djpretzel

Your ReMixer name: Schematist Your real name: Calbert Warner Your email address: Your website: https://www.youtube.com/user/CrimsonAzure7 Your userid = 32017 Name of game(s) arranged: Sonic 1 Name of arrangement: Blue Paradise Name of individual song(s) arranged: Special Stage Link to the original soundtrack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lWvuTyFysFg I wanted to create a mild fusion of Jazz and Hip-Hop with this nostalgic track.I was inspired by a lot of hits from the 90's!

ReMixer name - RushJet1 real name - Tadd Nuznov music link - email address - website - http://nsf.4x86.com or http://rushjet1.bandcamp.com userid - 9191 Name of game(s) arranged - Mega Man 2 Name of arrangement - Dark Depths of Wily's Castle Name of individual song(s) arranged - Wily Castle stages 3 & 4 -comments- This was originally made for my Mega Man 2 Remade project. This version it has been cleaned up a good amount since the original release. I always thought the first Wily Castle theme from Mega Man 2 got entirely too much coverage on remix sites, and even though the second theme was just the same bar raised a half step over and over, I thought I'd give it a crack anyway. This song is straight Famitracker/NES/VRC6 with the extra 2 square channels panned about 75% left and right.

Block-rockin' beats. - djp ----- Contact Information ReMixer name: DR.WELI Real name: Ville Touronen Email address: Website: www.soundcloud.com/weli Userid: 49169 Artistid: 12355 Submission Information Name of game arranged: Megaman 4 Name of arrangement: 'Flight of Rock' Name of individual song(s) arranged: Dr. Cossack Stage 2 Your own comments about the mix, for example the inspiration behind it, how it was made, etc: I started making this remix over a year ago and finally had some time and determination to finish it. I must say, I've never spend this much time on any other track. And the experience was quite painful as I've got accustomed to using Ableton Live and I had to finish this with the good ol' FLStudio. Totally worth it though! I hope it pleases all you Megaman fans Enjoy!

That is absolutely NOT the implication; your logic is faulty. Read this quote of yours back to yourself; the implication was only that I think that depictions of people in art CAN be objectified, and that such objectification is not inherently bigoted. Deriving anything else from my statement was just blind extrapolation on your part. Again, you know, maybe it's me... maybe I need to work on writing more clearly. I don't tend to have this problem too often, though, where someone repeatedly misinterprets and misunderstands my words. That's why I asked you to read them over again. I appreciate you explaining what you thought the implication was, but I don't even understand how you got from point A to point B... I wasn't defining the entire concept, nor did I claim to be. I look at this quote from you and I'm just kinda nonplussed as to how you connected those dots. I don't find this "implication" to be a reasonable interpretation of what I wrote. It seems we simply can't communicate, which probably means we shouldn't.

So, not the best oboe sample in the world... but a nice blend of textures, and it definitely develops. - djp Supercoolmike Miguel Poblete no website atm 53444 Shining Force 2 for the Sega Genisis Water Goddess Mitula Sanctuary Original Composer by : Motoaki Takenouchi Shining Force 2 - Water Goddess Mitula [Genesis] Music I would Like to have a link left for my submission if it is rejected please.

Kinda cool. -djp --- ReMixer name: Kamex Game arranged: Pokèmon Mystery Dungeon Explorers of Time/Darkness/Sky Name of arrangement: Eternal Remembrance Name of individual song arranged: "I don't want to say goodbye" Original soundtrack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aWHPbWIFEXg

