Liontamer Judges ⚖️
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Posts posted by Liontamer
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With my computer currently MIA, and me having to use an iMac & QuickTime Player, I can’t reference specific times in the track, so I’ll have to go for the broad overview. From a listener standpoint, I certainly like the track. Played it back on VGF47 and was feeling it. Frankly, this is more of a genre adaptation rather than our typical thorough rearrangements, and taking too conservative of an approach was a problem with Robbie's previous submission covering the Eternal Champions introduction theme.
There could have been a change in the overall dynamics at some point via a breakdown or two, and the composition started getting repetitive - it felt repetitive enough where you'll either snag some NOs or get some complaints from reviewers about the track not going in any new direction after a while. If anything, it could get NOed for a lot of the same reasons B1itz Lunar's Super Mario Kart remix, "Pentagon Path," was rejected. Arguments could range from it's close to the source tune, arrangement gets repetitive, there's a lack of dynamics, and the sounds and their texture may not be appealing. Ending was sudden & poor, and could have trailed off a bit longer for a better close.
I don't like how even some of the supporting elements of the source tune, such as the strings were simply copied & reinstrumented (yet given more volume/presence in the mix compared to the original). Despite that, you put a good deal of work into the genre adaptation; there were good textures and different rhythms here along with brief but observable liberal rearrangement sandwiched in between some of the more straightforward sections. I certainly noticed that some of the sections in the source tune were left behind in favor of doing your own thing instead. Haven't heard this many orchestral stabs since "Unleash the Beast," although in this case I didn't feel they were very cheesy. Indeed, they could have been punchier. The robot voice actually didn't grab my attention in any particular way, but at the same token I had no problem with the usage. Like Dan has said, the execution feels very authentic given the style, which is why a lot of the potential criticisms on the piece (repetition/dynamics/texture) feel like non-factors to me.
Like Izz, I certainly appreciated the performance. Though I genuinely liked it (like I had said earlier), it's also not my thing personally. I really would have been sold on the track had it possessed more of a comprehensive & interpretive approach on the rearrangement, but otherwise it's just over the bar for me. It could have been a lot riskier and could have taken the actual composition in bolder directions, but what was in place here was interpretive though conservative. Looking forward to more from you, Robbie.
YES (borderline)
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Bah. Might not get the comp back in time for Saturday, but we'll see soon. (Hate being behind schedule.)
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Excellent remix. I love how the original mix gets stretched, the bassline of the original song gets redone and redone, and then the insane guitar comes out to play. Bravo!If you're looking for a solid Super Mario Bros. ReMix. . .then prepare to be sorely disappointed. If you're looking for a generic metal song with lots of ripping synthetic guitars and some SMB thrown in for the Hell of it. . .you've got the right ReMix.
In my opinion, this wasn't worth the time it took to download. If I wanted something original and metally(?), I'd hit up Newgrounds or MP3.com or something. This is hardly a ReMix at all. More like an original composition with the Super Mario Bros. theme thrown in here and there just for the Hell of it. And even then, it's only a half-decent original composition. And on that note, this ReMix strongly reminds me of "The Legend of Zelda UnderWorldPressureCooker," by wRenchpilot. . . And not in a good way, either. In a sort of. . ."I couldn't think of anything better to do" way.
I'm sorry, but this completely fails to impress me in any aspect at all. How this became an OverClocked ReMix is beyond me.
Maybe because those here have better musical listening skills and taste, here. Almost the entire song uses the bass lines and the main lines from the original, reworked with many different instruments in different parts of the song, and extrapolates the main part and the bassline all over the song; sometimes together, sometimes seperate.
But I probably lost you the second I typed "bass lines". I'm guessing you never paid attention to that when you played the original game.
Stepping aside from the flaming here, there is absolutely no question about the level of arrangement here. Like Joseph Collins here pointed out, and it's certainly something I heard on my own while judging it, the usage of the source tune is perfectly recognizable throughout the major majority of the mix. Even voting NO on it myself, that kind of conclusion isn't even close to true.
