nitrozsz

It starts off so majestic, much like the original, and then the theme is kicked into overdrive. I like how you made the intro your own, because at this point, we all know what the opening of the Moon Theme sounds like. So it's refreshing to hear the beginning arranged enough to that it sounds different, while still being able to tell that it's still the Moon Theme. The rock arrangement done here is excellent. I loved the dueling guitars. They didn't try to overpower one or the other, and their performances flowed very well with the track. Great way to kick off the year ;D

Fascinating stuff It's weird how Green Hill Zone could sound like random notes when you only hear them on separate channels. Watching the Streets of Rage 2 one makes me more convinced that Yuzo Koshiro could make any game soundtrack, regardless of hardware limitations, sound so damn good.

Very creepy and atmospheric. Almost like Akira Yamaoka meets Super Metroid. The way the synths pan back and forth from one ear to the other, and how everything slowly gets louder and louder adds to how to make ambient music sound so intense. 2:52 will always be my favorite part, as it just exemplifies how to create an ominous mood in music.

I remember downloading this the day it was posted on this site. For my ears, it has always been a standard for how to take an original track, and improve it by about ten-fold while making it your own. I cannot listen to the original without thinking of this arrangement. There's a story to be told here. The intro is a set up to the final stage, 1:05 - 3:53 is the final stage, 3:54 - 5:56 is the final battle, and the rest writes itself. It still remains one of the most cinematic trance arrangements you'll find here.

General Overview: I love how this album can range from groovy and fast paced to relaxing while being able to retain its groove. It's good enough to listen to from beginning to end. Yeah some tracks are better than others, but no track on this album is bad. If you're looking for an electronic groove that both relaxes you and motivates you, download this album. Album Strengths (AKA Personal Favs): Track 3: PartyLabz (JoLabz) by Kubbi From 0:00 to 0:47, the music progressively builds towards an intergalactic trip through a futuristic highway. Very fun track, would love to blast this during a night drive in the middle of a city. Track 5: The Observer (Observate) by Phonetic Hero The piano work which compliments the electronic work really sold me on this track. Like I said in the original review, a great balance of electronic and orchestrated music. Track 6: Groovin' Through the Cosmos (Galactic Groove) by Amphibious The title is very accurate to what you get out of this track. I even like the "glitches" thrown in. Almost seems like the cosmos are trying to interfere with the groove. Love the beat, love the melody, love it all.

General Overview: This is a very fun, and exciting album all around. It's short, but with how many tracks there are, I'm glad that you could go through the album from beginning to end without skipping a track. Non-stop excitement suitable for an event like Apex. I especially love how the first track does an excellent job hyping you up, and how the last track winds down all that momentum as if to say "whooo, we had lots of fun didn't we? Now it's time to call it a day." Definitely recommended if you're looking for a fun and short album. Album Strengths (AKA Personal Favs): Track 1: This Is the Moment (Main Theme of Apex 2015) by John Ryan As I said above, excellent track to start the album. I definitely feel anticipation building as I listen to this track. Track 4: Smashed Fridge Bits (Super Smash Bros. Melee) by CJthemusicdude Oh my God this is an amazing Smash Bros arrangement. Energetic doesn't even begin to describe how fun this track is to listen to. Track 9: Girl From Another World (Ultra Street Fighter IV) Very exotic, and mysterious. I think I also used the word "sexy" in my original review of this track as well.

....what the hell, I can't leave this one without a review after doing the other two. General Overview: Volume III AKA the Super Castlevana IV volume AKA the best pre-Michiru Yamane Castlevania. Point is, Super Castlevania IV's soundtrack was amazing, and this volume did that soundtrack justice. It's a lot darker and it feels more cinematic compared to the other two. The other two volumes had more loud, fast paced, upbeat highlights. But this volume contains a perfect balance of those fast tracks, and tracks that are a lot slower, and more soothing. And of course, Nicolas Cage. Album Strengths (AKA Personal Favs): Track 1-4: Heart of Limestone (Limestone Cavern) by Rexy The original track was already creepy enough, but the original track relied on synth notes to convey a horror feeling. This track relies only on the piano to convey horror, and it does a really good job of doing so. (Couldn't think of anything else to add beyond what I said in my original review) Track 1-7: Whipped into Shape (Rotating Room) by Sbeast The rock elements of this track make this seem like it would be fun. But then you add the synths and the piano, and it becomes a lot darker. And I love that feeling of having fun in a dark environment. Track 1-11: Deadly Furniture (Banquet Hall) by Slimy Intense orchestrated arrangement. Almost Night on Bald Mountain-esq. Only instead of Chernabog sending little demons to cause havoc, Dracula is possessing random pieces of furniture to cause havoc. Track 2-1: Endless Tomes (Library - Collection Space) by Sam Dillard This sounds to me like what would happen if Yasunori Mitsuda worked on a track for a Castlevania game. It's so ominous, with a hint of intensity here and there to make that sense of exploring the unknown that much more wicked. Track 2-4: The Harbinger of Death (Treasure Room) by timaeus222 It's a good exploration track, but when the beat drops, it turns into an aggressive battle theme. The build-ups to the beat drops are what make this track great, and the beat dropping segments themselves are just incredible. Track 2-8: Stairway to Perdition (Beginning) by Audio Sprite This isn't as complex or as intense as many of the other tracks here, but maybe that's why I like it so much. It's very nice, funky, and nice music to relax to or to go out walking with your headphones. Track 2-9: Dracula's Secretaries (The Attendants' Rooms) by Slimy Very nice and cinematic take on one of the last levels in the game. It feels very much like a climax to the Castlevania adventure. Track 2-10: The Night King's Lament (Dracula's Room) by Sam Dillard The best track in the entire Super Castlevania IV soundtrack evolved, and made to present an incredible showdown between Simon and Dracula. If you listen to Dracula's Secretaries and The Night King's Lament back to back, it almost sounds like it could be a medley about Simon on the home stretch towards Dracula, and then finally meeting him in a memorable showdown.

