Chimpazilla Posted January 1, 2015 Share Posted January 1, 2015 (edited) original decision Alright, just a quick lil resub. Most issues have been fixed now; the snare is a touch less in-your-face, the cinematic drums have a touch less treble, and the harmonies have been mostly adjusted. I kept the structure as is, BroA, sorry! The source breakdown has changed, and I've tweaked the writeup a bit (This last sentence doesn't really need to be in the tagged comments; it's just a note. Oh yeah, and yay, the breakdown percentages add up to 100% this time! ). Merry judging! -------- Welllllll now, this was written quickly! I didn't really have more than two or three days total to work on this for the Final Fantasy Crystal Clash, but I'm still happy with this result. It has that Diggi Dis Wild Arms sound I was going for, plus some big cinematic drumwork in the middle, with this being one of my most organic mixes to date. Also, fun fact: the name was inspired by Calculus and Inorganic Chemistry (Crystal Field Theory + Gradient Vector = Crystal Gradient). At first, I didn't exactly feel up to the challenge of mixing two seemingly incompatible sources. When I heard Edward's theme, I was quite literally raising eyebrows and wanting to flip tables. It's just a harp playing two super long arpeggios, and I found the implied chord progressions to be all over the place. I chose Penelo's theme with the hope that its chord progression could be re-adapted to fit most other sources. Fortunately, though barely, I was able to tweak some things and make this work with Edward's eccentric harp song. I think you'll find that the chords I used are very specific. It was down to the wire with this one, and I literally wrote and mixed the last three-fourths of this arrangement on the last possible day I could have had time to do anything (Saturday), but I'm glad this idea came to fruition. Source Breakdown: 0:00 - 0:22 = Penelo 0:22 - 0:39 = Penelo 0:41 - 0:45 = Penelo 0:51 - 0:54 = Penelo 0:56 - 1:11 = Edward 1:11 - 1:26 = Edward + Penelo (Sine Wave, subtract last 5 seconds from Edward) 1:28 - 1:45 = Edward 1:45 - 2:01 = Penelo 2:06 - 2:10 = Penelo 2:11 - 2:19 = Penelo 2:19 - 2:32 = Penelo 22+17+4+3+15+16+4+8+13 => 102/152 secs Penelo 15+10+17 => 42/152 secs Edward There are overlaps, so these percentages are with respect to the entire track. 67.1% Penelo 27.6% Edward - Timaeus Penelo Edward Edited January 7, 2015 by Clem Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emunator Posted January 1, 2015 Share Posted January 1, 2015 Having not heard the original submission for comparison, I must say that I love what you did here! Your production sounds fantastic to me, I particularly appreciate how you handled the string stabs and percussion. You've got a really cohesive sound pallet matched with a triumphant, brisk arrangement that takes a very difficult source and reigns it in rather nicely. I think the pure-Penelo sections are the strongest part of this arrangement, there's some residual awkwardness from the Edward melody at times, but overall it's a very smooth, enjoyable fusion. And yeah, it bites a LOT from Diggi Dis' style so I appreciate you being up-front about your inspiration, though you put in enough detail work to make this your own. Definitely my favorite track from you that I've heard so far, this will be seeing some airtime on my own personal playlists Great work T! YES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chimpazilla Posted January 6, 2015 Author Share Posted January 6, 2015 I had no issue with the production the first time around, and I have no issue with it now either, it all still sounds great. It's the structure I have trouble with, and my thoughts on that haven't changed, so I'll just quote myself: I really love how you handled Penelo's theme, with the rhodes and staccato strings, and the synth lead. All the Penelo parts of this song sound terrific, and the production is up to your usual standard of excellence. I'm sorry you got stuck with my Edward theme as your second source though, because Edward really feels forced into this arrangement and has an awkward/uncomfortable feel, sorry to say, it makes for quite a disjointed overall arrangement. Once you return to Penelo with the piano and strings, the arrangement is once again stellar. I would love to hear this song again, with the Edward portion replaced with other aspects of the Penelo theme, I'll bet that would be just dynamite. The Penelo theme has five (iirc) separate sections to choose from, lots of material there. NO (resubmit) I'm so sorry, I love nearly everything you do timaeus... but this one just doesn't work for me. Good luck with the rest of this vote, maybe I'm the sole outlier. NO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clem Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 Bright, open, well produced. Those string stabs are very nice. The transition into Edward's theme doesn't bother me. A wash of cool moodiness to complement the Penelo bookends. The only thing that sticks out to me is a slight brittleness in the percussion. It's way subtle tho and ultimately sounds good. Sequenced with style YES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nutritious Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 Really enjoying this track. Great palette of sounds you've put together here. I felt that both sources were well integrated here and actually liked the change-up that the Edward theme brought. Very clear use of both sources with a good amount of personalization in the writing and structure. Production is solid overall; not much to say there. Ending felt a bit underwhelming & tacked on, but not a huge deal. It's a short track too and I do kind of wish more material was used from Penlo, but what is here works. YES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Palpable Posted January 23, 2015 Share Posted January 23, 2015 Mix is a little too bright for me, and doesn't have the same polish that Timaeus' subs usually have. The drums and piano were kind of brittle. What's here is really enjoyable nonetheless. Some really classy piano and string writing, and the pads blend nicely. Lots of detail work if you keep your ears open for it. I don't agree with Kris about the arrangement. It flowed really well and is the kind of thing I look for in subs that combine multiple sources. Though I can understand her POV, since there have been subs I've rejected because the writing didn't work for me. This one, however, I am happy to pass. YES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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