Palpable Posted September 10, 2010 Share Posted September 10, 2010 Harjawaldar, Vidar, Ludvig - Mads Smebakk - madsmeb@hotmail.com - http://www.myspace.com/harjawaldar - 30387 - Zelda: A link to the past - Sanctuary theme - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUaP-tm1buI Comments: This is a black metal version of the Sanctuary theme from Zelda: A link to the past. While it is black metal, this remix is going for a particular style of the genre. We were here aiming for the sound of the early 90's black metal scene of Norway, inspired by bands like Darkthrone and Burzum. In order to achieve this I simplified the main melody of the theme and turned it into a classic old school black metal riff. The repetative structure of the song is typical of the genre and creates a certain atmosphere. The production of the song is also adjusted to imitate the particular style. Thin guitars and grim vocals. The acoustic ending was created to add another dimension to the mood of the song, and also some variation. This sort of acoustic playing was also present in the 90's scene, and the band Ulver was most famous for it. The song was used in Dwelling of duels april 2009 and got fifth place, some hated it and some loved it. And I really do think that is the thing about this genre, especially the early 90's norwegian style. The Vocals were done by a friend of mine, Vidar, who's not a part of the vg remixing community. And the same goes for the drums which were done live by Ludvig, in his little drum studio. I wrote the lyrics which are basically a lyrical cliche of what was usual back then. The name "I den Svarte Skogen" means "In the black forest", and its about a dark and sinister place in a dark forest. The lyrics are written in new norwegian, which statistically is a minority language in Norway. As a long time fan of black metal music, I was really happy with the fact that I had managed to successfully mix a theme from my favorite vg soundtrack with this genre. I think this is something new to the vg remix community, and something that hasn't been done properly yet. And I can't think of a more fitting theme for this fusion than the Sanctuary theme. (Will provide lyrics if wanted) ----------------------------------------------------------------- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUaP-tm1buI Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DragonAvenger Posted September 17, 2010 Share Posted September 17, 2010 Breakdown: 0:00-0:14 - Intro source 0:15-0:35 - Main riff from source (altered) 0:35-0:56 - Chords from source (Verse 1) 0:57-1:10 - Original (chorus) 1:11-1:32 - Chords from source (Verse 2) 1:33-1:54 - Main riff (see :15) 1:55-2:20 - Original (chorus) 2:21-2:42 - Original playing on chords (guitars) 2:43-3:25 - Source melody over original playing from above 3:26-3:59 - Source on guitar (with some original playing) Not counting the areas where it's just the chords being referenced from the source you've got roughly 2:10 of source in there, which is just over the 50% mark. I was worried that there wasn't enough there, but you're good on that IMO. Despite that, I am a little disappointed that the source melody couldn't have been a little more present during the verses and chorus. The end section worked pretty well with the original and source playing, and it would have been cool to have that incorporated in the rest of the song. I feel like for a metal song this is lacking a lot of power. I think it's mostly in the drums and the way they are mixed. Without them really having presence the rest of the track feels like it's floating a bit, and really needs to be more firmly planted. I'd take a look to see if you can really bring out some more of the drums without overpowering things. I know that you wanted the thin guitars and bass, so I can't fault you for it, but that seems like another contributor for the lack of power to really support the vocals. I think with some fixes in terms of balance and presence that this one can sound a lot more powerful. As you said, this is one of those tracks that not everyone's going to dig, but those that do will really enjoy it. NO (resubmit) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OceansAndrew Posted September 22, 2010 Share Posted September 22, 2010 I am generally feeling the approach here with the exception of the drums. The snare sounds really muffled, and the kick gets a little smooshed sounding during the double bass parts.It's unfortunate, because the performance was pretty solid. The guitar tone was thin, but the frequencies worked enough that I could hear the pitches, which has been an issue with some other more extreme metal subs we've received. The mixing was a little quiet and lacked power, but besides the drums seemed ok. The acoustic passage was really nice, that sounded great, with good panning. So overall, strong performances, but the drum sound needs tweaking. Let me know if you want more specific crits, but you seem to have a good handle on things otherwise. No, please resubmit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fishy Posted September 30, 2010 Share Posted September 30, 2010 Guitars are pretty good, vocals are ok for the style. Drums? Need a lot of work. The kick should be huuuuge and clicky. The snare sounds too weedy. You're using a blastbeat too often for this kind of tempo. It's too slow to be really effective. Try and change up the patterns more often. Listen to some commercial (lol) black metal and see how much louder the drums are. Try an imitate that balance more. The drums are the only thing really letting this down. The acoustic passage is pretty nice. All around good work but those drums are letting the piece down. Get them loud and in your face like they should be! NO, resub plz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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