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OCR04437 - *YES* Donkey Kong Country 2 "Green Glade Groove"


Emunator
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Hello once again, 

I'm back again with another ReMix for your consideration. This time I thought I'd try to find a new approach for a well tread fan favorite.  

ReMix: Green Glade Groove
Source tune: Donkey Kong Country 2: Forest Interlude

Your ReMixer name: TSori
Your real name: Logan Thomas
Your email address: 
Your website:  https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=trumpetsori
Your userid:  2960

Credits:
Arrangement, Trumpet: TSori
Piano, Keyboard, Tambourine: dpMusicman
Guitar:  Siolfor the Jackal
Marimba: MarimbaMatt  
Drums: Evan Carville
Bass, mixing, mastering: Muik
 
Siolfor and I have artist profiles.  Here is everyone else's info.
 
ReMixer name: dpMusicman
real name: n/a
Email: n/a
Website:  n/a
userid: n/a

remixer name: Evan Carville
real name: Evan Carville
email: evancarville@gmail.com
website: https://youtube.com/c/EvanCarville

ReMixer name: MarimbaMatt
real name: Matt Silverberg
Email: MattSilverbergmusic@gmail.com
Website:   https://www.mattsilverbergmusic.com/
userid:  N/A

ReMixer name: myuik
real name: .n/a
Email:n/a
Website: n/a 
userid: n/a

Submission Information
Name of game(s) arranged : Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest
Name of arrangement:  "Green Glade Groove "
Name of individual song(s) arranged : "Forest Interlude"
Link to the original soundtrack (if it is not one of the sound archives already available on the site): see above

Source Breakdown:
Remix (Source)
0:00-0:10 (original)
0:10-0:28 (0:00 - 0:18)
0:28-0:49 (original piano over 0:00 - 0:18 from source)
0:49-1:10 (0:18-0:39)
1:10-1:28 (0:50-1:08)
1:28-1:50 (1:08-1:31)
1:50-2:08 (1:31-1:51)
2:08-2:30 (1:51-2:10)
2:30-2:49 (0:50-1:08)
2:49-3:30 (1:09-1:31)
3:30-3:40  (original)
3:40-4:00 (0:00-0:18)
4:00-4:12 (original)
Total: 252s,  Source:  220s : 87%     Original  : 32s  - 13%  

 Your own comments about the mix, for example the inspiration behind it, how it was made, etc.:

This ReMix marks of the end of what was a solid 10 month hiatus from any music activities for me.  Life just got too busy as it has a way of doing.  However, when the announcement came up for the Soundole Chillout Cover Contest this year, it seemed like the perfect excuse to get back to making music again.  The last few projects I had done before the  hiatus had been sort of dark, flowing lyrical solos or sort of ambient jazz tunes, and while those certainly fit the definition of "chill" I was ready to do something different.  "Forest Interlude" has been on my to do list for a while.  I love how beautiful and haunting that tune is, but it also kind of falls into that same  flowing/ambient sort of category...at least in its original form, So that got me thinking of what else I could do with it that was "chill" but not in an obvious sense.  I remembered my dad had once suggested that I do a cover of Herb Alpert's rise, and suddenly the ideas merged and I was hearing forest interlude over top of a jazzed up version of its characteristic ostinato and a funky bass beat.  This is one of those arrangements that pretty much wrote itself (love it when that happens).

Once again I'm joined by an outstanding band of collaborators.   I could write paragraphs about how great all of these guys are.  They're each fantastic musicians and a pleasure to work with.  I'm really looking forward to working with each of them again.  I need to give a special shoutout to Myuik who really went the extra mile to make sure this mix was done fast and done well.  
 
So with no further ado.  I hope you enjoy our "Green Glade Groove"!
 
Thanks

-TSori

EDIT (4/29/23): 

I finally have a new version of Green Glade Groove ready.

It has new drums, new piano recordings and revisited mix/master

Updated credits:
Credits:
Arrangement, Trumpet: TSori
Piano: ZeldaRocks
Piano, Keyboard, Tambourine: dpMusicman
Guitar:  Siolfor the Jackal
Marimba: MarimbaMatt
Drums: Kenny Jr.
Claps: Evan Carville
Bass, mixing, mastering: Myuik

And here are some links to ZeldaRocks' stuff:
https://open.spotify.com/artist/21HdpYpxplx6unTUvpuP6Y
https://youtube.com/@Zeldarocks

 
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  • 1 month later...

