DarkSim
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Posts posted by DarkSim
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Great to hear this one back again! Even better, you've taken on board a lot of advice and this version sounds fantastic. It's always a pleasure to see feedback being taken on board in a positive way, and producing a result like this.
It's a dreamy remix, very fitting for an ending theme, and the instrumentation fits well. The resonance on the lead guitar at 1:28 and 2:11 is still a bit on the harsh side, but it's a huge improvement over the first submission, and I'm really glad you were able to tighten up the performances and re-record those parts. All the other issues I mentioned in my previous review have been addressed, so I'm happy.
Not much else to say really - thanks for resubmitting!
YES
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I've never seen a track clip so much yet still sound this decent. That said, the balance is significantly skewed to the low-end, and the clipping becomes way more audible in the final section, from 5 minutes onwards. Fixing that would be a priority.
Love the swaggering groove this carries with it. As if it wasn't big enough though, I really liked how you stretched it out between 1:22 and 1:43, experimenting with the timings of the groove a bit more.
Instrumentation is cool, incorporating lots of middle-eastern sounds with the trappy snares, and the addition of trumpets works well with the palette. The only thing that didn't gel with the mix were the 'Ha!' voice samples. They were a little dry and stood out - might have been better to layer them some more, thereby adding some more body, like you've done with the 'Woo!' samples.
Arrangement is solid, weaving between the 4 source tunes without feeling like a medley at all. The source melodies are presented very identifiably, particularly Al Kharid. Using Agents of Keli in the break works well, but then bringing the beat back in at 5 minutes and going full trap on it sounds great.
Ultimately this is a great track that's just mastered too hot, and the bass mix seems too high. Fix those 2 issues, and we're golden.
CONDITIONAL
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Love this source. You've got some strong competition remixing this one - PrototypeRaptor's Chemixtrixx is still imo one of the best remixes on the site (damn, it's 12 years old now too!).
Instrumentation and sound design is very similar to the source. Plenty of original material in here though to differentiate it from the other Chemical Plant mixes out there. The section from 1:10-1:44 was really cool, and I loved that it went exactly where I expected it to at 1:45. A trademark Neon X solo from 2:05-2:18 again ends as I was hoping it would, circling back to the source nicely. 1:45 and 2:18 are two great payoffs, when you transition back to the source from your original material.
There are a lot of interesting harmonies and changes in chord progression at play here. Right out of the gate, there's the descending bass and reharmonisation of the synth layered on top. It's perhaps because it's such a familiar source that it might sound jarring, but to my ear it doesn't sound bad at all. The dodgiest harmonies for me were at 1:18, with the synth leads, but as it's during a solo you can get away with it.
Ending was a little weak, but no real issue there.
Overall I'd say this is a fine remix, taking the familiar instrumentation of the source and getting creative with the harmonies to create something wholly recognisable yet fresh in its approach.
YES
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This one starts out with a nice atmosphere, but unfortunately doesn't develop as much as it should, as the track goes on. The bass arp is kinda cool, but all the synth sounds you've chosen sound fairly simple, and there isn't enough part writing to distract from that simplicity.
Kick is very boomy and snare lacks any kind of presence. On top of that, the percussion writing is very basic. There isn't much in the way of fills and transitions between sections.
This one needs a lot more work in pretty much all areas, I'm afraid. It sounds unfinished in its current state, lacking attention to detail - even the ending is cut off too early. You've got the bones of it, now flesh them out!
NO
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When I first started out on my remixing journey in 2009, this was the first source I ever attempted to remix! Totally agree with you that it's a banger. I love the metallic percussion at the beginning, and you've recreated that really well. The pitchbending on the stabs is an interesting choice, it adds a little jazziness that I wasn't expecting.
I've got a couple of reservations about the production, which I definitely think could be improved, but nothing is a dealbreaker. There's a lot of sub-bass content, which is bloating the low-end a bit, and could probably be cleaned up to make it sound less fatiguing on the ears. Overall mixdown is a bit on the quiet side, and usually dropping some sub-bass content can help with that. On the opposite end, there's a hi-hat sound that's very present in the foreground, and could do with a little more care to make it sit better in the mix. It's particularly noticeable in the final chorus.
Arrangement is conservative, for the first minute and 20 it's like a much beefier cover, but then I do start to notice the differences. I like the section from 1:40, and then the break at 2:30 is nice, with the amped acoustic guitar.
Percussion is chunky throughout, with so much layering and distortion on it that it's only just kept under control. Definitely a highlight though, and worth listening out for the detail in there on repeat listens.