Don't know why he put "Sonic & Knuckles" as game name Production could use improvement but arrangement seems nice? - djp ----- Remixer name: D.J. Savery Real Name: Avery Martin email: user ID: 47180 ARRANGEMENT: Orchestrated Name of game(s) arranged: Sonic & Knuckles Name of arrangement: "An Oath of Destiny Fulfilled" Name of individual song(s) arrange: "Oath to Order", "Giant's Theme", "Zelda: Main Theme" Composer: Koji Kondo, Toru Minegishi System: Nintendo 64, Nintendo 3DS Zelda "Majora's Mask" is probably the most loved Zelda game that I have ever played. I love games that kinda breaks away from tradition, and MM did just that. From being able to use multiple masks to change the gameplay of zelda, to constantly playing the Song of Time (and it's variations) and restarting the giant clock multiple times, It is a sure lock at the top spot in my book. Collecting all those masks was a sure pain though Now for the remix, I always wanted to do this song. I first heard it when I downloaded the MM Soundtrack. I feel it's a call for help. Help from four giants who lost a friend to evil, and would do anything to save him, including holding the moon up to heed the destruction of Termina. This was a very hard song to articulate while making a true "remixed" version, as well as trying to stay as close to the original as I can. The hardest part was the build up portions of the song. Koji Kondo and Toru Minegishi really made it difficult for me to remix just because of how great of a job they did; however, no task is without a challenge. I really wanted to focus on the effect on Link as he travels through the land of Termina. I emphasized the effect of the "Oath to Order" to make it reflect the importance of him saving Termina. I am proud of the finished product! Here is the youtube channel for the song. Just like fire emblem, it kinda explains the feel of different portions of the remix. Hope yall enjoy! Be Blessed! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=teCAobgEZvc

Probably too simplistic; does get better w/ introduction of chiptune elements, could use the feedback either way, promising. - djp Remixer Name; Eat Brain Stems Website: soundcloud.com/eatbrainstems userid: 54588 Name of game: Pilotwings 64 Name of arrangement: Glidin' High Name of individual song arranged: Hangliding (Hang Gliding?) Source of individual song https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9Pga-y7F8k Comments; It's probably boring. I do a lot of high-energy-big-noise-mixes and was gonna do something similar to this mix. The project was coming along nicely, but I wasn't really feeling it. So I instead went with something a little more fitting to the original. Hope it's alright.

TRAP... kinda cool, but I just don't have a great framework for evaluation, relative to the source. We'd need a new title if it gets approved. - djp ------- remixer name: GARLAND real name: Spike Arreaga https://soundcloud.com/garlandmusic user ID: 54586 Submission Information: Game title: Pokemon Red/Blue track title: Lavender Town Remix song remixed: "Theme of Lavender Town" ------

Pretty strong debut, production-wise... need some extra ears on the arrangement. -djp ------- Dj Exias Shawn Badolian https://exias.bandcamp.com/ 25296 Game: Final Fantasy VIII Remix Name: Shattered Hopes Across Time Original Songs: Compression of Time Composer: Nobuo Uematsu Platform: Playstation Compression of Time: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l75zjpDpAWs Out of all of Nobuo's songs, Compression of Time has always held a place in my heart as I could relate my life to the melody. I really wanted to do the song justice, and amplify the spectrum of emotions the original piece projects.

Since NativeJovian said that the above was "pretty much exactly it," I just have to say.... what? Sexual objectification is sexual objectification... it's not rocket science, I *am* familiar with the concept, and the above does nothing to expound on the concept or explain why "depicting people in works of art" would be incompatible with the concept, or "laughably off-base"... I give up; no offense, but it's not worth my time... talk in circles all you want.

Then what the hell are you even talking about, or is Anita even talking about? How is she NOT talking about depicting people (females) in works of art (video games)?? Are you laughing at her as well, and at yourself, or did I miss something? Plenty of problems with almost everything else you wrote, but tell me how that definition is "laughably off-base" when it's EXACTLY how we got here in the first place... let's just stick to this one, single, laughable point and see if you can explain yourself.

