ReMix:Super Castlevania IV "Deforestation" 4:17

By Thunder Thouin

Arranging the music of one song...

"Forest of Evil Spirits (Stage 2 BGM)"

Primary Game: Super Castlevania IV (Konami , 1991, SNES), music by Masanori Adachi, Taro Kudo

Posted 2012-01-21, evaluated by the judges panel


This ReMix made my day; like newcomer Thunder Thouin (Yan Thouin), I'm a huge fan of the soundtrack to Super Castlevania IV, personally holding it as my favorite Castlevania OST and one of the top SNES soundtracks of all time. That our last posted mix was back in 2007 both disappoints & confuses me - there's gold in them thar' hills, and I wish more artists would give it the attention it deserves. Yan's done a drop-dead gorgeous job of doing so himself, and this makes him my personal hero, at least for the week. His orchestral arrangement also beautifully incorporates vocalizing & ethnic drums, resulting in a Zimmeresque, Gladiator-meets-Castlevania mix that makes for a fantastic OCR debut - this is one I'll be coming back to. A lot. He writes:

"I always wanted to cover a title from this game because it completely blew my mind when it came out in '91. I think the soundtrack was original and atmospheric, the composers had a lot more freedom than usual while writing this and it showed. Ranging from classical to jazzy, it conveyed a level of maturity to the whole game and in my opinion, blended perfectly with the mood of the series.

I decided to choose this one because it was overlooked by many and it had a dual quality which I liked. It felt like there were 2 parts to this one... a creepy and spooky first half and a more epic and engaging theme when the main melody kicks in. So after playing Lord of Shadows, I was inspired to give this one a symphonic treatement. I used a lot of East/West stuff and a few others to give it more of an orchestral vibe. The only thing I regret with this approach is that I had to get rid of the awesome bassline of the original, it just didn't work with this. I know I emphasized a bit on the 'hero theme' for the better part of the arrangement (climax, ending segment). For some reason, I was always drawn back to it. I guess I liked the melody. Anyways, thanks for taking the time to review it, and I hope you guys will like it."

Like it? Love it. Yan & I are completely on the same page regarding this game's soundtrack - I was similarly blown away at the time, and in retrospect it's probably one of the dozen or so game soundtracks that were directly influential in my starting OCR in the first place, up there with Revenge of Shinobi. In removing the bassline, TT's arrangement of the source in question makes it a little harder to identify, but facilitates an overall change to the nature of the piece that completely works. OA writes:

"Who would have thought that removing that bass line would make it so hard for me to wrap my head around the arrangement. :O After a lot of listens, I figured it out eventually, and i've come to the conclusion that this is a pretty great arrangement. Some of the brass is a little stiff, but the atmosphere is excellent, and the vocal stuff is a nice touch. I dig it."

Vinnie adds:

"I agree with halc that the balance was a little off, in favor of the low notes instead of the melody, but I also agree with him that this was a great arrangement and made good use of the full range of the orchestra. Loved the section starting at 2:19 where the flute gave this a suddenly buoyant tone. Not much to say, this was classy and well-done, and an underremixed source from the game, no less."

Really great & memorable debut from Thunder Thouin; I'm really hoping it doesn't take another five years for us to see a Super Castlevania IV ReMix of this caliber, and I'm certainly looking forward to his next submission!

djpretzel

Discussion

Latest 15 comments/reviews; view the complete thread or post your own.
avatar
Phonetic Hero
on 2014-01-13 08:07:02

I *swear* I said this earlier, but I dunno what I was talking about previously. This track is golden, dammit!

avatar
Bejack
on 2013-08-21 10:36:40

Grandiose! I don't know what else to say. I would really enjoy hearing this song in a future Castlevania game, that's how epic this song is.

avatar
Crulex
on 2012-12-11 15:15:56

That brass in the beginning....damn, dude! Such a terrific lead-in with some suspense and lurking terror, but on a grand scale. Makes the first part deliciously dark with some light undertones. Then to flip the script and basically go to a more adventurous orchestration before touching back on the darker feel was a brilliant move. I really like the back and forth from dark to light in this one. The vocals were a nice touch, but the screams didn't do anything for me because of the abruptness of them. Pretty good all around though.

