Gario

I might as well sub this to the site as well. Part of the almost released by now Secret of Mana album. Comments about the remix can be found on the album. Files, v13, mp3 and wav: "Under Cover of Night" source: #12 In the Dead of Night

Just giving a heads up, for something to be ripe for a mod review the track should be considered finished, with all the trimmings completed. If you're missing backing vocals then this is a WIP, not a finished mod review track. Just a heads up and a slap on the wrist on that front. That being said, I think this sounds great so far. You've got some nice vocal chops, and your performances are tight as hell. Paired up with some good production values that makes this quite a solid listen, overall. The sources that I'm familiar with in this are well integrated. I'm not at all familiar with Mario Odyssey's OST, so perhaps a link to the primary source would help me compare what you've arranged, but from all that I recognize I think this would be a great track to submit once it's finished.

You've got some lovely commentary on here, but I'll add my two cents and cap this off with an official mod review. EVAL You've gotten quite a bit of energy put into this track - the instrumentation sounds far better than the source while losing nothing in the original source's energy and intent. Of course, when handling the track in a way that's similar to the source you run the risk of being TOO close to the source for OCR's purposes, which unfortunately would be the case here. The notes, the style, the instrumentation, etc., is all very close to the source material, to the point of sounding like a sound upgrade rather than a re-arrangement of the material. Nothing wrong with that, of course, but it wouldn't be something OCR could post. On a related note, the arrangement does a direct loop with no difference between the loops (other than the automated highpass location). It's a bit of a side effect of following a source too closely, but it's still an issue in it's own right worth addressing: if the repeat is nothing more than filler for length then it's not worth having in a stand alone track. In this case it's a method of achieving an almost three minute runtime rather than a meaningful expansion of the track. Give the listener something new to grab hold of if you use such repetition in the future - some new textures, variation in the theme, a variation in the drums, etc.. As far as the production values go, this isn't bad - the overall loudness of the track is about where it should be, and save for the moments where the highpass overtakes the track there's little notable overcompression or limiting artifacts. Those automated highpasses, though, really cause production problems (clipping/limiting artifacts), and they make little musical sense to boot. Techniques like automating the highpass should be used with some purpose in mind, not simply in the middle of an otherwise straightforward arrangement just for the sake of having an automated highpass. It really tars an otherwise enjoyable track. It's not bad, but it would be stopped right at the gate due to how conservative the arrangement it. Furthermore, the strange use of automated highpass would cause it some problems, as well. While not a bad arrangement, it's not something OCR would be looking for.

Man, this track feels like a blast from OCR's past - the style, the instruments, etc. - it sounds like something from pre-2010 OCR, in the best possible way. Straightforward, the arrangement doesn't add too much trimming to the source, but simultaneously it takes enough liberty with the tone and instrumentation to be considered interpretive enough. The synths are pretty 'nilla, but they're definitely used in such a way to keep them sounding meaty and interesting. I love all of the percussion used in this, but they do go into autopilot quite a bit in this track. 0:39 - 1:38 & 1:49 - 2:38 are both long stretches where the drums are unchanging. This contributes to a static feel in the track, though it's fortunately broken up at key points so that it doesn't sink the track entirely. Still, for the future some more drum fills, variations in drum patterns, etc., would help keep the track feeling fresh throughout. Static percussion aside, I think this is a well rounded piece. It's a conservative arrangement with some cool instrumentation, slick style and a hefty beat to keep it all together. YES

MkVaff Michael Vafeas 6 Final Fantasy VII 'Cosmo" Valley of the Fallen Star This remix is the last song I completed as part of my first EP, which contains a combination of remixes as well as original songs. The album is called 'Loopy', and the concept was to try and create songs exclusively using various loops from all different sources. While the majority of the original songs from the project primarily use only loops, for the remixes I of course had to track the various parts of the songs and loop them within the software. There's a lot of the FF7 soundtrack that I have trouble remembering, but I always loved the Cosmo Canyon theme. It has a wonderful, propulsive rhythm, and uses the simplistic tribal sounds to great effect. It's one of those instantly hummable themes, and I wanted to retain all of the best elements of the original while also incorporating a bunch of loops and sounds that I discovered while putting together my bigger project.

