Chimpazilla   Judges ⚖️

Whoa that vocoded "rock it" is awesome. Very cool, chill, groovy groove. Man, I love Serum. These sounds are nice, care to send me over a preset pack? Please? Such tasty processing. Omg that drop. Excellent detailing. Dem growls. When one hears such sounds, what can one say. Holy hell, what a cool song. Going in my favorites folder. edit (20 minutes later): Thank you Mike for the preset pack! ALL OF THE YES

I see what you did thar with the title, Oceans Azure, OA, I get it! Agreed with Larry about the plodding pace, very deliberate sounding. The snare sounds like a louder/sharper copy of the kick, so it just feels like an accented kick note instead of a snare. The melody feels very stiff due to this rigid pacing with the drums. I'm feeling like this drum groove doesn't really accent this writing or soundscape as well as it could. The writing and sounds seem to suggest a more flowing/natural drum groove, with softer and more fitting drum timbres, instead of this rigid, heavy 4x4 kick/snare pattern. The instrument writing (leads, strings, piano) also feels quite rigid and grid-snapped. There are some areas in the mix where the harmonies are awkward, for example at 0:58 the piano goes off key or something, at 1:21 the strings sound off and again at 1:36. From 1:36-2:20 there isn't much of interest going on, no leadwork at all (or is it the strings, or piano?), and the harmonies are all over the place with many instances of things being off here and there, and the drums continue to plod. The synth lead throughout this track has a strange volume envelope making some attacks much too sharp and others too slow. Sorry to come down so hard on this. Perhaps make some changes and resub? I'd love to hear it with a revised drum groove, something more mellow. NO

No worries, I'm sending him the votes in an email now.

For the FF3 project ReMixer: OA I took a peaceful and serene song and made it a bit more mysterious and languid. The light warriors have been through a lot, and just want to take a little break. They discovered that you can postpone the end of the world indefinitely, as long as you don't speak to the right NPC, and are just going to chill on their boat for a bit before continuing their mission.

Lots to like here, really nice performances by both gentlemen! I really like this arrangement too, great mood shifts and energy changes. The drumming gets a little static in most of the first half (most notable from 2:58-3:34), then gets crazy-creative in the second half. I think the track is mastered too hot, -7.7db RMS might be a little high for such a mellow track, and I hear some distortion here and there mostly in the first half when the soundscape is more exposed. If you wanted to master this a little more quietly before it hits the front page, that would be greeeeeeeat. Mkay? Thanks a bunch. YES

"Homecoming" source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxkg6ZJsrMM Level99 and OA A pretty nice track we worked on together, finishing it up when Stevo flew out to visit me in MN. I love the theme, and I think we added some nice new ideas to an already great song. This has been sitting on my hard drive for a few years and i think maybe it's time for people to be able to hear it. Stevo- Steel-string acoustic guitar, electric guitar, keyboards, drum programming Andrew - Nylon-string guitar, electric guitar, keyboards

This is pretty darn cool. I like the filtered intro. The vocoded lyrics are excellent. The lead synth timbre is a little bit dry. Lots of good backing arps and ear candy. I like the acoustic drum cameos. I like the arrangement although is suffers from a bit of samey-ness, but there are nice harmonies and backing elements thrown in to the repeated sections to mix it up. The arrangement could really use a drumless breakdown somewhere, to give the listener a break from the relentless beat. I love how you wove in Vampire Killer, it's subtle and fits perfectly. Overall, it works for me. YES

