OCR03496 - *YES* Super Mario RPG "Weapons of Mass Production" *PROJECT*

[Nutritious]

*PROJECT MIX*

Nutritious

16520

Super Mario RPG
Weapons Factory, Fight With Culex

 

 

 

This remix was a long time coming.  I joined the SMRPG project with the intention to claim one of the better-known original tracks, but unfortunately (or fortunately?) I was late to the game and ended up selecting Weapons Factory.  This is a very short theme with lots of repeated patterns and a really strange time signature (13/8 or something?).  I started it some time last year with the idea of a electronic focused big wall-of-sound-type mix.  I got about halfway through when I ran out of ideas and the song really stalled out.  

Many months later, DaMonz began contacting me about the status of the track and we had a few discussions about ideas and ways to expand on what was here.  He was the one who came up with the idea of a DnB style transition and while working on that, I found myself humming the FF4 Boss Fight theme along with it.  It then hit me that that same theme happens to also appear in SMRPG during the secret Culex boss fight, so I decided to roll with the idea.  While there is a significant style-shift at the halfway mark, I tried to have a more gradual transition between the two source themes so that they are present together for a good portion of the switch.

Definite thanks to DaMonz for pushing me to not give up on the track & OA with feedback help (and anyone else I bounced it off of earlier on that I forgot!).

Source usage:

:12 - 1:08 Bass line from WF OST

1:09 - 1:41 Lead playing triplet/simplified version of strings from WF (weakest connection probably)

1:42 - 2:27 Bass & triplet Lead together (Bass cuts out after a bit)

2:35 - 3:11 Backing stab synth playing WF string lead more directly

3:12 - 3:32 Guitars playing WF bass, synth on WF strings continues

3:33 - 4:08 Guitar/synth leads playing Culex lead, previous guitars and synth alternate between WF themes and Culex theme

4:09 - 4:36 Culex theme on leads and backing

[Chimpazilla]

Wow that first source has a weird time signature, it makes it tricky to compare the bassline in the source to your adaptation.  I like yours so much better, the source time sig makes my brain hurt!  I'm having the same issue with the string melody, I hear what you did and I like yours much better, but it's just a bit tricky to identify the source material.  The boss battle melody is very easy to hear though.

The low bass is just a bit too loud and slightly boomy.  The drums get somewhat lost behind this big bass.  The main lead could use some modulation or vibrato or filter movement to add interest over time, but it's a nice sound.  I love all the little countermelodies you've got going on here.  

I can feel how this arrangement was difficult to put together, for a variety of reasons as you stated, but I really like it, it's always interesting.  The guitars at the end aren't fooling anyone, but for synth guitar it all sounds very nice.  The boss battle melody feels kind of shoehorned into the arrangement contour-wise, the melody writing could probably flow better, but it's working well enough.  Overall, really nice track!

YES

[Sir_NutS]

I have to agree with D...Kris about the bass being slightly boomy.  Not a huge issue for me.  I don't think the drums get lost in the bass, I can hear the kick and snare very clearly.  The choice of textures fit the arrangement pretty well, the mix sounds full and nice.  I thought more could've been done with the rhythm guitars besides the long chords and basic chugs but that's perhaps my preference.  

The arrangement is pretty good, never gets boring and evolves pretty well over time.  Highlights for me were the break in the middle of the song, with the piano background and textures, and the buildup back to the main guitar section.  The second half was much more interesting for me, even though this section was more conservative regarding the original, but its not a bad thing by any means.  Loved the small riff and slowdown towards the end.

This is a solid track with plenty of energy, no doubt it deserves to be in the front page.

YES

[Liontamer]

There's something somewhat hollow in the texture, most noticeably at :56 and then with the Weapon Factory melody at 1:07. I also thought the kick was too upfront yet thin and didn't gel with the other instrumentation, but nothing that was a big detraction. What's here is full enough, and by 1:41 when things filled out more, there was actually a small bit of mud.

Nice changeup of the texture of 2:04 to more of a spacey feel that works very well; I really love how the main source here has been transformed.

The beat at 3:12's too thin; needs some meat on the bones and perhaps a different tone entirely. The synth at 3:34 handling the Culex/FF fight is something I've heard from Justin a lot, so I'm used to the sound, but the way it's sequenced feels way too stiff; it's an electric guitar synth, and maybe everyone doesn't need it to sound more humanized, but the lead's timing felt too blocky there for the final minute.

Some more padding without creating mud would do wonders for the overall sound and fullness of this, but what's here is strong and the arrangement's excellent, particularly the effective time sig shift of 13/8 to 4/4.

YES

[Jivemaster]

Nice short buildup to start up the track. The arrangement here flows quite well, although the initial section after the build-up I felt dragged on a little too long. Once the track got going it was quite energetic. Instrumentation is solid, you drop different elements in and out which really keep the mix fresh.

Production is pretty good. Mixing is mostly right and everything is audible. Agree with Larry's comments on the kick - while it does cut through the mix, it could do with being fuller/more bass heavy, but not a major problem. That was really the main aspect of the mix for me that could be improved, but not enough to send it back for such a revision.

I don't really have any major problems with this. Nice work.

YES