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Looks like the laptop's AC adapter connection area is being a ho. Gonna have to get it repaired, and hope to get the comp back on Thursday. VGF's cancelled for now, with hopefully a makeup coming late during the week, perhaps Friday. Apologies to everyone, especially Bladiator (Happy Birthday!)
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http://www.snesmusic.org/spcsets/sd2.rsn - "Spirit of the Night" (sd2-17.spc)
I let this one marinate for a little bit. The somewhat dry (though reverbed) nature of the beatwork didn't really engage my interest for the first few listens, but I got more into the track as I gave it time.
Good opening with the belltones, acoustic guitar, percussion sounds and electronic work. Everything combined very nicely; the textures were very relaxing.
After going for rearrangement right from the intro, the source tune melody recognizably kicked in at :54. There were tons of additive goodies in there while "Spirit of the Night" played in a pretty straightforward manner.
Excellent work switching the flow up at 1:35 with some sweet rearrangement ideas for the lead, along with some brief stuttering and more creativity with the percussion patterns. I thought one of the fuller sections became cluttered, from 2:15-2:32, so make sure everything doesn't mud together too much for loaded up sections of your work in the future. Heard a little bit of tinkering around with the stereo field but could have gone for more activity there. Take further advantage of panning tricks.
The ending tapered off fairly well, although that last low string hanging until 3:09 didn't sound good. Even going for a delicate approach where things slow down and various instruments drop out as the piece winds down, the ending should have possessed a more satisfying resolution.
Overall though, very nice work and a pleasure to listen to, Brandon. Good work creating some dry yet purposeful and satisfying percussion work, a relaxing atmosphere, and some well-executed arrangement ideas.
Good choice for a source tune. "Spirit of the Night" is a favorite of mine from the SoM soundtrack, but it would have been easy to create something that attempted to coast on the strengths of the original composition and thus ended up being bankrupt from a creative standpoint. Keep up the good work!
YES
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Can't figure out what this is mixing from the NiGHTS soundtrack, since I'm not overly familiar with it. Certainly carries some of that vibe here though. From the looks of your VGMix release comments, Andy, it looks like you're done with this one, so I'll just make/iterate some basic points.
Vig, per his usual, nailed most of the salient points:
-this lacked dynamic contrast the whole way through
-the composition/arrangement was very plain & somewhat repetitive
-the mallets were playing some bad notes (didn't affect me too badly, but I definitely heard them)
-the sounds/samples were generally weak (punch them up with more processing/effects)
-the production was also way too muffled and messy; sharpen up the sounds and create a better balance amongst your foreground and background elements
It's not terrible, but, at the same time, this would need a ton of work to get it in any kind of shape. Frankly, I'm a bit surprised the production was this poor given that your FFX-2 mix was released before this one at VGMix. Perhaps this was an older project. In any case though, definitely apply yourself more on future stuff. Looking forward to the next submission.
NO
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Couldn't find any telltale sign of the source tune amidst the VGM FTPs I normally check out, so thanks for including the MIDI.
Was waiting for something to take hold during the intro. Finally got some beats in at :42. The mix lacks a bit in the high-end frequencies, but that's probably just personal taste. The percussion & bass work were both pretty sedate sounding.
I hear the attempt at "ghetto," but I live in one, and I'm not feelin' it here. There was no real presence or sharpness in the sounds. The trip-hop influence was certainly there, but it felt like the track meandered and plodded along. The source melody was pretty spartan in its usage until 2:26-2:46 switched to a piano solo-type section.
Things picked up at 3:22, but we got some um...odd...notes choices until 3:32, then more of the same old groove from before with some slight additions. The string usage at 4:02-4:26 sounded too artificial. Note-to-note dynamics were non-existent there. The performance generally came off as dull and monotonous, and that's not on account of the genre, as there is a lot of badass trip-hop out there. Keep at it, bro.
NO
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Just wanted to give Liquid Neon some brief judging feedback on the other submissions that fell through.