Ah, MkVaff, one of the true OG's of OCR lore; he's pretty much up there with Disco Dan and IAmEvil as far as prestige goes. I'm glad we were able to post this track - it's an entertaining as hell arrangement of an under-represented soundtrack - and I'm excited to hear what you got in store for us in the future.

I was very curious how one could make FF7's battle music into an elevator style song, and this did not at all disappoint. The switch to major was a smooth move, and the bouncy, overly active accompaniment really gives this that elevator music feel. That poppy organ was probably my favorite instrument in there. As far as places where you could expand, improvements, etc., I suggest building in a bit of an introduction. It sounds like it just pops into existence; with a small bit of introductory material it it'd prepare the listener a bit better for what you've got, here. It might also help generate some ideas you can use later in the track, too, as an added bonus. Obviously my opinion more than anything, but if you're looking for ideas that's a thought. The mix is a bit busy in this. The production is otherwise great, but if someone isn't familiar with the FF7 battle theme the overall track would be difficult to follow since every instrument is mixed more or less in the same place in the mix. Bringing out the instruments that are playing a theme the listener can grasp helps make the track sound more focused and goal oriented. Granted, this IS elevator music, so this meandering aesthetic might actually work to your advantage in this case, but it's an idea of an alternative direction to take the track. Great little spur-of-the-moment track you've got here, though - I got a real kick out of it.

Wow, I think this acoustic-only version is a really rich, self-contained arrangement in it's own right. The additional elements of the arrangement compliment the core, most certainly, but you've really got a great base to work with here. I'mma gonna hold on to this other version for my own listening purposes, too, since there really is a different tone to it than the posted ReMix. Not better, not worse, just... different. It's definitely difficult to hear some of the more subtle guitar textures in the posted version than it is in this unplugged version, which in some ways is a shame. Oh yeah, I like the remix, too - the overall atmosphere is almost heavenly, as the sound design compliments the lightness of the guitar work under it. The sounds are relatively basic, relying on what seem like preset pads and such, but I'd be damned if I said they weren't effective for the overall arrangement. Great stuff, here.

Haa, I can't believe I never commented on this one after all of these years. Nine years later, why not; it's great to look at something I held as one of my favorite tracks of the day, and it's interesting to think of how it would be evaluated today in comparison to back in early 2008. Firstly, looking at it today with fresh ears and a relatively new appreciation for the whole judging process, I think this is still a solid ReMix and would probably still pass. The arrangement has a good sense of how to build into an arrangement, layering instruments and textures slowly over the course of a minute and a half. It's static, but it manages to stave off that issue by making distinct enough changes in the build-up to keep the textures fresh - a good lesson on how to be both repetitive and yet keep things fresh. The instrumentation is good... for the time. Today I'm sure this would've gotten some flak for the plain instruments and rather horrible sounding fake guitar (I would've counted it against him in a submission, at least). That's less a statement against the track and more a statement on where music making is today - so many tools out there to create amazing instruments that the instrumentation back then really does sound dated. Even still, I think the handling of the instruments in this solidly hybrid style would've made it a safe submission today. Larry's contribution to this track is gold, I don't care what kind of controversy it may have caused back in the day - those haters were just wrong. In all seriousness, though, it's really built into the track in such a way that you can't go without it. It creates a much needed pause in the energy level of the track, and it's used as a vehicle to introduce new subtle textures that would've been much less noticed had they been introduced otherwise. The vocoding is clean as hell, too, and the lyrics are amazing and rather profound. This track would've been boring and uninteresting without that section, and likely wouldn't hold up nine years later. Not going to lie, Larry be willing I'd love to have something like this in one of my remixes one day. The production is passable, but it seems to get hot in the second half of the track (after the vocoded part). I do hear some limiting artifacts popping up in sections like that fake guitar and such. The mix is good, though, and the majority of the production is clean, so I doubt that would've sank the entire track, but it's not perfect. Would it pass today? Probably, though it's impossible to say a definite "YES" on it, strangely enough. I love this track thoroughly even today, but I don't think it'd be an easy or certain pass if it were submit today. The tools people have nowadays make it easier to produce clean, solid arrangements - the fact that in comparison to many submissions today this has a few underpar instruments and production choices shows just how far the community has gotten in nearly a decade. Speaking of the past, I love the write-up, here. Reading things like "Jimmy's been busy working at GC [Guitar Center] lately, catchin' some mad deals and learning the ropes; seems like that's working well." is really hilarious in hindsight considering where our boy Jimmy has been since (composing music for games like Mass Effect 2 and having decent success otherwise selling his brand). It's subtle, but there's a lot of site growth that can be infered by quotes from OCR like this one. Good track, definitely one of my favorites from yesteryear (yesterdecade?), and a decent place to see just how much not only OCR, but amateur arrangements have grown over this time. Good stuff all around.

