Jillian Aversa

QFE. My ears almost popped off in that spot. Wow, this is cheesy to the max! Everything from the vocal samples, to the 80's synths, to the four on the floor dance beat... Definitely DDR worthy. You really took this concept and went with it, which is admirable; lots of bold stylistic choices! A few sections seemed a little empty to me, in terms of source material, but you made up for that pretty well with the Vampire Killer quotes. The breakdown starting at 2:54 lacked some sort of transition, and the 3:57 key change was likewise abrupt, but those are relatively small gripes. I really love the "lurching forward" movement you gave the VK melody quotes (where Shael Riley's "Doesn't fight Dracula- only makes pancakes" lyrics would be in his OL ReMix, haha). It's good. I like eet. YES

LIGHTNING ROUND! - Same key and tempo as the original; where's the reinterpretation? What I hear is primarily just a change in instrumentation. - Orchestral march section is pretty muddy; too much reverbbbbb... - 1:03-1:20 has some nice variation on the source melody. - Cool harmonies in the guitar parts! - Final chord = last 24 seconds of the mix... and it's only two and a half minutes long in the first place! I think you're off to a good start with this mix, but you'll need to extend the length and develop some of those ideas a little further to get it up to site standards. NO BUT PLEASE RESUBMIT!

Guys, I really think it would be beneficial if you could try accept the fact that VGDJ as "VGDJ" has come to an end. There's always the possibility of zircon and I releasing something special from time to time, but we would appreciate if you turned your discussion into "What could we do to create a new podcast?" not "What could we do to change VGDJ?" It is wonderful and flattering to see all your enthusiasm, but you must understand that we can't force a new era of VGDJ; there is no natural way to do it, and it would require a ton of effort on the part of zircon and myself. The show only continued before because I served as a link to the next generation. We were missing only half the hosting team when Rayza left, and I knew how to do everything, so it seemed (more or less) natural that the podcast go on. I think the idea of a "panel" podcast, as Black Mage put it, is a really neat possibility for something new. Kinda like ThaSauce, right? Rama would be a great person to head up something like that, with his experience and knowledge of the community. I hope that DrumUltimA and Cyan_Ide would be interested as well, because I'm sure they'd have a lot to offer. XD In any case, we would both appreciate it if everyone could try to keep the discussion in here relevant to our last episode. If you'd like to discuss possibilities for a new show, by all means, start a new thread! It's just a little disheartening to see our last efforts get overshadowed by this sort of talk, when we have already explained our intentions. ^_~

Hey guys! Just to let you know, the lovely and talented Malcos is going to host this next round. We'll probably be switching off in the future, to allow for personal breaks in between. Might take him a little while to find a new track, but keep your eyes peeled!

Alright, your string samples are definitely a problem here, I'm afraid. Each one is rearticulated with a screechy bow sound, so the phrases come out sounding choppy and fake. Hardly any vibrato, either! Most of the sounds are pretty subpar. If you'd like some help finding (and learning how to use) some decent free samps, check out the remixing forums. I think you're on the right track, creativly speaking, but you can't rely too much on simply setting the original to a different style... in this case, orchestral. Things got a little repetitive after a while. If you took longer to build up to your climax, I bet some more original ideas would pop up along the way. Keep at it! NO

I didn't get a chance to hear the original file you guys had hosted, but production sounds ship shape to me now, at least! Love the intro; very spooky and mysterious with the "tick tock" and chimes. The panning back and forth between the ticks and tocks is a nice touch, and in general, I found all the parts to be well balanced. You have a lot of new, additive material that works extremely well in this interpretation, particularly from the guitars. The main issue I find with this remix is simply your recycling of the same material. It seems like a bit of a cop out, but then again, the intro and endings are both strong. I'm gonna be a little lenient this time around, because the mix was short enough that I wasn't extremely bothered about the repetition. In a way, it kinda gave me a chance to further appreciate what I heard the first time around! However, I think you should be wary about this sort of issue for future submissions. ^_~ Never been much of a metal fan myself, but I can certainly appreciate what you've done! YES

