Emunator   Judges ⚖️

This arrangement is brimming with personality! I agree with the others that the true strength here lies in how successfully you adapted the original source material to something tasteful and listenable without doing a full 180 on the peppy circus vibe of the original source. For as little material as you're working with, the arrangement never feels like it's treading water. Your sound design is no slouch either - the rich, bubbly bassline sits perfectly against the lo-fi synths that fill out the mid/high range, and the breakbeat drums keep the pace upbeat while contributing a warm, scratchy texture to the mix. I'm honestly not hearing any of the complaints about the leads not cutting through enough - I personally wouldn't have wanted the leads to be too in-your-face for this style of arrangement, so I agree with Eino's mixing decisions here. I thought this clicked on just about every level (except for the abrupt ending that unfortunately fizzles out) and ended up delivering WAY more than I expected from the source tune. Nice work! YES

I appreciate the ambition at work here, and how you aren't content to stay in one lane throughout your arrangement. The contrast that you pointed out in your submission writeup helps shake things up after you run through a more straightforward interpretation of the source for the first 2 minutes. The first few minutes, which are a very straightforward take on the original, follow the same style of sequencing and instrumentation as the original but run into problems with overcrowding. The levels of your instruments don't strike an ideal balance; often you have several sounds occupying the same frequency range at high volumes, and the end result feels quite messy. The velocity/timing of your sequencing is also very stiff - my guess is that some degree of this is intentional (the original song strikes me the same way) so I'm willing to write this off. I also strongly agree that the transition at 1:49 did not work and should be revisited. Between the very rigid timing of the instrument sequencing, clashing reverb/balance issues, and transitions that don't quite work, it all adds up to about half of the song that, although a solid improvement on the original, still feels problematic on a number of levels. The jazzy interpretation that comes in midway through the arrangement, however, is absolutely on-pointand I don't find any of these issues present. The live violin offers a great contrast to the synthetic palette of sounds that comes before it. The concept and execution are both incredibly strong here. After that, we go back into more of the same production issues that applied to the first two minutes. I know others have stated that this would be stronger if the whole arrangement was built around the jazzy breakdown, but I do feel strongly that the arrangement works on a conceptual level in its current form - I just don't believe that the more upbeat sections are as well-executed or interpretive as the middle. I would love to hear this again if you're willing to take a stab at it! NO (please resubmit!)

Name of game(s) arranged: Pokémon Diamond Name of arrangement: 'On the Shores of Canalave' Name of individual song(s) arranged: Canalave City (Day) - Comments: Given my history of endlessly dwelling on arrangements for years, I'm incredibly proud to say that my first finished remix of 2020 came together in under 15 hours over the span of just a few months while I've been in quarantine. I've been playing a lot of Animal Crossing: New Horizons lately, and although this doesn't borrow any cues directly from that soundtrack, stylistically, I wanted to craft something that might fit into that universe. Additionally, with all the stress, bitterness, and uncertainty going on in the world right now, I thought it would be a good exercise to make something that just sounds happy. In essence, this remix is the soundtrack to the island I wish I could escape to at this moment in time! This track also served as a chance for me to use some of the music theory knowledge I've been actively absorbing over the last year. I have no formal musical background and am entirely self-taught through sheer trial and error, but there have always been major gaps that have prevented me from tackling more complex musical ideas. Here, however, I was able to utilize complex chord structures and harmonies, numerous key changes, syncopation, and even modulate to a 5/4 time signature for a single measure to help the melody flow the way it did in my head... all musical concepts I couldn't even put into words a year ago. I hope this mix provides a few minutes of peace and respite for those in need of that right now!

