Palpable

Great energy and playing, but it was a pretty conservative take on the material aside from an interesting harmony here or there, and the badass solo. The second half added more of your own writing, but in the first half, I would have liked to see the backing guitars try something different somewhere in there. It was way too close to the source. The big mixing problem is that the track is so focused on the low-end. Everything needs more mid and high-end volume; you've got some headroom there. It'll make the track sound louder and more balanced. Even messing with Winamp EQ, I was able to get a better sound. A maximizer plug-in might help you get some additional volume out of it, if you're not using one already. You'd have to make some decent changes to get this to pass, so I'd recommend just working on some new projects unless you want to take the time to substantially rewrite this one. You have a lot of strengths and if you can fill your gaps, you could definitely get a remix posted. NO

One of my favorite songs from Kirby's Adventure. Without even hearing your song, I can already tell it'll be a great match for your style, Andrew. Heh I was so right. I love your style of mixing chiptune and modern elements with detailed programming; you have a sense of playfulness that gives your songs so much life. It's cool to see some new sounds (for you) show up here, like staccato strings and some unusual percussion. Keep making music! YES

Sometimes it's all been covered by the time the third vote gets there. Listen to those guys above. NO

I'm not usually not bothered by medley-itis, but this was so disjointed, it didn't sound cohesive at all. I also thought there wasn't much interpretation beyond changing dynamics and instrumentation. Most of the original melodies and countermelodies are kept intact. I think just on this basis, it's a NO, despite that fact that you had some cool things going on with instrumentation and playing, new drumming patterns, and huge dynamic shifts. Production sounds way off, no way to soften that criticism. The overall sound is muddy and focused on the wrong instruments. Something needs to be more upfront and attention-grabbing. You really got to listen to other songs that use these sorts of instruments and try to shape your instruments to match those songs. Participating in DoD could be a good way to improve that part of your game. Best of luck to you, Niccho. NO

Good ol' trance intro with 3 minutes unconnected to the source. I did like the rhythm modifications made the melody to make it trance-like, but this was pretty barebones as far as video game trance adaptations go. When the source is used, it is by-and-large unchanged, and it's barely present the rest of the time. Good solid trance production, all the levels where they needed to be, little details to keep the active listener involved. It got a little crowded in the 5:00-6:00 range with all the cymbals, but not a big deal. Because of the arrangement, this is a NO but I'd love to see more from you, something that dealt with the source more closely, like other trance arrangements we have passed on OCR. NO

Great sound to this one, very creative. The giant clap beat is very tight (Timbaland-esque), the synth processing is intense, and the random stutters and gates add a lot. It was disappointing that the arrangement played it fairly safe with the source for the first 2:18, but I liked that it got more and more liberal after that. Combined with the novel production and the well-placed subtraction of elements, I'm willing to say the arrangement is over the bar. Production was iffier, I felt like that beat should have been louder. The leads threatened to drown out everything else at some points. The vocal sample also didn't seem well integrated, though it was used sparsely. I'm willing to go YES, though I can see why Larry and Mattias NO'ed. There is room for improvement, and if this does get rejected it's an excellent resubmit candidate, but I feel it's a borderline pass as is. Solid work, Daniel! YES (borderline)

I definitely like the approach of shifting the rhythm of the melody, it gives it a pretty different feel. This is also a lot calmer, a nice mood. It would have been nice to add a little bit of change to the melody, because it is the real focus and the original notes are still intact, if shifted. The big problem here was that it repeated ideas a lot and could have been more interesting texturally, like Larry pointed out. The production is pretty good, but some more detail in articulations would improve the piece. The string attacks are slow, and I felt like the oboe and bass played staticly. That's the kind of thing that might not have been noticeable if the melodies were altered each repetition. I like it so far, but it needs some more work before it's over the bar. Keep trying, Richard. NO (resubmit)

Not to make you feel worse, but I think copy editing has gone out the window with the rise of blogs. With so much content being written and posted so quickly, even from major news sources, people are starting to expect and live with typos and grammatical errors, and as such, I think there will be less demand for copy editing across the board.

Awesome stuff. Going back through and tagging mixes has let me find a lot of top-notch stuff I missed in my break from the site. The synth programming here is detailed yet the pieces come together to form something really cohesive. Best moment is either 4:00 when the high synth floats over the top, or 0:49 when you first hear the massive synths. To have one moment like that in a song is special; this song is a gem.

