ReMix:Dark Cloud "Moon Dust" 3:43

By NoTuX

Arranging the music of one song...

"Moon Sea"

Primary Game: Dark Cloud (Sony , 2001, PS2), music by Tomohito Nishiura

Posted 2005-05-30, evaluated by the judges panel


Very peculiar, this mix is. Quoth Damon Campbell, alias Blue Magic:

"This is a little something I've been working on for the past week or so. It is a relaxing remix of the "Moon Sea" theme from Dark Cloud... The original song didn't really have much of a melody so I did my best to make up for it."

Chromaticism is the name of the game here, as an otherwise relatively normal downbeat groove is laced with some unorthodox chromatic interjections and motifs. There's actually a snippet of the core melody that sounds just like the chromatic descension from the Zelda 64 intro, but that's just the tip of the iceberg. It's important to note that such chromaticism was an integral part of the source material as well, and doesn't represent an addition on Magic's part, but a conscious decision to keep those elements in. Gray and analoq both felt that while the original style lended itself to such dissonance, the adaptation into a mellow groove made it stick out. Others disagreed; Mr. Shariq writes:

"I'm in agreement with Jesse and Israfel; the chromatic stuff is a bit odd, but I think that it isn't a major detractor to the overall piece. Some will like it, some will not; it's definitely weird, but I think that it adds some uniqueness to the mix."

My take is that it works fairly well, but it changes the nature of the work - it's hard to listen to as background music, which is usually the context for downbeat, laid-back grooves like this, because the juxtaposition is going to be a bit jarring, especially at lower volumes, where the details might be obscured. That being said, given a degree of focus, it's a pretty serene, atmospheric track, and Damon's specifically done a great job at bringing out a strong melodic presence. It's somewhat challenging source material, but he didn't dumb it down and created a grabbing piece. I particularly like the highpass filtering on the intro and the deep, resonating bass and complimentary kick drum; the overall production is rich and fills up the right spaces in the EQ spectrum. I'll echo Larry's sentiment that some of the short-release strings are problematic, both in terms of the samples used and their volume, but everything else blends in sublimely. Quirky but ultimately enjoyable, and definitely not your run-of-the-mill downbeat, "purdy" groove.

djpretzel

Discussion

Latest 15 comments/reviews; view the complete thread or post your own.
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Overdriven
on 2011-01-17 18:43:38

Very nice, mellow Mix here. One of the few things I can listen to to relax myself. Very well done.

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MechaFone
on 2010-05-29 16:54:53

Definitely the kind of mix that I can get lost in for hours on.

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Marmiduke
on 2010-04-05 03:19:00

Cool, cool, cool. Definitely has it's own little thing happening. Quirky, sombre, ambient. A pretty eclectic combination, and yet the effect it creates is contant interest and enjoyment.

Slow music is fantastic, but often predictable. I like that this throws a few anti-stereotypical sounds in there to blow away a few potential cobwebs from the same old melancholic formula.

I wouldn't go as far as saying it's quirks make it exceptional on a memorable level; this won't blow anyone's mind or change the way people approach this plodding style of mix. But it is a nicely executed track with a few interesting irregularities in sound and tone.

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OA
on 2008-04-04 10:04:18

Nice production on this one, and the multiple layers of percussion keep it from getting too plodding, despite the slow tempo.

Nice choice of synths, I can really get into them, and the chromatic runs are unobtrusive, and blend pretty well into the track.

Completely sweet ending as well, except the mp3 cut off at the end a few seconds early, before the sound had completely faded.

I like this one, nice work. :-)

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Radiowar
on 2006-06-23 22:38:46

The weird notes didn't bother me as much as the fact that this feels more like a remix of 'Dead Presidents II' by Jay-Z than whatever it is a remix of (never heard the original). I really liked the groove here though. Bass is awesome.

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Tir
on 2006-04-09 21:36:53
Sorry to be the annoying guy who does this, but the Moon Stage was definatley from Drack Cloud 2.

