timaeus222

To be honest, the brass isn't too far off tonally. The bite is there, but it shows up pretty spontaneously. For compression, try these settings off a brass section preset I made once before: Threshold: -21.6dB Ratio: 4.8:1 Gain: 3.5dB Attack: 69.7ms Release: 800ms Mix Level: 45% (if applicable)

Gotcha; I didn't want to use any rhythm guitar though, as it isn't fitting in the retro funk electro genre I was doing. I chose to go the funky route with wah EPs, spiccato strings reminiscent of the Bee Gees's "Stayin' Alive", PWM bass, and a whole lot of custom duck-like lead synths (80s acid house bass as lead, moog lead mod, and something of my own).

Dude, I'm not defending myself. I'm just setting things straight and clearing things up. Sometimes people are unfamiliar with what it is I musically write, and I kinda do have to explain it.

That's because it was used as the FL Metronome sound, but it doesn't mean it's necessarily a "bad sample". Old, sure. 17 seconds is a little too fast to already start upping the energy so much; besides, those seconds are all one related section, so the energy should be relatively the same until 0:21. I also actually paid loads of attention to the strings section, as I've given critique before on mechanical spiccato, so I had to "back up my skills". I guess. I was just emulating how it was used in the old Commodore 64, so however it sounded back then is however I should emulate it now. Sometimes when I read comments I see them using odd vocabulary that doesn't really match what something's actually called, so I was using your wording, so to speak, to stay consistent with how you said it. However, 0:21 does, in fact, have strong drums (and more drums, actually), which is why I was wondering how there seems to be not much of an energy jump between 0:17 and 0:21.

Probably my best effort yet in terms of production and attention to detail. This remix fuses Junk Man from Mega Man 7 with Moliarty's Tower from Darkwing Duck for the Wily Castle ReMix Gauntlet 2013 Round 2. Inspired by Joshua Morse and zircon. I've also never tried this genre before nor mixed with instruments exactly like this before. EDIT: Tweaked a LOT of the production before the j00jes got to see it. https://soundcloud.com/timaeus222/wcrg2013-round2entry-rushriders Sources: Junk Man (Mega Man 7) Source Breakdown: 0:00 - 0:11 = Darkwing Duck (0:41.1 - 0:44) [Near loop point] 0:11 - 0:16 = Junk Man (0:00 - 0:07) 0:16 - 0:21 = Darkwing Duck (0:41.1 - 0:44) [Near loop point] and Junk Man (0:00 - 0:07) 0:21 - 0:28 = Darkwing Duck (0:00 - 0:05.4) 0:28 - 0:32 = Junk Man (0:07 - 0:12) and Darkwing Duck (0:02.8 - 0:03. 0:32 - 0:41.8 = Junk Man (0:22.4 - 0:31.4) 0:41.8 - 0:47.4 = Darkwing Duck (0:15 - 0:16. 0:47.4 - 1:18.4 = Darkwing Duck (0:16.8 - 0:29.9) 1:18.4 - 1:23.2 = Junk Man (0:00 - 0:07) 1:23.2 - 1:28 = Darkwing Duck (0:41.1 - 0:44) [Near loop point] and Junk Man (0:00 - 0:07) 1:28 - 1:39.6 = Darkwing Duck (0:29.9 - 0:41.1) 1:39.6 - 1:43.5 = Junk Man (0:48 - 0:53.2) 1:43.5 - 1:47.4 = Darkwing Duck (0:29.9 - 0:41.1) 1:47.4 - 1:51.3 = Junk Man (0:42.9 - 0:48) 1:51.3 - 1:55.2 = Darkwing Duck (0:29.9 - 0:41.1) 1:55.2 - 1:59 = Junk Man (0:48 - 0:53.2) 1:59 - 2:08.7 = Junk Man (0:22.4 - 0:31.4) 2:08.7 - 2:14.5 = Darkwing Duck (0:15 - 0:16. 2:14.5 - 2:30 = Darkwing Duck (0:16.8 - 0:29.9) 2:30 - 2:46.4 = Darkwing Duck (0:41.1 - 0:44) [Near loop point]

It's an 808 rim shot, and it's fun to use. It fits into the 90s retro funk electro style I was going with. I don't get why there "isn't" enough energy in the first "refrain". The drums are pretty powerful IMO, and I might be the only one who slowed down the last four notes in the first iteration of the first Darkwing Duck section to fit into four jazzy chords. I don't get what you mean at all with the C64 arp. The wording is unclear.

This. Seriously though, the production on your drums is, oddly enough, not an easy thing for people to do, so at times they kinda skimp on the variation after they hear their drums sounding good.

Just give up. Do teh technomangaz and ull get ur votez

This is more low quality than I remember. I can really hear the huge difference between the MP3 and the video BGM, lol. And the MP3 is way bettarrrrrrr

Kristina is on the money as well. It helps quite a bit to switch to another genre if your mind naturally shifts that way. Eventually you'll have that type of intuition.

