DJ-Arthur

Take breaks eh... I wish I took some time off of work, so I could take my time, but I guess it's for the better... Because of work, I have to step back at least once a day, giving me room for overview... Anyways, about the track: I'm switching around with my patterns, keeping the track's flow in mind, introducing the variation that now happens at the 0:56 mark at 0:28 instead, and put the "original" melody at 0:56. I added some minor changes to the original melody (Read: a single note) and gated the second part of the song when it's playing alone. @SoulinEther: About the bass, I didn't notice it before, but I changed the "twin stab"'s (Lame name, I know) texture a bit, so tell me if it's better now. http://www.webstudiovandijk.nl/OCRemix/WIP-Metalman6.mp3 I'll put this in the first post as well.

Okay, First of all, I'd like to thank the Lord for giving us Coffee which allowed me to stay awake long enough to get this posted... Back to topic: I hooked my Server up with Version 5 and I finally get the feeling I'm getting the hang of this track, and where it wants to go with me (Oh boy, that sounds so... creepy...). Anyways, I added more original stuff and got some blubber cleared up, then dropped it someplace else (where it actually sounds quite good), so cleaning is on my to-do list... Tell me if the Bass solo at 2:35 is a no-no, or a nice break, k?

Allright, I'll enter with this: A Black Soul Black. The color of my soul. Mysterious, but black. My soul, Dark and withdrawn. My essence, not existing. Her Aura, A shining light. Piercing, my darkness. A tear, of my loved one. It cleanses, it heals. My soul, my essence. Black still, but Dark no more. by Arthur van Dijk

Ah yes, I forgot to re-master the main gain after playing with the note velocities in that part, I'll fix that. I'm also working on a more complex solo at the 1:52 mark, and a third bass line (well sort of...) to loosen the repetitiveness of the beat bass... Maybe add a filter? Somehow I get the urge to introduce a Grand Piano somewhere halfway through , though I doubt it'll sound "in place"... I'll definitely try it out and see what I can come up with. Edit: I couldn't get the piano to fit in, so I got rid of it... Blah... I did manage to make the bass follow the pattern I intended for the Piano, so not all is for naught. Also, I rendered version 4 to download, link, as always, in my first post.

Allright, I updated the track! Download it from the link at the top post. As Jammerlink suggested, I knocked the tempo from 130 BPM to 136, and it sounds good to me as it paces a tad quicker through the notes without getting muddy on me... I also played around with the bass line here and there to create some deviation from the rest of the riffs...

Tweex_ mentioned something like that too, I'm tweaking the lead and 2nd lead synth now, but then the other synths get "out of whack"... I'll tweak some more, and post an update later on today Edit: Update is ready, and link available in the first post

Could be, but I think the new Bass line, arrangement and added parts are varying it up enough. I ripped the real source from my NES in MP3 and placed the link in the first post

Link added in the first post

Hi everyone! It's been a while since I worked on something (Again, I know...) and dug up this old WIP on my old computer... I've reworked and rearranged it and plan on finishing this track, so any suggestions, comments en critique would be nice! Updated: April 15th 2009 Download "Enter the Metalman" version 6 Format: MP3 Bitrate: 320kbps VBR Size: 4,74MB Duration: 3:42 EDIT: Download MIDI of the Source Download MP3 of the Source Version History: Version 6: * Trading Places and Mixed up some patterns * Modified the Second Bass Line Version 5: * Added more original parts * Made some changes in the Bass line during the end * Added ambient Effects (Echo and Reverb) to some instruments * Slight changes in the arrangement Version 4: * Added a more complex solo * More changes in the Bass Line * Rescaled Velocities throughout the track Version 3: * Added variation to the Bass line * upped the Tempo a bit * Played around with the drum sounds Version 2: * Slightly altered drums, to add some more power * tweaked the 1st and 2nd lead synths * little arrangement changes near the end

Update: Version 7 Changes: - Edited the Guitar Solo: Removed all the chords, and replaced some notes to make it feel more like a solo entirely - Moved the Tempo slide from 140-130 to the fading drums section; it sounds less "out-of-place" now (Might need polish) - Edited the Piano section, more velocity scaling to bring the primo hand more to the foreground, and the rest to the back - Edited the final Guitar riff to last a bit longer and pulled its pitch down (Needs polish) - Some other thing I can't remember... Download Version 7

