MIDI
Song TitleArtistFeatured InNotes
AccordEller--The title of this peaceful (and accordion-filled) tune comes dangerously close to a pun. I was set to do the music for another (short-lived) game and got the town theme done before the project was canceled. I had done a lot of Phantasy Star-type stuff, so this time I tried to do a more subdued, Squaresoft-style town theme. I'm not sure if I accomplished what I set out to do, but I enjoy the end product. It's simple and sweet.
ArpeggioEller--The name says it all. I kind of just dreamed up the structure of the main line, then I wondered, "How would that sound?" Turns out it sounded pretty neat, and I built a song around it. This one is pretty similar to a standard pop song -- it has a verse, a prechorus, a chorus, and even a distinctive vocal line. I haven't written any lyrics or anything, though.
Battle of Who Could Care LessBen Folds FiveWhatever and Ever AmenMy favorite MIDI transcription of an existing song. I'm sure a lot of the piano is wrong, but it sounds pretty good to me.
Break of DawnEllerDarkPhear SoundtrackAs the name implies, it's a nice little "town" theme, borrowing heavily from the similarly shuffling town theme in Phantasy Star IV. I like the horns at the end.
BubblegooseWyclef JeanSouth Park: Chef AidFor some reason, they were playing this album at a bowling alley one time and the song stuck with me. I assumed that a version was available without the South Park kids on it, but I'm now pretty sure there isn't. The studio version (from Wyclef Jean's The Carnival) has a very nice -- but totally different -- guitar part, and features the mandatory rapping and posturing whose absence made this version so refreshing. Oh well.
Cherub RockSmashing PumpkinsSiamese DreamPretty complex. It's far and a way my biggest MIDI (in KB). Other Smashing Pumpkins fans seem to like it.
ClockworkEllerDarkPhear SoundtrackInspired by the Metal Man stage in Mega Man II on the NES. I've always said that, but recently I listened to the NES music again and it doesn't really sound anything like this.
CrystalEllerDarkPhear SoundtrackPretty generic snow/ice theme (see the map music for world 6 in Super Mario Brothers 3). It gets kind of interesting toward the end, but I would not say it's one of my better ones.
DearthEllerDarkPhear SoundtrackOriginally written as a total experiment, this was given a drum track so it could be included in DarkPhear.
DragonsEllerDarkPhear SoundtrackIt was supposed to be kind of dark and dreary to fit with the game. I think I overdid it.
DrownSmashing PumpkinsSingles SoundtrackReally good Smashing Pumpkins song. I'm pleased with how it turned out. Note that I faded it out at the end instead of transcribing the 3 minutes of feedback and random guitar howls at the end of the real song. You're welcome.
Dr. WormThey Might Be Giantswww.tmbg.comNote to hardcore TMBG fans: pay attention to the source: This isn't the album version from Severe Tire Damage, it's the original "Giant Cam" version from www.tmbg.com. I always liked this arrangement better, I wish they had made this version into the full-length song.
EastSmashing Pumpkinsunknown (Peel sessions?)A very early, very rare Smashing Pumpkins song. There's only one recording I know of. I'm happy with how it turned out, especially the solo, which was a lot of guesswork.
End of the Millenium remixSega/Eller--Re-making a song like the End of the Millenium doesn't require much effort -- several others have done it -- but I had an idea for the main piano line and wanted to try it out. I think it turned out alright.
EtherEllerDarkPhear SoundtrackBased off a bunch of experimental, near-random harmonies and melodies that I just spat out one day. I think it's pretty nice.
Follow MeEllerDarkPhear SoundtrackWritten as a total exercise in writing note-for-note harmonies, I was never terribly proud of this because it's so easy to do. I wanted to do a faux-classical composition after hearing some stuff that a friend made (that was a lot better).
Friends of PThe RentalsReturn of the RentalsRentals songs are so easy to do, they almost aren't worth turning into MIDI. For all I know, Friends of P WAS a MIDI before it was a live recording. This was one of my earliest MIDIs and I always thought I could have given it a little more character.
HorizonEllerDarkPhear SoundtrackThe main battle theme from DarkPhear. I think it's pretty catchy, although I always thought the drums on the refrain were kind of goofy. Inspired by the generic boss battle music in Final Fantasy VII. You know, the one that uses the organ and is in 3/4. Well, I'm sure it has a name, but I'm too lazy to look it up.
Mykel and CarliWeezerHear You MeMan, this is a great song. The original, I mean. The MIDI isn't anything spectacular, but I think it at least does the song justice. The harmonica and the solo were fun to do, and I think they turned out pretty good.
NervesEllerDarkPhear SoundtrackThe very first MIDI I ever wrote. Looking back, it's a bit repetitive. It was originally written with a fighting game in mind.
Night VisionEllerDarkPhear SoundtrackAnother faux-classical arrangement. It starts off good enough, but I don't think the second half fits in at all. Not one of my favorites.
