Liontamer   Judges ⚖️

Contact Info Remixer Name: Wingsinadream Real Name: Steven Kleinbub Email Address: Wingsinadream@gmail.com OCR Forums UserID: 25440 Remix Info Game Remixed: Zelda 64 Song Remixed: Gerudo Valley Hello, this is my first submission on OCR and while I am not sure if it is up to your standards, I hope for the best. I wanted to blend a mix of piano and soft background melody with the song overall and I think I suceeded in doing what I set out to accomplish. The mix of alternative sounds and classic piano while maintaining a full-bodied yet minimalistic approach was difficult and was cause for many overhauls in the general sound of the piece.Yes, this is a Gerudo ReMix from Zelda 64, but it isn't orchestral, and that's something to be thankful for I suppose. This is the final product and I hope you enjoy it. -- -Wingsinadream ------------------------------------------------------ http://www.zophar.net/usf/lozusf.rar - 68 "Gerudo Valley" Piano introing things sounds way too fake and rigid in the performance. Tone on the melody's synth is also rather bleh, the drums are thin, not much in the way of dynamics, and the entire texture is sparse and empty. Where was the ending? Some personalization is clearly there with the arrangement in terms of the writing under the melody, but how about interpreting that melodic content more? Barely any interpretation to speak of with the Gerudo theme itself. This probably sounded way more polished in your head. Needs a lot of work, to put it frankly. NO

Hi! Hope this is good enough to go on the site (under 6MB and all ID3v2 tags as required). game: Agent X remix: 'David Arnold' ost: ftp://mirror.support.nl/pub/mono/follindrome/spectrum/tim-follin/agent-x-1.zip year: 1986 sys: ZX Spectrum length: 2:57 remixer: Cheveron composer: Tim Follin comments: Tim Follin did impossible things with the one channel beeper on the ZX Spectrum, like creating a 5 channel score for Agent X. Tim compared the sound to 'nails in a vacuum cleaner'. On the other hand it's a rather nice tune, so I wanted to create a slightly more listenable version. For some reason the AY file plays too slowly on my AY player so after exporting the WAV file I had to speed it up in Audacity. Then I imported it into GarageBand and mucked about until I figured out the BPM (exactly 114 until halfway through when it starts skipping beats). Listening very carefully to the original fuzz I was just about able to recreate the original 5 channels, I rounded out the strings, added a few horn dubs, threw in an analogue synth effect and then just dropped some beats over the top to create a sound reminiscent of David Arnold's 007 remixes. -------------------------------------------------- ftp://mirror.support.nl/pub/mono/follindrome/spectrum/tim-follin/agent-x-1.zip - Title Thanks for providing the source tune, and your interest in the Dirge for the Follin project. Right now though, this isn't much beyond an attempt at a sound upgrade of the original. Js, turn down the volume on the source here, as it's really loud and grating on DeliPlayer. I dunno why it sounds like that, but moving on... The arrangement is fairly conservative and uninterpretive; only major difference is that it doesn't grate the ears. Even at :50, your bassline is exactly the same as the bassline in the original (you can barely hear it in the original). The synths are pretty generic, the texture is bland, and the melodic content isn't particularly musical. The ending fades out with some new ideas that could have been interesting but simply weren't really touched upon. Wish I could be more enthusiastic about this one, but you need a lot more work on the fundamentals. Head to the ReMixing forum to learn more about working with your current soundset and finding some free samples that are of a higher quality, then post any future material to Works for some fan evaluation just to give you some criticisms to work with as you develop. NO

Contact Info: * Artist: Phoenix 44 * Name: Jordan McGee * Email:maroon.fox@gmail.com * Site: http://www.freewebs.com/cheetahprodinc/jordanmcgee.htm * Account Name: Ch33tah * Game: Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of time * Song Time: Zelda song of time (P44 Trance Remix) * Comment: This remix is definately something that really gives the impression of time travel while keeping the original ocarina in there. I, Phoenix 44 am Ch33tah am registered as Ch33tah, just to let you know.

