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OCR01773 - Banjo-Kazooie "Malevolent Mansion"


djpretzel
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Barely scratches the surface of the melodic goldmine that is the Banjo-Kazooie franchise, but it will do nicely anyway.

I wouldn't say DnB was a perfect fit for Mad Monster Mansion; simply because it's a tad too optimistic and upbeat played at that speed. For me, DnB is appealing because it usually cuts through the breakneck energy through registering darker, lower tones into it. As well as that 'In the Darkness Lies' showed that the MMM melody is versatile, slowing it down and bringing out the morose nature of the piece.

This mix enblazons the 'mad' part of Mad Monster Mansion, influenced noticeably by Pendulum (sounds like it is stuck between the sounds of their two albums) While some areas click into place more than others, the source and the intended sound of the mix did eventually align and I was happy.

I thought the more rock-based stuff at the end was the strongest part, but generally, everything is of pretty high caliber. I really like the original melody, which is why hearing it be raced through is a little offputting for me, but that's what you get when you download a DnB mix, I suppose. It's DnB without the edge, which shouldn't be a turnoff really, but I've heard better examples of the genre by Audix himself.

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  • 1 month later...

Rockin stuff- definitely has the Greg signature on here, and it reminds me of Survival Instinct from the FF4 album. The live guitar is a nice touch and is well performed, and the shifting tempos keep you wondering what will happen next. There are a lot of production flourishes, and details everywhere.

Super good and highly recommended.

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Ah... Banjo-Kazooie, this song takes me back...

*cough* Right, with that out of the way. I love this track to bits, definitely has that 'mad' feeling about. As I've never listened to Pendulum I can't compare this to them, but the combination of Sole Signal's production and Neko's shredding, this is a solid track that's more than able to stand on it's own.

Great work from the both of you!

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I'm a little disappointed that the guitar didn't get as prominent of a treatment in the track, but I understand its use as a background element. I just enjoyed it so much when it took center stage toward the end of the song that I was left wanting more :-P

The rest of this is expertly arranged and sticks close to the source tune in terms of arrangement and mood (sorta) but, in signature Audix style, gets completely beefed up with extra embellishments out the wazoo, and the end product is just a spectacle to behold.

You guys really killed it here, brilliant job! :-D

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  • 4 weeks later...

By and large this reminds me of the Dark Matter battle from Kirby 64, except a little more haunted-house-esque.

I'm also quite impressed with this. While it is very energetically in your face and keeps a fast pace, it keeps a very pleasingly varied texture and soundscape (which I have to admit I wasn't expecting for a track with as "thick" textures/soundscape as this one has, if that made any sense) I also appreciate the slower tempo pauses for the listener in an otherwise exhausting track.

This is a really amazing track and highly recommended.

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  • 7 months later...

Nekofrog Review:

Being a HUGE fan of B-K, I loved this remix all the way. Greg make the perfect choice by bringing in Justin for some guitar goodness. The metal guitar added so much to it. The playing is executed perfectly. The sound is a little thin, but for everything that's going on in the track, it's not a bad thing as it sits very nicely into the mix. The power chords just gave it a new level of drive. The Pendulum sound is never really lacking drive, but the guitar opened it up to new heights. I would have loved to have heard a bitchin solo in there somewhere to give a mix a little variation, not that it needed it, but that dynamic shift would have been awesome. The rhythmic guitar lead at the end was a good middle ground. All around, a great first mix from Neko!

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This is one of the tracks that brought me back to OCR one day a couple of years ago (and played no small part in me sticking around) when I was bored, and it remains in my top 10 favourite OCReMixes of all time for so many reasons.

For one thing, the sheer energy of the piece is incredible - it makes 4:38 fly by! The half-tempo sections serve as brief respite from an absolutely storming ride. It's like the aural equivalent of being on a ghost train with a brake failure.

The instrumentation is also top-notch, giving it just enough edge to be taken as a drum n bass style tune, but also playful touches such as the xylophone firmly reminding you that it's a BK tune. Those off-beat staccato strings are delicious, and help spooky-up proceedings, as do a lot of the staccato instruments in there. The chunky distorted guitar helps give weight and cohesion to the track (if anything I'd have liked a little more bass out of the power chords) and the ending is perfection, just a little teaser of a guitar solo.

Another thing I love about this is the depth, and attention to detail. It seems like every time I hear this I get something new out of it, and I've listened to it over 100 times now. Keeping the intensity up for over 4 minutes isn't easy, but this makes it seem effortless. Really nice percussion variation throughout the track as well, which is hugely important and much appreciated!

This has also been an inspirational track for me as an aspiring ReMixer, and this piece was the major influence in my first effort at an OCR submission, so for that I am also grateful!

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Good gravy, this ReMix is sweet. Like DarkSim said, the energy of this piece makes the time fly by. I guess it's that energetic style that has kept me hooked to this song ever since I downloaded it. Also, this song sorta makes me think of a carnival run by The Joker from Batman for some reason. Can't say I know why.

Anyway, it's definitely something that's worth a good listen and download.

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  • Liontamer changed the title to OCR01773 - Banjo-Kazooie "Malevolent Mansion"

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