*NO* Donkey Kong Country "DK Island Trance '94" *PRIORITY*

[Liontamer]

Link to Remix: 

Contact Information

ReMixer name: Tab Newflax
Real name: Tobias Nylin
Email address: 
Website: https://www.tobiasnylin.com/
Userid: 2108

Submission Information

Name of game(s) arranged: Donkey Kong Country
Name of arrangement: DK Island Trance '94
Name of individual song(s) arranged: “DK Island Swing”

Comments about the mix:

Hello! Donkey Kong Country is one of my favorite games ever! I got it as a Christmas gift in 1994. I still often think of the nice memories of me and my brother playing it while celebrating Christmas at my grandmother's.

This is a remix of “DK Island Swing”. When I heard this song the first time I thought it a bit weird, but it has really grown on me over time. Especially the second half of the song, the more relaxed part. For me it is a bit mysterious but also soothing. 

I like trance music and got an idea on how this part could fit well as a trance remix. In the timestamps below I will refer to it as “Part 2” (1:30-2:47 in the original). There are also some parts where I’ve used elements from the first part “Part 1”, for example the characteristic chords from the intro (0:38-1:30 in the original). 

I hope you like it!

Timestamps:

("Part 1" = elements from 0:38-1:30 in the original)
("Part 2" = elements from 1:30-2:47 in the original)
0:00-2:05 - Intro, elements from “Part 2”.
2:05-3:29 - Break and build-up, elements from “Part 2”.
3:29-3:43 - Transition into “Part 1”.
3:43-4:39 - “Chorus”, elements from “Part 1”.
4:39-4:45 - Mini-break, using elements from 1:25-1:30 in the original.
4:45-5:13 - Transition back into “Part 2”.
5:13-5:54 - Break and build-up, elements from "Part 2".
5:54-6:22 - “Chorus”, elements from “Part 1”.
6:22-6:28 - Mini-break, using elements from 1:25-1:30 in the original.
6:28-6:42 - Transition back into “Part 2”. 
6:42-7:03 - Outro.

Edited April 17, 2023 by Liontamer
closed decision

[Liontamer]

The sounds aren't dry at all, but there's a core clap groove introduced at :27 that's noticeably lacking body & energy (which also weakens the finish at 6:28). There's something ultimately very vanilla and tepid with how this instrumentation currently sounds, and the textures feel muddier and more indistinct than intended. Not a sophisticated sound palette yet.

I liked the altered rhythms for that melodic line first done at :58; sweet idea here, and gradually adding more part-writing around it and varying the textures helped not let it drag out. The line that came in at 1:36 and gradually rose in volume was a fairly generic sound as well, but the more crystalline part at 2:04 was a much more unique sound, and the accompanying strings brought in at the same time were also a nice touch. IMO, the synth handling the melody at 2:31 came in too strongly (and kind of piercing, but I'll live); consider pulling it back for the first few bars and letting a gradual volume raise of it finish at 2:45.

Nice drop idea at 3:29, though the stuttered parts at 3:42 felt too locked to grid and mechanical-sounding; there may be some creative effects that could be used from 3:42-4:10 to give that a more creative and fluid sound that draws less attention to that. The buildup from 4:10 into the stop at 4:37 was odd as well, and I got clashing writing from 4:31-4:37 (then an abrupt key change at 4:38). Yeah, that whole transition definitely didn't click as intended, yet it was employed again from 6:14-6:21 with clashing writing again before the dropoff. At 5:53, the bassline did register for me, but it's basically steamrolled and has no presense.

I'll await further votes in the hopes that the musician Js can better identify and isolate specific problems here, as well as suggest ways to achieve some richer, fuller sounds that are nonetheless well seperated.

This isn't a cohesive enough presentation just yet; it still feels like the instrumentation is more at a work-in-progress phase where the core writing's in place and the arrangement's direction is set, but more effects & polish are waiting to be added. If you can figure out how to add that sheen to the instrumentation and not have that pair of akwardly written transitions, Tobias, this could be a contender.

NO (resumbit)

[DarkSim]

I love the DKC soundtrack, although I must admit, it took me a long time to identify the source for this one without looking at the submission email. I never knew DK Island Swing had that second part! The main melody line you use from 2:32 had me thinking the source was Life in the Mines, but after seeing the source breakdown and listening to part 2 of DK Island Swing, then source usage is obvious.

I actually enjoyed the sound palette for the most part, and thought the initial soundscape was established very nicely. It all builds up well until the gated supersaw around 1:40. However, it wasn't the instrumentation that put me off, but the arrangement decision. There's a chord in there that doesn't sound right at all in the progression. It plays on beats 5 and 6 of the 8-beat loop, and sounds perhaps a semitone too sharp somewhere. Would need someone with a better ear to pin it down exactly. If it only occurred once or twice in the track as a transitional chord, I probably wouldn't mind, but the progression repeats so often that it doesn't fit with the rest of the track.

Another quirky chord appears at 3:43 (slightly before as well in the build), but I swear I've heard this somewhere before. In fact, I'm sure it's very similar, and possibly a reference to, an existing OCR track. If any of the other judges can help me out with this I'd be really grateful, as I've just spent literally half an hour going through DKC albums trying to find the track I think it sounds like, and I give up! It doesn't sound as strange as the other chord, possibly because I think I've heard this progression employed before, but it's still a little unusual.

The melody line at 2:32 sounds a little thin on its own - I'd consider switching that up for something with more body and warmth.

I agree with Larry about the transitions and bad clashes around 4:31-4:37. Those have got to be tidied up for a piece like this. You have to try and keep the listener immersed in the atmosphere you've built up. Going back into the beats at 4:55 is nice, but it only reminds me of how the track started, and I find myself wishing for a smoother ride in between.

There was a lot I enjoyed about this track. The first minute and a half really had me in the zone, but I'd like to stay there for the duration of the track, and not be pulled in and out by clashing chords and clunky transitions. Smooth those over, and we've got a winner.

NO (resubmit)

[Chimpazilla]

The first minute and a half are indeed a nice buildup although the bass patch could be tighter and faster-release as it is playing in between kicks; as it stands now the bass has a flabby/loose feel and could really be more impactful if tightened up.  I'm also having trouble identifying the source bits so I'm glad you included timestamps.  The sound palette is on the vanilla side as Larry pointed out, which isn't a dealbreaker unto itself but the soundscape is on the repetitive side with the exact same elements all the way through. 

The mixing isn't bad but feels rather flat. This is a very busy mix and in the fullest sections many of the sounds are competing in the frequency range and soundscape placement.  There is some very good filtering on the saw and other sounds, I like that a lot.  The lead at 2:32 is plain and simplistic, and piercy.  Some filter movement or delay or vibrato on a long LFO would help. Those chords at 4:31 are weird and disharmonious.  The drum groove is weak, especially the clap as Larry mentioned.  In the busy sections, the clap cannot be heard at all.  The transition at 4:40 is jarring and it appears again verbatim at 6:14. 

I get why Larry said this arrangement feels like a work in progress, it just lacks sheen overall.  Although care has been taken to layer the patterns in varying ways to make an interesting arrangement, the same sound palette all the way through the piece makes it feel overly long and repetitive. 

I'm more borderline than my peers here because I think the arrangement works well generally.  I suggest smooth out some of those transitions and adjust awkward chords at a minimum, but I'd also like to hear this mixed quite a bit cleaner than this, and some variation in sounds used as the piece moves along would also be on my wish list.

NO (borderline, resubmit)

Edited April 15, 2023 by Chimpazilla