Perfect Dark "Supermans In Chicago": Reliant on the vocal sampling (in this case, Eminem) and definitely a guidelines violation. Music is absolutely distorted and the arrangement is very obscured.
SoM "The Likeness Of Death": Same issues as the previous.
Timesplitters 2 "Frozen West": Don't have the original to compare to. Melody at :41 was very obscured; sounds need cleaner separation as well as some more attention to the high-end in the EQing. Strings sound fake moving from note to note when you can hear them loudly. Decent production. Composition changes enough where it might not be a rip, though it would have to have a good amount of the source tune used and interpreted here of course. I'd be willing to fallthrough that one to at least give it a proper vote.
http://www.snesmusic.org/spcsets/ct.rsn - "Corridors of Time" (ct-3-04.spc)
Heh. Nice thick beats introing things. Then some downright unwieldy shit comes in at :19, and again at :32. Wow, the sound balance is ALL over the place. Everything's EXTREME and in yo face nigga.
Wow, all of sudden everything dropped out at 1:10, only to pick back up at 1:36. Reaching 2:00 of this 2:54 mix, so far only the first few chords from the source have been riffed on. Gotta throw a bit more substance on the arrangement side. 2:14 there is some serious distortion/clipping going on with one mo time fo da bass. Certainly a big detraction from an otherwise interesting track.
This is cooler than a lot of people are gonna give it credit for, but in any case, it doesn't use the source tune enough and doesn't do anything particularly interpretive to it, the sound balance/production needs to be overhauled, and the I'm not trying to squash your style, but you do need to place more focus and direction in the piece at times. It can be disjointed compositionally (e.g. Marsland Brotherhood's Speedball "Speedy Guitar"), but the various parts basically need to individually hold up to the standards here.
NO
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http://www.noderunner.net/~llin/psf/packs/FFX-2_psf2.rar - 101 "Eternity ~Memory of Lightwaves~"
Ah MAN. Why's it gotta be a straight cover? Damn. Then it basically repeats after the halfway point. Well, fuck.
Popping sound at 1:05, along with other light pops along the way. Good atmosphere though the overall sound could be sharper, as it's a bit muffly and I'm hearing some light (not bothersome) hissing. Get some higher frequencies into the picture.
Got to 1:41 and we're basically just retreading. The drums in here sound a bit too artificial. 2:23, still essentially the same composition as the PSF. Not saying it's just a rip or anything, but get interpretive too. Even the album version of the original only goes for 2:37, so if you're going for a 3:28-long mix, bring some further creative interpretation to the table or you won't make it. That's not a real ending at 3:17 either. Bring a resolution into the picture.
Anyway, my girlfriend liked it, so she'll be hanging onto it. This was a really unique offering relative to all other music I've heard in my time in the community, but if the arrangement hits auto-pilot it's all but over. Give your production and the level of creativity on the arrangement a kick. This had the potential to be a very well-received mix, Niels, but you need to put more work into it. Come on back with it.
NO (resubmit)
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http://www.zophar.net/nsf/megaman3.zip - Track 8 ("Sparkman Stage")
Pretty cool ideas on the sound effect intro. Not really connected to the music start, but ya know, Sparkman and all so let's have some sparks. Decent groove here. Fairly basic sounding; pretty simple and straightforward sounds, but the overall vibe was well put together. Cool arrangement ideas from 1:16-1:41. Nothing particularly liberal, but some good ideas adapting the Sparkman theme to the genre and adding a few personal touches.
1:41 changes the flow with some very random electrosynths with some phaser-type effects. The note patterns on them sounded really bad when they were alone until 1:55. It was better when some other stuff joined in and obscured those sounds.
The source melody at 2:07 sounded really shrill and there weren't too many liberties taken there on the composition side. With well-layered but otherwise basic electronic/trance instrumentation going on in the additive sense, I'm also looking for the source melody itself to have further interpretation on it.
Hits a freeform section at 2:59 that really doesn't come together well. Relies on the same phasing synths and so forth that I referred to before with the iffy notes. Better use of variation on the bare bones of the source tune at 3:50.