avatar
Bahamut
on 2012-10-17 09:55:17

This mix is quite impressive. I'm not super familiar with the Castlevania music aside from the usual songs, so I can't comment on the majesty of arrangement, but I do know that this is a great listen regardless. It has a great atmosphere to it and a vastness to it.

avatar
Joe Redifer
on 2012-02-11 23:36:55

This is definitely a good mix and the talent of Thunder Thouin is definitely evident. I recognized it because I always use when the strings start on that stage to gauge how well I am doing in the game. If I am not out of the little cave and back out into the trees by the time the strings start, I am going too slow. However with all of the videogames in this most recent generations that have been trying their hardest to sound as much like movies as possible, I have lost my taste for many symphonic works. Also, who is the female voice that pops up from time to time? Was that the remixer or was it stolen from something Lisa Gerrard did? Nobody else is credited on the remix and the remixer is referred to as a "he" so I have to assume the latter. I feel it would have been better without it because it seems to go past an homage into blatantly copying the style.

Castlevania IV does have an amazing soundtrack, though. It and ActRaiser make some of the best use of that SNES fake-orchestra sound in any game on the system.

avatar
ZealPath
on 2012-01-26 22:25:04

Very nice to see a mix of a less popular Castlvevania song, I always liked the original, though when I heard the bassline was being taken out I couldn't help but wonder if it was going to feel like the same song. Well, the feeling is still there, just in a different, very well done orchestral style, and I dig it!

avatar
Damarul
on 2012-01-26 12:00:32

this is freaking amazing! its one of my favorite songs too. I seriously say there needs to be a SCIV remix album...THERE HAS TO BE

avatar
GravitySuitCollector
on 2012-01-26 01:14:37

Great job. :-D Yeah, the scream thing at the end does seem a bit off, but overall, this is awesome. :nicework:

avatar
Thunder Thouin
on 2012-01-23 23:53:15

Thanks a lot guys... I'm really glad to be a part the overclocked community from now on :) This was my first attempt with my EWQL stuff but I was blown away by what you can do with it.. I'll definitely try my hands at another one soon because It's just too much fun. Anyways.. thanks again!

avatar
Thin Crust
on 2012-01-22 21:31:44

I.... Um....... Thunder Thouin, what have you created? I don't even know what to say. It's.....I've got to listen to it again and share it with everyone I know because this is really out of this world.

avatar
KnightOfTheRound
on 2012-01-22 14:45:37

Wow, what a remix! I loved just about every bit of this.

avatar
uhhh6677
on 2012-01-22 14:37:19

I like the dark atmosphere of this mix. The strings are very cool, and the percussion does well to bring out the epicness of the strings, and I like how the percussion doesn't overwhelm the strings. The vocal bits were pretty cool as well. I think the mix doesn't seem to develop, kinda staying the same throughout, and the screams at the end were kinda odd. Other than that, a very cool mix, and congrats to Thunder Thouin on an OCR debut!

avatar
Loning
on 2012-01-22 10:15:30

I agree, this remix speaks of awesomeness! You did a fantastic job with this track!

avatar
jordanrooben
on 2012-01-21 22:00:15

I simply can't believe this is a debut mix! It's great! Epic, is only half of it. It's not just bombastic, it's interesting. This is better than much of what I'v ever heard, OCRemix or not. Great job!

avatar
Nobbynob Littlun
on 2012-01-21 20:07:25

Wow, what a ReMix. I listened to it four times in a row and all I could think of for an improvement is that the higher-pitched brass bits come out a little... artificial, synthesized. And I dunno about those screams for an ending. But really, the whole thing is too good to care about such trifles!

Sources Arranged (1 Song)


Primary Game:
Super Castlevania IV (Konami , 1991, SNES)
Music by Masanori Adachi,Taro Kudo
Songs:
"Forest of Evil Spirits (Stage 2 BGM)"

Tags (5)


Genre:
Cinematic
Mood:
Instrumentation:
Orchestral,Singing,Strings,Vocals: Female
Additional:

File Information


Name:
Super_Castlevania_4_Deforestation_OC_ReMix.mp3
Size:
6,248,958 bytes
MD5:
e1cac2790b955e204d3573ed7a34f31e
Bitrate:
192Kbps
Duration:
4:17

Promotion

8-bit Jazz Heroes - Press Start
View All

Latest Albums

View All

Latest ReMixes