Contact Info (Required Fields): ReMixer Name: Nighteyes The Wolf ReMix Info (Required Fields +1) Name of Game ReMixed: Gunsmoke Comments: Time really flies. I can't believe 3 years have passed since I first submitted a mix! Crazy! Anyway, I decided to go with a different game this time, Gunsmoke. I was going to do another game that hadn't been done before, but for some reason this one stood out. I noticed there were only 2 other remixes, so I went for it. I went with a complete rock remix this time rather than mixing genres. I think this is the music that played when you paused the game, or maybe what played when you were at the shop. I haven't played it in so long, so I really don't remember. I do, however, remember thinking that the music soundewd cool and had potential. Anyway, I hope you like it. I filled out all the ID3v2 info I could, but I didn't have ALL the fields you mentioned, so I filled out the ones I saw. I hope this meets your guidelines. I hope to see this mix make the site. I'll check back in a few weeks. If it does, I'll try not to be such a stranger and maybe do some more mixes. Thanks! "The perfect moment has just come and gone"

The Cynic Project Sonic 3 Fire and Ice (2:27 160kbps CBR MP3) *final* I hope my style is compatible with OC. The sparse arrangement and synth programming are deliberate. The mixing is as good as I could manage on headphones. FWIW, I record all the MIDI (including percussion) live using the destination instruments, and then edit for velocity and expression (vibrato, cutoff) and quantize as necessary. Cakewalk Sonar 3.0 XV3080 (Bass; Shakuhatchi; Piano; Percussion; Pads) Supernova II (Intro Synth) JP8080 (Background Synth) Battery (Hi Hats; Genesis Samples)

Hey guys, I've just finished my first remix yesterday and would like you to judge it. Basically it's an ambient/atmospheric remix but it should also have a recognizable source tune espically at the end... Quick Info about me: ReMixer: Piano Forte Name: Alex Site: http://mitglied.lycos.de/pianoforte23/Musik/ ID: 26410 Quick Info about the song: Game: Chrono Trigger Songs: Ruined World, Sad Theme Links: I think the Sad Theme is not in your archives...I downloaded it at http://www.midishrine.com/index.php?id=5 name wtcsad You can download my remix at enjoy Piano Forte

LINK TO REMIX: Contact Info: Remixer Name: Tensei-San Real Name: Joren E-mail Address: Ayato_kamina1@hotmail.com Website: None at the moment UserID: 46758 ReMix Info: Name of Game Remixed: Chrono Trigger Name of Song Remixed: Tyran Castle Link to Original Soundtrack: Own Comments: Well, everyone has to start somewhere and I hope this ReMix will be good enough to make it on the site, and sound the start of my career as a RemiXer. Anyways, to cut the chatter: I've been wanting to make a ReMix for a long time, having all the appropriate software, and musical knowledge to boot. The song of choice IMO tips the scales between originality and recognizability, given that it's from one of the most often RemiXed games on the site, and on the other hand never has been RemiXed before (at least not as far as I could see) I've tried to retain the original atmosphere, alternating between strings, french horns, and a choir, to overdriven guitar and a steady rock beat, and ultimately mixing both together. The bass in the original piece was already very good, so I've tried to live up to that by taking some of the original bassline and mixing it with some new riffs. The Dinosaur sounds are somewhat gimmicks, but at least they bring on the right atmosphere Well, that's all I've got to say, hope this gets admitted P.S. I'm extremely sorry about not being able to implement all requested Id3V2 tags, but I simply couldn't find one program that allowed me to tag the original album or the lead artist. Also, since I'm not sure whether the ReMix can be downloaded from the link, I've Attached the MP3 to this e-mail as well, just in case, sorry about that. P.P.S. I'm not a native English speaker, in case you hadn't noticed, so forgive any mistakes in spelling, grammar and expressions. Yours sincerely, Tensei-San

Contact Info ReMixer Name: Fusion2004 Real Name: Mark Oleson Email Address: fusion2004@gmail.com Website: http://fusion2004.com Forums Userid: 7647 Remix Info URL: Game: Time Lord for NES Song Remixed: Not sure of title, Track 3 of the nsf (http://www.fusion2004p.com/Time_Lord.nsf ) Comments: I made it because F4T4L told me to. I'm sitting there on IRC and he DCC's me the nsf and said "Track 3. Remix. Now." I listened and after hearing the source complied post-haste. And here we are. D: I couldn't find a name for the track, nor could I find the composer. But anyways, I hope you guys enjoy listening to it as much I enjoyed making it. ----------------------------------------------------- http://www.snesmusic.org/hoot/kingshriek/TimeLord.zip - Track 3 Since this is a Rare NES game, Dave Wise did the soundtrack. Lame/empty/plain drums, and bland/flat sounds the whole way through. Arrangement had some decent concepts, and the second half of the song was stronger, but the execution was too rigid-sounding (e.g. the strings and drums) and sluggish. I'm unfortunately not feeling very generous with my time during this batch of votes. Sorry, bro. NO

Here I have a remix from Sonic 3 "Ice Cap zone" It has an electro style to it with the main melody played less than usual. In this remix and the flow is replaced with numerous new melodies and atmosphere. It still has almost all of the melodies played like in the original title. I had to extend the duration of this peace because of all the different sessions, although it may sound as if repeating itself. The bass and the electric drums are the significant factors in this remix, taking it close to the breakdancing type electro genre. Not being cocky here, but I myself think that this remix may have a chance to be qualified with the only drawback being it's duration and repetition. But take your time in the evaluation Thank you very much and keep it up! Here's info about me and the song: Artist name: Papu Sale Song Name: Freezing Point Song Link: ------------------------------------------------------ http://project2612.org/download.php?id=61 - "IceCap Zone 1" Weird, flat opening. Picked up a little as the ethereal synths came into play, but the foundation of the track just sounds flat. I did like the subtler playing of the intro notes from the source from :41-:54. Some serious bread-y-butter synths and beats are up in here. Track's a bit dry and thin with those beats, but we'll see where else the arrangement goes. Melody pops in at 1:23 with some changes to the rhythm. That flat foundation shouldn't be so exposed, 1:51-2:04 being the case here; is it just me thinking it sounds odd? After riffing off the intro notes again (2:04-2:24), it was basically another iteration of the melody in exactly the same way as last time, but Papu switched up the style at 3:06 with some new ideas in there. Switching up the snare's pattern into something less beat-keeping would be a nice touch somewhere; halfway through, it's getting pretty old. More good original ideas/writing in there from 3:34-4:01, piecing together well with the IceCap theme's style before going back to the theme. Synth lead from 4:15-4:29 (and later 4:43-onward) was a bit lame; would have appreciated some cooler processing/effects to make it sound more unique. Cool tease of the note flurries from 5:44 until the end as the song faded out; they're a bit too cheesy to be used for a long time (at least, IMO), so you did the right thing by limiting their usage to the end even if it was an arrangement cocktease. Great base here, but the sounds could use more refinement. Some of the flatter synths could use some changes. I also don't auto-NO the bread-and-butter sounds, but when more could be done to make the track sound unique from a synth/sample perspective, I like to push for that kind of improvement. The arrangement developed surprisingly well. The beatwork almost never changing up was definitely a negative. A more dramatically evolving arrangement could have probably weathered a negative like that, but it's not at that level yet. Since the changeups in the melodic arrangement were more subtle and not very dynamic, you need the beatwork to do something to compensate, not ride on cruise control. Solid stuff so far, but I'd like to see how you can further improve it. Definitely keep working on it, Papu. NO (resubmit)

Remix: Pirate Fortress of the Great Bay Remixer Name: Maurs Song Remixed: "Pirate Fortress" by Koji Kondo from The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, for the Nintendo 64 Scenes from the Pirate Fortress... Howling winds, bitter spray. A pirate Great Ship emerges, ghostly. Ragged sails billowing, it climbs the swells thrown its way by a raging sea... The Pirate Fortress looms ahead, its signal fires calling the Great Ship home. Soon the ship has vanished behind the Fortress's cliffs of iron and stone, the great gate is closed. Sunset over the Great Bay coast, the strength of the storm recedes with the day. But the apparent calm of night masks the treacherous waters. Waves writhe in the twilight, starlight dancing from crest to crest. Against the old fortress walls, these waves crash with tremendous ferocity. The Fortress, however, stands unconcerned by this ageless barrage. It sneers down, invincible. And behind those walls, strange fires ignite, pillars of smoke. What goes on behind those walls? Beyond the perimeter patrols, within the inner chambers - what tortures, what treasures known? The great watch tower is now alight! In the dead of night, the pirates take no chances. And through this magnificent fortress of brutal, all-female pirates, amidst patrols and firelight, a lone intruder makes his way... ... Hello djp and OCR, I always wanted to do a remix for OCR, and back in January I bought Reason and started this project. I worked on it on and off since then, schoolwork permitting. Finally, after a very concerted effort the past few weeks to get it finished, here it is. The entire thing was done only with Reason and my mouse, so anybody owning Reason has access to all the sounds I used. In creating this remix, I wanted to broaden the scope of the original work, so I made a multi-"movement" work, featuring Koji Kondo's theme as well as a lot of original composition. The first "movement" is pretty much Koji Kondo's original theme, fleshed out, with slight variations. The second (piano) "movement" borrows only chords of the theme. The third (dance) "movement" uses a little melody and accompaniment I came up with to transform the theme into a dance. The ending of the dance as well as the fourth section (the brass chorale) are original composition. Finally, the brass chorale crescendos to the Recap and the restatement of the original theme. To go along with this idea of "movements," I included a program note above. As far as I know, ocremix hasn't seen too much of that kind of thing, so I figured what the heck, and went all out. I just want to say I don't mean for the program to be the only possible interpretation of the music. You're free to see it as you please. All I'm trying to do is spark people's imaginations. Lastly, the compression to mp3 was brutal to a lot of my sounds (trumpets, piano, but especially some percussion and the dulcimer). I played with the LAME encoder a ton, but basically I think the length of the piece and the number of high-quality samples means there aren't enough megabytes to work with. I need to save bps for the loud sections, but at the same time, in the quiet sections, 128 is too low. So the quality is my gripe with the mp3, but let me know what you think. As always, any comments, questions, or criticism greatly appreciated. Thanks, Mark Mark van Mechelen 07mmv@williams.edu

Hello my name is Robin, i'm from the netherlands. I make music with my computersoftware, and not just normal music but also gamemusic. I got this website by a friend of me... I normally upload my music to _______. I was logged in today and i was searching myself to death... where the hell can i upload my song? and how doi listen to a song someone submitted? If you ( or who ever reads this) could plz give me some feedback about how to do... then you might help me out very nice... thnx already!. BTW, i've tried to send the song as an attachement to the e-mail. Hope that doesn't matter... the song is calles Super mario land... I don't remember which game it was, but maybe you'll recognise it? I just know it was a Gamboy game... Hope this is enough for you... lemme know as soon as possible plz... Cheers, Robin ---------------------------------------------------- Pretty straightforward trance adaptation. Definitely alright for the old school days, but the groove is pretty basic, and the interpretation is very minimal beyond converting the original into a more trance-friendly format. Took until 1:58 to finally do something a bit more original with the chords of the original, followed by the somewhat arranged melody fading back in. Once we hit 2:25, it was exactly the same arrangement ideas, except the lead was slightly different with thicker harmonization. Original ending at 3:21 was a pretty lackluster/"I-give-up" close, including that always tacky cymbal smash at the end that every newcomer throws in at the end. You've got some decent ideas for the remixing the source tune, but the interpretation factor is low. Besides continuing to learn how to develop complex textures, listen to some of the more recently posted tracks on OCR and see how they rearrange and interpret their chosen source tunes in a more substantive way. NO

Info: Remixer name: MaZe Game remixed: Chrono Cross E-mail: maze.mixer@gmail.com song title: People Seized with Life style: trance hey again. I thought i'd give it another try. This time with a track from Chrono Cross. I didn't feel like looking up all the correct info just yet, since i'm not sure if this'll even reach the panel :s. Enjoy. -MaZe.

