Vig

Dude! the end is still fucked! It cuts off before the delay tail ends. Two options: 1. Just throw a fade on the end so the file doesn't audibly end in the middle of a note. 2. Extend the bounce until the delay actually ends and the signal is at zero. This is very basic stuff. The track should be silent by the time the file ends. Fix it and it's ready to go. Currently it's not.

So harsh! Bright and Loud. Close-voiced triads on the 1 of the bar held for the whole bar are never a good sign. Wow this track is really too hot. Lots of digital clipping. Ooops. Aside from that, the writing is too mechanical and simplistic. You have some decent melodic/countermelodic ideas, some decent interplay between the parts, but this needs lots of work. NO

I didn't like this track at first because the beginning of the performance is quite unsophisticated. Towards the end of the track the writing gets more subtlety and complexity, while at the same time unfortunately sounding more mechanical. I think you should really consider reworking the first sections of the song, not to be more busy, but to be more...nuanced rhythmically. The second big issue I have is that the track sounds very muddy. You've got this nice concert hall reverb and it does sound like I'm listening in a realistic space, but you've got too many block chords going on in the left hand that just create serious mud. One solution would be to transpose the whole thing up a bit, maybe a minor third. That might work. A better solution would really be to just change your chord voicings to be more open. Give more space in the lower register. Aside from this, I do enjoy the second half of the remix quite a bit, even if it sounds sequenced. NO

Oh good. My favorite soundtrack. Weighing in because this is a testing track, so I'll be pretty brief and list what I think is good and bad -Samples sound artificial. -Writing is mechanical and rhythmically homogenous/unsophisticated. -Time signature change in the middle is a good idea. Writing and rhythms are still mechanical. -Song really doesn't need to be so long. There's too much melodic noodling. -Creative arrangement. No.

I don't know what it is today but every track I've heard has had a great groove with an awkward lead. This track has similar problems. The groove and rhythm section in general is really great, but the leads seem almost tacked on. Perhaps they are a bit too loud, and perhaps it's that the underlying tracks don't seem to interact well with the leads. I'd say there are things to tweak here, but there's nothing here really holding the track from passing. YES

Haven't heard an icecap remix in a long time. I dig your arrangement just fine, but the mixing is really dark. You need to scoop out the low mids on some of your leads. There's just way too much going on in the 200-500Hz range. Those strings are omnipresent and really should not be. Your leads need to be higher in the mix and brighter in general. Clean it up a bit and I think the mix is pretty good. NO

Wow the source gave me a headache. Three seconds in to your remix I can already tell I'm going to like it way more than the original. It sounds really clean. Love the clarity in the high end. Nice piano sound. Not loving the strings. Rather awkwardly written and mixed. Why is the most prominent part of the song a string part that plays nothing but half-notes? It sounds stapled on and really not...good. Listen, I love the groove and your general atmosphere, but you've really got to do something about your lead writing and probably that string sound. NO

Reminds me of "Lean On Me." Okay so you've converted the end theme to a swing ballad in 3. Creative. Unfortunately the sequencing here is way too mechanical. There's no life to the performances whatsoever. It's also way too long. It just creeps along. NO

Really dig the sounds. Tense intro. I used to play this game a lot, but I don't recognize the source. As the track goes on, it's clear to me that the strength is in its aesthetic, and the weakness is the composition/arrangement. The writing here is really not much better than straightforward. I feel like the track is composed of this dirty groove with whatever melody over it you happen to be up to, with some cool LFO effects in between. There's really no direction to speak of. Nice spatial stuff, good sound design and groove, but the composition is lacking. NO

Damn this shit is loud. You're used to hearing a track pump with the kick, but this track pumps with everything. It's like there's a clear center of attention at any given time, and everything else is complete mush. I'm a sucker for a phase-sync lead, but this could definitely afford more reverb. uh...I'm having trouble focusing. I think the arrangement is great. Lots of energy and variation. Could we please get a version where you ease off the compressor just a bit? Like, an enormous bit? Shit's ridiculous. Great track, don't get me wrong. Really fantastic writing and arrangement, you just really super need less compression. NO

Digging the sounds. Crisp. However, the writing is a little awkward. In the (minute long) intro some of the pads clash with the piano. Just harmonically mushy. The breakdown at 1:15 is really jarring and awkward. Why are those notes there? It's not a melody...they seem completely random. I do dig the groove that follows. The breakdown at 2:40 again is a little weird. Maybe keep the bass in if not the drums? Overall I start feeling the medleytits. The groove keeps coming back, and i think the track is somewhat lacking in direction. Definitely not bad though. Maybe make a couple of tweaks and try again. NO

That lead guitar sounds really trashy. Maybe that's what you were going for. Is it my imagination or is the snare leaning to the left? Given the garbage-rock sound you seem to be going for here, the lead oboe is a little inappropriate. an overall comment i'd make is that your sweeter and more pure sounds like the oboe and some of the synths could work layered, but they really shouldn't be up front. Add some grunge over them. That said, I'm fine with the mixing, and the arrangement is cool, though the end was a little bit drawn out. Cool stuff. YES