First off, major props to you for sticking with this and continuing to improve! Music production is such a daunting process, with so much to learn and digest especially in the early phases, but the only way out is to keep pushing through. Each new track that you complete will yield new breakthroughs and you will get better at your craft I am not going to spend too much time rehashing the critique from my fellow judges, because they did an excellent job covering the range of issues that are currently present with this, but to summarize my thoughts... This is a fun, bouncy arrangement that really evokes some classic OCRemix energy. You transition well through different moods and energy levels in your arrangement, which keeps this engaging throughout. However, the synth design and drum production are both very basic and sound very much like stock plugin sounds. This is the biggest issue by far, and could be remedied by automating parameters on your synths to give them more character and movement, or simply using higher-quality plugins. There are a number of freeware synths and samplers available if you look for them. There are also a frequent occurrence where your lead writing falls out-of-sync with the beat and sounds unintentionally sloppy. From a production standpoint too, the track is not mixed very well and is in need of some master compression. You can tell by looking at the waveform for your track and noticing how much the volume spikes as soon as your drums hit - it's desirable to have dynamics in your arrangement, but there needs to be a better balance so everything is at least audible at a normal volume level. I'm going to go against the grain here and suggest that you don't revisit this track right away. Although I absolutely see the potential in this arrangement and don't consider it a lost cause by any means, I feel like your effort would be better served simply producing and practicing as much as you can, instead of lingering on a singular idea. You'll see more substantial results as a producer if you hone your skills on a number of new ideas and try to absorb the widest range of knowledge and skill that you can. From my experience, by trying a number of different styles and arrangements and moving quickly from idea to idea, you'll inadvertently stumble on new skills that can be applied universally. Conversely, if you spend all of your creative energy on one idea, you're limiting the scope of what you can learn and might possibly be frustrated by diminishing returns. Within a year of focused effort and a commitment to learning, you'll look back and be blown away by how far you've come, and then you can revisit this concept with a whole new set of skills under your belt if you feel compelled to. Just some food for thought - either way, you have great potential and I hope that you find this feedback helpful and not discouraging. My direct messages are open if there's anything I can do to clarify my words here or help you along in your musical journey NO

I think there's some excellent potential for a remix of this source, and plenty of room for expansion by way of things like instrumental soloing, additional sound design, more intricate drum/bass writing, or an extended arrangement. As it stands now, however, aside from the instrumental upgrade, I don't feel like you've done enough to sufficiently personalize this to OCRemix's standards. This is interesting, because the detuned piano sounds like something out of a lo-fi arrangement, but the bass and the drums are dry and don't really contribute to any sort of overall atmosphere. There's room to take this in a lo-fi direction, a live-jazz direction, or even some combination of both, but right now it doesn't sound like you've committed to any particular direction outside of an instrument upgrade. To meet OCR's standards, this would need a good deal more creative interpretation on the arrangement and sound design front. NO

Always glad to see it when old-school OCR veterans come back into the fold I appreciate you taking a shot to submit something to us after all these years. That said, I'm not sure if you have switched to a different mixing or listening setup, but there's some pretty massive production issues present on this track that are keeping it from reaching its potential. The high-end of this track is off the charts, whereas the low-end is almost non-existent. Meanwhile, the bulk of the mid-range content is not balanced properly so you have to turn the volume up loud just to hear what's going on melodically, but at that point the high-end of the mix is painfully loud.There's a serious tonal imbalance going on that needs to be addressed. There's a fun, whimsical arrangement in here somewhere, but there's a lot of work that needs to happen first before that can shine through. Listening to some of your older remixes, I'm confident that you can reach that bar again. I would strongly recommend hitting up the Workshop forums (https://ocremix.org/community/forum/12-post-your-game-remixes/) for some in-depth critique and a forum where you can share new version of your track for feedback. Best of luck to you, I hope there's more to come! NO

This arrangement plays pretty close to each of the sources, but the way you merged them together in a fairly seamless way really helps differentiate this from the original. I also appreciated how you came back to Click Clock Woods multiple times as a sort of "chorus" in the arrangement. I think from an arrangement perspective, you've got something great going here. However, prophetik is right on the money that the sample and production quality is not up to par in its current form. I respect how difficult brass/wind instruments can be to work with in sampled form, and you did your best with the tools you had to make this sound humanized, the samples themselves are extremely thin and don't amount to a full-sounding overall mix. I'm honestly not sure what more you could do with this set of samples to make this work - the samples just lack the expressiveness to convey anything close to a realistic band sound. The instruments are all so exposed in the mix that every unrealistic articulation and sequencing choice remains front-and-center. I hate to leave it at that, but I don't feel like the sample pack you're using is doing proper justice to your arrangement. Sorry NO

Yoooo, welcome back! I absolutely loved this remix when it was posted (I still throw it on from time to time) and I'm excited to hear what you can do with 10 more years of experience under your belt. I'll be keeping an eye on this!

