GrayLightning
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Posts posted by GrayLightning
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So uh, have we heard anything from her?
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This is so fun. I agree that the arrangement is very good. There are indeed failings in the production, mixing side but in my opinion are trivial in the face of this solid and fun arrangement.
I haven't heard something quite this fun in the panel in a long time. I love the throwback sounds. This sounds like the great '90-93 japanese synth/sample fusion arrangements of some of the greats of that era. I love it. I would rather have a flawed mix with a lot of heart than a pristine one without. It's good enough for me to go with a Yes rather than resubmit.
YES
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This is nice! Upon closer examination I think more could be done with the actual arrangement as far as expansion. I like what you have here but you need to add more of your personal signature.
I completely disagree with larry on the plodding aspect. I think what you have here perfectly fits the chill aspect. I also don't really agree with larry's statement of the sequencing of the strings and flute. These are far from robotic or unrealistic in sequencing, especially considering the tools you probably used.
Now the main problems. The mixing and production isn't very good. Everything sounds pretty vanilla. You could use better use of reverb and eq to spice things up. To me there is no color in the tone here. I would use modulation of some form especially perhaps on the flute. Consider delays with modulation or colored reverbs with tail modulation. I would also make the flute stand out more.
Overall, Larry and I do agree on the key points of this mix. Creative but unpolished. Please consider resubmitting. I may even be interested in helping you out as I think this has a lot of potential to be realized. But for now, NO.
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I liked the first minute a lot, after that part and transition to the second faster parts of the mix, I don't feel the quality was consistently there. The drumwork I feel sounds pretty cliche of this genre and is for me the weakness of the mix. The arrangement as a whole as already noted by Liontamer, is good, but I don't think it's particularly daring. There are several highlights here though, the section at around 3:14 is quite very good. Ending is kind of bland in my opinion. Not a big issue, but more could have been done there.
The performance and guitar skills as a whole is excellent. You obviously have skills, but I wish more went into the conceptual phase of this mix. Conservative arrangement, but still above the bar with great performance and solid production equals a borderline Yes from me. Hope to hear more from you. Nice work.
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I have nothing to add that hasn't been covered already. I actually like this mix, I wish TO would work on this more as there is potential. I'm not crazy about the synth lead though it's very abrasive. Also the piano sounds way too robotic at this point.
One thing I'm noticing is that TO's stuff is overly loud levels and the lack of dynamics. Here, there is some from time to time, but the majority of it is way too powerful imo. Particularly with the piano, dynamics could really help that aspect.
Very cool usage of percussion/drums and processing though. I would consider resubmitting. Enjoyable, but it's not quite there yet for me to yes.
NO
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Well this is tricky. You decided to choose some Incredible and difficult source materials. The originals were amazing.
Starting off, I think there's way too much reverb here. Everything is swamped and so messy. Keep in mind, I am of the school of orchestral thinking of having the european mindset (dark, large halls). But here it just doesn't work.
The orchestration as a whole is quite very good. I like the use of all the percussion. The bartok/pizz phrase is pretty nice as well. I'm not sure what kind of seating positions you had in mind for the instruments, but these sound odd to me. Personal preference perhaps, but I thought the orchestral placement/panning here was unorthodox, and not really one that I like.
The taikos I felt also got a little tiring by the end. The low key percussions here added a nice change of pace.
Arrangement as a whole is good, but the challenge when mixing such good material is, I still feel this doesn't compare very well with the original. I suppose this too is personal preference.
Not my favorite of reu's at all, but the good here outweighs the bad. A lot of work has been put in here, and that's plain to hear. Nice work. YES
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Ok, this may be personal preference. But the tone of the guitar hit me the wrong way from start to finish. It sounded thin and very harsh.
Beyond that, it's an above average arrangement. Drums are simple but I had no gripe with that. A lot of rock drums of this gated snare nature (like from the 80s) typically sound like this. Production is problematic for me, outside the guitar, the levels are just off. Everything sounds cluttered and messy. This made the whole listening experience unpleasant for me. I also heard some wierd audio issues going on throughout the mix...