Never heard Forest Interlude done like this before! Right out of the gate I'm getting Bill Withers' "Lovely Day" vibes from that bass, then later on I'm thinking more "Get Lucky" by Daft Punk.

We've got an extended intro with that stomping beat, some keys playing the groovy atmospheric chords, then at 0:52 the trumpet comes in and sounds great. Live marimba adds spice and flavour, and that bass is going crazy in there. At the break at 2:24 I'm left wondering if that kick drum will ever calm down a bit and allow the trumpet some breathing room to feel the natural ebb of the track at this point, as it's desperately trying to. Surprisingly the answer is no! It's gonna keep on truckin' for the whole thing. Perhaps because it's so dominant, there are a couple of timing issues noticeable after the break, particularly bad at 2:52, but also 2:33 and 2:51. After the break we're treated to some more kick drum, some claps, and some more bass drumming. There's some piano in there too but the bass drum is just wiping that off the face of the earth.

I gotta say I'm once again stumped by one of your submissions that is fantastic on almost every level, has great live performances, yet completely drops the ball on the percussion. Not only is the kick mixed so loudly that it's distracting, but it's present for almost the entire track, and doesn't vary in pattern from a 4-on-the-floor. The percussion as a whole could be so much more than this! Not only within the remix, but the source track itself uses samples in such creative ways, even inventing a new musical term: Birdcussion. You don't have to reinvent the wheel here though, I understand if you want the focus of the track to be on the live instruments instead. Maybe use some softer, brushed drum sounds instead? Try choosing a kick pattern that's more forgiving of a live performance, or lends itself to the groove more. Definitely pare back the bass drum during the break section. There's an endless array of options available, but at the very least: turn it down!

NO (resubmit)

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  • DarkSim changed the title to 2022/07/05 - (1N) Donkey Kong Country 2 "Green Glade Groove"
  • 3 weeks later...

After listening to this track a few times, I was fully prepared to come back and add my YES to the YESes that just already be here, and was surprised by the only existing vote being a NO.  Sure, the kick is pretty loud, but that's the only complaint I was going to make.  Well, the ending could be a bit more satisfying.  But it's a great arrangement, with great performances.  The trumpet is superb, the bass is funky, the concept is unique.

I could justify calling this a Conditional on the kick having its volume cut by a bunch, but it's not required to earn my

YES

Edited by MindWanderer
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  • MindWanderer changed the title to 2022/07/05 - (1Y/1N) Donkey Kong Country 2 "Green Glade Groove"
  • DarkSim pinned this topic

Very interesting rhythm for the source tune; I appreciate the unexpected direction. When the added instrumentation picks up around :27, the source tune was feeling obscured, but the brass took the melody at :50, and then there was no question the source tune usage remains front and center for the rest of the track.

I can halfway understand a NO in the sense that there's a looseness in the performances and there's not a full synergy here in the instrumentation and mixing, especially because the tone of the beats feels somewhat out of place.

At 2:30, I wish the piano line cut through a shade more. Literal LOL at the flatness of the ending percussion shot at 4:10; what in the hell??? Flatter than a plateful of piss. :-D It felt like you gave up??

All that first blush criticism aside, this is cohesive enough, even if I have issues here and there. Nothing added up to a reason to hold this back. The arrangement's creative, the performances solid. Very fun concept from Logan and crew with a looser feel that embraces the change in mood. Let's goooooooooooooooo!

YES

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  • Liontamer changed the title to 2022/07/05 - (2Y/1N) Donkey Kong Country 2 "Green Glade Groove"

love the original.

love the slammed piano at the beginning. the claps are pretty loud over everything else, but i don't mind the kick initially. more band comes in with the melody at 0:50. this feels great here - for the most part, the bass is sitting back nicely, and the hats help with the feel despite being so far back in the mix. the ghost notes in the snare are noticeably ahead, but other than that it's nice.

there's a natural break around 1:50. i get more Get Lucky vibes here with some of the fun bass fills. trumpet is a bit ahead when it comes in again.

at 2:33 there's a bit of a feel change, especially in the keys doing a more rolling pattern. around here i noticed that the drums were really on auto-pilot, and it very suddenly bothered me a lot once i noticed it. there's just no attention paid to them. DS is right that this isn't the first time i've heard that from this artist.