Hey there, Remixer name: Jorito Real name: Jorrith Schaap Website(s): YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/Joeirot Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/jorito Userid: 3899 Submission information: Name of Game(s) Remixed: Castlevania 1, Castlevania Order of Ecclesia Name of Arrangement: Kill The Groove Names of songs arranged: Sorrow’s Distortion (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=db28R9LZBN4), Wicked Child (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7PFm7mrdVY), Vampire Killer (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RMLgBmO4ppY) Comments about the mix: Another track for the loser bracket in the Castlevania: Cacaphony of Incarnation compo on OCR. I was pretty inspired by http://ocremix.org/remix/OCR03319 to give glitch hop a shot. So I did some research in what glitch hop actually means and started working. Cycling to work (always good for idea generation!) I came up with some additional ideas to add some weird vocoded lyrics in there, some acoustic drums and vocal sfx from Ecclesia and also threw in a nudge to Vampire Killer, just because. Unfortunately due to deadline pressure and these it didn’t really turn into glitch hop, but I found the end result to be pretty enjoyable nonetheless. No source breakdown this time, because it should be pretty straightforward. However, there are bits and pieces of Wicked Child all over the place. After working with this source for the 4th or 5th time you really can milk it for all its worth and squeeze out some parts to inject them here and there Lyrics are notably silly because I didn’t take this track to be very serious, and anyway, it seems to fit the track. Lyrics: Wicked Child, do the dance, make a move Crack the whip, kill the groove Crack the whip, before I kill the groove Wicked Child, do the dance, make a move Crack the whip before I kill the groove Wicked Child, with your Heart of Fire Dance all night to feed your dark desire Into the castle, down into the lair Dance with the devil, there is no despair Crack the whip and step into the groove Dracula, he makes your body move (2x) Body move Body move Crack the whip, before I kill the groove Feel the beat Kill the groove Feel the beat That makes your body move (2x) And let nobody kill the groove Cheers, Jorrith

Not much to add to what the two gentlemen above have said. The instrumentation is gorgeous. Continue to work on your humanization skills; each of your submissions is better than the previous one in that regard. After reviewing several of your submissions, I feel that your biggest goal should be to learn to compose complete arrangements that sound like one cohesive track, whether you're working with one source or five, it can be done. As an example, you could use one main source, and another source from the same game (or another game but I prefer same-game) as a breakdown section, then back to the main source before the song ends. When you return to the source you started with, that's what makes your song not a medley! I also like to weave two or more source motifs together as melody and countermelody, that's always fun (I did that here: Wistful). Keep in mind that a good arrangement has dynamics: an intro, first verse and/or chorus, some sort of breakdown (lower intensity, different vibe, which can be achieved easily with a second source), another verse and/or chorus, then an outro. Many of your arrangements have no dynamics as they just move along at the same intensity. So yeah, take your writing skills to the next level with some improved arranging skills, and you'll be getting a new OCR mixpost every week! NO

Ah yes this one. The arrangement is conservative enough, plenty of source there. The track has that classic 80s-inspired-yet-fully-modernized sound I've come to expect from Sir_Nuts that he does so well. Soundscape is full, kick is pumping, and there's tons of soloing and fun writing details going on. I have to admit I agreed with Gario about those bass notes. The revision here is much better although my ears still tell me a note or two is off here and there. Certainly not enough to bring down the entire groovy track! YES

Bump, sampled audio removed, revised render provided in OP.

I paneled the first version of this but never voted on it, so I don't really remember it, so I'm pretty much hearing it fresh. It seems like repetitive beats were the main dealbreaker on version #1. The intro and outro vocals are super dry and sound tacked on, I dislike them as bookends here. If there was some ambiance or the beginning of the beat or something with the vocals, they wouldn't sound so tacked on. It takes a long time for any leadwork to begin, all the way until 1:19 it's leadless, this would have been a good opportunity to introduce some motif, original or source, lightly into the scene. Once the lead begins, I like the timbre, I wish there weren't two identical playthroughs of the source material back to back though, doing the second iteration with a new lead would have broken that up very nicely. As it is, the second iteration is nearly copy-pasta, but I like when the beats briefly change up, that's the kind of thing I want to hear. The marching drumming at 2:33 is a great idea, the drumming could be mixed to be a bit more present and more impact, and I'd sure like some more present leadwork there, your original lead filters in at 2:49 in but it's really quiet. When the kick enters again, it works really nicely together with the marching drums. I like the bits of slap bass in the mix. I like your bass wub-work too, as you get better at producing I recommend you learn how to make your wubs stand out better, I can direct you to a fabulous teacher if you want his name (bLiNd). This mix has a lot going for it and a few structural flaws. I think it's close if not there already. If you're truly new at producing, you're well on your way, so if this doesn't make it this time, I think it's not going to take much to get it there. I'm going to let other Js vote before I finalize my thoughts. edit 7/8/16: I agree with my peers, the good outweighs the bad here. The arrangement and mixing still have issues, but please take our crits to heart for next time. Take the time to learn production, as you already have some pretty strong skills. Looking forward to hearing more from you! YES (borderline)

