Samus Aran

Excellent mix, very well done. Even though the Metroid Prime music is very ambient and atmospheric, it leaves a lot of potential for remixing... and by combining different world themes and adding more structure, that's just what you [Darkesword] did. Still keeps very ambient elements in a faithful tribute to the original game music. I like how you took the liberty of changing the chord structure underneath the main melody line (the singing voices). Brilliant. Whatever instrument you use starting at 1:55 reminds me of old, 8-bit Megaman games... a little pleasant nostalgia going on there. The bassline is cute and catchy without sounding out-of-place. The 2:25 transition into the Chozo Ruins theme is what I'm most impressed with, however. When I'd absentmindedly hum Metroid Prime to myself (yes, I do this sometimes, guilty as charged), I find myself mixing the Phendrana and Chozo music unintentionally. It's a very natural and logical transition... nice to hear it so seamlessly incorperated into what really is a first-rate remix. Hope to hear more Prime stuff (or anything, for that matter) you in the future!

It's great to know I'm not the only one who really 'gets into' listening to songs like this... Seriously though... this is the coolest post I've read all month. If I ever submitted a mix here, a post like this would undoubtedly be the greatest compliment...

Dude. Well, I must say that from a music theory perspective, there's nothing too stellar and innovative about this mix...and like people have said, the instruments are kind of low-quality, and personally, I could do without the first 1:35. Doesn't really seem to fit in with the rest of the mix, IMO. Having said that... MAN!!! I'm such a SUCKER for fast arpeggiated synths! It's pathetic! Despite the fact that these arpeggios are rather basic and simple, I just eat them up. When I compose/arrange, I always seem to sneak some fast arpeggios in there. Can we say 'hyper synths'? I love this mix from 1:35 onward for that one reason! At 2:29... ahhh, it's so great! One reason I think I'm so crazy for that is because super-fast synths evoke a very "old-school" VG feel. You know, when the synths are so fast they're pretty much impossible to play on an actual keyboard or bass. Plus, great job on the panning! Little details like that really make a big difference. I can't wait to listen to these funky arps on a good set of headphones. And let me also say that your choice of a 'pluck synth' (can't think of a better description) for the melody theme at 2:03 makes it sound very... cute. So although it's nothing too fancy... it strikes a nice chord in the more... "primal" OCR department. Nice, fast-paced fun!

This song is undoubtedly THE defining example of a perfect video game remix. It just blows me away. JAXX was more than successful in revamping the entire song but keeping true to the underlying theme. Can we say "ubermix"? The timing in this remix is perfect. The synths alone are flawlessly executed, and he even throws in a beautiful oboe sound, followed by heavy thrash guitar. Normally, one would wonder how a mix could progress from haunting square synths, to an oboe and soft strings, then top it all off with mind-blowing electric guitar, but somehow JAXX has done it! The transitions are smooth and flawless. (I don't know how many times I can fit the words "perfect" and "flawless" into this review, but I mean every word! ) Even if you're normally not a fan of heavy metal (like me), you'll still love this song. The guitars may be mind-blowing, but only because of their sheer power. They aren't aggravating at all, but fits perfectly into the melodic sequence by accenting the awesome minor chord sequence. This truly is the ultimate remix. Gets a perfect score of 10 out of 10 from this audiophile (like nobody saw that coming... ). I tried very hard to think of something, anything wrong with this mix, but I can't think of one single thing. Even the length is optimal, although I could listen to remixes of this caliber for a long, long time... I find it hard to believe there are only six reviews on such an awesome remix!!! This is the kind of song that leaves such an impact on me as a listener, that I'm going out of my way to dig up and download everything else this guy has done. Do yourself a favor and download this song if you haven't already! -Samus

Ooh... spicy! Viva la variety! When I saw the title to this remix, I couldn't wait to download it... because it then dawned on me that the Gemini Man music is more than perfect for this style remix. It's practically begging you to turn it into a smooth, Latin-esque tune... and that's exactly what you did. I like the flute as well, it's light and sounds almost playful. The strings are also light, and the bass sounds nice and 'bouncy'... the piece doesn't sound weighed down at all, which is great. 8/10 here... very nice, very smooth... and DJP's right, you gotta respect a guy who dares to wander outside the basic VG remix genres of 'techno' and 'ambient'. (Not that I don't like those catergories! ) Congratulations on a remix well done, Mr. McVaffe sir! -Samus

Mmm... creamy! Seriously, though... I've heard so much about this song, and I've finally downloaded it. All the hype is true! This piece is soothing, swirling, and wonderfully ambient. The mellow piano sounds like water droplets (props to the 'Oceanus' title )... a must-have if you're a fan of ambeint remixes. Great job, Mr. Burnett! I'm definately going to dig up your profile to see what else you've done. An excellent remix. -Samus

Wow, I love this remix! The horns really add to the "prestegioius fanfare" type of feeling you get from this mix, and the strings add yet another solid layer to it. I love it... it's your typical "heroic" sounding fanfare with some syncopation and an energetic beat! This is great, I can listen to it repeatedly without it losing any of its impact. It sounds like it could be the opening theme for some sci-fi show. Great mix! personal rating: 9/10

Speaking of which, the bosses in "To the Earth" for NES were pretty freaking hard. Probably because it was so impossible to get to them in the first place, you were drainied of all your energy when you got there. Still a VERY COOL GAME!