YES
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Cool source tune, and I like the direction you've gone with the remix to make it more cinematic. I've no problem with the samples or instrumentation, but I am struggling to hear them without turning my volume way up. There could be an issue with the reverb here, that it's washing out the overall sound and reducing the clarity too much. Listening to the source after the remix, there's a massive difference in clarity of sound - the original sounds so much clearer.
The extra additions of brass, choir, and more countermelodic content in your remix need to really shine in order to make it distinctly different from the original. By improving the mixing and mastering on those additions, you'll also address the other concern that it's too conservative an arrangement. Highlight the differences and the original touches.
This is very close to a pass from me, but the production needs to be cleaner.
Finally, and this might just be a personal taste thing, but I think it would sound better if you removed the shaker from 2:27-2:41. Let the piano have its moment
Gonna close this one out, but I do hope to hear it again soon!
NO (resubmit)
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What an absolute treat! I don't know how you managed to blend so many elements together to make this incredible Japanese/Irish vibe that still goes hard, but I loved it. When the chorus comes back at 6:35 (yes, 6:35... it's a long one!) it was immediately recognisable and the arrangement led to it beautifully.
Production is extremely clean (perhaps a little too clean in places), often sounding like the musicians are right there in front of you. Some amazing instrumentation - opening with marimba, irish pipes, and there's all sorts of flutes and whistles mixed in, and is that a melodica at 1:15 (and later)? You did me dirty though with those Irish pipes. It's one of my favourite instruments/sounds, and we only got 5 seconds of them at the start, and a little bit at 2:18. Booo! More of those please!
There are great solos throughout as well, on both acoustic and electric guitars, and the clapping breakdown is a fun interlude, with more melodica action. We get a fully epic buildup from 5:42, with a very Windwaker-sounding melodica solo leading into a female choir getting the goosebumps going. I said it earlier, but the way that chorus returns at 6:35 is masterful. Just a superb build and transition, with a satisfying and recognisable climax to the song. This is how you do an arrangement!
I've run out of superlatives now, suffice to say, it's 8 minutes of craziness that brought a big smile to my face.
YES
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Production sounds great, I wouldn't have minded a bit more stereo separation, as there's a lot down the middle. Energy levels are HIGH and do fatigue the ears over the 6+ minutes duration.
Mercifully, there's a break at 3 minutes, and then after the break, although not repetition, it's a similar character to the opening 3 minutes. I'd say that the arrangement and dynamics of the track could definitely have benefitted from an earlier break (maybe a second one as well), and possibly trimming a minute or two off the running time.
My favourite bit is the glitching/dubstep-style effects at 4:27. Would have loved a bit more of this, and perhaps earlier in the track, to keep things fresh.
All that said, it's another banger from Black Ace, easily a
YES
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Great idea, but I think you know the execution isn't there yet.
The lead sounds OK for the genre, but it's stomping over pretty much everything else. It's the same all-crushing lead for the whole track as well, so it's a bit of a one-trick pony. Happy hardcore music isn't the most... ah... cerebral to listen to, so I'm not too concerned about the arrangement at this stage, but it does need much more care with the production than this.
NO
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Once again, fantastic sources, and great arrangement, but I'm afraid a lot of my suggestions from last time have gone unanswered with this resubmission.
Instantly I noticed that the kick has reverb on it (either as a plugin on the track itself, or baked in to the sample), so it's got too much presence in the low end. Combining this with the on-beat bass and lack of sidechain means that your groove really suffers, and it feels much less bouncy than it should. Try shifting the on-beat bass notes to the off-beat, and adding a 4/4 sidechain on all elements other than your kick (if you don't know how to do this, look up a tutorial for your DAW - it's easy and it'll make your track sound instantly better!). You can drop out the sidechain for the break sections as well, which will give them a better contrast. If you need to move the kick to a separate track to remove/refine the reverb, then do it. That's how I used to do most of my tracks.
A note again on the snare - it's been changed to a clap sound now, but the shaker and hi-hats still have higher volume, so it's more like auxiliary percussion than an actual EDM snare. Still needs punch.
I dig the new ending! Much better than a fadeout, I hope you agree.
A tight kick, punchy snare, sidechain, and some off-beat bass notes will get this track where it needs to go, I guarantee it! Love the source, love the arrangement, but it needs the production levels to match.
NO (resubmit!)
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My previous review called for more presence in the guitar and bass, better balancing on the vocal pad, and smoother fills/transitions. I'd say you largely achieved those, although there's still plenty of improvement that could be done with the mix.
