ReMix:Crack Down "4:20 AM" 4:20

By zykO

Arranging the music of one song...

"Kill Off (BGM 4/Stage 4)"

Primary Game: Crack Down (Sage's Creation , 1991, GEN), music by Yasuhiro Kawakami

Posted 2004-12-30, evaluated by the judges panel


Well, I thought Israfel's Shivers mix would be the last truly obscure mix to be posted in 2004, but I think zyko has that title beat in terms of esotericity. Furthermore, the ReMixer works in some unrelated but nonetheless fun movie quotes from the likes of Dune and Predator (see the very end for Governor Ahnud's cameo), in a funky, groove-centric mix from an old Sega Genesis title from the same publisher who released the slightly better-known Insector-X. GuitarMix critiquer extraordinaire Vigilante enthuses (with some reservations):

"funkified.

the guitar's clearly bringing the thing alive. It's definitely a jam track, but it never becomes dull; it keeps moving.

I like the vocal clips, although i think they could have been integrated a bit better with a fadeout, because the fuzz from the samples sticks out when the clip ends.

great stereo work, although i think some of the guitars sound a bit dry. i would have thrown on some intense stereo delay on the guitar around (:35)

this track definitely keeps you moving."

Pretty much - I mean, let's face it, you NEVER have to be familiar with the source material when the power of wah guitar is involved. The magic of the wah is generally accepted to transcend race, sex, age, religion, and nationality, and speak directly to the inner mojo each of us have within us. Well, except Ralph Reed. I had fewer issues with the production, which Jesse can always be counted on to emphasize, than I did the repetitiveness of some of the percussion, as Larry points out:

"Nice how many of the subtler support elements under the lead guitar were being played differently each time from 1:22-2:53, though the basic patterns (strings/percussion/sythn playing the source melody pattern) definitely went long, staying around until 2:53. The percussion pattern in particular definitely could have used something to keep it fresh around the 2:20 mark, which was when I noticed the repetitiveness."

... in general, you might get the feel at points that the mix is something of an excuse for zyko to just play some badass wah guitar. And - at times - you'd probably be right. But I ain't complaining, especially when there's enough arrangement in other segments to offset any... solo indulgences... that may or may not have occurred. The end result for some reason to me has a Streets of Rage feel to it; love the bit at 3'04" with the alternate processing, and the little organ riff that's present for a large portion of the mix does a good job of fleshing things out. Great attention to panning, with mucho cross-panning going on, and the saw synth bassline is phat. That may be the last time this year I deign to use the word 'phat' in a write-up, so savor it. Bottom line: good arrangement, great guitar work, and an amazing amount of wah are all vacuum-packed for freshness - chock full o' funk.

djpretzel

Discussion

Latest 15 comments/reviews; view the complete thread or post your own.
avatar
OA
on 2009-03-25 10:39:19

Some sour notes in the solo, but it's still a decent jam, more about the wah guitar than anything else. I wish the source was a little better, as this meanders way too much for me. Textures are nice though, and there's a lot of cool panning. It sortof sounds like a group of guitarists all sort of noodling around. Decent BG music, but doesn't really grab me and demand attention.

do eet naoowww

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zykO
on 2008-01-07 19:09:51
But why I'm REALLY Here... I noticed in iTunes the song is also 4:20 long, so I was wondering if thatt was deliberate? I figured probably so, but I must know.

absolutely =)

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Shadow Wolf
on 2008-01-07 16:52:19

Booyah! Bringin' the review after a year and some change! I've always liked this song. I end up listening to it a lot because it's the first mix alphabetically in my 2004 folder. But why I'm REALLY Here... I noticed in iTunes the song is also 4:20 long, so I was wondering if thatt was deliberate? I figured probably so, but I must know.

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Gollgagh
on 2006-11-09 23:32:42

This mix is genius. I can't believe I missed it until now.

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watkinzez
on 2006-06-26 01:46:08

I just had a phone call that was 4:20 long, and it reminded me of this song. Always been a favourite, bringing a unique quality to the guitar portion of the community- both the song and zyko.

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SirRus
on 2005-01-14 18:05:25

That ending was dope. I also liked the rest of the song, but wow the ending...

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Debotron-6K
on 2005-01-04 09:23:04

Heady

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MrBogus
on 2005-01-04 02:59:07

I can't believe all the negative press on this piece.

THIS SONG KICKS SOME SERIOUS ASS.

I loved the version posted on vgmix -- "The Man who broke his Smile" -- and I love this one just as much. As zyko pointed out in his submission email, this is a different take on the same theme(s).

I never liked any of zyko's previous guitar work, but this quite simply broke my bias in half. Very chill, ultra cool. My hat's off to you, zyko. Keep up the awesome work.

Oh yeah, for those of you who actually enjoyed the sound bites, you'll like the vgmix version. Edit: nevermind, I got confused and was referring to another of zyko's pieces.

avatar
Oddity
on 2005-01-04 01:07:28

The song length is also 420.

Zyko known for voices more than guitar? I thought he started with guitar and had a lot of guitar mixes pumped out in the beginning...or actually pretty much about equal in both departments, at the same time.

I'm sure if the original melody was better everybody would be cheering.

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A-RoN
on 2005-01-03 16:25:56
Isn't zyko more known for his rap rather than guitar?

Of course he is more known for his rap... Probably "Niggaz 4 Life" to be specific since it was so "controversial" (Not really if you ask me, but some feel that way).

Anyways, be it guitar or rapping, zyko puts out some awesome shit, and this is no exception. I think this remix sounds great, great guitar riffs, I especially like the ending. Only problem that I had was the repetitive drums, but that really didn't take too much away from the remix as a whole. Good stuff.

This reminds me of his poker-face Sonic 2 remix, especially the chugging. It's more a jam than an actual song, but the bassline is so catchy even though it repeats itself over and over which makes you pay more attention to the wicked licks out of the guitar. I like the ending as well. The organ synth thing used is amazing. Thanks for the anticipation, Weed! Great jorb!

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zykO
on 2005-01-03 05:53:56

I don't consider myself to be a good guitarist and I didn't hear anything there that I couldn't do on my third try.

you must be hot shit

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Red Shadow
on 2005-01-01 22:43:24

looks like everything is working now.

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Red Omen
on 2005-01-01 21:35:59

I like the pot euphemism in the title.

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RimFrost the Tourianist
on 2005-01-01 17:29:38
wtf is going on. all i get is a blank page and "file does not exist" when i try to download this. theres no information in the download bar either. anyone know whats going on?

at least, thats whats going on with the ocr link. im getting it from the supertux mirror. still, this is odd. is there a reason for it?

Same thing here ...maybe the whole site is under maintenance now ? ..or some file transfer overload..

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Red Shadow
on 2005-01-01 11:56:25

wtf is going on. all i get is a blank page and "file does not exist" when i try to download this. theres no information in the download bar either. anyone know whats going on?

at least, thats whats going on with the ocr link. im getting it from the supertux mirror. still, this is odd. is there a reason for it?

Sources Arranged (1 Song)


Primary Game:
Crack Down (Sage's Creation , 1991, GEN)
Music by Yasuhiro Kawakami
Songs:
"Kill Off (BGM 4/Stage 4)"

Tags (3)


Genre:
Funk,Rock
Mood:
Instrumentation:
Electric Guitar
Additional:

File Information


Name:
Crack_Down_4-20_AM_OC_ReMix.mp3
Size:
6,330,222 bytes
MD5:
85cddc7648269a7ffd1bbd64fcf22ee4
Bitrate:
192Kbps
Duration:
4:20

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