DragonAvenger

This one definitely has promise, but the production is where things are hurting. Right now to me the sounds just don't compliment the energy you're trying to create. OA has some great advice that you should really check out. I also agree with him on the strings at 1:35, the attacks are all over accented for a background part. By the end, there is so much going on that's fighting for the forefront. Vinnie is right that you should take a look at that to get the volumes adjusted so that the leads are more clearly supported rather than fought with. The arrangement itself is pretty good, I have no qualms with it, but the production right now isn't up to par. Tweak this up and send it back please. NO (resubmit)

Palpable hit this one on the head. The effects you have, like the glitchiness, are pretty cool, but if you remove that stuff, the song is really not developing or going anywhere. Right now I feel like there's a beginning and a middle, but not and ending. I was totally expecting the song to open up into another section, but it just finished. You need to figure out how you want the song to progress, so that it can come back down to an ending, if that makes sense. I'm a little confused why you have the J-E-N-O-V-A (that is very annoying to type) cameo in the beginning, without it really coming back anywhere else. I'd love to see it further on in the song, so that it feels more like a part of the song than something just added on for giggles. The glitchiness is pretty cool, although I think just a little overused at times. I think if this were expanded so that you're not using all your moves at once it would have more of an effect. Aside from that, the beginning right now is the biggest section I'd look at. Things are very harsh and stiff, which isn't allowing for the contrast I think you're going for with the glitchy section. Take a look at your arrangement and get a little more development and I'd like to hear this one again. NO (resubmit)

I wish MMvsUSAF had included lyrics in the submission email, because for the life of me I can't figure out what he's saying in a couple of lines. Regardless, the lyrics are very clever, and the delivery works for the track. Arrangement is there, and there's definite expansion on the original. Considering the source is 7 seconds long, stretching it to 2:53 without becoming boring is quite a feat, although I think the outtro could have been a repetition shorter. Production is good, with nothing being overpowered. Beats are repetitive, but it works for the track. Overall, I'm amused and impressed. YES

Very nice expansion of the feel and anxiety of the original, while still just overall rockin' it. I had no problem making the connection to the source, but there's plenty of original material to liven things up. I agree with CHz that the synth solo gets a little overpowered occasionally, like during the solo, but it's still pretty clear. Other than that everything is clean and nicely done. Cool track. YES

I'll have to echo the above statements. Right now the connection to the source is very limited, and because of that it's pretty difficult to really hear a solid connection between your arrangement and the original. The track is a cool listen, and there's a lot of good things going on. The guitar playing is pretty good, although it treads a bit too much into noodling at times for my tastes. The track has a really urgent feeling to it, which is pretty cool, as well. The timing of parts at times is just slightly off, I'd take a close up look to sync things up a little better. It's not a huge issue to me, but it is just enough to be noticeable. Also, take a look at the frequency issue the guys above mentioned. It's a nice track, but it's a ways away from being a remix at this point and time. NO

It would be kind of nice if OCAD could do a shoutout to any donators who name themselves. Make them feel a little more special...or dirty.

Hooray for going public!

I have to say, listening to this one slowly expand was a really nice thing after a day of work. It never gets huge, but it doesn't need to, nice reflection on the remixer's part. My one slight disappointment is that I'm not crazy about the vibrato on the beginning notes, but I can easily put that aside. Chill, quiet, relaxing, nice work.

What's pretty cool about this track is that it convey's it's own atmosphere, not a super evil, super scary, or overly cliche thing, but still has a bit of a sinister overtone. I like that it's unique in that. Overall the sounds are very good, and this one was a nice chill out with a bit of hip hop attached. Nicely done.

Larry pretty much nailed it; there are some issues with the production, like getting things a little more balanced, and adding a bit more of a human touch to the sequencing. The big issue, though, is adding more to the arrangement. The guitar soloing is a good start, and there is a bit going on at the end, but it mostly deals with cutting out parts, or letting the chords play. Try to expand more in that direction, or take a look at what you can do with the melody to change it up. Take a look at the posted mixes to see if you can get some arrangement ideas, and utilize our WIP board to get feedback on that as well as ways to improve the production. NO

The arrangement has some nice things going on, and I like that there are very few times when you directly quote the source tune verbatim. All the variations are a nice touch. I agree with Larry about some of the original counter-melodies you have. 2:18 is the biggest issue, because you have a piano counter-melody against a piano melody, both of which are sharing the same range. I would look for ways to separate the two so they aren't so cluttered. This is less of an issue at 3:12 because you drop out the melody and let the original stuff play over the chords. Overall, given that the source is fairly short and repetitive and after a while, despite the variation, things start to feel overdone. I'm a fan of varying things up, so a possibility might be to throw in an original section to break up the source a bit and refresh our ears. Just some food for thought. A lot of the sounds in this overall feel a bit mechanical. It would do wonders for the song if you could humanize the piano playing and the drums, and add some effects on the synths to give them some energy as well. The drums overall are a bit weak sounding, it would be good to beef them up. There's a good start here, take a good look at the issues brought up and you can get this one up to speed. NO (resubmit)

Cool atmosphere, but overall I agree with most of what has been said. For the most part we are dealing with bass, lead, some drums, and in the background some pads that are doing some support. The levels aren't really balanced, and the frequency gap only enhances that. The arrangement feels a little direction-less, although I don't think it's necessarily a totally bad thing on this track. I like the meandering quality it has, but I would have liked a bit more of a 'journey' through the track. I think this one can be brought up, but you're going to have to really focus on the issues the other judges brought up. Good luck! NO (resubmit)

Great adaption. Not a terribly hard decision to make here: the source is well done, with plenty of added elements to really make this shine. I'm definetly a fan of the drum fills; they really compliment everything going on. I agree with Vinnie that the synth lead could be brought down just a bit to balance out the soundscape a bit more, but that's hardly a deal-breaker. YES

