Palpable

Urgh, these piano subs always make me feel like a bad guy. Well, you fixed the problem with the recording quality, but now this sounds super flat. It sounds very sequenced (I'm guessing it is) with almost every note at the same volume, and fairly rigid to boot. Writing still awesome, production still a problem. Sorry! NO (resubmit)

Drums were pretty weak and the snare sound was cheap-sounding and prominent, so the song never had as much energy as it should have had. Some of the synths were cool, while others sounded bland. Overall, I liked the writing but sometimes the notes weren't working that well within the chord. Sorry, not feeling this one much. NO (resubmit)

OK I do hear the source I was missing now, although I wouldn't count as much of it as you did, Emu. It varies a little and I wouldn't even fault judges for not counting it since it's so slowed down (though I have used that trick in a remix myself). More importantly, I was missing Chozo Ruin Depths drone usage, which adds a fair amount more source. Though I haven't timestamped it, I feel that the source usage is dominant now. So is the production enough of a problem that this shouldn't pass? Probably not. The stellar writing and arrangement really does make up for a lot of the production shortcomings. I would love to see Argle take another pass at it, but as is, it squeaks by. YES (borderline)

I swear to God I heard them refer to the mechs as Evas in the trailer. Apparently it was Jaeger.

Never played 13, so can't speak to it specifically, but I think the FF games have kept the same style so long that they're probably targeted towards existing fans of the series rather than new fans.

Compression on the drums is quite high, but used for effect and definitely nails the modern 80s-inspired style Alex was going for. Not my favorite song of Alex's (he's made a lot of awesome stuff), but I can appreciate what he's trying to do here. Certainly think it succeeds on the level he's aiming for. YES

Did not find the production as slick as you guys. Certainly a lot of cool tricks, but I think the writing (which was very good) outstripped the production overall. The strings and leads should have been brought up more, especially so that moments like 2:30 have more impact. Some of the drum sounds aren't high quality (but are produced well). No dealbreakers, but it contributes to the vote. Source usage was low as well. Not gonna say this is 100% accurate as there were a lot of melody modifications and faded out riffs: 0:38-0:43 0:50-0:53 1:57-2:00 2:09-2:18 2:20-2:25 2:30-2:52 3:17-3:32 3:38-3:40 3:58-4:23 4:44-5:05 120/310 = 39% Overall, it seems like this is problematic in too many ways, as much as I like it. NO (resubmit) Edit: vote updated

I think it's actually a combination of all your reasons. The classic era FF games and soundtracks are widely regarded as some of the best and innovative games/OSTs of the era, and more modern FFs haven't been given the same distinction (at least not to the same degree). Nostalgia and age group of remixers here certainly plays a part too, but I don't predict that the modern FFs will hold much nostalgic value for kids growing up today. The new FF games are actually more aimed at that older 21-35 age group, I feel, and kids growing up today will have their own games to feel nostalgic about when they get older.

As I said to Miss Wooff, this is now at a level of playing I think meets the bar, and she persisted in getting those reverb settings right too. Great job sticking it out! YES

My judging limit is about two hours a day - after that, my ears turn to mush. But if we all had the free time to get two hours of judging in per day, we would blow through the queue really fast, I would guess in a week or two. Every now and then, we have judge parties where we try to vote on a ton of stuff or go through the inbox and they're very productive.

Closing this.

Weird source. I missed this whole era of Sonic games, but I'm digging this tune. Larry killed this one in terms of accuracy, with Deia covering everything else I would have wanted to say. Listen to them. NO

From the get-go, this sounds really washed-out and though the writing is complex, it's very hard to hear. A lot of the sounds like the drums are too plodding and dull to carry the song. I like a lot of the ideas in this, and the multiple sources are merged reasonably well, but unfortunately the production needs to be a lot better. I'd suggest posting in the Workshop forums to get some more direct advice on how to improve that part of your skills. NO (resubmit)

You've definitely gotta count sections like 1:27-2:08 and 3:06-3:28. I can see not counting the standard blues chords, but the guitar is following the source bassline/guitar (hard to tell what instrument it is) pretty much 1-for-1, it's a really clear connection IMO. I actually agree with Mr. Strader's breakdown completely, which puts him over 50%. Mixing was a little funky - compression a bit high, piano thin. A lot of things sound slightly off, but the overall picture sounded ok. The performances and writing helped smooth over some of that. Yeah I think I'm ok with this. YES

Surprisingly had little problem with this. I liked the subtle additional backing elements while keeping the melody intact, it's an approach I have taken before, though admittedly it's pretty conservative. The second half is quite creative and involves the source, so that it doesn't just feel like a cover + an original section smooshed together. I can see Will's POV on this but I don't agree with it. Plus, slick performances abound. The way the sax solo bursts through the door is fabulous, the icing on the cake. Happy to pass this. YES

Wow, this is everything but the kitchen sink in one song, and yet it still ties together pretty nicely. Kudos. No real production problems either. I wouldn't have minded hearing more reverb, but there's nothing keeping this from passing. YES

Yeah, kinda gotta go with Emu on this. For a song featuring trumpets as realistic instruments, this doesn't quite deliver. I didn't find the samples annoying, but I also didn't think they sounded real enough. I'm sure that must be frustrating to hear, because I hear a lot of detail in the sequencing. Honestly, the mixing was a little bit of an issue all over - song was a little empty, some instruments were too dry - so it's possible in a more full production, I wouldn't be hearing those issues. Also thought that the attention to sequencing on the trumpets should have spilled over to the percussive instruments. The marimba-sounding instrument and the drums were somewhat basic. Sorry friend, not gonna happen this time for me. NO (resubmit)

