Emunator Posted May 22, 2022 Share Posted May 22, 2022 ReMixer name - Justin Thornburgh Real name - Justin Thornburgh Email address - Website - https://www.youtube.com/c/JustinThornburgh Userid - 37749 Name of game arranged - Hollow Knight Name of arrangement - Hallownest Below the Wastes Name of individual song arranged - Enter Hallownest Composer: Christopher Larkin Link to the original soundtrack - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqispO2Bi2k Comments - The main idea of my arrangement was to explore a creepy and weird atmosphere that I feel is a different take on the dark ambiance of original track and game. I started with the idea of a fusion of orchestral and electronic elements which a heavy emphasis on sound design using analog synths. I moved sections around to create a different momentum and progression throughout with a hopefully cohesive form. The melodies and chord progressions of the original are strong and simple, so they feature nicely and prominently in the arrangement. Live euphonium and cello are also featured on the arrangement. The euphonium is played by Dewey Newt, and the cello is played by Chromatic Apparatus. I've checked with them and gotten OKs to submit here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MindWanderer Posted June 16, 2022 Share Posted June 16, 2022 What an interesting idea! I was initially concerned about the orchestral aspect of it, since that overlaps with the source instrumentation, but the liberal use of analog synths, not to mention the darkly gritty style, makes it a very different beast indeed. That's some killer sound design there, and the live euphonium and especially the cello work beautifully. It's not flawless, though. The high-end synths sound like they have too much of a low pass on them. Even for a dark tone, there should be something with a little brightness to it. I'm also not thrilled with some of the bassiest sections. 1:28-1:39 in particular is squashed and staticky. 1:59 and 2:41 don't sound great, either; I think there's a buzzy bass synth in 2:41-3:04 that's buried just enough so that only the buzz comes through and it sounds like bitcrushing, even though it isn't. While overall this sounds great, those super-gritty bass sections give me pause. It's one of those things that didn't bother me at first but grates after a few listens. I'll see what other judges say, and I wouldn't be sad if this got sent back to get those fixed. But the package is good enough that I think I can give it a YES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarkSim Posted June 28, 2022 Share Posted June 28, 2022 What a cool little source tune! Glad you brought this one to my attention. I must get round to playing Hollow Knight one day. Love the sound design right out of the gate. Usually I'm drawn to bass or leads, but in this track it's the effects and atmospheric flourishes that really stand out for me. Those skittering panned sounds, or the usage of LFOs from 0:20-0:30 are very well executed. When the bass does come in, it's surprisingly basic, sounding like a plain saw wave from the C64's SID chip. As the high-cut filter opens up, it starts to sound a bit nicer, but I think some sidechaining against the kick would make a world of difference to it. Particularly towards the end, from 2:22-3:04, there's less bounce to the bass than I expect for these type of sections. The euphonium and cello work so well with the sound palette you've chosen. 3:04-3:26 is a great way to finish off the arrangement showcasing those instruments, followed by that nice resolving chord with some more atmospheric pads. I'm not 100% sold on the four-on-the-floor sections, but most of the sound design is stellar. The bass could be tweaked to give it a bit more character and bounce, although on balance there's more than enough to like about this one. YES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prophetik music Posted July 15, 2022 Share Posted July 15, 2022 what a cool intro. agree with darksim that some sidechain against the kick would have been a really neat idea, but i actually like how perky the bass sounds hand in hand with the kick, and how it adds a lot of space for the orchestra parts to fill in. drives the track forward and keeps it moving despite being full of super low-focused synths. 0:55 sounds so charismatic. cello under the fun arpeggio at 1:20 is great, and the big bass buzz coming in right after it is great. feels very Frosthaven to me. the shift at 2:22 is interesting - a few little shifts in how you approached some of the synths (less space, a bit more sustain) really give it a much different feel. the heavily automated lead synth right after this is a great feel. i wanted the main body of the background to be bigger there as a payoff, but it's still big and fun and enjoyable to listen. there's a ton of great sound design in this. i appreciate your willingness to not go wall-of-sound and stick to a more beguiling atmosphere intentionally, which is a neat game-informs-remix correlation. this is great. YES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chimpazilla Posted July 30, 2022 Share Posted July 30, 2022 This is an eclectic mix of sounds if ever there was one. I love it, everything gels together amazingly and the arrangement moves along like a spooky adventure story. So many changeups here, rhythmically, energetically and instrumentally, all while sounding cohesive. Mixing and mastering are on point. Loaded with ear-candy. The leadwork near the end, with the string backing, is utterly epic (I wish that part was longer). I'm giving this two snaps, a twist, and a triple YES YES YES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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