Palpable

You're just begging for a zing with this, but I'll let someone else take it. What I like most about this song is that even though you've transposed the song to a minor key (which is already a cool idea), if you take out the guitars, it sounds pretty much like something you'd hear in the game, maybe when Tooty gets kidnapped. Yet it's original and has your distinctive touches all over it. What I like second most about the song is the slyly creeping strings in the bridge - that's sick. Sometimes the writing gets crowded but that's the only negative I can give you here, this is great. YES

Yeah, can't say I heard any more source than Larry did, his breakdown seems spot-on. We might want to ask Brian just in case, but I'm leaving my vote as NO right now, as this seems way liberal. Arrangement is awesome though, a perfectly realized take on the orchestra with guitars thing. I'd love to be wrong about the source usage. NO

I haven't played the Hitman games, but this has a great 90's dance sound and atmosphere, and the style is very nostalgic for me. The middle section with the modulating synths is excellent. Send us more stuff, dude!

Thanks for going above and beyond on this one, Jimmy. Also, the first time the source came in in your MP3, I LOLed, so thanks for that too. I feel ready to make a vote on this. Here's my breakdown: 0:00-0:24 chords 0:26-0:36 0:40-1:00 1:03-1:07 1:16-1:27 chords 1:59-2:09 chords 2:17-2:46 2:55-3:09 chords (one chord removed) 3:14-3:36 chords (one chord removed) 3:45-3:57 chords The parts which I think are indisputed don't add up to enough, clearly. I'm not sure if I've just heard this enough times now, but I feel like the sections I've marked as chords all sound enough like the source to me that I'm willing to count them. 2:55-3:09 and 3:14-3:36 were sections I missed when I heard this the first time, but the chord connection there seems strong enough. Wouldn't blame anyone going NO, chords are tenuous and I don't think there should be a hard and fast rule about counting them or not. I should mention I did think the arrangement was quite nice so that my vote isn't just one big analysis. YES

Glad you liked it! We have an acoustic/electric guitar so on the last track we recorded the guitar and mixed it with the guitar output to get that sound.

Great ears - I was indeed inspired by the style of that very track, which has been one of my favorite Bemani tracks for years. Probably should have mentioned that in my submission e-mail if you think it's that similar, but I suspect if someone is mixing D&B and jazz, they'll probably end up using a lot of the same instruments. Thanks for the feedback, everyone!

That distorted beat is so good. With that beat and all the quirky synth effects, the intro reminds me of "We Share Our Mother's Health" by The Knife, another talented artist from Anso's neck of the woods. But it deviates quickly, building an atmospheric and creepy mood and getting sparse at points. Another winner, says I.

It's fun hearing this song because I haven't played SDB in about a decade but the music is slightly familiar. I get a sense of nostalgia but I don't exactly know what is new and what is old. Anyway, I thought Brad wasn't giving himself enough credit here - even if the playing isn't perfect, there's a lot of great expression going on in this song; the live sax makes a world of difference. The mix pops out at you and that keeps it very compelling, and the individual parts sound good apart and better together. Great track, Brad!

I can't say this is my favorite bLiNd track on Echoes (that honor goes to the amazing "Path of Deception"), but I will say when this track starts messing with the rhythm of the bass, like at 0:48, I cannot control my head from moving along. It's like a reflex, it happens every time. What a number.

I'm fine with closing this, since it looks like it's swinging NO. I wasn't 100% on it, anyway.

Shamefully, I only got to listen to the full album a week or so ago (I blame life) but I loved it. Very consistent, and if there is an overriding theme, it's not the style or genre or mood, it's that things sound epic. Seriously, track after track, these songs hit hard and it suits the soundtrack. OK, OK, there are some good quiet moments in there too. It's very hard to pick favorites, so I'm not going to try. Yep, I'm taking the easy way out. Great job, everyone involved.

Glad this got resolved to your satisfaction, Sam, but the whole thing still seems dumb of them. The publicity is nice though.

I don't know, I was pretty ok with this one. There's a couple connections I would count that Larry didn't in his breakdown, like 0:41-0:42 and 1:44-1:46 (a harmony of the rising melody of the original), and gaps like 1:23-1:27 and 1:49-1:52 where the chords finish out the figure. In addition, the bass part in the beginning is kind of a mash between the bass part in the intro and verse of the original, and I thought it was a reminiscent enough connection. There were enough passing references to the source parts that the chord connection used almost throughout was countable to me. The arrangement forges its own path, building minimal electronic elements with some heavier orchestral stuff. Sounds a bit like Nick Singer's stuff but more emphasis on the beat. I think sometimes it gets too colored, but Jorge always pulls back on those notes quickly and the new chord at 2:12 was a beautiful alteration. I think it's a pass. YES

It's interpretive dance, you uncultured oaf. Actually, Amy and I did "Kiss Me" together, me on guitar, her on piano, and then she performed "Natural Woman" solo while I just stood there, which is what you see here. I guess this still technically counts as our performance.