Wait... what? What the what? WHAT? Why is objectification inherently bigoted? Classical art and sculpture, which during certain eras was much more egalitarian in its focus on both female & male forms, was inherently bigoted? Painting the human form is inherently bigoted? Pornography is inherently bigoted? Uhhhh.... why? Because you said so? Major disconnect; don't see where you're coming from.. at all. Objectification can certainly be paired with bigotry, and potentially exacerbate it, but it is not inherently bigoted... appreciating the pure aesthetics of the human form has been a classical & modern tradition in art for centuries; try not to shit on it... I think I covered this in detail; I'd request that you re-read what I wrote. I didn't say racism/sexism/etc. could not or should not be pointed out... If that's what you managed to take away from what I wrote, I'm telling you emphatically that you need to read it again. What I expressed was a difference between pointing those things out in the context of analyzing & criticizing the work - focusing on the work - as opposed to writing a three page rant on how racism is bad and wrong, citing a couple scenes, and ignoring the rest of the film. I'm not sure if you read what I wrote, because your response seems to be to an imagined argument: that I somehow stated that racism should never be pointed out when criticizing a work. The phrase "straw man" has been tossed around a lot on this thread, but c'mon... read what I wrote, please. We are in complete agreement on the patent absurdity and ridiculousness of the claims, but we seem to disagree on whether anyone's actually making them... from http://feministfrequency.com/2014/06/16/women-as-background-decoration-tropes-vs-women/ we see: She's CLEARLY invoking the shoddily-researched, inconclusive, uncited BOOGEYMAN of the corrupting power of art & media, here... see it for what it is, please??? Andy, you too... Andy used the word "fearmongering" earlier... to me, THIS is fearmongering.

Some definite issues, but needs the feedback... a few tweaks here and there, I'm thinking? -djp Liam Charalambous Your ReMixer name: Magellanic Your real name: Liam Charalambous Your email address: Your userid: 45748 Name of game(s) arranged: DuckTales Name of arrangement: Lunacy Name of individual song(s) arranged: The Moon Composer: Hiroshige Tonomura Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPkhhLC1tf8 Remix: Hey Judges, Been a while since I've been able to submit (or even play/produce any music). Definitely gotten rusty but hopefully you'll enjoy this rendition of the moon. Its a symphonic rock arrangement. I've experimented endlessly with symphonic elements in my music but this is my first, full attempt at actually incorporating orchestral instruments in a production. It isn't a typical orchestral arrangement. A lot of the writing influence comes from concert style music (aka no strings), with emphasis on brass ( I am a trombonist so, I do love my brass). I've a lot to learn and practise with the realism but as far as this remix goes, I'd say its complete. It would be great to get your feedback regardless of whether it passes or not. All the best to everyone at OCR, Liam

Could have been a DP but I just wanted to see some judge comments on THESE NEW JACK FEELS. - djp Snappleman: Hi :3 ReMixer Name: DoD Music Factory Members: Coda, Finbeard, Midee, Snappleman, Yusef Kelliebrew Email: you know my email, silly :33333333 Game: Dracula X: Rondo of Blood Name of arrangement: All I Wanna Do Name of individual songs arranged: Opus 13, Opposing Bloodlines So it was Magfest time in Dwelling of Duels, and the theme was DANCE MONTH! which basically meant submit a song that people can dance to. As usual I waited till the week before magfest before I even started thinking about it. I figured I wanted to do some Bobby Brown sounding new jack swing, and I knew I wanted Chuck on vocal. I went to Coda and told him that I wanted a verse and chorus in A minor, new jack swing style. He had that bit tracked out in 20 minutes, we laughed at how silly it was. Then I sent it to Midee and we laughed at how silly it was, then Midee started doing what Midee does (making incredible music). So we worked out the song and got it sounding decent. Then I sent it to chuck and gave him some subject matter to write lyrics over, which he did, and then he sang and recorded them too. I worked out the rap section and all that, then I went to Yusef and asked him for a guitar solo in A minor, which he gave me within 10 minutes. Then I sat down and mixed the song, submitted to DoD and etc etc. We kind of lost the Bobby Brown vibe early on but it turned out being an homage to early 90s hip hop/RnB/NKOTB, so that's good enough for us. Enjoy.

