DragonAvenger

I have no issue with the production side of things, I think the drums are repetitive but it's ok. I'm having a tough time hearing the source in here. I know it starts in the cello, but I lose it pretty quick. Help?

Definitely hearing and feeling the retro, nice work there. Overall the soundscape really gives back that 80's feel, but the arrangement itself is situated a bit more in the electronica style. Overall listening to this I'm hearing the main melody is left mostly alone and the synth is noodling around the melody. This is fine for some of the track, but after a while the repetitiveness of the source along with the 4 on the floor drums starts to make things a bit boring. Overall I think the track suffers from being too repetitive, and I think some melodic and structure changes need to happen. I'd have loved a breakdown to take a break from the drums especially. Production overall feels pretty mechanical, which isn't too much of an issue given the style, but some humanization would keep things more interesting. The synths are pretty generic, and some sound changes would have been nice to vary the mood more. There's a start here, but I think there's also a lot of work to be done. Good luck! NO

Contact Information Three Part Intention Kevin Martin www.soundcloud.com/dick-titson userid: 32830 Submission Information Mega Man 3 "Gamma's eight" Dr. Wily Stage 2 TRACK LINK: (arrangement was made to aesthetically resemble the Retro/Electro "New-Retro" Genre) -----------------------

Actually they have been already working pretty hard and the queue has made a good leap, you'll see when the progress thread is updated (soon!).

Goosebumps YES

Right away I'm noticing some distortion around 0:19. Kinda strange since there isn't really that much in regards to instruments passing. Aside from that you have done fun rhythmic changes to the melody and chords and overall the beast is pretty chill. The samples overall aren't super great, the drums in particular feel pretty weak.I'd look into updating some of your sounds and work on layering some parts to fill out the soundscape a little more. The bass presence is also weak, and could be brought up and used more. The arrangement is pretty repetitive overall, both in regards to the melody and the backing tracks. I'd suggest working on adding more variation, like done drum fills and rhythmic variations to keep the listener engaged. Adding and subtracting parts to help the arrangement evolve will also help keep the listener engaged. The wind transition at 1:38 is a little strange, because it feels like it was planned to be the end of the track but another party comes in. The sample also suffers from a lack of realism. There's a lot to work on here, but I do like the mood you set up for the track, and I think it's a fun take on the original source. Keep working on your production and arrangement skills and I hope to hear more from you sometime! NO

Hello OverClocked, My name is Calvin Jung, I have been a producer and remixer for the last four years and am now starting to build a presence on the internet. I am a big fan of the Youtube series Extra Credits, which introduced me to your website. I respect the community you've built and the amount of quality content that is on the site. The reason I am contacting you is to submit a remix of the song "Fear of the Heavens" from the game Secret Of Mana, which is posted on my soundcloud page. The original version is here for reference. I hope you enjoy my submission, any critiques and feedback would highly appreciated. Thank you for your time and consideration. Regards, Calvin Jung (Plusol) -----------------------------

I'm a little sad that you don't actually get to battle the pokemon you have to run out and catch. And from the looks of it you don't level them either, but we'll have to see.

Definitely like how down-to-earth this is. The arrangement is pretty clear with the backing track being firmly set into the source, so that Kid is able to do his thing on top. I have a couple issues with the production. The first is that the multiple recordings of the voice aren't perfectly matching up, so it sounds like a strange semi-chorus throughout. There are also times where it sounds like there's a backing voice during the verses but it's impossible to understand what or if they are saying something different, so it's just adding a bit of mud to the track. The guitar sample is not super realistic which sticks out further due to there being so few instruments in the soundscape. A more realistic sample and some humanization would do a lot of good here. I can see this going either way, but I'd like to hear some adjustments. NO (resubmit, please)