Very fun arrangement, reminiscent of halcyon. I like the slight queasiness you get from the samples used, it keeps this manic and edgy instead of safe. Fadeout seemed like a copout, but that's pretty much the only negative I had, and isn't a big enough deal to make it a NO. Don't do that next time. Welcome aboard, Blake! YES

I'm not familiar with Xenogears, but I couldn't hear the source at all in this. It sounds a lot like an inspired by kind of thing - similar mood, similar writing, but nothing that directly points me to the melody or arpeggios (the piano was close as it got). Anyone who wants to point out the connections to me, I'd be happen to listen, but right now, it sounds too liberal. I did like the sound of the song and your writing, and the guitar was kickin', a great addition. I would have liked the main melody a little louder, and the piano less stiff and dry, but production was pretty solid. Not much needs to change there. Arrangement is the big problem here, Shaun, but we'll see if anyone else has something to change my mind. NO

Just got back from seeing it and enjoyed it a lot, though I'm surprised it's seeing near universal love from critics. The cast and dialogue were great, and it was pretty skilled that only one or two of the shout-outs to previous Treks seemed forced (of the ones I noticed that is; most of my Trek knowledge is second-hand). Smiled big when I first saw the gung-ho red shirt guy. I thought it was cool to mess with continuity, though if I were a bigger fan of the series, it might bother me. I like that it leaves the door open to entirely new sequels, ones in which we could actually see main characters die. Personally I'm looking forward to those inevitable sequels. On the downside, it was pretty ridiculous how Kirk ascends to the rank of captain basically disobeying orders the whole time. Really, no one questions that Kirk should be captain even though he's the one that provokes Spock into letting out his emotions? I think I'd have liked it more for Kirk to organize a mutiny among the key Trek players, who only get recognized for their actions at the end of the movie. I also thought it was a little brainless for a Trek movie, and played more like a Star Wars movie, but not too bothered there. Overall, very good flick.

Amy noticed that the 15 latest comments on a ReMix page also shows deleted comments. Check out http://www.ocremix.org/remix/OCR00316/ vs. http://www.ocremix.org/forums/showthread.php?t=148&page=5 for an example.

I'm not that crazy about anime either*, but I plan on attending Otakon to see all the wonderful OCR peoples. Also, OCR needs someone to sit on the panel and not say anything. *Death Note was pretty cool though, first anime I've seen since college.

Oh God. God. The worst part is that they probably had a to spend a ton of money to make that video. Well, I think Mike Oldfield wins this contest, though Billy Joel deserves some sort of consolation prize for a video that makes light of suicide.

Yeah, nice try there, cheater. But maybe Andy will forgive you when he does become a millionaire off the basis of this awesome video.

Yeah I liked this one more than your previous subs too, Sreyas. The ideas in it were strong, and I have to admit, the usages of "Faithfully" in this fit perfectly. But as Larry pointed out, not kosher with site standards. "Elec Man" is dang close, only a note here and there off, so that could be an easy swap, though of course, it wrecks with the concept a little. The drums get really distorted at times, way more than anything else. My guess is it's the compression you've used on that channel, but whatever it is, it doesn't sound good. This may involve using EQ to cut certain ranges that are causing the problems - you might have to play with it. Foreground is a little cluttered though I wasn't that bothered. Your call on whether this is worth retooling, but either way, I enjoyed it and would love to see you keep submitting. NO

I can get behind the general vibe here, but this has problems on both ends that need to be addressed. The arrangement has some good ideas but those get repeated a lot, and most of the change-ups involve drums. I would have liked some alterations in the parts you kept from the original, and the bassline could have definitely been altered somewhere in there. At times, the drums also sounded very disparate, possibly due to different levels and amounts of reverb. Keeping the effects consistent across the drums and maybe using some compression would make it more cohesive. Mixing was out-of-whack. The bass and drums were really loud, to the point of making me turn my volume down. The leads paled in comparison, though turning down the bass and drums would probably help that. The attack on the strings was also unnatural and jarring. Though the concept is good, this will need some major work before we could post it. Take another shot at it, Arturo. NO (resubmit)

Agreed with Larry that it's a nice, chilled vibe. The writing you added is subtle at times, but well-integrated, and the new bassline is great. Obviously a very different feel. But I don't think this is there yet for a couple sizable reasons. The production is low-heavy; the writing blends together and it's hard to hear what you've added or what we should be paying attention to. I'd push the leads and drums higher at the >3K frequencies so that they sound more upfront (you'll have to play with it to get it). I'd also try to roll off some lows on some of the instruments. In general, things need more distinct space. I also thought it was really weird to bring back the drums for 20 seconds at the end, especially since they're a strong element in the song. I'd like to see them used for longer in the end. Finally, I think the song could use more of a dynamic curve. Both times when the drums come in, it feels like there's no build for that moment, they just pop in. Telegraphing them with a build would add to the song. I'd call it 80-90% of the way there. I really like the atmosphere and writing you've got. Fix a couple problem areas and you will have a really solid remix. NO (resubmit)

