Jimmy the Lip Posted December 20, 2002 Share Posted December 20, 2002 Russel Cox is, quite simply put, probably my favorite ReMixer on OverClocked ReMix. I was raised on orchestral music, mainly classical, and have harboured a love for orchestral works in general ever since. And so when I discovered this fellow's work, I immediately fell in love with it and hold his ReMixing abilities over any other that puts forth their work on this site. Though I have never played the game Ninja Gaiden, it does not take the experience of a thing such as a game or a film to enjoy the themes from said game or film. "Death of a Legend", Mr. Cox's take on a theme from Ninja Gaiden, starts off with either a clarinet or an oboe (I really never can tell) with string backup until the strings break in and play the theme for maybe half a minute. The tone of the song changes then, and the oboe/claranet reenters in a higher key along with the strings. After the end of this section begins a section in which there is a much more film-like quality to the piece with brass backup and a bass drum providing a beat. This section ends and leads into some low key strings and then a lone flute with a harp in the background. "Death of a Legend" combines sadness and a sort of resolute determination and just a touch of triumph, if a musical arrangement can be described in such terms: a very emotional piece. It sounds like it could be part of a soundtrack to a film and, from personal experience, I know that it would make and makes smashing background music while reading (and good background music, in my opinion, is required for the full enjoyment of a good book). Since I first wrote this I have used it as background for the Lord of the Rings during the trek to Mordor, and it fits perfectly: sad, depressing, hopeless, and yet the tiniest glimmer of good on the horizon, a shaft of sunlight peeking through the clouds. (I'm a hopeless Tolkien nut; so sue me.) As with all of Mr. Cox's arrangements, this is a first-class ReMix and is worthy of downloading by all means. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darklich Posted April 1, 2003 Share Posted April 1, 2003 Great remix! I like the key changes... forced or not, it's different and stands out among the crowd. Although Russell would probably cringe or laugh at the thought, the transitions made me think Days of Our Lives or some other daytime soap. Melodramatic is the perfect adjective for this track, and once again Russell has a fantastic sound. Great mix Russell! I'm glad you not only remixed your remix from vgmix, but you put in those transitions. The original was dramatic and full of real feeling (and rather awesome), but this one stands out, and in my opinion it's a breath of fresh air. ____ Oh yea... having watched Romeo & Juliet recently with my girlfriend, it definitely sounds like the original composer borrowed for this track. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
batvader Posted April 15, 2003 Share Posted April 15, 2003 I am not a musician, so my ''review'' might be hilarious to those trained in music theory. However, I loved this track, and I wanted to add my 0.02 euros. I have a strange fetish, and tracks/songs with the words ''Death'' or ''Funeral'' etc. in their title always prompt me to download them. And I wasn't disappointed. Very good emotional track, and the synths (I guess they are synths) emulate pretty well an orchestra (well, better than some neoclassical rock bands that use synths anyway). Oh, and it reminded me very much of the love theme from Attack of the Clones (Star Wars Episode II), aka Across the Stars. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anthea Posted April 19, 2003 Share Posted April 19, 2003 Wow. Just... wow. That's all I can say. I was madly obsessed with this game when I was 10, and this remix does complete justice to it-- not only to the music, which was brilliant for an 8-bit game, but to the cinematic quality and drama of it, however much it might pale in comparison with today's games. This is the kind of music Tecmo should have had if they had the foresight to make NG into a proper franchise (what the heck were they thinking, not doing it??). I'm listening to it again, and it still amazes me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluebeetle Posted October 3, 2003 Share Posted October 3, 2003 This is a Truly amazing piece. It is one of my favorites, I send it to all my friends. I know this is morbid, but it would be my song for my funeral. Keep up the Teriffic work!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mahjong No OujiSama Yoshi Posted November 18, 2003 Share Posted November 18, 2003 This is a song where Ryu Hayabusa's (The main character of Ninja Gaiden) father dies! This is a very good remix, and when the world's only dragon dies, I, "Video Game Master" dies, play this in my memory! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larryboy Posted August 23, 2005 Share Posted August 23, 2005 This remix is so beautiful, and I don't understand what's the problem with the key changes. To me they sound perfectly natural, and serve to give the piece a more dramatic feel. The one at 1:31 sort of "wakes you up" after a rather dreamy section, and the one at 1:57 indicates some action is going to take place. Of course, changing key can seem a rather "lazy" way to make transitions between different parts of a piece, but in cases where it's executed with such skill as in this song I don't see why it should be a problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enertron Posted April 2, 2008 Share Posted April 2, 2008 this remix is awesome, especially at the 1:30 and 2:00 marks. great orchestral work. i never even had this game but found a video on youtube of its ending and loved the music. also im makin a music video with a techno remix of the NES version of the song, which is almost done - thats what brought me to this site. your version gave me some great ideas! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marmiduke Posted May 31, 2009 Share Posted May 31, 2009 Awesomely emotive. I love a mix that can tell a story without stating a thing. There's a sense of grief, tragedy, hope and the inheritance of power brought to life through the very fine orchestration. Yeah, it gets pretty manipulative with the constant upping of key, but it does progress the narrative of the piece. If the track were extended to a full movement, things might sound much more seamless. The beautiful section at 2:44 with the harp proves that the theme doesn't need the big sweeping key changes to be touching and effective. But as I stated, things are gained as well as lost from them. I love this mix. It's one of the few that really put me in a creative and interested mood, which is something I cheish very much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yosefu Posted June 1, 2009 Share Posted June 1, 2009 This mix has so much emotion to it. A wonderful mix to a great game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OceansAndrew Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 Nice melancholy melody, and a well-supported arrangement of it. Some of the articulations had weak attacks, and the first keychange wasn't really smooth, but I thought the track was really nice otherwise; samples were decent, and the balance and production were good. It really does have a great melody, and the drama is super ramped up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swansdown Posted February 18, 2016 Share Posted February 18, 2016 Ahh, it makes me cry. ;-; Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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