You have some very good rearrangement ideas in there so far, especially stuff around the end (4:15-5:07) but that simply retreads a lot of what you had earlier (1:16-1:41). Keep thinking of additional variations to bring in to keep the interpretation creative and flowing before you throw in wholly original section or retrace your steps compositionally.
Wonder why it took so long to resub. In any case, you need a bit more creativity on the composition to keep things interesting/engaging for a 5 1/2 minute mix. I'm sure other Js will have some production comments as well, but overall I liked what you had in place in those regards. Certainly interested in what zircon & analoq would have to say here. Loads of potential, bro. You should probably move onto a new project (in case you were thinking of resubbing again), but still a good effort. Don't forget the WIP & ReMixing boards, keep honing your skills and keep 'em coming!
NO
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http://www.tzone.org/~llin/psf/packs2/FF7_psf.rar - 416 "One-Winged Angel" & 214 "J-E-N-O-V-A"
Good fusion of the two themes here. Played this back on VGF47; Reu's always got some good ideas up his sleeve, with this one from RPGamer's Sonic Revolution contest. Wish the texture was fuller; the various lines still sounded thin together, and was an aspect I really would have wanted to see improved. It may be a purely subjective type of statement, but it seemed to me that for a piece like this, that from a composition standpoint wishes to convey tension/emotion/intensity, the pianos were all pretty sparse-sounding. I don't necessarily expect any type of consensus on that, but that was my take.
For something like playing 4 lines of piano in one take apiece, things have the potential to get REALLY unwieldy, so it's commendable that for the most part that the performance was cohesive. I think think this idea was pulled off better here than in Reu's earlier Street Fighter 2 mix "Ryu for 4 Pianos," which I also liked. Nonetheless, there were certainly weaker/unfocused areas, like 1:25-1:41 for example, that didn't coalesce as strongly. Not a big hit on the overall performance though. Some may have problems with other sections along those lines, but I didn't.
Some audio distortion funkery was going on several times from 2:37-2:51. For example, some light warping of sorts was going on around 2:39 & 2:44 for some reason. Gotta fix that up if possible. I'd wanna hear some fuller textures here to give this performance some real bite. But if the panel passes this, I'd have to at least ask for a fix on the audio deformation problems if possible. Very cool piece, don't get me wrong.
NO (resubmit)
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http://www.zophar.net/nsf/metroid.zip - Track 1
Not a bad effort. Certainly some good additive stuff present in the mix. Good light piano rendition of the melody, as well as the string work and most of the other sounds.
Moving into 1:27, we got some distorted synth electric guitar that really didn't combine well here, along with some very basic, somewhat plodding percussion that had no punch to it. After a cymbal swell at 2:16 that sounded too loud and out of place (same at 2:36 - tone it down), the composition slowed down.
By 3:01 things remained slow in the next section. Nothing much really developed here. You don't have to start making the track loud or intense in order to create some sort of dynamics towards the end, but the already existing creativity and additive ideas went on cruise control beyond 3:01.
Scrap the distorted guitar and bring some other new instruments and ideas into the equation from 1:27-2:16. Wouldn't mind hearing some further significant reinterpretation of the actual "Title" theme, but some of that exists here and the additive components worked for the most part. Keep working on it, bro. Fairly basic ideas, but they show promise.
NO (resubmit)
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Hello again Larry,
I've rerecorded Beyond Midgar and it's not nearly as flat sounding as the first version. I don't hear any hiss in this new verson. I used a soundfont this time. With the first version I sent in, I actually outputed the MIDI from the computer to my electric piano, then recorded from the headphone port on the piano, creating a wav/mp3 type file so there was no soundfont used. The upside to that is a more realistic sounding piano but the downside is the hiss. I tried to minimize it with Adobe Audition but it wasn't enough. Anyway, here's the newest version. The link is still the same. Tell the other judges to check the date in the comments section of the ID3 tag to be sure they are listening to the newest version.
http://www.bogusred.net/mmdl/music/OCRBogusRed-Beyond_Midgar.mp3
If you would give me a couple more days, I can play around with the velocities some more to even it out a little bit. There are just a few areas that need tweeking. The ending is too quiet and there is some volume being cut off in a few areas. You mentioned an ugly key change at 3:15 in the first version (in the new version it's around 3:05), I don't think I was successful in fixing that. I hope to fix that within the next couple days. I'm not sure what to do to make that transition better.
