Liontamer   Judges ⚖️

=== link to submission: --> <-- this track was made by me in Renoise, using: * Samples From Mars * Rave Generator * Mario Maker 2 samples === contact information * remixer name: jneen-collective * real name: Jeanine Adkisson * email address: * website: https://jneen-collective.bandcamp.com/ * forum user id: 38527 === submission information * game: Super Mario Maker for Wii U, Super Mario Maker 2 for Nintendo Switch * arrangement name: Mario Maker - Banned Wagon Mix * track remixed: Main Theme === additional game information: So for my first submission I said this was from Super Mario Maker 2 (Switch), but apparently the version there is an arrangement of the original theme from Super Mario Maker (Wii U). Truth is, this theme is all over both games, in the title screens, credits, and in Story Mode. Super Mario Maker (Wii U) version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bn60nAbieF4 Super Mario Maker 2 version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wy0nNf4zfsU SMM2 also has 8-bit versions and a Night Mode version. The mashup bit was inspired by the credits version in SMM2, where the B section of the SMB1 Ground theme is played over the main theme: https://youtu.be/3CUL1QJz91U?t=117 Mario Maker music was composed by: Koji Kondo Naoto Kubo Asuka Hayazaki Mario Maker 2 Music was composed by: Atsuko Asahi Toru Minegishi Sayako Doi === mix comments Original comments: this mix was originally made as a theme for the Banned Wagon Team, but we eventually decided to use a different track. it came out really well though, so i wanted to polish it up and send it in. bass parts are all original, the breakbeat is custom sliced, and i added a lot of space to the harmonic rhythm to let the d&b elements and a couple melodic flairs shine through. mastered to approximately -14 lufs, peaking momentarily around -11, but i can render the unmastered version on request. hope you enjoy! On new version: * Added some mix variations on the breakbeat in the first loop * Broke apart the drum pattern in the second loop and added ride cymbals and claps * Added an entire new section with a resampled and re-sliced breakbeat and Big Horns and quotes inspired by the credits version of the track * Tamed the bass quite a lot * Differentiated the ear-candy bits in the mix a little more, hopefully now they sound distinct enough to not slip into the uncanny-valley they were in before. * Slightly more aggressive mastering, still targeting the youtube guidelines - can provide unmastered as well. Thanks to Hemophiliac and all the other judges for your suggestions, they were quite helpful! And thanks a ton for listening ❤️ - jneen

Still in favor it, so we'll see how the others feel. YES

Original Decision LINK to resubmission: Notes: thanks all for your feedback! We worked on polishing up the track based on the judges' feedback. This version has an all new mix, quite a few timing polishes, and a few punched in parts (specifically my vocals at the end). Thanks for your (re)consideration! Joe --- Your ReMixer name: Newmajoe [arrangement, production, saxophones, toy piano, backup vocals] Other musicians: Michelle Dreyband [vocals] Sam Schwartz [Guitar, Mandolin, mastering]. Your real name: Joe Newman Your email address: Your website(s): https://joenewman.bandcamp.com/ Name of game(s) arranged: Super Mario Galaxy Name of arrangement: The Little Girl And The Star Name of individual song(s) arranged: Luma, Gusty Garden Galaxy, Rosalina in the Observatory. Additional information about game including composer, system, etc. (if it has not yet been added to the site) The lyrics are adapted from the in-game "Rosalina's Story" written by Yoshiaki Koizumi, the game's director. Link to the original soundtrack (if it is not one of the sound archives already available on the site) https://vgmdb.net/album/5411 Your own comments about the mix, for example the inspiration behind it, how it was made, etc. The arrangement was created for the Dwelling of Duels February competition, which was "Mario" month. I was inspired by classic "storybook readings" with traditional film scoring, much like Disney audiobooks. My three year old daughter is obsessed with these stories, and I jumped at the chance to compose something for her in this chamber style. (You might even be able to guess her name if you listen closely for some quotes in the arrangement!) My collaborators Michelle (vocals) and Sam (strings) threw themselves 100% into this project, and were involved at every stage of production. I absolutely could not have done this without them. Best, Joe

