GrayLightning

Garageband is coming up with a lot of nice goodies available for it lately, like the world packs. Someone get me an apple please. Now to the topic at hand, hate to be glib, but analoq nailed the issues here. Too basic, sparse and simple. You have a decent framework but this needs more work. Catchy mix though. Keep working at it, you show promise. I suggest you post this to our WIP/Completed forum to share it with the forum goers. NO

Too thin and sparse. Not enough attention paid to the frequencies. This comes off sounding as very sparse. This needs more middle/middle low frequencies. Everything sounds flooded. There's no clarity going on throughout. The mix just comes of as very basic in production and arrangement. Pretty fun listen though, but needs quite a lot of work in said departments. NO

First of all, the good. I do like your arrangement. The compositional ideas you brought to the table are interesting, unique and more sophisticated than a majority of submissions we get. Your orchestration is capable, in general. Lovely instrument selection. I love the woodwind, harp and chromatic percussion used as the backbone of the piece. It creates a very enchanting and fairy tale like atmosphere. Now for the problems. Like the older version, this still bears some of the problems of before. There's no sense of attention paid to dynamics or articulation. The mix comes off as dead. Garritan Orchestra is capable of significantly better the results. The problem here is there's no attention paid to production. You need to be able to work with your samples to sweeten their sound, in terms of composition, orchestration and reverb/space placement and eq. The sound of this with the lacking production, lack of dynamics and the huge oversight that this was encoded in mono (why??). Kenneth, keep up the good work, I genuinely like the ideas you brought to the table here. Now you need to work on polishing this mix up. I'd really like to see a sense of evolution of the mix as well, this seems like in a state of stasis, in addition the production issues I cited as well needs to be addressed. Keep at it, I hope to hear a resubmission or further work from you soon. Interesting, but not there yet. NO

I'm digging the vibe here, it sounds like late 80s/early 90's low budget stuff. I do like the instrumentation, like the synth bells (yes, I have a weakness to that). However, this doesn't really have much substance. It's rather basic and repetitive. On top of that it's rather repetitive and underdeveloped compositionally. This needs more expansion in the conceptual stage. More instruments to thicken the texture would help a lot. I personally enjoyed this from a personal and nostalgic perspective, but beyond that this needs quite a lot of work in the categories mentioned. NO

Too sparse, too thin, instrumentally and compositionally. Too much reverb on everything. The reverb sounds a bit cheap too, it's deforming some of the samples at the back - like the cymbal and timpani. I liked the ideas presented here, and the percusive additions are unique and interesting, however, this doesn't have much substance on top of the presentation and production issues. This needs more supporting material in the composition and instrumental department. Also there's some wierd distortion going on with the percussion samples like the rolls. NO

Everything sounds like mush, that dooms this mix. There's no clarity in any of the instruments. For music of this style, this is key. On top of that, the arrangement is too straightforward, as already noted by the others. These two factors weigh down the mix greatly in terms of the elements we look for. Still, quite a pleasant listen regardless, but a NO.

There's both. Accordion is the focal point, but there's also a solo violin burried in the mix.

Hmm, this one is tough. I think the overall result is a bit underwhelming on some level. The production is definitely not as strong as what we're accustomed to from CP. It's a bit lazy. I wish you'd have done more EQing to sculpt a more full sound. The piano is really bright and rough sometimes, especially during the stronger sections. But, the arrangement is clearly thought out and interesting in comparison to the original. I like all the new ideas you put into the mix. I still don't think the overall result is as interesting as the original though. The problem with solo piano is the primary role of interest is relegated to one instrument and it better be a damn good one. Yes, it's on the low end of what we expect of you, but, I hear too much work put into this mix. If there's one thing I prize above anything else in this community, it's when an arranger incorporates a lot of one's own ideas into a mix, for good or ill. It's easy to make something sound good when you have good source material and you stick close to it - of course it's gonna sound good. But when you venture into new uncharted territory, that's where many arrangers in this community fail. That's why I prize liberalism of arrangement above anything else, and in this case you've done an admirable job. Everything else, I find passable in the sum of its parts. YES

