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OCR01107 - Mario Kart 64 "Frappe Cafe Vibe"


djpretzel
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Heard this when it was on VGMix and I still love it. Very nicely done. I would deffinately suggest [as I did on vgmix] that the brass lines are more 'realistic' as well as better constructed, but overall it is very nicely done. Something I'll deffinately keep arround to add to my 'holiday' collection for next year :D.

-Nex

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I have to agree with Trenthian. Some of the chords the keyboard plays are just...odd and completely clash with the bassline. But I don't think the brass is too bad, considering how crappy most brass samples are out there. Sure, maybe a little artificial...especially when the part deviates from the original notes. But overall it doesn't sound too bad.

Still...while the keyboard notes sound fine about half the time, there's enough to make me uncomfortable. I do appreciate the creativity there, but I think making everything fit is more important.

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Like a lot of other people have been saying, I believe some of the chords use are pretty suspect; they didn't hit my ear well. Nonetheless, this is a fairly good mix. I went into this one more in-depth on VGMix, so here's my review:

The opening notes honestly don't sound very melodic, and even when they're joined with the melody at 0:10, they don't really seem to match up well. Maybe those notes in a major key style would have worked better. When they're relegated to the background though, it's not as much of an issue for me. The "Frappe Snowland" saxophone melody, along with the backing drums however, are composed very well, not to mention the subtle but quality bass guitar notes.

While you're just laying out the basics that people are expecting with the melody from 0:10 to 0:40, the little saxophone bits in between the melody that are pure arrangement are pretty nice. Once the next part of the source melody comes into play with the switchup at 0:45, I had a problem with the dissonant notes being used. I didn't feel that the notes were changed "for the sake of changing the notes", but compared to the major key style of the melody you began with, they really clashed with the sound you started off with. It gets easier to not have a problem with upon repeated listening. Also, I know the feel of the song was supposed to be different as compared to earlier, but some more velocity on the trumpets and sax from 0:45 to 1:03 would have made them seem more natural sounding, as the notes seemed to end a little abruptly.

As a fan of SuperGreenX using the bongos, I liked the mini-section from 1:08 to 1:25, although again, the horns/trumpets from 1:16 to 1:25 had notes that just didn't match the major key feel that the main melody has. I'm no musician, but my ear just doesn't go for that stuff.

2:00 had an even more impressive bongo section, and while it wasn't 100% natural sounding, it's hard to program them that way, so I was still appreciative of what went into it. 2:21 segues into pure arrangement (those these synth piano notes are very sparse sounding) and while I'm down with that, a few notes felt out of place from 2:39 to 2:42 as the track got fuller once again. Kinda nitpicky, but the little things stick out. Otherwise, I really enjoyed the sixteenths from 2:48 to 2:51, and working in some of "Jingle Bells" from 2:56-3:00, since it gelled very well with the mix and the Christmasy feel it had. The cymbals from 3:00 until the end sounded very fake (though I'm not a big fan of cymbal usage, since it's so hard to get cymbals to sound good if they're not live), as well as the little horn toots that finished the mix off, since they were in some very high octaves (and I guess a little more exposed).

Overall this was pretty well done, and I'm a fan of Joshua's stuff, even if my knowledge of it's limited to "Where Destiny Meets". I thought that some of the notes here didn't vibe well within the broader sense of the mix, but it pretty much achieved both the Kenny G and Christmas styles that Josh was going for. I thought sleigh bells would have worked a lot better here instead of the tambourine to convey more of that holiday feel, but as an instrument they may have been hard to work alongside of a jazz setting, I wouldn't be sure. I enjoyed the second half of this one more than the first half, if only because more original arrangement aspects were featured there, so when I had a problem with some of the notes, it wasn't as strange sans the comparison to Frappe Snowland.

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  • 4 weeks later...
  • 9 months later...
  • 10 months later...

I liked the beginning very much, mmyess, nice trumpet that certainly gives that good´ol jazzfeel. Actually makes me think of a scene where it is a café and a band outside just plays to give the air some feeling.

Other things I liked was that african drum, also a typhical jazz instrument, very clatchy. But about those synths...they sounded well in the beginning, but when the trumpet came, they didn´t quite cooperate, they was more like disturbing noises behind the trumpet.

But this is a decent remix, I can fully reognize what track it is, something that I like with a remix. And overall this remix gives a nice feel to it, just sway along the rhytm.

Well done, Joshua.

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  • 2 months later...

This is one of my favorite low-key remixes. It's a perfect jazz remix, it's mellow, yet it's got definition to it, like a tune you can easily catch and enjoy. And the motifs derived from the original tune fit perfectly well one after the other. However, I do have one concern. This remix has not been played at any coffee shops, and it so should be. Actually, it deserves some serious stage time at a jazz club. I mean, I got bored of jazz after a while, but this got me back into it. Love it, Joshua!

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  • 1 year later...

I could absolutely fall asleep to this song! It's so calm and it has the perfect jazzy feel. This song should be playing in Starbucks or a bookstore. I mean, I could drink coffee and read to this! Brilliant! And also they should play this at christmas time, right when you wake up to see tons of presents under that tree. Snowy, calm, jaaazzzyyy, and overall, EXCELLENT!!!:mrgreen::-D:mrgreen::-D

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  • 1 month later...

Another nice jazz-remix by Joshua Morse. The saxophone sounds good to me, and the bongo sections add a certain something to the arrangement.

The only real complaint I have is the occasional clipping/crackling in the background, as it is clearly audible when listening to the song using headphones.

Nice work.

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  • 7 months later...

This would be so great is that bass didn't go out of tune every few notes. :-(

The arrangement itself is great, with some nice comping and some groovin' bongos. Even the synthsax is pretty nice, and the brass works too.

The drumkit is pretty mechanical as well, so the only time this mix really shines for me is the breakdown sections. I think if this one was looked at again and had a few adjustments made it'd be a winner, but the bass intonation kills it. :-(

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  • 2 years later...

Sorry to say, but I am not diggin' the arrangement. :( The mallets or whatever at the beginning are actually pretty neat though, and I love the bass arrangement. The mallets actually almost sound sorta creepy but not creepy in a way. It is quite strange but unique. But I don't really like the way it was mixed, and I do not like that keyboard saxophone. Sorry. Just not diggin' it. :(

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  • 2 months later...

I'm surprised I never posted in this thread - I've always loved this song, and it seems almost every holiday season, if not every, I've always found myself listening to this again. Sometimes even in the summer!

This is a silky smooth rendition of Frappe Snowland that is pretty easy to love, unless you just hate holiday music. I think it is this song that cements Joshua Morse in my mind :smile: .

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  • 2 years later...
  • 1 year later...

I think this is a great remix. It's not overly intricate, it doesn't dive too deep in the mix, and the instrumentation is fairly straightforward, but it fills that need for a emotionally placid track. It serves the source well too. And I have to say, I think the length is just right. Could be longer sure, but I don't think that would necessarily add to the quality of the track.

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  • Liontamer changed the title to OCR01107 - Mario Kart 64 "Frappe Cafe Vibe"
  • 6 years later...

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