ReMix: Mega Man 2 'Dr. Wily Symphonic'

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Mega Man 2

I love the submission email on this one, from Blue.Nocturne:

"Before you say "NOT ANOTHER #$%@ing DR. WILY REMIX," be sure to give it a listen as I promise it will be worth the 2:49 of your life. I decided to orchestrate it, as I feel every good song deserves to have an orchestral counterpart. Enjoy! (at least I hope so)"

Give it a listen I did, and enjoy it I did; the original's a classic among classics on the MM2 OST, and I agree with Dennis that the theme needed some orchestral love. Kim's debut LttP ReMix featured some excellent arrangement in the genre, and this follow-up continues that trend. At 3'28", that mix was fairly short, but here Blue.Nocturne weighs in at 2'49"- can true and complete justice be done for such a venerable, classic source in such a relatively brief amount of time??

Yes.

It helps, of course, that the artist has maintained the very quick pacing of the original, with strings aided by the quicker attacks of xylophone hitting you with the intro riff right out of the gate. I love how, at 0'23", the B section is treated as sort of an orchestral beat drop, with the tone becoming mellower and harp glissandi creating a temporarily serene atmosphere. It's true, however, that structurally and melodically this arrangement plays it close to the source: most of the variation and interpretation is happening at the accompaniment level and is additive in nature. Judges had minor beef with that, and I too would like to see future submissions from Dennis branch out just a bit more, but overall he's got it going on, as he has again proven. Andy writes:

"Pretty nice orchestration here. Lots of people use QLSO, but few people use it properly. This is one case where I'd say it was used very creatively, particularly in the slower break in the middle with the quartal movement in the wood percussion. Great original writing! I would have liked to hear more variation in the main melody, though - the chord progression and the melody are basically identical to the original. Some flourishes or variations on the chords/rhythms would have been very welcome there, for example. There are, however, some great fills and transitions throughout, as well as little touches of detail that add to the whole package."

Sounds good to me... this is yet another sophomore/follow-up mix from an artist who recently had his OCR debut, and it's yet another strong track that brings something new to the table and proves the first track was no accident. Wish the mix title matched the creativity of the music, but other than that, this is (more) great work from Blue.Nocturne.

― djpretzel

Discussion: Latest 15 comments/reviews; view the complete thread or post your own.
this song has always been a favorite of mine and i have heard some AWFUL renditions/remixes of it, but this is fantastic it adds a whole new element to the crazed doctor's castle, fantastic:razz:
i would like your permission to use this remix in a game i'm creating in September as the penultimate BGM

- MegaAntMan1 on July 13, 2010
Great remix, I love how it stays so close to the original. I hate how some people don't like this yet they love the remixes which sound nothing like the original song at all.

- ocnblitz on February 23, 2010
Yeah, in the interests of beating a dead horse I'm gonna compare this to Brawl's soundtrack as well, especially the flutes and the choir at the end - in that context I think this mix would be absolutely perfect. Some of the arrangement sounds a bit amateurish and repetitive but that doesn't stop this from being an enjoyable take on one of my favorite themes from any Mega Man game :-)

- Emunator on December 21, 2009
Heh, I can't listen to the source/any remix of it without thinking of Okkusenman anymore.
This one is a keeper. I really like the instrumentation. The breakdown was done very well and gives this fast-paced remix a welcome, laid-back section. I would've liked to hear more of the choir sample, though.

- Martin Penwald on August 30, 2009
Really nice stuff, with some good additions to the original, and a great breakdown section. Structurally it's very similar, but I am definitely feeling this one. Great percussion and i am loving the harp glissando's.
Well played, sir. I dig it.

- OA on August 24, 2009
I remember hearing the WIP of this quite a while ago and didn't even realize it was the same song till I went back and checked. This may not be reaching any new creative highs, but it's still a very solid orchestral rendition of a song that's seen many mixes over the years.
It's Mega Man 2, Wily Stage 1, Orchestral version. And it's pretty friggen sweet, nice job!

- ZealPath on August 18, 2009
About time! This is freaking great, another way to really enjoy the Dr Wily theme : )

- Scaredsim on August 15, 2009
I've been waiting for this one for a while - it's been on the 'To be Posted' section for some time, now. It was very good, but not the best rendition evar. Oh well, it was still really good :). I liked the subtlety you used throughout, though - it makes full use of the orchestra rather than beating us down with the awesome theme :). The choir is cool when it's there.
By the way, has anyone else abused their right to the xylophone in high school by playing the Wily theme on it? Hearing the xylophone in here used like that brings back memories :-o.

- Gario on August 12, 2009
Thank you for restoring my faith in Wily! To be honest I always thought the original track was a bit overrated--good, but not great. This mix may be a comparatively straightforward recreation, but your arrangement really reinforces what was already there and makes the song really "pop". A little more variation wouldn't have hurt, but this mix does a fantastic job just playing it straight.

- greg on August 12, 2009
I was very impressed with this piece. Not so much for the originality but for the smart use of samples especially in the string category. The solo violin sounds just about as real as EWQLSO will allow. Song was good. Sampling and production awesomeness!

-Derek-

- derako on August 12, 2009
I don't personally have a problem with mixes sticking close to the original, and I really don't understand why anyone else does, as long as no one else has done the same thing with the same song before. This is new enough, simply because it's (for this source) a new genre.
For being an orchestral mix though, it feels really rocky, rhythmically speaking. I think the drums shouldn't have been so much "kick, snare", but rather "snare, snare", with snares both on the 1st and 3rd beats of the measure as well as the 2nd and 4th. It's like a rock remix with orchestral instruments. Definitely worth a listen, and I appreciate the effort, but this could really have been made more "orchestral" with a few small tweaks.

- Dafydd on August 11, 2009
This song stays remarkably close to the source material, which can normally be a distinct minus. That said, the instrumentation is smooth, and really plays well to the actual theme. When you split away and went into the calmer original stuff, it made for a fairly compelling listen. I wouldn't mind seeing more of your own original interpretation in this sandwiched between the two verses of Wily's theme.
In terms of instrumentation, your horns and brass section sounded a little on the weak side. This isn't in terms of sampling, however. The thing I take issue with is the volume in the punchier parts of the song. They just don't come off as powerful as they should. I'm not really sure if I liked the snare sample either, but it's so far in the background it's generally unobtrusive.
Overall, though? I love the source track, and I love your arrangement of it. It's faithful, it's smooth, and it's instrumented well with plenty of depth. Well worth the download for a job well done.

- Triad Orion on August 11, 2009
Very good arrangement. I cannot complain: if Wily were in SSBB, I would like this to be the music. However, as aforesaid, it could have done with a variation on the main melody itself: Keep the chord progressions and build a melody on it.

- genius11433 on August 10, 2009
I think it relies a bit too much on the string ensembles there... I feel like something could be done to make those fast, stacatto dununuh dunununuh bits sound more natural, but I'm not coming up with any ideas beyond "different instrument" :S

- Nobbynob Littlun on August 10, 2009
WOW. My jaw has hit the floor. SSBB is teh shiz, and i would gladly hack my game to put this track in there. Anyway, I am a relativley new gamer, and i have never played this game, but this is awesome. 9/10

- mew2king on August 10, 2009