Jump to content

DarthDementous

Members
  • Posts

    1,378
  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    1

Reputation Activity

  1. Like
    DarthDementous reacted to Nick1Ø66 in THE ORVILLE - Show Discussion   
    I've been wondering...what are midi-files?
  2. Like
    DarthDementous reacted to Wojo in THE ORVILLE - Show Discussion   
    I just love the show because it gives me the same warm fuzzy that watching classic TNG and DS9 does. 
  3. Like
    DarthDementous reacted to Jay in THE ORVILLE - Show Discussion   
    I like the optimism the show has too - seen too many pessimistic shows lately and its a welcome change.
  4. Like
    DarthDementous reacted to TheAvengerButton in Gordy Haab's Star Wars: Battlefront 2 (2017)   
    I'm gonna bump this topic again (sorry if this is a no no) but I've managed to make a full soundtrack playlist for myself and I thought I'd post it to help anyone else looking to make a "definitive" listening experience to enjoy.
     
    So, the game's soundtrack is a mess as I've before stated and I've been desperately trying to figure out what the extra music is that appears on Gordy's soundcloud page, and from what I can tell I guess it's music he's written for the game that the campaign developers...didn't want to use? Let me break down the tracks for you:
     
    Encounters on the Battlefront seems to be a collection of music that is mainly used in the main menu, with a few out of place action cues thrown in the middle to balance out the calmness of the rest of the track. Cool.
     
    Iden Versio-Into Combat is just a "concert arrangement" of Iden's theme, shows up almost exactly preserved in the End Credits Medley.
     
    Prologue and the Escape is a severely cut up version of the same "Prologue" theme that was released with the rest of the ten minutes or so of campaign music way back when except with an action cue that surprisingly I've never heard played at all during the campaign. Very strange. I'll tell you what I did with this one once I get to the tracklist itself.
     
    Home Planet, Vardos is half of a "concert arrangement" piece and half an actual score, with parts of it playing during the opening cutscene when the Corvus arrives over Vardos and Iden talking with her father. Some of it plays in a loop when you're on the ground exploring the planet. Either way this is one of the best arrangements IMO that he's done of his music.
     
    The Battle Unfolds is an arrangement of the action cues from the soundtrack. It includes Falcon Flight, but I still include that as a standalone piece in the tracklist regardless of its appearance here.
     
    Han's Kessel Run is Gordy's incredible piece written for the Solo update. The first half is the "Solo" theme that Gordy composed while the second half covers his music written for "Kessel". I almost enjoy this theme for Han more than William's and Powells and this is once again a stand out piece of scoring for Gordy.
     
    Touring the Planets Montages--I'm including both here because it's redundant otherwise, but these are self explanatory. They cover the music for the planet loading screens. Without the John Williams, of course.
     
    The Betrayal is a score piece and plays when Iden and Hask confront each other the first time on Vardos when Iden is trying to rescue the civilians from Operation Cinder.
     
    Snoke and the Dreadnought. Here we reach a piece that I do not believe appears in the game AT ALL in ANY form. It's a brilliant piece though, and it gives us a First Order theme that is simiilar to Kylo Ren's theme from the films.
     
    Hard Decisions and the Rescue Attempt appears in the game only once. The beginning part I know I've heard in the game somewhere before but I couldn't find it played during the campaign, while the "I Can Fly Anything" knock off in the second half of the piece plays when you're fighting on the Retribution in the Resurrection DLC.
     
    Pillio Wasteland/Skirmish is an arrangement of a secondary theme that you hear all throughout the campaign and the Menu music. It mostly covers Dell's journey to Pillio.
     
    Go. Survive. Live! is an alternate arrangement of sorts to "Iden Confronts Garrick" with a little bit of "Finale" thrown in (I think) at the end.
     
    Iden and Dell is a love theme that I don't think is ever heard in game. It's very similar to "Han Solo and the Princess".
     
    Last but not least we have Iden, Reborn, a part of which does play during the campaign after Leia confronts Iden on Naboo after the battle.
     
    So there you have it. I've tried to do my best and I've poured over different gameplay of the campaign a million times to bring you this analysis of these tracks. Now onto the tracklist, which I'll post and then give a commentary for:
     
    Beginning note: It's important to think of this as not just a "score" soundtrack. It's a soundtrack for all the music he has composed for the game put forward in a straightforward manner with the chronology of the story preserved as best as it could be while also allowing room for the arranged tracks as well. I'm also looking at INTENT. What did Gordy intend these tracks to represent? I think I did a fair job as far as that goes.
     
