Chimpazilla

I like the 4/4 adaptation, but the overall sound of this mix just doesn't hit the mark. The instrumentation sounds dated and the drums especially sound almost comically weak. Filtering the drums from 0:31-1:07 makes that section sound even more lo-fi and minimal but not in a good way. The arrangement sounds very conservative and similar to the source tune even with the time signature change, due to the similarity of instrumentation. This really isn't a bad remix, but I am reading the other Js' words and I agree with them pretty much completely: the lack of humanization, the similarity of the instrumentation and writing to the source tune (other than the 4/4 change), along with weak and over-filtered drums puts this just under the bar for me. I'd love to hear this again with some more unique elements added, different lead sounds, more varied and impactful drum grooves, some additional ear candy or effects, and just more interesting elements overall. NO (resubmit)

Very unusual intro! Not my favorite part of the track (although with repeated listens it is growing on me), but it quickly transitions into some smooth, funky beats that marry the two themes completely seamlessly. Lots of detail in the mix, and the production is good. I like the piano solo quite a bit, wish there was more of it! The arrangement is terrific. I think this mix is great except for one problem. The master is hitting +5db peak. I don't hear compression artifacts, but I think it's a good idea to revisit the mastering and make sure there is a reasonable ceiling set so there are no issues when uploading the track to YouTube. YES (conditional on setting proper final limiter ceiling)

Nice 3/4 intro, then the source translates quite well to a 4/4 groove. I love the style here and the production is really good. The sounds used are good and everything is produced clearly. The kick could definitely use a little more click for it to punch through but it's strong and beefy enough. The arrangement has some similar sounding sections, especially because that saw lead plays for so much of the arrangement, but there is always at least one unique element playing some little countermelody or variation on the source writing that keeps it fresh. The breakdown varies the energy of the arrangement just right. I love the backing deep brass near the end. The end comes off a tad abrupt but not a dealbreaker. Very fun and enjoyable listen. On the mastering side, it's a bit loud, and SPAN indicates some clipping, although I don't hear any overcompression artifacts. I recommend making your final limiter ceiling more like -0.3 or -0.5, rather than 0, because the 0 ceiling can sometimes cause some unwanted clipping. YES

I'm going to trust Prophetik for his explanation about the notes that don't work. I hear it but I lack the knowledge to describe it like he did. The arrangement has a tremendous amount of unpleasant disharmony. One reason for the dissonance is the fact that you chose to use an 808 trap-style bass. In actual trap, the 808 bass often is off-key in comparison to the other instrumentation and vocals, and the 808 bass bends all over the place, and it is expected in a trap song and usually works well. In this case you have such a melodic arrangement with so many melodies and countermelodies, that this 808 bass just makes it sound more messy harmonically. Also, and this is my personal opinion and certainly not a dealbreaker for this track, but I don't feel that a trap bass and drums work well with the much more bright, melodic synths you have going in this arrangement. But the biggest issue is all that dissonance. NO