Really been listening to this one a lot, it's a bit of a head scratcher for me. The soundscape is pretty unique, which fits the original, but at the same time it's pretty out there compared to a lot of other electronica tracks you hear. At times there are some unconventional balance choices that offer a unique perspective. Overall I enjoyed what you went for here, though I felt like (especially on headphones) the low end is a bit too strong and could be toned back. This is especially evident towards the end. The mix is fairly repetitive, though there's a ton of evolution as new parts are added and dropped. Very reminiscent of the source, so that works really well IMO. I felt like the transition at ~2:08 was weak, but everything else worked well. I think this is pretty close, and I'm curious what the other judges think. Right now I'm going to say this is a really close NO, and I'd love for you to tweak the balance especially. Hope to hear this again! NO (resubmit, please)

As I commented to the other judges, the soundscapes of the sources is really not good. Regardless, I like the arrangement you have here. The melodies all fit together well, and listening through I wouldn't have guessed they were separate sources. The melody changes you have are also pretty nice, small embellishments that fit into the style you are going for well. The production needs some work. The synths in general feel pretty generic, and the drums feel a bit thin overall and are on autopilot for pretty much the entire track. The bell sample sounds pretty fake as well. Everything is very mechanical as well, humanizing the parts would add a lot here. There's also little in the way of any dynamic change, and the track feels like it drags as a result. A breakdown or soundscape change would help a lot, along with varying the backing parts more. You're definitely on the right track here, but the production side of things needs work, as well as adding more variation overall. Hit up our WIP forums, this is a great track to get some extra feedback from. Hope to hear this again! NO (resubmit)

Remixer: Somewareman (Ben Molulon) Remix: Sonic the Hedgehog 4 'Labyrinthine Depths' Ok, so here's my latest remix from Sonic the Hedgehog 4. It's a combination of Lost Labyrinth Zone, Acts 1, 2, and 3. I actually salvaged this from an old, sub-par, western style remix of mine and made it into more of an electronic dance piece. You can still hear a bit of the Spanish and western influence in certain parts. I was holding out on submitting this because I wasn't sure if the mastering was up to snuff, but after a few months of tweaking, I figured, "what the heck, I don't know what I'm doing anyway." and decided to submit it. I hope it's good enough. The majority of the song is Act 1, with small parts of Act 2 coming in at around 1:17 and 2:18. Act 3 is added in for the remainder of the song at 3:07. -------------------------

What a great story! I love that not only did you find out the site from your kids, but you used (and really enjoyed) the WIP forums to improve your track. I also am really enjoying where you went with the melody here. I wouldn't have thought of putting Mario Paint into bluegrass, but it fits in really well, and the arrangement itself is pretty fun. I do have some issues that I would like to see you address here. The first issue is that the melody feels somewhat mechanically played. I'd love for you to put a little more expression in your performance. Right now all of the notes sound like they are played at the same volume and using the same attacks. Having some dynamic changes and accents would really bring the melody to life more. On a similar note, the backing tracks feel cookie-cutter, and are lacking the expression that would really make this track interesting and energetic. I feel like the stylistic change and the arrangement itself are pretty close to bringing this over the bar, but the performances need to be upped just a bit to get this where it needs to be. I'm very excited to hear your next track, and I hope you look at this one a little more as well! NO (resubmit)