Alright, I'm gonna step in here to help justify the glib YES votes. I feel your concerns, Jimmy, about the lack of actual rearrangement; what Justus has done here is actually a simplification of the source in terms of note quantity. However, that is a very common practice in string arrangements. The focus should be more on the emotion of the performance (which was executed beautifully) than the level of technical additions. Y'know what I mean? Here's how I see it: OCR is dedicated to the appreciation and "reinterpretation" of video game music. This remix demonstrates a very clear artistic vision– one that is far different from the original source. It took some obvious skill to arrange (even if that meant simplifying some things), perform, and mix. I do wish that Justus had added some more original material, but what's there is still passable in my book. For the record, there were a few sour notes throughout the recording, particularly at 0:15 and 1:29. The violin playing the melody tended to veer flat on occasion, which caused some minor wincing. BUT! All in all, very lovely work. Anyway, I am glad you had the guts to question some of the glib votes here, Jimmy. I still think the mix is passable, but it's important for us to always explain our decisions with some level of detail, even if we think it should be an obvious YES. ^-^ YES

This mix shows some promise for the road ahead, but I would definitely consider it a rough draft as it stands. Everything is very repetitive. There are hardly any chord changes, and that's always going to be a problem for a mix of this length. The swirly pads you chose for the foundation of this piece are a little too present, in my opinion. You could fix that by either turning down the volume, or (preferably) finding something more understated. Percussion is bland and mixed too soft, and the same could be said about the grungy guitar. The section from 2:15-2:40 is probably the most creative section in the mix, and demonstrates some neat ideas with the chill sinewaves and varied percussion. I think that part also works well because it's a little thinner and less muddy. Maybe you just have to much reverb and not enough panning throughout? There is work to be done on both arrangement and production here, but I see potential. Keep it up! NO

There has been no change to the key, tempo, rhythm, or overall structure here. While your sound samples certainly provide a more sonically pleasing version of the piece, that's all it is: a setting with different instrumentation. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoy it! But alas, it is not a remix. You'll have to do much more with arrangement before this piece will pass. At least the production's solid. NO

Wow, I am duly, dually impressed with your work here, Phil! The accoustic/piano sections were stronger than I've ever heard from you before, and then I didn't know you had this whole other crazy side to you. The melody usage is rather conservative, but you've done so many creative things with the instrumentation, and lots of jazzy flair as well. It's cool, and then it's super dooper uber happy, and then it's cool again, and then super dooper uber happy, and finally cool again. Yes, how Kirby indeed! The section starting at 1:07 was a little weak at first, in my opinion. Instead of bringing out the breakbeats, they sound a little distant in comparison with the rather overbearing piano. I'm gonna have to agree with Larry that the percussion sounds kinda like a default, but I'll let it slide. Nice pitch bend at 3:10, followed by the cute little squeaks. What a mischievous little puff of pink; you've really captured his personality! I think the cumshot at the end was a little overdone (poor Malcos has no idea what's going on! ). Something about the timing was strange... I would have preferred either no cumshot, or a few more seconds of the *real* ending before it came in. Oh well, good stuff! (>^-^)> YES <(^-^<)

This arrangement is spot on! I've never played DKC 2, but the connection was clear, and I was very impressed with how well you maintained interest throughout the piece. I found your rhythmic choices very fresh and innovative– not just in the percussion itself, but the way you swung and stuttered the lead synths. Definitely club worthy... not that I'd really know. ^_~ I, like a few others, wasn't crazy about your first few samples, especially the intro bass. It sounded very dry and fakey. But the more layers you brought in, the better it got. Are those "Ow ow!" noises sampled from the game? They remind me of the alligator bopping game I used to play at rollerskating rinks, haha. Creative transitions, especially your usage of the animal noises. If other people hadn't pointed it out already, I might not have noticed how lossy this sounds at first. I'm pretty sure the casual listener wouldn't pick up on it, but it does show a lot of room for improvement. The parts could stand for clearer distinction, especially because they all sound a little high-freq. And something about the supersaw at 3:10 bothers me... It's a little overpowering when the other stuff drops out- too exposed. (By the way, what's with the 12 seconds of dead air at the end?) All in all, an easy resub! NO BUT PLEASE RESUBMIT! EDIT: P.S. Did you mean "tricky"? o_O

