ReMix:The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask "Shikashi's Dream" 5:46

By anterroir

Arranging the music of one song...

"Astral Observatory"

Primary Game: The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask (Nintendo , 2000, N64), music by Koji Kondo, Toru Minegishi

Posted 2012-08-20, evaluated by the judges panel


From newcomer David Enterlein, aka anterroir (which my brain keeps wanting is misread as 'anterior'), comes a darker, downtempo arrangement of the 'Astral Observatory' theme from Majora's Mask that brightens up towards the end. Deliberate, isolated piano introduces a stormy landscape that's filled with both uncertainty & warmth - brief, comforting moments quickly turn to darker, ominous overtones. It's a cool balance to strike, and the 2+ minute extended intro employs it well, before beats come and the tracks gets a bit more structure. Gated synths certainly get a lot of field play, a deep synth bass punctuates the rhythms, and shimmering bells express the melodic motif as choral pads accompany. The 4'59" dropout of the gated synth line was a little abrupt, and I think that particular component was ultimately overused, but overall I'm digging the mixed instrumentation and the 'slow burn' of the intro, as OA puts it:

"Cool idea to modulate the track while keeping the melody the same. The soundscape is barren but spacious, and the production is balanced, with some nice percussive textures. The song progression is very slow burning, which is not something that i'm really used to, but the track progresses and builds nonetheless."

halc adds:

"great arrangement here. didn't know what to think at first, but when that piano melody came in, it all clicked. theres some really great reharmonizations going on here. the mix pushes the boundaries as far as being too liberal, but quite enjoyed this overall. hope to hear some more subs from you in the future!"

Emunator also had some good pointers. Definitely a liberal arrangement, but you can hear the connectivity relatively easily, and the artist did a great job painting a dark, troubled picture with both texture AND tonality. Strong debut from anterroir with depth & development.

djpretzel

Discussion

Latest 11 comments/reviews; view the complete thread or post your own.
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Crulex
on 2014-03-14 10:20:27

That intro set the stage for the rest of the ReMix very well. Picking it up at that the yell was a good mark to it, and this really does come off as a cinematic ending, although I see it more as a game ending than a movie score. Either way, it fits that tone of summing things up. Good debut ReMix with this one.

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anterroir
on 2012-10-29 14:54:43

Thanks everyone for the nice comments :oops:

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genius11433
on 2012-10-09 21:28:45

Wow. This is one solid mix. Easily sounds like something from a movie...Perhaps the ending of a suspense film?

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Derceto
on 2012-08-22 21:16:28

I absolutely love it! I've already listened to it well over a dozen times at work over the last two days. This one's right up my alley, particularly once it really hits it's grove at 2:08, this ones going on the Ipod! Thanks for sharing this with everyone!

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timaeus222
on 2012-08-22 13:10:02

Surprisingly long intro there, but it didn't wander off for no reason. It seemed to have a logical structure to me. Loved the bit crushed percussion made to build it up at 1:18 - 1:26.

Perhaps some more filler notes could have been used to flesh out the piano in the intro some more, though, considering the pattern in the chord technique was somewhat simple, but it's not overbearing.

The snare afterwards could have a tad more low end punch, but it's sufficient nonetheless.

The gated poly saw was interesting, but it went on for quite a long time. Maybe it could have faded out at about 4:15, but that's alright.

At 4:35, perhaps you could have added some new elements to the mix (considering it feels like the climax), as you kept a lot of them from earlier, but the mix still works well there.

Overall, great work!

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Master_Yoshi
on 2012-08-22 02:11:25

What a fantastic mix from a fantastic source of one of the best games ever.

It did take a while to start cooking, but just like a good roast, it's well worth the wait, and you know as it cooks from those delectable smells that you are in for a fantastic meal.

.... god I'm hungry.

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lemnlime
on 2012-08-21 20:55:18

Nice song choice! This remix is slow to get interesting but it does a good job of being a creepy version of an originally upbeat song. I especially like the part beginning at 2:55 where it sounds like a distorted radio (for lack of a better term). The song is fairly forgettable since it doesn't do anything flashy but it works for what it is. Thanks for creating this remix, anterroir! Hopefully there will be more in the future :grin:

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counterpoke
on 2012-08-21 15:52:23

I LOVE this song. can't get enough of it. MOAR PLZ

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urdailywater
on 2012-08-20 23:43:51

Love the dark ambience here - the production on this piece is super cool.

Piano is great, and so are the strings. The pads used in this piece feel very good, very mellow but spacious sounding.

This piece is very cinematic sounding which I like it. Good job on creating that sort of dark atmosphere!

Yup. One of the best Zelda mixes in a while IMO, but I'm a sucker for this type of music anyways :P.

Also did I mention the gating is super cool? Because the gating is super cool.

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C7
on 2012-08-20 19:15:04

Yay! Some more Majora love! I really really like this mix a lot. There are some fantastic ideas, the beats are well-used, and there's a good sense of progression. The slow intro was great and led into the main melody in a really nice way. My only two issues would be it falls a little into repetitious territory, and has a few odd tonal choices/transitions in a couple places. Otherwise, very nice work and a great start for a first-time poster! Heck yeah to more Majora, and great mix!

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djpretzel
on 2012-08-20 17:52:23

What did you think? Post your opinion of this ReMix.

Sources Arranged (1 Song)


Primary Game:
The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask (Nintendo , 2000, N64)
Music by Koji Kondo,Toru Minegishi
Songs:
"Astral Observatory"

Tags (6)


Genre:
Ambient
Mood:
Dark
Instrumentation:
Bells,Electronic,Piano,Synth
Additional:

File Information


Name:
Legend_of_Zelda_Majora's_Mask_Shikashi's_Dream_OC_ReMix.mp3
Size:
8,394,972 bytes
MD5:
3cee6b137cbffe090899657acd801206
Bitrate:
192Kbps
Duration:
5:46

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