*NO* Mega Man 8 "Jump Jump, Slide Slide"

[Rexy]

Contact Info

 

ReMixer Name: Ranipla

Website: https://ranipla.bandcamp.com/ and https://soundcloud.com/ranipla

UserID: 36139

 

Submission Info

 

Name of game arranged: Mega Man 8

Name of arrangement: Jump Jump, Slide Slide

Name of individual song arranged: Ice Stage

 

Comments:

Originally this track started off as a joke. A friend of mine was playing Mega Man 8, however it was the English version, which was infamous for it's "totally high quality" voice acting. One of those gems was this annoying robot that would yell "Jump Jump" and "Slide Slide" as an instruction, I found it to be a hilarious sample thus this was born.
 

Edited April 6, 2020 by Rexy

[MindWanderer]

There are a few different styles here, so I'll address each one in turn.

• 0:21-1:03 has a single high-pitched lead and a medium-pitched accompaniment.  No bass, just percussion.  This is okay for a few seconds as a breakdown, but it's serving as the main melodic core, and it's too minimal for that.  2:29-3:12 repeats this section with a mid-low saw arp that's sort of a bass, but not really; it's still pretty thin but better, easily the best-done part of the mix.
• 1:04-1:25 is an okay bridge--just one synth, the percussion, and the VFX, but for a brief section and a lead into the next section, it's OK.
• 1:25-1:46... what is this even.
• 1:46-2:08 is yet another minimal section, high this time, just a high-pitched synth lead and a high-pitched piano arp.

The rest is similar to the above and has similar issues.  There are usually just one or two non-percussion instruments playing at a time, sometimes as many as three but even then they're never split into high/mid/low.  The soundscape is thin everywhere--not always in the same way, but always thin.  Usually it's the bass that's missing, but often it's the mids.  Often both.  Overall the entire arrangement feels underdeveloped.

It's a good foundation, but the main sections that are diving the melody need to be richer, using more of the audio spectrum.  I think if this were fleshed out more it could be all right.  Although I'm never going to like 1:25-1:46.

NO

Edited March 31, 2020 by MindWanderer

[prophetik music]

hey, this has some real fun parts in it! i agree with MW that as a whole it's real thin from an arrangement side, but there's some really fun ideas going on throughout. 

i enjoyed the initial presentation of the melody at 0:32. for an intro section i thought it did a good job laying out the initial melody. i also found the section at 1:25 to be pretty crazy but i didn't not like it, just thought it was in the wrong place in the mix. when that section ends we're nearly two minutes into the mix and have heard the melody once through for about thirty seconds, which means that the mix feels pretty distant from the source at that point. going back to the melody after that was a good refresher, but then it's into another (really cool!) original section that is fun but isn't obviously tied to the source.

the restatement of the melody at 2:30 or so is nice but it's the same articulations as it was the last time we heard it, which was a little disappointing. it's also still feeling hollow at that point. the build after this is a nice change from what we've heard, and goes into another chillstep-like set of wubs which is a great contrast to what we heard before. it's also too thin here in terms of frequency range, and then it goes to a filtered piano for an outro which is fine. there's a long block of silence at the end that could easily be trimmed there as well.

overall i found the arrangement to be decent but really lacking in bass throughout. i think MW nailed it that it's essentially thin everywhere - there always seems to be at least one instrument missing. the drum programming is fun, the synths you've chosen are enjoyable to listen to, and the melodic content is (barely) enough overall. i think though that it's sounding unfinished next to other tracks in similar styles that we've passed in the past. i think this one is close! some pads and a bit of additive arrangement will really improve this significantly.

 

 

NO

[Rexy]

This arrangement has its fun parts, for sure.  The tail ends have good uses of high-pass filters to secure the rest, there are some well-planned sweeps throughout, and the DnB bass breakdowns are a fun idea.  You've also kept it source-dominant throughout, so that's a plus - however, not a lot of it had gotten played around.

You made a start with varying the opening chords with the high pad breakdown at 2:40 and gated pads at 3:33, as well as bringing the central motif onto the piano briefly at 3:23 and 3:55.  But aside from those changes and the different key, there's not a lot done - the melody is presented as-is throughout, with no engaging changes other than a brief instrument swap near the end.  Hence, I have to disagree with prophetik in that the melodic content isn't quite there yet.  There are a lot of ways to vary up the notation  - changed rhythms, grace notes, and pitch glides are the first three ideas that popped up in my head.  Feel free to experiment.

And of course, I also noticed that the mixdown feels empty.  Don't get me wrong, though - the current instruments are neat and have the potential to engage the listener deeply.  But a lot of the time, the bass does its sub-work, and then there'd be a gap in the low-mids while pads and melody occupy the upper-mids.  prophetik's idea of additional pads covering that frequency range is a good start, though I feel it'll be appropriate to bring in an e-piano or a similar set of keys.  If you think the soundscape needs to be thicker, layers can work as well - a different tone on the bass or melody transposed respectively up or down an octave could add more power to your palette.

As of right now, it's a fun and bouncy romp, but this track needs more done to it to push it over the bar.  Further playing around with the melodies and a thicker soundscape are two things I'd like to hear in a potential future revision.  Please submit again.

NO (resubmit)