Update 7/12/16: Marc has sent me a new version with improved mixing. His mastering was on the quiet side, so I mastered it more and sent it to him. He approved of what I did, so he sent me his unmastered wav so I could master it up right. Here is the result (wav and 192mp3). I still feel like there are structural improvements he could make to his track and we have discussed them, but this track is sounding mighty good now. I think Marc will do big things at OCR! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ previous decision Remixer Name: shaboogen Real Name: Marc Losper Email Address: UserID: 33244 Game arranged: Super Street Fighter II: The New Challengers Name of arrangement: An Enjoyable Face Remodelling Song arranged: Cammy stage theme Link to original: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WGXCbfo3JY As I stated previously, The Cammy theme has always been my favourite in all of Street Fighter. My goal was to create a version of the song that suited both my own sensibilities as a lover of funky and fun electro and still encapsulated everything that I loved about the original song. With regards to the original judge's decision, the prevailing feedback seemed to be focused on the arrangement (specifically the lack of variation in the drum pattern) as opposed to the production quality itself. To address this, I did spend some time focusing on producing a more ambitious arrangement. I added a new percussion line that changes at various points in the song in order to add more interest. I also modified the original B section into a full breakdown, preceded by a small half time section in order to break up monotony. (I'm unsure whether or not the voice samples to open and close the track are allowed. The rules don't specifically state they aren't, but obviously licensing is tricky. These are easy enough to remove if required) Although there wasn't a great deal said about the production itself, on reflection there were a lot of things that were below par so I went back and cleaned up all the synths and EQs along with giving the track a fresh master. The new version (to my ears anyway) has significantly more clarity and allows all the sounds more room to shine through and should hopefully deal with any issues with regards to shrill-ness or mud. To be a little clearer, I was a very new producer when I sent my first tune through and I know now that it was very premature in my development. Hopefully, these new changes bring the tune more in line with OCR standards. Thanks https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WGXCbfo3JY

What a cool take on such an odd non-melodic source. I like it a lot. I feel like the whole mix, and the drums in particular are a little more lo-fi than they need to be, but I assume this was a purposeful stylistic choice as it comes from original lo-fi samples. It's amazing what you did with those samples. Regardless of my feelings about this much lo-fi-ness, this works for me. YES

Remixer name: Marshall ArtWebsite: http://marshallart.bandcamp.com/members: jmr (Jeffrey Roberts), streifig (Mikhail Ivanov)Song title: But You're Still HungrySource: Chrono Trigger - Ruined Worldhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1HhLHfUTD90MP3: WAV: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MqJV1tkBbKk Here's Marshall Art's take on yet another melody-less source, this time from Chrono Trigger. It's one of three songs we made for Chronicles of Time. (For anyone reading this who lives under a rock, it's a massive 5-disc fully-licenced Chrono Trigger tribute project. It was on the front page of iTunes next to Taylor Swift, so you know it's cool.) As per our usual, everything you hear in this song is a single NES (2A03 with VRC6 expansion) and umpteen layers of guitar. I'm particularly proud of the drum sound I was able to pull from the NES (which under normal circumstances is only able to pull of a single, lo-fi sample at a time), and I've gotta hand it to Mikhail for crafting the dreamy, shimmery guitar chords which carry the song. Couple things which I want to point out in the interest of full disclosure: - The melody played by the triangle wave channel at 1:38 is loosely based on the bass line from Lab 16's Ruin, which we also covered for Chronicles of Time. - The dissonant bell sample heard at the end is recreated from the original Korg M1 sample and not ripped from the SNES game. I know how picky a certain company is about sampling from their games. If you're not convinced, listen carefully to the original SNES song and you'll hear the quick echo effect that I didn't recreate because I failed to notice it until long after our version was done. Part of me still wants to go back and fix that... - The guitar at the end is "inspired by" the intro of Deftones' Pink Maggit. I feel like it's fair to call 14 notes in a nearly 6 minute song an "extremely limited" reference, but I'll leave that for you all to judge. All the best, -Jeff / jmr Marshall Art