No ExitEllerDarkPhear SoundtrackAnother repetitive DarkPhear song. Actually, in my defense, this is exactly how I wanted the song to turn out. It's the dungeon music. You're not really supposed to be paying attention to flourishes and chord changes when you're trying to find your way out of a dungeon.
Organic BeatSegaPhantasy Star IV SoundtrackA pretty accurate transposition of the PS IV tune. It wasn't that hard to do, except the eight semi-atonal notes halfway through the 'chorus'. Those were pretty hard to figure out, but I think I may have actually nailed them.
OverloadEllerDarkPhear SoundtrackWow. It doesn't get much more fun than writing what is essentially a 2-minute-long guitar solo. It was fun to write all the guitar lines and layer them all together. The harmonics turned out better than I thought they would, too. The ending may seem a little weird; it was tacked on later to make the song more loop-friendly when it was chosen to be in DarkPhear.
Phantasy Star RemixSega/Eller--A pretty over-the-top remix of the title theme from the original Phantasy Star on the Sega Master System. Some people may not like how busy it is, but I always kind of liked how such a frenzied, drum-filled beat was backed by airy strings and harps.
RepriseEllerDarkPhear SoundtrackJust a simple reprise of Horizon, the main battle theme in DarkPhear. It is played after the battle when you're getting money/exp/items, etc.
RocketSmashing PumpkinsSiamese DreamI'm pretty sure this is the first transcription of a real song to MIDI that I ever did. I know, you can tell. Well, it's not THAT bad for a first try...
South CarolinaJohn LinnellState SongsThis is a great song, and I think the MIDI is pretty good, especially when the brass section gets going. The saxophone was always quiet on the computer it was sequenced on, so I had to turn it up. As a consequence, people have complained that the saxophone is way too loud. Sorry. Maybe I'll re-mix it one of these days.
StaminaEllerDarkPhear SoundtrackProbably my favorite original composition. I had to max out the resolution and plot a bunch of little tiny notes to get the 'slide' effects at the beginning, but I think it was worth it. I don't listen to techno or anything remotely like it, but I can't stop making these pseudo-techno MIDIs. I guess that's what happens when you grow up on the NES.
StepsEllerDarkPhear SoundtrackRepetitive? Kind of. Give it a little time. I think it gets pretty nice after all the melodies come in.
The Promissing Future 1SegaPhantasy Star IV SoundtrackThe first video game transcription I did. I know, it's an easy one.
The Safety DanceMen Without HatsRhythm of YouthWho doesn't love the Safety Dance? Not surprisingly, 80's synth-pop lends itself well to MIDI.
ThraySegaPhantasy Star IV SoundtrackAKA Rune's theme from PS IV. It's a good song, but my version was originally mixed in FM synth, and nowadays it sounds real thin. I have a better version that I will post when I get around to it.
Thru the Eyes of RubySmashing PumpkinsMellon Collie and the Infinite SadnessMan, is this a great song. I think this took more work than any other transcription I've done. I know the first 2 choruses sound weird; I was trying to mimic the whispering harmonics that play throughout it, but they got turned up way too loud in the final mix. I also didn't get some of the chords right. So that part's kind of tough to listen to, but I really like the rest of the song, especially the ending, with the accurate transcription of the stream-of-consciousness drums and synth strings, and the fade into the Mellon Collie reprise.
Tonoe de PonSegaPhantasy Star IV SoundtrackCatchy little theme from Tonoe in PS IV. The whistle-like sounds are supposed to be this weird animal sound that plays in the original song; actually that sound itself is a total rip-off of Nintendo's Yoshi sound, so it could stand to be changed a little. Hardcore PS fans will note that I gave the song a fake ending rather than the loop-friendly abrupt ending. If it's that important to you, get a MIDI editor and chop it yourself.
Weep DayThey Might Be GiantsThen: The Earlier YearsWhat a fun song. The drums were fun to do for once! It's great fun to sing along to, if you've heard the original.
Where Your Eyes Don't GoThey Might Be GiantsLincolnI'm pretty happy with this one, especially since it's one of the first few transcriptions I had done. Obviously, the keyboard/organ/accordions were faked, but I think they sound pretty good.
Without a CareEllerDarkPhear SoundtrackI can't really take much credit for this one. The intro is a note-for-note ripoff of the ragtime (pub) theme from Phantasy Star IV, the ending is a near-complete ripoff of Scott Joplin's classic Maple Leaf Rag, and everything in between is probably a ripoff of both pieces. Still, it's a catchy little hack job.
WKRP In Cincinnati ThemeunknownWKRP In CincinattiIt's the theme from WKRP in Cincinnati! How cool is that? This was actually done to help out my dad, of all people, who was doing some weird kind of parody of the song for work (?!?) and needed a music track minus the vocals. After he was done with it, I just added the vocal line and called it a day.
YawnEller--This is another peaceful Squaresoft-like town theme that was never used. It's pretty relaxing, though, and not too repetitive. As with Break of Dawn, I enjoy how the horns come in at the end.