I do like this, even past my academic curiosity: it's clean, it's clear and it's super interesting. I'll argue the issues that Mind Wanderer bring up in the arrangement are not 'problems', per se; it sounds like something Varese would put on a tape, or something Crumb would make with the different tuning style. I'd rather not fault the artist for something that's not only clearly intentional, but even getting the sound pretty spot on. There aren't any production issues to speak of that I can tell, so if the arrangement had enough source I'd say this was an easy pass. That being said, the concern that there's not enough source in this is perfectly valid. Here's where I can find the source, given a pretty liberal interpretation of the term: 1:12 - 1:28 - VERY liberal interpretation of a background texture turned into an elongated chord 1:54 - 1:58 2:02 - 2:06 2:28 - 2:31 2:40 - 2:43 ~30s / 197s ~15% Source ... Yeah, I think it was a mistake for me to post this up, considering the severe lack of source - it's such a strange source to begin with I thought it might've been a lack of familiarity that I was missing, but it's really just not to be found. The fact that it's 38% silence and single held notes should've clue'd me in on this, however - with that much quiet the track would've needed to be almost 100% source with what was left. Sorry, this one's a pretty clear NO due solely to source usage, but I do hope you try something in this style again with more clear references to the source since it's a really cool piece. NO OVERRIDE

RebeccaETripp Rebecca Tripp http://www.crystalechosound.com/ ID: 48262 Game(s): Chrono Cross Song Title: The Fairy and the Water Dragon Songs Remixed: Garden of the Gods Comments: It’s got choir, strings, opera solo, english horn and flute, harp, celesta and some Chinese temple bells Link to the track:

Your ReMixer name: Cyril the Wolf Your real name: Connor Pelkey Your email address: Your website: http://youtube.com/user/cyrilrufus Your userid: 14729 Name of game(s) arranged: Megaman Zero 2 Name of arrangement: You Don't Define Me Name of individual song(s) arranged: Cannon Ball Link to ReMix: Lyrics: Everyday I feel like my past is haunting me All the time I see their eyes saying "you're guilty" Endless fights though I think I know what's right Just to spite all the scars I hold deep inside Chorus: Don't write me off like I'm someone's copy You're not the one who gets to define me I am my own Original All of my heart and my soul... are mine I've Heard it said you're not defined by how you were born (fake) Destiny is just an excuse of the battle worn (fake) I've Made my choice to bring the dark into light Hear my voice as I shout to resist madness Chorus I feel rushing in my ears I feel pounding in my chest I feel my grip tightening Cracking through the sins I kept repressed You say you're the messiah to change us But you're just a puppet with unseen strings You say that I'm a fake but I've my own mind and I'll Prove to them that I'm more than just my- Body cries out for relief As we strike each other down our laboured breaths pierce through this scene Silence comes as you fall to the ground So in the end light shown through I'm more than just my Past more than him More than them I'm my soul I'm me Chorus I'll be honest I never know what to say for these things. I love Mega Man's music, throughout all the series (except *maybe* Legends) and I like to sing and layer my voice into thicc choir type sounds. Combine that all together and I can tell the story of the game in as grandiose a manner as possible - but without having to resort to lavish instrumentation. All that's in this is Guitars, Basses, Organs and Vocals. Sure there's a lot of each but I think it communicates the feeling of searching for one's self-identity well. Since submitting tunes to this site finding that sort of idea compelling and while the story telling of Mega Man games has never been it's strongest point in terms of depth and maturity, I tried to draw as much out of it as I could.

