Jump to content

Earthworm Jim: Use Your Head - PRC281 EP

Eino Keskitalo

By Eino Keskitalo,
in Post Your Game ReMixes!

 Share

Recommended Posts

Eino Keskitalo Collaborator

Eino Keskitalo

Posted
Posted (edited)

Hi, this is a collected work-in-progress thread for Earthworm Jim: Use Your Head - PRC281 EP.

We, the participants of People's Remix Competition round 281, decided to make an EP/minialbum out of our submissions to the competition. The source of the round was Use Your Head from Earthworm Jim. Our aim is to improve our tracks so the EP is acceptable as an OCR-I release.

The purpose of this thread is to track progress and also gather feedback on the WIPs. Everyone is invited to provide feedback! Artists on the album are encouraged to post WIP updates on this thread (or make their on Workshop thread if they so like!) (Also, you're not required to share your WIP publicly if you don't like, though it's probably the easiest way to get feedback from other project members).

Tentative deadline: end of November.

The album is not recruiting for additional tracks. We do need album art though.

Here's the tracklist:

Edited by evktalo
Link to comment
Share on other sites
HoboKa Rising Star

HoboKa

Posted
Posted
Hi, this is a collected work-in-progress thread for Earthworm Jim: Use Your Head - PRC281 EP.

We, the participants of People's Remix Competition round 281, decided to make an EP/minialbum out of our submissions to the competition. The source of the round was Use Your Head from Earthworm Jim. Our aim is to improve our tracks so the EP is acceptable as an OCR-I release.

The purpose of this thread is to track progress and also gather feedback on the WIPs. Everyone is invited to provide feedback! Artists on the album are encouraged to post WIP updates on this thread (or make their on Workshop thread if they so like!) (Also, you're not required to share your WIP publicly if you don't like, though it's probably the easiest way to get feedback from other project members).

Tentative deadline: end of November.

The album is not recruiting for additional tracks. We do need album art though.

Here's the tracklist:

I'm thinking of hybridizing my current version with my soundcloud version so we can get the best of both works - it's gonna be epic, if I can pull this off right anyhow...

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Xsquader Newbie

Xsquader

Posted
Posted
I'm thinking of hybridizing my current version with my soundcloud version so we can get the best of both works - it's gonna be epic, if I can pull this off right anyhow...

I wasn't even aware the soundcloud version was not the one you submitted. I do like the soundcloud version better. It shouldn't be too hard to do a bit of hybridization, I like to do that to most of my original music myself. Modern sound with bits and pieces of the vintage sound. Good luck with that. I look forward to hearing your future updates.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Eino Keskitalo Collaborator

Eino Keskitalo

Posted
  • Author
Posted

That'd be great gercr, please ask him!

We'd need front cover at minimum - basically, something EWJ related with the title ("Earthworm Jim: Use Your Head - PRC281 EP" would be fine IMHO), probably some OCR logos and stuff assuming we get the official status. Back cover with the track & artist listing would be nice. CD label would be fun. Then there'd be theoretically the art assets to do a physical print (CD jacket) (no, I'm not suggesting that'll be happening :) )

Link to comment
Share on other sites
timaeus222 Enthusiast

timaeus222

Posted
Posted (edited)

I took a listen to this earlier, and I like the general mood of it. Objectively it seems like ambience + vocoded/buzzy groove + dubstep drums. I wouldn't go so far as to call it "Chillstep", but I think the drums don't seem to fit the ambient nature of this track because they're pretty strong yet sorta dry, and the vocoded groove feels repetitive because it's often there without changing much. I don't think the tempo is too slow or the track too long, but the repetition might be why someone thought that. The dynamics don't seem to go anywhere because it feels like a groove plus some melodic experiments and occasional dropping of the drums, making it seem longer.

Instead of sticking to one single [vocoded] groove and writing a melody that acts as nearly the only dynamic element (besides the genre of the drum rhythm), try considering the changes you can make in the overall mood in distinct sections of the remix. You can make it heavier (climactic), lighter (breakdown), or maintain the current groove (main). Try scanning through your track 15 seconds at a time. You can't tell where you are (intro, main, breakdown, climax, or outtro) if you don't look because there's the same set of drum samples pretty much everywhere past 0:18. There's my take on it. :)

Edited by timaeus222
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Eino Keskitalo Collaborator

Eino Keskitalo

Posted
  • Author
Posted (edited)

Some quick-ish comments to some of the pieces: (edit: also, Tommy Tallarico retweeted this so there's no backing out of this now! :D)

User Your PLASMA!