He sure is! No offense Justin, but your stuff sort of pales in comparison. I think this is the best I've heard from you yet. I loved how the softest section is followed by crazy-ass shredding with no warning, like a kick to the face. Well done, dude.

We're mailing out the first batch today. Big thanks to everyone who has supported us so far! I promise the album sounds good even if you're sober or awake.

Hey everybody! My band Flickerfall is proud to announce the release of our first EP, Delayed Reaction! The album has six original tracks that blend electronic beats with pop/rock vocals, guitars, and piano. You can preview the tracks on our website, http://flickerfall.com, and sgx's Protagonist Records is featuring one of the tracks from the album as a free download. The other half of Flickerfall is Amy Hsieh, who you might have seen performing during the OverClocked ReMix panels for Otakon 2009 and 2008, SITACon 2008, and AnimeUSA 2007, or posting on the OCR forums as diotrans. She handles vocals, guitars, and keyboards for our band, while I provide the electronic backdrops, the likes of which you may have heard on this very site. Flickerfall also has a track on the upcoming DKC2 project. We're selling CDs on our website for $6 + shipping, and digital downloads on Protagonist Records for $5. If you like the album, please use this thread to let us know - we'd love to hear your feedback! Or become a fan of our band on Facebook, which will have info about upcoming shows and releases. CD purchases: http://flickerfall.com/index.php?page=store MP3/FLAC purchases: http://protagonistrecords.net/delayedreaction Our website: http://flickerfall.com Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Flickerfall/14966722683

I'm a little biased, hearing this one as Amy was working on it and helping her with it a little, but this was pretty much entirely her work, and I think I can provide a fair vote. The vocals and guitar are pulled from the originals, but the string quartet that makes up the meat of the backing track is entirely original and has some great writing. Mixing the Japanese and English was an interesting call that spices up the vocal part. The structure and mood are changed too, culminating in a more somber take. It might have been nice to hear some vocal differences, but this clearly stands apart from the originals. The minor criticisms I have are on the production side. I think it's a little too dry though I know Amy was shooting for that kind of soundscape. The parts could also be separated better but everything is still audible. I'm cool without the conditional. YES

Yeah we're trying to get a panel at PAX East too. Gotta catch 'em all!

Definitely hit that 80's sound with the heavily reverbed drums. You can imagine this playing in Bloodsport or one of those badass movies from the 80's that inexplicably had soft rock songs on the soundtrack. I liked what you did with this, it was good, but 2:57 was the only moment where something really caught my attention. I won't say your work is starting to sound boring, but maybe it's starting to sound too easy? I think you can afford to take more risks, like you did at 2:57. There are so many ways you can go with it - structural changes, new instruments, genre mixing, bigger dynamic changes. I feel like you've nailed down a style and now it's time for you to broaden your scope some. Nevertheless, YES

It's an enjoyable piece, for sure, but the level of repetition started to bug me towards the end. Although there are small change-ups in the backing parts, the lead synth feels like it's playing the same way every time. And texturally, I wanted to see a little more variation, maybe even just one section that did something really different. On top of this, my breakdown is the same at Larry's except I included the gaps between measures. This puts you at 41.6% which is still under what I would call dominant source usage. Sorry, Natalie. If you're willing to resubmit this to include more source and vary it up a little, I could see it passing. It's a very strong base. NO (resubmit)

Knock off the puns, OA. There's no place on the panel for such lightheartedness (of redemption) (get it, light of redemption?). A model medley, and one of the highlights of the project for me. The transitions in this are awesome and make it sound like it was written this way to begin with. In particular, I love what you did at 1:00, Juan, with the chords of Red Wings altered to make the whole passage work perfectly. Sure, it could be have been more interpretive melodically, but this is still pretty expansive on instrumentation, with a lot of new background writing standing out. Great stuff. YES

Sure it does. Samples and articulation are the weak link, but the weakness of the samples, the brass especially, is not that hindering after the opening. The pace is breakneck and stuffed here, and bad sample realism hurts more on slow, drawn-out, isolated songs. So this played to your strengths, though work on getting some better samples. I also would have liked a little ambience, this felt like the band was playing all scrunched up together. Overall, a really solid, really enjoyable arrangement that makes up for its shortcomings. Glad you used double-time drums in there towards the middle and end - those could have been used more, but I'll forgive you for it. YES

These are the most recent games I've played that I'd put on a difficulty level with NES games. Getting the Master levels in the first game is damn hard and took me weeks, and the only way I'd have been able to beat the Master levels is with unlimited lives, which you are thankfully given. Master 3 took me upwards of 200 lives I think. Then in Monkey Ball 2 I remember getting to the Master levels but giving up on some level near the end out of frustration, even having dozens of lives left. Yeah, just insane games.

Like the previous years, it depends if I'm in town, but obviously I'd love to go. That time of the year is always a prime time to take family vacations but if a vacation doesn't conflict, I'm there.