By chance I came across this thread while makin' the panel thread (did a search for the previous decision, found this thread), so I took the liberty of changing your tag. Hope you don't mind~! On the version you submit, I have to say the mixing and mastering was WAY better than the older version, which speaks well for your chances on there. I won't speak for the other judges, but I personally thought it's a really cool submission that now has the production to back up the arrangement. Good luck on the panel, by the way.

Ooooh, I remember this one - it's the track with that weird detuned guitar in the beginning. Comparing against the old version this is so much better in terms of mixing and production: the bass is nice and healthy, the drums are mixed great, and nothing gets washed out. I give Sixto & John Stacy 100% props for giving you some solid advice, since this really rose to the challenge we presented some time ago. The performances are a little on the loose side of things, with the lead guitar sometimes not landing on the beat when it's supposed to, but it's not something that'll prevent this from being posted, either - just be aware of the issue and improve your performance technique for next time around. I notice the time difference between the two - this version being about 40 seconds shorter than the other one. I can't say I noticed what was cut too much, so it must not've been significant - nice job on trimming the fat a bit. Yeah, I liked the idea before, and I think the execution is great this time around. Thanks for giving it another go - here's hoping to see you on the front page soon! YES

Previous decision Contact Information Remixer Username: Furorezu Real Name: Daniel Florez Preferred E-mail: User ID: 33297 Name of games arranged: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Name of arrangement: Awakening of the Forest Sage Name of individual songs: Saria's Song Source materials: Saria's Song Hi, I worked on this based on the feedback and made changes to the structure of the song in order to make it less stale and at the same time, make it build up over time. Most instruments were rerecorded and I completely reworked the mix to address the production problems mentioned in feedback. I'd like to give a huge shoutout to Juan Medrano (Sixto Sounds) and Corno Porno DiGiorno (John Stacy) for helping me out with learning how to actually produce something.

Oh, this sampler? Cool; might be able to do better with it than I thought. Looking at that page, it looks like you can tweak every item/sample that comes out of it using the filter modifier. "REL" looks like the release modifer, toning it down (not all the way - that makes it flat and awful sounding) will let you adjust how long the choir is allowed to hold after you change chords.

Well, glad you're getting some music off the ground nonetheless, even with free samples. If it helps, often samplers have a knob on them called "Release" that you can adjust to decrease how long the sample remains after you let the note go. Tweaking that may help make the music less "wet" - give it a shot. You'd be surprised what you can do even with free tools, sometimes.

The song is weird and definitely a thing involving bad tape. I like the instrument choices (even without a wurlitzer), and I like different/unexpected, so this seems to be up my alley. The reharmonizations are a really nice change of pace - jazzy and smooth. It's not as easy to hear the source behind it just because of how much these harmony changes affect the source, but it's certainly there more than enough for OCR. The addition of Mario 64's Dire Dire Docks at the end was... strange, but it worked well enough. The performances are pretty good in this. The way the organ holds back at 0:24 sounds like it's mistakenly off-beat (even if it was intentional), but otherwise the performances are quite good (especially at 2:20 - I hear what you did there, you sneak). At the end of the track it sounds like the audio cuts off rather than letting the instruments ring out for a short time. A minor issue, but if that could be fixed that would be ideal. Otherwise the production is what it's supposed to be - crunchy and stylistically lo-fi. It works well enough for me. Otherwise, yeah, it's clever and different - definitely something that would be good on this site. YES