Remixer: ibeginwiththeendinmind Name: Chris Ross Email: User ID: 54548 Link to remix: Game: The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile Arrangement Title: A Prisoner's Vengeance Original Track: Perfect Nightmare "The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile" is an indie title on XBLA by Ska Studios; the studio also known for "Charlie Murder," "The Dishwasher: Dead Samurai," and "I MAED A GAM3 W1TH ZOMBIES 1N IT!!!1." The soundtrack is composed by James Silva, one half of the Studio's team. The original soundtrack for the game can be heard here: http://music.ska-studios.com/album/the-dishwasher-vampire-smile I felt inspired to join OCRemix after I had heard about it from ExtraCredits, and had had the idea of reworking this track floating around in my head for some time. I really love the atmosphere and language of the track, and felt that it was an incomplete idea, so I set out to flesh it out into what I have here. I moved the direction away from the industrial/punk sound it had, and made it into a straight up metal track. I was playing around with the idea of sung vocals, but I felt that keeping the whispering throughout was in keeping with the atmosphere. If there is any concern over how close the beginning of the song is to the original (and use of the lyrics therein), I do have permission from the copyright holder to use it in this manner, and his blessing over this song.

Seems legit... -djp -------------------- Good afternoon! Just thought I'd send another submission to go with the "Then the Healing Came" remix I did for OCRemix. Contact Information: ReMixer Name: George R. Powell Real Name: George R. Powell Email address: Website: http://www.georgerpowell.com UserID: 52273 Submission Information: Game: The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask Name of Arrangement: "Battle the Terrible Fate" Songs Arranged: Last Day, Majora's Incarnate Battle Misc Info: After hearing the music to Majora's Mask, I could not help but note how haunting "Last Day" was. It was the one piece out of the entire game that left me with chills running down my spine. Not only did I have to compose a rendition of this piece, but I really wanted to see if I could use it to capture the moment of Child Link standing on the precipice of destruction to face his foe, only to find his foe rising in intimidation, the danger becoming more and more real, followed by the battle that our hero has now been thrust into. ------------------------- Final Hours - Majora Final Battle Themes -

WOULD NEED A NEW TITLE Fairly conservative arrangement... - djp Contact Information Your ReMixer name: DjAtio Your real name: Anthony Higham Your email address: Your website: www.soundcloud.com/anthony-higham Your userid (number, not name) on our forums, found by viewing your forum profile: 47686 Submission Information Name of game(s) arranged: Final Fantasy VII Name of arrangement: "FFVII Wall Market (DjAtio Remix)" Name of individual song(s) arranged: Wall Market (Nobuo Uematsu) I really enjoy the uniqueness of Nobuo Uematsu's compositions, but this one in particular caught my attention because it's a bit downtrodden, yet it's still interesting harmonically and melodically. I really wanted to emphasize the 12/8 feel because, it has a nice driving effect on the listener. I also wanted to incorporate a reggae/metal sound.

Link to submission: Contact Information ReMixer name: Jack Vaine Real name: Aleksander Ottesen Email address: Website: www.jackvaine.com UserID: 53980 Submission Information Name of game arranged: Banjo-Kazooie Name of arrangement: Gruntilda Victorious Name of individual song arranged: Gruntilda's Lair Additional information about game: N64, developed by Rare, Published by Nintendo in 1998. Composer: Grant Kirkhope Link to original soundtrack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWhKyk-4j6I My own comments about the mix: I really, really, really... Really, really love Banjo-Kazooie. A large portion of my childhood was consumed in front of the TV-screen playing that game. I think was nine or ten when I got it, and the entire melodic theme throughout the game had a huge part in me becoming interested in music in the first place. It seemed only fitting that I would try to remix the very theme that followed Banjo through most of his adventure, as it certainly has followed me through mine

