DragonAvenger

Personally, I'm liking this mix. It's very angsty, which seems to be exactly what you were going for. The source is present in the bells which remain pretty much constant throughout the mix. I have a bit of an issue with the fact that that is pretty much the only source I can gather is used in the mix, but it the fact that it is there throughout, and brought back into focus often just puts it over the bar for me. Even though it is a background pattern, most everything else revolves around it. The production has some minor issues to me, but they all seem to be pretty intentional, so I'm willing to throw it to artistic choice. The drums feel a little too distant to me at times, and there is a distinct lack of a real low end. Nothing deal breaking here, and I like most of what you've done. I personally think this is good enough for a pass, albeit it's close on the source usage. I can see the other judges voting the other way, though, so good luck on the rest of the votes. YES (borderline)

Dragon Quest IX with online multiplayer.

Keep those tunes and those legs pumping! Glad you are liking all the music on the site!

I like the source, despite it being short. I think there is a lot that you did with it. I think the second run through of the source is where you did the best arranging. The source was there, but there were a lot of knew ideas and riffs that you added. I have a bit of an issue with the structure. You stated in the submission letter that you added the solo to add time, and it kind of feels just like that. The solo feels distinctly separated from the rest of the track. Part of that is the weird static divider you added, which I think should go, but also that the source doesn't really make it's way back in to reconnect the track back together. I like the solo stuff, even the weird timing, but I'd like the structure to be worked around so that there is more interplay between source and solo. The static ending is just as strange; it's not doing anything for me, and I think the track would do better with a different ending. The lead feels a bit too quiet, which is adding a level of indistinctness to the overall track. It also doesn't help that a lot of the instruments are taking up the same frequencies. The sounds overall aren't really grabbing me, it feels a bit generic overall. I recommend getting some advice from the WIP forums to really get your sounds cleared up. Good arrangement ideas, but I need a better structure, and some production work. NO (resubmit)

I like the arrangement here, and the added instrumentation works very nicely. I can definitely hear the Holst influence, which is pretty nice. I'm hoping to hear more from the GSO as they improve!

I loved the quiet emotion in this. It captures that sometimes simple is the best way to approach things. There is nothing flashy going on, and it doesn't need it. The playing has a lot of emotion, and the backing synths/strings really add to the overall product. Great work, especially since it was done in such a short time period!

I like the style change you have here, it's not something I would have expected from the source. As it is right now, however, the actual variation on the melodies of the source are pretty low. I'd like to hear some more original material or variation on the melodies to add more flavor. There are a couple sections that you have and they sound good, but it isn't enough right now. This also feels like it's a run through of the same thing two times. If you are going to repeat the whole song through again, you need to do a lot more to it to make it different from the first time through. The samples here are sounding very thin, and it makes the whole song feel a bit flimsy. I'd experiment with some different sounds, or maybe layering some things to make the soundscape fuller. Also, everything sounds extremely mechanical. Take a look at the velocities to add some humanization to this. You've got a good start to this, but it needs more work. Check out the WIP forums for some more feedback, and I'd like to see this again after it's fixed up. NO (resubmit)

Agreeing with Andrew on this. It's a great track to listen to, but the connection to the source is too tenuous for me. I'd love to see this reworked, but it stand's great on it's own, too. NO (resubmit?)

I like how the source was handled in this. It's used quite a lot, but it doesn't get overly repetitive. The militaristic drums work really well in the track, I think it adds a lot of emotion to the overall track. I also thought the pause near the end and the final slowdown were nice touches. I agree that the leads are just a tad loud compared to the rest, although it doesn't bother me that much. Just a minor balance issue. YES

I'm going to have to side with Larry on this. The style and detail in the writing are fantastic, but the repetition of the sections really brings the mix down. With the amount of detail that went into everything else, I was pretty disappointed that the mix turned into a copy-paste. There is so much potential here! Right now everything is going full force, aside from one very small section in the middle. I'd love to hear a bit more in terms of dynamics, and even some more change of instrumentation (probably mostly in dropping instruments out and bringing them back in) to add variety and keep things more interesting. If there had been new details added to those repeats instead of just a cut and paste, this could be really, really good. I want to see this one again. NO (resubmit)

Can't agree with Vinnie more. Love what you've done with the source here, despite that it is very conservative melody-wise. All the little details add so much to this, it was a great listen. Some expansion on the melody would have made it that much better, so hopefully we can see more of that in the future. Production is very good. My only qualm is how quiet the beginning is. I know what you were going for, but the track is barely audible at the beginning. YES

