ReMix:Tetris "Thirty-Plus Mix" 4:05

By R3FORGED

Arranging the music of one song...

"B-Type"

Primary Game: Tetris (Nintendo , 1989, GB), music by Hirokazu Tanaka

Posted 2006-08-15, evaluated by the judges panel


Whew. While we've not posted a single mix for what I believe is the longest period in the site's history, we HAVE been busy. I was interviewed by the kind folk over at Game Music Radio, for one, and we also had quite a showing at this year's Otakon. This was the first time OverClocked ReMix has held any sort of convention panel, so none of us really knew what to expect - horrific visions of a room that seated 100 with only a dozen attendees came to mind as a worst-case scenario. Even though we had a sub-optimal time slot at the very beginning of the con, however, we had well over 300 attendees, gave our PowerPoint presentation, did some live performances of OC ReMixes, and had a fun little game music trivia quiz at the end. During a final Q and A, I even received a pixelized work of art depicting a pretzel - kickass. Honestly, you had to be there - it was probably the single biggest OC ReMix-focused gathering to date, it went off better than I would possibly have imagined, and we hope to repeat next year and at other events as well. There's coverage over at VGDJ that will include both audio AND video. Thanks to fellow panelists Taucer, zircon, and Larry, and a huge round of applause for panelist and panel coordinator pixietricks, who made the whole thing happen. Of all the single events that have occurred that make me realize how lucky I am to run this site, this one stands out, so thanks as well to all who attended, or tried to - we hope to see you again next year!

Part of the reason for the slow trickle of ReMixes is that I plan to implement some sitewide design changes and features when OCR01500 is released, in addition to updated torrents. I've put in dozens of hours of work and will have to put in dozens more before things are ready to fly, but I realize the natives are probably getting a little restless, so OCR01499 had to happen sooner or later. Newcomer R3FORGED, aka Ian Grover, writes:

"I was really tired of the horrible midi-instrument swap dillio, and the horrible representation of electronica on the web, so I decided to add to the chaos...I'm not going to say that my stuff is the bomb-diggity, because I know it's not that great, but a large sum of people have complimented my work. I was convinced to put this remix up for grabs not too long ago, so I ask you: Is it good enough for OC?"

So, that'd be a yes. At least, so sayeth the judges panel, in unison, and I'd certainly tend to agree. Jesse, whose current girlfriend is apparently affecting his ability to communicate sans effusive vernacular, writes:

"Awesome. Near-professional production. The track could afford to be about twice as long, as it doesnt really have time to develop as it should. However, what's here is tight, slick, warm, and for some reason is filling my writing with hysterical adjectives (yes, hysterical. Look it up)."

Larry agrees:

"The melodic content at 1:37 was straightforward to start, but everything was dressed up nicely with expansionist ideas and varied instrumentation. The rest of the track more than qualified in terms of interpretation within the genre adaptation. The production was pretty damn beefy without being needlessly loud and overbearing; very solid."

So, it's been awhile since our last Tetris mix, and the theme has certainly endured its fair share of abuse in terms of MIDI rips and what not over the years. Thankfully, Ian bucks that trend, delivering highly-polished electronica with lots of swell panning and shiny filtering. In Soviet Russia, undulating techno synths filter YOU. Or something like that. The piece takes its sweet time to develop to the point where the familiar theme drops in, and continues logically from there; frankly, if I were rotating sets of squares to fit neatly into rows, I'd wanna be listening to this, or something like it. Ian offers a great first mix that goes where many have gone before but comes back with something a little different; certainly unique enough to stand out, and very solidly constructed. Chtob vse byli zdorovy!

djpretzel

Discussion

Latest 15 comments/reviews; view the complete thread or post your own.
avatar
Crulex
on 2022-01-09 23:29:07

Really interesting to hear a techno-ish piece with the intro build up of a trance song, but as long as it’s not boring, I can handle a longer intro and this certainly wasn’t boring to me. Enjoyed the beat and the high-paced energy throughout the song. Kinda reminded me of a lot of electronic music I heard in the early 2000’s, so it feels right at home in my tastes.

avatar
OA
on 2009-12-04 12:34:36

Though it's not exactly the Tetris type B song, this is some great remixin work. That intro took forever, but it was packed with interest, and really there are excellent details all over this mix. The ending finished a bit abruptly, but I was definitely jamming to this fine audio adventure.

avatar
SoulinEther
on 2008-08-23 02:08:59
It's also one of the most overrated and overplayed pieces of techno out there.

