ReMix:Shatterhand "Shattered" 3:49

By Rubbler, SnappleMan

rock electric-guitar collab

Arranging the music of one song...

"Missile Command (Area G)"

Primary Game: Shatterhand (Jaleco , 1991, NES), music by Iku Mizutani

Posted 2005-07-04, evaluated by the judges panel

Hopefully, where applicable, you're enjoying your Fourth... not much being one for fireworks anymore, I get more into the varied array of marathons that stations tend to run, and have been tuning in to The Twilight Zone and The West Wing specifically this holiday. Here to add a little rock to your patriotic goings-on and at the same time lend us our first Shatterhand ReMix are SnappleMan and newcomer collaborator Rubbler. Andreas explains their respective duties:

"Anyway, this is a collaboration between me and a fellow called Rubbler. I handled all the arranging, lead guitar, and drumming. He did the rhythm guitar and bass guitar."

Apparently Majin Geodood also assisted by covering the intro bits on guitar. Shatterhand's a game whose soundtrack has substantial cult appreciation, even amongst those who've never even played it, due to being laced with Konami/Tecmo-esque hard-rockin' NES action. That the first submission we're posting is rock/metal is no surprise, as it's the logical genre to apply, given that the source material already has the right structure and tempo and is essentially only lacking instrumentation and a little spit and polish. Snapple and Rubbler have offered up more than just saliva and varnish, however. Introing with dual clean electric guitars, left and right, there's a drone that fades in and segues to a more upbeat, kickin' mojo at 0'30", where driving bass and especially rhythm guitars start pushing like crazy, excellent acoustic drums with a lovely human touch and plenty of switches and fills pick up, and squealing (and at 2'10", scorching) electric lead owns the melody. When doing a rock mix of a game called "Shatterhand" and naming your mix "shattered", I think some mad skillz shredding is not only appropriate, but downright called for, and Andreas has given us his best yet, with some rapid fire runs that befit the game's relatively quick, intensestuffs action. Brandon says:

"I certainly think that the intro could have been handled better. I like the intro as a separate entity but slow-to-fast works best when there’s some connection between the parts and I’m not feeling that here. Anyway, once things get going the rhythm and the lead guitars are solid with loads of punch. The solo at 2:12 is very cool and makes me feel like loading my Shatterhand rom and punching the life out of everything on screen. Great job. The drum work is complex and avoids the rock cliché of the overused double bass or some monotonous eighth note kick-snare-kick-snare pattern.

There’s a good mix of original material, rearranged and cover sections to keep things moving along and I have very few problems in the arrangement department. Of course it’s not the most expansive take on the theme but there is a lot of creativity and skill packed into a relatively short mix. Nice work from all those involved."

I think that's a fair dig on the intro, actually - it's nice and adds variety, but could have gone on a bit longer, built a bit more, and been bridged more coherently into the body of the song. Still, this mix is sorta like clicking on "Instant Action" when you fire up Unreal Tournament - you know what you want, you know how to get it, and you wanna forego the GUI niceties and configuration options and get straight to the fraggle rock. It's got overt Castlevanian aspects to it that should endear it to fans of that series, and while the ending is a wee smidge abrupt, the right-under-four-minute playing time seems like a good fit. I'm guessing Andreas can play both rhythm guitar and bass as well, so without knowing more about Rubbler, I can at least offer that he's definitely got some skillz, too, and the whole thing comes together admirably. I might have punched the drums up a notch or EQ'd their high-end so they'd cut through just a hair more, but only because they're so tasty to begin with. Excellent work from both artists, possibly Snappleman's best yet, and a strong recommendation to everyone, regardless of familiarity with the game (check that out too, if you've time), to get shattered ASAP.

― djpretzel

Discussion

Latest 15 comments/reviews; view the complete thread or post your own.
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TillyFun
on 2016-10-24 21:52:50

What great drive! :D And shreddage. ^_^

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LuketheXjesse
on 2009-07-07 01:49:06

Man oh man. Yet another glorious remix from my personal favorite remixer 3

Production here is rough, but I'm not picky with such things; top notch arrangement fills in for it anyway. I've never heard the source, so I can't tell how liberal or conservative this is, but Snap is usually conservative, and I'd rather it be true to the original song anyway. Nice work!

^____________________________^

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OA
on 2009-03-23 16:56:37

Rocking stuff, and a little more raw than i'm used to hearing from Snapple and co., but it's a welcome sound- sounds like live playing to me. Great rhythm playing, with some excellent riffage. Leads are uber, with some excellent solos, tasteful and shredding at the same time. Added to a great source tune, this is definitely a keeper.

Rock on guys.

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Liontamer
on 2009-02-22 08:36:44
It started off good, but the thrash-type of metal style you sort of infused in this track kind of ruined it for me. You needed to stick more to the actual music rather than tailing off into a tangent with your own guitar-work.

F that. These guys are doing it right. Nothing wrong with soloing. The track's a bit dated these days, as the energy could be more pronounced here, but this is still a really solid arrangement. Shatterhand has got some more good cuts besides this source tune, so I'd love to hear Andy revisit the soundtrack.