General Overview: Volume II continues to pour out the Vampire Variations purpose of providing great arrangements of classic Castlevania music. Volume II is a little more varied in genre choice than volume I was, which I thought was a necessary improvement. Fans of rock arrangements will still enjoy this volume just as much as they did the previous volume. I actually found myself skipping less tracks here compared to the previous volume. Like the previous volume, I was left satisfied with this album at the end. Album Strengths (AKA Personal Favs): Track 1-1: Sinfonia del Diablo (Blood Relations of Heaven and Earth) by AngelCityOutlaw and Chernabogue This track served as an excellent overture for this album. And even by itself, it's a great track creating a sense of embarking on an adventure of the grandest scale. Track 1-3: Richter's Graveyard Groove (Cemetery) by Mega Beardo Very intense, and exciting. Became extremely compelling when the synth strings were introduced. Very gothic, dark, and hardcore. Track 1-4: Nosfearatu (Cross a Fear) by AngelCityOutlaw One of the more eclectic tracks from this album. Loved the rock/electronic/orchestrta combo. Really worked well here. Track 1-6: Transylvania Sound Machine (Ghost Ship Painting) by Stemage and Chunkstyle So damn groovy. This was my favorite track from Rondo of Blood, and I absolutely love what was done here. It manages to improve on the original, while retaining what made the original so good in the first place. Track 1-8: Phantasmal Hellfire (Wild Dance in Phantasmic Hell) by timaeus222 That piano intro really threw me off. Thought I was going to get something closer to the original version, or an orchestrated arrangement. Nope, got a really intense electronic boss fight here. The melody was intense, made even more intense with the aggressive background synth work. Next time I fight Shaft in Rondo of Blood, I might have this in the background. Track 2-4: Satanic Spire by Gario Nope, Phonetic Hero's Sonic CD remix is still the evilest But this is still an excellent track. Loved the eerie and creepy blend of orchestra, electronic, and chiptune. Especially at the end when the speed changes, and everything becomes more and more distorted. It pulls you in with how fun it sounds, and then tries to take over your soul. Track 2-11: Season of the Witch (Together Forever) by Brandon Strader I had a feeling that this was a direct sequel to Vampire's Kiss. Sounds just as good too in terms of quality. The brass/guitar combo sounds really good here. I almost wish this was the last track of the volume, as it would have made an excellent outro to this album. The voice samples were (not surprisingly) used very well here, especially the "finish it" part.

General Overview: This is a great album for anyone who was ever a fan of classic Castlevania music. I do have to add that if you don't like rock arrangements, this album might turn you off, as most of the album fits in the rock genre one way or another. But if you like rock arrangements and Castlevania music, then you'll REALLY like this album. A little more than half of the tracks on the album I listened to all the way through. Less than half of the album was skipped because it wasn't for me. Not gonna say which tracks I skipped, but there was definitely more than enough content on this album to keep me satisfied till the end. Album Strengths (AKA Personal Favs): Track 3: Swamp Ripples (Stalker) by Viking Guitar Very Metallica inspired. So elegant, yet intense. Track 7: Vampire's Kiss (Vampire Killer) by Brandon Strader Great guitar work with clever integration of voice samples. I especially love the combination of voice sample and guitar at the 1:21 mark. Track 9: The Gate of Nightmares (Medley) by BONKERS feat. Viking Guitar I would absolutely love to see this performed live. It's just so wonderful, and fun with seamless transitions in between each section of the medley. Track 10: Underground Pulse (Underground) by Chernabogue Nothing but percussion instruments here. And the way they were performed is so uniform and interesting. Each percussion instrument used in this track was used very wisely. Track 11: Of Whips and Strings (Medley) by Super Guitar Bros. Two acoustic guitars creating six minutes of pure, simple Castlevania goodness. Absolutely incredible medley. Track 16: Edge of Darkness (Walking on the Edge) by The Dual Dragons I'm amazed that this is an arrangement of level BGM, because it sounds like an incredible and intense boss fight is going on when I hear this.