    1. Prologue
    2. The Escape (I kept the score version of the prologue for Track 1, took out the beginning portion of "Prologue and the Escape" and made it it's own thing. I think the action music here is supposed to represent her fight off the ship, but in the game this music was replaced with the Crait Loading Loop music and another action cue)
    ((The next three tracks are arrangements that I put here to fill out the blank space of non-score music. The Endor and Fondor missions are made up of mostly action cues and score from the first game))
    3. Encounters on the Battlefront
    4. Iden Versio - Into Combat
    5. Touring the Planets - Montage 1
    6. Pillio Wasteland
    7. Home Planet, Vardos
    8. The Betrayal
    9. Hijacking the AT-AT
    10. Iden and Dell (put here to represent the scene of Iden and Dell meditating on what to do next after Vardos. I thought this was a good place for it)
    11. Iden, Reborn
    12. Han's Kessel Run (once again, this doesn't actually appear in the campaign but since this track and Falcon Flight deal with Han Solo I thought it fitting that these two tracks are together)
    13. Falcon Flight
    ((Again, I'm putting these next to tracks here to fill the void left by the borrowed score used for the next few missions. The incursion on Sullust and the Battle of Jakku missions use either Battlefront 1 score--the Sullust suite in the case of Sullust and random action cues in the case of the Battle of Jakku))
    14. Touring the Planets - Montage 2
    15. The Battle Unfolds
    16. Fighting Hask
    17. Iden Confronts Garrick
    18. The War is Over (I retitled this from it's original title, "Finale")
    19. Kylo Ren Arrives
    ((While these next two tracks don't appear in any concrete form in the game, I think the INTENT was that they appear frequently during the Resurrection DLC and they didn't. Their music reflects the soundscape and style of the Sequel Trilogy with The Rescue Attempt being a BLATANT, BLATANT knock-off of I Can Fly Anything and Snoke and the Dreadnought having notes of the feral Phasma fight in The Last Jedi))
    20. Hard Decisions and the Rescue Attempt (even though parts of this track play while you're on the Star Destroyer, I put it here because I think the Rescue Attempt of the title is referring to the rescue of Zay on the planet Vardos)
    21. Snoke and the Dreadnought
    22. Go. Survive. Live! (the reason I put this here is that it has a lot of nice finality to it, seeing as it quotes the last two tracks in the campaign score.)
    23. Credits
     
    And that's it. The only unfortunate thing about the files I have in my library are that the story score tracks are 128 mp3s while the rest are beautiful WAV files, but hopefully one day I can run across score tracks that are at least higher quality MP3s. If anyone enjoys this music as much as I do and wants to use this as a tracklist, or if anyone has anything to add or criticize be my guest.
  5. Like
    DarthDementous reacted to TheAvengerButton in Gordy Haab's Star Wars: Battlefront 2 (2017)   
    So, I wanted to revive this topic for a moment. I apologize up front for the novel I'm about to write.
     
    Firstly, I want to gush. I figured out recently that ol' Gordy uploaded the Gordy Only tracks to his Soundcloud for the first Battlefront game and it's so beneficial to a positive listening experience. Having it just be his original themes is fantastic, especially if you were wondering about his melodic chops as a Williams-mimic. I think he does a fantastic job there. My favorite of his themes is the Resistance suite.
     
    Second, I want to throw a fit about the soundtrack to the second game. Originally, Haab had uploaded 8 or 9 tracks from the campaign (Prologue, Hijacking an AT-AT, Falcon Flight, etc.) that I guess has been wiped from the internet altogether. FilmScoreMedia (hi Manakin) no longer hosts them on his Youtube page and they damn sure aren't anywhere else on the internet to listen to. But then a little while ago he uploads another batch of fourteen or so tracks that I haven't been able to make sense of. From what I can tell not a lot of their content has shown up in the game. There's the suite "Iden Versio - Into Combat" which seems to just be a "concert arrangement" of her theme. There's "Prologue and The Escape" which has the same music from the earlier track "Prologue" with the very beginning cut off followed by some action music that I don't think is actually heard anywhere in game. There's "Snoke and the Dreadnought" which I would assume is a piece from the Resurrection DLC but I've played through the campaign enough times and I can't seem to recall any of the music in that theme showing up in the game.
     
    Due to the nature of the second Battlefront I can understand it being a little more difficult to put forth some melodic content seeing as the game is mostly multiplayer focused and there are too many planets and maps for Gordy to repeat what he did in the first game, but this means that the only really consistent theme we get for the second game is Iden's theme. There's a lot of reuse of some of Battlefront 1's music as well and it doesn't seem to be reorchestrated, but just copypasted from the first game.
     
