Chimpazilla Posted December 16, 2016 Share Posted December 16, 2016 Remixer name: nelward Real name: Nick Elward Email address: Website: soundcloud.com/nelward User ID: 32483 Name of games arranged: Sim City (SNES), Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening Name of arrangement: OMG Mr. Write Name of individual songs arranged: “Dr. Wright Dialogue” (Sim City), “Weird Mr. Write” (Link’s Awakening) I always knew this as Mr. Write’s theme from Link’s Awakening and its a tune that always gets stuck in my head despite only being featured in that game briefly. The loop is only about 4 bars so I had to embellish it a bit. Hope you enjoy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chimpazilla Posted December 16, 2016 Author Share Posted December 16, 2016 "The loop is only about 4 bars so I had to embellish it a bit." Yes it is, and yes you did! Wow that original is short and repetitive. The remix by comparison is creative and lively, and at the same time chill, and all the while the source is completely recognizable. The breakdown is cool and unique, I would have liked some extra ear candy there, but it breaks up the arrangement nicely. There are some sections that repeat essentially wholesale, and I would have preferred to hear some different elements added the second time around, but I have to give credit for what you did with this short source so I'm overlooking the copy/pasta. The mixing is adequate if a bit underwhelming; although I feel like some highs are missing which could give the mix a much larger and more airy/alive feel. Regardless, I like it. YES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gario Posted December 16, 2016 Share Posted December 16, 2016 Oh shit those are the same source. I didn't know that, lol. Welp, that makes my job easier! The arrangement is slick as all hell. I swear the source just annoyed the hell out of me since it SOUNDED like it was supposed to be an antecedent/consequence... and then didn't have the second half of it. This really take that shape and makes it into something that both fits AND constantly refers to the source for material. I will point out that the direct references are lacking: from a strict count... 0:00 - 0:26 0:28 - 0:53 1:53 - 2:13 71 Seconds Direct source usage 171 Seconds total arrangement time ~41% Source If looking only at direct source usage this is a little lacking. However, I still think this is a pass even on that front due to how the source is incorporated in the non-direct source parts. The theme is cut up, rearranged and placed over different harmonies in order to create something completely new out of the source, which really blew my mind as to how clever that was. 0:54 - 1:05 1:09 - 1:19 2:16 - 2:27 2:30 - 2:40 42 Seconds of Indirect source 113 total source usage ~66% Source in the arrangement I know, I know, it's a lot of words and numbers to say that I think the source checks out fine, but I think it'll help others that look at it and think there isn't enough source in it. Anyway, as far as production goes, I think it was quite good. The fake trumpet theme that carries through is a little piercing, though - it could've used a little mixing down so the other elements could shine through better. I also feel that, while the arrangement itself was spectacular, the soundscape was a little static. The breakdown in the middle helps keep things interesting, but the overuse of the trumpet as the melody carrying instruments is noticeable. Minor critiques to an otherwise great arrangement, though - I loved it. Nice work! YES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nutritious Posted December 19, 2016 Share Posted December 19, 2016 Sim City is an OST of utter nostalga for me. I really need to do some remixin on it. Catchy start to the mix. Probably could've had a more developed intro, but what's here works. Liking the groove. Mixing felt a bit odd to me - like some of the leads were sitting in a weird mid-range distance in the mix, rather than upfront. Minor nitpick, though. Super good arrangement work on this short source. Very creative take on the original that expands it enough to warrant the full mix treatment. It sort of sounds like a TV show theme from the 70's. Another minor issue: ending clip or static effect cuts suddenly at the end. I agree with Gario that some more dynamic contrast in the mix would be nice as it keeps a relatively flat energy level. However, overall, it's a solid mix and fun listen. YES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir_NutS Posted December 23, 2016 Share Posted December 23, 2016 This remix is very simple but also very clever. The sound design won't blow anyone's mind, and the mixing is decent, but the arrangement ideas introduced to such a short source are remarkable. On my subjective take on this, this is super catchy and will brighten anyone's day with its happy, careless nature. On the objective side of things, the only gripes I have are on the production side of things, with some elements popping out more than I would like such as the glissandos, the trumpet and the orch hits. Man are those orch hits CHEESY, but they fit so well, but they could've been mixed just a little lower. But this song is not really mean to shine on production but on arrangement, and that was accomplished here. The original is expanded on and embellished, and the breakdown was just excellent. Overall I'm happy to pass this, great arrangement an clever use of fake/cheesy sounding instruments got you far enough on this one.YES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liontamer Posted January 9, 2017 Share Posted January 9, 2017 I was slightly more generous with my timestamping that Gario, but this also checked out for me. The music was 2:47-long, so I needed at least 83.5 seconds of source usage for it to be dominant here. 00.75-54.25, 1:49.5-2:16 = 80 seconds or 47.9% Then, accounting for the other sections like Gario mentioned, I didn't recognize as much, but there was clearly more than enough for the additional few seconds once I started counting. Nice mellow groove that was a little static, but did have dynamic contrast within a much more limited dynamic curve, which is totally fine and valid. Catchy stuff, and a very cool approach with this arrangement, adding a touch more funkyness to it, and certainly presenting a totally different feel, even compared to the more laid-back feel of the original SimCity version of the theme. I wasn't down with Nick's previous EarthBound submission (vis-a-vis the Standards) due to feeling it wasn't interpretive enough (despite going in the right direction), but had 0 reservations here. Also cool to find out Nick's in the Atlanta area. Keep it up!YES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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