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Chimpazilla   Judges ⚖️

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Posts posted by Chimpazilla

    "The Goddess Gets Groovy" (The Goddess Appears/Great Fairy Mountain Remix)

    in Post Your Game ReMixes!

    Posted

    Whoa, where'd da bass go??? I like the new bass writing but it is so quiet I can barely hear it! Bring it up, but be careful to cut the low frequencies below 35-40Hz out.

    I like the added grooviness! I like that synth solo at the end! (sounds a lot like, nah... haha!) I think you could begin the solo at 2:21 though, start out tame and get groovier after 2:33. 2:21 - 2:33 is a lost opportunity otherwise.

    The snare is still a touch loud and is also dry. Some extra snare variation would be good. With varied velocities. (not the same hit each time)

    Also, I'm hearing some moments of overcompression/clipping, like the harp in the intro, and even the bell lead that starts at 0:20. Make sure those aren't getting limited too hard. Make sure the overall track isn't getting limited too hard, it does sound hot in several places. If so, you'll have to go back and rebalance some things.

    It's improving! Nice work.

    "The Goddess Gets Groovy" (The Goddess Appears/Great Fairy Mountain Remix)

    in Post Your Game ReMixes!

    Posted

    I like this, what a creative idea. There are some really unique inspired ideas here. There will absolutely need to be more drum variation, the same kick/snare/shaker combo gets old. At a minimum, it needs some soft crashes at the transition points! I think there may be crashes in here, but wow are they quiet. Change up the shaker pattern at least by 1:33, better yet, make it a different instrument altogether, and some different patterns, to accent the different moods of each section.

    I'm not sold on that bass. I know it is meant to be funky, but it just sounds a bit flabby and out of place to me... personal opinion. Also, bass writing could be varied here and there, it's very static.

    My main gripe about the song is the leads. When they play, they are buried. At 1:33, there is a piano playing. I don't think it is meant to lead there, but what if it did? Push the fairy melody back a bit, bring that piano forward and do something more original with it. Right now it is just a jumble of countermelodies with no focus. Go through the song slowly and carefully, considering what is the main focus at each point that the listener should be paying attention to, then bring that out.

    That break at 1:57 is my favorite part! The staccato strings and new chords are gorgeous. But there is that *same* shaker, yawn! Even changing that to a soft hi hat would give variation. Or what about just a few triangle hits? Just something different. And at 2:09, there is an opportunity to introduce some new kind of lead over the established instrumentation, something soulful and louder than the background!

    Again at 2:22, just background and no lead. You could do a mini-lead melody here, getting us ready for the lead solo that follows at 2:33. I like the snare break that leads up to 2:33 a lot, the song needs more of this kind of thing!

    Harp could use just a drop more reverb. Just a drop!

    I hope you keep going, I really like the ideas you've got here!

    Smoov Groov preview

    in Post Your Original Music!

    Posted

    The brass was a sample out of Smoker's Delight which I processed and did some chopping and repitching to get the melody and rhythm I wanted while still keeping all the unique articulations of a recorded human performance 'n' stuff. A lot of the sounds in this track are samples I've treated as such.

    I'm hugely impressed 'n stuff by this. It sounds great. 'n stuff.

    Intense Bass: Done in mixing, or mastering?

    in Music Composition & Production

    Posted

    Jordan, definitely the bulk of bass processing should occur during mixing. You will most likely eq the bass to cut out extreme lows (below 30Hz) fairly aggressively, then probably you'll want to cut out some mud anywhere from 200-400Hz (use your ears, don't cut too aggressively). Depending on the patch or sample, you may want to boost (slightly) anywhere from 2000-3000Hz to bring out the click or pluck or attack. As for mastering, you may want to use a mastering compressor, gently, to melt the highest peaks (typically bass and kick and/or snare) into a cohesive range, then finish it up with a limiter to catch the wild peaks from going over 0db (just make sure the track isn't crushed or overcompressed after you limit, then something is definitely too loud, go back and rebalance the instruments).

    What stage of production is it best to handle the bass in, mixing or mastering? I imagine one would either mix the bass to be louder in the mix, or EQ out more bass frequencies during mastering. Which is better, or does it depend?

    Happy Birthday, Emunator!!

    in General Discussion

    Posted

    Happiest of birthdays, dear friend. I hope you had a great weekend, although I see you spent quite a bit of time judging! (wow, you guys slammed through TEN mixes yesterday...) Enjoy your day. Please be careful though, (don't drive), should you decide to exercise your newly legal right to drink! {{{big hugs}}} :)

    Streets of Rage "Souled Out"

    in Post Your Game ReMixes!

    Posted

    Maybe I should look at this as a learning experience, in multiple ways. Not just for music, but my reactions.

    This is the most important thing you said. Bravo! And we are all learning this, every day. Working within a forum is an excellent way to work on your people skills, too. :)

    No one here is mad at you. In fact, this spurred quite the cohesive conversation I think. It's all good.

    So make some new stuff, post here, and we'll all work through it together. :)

    Streets of Rage "Souled Out"

    in Post Your Game ReMixes!

    Posted

    I spent six months on a track once, it got horrible critiques in the wip forum. Clearly I was doing something wrong. I took careful note of the critiques and started something new.

    That something new took me four months and also got horrible critiques in the wip forum. Clearly I was still doing something wrong.

    I reached out to some musicians whose music I respected, and made friends with them. I sent track after track to them, and clearly I was doing stuff wrong. A bit less wrong as time went on.

    Each time I received bad criticism, either in a forum or in an email, I thanked the person heartily for the time they took to write the crit. Then I went off and cried for awhile, then considered the things said, and tried again.

    I'm now at a point where I can write something within a couple of weeks and get fairly good comments on it. Still, each person who takes the time to comment points out to me the things I still haven't learned, or things I just couldn't hear because I'm too close to the mix. This has been absolutely invaluable and I'm so thankful for it. I rely on it. I then go off and learn that thing, or fix that thing, or try that new thing.

    Each and every time I respond to anyone in a post or email, I'm always kind and gracious, even if the words written to me weren't so nice. If I can't respond kindly right away, I say nothing. Eventually, I am able to thank the person for whatever they said, and 9 times out of 10 their advice was correct. Clearly I'm doing something right. (funny, quite often, these very people whose words hurt me the most are the ones who give the most helpful advice, and often they become my good friends shortly thereafter, but only if I've treated them with respect and kindness, which I always do)

    Sometimes I paint myself into a corner on a track and it really can't be salvaged. I used to hang onto that track for months, not wanting to admit having "wasted" time. Now, when I hit that "painted into a corner" thing, I either reach out to a collaborator to see if they have any ideas for the track, or I scrap the track. Either way, I've learned something from the effort and the time is never "wasted." Clearly I'm doing something right.

    I also find myself getting invited onto album projects from time to time. I now have a reputation for being reliable and good to work with, as well as an improving musician. Clearly I'm doing something right.

    Hang in there. Try again. Make some new friends. Make some new tracks. Get feedback along the way instead of waiting until the very end. And above all, be civil in what you write. You'll get there. :)

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