OCR01291 - Metroid II "Anthem of a Metroid Hunter"

[Ham On Rye]

I love this remix. So much I had to register just so I could post how much I love it. I used to keep a save game of Metroid II on the pak at the very end of the game just so I could go in, beat the last boss and listen to this music over and over again. I'm hardly an expert critic but I liked how the instruments kept that game boy sound.

[philomory]

The ending theme of Metroid II is one of my all-time favorite themes. Like Ham On Rye I have a save on my cart at the very end so I can go beat it to hear the end music; I used to press my game boy up against my ear to hear it better.

Let me say that this remix is very good. But, because of how much I love the original, I can't help but hold a very high standard for what a remix of it should be. So I have a criticism.

Basically I don't feel the remix was opened properly. Anthem spends 1'09 covering what was, in the original, an 0'08 lead in. That's not necessarily a problem, but for someone who's familiar with the original it builds up a lot of anticipation.

My problem with Anthem comes at 1'10, when the anticipation built up over the past minute just falls flat. In the original, after the opening bit the theme comes in immediately with a sort of energetic fanfare-ish sound. In the remix, however, there's this sort of winding-down noise, after which the theme fades in, becoming recognizable a few seconds later. I found it to be a big let down.

The bit from 4'19 to 4'25 shares the same problem, but not nearly as much, because the theme is picked up again that time.

Other than that the only complaint I can make is that at some points it felt like the melody was too soft relative to the beat.

Now, I'm not trying to say that that ruins the remix. That would be a gross overstatement. In fact, from 1'18 to 4'18 the remix is very, very good. But it took a long time to shake the feeling that something was missing.

[Audity]

So I just went to go clean the toilet seat, and I heard something inside the toilet. It was none other than the beginning of this ReMix! I swear I heard it! So I ran over to the internet in order to review the whole song, due to me literally hearing what sounded like the beginning.

This mix is quite versitile. The introduction is very drawn out, yet pretty appropriate in how the left ear sounds during it, mainly.

When the melody comes in at 1:10, however, I feel a bit of melodyitus, in that the melody doesn't really seem to fit with the rest of the intro (which sounds more game-boy metroid-like). I know purists of the original like the post above have a completely opposite look (wait, I just looked at his post again and he also said 1:10 didn't fit), but as for me, I've never played this part of the game, so it sounds more like the ending to a Mario game. The softness of this section is well-anticipated, but the start of the "Mario melody" doesn't fit.

The rest, I don't really know what to say except that it never gets boring, unless you don't like the genre of the whole piece, which is very one-genre-ish due to the sample sets. Fun.

[WesternZypher]

Boppy and upbeat. Me likes.

[OceansAndrew]

Good stuff, peppy and chippy, and some good vintage BGC- Strange that this track was made years before I ever started to want to mix myself.

Anyways, the beats are hot, the atmosphere is there, and though i think the intro went a little long, there was a lot of care put into the little details that really make a mix awesome.

Good stuff, and interesting to hear where Jimmy Jam has come from 5 years ago.

[Pachi Risu]

That was quite the listen, definitely a decent upbeat ReMix. Keep 'em coming.

[halc]

This one seems to come up fairly often when I listen to OCR's on shuffle. Plenty of signature BGC synths and drum processing - always an enjoyable listen

[Polo]

There was a gap that needed to be bridged between the last two songs in the game, and bgc pulled it off seamlessly. The bulk of the mix, as djp says, is very celebratory: the percussive flourishes are like flags "waving" their right to celebrate, the lead at 1:46 joyously declares a toast, and the violin adds a sensitive touch like a female singer invigorating the hearts of men. It's also cool how the pistons/hammers, air compression, and other machine-based sounds capture the "atmosphere" of outer space (i.e. being surrounded by tech facilitating space exploration). And through it all, I see a scantily clad huntress smoothly chillin' after a hard day's alien massacre.

This satisfies on many levels. See you next mission!

[Marmiduke]

A strange Metroid song, that's for sure. Definitely a stark contrast to the dark, subterranean mood electronica the series is reknowned for.

Overall, the mix is pretty solid stuff. It's got a poppy vibe that's well married to the retro-tinged synths, and there's much appreciated depth to the backing tracks. The arrangement itself failed to grab my attention all that much, but it's got that nicely implemented, methodical intro that sets up the melody to come. While that melody is very centric, varied and apparent... I personally think it lacks the punch needed to carry the full mix. A firmer presentation of that main melody would have improved the entire package.

Regardless, this is sweet. Light, soft and airy doesn't come to mind when thinking about Metroid soundtracks, but the mix does it well enough. Somedays, you just need triumphant end credits music to pull you through.