Palpable

While the playing and sequencing were solid, I didn't feel like this did much more than adapt the song to a metal style. The guitar and bass parts follow the song very closely, until near the 3:00 mark, when you added some original soloing. I would have liked to see a little more departure than that. The mixing was also somewhat rough on this, with the rhythm guitars too high in the mix and eating up a lot of the space. I thought this was cool, but only a base, not a finished product. NO

The balance was a little problematic, especially the stabs. However I had more issue with some of the more bubbly synths that felt really out-of-place in such a hard-hitting mix. The end which was just a repetition of previous sections without the drums and bass didn't work. Maybe that would have been a good place to use the mellower synths and drop the energy levels. The arrangement was ok but a little repetitive - not an issue per se, but when you take it with the production issues, this doesn't seem over the bar. Please take another look at this, because the concept is cool. It just needs some variation and smoothness. NO (resubmit)

The arrangement ideas here were great, and there were some really creative ways in which the melodies were used. Programming/playing was great as well. Unfortunately, this is an OverCompressed ReMix, which also makes it difficult to give you any further production advice. Most likely, there are some mixing issues you will need to sort out in order to get everything sitting clear and not have the compression clamp everything down so much. The drum samples sounded a little weak to me, but it's hard to say without hearing them in isolation. Please take another look! (Also, nice mix title.) NO (resubmit)

Very hard song to judge. The transitions are almost non-existent; it's like changing stations on the radio. I think even given the medley structure of the original this could have been smoother if the style changes weren't as abrupt. If the ending credits song didn't exist, this would be a no-brainer NO for me. The lead guitar actually sounded ok to me in most sections, but the rhythm guitars were not so good. 2:07 was particularly rough, the guitars sound so dull and there's not much else to listen to there. Luckily, those rhythm guitars didn't show up too often and were usually one of many elements. Sorry but I'm gonna say NO to this. A disjointed source can be remixed but not disjointedly; this just doesn't have the level of smoothness and consistency as songs we post on the site. NO

Great source, I'd never heard it before. Sunsoft's music team was on a roll in the NES days. I was confused by this at first, because the simplicity and heavy reverb of the piano made me think more instruments were going to come in. Only after a minute, I realized this was mostly piano. For a piano-led song, I think the piano has to sound more fluid and varied than this. The left-hand keeps playing the same way almost the entire time at the same velocities. To me, that's way too simplistic given that the piano is the lead instrument (sometimes only instrument). There was also a stiffness to both hands that didn't suit the piece. Pads were also a little loud and in the way, but compared to the piano, weren't major. Please take another look at humanizing the piano and maybe bringing it out of the reverb a little so that it doesn't sound quite as background-y. NO (resubmit)

This lacked melodic variation, but drum'n'bass is close to the worst genre for expecting that. I'm not even sure I would have liked the result more. I dug this overall, and thought the approach was fine because of how original the backing track was. The soundscape was hellish and the off-kilter Moblin melody suited it. The low-end got a little messy, and I'd like to listen to this on monitors when I get a chance to see if the subbass is too overpowering, but this seems like a pass. YES

The transitions weren't awkward except for the full stop, but I did feel like the song had some abrupt shifts indicative of a medley (or Dream Theater song). It was a decent arrangement, but leaned conservative. Almost all of the additions are guitar harmonies and dynamics, the melodies and structure haven't changed a lot. Those two in combination make this already a close call, but the mixing could have been improved as well. The guitars are coming through clear, but the drums and bass get a bit lost in the muddy low-end. No one issue is a dealbreaker, but when I look at everything together, I don't see a pass. It's a shame too, because you guys obviously have good chops and arranging skills. This song can probably be fixed (and may pass anyway), but I'd prefer to see a non-medley from you guys, which I think would be great. NO

Haha, I'd be careful with that rule of thumb. There'd be a lot of form lettered songs on the front page if I were using it. This was really good, refined work. The disco strings should have sounded more attack-y (both the held notes and the stabs), but that was the end of my complaints. The soloing section at the end was awesome, and the references back to the melodies made that section feel very connected to the sources. Effortlessly smooth. Yeaaaahhhh. YES

As far as I can tell (based on a couple minutes of research), Two Steps From Hell did the song for the trailer, while Joris de Man did the music in the game, as he did the previous games. So that trailer song would be ineligible unless it's used in the game and was written for the game, while the music in game should be fine.

previous decision This version is a fair bit different from the last one, so make sure the new arrangement is cool with you when you vote.

You might want to try asking on the FL forums. The song keeps playing past the point of where I can even move the scrollbar. Seems like a bug.

If you click on the tags on the page that Liontamer posted, it will show you the list of all songs with that tag. We don't have capability to search on multiple tags yet (to my knowledge).

Nice, I never knew that. That certainly makes it easier to deal with.

Looking at the plan for FL 10, you would appear to be right. That's a little disheartening, but I could probably live with it.

I have tried out a couple songs with pattern blocks up in the tracks area, but it doesn't quite suit my style. I appreciate that it's easier to see at any given point in the song which pattern has... say, the drums, but I use the Playlist for automation and audio clips and I find putting pattern blocks along with those makes it harder to see everything, even if the grouping makes more sense. To change anything, you have to scroll through the pattern block list anyway, so I'm also saving a step. The only time I put pattern blocks in the Tracks is if the data directly relates to an audio clip, like vocoding or if I'm using an instrument as a controller, e.g. gating. I used to label patterns but I got out of the habit for the sake of speed. It really comes back to bite me towards the end of a project if I don't label, and I need to start doing it again. I always label in the mixer. I only learned about cloning patterns three years ago and it's done wonders for making variations within my songs. It's my primary way of working now.