Nice tune. You mixed a few different instruments into something cohesive, and your writing transitions into and out of the original seamlessly. But like Larry, I thought it was too much their thing then your thing, and not enough combination or overlap of the two. I don't think there's a lot you'd have to do to make it eligible for OCR. Tweaking the original parts you used might be all it takes. I'd also fix those opening chords, because I thought the new ones you tried out were for the worse and not a strong way to open. The production is also off, though the instrument quality was good. I think the wrong parts of the drums are emphasized, especially the cymbals and hats. You can hear them pretty clearly, when they should be more felt. That comes down to playing with EQ to get a sound that fits into the piece better. The flute is also harsh-sounding and needs to be softer. I wouldn't mind seeing you take another shot at this. A lot of what's in place is good. NO (resubmit)

Can always count on Platonist for some solid tracker stuff. I agree with Mattias that though the production isn't as daring as previous mixes, the arrangement tries some new tricks, most of which work. Loved the new section at 2:36, and from there till the end of the song, it was golden, going through some excellent synth acrobatics. The first half was a little repetitive in how it handled the source, but lots of small details to liven it, which is Jonas' usual M.O. I wouldn't have minded more of a dynamic curve to this, culminating in the 2:36 section, but I'll let Jonas try that next time. This one is a YES. YES

NO OVERRIDE Sorry that's how it is, but I refer you to our Submission Standards and Instructions: This sounds like it could be Lava Reef Zone Act 3. I like some of the arrangement ideas, but the production just sounds cheap, almost like Genesis-level quality (hence the comparison). Your leads and guitar sounds are not bad, but the drums are weak, and the bass and the keyboard most prominent at 2:18 sound tacky. Overall, I wasn't digging the sounds used, especially compared to Snowboardin' Sonic and other stuff I've heard from you. The instruments were also very upfront and dry. Maybe you were trying for an old-school VGM sound, but this sat in no-mans land, not quite chiptune, not quite synth-pop. I want to see another go at it, Will. There are good seeds here that need more attention. NO (resubmit)

I have a love/hate relationship with Billy Joel (like I suspect Archaon does too, since he was able to provide this level of analysis). His lyrics and attitude are banal at best, and gross, sexist, or hypocritical at worst. Some of his songs are so past the point of good taste it's not even funny. But damn if the man can't turn any sentiment into a catchy tune, a top 40 hit, no less. In spite of all his flaws, I still love the guy's music. You left out one of the best songs you can use to criticize him: You're Only Human (Second Wind) So take it from me you'll learn more from your accidents Than anything that you could ever learn at school You probably don't want to hear advice from someone else But I wouldn't be telling you if I hadn't been there myself So let me get this straight. You "didn't care what we said anymore, it was your life", but now you're telling us to listen to you?? GTFO. Bonus points for one of the worst videos ever crafted.

I definitely like the arrangement, apart from maybe the minor bit of dissonance here and there (which never got that bad). Adds a lot to the original, giving it a flow I never felt it had, and expands it in a way that is very natural. The biggest criticism I have is the length. Could have been longer, but what's there is very nice. Unfortunately, you've got some ways to go on the production. The instruments felt distant and muffled, and they occupied some of the same spaces too, fighting to be heard. Better samples or a more realistic shaping of sounds will help a lot. Not much to say beyond that, I wish you luck in improving. NO

Good production, NeoS. It could use a little touching up in the mixing, and giving the individual parts more clarity, but overall, solid stuff. Got me groove biased. However, I wasn't totally sold on how the source was used. You had some sections that used it verbatim, some sections that simplified it (the giant trance lead), and then some sections that ignored it. It's hard to get excited about that, and I think it needs more to it. I too would have liked to see some modifications to the melodies, maybe some new chords. The countermelodies were a good addition, just needs more to it. I also thought it was odd that the song finally kicks into high gear at 4:05. I'm not calling that a dealbreaker, but I felt cheated that there was such a long build-up. Sometimes it's hard to separate what I'm looking for subjectively vs. objectively in a song, and that falls somewhere in between. It would probably be stronger at least bringing in the beat sometime between 0:56-3:20, if not the full guns. Very close to the bar, but not quite there. I'd like to see another version that uses the source more creatively, and touches up the production a little for clarity, putting more emphasis on the high-end or scaling back reverb. This might fix the distant/lack of energy problem that Mattias and Larry mentioned. If you can do it, this is as good as YESed. NO (resubmit)