    There is a hell of a lot of copypasting from every sort of different source for the actual Campaign soundtrack. You get little snippets from the movies (Panaka and the Queen's Protectors showing up in action sequences) or little tiddly-bits from the first game (a quote from the Death Star theme he wrote for the DS maps in the first game appropriately showing up during the Battle of Endor sequence) and then those splices of his original written music showing up from time to time (Falcon Flight, which is a particular favorite of mine). It's all kind of a mess to make sense of and I can't enjoy a listen of Battlefront II's music as much because I have a problem and I like consistency and chronology. Trying to piece together a vague idea of BFII's soundtrack is making me go nuts and I was wondering if anyone out there has made any sense of it.
     
    Let me give an example. In the first level of the game, we begin with the piece "Prologue" which follows the first scene of the game--Iden's interrogation up to "You're right. The Empire's time has come." Then we switch over to some low end brass and woodwind, soft string piece I can't identify because I can't hear much of it, but I suspect it's a bit from one of the film soundtracks as I haven't been able to match it with any of the original music tracks. It plays while the Sullustan is hacking into Iden's droid. Then once she escapes we get the action sequence music, which is Panaka and the Queen's Protectors (which IMO is kind of ill-fitting because we are an Imperial killing good-guy Rebels and the selection just adds a dark irony to the proceedings) mixed with a little of the Crait A music, which is quite a fantastic war march that might also be a new favorite of the original tracks.
     
    I guess what I'm trying to do is something similar to how Gordy has laid out the soundtrack to the first game and create a listening experience that follows BFII's campaign that only features Gordy's original music. It's a very daunting task and there are some random tracks I can't seem to locate or place from the films or even the past two games and it's driving me nuts. Does anyone have any insight or is anyone obsessing over this to the extent that I am?
     
    EDIT: I'll also add that I can at least follow some of the chronology of the soundtrack with help from some Youtube videos who have added the tracks that cover the cinematics, but I am trying to include the original music that has been spliced into the the actual gameplay as well to see if I can make a nice, whole listening experience.
  6. Like
    DarthDementous reacted to Nick Parker in Seal sings the Star Wars theme   
    Agreed. 
     
    Still, there's something almost profound in seeing another species perform a John Williams theme.
     
    ...Think if we put the seal in front of Williams' house and have it sing, Williams would come out and shake its flipper?
  7. Like
    DarthDementous got a reaction from Smeltington in Potterdom Film/Score Series Thread   
    on the topic of scores, I found this lovely little suite from the Order of the Phoenix video-game. because the released soundtrack has been altered to remove any references to Hedwig's theme this was a pleasant find:
    probably the best treatment of William's themes and integration I've ever heard (other than from Williams himself ofc :p).
  8. Like
    DarthDementous reacted to Thor in Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (James Mangold, June 30 2023)   
    Indiana Jones and the Tired Old Jokes About His Age When He's Really Not That Old.
  9. Like
    DarthDementous reacted to Not Mr. Big in Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (James Mangold, June 30 2023)   
    Indiana Jones and the in his Bed because He's OLD!!
    Indiana Jones and He Does Social Security Now 
    Indiana Jones and the Giant Killer Bedsore from Lying Down All the Time in HIS BED 
    Indiana Jones and the PENSION CHECK of Indiana Jones Who is Now Old

  10. Like
    DarthDementous reacted to TheUlyssesian in Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them 5-film series   
    If it's not in her book or her screenplay, it's bullshit.
     
    It's like Mel Gibson receiving praise after the release of Expendables 3 for saying how his character had saved oppressed people from persecution in his youth or fought in the civil Rights movement.
     
    Should Gibson get praise for such claims?
     
    Opportunism has to be called out wherever it comes from.
  11. Like
    DarthDementous reacted to Disco Stu in Junkie XL's SONIC THE HEDGEHOG (2019) & SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 2 (2022)   
    Sonic was always the personification of the worst tropes of 90s kids marketing.  This looks like the movie the character deserves.
  12. Like
    DarthDementous reacted to Unlucky Bastard in Star Wars IX The Rise of Skywalker (JJ Abrams 2019)   
    It thubverted ekthpektathunth
  13. Like
    DarthDementous reacted to Arpy in Star Wars IX The Rise of Skywalker (JJ Abrams 2019)   
    Solo was a mess, it was a severe mishandling of marketing and the fact that they had so many issues during production with the firing of the original directors. The end product is what you'd get if you pulled an all-nighter on an assignment, you did the research, you've got the quotes and supporting arguments, you've got the references and bibliography all cited and correct, but you left it to the day before it was due and it shows. 
     
    But TLJ, a mess? Nothing would suggest the production process didn't go smoothly and end result was anything but a disaster, it was just not what a majority of the audience had expected.
  14. Like
    DarthDementous reacted to Arpy in Star Wars IX The Rise of Skywalker (JJ Abrams 2019)   
    Clean up a mess? @rough cut  Imagine the stress, the pressure of nearly a decade of a void of Star Wars films, the aftertaste of the Prequels, the legacy and nostalgia of forty plus years leading up to The Force Awakens. It must've been insane and would've given me panic attacks!
     
