OCR03574 - *YES* Metroid Prime 2, Metroid & Super Metroid 'Attack of the Drones'

[Gario]

Contact Information

Username: timaeus222
Name: Truong-Son Nguyen
http://soundcloud.com/timaeus222
http://tproductions.comeze.com/
ID: 24526

Submission Information

Game: Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, Metroid (NES), Super Metroid
ReMix Title: Attack of the Drones
Consoles/Platforms: GameCube, Wii; SNES; NES
OST Composers: Kenji Yamamoto; Hirokazu Tanaka; Kenji Yamamoto, Minako Hamano
Sources: Torvus Bog (Metroid Prime 2), Title (Metroid NES), Lower Norfair (Super Metroid)

 

Composed for the 30th anniversary of Metroid!

 

Comments:

"AngelCityOutlaw: Told you we'd see you next mission.
 

timaeus222: A wild collab has appeared! This time, it's a heavy cinematic, Hans-Zimmer-inspired medley of Metroid themes! This was pretty hefty on resources for me: Shreddage Drums, LA Scoring Strings, Pearl: Concert Grand, and more, which evidently conspired against me to crash FL Studio like 20 times. But that's not all - we planned to write this in 5 days, and made it just under the wire; a few hours later, I began my move for grad school in WSU for my PhD in computational chemistry (chemistry + computer science). So to those of you who have been listening to my music, thank you for being avid gamers and lovers of music, and I hope to continue composing even a little in my free time (I did gather most of my music resources for the trip, except for my good headphones), and when I return home during Christmas breaks and summers."

 

Extra Info:

 

Rough Source Breakdown:
0:00.0 - 0:27.7 = Title (Metroid NES)
1:14.3 - 1:42.3 = Torvus Bog (Prime 2)
1:58.2 - 2:11.1 = Lower Norfair (Super Metroid)
2:20.8 - 2:48.8 = Torvus Bog (Prime 2)
2:49.9 - 3:12.4 = Title (Metroid NES)

27.7 + 28.0 + 12.9 + 28.0 + 22.5
= 119.1/193.9 = ~61.4%

27.7 + 22.5
= 50.2/193.9 = 25.9% Title

12.9/193.9
= 6.7% Lower Norfair

28.0 + 28.0
= 56.0/193.9 = 28.9% Torvus Bog

[MindWanderer]

Ah, I heard this one in the workshop.  Note that AngelCityOutlaw collabed on this one (his very short contribution to the blurb made that unclear).

I wouldn't have pegged this as Hans Zimmer, but as Hans Zimmer as interpreted by Timaeus, sure!  Epic cinematic with some electronic wackiness thrown in, good stuff.  Although as I said in the workshop, and other commenters agreed, the glitchiness doesn't always work well--the crackle at 0:21 in particular just sounds like a wiring problem, and elsewhere it doesn't sound like it's in the same sound space as the instrumentation.  It never sounds unintentional, but doesn't always blend in with the music.

I also mentioned in the workshop that the strings, especially at 1:14-1:42 and 2:20-2:48, are uncomfortably fake.  In those particular sections, the identical timing of the swells is especially grating.  A string note at 1:20, and where it repeats, also sounds off to me.

Otherwise, this is a solid arrangement with solid production.  The strings and the glitching do bug me, but the overall arrangement is more than strong enough to forgive them.

YES

[Gario]

Got to hand it to MindWanderer for pointing out the strings sounding fake and the glitching not meshing well with the track - 100% agree with him on those counts. I'll also add that the horns at 0:46 also sound a bit fake, due to how the attack is handled (having a swell for each note).

Otherwise, this is a well produced arrangement that makes sense as a coherent piece. It doesn't make me think that three sources are being used at any point, which is pretty impressive as far as arranging goes. While the humanization and strange use of glitching are an issue, it's not enough to give this anything other than a YES.

YES

[Liontamer]

Strings from :29-:44 & 1:43-1:58 were massively exposed and I'm not sure of the point of that; it's just such a dry sound. Honestly, I'm pretty disappointed timaeus and ACO just let it slide. 2:21's string writing also exposed the sample pretty badly as they came in. In any case, those are the main criticisms of an otherwise solid arrangement.

[reads above]

Yeah, poo on you guys for these strings. What gives?

YES

[Nutritious]

Sweet intro.  Sets the stage nicely. I'm not sold on that static effect though - it sounds a bit too drastic when it comes in and instantly pulls me out of the track.

Liking the low synth undertones beneath the orchestra.  Not gonna beat dead string horse, but I do agree with the above crits on them.  A little more focus on humanizing and some reverb adjustments could make them blend better.

1:43 sounds like either overcompression or clipping distortion.  Happens to a lesser extent in other places with big transition hits.  Watch those levels.

Arrangement is clear and creative.  No qualms there.

Very cool track.  It has some production issues that could be tightened up, but good listen overall.

YES