Palpable Posted April 1, 2015 Share Posted April 1, 2015 (edited) Contact Info Remixer name: Solatrus Real name: Jeremy Iamurri Email: Website: http://www.solatrus.com Forum ID: 20610 Remix Info Arrangement name: Fontech Artes Game arranged: Tales of the Abyss Individual songs arranged: City of Sound Machines Game Platform: PS2 (original), 3DS (re-release) Game Composers: Motoi Sakuraba, Shinji Tamura, Motoo Fujiwara Original soundtrack location: http://www.play-asia.com/tales-of-the-abyss-original-soundtrack-paOS-13-49-en-70-17su.html Comments: I discovered Tales of the Abyss for the first time in March 2014, picking it up over two years after its 3DS port was released. Upon my first time reaching Belkend in the story, I found myself entranced by the ethereal, yet industrial, music. I knew right then that I had to create my own arrangement of this theme. I wanted to keep the vibe reminiscent of the source material, so I opted to leave the tempo near the original 81 BPM. While my voice selection for the melodies doesn't stray too far from the original work, the production (most notably the reed instrument's distorted ghost notes), the addition of grace notes to add character to one of the two melodies, and new scoring, makes me feel that I made this arrangement my own. The only sample lifted directly from the original piece, albeit bitcrushed, is two bars worth of the original percussion loop, because I consider the loop to be a very integral and memorable part of the source material. File location: Edited April 14, 2015 by Liontamer closed decision Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Palpable Posted April 1, 2015 Author Share Posted April 1, 2015 The chilling intro was really promising, great mood setting. I don't think the song delivered on that promise when the drums kicked in at 1:00. It felt like the track was still missing something. On the 1 beat, I kind of expected a kick or something; it illustrated how empty the track was when the drums weren't playing. Overall, the track was pretty slight until the 3:03 section, when the song went into full flight. I wouldn't have minded that section being used once earlier in the track, or maybe just bringing in more percussion at 1:00 sooner to keep the rhythm. I get that you slowly build things up, but that section is lacking. The strings were an elegant addition that fit well, but they always sounded behind the beat. Gotta be careful with the articulations of "live" instruments. The oboe lead was also pretty stiff and not that realistic, which hurts when it carries the melody. I see a lot of promise in this track but it's not hitting the mark yet. Worth noting that there is direct sampling, but it sounds modified enough that I doubt I would have noticed if the artist hadn't said so. NO (resubmit) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chimpazilla Posted April 5, 2015 Share Posted April 5, 2015 There are some cool elements in this track but Vinnie is right, it ends up sounding undeveloped. When the drums kick in at 1:00 it seems there should be a kick on the 1 beat, but if there is, it is mixed too quietly. This sounds like Damage drums which I love! But the snare is mixed very loudly and the kick too softly. I also like the section from 3:03-3:27 but I agree there should be a section similar to this (energy-wise) earlier in the track as well. It is a slow build up and 24 seconds of excitement isn't quite enough of a payoff. Something else of interest is needed before 3:03, like at 1:24-1:48, that section could have faster drums or some other backing element added for excitement. Very cool ideas but not quite there for me either. NO (resubmit) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nutritious Posted April 14, 2015 Share Posted April 14, 2015 Cool use of haunting synths to set the stage for the mix. Fellow J's really hit the nail on the head here. From 1:00 until 3:03 it sounds like there are missing notes and/or elements that should be fleshing out the track - like they were muted before export. At 2:16, the drums drop off for a breakdown section, but because the soundscape wasn't fully realized prior to it it just sort of sounds like a lower-energy version of the previous section instead. Things become much more full at 3:03. I'd argue the backing pads/sustained notes are actually a bit too loud here. The oboe lead sample works in general, but because it has no vibrato, it sounds stale/stiff (not sure what word I'm going for here) on the long sustained notes. I'm also on the same page with Vinnie on the direct source sampling: I wouldn't have noticed either without it being mentioned because of the bitcrush-type effect. Nice start here, keep on it. NO resubmit, please Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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