Super Mario Bros. 2 - Boss

[Siolfor the Jackal]

It's pretty simple so I thought I'd do a quick and dirty record of the guitars, but I'm not sure where to go with it from here. Maybe thinking of transitioning into Wart's theme or just ending it with a end level jingle but I'm not sure.

 

[The Nikanoru]

Cool sound, I like the slight changes for variation, but still very repetitive.

My feeling is that you will run into the same issue with Wart's theme in terms of repetition. I think one solution could be layering some interesting fill work over top of the foundation you have here (maybe after 2-4 loops) and introducing a solo you can shred cheese with (perhaps over top of Wart's theme, depending on where you decide to go with it).

Just a suggestion, hope this helps.

[Siolfor the Jackal]

Yeah, that's pretty fair. I kind of leant right into the repetitiveness of the original but I thought maybe the rhythm variations might make up for that. That said, the drums are still very copy/paste so there's probably a tonne I can do there as well.

I think your suggestions are great and I'll definitely try and work on that, cheers.

[SirCorn]

This is really cool! I'm loving the idea you have with this. In my opinion, I get the doomy/sludge vibe off of this. It's unsettling, harmonically interesting, and makes a good foundation. Since you're going for a cover and not really a remix, I'd say this is accurate because the theme itself doesn't offer much variation. What you COULD do (if you were into this sort of thing), is try to take advantage of the repetition with layers. Layering seems to be your friend in repetitive pieces. Perhaps introduce a lo-fi interpretation of the riff, add the double tracked guitars, use some harmonically inspired texture in a pad or extra guitar, and experiment with making a haunting, legato melody instead of a shred section. I like Nika's input, but as a guitarists, it is too easy to let that be our answer to a bland musical moments. Be the "voice" and the backing band and I think you'll have a solid interpretation of this piece without needing to add quotes from Wart's theme (unless you want to and by all means do!). 

[Siolfor the Jackal]

Some solid advice, thanks a lot, man. I'm excited to go back now and try some of this out.

[Uffe von Lauterbach]

Two things occurred to me while listening to your remix, if it's OK to call it that at its current state.

1. I want to say taking the Castle Theme from the original Super Mario Bros. and layering it on top of your Boss Theme sounds like it could work. I don't know for sure, though. So give that a shot if you want to.

2. Using the ending jingle, but not as the ending. Before doing your transition into Wart's Theme, if you're going to put that in your remix, do the Boss Theme > Ending Jingle > Wart's Theme. Not like a medley, either. Try to make it flow into one another naturally.

[Siolfor the Jackal]

You know, there has been a couple of times where I've been thinking about this song and suddenly find myself thinking about the SMB Castle theme, but I thought I was just weird. Maybe there is something there after all...

I do like the idea of using the jingle as a transition to Wart's if I go that route, and yeah I don't think I'd do it if it doesn't sound natural. Seems lazy to just paste it on the end.

Thanks, dude

[Wiesty]

Definitely needs some sort of melody or hint of a melody, as right now it just sounds like a backing track. It's a solid start for an arrangement but needs to go places and will need some variation in intensity/direction etc. In terms of the mix it sounds VERY mid heavy to me. You're going to need to do some EQ to add some spaces between the instruments. The drums way back in the mix and the bass is pretty calm compared to the blaring mids we get from the guitar. I would EQ the instruments to give them their own sonic space first, that is get rid of any unneeded low frequencies in the Guitar to leave that all for the bass so you can boost the bass up. The highs need a boost as well so that the cymbals really cut, it will add a ton of clarity and definition. 

[Siolfor the Jackal]

Yeah, I really need to learn how to mix as I have no idea what I'm doing.

[Wiesty]

Don't worry, it takes a lot of time to develop ears for mixing, I've been doing it for years and still suck at it. Best thing you can do is get into a good studio monitor setup so you're hearing what is actually there.

[Uffe von Lauterbach]

On 5/5/2017 at 11:41 PM, Siolfor the Jackal said:

You know, there has been a couple of times where I've been thinking about this song and suddenly find myself thinking about the SMB Castle theme, but I thought I was just weird. Maybe there is something there after all...

I do like the idea of using the jingle as a transition to Wart's if I go that route, and yeah I don't think I'd do it if it doesn't sound natural. Seems lazy to just paste it on the end.

Thanks, dude

That's pretty funny that I wasn't the only one who heard the Super Mario Bros. Castle Theme. If you do decide to try that out, I hope to hear it to see how it turned out. If it works, though. Otherwise it might not be a good idea. But I guess we'll see.

[Niowiad]

Whoah the wall of sound at 00:12 caught me by surprise even though I should have expected that  Was that double or quad tracked for the guitars?

One thing I was thinking about, you could change the strumming pattern as the double bass kicks trying to make it sound tighter. Come to think of it I would also probably postpone the double kick section, or repeat it later if you also wish to keep it like that in the first half of the track.

Overall I really like the idea.