Dear OCRemix community! I believe I have finally made something that I can submit to OCRemix. I have carefully read the submission instructions. Although it is clearly stated that "chiptunes" are discouraged, I still wanted to give it a shot as some of the my favourite remixes in this community are chiptunes already! I have provided all the required information as a list below, including a OneDrive link and a short paragraph about the inspirations. Looking forward to your feedback. Kind regards, Nedim Gökhan (Nwgo) Aydın ReMixer Name: Nwgo Real Name: Nedim Gökhan Aydın E-mail: Websites: none User ID: 34259 Game: Undertale Title: NoMercy Arranged Song: Megalovania (originally composed by Toby Fox, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDgQdr8ZkTw) Comments: There is an artist called "Paptircem", who started an online challenge where she prepares a music sample by following the poll results on Instagram and followers respond with a cover/remix to that. I have made a chiptune remix, the community and the artist liked it, which encouraged me a lot. I have been listening to chiptunes since my teen years and since 2 years I have been specifically reading, watching, learning and working on chiptunes in my free time. This semester, my work at university did not leave me any time to produce anything satisfying, thus I have made a poll on my own instagram and asked for songs that may sound nice as chiptune. One of my students suggested Megalovania, which excited me a lot since I've recently completed Undertale and loved it. Megalovania is an amazing low-bit, chiptune-ish song which blew the minds of thousands of fans around the world. I was planning to do simple, a few minutes long projects in a few days for each suggestion, but Megalovania took 3 months to fully satisfy me. There are lots of arpeggios and short, plucky notes here. The song starts with the notes from the bridge part of the original song. We hear the original melodies from the song that are re-arranged with chiptune instruments, which ultimately changes A LOT to result in an original scramble of notes and tones, still respecting the original scale and melody. In the final part, there are faint non-chiptune sounds (choir, cello and flute) used. I had a final fight clip on my mind, including the infamous "No Mercy" fighting scene, flowey's fight, gathering colorful hearts and the final scene of full pacifist ending where all the heroes were watching the scenery. I wanted to name it "NoMercy" since I wanted to put the feeling of "constantly increasing pressure" and a constantly transforming badass boss fight. Tried to fill it with my feelings, I hope I could do it in the correct way.

Your ReMixer name: Pixel Pirates Your real name: Tobaunta Torkelsson & Fredrik Vinterstjärna Your email address: Your website: pixelpirates.nu Your userid: 37469 Name of game(s) arranged: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Name of arrangement: Pixels Pirate Valley Name of individual song(s) arranged: Gerudo Valley

Hi, thanks for everything you do! Contact information: ReMixer name: MelodicImmersion Real name: Paul Email: SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/paul-devito-270647719 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5sDfv940zBF6stqk7aCNPQ UserID: 38216 Submission Information: Game arranged: The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker Arrangement: "Giant Flying Sand Worm" Song arranged: "Molgera" Original song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wlF0-Qs2xkI&ab_channel=Magnus619666 In short, this is Molgera's theme from Wind Waker arranged with a full orchestra to sound as EPIC as possible! This arrangement was originally made for the OST Composing Jam: Pastime II, a "game jam" all about making music inspired by favorite games and anime, hosted by the benevolent Lone Rabbit. Learn more about the jam here: https://ostcompjam.alonerabbit.com/ Follow Lone Rabbit on Twitter: https://twitter.com/LoneRabbit9 Molgera's theme from Wind Waker is my favorite song from the series and one of my favorite game tracks of all time, so it was an absolute honor to cover it! I'm a fan of Epic music and it's my go to style as a composer. I've always felt that Molgera's theme has the potential to hit way harder and bigger, especially as tiny Toon Link toughs it out with the most intimidating boss in the game. At the time I wrote this, it had only been a few months since I began getting more serious about the quality of my mixing and mastering. If my mix is lacking in any way, I'd love to know so I can improve. But most importantly, enjoy! Thanks again, Paul

Remixer name: Bluelighter ID forum: 21840 Game & Songs: Final Fantasy X & Underwater Ruins ; No Hopes, No Dreams Composer: Junya Nakano & Nobuo Uemastu & Masashi Hamauzu Hi OCR! Here is a piano arrangement of two themes heard at the beginning of the game. In the history, it was when Tidus (the main character) discovered a desolated word. J. Nakano made an atmosphere track for Underwater Ruins, a little scary. However, the melody had some delicacy. I’ve tried to adapt this in my arrangement (parts 1 to 3 and 9, cf. breackdown). About part 3, it the same melody but with a more marked rhythm like in the original. There was also a stressful side in the original piece. At part 1 and 4, we retrieve the strange harmony of the original. At part 4, I’ve added some ornaments based on these harmonies. “No hopes, no dreams” (N. Uematsu) came naturally after “Underwater”. Musically, some common harmonies allowed me to make my transition. These parts (6 to 8 ) are more powerful with a more marked rhythm. The piece ends by parts 9, delicate part similar to part 2. Enjoy ! BREAKDOWN 1- 0'00 Underwater (1'04-2'00) 2- 0'26 Underwater (0'-0'30) 3- 1'27 Underwater (0'30-1'04) 4- 2’00 Underwater (1'04-2'00) 5- 2’29 No Hopes (0'23-0'38) 6- 2’44 No Hopes (0'10-0'23, the key transposition) & Underwater (0'30-1'04) 7- 2’58 No Hope (0'38-1'20) 8- 3’25 No Hopes (0'23-0'38) 9- 3'43 Underwater (0'-0'30)

