docnano

Thanks for the feedback! I guess the augmented fifth was an unconventional choice there, but I wanted to convey a sense of “airy wonderment”. Maybe could have foreshadowed it a bit to make it less of a surprise. Hope you’re doing well.

If I wrote the soundtrack of a traditional JRPG, the airship theme might sound like this. What if there's no airship? Of course there's an airship.

One of my favorites on the album for sure. Great jazzy/hip-hop vibe that would be at home in a not-so-serious anime spinoff of our beloved franchise. The lyrics brilliantly straddle the line between witty and immature. Love it!

I'm not usually a fan of medleys, but this one gets a pass due to its amazing execution and interweaving of decades of themes that never sounds forced. I'm especially glad that Sam preserved the call-and-answer component of the original overworld theme, as that usually gets dropped in arrangements of the theme.

I just listened to a somewhat delicious remix.

I'd also like to acknowledge the role of critical feedback in the writing of this arrangement. I think it was Theophany that encouraged me to do a substantive rewrite of an earlier version (into which I had already poured several hours of work). But the previous version was confused, with too many ideas vying for the listener's attention. In restarting from scratch after playing around with the themes a bit, I had a much clearer vision for the arrangement, and what emerged was by far a superior product. In other words, don't succumb to the sunk-cost fallacy -- sometimes it's best to start over from a clean slate.

I'm pretty sure I heard this when it was an early-stage WIP a few years back. It made an impression then, and the final version is even better than I'd hoped. Whimsical, fun, light, and with beautiful jazz harmonies to boot. Awesome!

Wow, 2011... has it really been that long since we heard a new remix from Mustin? Love the chill vibe of this mix. I can also relate to the personal story; I have my own vivid memory of playing FF4 into the wee hours of the morning at a friend's house, hunting for where to drop the Key of Magma. It was just that kind of game -- a real high point for the series, in no small part because of fantastic musical themes like this.

Thanks to all for the feedback on our mix! I'm glad we were able to share with you all.

Thanks for the glowing review, DJP... and I still love listening to your old bluegrass-caricature remix of the Bubble Bobble theme. I feel like pointing out that, although this is my 5th posted remix, it was the first one I ever submitted to OCR. In other words, my apologies to all if the production is a little rough!

Awesome. That is how you orchestrate the Metroid title theme.

This is a straight-up cover, not intended for submission or anything. Just for fun. And DAMN, what a fun track this is -- certainly a contender for my favorite FF battle theme. It's pretty close to how I always imagined that the original SNES version sounded. Any feedback on orchestration/mixing is appreciated. Otherwise, enjoy.

I've had it in my head to do a smooth jazz arrangement of Tifa's Theme for a while... now that this exists, I don't have to. Gorgeous, gorgeous treatment of the source, with some tasteful development and improvisation. Great work, folks -- definitely adding it to my FF7 playlist.

Tons of character, and the choice of instruments/style is perfect for the spirit of the source. The change of time signature halfway through was a nice surprise. Love it!

It's sounding great to me, though I have no experience with chiptunes. Any plans to develop it further?

I feel compelled to remind everyone that I did not arrange the Duck Tales mix -- evory did, and I just performed it with very minor modifications. Credit goes to him for that arrangement!

Wow, this makes me very happy. Such a creative idea and brilliantly executed. The unique voices really make this one shine. Someone needs to make an animated short for this.

Much improved. I like how you toned down the synthetic instruments in the second half. Sounds infinitely more authentic now. I love it!

Wow, wasn't expecting that tempo change . This kicks some serious butt. Well, the first 2/3 of it does. I really love how you're confident enough with all these instruments to pull something like this off, and quite well. And LOVELY vibrato on that whistle. I think your performances are safely within the realm of human charm without descending into slop. The arrangement is terrific for the most part, as well. My main gripes with the current version are with the Golden Saucer and Chocobo sections. First, the combination of the synth dobro (?) with the accordion for Golden Saucer isn't working for me -- maybe bring the accordion down a touch, or have it play a countermelody instead of the main melody. A real dobro would sound awesome here, but in absence of that, why not use your guitar? Also the transitions between themes are a bit jarring to me, more like a shameless medley. I'd cut one of the two additional themes out, or find a way of tying them more closely to the main theme via chord progressions or backing rhythmic motifs. Regarding the fiddle part, you could always hit up some of the violinists on OCR. I know of Chris Woo (Amaterasu) and Gabe Terracciano. I've heard worse samples in accepted mixes, but a live one would be waay better. Oh, and great way to end it. I really hope you submit this when it's done!

Here's a Michael Nyman-esque piano arrangement of Bonds of Sea and Fire. I recently added strings to back the piano part, but I'm not 100% convinced that it's the right choice. Here's the current version: http://soundcloud.com/docnano/romance-of-sea-and-fire-1 And here's the piano-only version, if you want to compare: Source:

This remix is superb, regardless of whether it or its writer actually exist...

YES. To excess. I frequently go through binges of my own music only to later collapse in a funk of revulsion at my own narcissism. That's not to say that there aren't real benefits of reviewing one's own work for the sake of improvement. But at it's core I'd have to say the practice is hedonic, at least for me. I enjoy the music that I make -- not only because I make music that I like, but also due to the added emotional attachment one feels for one's (intellectual or biological) offspring. Since songs are not other people that require or reciprocate affection, this is probably best done in moderation.

Oh, how did I miss this? I think this represents what a lot of remixers were TRYING to do in the early years of OCR, but with a more grown-up sense of production and musicality. Jazz or not, I love it.

Yeah, the main S90 ES piano sound is definitely more suited to playing softer and more sensitive passages. Thanks for the tip!