There's still a panning issue in the entire track. It's so far panned that there's literally nothing in the middle except for the weak mellotron choir sample. It sounds very fake, and just doesn't cut it. The distortion on the guitar at 0:53 is too much, and you should reduce it by about 5~10%. This amount sounds sharp and thin, and it's blurring the clarity of the notes. The kick is too weak as you heard from avaris, and should be louder. The hi hats are slightly too loud.

I listened on speakers earlier, but on headphones it still sounds fine. There isn't any background noise from the hi hats at all, or from anything at all. That's reverb, nothing wrong with that on the hi hats.

Yup, pretty important. I try to have patterns go v1, v2, v1, v3, v1, v2, v4, v5 for one section, where v4 is similar to v1 somewhat. Variation is key in reducing repetition.

It is bare. The intro phaser didn't really connect too well with 0:07. You don't have a lead until 1:07, and that's almost 1/3 of the remix already. Yes, you do have reverb, but reverb alone isn't going to fill any soundscapes. You need to fill in open frequencies with instruments that meaningfully contribute to the soundscape in an inviting manner. The kick was OK until 0:36. At that point, you need a tighter kick and more of other percussion than a few tom hits and a tinny snare. I don't even hear a single hi hat. =O 0:52 was especially bare. It almost sounds like a fake piano, but anyways, it's not enough to be a little mini breakdown. You need some filler instrument, like a pad or sweeper drone. 1:36 gets muddy in the low end, and an easy part to fixing it is to raise the lead one octave up. 2:06-2:35 is a repeat of the intro a few times with the drums of 0:37, a few new tom hits, and less reverb on the phaser saw. 2:35-3:39 is a repeat of 1:06-2:05 with the addition of the phaser saw and no notes changed. If I could name two times that you repeated things, it's a good sign to put more effort into your work. I think you can do it. Try to think of something to vary up a section significantly from the previous one, and try really hard not to repeat anything verbatim.

Looks like you knew your source well either way. Sometimes it gets hard to determine whether a source was interpreted just right or too much. I did get something privately rejected because it was too liberal, with unsaid comments that I surmise didn't call the production a dealbreaker (album-to-be track eval). I agreed with how it turned out, as I did variations too early. It could happen to anyone though! Also, that EP... killer. Trust me when I say that's one of the best EPs I've ever heard, especially in the low range.

Tender Lovin' Care and Musical Instrument Digital Interface Control Change.

That guy 10char Here are my reviews btw. Lights Out SuperiorX: Nice, you had a similar idea as me on the wah EP. I was gonna do a wah clavi, but I went with an EP eventually. I'm missing some of the tines frequencies, though, since you went for 100% mix rather than a 50-50 signal split. Mixing is generally good. Bass is a little muddy, and sometimes treble is ever so slightly too much. Integration of sources was pretty smooth. Nice slap bass and soft arp. Smooth atmosphere. From Dark to Light Sir_NutS: Nice, this is what I wanted to do at first, if I had a mic lol. Michael Jackson and Daft Punk influence, it seems. Ever so slightly too much reverb, not a big deal. No major EQ issues. Smooth mix. My only other nitpicks are probably that the vocals could have used some vibrato from the vocoding modulator to go the extra mile, and the vocoded tone is lacking a good amount of clarity (which, believe it or not, can possibly be better). Chilled Duck KgZ: May be just me, but I don't like it when leads sound like they're sidechained. Production is pretty smooth, though there is still room for improvement as there isn't much content above 16kHz aside from the middle section's lead. Preferentially, some leads could be improved tonally and frequency-wise, but I'm not bothered by anything else, other than the title. This isn't chilled. It's like, Party Duck. You know, if there was a Party Man. Spicy Icy ectogemia: Yeah, pretty funky, but to me more in the Blues Brothers sense than the Joshua Morse sense because of the brass section. Instrumentation was pretty cool, though some transitions were a tiny bit iffy, such as 1:17. For example, a way you could have connected the section at 1:17 and the section that came before it was doing a neck slide on the bass combined with a reverse and regular cymbal. Sometimes the organ note variations at the 1:17 section were written for the sake of variation rather than progressiveness (the result of just replacing old notes with speedier notes), so at times it didn't really flow. It seems you have a harmon mute there, which was EQed pretty well, actually. Other brass sequencing was pretty solid, and sources were used nicely. I liked your fretless bass, too. The Sky Demon Phonetic Hero: Brave effort. Staccato strings fell behind the tempo a bit. You didn't keep with the cinematic theme so much though, which was to your benefit ultimately. Some leads were a little buried, and attention was sometimes drawn away from the leads by the rapid drums for me. Chiptune section was just a bit too quiet in comparison to the other sections, but not a big deal. I tend to be bothered by sync leads sometimes, so don't mind that I didn't like its usage here. Groundpowuh therex: The only full chiptune track here. I'd say the notes are great. The only thing I'd suggest is a fuller atmosphere. Sometimes it feels bare, even for chiptune. If you want to use few instruments at times, I'd suggest you compensate with frequency distribution or reverb. Still a pretty well done arrangement. Ragebot Massacre Ghetto Lee Lewis: Sounds like you have a woofer on-hand. Reverb is a bit much on the low mids, and the saw leads are pretty grating sometimes, especially the supersaw-type of leads. Mixing gets pretty loud at 0:46. Some sounds are pretty cool. 1:46 is pretty neat, though the rising arp on the left was a bit rigid. Pretty heavy stuff, almost too heavy, but I'm sure you'll notice it. Burning Disaster Esperado: Pretty good effort. A little quiet, but still pretty cool. Transitions between sources are iffy. Oh hey, some CSD was gated and glitched. The instrumentation worked pretty well together too, good job. Dr. Wilyarty Stage 1 Hakstock: Oh yeah, really balls to the wall here. Noticeable overcompression. Good news is that I can hear the leads. Some instruments and sometimes the drums are buried by the reverb. Some leads could get more attention to detail, just preferentially. The Postman Always Rings Twice Parah Salin': Transitions were pretty iffy, but interesting use of sound effects to do so. Bass tone does not suit the notes it plays. Brass falls behind the tempo a little sometimes. Grime Mr. L: Slight timing issues in the EP, chill atmosphere. Tiny bit bare. Seems to doodle a bit sometimes, but pretty cool entry. I could kind of spot Moliarty's Tower, but it may be a bit too liberal in interpreting that source. Forceful Typhoon Tower Sterling Ortiz: Timings were off a lot, especially between the static bass and the leads. Lots of reverb decreases the clarity. Somewhat random source insertion. Good effort. A Fowl Knight Trism: Really loud frequency-wise and generally reverb-less, but giving you the benefit of the doubt. Nice arpeggios, and great energy. I think you paid a lot of attention to minor details rather well. Ending was strange though. Awkward silence, and then really loud and dry lead. Some stereo imaging is pretty cool, but because of the frequency overboosts, it isn't as cool as it could have been, but the gesture was there, so good job.