the ending is a fairly natural progression but does feel kind of flat/sudden. the splash at the end is almost a joke.

this should have been an easy vote and it isn't. i think my biggest issue is also that the kick is the second-biggest thing in the track despite doing absolutely nothing the entire time. i agree with darksim that there's a total lack of dynamic progression in the track as well. there some super-minor timing stuff throughout but as a whole the bass and hats do a nice job sitting back, and the trumpet sounds great throughout. i think that this is borderline for me. there's just not a lot of attention to details like i'd expect, but it also is above my bar. i really wish that the percussion wasn't, like, the demo track you sent out to get the vibe for the bass player, and that the kick was a few db down.

 

 

YES (ehhhhhhh)

 

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  • prophetik music changed the title to 2022/07/05 - (3Y/1N) Donkey Kong Country 2 "Green Glade Groove"

This is funky and cool and I'm chair dancing to it.  Herb Alpert - Rise comes through instantly with the bassline and trumpet lines.  This mix captures that late 70s funk/disco vibe well.  I wish there was just a bit more variation in the overall beat; the track establishes an energy level on the first note and it stays the same all throughout.  This isn't the greatest kick sample, it is all mid-and-top with very little beef, it is too sharp, and it sounds quite fake compared to the organic instrument soundscape (something softer and more natural would have been better) but I'm not super bothered by it, especially once the trumpet begins.  The piano is so cool but it is mixed super flat, what a shame.  The trumpet comes in loud and proud by comparison. The trumpet sounds great but I feel like the flat piano mixing is a lost opportunity for extra awesomeness.  The arrangement has a repetitive feel due to the energy level never changing, but there is a lot of creativity in the performances.  I feel the looseness in the performance that Larry mentioned.  It almost sounds like the elements are sometimes behind the beat, and it's a little distracting. I would have really loved some additional and/or varied percussion elements coming in and out of this arrangement to vary the feel and energy, this can be a note for next time.  What's here is too cool, funky and fun not to pass, but I am in borderline territory here due to the issues I've mentioned.  Larry and Brad are right about that final splash... oof.

Just to throw this question out there to the other Js, is there any issue with passing a mix that so closely resembles a non-vgm source?  If it's all good, then

YES

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  • Chimpazilla changed the title to 2022/07/05 - (4Y/1N) Donkey Kong Country 2 "Green Glade Groove"
On 1/20/2023 at 8:09 PM, Chimpazilla said:

This is funky and cool and I'm chair dancing to it.  Herb Alpert - Rise comes through instantly with the bassline and trumpet lines.  This mix captures that late 70s funk/disco vibe well.

Just to throw this question out there to the other Js, is there any issue with passing a mix that so closely resembles a non-vgm source?  If it's all good, then

YES

As long as it’s not extensively referencing/arranging a non-VGM source, it’s all good. If it’s just stylistic, then there’s of course 0 concern. In comparing it, I hear those rhythms being taken from the "Rise" bassline, but it's not exactly the same notes. I'm open to other opinions, but I'm personally OK with it how it's stylistically invoked here.

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My dude, this thing slaps. Groove is awesome, the insturmentation is fun and great, I love that honky tonky piano. Bassline really makes the whole thing sit wonderfully together. Your mixing is on point, and the song is fun as hell to listen to with good variation over all and the ending made me smile. 

My only critique -  The drums aren't my favorite, and probably could have used a little more attention througout for sure, but there's something to be said for that lending itself to the way that these sort of 70s groove tracks sounded, so it's not enough for me to NO it. I would go over this again, and maybe at least change the dynamics when you go from section to section, or anything to make it less set-and-forget. I think this could benefit from live drums, and we have so many talented people in our community that you could reach out to. But that's not totally necessary; what I think probably is necessary is at least spicing up the drum track with something other than the occasional single-hit snare fill. It gets really repetitive. 

YES

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  • Liontamer changed the title to (2022/07/05) *YES - TAG - AWAITING REVISION* Donkey Kong Country 2 "Green Glade Groove"
  • Liontamer changed the title to OCR04437 - *YES* Donkey Kong Country 2 "Green Glade Groove"
  • Liontamer locked and unpinned this topic
  • Liontamer pinned this topic
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