djpretzel Posted October 14, 2005 Share Posted October 14, 2005 Hey there, I thought I'd surprise you this time (don't gimme that look ¬¬) with a collab working with the one and only Jredd, or in reality me (Phil) with my friend Trevin. The game I chose to remix was Threads of Fate, because I haven't seen any coverage of it so far, and it's one of my favourite soundtracks. Trev saw my WIP and said: 'Your drums sux' (a little more politely) and made me some better ones. Here is the original set of .PSF's in .RAR form: And now a link to the mix: I think this mix is a leap since any of my other mixes, and I have made sure the production is a shweet as can be. I hope more people will mix this soundtrack in future, yes, I'm looking at you! Thanks for all your work keeping the site in shape, and I hope this mix is to your likings, Phil and Trev. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Orichalcon Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 Source: http://www.zophar.net/psf/DewPrism_psf.rar - Track 4 - Pass Through the Forest Some creative work here. Starts off with some light white noise and reverse-sounds, not sure what they are, some sound like bells, while others almost sound guitarish. The sinewave playing the arpeggios in the background when the drums and melody come in are a nice touch. Unfortunately for Trev, I have to say that the drums are still a little on the suck side. They're subdued, and while they're programmed creatively, the samples used are basic and never really relate themselves to a mix relatively well. In the thicker sections of the mix, it's not too noticeable, but in the less complex sections, especially at the beginning, the basic sound is noticeable. Just a nitpick though. In terms of arrangement, after listening through the source most of this is adopted straight accross from the source. I think you're using a guitar for the lead, and it's quite bland and subdued, which is what this mix suffers from overall. It needs to be more powerful, rather than keeping this low and subdued tone for the majority of the mix. The blunt sound is an issue too, it needs to be much sharper in the lead sections. The changeup at 3:30 sounded like it could be interesting, but you're pretty much repeating ideas relying on that sine arpeggios too much. I think if this was taken back and reworked to get a more powerful and crisp overall sound, building up to different overall dynamic levels, you'd have a really nice and inspiring piece here. But as it is, it's quite dull, over-reliant on the sine waves and just not standing out as an amazing example of rearrangement. Also, the soundtrack from this game is also very nice. Never heard it before this, and I'm enjoying it quite a bit. NO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liontamer Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 Yeah, cool original. I swear I played something on VGF as background music that sounded very similar to this. Cool intro at :23, though TO's right in that the feel isn't much different. I think the guitar work is ok, but there's no edge to it; it's like zyko's tone, only no power to it whatsoever. The sound balance is pretty weak, in my opinion. After :34, the sounds aren't quite mud, but they do crud together in the low-end and low midrange. The guitar lead really shouldn't be so subdued compared to the various forms of percussion in there. Percussion gets really repetitive. I actually think it might not have to be changed, just that it shouldn't be so loud and should have more variation in there. It would do a fair job at filling out the soundfield. Oooh, the arrangement got retread at 1:45 like this was a PSF file. :'-( Nah, you gotta bring more ideas to the table, not loop the same idea repeatedly. Not much difference in the second iteration of the source melody compared to the first; no significant/new ideas introduced, or different arrangement brought to the picture. Gentle section at 2:43, but it's not as solid as it could be with the piano, and only lasts until 2:55. Not much going on in terms of dynamics. The drums get a lot thicker at 3:07, but the overall feel is the same. The sine wave is definitely a cool idea that overstaying it's welcome due to a lack of variation, like TO mentioned. Things wound down a bit at 3:19 for some additional contrast, but then at 3:30, we abruptly go to some reversed sound action that sounds like a decent idea for a fadeout ending, but not lasting this long. Definitely too drawn out. Don't need it for 45 seconds. More like 10 seconds. Needs a huge overhaul. NO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarkeSword Posted November 7, 2005 Share Posted November 7, 2005 Hey nice choice of original. I'll have to check out the rest of this soundtrack. Not a bad texture, but I think that primarliy arises from the source material itself; I'm not really hearing a lot of interpretation going on here, other than some new percussion and some instrument swaps. Like TO mentioned, the whole things sort of blends together; it'd be better if we could get a crisper sound. Also, this really need some more interpretation; you've got to bring new ideas to the mix. Don't just upgrade, rearrange and reimagine. NO PS: reverse stuff at the end is gorgeous. i <3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrayLightning Posted November 8, 2005 Share Posted November 8, 2005 Everything sounds like mush, that dooms this mix. There's no clarity in any of the instruments. For music of this style, this is key. On top of that, the arrangement is too straightforward, as already noted by the others. These two factors weigh down the mix greatly in terms of the elements we look for. Still, quite a pleasant listen regardless, but a NO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts