Emunator   Judges ⚖️

There were some parts that were enjoyable here and really clicked, but it pretty much sits on cruise control for most of the mix and doesn't really go anywhere. And, on a personal note, I absolutely can't stand those vocal samples anywhere I hear them :\ I don't know what it is about them, but they always grind my gears.

Holy crap, I was NOT expecting this to be so good! Super-energetic take on a mellow source, I'm quite impressed! The whole mix feels very convincing, I can't tell what's live and what's sampled. Some of the transitions were a tad awkward and the arrangement felt pretty unfocused, but overall this is a very high quality mix, especially for something so early on in the library.

The pads in the opening felt a bit off, but overall I like the groove going on here. The piano and the powerful strings especially were a high point in the track. I'm also not really feeling the drums but they're not Bad Tuna-level offensive by any means, so it's not really a huge deal I wasn't as impressed with this as some of the other reviewers were, but this certainly isn't bad by any means.

Hey, this was a pleasant surprise! The piano felt a bit rigid at times but once you got a groove going it didn't feel that way anymore. The only real problem I've got with this is the hi-hat... the way it was sequenced in that machine gun style feels kinda lazy and very distracting. Great take on the source material, it took me a while to figure out I was even listening to a Zelda II remix but once it hit me, it was a really cool feeling! Overall, I'm liking this a lot!

This one doesn't grab me as much as "Melodies of Life" or "Back to Towne" but there's still a lot to love here. Very melancholy and emotive, and the strings in the background were really subtle, but a nice touch. I don't have a problem with the flute, but I do agree that it's pushed pretty far back so whether you love or hate the flute, it doesn't do that much one way or another. This definitely would have benefited from a stronger ending, too, but overall I don't think I was as bothered by some of the issues that others are pointing out. I can never get enough McVaffe piano

Pretty vanilla, but there's a few moments where this track harmonizes pretty nicely. I have to agree with everyone else, what the hell was with the fadeout in the middle of the track? That really was hilarious, at first I thought this was just a 45 second track with a crappy fadeout tacked on the end, and then it jumped in with a brand new song.

The high and low frequencies feel pretty empty, which is unfortunate because the synths could definitely benefit from a bit of a boost. The soloing at the end was badass! For such an early remix, this is pretty good, actually!

Lolwut? This is really strange, I don't quite know what to make of it. The machine gun drums are a really weird stylistic choice that doesn't make any sense to me. The instruments definitely have that old-school OCR feel to it. Nevertheless, this was a pretty daring arrangement and for the most part, it worked. The synth soloing in particular was pretty good, especially for such an early remix.

Reminds me of a dungeon exploration scene in an RPG just before a big boss fight. Personally, I like the very dramatic, deliberate percussion you've got going on, but I don't like the synth that came in during the first part of the song. I've heard synth pulled off well in an orchestral arrangement before, but it kind of sticks out like a sore thumb here, in my opinion. And yeah, a climax would have been excellent here; what you've got feels like about half of a (quite excellent) song that didn't quite get enough time in the incubator. It's clear that you're a competent remixer though, I look forward to hearing more from you in the future!

The sound choices really caught my attention. Mazedude has certain mastered the industrial genre and knows how to pick instruments and samples that create that haunting, mechanical atmosphere. For a haunting, dark, atmospheric track, this can't really be beat, but overall the arrangement feels pretty repetitive and doesn't really go anywhere, but that's not really a huge issue with this genre. The mood is what counts and you totally nailed that aspect of the mix! As a side note, whatever the hell you've got going on at 2:09 reminded me of the sound effect in Luigi's Mansion where you suck the ghosts out of the vacuum at the end of each section of the game. Really cool

The ambient pads in the intro were interesting, albeit generic, and 3:20 sounded pretty cool. The rest of the song felt really flat and completely cookie-cutter. It's nice seeing how FFmusic Dj has been able to refine his craft over the years and create this same style of basic trance, but make it sound sooo much better in terms of production and arrangement.

Yeah, this one isn't really clicking with me. The opening synth really grated on my nerves, but I actually like the sound of the synth that you ran with for most of the song Some of the sound effects later in the song gave it a bit of variety but I can't really recommend this because it basically loops the same style/notes over and over. This would have served as a great introduction to a more fleshed-out electronic remix, but it doesn't really stand on its own.

Now this is just fun! That's OA for ya, though I'm always impressed with how skillfully you can mix different types of guitars, piano and other orchestral elements, and synth together to form such a cohesive musical package. The acoustic guitar (I'm pretty sure that's what I'm hearing, anyway) sounded really fake, even though I'd venture a guess that it was performed live, since this is a DoD track. That's kind of weird, but it's such a minor element in the overall picture that it's hardly worth mentioning.

Well, it should go without saying that I like this a lot Your guitar playing is exquisite and the tone is unbeatable when it comes to acoustic guitars. However, like some of your other mixes I have a hard time picking out the source tune except for a few parts. Nevertheless, it's only once in a blue moon such an emotive, personal mix comes around, so I'm really glad you contributed this to the project. Wonderful work! Also, your production has definitely shot up a notch since your FFVII songs! With such a bare-bones style as this, a high quality recording quality is absolutely a must.

Dhsu and Anthony's styles really mesh well together in this song. It's a pretty straightforward duet, with the emphasis on "pretty!" This song really is beautifully played, and since I'm actually a fan of the smooth jazz genre to start with, this ended up being one of my favorites from Summoning of Spirits.

AeroZ, you are a master of taking your songs to new levels of creativity while still keeping them accessible and not too weird. It satisfies my craving for unique, unconventional blends of musical styles, but I've also passed this song around to a few friends that have more mainstream, traditional tastes and they've loved it, too. That's quite a testament to your musical vision and ability

Definitely what I've come to expect from VHD with the dry orchestral sound, but I think this takes it to another level, arrangement-wise. I don't really make it a secret that I've kind of gotten burned out when it comes to straight orchestral arrangements, so I'm not easily impressed when it comes to this genre. However, your unique style and dynamic arrangements really hit the spot for me. This is one of my favorite songs from the FF4 album, it's clear that you put a lot of effort into this song and it paid off in a big way!

The piano was definitely the highlight of this mix for me. It wasn't bad up until then, but that particular instrument gave the song a much-needed boost for me. Not my favorite from Prot, but this one's got its charms nonetheless

Bahahaha, I can't wait to hear Battle for the Badge in its entirety. That's gonna be so badass

Pretty mellow and low key, but as far as orchestral goes this isn't bad I love how this contrasts your other contribution to the album, they work so well together! I'm always amazed at what you do with free samples, that's really pretty inspirational for aspiring mixers like me that have no money whatsoever

By the way, the Aplus mirror leads to a broken link. I'm having the same problem with "Step into the Light" as well.

Oh, thanks! That's good to hear You mean this? http://www.ocremix.org/remix/OCR01796/

That's what it says on the VGMDB entry that Liontamer posted, anyway. Maybe that's just a placeholder.

Whaaat? It's not coming out until October 20th? Seriously? I'm so impatient. blah.

Nice soundscape - the drums give a lot of much-needed momentum to an otherwise-chill song. I really do love ambient songs with a fluid, moving drumline like the one you've got going here Your choice of lead wasn't the strongest point of the song, but I didn't find it particularly offensive either. It contributed to the mood that you'd established, so in that sense I think you were pretty successful. This song helps me relax, and I'd imagine that's exactly what you intended to do with this song, so good work!