Okay, then I will show you my motivation: - I began my essay post by publicly agreeing with almost all of The Coop's ideas about what OffTopic should be like, because I was hoping that it would show everyone that we are trying to bridge the gap between the staff and UnMod by working together as a team. - I then moved on to try to explain, from an inside perspective, why UnMod was deleted. Everyone has been demanding to know why, and that was my honest answer. I thought it would help you all to see a detailed explanation of our reasoning. (That being said, the only thing that we all clearly agreed on was the issue of abuse. The few bullets before that were my own perceptions, and my way of rationalizing what led up to the abuse. I'm not an expert in psychology, and I openly admit that. ) - As for the Ginger comment, this explains it: Eulogic has been trying to help me behind the scenes as my "unmod translator." The attempt at humor and bridging the gap was obviously taken the wrong way, but we had only the best of intentions. I am fully aware that most of UnMod hates me, and I don't care about that. What I do care about is trying to get this thread back on track, and trying to show to you all that we as staff are attempting to help patch things up. I was hoping that people would interpret my original post as an act of good will, especially considering how much they hate me.

I never said it was the fault of anyone in UnMod, and I certainly didn't have that intent when I posted my perceptions of what went on. I know it goes on everywhere- of course. Perhaps I am completely off on my thoughts about what could have caused the abuse (i.e. postcount, popularity contests, etc). I am willing to accept that, no problem! I obviously didn't spend as much time there as you all, so I only know what a few people have expressed to me behind the scenes. The point is, there was abuse, and that abuse is what eventually made OffTopic our best possible compromise. That's all I was trying to clarify. I am mostly in agreement with you, Coop, about your vision of OffTopic. I meant that essay post as an attempt to explain my perceptions, so that people might have better insight as to why UnMod was deleted. My perceptions are mine alone, and I don't necessarily speak for the rest of the staff. Just trying to help, honestly.

Why don't you go chase after Ginger some more? I'm not going to take my shirt off, so you can go ahead and leave this thread.

Actually, the main point I was trying to get at for the reason UnMod was deleted is abuse, especially when it spilled onto other forums. All the bullets before that in my essay post (2 pages ago) were just factors that led up to that abuse. Hope that clarifies things.

I fail to understand why this merits the sudden deletion of an entire forum. Oh my God... are you serious? You obviously missed my essay post on the last page, in which I explained the reasons UnMod was deleted in extreme detail. Please take the time to read what people are saying before making assumptions. That goes for everyone. EDIT: The post is on page 22. I didn't realize this post would be the first on 24. ^_~

Join dates may have been the actual mark of a more experienced UnModder, but I am absolutely certain that many new people still used postcount to try to "make up" for it. I've talked to people who admited it behind the scenes, because they wanted to feel more welcome. And regardless, just seeing tons of fad threads contributes to the "mob mentality," because it encourages more to pop up.

What a pathetic prank.

As I just attempted to explain in my TLDR post ... We all want to keep it within reason. The "un-useful" thing isn't a problem in and of itself; it's that too much junk encourages people to post for the sole purpose of increasing their postcount. And that's what caused all those icky things I listed above, which resulted in UnMod's end.

