DarkSim

Well, I wasn't a fan of the Strauss intro - far too overt usage, but then good on you for clueing us in to the Sun of Nothing usage, because chances are low any of us are familiar enough with that song to make the connection. Imagine if someone stuck a minute's worth of Stairway to Heaven in the middle of their track... it's not gonna fly unfortunately, so thanks for pointing out the reference material, however obscure it may be. If you do revisit this one, could you do something about the oscillating panning on the strings and subsequent synth from 1:45-2:39 and then 2:58-3:34? It's so distracting having them move around like that - better to keep them in one place, or drastically reduce the amount of movement. Would love this one to get on the site in some form, but it'll need a major rework. Great track and concept, though! NO

Thanks for the reference tracks - I listened to T-Square - TRUTH, and can definitely hear the influence. So cool to hear Stickerbush done in this style, it's one of my favourite pieces of VGM, and you've done something new with it that sounds great. Couple of things could be improved with the mixing - that snare is quite aggressive, particularly noticeable in the first minute or so of the track. Once you hear it, it's kinda distracting. The bell from 0:30 is also very faint and could stand to be brought up a little. Love the introduction of the sax and lead guitar, they work wonders together. Perhaps an extra tribute to David Wise, who also plays the saxophone? Would be amazing to hear the sax played live... Nice ritardando to finish. Really enjoyed this one, thanks! YES

Hearing this for the first time, and I'm in agreement with Joe here. It's a pretty uninspired arrangement, but there are differences in the choruses, the build to the second drop is better, and production is excellent. It's loud, but everything is crystal clear. Source is all over it. It's hard not to be swayed by the greatness we've come to expect from bLiNd, but even an off-form track from Jordan is still above our standards. Like Joe said, if this was a newcomer we'd all be in awe of the skills on show. Regardless of how much better it could be from the artist, it's gotta be a pass. YES

I'm impressed how you've managed to flesh out the source so well with a melody that, listening to the source afterwards, I could hear in my head. It feels like a very natural expansion on the theme, and works perfectly in the rock/metal style. Mixing is decent, the rhythm guitars have a nice chunky feel to them, and the shrill, distorted lead has been given some generous reverb so that it's not too grating. The drumkit lacks a little humanisation, but it's sequenced very well with lots of variety. Arrangement works well, there are sufficient breaks and energetic sections, and I like that outro a lot - an idea perhaps tacked onto the end that you came up with too late to work it in earlier. Could have made a moody breakdown section, or even an intro, but it works as an ending as well. YES

That melody from 0:07-0:12 has an Arabian feel, a little nod to Oil Ocean I guess, from the source. It's a tidy package with very cohesive sound design which I like, even if it might sound a little dated. The SFX were unexpected, but they work for the style (putting a Boo cackle from Mario in a Sonic mix - how dare you!). Mixing feels good, although again there's a retro feel to it that comes from the synths and it lacks some of the complexity and richness of modern EDM. On the issue of repetition, I think that while the percentage may be approaching a third of the track, it doesn't feel overly repetitive, and given that it says what it needs to say and doesn't beat about the bush for too long, I'm happy. YES

Digging the retro-synth style. Nice cohesive sound palette. The swing on the hi-hats is a bit disconcerting, but it didn't trouble me as much as proph. Once I figured out it was 3/4 it was more natural, but I think a lighter hat sound with some more sizzle and decay on the transient might have worked a little better, with perhaps a looser feel to it. Or play the notes in triplets and then swing it from there. Piano sounds lovely, and it fits right in with the synths. The transition to the 4/4 section at 2:16 is a bit clunky, but it's not easy to smoothly go between signatures. The ride cymbals here sound great - exactly the kind of thing I was suggesting about the hats earlier. Snazzy piano arps in the solo at 2:46 echoing the synth arp in the background. This whole section is golden. Surprised it didn't end at 4:06; we're retreading some ground from the intro, and then some synth noodling to finish. Altogether a really cool take on the Snowman theme, repackaged in a retro aesthetic. Still a couple of points to improve from both arrangement and production sides, however it's more than enough to pass the bar. YES

Listening to the revised version. Cool intro with the filtered chips, bass and FX. Nasty subbass from 0:16 really sets the mood. Love that initial hit at 0:45, there's loads of detail and the sound design you'd expect from a complextro/chipstep/dubstep/whatever the kids call it these days style. I was a little concerned that the subbass would outstay its welcome once the groove kicked in, but thankfully at 1:19 when the main section begins, you switch it out. Great decision, and a fantastic 30 seconds. The Monkey Island theme isn't overtly used here, but it might have been nice to hint at at more strongly. I think fans of the series looking for a remix may be disappointed that we don't hear the theme at least once, however I really like your twist on the melody and how you've made it your own. From 1:49 we get a half-tempo section with tons of ear candy in the off-beats, then it slams back into the groove at 2:21, with another run-through of your new melody line. This section in particular feels overcompressed. It's a loud track, which goes with the genre, but even though the mixing sounds OK, I think you could have been a bit more restrained with the master compression here. Ending is a bit abrupt, but I don't mind it. Cheeky little string plucks reminding us of the harpsichord line from the source. YES