I wasn't just talking about rights & freedom, I was talking about criticism vs. advocacy and then also the problem with saying that X art causes Y behavior, i.e. infantilizing the audience for art & turning artists into programmers who are simply feeding deterministic code into the minds of automatons who will do their bidding, without question. You have this tendency to rephrase my arguments in the broadest possible sense, without ever addressing the specifics... SPECIFICALLY, I am opposing rhetoric that attempts to draw direct causal lines between art and behavior. You've ignored that point almost entirely by rewriting it into "reinforces negative cultural attitudes"... all you need to do is add a "potentially" before the "reinforces" and you've arrived at the type of reasonable, relatively unobjectionable language that I wish Anita actually used. The problem is that she doesn't; she instead isolates aspects of games and - with zeal & certitude - maps them onto real-world behaviors. This isn't good. It's bad. It's a flawed argument commonly employed by censors; even if she is not advocating for censorship, she is using the same toolbox. Yes, it's still an important distinction to make - I'm not saying it's the same exact thing, only that it is still bad in & of itself.

Apologies, I only say the post of yours that was deleted that was simply you repeating your "Straw Man Quest" post, verbatim. If you had something more substantive to say that wasn't just repeating the same exact post, go for it. Posts shouldn't be deleted/hidden for logical fallacies alone...

That'd be odd to start doing NOW, eh? Don't really appreciate the suggestion, either. Andy: Hope you're using Lazarus browser plugin so form data doesn't get lost Try chunking the post? It shouldn't be a security related thing, so no idea why it would be getting lost... do you get an error?

I've tried to be very clear in what I'm objecting to, but perhaps I've failed.... I'll try once more: When, rhetorically, one makes the claim that X type of art will lead directly to Y type of behavior - with zealous certitude - one is putting more than an aesthetic pressure on artists, one is essentially holding them morally/ethically responsible for the actions of those consuming their art... It's not "one million steps away from censorship" - you keep using these extreme expressions, I'm wondering why?? - because in drawing direct causal lines between the consumption of media and certain types of behavior, it removes responsibility/accountability (i.e. agency) entirely from the audience and places it entirely on the artist. You can't possibly disagree with that more? Really? That's a million steps away from censorship? It's like... FIVE steps away... because if the audience for art cannot be expected to be responsible & accountable for their actions at ALL, and are GUARANTEED to become misogynist, racist, violent, etc. when consuming certain types of art, then what are we left with? You can't shift 100% of the personal responsibility & accountability like that, treating the audience like a group of large, highly-impressionable children/robots who will inevitably do whatever art tells them to... and not expect SOME sort of negative impact with regard to freedom of expression. Artists should be able to think of their work as a dialogue with the world, not as a set of rote instructions that will be carried out, sans introspection. Human beings making art have agency, but so do human beings experiencing art; infantilizing the latter group occurs at the expense of the former, regardless of whether that infantilization is coupled with an explicit mandate to censor. Mull that sentence over a few dozen times, please; chew it slowly, and see if you still feel the same way. I can't make things clearer.