The climax of the song I think is beautiful, around the 2:25 mark - I don't find the vocal pad overused, and I like the interplay with the strings. The drums still lack presence, particularly when they first come in around 1:31, and are definitely the weak point in the track. That said, there's a lot to enjoy here. I like the use of effects, and the panning on them works for me.
I feel inclined to say this one's just over the bar, but in saying that I can still hear plenty of potential for improvement. Lots of small issues, but as the major ones from my previous critique have been addressed, so it's a close
YES
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Hearing this for the first time, and it's a fun one! To use that judging cliché though, "it sounds like something that might have passed in 2005".
Right out of the gate we're dropped into the thumping retro-techno beat without so much as a sweep-in or intro. Not necessarily a bad thing, but I'd expect at least a tiny bit of variation to start off the track. I really like that arp synth that comes in at 7 seconds, and as the melody is introduced, the whole feel of the track changes. It's a happy melody, and the pumping tempo really does remind me of OCR of old.
The kick and bass seem a little muffled/boomy, certainly lacking in clarity, and the synths individually are very generic sounding, however you do mix them up a lot which keeps things sounding fairly fresh throughout. There is some detail in the automation, particularly filters, however there doesn't seem to be a great deal of stereo separation, and the mix feels very narrow as a result.
This isn't a bad track by any means, and there are a lot of fun ideas. I like the big organ at 1:40, and the quirkiness of some of the oldschool sounding synths like that heavily detuned saw arp at 2:05. The strength of this definitely lies in the energetic arrangement, though, which does have its own surprises in there too. The transition around the 2-minute mark is a little iffy, and the break at 1:03, although having a cool acid arp, does expose the very dated-sounding percussion.
It's a battle between heart and head for me. My heart is saying yes, but my head is saying no. It's a great effort so far, that still needs more TLC to pass the bar, and if not better synth sounds, then no mistakes elsewhere. Cleaner percussion and mixing, tighten up the transitions, wider stereo space, and try to bring some je ne se quois that helps this mix stand out.
NO
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I'll be honest, the first 3 minutes of the track I was trying to figure out the time signature! Really interesting rhythms being employed here, and it's hard to pin down with the bass arp and percussion. I think it's still 4/4, but the last beat seems to come in early so it feels like the last one drags on longer. Regardless, I do enjoy more complex rhythmic structures, and with the solid sound design and effects, I didn't find the intro outstayed its welcome, even at over 2 minutes in length.
The first 'chorus' part from 2:05-3:00 sounds great. The soundscape is filled out nicely, the kick packs a clean punch, and it does feel like a satisfying end to the long build.
After 3 minutes, we get a comparatively ponderous section that didn't really do much for me until the piano came in at 4:50. It's understandable to drop things out for a break section, however the sparsity of this extended section, complete with the straight groove and vanilla-sounding synths, stands in contrast with what came before it. I definitely think it could have been shorter by about a minute to avoid dwelling on the lack of points of interest in that section. Once the piano comes in though, it does again sound very nice and full.
The final movement of this piece has a few false drops and stop-start moments, before that big chorus comes in again, leaving on a high. Listening to the source tune after the remix, I can clearly hear the inspiration, and was perhaps a little disappointed that all the things I liked best about the remix were present in the source. That said, it's clear that this is a huge enhancement to the original, and pays a fitting tribute to it. You've extended the running time by about 3 times the source's length, whilst keeping the arrangement and instrumentation similar enough to be clearly recognisable, and each section has a decent build that ends in a satisfying way. Can't ask for more than that!
YES
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Quote
Cool arrangement and creative approach to the style, but unfortunately the mixing needs a complete overhaul. Once the bass comes in, it's extremely hard to focus on much else. There's a lot of acoustic energy in the lows and low-mids that's fatiguing my ears as I listen. Is there any reverb on the bass? Sounds like there could be - if there is, dial that all the way back and that'll be a good starting point, then look to do everything Chimpazilla suggested.
I always think of mixing as "the easy bit", as it can be done after the song is composed, but in reality, with a completed track it can be a daunting task. The good thing is that mixing skills apply to everything you'll ever make, whereas each arrangement is always unique. Give this one another crack, and hopefully it'll clean up nicely and you can take those skills forward.
My original review ^
Unfortunately, this seems to have gone completely the other way! I can now barely hear the low-end, and the sound is very thin. There's clearly bass there though, so I've delved a bit deeper and had a look at the spectrum in Live 10 and Audacity to see what's going on.
