Chimpazilla Posted August 18, 2014 Share Posted August 18, 2014 (edited) TheShaggyFreak William Chrapcynski http://www.pureshift.com user id: 25853 Name of Games Arranged: Final Fantasy IX and Final Fantasy XIII Name of Arrangement: SazhaFreyaSazh (featuring XPRTNovice) - Name of Individual Songs Arranged: Sazh's Theme - Freya's Theme - This remix was created for the Final Fantasy Crystal Clash contest and was used in round one. I wanted to keep with the jazz setting that's in Sazh's theme but I changed up the instrumentation quite a bit and it's also a bit more laid back and I wanted it to sound like it could be played by a live band. So, I tried to keep the instrumentation a towards the minimal side. I also wanted the recording to sound a bit dated which the main reason you may notice a tape hiss sound in the background. XPRTNovice (user id: 48347) was kind enough to lend me his sax skills for the alto sax part and it really added much to entire vibe. Most of the material is from Sazh's theme but Freya's lead line was added in as well. This was done per the rules of the Final Fantasy Crystal Clash contest. William 'Shaggy' Chrapcynski http://www.bsodcomic.net http://www.pureshift.com ------------------------------------------------------------ Sazh's Theme - Freya's Theme - Edited October 8, 2014 by Liontamer closed decision Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jivemaster Posted September 21, 2014 Share Posted September 21, 2014 (edited) Ok, there are some decent ideas here. Straight off, I'm finding things too repeaty, anticipating for the next thing to happen for too long. The source is spoken for, but you're not really doing a lot with it. The originals are quite repetitive too, which is adding to this problem. There aren't a lot of elements to the track. We have that bass, and that nice organ, and not a lot else for the majority of the track. As far as the original source tune of Sazh's theme goes, its acoustic instruments and varied percussion elements are the major players in keeping interest. Being more on the electronic side of the fence, you may need to compensate a bit. I think the bass could benefit from some varied notes here and there to make things feel more fresh as time goes on. I'd also recommend playing with some filters on the bass to make it evolve over time to keep things interesting. You've got that gorgeous sax around the middle of the track which is the best bit IMO. I almost think if we can cut to the chase sooner than later and get to that sax, we're off to a better start. Production wise I don't have any major issues. So far it's a NO from me. This track has some good ideas but needs a bunch more variation. I feel if you spend a bit more time with this, maybe add a few more elements here and there, things will work. NO Edited September 21, 2014 by Jivemaster Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chimpazilla Posted September 21, 2014 Author Share Posted September 21, 2014 Whoa cool, 11/8 time signature! Bass and organ sound cool, although quite simple and mechanical. The lead organ comes in and it is playing a super simple melody, while the bass and backing organ continue to do the exact same thing. The drums feel very autopilot. When Joe's sax comes in, it sounds so sweet, and blends gorgeously with the organ. After Joe's sax is finished however, the mix goes back to the same exact bass/organ/drums pattern, with the simple organ lead. I have to say this mix sounds a bit like a Sax Sandwich. I think a lot more development is needed during the bass/organ/drums-only portions of the track. Some more drumming variation and fills might help. You could play that bass pattern with a different instrument and let the bass do something else. You could make the lead writing more interesting, and/or bring in an additional lead. You could have Joe record some more sax or another instrument over the first and last parts of the song. As it stands, those parts of the track (before and after the sax) are just too sparse and underdeveloped. NO (resubmit) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liontamer Posted October 8, 2014 Share Posted October 8, 2014 Yeah, opens up pretty stilted, so we'll see if this goes anywhere with that premise... 30 seconds in, it's not. 45 seconds in, it's not... :59 finally brought in Freya's theme in combination, but yeah, this approach isn't working at all, it's way too static, and there's definitely no live band feel. Then there's JoePRT with some silky sax at 1:37. Then back to the same stilted stuff at 2:06, only with sax accents, but not much else going on conceptually or interpretation-wise. Didn't get out of first-and-a-half gear either, which wasn't wrong in-and-of-itself, but it was dynamically flat. "Freya's Theme" was creatively integrated here, but "Sazh's Theme" didn't have much interpretation. It was basically an 11/8 copy of "Sazh's Theme" with a lot less expressiveness, which won't get it done. There's some interpretation, but ultimately not much; you'll need more, Will. I also gotta have more variation, more expression, more dynamics, and more cowbell. NO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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