Contact Information Your ReMixer name: Your real name: Your email address: Your website: Your userid: Submission Information Name of game(s) arranged: Name of arrangement: Name of individual song(s) arranged: Your own comments about the mix:

Previous Decision Remixer name: Bluelighter; Peíorele ID forum: 21840; 34182 Game & Songs: Skies of Arcadia & Sailor Town Arranger: Bluelighter Interpreter: Peíorele (Trumpet solo) Composer: Yutaka Minobe, Tatsuyuki Maeda Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YegyGi2YdfY Album Project: Skies of Arcadia Skies of Arcadia Soundtrack - 18 Sailor Town www.youtube.com Compositeurs : Yutaka Minobe, Tatsuyuki Maeda Éditeur : Sega Développeurs : Overworks Plate-Formes : Dreamcast, Gamecube Dates de Sortie Dreamcast : 05 Octob... Precedent decision: http://ocremix.org/community/topic/43844-no-skies-of-arcadia-a-sailors-respite/ *NO* Skies of Arcadia 'A Sailor's Respite' - Judges ... ocremix.org Remixer name: Bluelighter ID forum: 21840; Real name: Guillaume SAUMANDE; Game & Songs: Skies of Arcadia & Sailor Town Composer: Yutaka Min... Hi OCR, Here is a new version of my mix of "Sailor Town". Main improvements: - Real trumpet player where it needed (pt4, 5, 6, 9) - Cleaner sound for brass in staccato (pt5, 6) - Harpsichord a little louder for the melody I really thank Peiorele for his collaboration on this remix! Enjoy Breakdown: Original Start: ML1 (Melodic Line) 0'14 ML2a 0'28 ML1 BIS 0'42 ML2a BIS 0'56 ML3 1'10 ML4 1'24 ML1 1'38 ML2b 1'53 ML5 Mix Pt. 1. INTRO based on ML1 (soft & march band) Pt. 2. 0'26'' ML1 soft Pt. 3. 0'50'' ML1 march band Pt. 4. 1'13 ML2b march band Pt. 5. 1'43 ML3 soft (with progression in instrumentation) – time signature in 11/8 Pt. 6. 2'19 ML3 march band – ML2a with brass adapted to this specific harmony – time signature in 11/8 Pt. 7. 2'43 ML4 march band & soft Pt. 8. 2'58 ML1 soft Pt. 9. 3'11 ML2a soft – marching band – time signature in 15/8

Hey, a Guile cover! Awesome. John is correct that this is absolutely close to the source, but I disagree that this is a problem - y'all do what you want to do. I always like to make it clear that there's no such thing as "too close to the source" unless you're submitting to OCR. As far as the rest of the track is concerned, I think you made some great choices with the lead instrument (it sounds synthetic, but it sounds pretty neat nonetheless), and the choir is definitely something that can work. However, the choral pads are very wet as they stand, which makes them sound like they're from a completely different piece. Outside of a church choral arrangement I can't imagine when you'd need your choirs to be that wet. John makes a really good point on writing idiomatically, if you want to make an authentic 'epic orchestral' piece. Though that's always up to the arranger, it's wise to take note of how instruments have been used in other orchestral works in the past, and write your instruments utilizing these idioms. This is one of the more advanced ways to make a piece of music sound authentic and realistic and it's not easy, but oh man is it worth it if you get the hang of it. In this case, rather than listening to Mahler and Brahms (as amazing as they are) I would suggest studying Williams and Horner, since those are styles you'd be closer to emulating. Or not; the track doesn't sound terrible, per se, but it doesn't quite sound like an epic orchestra, either. Always up to the artist what they're going for, but if you're making an epic orchestral arrangement/cover then you'd be in better shape to do so by doing your homework on how other artists and composers get that "epic" sound out of their instruments. Thanks for sharing!