This one is chock full of various sources, but it's cool to see that they're all related in one way or another. There are a few times where the sources meld together, but for the most part you hear only one of the sources dominantly. While a lot of these are similar, making it easier to put them together this way, I'm a bit worried that things are floating with medleyitis. On the plus side, each source is arranged, the transitions are fairly smooth between each source, and there are sections of more original parts to connect or beef up the originals. On the minus is the fact that for the most part each section is separate, and you can tell when the new sections have started. I'm on the fence with this aspect. It took me more than a few listen-throughs to try to work this out, but overall I feel like the track is lacking the energy that even your earlier work has. It's hard to pinpoint exactly why, but I think part of it deals with most of the sources being a bit more low-key which, when combined, doesn't add up to as much as I'd like it to be. Along with that there amount of transition time vs. melody is skewed a bit, so that the build-ups/lead-ins take a little too long, and there are a lot of them. In my opinion, I think that's what's hurting this the most, which is also one of the issues with medley's in the first place. The LotR opening really isn't doing anything for me, aside from being some nearly-empty space before the track starts. I get that it's supposed to be a sort of foreboding opening, but it isn't working for me. I think the track would do without it. The sounds overall aren't terribly realistic, but overall they do work together pretty well. The organ feels like it is in the soundscape for most of the mix. After a while I was hoping for some other sounds to take over and give things a bit more variety. I also feel like the low end isn't as prominent as it could be, which would beef up the entire track. I think that while there is a lot going on here that shows off your skill, I don't think this one quite cuts it. I'd focus on getting more variety out of your sounds as well as boosting the overall energy and focus of the track. NO (resubmit)

Mexican Hat Dance for the win. Seriously, this track is a lot of fun to listen to. The actual melody lines aren't changed around too much, but there is arrangement in the backing stuff as well as a lot of original solos/sections thrown in. I can agree about the trumpet being the only drawback, but even withstanding this is a cool track to listen to. YES

I'm going to go out on a limb and say that drunk submissions usually aren't a good idea, but this one has some nice points to it, and it is very creative. There are some moments that are downright beautiful (1:38 is fantastic), but I feel like things are so hectic most of the time that it's hard to grasp what's going on. The lack of a set direction, and therefore at times development, is what's causing problems for me. I'd like to see there be more of a connection between what's going in the various themes. For example, the change at 1:38 doesn't have a clear relation to what's going on before it. I do like the quirky nature of what's going on, but I personally need more relationships between all the sections. There are some production issues that are getting to me as well. I can't say I'm a fan of the different sfx used throughout the song. As OA said, a lot of them don't connect towards the sources, and feel out of place, but overall I find them to be jarring and unnecessary, even as transition devices. At least find some sounds that connect to the sources, please. The chip sounds overall are a bit too loud compared to the rest of the track. This is partly because they have very good cutting power, so they don't need as much volume to be heard clearly. Right now they are all I can hear at times. I will also agree with OA that at times the synth guitar and chip stuff (and some other elements) are all vying for the same space. Open up your soundscape more by panning some stuff. There are some pretty awesome parts in here, and I think you can bring this together to make a really nice track. Re-look at some of this stuff to get things fixed up, please. NO (resubmit)

This is definitely an unexpected change of style for the source, and it fits surprisingly well. There is plenty of arrangement going on in this, including the minor-major change, and I like that you even included the 'chord' interludes into the mix that are present in the source. Very cute, overall. The thing that's killing this for me is the recorder. I'll be the first to admit I have a bias against the instrument, having had to teach 3rd grade music for a year (nothing like 18 ten-year-olds with recorders), but I can set that aside for the most part. However, there are some notes that are not in tune, especially on the higher end of things. Taking into account how hard it is to stay in tune on a recorder, I appreciate the notes that are in tune, but some of those high notes are not pleasant to listen to. I'm not sure how much work it is to ask that those notes get fixed up, which is putting things in a tough position for me. The other option is changing your lead, which you can do and still have that child-like feel. I re-listened to this after reading Vinnie's remarks, and I do have to agree with him on how some sections feel a little static. I think there could be a little more going on in those sections to really bring things out. I'm also going to agree on adding some reverb to the recorder, and maybe try to tone done the top end. Good luck. NO (resubmit)

Insane, and awesome. No other words can describe it.

PAX East photos here: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=58133&id=1277193921&ref=mf

I can't hit the clam until I trap the fish! Stupid fish. I'll say this again, I had a complete blast. I am super tired today at work, but it was easily worth it. Later this week I should have pictures up on my facebook, as well as a video or two possibly.

Hey guys, thanks to anyone who watched the stream! I can confirm that Moguta did indeed tape the entire panel, and I know I had a blast sitting up there!

The original decision essentially said that you had some great stuff going on, but the source just wasn't there. Glad to see that you've really revamped this to include a lot more of the source, and in some creative ways. There were a couple points (:29 most notably) where the source usage isn't that clear, but after a few listens I was able to hone in on them. While I'm not real crazy about the whole sound clips/wall of static noise thing you've got going on (especially at 1:47), it was a surprisingly smooth transition into and out of it, so props on that. A couple of the source uses are a bit buried among all the other sounds you have going on, I'd like those to pop out just a tad more. Otherwise, the only nitpick I have was that there was panning in two (and only two) sections that I noticed. I could see you using the panning a little more effectively. You've addressed the issues the other judges had effectively, so this one gets a YES from me.

Not much to say on this one. Great personalized arrangement, it adds a nice introspective feel on the source. Meanwhile, it's still easily recognizable, with new twists. I agree with Andrew that it's a little quiet, and could be brought up a notch or two. Nice work. YES