Contact Info ReMixer name: Phntm of the Opra email address: mattimatti@gmail.com userid on forums: 44461 ReMix Info Name of Remix: A Flute Lost in Space Name of game(s) ReMixed: EVE Online Name of individual song(s) ReMixed: My Other Residency Additional information about game if it has not yet been added to the site, including composer, system, etc. Composer: Jón Hallur. Publisher: CCP Platform: PC Link to Original (will be removed after the judges review):

http://snesmusic.org/v2/download.php?spcNow=ed2 - "Battle #2" (ed2-113.spc) Weird how that warbly synth just abruptly cuts out at :04. The note movements on that single string synth sounded very fake; sample was very thin and too distant-sounding and lo-fi. Piano at :12 also was too thin and synthetic sounding and needed to be flesh out. The way the guitar came in at :32, it sounded completely pasted on top. You could tell from there on in that the production simply wasn't going to be a strong point. Why waste a 195kbps encoding (which, by the way, is over our bitrate ceiling) on something that ultimately sounds like this? Melody kicked in at :56, and aside from the lead synth and rhythm guitar everything else sounded like total mush. The machine gum drums are a decent idea, but I have a feeling they'd just get annoying if they were a lot louder and more upfront than the are now. In any case, the drums, strings and other sounds in the background indistinctly mushed together. None of the sounds had any meat on them, only a wash of effects. Really flat and ugly tone for the synth solo at 2:02, you need to change the sounds to something smoother and more energetic. Good transition into 2:23 for another iteration of the melody on piano. You could barely hear the strings playing some nice countermelodic ideas, thanks to the poor production. The guitar performance is aight, but not very strong. Track ended at 3:28 with 8 seconds of silence left over; fixy fixy. On the whole, the arrangement aspect was relatively conservative but pretty interpretive/personalized in terms of the instrumentation choices and overall style, in contrast to Vigilante's POV. However the samples are generally both poor and poorly used, and the production is just ass. It's unfortunate that there's such a disparity in the quality of the two main components of the track because the arrangement was a great leap forward from the last submission. If the sound quality was on point, I don't think I could find a strong reason to NO this. Backup those source files, scout out the ReMixing forums and see what you can do to improve the sound quality of what's in place here. Nice improvement so far, Andrew.

Here, here. I never talked with Brian, but the few times I got to chat with Zach, he was always great. I wouldn't be here without ZTNet making sure it stayed alive in the first place. Thanks for your help, bros. Let's hope djp doesn't drastically mess up the code in the future. (Ohwaite, dat sidebar...)

So, uh, why did you leetsp33k your nickname and all that jazz if you just go by "Reforged"?

Already made by me: Clearly, Dave will love that one!

http://snesmusic.org/v2/download.php?spcNow=top - "The Stream of Time" (top-102.spc) Opened up with a ticking clock; very relaxing and nice. Loved the bubbly synth covering the intro of the source coming in at :15 with that other chime-like percussion; nice texture. The bass kick was also nice and phat. The strings in the mix here are so similar to the ones in the SPC; similar tone and buried very deep in the back. zirc picked up on the strings having some very unrealistic voicing changes, though they honestly didn't bother me much, as I felt the sample wasn't exposed as bad as it could have been. Beats at :38 could have filled the soundscape more, but most of the patterns were excellent. Don't drag it down with a plodding pattern like you did at 1:17 though. Nothing melodic was really happening though, then the track went practically dead from 1:32-1:55. Too many elements dropped out basically leaving that boring beat pattern, the strings (now exposed) and the bubbly synth; at that point, the mix felt overly simplistic, empty, and devoid of substance and direction. Picked back up fairly well at 1:55, but, like Jon criticised, there's just no direction to the track at all. What would normally function as supporting elements were all upfront, what would normally function as melodic content were way in the back. I mean, if you want BGM with no hook at all, that's fine, but it's a bit backwards in terms of developing the source material with the site in mind. I know the tempo of the original is slow, but there's a fair amount of content here to work with, both with overt melodies as well as other material in the source that can be rearranged to work melodically. Sorry David, gotta roll with the other NOs. Decent foundation here, but that's only basically what's in place so far. Refine some of the production and also rework the arrangement to give it a melody and, subsequently, direction. You continue to improve, so don't be discouraged.

