Life Force - Running through the Starfield

[!Nekko!]

Here is a remix of the song from the second stage of Life Force on the NES, "Starfield".

http://tjnekko.com/TJ Nekko - Running through the Starfield (Life Force).mp3

I'm at a fairly complete state, but I feel like there are a few spots that can be improved and I'm hoping I could get some second opinions before submitting.

Made using FL Studio 10 and Reason 5.

Source: LifeForce - Level 2 Theme (Starfield)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=0mv4YfP4uqM#t=49s

Thanks!

Edited February 24, 2013 by !Nekko!

[!Nekko!]

Updated version. Slight changes to the intro, plus several other places. Also a new finish.

http://tjnekko.com/TJ Nekko Running through the Starfield (LifeForce) 20130219.mp3

Thanks ahead of time!

[!Nekko!]

Final Version - Made several significant changes. Better build up at the beginning, chord change and varied melody on final refrain, and several mixing/EQing tweaks.

http://tjnekko.com/TJ Nekko Running through the Starfield (LifeForce) 20130224.mp3

This is probably my final version before submitting, so any feedback is super appreciated!

Edit: Remastered a little bit. Should be less high heavy now.

Edited February 24, 2013 by !Nekko!

[Nutritious]

I'm surprised you haven't had any comments for this mix yet. Very cool soundscape you've put together here. Liking the atmospheric build up to start things out. Overall concept is solid.

I'm a little concerned with the flow in the first half. It sounds like it's building to something for the first 1:10, but never gets there, because it breaks down with a (very cool, admittedly) LP filter. It does catch a groove at 1:35.

Personally, I think this would be a ton more effective if you keep your beginning build until either :47 or 1:10, then at that point, sudennly bring in a much more in your face, meatier dnb kit, underpinned with some sub bass to fill out the low end. You could then have the LP filter breakdown and continue from there.

I could totally help with that if it's something you want, but I don't want to tell you how to write your track .

Not sure I'm sold on the strength synth lead at 1:57. It's got a lot of verb, too, which makes things a bit messy.

[!Nekko!]

Nutritious, thank you for the feedback! I tried out some of the things you suggested and I do like how it resulted. You may need to clarify based on the changes I've made whether they represent what you meant.

Here is the latest version:

http://tjnekko.com/TJ%20Nekko%20Running%20through%20the%20Starfield%20%28LifeForce%29%2020130225.mp3

I used a punchier sample for the intro-beat, but having anything more than this before the LP filter doesn't feel natural for me for some reason. Cleaning up the verb on main synth did help, but I kept the delay for now because I want to maintain some "space"iness. I also removed one of the layers that may have been making it muddy.

I'm not sure if what I have for the new subbass is too quiet or too loud. I can still hear the rest of the instruments, which is why I liked where I stopped. Feedback/examples here appreciated.

I do think I have a lot more work to do fleshing out the song and adding some sample embellishments around. As always, I appreciate having another set of ears/speakers/headphones giving me feedback!

Edit: Just realized how heavy that frequency range is. I'm toning down that freq on the drums and a few other instruments and will post changes.

Edited February 27, 2013 by !Nekko!

[Nutritious]

Actually, I was thinking something more in the middle of what you did. Sort of like this:

http://nutritious.oceansend.com/Nekko.mp3

It sounds a bit awkward to me to have that type of fill every 4 bars of the beat. Something that drastic should be every 8 at the most, IMO. I'd have a more subtle fill every 4 to keep it from being repetitive.

I still think the LP breakdown is early on in the mix, but that's your arrangement decision . New beat is definitely an improvement.

[!Nekko!]

It sounds a bit awkward to me to have that type of fill every 4 bars of the beat. Something that drastic should be every 8 at the most, IMO. I'd have a more subtle fill every 4 to keep it from being repetitive.

Yeah, I agree with you there. I think I get so caught up fleshing the rest of the song out that I tend to forget things like that.

I still think the LP breakdown is early on in the mix, but that's your arrangement decision .

I think I might understand what you mean now. I was thinking you wanted a smaller climax before the LP breakdown, but do you mean just build it up even more? I'll need to listen to some tracks to see if I can get some ideas. I've always struggled with putting together smooth buildups and good climaxes, which is probably why I cut corners there.

Edit: Here is a version that expands the intro a little bit and I added some variety to the drums. It's definitely a rough cut for now.

http://tjnekko.com/TJ%20Nekko%20Running%20through%20the%20Starfield%20%28LifeForce%29%2020130227.mp3

Edited February 27, 2013 by !Nekko!

[!Nekko!]

Update! Just a few minor fixes and improved the intro a little bit more.

http://tjnekko.com/TJ%20Nekko%20Running%20through%20the%20Starfield%20%28LifeForce%29%2020130228.mp3

[Rozovian]

That's a really loud noise effect.

Nice choice of sounds here, but the whole thing sounds ridiculously bright. Do you have any mids? Snare could be a little stronger, it's kind'a weak. More mids.

Recognizing the chords of the source so far... Ugh, there's a voice clip. Yeah so, source is there, it's a minimal source, and while I find that those lend themselves well to plenty of variations, I don't mind the repetitive take on it. I do mind some of the transitions, tho. There's a lot of stop-and-go.

Leads are too loud. Everything is too bright. Those bells at the very end are piercingly bright and painful to listen to. Dunno what setup you're listening to this with, but it really doesn't sound right on mine.

Way too bight, minimalist take on the source, stop-and-go arrangement... Hard to say if it's ocr material, but it's not ready yet.

/mr