DragonAvenger

Original Decision Remixer Names: Mak & AngelCityOutlaw Forum IDs: AngelCityOutlaw: 45057 Mak: 32137 "Real" Names: Mak Eightman & Criss Stratos Games Remixed: Final Fight & Guilty Gear XX #Reload (Korean OST) Songs Remixed: Industrial Area & Red Crossroads Link to Remix: http://soundcloud.com/angelcityoutlaw/mak-eightman-criss-stratos Sources: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Vkdj4wD5aw So, back in about November 2011 or so, I had made this rock mix of a Final Fight tune. It got rejected, but I teamed up with the mighty Mak Eightman recently. I had lost the original, mixed .wav of the song, but I still had the individual files kickin' around. Since I wanted this to be a collab from the get-go, I sent the files to Mak so that he may mix them in his own way. Well, it turned out that something went totally screwy with my computer when I exported these files and the rhythm guitars were thrown just horrifically out of time. So, I told Mak that when I was able to record guitars again, I would re-record all the parts and tweak the arrangement more. With that, we went our separate ways. However....little did I know that Mak was cooking up a recipe of sheer badass behind the scenes. Waking up at noon after a long night of dealing with drunks and fights at work, I open my email to see this from Mak "Hey! Now it's yours. Do whatever you want with this track. Just don't forget to warn me, so I know what can I do with it)" Followed by a link to the most awesome mix of the arrangement I could've imagined. Here we have him re-playing most all of the guitars and still keeping my original leads and solos intact plus tons of his own great leads. Lots of improvisations and variations on the main theme this time around! The Guilty Gear bridge section still rocks hard! Mak also wishes to say: "Thanks man. I'll fix some issues to make it more submit-like and you'll submit it) I already did one last week. Don't forget, it's YOUR arrangement!! I just fixed it a bit. Plus I've no idea what was the source lol." and "I was upset when judges NO'ed this track, cause Chris made amazing work, so here i am. Fixed some things. Hope you like it. Best of all!" Regardless of whether or not this passes, please keep the link up! I'm quite proud of the track and I hope Mak is too; he should be. Many thanks to him and everyone who has listened to and will listen to this song!

I'm with Larry, but I'm just a little less reserved than Wes is here I will agree that there are times when things are fairly conservative, but there are also a lot of harmonic changes that add a lot of new flavor to the mix. I think that along with the overall chill atmosphere that is a change from the originals makes this a clear yes. It's a tad long, but forgivable, and I felt comfortable listening to all of it without feeling too much like things were getting repetitive. YES

Listened to this new version as well as some snippets of the old version to compare. There are definitely some good improvements, and now there are a couple of new issues I'm hearing as well. The snare definitely sounds better, although I'm still not fully sold on it as-is. I also realized how simple the drum writing is at times, although it fits the genre. The soundscape definitely feels like it's been moved back from the original, although I almost feel like there's a haze over everything now that i'm finding a bit distracting. Hopefully another judge can articulate that better as well as how to improve on it. Lastly for me, the ending feels a bit sudden, which I didn't notice in your first version (my fault for missing it). With the amount of repetitions on the Gerudo theme at that point, maybe dropping out a couple background elements at that point and adding a filter effect might help make the piece feel more like it's wrapping up. All that being said, I do want to reiterate how much I really enjoy the arrangement, and how that I think the combination of the two sources is super-excellently done. Almost all the transitions between themes is seamless, and it's really fun to hear the source get switched up so readily. I definitely want to see this on the front page, and am really hoping you take a swing at this one again. NO (resubmit, please!)

I went into this being worried that because it was a percussion-heavy source that it was going to be difficult to figure out and that I'd be spending a long time working out bits of source here and there in a non-melodic setting. I was pleasantly surprised to find that a lot of this is pretty clear on the source usage even for someone who isn't very familiar with the tune. There are a lot of elements that are used intermittently, dropping out and coming back, that lend a lot of familiarity with the piece. Each idea is well-presented, and when it returns it helps set up a solid foundation within the source and for the flow of the mix itself. The arrangement is very creative considering how constrictive a source that is all percussion can be. Given that the setup of the piece lends itself to a sparser texture, you've done well to keep things busy and the soundscape pretty full. There weren't really any times when I felt things were too empty and lacking direction. Production is clear, and the sounds are all solid. Pretty easy call when it comes down to it for me. YES

I think Emu's judgement on this is excellent. He hit many points that I wanted to hit myself and more. I'm going to echo that there really are some great ideas here, and I strongly hope you fix this one up for us, because I'd love to see it on the front page! NO (resubmit, please!)

Send in an email with the new link and we'll get it up there

Hi DA, I saw my remix (Pokémon Red Version 'Moondrops') was under 'conditional on encoding'. I think I've fixed it up now. It's in VBR1: Sorry about that.

