Reviews by cyphax

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The last ninja - palace gardens (loader) - arranged by wk-one

Review by cyphax, 06/11/2006

Warning upfront: my favorite Remix64 track is Tonka's version of this same song. I'm also a big fan of the original SID. That puts the bar way up… well up there, quite high. Not all too fair perhaps, but c'est la vie.

This arrangement isn't bad. But I wouldn't wanna call it great either. So, it's average, hence the rating. Except nostalgia, cause it's very faithful to the original, that is a plus. What could wk-one do to make this better and rise above average?
Let's start off at the first 2 minutes: they're in desperate need of… shape. Shape? Shape. It's too plain right now, and it doesn't really have… well, shape. Or a face. You pick, it's all just terminology: download and listen to the song and it becomes clear in about 2 minutes what I'm trying to say. Fortunately, after these 2 minutes (you know what, it's actually 2:12, but that's for nitpickers) the song starts to show its true face ever so slightly, with drums and just generally more sound, more flair. Unfortunately it's still not convincing enough to blow you away or anything.

The way I see it, this is a fine foundation, but you have to build the house on top or you still end up without a roof over your head. If this is a first attempt, it's surely not bad at all. Just add some bells 'n whistles.
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Judgment Day (2005) - arranged by XxDUSTYxX

Review by cyphax, 13/06/2006

Unfortunately I didn't hear the original and I can't find what it is so I'm gonna have to do without. So how does this song do all by itself? Simply put; great! In Dusty's previous effort, Echoing, I thought the choice of instruments/samples wasn't as good as it could've been. The same does not apply for this remix. Dusty's picks are good alltogether and the remix sounds very pleasant.

I can understand why one might think the song lacks variation but quite possibly the original didn't have any more variation either, in which case I can't blame Dusty at all.

To sum it up a little I can't really seem to find anything wrong with this, I simply really like it a lot.
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Echoing (2002 Remix) - arranged by XxDUSTYxX

Review by cyphax, 30/03/2006

I have somewhat mixed feelings about this remix, but alltogether let's start off by saying that I really like it. What's not to like about this mix? I think the choice for the leads wasn't the best in most of the song, and the effect that's added to it here and there doesn't do it much good either. On the other hand there's this chorus or whatever that you first hear between 0:33 and 0:45 approx. that hits it just right and sounds very very good. Hence the mixed feeling thingie. The beat is simply fine, not particularly outstanding but it serves its purpose, like it should.
To sum things up: energetic and at times volumous remix that could be better with different leads but sounds good to excellent depending on which part of the song you're listening to.😉
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Last Ninja - Palace Gardens (Loader) - arranged by Tonka

Review by cyphax, 19/02/2006

While I hadn't heard the original, after hearing this remix I wondered how it could be true to the original SID. I went ahead and fired up the SID and well, the remix IS true to the original. It's a fantastic SID altogether. But this remix… this remix is something else, something much more. Actually, to put it straight-in-your-face, this is by far my favorite from remix64. What it is exactly, I can't tell but somehow this song gives me lots of energy, and I can't sit still for a second listening to it. Perhaps it's the beat, the right use of SID samples for the leads; it all blends into something very beautiful.
For me, it just hits the right spot, and it hasn't lost any of its magic since I first heard it (I'm talking months ago). Again, absolutely my favorite remix/remake!
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Gordian Tomb Adventures - arranged by Glyn R Brown

Review by cyphax, 23/05/2004

More than a job well done. I didn't know the original sid track either but you don't have to, to like this. Being a matter of taste, I have no problems whatsoever with the vocals, they fit in great.
This is at least a must-try, you'll find out soon enough if it fits in your musical taste. If it does, you're not gonna be sorry for hearing this one.
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