybersquatted. So, no, we weren't hacked or affected by the Conflicker worm - it'd have to be a pretty awesome worm to come up with some of those Youtube links (a BAT BOMB!?) - and our domain did not truly expire and is (sadly) not for sale. Larry DID end up getting a bunch of new MySpace friends thanks to our "Black Dating" link, so there were even unintended and disturbingly pleasant side effects.
What's no joke (segue!) is that, while our domain hasn't actually expired nor is it at risk of doing so, our hosting costs remain significant, and revenue from ads has dipped to about half of what we saw last year, meaning that we're currently running each month at a loss. The only reason we've been able to do that is because of last April and BGC's "Support OCR Month"... I've spoken with him and I think he plans to do something similar this year, and there might even be prizes, but one way or another, I really hope it turns out as well as last year. I know the economy sucks, everybody's hurting, and it's hard to justify donations of ANY kind, to anyone, for anything, but we provide a lot of great music for free, I'm working at least 15 hours a week on the site (usually more), and while ad revenue has dipped, our operating cost has remained the same. We've got a lot of big plans for this year, our tenth anniversary, and anything anyone can do to help is seriously appreciated.
Speaking of great, free music, ilp0 is BACK with his first mix of 2009, a futuristic spaghetti western rock piece with hints of dub/reggae/jazz, arranging Capcom's Gun.Smoke. Ilari didn't provide any exposition in his submission email, so I don't really know what he was thinking, but the title seems allusive to Cowboy Bebop, and the style - while not particularly evocative of that specific anime - could easily be something Kanno would do, modernizing a genre and merging it with others. You've got dirty, heavy drums, a grizzly guitar, sonar pings and synth thwacks, and piano that provides mostly flourishes until around 1'50" where it gets a chromatic and jazzy solo. What really makes the whole thing work all the better is the authentic spring reverb/delay and vinyl sound, channeling dub influences but also the dirtier sound a lot of old spaghetti westerns had, and merging the concept. Gun.Smoke's a game that doesn't get mixed very often, but both K.Praz (where'd he go?) and Gux (ditto) put out some solid stuff way back when, and now ilp0 joins their ranks with an approach that reminds me of some of mutagene's stuff (ditto AGAIN), blended with his own unique style. Everything Mr. Nieminen does has sounded great to me, and equally impressive is that each piece has its own unique approach, tries new ideas, and still manages to sound fantastic. 'Space Cowboy' is no exception; awesome work.
Discussion: Latest 13 comments/reviews; view the - MechaFone on April 28, 2009
Very nice work.
- Martin Penwald on April 18, 2009
this is an epically remix-unattended classic which needs more coverage .. more gun-smoke! more gun-smoke! turn it into the new Ice Cap Zone fms!
- Platonist on April 15, 2009
- Mtlbro on April 12, 2009
- underthesun on April 6, 2009
Fantastic mix. I love the guitar that starts at 00:53, and it's just one of the many hilights in a terrific whole. OA has a great point about panning. There's a lot of stuff in this mix yet it sounds spacey.
--Eino
- evktalo on April 3, 2009
The piano lead that comes in during the second half of the piece starts out really striking but I find myself losing some focus by the end of its reign. It feels kind of decaying, like an ancient statue in an overgrown baroque garden - when the piano starts I feel like the nature is overwhelming everything man-made in a maze of green. At 2:40, it's like time suddenly freezes or slows down, and I'm left watching as the head of a statue finally succumbs to the throes of erosion and gravity. It lacks any malicious texture, but it still represents the loss of humanity within a place formerly held in great esteem by mankind.
Sorry for the bad example. Interesting mix though.
---------------- Now playing: [URL="http://www.foxytunes.com/artist/ilp0/track/gun.smoke+space+cowboy+oc+remix"]ilp0 - Gun.Smoke Space Cowboy OC ReMix[/URL] via [URL="http://www.foxytunes.com/signatunes/"]FoxyTunes[/URL]
- Lint on April 3, 2009
- Another Soundscape on April 2, 2009
AWESOME.
- EvilHorde on April 2, 2009
- ChaosPlayer on April 2, 2009
What really stood out to me on this track is how exceptionally good the panning ideas are. Often times people will use panning as cool effects here and there, but here, panning itself is almost like it's own instrument. Be sure to check this mix in headphones.
Great stuff, super recommended!
- OA on April 2, 2009
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