Dear OCR Judges... Here's the Link to my First Remix/Arrangement: Contact Information: * My ReMixer name - dabedaab * My real name - Steve Snider * My email address - * My userid - 32663 Submission Information: * Name of game arranged - Mario Paint * Name of arrangement - Pickin Colors * Name of individual song arranged - Title Theme * Additional information about game: - Composers: - Hirokazu Tanaka, Ryoji Yoshitomi, Kazumi Totaka - System: - SNES - Link to the original soundtrack: - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GdapZ1FZhI My comments about the ReMix: My 3 adult children all love VGM and introduced me to OCR. I like the fact that VGM is No_Genre/All_Genre (that's the way they put it). Your community is open to all types of music. All 3 of my children encouraged me to submit a song on OCR. I cruised the site and saw how the forums worked and how I could gain feedback from the larger community. Seems to me like this is a win-win situation in that it furthers the cause of VGM and I learn in the process. So, where to start I wondered (since I don't know much about gaming and the songs pertaining to same)? I asked my oldest son to think of a VG song that had a catchy tune (something he could easily hum). To that he replied the "Title Theme" to "Mario Paint". I listened to it and immediately began envisioning the arrangement in my mind. Since I have a background in Bluegrass, I quickly decided on using instruments from that genre. My first step was to map out the chords. Once I had those figured out, I laid out the "background/rhythm" tracks via "Band-in-a-Box". The background tracks are the Mandolin Chops, Fiddle Chops/Shuffles and Rhythm Guitar. All the rest of the tracks were products of my creativity and experience (including the arrangement itself) as follows: * Melody - Mandolin, Banjo * Harmony - Mandolin, Guitar * Improvisation - Guitar Lead * Bass I own and play all these instruments. Since I only (about 3 weeks ago) obtained the physical equipment to record live tracks, I was a bit shy about using them in the Remix/Arrangement. During the "WIP" and "Mod Review" phases I couldn't decide which I liked better (the Midized version or Live version of me playing the Banjo). My OCR peers have advised me to go with the live recording (which I have done for the Banjo Melody track). The other Melody/Harmony tracks are me (only midized and rendered via LMMS). Perhaps as I improve my recording skills I'll eventually be able to create all tracks as live (except for fiddle which I don't play). In all, this experience was a "Blast". I've already got my second remix as "WIP" in the forum site. I'll consider this a "Positive Experience" no matter the outcome. I don't know how the experience goes for everybody, but I personally found the feedback Wise, Prudent and Useful. I, and the OCR community in general, all agreed that the arrangement improved through the iterations as I incorporated the feedback sent my way. Anyway, I hope you enjoy! Thanks.. dabedaab (Steve Snider)

Definitely an interesting choice of soundscape. I think the super-reverby-delay works for the dreamy feel you are going for, though I think after a while it starts to get a bit tiring to listen to and is too much at times. In regards to the arrangement, I like the style change, though I think the mix as a whole goes on for too long. The source itself is so short, there's only so much that can be done with it before the ideas run out. This sounds like the case as you run through a bunch of other melodies before the track ends, which feels tacked on and overall awkward in places. I'd suggest maybe keeping just the Kakariko village theme, then revamping back to Zelda's lullaby. Similarly, the ending that combines the village and lullaby theme get super muddy because of the reverb/delay and sounds pretty messy. The ending also feels unresolved, but that may have been your intent. I think you have a start here, but it needs some work. I'd look into adjusting the amount of reverb/delay you have so that it doesn't overpower the mix, and look into adjusting your arrangement as well. Good luck. NO (resubmit)

Remixer name: Jooce Real name: Joo Choe Website: soundcloud.com/justjooce my friend told me to submit my zelda lullaby remix to you guys. I hope you like it. Thanks, Joo -------------

The opening here is pretty sweet, definitely enjoyed the textures you used here. Feels very magical, in a sense. After that the groove starts, and it sits on it for a quite a while with some added parts coming in. When the source melody comes in, it's in a super blocky synth which to me feels really out of place. The contrast is really stark to the other rhythms you have going on, and it doesn't feel like it fits in. Later the bell synth/piano sounds a lot better. 4:30 has a weird bass wobble going on that also sounds really strange, then fades out somewhat abruptly. Overall it feels like there are some odd sound choices going on. A lot of the backing parts in the first half don't really have a connection to the source, and to me the track feels more like cameos than an arrangement. The times that the backing works off the original backing really fits nice, and the second half of the mix works fine in that regard. I'd like that to start coming in earlier to make those connections, or maybe space out the original backings later into the mix. I know house music is supposed to be very repetitive, but I'd like to hear some more changeups in regards to the percussion and backing parts. The opening is nice where different instruments and synths are layered in and out, but once things get started that doesn't seem to happen as much. Changing up the percussion patterns would help in that regard as well. I think the track has promise, but right now some of the design choices aren't working. Having more source connection in the beginning, and changing up the first lead would go a long way. Good luck! NO (resubmit)

