Chimpazilla

Wow, talk about a necro-resub! I am just about to resub something from 2011 and I thought that was old! Haha, but I digress. Dat source tune HURTS, wow it is piercy. Nice writing but hard to listen to. The first few notes sound like the Emergency Broadcast System sound. Ouch. On to the remix! What a lovely genre imrovement, you brought out the beauty of the original composition with none of the chippy piercy-ness. Lots of nice ideas adding to a totally new soundscape. Is it just me or am I crazy here... the piano seems to be panned quite far right, and I also hear the bell timbre and some of the strings on the right. The wide saw is quite centered. The piano sounds more centered on headphones than on my speakers, on my speakers this panning is quite pronounced, and I don't like it. This may be down to personal opinion... please chime in on this other Js... but I don't care for noticeable panning, especially when it is unbalanced (without something playing on the other side). Ok watching the track play with SPAN confirms my panning observation, it's not my old ears. *whew* I think the track isn't quite there mixing-wise. From 0:11-0:14 there is some distortion in the render. The piano sounds a bit too bright, and the bass is muddy and indistinct. The wide-panned saw is nice but much too bright above 8-10k Hz, and it has just enough of a slow attack that it feels slightly behind the beat. The wide panned saw is too loud. The drums aren't mixed well, the kick sounds ok though. When you get the bass working right, you might want to look into sidechaining your kick to your bass, it helps with mixing kick and bass and adds interest and groove as well. The arrangement and writing are repetitive. At 2:08-3:05, the same writing from 0:55-1:55 begins again, but in a lower octave on the piano. Is this enough variation? I'm not sure that it is. There is an additional bell countermelody so that helps, although the bell timbre is too loud. You've used that same wide saw again at 2:38 in the exact same way as you did at 1:24, so that sounds too repetitive. I think the arrangement has merit overall, but the section of 2:08-3:05 needs to have some more writing and timbre variations to distinguish it as separate from 0:55-1:55, and some mixing cleanup is needed. And please, for me, adjust the panning so things are more centered, at least the piano. NO (resubmit)

previous decision from 2009 Hello, my submission is below: Contact Information: Remixer Name: Jennerstein Real Name: Jared Ong E-mail Address: Website: www.jongmusic.com UserId: 24986 Submission Information: Name of Game Arranged: Bubble Bobble (NES Version) Name of Arrangement: Storybook Waterfall Ending Name of Individual Song Arranged from Game: Happy Ending (Note. The song is not specifically named on the OC Remix Bubble Bobble page, but can be found in the chiptunes as track 11. VGM Music identifies track 11 as "Happy Ending". More specifically, I'm arranging the music that plays over the credits. Link to Original Soundtrack: . ) Comments about the mix: I originally submitted a version of this mix to the judges panel in 2009. The original was rejected for a few reasons. The piano sounded too muddy and far away, the strings didn't sound realistic enough, and the cymbal crashes were out of place. In general though, the judges liked the track. Five years later (hey, family life gets in the way ), I'm submitting a new version. In addition to fixing the problems cited by the judges, I rewrote a lot of parts (adding a few new counter melodies), remixed, and remastered. The idea behind this remix was to capture the essence of the "Good Ending." For those of you who have played the game, to get the "Good Ending" you need to beat the final boss with both characters alive. After what seemed like months of trying to beat Bubble Bobble with my siblings, we finally defeated the humongous boss with both characters and watched the credits roll. I remember hearing the music play over the credit and thinking that the prettiness of the melody was masked by the limitations of the NES' sound capabilities. Many years later, that thought surfaced again and I decided to see if I couldn't come up with a remix to do the music justice. I truly believe that video games should have a good payoff with memorable end game music. I also wanted to give those little dinosaurs a remix they deserved. After all, they worked so hard popping bubbles, eating fruit, and shooting lightning bolts from their butts. This piece has ambient, new age, and dance influences. One of the major changes I’ve introduced is an extended “chorus section.” The original piece of music had a chorus section that seemed to end a bit abruptly. To remedy that, I use a deceptive cadence (i.e. V -> VI) in order to extend the passage for a few more measures. I then composed a tiny new melody to fit in after that deceptive cadence. This little bit off melody helps the arrangement flow better. Lastly, I organized the music in a pop-friendly format: intro, verse, verse, chorus, interlude, verse, chorus, outro. The end product is a little bit of cheer-you-up new age/dance, my very own take on what a happy ending should be. I hope you enjoy.

This is a pretty unique mix! I love music box sounds mixed with electronica elements. The bass isn't balanced well, often bass patches have one note that is too loud and needs to be tamed with eq prior to any compression, and I hear that problem here. The bass needs to be tamed in its lowest regions too, and in the mud zone (200-300ish Hz). I'm hearing a lot of rumble in addition to the random too-loud notes, and not a lot of clean impact. There is some very good bass writing here, though, like 3:47-4:02. You've got some things hard panned (like the synth at 0:30, and the section starting at 3:17), I'm not a fan of one-sided hard panning but that's my opinion. Some of the higher sounds in the mix are piercy and too up-front, and too dry, giving the mix a crispy and resonant effect that is a bit overpowering as well as feeling not quite cohesive sonically. Some of the more dancey synths sound somewhat generic but there are good effects used. Good sidechaining. In the breakdown, the guitar sounds fake and the piano is very rigid. Loud bass notes are very evident here. That whole sections needs to be humanized better. The bigger issue here is source use. Even with your provided breakdown (thank you!) I can't make it all out. You've obscured a lot of it with effects, which sounds cool but unfortunately makes it VERY hard to hear. If I give you credit for what you've laid out in your breakdown, even with a lot of lenience, I'm only getting to about 42% source use, and that is really stretching it. I just don't think it's enough source for OCR. If other J's find more source than I'm hearing, I'm open to revisiting my vote on the source aspect. There are some very cool writing and effects ideas here and I hope you'll fix this up for us, give us some more recognizable source and fix the eq/balance issues, because this is really cool. NO (resubmit)