I really did like the ending sections though, except the cheap fade out ending.
Good concept, but as with a lot of mixes we get on the panel, the execution is just lacking. Please consider working on this more and resubmitting. There is a lot of promise here. NO
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I really like some of the ideas here and the instrumentation is really nice. At some parts the synth under the melody is way too dominating, at times it just dominates the melody. The melody here should be a bit stronger. At times some of the passages sounded a bit too robotic also.
Some good ideas, but the execution is just lacking here. As larry mentioned, this needs some more. Beef up the ideas and build on this. Retool and resubmit.
NO
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Yep, I don't care if it's part of the genre. When the same repetitive thing happens for over a minute, it doesn't make for an enjoyable listening experience. It would be one thing if what's repeated was particularly interesting or memorable, but in this case I don't feel it is. This may work at a club, but a listening experience outside a club, it is not. For the same reason we would not find it excuseable for an ambient mix with 1 chord and nothing else for a minute or so (granted this example is a simpler analogy).
But beyond that, this is very cluttered. The mixing is all over the place. But it's dominated by that growling sound throughout, which is very unpleasant and disorienting.
I did like the stronger sections of the mix, from the latter half til the end, but even that still needs some work.
Finally the ending just cuts off very abruptly. Not up to par at this point. Consider working more on the polish of your mix.
NO
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Simplistic arrangement, and everything is drowning in the reverb. The slapback is particularly annoying for this kind of genre. Beats are pretty simplistic also.
There's actually some fun to be had listening to this, but again that's mostly due to the original. I would go back to the drawing board on this one. Consider your concept, and execution. Work on the composition some more, and also try using less reverb. For the synths you should stick to short delays.
Another thing to consider is this mix is overly long and repetitive. Where's the meat? This sounds like something the panel got 2-3 years ago. Better luck next time.
NO
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Pretty much agree with analoq on this one.
Production is very plain. Everything sounds thin and simplistic, at least until the first minute. Beyond that, I don't hear anything above the bar here.
There's nothing particularly wrong here, it's pretty catchy, but one could say that has more to do with the source material than anything. What's here for me is a slightly above average arrangement, with below average production, synth design or processing for the most part. As the mix gets further along into it, it does get a bit more sophisticated.
Fun mix, but as analoq said, lacking seems to be the word of the day for me as well. NO
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Since no other judge has closed or continued to vote on this for a while now, I'm closing the vote. Part of the reason for the delay was the Vote to 6 policy. As the vote stands, it's 2 to 5, with a vote that's fairly conclusive. We do hope to hear more from you soon though.
Our sincere apologies to metaphist for the delay.
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I pretty much agree with danb's statement. On top of that, it's kind of wierd that there's such a wierd disparity going on here. You have some very wet stuff and then you have that beat which sounds so dry, dull and unprocessed sounding.
Better than average, but it's not quite there yet, for reasons already stated above. NO
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There's a lot of complexity and a lot of great ideas going on here. The arrangement is pretty good, but I don't think the concept of this at all works. For me it sounds very cluttered, messy and not that pleasant during the very busy sections. During the powerful sections, there's a crazy amount of clipping/distortion/crackling.
While I like the arrangement concept, the execution and the concept of how the arrangement was presented just doesn't sit well with me. Coupled with the numerous audio issues, this is a NO from me.
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It's real. Larry's voice rivals those of angels.
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GØ£ÐËÑ T€ÅR§ Fallthrough
Fallthrough so that mixer can get judge comments. He notified me like two months ago about lost submissions, so I told him he can Fallthrough a mix to the panel as soon as he provides me info on it.
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Hey, pretzel!