+1.

This is better. Even if it doesn't accurately get the source, it IS a remix, and not a cover... Though, yeah, Disco Dan's analogy to a movie is pretty accurate, though I don't see it as that big of a deal for me..

I just wish I could find more of his work :/

avatar
mananetwork
on 2007-10-12 18:52:22

Hard day at work! This song just turned my frown upside down :D

avatar
Disco Dan
on 2007-03-27 02:24:27

I have this habit. If I'm going to do an arrangement of a theme, I see what's already been done with it, to make sure I don't cover old ground. And if it's been covered, then I have to make sure I cover it better. Or more thoroughly. Or with astroturf.

Anyway, I may or may not be working on an arrangement of this same theme, so I came to the OCR archives to see what existed, so as to not duplicate any efforts. So I found this mix and the previously mentioned Techtris TypeZ mix covering the Type B music. Now see, I never had a gameboy (Sure, I played my friends' Gameboys from time to time, but I didn't play Tetris. I mean, what was the point? I had Tetris at home on the NES. And that was bigger. And in color. Sure the gameboy was portable, but I was in 3rd grade when this came out, so if I wasn't at home, I was probably at school, where Gameboys and walkmans were confiscated) but the Tetris that I had had 3 themes you could choose from. Type A was "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairies" by Tchaikovsky, Type B was the music (basically) remixed here, and Type C was this ethereal atmospheric chill tune with a weird time signature. The Korobeiniki theme that's USually associated with Tetris wasn't even on the NES version I had. In any case, I always prefered this theme, though I don't know that I could explain why. Maybe because the Nutcracker Suite sounds much better orchestrated, I don't know.

However, this remix. Yes. The topic of this post. It is VERY well produced, albeit a bit short and abrupt. I know, 4 minutes is longer than most songs played on the radio, but with the build up time (foreplay), we don't reach the melody (coitus) until nearly halfway through. Then the climax (orgasm) comes near the very end, and leaves no room for the regression (cuddling) that would usually complement the rest of the work.

In addition, I have the same qualm that a previous reviewer had:

That's a professional quality remix in my book. You've set a very high standard that all OCremix should strive for.

But where did you get the melody from? I noticed in this mix and MangaX's "Tetris Techtris TypeZ OC ReMix" that the B theme starts its descent from the top note two beats too early. Compare these 2 midis:

Meticulously transcribed: http://hundredyearswar.googlepages.com/TetrisB.mid

VGMusic's : http://hundredyearswar.googlepages.com/VGmusic_Tetris2.mid

If you pull out your GameBoy, I think you'll find the first midi to be more accurate. Unfortunately, this remix, as well as MangaX's (http://www.ocremix.org/remix/OCR00258/), uses the second, erroneous transcription. It's a shame that such an incredible remix doesn't truly represent the original.