I've listened to this one a good few times now, and although it does have a simplistic quality to it, I can't find anything egregious that would cause me to reject it. The bell sound in the beginning is decent quality, then just as the overtones are getting dissonant, it drops out, which was a good decision. The bass is nice and soft, and the new bell sound is sweeter, if a little loud with some of the resonant frequencies. There's a light lofi-filtering on the reverb if I'm not mistaken, and it gives it a nice little crackly texture in the background. The bass solo is alright, but the sparseness of this part is pretty weak. I'd have liked a little more sizzle in the hats for the groove here, to really sell it. It's alright, but there's definitely room for improvement there. Speaking of the hi-hats as well, I don't think I can hear an open-hat to closed-hat transition in the whole piece. You use open hat cymbal samples, but they're not linked to the closed hat so the kit doesn't sound believable as a single unit. Having the closed-hat sample silence your open-hat sample should be easy to do in your sampler, so look into that in future. It can make your grooves sound so much better as well. After the bass solo, there are some more nice-sounding bells, but is it me, or do they come in a fraction early? On repeat listens, I think it's a trick of the delay on the descending bells preceding them, but listen to the first hits at 1:18 and 1:26. I think I'm going mad... Anyway, we get some more of the bells from the intro and then another go around, before a soothing pad enters at 2:30 for a warming final chorus. Classic jingle bells in the outro fadeout. Would have been nice to hear some more fleshing out of the ideas, but the bare bones of this one are solid. YES

I like the decision to take the source in a Christmassy direction, and it's easy to hear where the inspiration comes from. Your remix begins where the source ends, with those detuned bells, but beyond that, this downbeat remix is all its own. It's conservative in that the source is always there, but your track is constantly evolving and new ideas always being presented so it never feels repetitive. It begins with some sfx of winding up a music box, and then we get some sad-sounding bells with string backing. As the strings die down, some more detuned bells join the mix, and this part sounds superb. The bass that comes in doesn't sound quite right, but I can't quite put my finger on why. There's definitely a dodgy note or two at 0:51. I like the filtered vox 'Da da da da daa dum' before the drop, and the textures added by the percussion and bell arps create a really interesting soundscape. The new bass synth is good, but seems to be mixed a bit quiet. I'm not sure the melody on the piano is the right choice here, perhaps an extra layer with a little more sustain to carry it may have been a better option. Cool break at 1:50 keeping things fresh, and then when the bass hits back at 2:12 that's more like it. Not a fan of the slight panning on the bass, but it's subtle enough to not be too distracting. I do find myself wondering why the bass in the other sections of the track isn't up to the level that's it's mixed in this part, though. Not enough room in the soundscape? That's a mixing problem, and you shouldn't need to turn down the bass in the other sections to make other elements stand out - their frequencies shouldn't be interfering with each other anyway if your mixing is good enough. Regardless, I don't think it's enough to sink the track. The addition of guitar in the next section is another great way to break up the track, and I like how it works with the backing instrumentation. Nice work from Zack there! Some cheeky jingle bells in there as well to keep that Christmas theme alive! Finally, we get another beautiful downbeat section full of texture and suspense, which may be my favourite part. Great ending too, with the vox line leading into the music-box finish. There are some minor gripes I have with this, but the package as a whole has more than enough going for it in the 5 minute running time. There are some excellent moments in here, particularly towards the end where everything is really clicking, and building to a satisfying conclusion. YES Edit 19/12 (British time): Ahh this is a shame, a revision that introduced more problems than it solved! Whereas before, the initial bass sound was mixed quietly, now it's mixed better but the sequencing is so much clearer and it's much more obvious that it sounds too dissonant with the rest of the instruments. The bell arp is also mixed way too hot, and contributes to a claustrophobic feel when it's being played - I previously commented that the piano lead from 1:01 sounded thin, but the bells are now just wiping it out. The nice, lofi vocal sample has also been buried somewhat, lessening the anticipation before the following sections, and the jingle bells and violin sample in the left ear seem too loud as well. I appreciate the efforts to clean up the mixing, however the balance is all off, and the bass notes in the first minute need revisiting. One more pass? NO