Contact Information Username: timaeus222 Name: Truong-Son Nguyen http://soundcloud.com/timaeus222 https://hand-held-thumbs.hostingerapp.com/ ID: 24526 Submission Information Games: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Links ReMix Title: The Arc That Spans The Heavens Consoles/Platforms: Android, iOS, Microsoft Windows OST Composers: uncredited/unknown (previously discussed with Larry) Source Tunes: Zuzu Boyle Theme (attached) Comments: "I've been having a lot of fun with Yu-Gi-Oh lately, both Duel Links and Master Duel (released early January 2022). Basically, Duel Links uses ~60% the board size of the real life game, with half of the Life Points and about half the deck size. The meta of this game changes fairly quickly, but right now it's rather diverse. The Melodious deck was part of the meta few months ago but is still semi-relevant (the current meta consists of several Arc-V decks like Odd-Eyes, D/D/D, and Galaxy). The character who uses the deck is Zuzu Boyle, whose theme is used in this ReMix. The title is based on the phrase the main character of the Yu-Gi-Oh Arc-V anime says when he performs a 'Pendulum Summon': "Swing! Pendulum of the Souls! Draw an arc of light on the skies! Pendulum Summon!" I haven't done Jazz Fusion in a really long time, but I instantly felt that kind of inspiration from this theme, and wrote this in about 3 days, using a similar sound pool to the Kirby ReMix "Kirbland" I did as a Twitter challenge. You might hear references to zircon and Joshua Morse here and there. Out of all the elements in this mix, I enjoyed writing the drum (Groove Bias) and bass (Trilian Jaco Bass) parts the most, especially the bass solo! Hope you guys stay well, and keep on ReMixing! No source breakdown this time, as I think there are fairly direct connections to be made. :-)" Extra Info: As previously discussed, I have no idea who the music artist is and Konami doesn't seem to be very open with revealing the composer name. Very weird.

Mix will need a proper name to post. Your ReMixer name : NaderGator Your website(s) : www.nadergator.com Your userid (number, not name) on our forums : https://ocremix.org/community/profile/38199-nadergator/ Name of game(s) arranged : Yie Ar Kung Fu 1 & 2 Name of arrangement : Yie Ar Kung-Fu (tribute) Name of individual song(s) arranged : kf-theme.midi , yiear2.midi Additional information about game including composer, system, etc. (if it has not yet been added to the site): MSX SYSTEM kungfu 1&2 remix Link to the original soundtrack (if it is not one of the sound archives already available on the site): stock in game midi Your own comments about the mix, for example the inspiration behind it, how it was made, etc: inspired by the melody of yie ar kung fu 1 and yie ar kung fu 2 on MSX system , remixed with synthesizers, improved drums and sound effects Thank you, Nader

Lovely 6/4 source tune! The remix does start out sounding like a major sound upgrade; it is essentially a cover from the beginning until the whistle lead begins at 1:37 (whistle is beautiful). I agree with Brad that the bells and some percussion are too loud, nearly piercing. I feel like there are enough creative variations and additions to this source to be transformative. The choir is very interesting and haunting. The complete changeup at 3:15 may not be everyone's cup of tea but I totally dig it, I love arrangements that tell a story. (Although I do agree with Joe when he said "you need to depart from the source more, WHOA not that much!") It does turn out to be a very unique arrangement. The mixing is good despite insane amounts of reverb on absolutely everything (and probably too much lows in the reverbs). My only mixing complaint is that there is a great deal of low frequency energy in the mix, most notable at the ending; the choir has some straight-up rumble between 20-100Hz that could have been EQ'd out to create a cleaner and less loud master. Other than that, like Wes said, I dig it. YES