Overall this is an energetic trance-style electronic arrangement, with some quite good sounds and a lot of potential!

I for one quite like the double bass sound, it has a nice grainy texture. It is a bit loud in the mix (and probably. taking up EQ frequencies especially after the intro). It is also kind of static.. instead of legato (i.e. playing all the time when it plays), it could have little 8th note rests before each new note to make it a bit more rhythmical. I also don't like the slow attack, how the volume swells up during the note (I'd try compressing it). All that said, I like the texture it adds, plus it's the most unexpected sound in the mix so far, so it gives the whole piece a bit more character. OTOH I don't mind if you want to get rid of it.

Structurally, there is development throughout, and the changes that happen as it progresses are good, also good reinterpretation without ever losing the source. It is however a bit samey still - using the descending riff from the source would break things up and add a lot of excitement. 0:46 would be a good spot to first use it.

I like the overall sound around after 1:00, I like how the tune progresses into that. The mix does get quite busy/crowded. It might help to have either the "icy drops" arp or the siren like synth be the lead and mix the other into a support role. You could even change their balance midway through the part, if that works. Structurewise, after this part going to the descending riff again would probably work very well.

Use Your Body

Very tasteful 80s synth piece. I like the extended percussion-heavy section, and the arrangement/interpretation overall, again never losing the source.

Not much to criticise, I agree with other feedback that the lead first playing at 0:57 is taking a lot of space in the mix EQ-wise, and maybe plain volume-wise too. Love the vibrato+filter applied to it at 1:46!

The only other criticism at this point would be that I feel the EP is a little lonely at the intro - some other sound, like a texture or ambiance might work as an addition.

Looking forward to the update!

Heading into Worm Territory

Love the piece, great ambience, the slowed-down feel is a very nice take on the original.. it goes into bluesy emotional territory. I especially like how you handled the descending riff - really impressive & effective. The soloing is very nice, and the bassline is subtle but tasty.

I think timaeus222 preeetty much covered what I had in mind for criticism. Thinking about the structure that way would help the dynamics of the piece a lot. I felt the drums were quite same-ish (there's differences, but not much in feel) and also all the drums are kind of loud, there's not much subtlety to the rhythm and I'm surprised I don't head e.g. hihats or something like that in there. But these may all be a part of what you're going for, and considering the overall structure seems like a better feedback/approach than "add some hihats" ;)

Edited by evktalo
Link to comment
Share on other sites
timaeus222 Enthusiast

timaeus222

Posted
Posted (edited)

I'm not wearing my production headphones right now, but...

Use Your Body

Solid overall. Some practical points:

  • The lead at 0:57 has a fairly high amount of reverb on it, and since it's a saw wave, there are a lot of high harmonics, which falls in line with evktalo's EQ clutter concern.
  • Dat cowbell. I also really loved the occasional intense vibrato on that synth.
  • I'm not so much inclined to say that the E. Piano in the beginning needed more with it, but it would be nice to have some sort of background sweep or maybe an ambient arp at 0:08 - 0:25. I did think the bass that comes up by itself needed more filler textures to accommodate it. Maybe a few arpy DX7 E. Piano notes? Still 80's if you do that. :)
  • The drums sound good in general, but sometimes the kick creates quite a bit of low end clutter with some rapid-fire hits (2:06, 2:10, 2:13, 2:14, 2:18, 2:22, 2:25, 2:28, 2:33, etc.). I would either adjust the velocity variation on it or do some sort of noise gating or transient shaping to shorten the envelope and clean up those types of sequencing.
  • The synth lead at 3:24 - 3:39 was a little buried by the saw wave from 0:57.

The Princess is a Cow

Good ideas here. There's a lot of reverb washiness though. It kinda feels like your lead doesn't have a lot of reverb, whereas your backing stuff has a lot. Ignoring the reverb, it has some nice complexity to it. Lead guitar performance can be tighter (esp. after 1:08 ), and the choices in the implied dynamics (and the reverb) seem to make it feel understated.