Beat is cool. I think the bass synth could use more balls, but it's not bad. The string stabs sound awfully cheesy. I'd go a bit more artificial with the string sound and perhaps make them brighter. Not a huge issue. I love the drums, and the arrangement, while not particularly dense, does keep it's inertia, right until the end, which is anticlimactic. I'd say.. YES

Instead of the guitar and piano being too loud, I'd say the drums are too quiet. Whatever. Same issue. There are definitely some level issues. I'd also say the piano is a bit thin and dry. Most of the time I'm struggling to hear the string parts or something else in the back that I feel is probably really well-written, but is buried in the mix. Great arrangement, but you've got to sort out the levels. NO

I disagree. I think this sounds an awful lot like a medley. There is certainly some amount of overall form; I can identify that Wily Stage is like a B section, but the track never really comes full circle. The main thing that unites the song is the groove, which never changes. I can't pass this on account of medleyitis. Sorry. NO

A little messy. The dub bass doesn't have enough bottom, and the LFO adjustments are a bit too spastic. The writing is also a bit messy any time you have more than one melodic line going at once. They seem to fight one another too often. The second half of the tune is tighter than the first, but then the dub bass comes in again, and then the competing melodies are just too much. NO

Really dig the drums, except the cymbals which are quite loud. Really dig the arrangement, and the mix is pretty good. The weakest element is easily the lead guitar, which is executed admirably, but there's really no mistaking it for the real thing. However, it's still a solid production. YES

I like the mixing for the most part. everything sounds clear and crisp. My main problem is the acoustic guitar. I think you ought to compress it more, cause currently it sounds a bit plucky and weak. It's not a dealbreaker by any means. I like the vocals. My main complaint is that the arrangement is pretty static. Not a whole lot going on dynamically, and it's not really holding my attention. Borderline YES

Great percussion; I really enjoy your sequencing. My issue with this track is that the relevance of the source is tenuous at best. Doesn't seem so much like an arrangement of the source as a three-minute drum circle with a melody over it. Nice rhythms though. NO

My first impression was untss untss untss untss! However, keeping an open mind, I found a degree of complexity in the writing here, untss aside. I won't talk much about the production/instrumentation, because it's pretty standard for the genre. The arrangement: you definitely jump around quite a bit between the two sources, and sometimes you do so in a harmonically complex or melodically interesting way. My favorite example of this occurs at 0:40 and then 0:52. You use the two themes as a call/response, and the bubble man melody is reharmonized in a very tasteful way. On the other hand, some of the transitions are less graceful and smack of medleyitis, such as spots like 0:30 where you simply tag one melody after another with no particular continuity. The final section, around 2:20 in particular feels like it was just thrown on with no consideration for its overall purpose within the song. Let me tell you, if the beat never changed, I wouldn't have listened twice to this submission, but you really do a good job of mixing it up and keeping my head from untssing right off my neck. Ultimately, the melodic interplay and reharmonization are very well-executed, and while there are moments when I feel very conscious of the fact that I'm listening to a medley, on the whole the writing is quite clever and enjoyable. YES

Wow. The source is quite forgettable. You certainly did a rocking job with it. Very well-adapted to the instrumentation. You manage to convey a lot of energy considering so many of the instruments aren't live. I'd say my biggest gripe is that the electric guitar is a bit forward in the mix, but really this is short, sweet, to the point, and doesn't give you time to get bored. YES

Loving that snare immediately. Not so crazy about the bass. Sounds a little bit farty (that's a technical audio engineering term). If it were me, I'd probably throw a low pass filter on it and get rid of some of the low mids starting somewhere around 250Hz. Aside from that, I agree with the guys that the dynamics are pretty static, and I'd say the track never really gets moving, it has a plodding sort of feel. I think one way to help this might be to make the vocal pads a little more interesting both harmonically and rhythmically. NO

Today I learned Tides of Time had completely different soundtracks on the Genesis and Sega CD. Anyway, this remix keeps the feel and spirit of the original certainly. What this remix brings to the table is a palpable (hah) anticipation and powerful dynamics. It's quite powerful. What I would have liked to hear is a little more harmonic complexity in the denser sections. I'm also not super thrilled with the lack of an ending. However, this track has serious personality, and great dynamics. Borderline, but YES

Great sources. I rag on remixes that use more than one source very often because people tend to make medleys without a thought to an overall progression. The arrangement of this tune however, is quite well done. Rather seamless. Now the bad: First, the mix is really kind of harsh overall. Needs some more low end lovin'. The other thing that is really bugging me is the beat. It never changes, and it's so far out front that it gets rather irritating. The other problem with the arrangement is that there isn't a lot of variety of instrumentation throughout, so it pretty much sounds like a long noodly jam. Not bad, but not there yet. NO

Ah man, this is so cool. I love the groove. The electric piano is great. The leads are a bit harsh. The arrangement is a bit on the conservative side, but I don't think it's a dealbreaker. What is a problem is the tons of distortion all over the place. You've got to fix that. NO (resub)