So music for a Classic Sonic inspired game sounds like music from OTHER Classic Sonic games?!? Impossible!!!
That theme is jammin'. It sounds like a blend of Fumie cuts off Adventure, Sonic CD, and Sonic Rush/JSR. I love it, and I cannot wait to hear more.
I don't know if I would describe it as "Sonic CD but not," but I think I understand what LowSeasCaroz is saying. This particular track doesn't quite have the same "punch" that some of the other tracks he's done. It's difficult to explain without a musical vocabulary for sure. I like the track, please don't misunderstand, and it's far better than anything from Forces and most other Sonic tracks as of late, but... yeah I don't know. I wouldn't want to be on the record saying I'm iffy about a Tee Lopes track, ya feel? Let's just say I want to hear it alongside gameplay. Maybe it'll click then.
Whilst I agree it's not quite as Sonic & Knuckles-like as I would want to hear, I got nothing bad to say about the quality of the work. (Apart from that I think Tee Lopes should be getting strung out listening to Pink Floyd so he can start mimicking Spencer Nilsen's superior US soundtrack :^) ) I do feel that the Mania OST feels closer to the vibe that 90's Sonic was trying to give off though. Was in this thread or the Forces one where someone used Paula Abdul as an example of the 'feel' of classic sonic music? Either way, Tee Lopes isn't too far off, even if it feels his work is just putting a new hat on an old malibu stacey.
Hmm, well here's my humble thoughts on Tee Lopes's work: Along with the fantastic pixel art and animation, his music is the biggest reason I'm excited for "Mania." I think his renditions of "Spring Yard" and "Bob-omb Battlefield" are his best work prior to "Mania" (and his "Aquatic Ruin" rendition is pretty good, too). Some of his other work prior to "Mania" for me does fall into the category many remixes/renditions do of "interesting, but nowhere near as good as the original." (Which is not a bad thing in and of itself--having your take on a great song come close to or exceeding the original song's quality is obviously damn hard for anyone to pull off.) But I am not worried in the slightest about feeling this way about the majority of his work for "Mania," based on what we've heard so far. I think his renditions of "Green Hill" and "Flying Battery" are honestly slightly better than the incredible original songs. (Pretty damn impressive considering those are all-time classics.) Of course, his renditions don't *exist* without the originals, and the originals are still incredibly great. But once I have the "Mania" OST, I will honestly opt to listen to his renditions for those two over the originals, most of the time. That said, I do think his rendition of "Chemical Plant" is not as good or better than the original. (Again, really damn hard for anyone in the world to do that considering the original song is a masterpiece, and Masato Nakamura in my opinion is one of the greatest composers of all-time.) I still think it's pretty good, but I would in that instance rather listen to the original. But his Act 2 remix for the zone is wonderful, and I will be listening to that a lot. As for his original compositions--"Studiopolis" and "Mirage Saloon" are destined to become stone-cold classics in the pantheon of Sonic music. They're perfect for their zones, I don't think they merely sound like remixes of other songs but much more wholly original (though of course *any* original work is taking inspiration from myriad sources, whether consciously or not). You may be right that "Hi Spec Robo Go!" sounds a little more "remix-y," but it's still really good. I think this is going to be the greatest game soundtrack since Disasterpeace's "Fez" from 2012, and the best soundtrack of the year. I also think Tee has overall really stepped up his game working on this project, and that "Studiopolis" and "Mirage Saloon" prove he can make original compositions that are better than even his best remixes/renditions. I greatly look forward to not only his work for "Mania" but everything he does from here on out.
I can understand the critique of Lopes' tracks and past compositions released so far as being derivative or of limited range, but I'll have to greatly disagree with you on using that as a metric of the quality of both the tracks themselves and Lopes' skills as a composer. If we are going to measure the originality of or variation within a work as a barometer for how good or bad it is, then I could make the argument that Mania should be in the same realm of quality as Sonic 4, due to how half of the game's zones (as well as several bosses and badniks) are reused from older games. Same goes for Pocket Adventure (the entire game is a rehash of content from the old games) and Generations (all of the levels are past zones, with the majority of them being of the tropical / city trope).
Tee Lopes' soundtrack so far may not be the most inventive when it comes emulating the Sonic style, but isn't that kind of the point? I'm not accusing Mania of not bringing anything new to the table of course, but in essence, the entire appeal of the game is that it is building upon concepts that we as fans have nostalgia for; bringing back the art style, the retro engine's recreation of the classic physics, etc. That being said, I think it's appropriate that Mania's soundtrack is heavily influenced by the series' past soundtracks. Tee Lopes has a long history arranging songs from Sonic soundtracks, and that undoubtedly has had an effect on his style. Indeed, it is necessary for the composer to become well versed in various styles so that he/she can choose what they would like to build upon or explore. Honestly, I think Mirage Saloon and Studiopolis are home runs for the soundtrack. They may be playing it safe, but they do a damn good job at it. Lastly, if we get the pleasure of receiving another Sonic soundtrack from Tee Lopes after Mania, I'm almost positive we'll see growth from him, along with a more unique style as a result!
In a way I totally get what you mean. I think as a fanbase we tend to latch onto many things we liked from previous works and sometimes that becomes a problem. Not every fangame has to be Sonic CD with the Japanese soundtrack or unused concepts from Sonic 1 or 2. Not every fanart has to be inspired from the Japanese Mega Drive covers or Modern Sonic being stuck in the Adventure era etc etc. While there should be a style and consistency to the brand (whether it's Classic, Modern or Boom) that doesn't mean it can't be different or try new things. For example, I still remember some people giving shit to the Generations soundtrack because it had dubstep and autotune elements because they felt it was trying too hard to keep up with the times. Though they fail to remember that the music from the classics had the music it had because it was trying to emulate the music of the time. I think Mania does suffer from this a bit (not just from the soundtrack) but at the same time I feel like it's part of the charm it has. Though I would expect a different experience for a hypothetical Mania 2 for example.
My only complaint is that it sounds so much better at 90% speed. Still plenty energetic, but easier to follow the melody.
I actually agree 100% for this and the boss music. Save the speed for pinch mode. The mini boss theme in Green Hill Act 1 is just right.
Something like this kind of...sorry if it's a bit off topic, but I liked the emulation. https://youtu.be/rCSMOWNDJr0
http://vocaroo.com/i/s1FgDXMMHzY6 ...it actually really bugs me how much more I like it at that speed. In a weird way, it makes the actual track sound better by association? Like, now I can pick out the melody itself a lot easier now. Also in the camp that says I like the official music, and I'm sure the tempo is fine-tuned to match the gameplay; I'll probably change my own 'tune' once the game is out and I can hear it as intended alongside the boss battles. The slower version just makes for easier listening is all. This is my initial impression. No offense intended to the parties responsible for its composition and mixing. Just my thoughts.
What the fuck. I want an HQ version of this. I am genuinely surprised of how good it sounds! EDIT: Fuck it, I did it myself. Enjoy! I actually like some of NicoCW work. His Collison Chaos rendition is also pretty cool, and sometimes I listen to his Generations-styled remixes. Still, some of his new work on his new channel still sound very amateurish to me, with incorrect use of instruments.
Also tried to slow it down a few minutes ago lol. http://picosong.com/WWkG/ I like it more slower too.
The music for this game is going to be on loop for me forever. How can this be so good, but Forces be so off the mark.
Yep, put me down as liking the 90% version better too. It's easier to follow and you can appreciate the melody more.