I didn't vote on the previous submission, so I'm going into this one with completely fresh ears. Nice tropical-style instrumentation to open, with an absolutely huge kick. Sounds like the transient is quite fat with low-frequency content after the initial hit, which gives the kick a fatiguing quality quite quickly. Fun use of the Toad vox leading into the initial drop at 1:02. Steel drum lead sounds great, and some nice auxiliary percussion in the background. Nice transition to the B section with the descending triplet steel drums. Strings in the B section at 1:33 sound very similar to the original Mariokart 64 instrumentation, and then we head into synth territory which reminds me of Ben Briggs' early stuff like Fleeting Ecstasy. The kick doesn't sound as fatiguing in the busier sections, which leaves me wondering if perhaps your compressor is working too hard in boosting the transient when there isn't as much stuff in the mix. It's a nice reprieve when the kick drops out for a bar or two at 1:50. There's a bit of winding down as the mix comes to a close, and some nice delay on the final few notes to finish. Not a ton of original writing here, but the instrumentation is a neat switch from frosty to tropical, and it's a tidy package. Kick is a bit on the heavy side, but at a short 3:08 running time, it never gets too uncomfortable. Nice job! YES

It's always hard to take a short source tune and flesh it out without sounding repetitive. I think the 2:50 running time of this ReMix, and the break in the middle just about does enough to stop it from being too repetitive, but that said, there are some nice flourishes in amongst the melody and different instrumentation to keep it interesting. Trumpet is fantastic - I mistook it for a live performance, and it's definitely the highlight! Excellent original break section from 1:20, would have been perfect for a more elaborate trumpet solo, but alas, I'll have to make do with what's there! The initial presentation of the Spanish guitar is quite odd - something about the hard-panning on the rhythmic strumming and the way it blends with the percussion makes it sound like it's sitting in an odd sonic space. Could also be the way it's interacting with the triangle-wave bass, as it doesn't sound as strange when the chiptune elements are removed. Overall though it's a decent package. I quite like the ending with the filtered reprise of the chiptune theme as well. YES

Wow, what lovely source tunes! I feel like doing a solo piano arrangement of these themes invites comparison to the Ending Theme, itself also a solo piano arrangement. It's great that you've seamlessly worked in the other sources though, as your arrangement is clearly your own. It helps that there is a common motif across all the sources, but you've done a great job of capturing the essence of them and still keeping it original. Comparing the performance to the Ending Theme, there isn't as much ebb and flow to your piece, both in terms of dynamics and tempo, however that's not to say it isn't heartfelt and sincere. The production/recording could be cleaner (again going off direct comparison), but it's more than good enough for our standards. The 'big finish' at 3:17-3:47 has weight to it, and is a decent emotional payoff for the track. Some of the high grace notes I felt were played a little too strongly, particularly towards the end at 4:09 and 4:39, and the damping at 0:47 caught me by surprise on first listen, however I'm sure it's intentional. Minor points on what is overall a delightful listen. YES

Initial thoughts when listening were: "This is epic, but I can't hear half of the detail in the orchestral elements. Why is it there if I can't hear it?" Came here to put that into a more eloquent way, and find that MW has already done it. I thought that all the rock parts sounded perfect (bass was just right on my headphones), but I'm 100% in agreement with MW that this needs another pass on the mixing. If something is barely audible, is it even necessary? The intro gets buried in mud, The flute at 1:37 sounds almost unintentional given how low it is in the mix, and a little distracting. Similarly at 2:52 the strings are seemingly trying to continue the guitar solo that went before them, but they're so low in the mix I'm straining to hear. Is that the right instrument for that part? Don't get me wrong, this is a fantastic track, but the mix is far too busy for too much of the track for me to pass it as-is. It may just be a case of being ruthless and cutting out parts that are unnecessary, but I would love to hear this with a cleaner mix so that all the detail that is in there can be fully appreciated. NO (resubmit)

Great use of SFX in the intro, warping into the synth pad. Good use of engine revs as a riser at 0:35 as well, although it's a little loud in the mix. The use of distortion on the lead synth at 0:33 and 1:11 fits with the growling sounds of an engine as well, leaning into the car theme. Real punchy kick in this one, although it does drop out for a beat or two, and has some fills, so it's not on autopilot, and the rest of the percussion isn't too overcomplicated for such a high BPM track. Nice switchup at 1:54 with the hats on the off-beat. Some lovely synth interplay in the chorus around 1:23 - definitely my favourite section there. The SFX make a return at the end, and it's a small thing, but I think it would have made a better ending if there was some sort of doppler-shift applied to the final effect, as if the car is zooming towards us and then passes us, zooming off into the distance. As it is, the sound rises and rises, then stops, feeling somewhat unresolved. This one packs a huge punch, and drags a great source tune kicking and screaming to the finish line. YES

It's a haunting, atmospheric piece up until 1:54, which is where it becomes too noticeably repetitive. There are variations throughout the piece, but the established sound doesn't evolve enough, the texture doesn't change enough, and the dynamics of the piece don't move enough for it to warrant such a long running time. If you want to make a brooding theme like this, it has to expand more on the ideas established in the beginning, otherwise the listener will lose interest. It's a shame you won't be returning to this one, but something to bear in mind for the future. NO