ReMix:Breath of Fire II "Jaded by Death" 4:05

By HoboKa

Arranging the music of one song...

"Lethal Dose"

Primary Game: Breath of Fire II (Capcom , 1995, SNES), music by Yuko Takehara

Posted 2016-04-12, evaluated by the judges panel


HoboKa (Alex Shtokalko) gets his first solo mixpost on OCR with this Breath of Fire II ReMix from BadAss III, conjuring up a dark blend of orchestral, choral, and industrial flavors for something dark & intense, which builds as things progress:

"My new interpretation, "Jaded by Death," is finally here. After, what, 5 or 6 years from my previous attempt - and it's for the BadAss: Vol. 3 album, no less. I believe that I have come a long way; pu_freak, timaeus222, and Chernabogue gave me plenty of sage advice on the composition and production, and, after about 12 versions in, I'm finally done.

I decided to make use of that Damage drumkit that I've been itching to use and, man, did it work well for this one, at least in my perspective. pu_freak wanted something dark, brooding and evil sounding, so I obliged him... and, as pu_freak wanted, I made "Jaded by Death" as evil as I could, employing the use of creepy orchestral and industrial influences, with some SFX and scary drones and stuff. I actually enjoyed making this remix and hope that you guys do too! One frustration I had was getting the mix sounding as good as can be; and another more distant but always nagging feeling is pleasing the J panel; always a strain for me, but, luckily, I don't focus on making music solely for OCR, else I'd probably suffer an aneurysm, lol."

Alex exemplifies perseverance & persistence, and I'm certainly glad we haven't caused him any life-threatening brain/blood conditions with our feedback :) This arrangement has some pretty crazy transitions & tempo shifts, but there's a unifying aesthetic of gothic symphonic colors (strings, organ, chorus) paired with big, industrial drums + FX that keeps things coherent. BA3 director Pieter "pu_freak" Van Os writes:

"HoboKa's use of strings and choirs is complemented by excellent percussion which forms the skeleton of this mix. It's minimalist in an orchestral and evil way, only building up the energy in the second half of the song. At the end, it leaves you all alone in the corner, with the ominous choirs letting you know you're never getting out..."

This mix split the judges panel, as many had concerns over sound quality and aspects of sequencing/production, but even the dissenting votes commended the creativity of the arrangement. Palpable's vote stands out to me as being both poignant & representative of the presiding sentiment:

"I didn't hear a lot of connection after the intro and before the second half, when the themes are strong, but the string runs are straight from the original and it has enough connection. The cool instrumentation and great dynamics are the highlight here, and make up for the minor flaws with the sequencing. Alex's song painted a complete picture for me and I'm happy to give him (IIRC) my first YES on one of his tracks. It's great to see people progress as songwriters and Alex's determination to improve has carried him a long way from where he started."

Indeed; a good addition to BA3 & indicative of improvement on Alex's part, "Jaded by Death" is a dark, dramatic ride through some very disturbed & disturbing neighborhoods, highlighted by emphatic & sinister percussion!

djpretzel

Discussion

Latest 6 comments/reviews; view the complete thread or post your own.
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Necrox
on 2016-05-08 15:31:06

The percussion is pretty sick and the atmosphere is nice and dark. This is quite the battle theme. Creative.

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Venom Fighter X
on 2016-05-03 11:32:30

Nice stuff,

The Damage kit does sound good. :)

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Lance Winchester
on 2016-04-17 06:07:41

Awesome and terrible cover of Deathevan final battle! Breath Of Fire 2 is one of my favorite games since always just like his ost that I adore!
That made dream for an OCR album on Breath Of Fire 2!!!
Super job, I still have shivers of happiness of them!8)

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HoboKa
on 2016-04-13 04:25:19

I am so great G-R-E-T!! DOH!! I mean G-A-R-T...erm...you get the gist :D

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Polo
on 2016-04-13 03:13:07

There are times when the rapid 4-note bass pattern of the source sounds muted or overtaken, but at least it's offset by other sounds maintaining the tone or emotion of the moment. The percussion, similarly, sometimes gets drowned out, but I like how it ever-so-gradually evolves alongside the mix to add different shades of flair.

I'm guessing 1:24-5 is an attempt at partial melodic rearrangement, but to me the C-G-Bb progression sounds off. It does sound a little more at home at 1:41-2 though.

Given the way the last minute sort of hits the reset button on the mix before deflating into nothingness, I interpret this section as a wannabe prelude to another song/chapter in the musical narrative. It also would've been nice to hear more exploration of the source's second part ("Ab-G, Bb-Ab"-dominated), although the extended measure at 2:40 (with the organ at 2:47 adding to the mayhem) is certainly strong.

All in all, this makes fitting hellfire music.

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Liontamer
on 2016-04-11 17:10:30

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

Sources Arranged (1 Song)


Primary Game:
Breath of Fire II (Capcom , 1995, SNES)
Music by Yuko Takehara
Songs:
"Lethal Dose"

Tags (10)


Genre:
Industrial,Symphonic
Mood:
Dark,Energetic
Instrumentation:
Choir,Organ,Strings
Additional:
Time > 4/4 Time Signature
Time > Tempo: Variable
Usage > Halloween

File Information


Name:
Breath_of_Fire_2_Jaded_by_Death_OC_ReMix.mp3
Size:
7,003,190 bytes
MD5:
3a9e37a633fcc8b2a11b76a29fde6cb3
Bitrate:
225Kbps
Duration:
4:05

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