Larry, while a bit harsh, has the right of this. You've got a pretty good start at getting the basics down, and from here you should start looking into expanding on your arrangement and improving your production. Look for ways to flesh out your soundscape by finding some better soundfonts and adding more instruments to fill out the soundscape. Similarly, look into different ways to expand on the arrangement. Check out the most recently posted mixes and compare them carefully to their originals to get an idea of different ways other mixers have approached arranging a song. There's a lot of work to be done here, but you've got a start, and I encourage you to keep at it. Good luck! NO

There are a lot of really fun ideas here, and some of the writing is very creative. I think some of the ideas aren't hitting the mark too well, on the other side of things. The overworld theme felt somewhat forced into the arrangement, for example. It didn't sound wrong, but I also don't think it was helping the arrangement either. Similarly, I was stretching to hear the Dire Dire Docks B theme that you pointed out in your breakdown. I think it's a bit too much of a stretch there. The other issue I'm not quite feeling as much is how repetitive the end section gets with the main riff of DDD. I like some of the repetition; it strengthens the mix and the little ideas you have between them is fun. I just think it goes on for a bit too long. Production is pretty good, but with a piano arrangement things tend to stick out more. The sound is passable as is, but it definitely sounds not realistic. The sequencing is where I'm feeling things are lacking humanism, and would love for you to touch it up with those little human timings and expressivity to make this shine. This is a super close call, and I can really see people going either way on this. Solo pianos are always scrutinized a bit more than other mixes due to the nature of how exposed they are, and I think this one isn't quite there yet. I hope you smooth out the details and send this back to us! NO (resubmit)

Not much to elaborate here: LOVE the interpretation between the instrumentation, feel, and time signature change. I love that the piano melody presents an elegance against the slightly hectic drums and backing guitar. The contrast is excellent, and used very effectively. Larry is right that the second half doesn't quite have the strength of the first, but I will agree that even with the repetition that this easily still gets the job done, and is a unique approach to an oft-heard theme. YES

A lot of things people mentioned I'm a fan of as well, but here are some that come to mind for me. Love epic vocal choral tracks (Carl Orff, etc) Melodies that are hum-able or sing-able (relating to stuff already with vocals and stuff that isn't) Canons or rounds that are complex Fun vocal effects used tastefully Clever and unique harmonies

Timestamping here: 0:35-0:47, 1:06-2:30 and from 3:35-4:04. Things are checking out in terms of percent usage, but I would say it's on the low end in terms of arrangement itself. The source, when used, is either very repetitive (a two chord piano part) or pretty close to the original. With how much you cut and use the vocal clips, I feel like there's more you could to do cut and alter the source melodies and harmonies. The vocal samples are cut and glitched and while pretty repetitive, I do think they were pretty interesting. Not that I wouldn't mind you cutting down on them, but they are pretty creative. The ending wasn't doing it for me; both due to the samples being fairly weak, and because the ending of just drums itself just isn't very strong. I don't really have a suggestion on how to make it better currently, but it feels like a cop-out as is, to be harsh. Production has some aspects I'm not feeling as well. The snare overall is super weak, and whatever drum sample you use alone with the piano part is really fakey. I'd say they downright need to changed for better samples. The other samples I was feeling, and I think overall you've got a pretty good balance, although I might bring down the vocals a touch and bring up the other parts in some areas for better clarity. There's some creativity here, but I feel that it isn't extended to the music enough for our standards. I'm not sure how much of an overhaul you'd like to do here, but personally I'd love to hear you work on this and send it back. NO (resubmit)

Really not much more to add to what Larry has said. Take Emu's advice to heart, and use some of the most recently posted mixes as examples of what you can do. Compare them closely with their original sources to see just how the mixer was able to add his own personalization to the mix as well as how he altered the source to fit within our standards. Good luck and keep at it! NO

Not much to add, but I will say I wish there'd been more incorporation of the source during the rapping, and similarly wish it had started earlier. Aside from those two things, this is ridiculously good; I love all the references, and everything is super tight. Super fun to hear this one! YES

I'm a little worried about the opening being a bit un-cohesive overall. Once things settle in it gets much better, but things felt unclear at first. When things do get going, though, it's a pretty dark and gritty adaption that brings a lot of energy in the guitars and drums. Definitely a fan of the guitar soloing like Larry was, and I personally liked the mallet stuff. Overall it's a fairly easy pass IMO, but I'd like Mak to work some more on keeping his parts focused and clear for the future. YES