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

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

I'll pass by the fact that this isn't dubstep in any way; it is important to get musical labels right, but I don't care that this wasn't "as advertised" re: the genre. Sets a good mood, so the first 35 seconds are sweet, though it quickly becomes super buzzy and abrasive at :17. Synth at :47 was thin and shrill. At 1:00, the running line is thin here but a good sound, then neither the beats nor the melodic line at 1:08 have any depth (drum sounds like a plastic bucket's being hit). As is, the textures were buzzy and abrasive, yet thin. The choir vox accents from 1:16-1:24 got steamrolled and I only noticed them because I was actively listening. There's a supporting synth line from 1:32-1:58 that adds some tension, but suffers from the same overall problems (thin sample, crunchy production). Stiff and anemic lead at 1:59; not sure why you'd roll with this; drums still sound like a plastic bucket, and the shakers until 2:25 aren't bad, but I'm not sure what they're adding here when these textures are reatively barren. The instrumentation sounds better at 2:25 going back to the running line until the bucket-like drums (2:33) and bland synth (2:42) come back in. Didn't hear anything else of note going on until the finish, retreading some writing ideas with different sounds that were a little more creative, but still thin, shrill, and piercing (and ultimately didn't feel much different than what came before). I'll always enjoy renditions of this theme, so I'm glad you tackled it, Lucas. The instrumentation needs waaaaay more depth and sophistication, and the soundscape was too crunchy and distorted. Until there's depth and clarity, it'll be hard to realize the potential of the arrangement, and this isn't anywhere near fully cooked. NO

If you open a new tab and then copy-pasta the link into the address line, THEN the browser will DL it, but definitely unintuitive.

Quite the improvement!

For the source, the drum writing was super basic and the brass samples were pretty exposed, but it's an energetic theme; nice choice here. For the arrangement, the opening piano timing's very mechanical. OK, lots of parts are rigidly timed/looped. Smart usage of the source's intro line interpretively arranged and used as the countermelody for your arrangement at :29; very cool. The "ocean wave" first used at :13 seemed a bit gimmicky as it got used at :27, :42, and :55 (and more); sounds kind of bitcrushed rather than actual ocean, so it comes off more like an overused sweep, but I see how it's meant to work with the chiptune lead (and the arrangement title, of course). The drumkit writing at :15's actually more interesting than the source's (which was very metronome-ish there), but this kit had a flimsy tone, so the drums don't lend much energy or depth from 1:15-1:29 when the soundscape should have felt more filled in. Your textural variations are in the right direction, but -- particularly if you're not looking to extend the length of this barely 2-minute track -- consider other variations on the melody at :59 and/or 1:22. Otherwise, it feels like a mix-and-match looping of the different building blocks, too much cut-and-paste-style building of the track. For OCR's Submission Standards, a track this short shouldn't feel like it has a lot of outright repetition or the arrangement will be perceived as underdeveloped. Introducing other writing variations could move this in the right direction; just be wary of extending this without developed-enough and fluid enough writing to justify it; this pacing with these textures would definitely drag out as is. Some different padding or more active writing than just the current bassline could also help give this a more sophisticated and cohesive texture. Right now, the bassline tended to add what felt more like an indistinct low hum/drone that also added mud. The bassline's complimenting music that's very locked to grid, so the energy feels very stilted, though your drums and supporting chiptune lines help in terms of the energy level. No big deal, but some leftover residual noise came back in after the track faded to 0 at 2:07, so watch the cutoff. Though the other judges may have better insight, I felt the overall mixing was solid and I could hear the parts well aside from the indistinct bassline critiques. Very good potential here, Elijah. Other Js may be able to offer some suggestions on giving this a livelier energy and further writing variations; those seem to be the main drawbacks here. NO (resubmit)

