:
First off, for a musical thing like this get rid of the intro music. I thought that was the song.
2 bit things: the cello is consistently a fraction of a second late in a few places, and whenever you reverbed the strings it got really messy.
The cello sounds awful. I don't know what you're using to get that sound. It sounds like it was sampled from a live cello, which is good in theory but in practice it's really jarring because every note is articulated like it's the start of a phrase.
In the original piece the cello is a percussion instrument rather than a melodic one. It's the drive. It's the oomph. Adding the higher string part with the tiniest hint of harmony obscures that in my opinion. You either need to commit to harmony and add some gritty 5ths in there, or make sure the rhythm is stronger. That gets back to the cello sound being bad.
Was the drum track done live, or did you sample the individual hits?
This post sounds grumpy because I hate life but overall it sounds alright. I'm just good at being critical of this stuff. I don't know if you'll want to fix any of it, but if you plan on doing more of this kind of thing then you need to find a better way of making the recording. If you use better sounds I can also potentially give more in depth tips. I've helped out Slog Bait and Nep with musical stuff a few times now, and I'm more than happy to say what I can if you want the feedback.
|
Cheers for the feedback! I'll quote so I can see what I'm replying to
First off, the intro is there because I plan to make this a sub-series of the channel. That little intro will be the same for each, with a different title card of course. It gives it form. So whilst it may have been confusing this first time, as it occurs in each entry confusion will be minimized.
Regarding the 'cello', I know exactly the moments where it is the smallest instance out and such, but due to FL Studio's grid/snapping system, I couldn't make that gap any smaller than the fraction of a second it currently is
I'm sure it's possible but the vast majority of real recordings I do are all performed live by myself, which ensures perfect timing and input/output quality. Also, in terms of reverb, only the base string section had it applied (excluding drums, the end-of-loop synth etc.), so what you must be hearing is the base set's reverb mixing up when the 5ths and octaves come in
I'll double-check that for next time though man, so thanks
Actually, the cello sample I have is incredibly good haha! For this, I didn't use a lone cello at all. Instead they're sampled 'strings' sections, alongside a few synthesized power string channels. Still, the first note sounding sharp is an issue I realise
If this were anything serious that I was trying to send off or demo or anything then I would have spent more time sorting out the strings but I really couldn't be bothered this time; most people who watch that video won't have an issue with it, I'm sure
Yeah the original has a strong stabbing kind of feel to it. I wasn't going for that as much, which is why the final two notes at the end of each phrase are slightly elongated. I wouldn't have done that had I wanted it to keep that punchy sound as much as the original. However, I'm aware this is somewhat contradictory due to the jarring string patch, but as I said..it's just some fun
I didn't want to commit either way...matter of fact I had no end goal haha xD So it is what it is I suppose; I wasn't trying to recreate the original nor do the exact opposite ;D
There are also 5ths being played from the 3rd phrase in, and every time after that unless it's clearly the single one note string section playing as it does occasionally throughout
Drums I programmed myself. Didn't play cos I wanted a hybrid of acoustic drums and a sort of metal/natural rhythm if you follow. I like the drums though, personally :P
RIGHT, hahah! Sorry about that, I just wanted to reply to each point. I appreciate everything you have said though
I slightly disagree with a few points regarding sample quality, however that'll be down to personal preference
So thanks again, buddy!
Oz
Edit: Just compared the youtube upload's audio to the uncompressed audio file I've got and quality has diminished fairly noticeably. Lost a lot of the bass too. Lame D:
Oddworld Music Remake :)
If you're not taking this super-seriously then it's fine. The AO soundtrack is really fantastic in the way it takes one or two rhythmic ideas and builds the soundtrack of an entire area around them. It's very hard to work with in an arranging sense. Tackling some more original stuff in a similar style is probably has a lot more potential.
I don't think it's that bad. But I certainly agree it's hard to create an arrangment around the pre-existing Oddysee tracks. The biggest reason for that I think is not due to their simplistic nature, but the fact that each develop in accordance to specific gameplay mechanics. So the chase theme, for example, has that tension loop that occurs when you're waiting just out of sight or reach of a Scrab/slog. Now that doesn't happen in the ripped/released versions of any of the tracks, obviously because they are set arrangments that constantly loop, instead of developing. I mean, listening to the AO chase music is actually extremely dull xD It's only so epic when put into the moment during the game, where it can develop and vary depending on what's kicking off on-screen 