Wonderful atmosphere and instrumentation, yes. Unfortunately there's not much arrangement going on here. You have to mix it up, change up the structures, or expand the harmonic or melodic content. Make the mix your own, add your own flava to it. Synths are indeed pretty tite though. On the production side of things, everything is nice, except the breaks, they sound rather thin and flat in my view. A bit too loopish as well. Interesting stuff, and well put together and for that you deserve the compliment. However, bringing new ideas, rearrangement is what the game's all about at OCR. Work on that aspect more next time. Weak ending to boot. Keep it up. I believe this is the first mix I've heard from you and I'm interested in hearing more. NO

Production issues killed this one. Everything has a lofi and thin sound going on. It sounds like you put some strange reverb/and odd EQ filters on this one. There's no body throughout. The kicks have no power, the lead is lofi, thin and distant. This needs to go back to the mixing and mastering drawing board. Cool conceptual ideas though, I was digging the ideas presented here. But really this has quite a bit of work to do to clean things up before one can consider this. Sweet ending parts though. But, NO.

Very cool ideas indeed. But... Some main issues here are the piano with the mechanical nature of it both in timing and in terms of velocity. Things are too rigid on both fronts. The drum and percussive work is a little on the vanilla side; though I do like the fills, beyond that there's not much substance. During the busier parts, things started to get a bit cluttered, I think the organ has too much fx, while everything else sounds bone dry. The sax work is the highlight here though. Impressive stuff going on there overall, however, all the issues here do weigh this down. This needs quite a bit of polish in my view, which is a shame, as the creative ideas at play here are unique and interesting. But at this point this isn't there or near there yet. Keep it up though guys, I hope to hear something new or a resubmission from you two. NO

I beat mythril to the first post. DJP asked me for input while he was working through this, so I was fortunate to have heard this throughout its WIP stages and through completion. DJP doesn't disappoint. I think this is arguably his best arrangement to date. I recommend repeated listenings for people who aren't very open minded. It may not impress most listeners at first glance, but this mix has a lot of heart, authenticity and I really think DJP is perhaps the most flexible arranger in the community. Everything in the mix just sounds authentic - from the great accordion, piano and guitar sequencing to even the complimentary instruments like the solo violin. I also want to note the part at 2:10-2:20 was fantastic. The icing on this cake is the quality production values we've come to expect from DJP. My favorite Earthbound mix, and overall, truly splendid work.

The arrangement is good, interesting - to be expected from shna. Great ending to boot (my favorite part). The texture of the mix is at times thin and weak though. It's not as strong as some of your other mixes. Now for my gripe, the production is incredibly bland here and dare I say, weak. It's not the samples or the synth quality. Those are acceptable, the synth in particular is nice. But this is substandard production. There's nothing going on here in terms of interesting processing, reverb, or delay. It gives a bland sound throughout. Mixing is fine though, but I'd personally have wanted this to be a touch louder and with some more eq tweaks. The snare for example sounds bland - some eq and compression would really help spice up the sound. Left panned bass is a bit unusual too. Though I'm hesitant to call that a problem per se. I think it would have been better suited in the center. Good arrangement, but the production is lazy. We expect more from you shna. I think it makes the grade, regardless. Borderline YES.

I can see why darke thought this was real. It sounds like a low quality recording of an upright or something. But beyond that, the amount of clipping here is hugely problematic. Normalization doesn't really work in this case. A limiter would the most appropriate here, but remember compression and limiting sometimes won't help. Piano is one of the instruments with a lot of transient energy and with thick chords they can clip even under -1 db. A limiter and combination of tweaking your velocities during the heavier sections would help curb that problem. Arrangement and performance are fine in my view. I don't know if I'd consider it passable. I'd like to see more performance polishing going on. Arrangement works for me all in all. Weak ending though, what's up with that? NO

This resembles your CC mix in terms of some of the mix problems. The main issues: - sparseness, the middle range sounds vacant. This is easily resolved with thicker chords, better orchestration or even just adding some pads to sit in between some of the instrumentation. - percussion and beats are nicely sequenced by they sound thin, there's no phatness. - piano could be humanized more, still, but I think the flute is fine. - needs more variety Neat mix though, keep up the good work and keep improving. But it's not there yet. NO PS. This historic vote has to be blessed with a conclusionary and repeating statement of: Larry, that's not an ocarina™!