Contact Information: ReMixer name: BurningMagma Real name: Elijah Wiencek Email: User ID: ocremix.org/community/profile/38331-burningmagma/ Submission Information: Name of game arranged: My Singing Monsters Playground Name of arrangement: Chorus of the Sea Name of individual song arranged: Water Island Additional Information: Composers: Dylan Cole, Sam Clark, Tom Meikle Link to original soundtrack: www.youtube.com/watch?v=oNgR45vm8cY Comments: I've been playing the original mobile game for a while now, and when My Singing Monsters Playground came onto the Nintendo Switch, I knew I had to do something. Then I wondered, "How could I make a tribute to my childhood?". ReMixing was my answer, so this week (as of writing this), I tried out mixing the Water Island theme. After messing around in FL Studio while having 8 GB of ram, I present to you "Chorus of the Sea". -BurningMagma

Usually, Guillaume's timestamps line up and make sense, but these were a couple of seconds off, so it threw me off. The "Unrest" sections were harder to make out. Liberal, but I groked it. YES

Great energy at :33 with the melody prominently arriving after the more subtle build. The mixing's very lossy-sounding, and I'm not sure why, though 1:14 seemed to allow some more high-end frequencies through. Back to thick beats at 1:35, and this is mixed in a very muddy way. Yeah, it's just staying like this the whole way through. This soundset is beefy, but the mixing is very muddy. I'll need some time to wrap my head around the source tune usage in the arrangement with the rhythmic changes; at the very least, I'd love a source usage breakdown from Trevor explaining what's referenced where. For now, a timestamping is kind of moot point, because the mixing kills this regardless of the arrangement and musicianship. MindWanderer said "after listening to it several times, I realized there are accompanying synths that are almost completely drowned out, like an arp at 1:36-1:57", and that's definitely right. Nearly every section sounds muffled, like a fan recorded this on a bootleg tape. If you can fix the mixing, and the source tune usage is confirmed solid in terms of dominating the arrangement, then I'd love this posted in some form. Amazing energy here, Trevor; definitely don't drop it if it doesn't make it as is. NO (resubmit)

If we run into a track where the music is effectively obscured by vocals or spoken word, I think there'd be a discussion. For this, I don't think one would argue that's the case here. The music's always plainly audible and there are also areas where there are no vocals with the VGM arrangement. A long time ago, we removed two ye olden Counter-Strike subs for being original compositions + in-game SFX, and we had a ye olden Diablo sub that was just an original composition with sampled in-game narration on top. We're a game music arrangement site, so if someone submits an original composition that included game-sourced script/copy, that's not a VGM arrangement.

Opens and closes sampling the "Item Room" theme, but it's brief and a bookend technique. A simple but interesting soundscape to start. A wholly original line comes in at :31 (it does sound Brinstar-y, MindWanderer's right). "Norfair" arrives at :51 with a very fake-sounding brass sample that lacks depth. Some minimalist beats arrived at 1:13, then the texture filled in more at 1:33 with some variations on "Norfair". All the brass, even layered, sounds very thin and mechanical; I'd argue it's not a viable lead as is since it'll never sound organic. Texturally, this is still too thin, and arguably doesn't fill out until 1:54 when a denser padding line came in. 2:14 continued filling in more, and you can hear how the track tries to evolve, but the blocky timing and relatively thin textures still drag out. I liked the change in the lead at 2:40-2:48; it could potentinally get tired after a while, but works there in terms of varying up the sounds. Some light electric guitar chugs entered into the picture at 2:49, followed by it doubling the lead at 3:05, then handling the countermelody at 3:15; very creative way to keep that part involved yet have it regularly switch roles. At 3:25, we were back to the thinner textures, and this is just too relatively thin for too long to work, even though the effort is noticeably there to vary and build these textures. To me, the brass leads should be replaced. When expanding out the sounds, one would think the rigid timing would still work, but it's currently not. Would any musicians Js familiar with minimalism be able to offer Grant some production tips to help this sound more cohesive? NO (resubmit)

