All Activity

Really soothing and with good pacing!

Voting Guidelines Teams were tasked with writing three mashup arrangements of two songs each, one from a Mega Man game and the other from a Mega Man Successor game. In order to make your vote, listen to the remixes and, for each pair, choose the remix that fulfills the following criteria (listed in order of importance): The remix arranges both source tunes in an interesting and identifiable way into one cohesive piece of music. The remix is well-produced within the conventions of the genre. The remix is enjoyable to listen to. Stream the remixes via Soundcloud or Download the Round 2 Remix Pack (MP3). For your reference, here are the source tunes for Round 2. Mega Man 4 vs. Gravity Circuit Pharaoh Man Theme of Ray (Optic Circuit) Mega Man X4 vs. Mighty Gunvolt Burst Cyber Space Beyond the Watery Vortex Mega Man Zero 4 vs. 30XX Ciel d'aube Slave to Duty (Midgard Boss 1)

Learning to play the electric guitar - Part 1: First steps and the first melody I was able to play on the electric guitar after a few hours of practice -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- In late summer 2024, after a long time, I fulfilled a big wish and finally bought my first electric guitar for my small home studio, a pretty versatile Ibanez Gio GRG140 in a really stylish white. At the time, I didn't have much time to learn how to play the electric guitar more intensively. But at least I was able to familiarize myself a little more closely with the electric guitar, its construction, its functions, its care, etc., and I was able to make the strings of the electric guitar sound quite official and play a few notes using the really good guitar amp plugin Vandal in my DAW Samplitude Pro X4 Suite. Since I had already worked with really good electric guitar VSTis for many years, composing with them and playing them via MIDI keyboard, I already had a good foundation of prior knowledge about electric guitars, guitar amplifiers with their wide range of settings, and various playing techniques on the electric guitar (if only to understand how to implement such playing techniques as convincingly as possible with an electric guitar VSTi based on the playing techniques on real electric guitars). And the melody I play in this video was basically the first melody I was able to play reasonably well after just a few hours of practice. It's a slightly modified melody from the soundtrack “The Price of Freedom” from one of my absolute favorite video games called Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7, or rather the remake Crisis Core - Final Fantasy 7 Reunion (the short video footage I used here is from the remake version of the game). The original song “The Price of Freedom” was written by Takeharu Ishimoto. So far, I've only been able to play this melody on the high E string. But by using various playing techniques such as hammer-ons, slides, and bends, I've already been able to achieve a smooth-sounding and quite convincing result. Well, I know. When learning to play the electric guitar, playing melodies actually comes relatively late after learning the chords. But I was somehow tempted to provisionally play a few small melodic passages. ... In the summer of 2025, I finally started learning to play the electric guitar with the help of a specialist book, which also included additional online content with illustrative video material for practicing electric guitar playing and actively playing as a solo artist or in a band. I usually only practice a few hours a month. But I feel that even as a complete beginner, I have already made some progress. For example, I have already learned a few important basics, such as theoretical principles relating to electric guitars, the different types of electric guitars, various types of guitar amplifiers, the correct posture for playing electric guitar, and how to read tablature. I've also learned some practical skills, such as tuning the strings, correctly grabbing individual strings in different frets, playing with a pick (which was also used in this video), alternate picking, the basics of playing individual notes rhythmically, and the practical use of a metronome. The first power chords are probably already on the learning plan. Of course, out of curiosity, I have already tried my hand at playing more complex chords, but so far I have failed because I am not yet very good at grabbing the chords correctly, I obviously don't hold my fingers in the optimal position, and I usually end up accidentally muting neighboring strings with my fingers. But I'm definitely not going to let that discourage me, because practice makes perfect (or at least better), as we all know. And my musical journey into the world of electric guitar playing has only just begun. ... However, I was very proud of the live result in this video, even though it took me around 50 takes or recording attempts until the electric guitar playing on my Ibanez Gio GRG140-WH was kinda flawless and the use of various playing techniques finally met my expectations to the extent that I was really satisfied with it. On this new and exciting journey, Master Mi will once again become the inquisitive student Mi and is already looking forward to his potential progress in the coming years and the many interesting opportunities that will arise for the future, especially in the field of music composition for soundtracks and remixes. I could almost say: “Yeah, I'm on fire now.” )) ... But feel free to listen for yourselves. Here's the video with the recording of my early attempts at playing the electric guitar: ... What do you think? Nothing too special - but not too bad for a bloody beginner lvl. 1, eh?

What did you think? Post your opinion of this ReMix.

Really stellar chord work going on here to go with that arpeggiating bell. Pacing is solid on this, with subtle development that works really well.

Amazing vocals! I love the mountainous vibe in the first minutes. Cool moment with the duduk and flute at 1:45. Loved the breakdown at 3:14. The violinist and vocalist really contributed so much in general.

I love me some Highland music! Short but sweet!

It's incredible that people still find a new way to innovate interpretations of Corridor of Time (also a clean transition into Schala). Really smart usage of arpeggiating sine waves! Another fresh take with the mark of a true cinematic master.

This sounded really hard to write! So much dissonance but it works well!

This makes so much sense to write this way. I remember this theme just being ethereal.

Interesting chord options in that sample. I suppose I should've been a little more clear on my approach. I'm going more into a direction of non-functional harmony. I'm trying to get a blend of diatonic and non-diatonic, hence the A♮ in my composition. But I will consider the options you provided. That third chord sounds the most promising to me. It's unfortunate, though, because the E and E♭ is a bit jarring. But even with open voicings, I was hoping that it'd sound a little more pleasant. I'm trying to create a "desert" theme, but without going the stereotypical route. Anyway, thank you for your input. I appreciate it.