Previous Decision ReMixer & real name: Eino Keskitalo e-mail: Names of games arranged: Chrono Cross, Star Control 2, Wonder Boy in Monster Land Name of Arrangement: Liskojytä Names of individual songs arranged: Lizard Dance, Syreen Theme, final dungeon music Sources: Lizard Dance (main source): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elZubKOdV3c Syreen Theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXF4sHVMGwY Monster Land final dungeon: https://youtu.be/MGeBKcyic5M?t=697 MP3 link: FLAC link: Here's a resub based on the excellent judges' feedback from last round (http://ocremix.org/community/topic/46030-no-chrono-cross-star-control-2-wonder-boy-in-monster-land-liskojyt%C3%A4-project/). Also got some valuable additional feedback from Jorito. I pruned some stuff from the mix (why do I have everything going on at all times anyway?), tuned the EQ, percussion bitcrush and reverb for additional clarity, and added some variation to the final 'verse' section. I certainly feel the end result is much better now. Cheers! Original notes below: I've had a couple of Chrono Cross arrangements from People's Remixing Competition lying around since 2013 that I've been wanting to finish, so I (once again) took the opportunity of an appropriate album project to finish up this one. I had been working on it since then at some point, there was basically only polishing to be done. I had lots of it in mind, but thankfully Brad's enthusiastic response to the track made me realize it was already close to good enough. That final stretch to good enough did take plenty of effort though! The Lizard Dance is a pretty cool one-chord jam.. I added a little bit more bass movement in this arrangement. There's also the bit where I've taken two lines and separated their tempo, cutting the other in half and other in 1/4, and bringing it up in steps.. the harmony ended up not matching so well anymore, so there was some tweaking there. Overall I remember wanting to experiment with chip sounds over rock drums back then, and that's what all the sounds are here, simple wave forms apart from the drums. There are a couple of cameos from other games, one from Wonder Boy in Monster Land - the final dungeon music, and one from the Syreen theme in Star Control 2. The background instruments (left and right panned) play them during verses, especially prominent during the second one. A huge thanks to Brad for directing the project and cheering this one to the finish line!

It's a fun idea to have the Marvel universe all come together and all, but I'm thinking more in terms of Disney's monopolistic tendancies when I say I don't think this is a good thing for the rest of us. They have the tendancy to dig their copyright-law claws hard into IPs and franchises that make them lots of money. I'm still rather pissed at em' for changing copyright law to extend their Mickey Mouse rights constantly, which is preposterous. If the merger happens I think there'll be some cool short-term gains, but I don't think it's healthy in the long term to have one company in control of so much IP, especially when they've got a record of not letting things go once they've got hold of it.

Third time's the charm, baby, which totally is the case here. I can hear the cleaning up that went into this - no more snare being drown out by the more crowded portions. I like the variations you made to the lead instrument, as well - you didn't change the instrument itself, but you artfully play with the parameter envelopes to give it some much needed longevity. Being crowding and lead variety was what I hit it on before and these things were addressed, I think it's good to go now. Nice work, and thanks for sticking with it! YES

Previous Decision ReMixer Name: Tonalysis Real Name: Jeff Morrow Email: User ID: 31683 Name of game(s): Beatmania, Dance Dance Revolution Name of arrangement: Epic Steps Name of original song: Sync Composer: Outphase (Taku "TaQ" Sakakibara and Takayuki "dj Taka" Ishikawa) Link to original: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_-UxUJ6P8nU Link to remix: Comments: Frequently, fans discover artists through OC Remix. In my case, I discovered OC Remix by first discovering zircon through Pandora. After learning the basics of how to use FL Studio, and taking a few lessons from zircon himself, I decided to try my hand at remixing. I'm a long-time DDR fan, so I decided to pick my favorite DDR tune as my first submission. My goal was to take the track and make it even more epic. Thanks for considering my remix. EDIT: this is (another) resubmission based on previous comments by OC Remix judges.