Good catch on the theme cameos. I'd already noticed the latter one, but wasn't listening closely enough to catch the very well-integreated "I Love Lucy" theme. Nice! It's only 15 seconds of non-VGM cameos, so no problem re: the Submissions Standards. As far as a story narration, I can't recall another ReMix in that format, but I'll check. To me, it doesn't really matter one way or the other. If you eliminated the spoken word entirely, you have an interpretive enough, developed enough VGM arrangement, so anything else is a bonus. As far as Michelle's delivery, I don't see what the problem is. Maybe XPRTNovice may have some tips as a pro VA, but everything's reasonably emotive and strongly delivered, IMO, and the delivery involves a brighter and more forceful style while employing plenty of vocal variety. Without being able to hear my tone due to this being text, it'll sound like I'm saying there's a low bar on this kind of performance; however one would feel about this narration, it's more than capable and rising above any reasonable hobbyist performance bar. I'd rather not nitpick this, because none of the performance is a drawback vis-a-vis the Submissions Standards, just the mixing.

Cool, a narrated story format. I'm sorry for being unable to properly articulate the mixing issues; IMO, the narration vocals were too loud and don't really feel like they sit within the music. It may be a stylistic thing where the narration should have a sharper edge to it, but it was odd hearing almost click-like finishes to syllables (e.g. the Ts at 1:32 "comet" & 1:34 "planet", the D at 2:37 "dearest"). I felt like I was getting a lot of shrill frequencies throughout with the instrumental, yet the piece also lacked high-end clarity. Not sure what that stray gurgling/static noise from 5:06-5:14 was; maybe it was intentional, but sounds like a mistake. The last sung note at 5:43 could use tuning to smooth it out (though the toy piano underneath it seemed to reorient things and resolve it alright). The ending also cut off too fast; gotta let that final toy piano note get that second or two to hang and fade out. The crits are nothing holding back this strong arrangement from being approved, but if Joe were open to it, would love to get another mixing pass on this. If we can't, I'm still in favor of this going up. Nice concept and good interpretive iterations of the source themes. YES

LINK: Your ReMixer name: Newmajoe [arrangement, production, saxophones, toy piano, backup vocals] Other musicians: Michelle Dreyband [vocals] Sam Schwartz [Guitar, Mandolin, mastering]. Your real name: Joe Newman Your email address: Your website(s): https://joenewman.bandcamp.com/ Name of game(s) arranged: Super Mario Galaxy Name of arrangement: The Little Girl And The Star Name of individual song(s) arranged: Luma, Gusty Garden Galaxy, Rosalina in the Observatory. Additional information about game including composer, system, etc. (if it has not yet been added to the site) The lyrics are adapted from the in-game "Rosalina's Story" written by Yoshiaki Koizumi, the game's director. Link to the original soundtrack (if it is not one of the sound archives already available on the site) https://vgmdb.net/album/5411 Your own comments about the mix, for example the inspiration behind it, how it was made, etc. The arrangement was created for the Dwelling of Duels February competition, which was "Mario" month. I was inspired by classic "storybook readings" with traditional film scoring, much like Disney audiobooks. My three year old daughter is obsessed with these stories, and I jumped at the chance to compose something for her in this chamber style. (You might even be able to guess her name if you listen closely for some quotes in the arrangement!) My collaborators Michelle (vocals) and Sam (strings) threw themselves 100% into this project, and were involved at every stage of production. I absolutely could not have done this without them. Best, Joe

