halc

this is mastered way too loud, causing some noticible distortion, especially in the drums. you'll definitely want to pull that back a bit, and re-level your individual channels to compensate. the kinda minimalist-electronica approach definitely isn't a bad one, but I agree that the melody could be more prominent in the arrangement, and that the overall track was kinda repetitive. the synths were vanilla sounding too. NO(resub)

hahaha, yeah. this is hilarious, and has a pretty damn groovy arrangement for a 'joke' track, but it's unpolished. I'd be happy to pass this if the mixing was cleaner. lol(resub)

great choice of source tune. gotta agree with OA though, it's a bit too conservative, and gets pretty repetitive. production was pretty good overall though, the vocals sound cool, and the song definitely had a daft punk feel to it. it's close, but I think you could take this a few more steps forward with the arrangement. really hope to hear this one again. NO(resub)

yeah, this is drowning in reverb; it's difficult to comment on anything because of how washed out it all is, besides the arrangement, which seemed solid enough, somewhat straightforward with some good personalization. the reverb kills it instantly, though. fix that and send it back. NO(resub)

I loved the intro, but I agree that it could be condensed without losing any of the effect, and the eventual 'drop' didn't quite pay off the way it should. things also start getting pretty cluttered in the second half. pretty weird stuff overall, but I kinda like it. give this another look to see what else you can make of it, because it definitely has some potential, but as it stands, I've gotta go with a NO(resub)

not a lot to add. I loved the FM/genesis sound this had, but the instruments and melodic parts felt a bit subdued compared to the bass and drums, at least until that trance synth halfway through entered. aside from some balance issues, the production was generally well-executed, and packed a punch. arrangement wise, I have to agree that the mix gets pretty repetitive, and is pretty conservative to begin with. try weaving some more layers in and out, adding original harmonies or countermelodies and trimming back on some of the repetition or varying things up more. NO(resub)

there's some really distracting recording noise/fuzz on this, especially in the intro. like the others, I was digging this a lot at times, but the overall arrangement isn't too interpretive. I agree with Deia that the transition wasn't too smooth, but I liked the idea. it's not too far below the bar, I hope to be hearing it again sometime. NO(resub)

real nice. the mixing felt a little thin/reserved, but very pleasing to listen to, overall. arrangement-wise, I gotta agree with my fellow j's. there should be more interplay between original and source, whereas this jumps back and forth from straight up source to all original writing. digging it a lot regardless, but I've gotta request a resubmit here. NO(resub)

yeah, very interesting mix here, this is a pretty cool avant-garde sort of piece. personally, I really like a few parts of this. the bleeps and bloops are very pleasing to the ear. there are some neat changes to the groove, but the instrumentation doesn't evolve much throughout the track, which is already kinda sparse and dragged out, and could've been more straightforward with the source usage. some cool arrangement ideas to be sure, but the overall execution needs to be more focused. NO(resub)

also agreed with OA. the arrangement had a good integration of the sources, but the mixing has some vital flaws. the bass was inaudible, but the kick drum was overly boomy. some of the synth sounds are a little generic, but overall the sounds and samples were okay, just un-balanced. drums felt repetitive, but I liked the little glitches and fills. keep at it. NO(resub)

I agree that the arrangement was really lacking in energy, but was digging the first minute or so of this; I don't think the lo-fi was a bad idea, it kinda reminds me of AeroZ actually, but the sounds were way more vanilla. liked the source and general direction of the arrangement, but the overall execution needs polished. NO(resub)

I always thought this was a nice approach to the source, and is nicely improved from the last version. really like the bit with the piano and portamento'd synth in the middle. some of the sounds still feel weirdly mixed, like the rhodes which feels really hollow, and that viloin lead that interweaves with the leads sometimes. feeling it overall though, and the chiptune breakdown at the end was tight. nice work. YES

alright, aside from the ending (you'll get over it), I applied pretty much all of the feedback, re-worked the wobble a bit, and it's sounding a lot better now. this version is submitted: http://halc9bit.com/private/ruffneck-terra.mp3

glad to see Josh submitted this one! it was a late-comer to the album (and a GREAT transition track between Ben's chip-tro and Doug/Brandon's organic jam), but it's definitely an understated favorite of mine.

really freakin' awesome. LOVE the album art too, especially the way your name is written with the cord. ;D impressive stuff as always.

why fix what isn't broken? ;D okay, really, I feel you on that, but it's just so effective. it's kind of a signature of my style. either that or I'm just lazy, dunno. my upcoming pilotwings album has some legitimate endings, so don't go around telling everyone I can only make filter-fadeouts. anyway, appreciate the comments, some good crits here too. I'm a bit too trigger-happy when it comes to calling things finished, but I can see the concerns with the wobble at the end. maybe I'll take a look at it in a few days with fresh ears.

yes, terra dubstep. double whammy. it's actually a remix of ' ', which is a little different, but has the same melody. hope you like it. :]http://halc9bit.com/private/ruffneck-terra.mp3

okay, listening to this again with fresh ears and the other NO votes in mind, I gotta agree that that snare is pretty suck, and though there are some nice fills, that main beat gets really old. I still thought the rest of the arrangement was pretty slick, with a unique (if pretty lo-fi) soundscape, overall I dig it. flipping my vote on account of the drums, though. NO(resub)

eh, I dunno about the constant/delayed voice clips, they're interesting in the intro, but it gets a little distracting. bass was very overpowered, and overall the soundscape was pretty cluttered at times. some interesting plays on the source, I actually thought it was pretty conservative at times. howerver I agree with OA overall; I hope you continue making music and improving your craft, this one just didn't feel entirely cohesive to me. NO(resub)

marimba so pretty. coulda used a soaring synth solo somewhere in there, but I'll let it fly this time. YES

yeah, I agree that the wobble needs more sub-bass. balance could be tighter too, a lot of your instruments seem to be fighting for the spotlight. the drums felt a little basic and autopilot-y to me but there were some nice fills; overall the arrangement sounded tight. just needs some production and mixing tweaks. NO(resub)

ahh, the bass. it's massaging my brain. YES

nothing to add; you got a smooth blend of sounds here, but the arrangement isn't too interpretive. diggin' it either way, but it needs more expansion on the theme to put it in the OCR lane. NO(resub)

I love this source so much, and your arrangement is slick. however, about the mixing.. first off, I agree that it's a bit overcompressed, still listenable to my ears, but there is also a bit of low end muddyness. the overall volume seems quite low, especially for a housey mix like this. I definitely think you could tone back the compression and then boost the mix itself, because there's plenty of headroom. overall, really digging the sounds, arrangement and vocals, but I agree that there are some relatively minor issues with the production, and a few easy fixes would really make this track shine. NO(resub)

didn't love that snare, it has this really heavy resonance to it. in agreement that the backing sounds are all pretty distant sounding too, but the guitars had some nice crunch. the arrangement had it's own flavor to it, but overall was pretty conservative. not bad, but there's room for tweaks on both ends of the fence. keep at it. NO(resub)