OCR01733 - Jade Empire & Global Gladiators "Global Empire"

[djpretzel]

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

[Liontamer]

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

What did I think? Nice work, gentlemen.

[avaris]

I've been listening to alot of music from The Last Samurai at work recently and this defiantly hit home. Wonderful blend of synths and natural elements. The section from :55 to 1:17 felt a lil sparse though. I thought the synth bass was gonna back back in or at least have some type of crescendo. The orchestral build ups are wonderfully done.

Breakdown at 3:15 was def the highlight. Awesome sound choices to create a very strong mood.

[sephfire]

I've loved this since Tweek let me hear the WIP in his car. Awesome work, guys.

[big giant circles]

The concert was amazing, and the meetup was a blast! Thanks to DJP for getting this mix up. If anyone's interested, here's the submission email which pretty well sums up our collective roles in the creation of this one:

Aight fellas,

Here's one that will hopefully blow your ears off. It's a 2-way, split nearly evenly between Jade Empire and Global Gladiators on the Genesis. Brief history of the remix and how it all came together is as follows:

With VGL, Louiville approaching fast, I put my head together with fellow remixers Audix and Tweek who are both attending the show with me. We basically thought it would be awesome to do a tribute mix to Jack Wall and Tommy Tallarico for all their fine work in the industry, and what better way to do it than to do a mash-up remix of two of their songs. The remix turned out phenomenally, with each of us contributing fairly evenly to the end result. We more or less had 3 distinct sections and while there was some overlap, I'm primarily responsible for the intro, Brian did the 2nd movement (the orchestral section), Greg did the 3rd (chill/electronic) and then the last bit is all 3 of us. I did the rock elements, Brian orchestrated, and Greg did the solo. Working on this mix with Brian and Greg was an absolute pleasure. They're both exceptionally talented, and really made the collaboration both easy and fun. Lastly, we of course always want to thank the people who inspire us to do this. We're presenting this mix formally to Jack and Tommy at the VGL show and thank them for all their hard work in the industry. Thanks also to Dave and Larry, for their efforts in moving OCR forward.

-BGC

Tweek says:

"I think on some level when I suggested remixing 'Hammer Fury and Tongs' that Jim and Greg thought I was a little crazy. I've loved the track ever since I first heard it but it was always a daunting task to think about. The orchestral sections I put together are without a doubt the best orchestral writing and production I've done. The blending of our three styles is something that I continue to be amazed by. The format and style is very similar to Confronto Finale, but this blows it out of the water! It's truly a testament for what can happen when different people provide their expertise. Having worked with both Jimmy and Greg before, I knew that this was going to be epic: I wasn't wrong."

Greg says:

"This marks my second collab with Tweek, first with bgc, and it was a pleasure working with both great musicians. Initially I wasn't sure how well the two sources would mix, but that's what OCR's all about, right? After the great first 3 minutes put together by Tweek and bgc, I took over with the breakdown and drum n' bass section. I figured a short piano segue would be in order, transitioning into a decidedly electro direction. We wanted to be sure all of us had a part in the outro section, so I laid down a solo (on a one hour deadline ) on top of Brian's orchestral loop and Jimmy's drums and guitar work."

[Geoffrey Taucer]

Epic. I love it!

[Chiwalker]

I love this, it's very catchy

[Eino Keskitalo]

I like the intro before the brass/strings stuff comes in, and I like the breakdown and what follows, especially 03:31 onwards, though the piano sounds a bit meandering for me. More economic playing would have yielded an even better effect. The boombastic soundtracky brass/strings just makes me feel I've heard it all a gargantuantazillion times before and is precisely the pestilence that is making a lot of the current game soundtracks suck, a-rantta-ta-rantta whine-a-whine! At the end, the strings/brass and the distorted guitar manage to negate each other and the part loses punch, until the synth soloing comes in.

Hmm, the structure dynamics (whatever those are) are pretty good I think - I wouldn't have thought it was as long as over six minutes. That's impressive for a collaboration of this kind.