Okay, as soon as I figure out what it means, I'll get on it , you mean a pitch wobble? I actually got ahead, and moved the tempo change to the fading drum section. It makes it sound less awkward. I'll try and improve the guitar solo too. I also remastered the guitar entirely, for it being too loud in this version. The ending note is no problem, I'd delay the volume slide for a second, and add the pitch pull. I'll check it out when I've got time... Vacation's over so I have to work today, bummer... I'll post it as soon as I've got around to add those points. Thanks again progressive, you're being a great deal of help here!

This is a really awesome mix! I'm left craving for more... I've got nothing to comment, besides that this is splendid work. Although I do feel like the Piano at 2:50 and 3:10 tend to sound too robotic. The rest is just all good. Definitely worth keeping track of... Subscription... Set... Activate!

Updated: Version 6 Changes: # The whole transition from the Guitar-solo to the Piano section is reworked from scratch: Drums are fading out, piano fading in, space thingy fading out, definitely more flow there. I hope it doesn't sound strangely sudden anymore. # Re-Mastered the entire Piano section and adjusted the volume of each hand. Now the Primo melody sticks out the way it should, and the lower hands are a tad more in the back # Edited the ending automation, to make the bpm keep dropping from 130 to the end of the track, instead of keeping steady at 110. # Some other minor thing... I can't remember... Something with the Guitar anyways... I believe it got a bit louder, and a tad more EQ'ed. Download Version 6 EDIT: I just came up with this idea: I could move the BMP slide from 140 to 130 to the point where the drums fade out, so that the entire piano solo is at 130 bmp... Tell me what you guys think.

Hey! Nice going on this one! It's one of my favourite tunes from Sonic 2, so I might be a bit pre-judged... First of all: I definitely like the drums. Don't change them. Period. The Intro is very good, with the atmospheric Piano and all, although the first notes of the organ tend to sound too much detuned (Intentional, perhaps?) The pads are terrific, as I expected from you . They do tend to clash with the vibrato-Piano reverb here and there making a blurry effect. You probably don't want that to happen, so be careful mixing those too loud. Overall: The idea is definitely worth exploring, and I'm looking forward to see more of this! Moving the snare to-and-fro a semi note is risky, but it looks like you can pull it off here, good job. Keep it up! Greetzz, my friend, and salutations too

Hey, thanks for the pointers! Now I have something I can work to, since I couldn't really grasp more intuitive ideas with it. I'll get to work on this again after I finished my Duck Tales Remix of the Moon, which is also posted here. I've got some ideas jotted down for it, so "I'll be back" with it...

Update: Version 5 Changes: # Edited the Bassline during the Guitar Solo, to expose the guitar a little less # Redid the pitch automation for the Guitar solo, less yanking on the snares now # Changed the utterly last notes of the Guitar solo and removed that sloppy chord # Edited the transition between the Guitar solo and the Piano interlude # Added some subtle velocity changes in the piano solo # Scaled the velocities of the high notes on the piano to make them sound more delicate and less Hollow # Changed the ending to make the Piano accompany the synth Strings # Tuned the Volume slides of the Synth String during the ending. It got too Loud IMO Get it here... (192kbps MP3) EDIT: Hmm, The Primo melody in the Piano solo still seems a tad too soft... I'll adjust that in the next update

I noticed the "hollow" uppertones: It turns out I forgot to scale the velocities of that instance... I'm also editing the guitar solo Bassline, because I decided the guitar sample is too weak to be that mch exposed. Then I'll be fine-tuning transition between aforementioned solo and the Piano interlude. Also, I changed up a bit of arrangement in the ending: I decided to let the piano continue instead of the synth bass, making the flow more natural. Not worthy of an update yet, but coming soon!

It's late, but still... Hope you had a awesome B-day! omg! Evil Birthday! FTW Adams family! D'oh! Sounds good though, nice present!