Ok the arrangement is still bubbly, glitchy, weird and cool, but now with more added Underground™! This mix addresses my issues from the first submission. The arrangement has lots of good dynamics in terms of having several breakdowns and filtered sections to keep it fresh despite the timbres staying the same throughout. The mixing is good, master is good too despite being a tad on the hot/crispy side and also somewhat flat (needs a bass boost). I love all the details here, tiny sections of glitching or other effects that add up to a nice serving of ear candy. I love the percussion starting a 0:55 that replicates the percussion in the source, nice touch! I love the final ending! So much creativity here. Super Mario 2, aka Doki Doki Panic, was one of the first video games I ever played, way back in the day. I'm already dating myself so I'm not gonna say the exact day! But yeah I played this relentlessly with my roommate at the time, when the game came out. She walked in the door one afternoon with the NES console and cartridge. We played until 3:00am sometimes. For months. We never got all that far before being sent back to level 1 repeatedly. But my favorite theme has always been this one, the Underground. YES

I agree with my fellow Js here almost entirely. This is a great arrangement of this source, full of cool ideas! But there are production issues that are causing this mix to feel quite fatiguing. Contrary to what Brad said, I think the kick has plenty of click and I do hear some sidechaining on the bass. I think the bass sounds good, it is full yet not overdone. That kick click does seem to get lost though, when all the midrange instruments are playing. The lead sounds and all the backing arps sound nearly identical in that they are all playing in the same frequency range and soundscape position, so when everything is playing it all kind of mushes together, despite each sound being super crisp and clear on its own. There's just too much going on in the mids and highs. Each sound is very sharp, and as they stack together it becomes painful to hear. The arrangement is also balls to the wall the entire time with the exception of a bar here or there, that's not enough of a break for me to recover. The part of this arrangement that feels best to me is 0:44-0:59 where there is only one lead sound for my brain to pay attention to. Each midrange sound in this mix is quite piercy, so I can only tolerate one at a time! I did a screen grab of one of the busy sections and you can see how loud the top end of the mix is, ouch. Everything above 4K is just blasting. Also, using 0db as your limiter cutoff is causing some unwanted clipping. I always set my ceiling to -0.5 so that doesn't happen. I'm not exactly sure how to suggest fixing this mix, but at a minimum the leads have to be differentiated from any backing arps, either through EQ or soundscape placement, or changing one of the timbres so they don't sound so similar. I love this arrangement, although I would prefer a longer breakdown at some point, but this would be a YES from me if it weren't fatiguing and painful overall. Edit to add: The arrangement definitely needs a proper ending, this one feels rushed and doesn't conclude the ideas well. NO (please resubmit)

This is a lovely rock arrangement of this source tune. I agree with Larry that the source use is just too light since the vocals are the only connection to it. Larry had some good suggestions about adding a few countermelodies or other writing to reference the source tune throughout the piece. The vocals are really lovely and beautifully performed, but because of the mixing, I cannot discern the lyrics. The mixing is extremely flat and mid-heavy. I'm not seeing (on SPAN) anything egregious in the sub-40Hz range, although I suspect the low-lows of the piano and every guitar are stacking up on top of the bass to cause the overall low end to lose focus and be too loud. The master is hot, although I don't hear any artifacts. SPAN shows me the master is indeed clipping, and this seems to happen often when the final ceiling is set to 0db. I always set my final limiter to at least -0.5db to assure no clipping happens. I would probably let the mixing and mastering slide if it weren't for the source-lite problem, but all of this adds up to a resubmit for me. If this track does not pass, I suggest fixing the mixing by EQing lows out of everything that isn't kick or bass, so the low end isn't overloaded (which kills your mastering headroom). You'll also want to do a gentle EQ notch (wide-ish Q, 3-ish db GR) in all the midrange instruments somewhere between 1000-2000Hz (figure out where her fundamental is and that's the number) to allow the vocal to shine through. Right now, the vocal mushes into the soundscape. Make sure at least her primary vocal has 60-90ms of predelay on her reverb so she sounds up front. The guitar that accompanies the vocal when she sings is competing with the vocal for space in both frequency and panning. Panning that guitar much wider and letting the vocal take up most of the middle of the soundstage will go a long way toward cleaning this mix up too. Please fix this up and get it back to us! NO (please resubmit)

