prophetik music ⚖️ Posted March 6, 2024 Posted March 6, 2024 Sorry for the submission spam! I promise this is the last one for some time :) City of Tears, the "destination" of my Hollow Knight EP, and the reference for its cover art! In a way, for this entire project, I wanted to make it so that the whole point of it is to "reach" this moment. It was such a powerful moment in the game for me, where I felt that this is truly where everything "opens up". I felt like everything before the City of Tears was some kind of prologue, an introduction to the game. The mood is all dark and gloomy both through the visuals and the music, as you're trying to figure out what you're even doing there in the first place, traversing tight and damp caves and tunnels. Then you reach the City. It feels so vast and grand and refreshing, and its music reflects that incredibly well. So, I tried my best to have my remix capture that feeling of grandeur, and of taking a deep breath of fresh air after a long trek through mud and dirt. For this one, a big part of the sound design was made super easy thanks to Reason's Objekt synth, which I purchased specifically for making this album. I definitely recommend it for anyone using Reason, it's amazing! The cherry (hoho) on top though, is once again my mom Christine's astounding cello playing. It makes such a gigantic difference, to be able to have such a heartfelt and powerful performance. There's no way I can ever fully express my gratitude! And again, huge thanks to Sébastien (Trainbeat) for providing session-ready charts and for the studio engineering expertise! Games & Sources
prophetik music ⚖️ Posted March 7, 2024 Author Posted March 7, 2024 starts out with hand pan and a really neat keyboard tone. bass comes in at 0:54 and gives a lot more body to the mix, as the drums are particularly treble-heavy on this one. 1:25 is a bit of a break with a pretty big high at 1:32 - i can hear the airiness you're talking about here. the cello comes in soon after and it's a lot better balanced in this one to my ears than in 'a dream'. there's a bit of a shift towards more rhythmic elements at 2:23 - i really like the arpeggiating synth in the background. it continues to convey that airiness you mentioned really well, especially alongside the tone of the lead here. a piano comes in and takes over the lead and it's a bit quiet next to the beat. this trucks along until another shift at 3:56 where the cello comes back in. cello is a bit loud here compared to the backing elements but the soaring lines are undeniably beautiful as before. there's an air of finality at 5:00 as the cello fades out, and the rest is outro and settling down. the tempo shift at 5:20 was really nice. another success, in my book. you definitely achieved what you were trying to do, and the breadth of approach shown here within a fairly narrow style is really interesting. excellent work. YES
MindWanderer Posted April 25, 2024 Posted April 25, 2024 I'm fascinated that you did Greenpath in the style of City of Tears, and then City of Tears close to the style of Greenpath, although those rising flutes retain their original character. The composition and production are on point, for sure. It's a great chill piece that would work well in a sequel where the City of Tears was overrun with greenery. I do think it runs a little long and repetitive. 2:23-4:57 is 5 30-second loops, mostly reiterating the same ideas, with some slight changes each loop. It's not copy-pasted, so it's not a hard no, but I think you could have done more with less. This section could have stood to be a full minute shorter and not lost out on any of your creative ideas. While that's a notable criticism, it's far from a dealbreaking one. I'm happy to greenlight this. YES
Hemophiliac ⚖️ Posted May 26, 2024 Posted May 26, 2024 What a lovely texture and soundscape this is! Punctuated by an incredible live cello performance, this has great production and a solid arrangement. The middle of the piece is a bit of a slow burn in terms of development with an idea being presented and it's orchestration being changed slightly with each repeat. The changes at first are small but gradually get bigger and more dramatic as the piece continues. The simple sine popcorn-like arp really adds a lot of energy and movement without being too intrusive into the rest of the soundscape. The ending was a large shift in feeling as a strong, powerful cello note carries us out of the piece. I really feel like it's a huge contrast in the uplifting feel the rest of the piece created. It's like wondering over the top of a green hill to discover that the entire other side had been burned down without you noticing the devastation. I don't know if that was intended to shift the listener into another mood as this is a transition into another track in the EP. As a stand-alone, it's a big shift; but not a deal breaker in my vote by any means at all. YES
Chimpazilla ⚖️ Posted July 20, 2024 Posted July 20, 2024 Lovely metallic pluck to open things up. The crackle effect doesn't feel that natural on this track, since the instrumentation is so crisp and clear. This track is mastered SO LOUD, wow -5.3db RMS. I think some of the lowest lows and subs could have been EQ'd out, providing more mastering headroom. But it sounds clean as heck. What a gorgeous arrangement. The instrumentation is so lovely and cohesive and the story evolves as the piece moves along. The cello is a highlight for me, Christine is so very talented. The overall arrangement is a tad repetitive, but it's such a pleasant listen so I'm not having a problem with repetition, and there are subtle things added as we move along. Very lovely arrangement! YES
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