Fate of Atlantis - Soundtrack Re-Recording in 2011 - RELEASED!!

beckett007

New member
First time poster, LOOOOONG time lurker. Figured it was about time I posted as I have something worth posting about :)

Over the last month or so I began to re-orchestrate and re-arrange pieces from an old adventure game that is dear to many of our hearts.. Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis. The original score composed by Clint Bajakian, Peter McConnell, and Michael Z. Land was epic in its own right and has some amazing themes and motifs running throughout. What I've done here is totally reworked some of the original midi source files and have re-recorded them utilizing a custom sample library recorded in London... which is why this album is called "The London Sessions". This has been done before... but not like this and not to this scale. In fact, this could almost be considered a "music inspired by" situation due to the amount of reorchestrating and arranging that I've done... but you'll undoubtedly recognize themes from the game in all of their epic glory! I assure you that this is as close as we'll ever get to a live orchestral performance of FOA.

Because only ONE custom sample set was used the album has a very nice cohesive feel to it and turned out really well. Just please understand this is not meant to be a complete score and a direct rip of the game score... it has been re orchestrated to give it more of a modern vibe.

Those familiar with the game will REALLY enjoy this for sure. Those who aren't should grab a copy of it off of STEAM or unlock the game within the Wii version of Staff of Kings. Old school goodness.

Anyway, this is far from a complete score from the game, in fact it's more like a "best of" but all of the big pieces are there.

FOA_LondonSessions_AlbumFront.jpg


Here's the full track list.

TRT - 31 Minutes +/-

1. The Raiders March (main titles)* - 2:23
2. Map Screen - :30
3. Kerner and Trip To Iceland (Kerner steals the statue)* - 3:13
4. Sophias Presentation - 2:19
5. Streets of Monte Carlo (monte carlo car chase) - 1:47
6. The Unfortunate Death of Dr. Jones* - 1:24
7. Fight at the Dig (fight music)* - 1:31
8. The First Ring of Atlantis - 3:13
9. Crab Raft - 2:25
10. Lava Maze - 2:54
11. Finale and End Credits (the second ring of atlantis)* - 9:25

*-Contains portions of The Raiders March by John Williams

Check out a few samples:
Fight at the Dig:
http://snd.sc/v61g8S

Crab Raft:
http://soundcloud.com/rich-12-1/fate-of-atlantis-crab-raft

Finally, the FULL album can be downloaded here:
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=60ECVZEM

In the zip you'll find the tracks listed above (which have correct ID3 tags), a F.A.Q. concerning the score, and the cover art featured above.

Or if that link is having issues, it can be downloaded via my site here:
http://richdouglas.net/ocr/FateOfAtlantis_LS_Soundtrack.zip

Enjoy!

Rich
 

IAdventurer01

Well-known member
Just finished listening to the whole thing. First let me preference this with that it was EXCELLENT. I've been working on a rearrangement/recording of FoA on-again, off-again for about a year myself, and I know firsthand how difficult this can be, and you did splendidly. Now I'm going to complain about stuff. ;)

COMPLAINTS: :gun:
First, while I think that you succeeded in making the sound "more modern," I don't particularly think it fits an Indy adventure. Basically, I would compare it to trying to listen to Raiders with The Dark Knight soundtrack (extreme comparison, but it's what was in my head). While it's not inherently bad, I just don't think it particularly works.

Along with that, some of the mysteriousness of the original pieces I think is lost. Crab Raft is by far the best example of this, in which your arrangement of it perhaps gives a much more sinister sound to Atlantis, I think it loses a lot of its original, haunting quality.

That said, I think you did a much better job of capturing that in Lava Maze, though that song I always found a bit more 'sinister' than 'haunting' anyway.

The appearances of the Raiders March I think were the worst parts of the soundtrack, but mostly just because we've all heard live recordings of it for years, and you can't really compare. The 'modern' sound hurts this the most though, with the percussion being entirely to heavy and drowning out the rest of the parts. It makes it feel as though it's dragging, too. Most of the 'action' cues seem like they're dragging a bit, in fact. Giving a bit lighter, but more driving percussion backing would help, or maybe even taking it up tempo slightly to make the cues more exciting.

TECHNICAL STUFF:
What did you use to make it, by the way? I particularly like the strings and low brass you were using. Percussion sounded good, too, but I personally don't like it as heavy and thumpy. That might be the large amount of room noise you have set, though.


And again to end on a cheery note: Truly, a great job. Yes, there are other attempts at improving the sound of FoA, but you're clearly reigning at the top in my book for right now. (y)
 
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InexorableTash

Active member
Very nicely done. Should we be hoping for more, and/or suggesting favorite tracks? (The answer may be in the FAQ, but I can't read it from this device.)

I echo IAdventurer01's sentiments about the Raiders March. There's something about the FOA version that always feels slightly off, even in the original MIDI. Is it the "attack" on the horns being "weaker" than live recordings, leading to an unusual "swell" during the bombastic notes of the march? Obviously I don't know the correct lingo to describe what I'm hearing. I also don't know if this was intentional, something you attempted to preserve, or a limitation of the technology.

Regardless - the overall quality of this re-recording is extremely high and I'm impressed. Definitely the best version I've heard.
 

beckett007

New member
Thanks guys! Glad everyone is digging it.

There MIGHT be a volume 2 if I can get the time, but I'm really happy with the album as it stands. Feel free to suggest a few favorites and I'll see if I can get around to re-orchestrating them!

Of course everyone is entitled to their opinion IAdventurer.. but as a fellow composer you know that music is an artform, and any artform is up to the artist as to how it's presented and a totally subjective. That said, The Raiders March is a VERY tricky animal to nail down using samples. I definitely feel I did the best I could with the tools at my disposal, but totally agree with what you guys have stated here. Coincidentally, I've been doing James Bond music for 10 years in my spare time... and the bond theme seems far easier to nail down with samples.

For example, I did this with various commercial sample libraries and some live guitar work. Pretty damn good for being 90% digital:
http://soundcloud.com/rich-12-1/gunbarrel-and-the-long-climb


In my opinion, with Crab Raft in particular, the arrangement itself is mysterious while the orchestration is sinister. Totally works, but as stated above... this is of course totally subjective.

As far as what I used to make it, it was one sample library recorded in London with tutti sample which has true legato, natural reverb (what you hear is what it sounds like "out of the box"), and utilizes some of the same players Zimmer did on The Dark Knight (hence the reason the sound and timbre is similar)... but I don't want to give away all of my secrets :).

Rich
 

Attila the Professor

Moderator
Staff member
beckett007 said:
There MIGHT be a volume 2 if I can get the time, but I'm really happy with the album as it stands. Feel free to suggest a few favorites and I'll see if I can get around to re-orchestrating them!

The first one that occurred to me as absent was Indy and Sophia's Kiss, light and lilting. The New York music is probably one of the first I think of when I think of the Fate of Atlantis score, but possibly it doesn't seem representative enough of the game to work for you; the same may go for The Singing Nazi. You did rather good work with the Nazi theme from the game in a track or two; perhaps the fuller statement of it in The Nazi Submarine would be something to consider. Finally, the Transit is fantastic.

The work you've done so far is really quite good, and a lovely surprise to come out of the blue like this. I agree a little bit with the Zimmer critique, but you're working with what you're working with, and the artist does have some discretion for interpretation, after all.
 
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