Liontamer Posted November 16, 2006 Share Posted November 16, 2006 Super Mario World Snes Castle Theme Enjoy ------------------------------------------------------ http://snesmusic.org/v2/download.php?spcNow=smw - "Sub Castle BGM" (smw-15.spc) & "Map 2: Overworld" (smw-03.spc) Fairly good intro. Interesting use of the claps there; nothing negative, although they're something I wouldn't expect here. Nonetheless, they're simply but properly produced so that they fit in the soundscape without sounding pasted on top. The soundscape felt a bit thin; most of the way, the strings should have filled out the track more. The brass samples at :51 were pretty bleh. Yes, they're tough to get sounding good, I'm aware. The brass sounded better at 1:21 for the chorus, so it's not like the usage was poor across the board. Arrangement's pretty conservative, without substantial enough additions to make up for it, IMO. There's some new writing, sure, but it's not a major contribution here. Transitioned at 2:03 into "Map 2: Overworld" arranged in basically the same conservative style before getting more interpretive with the rhythms from 2:18-2:33; fakeness of the brass was exposed for a few seconds. Went back to the Castle BGM at 2:33, but with more going on than before. Good job changing the rhythms of the bassline at 3:09, but other than that, the expansion factor and interpretation factor both felt low. Needs more depth in the soundfield during some of the emptier parts, more effective usage of the brass/strings. But way ahead of those things, it needs more interpretation. Frank could make this twice as good. NO (rework/resubmit) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zircon Posted January 3, 2007 Share Posted January 3, 2007 Frank is impressive with his production skills almost all the time. It's rare that I really have a problem with his synths, his beats, or his sample usage... but I have to agree with Larry. If there was one thing that was weak in the production end it was the brass. Plus the texture/instrumentation of the mix never really felt like it was gelling properly. You had those big hip hop claps early on, for example, which I was not feeling. Later on (towards the end) you had 'em with the beats, where they fit more, but by that time some of the other elements like the 'miscellaneous' percussion and orch strings were gone. I feel like you need to focus your ideas here of what you want the mix to sound like. And don't get me wrong, I am all for hybrid genres... just listen to my own mixes and you'll hear that, but still, I think this particularly combination you used didn't work. On the arrangement front I had several problems. One is perhaps more subjective, but the second to last chord of the Castle BGM music (before the V) was minor in the original, and you made it major every time you used it. It stuck out to me, and detracted from the feel imo. If you're going to change that one chord to make it a little less ominous and dark, why not jazz up some of the other ones, which were otherwise used verbatim? This brings me to my next point which is the lack of interpretation. Larry already pointed this out, but I feel it's worth emphasizing because it's probably the weaker area of the mix. The source material is used straight up with very little variation throughout the mix. The same riffs are repeated over and over mostly with instrument changes rather than melodic ones. Why not try some soloing over the chord progression(s), or using more of the castle BGM? Now, there were a few points in the mix where I thought you were being interpretive, but you didn't build on them. For example, those swung rhythms in the background of the first 45 seconds with the hand percussion was hot. I was expecting some meaty stuff on top of that, but you never developed it and instead went with the fakey brass just playing the original straight up. Then, in the overworld section, you were having fun with rhythms and percussion again but chose to transition abruptly back to the more lackluster castle BGM material. Though, I have to say, if you had worked more on the arrangement of the preceding and following sections, I wouldn't have minded the conservative Overworld treatment. Bottom line... the production is almost all there, but the arrangement needs some rethinking. Refine & resubmit, this has potential to be a lot better. NO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jillian Aversa Posted January 3, 2007 Share Posted January 3, 2007 Goin' on a J-date! Okay, so here's what I have to say: essentially, I feel as though what you have submitted here is a conglomerate of some very productive brainstorming sessions. I mean that in the most encouraging way, because by the end when you reached the hip hop chunk, I think you found a style that could really work well for this source... especially considering your skill set. To be honest, I wasn't feeling the first 2 min 45 sec. As Larry already pointed out, the arrangement was very conservative; you started to find an interesting soundscape, but changing the instrumentation alone isn't enough. I also agree that the claps did not really fit in the mix until you got to the final section starting at 2:49. Everything before that demonstrated some nice experimentation, but didn't cement as a whole. There were hardly any transitions from idea to idea! Production was also somewhat lacking until the hip hop section. Brass samples are a b*tch, and unfortunately the ones you tried to work in sounded noticeably thin and dry. The bass drum (and really a lot of the instruments) could use much more reverb to get a more live sound. Personally, I think you should focus on the hip hop style as grounds for a resubmission, and maybe work in some orchestral elements along with it, instead of keeping them so separate. It could work really well, but only if you give yourself a chance to further explore the arrangement possibilities. I hope to hear more! NO, RESUBMIT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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