--Eino

[big giant circles]

I like the intro before the brass/strings stuff comes in, and I like the breakdown and what follows, especially 03:31 onwards, though the piano sounds a bit meandering for me.

Thank goodness there was SOMETHING you liked about our mix...

More economic playing would have yielded an even better effect.

Economic:

1.

a. Of or relating to the production, development, and management of material wealth, as of a country, household, or business enterprise.

b. Of or relating to an economy: a period of sustained economic growth.

2. Of or relating to the science of economics: new economic theories regarding the effects of deficit spending.

3. Of or relating to the practical necessities of life; material: wrote the book primarily for economic reasons.

4.

a. Financially rewarding; economical: It was no longer economic to keep the manufacturing facilities open.

b. Efficient; economical: an economic use of home heating oil.

uh, what?

The boombastic soundtracky brass/strings just makes me feel I've heard it all a [lot of] times before and is precisely the pestilence that is making a lot of the current game soundtracks suck*, a-rantta-ta-rantta whine-a-whine!

*First of all, "a lot of the current game soundtracks suck" is your opinion, not fact. Try not to preach your opinion as absolutism. LOTS and LOTS of people would beg to differ with you. I hope you never attend a Video Games Live concert with that mentality.

Pestilence:

1. A usually fatal epidemic disease, especially bubonic plague.

2. A pernicious, evil influence or agent.

So, you feel like our mix is either

a) A usually fatal epidemic disease, especially bubonic plague, or

A pernicious, evil influence or agent?

Bro, I realize you're from Finland so I suppose there may be some translation issues, and that's fine if you personally don't like it, but wouldn't you say that's a bit extreme?

I don't really care for your band's music, but I wouldn't call it a pernicious evil influence, nor would I generalize and say anything that suggests or demands that all art-rock/pop bands suck.

Hmm, the structure dynamics (whatever those are) are pretty good I think - I wouldn't have thought it was as long as over six minutes. That's impressive for a collaboration of this kind.

Well, sounds like you're ending on a compliment of sorts, so I appreciate that at least. Although, if you don't even know what you're talking about regarding dynamics, how can you properly critique them? Again, I'm fine if you don't care much for the mix, but as stated in the review guidelines thread, I don't appreciate non-constructive, over-generalized whining that is based on personal opinion. And that goes for any mix, whether it's one I was involved in or not.

At any rate, thanks for listening. Better luck with future reviews.

[The Xyco]

Hey, this kicks an inordinate amount of ass.

I'm unfamiliar with the source, so I cannot judge on the nature of this being a ReMix, but as a general and technical piece, I'm loving it.

I'm particularly fond of the transition just after 5:00.

Audix, as always, I am impressed with your work. I definitely sense your contribution here. That, of course, is not to diminish the work done by BGC and tweek, but you are slowly building a fan in me. Keep it up.

[tweex]

That orchestration is sexy as hell. Yeah, that's pretty boastful for me to say, but damn it's good!

a wonderful collaboration between three mixers who, from the sound of it, also had a pretty damn good time themselves with this stylistic romp.

And we romped all night long......

Too far? I think that might have been.

Good mix, love how it turned out. So should you!

[Xeiros]

6:11-16:38 seems to be missing. It just cuts off.

[Liontamer]

6:11-16:38 seems to be missing. It just cuts off.

Hahaha! We don't have any 16-minute mixes. You probably have an MP3 player that isn't decoding the file properly. It's showing up fine in Winamp, but I dunno how it's showing in other players.

[Xeiros]

Perhaps I can assume that however it is encoded in the program I use to transfer it to my media player, in the case Explorer as you can see here http://img209.imageshack.us/img209/7960/captureocr2fn7.jpg , it will display on the player the same way. So since winamp encodes it properly for me all should be well. Bitchin Mix btw.