Listened to this one a few times, and there's a lot of good points here. You have a great way of working with a melody and adding a lot of interpretation to it, and some of the higher tension sections of the mix were really engaging! In terms of the arrangement, what is bugging me most is how cut and dry of a medley this is overall. Each song is treated separately, and while the transitions for the most part are pretty good, there's no little mixing of the themes together and no return of the older themes later. That being said, the overall effect of your mix is very good, and I felt like there was only one facet that wasn't working for me too well; the transitions from the faster sections to the slower ones were a bit awkward overall and not as engaging as going from the slower to faster ones. I think if it were a stand-alone arrangement issue of the medley and that one facet I'd be ok with letting this sneak by the panel. The production overall is pretty good, but the believability of the instruments is lacking just enough that it's bringing the mix down along with the arrangement. A couple sections I noticed in particular was the lack of velocity changes in the notes overall to help convey the emotionality of certain parts better. The longer notes in particular had not much in terms of velocity changes or any sort of vibrato to give them a bit more of a humanistic feel. The drumwork was overall pretty sweet though, and did a lot for the mix. I'm curious what the other judges think in terms of the arrangement especially, but right now this one is pretty close for me. I don't know how this will pan out, and I don't expect you to be drastically changing the arrangement at this point. Standing as-is, the song is a pretty great listen, and regardless of whether it makes OCR you should be proud of it! NO (resubmit)

One thing that I've noticed that makes things easier for Dave and his write-ups is when the submitter has more to say about his mix. This helps give Dave some inspiration on what to write about, and overall makes his job easier. Sometimes being over-wordy is a detriment, but I would say for a lot of submissions more would be good. Similarly, if people want to make the judges lives a little easier: breakdowns, breakdowns, breakdowns! Source usage may be obvious to you, but we may not be able to hear it, or it takes us a lot longer to figure it out. The more specific you can be about what source is used where, the easier we can identify it. This doesn't always mean we will agree with your breakdown in terms of how viable it is as source, but it certainly gives us a diving point. Linking the source (youtube, preferably) in your write-ups also makes things easier, especially when it's an obscure source.

The opening that slowly faded into Ruined World was pretty great, love what you did there. I agree with Larry somewhat on the 1:27 section; it feels like it's lacking direction, but I don't think it's as bad as Larry is making it out to be. On the other side, though, I don't know if the 1:27 section is really adding to the mix in a positive or negative way here. The transition into it is pretty rough for sure, and should be reworked. After that we're into the Chrono Cross track, after another somewhat awkward transition. Overall I think this section is good, but a couple things I'd look into changing is the super hard hitting notes that feel beyond what is needed. Toning them down a little will still get across that powerful feeling you're going for without having things sounding forced like they do right now. In terms of the piano section I'm mostly agreeing with Larry. I think there's a bit of a rigidity that can be smoothed out here, and I'd also look into making the tempo change a bit smoother as well, as it feels a bit sudden. Overall I'm hearing a lot of improvement in you, and I think you're very much on the right track here. Definitely work on the transitions and production issues, and consider reworking that 1:27 section. NO (resubmit)

I'll admit that when I first listened to this in the inbox I didn't go to far, and was worried it would remain very coverish. I was super glad to hear when you took off with the harmonies and personalization, and this is a really fun and relaxing track to listen to. I will agree with Emu that there's some sloppiness in the overall performance, but it does add a bit to the charm. Very glad to hear this one! YES

I don't really agree with andrew that the first half needs more embellishing, as I think the buildup works well here. I do agree on the velocities, and really would love to see this one fixed up! Send this back, please! NO (resubmit, please)

Not much to add here! The arrangement is definitely a bit close for our standards, but the personalization and harmonies make up for it. Always wonderful to hear more of your voice, Kate! YES

Andrew said a lot of what I have to say. What sticks out to me the most is the rhythm guitars and their frankly boring straight chords. As-is they sound like they're a little loud in the mix, but I don't know if it's just because of how plain they are or if it's a balance issue. I also will echo OA on the drums; they could use some more fills and change-ups to enhance your arrangement. Overall you've got some fun ideas on how to add to Heatman's theme, but I do think that things get a bit repetitive. Some kind of structure change like a breakdown might help vary things up, and possibly taking out some of the parts that are similar will help that repetitious feel. The ending also feels a bit sudden and out of place from the rest of the mix. I'd work on a better transition to what you've got already or consider something else. Hope I didn't come off as too harsh here, I think you've got a great start to a mix, but this one needs some work before it's a pass. NO (resubmit)

Andrew hit a lot of good points. For me, the overall mechanical feel of the piece sticks out because of how exposed your instrumentation is. When you're going for something delicate like this, the emotion or lack thereof can make a big difference. Similarly, in terms of OCR standards, I think having some more expansion on the theme would make a difference here as well. I think you've got a great start here, and it will really come down to the small details to make this really shine. I hope you continue to work on this! NO (resubmit)

I agree with pretty much all of what Andrew is saying here. The vocals are cheese, but they are pretty fun too, and amusingly applied. I think they could probably come down just a touch overall, as they're a bit overpowering in the soundscape. Likewise, getting rid of the overall dryness would probably help that as well. The structure and arrangement are definitely a little closer to the original than I'd like, and I think to me if it came down to just that I'd be willing to let it pass. With the production too it's just under the bar for me, and I'd love to see both issues changed, but if you hit just one of them I'd be ok with it. Regardless, this is a good candidate for a resub! NO (resubmit, please)