Chimpazilla
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Posts posted by Chimpazilla
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What an awesome concept for this silly source tune, I love this! The performances are great, the island vibe is totally achieved. 6db of headroom is too much, though. Some normalization would surely do the job, as Wes mentioned, as it does not need more compression. I am having an issue with the bass though. On my setup, when the bass plays a G, I am getting punched in the brain at about 45Hz, enough to give me a headache. I applied a gentle notch filter on that frequency and it was more listenable. I would request that this be done, it will lower the boominess quite a bit. My brain thanks you in advance. Irie, mon.
edit 10/9/20: Fixes applied, full YES vote achieved!
YES
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Another quiet master, but it is such a delicate track that it feels appropriate, although I'd still prefer it a little louder. This is a fairly straightforward and lovely runthrough of the source theme. The ocarina is performed well, and I like the low and high doubling of the motif. The source tune is slow and relaxing and the remix maintains that slow vibe, and this doesn't make for the most exciting remix, but it's sweet and meditative. The outro goes on too long for my taste. It feels like the track is ending after about 2:40, but then there's a little more motif at 3:20. The track definitely could have ended after that last motif; dragging it out until 4:00 really feels excessive. I can't find any solid reasons not to accept this track, but I'd kind of like to see what other Js think of it before voting on it.
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Michael your creativity continues to amaze me. What a unique take on this source, you achieved what you set out to do perfectly. I adore this glitchy style and you've really mastered the artform of it. I agree with Wes, when the organic piano comes into the scene, the contrast is glorious. At 1:01, the "secret" sound totally seals the deal for me. I love this!
YES
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This is a quiet master, but not overly so as with other submissions. What a unique, interesting and emotional take on this source! It's very creepy and mysterious, and has a Harry Potter vibe. The soundscape and writing are rich and varied, the arrangement is very dynamic and it holds my interest throughout the track. As Rexy pointed out, the articulations aren't perfect, but what is here gets the job done extremely well. I love this!
YES
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I like this! The mix is definitely clipping, although I don't hear artifacts per se, it needs to be brought under 0db because YouTube compression will probably bring out artifacts. There is no reason it needs to be mixed this loud. The synths do sound simplistic but effective for this genre. The highs on some of the white noise sweeps goes into painful territory briefly, and there are a lot of them. The progression of the track goes on for quite awhile without anything incredibly interesting being introduced, which is ok but not optimal. The transition into breakbeat wasn't as jarring as I was expecting after reading Rexy's review, but I admit I'm glad I wasn't dancing to it at the time! Overall I think this is pretty solid, but the length of the track really calls for more interest as it develops. At an absolute minimum, the mastering must be brought under 0db.
NO (resubmit please)
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Yep, another mix with huge headroom. Other than that, I really like the instrumentation used in this conservative mix. I particularly like the low breathy instrument paired with the mallets, flute and harpsichord, the contrast is just lovely. I find plenty of variation from the source including lots of Rebecca's signature flourishes. I think the two themes transition well. The track is simple yet effective, a relaxing and fun listen.
YES
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Ah, the source is easier to hear on this one than on other remixes submitted by Michael (whew!). What an interesting mixed approach here. This mix has an 80s vibe too it, as well as a gorgeous Asian flair and also a chiptune feel. The synth guitar adds even another element to the feel of the track, and the humanization of the guitar is done well. I like the various percussion and white noise blasts. What an eclectic mix of sounds. Super fun!
YES
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Michael tends to remix somewhat nebulous sources which makes it difficult when the remix is very experimental and also nebulous (and even more so when the judge isn't familiar with the source!) but his approach is one that I happen to enjoy very much and find interesting and cerebral. I do hear that source arp throughout the remix. Some of the timbres in this remix are stylistically crushed and grating, as the bell sound (music box?) that morphs leading up to 1:13, this won't be everyone's cup of tea and I can see why MindWanderer said what he did about that transition. The bell lead starting at 1:13 has that wonderful clicky attack from stylistic compression, I love it but again not everyone's thing. That bell sound is quite low-mid heavy, almost enough to be painful but not quite. All that said, I have no requests for anything to be fixed, I think it's great just as it is.
edit: I'm going ? for now because I'm not sure there's enough source.
edit 10/9/20: I am revisiting this. I still really like this track. The intro does take too long to ramp up, with pure silence for almost eight seconds. Ultimately, the only connection I can hear to the source is in the source's backing arp, which is heavily interpreted throughout the remix. I don't think this one quite meets our standards. I would love it though if you would revisit the mix and make the source connections stronger, because I really like this track very much.