Alrighty then! Updated to Version 4! Changes: # Added a Guitar Solo of some sort at 1:18 (Might need a bit more polish) # Re-automated some effects like volume slides # Re-Sequenced the entire Piano section while adding another hand, since the pattern is now so complex my three (!) unworthy sound-processors can't handle it in realtime composing (Bah), so I used some humanization algorithms. I think it went over rather well... # Whole song now 3:01 in duration # This version is encoded in 192kbps bitrate, to get a little better quality. I don't have to worry about filesize (now 4.15MB) with only 3 minutes anyway... Download Version 4 Well, what do you guys think?

Sounds like an excellent idea! I'll start working on it tomorrow, since today my new Audio/Video stand got delivered. (FINALLY, I've been waiting for it for 6 weeks for crying out loud...!) Anyways, I'll post it as soon as I got something that's fitting, providing I didn't exhaust my inspiration for listening to it again and again. (My cat seems to really like this track: it's lying on the speakers, purring, so I've set Orion to Loop it continuously... At least he's quiet for a change ha ha) Curious: Normally I can't keep listening to the same music again and again without the sound getting blurry in my head... Bah, I'm getting of topic... I'll try to create some guitar solo somewhere around 1:30, before the piano intermezzo.

Update: Version 3. Changes: I nudged the starting tempo down to 140 Redid the reverb on the Dist. Guitar Played with the Piano/Guitar part (1:30 - 2:00) and slowed to 130bmp Added an ending to 110 bpm Download I get the feeling I'm missing something here... Any ideas?

Update: Version 2 Changes: Actually did some arrangement (not much though), and introduced a nice Grand Piano solo. The high tingling sound has changed, and boasts a little less gate that the previous instrument. I Also reconfigured the reverb on the Dist. Guitar, but now it hangs in the balance whether it's too much or not. I might just trim it a bit to get the Guitar a little more up-front. I changed the tempo from 145bpm to 142bmp, to give the piano a more real feel, and transposed the whole thing down 4 semitones because the guitar couldn't squeeze-out the really high notes right. It's 1:58 in length now, and I need another break of some sort. A nice ending would be good too, but here's what I have now: Download Here Comments, anyone?

Something I'm working on... This Post now serves as Download "center" for all updates/revisions. Last Update: Version 7 (Aug 11th 2008) Any comments? Download "A Rock Called Moon" WIP Version 1 Download "A Rock Called Moon" WIP Version 2 Download "A Rock Called Moon" WIP Version 3 Download "A Rock Called Moon" WIP Version 4 Download "A Rock Called Moon" WIP Version 5 Download "A Rock Called Moon" WIP Version 6 Download "A Rock Called Moon" WIP Version 7

Hi guys (EDIT: and girls, sorry), I've decided to pick up my NO'ed submission to work on again. Changes: Not a lot in terms of instrumentation: I removed the lead change for the second part, so now it's all Saw. (Get it? Metal blade, Saw..? Never mind...) Aside from my lame jokes that didn't change at all, I changed the arrangement as well as notched up the tempo just a bit. Removed some repetitive parts, added some changes, more additions/substractions in the drum beats, and made it a tad more flowing. Anyways, I don't think it's done yet, so listen in and help my inspiration to burst into a whole new level Download Original Submission Download WIP Version 2 (Both in MP3, 128kbs)

The Intro is Awesome, that's for sure! A whole lot of improvement against the first post. The actual main part does sound appealing, and I also recognized the boss-tune for a part of about 30 seconds. Variation enough in my humble opinion, Although the outtro is indeed a bit on the long side, and seems to be a transition to another part of the song (or another song entirely), instead of ending the track. Overal: # Intro sticks close to the source, but with the added flair it should be enough. Well performed and good sound quality. # Main part: Enough variation to carry the track, the transition at 2:30 to the Boss-tune could be stretched up a bit, to keep more "flow" IMO. Personally, I would let the lead play through another bar or two. Again good sound quality, as well as smooth production. # Ending/Outtro: Should be shortened, it lasts for almost a minute, with little sense of direction towards an end. The idea is there though, so polish it a little I think this track has a lot of potential. Keep polishing the ending and the transition at 2:30, and I think this could be an excellent track! Keep it up! I'll be watching this...