It started out well, but as the track progressed, there seemed to be a decrease in enthusiasm with the percussion. The last two minutes were very boring, as it sounded like a very long fade out until the drums kicked in again at around the 4:31 mark as if to tell people “hey wake up, the song is over!” Nice live presentation, it just wasn't a very compelling performance for me.

This is a very nice arrangement. It does a great job conveying emotional scenarios in the simplest way possible. 0:36 to 0:53 was just brilliant. Great job all around.

This is a fairly decent, 80s inspired electronic mix. I think my favorite part of this track is the vocal samples and how they were used in conjunction with the beats of the track. It probably might turn some people off, with how “choppy” it sounds, but there are enough layers to this track to make it entertaining enough to listen.

Oh man is this track so good. I loved how the vibe of Eastern music blends so well with the electronic music you’ve produced. This track strikes me as something that could be used as a battle theme, or the theme of a fast paced action level. I didn’t even realize how short this track is, as I enjoyed it so much to make me lose track of time.

Dubstep is a hit or a miss for me. Unfortunately this is a miss for me, as I only really liked the beginning and the end, which seemed abrupt to me. Only ending with a looped drum sample seemed like an odd choice IMO. I will still recommend this track to people who do like dubstep. If you hate dubstep, you might not even wanna download it. If you can tolerate dubstep, you should download this track. If you love dubstep, then you absolutely must download this.

Amazing introduction there, guys. And followed by that introduction is a pretty kicking rock arrangement in superb quality. Everything sounds so clean, and perfectly balanced. I love the subtlety of the background synths. And that piano solo from 2:26 to 2:41 is so great. Absolutely wonderful track. Definitely worth a download.

Man this track is so good and foreboding. The original track was already creepy enough, but the original track relied on synth notes to convey a horror feeling. This track relies only on the piano to convey horror, and it does a really good job of doing so.

Listening to this track, “aggressive” isn’t what I would use to describe it. It’s definitely very adventurous, and encouraging. I have to wonder if ZZ Top music played a part in the planning process, cause some of those guitar riffs made me think I was listening to Gimme All Your Lovin’ for a split second. Definitely one of the best electronic/rock combinations you’ll hear from this site.

If you’re a fan of the Pokemon X/Y soundtrack (especially this battle theme, which might be my second favorite from the soundtrack), I would highly encourage that you download this. Incredible arrangement. I absolutely loved 1:20 – 2:05, as it sounded like it was retelling the moment one of those three legendary Pokemon is gearing up for a powerful attack, launching it, and then just standing there waiting for you to do something about it, but you can’t cause you’re too intimidated. And when the track slowed down a little, and then picked right up near the end. Flawless work all around.

Industrial-electronic warfare never sounded as great as it does with this track. The low chords especially sound tense, complementing the very exciting, and intense (in a fun way) war anthem of sorts. You could even do a military march to the percussion beats. At least I probably would.

Very ominous track. Ominously building up to oriental trance, with some dubstep in the background. I like this mash-up, as the way the electronic music is produced compliments the ancient Asian-style music.

I’m not sure what I was expecting from a track with the title “optimist prime.” It certainly wasn’t something so pretty, and dream-like. 2:15 caught me completely off guard though, as it seemed to be building to something interesting, only for it to build to “more of the same.” Still, it’s a fun and catchy track.

It would be kind of tough to sell a hard rock arrangement of….a hard rock track. This seems more like a greatly extended version of Galacta Knight’s theme inspired by Pantera. I like it, but this seems like one of those “either love it or hate it” tracks, and not just because of the genre choice.

This is a great arrangement. I’m almost reminded of how the Devil May Cry 3 soundtrack was produced when I hear this track. Sure it has it’s rock and/or electronic music, but then you get this glorious piece of cinematic orchestrated excellence.

This is definitely an “experimental” track….metaphorically, and literally. The first part of the track struck me as a “build and create things to the beat.” The middle part struck me as testing the new creations. And the last part struck me as verifying that the new creations work, and that the inventor is happy. Great story to be told in this track.

I would have never guessed that this came from Splinter Cell. This sounds more like something straight out of a Suda51 game (and I mean that as a compliment). It’s so cinematic, with the right amount of rock and electronic to it, to get that distinctive flavor. It’s so well produced. That last minute was especially tense for me. Great job.