This is very similar to another of Meteo's subs from a couple years back, but it looks like that mixed a different Prime source. I agree with the previous votes that the arrangement is mostly fine as is. The mix of the two themes is cool. The production still ain't doing it for me, there's problems everywhere, ranging from major to minor. The drums are on auto-pilot the whole mix and don't have much energy - that's a major problem. The backing track washes together and it's hard to make out any writing detail beyond the lead. The choir also has a really strange filtering that doesn't do it favors. Combine that with a rigid lead that doesn't have the same smoothness of the sine wave lead used in the Prime games... not adding up to a pass, I'm afraid. When most of the instruments dropped out towards the end, it was a lot better balanced and the drums even sounded OK. I'd say start with the ending, and figure out what you are adding that is making it sound muddied. NO (resubmit)

The compression is higher on this track than I would like, the intro is close to as loud as the song ever gets, which limits the dynamics. Not a dealbreaker, but I think it would have been stronger with greater dynamic range. I also found that the backing guitars were pretty far-forward and that ate up some space that would normally make your drums sound heavier. Instead, they sounded pretty plodding, in spite of the fact that the writing and samples were great. Nevertheless, the arrangement sounded cool. I was having a hard time getting my head around the source and how you used it, and I wouldn't mind seeing a breakdown. There were a lot of liberal references from what I could make out, and very few parts where the usage was overt. My vote will hinge on whether someone can sell the source usage to me.

I can definitely hear you improving, Guilherme. The sequencing and mixing in this song is a step up. The guitar, which needed to sound realistic as it is a lead, does a reasonable enough approximation. Even the brass, which is more of a background player, sounds pretty decent. Arrangement is boss. Here's the issues I noticed. One, the guitar is too far forward and too dry. This was most pronounced in the 1:08-1:20 section. Two, the arp-y synth work (Sytrus? I think I've used that preset) was too in your face and took away from the other instruments. I actually didn't think it fit the song period, but if you wanted to keep it there, it should have been pulled back. On the fence about whether to send this back and make you do another version, which I think would have no trouble passing. Eh, hell with it. YES (borderline)

Pretty nice arrangement. It's not a lot different from the original in instrumentation, but goes in a softer direction, and plays with different orchestral textures. The toned percussion that OA mentioned was a highlight. I don't think this quite has the realism it needs though, when you compare it to other orchestral arrangements on our site. The brass has realism issues almost across-the-board, and was a major thorn in the paw. Some of the samples need to be better and the articulations need to be more realistic. I also thought the intro was too stiff, and there were some slow attacks here and there that also detracted. With those issues fixed, I don't see why this wouldn't pass. NO (resubmit)

Fun, but overly simple, severely lacking in polish, and the samples and articulations were pretty poor. Lot of cut and paste happening, the same melody lines were used over and over. Sorry, this would need an overhaul before it could pass. NO

I'd love to play Hobo Kombat, sounds fun. Drums were rough across the board. That first snare sounded cool but totally didn't mesh with the other drums, and the same problem happened with pretty much every new snare/clap you introduced. I wasn't a fan of the drum change-ups every few measures, it didn't flow well at all. You've also got an awkward drum breakdown section near the beginning that wasn't smooth enough, but the section following that worked pretty well and was the best part of the song. I also had a hard time hearing source in a lot of this, which is a problem in itself, but the lack of flow in this song is a dealbreaker as well. Sorry, Alex, I wasn't feeling this one much. NO

Man, where's the low-end in this? This totally doesn't have the fullness it should have. Apart from that, I thought this was pretty cool. Didn't get the same "lack of build" vibes that Deia got - I thought it progressed nicely and had the synth craziness that listeners crave. I wouldn't say I'm a conditional YES, given how enjoyable the track is, but I strongly suggest upping the low-end on this to really knock it out of the park. I'll probably e-mail you about it. Edit (3/18 ): Spoke with Will about this, not sure low-end is the problem necessarily. He sent me a version with more low-end and whatever gap I was hearing was still there but it sounded muddier. He wants to go with the original version so we'll go with that. YES

I love this soundtrack. Man, they did a good job with it. Pretty short and sweet arrangement. I don't think the mixing is as polished as some of Blake's previous stuff has been, but it's solid work. The electric piano felt like it should have been filling in more of the gaps, maybe too much of the bottom was cut out. Would have preferred it to be centered too. Only at 1:04, did the spectrum finally feel filled in. Here's your YES. YES

If I never have to judge an Animal Crossing sub, I'd be a happy man. If I could only judge these tracks without listening to the source... they're always an improvement. The mixing was kind of wonky here. Kick was too subbassy, could have used more thwack. The jazzy backing guitars were more felt than heard, but in such a sparse mix, there's no reason not to include more of the body. The lead guitars sounded like they were in a different space, and I don't think the recording was clean enough - you can hear the static really clearly at the end. Besides that, the arrangement was pleasant and I liked the subtle detail in the playing, but the backing track needed some kind of change-up. It was coasting after the first minute and a half, and that would have been a great place to change the patterns, maybe introduce some fancy drum soloing. I'd like to hear another version if you've got one in you. NO (resubmit)

Wow, cool mix, right from the intro. So many moving parts and it all fits together. The slow attacks did bother me a little, but it was easy to overlook most of the time with everything going on. The mixing was also not perfect, but for such a busy mix, it's great that I can hear everything clearly and that the energy level is high. The drums could have been better samples, but I think this is passable. Let's see how it goes. YES