Palpable Posted August 20, 2015 Share Posted August 20, 2015 Hi, I'd like to submit a metal remix I made a while ago of Isao Abe's theme for Blanka from Street Fighter 2. ReMixer name: shredd Real name: Matias Lehtoranta Email address: Website: www.soundcloud.com/shreddingdragon Userid: 54225 Name of game(s) arranged: Street Fighter II: The World Warrior Name of arrangement: Because Eels Name of individual song(s) arranged: Theme of Blanka Additional information about game including composer, system, etc.: Composer: Isao Abe; System: Super Nintendo Entertainment System Link to the original soundtrack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xaaAhI8E6gQ Comments about the mix: This arrangement was made as a birthday present to my good friend, whose main character is Blanka in Ultra Street Fighter IV, a game that we are both passionate about. I wanted to avoid making a total copy-paste of the original tune, since I knew my friend likes covers that deviate a little from the original. I even discarded altogether the iconic bassline that starts off Blanka's theme. This is a syncopated, modern metal approach, in the footsteps of Meshuggah and other 8-string metal acts. I changed the rhythmic mode from straight to a triplet feel. Low-chugging guitar riffs provide backing for Blanka's melodies, played on different synths. I spent time shaping and testing various synth sounds for lead and background layers, which are a big part of the whole arrangement and atmosphere. I did want to retain some of the naturalistic vibe of Blanka's character and his original theme music, reflected in the flute sounds on this arrangement. There is a fair amount of original content, but it's mostly to provide some framework for familiar Blanka material. There isn't really any traditional guitar shredding - this is first and foremost a new interpretation of Blanka's theme rhythmically and tone-wise in the context of metal. Somewhere in the mix there are small details, for example the semi-mechanical jungle beat of the intro section appears again during the mysterious quiet breakdown near the end. In Street Fighter lore, Blanka is supposed to have gained his shocking superpowers from electric eels in the Brazilian jungles. This arrangement's title originates from a night out, during which my friend was asked "Why is Blanka green?" He simply paused for bit, and said "...because eels!!" // The picture included is also original artwork by another friend, authorized for use as the cover art of this track! ------------------------------------- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Palpable Posted August 20, 2015 Author Share Posted August 20, 2015 Super restless, creative arrangement. I really love the juxtaposition of the chugs with the Blanka melodies. It's not always incredibly musical, but I think 90% of the time it sounds really cool and there's no end of ideas. My only qualm is production, but I think it's a dealbreaker for me. The stop-start chugs already sound a little too choppy, but the bright synths really don't sit well with the metal parts. Never gels for me. It bothers me that an issue like that is a dealbreaker, but I just can't see past it. Wouldn't be surprised if this got YESes from others. NO (resubmit) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liontamer Posted August 20, 2015 Share Posted August 20, 2015 The most important thing to mention first is that this is Yoko Shimomura's theme. Isao Abe's composed Sagat's theme, but the other World Warrior themes are hers. Now, I don't know how Palp and I, two close members of Team Brown Heat (who, in my head, are legally bound to vote as a bloc), have been on opposite sides lately, but somehow we disagreed here and now wind up on different sides again. I think I'm on the right side of this one also. I listened to this at full volume, and I'm ultimately OK with the production and balance here. I thoughts the parts were distinct enough, and didn't get the same sense of this not gelling enough, though I see where he's coming from. Timing this out, this was JUST at 50% overt source usage, mainly due to the long intro taking up lots of time. For a 5:24-long piece, I needed at least 162 seconds of identifiable source usage for the VGM to be dominant in the arrangement: 1:13.75-1:40.5, 1:57.5-3:32.5, 3:33.75-3:48, 4:46-5:12 = 162 seconds or 50% There was also that little snippet of sampling the SNES version of the source from 5:13-5:15 that nudged what was dancing on the line over the cliff. Arrangement-wise, I felt this was samey at times in terms of the ideas and energy level; that said, the overall interpretation of the theme was obviously creative and otherwise excellently executed. Matias has done a nice job rocking out Blanka's theme. Let's go. YES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nutritious Posted September 16, 2015 Share Posted September 16, 2015 I love the SF2 soundtrack. Songs like this bring back the nostalgic feels for me. I admit, I'm not in love with the formant-type lead that comes in at 1:14. There's nothing inherently wrong with it, but it does juxtapose pretty strongly against the big chuggas in the background. In a way, this is true of the leads in general, since they're pretty tame compared to the backing guitar & drums. Don't want to dwell on it too much, though, because it can be a valid stylistic choice. Triplet conversion is solid and a great idea. The timing change-ups were very well handled and a nice addition I wanted to single out. Performance was very tight and I can get behind the stop/start guitar style. Being nit-picky on production, I'd argue the rhythm guitar is slightly too overpowering against the drums and could be toned down slightly. Also, the mix sounded a little dull to me with regards to high-end EQ. Overall, great stuff. Very creative take on Blanka. YES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chimpazilla Posted September 16, 2015 Share Posted September 16, 2015 I'm not sure all the sounds in this mix go together as well as they could. The chugs do sound a bit heavy and staccato, but this mix is like a hybrid metal-electro-experimental track more than a purely metal track, so I find the staccato chugs interesting and playful. That formant lead is odd, so is the pan flute that follows it... but this is a tapestry of odd sounds that either work for you or they don't. Personally I'm enjoying the unique and odd combination of sounds. Mixing isn't perfect, and the ideas get repetitive after awhile, but overall I find this very creative. Thanks Larry for the source breakdown, wow this squeaks by on source, but the arrangement is very cohesive and has great flow. Me likey. YES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DragonAvenger Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 I'm between Kris and Vinnie in terms of my vote here. I definitely feel like the instrumentation isn't really gelling, which bothers me more than I'd like. That said, the arrangement is pretty cool and definitely unique, which puts a big positive on this. I'm siding on the YES side off the fence because I do think the arrangement positives are weighing best on the scales, though it was a pretty close one for me. Yes (borderline) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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