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OCR02344 - Donkey Kong (GB) "Duel of the Apes"


djpretzel
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Of all the tracks I heard in the trailer, THIS was the one I was looking forward to the most. I have very fond memories of the GB Donkey Kong - one of the most played games on the system for me, so I'm very happy someone covered the score eventually!

After a nicely manipulated intro fusing both the DK jingle and the 9-5 arpeggio, it goes straight into a straightforward adaptation of the 9-8 stage though a lot of the additions on the guitar later on and the call-and-response between the guitar harmonics and strings add in a lot of melodic character. The solo section following it and the choir preceeding it managed to similarly give it some clever touches in regards to the melody, so while the structure may seem safer in comparison to other BGC tracks there's still a considerable amount of substance that really lift it up.

Even under the production bonnet it managed to hold its own. I believe the key element that should be given credit is the synth guitar work; even though they are a considerable pet peeve with me in the community in general, the amount of expression done towards it gives it a well balanced touch. Excellent.

I do however have one goddamn nitpick with this - it's too short!! That may be nostalgia with the source more than anything, but I was kind of hoping for it to not just end after a second rendition of the theme.

It's still a very sweet track overall, and I feel greatful that you handled something that A) is undercovered, and B) that I have somewhat of a nostalgic attachment to, so thank you BGC :D

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Seeing a DK remix in BadAss was great. And BGC did an awesome job, from the very beginning with the little DK jingle to the ending with choirs/guitar/orchestra/phat beatz.

The choice of sources is cool. The sampling of guitar is amazingly good, I thought it was a real guitar first. Synth solos (and guitar solos) were pretty exciteing to listen to.

And like Rexy said: "Why is it too short?" :) I'll look forward more DK remixes, this game deserves it.

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I love this track so much. The bass is really driving, the arrangement is very tightly packed, and even the fake guitar sounds pretty good! :-)

It definitely sounds like Jimmy had a specific vision for this track, as every element fits very well, and it definitely has the aforementioned swagger.

A++ will listen again (and again).

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DUN, DUN-DUN-DUN! God, I love that intro and it being used again at that great ending. Like a wave of nostalgia. If the goal was an epic battle, you sure as hell achieved that. Excellent guitar and drum work, and the symphonic choir really made this ReMix feel like a grand battle. I really don't think it's that short, being filled with so many goodies and being over four minutes long, but I will say that I wished the track 29 part was used a little more. Can't complain though, cause it was amazing. Incredible job, BGC.

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I immediately sat up in my chair when this started playing while I was listening to the album. When I looked at who the boss was, I was rather confused at first... until I remembered that Donkey Kong was originally Mario's nemesis. :razz: Oh, well. Guess Mario got tired of chasing after Pauline... Anyways! This track really rocks to the core, and the addition of the choir really helps with the menacing, foreboding feel. If this had played during the actual stages... well, that would have been pretty badass. Yay for more BGC!

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That intro to the song made me think of Inspector Gadget, although I know that's not where that intro originates from. This is a nice chill bad guy tune where you're rocking and doing your own thing. The guitar adds a nice touch here - we don't get to see a whole lot of that from Jimmy. The song builds pretty nicely while still maintaining that chill pace. Solid work overall.

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Oh, and Codamadius, I do believe the original Donkey Kong eventually became Cranky Kong, as the canon goes. I think.

True. About the track:

Ah yes, a track that has been in my playlist for quite some time (it helped that it was finished so soon). Since I wasn't familiar with the srouce, I never knew you used sveral sources with this, it really sounds like a whole. I love the inclusion of the choirs and bells, making everything a little darker and a lot more epic! Absolutely love the synth solo around the 3 minute mark! Great stuff

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  • 2 weeks later...

Man Dingo, this is some good stuff.

You've turned this tune into one heck of an epic. This is the kind of song to play for the final of "Donkey Kong: The Movie". I just imagine Jumper Man making his way to save the princess with all of his strength as flaming barrels are coming his way. The chorus is great and love the reoccurring motif that brings a dark and ominous vibe to the whole thing. Simple into Star Wars, that's what this feels like.

Thanks for posting this one!

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  • 3 years later...
  • 5 years later...
  • Liontamer changed the title to OCR02344 - Donkey Kong (GB) "Duel of the Apes"

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