OceansAndrew Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 this is my first submission. I do know that there is a DnB Style Remix of DKC2 Stickerbrush Symphony already, but it sounds awful and too heavy in my opinion, but for other people it may be ok. Please listen to my rendition and consider it. I will include it as an attachment but you can also listen to it at Soundcloud: Contact Information: ReMixer Name: Aleksandar Goldstein (Email-Adress: ) Please don't make this public Website: Not available, but I also have a Youtube Channel where I played some VGM on Piano: http://www.youtube.com/user/MarkovicDeluxe UserID: Not available, since I'm not actively participating in the forums Submission Information: Name of Games Arranged: Donkey Kong Country 2 Name of Arrangement: Flying Brambles Name of individual songs arranged: Stickerbrush Symphony Comments: I really like this particular tune from the Donkey Kong Country 2 Soundtrack. While in it original form it provides a kind of speed without being too harsh and it also tells almost a story. I wanted to take this feeling and put it inside this remix. In particular I always imagined the blue sky and white clouds you're able to see on the background of the Bramble Blast Levels in DKC2. They're truly the calm and free part of the otherwise very hard and caged worlds of the Levels. I'd like to imagine that you could fly through this sky in a calm and chilly way but also feel the speed behind it when you're flying through sky and all the things below you are swooshing away from you. Best regards, Aleksandar Markovic Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OceansAndrew Posted May 13, 2012 Author Share Posted May 13, 2012 This definitely plays it close to the source at times, but being 6:30, there is a lot of space for a slow burn arrangement-wise. I was really enjoying the sound and feeling of this track, with the drums that are energetic but not overbearing, and the piano break in the middle is excellent. It took me a few listens to decide whether or not it was personalized enough, but I do think it is a unique and worthy addition to OCR. Yes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DragonAvenger Posted July 3, 2012 Share Posted July 3, 2012 Man, I am SO torn on this. The first half is definitely very conservative, and if it weren't for the second half being truly excellent this would be an easy call. Like Andrew, I do think that this does get the job done, but if it turned out to be a no and others ask you to cut down a bit on the conservative first half I wouldn't mind. Good luck on the rest of the votes! YES (borderline) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emunator Posted July 20, 2012 Share Posted July 20, 2012 Ugh... I want to pass this so badly, but honestly I don't think there's enough development in this song until the piano soloing comes in about 2/3rds of the way through. From there, everything is golden, but before that I feel like this never reached its true potential. You need more layers, more dynamic writing, creative sound design... SOMETHING to help spice up the first section of the track, or cut down on the length somewhat. It's not solely the conservativeness that I think is an issue, but rather the overall lack of musical expansion and going on until the piano break. Honestly, the sections need to transition better too, in my opinion. For the last few bars of your D&B section, you could gradually build up your drums more and then add some sort of crash/boom to end off that section more conclusively, instead of juts dropping into the piano part with no warning. Your production is great, sound choices are fantastic, drum sounds are great and the soloing at the end is amazing, but I know you can improve this and make something truly awesome. Right now it feels like you're playing it pretty safe for the first 4 minutes of your track, and there's a ton of room to make that part as memorable as the last 2:40. I hope you don't think I'm coming down on you hard because I dislike the track; on the contrary, I IMPLORE you to revisit this and resubmit if this ends up being rejected. I recognize a lot of potential in here but I don't think it's quite at the bar at this point in time. Good luck either way! NO (resubmit!!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Palpable Posted July 31, 2012 Share Posted July 31, 2012 Siding with Emu on this one. The first four minutes were so conservative that I didn't feel any amount of interpretation after that was gonna make up for it. You've clearly got a good ear for sounds and production, but we're looking for music that's more like the second half than the first. I also think that there could be more to catch your ear overall, some random details here and there. The instruments aren't static in themselves, but they become so after being used in the same way for minutes. Hope you can take another look at this for us. (P.S. No need to poop on other mixes in your write-up - at least be more constructive if you want to criticize a mix!) NO (resubmit) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nutritious Posted July 31, 2012 Share Posted July 31, 2012 Gonna sign off with the mix being too conservative for a large portion of the track. I'd also say the beat, while well produced, gets a bit repetative even for DnB. A bit more variation in the breaks couldn't hurt. On the plus side, production is strong here and the sounds are interesting and fit well. It is a bit of a minimalist dnb style, but I think it works well with this theme. Loved the piano interlude after the 4-minute mark. Both very pretty and creative. Good stuff here, just look into some more arrangement work for the first 2/3rds and it'll pass IMO. No, resubmit please Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fishy Posted August 11, 2012 Share Posted August 11, 2012 I agree with the other guys about the first 4 minutes. That could easily be condensed to 2:30 or so and that would stop it dragging on a bit without removing any of the musical ideas, only some repetitions. The production and sound are really great though. I would ask that you shorten the first half and send us a bit of a shorter edit and this would be a sweet addition. NO, but definitely resubmit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liontamer Posted August 28, 2012 Share Posted August 28, 2012 Melodically, this got plodding fairly soon after it started. Initially, the conservative approach was personalized nicely with the new instrumentation, but then the arrangement never went anywhere else interpretive structurally until 3:57. The addition of the drums at 1:19 was underwhelming in the long run. The tone was vanilla and the pattern, especially the snare, was boring and repetitive after a minute, when the soundscape really needed to be devloping and evolving more substantially. 2:37 finally added the escalating warbling-style synth, but the drums were still plodding on complete auto-pilot, and the overall texture was still thin, with a lot of empty space. Trim the fat on this (e.g. some of 1:19-1:41). You're following the source's structure so closely, yet leaving the soundscape empty, so a lot of the quieter sections before the main melody drops in are too sparse and just bloat the length. You also need to write less plain and repetitive drums (1:19-3:56 with 0 variation in the pattern is too long) and pad/flesh out the background instrumentation further so the soundscape isn't empty leading up to 3:56. The final section with the piano was sweet, and served a nice changeup (finally) and more substantial interpretation of the source. Good start, Aleksandar, definitely figure out what criticisms you feel will help the piece, and work on this some more to take the development of it to the next level. You may be able to get this where it needs to be. NO (resubmit) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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