    One of the things I found interesting about the process on that film was just how involved Abrams and Kasdan were and their collaborative nature in going for walks, talking for hours about the story, really trying to wrap their heads around how they were going to bring Star Wars back. I was more interested in that aspect when the film came out because from all accounts Disney and Lucasfilm had a positive front, constantly reassuring the fans that this was something special, and for a while, it didn't seem like a mega corporation making a product, it felt like they were invested in creating a good film first.
     
    They put on the same face with TLJ and I felt completely at ease going in that what we were getting was more of what TFA and Abrams had given us. Like others I was disappointed, I wasn't sure why at the time, but nowhere in that period of absorbing what I'd just seen did I feel betrayed or disheartened or thinking that this film was poorly thought out - I really believed it was a problem I had disassociating myself from my expectations, my feelings and thoughts. 
     
    Is TLJ a mess? No. Is it different to what I had expected after TFA? Definitely. Is it a problem inherent in the management and creative side of Disney, Lucasfilm, Rian Johnson, Kathleen Kennedy etc? Not really, it's more the negative emotions surrounding the film that have impacted how I'm going to respond to the next film and that means that instead of feeling reassured Abrams is returning, I'm feeling like this film coming up will have to temper the expectations more than TFA, it has more riding on it because it has to end this series. Not cleaning up a mess, more like polishing a tarnished medallion. 
     
  15. Like
    DarthDementous reacted to John in Star Wars IX The Rise of Skywalker (JJ Abrams 2019)   
    Not sure if joking or not... Star Wars movies are known for their excellent art direction.
  16. Like
    DarthDementous reacted to Chen G. in Star Wars IX The Rise of Skywalker (JJ Abrams 2019)   
    I love that, even though he works on these films, Mark Hamil is saying it like it is!
     
    I'm not even sure I agree with him, but you gotta admire his attitude.
     
    He's the man!
  17. Like
    DarthDementous reacted to Alex in Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (James Mangold, June 30 2023)   
    Mutt died on the way back to his home planet
  18. Like
    DarthDementous reacted to Demodex in Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (James Mangold, June 30 2023)   
    Ah, I see what you're saying now.  Yeah, I can agree with that.  I can admit when I'm wrong.
  19. Like
    DarthDementous reacted to crumbs in Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (James Mangold, June 30 2023)   
    But so much of the jungle chase was shot legitimately, albeit in the cushy safety of Hawaii, before Lucas and ILM cartooned it to hell and back. What started as just covering up tire tracks from the camera track ended up coating the entire screen with relentless CGI foliage. The result is a blurry, cartoony mess. The sword fight atop the cars is surely the worst offender (yes, even worse than swinging with monkeys in the vines). It's even replete with a godawful fake lens flare smeared all over the frame, as if to hide the godawful CGI all over the shot.

     

     
    What the actual fuck was Spielberg thinking when he signed off on that? If nothing else, Spielberg has always had an astute eye for poor CGI but he just didn't seem to care with KOTCS.
     
    You're right though, watching this documentary on how much was done practically really is an indictment on... something! I'm not sure if it's the colour gradist, Kaminski asking for bloom/smoke, an ILM compositor on steroids, or Spielberg himself, but all this work just looks like a mess of over-processed digital rubbish in the final cut. The jungle-specific stuff starts at 11:00 and it's just depressing how much better everything looked BEFORE they smeared digital plants all over the frame. Ironically, they cite the reason for this as, "selling it to the audience that they're driving through a jungle, not on a road." Fail much? All they did was make it look like a Pixar movie and draw attention to the fakeness of the imagery, when it was shot in a real jungle!
     
     
  20. Like
    DarthDementous reacted to Balahkay in GALAXY'S EDGE - New John Williams composition (2018)   
    I really hope Williams keeps up this momentum and vibe as he works his way through TROS.
  21. Like
  22. Like
    DarthDementous got a reaction from Ollie in Michael Giacchino's Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016) - 2022 Expanded Edition now available   
    glad to see that there's people out there that also enjoy this score and want a more comprehensive version of it. keep up the great work guys!
  23. Like
    DarthDementous got a reaction from The Illustrious Jerry in Star Wars IX The Rise of Skywalker (JJ Abrams 2019)   
    watch the crystal cave Falcon scene from The Last Jedi, one of the TIEs shoot the square radar dish off.
  24. Like
    DarthDementous got a reaction from Cerebral Cortex in Star Wars IX The Rise of Skywalker (JJ Abrams 2019)   
    watch the crystal cave Falcon scene from The Last Jedi, one of the TIEs shoot the square radar dish off.
  25. Like
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Guidelines.