OCR01931 - *YES* Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past 'Exodus to Sanctuary'

[Liontamer]

Paneling just for the comparison to the mix this was inspired by - LT

CONTACT INFORMATION

ReMixer name: Olarin

real name: Bradley Mellen

email address: olarin42@yahoo.com

website: http://bradleymellen.com/

forum userid: 23257

SUBMISSION INFORMATION

game: The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past

track: Sanctuary Dungeon

COMMENTS

This was recorded in January of 2007, when I got some fellow musicians together to make a short demo, and to see if I could manage a passable recording on cello (which I'd been playing less than two years at that point). I initially had little thought of submitting this to OCR, as the whole idea to record the tune had come from listening to the excellent Neskvartetten ReMix "Ganon's Temple", and I figured that track had already pretty effectively covered the idea of a euro-jazz rendition of Sanctuary Dungeon. However, after repeated listening, I've decided that although the approach was similar, our instantiation is sufficiently distinct from theirs in form, instrumentation, mood, and interpretation to be worth a submission. So I'll leave the decision to you guys as to whether this version warrants posting another jazz reading of Sanctuary Dungeon to the site.

Of course, if posted, please make sure to include the names of my fellow musicians prominently in the write-up:

piano: Ari Kessler

bass: Marshall Skinner

drums, recording/mixing: Keith Maxwell Button

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Just want to note that we generally co-credit performers, so I need to check with Brad how he wants to handle that.

http://www.ocremix.org/remix/OCR01231/ - "Ganon's Temple"

Yeah, clearly some similarities. If you do a loose jazz arragement of the theme, that's gonna happen. But these are different animals as far as I'm concerned. I'm OK with this though, as far as the comparison to Neskvartetten's arrangement.

Short and sweet, I thought the levels were a little quiet, but that's probably just a result of the positioning of some of the instruments. Otherwise, a solid, chill arrangement that works very naturally and creatively with the source tune. Nice stuff.

YES

[anosou]

Yeah, I really dig this. A bit distant but not so much that it hurts the track. Would've loved the cello to be less panned but that's personal preference. Nice interpretation of the source, 2:09-> in the piano was really clever. Even during the more solo-oriented pieces you at least use the chords and hint to the source. Playing was overall good but I thought the intro was a bit too loose, especially in the piano, but nothing major. Not bad, not bad at all. I dig.

YES

[Palpable]

I'm a little torn on this, there's some rough spots. The quiet mixing gives a distance to this piece that I don't like, which was similar to your FFVI arrangement. In the parts where the writing is really sparse, it loses me. Not a dealbreaker, but something that detracts. I'm also not crazy about the arrangement because it's fairly conservative for the first 1:22 or so. You've got some new bass and drum action tucked into the background, but the piano and cello is pretty much straight source.

But then there's the good stuff. After the first 1:22, the writing gets a lot more expansive and intricate, on all the instruments. It's a lot of fun. The playing in this one is better than your last piece, with only the occasionally flub. Production is more natural, somber mood is well-crafted. It stands apart from the Neskvartetten song pretty clearly.

Rather than overthink a close call, I'm willing to throw this the YES just because I think it's a clear improvement over your FFVI sub, which the panel passed (though I said NO to). Keep sending us stuff, Bradley, I think you've got a unique style.

YES

[OceansAndrew]

Arrangement here is great, and is different enough from previous mix to stand on it's own. There were a few slight intonation issues in some spots in the cello, but the small rough patches were smoothed out overall by a collection of good performances, and the whole ensemble gives the piece a languid-yet-alert vibe that just sounds sophisticated. I can imagine this track being played in a posh hotel filled with movie stars from the 50's.

Production is a little too far back, I agree, but the room sound is consistent, so it all works for me. Balance is nice, and I actually prefer the way it was panned, with the instruments all in their own space. It's a classy way to handle a small combo like this.

yes