Remixer Name: Keitomine Name: Deronde Williams Website: https://www.facebook.com/TechnikaCore User ID: 32283 Name of Game: Donkey Kong Country Name of Arrangement: Who is Dankey Kang? Song Arranged: Aquatic Ambiance Genre: Progressive House ----------------

Definitely not the style change I would have thought, but it's a pretty fun listen! I felt the opening took some time to really warm up, and maybe a little more arrangement in there might have brought me in sooner, but when things picked up I was enjoying the track. Drums are on autopilot for some sections, and some more work to have them compliment the melody would have been nice, but not a deal breaker. I do think the track feels a little short due to having a longer intro, and a bit more interpretation might have been a good way to stretch out the track a little. Overall I'm not as solid on my yes as Larry, but I do feel like this is above the bar. Yes

The track is definitely br00tal for sure! The super low bass really makes the track growl, and sets an ominous tone to the mix. The arrangement is pretty on point, and I was digging the style change overall. The compassion is really high here, and the whole track feels squashed as a result. I think this needs to be addressed. Along with that the production on the synth at 1:47 sounds a bit strange compared to the rest of the track. It feels very up front compared to the other parts and not in the same space. Really cool arrangement, but the production is holding this back at the moment. Hope to hear this one again. No (resubmit)

I think Wes is pretty correct in his short notes here.The arrangement is really nice, and the live performances are good, but the sampled parts feel blocky. The contrast between the live parts and samples only highlights this further. I think the track would really benefit from another pass to humanize those parts more. I'd also like to hear the drums get beefed up a bit. The snare sounds weak, and the kick even more so. Working on the drum writing a bit to emphasize the arrangement would be good as well, sometimes the drums feel a bit too much on autopilot. I think this is close, but needs just a nudge more to get over the bar. I can see this going either way, though. Good luck! No (resubmit)

From Joe about source usage: " First note melody starts at 0:23, echoes back and forth from there until 0:45. Drum intro goes from there until the melody picks up again at 1:29" Just putting this here so others can see and decide if they agree or not

Oh man, I'm on the fence with this one. The playing and performance are both good and fun, but the piano sound (as you mentioned) is not amazing, and feel like the arrangement suffers from a lack of direction and noodling at times. That being said, there's plenty of interpretation of the source and even in its meandering way the source remains an is continuously interpreted in different ways. I'm definitely curious what the others are going to think about this and I may change my mind later but for now I'm going with a Yes (borderline)

So I think I'm hearing Grahf theme (0:30) starting at 1:29 in the mix. Before that there's one little quote of the source but I'm not making any other connections before 1:29. At 1:57 in the mix were matching up with 0:49 of the source. 2:24 matches up with Omen, and after that I'm hearing the sources pretty cleanly. The soundscape here is amazing and I loved listening to this. It really has that evil feeling. The Omen portion at the end is positively creepy, even terrifying. Normally I'm not big on voice quotes during a mix, but I feel like the mix is really tailored around the voice, and the music really helps seal the emotion behind the voice. Joe has great performances on all the parts as well as the voice acting. I don't think this mix would be the same without them. If love done clarification on the opening to 1:29 in regards to source usage. If it's there I'm totally on board with this, though as is I feel like it's a pass anyways. Yes

Just a note that the death sound works perfect. Had to note that first. I love the jazzy feel that you guys kept with the track. It adds a lot of character to the mix, and I really enjoyed the groove. As mentioned the track is almost all Izzy, but I did manage to catch some of the Sigma stage in there. I'd probably need some time stamps to really pick out more but I had no issues with the source usage as it was. The backing parts are all really well tailored to the melodies, and everything flowed well together. Nice work here to the both of you! Yes