I have something for the queuing line, and I thought I'd give you my info in paragraph form! Whether you remember me or not, I call myself GØ£ÐËÑ T€ÅR§ when mixing (although born as Chris Narvali)...and I say that because I've submitted before, using links that would expire before you'd ever read about it, so I figured you could be fed up. Please disregard the past... Smile
Anyway, don't wanna go too deep into a history, but my previous submissions were from Majora's Mask (as is this one), and since dead links got me nowhere, GrayLightning was kind enough to tell me things as they were instead. This is a third attempt using my best skills so far, and from MM this is called "For 3 Days".
This is a vocal attempt, and let all be warned that I'm not great at it, but with that in mind, here's a quote you can post: "I give real credit to artists like DJP, jdproject, Star Salzman, and anyone else (apologies) who ever dared to perform vocally, for it is nowhere CLOSE to easy!" The song is based on Clock Town, the lyrics were written with a general view of the words Link must've thought of to keep him going...and as awkward as some may take it, it's like pop, inspired by a song the Backstreet Boys made called Get Another Boyfriend. I put in similarities between that song and this mix (along with other Backstreet/Pop elements), and I just hope you're fooled!
...OK, now I'll finish briefly. My e-mail's cnarvali@hotmail.com . My website is http://goldentears.x3fusion.com . I'm called GØ£ÐËÑ T€ÅR§ on the forums too (I tried looking for a number, but I guess I got nowhere - Edit: 11244), and I tried to fill out whatever I could on the song's ID3 tag (Winamp).
Here's a link to the source tune (I think it's familiar enough, though):
And then voila, the remixed link:
I hope everyone enjoys this, as it took several months to get, in my opinion, perfect. It was difficult, and painful, but loads of fun at the same time!
P.S.
...And I suppose it would help if I showed you the lyrics, huh?:
Majora's Mask - "For 3 Days"
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For 3 days
(Count it up!)
Verse 1
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I am a boy from a far-away place
While galloping along, I fell on my face
Someone took an ocarina from me
And I'm gonna get it back!
Chorus
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I've been fighting for 3 days (3 days fighting)
3 days running and jumping around (Moving around)
I've been fighting for 3 days
Trying to save your life (It's your life I'm saving)
While you were all hiding for 3 days
3 days screaming and fleeing aloud (Look out)
I've been fighting for 3 days
'Cause I'm a hero inside (I'm a hero)
Verse 2
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Being all prepared, I leave for my quest
Although I'm really lost, I'll show you my best
Pretty soon the moon will stop and you'll see
Skull kid, you will pay. Attack!
Verse 3
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I was just riding, keeping to myself
When suddenly I'm knocked out cold, out of nowhere
A little shook, but I still had full health
Then I saw this kid. I swear I knew him from somewhere
He runs away with my horse. He runs away with my toy
Little did he know he messed with the wrong boy
Oh, what can I say. I've got another 3 days
(Ladies and gentlemen. The Indigo-Go's!)
Now the problem is mine! 'Cause I'm the Hero of Time!
For 3 days
Chris Narvali.
PS. OH! By the way, my "GoldenTears" (special characters) name is my mixing name, but the ID3 tag will say "GT". I did that in case if you post the mix, my mixing name might become an issue. If it is, you can change it to just GT
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What's with Gray and his phoenix titles?
Probably, he love Phoenix.
Txai is right.
But also there are a lot of similar motifs/ideas, and some instrumentation as this is essentially Phoenix III in the series, with the other two obviously being I and II. I don't plan a IV at this point though.Thanks for the comments and your time everyone.
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As entertaining the last pages of tit for tat are, the points have been made then. There's very little, if anything to be gained at this point. Kungfu has just expressed the dedication. Whether or not the project will be successful or not remains to be seen, but ultimately it's up to him/mixers involved in this.
There are other methods of reaching Kungfu on this topic, this manner is only proving distracting to him and this thread. A healthy exchange of ideas is certainly important, especially at this stage, but going in circles in this negative way is just pointless. Let's move on, shall we?
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PHATastic. If someone can do improvisational vocals that just work, Larry has proved he's up to the task.