NO (please resubmit)
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I LOVE the approach to this remix. The heavy well-produced glitching, sampling and sub bass gives a wonderfully calming and yet unsettling atmosphere. The piano artifacts fit in perfectly. This sounds amazing on my setup and the soundscape is huge and varied, that perfect combo of full and empty at the same time. The short vocal section is a very interesting, thought-provoking and intimate interlude (wow, your great-grandfather!). This is the kind of track that I really dig but it won't be everyone's cup of tea. I find the mixing and balancing of every element ideal. I love the reverses too. I hear how much effort went into the production of this. I'm not a huge fan of the abrupt ending with no resolution, but it goes with the disjointed theme of this track. I'm concerned about source use and this is going to require a timestamp check. I'm going to give this a yes on creativity and production, pending the timestamp analysis.
YES
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Is it just me or does the lead guitar sound like it's a few cents high in pitch generally? I also hear many sour guitar notes beginning at 1:03 and continuing until 1:34. The mixing of this track is serviceable but the lead sounds quite small and thin. The choir/pad instrument that plays throughout the track is verbatim from the source, it is repetitive as it only plays two notes and often it clashes with the rhythm guitar writing in the remix. It would be good to use a different filler instrument perhaps during the breakdown, that is a good opportunity to introduce more interest as well as a build toward the final chorus. More sour guitar notes from 2:31 until the end of the track. Covering this source this conservatively in metal isn't exactly groundbreaking; the arrangement itself is really too conservative to stand alone as a remix. I can't pass this until the mixing and sour notes are addressed at a minimum, but I'm thinking that other than the breakdown it may be too conservative even with these issues addressed.
NO
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I love the surf rock sound of this! The performances are very good. I'm stumped on this though.... I know this source well and I cannot pick it out, except at 1:18-1:34 (0:59 in source video). After ten listens I still can't make out any other source. Other Js, what say you?
edit: Thanks Wes for that source breakdown! I still can't hear it. I'm leaning towards NO because I feel like it just shouldn't be this hard to hear the source. If there was more of a flavor of the source in the mix, to connect to, then 46% could possibly be considered, but in this case (with a mix with such a different feel from the source) it just isn't enough source. Still, very fun listen!
NO
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Wow, this is short, but it packs a lot into that short time. This is going to be a very split vote. I could see it passing, but I'm going to say that I'd like two production fixes before passing it. One, the leads are significantly quieter than the backing guitars (which sound amazing). The leads need to come up a bit in volume. Also, that snare sounds really mid-heavy and uncomfortably thwacky, it needs a touch more highs and less mids. I'd pass it with those two fixes, although ideally I'd love to hear another reprise at the end to really finish up the arrangement.
NO (resubmit)
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This is a fun tune and is mostly very well produced. I agree with my fellow Js that the vocal performance is a weakness, and it would really benefit from a manual comb-through to correct some of the more off-key notes, which can be painstaking but would really help here. Autotune might be fun too, but would give the vocal a totally different flavor, and Autotune didn't exist in the 80s so it might not fit. As for the vocal mixing, I feel like the vocals could come forward just a bit, perhaps with some added bite with a hint of distortion, or perhaps a longer predelay on the reverb, but those are extreme nitpicks. It's a fun song and none of the issues break the deal for me. Let's do this!
YES
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I agree with my fellow Js that this mix sounds mid-low heavy, but it's not striking me as boomy, and my sub isn't freaking out. I like a lot of bass and it sounds great on my mixing system, but I can see how it might sound boomy in a car. That said, the mix sounds to me as if it has been high-passed, lacking sparkle. I also agree that the master sounds heavily compressed, which is fatiguing but I don't hear any compression artifacts. The arrangement is a source sandwich, which is pushing the boundary of being a medley, and the transitions are not smooth, but they work well enough and the track still sounds cohesive. The guitar performances are very good! I like it, count me in on this one.
YES
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I'm afraid I have to agree with the NO votes for the most part. Prophetik likes the change to major at 2:18, but I feel like it messes up the flow, and that first note right at 2:18 just sounds like an error to me. I like the later shifts to major, those seem to work better. Other than that, this is a lovely romp through the source tune. I have no problem with the volume level on this one. But I feel like it is just too conservative and droning.
NO (borderline)
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I'm not sure how I feel about this one. The harp in the intro is low-mid heavy in an odd way. The choir is uncanny but used well/briefly enough. When the flute comes in, it has vibrato on it full-time which sounds unnatural to me. The overall writing feels like an upgraded midi to me for a huge amount of time. I hear some variation starting at 1:29, but it's back to upgraded midi at 1:52. The piano sounds stiff. The piano writing is identical to the source including the little rushed notes. At 2:42 there is some writing variation again, until the end, but overall this is VERY conservative. The instrumentation and mixing are passable, the humanization squeaks by other than my nags. My main concern is whether the arrangement is too conservative overall. I'm going to wait to see what others think.
edit: After reading Wes's words, I feel more confident with my position on this, which is that the sample issues along with the arrangement being too conservative put this just under the bar for me.