I concur with my fellow Js here entirely on all points. This is indeed a beautiful, emotional arrangement of this source. But the production needs some fixes before we can post it. There are a couple of issues causing the master to be overcompressed, as is very evident at the busy section starting at 2:34. That final big section is so loud, flat and overcompressed, it sounds crackly, especially when the bass drum hits, as everything is playing at once in the same frequency range. The soundscape is super crowded, giving the final master almost zero audible dynamics. With some proper EQ treatment, you'll be able to get this mix sounding louder without being crunchy and fatiguing as it is now. From the intro all the way until 1:36, there is some low-end content that is inaudible but is surely causing your mastering to be overcompressed. You will want to EQ out all low frequencies that are unneeded in each instrument, at the very minimum you will want to cut everything below 30Hz as this is mostly inaudible. Low-end rumble only steals your mastering headroom and makes clean mastering harder or impossible. The next issue is the surprisingly loud high-frequency dog-whistle sound at 15K Hz that DarkSim pointed out, happening starting at 1:46 and getting worse at 2:00. It is utterly ear-piercing and has to be removed or scaled way back. So, those two issues must be fixed. Then, focus on removing lows from any instrument that doesn't need lows. I suggest low-cutting each instrument while it is soloed, move the EQ up the frequency range and listen until the fundamental of the sound begins to change, then back it off a little. You don't want to change the character of the sound, only cut out low frequencies that are unnecessary. That will clear up your soundscape extremely well. Hopefully after you've done this, each element will sound more clear and they won't be competing in the same frequency range, and there will be room for that big bass drum when it hits, without causing your master limiter to constantly max out. The outro writing is somewhat abrupt but it works well enough. However your render cuts off before the end of the final reverb tail. Either render the entire tail, or fade it out so there is a smooth resolution of the sound, instead of a cutoff which there is now. I hope to hear this again as it is a lovely emotive interpretation of this source tune. NO (resubmit)

Ok I'm torn on this one. The arrangement and performances are terrific, this is a great remix of this source! It could surely be mixed more cleanly, it does feel a bit flat, but dealbreakingly so? I'm not so sure. If this doesn't pass, I do agree that the mix should get some EQ treatment, as DarkSim explained, removing lows from every element that isn't kick or bass, and an EQ notch in the bass to make room for the kick (or even a very light touch of sidechaining, very slight gain reduction, super fast attack and release) will also help. I can't quite see rejecting this excellent arrangement based on EQ alone. Leads could indeed stand to be a touch wider, but I understand keeping them centered since the rhythm guitars are super wide. I am going to listen to this a few more times before I vote, I can't simply put the third NO on this on EQ alone. Edit 10/12 - I asked Larry to chime in on this one, after I listened again with fresh ears today and still found the mixing to be adequate. He agrees with me. The arrangement and performances are great and people will enjoy this mix. Our bar for production is high but I disagree with the NO votes that this mixing isn't good enough to post. Let's do this. YES