I'm pretty sure the problem lies in your sub-bass frequency. For starters, your kick is at 30Hz, which is way too low. Of course, you can use sub-bass kicks in certain circumstances, but only if you're very careful about the rest of your bass and sub-bass. The bass here is also fighting for the sub frequencies, however, which is probably causing your master compressor some problems, ultimately leading to the thinness.
You can see the fundamental/first harmonic of your bass (the lowest frequency) is competing around the 30-40Hz mark, and then the second harmonic (double the frequency of the fundamental) is much louder. If I'm remembering my physics correctly, then typically the fundamental will have the highest amplitude/energy, and all harmonics above will be lower. The fact your second harmonic has more energy could be due to a number of things, most probably the synth bass you're using has multiple tones, and one is playing an octave higher at higher amplitude. I would suggest looking into that, and either removing the voice playing at the lower octave, or simply bumping all the notes up an octave (you would however still have a second harmonic at 120-140Hz in that case, which may have its own set of problems).
Getting someone else to master your track is often a good idea, however if the problem is as ingrained as this appears to be, no amount of rebalancing EQ on the master channel will fix it.
Arrangement is fun and energetic, with some really creative choices (especially the throat singing - love that addition!), but again it's the production that's letting it down. I hope my advice above can help, and you'll be a better producer for it!
NO (resubmit)
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Hey, what a cool source tune. Love the direction you've chosen to go with this.
Some cool sound design and a nice vibe is laid out in the intro, and the lead synth sounds decent, albeit too high in the mix. It could do with fattening up a bit when it's standing on its own. Might just be a case of turning the volume down, though. Things get a little muddy at 1:09 with the half-tempo section. Funnily enough, the lead is fattened up at 1:22! I like that detail, it works in this chorus section. The percussion is difficult to pick out during these busy sections though, and could definitely be mixed a lot better. Choosing some less 'hissy' samples might be a better choice as well, particularly as the piece progresses.
There's a breakdown, a buildup and then a final chorus. There are lots of things fighting for space, particularly the arpeggios, and by 2:42 the character of a lot of the sounds (saws, white noise) blend together to give it a mushy texture, with only the lead really cutting through to carry it. The quiet mastering is also very noticeable during the build and final chorus, where if I turn my volume up to match my usual playing volume, the muddiness becomes obvious.
After the climax, we go back to the beginning, and then the track ends. Not a huge fan of that arrangement decision, but I could forgive it if the mixing were up to par. As it is, there's too much detail lost, and the muddiness is hurting your master by not allowing you to crank up the volume to the level it should be. Clean this mix up, and it'll be a pass from me.
NO (resubmit)
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Well, isn't this a jam? I wasn't sure what to expect from the intro - some of the filtering sounded a little strange - but once things kick off I was bopping my head all the way through. That bass sound that comes in at 0:35 is awesome - although again there's some sort of filter on it that makes it sound like I'm listening through a didgeridoo. Not sure if it's a good or bad thing, but certainly some interesting sound design, and the filter's lifted and the bass mixed up throughout so it doesn't become a nagging issue.
This track's got all the staples of a classic electro-house track. Those synth organ sounds particularly fit the genre well, and of course the sidechaining and swung beats give it a monstrous groove.
It's not the staples that set this track apart for me, though - it's the detail. The sounds do evolve as the track progresses, there are lots of automated effects at play here, and there's tasteful use of glitching. Love the effects at 3:17 for example - some bitcrushing and filtering from the sounds of things, combined with dropping out the bass for a bar, serves as a nice 'electro-fill'.
Source is there if you look for it, at proph has already laid out.
Hugely enjoyable track, thanks for submitting!
YES
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Lovely source tune, and listening to the remix I can see how it started out as a cover, and then felt you getting more experimental as it went on. That Irish whistle lead is haunting, in the best way. A great counterpart to the melody, and mixed perfectly so that it doesn't sound shrill.
The vocal pads are also a stellar addition, and the slight element of discord at 2:15 works well with the whistle, adding a definite point of difference from the original. I enjoyed the percussion as well - lots of ethnic additions and metallic sounds keeping things fresh. The mixing on the bells/cymbals is definitely bringing too much heat though, which is a bit of a shame because the reverb is so nice on everything else. Just needed to turn the volume down a bit there, or maybe wetten the reverb a bit.
There's also some audible artifact playing quite often from about a minute in. Actually, turning my volume up and listening out for it, it might be intentional! However, it does sound like an artifact due to the dryness and crackliness of it. Could be a shaker?