This has no place in a remix write up whatsoever. Putting in a personal tidbit, especially something of this nature, is unprofessional and unacceptable. You made a remark about drama - what is this? The vast majority of people downloading this mix would have had no idea about any kind of drama had you not posted a comment like that, and frankly it not only makes you look bad, but having it in a ReMix decscription makes OCR look bad as well. This site is about game music and the community of remixers and fans behind it, not petty squabbling and personal differences behind the scenes. I think it would be in your best interest and in the best interest of the site to remove references to whatever kind of drama fest happened in the making of this album. Please don't tarnish it. DJP's write-ups have always been more in the vein of pseudo-live journal posts and sometimes include community news and views. They're not really meant to be serious or singular in scope. Whether he included that or not, it would have come out in one form or another, and would have been a topic of conversation in this thread. At the end of the day, it is DJP's prerogative to set the record straight or state his point of view, as long as Joe/project got a fair treatment as far as postage goes (which it has). In the case of this postage/writeup, overall, I think things were handled professionally.

Well larry just put this up and we need to do a fast track vote on this for possible halloween consideration... I'm on my way out though and I don't have time to fully weigh in on this. Quick take: This indeed a cool mix and would fit the holloween motif perfectly, however, I feel the arrangement is too straightforward and conservative. This submission feels more like an upgrade to the original rather than something that meets the arrangement standards that we normally pass. Cool yes, enjoyable and interesting upgrade, but too conservative and lacking in arrangement particulars in my view. I really hate to no this, but it's too questionable in that element for me to pass. [Fanboy] Elsa, I'm a huge fan of yours though. Your additions here were the highlight of this mix for me. Not to mention, Sweet Games, which I consider the greatest game related piece of music ever crafted. I'm looking forward to more of your works! [/Fanboy] Borderline NO

November 1, 2005 (Reuters): Millions of Warcraft fanboys attack OCR - to which they were diverted to UnMod. 99% of said groups (warcraft fanboys/unmodders) disappeared and were never to be heard from again. The furry thread remained intact, however, to the chagrin of the superior minded OCR members. Two birds were ultimately killed with one stone though..... Peace reigned supreme for 1000 years. Subsequently Avg. IQ of the net increases by 49%. Now as far as the mix, I'm enjoying this on some level, but that has a lot to do with the source material. The arrangement here is basic. You have some basic musical elements going on, that's supplemented with mostly percussion. The synths are thin and could do with more processing. The other elements are a sound downgrade for sure. I did like the drums and percussion. They were the highlight of the mix for me. But again, there's not much going on here. You have a framework of a melody and beat, nothing else. Needs more conceptual expansion as well. NO

There's nothing more to add here really, that the other judges did not cover. Here we go with a lightning round. My main issues: - timing and rhythm, everything just sounds off - some clipping - too dry - needs some more reverb to soften and blend elements more cohesively Very impressive and interesting first submission though, but its just got too many issues in great degrees to pass. I'm looking forward to hearing more from you though. NO

I have to say, I'm really enjoying this. The atmosphere is gorgeous. There's a right amount of instrumentation and space to allow the reverb/delay to do their magical thing in the stereo field. However, one could probably get away with thickening up the atmosphere a bit more with another layer of pad. The guitar was ok, I thought the bends got a bit cheesy at one point. For me this instrument didn't really belong in this space. I would have personally preferred either a woodwind or softened solo string in its place. Or something more gentile and less abrasive. The percussive work in general is delightful. It really works within the context of the piece. So for me outside the lead choice, I'd like to see the arrangement get some more TLC. Work on the structure, work on evolution and expansiveness. It seems as it progresses it loses focus. Don't change the percussion. Lovely stuff though, but sadly as a whole, not ready for postage. Keep at it, this has a lot of potential. NO