Fearmongering can get a whole lot worse... it's kind of funny that you'd criticize overstatement via overstatement. It's not just funny, it's the FUNNIEST! I agree that Shadowe should back those claims of explicit speech up with some quotes/links; as far as I've seen, personally, Anita & Leigh are very careful to avoid explicitly advocating for the banning/censoring of games... But Andy, as I've repeatedly pointed out, their rhetoric & "reasoning" are the SAME as those who've advocated for banning games (books/movies/etc.) in the past... As I've repeatedly pointed out, they assert direct causal lines between games and negative behaviors, with the type of overzealous certitude that, even if it's careful enough to avoid directly advocating censorship, leaves one very little ideological breathing room for alternatives... As I've repeatedly pointed out, they use zero-sum arguments which, instead of articulating an inclusive message that gaming is big enough to welcome/encourage other types of games, and other types of gamers, instead REALLY focus on how they think gaming is a town that's "too small for the both of us" - an exclusionary message. They're fighting fire with fire, exclusionary attitudes with exclusionary attitudes, when the opposite is needed. See Leigh's absurd GamaSutra piece on the death of the "gamer," for instance... it's not about widening the umbrella, as it should be, it's about kicking some folks & some games out from under it. What does it matter if they're careful enough to avoid directly stepping on the landmine of censorship, when they're employing every last rhetorical trick & argumentative fallacy that actual & would-be censors have, in the past? Did we not deplore those arguments, then? Are they only nonsensical and absolutist arguments when in the presence of an explicit demand? Do they suddenly become admirable or reasonable as long as the "magic word" isn't spoken? It's almost.... less honest. It's like when racists avoid using the N-word and speak in euphemisms.... you KNOW what they're trying to say, because you've HEARD the story before... Call me crazy, but I think art is improved & enriched through karma... not dogma. Criticism can be filtered through a lens, but it should still be looking at something... when the art drifts out into peripheral vision (and beyond), it becomes rhetoric. What you're basically saying is that you have no internal standard as to what the word "criticism" even means. Okay, that's cool. I do. As I made clear, cultural criticism - to be considered as criticism, to me - still has an obligation to put the work first & foremost, to probe instead of proselytize. If you're saying that as long as someone is talking about art, even if they're transparently using it as an excuse to push an agenda and don't really seem to care much about the art, you still consider that criticism, well... we strongly disagree. As stated, I respect both art & criticism too much to be that... lenient.

Andy, I do think there's a line between criticism and advocacy (or, on an extreme end of the spectrum, propaganda)... criticism would be primarily interested in the merit of a work; advocacy would use "critique" of that work to further a given ideological agenda. It CAN be a blurry line, I admit; here are some questions one might ask to try and suss out the difference on a case-by-case basis: Is the criticism in general primarily focused on how the specific work being criticized could be improved, OR is the "criticism" more interested in how that work confirms/supports a larger ideological point? Does the criticism allow for uncertainty or plurality of possible interpretations while asserting a single interpretation as merely preferable (or more firmly supported), OR does it mandate its own interpretation as being self-evident and mutually exclusive with any alternatives? Is the tone exploratory or dogmatic? Is more time spent on the personal effect/impression of the work on the critic, or on the perceived (or worse, guaranteed as being inevitable) effect of the work on an imagined public? I've highlighted what I view more as criticism in green and what I view as advocacy in red. You (or Radiowar, if he were still contributing!) might respond that the explicit role of cultural criticism IS to advocate and that the above list makes that impossible, but I would counter that EVEN so-called cultural criticism has an obligation to focus on the work first and foremost, to maintain an exploratory/analytical emphasis, and to avoid too much certitude regarding the inevitability of the work's effect on others. It's worth asking yourself these questions. Bottom line: Is the work being informatively analyzed on its merits, or is it being opportunistically used for its (perceived) flaws? Hopefully my list makes sense to you... it's all free speech, either way, but I respect & reserve the word "criticism" for discourse that meets more of these criteria than not, because I tend to see advocacy as having an ulterior motive that puts the work second (or dead last) and puts the "message" first, which results in highly compromised analyses - the "critic" is obligated to apply an active filter to anything that doesn't fit with the paradigm and to use a persuasive tone at all times. It doesn't matter if I might agree with the message or not, because I respect art enough, and indeed criticism enough, to not admire the former being used as a tool, under the guise & protection of the latter, for what amounts to rhetoric in the service of a third party who is ultimately disinterested in the work - SAVE for how it can strengthen their thesis. You want more variety for female characters in games? So do I... but we both also want video games to be recognized as art, right? Advocacy that uses games to articulate an agenda & only pays lip service to the idea of criticism diminishes the idea of games as art, because it doesn't respect them enough to give them the actual analysis that would be afforded films, novels, songs, or most other art forms. It is a trivialization of the medium, in the transparent & opportunistic service of dogma. You can't be okay with that JUST because the dogma in question resonates with you, in its distilled & most benign incarnation. Done. I feel pretty good about this post, because I was able to express most of my objections with clarity for once. Plus colors are neat & ordered lists are cool.