The soundfont I used by the way is the RolandNicePiano. If anyone has suggestions for a better soundfont, let me know.
As GrayLightning and The wingless mentioned, it is still held back a bit which for me is a really rare thing. Usually I play way to fast like I did with my previous submission "through the lens of spira," which by the way was not sped up as some judges thought ::cough Vigilante cough::. I tried as best as I could to play with my heart instead of with my ego. The remix may be too much like the original sound track version but it's not always what you play; it's how you play it.
Anyway, I hope you and the other judges enjoy it and agree to post it. I'll have that cleaned version to you within a few days.
-Susie
BogusRed
Just keeping you updated. This revision will be worked on further. Please listen to it and provide some feedback to help improve the production. 3:37-onward will really need work. Suggestions on soundfonts/etc?
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http://www.zophar.net/vgm/wonderb3.zip - "Mind of Hero"
There were some pretty static sounding synths in play here creating a very dry texture. The instrumentation, as it were, was pretty sparse. Some delayed synths, a bassline and some beats made up 90% of the track. The composition was really dragging beyond the 2-minute mark. Started recycling/retreading a bit at 2:25. Also noticed a few odd note patterns in places.
Finally something new at 2:55 with the synth electric bass work, but this just continued to sound very spartan with no dynamics or particularly interesting ideas present. Bland execution. Keep at it, sure, but you've got a ways to go. I could certainly hear how you were attempting to follow Palpable's style from "Marble Dancefloor," though this definitely didn't pull it off.
NO
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http://exotica.fix.no/tunes/archive/C64Music/GAMES/S-Z/Wizardry.sid - Subtune 1/9
Checking out the SIDtune, the thing sounds ugly as hell. Tons of downright ugly note choices. In any case, the sounds were very cluttered together. The strings in particular were seemingly supposed to sound grandiose but didn't get there. Arrangement hits 1:00, then rinses and repeats. Some additive ideas on top of the chorus at 1:51 in the form of a quasi-electric guitar or whatever that was, but it only served to clutter the track further. Last hanging synth guitar note at 2:23 was very out of place at the end. Learn to create better separation of your sounds.
NO
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http://www.zophar.net/gbs/metroid2.zip - Track 3
I'll give you credit in altering the rhythms of the original, though the arrangement was still relatively conservative. The electrosynths chosen were very flat and homogeneous-sounding enough in their various combinations where it was a huge detriment to the track. Nothing in the way of dynamics or build was present. The section from 2:52-3:16 was pretty haphazard sounding. The ending limped to the finish. Very static and unengaging track overall.
NO
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Let's go with the quickness, sirs & madames. If you want Valentine's Day-inspired radio action featuring mah lady, check dis out n' shit! Official Playlist/Chat Transcript/MP3 (129MB/188mins).
VG Frequency #48: Angle 6
Larry Oji - WMRE (Emory University Student Radio; Atlanta, GA)
Saturday, February 12, 2005 / 10:40 PM - 1:50 AM EST
Liontamer f/Paige, Trenthian, Hemophiliac, Flik, Antonio Pizza, Miss Robin & Bladiator
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0. Paige brings the feminine touch to this Valentine's Day themed episode; be prepared for emasculation on a grandiose scale
1. OverCoat - VG Frequency "Hot Mansex" Bumper
2. Miki Higashino - Genso Suikoden 1 "An Old Irish Song" [Melody of Legend ~ Chapter of Love AST]
3. Competition - "Circus of Lies" [http://www.angelfire.com/theforce/shnabubula]
4. virt - "a kiss over ether" [http://www.hellven.org]
5. Motoi Sakuraba - "Shower of Blossoms" [star Ocean: The Second Story OST]
6. Trenthian congratulates Larry on Paige's feminine presence on tonight's show and wants to commemorate the occasion with a display of Larry's chesticles [http://www.soundclick.com/trenthian]
7. Hemophiliac dials in from work to request Funky Mokey Love (not yet, foo') and reveals "His Valentine's Tragedy" [http://onehemophiliac.deviantart.com]