Tales of Symphonia Original Soundtrack - 329 "Zelos ~Serious Arrange~" Don't forget to encode at 192kbps or below; thanks for providing the source. Yeah, this brass sucks it. Nonetheless the arrangement is pretty damn good. Took me a few minutes to familiarize myself with the source melody and latch onto it here, but it's creatively used here in a very non-obvious way. Why the pregnant pause at :10? TO's absolutely right about the fakey brass and fakey strings needing to take a back seat in this mix. They're all so loud, dry, and upfront that you can't help but hear how poor they sound. The brass in the original sounds better than what's in play here, and the foreground here does sound sparse with the brass the way it is. I'd say pull back the volume on the brass and flesh out the tone on it. TO's also right in that the wah guitar is criminally low here. Adjust the balance accordingly to let Luiza's stuff cut through more. Love the way the ending trailed off though. Funktastic. Overall, the track's too loud, but it doesn't seem like anything is clipping. Nonetheless, the sheer loudness of the track made the dynamic changes seem a lot less dynamic. Everything just sounds all up in a nigga's face. Nothing really needs to be altered as far as the arrangement goes. Everything seemed great there. Give the production a thorough once over and run it by some of the Js before you resub it. NO (refine/resubmit)

Remember, 192kbps is the bitrate ceiling here. The VBR encoding of 205kbps on this one is too much. Gotta bring it downward. http://www.zophar.net/nsf/smb3.zip - Track 2 ("World 2 Map") & Track 15 intro Opening woodwind is noticeably bleh on realism, then again so was a lot of the intro at :17, but I did like the arrangement ideas there. Nice buildup from :30-:34, though the pinao at :34 sounds way too thin and MIDI-grade. The source tune melody is also way too quiet, whereas all of the embellishments are louder and over the top of the melody. Gotta adjust that sound balance there. Nice use of the Warp Whistle jingle at 1:04. Tone of the snare drum didn't quite seem to fit either; No intensity behind it. Actually, there's not really much intensity behind any of the instrumentation, despite what the writing is supposed to showcase. The overall volume was a bit too quiet, and there were those issues witht the sound balance I mentioned that placed the listener's focus on the wrong elements. Decent idea for the key change at 2:26, though that electric guitar-like synth at 2:28 didn't fit there at all and sounded completely out of place for something that was supposed to sound orchestrated. Probably better to use a different sound entirely there, one that's also supposed to sound organic. There were some good ideas there to make that last section more powerful, but I agreed with Jesse that the arrangement dragged a bit by that point with the general pattern seeming too samey. Flesh the sounds out a bit more and achieve a more organic sounding performance, adjust the sound balance in places, and keep the arrangement moving and this'll make a great addition. Great progress so far, Ryan, as this was a big improvement over the old version. NO (resubmit)

http://www.noderunner.net/~llin/psf/packs/FFX-2_psf2.rar - 101 "Eternity ~Memory of Lightwaves~" I liked the glassy intro. The other instrumentation sounded very cheap unfortunately, the flute, piano and synths. Very unrealistic sounding and also sparse like DarkeSword mentioned. The effects definitely crowded up the soundfield, overcompensating for the thin instrumentation you had in place. Flesh the individual sounds out instead, then work on the broader effects. Agreed with DS as well on how there wasn't much in the way of dynamics. Simpler section at 1:56 to 2:52 exposed the samples like nobody's business. Ending at 3:17 was really sudden and it simply sounded like you ran out of ideas. Samples cut out very cheaply at 3:28. You really gotta step up the sound quality here and work on developing a more substantially evolving arrangement. Feedback from the Works forum coupled with research in the ReMixing forum will help you add some meat and spice to this empty blandness and start to realize your potential. NO