NO
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I really like this laid-back concept, and the instrumentation ideas are great. But I hear what Larry is nagging about. Your instruments are not mixed or balanced well nor are they placed well in the soundscape. I hear your lead instruments way in the back instead of the front, and what does find it's way to the front are your acoustic guitar and accordion, which should clearly be in the back. Even though those elements are wide-panned, they are too loud and dry and they are totally drowning out the leads that you have more centered. (This wide placement is fine, it's the levels and mixing of those elements that isn't working) At the same time, all instruments feel like they occupy the same space sonically; almost everything is in the same frequency range so it sort of mushes together. The bass doesn't sound as bad to me as it does to Larry, but it does sound a little indistinct to me, and when it plays higher notes it sticks out uncomfortably. I think this is all down to mixing. I recommend a complete re-balancing the levels of this track, for starters. Backing elements have got to be quieter than leads. Also, use reverb with varying predelays to indicate which instruments are closer to the front. Make sure to eq everything below 150-200Hz completely out of every element that isn't kick or bass, this is probably why the low end sounds so indistinct to me, there are too many frequencies competing in the lows, creating mush. Like Larry, I'm sorry to sound so negative, because this really is a very cute concept and the performances are mostly good, but at this point the production just isn't getting the job done.
NO (resubmit)
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7 hours ago, Trism said:
(two Chris', what are the odds?!).
I'm a Kris too. Three Ch(K)ris's. Wow!
- Troyificus, HoboKa and Manji
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I have loved this track as I have heard it develop over the past few weeks. It is very sweet and relaxing and well executed, full of lovely detail. I agree with prophetik about the sour notes and I have mentioned them before, they are noticeable but not distracting; certainly not worthy of holding this lovely arrangement back. Wes your arrangements always speak to my soul.
YES
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Just FYI everyone, the rendering errors were all on my end and had to do with issues with my Lynx card. With the help of my computer-expert friend, I was able to solve that issue today, which is a huge weight off my shoulders as well as finally getting this track sounding the way it should! It's a beautiful track and I enjoyed working on it!
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I have to agree with Rexy in full, she nailed it. I love this idea, "pseudo-surf" is a great term to describe it. The mix is way too hot, this much clipping is unacceptable; the track needs an entire re-balance and mastering with levels not exceeding 0db (but preferably more like -0.3 at least). The arrangement is short and repetitive, in writing and instrumentation, three playthroughs of the same material, and the ending is an abrupt drop off. I agree with Emu about the drum breakdown, great idea but it sounds too basic to carry of that section solo. Cool ideas but this needs more work.
NO
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The piano is lovely. I love the drum work too, but I'm finding it repetitive and relentless, I wish for a breakdown somewhere, longer than five seconds (2:27-2:32). I agree with Emu that the length of the track isn't supported with quite enough variation, but honestly I think that would be remedied by dropping the busy drums down to minimal or nothing for nice long-enough breakdown segment to let it breathe and then rebuild the energy. The mastering has to be brought down for sure, there is audible distortion when the snare/kick/hat hit at the same time. Please fix and send it back, it's really nice!
NO (please resubmit)
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The intro with the strange piano is odd. The tambourine/hat loop feels very stiff, repetitive, plodding and out of place, and the pace is too fast while the piano and accordion play whole notes. That loop never stops, it is relentless. The flute is quite nice, best part of the mix so far. I like this arrangement, but that tambourine/hat loop must cease at some point during the track. I think that bothers me even more than the production problems because the arrangement never gets a chance to breathe, it needs a breakdown without that loop. Perhaps some variation with another loop, one with a different energy level, at some point would also be good. Great ideas here, but there's a bit more work to do on this one.
NO
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I totally dig this. The guitar is ace, and the bass is making me smile big time. (is that you Deia?) Loving the entire soundscape and writing. I hear the weird chords, and the weird triangle thing, but they don't bother me much at all. My only real nitpick is the drums feel repetitive after awhile, and that abrupt cutoff ending really reveals the loopiness of it.... oof, please fix. This is super fun though, yes indeed.
YES (conditional, please to fix oof ending)
OCR04152 - *YES* Life Force "Surgical Strike"
in Judges Decisions
Posted
This is a fun and epic track, and well produced although it's loud/sausage-y and peaking at 0.9db. The mixing is well balanced. The master is very clean, but the peaking above 0 might mean compression artifacts on YouTube. Other than that I have no complaints, it is a very well crafted, exciting and enjoyable track.
YES (not conditional, but it would be nice if the master didn't exceed 0db)