Wow, this is certainly ambitious and very well executed! I'm glad you stuck with this concept through the years because your arrangement is a winner. Though it never strayed far from the Gusty Garden/DK Isle themes, there are ample changes to the phrasing and harmonies that make this sound entirely your own. The segue from Mario Galaxy into DK64 was flawless and instantly evoked a nostalgia overload for me. As I've come to expect, I can't find any fault with the brass performances, but all of the additional guest instrumentalists pulled their weight too. The choice to go back into a mellower bossa nova jam at 6:10 was really slick and landed perfectly with me, especially when you immediately follow up with such a satisfying climax. Bravo! Just a few gripes - the drums felt like a weak point throughout the arrangement. The hi-hats were especially grating over time, since they were mixed very far forward compared to the rest of the drums and rarely deviated from a basic quarter-note rhythm. At 1:34, they sounded downright distracting, but fortunately this didn't last very long. Additionally, the overall master needs to be normalized in volume and there's silence to be trimmed on both ends of the mix. Fix those two things up, and this is ready for primetime! Great work. YES

Of all the minimalist Zelda arrangements I've heard from Rebecca lately, I feel like this is far and away the most fully-realized and successful. Although the original source is very abstract and doesn't provide much to latch onto, the original writing in this arrangement helps seamlessly weave together the fragments of original melody into something much more concrete. The instrument tones were all full-bodied and complemented each other well, nothing sounded egregiously unrealistic. Particularly, I found the low-register piano to be particularly moody and helped punctuate the track in a very dramatic fashion. There's a lot to love here. Aside from the volume fixes, this is an easy pass in my book. YES

I feel like Brad did a good job breaking this down and I agree 100% with his assessment. The real strength of this submission lies in the reharmonization of the original Midna's Lament track, and I appreciate the efforts you took with the instrumentation to accentuate this creative choice. I just don't feel that the arrangement has been fleshed out enough to pass muster by OCR's submission standards, especially considering how long the fades last on both ends of the track. An arrangement that short can work if the song is ironclad in terms of production quality, but in this case, I also agree that the soundscape feels unpolished from a mixing standpoint for the same reasons that Brad mentioned. Love the concept and creativity that went into this, but there's not really enough for me as it stands. Would be interested to see this back again in a more fleshed-out form! NO (resubmit)

Wow, this is a very ambitious fusion of different themes. Your arrangement is really excellent, it moves through a number of different ideas but still manages to segue fairly smoothly between them. Love the 12-string action that leads into the meat of the arrangement. Really, there's a lot of great ideas going on here so please don't take any of my criticism to suggest that I didn't enjoy this. There are, however, a number of production-related things that are holding this back from the OCR quality bar. Overall, my impression of this track is that the sounds don't gel together like they should. I'm all for mixing synths into metal arrangements, but the synth patches are so basic and unprocessed that they sound pasted on top of the rest of the track rather than properly integrated into it. A touch of reverb and level adjustments would go a long way to making these current patches work, but you could also find some more interesting synth sounds, even from freeware plugins, to help massage those parts into the arrangement better. The master as a whole sounds like it needs some compression to help glue everything together. Right now, it often feels like your instruments are all existing in completely different spaces, and the mix lacks cohesion. On a more specific note, it sounds like the high-end bite was scooped out of your guitar tone. Some EQ adjustments ought to fix that up, but it's currently holding your guitar (especially the lead) back from delivering a proper punch. The bass starting at :12 doesn't sit right with me either. The tone is very exposed, and the lively rhythm clashes with the rest of your instrumentation. Once the overdriven guitars come in, I don't have an issue with the bass, but I would strongly consider reworking the use of bass in your intro entirely. I'm also not a fan of the shaker - for one, it feels like it's frequently off-beat, and it's mixed MUCH more prominently than your hi-hat. It certainly doesn't feel like it's coming from the same area of the mix as the rest of your drums. What's going on at 2:19? Sounds like a rendering error or a bit of recording that wasn't properly faded in. I know this is a lot of criticism, but I honestly wouldn't share this level of critique if I didn't feel that there was merit and incredible potential in your arrangement. You just need to bring your production game up to par and you'll be golden! NO