This is super cool! I'm loving all the drum pattern changeups, especially the breakbeat/crazy breakbeat near the end. I feel like the mixing could be a little better, the whole track is a bit bottom heavy and some instruments and drums (snare) could have some lows removed and it would all sit better. The leads and also the backing saw are a bit plain, but it's all used really well. I love this arrangement. There's copy pasta going on here, but there are differences added to the final section to differentiate it from the previous iteration, mainly the heavy gating of the saw (which would be so much cooler with some effects or modulation on that dry timbre) and dem breakbeats. Count me in. edit 2/20/17: I still like this track, it sounds good to me, my assessment and crits still stand. However, I was not aware of Lunar, I hadn't heard the track until now. This remix clearly seems to be a careful remake of Lunar, following VR's "making of" stream, then adapted to the Pokemon source. The remake is well done, I must say good job on this! But ultimately it does sound too close to Lunar for me to give this a pass for OCR. Switching to NO

Contact Information Remixer name: Kamex Real name: Erick Nunez Email Adress: Website: https://www.youtube.com/user/GreatGabite?&ab_channel=Kamex Userid: 32509 Submission Information Pokemon Mystery Dungeon Explorers of Time/Darkness/Sky "The end of a Journey" Temporal Tower Soundtrack https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9hSrrXJkHjQ&ab_channel=dialga328 This track is what I'd probably consider one of my best works. I was always a huge fan of mystery dungeon music and I'm happy to be able to express my love for the soundtrack through song. Especially this one as it is the last dungeon in the main game, ending your journey which is why I tried to give it a more sad tone to the arrangement. The original had more of a motivational kind of tone, one that says "let's save the world!" but for this remix,I had it more focused on the fact that you cease to exist after completing the deed.

ReMixer Name: DusK Real Name: Dustin Branscum Email: Website: http://www.itstartsatdusk.com User ID: 24328 Game: Guild Wars 2: Heart of Thorns Arrangement Name: "Mordrem Stomp" Song Arranged: "Heart of Thorns Theme" Platform: PC Composer: Maclaine Diemer Release Year: 2015 Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QtvnP91PDfQ ReMix link: Comments: This is a remix that I created to surprise ArenaNet with when I go down to Seattle next week -- which probably means that, by the time this is posted, I'll have just celebrated the first anniversary of that trip :D. I decided to just straight up heavy the hell out of this source. Not a whole lot more to it than that; A lot of this track is simply me taking liberties with the structure and having fun setting the chord progressions and melodies to metal. I contacted two people in secret to get feedback on this mix and neither got back to me. However, I feel pretty confident in this track. Here's hoping you guys dig it!

I love Lavender Town with it's odd, eerie and unsettling harmonies. It has so much potential for many different types of remixes. The intro and outro synth is piercing. The synths used throughout the mix are quite vanilla sounding with minimal processing or effects for added interest. The motif is played many times verbatim. The main thing I hear in this mix is the potential for a cool trap beat, but it never appears. The beats here are very plain 4x4 kick pattern, the percussion samples are weak. The drop at 1:26 could be so huge and powerful, with some killer trap kick patterns and pitched 808 snare. I'd love to hear it this way! I suggest you look into it, you've already got a good sub bass going in that section. Anyway, I think it's a good start, the arrangement structure is solid enough, but as it stands the mix is just too plain, in writing and timbres used. NO (resubmit)

Remixer: Martin H (Woohoo Chant) I hope you guys like it

The intro sidechaining is too heavy, even for me, especially on the lead bell timbre. The beats all through the mix are quite simply written and with bland timbres with no delay or anything to add interest to them. The lead sidechaining is again too heavy starting at 1:34, it becomes disorienting. The breakdown at 1:34 is not terribly interesting; doing a drumless section with more/different sounds/sfx etc. would go a long way toward breaking up the arrangement. The lyrics are interesting, the vocals are ok but the processing is very static all the way through the track, it would be nice to hear them processed in a different way here or there, some harmony added, or the occasional verse center-panned to contrast with the wide reverby vocals. Let's see what other J's think, but I'm leaning towards NO

