Posted 2009-01-18, evaluated by djpretzel


Q: How money am I? I'm sitting in the Starbucks at Mandalay Bay, drinking a Mocha Frappawhatever, posting a ReMix... while Anna does her law school reading. A: Not particularly money. But that's ok, we're having a good time in Vegas, catching some shows, good eats, etc. The film Once came on HBO in our hotel room and we ended up watching the whole thing - definitely recommended, one of the most deserving recipients of the usually upsetting "Best Original Song" Oscar. Unfortunately, I came away from MAG with more than just memories; had an awful cough ever since that's persisting here in Nevada. Anna's mom suggests gargling with vodka... we'll see how that turns out.

In the meantime, though, even on vacation I'm trying to ensure that 2009 sees more frequent, consistent posting of mixes. Had Joshua Morse's Hybridism been an official OC ReMix project, you probably would have seen a flood of Ragnarok mixes last year, but having them spaced out like this does have the benefit of spotlighting the album to newcomers and reminding those who may not have checked it out way back when how groovy it is. This one's another collab with Mr. Lofton, arranging 'Brassy Road' - jm gives us the breakdown:

  • Lofton on organ, eps
  • jm on brass, kalimbas, percussion, strings, ep @ 3:33
  • rest of backing split b/w us both

Sweet organ solos, Mr. Lofton! The kalimba sets this mix apart from the duo's previous Rag mixes, giving it a more Carribean/tropical feel, prefaced with the jungle/avian sound FX. There are also some nice, really subtle funky synth bits with short attacks that for me are just as good as the flashier, more elaborate soloing. It wouldn't be Morse without a meaty funk/disco beat and ginormous bassline, both of which the track delivers, and the whole thing fades out into the same serene tropical atmosphere it begins with - but not before organ trades off with kalimba and EP for some mad soloing action. If you could level any criticism here, it's that the mix is actually a little solo-heavy; it would have been nice to pepper things with more refrain/ensemble passages. Nevertheless, it's GOOD soloing - damn good soloing - so it's hard to fault 'em on it.

This is the third mix we've posted from Hybridism, and all three have been fantastic, so I'm not sure what further persuasion anyone would need to check out the rest of the cuts. Can't wait to see what Morse & Lofton have in store for us in 2009 - this album is a hard act to follow-up, and has yielded some memorable, extraordinarily funky, and superbly-crafted ReMixes.

djpretzel

Discussion

Latest 15 comments/reviews; view the complete thread or post your own.
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Black_Doom
on 2015-04-24 10:19:24

This is definitely my favorite from Hybridism. It brings a lot of upbeat emotions. The instrumentation is damn neat: vivid brass, crazy organ solos and groovy drums create a very sunny, lush soundscape. Awesome!

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esteve7
on 2014-05-26 23:20:05

Came across this in my playlist and am on my 7th listen. It's just so perfect, mellow, and groovy. I don't want to meet the person that dislikes this song.

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WillRock
on 2010-07-03 09:22:55

This is some great jazz music right here.

All the instruments just blend together seemlessly, the production is great, and everything here clicks.

A very groove oriented mix with some funk added in for good measure, with lots of electric piano and organ solos that really leaves you feeling satisfied when it ends.

Strongly recommended.

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Pachi Risu
on 2009-11-13 13:31:13

Kudos to a job well done.

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Marmiduke
on 2009-07-29 22:44:09

Awesome barrage of sounds and soloing. Sort of a whirlwind of different styles and ways to approach the theme, without it sounding like a scattershot at all. I always admire mixes like this; it must be hard to keep things heading in a balanced direction.

Loving the Motown vibe with the strings and horns, which gives great perspective to the more complex xylophone/e-piano jazz-inspired moments.

Any fear of not being able to fully get into mixes from a game as insignificant to me as Ragnarok were blown out of the water with this mix. Very cool work.

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metaphist
on 2009-07-22 10:59:53

I've been listening to this hardcore for a while now. Very fun and energetic.

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Martin Penwald
on 2009-02-12 15:52:23

Great, just like everything else on Hybridism.

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Rozovian
on 2009-02-09 10:17:53

This is so going on my positive music playlist. :D 'nuf said.

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DragonAvenger
on 2009-02-01 22:28:44

Crazy soloing, love all of it. The entire feel of this track is great, really gets you into the groove. The xylophone throughout was a great instrument choice.

Fade out seemed a little long, but other than that, I'm diggin' this.

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JenZ
on 2009-02-01 17:15:49

I downloaded your RO project a while back and I liked this song the best out of all the tracks. I'm happy this is an official OC ReMix. Congrats! I'm a huge fan of the game and soundtrack. It's my favorite MMO ever. Wish more people would contribute.

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CopiousX
on 2009-01-28 23:57:28
....... wow

Yay music? :-(

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kaijin
on 2009-01-28 14:45:01
At 3:54 the e. piano solo was really fun, and the ensuing fade out worked very nicely. Also, the xylophone-esque instrument worked nicely in the cliche Dadada-da-da-da-da westernized Chinese phrase (It actually surprised me to hear it super-imposed on the Blues/Motown format of the rest of the song). Honestly the song works well, but beyond the "Chinese" phrase it wasn't spectacular.

P.S. Usually I don't like ambient sounds throughout a song, but that jungle track brought things together nicely.

....... wow

Someone asked me nicely to expand on the review so, for their sake, I'll share my general opinions. I happen to like this arrangement a lot, and compositionally speaking, it lends itself well. The brass fit perfectly as a counter point. There really wasn't anything that didn't fit. I'm not about pretend I'm hearing a cliché pentatonic phrase, that clearly isn't cliché, or the least bit "Chinese" either. I'm sure if I were arranging it personally, I might have changed some of the instrumentation, but let's face it, what I'd pick is trivial. This is superb work and I for one, would love to see more of it in the future.

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CopiousX
on 2009-01-28 02:39:19

At 3:54 the e. piano solo was really fun, and the ensuing fade out worked very nicely. Also, the xylophone-esque instrument worked nicely in the cliche Dadada-da-da-da-da westernized Chinese phrase (It actually surprised me to hear it super-imposed on the Blues/Motown format of the rest of the song). Honestly the song works well, but beyond the "Chinese" phrase it wasn't spectacular.

P.S. Usually I don't like ambient sounds throughout a song, but that jungle track brought things together nicely.

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Lucentas
on 2009-01-19 15:44:43

I like this, it's funky, eclectic, and has a great beat. Awesome job.

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OA
on 2009-01-19 13:01:14

Lovin' that bass, and some great funky rhythms. This is extra classy stuff, and the solos are nice. Solidly produced and smooth, even the fade out seems to work well.

Good stuff, nice work, gents. :-)

Sources Arranged (1 Song)


Primary Game:
Ragnarök Online (Gravity , 2002, WIN)
Music by soundTeMP
Songs:
"Brassy Road"

Tags (4)


Genre:
Jazz
Mood:
Instrumentation:
Piano,Synth
Additional:
Origin > Collaboration

File Information


Name:
Ragnarok_Online_Brazzy_Road_OC_ReMix.mp3
Size:
7,381,767 bytes
MD5:
265d0b13f2e6846bef8a683d9100f5e8
Bitrate:
214Kbps
Duration:
4:32
Featured on album...

Ragnarok Online : Hybridism


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Published 2008-01-19
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