Posted 2014-03-03, evaluated by the judges panel


Newcomer FaytxStay gives us our FIRST EVER Paper Mario ReMix, an epic metal/prog amalgam arranging The Thousand-Year Door, incorporating bits & pieces from FFX, Castlevania, and who knows what else! While not 110% polished in every last regard, the level of creativity and willingness to experiment on this track is evident right from the get-go, with some plucked string instruments and a funky-spooky oscillating vocalization that segues into more clearly defined rock/metal at 0"13" - brief, but different, and a good way to catch listeners' attention. The artist writes:

"Honestly, Paper Mario is the only game that I haven't seen remixed on OCR. I figured with this being my first submission, I'd try a game no one has before. For choosing the song, I found it to be the most creepiest thing I'd ever heard of in a Mario game, so I figured I'd push it even further. With my noob skills at the time (still needs work now), I couldn't capture the song how I wanted it, leading me to refine the song 16 times over the years. With little experience in guitar and less equipment at my disposal, I didn't have much hope to finish this. But with people at OC ReMix pushing me forward, I got around to making this the most powerful combination I could create. Kontakt, Shreddage, EZdrummer, Pro 52, and Guitar Rig 4 helped me beyond my dreams."

I love the perseverance and humility; there's really a lot to like, here, and a plethora of fun details baked into the arrangement. OA sums it up well:

"Pretty nice take on the source, it's very apparent throughout, but has a lot of good embellishments. The metal treatment is pretty solid, and though the levels on the mixing aren't exactly where i think they should be, everything is clear and sounds very nice. The overall soundscape gels together very well, and overall the transformation was pretty cool. The source itself is pretty varied, with a lot of parts, and this incorporates those plus a few new ones to good effect. The laughs and whispers added to the mood, and overall I think this is pretty badass."

Some level of kudos are warranted just in FINALLY getting Paper Mario represented on OCR - only took 14 years :) A lot of frenetic energy and layered sequencing going on, and the strings & bells add an extra dimension to the metal instrumentation. One nitpick - the choir sample introduced @ 0'41" is a little weak and has a fairly unnatural attack; the part would have been better served by a more obviously synthetic component, or more strings. Some interesting intonation going on, too; difficult to track, entirely, but nothing ever sounds WAY out of place, possibly because it's all blazing by so dern quickly. The major strength is in the layering of complex parts, general sense of forward momentum, and some of the less orthodox instrumentation calls; I also liked the break @ 2'30", which gave my ears a rest after the blistering assault of Shreddage that preceded it. There's a LOT going on here, and not ALL of it clicks, but most of it does, and I really dig the flamboyant & fearless approach to a relatively tricky source. Nice debut from FaytxStay; hopefully he can fill us in on the lyrics to the distorted death metal vocals section, as the volume (presumably a stylistic choice) is pretty low on those. Looking forward to hearing more from him, and more from Paper Mario, too!

djpretzel

Discussion

Latest 6 comments/reviews; view the complete thread or post your own.
avatar
Black_Doom
on 2015-12-16 14:10:44

Despite all the sources being from different games and just being different, this mix sounds quite cohesive and flows very nicely. The guitar tone is pretty cool, and some ambient sounds thrown in here and there are nice touches as well. The evil laughter is great addition too! All in all, this is a really strong debut :)

avatar
jnWake
on 2014-03-17 16:52:52

I'm glad to see some Paper Mario love here. Those games have great music.

People should support the Paper Mario project that's sitting on the projects forum by the way, we deserve more Paper Mario mixes :razz:

avatar
MinnieMoog
on 2014-03-04 13:45:38

This is an awesome remix, thank you so much for posting this. Paper Mario 2 stands among my top five favorite games as a matter of fact. I'm really glad to see such a solid justice being done to its beautiful soundtrack. Great song choice too. I'm in agreement-- The final boss theme to this game is most certainly one of, if not the darkest Mario theme around. Lots of clever atmospheric tricks and spooky chord progressions haunt the original. This progressive metal/rock approach is a very clever take on the source, by extension.

avatar
Crulex
on 2014-03-04 09:17:35

Okay, first off, love those laughs you added in, cause that sealed it for me on this Shadow Queen mix. Pretty cool that you were able to also use parts of Otherworld to add to the overall metal attack of the song. Echoing DJP, I'd love to know what the voices are saying, but all in all, awesome debut mixpost.

avatar
The Derrit
on 2014-03-03 16:09:44

now someone just needs to do the doopliss theme and the final song from the rumble pit and we're good.

enjoying this song

avatar
djpretzel
on 2014-03-03 15:18:06

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

Sources Arranged (3 Songs, 3 Games)


Primary Game:
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (Nintendo , 2004, GCN)
Music by Saki Kasuga,Yoshito Sekigawa,Yuka Tsujiyoko
Songs:
"Battle with Shadow Queen - True Form"
Additional Game:
Castlevania II: Simon's Quest (Konami , 1988, NES)
Music by Kenichi Matsubara,Satoe Terashima
Songs:
"Bloody Tears (Street-day time-Stage BGM)"
Additional Game:
Final Fantasy X (Square , 2001, PS2)
Music by Junya Nakano,Masashi Hamauzu,Nobuo Uematsu
Songs:
"Otherworld"

Tags (8)


Genre:
Metal,Rock
Mood:
Aggressive,Dark
Instrumentation:
Electric Guitar,Singing,Synth,Vocals: Male
Additional:

File Information


Name:
Paper_Mario_The_Thousand-Year_Door_Black_Onslaught_OC_ReMix.mp3
Size:
8,037,021 bytes
MD5:
8c3dd34d45021cc13e37c398cf23e5a7
Bitrate:
192Kbps
Duration:
5:31

Promotion

8-bit Jazz Heroes - Press Start
View All

Latest Albums

View All

Latest ReMixes