This song is perfect! I can't say enough good things about it! I've listened to ever Metroid/MetroidII/Super Metroid song on this site and would have to say this is tied for first place for the absolute best. While EFSISIOS keeps the original melody from the Metroid theme, he builds up original chords beneath it, and the result is a very smooth sounding tune. The solo piano in the foreground and swelling strings in the background evoke a haunting and mellow mood, but there is an underlying feeling of power that you can sense when you hear the occasional echo of an electric guitar. I can't get over how clever the chord sequences are. Well done, to say the least! I agree with Joe; the timing on the percussion is excellent and well-executed. It helps add to the mood, it's pleasant not to hear overbearing percussion in a remix for once. Overall: very melodic, by all means true to the general mood of Metroid, brilliantly done remix. Personal Rating: 10/10! I can't find a single fault with it! Highly recommended... the cream of the crop when it comes to Metroid music remixes!

This piece is excellent! I'm a huge BM fan -- I like EVERY BGM from Blaster Master. So naturally, I like the title theme as well, but I never thought anyone could remix it, because it's so short and rather repetetive. Well, KP found a way, and did it well. Very moody, it evokes a mood that's true to the nature of Blaster Master: you can easily think of dark, damp, vast underground caverns when you hear this. The church bells are a nice touch. A great mix, overall! Personal Rating: 8/10 A very hard task to remix the opening music from Blaster Master, but KP did it!

I agree: the title is excellent. I particularly like how you slowed the tempo down ever so slightly, to let the mood sink in a little more. The snare also adds to the "Death march" feeling. Otherwise, I agree with Rob, there's nothing outstanding or noticably special about it. i recommend it for Super Metroid music fans who are purists. This is a true-to-the-game remix. Personal rating: 7/10

A great remix! Like m68030 said, the bassline is killer. I like how in the very beginning, the song is composed only of two types of voices: very high treble and very low bass. The mid-range voices don't really come into play until the bridge of the song... rather clever if you ask me. Speaking of being clever, I love this remix because it required quite a bit of music theory knowledge to make. After all, AmIEvil takes a song written in 3/4 (or 6/8) time and transforms it to a strictly duple meter. Nice work there, it's brilliant! The title, oddly enough, also fits, IMO. The mix has a very... well, strut-like feel to it. I can picture Samus walking down the street all bad@$$... all right, I'll stop, I'll try and keep this review serious. Great work! Ingenious theory tricks, and you make it sound good, too. Personal Rating: 8.5/10

Funkadelic! All right, I'm stumped, where is the original tune from? And what exactly is the original tune...? Well, no matter, this tune is rockin'. If you're tired of Metroid music that's all dark and moody and mysterious, pick up this number for a refreshing change. Very cool. Personal rating: 8/10. (I still dig the dark and moody music, too. )

I love this song, it's just a great techno tune. The bells are so great, and I personally like the flanged voice samples at the beginning and the end of the piece. The voice samples not only tie the song intro and ending together, but they also tie it back to Super Metroid. Most of this music is original, but that doesn't mean it's not good... it's excellent! A fun techno song to listen to in the car or at parties. And yes, I play OC remixes at parties. (People like them a lot, more often than not... and you should see the looks on their faces when I tell them it's "only" video game music... ) Anyway, yes, this song is a great techno ditty. Download it, it's great! Personal Rating: 9/10

Excellent remix! Well, Fieari summed it up, really, but in not so many words: When I first heard this mix I didn't like it all too much. I'm used to remixes being just "music!", so the beginning SFX kinda threw me off. But now I listen to it again and realize that it's perfect. Like Fieari said, that's exactly what a Metroid would sound like. The variable pitches in the beginning add to the creepiness factor. Very cool. I think what AmIEvil did at 1:35 was pure genius: Layering the Metroid theme on top of the Super Metroid Brinstar (green area) music. It works so great. Brilliant! Then, after all that active music, everything stops at 2:40 with the Rocky Underwater Area Maridia music. This is my favorite music in the game; if you want music to set a mood, it's this Maridia music. And it does. Very nice transitions, too. The poco roll. at 3:40 resembles a sonata or something, neat. And the ending music piece is really cool, it sounds like it could accompany the green area of Brinstar. Overall, great mix, it does Super Metroid music great justice. Personal rating: 9/10