OCR04126 - *YES* Pokémon Gold Version "Dreaming Down the Lane"

[Rexy]

RebeccaETripp
Rebecca Tripp

http://www.crystalechosound.com/
ID: 48262
Game(s): Pokemon Gold/Silver
Song Title: Dreaming Down the Lane

Songs Remixed: National Park

 

This song was mixed by Chimpazilla
 

[Liontamer]

The bowed string articulations definitely aren't the best/most realistic, but they're serviceable enough.

Rebecca always does a good job fleshing out her orchestrations and giving them plenty of character and textural variation.

There's some dynamic contrast in play, but until 2:41's shift into a winddown phase, the overall energy level was flatter than it should have been despite the constant instrumental changes; playing more with tempo or rhythmic variations could have helped there.

Yeesh, there's no ending though, with a very sudden cut-off at 3:24 that would need to get fixed so that it properly tails off.

On headphones, I'm also hearing some very light static/pops (e.g. :20-:29, 1:22-1:25, 1:40-1:48 [big pop at 1:48], 2:15-2:18. 2:43-2:48, 2:56-2:59) all over the place that would need to be removed before we could roll with this.

YES (conditional on fixing ending and pops)

EDIT (7/23): /listens to fixed version

Cool. Pops fixed. Ending's not totally cut off, but still fades out too quickly. Bah.

YES

Edited July 24, 2020 by Liontamer
updated vote from YES (conditional) to YES

[Rexy]

As always, the orchestrated treatment sounds lovely.  It's a simple idea, with two run-throughs of the theme and an ending based on the A section, but the choice of instrumentation and accompaniment writing differs between the two variations.  The first one varied the scope up with additional countermelodies and harp strums, keeping more of that source familiarity.  Then, the second run brought the main melody into the background with an emphasis on multiple countermelodies and harmonies, all on a much higher register.  As Larry pointed out, there isn't much dynamic variation other than the ending - but the way you utilized the instruments in each run-through more than makes up for it.

Obviously, with Chimpazilla helping out with the mastering, the usual quiet mixdown problem is absent.  That makes the track a more reasonable listen, and the clean and balanced mixdown also contributed to it.  The string articulations do feel stiff and too soft, though.  I would've wanted to have heard the treatment as straight legato rather than repeated gentle attacks, myself.  Yet, I also know such articulation is challenging to program even in the most elaborate string VSTs, so it's not too much of a concern.  And while Larry brought up the pops, I didn't hear any of them other than the obnoxious one at 1:48, so along with the sudden ending cut-off, these sound like quick fixes that either Kris should address or you should re-render.

Even without the pair of hiccups, it's a satisfactory source treatment with a respectable amount of interpretation and a solid mixdown.  If the pop and ending cut-off issues get remedied, then I'll consider it set.

[EDIT 2019/06/27 - Rebecca and Kristina have gotten together to get the two conditional issues addressed.  It sounds gorgeous to me now, and I'm more confident with seeing it on the front page.  Nice job!]

YES

Edited June 28, 2020 by Rexy

[Emunator]

I've always wanted to hear what Rebecca could do with a Pokémon source. This is whimsical and nostalgic at the same time, it captures the duality of the original source material while expanding on the instrumentation a great deal. I'm certainly no classical music expert, but I'm feeling a little bit of Debussy in the string writing at times, which is frequently both complex and unconventional but also utterly serene. 

I can tell that this is a little bit dated on the sequencing side of things, especially with the articulations on the strings and woodwinds which can't quite keep up with the melodies at times, but overall this hits the mark well enough. Hearing Kristina's mixing/mastering job really showcases how much of a different strong production can make, I would love to hear future submissions from you reach this caliber of production, I think this is a very attainable bar for you to reach on your own! 

There is a really pervasive crackling that does not sound intentional that I would love to see addressed. I wonder if this is related to the sample rendering issues we're hearing on some of Rebecca's other tracks? That and the sudden ending are enough of a showstopper to work on getting a fix, but other than that, I'd be happy to see this grace the front page!

YES

(fixes check out, this is good to go!)

Edited July 8, 2020 by Emunator

[prophetik music]

ooh, right off the bat those ensemble string articulations are exposed and not great. the faster moving parts are super-oofy as a result. it sounds better once we get into the main body of the mix, but it never goes away, and it's pretty distracting.

overall this is a really interesting arrangement because it feels very Pokemon throughout. it has the whimsy i associate with those soundtracks, yet still is distinct enough from the original to call it something new. the mastering by chimpa really helps this sing out even more.

ima rubberstamp this one as needing the pops mentioned by other judges and the ending clip fixed. once that's done this is good by me.

 

 

YES (conditional)

edit 6/29: pops fixed, ending fixed, vote fixed. YES

Edited June 29, 2020 by prophetik music

[Chimpazilla]

Just FYI everyone, the rendering errors were all on my end and had to do with issues with my Lynx card.  With the help of my computer-expert friend, I was able to solve that issue today, which is a huge weight off my shoulders as well as finally getting this track sounding the way it should!  It's a beautiful track and I enjoyed working on it!