A Bollywood and tango hybrid's no doubt an interesting approach. Opens sounding like Super Mario 64's "Lethal Lava Land" with the mood. Theme kicks in at :07 with a nice rhythmic change, but the strings sound so rigidly timed. At :23, the piano sounds thin and mechanical, then the clap-driven beats at :24 were really flimsy and didn't drive the track forward. The accordion at :31 was really stilted. :48 hit an original section that sounded texturally empty, but brought back the source melody underneath at :55. Back to the underwhelming beats at 1:04, and I noticed how the foreground feels like it's the bass and beats, with the melody competing for space and the supporting strings being obscured. I liked the transition at 1:25 (that delay effect gave the accordion some depth to the sound) into the source tune's next section, although the steel drum timing sounded so robotic. Thank you for the new beats at 1:41; I'd argue the change was overdue, so consider varying them up earlier. The rhythms are much more interesting, and the strings at 1:57 sound serviceable, though they need a richer sound. Wow, a VERY underwhelming & sudden ending. It's comes off so lazy, which is unintentional but likely how it would be taken by many others, so I'm keeping it real here. Even in the original itself, it takes more time for that section to play out and then transition back to the beginning, so why not consider it here as well and ensure it doesn't feel like such an abrupt close? The final string notes should have been given time to breathe and there's literally no resolution, it sounds much more like a work-in-progress sketch where you say "I'll come back to this later to finish it", so don't give up on including some other arrangement ideas to wrap it up in a cohesive way. It's a good concept, Hanabi & Alter; the structure is conservative, but the interpretation is there with the new instrumentation, beats, and rhythms. But the arrangement is clearly unfinished with the way this ends. I also felt the instrumentation realism was in the uncanny valley on practically everything, which was another dealbreaker for me; the tones were decent yet noticeably thin, and the sequencing was too rigid, so the timing felt very blocky and locked to grid. Would love to hear a musician judge offer some tips on how to mitigate the realism issues and achieve a more believeable sound with tools like these. NO (resubmit)

Name of game(s) arranged: Donkey Kong Country (DKC) Name of arrangement: Tantric Hijinx Name of individual song(s) arranged: Jungle Hijinx Your ReMixer name: HANABI [하나비], Alter Loy Your real name: Aaron (Hanabi), Alter (dunno real name but is not that needed right?) Your email address: Your website(s): https://open.spotify.com/artist/1V0ertkugC2gsMZPdFnfd2?si=K75wAq9ESQ6jIV08oYwaQQ (Spotify) and https://www.youtube.com/@HANABI_Music (Youtube), Alter Loy's Spotify too so you have his spotify to tag as well: https://open.spotify.com/artist/7rL0RtqIfDQGJpLv7IWIcq?si=O0z1TeqiT8u4RtATK5-GDQ&app_destination=copy-link Additional information about game including composer, system, etc. (if it has not yet been added to the site): Composer - David Wise, System: SNES Link to the original soundtrack (if it is not one of the sound archives already available on the site): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjRw9X2Hxro Your own comments about the mix, for example the inspiration behind it, how it was made, etc: I am half Indian, and Alter Loy is Spanish so we did an Indo-Spanish fusion track. I noticed the track isnt here: https://ocremix.org/game/47/donkey-kong-country-snes

Ha, this feels kind of like going for a Super Metroid-type of approach, which I dig. The mixing's not great: from :36-:52 for example, it feels like the background parts (not the lead) are competing to be heard amongst themselves. Man, :52-1:24 just feels empty, then to be followed up by an even more barren section from 1:24-1:40 is a bad contrast. Then from 1:40-2:12, the backing synths sound like they're massively off-key. 2:17's section also seems interesting, but the sound of the lead is stilted and anemic. Ending was needlessly messed up; if you're going to do an ongoing playback-type of fadeout, don't stop the instrumentation flat like you did at 2:58, let it continue. This is an interesting arrangement concept, Lucas, but I'm hearing all potential and no polish. The musician judges will be able to better articulate why this isn't clicking yet; for me, the beats don't have enough oomph to fill up the soundscape, and all of the timing feels too rigid without the body/depth to the sounds to give it personality. No cohesion achieved here yet. Limited time spent creating something isn't an inherent knock on a product -- DDRKirby(ISQ)'s spent a career disproving that due to One Hour Compo. That said, I think you could pull this up into something passable, but I'm also not hearing enough time invested in this -- or sensing enough comfort with these tools -- to feel like it would be a bankable outcome. Whether you can get this there depends on your level of interest and further experimentation. NO (resubmit)