8. He's Big Poppa...Dolittle!
9. Flik be chillin' in Fargo and working for Fox for da $$$, though he's trying to win a $55,000 Cadillac; he been fired as co-host and replaced with the woman, whom Flik proceeds to extract sensitive information from before shilling the Mario Brothers Quartet and reveling in single life [http://www.vagstudios.com]
10. master - Final Fantasy 9 "Rose of April" [OC ReMix #795]
11. hunz - "Sarah's Song" [http://www.hellven.org]
12. TO & reelmojo - True Love 1 "Sleepy Love" [The People Remix Competition v2-8]
13. Gwilym Wogan - "the meinpenis song" [the meinpenis zeitgeist]
14. Motoi Sakuraba - "Weathercock" [star Ocean: The Second Story OST]
15. Antonio Pizza brings "Katamara" back into Larry's life; Larry's got a KID, Katamara's demanding child support and Paige walks out in disgust [http://ap.zapto.org]
16. Hideaki Kobayashi - "Valentine" [Phantasy Star Online: Songs of Ragol Odyssey OST: Episode 1]
17. NoWave - "Love" [invisible]
18. Malcos - "Elusive Love" [http://www.malcos.co.uk]
19. Poets of the Fall - "Late Goodbye" [Max Payne 2 OSV]
20. Hemophiliac - True Love 1 "My Valentine's Tragedy" [The People Remix Competition v2-8]
21. Tenpei Sato - "The End of This Passionate Feeling" [Phantom Brave OST]
22. Yoshino Aoki - "Brave Heart" [breath of Fire IV OST]
23. Antonio Pizza yells at Larry to "GIVE HER THE MONKEY LOVE!" [http://ap.zapto.org]
24. Rayza f/Joëlle - VG Frequency "976-RAYZA LV" Bumper
25. Marc Star - Street Fighter Alpha 2 "Kasugano (Booty Mix)" [VGMix2 #722 / OC ReMix #1117]
26. Kae - Chrono Trigger "The Girl Forgotten by Time" [Time & Space: Blue]
27. Tenpei Sato - "The Sorrowful You" [Phantom Brave OST]
28. Shnabubula - "Lament in Eb" [signature]
29. Red Omen - VG Frequency "Brings Us Together" Bumper
30. Yoko Shimomura - "Dearly Beloved" [Kingdom Hearts OST]
31. Yoko Shimomura - "Friends in My Heart" [Kingdom Hearts OST]
32. Zeratul - "Sea of Dreams" [http://www.sarbatka.com]
33. Akari Kaida & Yoshino Aoki - "Life's a Beach" [breath of Fire III OST]
34. Dale North f/Esther Stilwell - NiGHTS into Dreams... "Dreams Dreams" [The Very Best of Sega]
35. Hideaki Kobayashi & Yutaka Minobe - "Rose Confession" [Phantasy Star Online: Songs of Ragol Odyssey OST: Episode 1]
36. Yu Miyake - "Angel Flavor's Present" [Katamari Fortissimo Damacy OST]
37. Yu Miyake - "Lovely Angel" [Katamari Fortissimo Damacy OST]
38. Peter McConnell - "Ninth Heaven" [Grim Fandango OST]
39. Akari Kaida & Yoshino Aoki - "Even the Sun's Happy" [breath of Fire III OST]
40. Rayza f/Paige - VG Frequency "Scary Larry" Bumper
41. Artdink - Zeus 2 "Cozy" [Melody of Legend ~ Chapter of Dream AST]
42. Asuka Sakai & Charlie Kosei - "Que Sera Sera" [Katamari Fortissimo Damacy OST]
43. Israfel - Shivers 1 "Cerebral Rose Jam" [VGMix2 #1165 / OC ReMix #1292]
44. Star Salzman - "Home is With You" [http://www.starblast.org]
45. Yasunori Mitsuda - "Earth Dragon's Island" [Chrono Cross OST]
46. Bladiator muscles in on Paige before regaling us with a story (oooh, dis woman's crazy) while Paige plays love doctor and giving us the status on his upcoming PRCv2-9 Kirby's Adventure collab with Hemophiliac & GrayLightning [http://filez.mustard.pointclark.net/blad]
47. Peter McConnell - "She Sailed Away" [Grim Fandango OST]
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http://www.zophar.net/nsf/friday13.zip - Tracks 5 & 1
NOOOOOOOOOOOOO! Why are you letting me down like this? This could have been AWESOME. Well, the source material is awesome, so this really carries it appeal from that. This was at least cool to listen to.
