Liontamer Posted November 10, 2017 Share Posted November 10, 2017 (edited) Contact Info ReMixer Name Stunning Cactus Real Name Colin Betts Email Address Website https://colindbetts.wix.com/colindbetts User ID 32605 Submission Information Name of game arranged Kirby’s Adventure (NES) Name of arrangement Ride the Rainbow Warp Star Name of song arranged Rainbow Resort (a.k.a. “Level Map Select of LEVEL 7”) Link to original soundtrack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dnVcKSqxU8 Link to my remix: Comments: I fell in love with the haunting melody the first time I heard it (which, oddly enough, wasn’t from the original soundtrack, but from a fan-made game that featured a remix of it). I didn’t really intend on remixing it to the extent that I did; I was originally planning to make a grand orchestral cover. However, I one day stumbled upon the anime No Game No Life and became absolutely infatuated with the opening theme, “This Game”. It’s a very upbeat tune with rapid pianos, bass-licks, drums and guitars, and I probably spent a day or two deconstructing it because it was so dense with crazy counter-melodies, polyrhythms and key modulations. I knew I had to make something in that same vein, and while working on creating my orchestral version of Rainbow Resort, the idea struck me: a bait-and-switch intro leading into an upbeat, frantic and super-catchy arrangement of the timeless Kirby track. I ran into a couple walls in the development process (and probably pounded my head against a couple real life walls), but focusing on finishing is what kept the fresh ideas coming. I’ve never worked harder on any composition in my entire life, and I’m genuinely pleased with how it turned out. I honestly couldn’t genre-ize this piece if you asked me to. Perhaps it’s some sort of hybrid between rock/metal and soundtrack music. I hope you’ll find this rather unorthodox arrangement of a classic 8-bit Kirby tune as endearing as I intended. Edited February 6, 2018 by Liontamer closed decision Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MindWanderer Posted November 29, 2017 Share Posted November 29, 2017 Other than not providing a download link (which helps us analyze a track using tools other than just our ears), there's mostly a number of small issues here that add up: The lead violin, snare, and cymbals are substantially muted. The bass guitar and the bass end of the piano are a little too quiet, as well, which results in the soundscape sounding much thinner than it ought to. The brief synth section doesn't gel with the rest of the arrangement. 0:23 gives us a nice little riser, then a lead-in supersaw (which also lacks impact), and then it's back to acoustic instruments for the rest of the mix, aside from a very subtle synth celesta that I only heard on the 3rd listen. It's confusing, and sounds like it was written by someone who wanted a riser but didn't know how to do it without synths. There are some buzzing sounds (e.g. 0:15) that sound almost like instrumentation but more like something lying on top of the piano and vibrating. I could live with the other issues, but the balance is a big one. The violin really needs to cut through the mix more, and the lack of low end and impactful percussion make the arrangement sound much weaker than it needs to. The arrangement is quite nice, and I'd like to see it posted, it just needs a little more production refinement. NO (resubmit) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DragonAvenger Posted February 6, 2018 Share Posted February 6, 2018 First thing I'm noting on headphones is that the violin lead is panned pretty heavily left. Generally you want to keep the leads in the center do they are able to come through stronger. Similarly as Mind Wanderer mentioned there are some pretty big issues with the balance. Overall the track sounds a lot quieter than it should be and there is some muffled feel overall that I'd love to hear fixed. I'm going to suggest hitting up our WIP boards and getting another pass on balancing the track. Really loving the arrangement ideas here. There's a ton of determination here conveyed through your instrument choices. I'd really like to hear this on the front page do I really hope you clean this up. NO (resubmit) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir_NutS Posted February 6, 2018 Share Posted February 6, 2018 Man, I really dig this arrangement. The piano is really lovely, however I must agree with the other J's on some issues. The track sounds muffled and some instruments lack clarity. The panned violin wasn't a huge issue for me, I understand why it's being done (it follows the piano very closely and would probably clash a lot more if put in the center) but it does feel lopsided to listen to when there's no counterbalance, specially on headphones. I also had no issue with the synth instruments, a track doesn't need to be straight-up edm to have these type of synth sounds. They didn't feel out of place for me at all. To be honest, my only big gripe is with the overall clarity of the production, if it can be cleaned up and balanced a bit more, it'll be golden for me. The arrangement is great and intricate, This is super close for me, but I'd like to hear an improvement on the production side. NO (Borderline, resubmit) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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