Right off the bat, this track is brickwalled HARD and is excessively loud. In fact, there's several times it's clipping and peaking over 0db. The waveform looks like it had the peaks sliced off with a knife. To sanity check this, I compared this to some of your previous tracks and saw that, although those other tracks were fairly compressed, they had much more headroom than this and still had some dynamics to them. I love this arrangement for all the same reasons I enjoy your other work - it's energetic, full of incredible transitions, and for lack of a better word, it just slaps. Evidently my evaluation setup was giving bad readings so please disregard the comment about clipping. All of the other feedback still stands regarding the loudness and overall compression, but without the clipping, the arrangement still puts this over the bar. I'd like to see a less aggressive master on future submissions though! YES

You did a great job of capturing the original Deus Ex magic in your sound design. I think for what you set out to do - creating a modernized expansion of the original source material - this is certainly an enjoyable effort! However, there's a few things holding this back from meeting OCR's standards on the arrangement and production side. The production feels imbalanced overall, especially when the main melody comes in. Consider re-balancing your instrument levels during that section so the most prominent part of the arrangement, the one you want to stand out, is actually at the forefront of your mix. I also think you could bring back the acoustic drum hits that you used in the intro and nowhere else in the mix to help those chorus sections pack even more of a punch. As it stands, I find that the backing instrumentation during those sections falls somewhat flat and could go further to fully convey the drama you intended. Additionally, I found the percussion sequencing to be very static, as if many of the percussion sounds were all hitting at the exact same velocity and were too rigidly quantized to the grid. A good example of this is from 2:12 - 2:25 - even though you're working with electronic percussion, you can do more with the velocity to help the drums sit more naturally. The other judges did a solid job of explaining the arrangement breakdown so I'm not going to say much about that aside from cosign their opinions. There's a lot to like hear, and you are clearly off to a very good start with your sound design. It's a great upgrade from the original, but it's not quite there yet. Hope to hear from you again in the future! NO

I'm a huge Animal Crossing nut and this is one of my favorite K.K. Slider songs, so I'm keen to hear what you've done with the piece! The style you've chosen works very well with the source material. By the end of the arrangement, your soundscape is fleshed out very nicely and is extremely pleasant to listen to, and I understand the slow burn you were aiming for here. However, the first half of the song (basically everything up until 1:40) feels comparatively underwhelming. Aside from setting the tone for the rest of the arrangement, I don't feel like that first minute and 40 seconds contributes much. Part of this, in my opinion, is due to how sparse and staccato all of the writing is - there's nothing to pad the soundscape. This space is filled up with arpeggios and countermelodies later on, but this could seriously benefit from something extra to fill the void early on, like a synth pad or even letting your instruments sustain a little longer or giving them a bit of delay/reverb so everything isn't so exposed. Alternatively, you could play with a softer sound palette during the introduction and gradually work up to the more aggressive, bright synth patches in order to maintain the contrast you currently have. Love the concept and, by the time everything kicks in fully, I'm 100% on board with this track, but this could benefit from a bit more time in the oven to ensure that the track is engaging all the way through. If this doesn't make it, I sincerely hope we hear a resubmission from you! NO (resubmit!!)

I absolutely adore what you've done here. The Lavender Town melody is recognizable throughout, but the reharmonization presents it in an entirely new light that somehow still manages to work in context of the original game. This remix has so many layers of emotional nuance and keeps me gripped the entire way through. You nailed the post-rock buildup, and although I wanted to hear more of a dramatic climax, this still tells a complete story as-is, and I can't find any serious fault with the execution. This is an easy pass for me - hope to hear more of this from you in the future! YES

