Not happy with this... what can I do?

[Oysterman]

Hey guys (and gals?),

One of my hobbies is to do my own versions of old Nintendo game music. Following this link, you can hear my latest acheivement (sp?) - the song from the first stage in the old NES game "Batman" (4,5 MB download).

I spent this day throwing together a mix of it, and I feel that something is wrong, but I can't quite put my finger on it. Maybe I just need to give it a rest and come back to it tomorrow... but if you have the time and energy for it, could you please check it out and see if something rubs you the wrong way as well? Or is it just me?

Just MIDI instruments and bass guitar (insanely tough lines to pull off, I lost count of all the takes).

Thanks in advance, and be nice to the newbie!

 

[leahkim]

Oysterman,
Admittedly I am in NO way familiar with the original tune or the Batman game for Nintendo, but I will say that it is obvious you spent a good deal of time sequencing this tune - lots of notes!

I didn't care for the beginning up until the "up tempo" section (there was something about the instrument sound that was used, I guess) but maybe that's how the original sounded? I didn't really like the abrupt ending, either. But the song was pretty neat, and I could definitely have imagined a video game going on in the background (or is that the other way around???)

Other than that, your bass playing was great -- I thought it was sequenced until I re-read your post! Sounds like a fun hobby. I suppose you must have done the theme to Super Mario Brothers already, huh?!

 

[Oysterman]

Oysterman,
Admittedly I am in NO way familiar with the original tune or the Batman game for Nintendo, but I will say that it is obvious you spent a good deal of time sequencing this tune - lots of notes!

Actually, it wasn't all that tough. I wrote the MIDI in a notation software and edited it a bit in Cakewalk, but it's a lot of "copy & paste" with slight variations.

I didn't care for the beginning up until the "up tempo" section (there was something about the instrument sound that was used, I guess) but maybe that's how the original sounded?

Yep. The intro music sampled from the original game. 8-bit sine and triangle waves... ah, the nostalgia.

I didn't really like the abrupt ending, either.

It's really not supposed to end there. I'm compiling a medley of all the music featured in the Batman game, but I have only learned how to play the first part (well, today I learned the second part), and was eager to go over and mix something. I think I will redo it completely when I have ALL the pieces of the puzzle in place, but anyway, I wanted to try it out. I wasn't too happy with the outcome though, yet I didn't know exactly WHAT I didn't like about it... so I posted here. But it seems like nobody else can find something concrete either (or perhaps they just don't give a damn ).

Other than that, your bass playing was great -- I thought it was sequenced until I re-read your post! Sounds like a fun hobby.

You don't know how many takes I did...! And yes, it's a fun hobby... but any hobby is fun if you're a nerd like me.

I suppose you must have done the theme to Super Mario Brothers already, huh?!

Yes, yes, I have played that in a band, but not recorded it myself. I will do it someday, though, that's for sure...

Thanks for checking it out! Now thrash my mix!