Have you ever even played Dark Cloud? Doesn't seem like it. Hell, I'll even give you the track number for the song on the OST: 35, "Ocean and Moon".

Apologize for being the annoying, mis-informed guy. Dark Cloud 2/Dark Chronicle didn't even have a track REMOTELY like this one.

The soundtrack wasn't exactly spectacular, and there actually wasn't music playing for a lot of the game

I'm with Kaleb.G. It had great music, just most people were too busy whining about the game to really notice the music. The best tracks are the ones you didn't hear that often in game (it had some great boss battle music).

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Liontamer
on 2005-07-20 21:22:21
I particular like the highpass filtering on the intro and the deep, resonating bass and complimentary kick drum;

Not like DJP to make a gramatical error... odd.

OMG, there'z no err0r!

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Mr.Michael
on 2005-07-20 20:12:16
I particular like the highpass filtering on the intro and the deep, resonating bass and complimentary kick drum;

Not like DJP to make a gramatical error... odd.

Anyway, I agree that this is very hard to put on as background music, but oddly I have found that that hasn't stopped it from fitting in with my playlist for mellow OCReMixes. Go figure, nice stuff, BlueMagic. Background sounds kind of Metriodish, I guess if you listen to the piano and close your eyes and think about night time, the background could symbolize stars pretty well.

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imm0rt4l
on 2005-06-18 22:23:57

I don't remember this song on Dark Cloud, I should really finsih that game though......

You used the same melody from Jay-Z's "Reasonable Doubt".

Pretty cool.

yea that's right!!!

I was listening to this track thinking I was going crazy :x . I knew it was from a hip hop song. As a matter of fact I was listening to Games 300 bars and when the Jay-z's sample came up I remembered this song since it sounds similar. Props on this one. the creators got a good ear for hip hop.

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Blue Magic
on 2005-06-07 16:56:34
You used the same melody from Jay-Z's "Reasonable Doubt".

Pretty cool.

Wow. I was wondering if anyone was gonna catch that.

But yeah, I was influenced by that background melody. I figured it would fit the mood that I was trying to set perfectly.

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Kaede_X
on 2005-06-07 12:41:27

You used the same melody from Jay-Z's "Reasonable Doubt".

Pretty cool.

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Liontamer
on 2005-06-04 19:50:02
Sorry to be the annoying guy who does this, but the Moon Stage was definatley from Drack Cloud 2.

The source material may also be used/revised in Dark Chronicle, but it's from Dark Cloud. Thanks.

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pokezel
on 2005-06-04 18:52:56

Sorry to be the annoying guy who does this, but the Moon Stage was definatley from Drack Cloud 2.

Anyway, on to the review.

Very good mellow. Reminds me of the low, laid back Moon theme. It doesnt detract form the original's vibe, which is very positive. I do think it could make a very nice background tune, even though it is a bit complex for one. I wish it was longer though. ;_;

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Nobbynob Littlun
on 2005-06-04 07:31:44

Not precisely something you can keep playing in the background, but it is a work of art. My only complaint is that it seems generally unbalanced towards the left speaker, which bothers my right ear.

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jordex
on 2005-06-01 19:22:13

This is pretty cool and get's pretty crazy in some parts

Theres so much going on but the melody keeps everything together, especially how its always coming out of the left ear

The pianos the best thing in the song along with the synth lead. I think if the drums just stuck with a simple beat it would clean up the song a bunch

but nonetheless it's a good song, I've had it on repeat for quite a while

Sources Arranged (1 Song)


Primary Game:
Dark Cloud (Sony , 2001, PS2)
Music by Tomohito Nishiura
Songs:
"Moon Sea"

Tags (3)


Genre:
Ambient
Mood:
Chill
Instrumentation:
Piano
Additional:

File Information


Name:
Dark_Cloud_Moon_Dust_OC_ReMix.mp3
Size:
3,650,014 bytes
MD5:
eafd3e897b24c501448f679a08792267
Bitrate:
128Kbps
Duration:
3:43

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