I think the obvious answer to the question of why this has occurred is because both remixers used the faultily transcribed midi file. HERE is what the original "B" theme sound like. It's not quite the same as this arrangement. Actually, they're considerably different. Anyway, the remix as a standalone song, is a rather enjoyable piece of trance/dance/etc music, but the shortcomings are the abruptness and the lack of accuracy with the melody. It's like hearing that your favorite book is being made into a movie, only to watch the movie and discover that it doesn't quite interpret the book properly. You watch the movie thinking "No, that's not right, that character dies in the book." I listen to the song, and it gets to the melody and my brain starts humming along with it, except my brain knows the melody, and I find that the notes aren't matching. It's a bit like hitting pot holes in the road on an otherwise nice drive. Bittersweet, really. Anyway, yes. Great quality, just work on the other stuff. That is all.

avatar
Screaming Cucumber
on 2006-08-28 05:52:35

This remix is incredible! It's deliciously fast-paced, bordering on the hectic, and most importantly, it's the B theme instead of the eternal A theme everybody and their grandmother has been mixing to some sort of entropic death. It's the sort of mix that makes me wish I knew a lot of technical musical expressions to more specifically dissect the various glories contained within, but I don't. So for the time being, "tremendously awesome" will have to suffice.

More, Mr. Grover, more of this!

avatar
Ness757
on 2006-08-27 04:58:14
The synth layouts remind me of DaRude's song Sandstorm, just more unique with humanized arps.

Good job.

8/10 8)

...scary. I don't know if I should take that as a compliment or not...lol

Considering it's one of the most well known pieces of techno out there, I'd take that as a compliment.

It's also one of the most overrated and overplayed pieces of techno out there.

avatar
Radiowar
on 2006-08-27 01:17:40

I didn't really like this mix. It's well done and stuff but I think it lacks energy especially since it's so underdeveloped.

avatar
Chickenwarlord
on 2006-08-27 00:07:00
The synth layouts remind me of DaRude's song Sandstorm, just more unique with humanized arps.

Good job.

8/10 8)

...scary. I don't know if I should take that as a compliment or not...lol

Considering it's one of the most well known pieces of techno out there, I'd take that as a compliment.

avatar
Reforged
on 2006-08-26 22:55:15
The synth layouts remind me of DaRude's song Sandstorm, just more unique with humanized arps.

Good job.

8/10 8)

...scary. I don't know if I should take that as a compliment or not...lol

avatar
A-RoN
on 2006-08-26 19:11:29

The synth layouts remind me of DaRude's song Sandstorm, just more unique with humanized arps.

Good job.

8/10 8)

avatar
John Revoredo
on 2006-08-26 11:36:01

Ok, thanks for the information.

Didnt mean to offend you.

avatar
Liontamer
on 2006-08-26 06:22:34
I think the judges are trying to be too selective with the mixes, and now select only ultra-synthy things.

I agree 100% with your baseless comment.

Because mixes #1492, #1493, #1494, #1495 and #1496 are definitely not either a) predominantly played live or B) completely played live. Clearly, we need to keep out any mixes like that. Pick anything posted in the last 3 years, and I'm sure it would fall into the "ultra-synth" category. Understandably, that is all we allow.

avatar
John Revoredo
on 2006-08-26 04:07:38

I think the judges are trying to be too selective with the mixes, and now select only ultra-synthy things. Everyhting sounds like if it was written by malcos or Dj Pretzel. Guys, there is a lot of good non-synthy mixes out there.

Now, about the mix. It's nice. It would as good as bLind(9/10 or more) if you had used more than one note in the bass!!. 7,5/10

avatar
Chickenwarlord
on 2006-08-24 13:57:37

Pretty average I think. Well produced, yes. Nothing grabbed me and said "THIS IS EXCELLENT" like some of the other pieces. As catchy as the original theme is, I just can't see myself listening to this except on random shuffle.

Sources Arranged (1 Song)


Primary Game:
Tetris (Nintendo , 1989, GB)
Music by Hirokazu Tanaka
Songs:
"B-Type"

Tags (2)


Genre:
Mood:
Instrumentation:
Electronic,Synth
Additional:

File Information


Name:
Tetris_Thirty-Plus_Mix_OC_ReMix.mp3
Size:
5,958,535 bytes
MD5:
27e16641708a0e640008da257afa7fc0
Bitrate:
192Kbps
Duration:
4:05

Promotion

8-bit Jazz Heroes - Press Start
View All

Latest Albums

View All

Latest ReMixes