You already know Josh and I are down - we’ll be mashing AQA from Fusion with Heart of Fire from Castlevania Aria of Sorrow

Hey all, this is a rework of my previous Metroid Fusion album/EP idea. Plan is for it to be an "official" OCR album, but wanted to put feelers out to make sure there was interest first. The idea is that every track uses a Fusion source and a secondary source, meaning the Fusion remixes from Game Set Mash 2 would all be eligible. Round 1 / Round 2 / Round 3 It doesn't have to be a literal back-and-forth; "pastiche" tracks (like something in the style of John Williams or Gorillaz) are acceptable as long as they follow the usual OCR submission guidelines. I'm hoping for about 8-15 tracks; there are 6 that would be eligible from Game Set Mash and then at least one I want to do personally. For release time we'd shoot for Fusion's 25th anniversary, so either November 2027 or we could do February 14 2028 if we needed an extension for some reason. EDIT: Also meant to mention Fusion sources can be used more than once. If you want to do AQA Depths three times, go for it!

I didn’t come back to OCR after a 15-year hiatus (not unless you want to count a direct rejection from Larry himself), but I did come back to arranging VGM after a 10-year hiatus along with @pixelseph and joined OCR in so doing. I did the same thing you’ve already done: revisit and old completed project and do it again, only with better tools and more experience. In our case, Seph had done a few tracks with Team Dogfight for Homestuck, I took audio production courses in community college, and the two of us played in a few bands between 2012 and 2022, even did some studio recording time. We had a massive knowledge gap holding us back that we needed to fill before we felt comfortable coming to the community and revisiting old material got us back in the saddle, so to speak. Snappleman shared some wisdom in the Discord and I’m inclined to agree: if you’ve got any old backburner projects you didn’t finish, you could pick one of those up and see if you can complete it now.

Glad to see you wanting to get back into the swing of things musically. Don't forget to join the Discord server! https://discord.gg/ocremix - More folks are offering you advice there too. :-)

Random Hero! a name I havn't seen in ages (I LOVE your Squirrel Outta Hell Count Batula arrangement!) I only got in the mix game within the last 5 years ish, and my samples are terrible midi so I don't have much advice, just wanted to pop in and say I'm a fan!

What did you think? Post your opinion of this ReMix.

Hey there old timer. The last time I did any serious music arrangement work regularly before the last couple of years was back in the first half of the '00s. I know where you're coming from. Technology now is at the point where I can make the kind of things I want to make easily and cheaply compared to 20+ years ago when it was all locked away in ivory towers and you couldn't just "go on YouTube to learn how to do something". If you still have a grasp of the arrangement fundamentals – and judging from your past contributions you did then and I doubt it's left you – you'll be fine. I have learned so much in the past few years through osmosis and from trying things out. That's the most important thing. Try things out. Like Zack said, join the Discord and hang out. There's usually a regular WIP commentary night called Office Hours on Wednesdays, but even outside of that, the #workshop is always active. Make stuff, see what others think.

Join the discord and mingle. Workshop is a great spot to rediscover yourself.

I was out of the arranging game for most of the last decade due to burnout and just not being able to harness any inspiration, and I'm back into it as hard as I ever was in the 2010s and I think I'm making my best stuff ever now. So yeah as long as the muse has grabbed you again you'll be fine!

I held off listening to any of the other tracks until after it was released. Lots of great stuff on this, and a fair bit of variety among them as well. Looking forward to participating next year as well.

I can literally smell a human sinner here. For this incredibly grave sin, you should regularly repent and synth hard! ... Dude, 15 years? Were you in a creative coma as a musician, snoring away comfortably like a huge Flemish Giant flopped into the cozy meadow, or were you somehow on the run from the Mafia or something? I mean, hey. I'm also kind of a pro at picking up an old remix from over 10 years ago and completely remixing it or rewriting the composition (simply because I've just started getting into music, composition, mixing and mastering around this time). But if you haven't done anything musically in all these years, you've really let yourself go and metaphorically left your passion in your bum bag. ... Nevertheless, welcome back to the club. ))

Just jumping in and writing is probably the best way. Work on the broad strokes of composition without focusing on details, making stuff you don't intend to polish to a 'finished product' to keep yourself familiar with tools, and possibly trying out ideas or techniques you are not as familiar with to stretch yourself. If you end up with something you particularly like the direction of, then maybe circle back to work more on it.

Has anyone got any advice for getting back into the remix game after a 15 year absence? 😂 https://ocremix.org/artist/4705/random-hero For the first time ever, (my old computer was horribly underpowered 15 years ago, let alone now) I have a computer powerful enough to properly run my music software. But it’s been over a decade! Does that muscle even exist anymore? At times, it felt like those 5 years or so when I was active on this site were like me catching lightening in a bottle. Can I do it again, with new, more user friendly tools? I’m gonna find out! So to shake off some of the creative rust, I made this. I guess you could call it ‘The Angels of Hell: 15th Anniversary Re-Remix’ https://drive.google.com/file/d/14bPcavUvStgJAfFU_TtcKjWRj1_i1Qzd/view?usp=drive_link I used the sample pack from the original. Compared to what’s out there now, it might show its age a little (like me) It’s the same song structurally with a few additions, subtractions, alterations and substitutions with a way better mix. Wish me luck! RH (Ryan)

Coming from a DKC2 aficionado such as yourself that's high praise!