Head Into The Abyss

The piano is evidently mechanical. It's good that there's certainly velocity variation, but the sample and rhythmic error don't do the notes justice. :???: Also, the left hand feels pretty simple. Maybe you can progress from single note left hand parts to more chordal left hand parts by the time you get to the orchestral part. Orchestra sounds like free samples, which isn't a bad thing, but it ought to sound realistic for the general listener (and most people have heard of an orchestra, so a lot of emphasis is placed on the realism of an orchestra). You have nice ideas, but they can be augmented to accommodate for the limitations of these free samples. You may want to study zircon's Dungeonmans soundtrack to better understand partwriting for realism, and for making as much use as you can with free samples. That soundtrack uses all free stuff.

Whip Yer Head Boi (Version 1, 2)

1) Sounds kinda 80's. The harmonies and groove feel kind of... generic and plain to me. I hear a lot of fifths and fourths, and almost a techno-ish vibe (O_O). The balance is a bit off in certain parts, like 1:48 (piano is a touch loud), 2:05 (bells are a little piercing), and 2:55 (the distant lead is a touch too distant but is not problematic as a stylistic choice). It was a nice listen; I just think it needed more diversity in moods (and more humanized piano), and maybe your hybridization idea can bring that in.

2) Drums feel nice and punchy. Sorta more of a rock-ish vibe than the other version. Still kind of a loop-y feel though. The fake guitar lead at 1:58... I dunno about that. It gives the soundscape a lo-fi quality. It might work better if there was some vibrato. Getting simplistic harmonies and groove here, like in the other version.

Mahtava Mato

It's a WIP, but I feel like something heavier than what's there now ought to come in at some point. Maybe 0:26.

User your PLASMA

Some synths are really simple. The first one, for example, is just a basic envelope with a slow attack on a static sustained synth (i.e. no filter action?). Overall a pretty nice soundscape, and I just have these thoughts:

  • Hi hats can have more velocity variation to make them less mechanical, maybe vary the sample too
  • The ambient arp that comes in at 0:46 is a little too loud at first.
  • The basic saw lead at 1:01 is pretty loud, and is kinda abrasive to me.
  • Some transitions needed; stuff just happens right now. i.e. where's the cymbal at 1:02? At 1:32? What about a riser before 1:32?

Edited by timaeus222
Link to comment
Share on other sites
timaeus222 Enthusiast

timaeus222

Posted
Posted
"Sounds kinda 80's. The harmonies and groove feel kind of... generic and plain to me. I hear a lot of fifths and fourths, and almost a techno-ish vibe (O_O)"

Ouch. Shot fired. What's wrong with techno? :lmassoff:

I found the other feedback more or less useful though, particularly the production stuff.

:lol: Whenever I see someone call something techno, I just go V_V because sometimes they mean it's too repetitive and occasionally boring.

So to cause me to go O_O and call it techno-ish... I almost didn't want to say that. Maybe you're just in an inspirational slump? 'o' (then again, I'm not really familiar with what you write)

Link to comment
Share on other sites
HoboKa Rising Star

HoboKa

Posted
Posted
:lol: Whenever I see someone call something techno, I just go V_V because sometimes they mean it's too repetitive and occasionally boring.

So to cause me to go O_O and call it techno-ish... I almost didn't want to say that. Maybe you're just in an inspirational slump? 'o' (then again, I'm not really familiar with what you write)

No this is my usual style. It's not everyone's cup of tea, as made abundantly clear here. Thanks for the input :)!!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Xsquader Newbie

Xsquader

Posted
Posted

Thank you Timaeus and Evktalo for the constructive criticism and feedback. I'll try to throw an update out in the next 3-5 days (maybe sooner if I have time!) and then see if it is more pleasing after that then go from there. Taken note of all of the advice and feedback and going to try to incorporate what has been said into the updated mix.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
HoboKa Rising Star

HoboKa

Posted
Posted (edited)
Yes, it's ok to keep WIPs public. You'll get more feedback that way (sorry I've been so slow). (It's also ok to PM them to me if you didn't want it public.)

In that case, here it is

http://www.mediafire.com/listen/bt7qia91a7v8o7q/EWJ_WhipHead_VerA1.mp3

EDIT

If you had downloaded it yesterday, it was the wrong version - sorry about that! It is now the correct link.

note:

-I think I'm going to add another minute, so it's not completed compositionally and the transitions may be pretty rough at parts.

Edited by HoboKa
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
 Share
Go to topic listing
×
×
  • Create New...