I think The Coop's ideas about keeping porn softcore, within designated threads, and including a "Not safe for work" disclaimer are all very reasonable suggestions. The way I understand it, porn was never the main issue with UnMod, and played only a minor role in Dave's decision to put an end to it. Still, I would understand if he decides not to allow that sort of thing, since things could get sticky (no pun intended) if people started bending the rules. There will definitely be thorough discussion on the matter. I also agree that fad threads should not have a place in OffTopic, as they are a waste of space and really junk up the queue. As for mock and +1 threads... It's hard to say. Some of those things were funny, but the sheer quantity of them was a little ridiculous. The classics like "...and it made me smile" are harmless and fun, but I think they should be kept to a minimum. There really is no point treating a forum like a slow AIM chatroom. My opinion is that OffTopic should follow the general trend of GenDisc in that all threads have a productive purpose. If there are a few things that aren't officially "topics of discussion," but geared more towards posting artwork and the like (even if there’s a little porn), I see no harm in that. The problem with fad/mock/+1 threads is that they quickly become less about humor and more about increasing one's postcount. I know some of you may be thinking, "What's the harm in that?" So let me explain my reasoning. It seems like the whole postcount phenomenon actually had a negative effect on the UnMod community, and contributed largely to our reasons for deletion, in the end. When new people joined the forum, whether justified or not, they were usually teased or told to GTFO. Because of this, they felt like the only way people would take them seriously is if they increased their postcount– and fast. While seemingly harmless at first glance, this phenomenon is what became the main catalyst for the following issues: Flame wars: The more the n00bs posted, the more they were mocked. It was obvious that they were posting every few seconds, and that became an annoyance to the people who had been around longer, so insults were flung left and right. Popularity contests: All anyone wants in life is to fit in. By increasing post count, n00bs and regulars alike seemed to think that they would be more accepted– or at least remembered– and so UnMod became one big popularity contest. Mob mentality*: With everyone trying so hard to impress each other, people started to lose their individuality. Fad threads flooded the forum because a lot of members couldn't (or were afraid to) think of any original ideas. And that, my friends, is what led to this: Abuse: The reason that UnMod was eventually deleted. At first, the abuse stayed primarily within the forum, and the mods were extremely lenient about this for a very long time. However, that "mob mentality" grew stronger and stronger with every passing day. Ultimately, it got so bad that whenever there was a major change to the site design, staff, policies– you name it– the abuse began to spill over into GenDisc and other forums. It was simply a headache to have to deal with this level of immaturity. People started complain about the changes, the moderation, the remixes, and the staff as though they were entitled to do so with no consequence– and publicly, in the clean forums! Of course not everybody in UnMod took part in all this, and we all recognize that fact, but the only solution we could find to this problem of abuse was to create OffTopic. OffTopic as a new forum is out attempt at compromise, I assure you all! It would be impossible to please everyone, but it’s our best shot, and I hope those mature enough to understand the situation will give it a chance. Nobody intended to bulldoze your home on the internet– just provide a reasonable substitute. If you are one of those people that simply needs a place with no rules, you’re out of luck. The abuse had to go in the end, because unless Dave hired 20 extra mods to police the forums, it would have been a physical and emotional headache for the entire staff. We want OCR to be a welcoming place for everyone... everyone who is willing to play nice around these here parts. ^_~ I think most people are willing to admit that there have been some mistakes made in the process of this transition. Nobody knows how or why the writer’s thread was deleted, but it was clearly an accident. A few people may have been banned who did not necessarily deserve it, but you must understand that the whole alt account business is confusing, and the mods are looking into it as we speak. If everyone could have a little faith that we are sorting things out to the best of our ability, I think OffTopic will turn out just great! *(As a side note, I believe this "mob mentality" is also what caused the site staff to overlook some valid issues during our transition that a few of the more thoughtful posters have now brought forth. It is not exactly reasonable to accuse us of lumping everyone together, when it was clear that an enormous proportion of UnModders could not think for themselves, and abused the forums together as an entity. We have always acknowledged that there are exceptions, and apologize to any and all of those who did not take part in the trouble.)

Neat idea. I'd certainly be willing to volunteer some information... assuming that the point of its availabilty is simply to satisfy one's general curiosity. I wouldn't want remixers to start reading into things too much, because then they might develop all sorts of paranoid notions about what styles we like/dislike. We judge with as little game and genre bias as possible. ^_~

Hey, glad you joined the forums, QnMidnight!

Haha, that ROCKS! I wouldn't change a thing.

Uhhhh... Why would you say that? This is a harmless thread, with harmless contents. It's not going anywhere.

Wow, this is some fantastic artwork! And even for those of us artistically challenged folk, I am at least laughing at the ideas. Sometimes poor execution makes it even more funny, actually. I hope this thread lasts a long, long time. XD