This was an extremely tough one. I'm borderline on this. As with many Mazedude mixes, this is an admirable effort, but in my opinion, there's not enough here in my view for me to pass. The arrangement is conservative, more so than the other mixes by the artist we have passed. There's a general structure and format of the original that is consistent in this mix - from the repetive harmonic support (that is apparent with the harpsichord parts) to the flat/lack of dynamic approach of the mix. More expansion here in the melodic or harmonic content would help two fold - with the rearrangement criteria and secondarily with preventing it from getting a bit redundant. This (the arrangement) element is my chief concern. The percussion by mazedude as to be expected is good, as is ailsean's guitar section - this is evident. Outside of this, other than the arrangement issues, I have to agree with some of the production criticisms cited. There's a wall of sound going on throughout here, and everything is a bit muddy and overreverbed. I love my reverb too, but in this case it's a little overboard. The latter issue, I suppose one could argue as subjective. I am hesitant to call them problems per se, but I can't call them positives either. The combination of these two factors (arrangement and production concerns) makes me lean towards a NO.

You've improved a lot. This is a big step forward compared to the previous submission. I can see where analoq is coming from and agree to an extent, however in my view this is a cut above our bar and as good as anything we've posted recently. Loved the harp composition in particular. Good orchestration, arrangement, production and certainly deserves to be posted. YES

Like his last submissions, he claims that he's not getting the automated reply/auto rejection or anything from djp. ----------------------------- Hi, DJP and new judges! GØ£ÐËÑ T€ÅR§ is back for another try, and be assured that this isn't vocal (http://www.ocremix.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=56518). I'd like to apologize for that 3 Days tune, since it was really a judges-input-only request and shouldn't have been submitted to that infamous queueing line. You hit the nail on the head that me singing is downright ugly, but I still stand by the instrumentals for it (and thank you DJP for giving me promise), so no hard feelings. This mix, I tell you, is more serious. I've spent several on-and-off months on this one too, and I believe it should meet your standards (and surely you'll tell me otherwise). Again based on Majora's Mask, I'm calling this one "AfterEffect", pretty much because it's based on the End Credits theme (I guess the beginning part of it, which I thought was catchy), with a couple of other tunes in there, and because it's my rendition of what really happened when the people of Termina realized they were saved. The first half of it is sort of orchestrated, and then the rest is dance/techno whatever. Hopefully I did both genres good...and now the details, in it's old cut-and-paste fashion: Contact Info Your ReMixer name: GØ£ÐËÑ T€ÅR§ (or just do initials: GT) Your real name: Chris Narvali Your email address: cnarvali@hotmail.com Your website: http://goldentears.x3fusion.com Your userid: 11244 ReMix Info Name of game ReMixed: Legend Of Zelda: Majora's Mask Name of individual song(s) ReMixed: The Last Hours (with brief parts of Evan's Solo blended in) as intro, then it's pure End Credits (first section of it, I guess) Additional information about game: Nintendo 64, Koji Kondo (Ocarina Of Time?) Link to the original soundtrack: (Liontamer's work ) http://www.zophar.net/usf/lozmmusf.rar - 124 "Final Hours", 230 "Evan's Piano Solo", 253 "Staff Roll" Your own comments about the mix: (All popular section, done and done!) I hope you enjoy it this time!

This is a significant improvement. However that intro is still there, and in my view, it sounds rather ridiculous. It might work better in another context, but here it just is a bit silly - at least imo. You did at least tone it down from the first version, where it was a lot more exposed. The orchestral elements don't gel in my view either, as noted by analoq. The strings are far too agressive in sound and in attack. I think it would work better if you had more sustained/legato slower and blossoming sounds. You can do this by adjusting the attacks of your sustained samples in your sampler or in a soundfont editor if that's what you use. Also everything sounds centered. There's no real space/placement. The production needs quite a lot of work in reverb/processing/eqing. Everything sounds centered and dull. Your edit on the sax is much better now though. The sax performance in general is quite good, definitely by far your best work in that regard. The backing tracks however aren't that thought out. You mostly have high strings and low strings and a harp. There's a very sparse sound going on here that needs to be addressed in this context. NO

This needs more mutton.