[big giant circles]

I think it has to do with the VBR encoding. I notice it shows up funny in windows media player as well. It's fine in winamp.

[MadGonzo]

second comming of Christ!

[Dunther]

Really, shocking, amazing, wonderful work.

I never played Jade Empire so I didn't hear the music, but this remix kicks ass.

[LuckyXIII]

I really, really dig mixes with this kind of epic feel. The orchestration is big and it has that phat beat that kicks in right at 1:47. I didn't realize I was still listening to the same mix towards the end when I heard it for the first time; that's like finding a surprise dollar in your pocket.

A 16 minute mix would be awesome. Kind of like a suite or mini-project or something.

[The Joker]

First of all, Ilove that dirty drum in the geinning. Reminds me of another awesome mix BGC was part of... All self advertisement aside, this type of music is my favorite to listen to, symphonica is what I call it. That low brass break gives it so much weight, as does the rest of the orchestration.

Synth work is excellent & flows seemlessly, not detracting anything from the other elements. Also, that DnB/breakbeat section was groovy as hell! Pandemonium 2008! It was a nice little jolt that kick it up & kept it interesting.

All in all, awesome work.

[Eino Keskitalo]

Thank goodness there was SOMETHING you liked about our mix...

Hi BGC,

I must apologize. Thank you for posting the link to the link to the review guidelines. I have read them (believe it or not), but it's pretty embarrassing to see how I managed to break the very first one with that post. You're of course correct that what I posted was opinion, not fact. I have a strong opinion in the matter and I was ranting, and this was definitely the wrong place for it. I think I may made a similar comment in another review post, and I apologize for that as well. Finally, I wasn't very serious, but there was very little to indicate that and I now realize I that it was a pretty idiotic post.

On top of that I recognize that some or most of the "constructive criticism" bits in the post weren't very helpful, and come across as fluff thrown in to make the review seem valid. I should have let the ranting out and given a bit more thought on those.

*First of all, "a lot of the current game soundtracks suck" is your opinion, not fact. Try not to preach your opinion as absolutism.

Agreed.. I should thought better about pushing "submit reply", as this was a wrong place for such a rant. Frankly, I probably haven't even played enough of current generation games to come across a recent soundtrack I really really liked.

I hope you never attend a Video Games Live concert with that mentality.

Well, I'd love to attend VGL or a similar concert, and rest assured, I'd attend with an open mind. Looks like it's coming to Scandinavia in 2009. A trip to Sweden just might be feasible for me then.

Well, sounds like you're ending on a compliment of sorts, so I appreciate that at least. Although, if you don't even know what you're talking about regarding dynamics, how can you properly critique them?

Heh, a fair point. I knew what I meant but didn't know how to phrase it. A question I'm myself asking now is if I don't appreciate the style, how do I critique it fairly?

Anyhow, I've now listened to the piece quite a few times, and here's hopefully a better review:

I'd label this one "blockbuster action film soundtrack styled orchestral electronica". I don't generally like this style, but this is an accomplished mix that I find fairly enjoyable despite my reservations, and those who like the style should appreciate it.

The piece opens with an eerie synth, then drums and a bubbling synth bassline come in. I like the "cold ambient" sound of the synth, and the drums aren't being pummeled with 110% power right from the start, which leaves a bit of room for growth later on.

Brass and strings come in at 00:39 and the tension starts to build with additional breakbeat fading in. The brass part sounds good, and it builds up very well. I think the string part is a bit too busy this early - it detracts the attention from the building tension. I felt less would have been more in this particular section, although it's probably good to introduce the figure. Maybe a something like a plucked version of the figure would have been good though, that would have added more sense of growth later on.

The next section has no bass (just the less-is-more effect I meant before), keeps the breakbeat and adds a slightly harpsichord-like synth to a great effect. Then there's a similar figure like the previous string figure, only on lower strings, and here the feeling of build-up is tangible.