Contact Information:ReMixer name: ladyWildfirereal name: Elizabeth Carterwebsite: https://soundcloud.com/ladywildfire, https://www.facebook.com/ladyWildfire/, https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9uzIBogkhkGxjFBzMMNfwg userid: 11659Submission Information:Name of games arranged: Castlevania 3, Castlevania: Curse of Darkness, Castlevania: Symphony of the nightName of arrangement: VampireName of individual songs arranged: Abandoned Castle, Entrance, Warakiya Village Lyrics & Source Usage: (Abandoned Castle) (Warakiya Village) (Entrance) (bell intro) sirens are calling enticing my darling captured in my trance don't keep me starving every night we all go out to play and dance the night away until the morning sun don't you want to be born again living forever, your new life begins move to the beat set yourself free we can dance til the end of the night your blood smells so sweet and now i can see that you're wondering if this could be right we'll stay here together we'll be young forever don't be afraid dear nothing to fear when you're having the time of your life (synth lead 1) (synth lead 2) driven by hunger no sense of danger sinful adventure we live for the pleasure every night we all go out to play and dance the night away until the morning sun and when you hear the beat the party never ends who'd ever want to be human again? so move to the beat and set yourself free we can dance til the end of the night your blood smells so sweet and now i can see that you're wondering if you'll miss the light we'll stay here together we'll be young forever darkness will take you so don't be afraid of the shadows that dance in the night so melt into me my kiss is so sweet and i promise you won't feel a thing one day you'll see our love will grow with the power the darkness can bring we'll stay here together we'll be young forever i hold the key to life never-ending as long as you stay here with me

I really like the concept for this remix, the idea of adding additional/different chord progressions, it gives the source a totally different feel. The arrangement is cool, source is evident, the rhythm guitars and drums fit nicely. The track has an 80s flavor to it with the synths and guitars combined. My big issue with this track is that it sounds so overcompressed to me. I don't hear distortion but the dynamics are very flat. At 1:28 for example, every instrument sounds the same volume and the drums sound so distant and tame when I think they should be loud and proud. The synth leads throughout the mix are the only element that I hear occasionally mixed toward the front, rising up from the background here and there. The intro piano is mixed very much upfront, so I was actually surprised when the soundscape flattened out completely at 0:33 when the drums started up. Cool ideas and arrangement, you'll get my YES after another pass at the mixing/balancing/mastering. NO (resubmit, please)

ReMixer Name: Glubglubz Real Name: Anthony Amorose Game: Sonic 3 Arrangement: Lakeside Racing Song: Azure Lake Zone I always thought this song was a bit under-appreciated. My favorite aspect of the original is the upbeat melody mixed with the driving rhythms underneath. I wanted to further push that contrast by adding chunky guitars and punchy drums, while keeping the melody feeling very synthesized. As much as I like the original, there were some elements that I knew had to be changed. First and foremost was the chord progression (or lack thereof). It had become apparent early on that, no matter the length of the song, it was going to feel very static unless I departed quite heavily from the source material. The other element I needed to change was how simple the structure was in the original. I used that as an opportunity to have fun changing the intensity from section to section. Thank you for you time and consideration, Anthony Amorose

This is a fun, lively source, one that I personally would find difficult to do justice to in a remix because it is already so complete and full sounding, nice motif and full soundscape and lots of nice detail. I've never heard of this game. The remix starts out so sparsely and very quietly, and remains sparse and quiet throughout half the mix. The soundscape sounds its best fullness-wise starting at around 1:50 but all the instruments are competing for volume such that it sounds like a mushy wall of sound, albeit a quiet wall of sound. The writing is very stiff and quantized throughout the mix. The total silence at 2:16 feels awkward. That whole next section goes back to sparse and quiet. The section from 3:18 to 4:34 is overcompressed to the point of clearly-audible distortion and pumping, that entire section is WAY too loud, and the compressor is working overtime. The piano hammering away at 4:03 sounds so stiff and quantized. I like the orchestral concept for this source, but to really do it justice I feel like some of the sparser areas need a little more detail. The mixing also needs to be improved so that the instruments each have room to be heard in their respective frequency spectrums without competing this much. The humanization needs to be improved, particularly on instruments such as that exposed piano near the end. The biggest issue of all for me is the dynamics throughout the track, the quiet parts are painfully quiet, and that last section is clearly overcompressed and distorted. I wouldn't mind hearing this one again, but at the very least not until the mixing, balancing and mastering has been addressed. NO (resubmit)