I have to agree with the others that this arrangement has been stretched about twice as long as it needs to be, considering the lack of variation. Once the 1 minute mark hits, there is no variation in energy levels - the track rides the same 808/hi-hat/snare loop for the next 4 and a half minutes, which is particularly egregious when the same 1/16th note hi-hat pattern plays almost the entire time. There's a few points where you add some light fills, but there's so much more that you could do to add excitement to the drums here. Arrangement-wise, this mix is begging for a breakdown to give it some room to breathe. On the flipside, when you hit the chorus, your melodies are more energetic but the production remains exactly the same for that section. It's like the drum track is in its own lane and doesn't rise and fall in tandem with the actual arrangement. I would also strongly recommend looking at your harmonies and remove some of that unintentional dissonance that other judges have pointed out. I enjoy the mix of chill synth instrumentation in a modern trap arrangement. It evokes a classic OCR electronica feeling, but modernized. You're off to a great start here, but more attention needs to be paid to fleshing out your arrangement and making sure that it stays fresh the whole time. Good luck! NO

I appreciate the Nujabes influence and how you applied it here. Your palette of instruments is lovely and suits this track very well! There are some critical mixing and sequencing issues that I'm picking up on, however. As others have rightly pointed out, the mixing is very busy and overcompressed for a song of this style - this needs some room to breathe. Right now, the mix feels like an oppressive wall of sound that doesn't suit the arrangement you've created. The bass is extremely loud and muddy, I feel like that should be your first target when revisiting the mixing. In addition, I would take a second look at the velocity and timing of your instruments and drums - just about everything feels rigidly quantized to the grid. The kick and bass are two notable examples of this - because your velocities are so static, your song doesn't ever seem to find a groove that sits well with the rest of the instruments. While I can appreciate the juxtaposition of organic instruments with more electronic-sounding drums, there's still a lot of ways that you could make the sequencing feel more natural. I hope you can take this feedback in stride and continue to refine your craft, please don't be discouraged! The vision is there, but this would certainly benefit from some more attention paid to the technical side of things. Good luck with your future submissions! NO (resubmit)

I'm with Larry here - the instrumentation is well-written but the sample quality doesn't hold up to scrutiny in this minimalist context, particularly the piano and the solo strings. Comparing it directly to the OST, your sample feels tinny and lacking the same dynamic range. In addition, the performance feels robotic as well. Small nitpick - the decay/release on the solo violin at the very end of the song is very abrupt. There's some really great evolution on the original source with the addition of new instruments and original writing, but when so much of the arrangement is built around piano and that particular element is noticeably weaker, the overall product doesn't click for me. Although the arrangement is short, if you were willing to take a stab at re-working the pianos, I think this would be a solid candidate for resubmission! NO (resubmit)

I find myself agreeing most with Nutritious on this vote. I greatly enjoyed the sound design and groovy lead writing and squelchy synth bursts throughout the song, this is a very solid foundation. If the production was rock solid, I would be more willing to forgive the somewhat-static arrangement, and vice versa if the arrangement was more fleshed out, but as it stands, I think there's enough room for improvement to warrant a resubmission. I have to second the comments about the drums sounding very imbalanced - right now, I'm struggling to tell whether there's even a kick drum in the mix or not. If there is one, it's getting eaten up in the mix and has almost no low end presence. If this was a stylistic choice, I can live with that, but it sounds like it was just not mixed correctly. Overall, the compression needs to be scaled back just a hair to give this some breathing room. Other judges have touched on this in greater detail so I'm not going to rehash the specifics, but I agree with their assessment completely on the overall mixdown. I sincerely hope we hear this back on the panel if it doesn't end up passing - even as it is, this is an incredibly enjoyable take, but it needs another round of polish before it's ready for primetime. NO (resubmit!)

I'm really enjoying the spacey sound design here. The balance of airy, reverb-drenched pads and leads compared to the deep, constant presence of the kick and bass actually sat very nicely with me. I had high hopes for this track based on the first minute or so. However, it simply doesn't feel like it goes anywhere. There was so much tension introduced around the 2 minute mark but the buildup that culminated at 2:34 was a total tease. There's a huge amount of potential to bust into a double-time beat or add more rhythmic variations to really bring this arrangement home. I also have to second Rexy's feedback on the filter sweep that occupies the high frequencies - that needs to be toned down with volume or EQ adjustments. I also felt like the snare roll starting at 2:15 was comparatively lacking in energy and fell flat for me, independent of my thoughts on the arrangement itself. Some additional mid-frequency risers/percussion fills would help that transition fit more naturally. I want to hear more of this - the bones of this are great but I think you can push yourself further to take this from good to great without changing the core of what you've already written. NO (resubmit)

