ReMix:Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest "Ocean Lanterns" 4:09

By Emunator

new-age rnb bells electric-piano chill timesig-4-4

Arranging the music of 2 songs from 2 games ( view all )...

"Aquatic Ambiance", "Forest Interlude (Web Woods)"

Primary Game: Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (Nintendo , 1995, SNES), music by David Wise

Posted 2015-09-03, evaluated by the judges panel

We end the first flood of September 2015 with another arrangement of another Nintendo classic, as Emunator (Wes McDonald) gives us a transporting ambient/chill ReMix of both "Aquatic Ambiance" & "Forest Interlude" from DKC2:

"Lately, I've been listening to a lot of alternative R&B (artists such as FKA twigs, Banks, Drake, and The Weeknd) and wanted to write a remix that took some influence from that style and married it with my signature chillout style. This originally started out as a remix of "Aquatic Ambiance," but I quickly found that the melodies from "Forest Interlude" fit much more naturally with the style I was working with. You can still hear a lot of residual elements from that first attempt (the opening bell melodies at :38, the breakdown at 1:02, and, of course, the iconic pitch-bent flute/piano at 1:47 and other scattered points in the song), but over time this grew to be a "Forest Interlude" mix done in the washed-out, watery style that you'd expect from an "Aquatic Ambiance" mix. Hopefully, it's not too jarring!

This shares some similarities to my previous submission, "Laguna Tides," on the surface, but this time around I tried to amplify the moodiness to create more tension than I have in previous mixes. I went to extra lengths to use more sound design and effects throughout the mix as well, to keep things fresh and create various singular moments for the listener to latch onto. Overall, I believe this is one of my most sonically-cohesive, detailed arrangements, and my best production work to date. Hopefully, you agree!"

I do! Wes has never been a production slouch - as his previous ReMixes attest to - but this has a sheen, polish, & depth that does feel like a new benchmark for him; very slick. DragonAvenger writes:

"Super chill, definitely makes me think of someone scuba diving among a lot of colorful fish in the tropics. Great use of samples to achieve your mood. Nice change of harmonies at the end as well, adds a new flavor to the melody. Liking this!"

zykO adds:

"excellent ethereal stuff here, wes; track only ever does what it needs to, is paced well from transition to transition and uses enough of the source to be a remix of it and not use it as a crutch. for being doused in so much verb, it is still surprisingly tight. i can hear some of the R&B influences there in terms of instrumentation but this is decidedly something else entirely, more new-age than it is R&Bish; there's an element here that reminds me of Vangelis more than anything, a sort of sweeping sense that makes the music feel larger than life. i love how just when you think this track had shown you everything you knew about it, you change it up on the way out for good measure. a source done a hundred times sounding fresh? WUT

even the title is a ball knocked out of the park; way to contrast the light of the lantern with the darkness of the sea. fabulous stuff"

Ditto all that; great arrangement, seriously spacious & enveloping while still having a very musical, melodic backbone - kudos to Wes! Great way to conclude our first flood of the month & pay homage to the Big N's amazing VGM... be on the lookout for a second flood with a theme that might possibly rhyme with "spinal man to see vine"...

― djpretzel

Discussion

Latest 11 comments/reviews; view the complete thread or post your own.
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JBanks
on 2022-09-09 09:13:10

I love how well the two tracks work together and the underwater vibes are so serene.

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WesternZypher
on 2017-07-24 12:28:37

Calming, enfolding, serene, peaceful. Watch schools of neon fish swim around and through the coral.

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Crulex
on 2017-02-09 02:20:23

Just as beautiful as I would have hoped a mix of Aquatic Ambience and Forest Interlude would be. The bells and chimes where super pretty and had the perfect realistic depth to them. The section starting at about 2:44 was neat, I liked the tone shift with it being a bit darker while maintaining that wondrous underwater vibe. This is awesome, Emunator!

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Necrox
on 2015-12-05 18:31:40

Excellent sound choices, really atmospheric stuff. Forest Interlude fits right in with good old Aquatic Ambience. I don't have a lot to say besides great work.

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Vaizar
on 2015-12-05 18:08:42

Really love the mood created with this mix. It feels like you took the nature-ish sound of the source and turned it in to a far more shimmery, chill, calm, relaxing, etc. atmosphere. The production is definitely on point; everything seems to go just where it needs to go, no sounds seem out of place or jar out. Overall, a really high quality track that does everything it should be doing.

I also agree a lot with timaeus: those bell hits are sexy.

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Chernabogue
on 2015-12-04 12:39:23

Like Timaeus said, you really nailed the underwater/ocean atmosphere with this track. The sound design and choice of synths are very good, and they fit the theme. Excellent drum programming and choice of samples. The second part (or at least its beginning) felt a little darker than the first part, but the ending part fixed this. I really dig this one. More please! :)

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MrKyle
on 2015-09-07 17:07:43

Like the arrangmenet and the mix. Definitely feel the Laguna Tides connection. To me, they feel like companion pieces. Great to listen to back-to-back. Funny, I mentally/emotionally want a Sonic Casino Zone remix to form a trifecta...

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Patrick Burns
on 2015-09-04 23:36:56

I can't remember all that's changed since I last heard it.... but this is GREAT! The past few years I've found myself saving mostly chill tracks from OCR, and this definitely ranks among my favorites. I think if everyone out there decided one evening to try making the most patient arrangement they could muster, they'd be surprised at how much awesomeness starts filling the spaces.

The breakdown at 1:09 is a good taste of change---got those Aquatic pads fading through me, then starting around 1:50.... such a good lead coming through with a bit less attack and more wobble, snares at half time.... then right back on track like it's nothing... and the stuff around 3:00... you just the right kind of tempered climax for the mood of the tune... 3:20 you did a great job of finding a good melody to draw things down.

And thanks for the pitch bended flute

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Melody of Light
on 2015-09-03 22:23:10

I agree that the bells are delightful. This song channels the original melodies really well, while being a beautiful work of art in and of itself. I've discovered a love of chillstep, and this song fits nicely into that genre. Very nice work!

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timaeus222
on 2015-09-03 13:44:56

The sound design is pretty spot-on. I think you nailed the underwater feel you wanted. The best parts by far are the tubular bell hits at 3:30 and 3:42. The pacing on the melody there along with just the right chord really evokes that definitive outtro feeling.

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Liontamer
on 2015-09-03 11:36:30

What did you think? Post your opinion of this ReMix.

Sources Arranged (2 Songs, 2 Games)


Primary Game:
Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (Nintendo , 1995, SNES)
Music by David Wise
Songs:
"Forest Interlude (Web Woods)"
Additional Game:
Donkey Kong Country (Nintendo , 1994, SNES)
Music by David Wise,Eveline Novakovic,Robin Beanland
Songs:
"Aquatic Ambiance"

Tags (6)


Genre:
New Age,R&B
Mood:
Chill
Instrumentation:
Bells,Electric Piano
Additional:
Time > 4/4 Time Signature

File Information


Name:
Donkey_Kong_Country_2_Ocean_Lanterns_OC_ReMix.mp3
Size:
7,071,017 bytes
MD5:
c4ef2ec2f70b71649baec23c754f4660
Bitrate:
223Kbps
Duration:
4:09

Promotion

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