Good remake. Objectively it could use more TLC on articulations and MIDI CC for the fake orchestral instruments, but it's just a remake, so it doesn't matter too much.

Like before, 2:46 was a good spot to end on. The rest is another repeat, of 1:07 this time. Nice smooth jazz.

Errrr that is stretching (thankfully only one part of) the page. You might want to consider shrinking it or linking it. Yep. Hard to believe, but sometimes I find (or make) synthesized E. Pianos, for example, that are more fitting to (or even better for) particular remixes of mine than an E. Piano library I have for Kontakt. Another example... a synthesized electric sitar I had created one day fit into my Yu-Gi-Oh ReMix better than EWQL Ra's electric sitar, after I tried substituting in both to compare. I remember zircon talking on KVR in 2007 about EWQL Ra's sitar not being all that great before working on Sitar Nation, but the fact is that it was sampled, and samples are *usually* better than synthesized versions. =)

No, I'm not comparing myself to him. Though he is one of the best producers in this competition, he isn't the best producer in this competition. I'm not going to say who it is, however, he still has room for improvement in production and arrangement, as does everyone. I bolded what my points earlier had expressed. +100 Give them more than 30 seconds. Give them the whole song. I know it's a competition, but if you listen to one great song fully and one almost great song partially, the almost great song will tend to seem "almost good" or "decent". Be fair. That is all.

"you gave his ambiguity the benefit of the doubt." is what I got. The rest is my additional comments. Information in this case means a story, or auditory information, like arrangement content, ambience, head-bang or not, dance or not, etc.

What I'm getting from this is that you gave his ambiguity the benefit of the doubt. While 30 seconds is long to the listener, 30 seconds is not that long to the producer. To be able to fit engaging content in 30 seconds might actually be pretty difficult for some people, and if I were to take KgZ literally, it would be the case that he means the first 30 seconds (which apparently seems to be very close to what he said). I wouldn't just listen to 30 seconds and quit if I'm not interested in the first 30 seconds. What if the intro makes use of long, well-selected pads that convey 30 seconds' worth of information in 50? I would take Gario's approach and skip around a little first if I ever was somewhat skeptical about the intro. Then if I notice something really cool, I'd go back to see how it connects. Regardless, I still listen to the whole track in the end, and I give everyone a fair listen if their track is listenable---listenable being not ear-splittingly painful the whole entire time.

Minor production issues aside, I'm really diggin' this. This is an extremely smart arrangement with some smooth harmonic modulation.

I don't know how 0:50 got messy again. It was fine before, and now the snare is indeed buried again. Did you add more bass or sub bass content? I'd agree that ultimately, the arrangement when deconstructed has cool parts on its own, but when combined as it is right now, it doesn't sound like a cohesive piece.