Off the top, I appreciate the overall concept and artist notes here. I can tell that this arrangement is coming from a place of admiration for Grant Kirkhope, which is an admiration I share myself That said, as someone who has listened to these soundtracks countless times, I would not have known this had any Banjo-Kazooie/Banjo-Tooie without looking at the artist's breakdown, and even then, I really had to force myself to hear the connection over multiple listens. I see how you got from A to B, but the end result feels way too far removed from the original content to click with me. From a sound design/production standpoint, this is also a mixed bag. I like the sound pallet that you used to evoke a retro feeling, it's very cohesive and does a great job conveying the concept you had in mind. The reversed sfx and fills throughout the song are also very engaging. However, many of the samples/synths were so exposed that the lack of variation/automation really became obvious. Particularly in the bass - not only is the bass pattern fairly static (which I realize is a feature, not a bug, with this genre) but the sample itself stays at a relatively flat velocity and doesn't ebb and flow with the rest of the track and is a fairly "vanilla" sound to start with. When the mix is filled out at its busiest points, it's not as noticeable, but there are just as many sections where the arrangement is so minimal that it really highlights the rigid sequencing. I hate to come across so negative on a track that has a lot to like about it, but ultimately this just doesn't click for me as a remix. Good luck with the rest of the vote! NO

I appreciate the obvious effort to add variation to this arrangement. Although it always finds its way back to the classic 4-on-the-floor trance rhythm, there's plenty sprinkled in here to keep this fresh. Sound design, percussion samples, and overall sequencing was on-point, and I have no complaints about the bones of this mix. I do agree that some volume adjustments/EQ tweaks to allow the lead to sit more up-front would really suit this track well. The overall mix is a little hot in the mids and high frequencies, as well. However, I don't believe that any of this amounts to a dealbreaker - the strength of the arrangement and sound design puts this over the bar, IMO. The leads, although quiet, are certainly still audible.There is room for improvement on the mixing end, but it's enough to get the job done this time. Good luck! YES (I agree that if we can get a version that trims the excess silence at the end, that would be great!)

I wasn't immediately sold on this track. During the intro, I found the synth-epiano and minimal percussion to be robotic and wasn't a compelling enough sound to carry the track on its own. I would have appreciated some light ambiance to pad that out and offer something less on-the-grid for that introduction. Fortunately though, things fell into place as more layers started to emerge. Your wind and harp writing provides a lovely expansion on some of the original Temple of Time melodies and are sequenced fairly well. The little glitch at 1:08 was really cool, I wish there were more flourishes like this. I have to agree that some of the low-end mixing and writing muddies up the track, and those bass parts could stand to be replaced by an instrument with less of a tail, but it's not a huge deal. It's not the strongest yes, but I appreciate the efforts made to personalize the original and the sample quibbles weren't enough to bring down what you brought to the table! Props for tackling a lesser-known Zelda source as well, especially one as tricky to work with as this. YES

Source usage seems to be the main point of contention with this vote, and I'm on the side of NutS here. While I don't disagree with Rexy's timestamp, I think it's important to view that in context of the arrangement and not just look at the percentage in a bubble. The usage of source is spread out throughout the entire track (rather than simply bookending long stretches of completely original music) and thus keeps Roxas theme at the forefront. Despite the ample original writing (which is incredibly well executed) it always comes back around. Ultimately, when taken as a whole, this feels like a remix of Roxas theme. It takes a lot of skill to successfully execute a concept like this on a technical level. If any element here - the realism of the orchestral sequencing, the integration of the electronic percussion, or the overall mixdown - wasn't up to par, this remix would fall flat on its face. Instead, the end result is dynamic, beautiful, and full of memorable one-off moments that demand attention (some of my personal highlights were the initial breakbeat fill at :31, and the piano riff at 2:50 that sounds reminiscent of Clash on the Bridge from FFV.) Best of luck here - I'm not sure which way this vote will swing, but regardless, I hope we hear a lot more from you! YES