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sykodx469
on 2006-11-30 15:18:04

Fucking. YES. Awsome playing, awsome song, awsome mix.

Kick ass leads, I personally enjoyed the thrashy part you included :)

Very nice! \m/

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Ruffian
on 2006-02-26 03:59:43

It started off good, but the thrash-type of metal style you sort of infused in this track kind of ruined it for me. You needed to stick more to the actual music rather than tailing off into a tangent with your own guitar-work.

I would of liked to see some other stages too.

This entire game is filled with great music. It's a shame just to waste everything else by leaving it off.

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hansikursch
on 2005-12-22 23:50:12

I'm glad some people have so much talent when interpreting a video game soundtrack. Keep up the good work!

I just can't stop listening to it! The thrashy part at 2:39 just rocks!

Come on, do Stage 1 song now! Shatterhand deserves more than one remix!

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shelalon
on 2005-08-22 17:53:21

oh my fucking god.. not only I LOVED Shatterhand.. and wanted to keep the music forever when listening to it...

not enough people know it I see, but it was one of the best...

I downloaded the NSF original music today unaware of the remix.. and was happy with just that.... but then I thought "wait.. for every nsf/rsn on this site there's always at least one remix.."

I almost shit my pants the first time I heart that.. and the second.. third.. fourth... OMFG.

*joins the worshipping*

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BrainCells
on 2005-07-17 15:52:22

I love you guys!

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EvilHorde
on 2005-07-15 12:12:27

Guys, seriously, DAMN!!!

I know I posted here before, praising this but SHIT, I´ve been listening to this all week and it just gets better and better!

I really admire your skills dudes. You sure play damn well and the sounds and mixing are awesome. The drums are supertight, and make me particularly jealous. Definately one of my favorite remixes ever.

This is so catchy. Oh yes. Now I´m gonna give it yet another go... YAY!

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housethegrate
on 2005-07-12 22:18:32

I really loved this arrangement the first time I heard it at DoD. Shatterhand has the sweetest soundtrack ever! Snapple and Rubbler do it justice, completely.

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Jeditrooper
on 2005-07-11 21:49:02

Nifty. I'll just add this to my large collection of remixes...

And just something I was looking for too...needed something to air guitar too...even if I suck at it.

Heh...2 and a half years downloading remixes here...and I just now post what I think of a mix....*shrugs*

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Nys SOB
on 2005-07-11 21:05:55

I agree that the guitar and bass work are kickin', but I've got to disagree with everyone here about the intro. It's actually quite good, and on the first listen, I came up with this:

Imagine you're codename Shatterhand. You've been sent to take out an enemy base, but something feels wrong. You've just passed through four corridors and there's no activity. No guards, no traps, no ambushes. You start to feel that maybe the intel was bad when...

*screetch* bam, three cyborgs right around the corner. You crack your knuckles, grin, and mutter something about kicking ass.

*proceed into main portion* Now they start coming from all sides, but it doesn't matter. You're dishing out the punishment. They're throwing everything at you in the hopes of slowing you down. Fat chance of that happening.

By the time the song's ended, you're teleporting out after leaving a wake of death and destruction.

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Linearity
on 2005-07-10 14:27:40

Damn! Man, I'm a sucker for a good thrash, and you guys certainly got me in that soft spot with this one. I didn't, to my surprise, leap out of my chair with my air guitar the first time I listened to this, but let's just say that I'll be listening to it many times again with the blinds closed on my windows.

Music-wise: Good composition and mix. The beginning sticks out a lot compared to the rest, but that's not bad, really. The ending is abrupt, yes, but again, I like it. I never played Shatterhand, but the arrangement sounds great to me.

Sweet!

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Rubbler
on 2005-07-09 14:23:25

Hey guys, thanks for the kind words. Just thought I'd toss my two cents in here.

I first have to say I'm glad Andreas decided to go with this version of the song. He asked me around the middle of last month if I could redo some rhythm tracks and bass tracks, try to do a few things different, etc. He never did let me hear how it turned out, but I can't see it being better than what we've made in such a short time. This mix was the most ambitious project in terms of the sheer lack of time we had to make it happen. In those 3 days we never stopped recording, right until the night before the mix was due, which Snapple diligently finished by not going to bed until about noon the next day, he's a hell of a guy.

So anyway, I'm glad this kind of blood sweat and tears mix made it on, and you're all digging it so much. I look forward to collaborating with Snapple on the million of things we have planned and it will surely be the most badass music we'll put out. Thanks and keep rockin'.

Sources Arranged (1 Song)


Primary Game:
Shatterhand (Jaleco , 1991, NES)
Music by Iku Mizutani
Songs:
"Missile Command (Area G)"

Tags (3)


Genre:
Rock
Mood:
Instrumentation:
Electric Guitar
Additional:
Origin > Collaboration

File Information


Name:
Shatterhand_Shattered_OC_ReMix.mp3
Size:
4,673,250 bytes
MD5:
210349a771d69b677e15fc4f3eecbaea
Bitrate:
160Kbps
Duration:
3:49

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