Metal isn't particularly my favorite style to listen to, but I like how you approached the source in this case. There is a lot of intensity in here and a lot of good things happening. As far as melody goes this is fairly conservative, however. What is really killing this is that you play through the source 2+ times without making much change between the two. It almost sounds like you copied and pasted the second time. There's tons of change in the other instruments, so I'm willing to forgive the conservative take on the source, but not two times through nearly unchanged. I'd like to see you break away from the source and add some solos, or some original sections in here. You're playing chops are good, give them some fun! Also, the fade-out ending isn't working for me. I'd like to hear something big after all that, not have the song disappear! Production seems pretty decent to me. I'm not exactly feeling the cymbals, and I think the snare could have just a tiny bit more cutting power, but aside from that I like the overall sound you've got here. It's a good start, but you need to get some original stuff in here or variation to the source. NO (resubmit)

Not much I can add to what Shariq said here. I like the overall atmosphere, although I agree that the middle loses a bit of steam. It would have been nice if you'd added some more original stuff or variety in this, because it stands a little conservative, but I think the changes you made are enough for the bar on this as it is. I like the bass playing, especially the beginning riffs, nice work there. Production is good, everything is sounding clear, and everything fits together. There are a couple of times that the lead could have been a tad stronger, but it is by no means overpowered. Conservative, but it's got a lot of good things going for it. YES

Can't.....get......image.....out....of...head....

As long as it't not taking directly from the movie, there should't be a reason you can't submit a mix of that source.

Overall the balance definitely feels like it's all over the place. For example, at 3:27 (which happened to be the new section that came up) the lead synth is tough to hear, where before when it was playing a more background role it was fine. The first thing I'd ask you to do is to really listen to what needs to be more forefront and what should be pulled back. I can hear some use of panning, but try to keep stuff that is melody more centered, and let some other things be on the sides (you did that for some things, like the wiggly saw synth, just could tighten up the consistency). I like how you opened the track and led into the first melody, I felt like this was the most solid part of the arrangement. After that honestly I feel a little lost with everything shifting so much. It's cool to do the style and time shifts you're doing, but some of them are a bit too sudden and because of that feel random. If you could make the transitions a little more fluid I think that would help the track feel more cohesive. This isn't an easy track to arrange, and I think you've got a start here, but it needs some work in both production and arrangement. NO (resubmit)

Okay, I re-looked at this, and there was some stuff I missed the first time. Taking the bells, the weird synthy thing and bass in the beginning, and the downward bell pattern, this is fairly close to source in terms of what's going on, albeit in a weird key from the original. After that, most everything that is added is original. It would have been nice if the stuff you added in had more of a connection to the source. Once that stuff comes in it feels like you are just using the source to solo over, which makes the song feel not as cohesive as I would have liked. I'm also noticing that the drum loops stay the same once they get established. You could add a lot more variation to those as well, though that's a smaller detail. Right now the big issue is that you have Source and Original, and very little connection between the two. I do like the opening and the sound you went for it. At first it wasn't really my thing, but it did grow on me. The swells add a nice touch. I'm surprised there isn't more panning used aside from the drums; the track sounds like something that could make good use of various panning techniques. The other big issue is once the guitar solo comes in the song is VERY crowded. There's so much going on that I really can't make out individual parts aside from the bass and guitar at that point. I'd like you to restructure that section so that maybe you get rid of the fluff and let the right parts come through. Big issues: more connection in the original stuff and uncrowd the second half. NO (resubmit)

Nice fix here, very awesome track. Rock on, dude. YES

I changed my hero to a thief as soon as I was able. To be honest they honestly don't do that much for me. The steal ability (half inch) is decent, but has a pretty low success rate. The other abilities I have used all of once, except for "Eye for Trouble" which gives you extra information on monsters. It is good, however, to do the level 40 quest, which gives you the thief scroll that will automatically attempt a steal when you kill a monster. Can be really awesome in grottoes. I've heard of people lucky enough to steal an item in a boss grotto battle, then have the boss drop a chest, and get a thief scroll steal off.

Dang, that sucks. I just beat the game about 30 minutes ago. Hooray!

I think this is definitely one of, if not your best work yet. There are a lot of things that work just right, and it's very obvious you spend a lot of time and care to get the drums right. There's a lot going on in the mix, and it's all balanced very well. Great solos, as always. Nice work. YES

Not much to add to what the others have already said. As a background track, this works pretty well. Despite the simpleness of it the soundscape is pretty decently filled, and there is enough here to keep things interesting. YES

Spoiler tag that please.

Pretty much what OA said. There is a definite improvement over the last submission of this, and it sounds pretty good to go. It's gotten moodier, which makes a great atmosphere. Thanks for relooking at it! YES