The intro sounded too distant. The piano sample has no attention to velocities done in the effort to sound more realistic. Same with the light string work occasionally used. Damn, this theme is cool as hell. Still an enjoyable listen.
Some SLIGHT work with dynamics, but the sample usage killed most of the effect on that. And the track, after transitioning to Track 1 of the NSF, abruptly cuts out at 3:03. Who knows, maybe it was stolen from someone else. In any case, this let me down. [sniff sniff] Gonna cry over this. Wing might too. Stop making black men cry.
NO
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http://www.snesmusic.org/spcsets/ct.rsn - "The Brink of Time" (ct-2-13.spc) & "Guardia Millenial Fair" (ct-1-06.spc)
Still sounds basically MIDI-grade to me. Nothing sounds realistic given how I assume you'd want for this to sound; instruments carry no sonic depth or realism. No attention to velocities or dynamics whatsoever. Composition doesn't develop or evolve.
Vig called it well saying it was monotonous. Your ideas were promising and tried to arrange the Brink of Time in a slightly different direction, but 2:37 would have been a good point to take this in another new direction. Adding some pizzicato strings for a sec wasn't really enough.
And Izz's observation of the track sounding "emotionally constrained" was very insightful and on-point. This was devoid of nearly any and all feeling. Indeed, your execution doesn't do a thing for your ideas, which have genuine creativity and potential.
My copy just cut out at 4:25 (surely hope that's not the real finish) but that's alright. Better camp out at the ReMixing & WIP forums, bro, and significantly improve the craft.
NO
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You're right Mike, it's not terrible. "Lame as hell" was geared on more of a guidelines point of view, as it was just the original (albeit a MIDI) with a bit of tooling around. Very disappointing on those lines.
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Hey Larry -
I submitted this a a few months ago, then again at the end of January. I'm assuming it didn't make it, based on the current load on the queue (beginning of February, right?)
This is an arrangement of the Final Fantasy Legend main theme. I arranged it for four to six saxophones (basically an Alto/Alto/Tenor/Baritone sax, if you care). All parts were recorded by me, and I recorded it all straight up and blind - no pitch processing or anything. I recorded each just with the MIDI that I made of the song, without listening to each individual part. The pitch turned out pretty good as it was. I tried to do it in the same style as a song by a vocal jazz concert called Acapella, for what its worth. There are a few parts where the parts switch up and I add a part here or there...I just recorded the little section and added it in.
I used M-Audio Pre-amps, some studio mikes from the recording studio at my college, and Audacity for the basic sequencing. Fruity for the reverb. If y'all care, I used a Selmer Super Balanced Action 80 Alto Sax, Selmer Mark VI Tenor Sax, and a Yamaha Pro Edition Gold Baritone Saxophone. You guys have the chiptune on your site, I believe. The composer was Uematsu.
One note about the song - every set of songs that I've heard from this game doesn't include this song. The song is the Opening theme - the main screen song. Its also the main theme for Legend II and III. I've got a MIDI that I sequenced from the game, if that will help, and I can rip an mp3 from the sound test if you guys want it.
Anything else, please feel free to ask.