Good production and the arrangement is definitely above the bar. But what this mix has is incalculable, it has a lot of heart. Evocative and inspiring, despite some minor flaws.
Scene and Vibe +1. YES.
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This sounds pretty generic. There's some mid range/to high frequency stuff going on, then there's some low end stuff going on and the straightforward beat typical of this genre - but where's the texture in between that?
Outside that the arrangement for me was a mixed bag. Decent most of the time, with some creative and unique stuff going on to a lesser extent. I also feel for a mix of this nature, there was no hook or hooks here. Ending also was a bit cheap, sounded just like it just stops randomly with delay processing to make it sound slightly better at that point.
I'm not that crazy about the synths to be honest, and beyond that there was no texture and meat underneath it.
Not bad at all, this is a bit above average. But I don't feel it's anywhere ready yet. Keep at it, this has promise, but for now NO.
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Pretty much already covered by the others, so I'll reiterate the key points for me. Arrangement isn't as interpretive as it should be. Then the clipping issues. As far as the guitar, I too agree it sounds mono and overly distorted.
Whether or not the guitar fits in with this style of arrangement, I think is is a personal taste issue. It's a tough call. I don't have grave issues on that front.
I did like your orchestral sequencing. Very nice use of edirol. Might want to tone down the reverb just slightly on that though.
Keep at it.
NO
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At first I was really put off by this *especially the first minute*, but after more listenings I got to enjoy it on some level. I think the pads and pad designs are a bit typical. Drums definitely sound very lifeless and dull, as far as sound quality. The transition to the second portion, I feel don't work at all. Also the change up in the drums for a few seconds at that point don't work too well either. I did like the sections with the timpani percussion/heavy percussions and also the end of the first and second section.
Ending was disappointing and abrupt. Below average as a whole. And while I like some of the ideas here, it really isn't executed too well. I think there is potential here with a lot of work and polish. As is though, NO.
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Some cool stuff going on here. The vibe is definitely very nice, chill and interesting.
Digging the pads a lot too.
The problem in this mix for me is the execution just isn't there. The concept is nice, but the structure I think could be improved on. Second main issue for me is the very robotic, static sequencing. The piano sounds too perfectly timed. The 1:23-1:30 section as already mentioned is seriously bad. Not sure why that's there? Also some of the note to note transitions for the pads could be smoother (outside the gated stuff).
Arrangement and production are above average. I think you focus a lot on the high range of the frequency spectrum, a little in the bottom end, but not much inbetween. Drums for example mostly consist of semi-bright snare and hats, it gets a bit redundant after a while.
Also, contrary to larry, I don't believe music of this nature needs to build into something per se. While I do agree, the ending could be more meaningful, what is here is typical of a lot of music of this style..so I can't put much fault on that aspect.
Above average, but it needs more work. NO
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The source material is excellent, and with that, it makes for a very difficult mixing challenge.
What this really needs is more humanization. Guitar is one of the most difficult to sequence, for a reason. Here it just sounds very robotic. On another level, to add a greater human touch for these instruments, more attention paid to the velocities would do this mix good. Some of the notes tend to jump in volume without a smooth rise or fall as it goes from some notes to the next.
The other issue for me here is the mixing levels. Everything is loud, and it causes a bit of chaos. The guitar tends to dominate the entire mix almost hiding the melody. Work on spreading out the the instruments on your soundstage also. This would help with the cluttered aspect. Another thing this could use is some more reverb and short delays (like for the guitar).
I do like the arrangement, and there's some nice creative things going on here (as staple of Roe's works). There are good ideas in place, but the execution is just lacking on several fronts.
Liked the ending portion a lot, cool concept going on there.
Keep at it Roe, with more polish you'll be putting out some great work. NO
*NO* Final Fantasy 6 'Shadow's Theme'
in Judges Decisions
Posted
Great mood, great atmosphere, but this is way too conservative a mix. In addition this is too repetitive, incomplete; expand this more so the outcome is more developed. Promising, but as is, too underdeveloped and lacking a thought out arrangement. NO