The last minute of choir practice doesn't sound bad, it's just not what I was expecting! I'm not sure it entirely belongs there in that state, but based on the quality of what precedes it, I'm not going to judge it too harshly. This one does do enough in my book, the section from 2:15-3:14 doing the bulk of the work getting it there.
YES
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Perfect genre for the remix! Doing an arrangement in this heavy style is tricky though, as things can very easily get muddy very quickly. There's definitely room for improvement here in that regard. My favourite parts are those little fills and dropouts at 0:35, 2:17, etc. Really cool detail there, and as things drop out and the mix becomes clearer, it's a nice mini-break.
I think your stereo separation could stand to be a little wider - the leads seem to be occupying the same stereo space when they're playing together. I appreciate you've paid attention to the panning of the percussion, and there are certain points where you've panned for emphasis, such as 2:33, but getting a clean mix takes a lot of work, and every bit of breathing room you can give your instruments helps. Get in there with the EQ and start carving out space for each one: rolling off the low-ends of everything that doesn't need it, put a small notch in the bass to make room for your kick frequency, filter out any rogue low-end reverb.
That said, it's a really creative mix, with some good performances and lots of little details to catch on repeat listens. After discussion with Larry and Kris, I'm happy to recalibrate to a
YES
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I just got done listening to your awesome Batman: Return of the Joker mix, and it put me in the mood for some judging. How funny that the first track I clicked on was another track of yours!
Very nice arrangement here, with a clear artistic direction. I appreciate the attention to a dynamic range in the track as well - the climax at 2:33 is the loudest section, although MW is right on the money with his mixing critique. Let's dive in with a couple of screenshots:
Clipping analysis in Audacity shows there's only 1 instance of actual clipping, however the section preceding the climax has some high frequency content that will pierce the eardrums of anyone lucky enough to still have hearing up to 15kHz:
The climax also has some resonance issues, and I get what you're going for with the 'epic reverb' type thing, but it does sound too muddy for me. There's some static-sounding noise in there that doesn't sound too great, so identifying the source of that and either removing it, or making it sound more intentional, would be beneficial.
Back to the beginning, and the soft, emotional section should have some better humanisation to it. It represents beauty, and while I know there's a ton of beautiful synth sounds out there, I reckon this would be vastly improved with some more subtle variation in the tubular bell sound (velocity/timing), and also with the attack/decay/sustain/release on the synth flute sound you have.
This is a great idea, and you're pretty much there with the arrangement. Production needs more work. At the very least, those high-pitched frequencies need to go, and if you wanted to take on board and change any of the other points, that's up to you, but would be appreciated!
NO (resubmit)
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I was wondering how you'd get a whole track from a 4-second source after I read the title, but then the SMB1 main theme takes over and does most of the heavy lifting. The star theme is used extensively in the backing with some plucks, but it's fairly subtle until the break at 1:42. I love the transition with the pause SFX, that's a great touch, and well handled. The power-up SFX later is OK, but you've already used that trick once with the pause, so the impact is less at the climax of the track - the point where you want maximum impact. It still works, it's just missing that "aha!" moment that the first one had.
It gets a bit iffy towards the end, where the mixing definitely does start to grate on the ears, and some of the jazzier notes in the SMB theme sound a bit odd in this style. The theme is so recognisable that it's not a problem, but if you'd never heard this melody before, it might raise a few eyebrows at the way it's presented here.
The fadeout ending is a bit of a cop-out, but again it's not a dealbreaker.
It's a fun track that doesn't outstay its welcome. Reminds me of Ben Briggs' Fleeting Ecstasy remix of the Wing Cap theme.
YES
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A lot of FF/JRPG remixes can sound quite samey, but there's no danger of that here. This has been twisted, glitched and crushed almost beyond recognition.
The warm analogue pads to open soon give way to that cold, fuzzy percussion that's got such an interesting texture to it. I'm surprised it works as well as it does with the melodic content. Takes a great deal of vision and creativity to pull that off. There's so much bending and distorting going on in almost every element in this piece, I'm impressed by the effort put into the sound design and automation. It's one of those tracks where you can try to dissect everything that's being done from a compositional or production point of view, but it'll take a few listens to catch everything.
The bass sounds a little strange to me, though, as I think the high-cut filter has been rolled off a little low. This isolates the bass a bit more than I'd like, but it's augmented at various points by other synth sounds to make up for that.
Overall it's such a creative track, but if it weren't for the source usage breakdown, I'm not sure I would have been able to pick out the individual elements very easily. Thankfully you gave us the breakdown and saved a bunch of hard work there! Nice one.