Weird instrumentation from the jump. OK, I'm not fully on board but you have my attention. The beat pattern brought in at :10 is initially interesting, but I did feel it was used too much without enough variation besides dropping them out entirely; employing some different patterns and/or sounds could have been good. By 1:27, I'm waiting for something else to change-up as the instrumentation is getting fatiguing; in terms of dynamics, the beat did drop out at 1:54, so that's at least something. The mixing was alright, though it does lack high-end sharpness, and proph was right about the imbalances though I can live with them. Laughing out loud at the juice this arrangement has despite the corniest instrumentation ever. I'm definitely in the camp of hearing how this has flaws in the mixing and repetitive feel but have enough strengths to pull it over the line. Not my cup of tea, but chamomile can be hot in the streets too! YES

Beautiful stuff, particularly the tremolo string writing. The brass isn't the best, but the overall texture is solid; a little too muddy, maybe, but it overall achieves the mystical mood it's going for. The countermelodies having a more ghostly quality underneath the melody (e.g. 1:01-1:20) was a wonderful touch. Good job with the instrumentation tradeoff for the melodies, a tactic that's worked very well for Rebecca, as well as her signature percussive ornamentation. Shining, shimmering, splendid. (Peabo Bryson-approved?) YES

Noticeably crunchy & pumping to start until :13. Cool subtle sound design stuff going on underneath to add some omnious sounds into the texture The soundscape's somewhat washed out, but I'm making out the parts fine. Probably could have done without the "Put your hands in the air" sampling at 1:06, then the next part at 1:20 did sound distorted when the beat came in at 1:23 (and also obscured the melodic line at 1:33, though that was short-lived). A needed changeup happened at 1:46 to drop things out and clear out some clutter. I liked the quiet bubbly line getting pushed up at 2:26. More of that club chanting sampling, which wasn't my cup of tea and didn't really integrate well; maybe the clips just sounded too low-quality and didn't feel like they were in the same "room" as the music. More overdriven stuff from 2:56 until the 3:19; IMO, too loud while slightly abrasive, but I can live with it. There were elements I didn't feel clicked, but Dustin's arrangement is still solid. The theme is meaningfully expanded upon via the instrumentation and denser textures, as well as the original music and audio clip transitions. Creepy club sound achieved! YES

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

Though not a huge deal, the woodwinds didn't cut through at all during the intro lasting until :21. The electric guitar panning was way too wide and didn't make sense on headphones. From :37-1:32, there's also a crunchiness to the soundscape, though I couldn't tell you why that's happening; from 2:09-2:12, it sounded like the brass flourish was distorting, then there's constant distortion from 2:25 until the end. Production-wise, this needs a serious reexamination, and I think the YESs have lost the plot, nor would I accept this as is if the source files were gone. Something about the way this has been mixed feels like shit's been overdriven, so there's pervasive and unpleasant distortion and crunch. I hope fixing this would be a straightforward enough process, because with the personalization via the instrumentation and performances, it's a great arrangement and an easy pass. NO (resubmit) EDIT (8/1): This version's certainly mixed better. That said, since I'm still listening on headphones, the panning's still too wide; maybe it's a non-issue for speakers/monitors. It sounds like various parts are nearly, if not totally, exclusive to one ear. Overall, it sounds like too much is panned hard right, and that's actually my weaker ear, so it's gotta be drastic if I'm going to notice. I wish I could go YES (conditional) at this point, but addressing panning feels like it would be a lot more involved. Whether this sustained and extremely wide panning's intentional or not, my vote has to stay the same unless the panning's addressed. EDIT (9/12): The panning's still too wide, I wish the overall sound was sharper, and 1:25-1:27 felt to me like some very minor distortion was there, so some nitpicks still exist. That being said, this newly mastered version Felipe sent actually eliminates the crunchiness and distortion! We do have the unmastered version he sent as well (check the first post), in case one of you Js think you could improve it even more. To me, the arrangement's solid, so we shouldn't tinker with the mixing any longer, when we now have a viable rendition of the track! Glad to FINALLY be able to flip this vote! YES