Credit this song to the Prophet of Mephisto. That is my ID on the forums, as well. My website is at www.soundclick.com/theprophetofmephisto. Props to the crew at Remix Affiliates for their help on this song. The name of the song is 'Legend of the Saxes'.
BRAD BURR
aka the Prophet of Mephisto
http://www.zophar.net/gbs/ffl1.zip - Track 1
I remember the source tune from way back when I got into the scene and started doing radio, since it was the source tune choice for IMC5, which featured some really good tracks from guys like analoq & aluminum.
The sax work didn't sound terribly fake, but it also didn't come across as exceptionally authentic-sounding either. The performance was supposed to sound chill and laid-back but instead ended up sounding very sluggish. I heard light pops/audio deformations at points. Gotta eliminate those, but nothing was a big bother there. The arrangement showed some significant reinterpretation more in the second half, which was good. I certainly liked the ideas there.
Interesting light jazz kind of vibe, though I don't believe all of the elements combined well. The various brass support work sounded really improvised yet meandering at times. The whole track seemed to lack any focused direction as a result. The lead needed to be punched up to provide something for the listener to latch onto. As it stands, everything layered together at basically the same volume/intensity and just mudded together. The ending had a resolution, but it came across as too sudden and undeveloped. Promising ideas, Brad, but there's loads of stuff to work on in you wanna achieve a cohesive, spirited, and focused end-result.
NO
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http://www.vgmusic.com/music/computer/atari/atari/3D-Galax.mid - Title theme
Poor/flat sounds, no sound balance/poor mixing, some arrangement ideas were present, but nothing too involved. Give your remix an actual title as well.
Sorry to sound glib and/or harsh, but get better at everything. Look up more information at the ReMixing forum & Work-in-Progress forum for advice on how to improve.
NO
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http://www.snesmusic.org/spcsets/dkc.rsn- "Fear Factory" (dkc-20.spc)
I'm almost sure you used a midi of Fear Factory to make this because of how you left the notes unchanged and just restructured them. The trance surrounding the original song's melody is very weak and simplistic and the melody itself is sequenced badly, such as the sluggish organ starting at 1:56.So some (not even all) new instruments playing the exact same notes in differently ordered patterns with incredibly sparse drums and synths for support. Very weak.
I think what Binnie was trying to say was that this would have made a hot B-side to Kong in Concert.
Yep, sounds like you just mucked around with a MIDI. Lame as hell. And, yes, that's not harsh enough. Maybe send it to VGMusic or something, though I wouldn't really recommend that either. Should drop a NO Override on this guy, but he tried to do a little something beyond the ripping. Wow, 6:17 for THIS? Nah, bro.
Submission Instructions & Standards]In terms of arrangement - how close or distant ReMixes should be to the original - the general rule is that the ReMix should be YOURS. We don't just mean that you were involved in its creation, but that it is different enough from the original so as to readily illustrate the contributions, modifications, and enhancements you have made. In other words, don't just take the original and drop a few drum loops on top. Also, don't simply take a MIDI file and assign new instruments to the parts, or add reverb, and expect that to pass as 'yours'. When we say 'ReMix', we actually mean something closer to 're-arrangement', if that helps clarify. If you listen to most of the pieces on the site and compare them to the originals, you should get an idea of what a ReMix is.NO
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http://www.snesmusic.org/spcsets/ki.rsn - "Main Theme" (ki-01.spc)
The opening pad was so distant and muddy, the production on it was horrible. The electrosynth beats were on cruise control and provided next-to-no variation. Malc pretty much broke it down, so all his comments might as well be my own. The arrangement was very uninspired. Well, everything was very uninspired. Not much else to say. It's not terrible, but it just needs a lot more work to get to any genuine level of quality & creativity.
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*NO* Final Fantasy Legend 'Legend of the Saxes' *FT*
in Judges Decisions
Posted
I learn something new every day. Actually, it's one of those things I knew in the back of my head anyway, since my twin brother used to play the bass clarinet back in the day. Thanks for the reminder, Shariq!