YES
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Nice vibe to this one. Reminds me of halc's early stuff, especially that bitcrushed and filtered percussion layer.
The synths are, indeed, very basic in their sound design, but they're chosen well enough as to form a cohesive palette. Production sounds clean, although I felt the transitions could have been smoother, particularly the 3:36 sweep effect, which sounded too loud. Hearing that sax synth at the end, I understand the choice to keep the sound design basic. Any more interesting sounds would expose the sax sample as too fake - it doesn't sound the best as-is, and the real deal would be ideal - but you work with what you've got, and I respect that.
Arrangement is fairly straightforward to begin with, however the ponderous tempo left me checking the timestamp after just over a minute, wondering when it would pick up a bit. It's chillout, sure, but I found myself wanting to be engaged with it just a little more. I really like the idea of the pad at 2:33 and other sections. If I'm being picky though, some more body to it in the low-mids would serve to fill out the mix some more, and give emphasis to those sections. Heck, you could even bring in a nice warm and fuzzy bass layer there to really tickle the ear drums, and I bet that'd sound lovely.
It's a nice remix, that's for sure, but nothing about it wows me. The main point of interest is the sax solo, however that's the weakest of all the synths. It's super close, but I think something needs to be elevated to nudge it over the edge.
NO (resubmit)
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I really like this one! It was a very enjoyable listen, and I can definitely appreciate what you were going for. It's got a beautifully peaceful, ambient quality to it. The softness of the synths and the timbre make it a very easy listen, if a little fuzzy. It does sound as if you've used high-cut filters too much, though, and there's a muted nature to all the sounds. After reading your writeup, it makes a little more sense, however I still think the high-cut is overdone. There need to be more moments of clarity in the composition, to show that the 'fogginess' of the rest is intentional. The piano break at 1:10 is a lovely moment, but the tremolo you've put on it - that wobbly LFO - feels forced, like you're trying too hard to mess up the sound for the sake of it. Have a little detune on it, sure, but I'm not a fan of the implementation of that wobble effect.
I found myself wishing for a clean vocal line over this atmosphere, actually. Something Nordic. It's crying out for one! When I listened to the source after your piece, it clicked into place. That was pretty much exactly what I was hankering after; the way it's done in the source. I think if you did that though, it would sound way too similar.
I hate to reject this piece, as I think it's a fantastic start, but there definitely needs to be some clearer points of reference to hang the arrangement on. Try experimenting more with the piano, or using that synth arp to lead into a more electronic sound.
Hope to hear this one back!
NO (resubmit)
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I'm just about recovering from that solo... damn! Love those drum fills at the end of it as well. What a great package this is. The perfect cocktail for OCRemix - an ancient source tune brought right up to date with a fantastic arrangement.
My gut instinct tells me that it's over the bar as-is, however MW is absolutely right with his production crits. The clashes between guitars at 0:56 and 1:03 are easily avoidable with some stereo spacing and EQ/volume adjustment, and the following section with the brass needs bumping up in the mix. There's a loud splash cymbal at 1:23 that needs turning down. I'm not too bothered about the kick and snare - they sound OK to me, but it's always worth having a look to see if your EQ could be tightened up.
Although I'd love to see this tightened up with another production pass, I'm going to vote with my gut on this one. I think there's more than enough to like about it, and the key elements are all handled well enough to cover the shortcomings of the secondary ones.
YES
*NO* Chrono Cross "Fishing Village"
in Judges Decisions
Posted
Sounds super chill, and production is clean, but I'm not sure what you mean about the 'modern feel' - I hear some filtered, lo-fi sounding drums in parts, that even have some light stutter effects on them, but other than that the instrumentation sounds quite MIDI-like.
The samples you've used for guitar and piano have little to no humanisation on them - right out of the gate at 0:02, those fast hammer-ons are presented the same artificial way 6 times in the first 30 seconds. Same with the piano - all the notes seem to be playing in the same way. If you listen to the source tune, the guitar sounds much more humanised, even though it's still clearly sampled. Nothing wrong with using samples at all, but when they sound noticeably rigid in this way, it distracts from the listening experience somewhat.
It's a beautiful piece that at the moment is being carried by the strength of the source tune, and the switch to 4/4. I don't have any problem with the drum writing - the minimalism there and the lo-fi sound is working for me, but the instruments all lack character. I'd want to hear some more humanisation and original part writing to pass this one, I'm afraid.
NO (resubmit)