In the next part a "modern" beat enters. I really like the electric guitar -sounding thing on the background! The lower strings sound a bit out of rhythm with the beat. It's only slightly so (and doesn't happen with just the previous percussion), but it gives the impression that the styles don't integrate as well as they should. It seems to bother me a lot on every other listen, other times it sounds fine. There's a lot of big overlapping brass and string lines, and it starts to feel a bit much for me, but it does work and there is a sense of build-up throughout, which is very important. I like how the bass guitar (?) comes in just before the breakdown.

The breakdown is a refreshing breather after the build-up of the previous few minutes. I feel the piano is a bit busy in the breakdown - there certainly were a lot of notes before, so the part could afford to have a bit more "space" in it in my opinion. In any case, it's a good transition and I really like how it develops into double-time electronic beat very seamlessly. I definitely like those little pauses. I generally enjoy the last half of the mix quite a lot - it takes the tension built in the first part and goes wild with it.

I feel the timing issue again when the string part is added back in towards the rock section, although it's not as noticeable. Also for a brief while before the synth solo the guitar and strings/bass seem to compete against each other for the same space and they sort of steal thunder from each other. Nevertheless the idea of reintroducing the string/bass is good, and ties the ending to the beginning neatly.

Overall the structure of the piece works very well. It doesn't feel like a six minute track, and I mean that in a good way. (Not that I dislike long pieces in general). Also, I don't know the sources but the pieces are obviously arranged together very well, as it feels like just one cohesive piece.

Not a keeper for me for genre reasons, but nevertheless some very good work here!

--Eino

[big giant circles]

Eino, I appreciate your revisitation of the review thread - that means a lot

Also, just to clarify, I wasn't demanding that you (or anyone else) must feel compelled to compliment a track you don't like just because I reiterate a couple of the guidelines. You're still entitled to not like the track a little, or at all, and that's fine. I am rather impressed with the way you managed to review it constructively--that is, put your personal tastes (or distastes) aside and simply state what you found good, and what you didn't personally care for.

And I also apologize if I came across as super harsh. Didn't mean to sound like I was picking on you, but I appreciate you taking my concerns to heart.

Hope to see more constructive reviews like the one you just did in the future

[Martin Penwald]

First of, the arrangement here is very good. Although the track is over 6 minutes long, it never gets boring and keeps you interested throughout.

Now, about the parts themselves...can't say I care too much about the action-blockbuster-movie-like strings in the beginning. However, since that was exactly what you were aiming for, you did a great job at evoking just that kind of blockbuster-feel, no matter whether I personally like it or not.

Where this mix really shines, at least in my opinion, is the second part, starting at about 4:00. I love this part; it reminds me a lot of Pendulum.

All in all, you did at good job at what you set out to do, and I love the second part. Well done.

[Sole Signal]

Where this mix really shines, at least in my opinion, is the second part, starting at about 4:00. I love this part; it reminds me a lot of Pendulum.

Thanks, that was def my inspiration. What I love about this mix is how well our separate sections blended together. Basically, each of us took our own section and developed it separately from the others (except for the outro section, which all three of us worked on).

[Platonist]

at the time that this was posted, my cousin had a Jade Empire marathon going on @ his place ..

it made me curious about this mix even though i never played the game.. and it's definitly a good mix!

nice to see 3 topnotch artists work together like this.. keep them coming

[OceansAndrew]

Audix + Tweek + BGC? It's like clash of the titans, but they aren't clashing!

Good stuff, and some good variations, I think I preferred the more synthy sections because of the harmonic content, big the big orchestral bits were cool too. Exceptionally nice beats, and transitions. It's pretty ovious you three work well together, and the song progresses really nicely as you all have some time to shine. This mix really has everything, and it managed to stay glued together, even though it covers just about every genre in the book.

Great mix. I love it.

We just got a slammin new BGC track recently, and I can't wait for Audix's presumably incoming Earth Day mix, and Tweek's rumored tribute to Administrative Professional's Day! Good times at OCR!