Argh, this was totally firing on all cylinders until the piano came in. Why was it so dry? With a nice reverb trail, it would have totally fit into the lush soundscape you were building, but it instead stuck out like a sore thumb. From there, the song was solid but not quite as strong, with the long synth lead needing a little more detail to it and the bass sounding slightly dorky. I was also a little disappointed that you stuck so closely to Tidal Tempest once it came in, but you had very creative intersections with the other sources once they were brought in. Great ending too. Difficult call. The arrangement was very cool when it deviated, and you had some little touches that were ear candy. Awesome solo too, to go that extra mile. I'm gonna give you the nod on this one, nice work. YES (borderline)

This is one of my favorite songs from the whole series and I've been waiting for someone to blow me away with an arrangement of it. Unfortunately, this wasn't it. It's certainly a unique approach, but it felt very unpolished. The timing issues did bother me some, but more importantly the song felt plodding and a little sparse at the slower tempo you used. There wasn't a whole lot going on at times, and the relatively unprocessed rhythm guitars and drums made it sound too basic. I didn't get why they were so dry compared to the lead guitar and vocals, it was an odd pairing. DragonAvenger also had a very good point about how the rhythm guitars get a little annoying because of how much at the forefront they stay. There's not a lot I can tell you that would help production-wise. You could do some fairly easy tricks to bring out the vocal, but it sounded like you were intentionally trying to make them sound unclear, like an indie song or something. My issues were definitely more on the performance and arrangement side. NO (resubmit)

Gotta agree with DA that there's a lot of promise here, but it needs a more solid execution. Mood and instruments are awesome - keep them and try to make them sound more cohesive. There's a thinness pervading this song that should be filled in, and the snare sounded way too dry for what was going on. The backing guitar being a little slower actually sounded okay to me, if I'm being generous. Kind of gave this an eerie vibe and it wasn't so prominent that it sounded terrible. The out-of-time distorted rhodes (?) later in the song sounded bad though since it was so prominent. Another big issue was that there wasn't much of a direction here. I can see an ambient, impressionistic take working, but this wasn't quite that. I'd love for you to get some help ironing out some of the production details and coming back with something more focused. This has the potential to be really good. NO (resubmit)

You've got a nice mood and instrument set here, and the overall package is not bad. I like that this goes through a few different gear changes, while staying mostly cohesive. I think a little more polish and effort would go a long way though. The piano is not played realistically enough for how prominent it is, and though the lead synth has some movement to it, it felt a bit static still. The drums are mostly on autopilot and that also contributed to the static feel. Ending was abrupt and not that great. I did love the orchestral instruments brought in at 1:04, that added a lot of depth though it was a quick section. Parts of this work for me and others parts don't, and as such, I don't think it's ready for primetime yet. Though I listed a lot of areas to look at, I think the plodding drums are a fairly big problem, and with that fixed, this would be pretty solid. NO (resubmit)

I didn't hear where my song was used in it, but it was pretty awesome nonetheless.

I love your approach and playing here, it's quite creative. You turn these songs inside out and dictate a steady direction for the piece. Unfortunately, the piano sound was on the weak side and I think you may need something a little less thin for a solo piano piece. I also think some of the transitions are awkward and you may want to consider smoothing that out somehow, possibly by changing the keys of the songs in order to not be as jarring. There's promise here, but not a YES yet. NO (resubmit)

Greetings to everyone on the judges' panel. I am Karth from the forums (also known by dmGuillotine) and I'd like to offer my very first submission to the site. Offline I go by the monicker Dave Guillot. Email: Website: http://soundcloud.com/dmguillotine/tracks?page=1 User ID: http://ocremix.org/forums/member.php?u=5854 The game I've chosen to arrange in my fledgling effort is the classic SNES title, Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars. I call the arrangement, "To Reach the Unreachable Star" which is not only an homage to Man of La Mancha but also appropriate to the source material. Here is the remix itself: I employed three tracks in the creation of this piano piece: 1. Most importantly, "Fight Against Monsters" is the normal battle theme and the meat of the arrangement. 2. Also crucial is "Victory" which is a close relative of the battle theme. 3. Finally, the glue that holds the song together is "Got a Star Piece," providing important motivic material as well as the premise for the title. Here is a link to the full soundtrack for reference purposes: I'd like to provide a breakdown of where each theme occurs. 0:00 to 1:23 is all interpretation of Fight Against Monsters. 1:23 to 1:32 is the first appearance of Got a Star Piece. 1:32 to 1:48 is the another variation on Fight Against Monsters. 1:48 to 2:24 employs Victory. 2:24 to 2:43 is Fight Against Monsters again. 2:43 to 2:50 intertwines Fight Against Monster and Victory. 2:50 to 3:11 uses Got a Star Piece. 3:11 to 3:24 is a brief original motive leading into the closing. 3:24 to 3:49 ends with Got a Star Piece, interpreted in a different context. The story behind this piece is not complex. I think it must've been two years ago when I thought to myself, "Hey, this battle theme could really sound epic if handled differently!" and then banged something out on the keyboard. So the inspiration for it was essentially me thinking I could do better than Yoko Shimomura. I leave it to you as to whether I succeeded. I'd like to clarify that not a single piano key was touched in the making of this mix; it was all programmed in a sequencer. Sometimes you can tell, I think, and perhaps it's because my piano sound is less than ideal. In any case, this is my first submission so if it doesn't work out I'll gladly polish the arrangement until it sings. Thanks for your consideration. I curiously await to see how this pans out. Warm regards, -Dave Guillot / Karth / dmGuillotine

I have asked Martin for more info, since the outside source usage may be an issue.