Wow, what a unique take on some really old and well-known (and remixed to death) themes. I agree totally with MW on his comments. The changed harmonic structure of this mix from the original is really super cool. I also really like the dead-stops with one simple sfx as the bridge to the next section. The mixing is very full and the master is way too loud giving the soundscape almost no dynamics which is a shame, and MW is right that the low-end is light and everything is smooshed into the mids. The mixing could really be improved by carefully EQing all lows out of everything that's not kick or bass, and doing some extensive sidechaining on pretty much every element (lightly and in varying amounts) to allow the kick to breathe (it's really quiet and buried as is) and all the other elements to be more distinct. My ears are getting fatigued upon repeat listens because the mixing is so dense. And the fadeout ending is... arg, why... I hate fadeouts but I can't reject this mix on a fadeout. I'm really torn on sending this back for some mixing adjustments but ultimately what's here works well enough. The arrangement is so creative and I think people are going to really like this one. YES (borderline due to fatiguing mix/master)

The mix has an industrial sound right away and that's super cool. I really like the detuned piano. I have also never heard of a painting being an inspiration for music, at least in terms of mixing, and I'm not sure that's an approach that works for music, especially when the painting can be described as blurred or smeared or muddy. The listener will most likely not have seen the painting and cannot make the connection but they do hear the blurry/smeary/muddy effect. What I'm hearing is that this track is mixed the way you intended it to be and it is very full yet very gritty. The arrangement doesn't evolve much once it gets going, with only the arp giving it a different energy feeling and only briefly. The ending does appear rather abruptly but it works well enough. I have listened to this several times now and it is growing on me. I think the smeary industrialish soundscape creates a very interesting and dystopian vibe. A clearer lead instrument here or there would be very nice but a leadless arrangement works just fine. My main concern is lack of energy evolution throughout the piece; it ends up being very static in terms of soundscape as well as arrangement. All that said, I'm liking this more and more as I keep listening. It's weird and interesting and giving me the feels. I think this mix stands alone well enough to convey what it was intended to convey. This may not pass, and it surely won't be everyone's cup of tea, but I'm a sucker for weird, unique remixes full of emotion. YES

I hear how the instrumentation and vibe are the same as Ben's remixed version, but as Larry pointed out there are nice personalizations. The arrangement builds to a nice crescendo as more and more elements are added, and the mixing of all the elements works well. It's an exciting and nicely personalized version of these sources and an enjoyable listen. @prophetik musicThe Necrodancer remixes needed to retain not only a similar vibe but also the exact structure of Danny's originals because the arrangements needed to accommodate the shopkeeper vocals! That was an interesting element to work around! (And so funny to hear the actual shopkeeper vocals playing over your own remix) YES

This mix is very conservative in terms of source representation and the instrumentation and vibe are similar to source. As the other two Js have pointed out, there aren't a lot of new ideas presented until the sax joins in and that is a weak sound, although the writing there is really nice once it begins interpreting and soloing. The sound palette is cohesive for sure, but the entire mix sounds extremely dated. The mixing works well enough but lacks any sparkle and the low end is on the weak side. The drums feel very weak and every drum element is located dead center of the soundstage making the entire drum track very flat and lifeless. MW is right, this mix would have fit right in 15 years ago. The energy of the piece never evolves or changes as it moves along, making it feel longer than it should, at least up to the point of the solo. Perhaps if this were redone with more modern sounds and more unique elements and writing appearing earlier in the arrangement this would be a much more exciting mix, but as it stands now it's just too plain as well as too conservative. The idea is solid and I would love to hear this again with some sound and writing improvements. NO (resubmit)