http://www.exotica.org.uk/tunes/archive/Authors/Game/Hippel_Jochen/Amberstar.lha - "hipc.Misty_Orc_Hop" Kinda of funny, I Googled for more info on the original soundtrack and found that he spammed a couple of demoscene sites with this same track. Well, nothing wrong with trying to pimp your material out there. Well, it's a decent track, but still rather boring in terms of the synth design. Melody really picked up at 1:05 with some thicker beats and kicks. Decent change in dynamics and feel at 2:02, though again the bleh synth design undermines the writing choices. I can roll with the bread and butter sounds, and Jesse's right in that the arrangement is at least alright, but the production on everything is pretty underwhelming. Maybe it's just my experience with Remix.Kwed.Org and AMIGAremix, but many artists from the Commodore scene could produce a much better sonic result than this with the same samples. On that level, this needs to enhanced via more creative post-production. For me, the arrangement doesn't make up for how bland the track sounds. Maybe you'll have better luck with the others though, so good luck bro. NO (refine/resubmit)

http://snesmusic.org/v2/download.php?spcNow=ewj - "Buttville ~ The Descent" (ewj-07.spc) Interesting enough beginning. Drums came in at :16 and they do feel a little bit trebly. Synth guitar at :24 feels too mechanical with the timing. Could have been a chance to add some personalization to the melody rather than playing it out stiffly and verbatim. Chorus at :58 and the subsequent followup until 1:15 was getting obscured a bit by the beatwork. Work on that balance. Yeah, Malcos is right about the treble. The cymbals needlessly sizzle a hell of a lot. Guitar wank at 1:32 is again buried by the cymbals and drums. Bassline could have been an asset there, but was also too obscured. Even that bassline followed the melody in too straightforward a manner. Coupled with the beats obscuring the lead and bassline in the first place, the guitar plays through so robotically and the synth has no meat on it. It makes the arrangement feel devoid of feeling and energy. Outside of the guitar stuff from 1:32-onward (which, again, was undermined by the production), the arrangement of the theme was too conservative. A decent base, but this needs a lot of love on the creative end, and some reassessment of the production end. Wish I could be more enthusiastic on this one. NO

http://snesmusic.org/v2/download.php?spcNow=ewj - "What the Heck?" (ewj-02.spc) What a strange theme. One of the most odd experiences I've ever had listening to a video game soundtrack. It opened up with some MIDI-level orchestration, only to move over into the elevator music with completely non sequitur screams. How you were going to go after this one, I dunno. Probably only Mazedude or Shnabubula could arrange this with a method to their madness. Intro was a light sonic improvement over the original, and pretty much a purposeful throwback like Malcos also saw. Moves over at :34 into some breakbeats and a very simple piano part (the countermelody by itself until the lead eventually comes in). Rather than presenting that part in such a straightforward way, that was your opportunity to build upon it and interpret it by changing the rhythms, adding ornamentation/grace notes, and just integrating your own ideas to present a more personalized approach. The beats sounded a bit lo-fi like the piano part had merely been stuck over the top, plus the drums were indeed too loud. The drums' loudness doesn't cover up the fact that the other instrumentation was very synthetic sounding and very sparse. Malcos hit the nail on the head. I love it when we hit the same core issues independent of each other. The patterns changed up a little bit, but the overall feel was too samey the whole way through. Dunno if you were simply using various drumloops, but that's not at the heart of the issue. You're going for some dynamic contrast based on the intensity of the beatwork from section to section, but the dynamics could be more pronounced regardless. My main issue was the lack of interpretation with the melodic content coupled with the thin and artificial texture of the instruments outside of the drums. You really gotta flesh those sounds out and get the arrangement side more interpretive. Do those things, then scale back the drums to let the other instruments stand out better, and you'd be a lot closer to a winner. NO

http://www.queststudios.com/mt32midi/kq5_8.zip - "Bandit Camp" The disjointedness is actually in context, since the original sounds worse. It did get a little more interesting from 2:40-onward. But Vigilante's general point of view (i.e. "Lack of harmony, lack of variation, generic instruments, lack of direction") I agreed with, and those issues he mentioned are the killer here. Flesh this out. NO