The opening does sound like a straight cover, almost midi-rippy as DS said, but once the beats kick in I'm onboard, I love the soundscape and groove even though it is so conservative still. The mix sounds dynamite. Then the original/interpreted section begins at 2:24 which is just awesome! But what the heck, I'm in the middle of a full-on drop section, and it fades out??? I may be in the minority here by actually saying no to this, and I apologize because this mix sounds so good, but I feel (as the others have pointed out) that this is indeed not a full arrangement, even at the length of 3:27. If you came this far with it, why not finish? Instead of a fadeout, what my ears are expecting is some kind of resolution. It could be a second breakdown (something a bit longer, epic, and story-telling) followed by another full section (revisiting the source motifs but with new elements or drum groove or something) and then a proper cooldown and ending, or if that sounds like too much, skip the additional full section and just make a drumless cooldown lasting 30-60 seconds, featuring the original writing again, and controlling the energy down toward a proper conclusion. Make it make sense! MW said he has never rejected a track purely for a fadeout ending, and in eight years as a judge, neither have I (although I find them super disappointing every single time). But in this case, the sudden fadeout truncates the track at its fullest section and it just doesn't feel right. PLEASE finish this track because I love what's here. The production is on point and even though the master is super loud it never sounds overcompressed, so I have no production crits at all, great work. But DarkSim said it very well when he said that the extra arrangement work would elevate this mix from "passable" to "one of the best Aquatic Ambiance remixes of all time." Good luck to you on the rest of this vote. This track may pass, and people will surely enjoy it, but this might be one of those tracks where, a couple of years from now, you feel regret at having missed the opportunity to have really polished this arrangement to the awesomeness that it can clearly be! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Edit 8-29-22: Neon X sent in a revised version with a proper outro, and it works for me. Upon listening today, I hear the over-hyped highs Larry was talking about. Not sure how I missed that before. Regardless, this revision gets the job done for me. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Edit 8-30-22: Longer version is just what I was looking for. Perfection! YES

I hear the source clearly and continuously despite the key change. Wow, this is a cool beat. I'm really loving the acoustic elements along with synth timbres, and ethnic strings (is that a Koto) that appears at 1:28. The dark piano fits perfectly as a backdrop and makes me think of a rainy street at night in a city somewhere (the rain sfx are giving me feelz). There are so many new instruments introduced as the arrangement moves along, so while the energy stays chill throughout, the overall presentation remains fresh and interesting. The mix/master is indeed loud but super clean; it never feels or sounds overcompressed and everything is well audible as I would expect from DDRKirby. Love it. YES

Another lovely interpretation from Rebecca. As usual, the track appears to not be mastered; the peak max is -5db at the loudest point, although the track spends most of its time around -9 or -8, which is super quiet. I do not understand why the mastering critiques we give on each submission are never implemented or even acknowledged. This remains disappointing. The articulations are passable, although with consistent feedback from the judges I'm not clear on why no attempts are made to address the very specific issues that appear in each submission (unnatural releases and vibratos, thin/robotic textures). Larry is right though, the evolving textures an introduction of various instrumentation as the piece moves along keep the arrangement fresh and appealing. YES

This is definitely a straight cover, two playthroughs of the theme and a fadeout, which is not what we look for. But it sounds very good! The production is good although as my fellow Js have pointed out, the mix is loud and low-end heavy. The master compressor is working too hard, causing some unwanted sizzle and a high RMS value (-8.9db RMS is quite loud for an orchestral track, and at that volume it sounds overcompressed). If you wanted to stretch this out into a full, real arrangement, including some unique, interpreted sections, perhaps some original writing somewhere as well, with the mastering tamed somewhat, we would love to hear it! NO

This is quite a conservative arrangement, but the soloing with the violin, trumpet and guitar are great and fit the vibe perfectly. It starts off sounding just like a cover but I like the faster surf-rock style. I wish original writing kicked in sooner than 1:11, though, but the trumpet writing is particularly good. The guitar and organ soloing are also quite good. The mixing though is a problem. Every element is playing in the middle of the frequency range and in the middle of the stereo field. I actually opened up Ozone Imager to see if I was imagining this, but the Imager confirms that even in the fullest section, everything is playing in the middle, nearly mono. The mix will need to be cleaned up, cutting out unnecessary lows from everything other than kick and bass (this will clear out a ton of mud), and ideally placing some backing elements more widely in the soundscape (leads should be more centered but not mono). This will give the mix a nice, full soundscape without elements piling on top of each other in the middle. NO (resubmit)