ReMixer name: ElectricMudkip Email: Userid: 53717 Name of game(s) arranged: Pokemon Sapphire Name of arrangement: Thunderstorm in the Tropics Name of individual song(s) arranged: Littleroot Town Own comments about the mix (I WROTE A LOT I'M SORRY ;~ : There are a lot of Littleroot Town arrangements on the Internet, but for however many there actually are, not many of them take risks--and that alone was my sole intention for this particular remix, to indeed take those risks that others never dared to. Now, I do admit that at first glance, the source material might be hard to hear--but I can guarantee it's there, in spades, even if it's not the full melody. Should I do a breakdown? Is that an acceptable thing to do here? I guess I can do a quick breakdown of what's what, to help illustrate my point: 0:00 to 0:30 = original intro, fragments of Littleroot Town theme on music box (LR theme for short). 0:30 to 0:45 = full LR theme on music box, 0:45 to 1:15 = same melody again, played by a synth-y bell-like sound. 1:15 to 1:45 = some original melodies. 1:45 to 2:15 = LR's theme again, played by Ruby & Sapphire string ensemble instrument. 2:15 to 2:45 = original again, 2:45 to 3:15 = expansion upon previous section, whilst sneaking in some more LR via piano (it's altered though). 3:15 to 3:46 = small drop (courteous of Mudkip, lol) and then an impactful original section. 3:46 to 4:01 = a quick bridge, and 4:01 to 4:31 is more original melodies. 4:31 to 5:01 = different part of LR's theme than before, played on string ensemble. 5:01 to 5:31 = some falling chord action, 5:31 to 6:01= both a mix of fragmented LR melodies and the full LR melody, all on a music box. 6:01 to end is just sound effects and bongos, lol. … Okay, that wasn't as quick as I wanted it to be, but it proved difficult to explain this mix without dissecting it in a more precise manner, haha. Apologies. Here's to hoping I can learn something from attempting to submit one of my mixes to this cool website.

Interesting style for this source! There are some unique arrangement ideas here and nice transitions. I like the bassline in the intro from 0:20-0:30. The sampled guitar and the super stiff writing gives this track a comic edge that I'm not sure was intended. The samples are super obvious. The drumming is good during the faster passages, but in the intro and when things mellow out at 1:58, the snare is much too snappy in an unnatural way. The writing ends up being repetitive because there isn't a lot of variation on the theme. 1:00-1:28 is an exact repeat of 0:31-1:00. 2:40-3:04 (other than the speedup) is nearly the same as 1:35-1:57. Some more writing variation is needed to differentiate these parts from each other. The track comes to a complete stop at 2:39, then comes back full blast at 2:40. I think that transition needs to be bridged with something other than silence. I think you need to decide if you want this track to sound more realistic and epic or more synthy or just more silly. I'm not sure how to explain this better, maybe another J can help me. I think there are several ways you could go with this track to improve it, and you may want to take it to our forums. I just think the ideas aren't quite working yet, but there is promise here in the arrangement. NO (resubmit)

Contact Information ReMixer name: Theremy Real name : Zak E-maill: Website: https://soundcloud.com/zakiandiga User ID: 49055 Submission Information Name of game(s) arranged: Final Fantasy III (Squaresoft, 1990, NES) Name of arrangement: The Ancient Flare Frenzy Name of individual song(s) arranged: Battle 2 (Boss Battle) Final Fantasy III was first released in 1990 for NES, developed and published by Squaresoft (Now Square Enix). This game was already retouched and ported to vary of platform a couple of times, including the recent port for the iOS and Android smartphone. This Battle 2, is a BGM which is played during boss fight, composed by Nobuo Uematsu. http://ocremix.org/song/16572 My first submission. Inspiration comes from the game I play, Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn. There are raid dungeon, Crystal Tower: Labyrinth of the Ancients which use a re-arranged version of Battle 2 BGM as final boss fight on that raid dungeon. It was one of my favourite boss. I did this fight quite a lot which makes the tunes attached to my head. Now I try to get it out from my head, So with the tools I currently have, I try to make this version of Battle 2 Arrangement. Regards, Zak' ---------------------------------------------- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=157rcOKcOGQ

This is a really good integration of these two themes! The arrangement ideas are quite good. But Vinnie nailed it, the synth sounds are SO bland and generic, the sounds are really pulling this down for me. This sound palette is probably something that would have passed quite easily back in ye olden days, but right now it could really use a sound upgrade. I won't call the sounds themselves a dealbreaker, because they ARE used well, and mixed well, although I'd recommend you low cut your reverbs and delays because they do get a bit muddy in the low end. The dealbreaker for me is that 2:30-3:27 is an exact copy/pasta of 0:34-1:31. If I can layer these two sections together and they are identical, there's a problem. The track needs to have some writing variations in the second half, and some instrumentation changes, drumming variations and added effects wouldn't hurt as well. NO (resubmit)

It seems it was this track's destiny to be further delayed after your many delays. Nevertheless, it is a lovely track, the vocals and lyrics are beautiful and the instrumentation is well performed. The string samples show their sample-ness occasionally (2:04-2:24 for example), but generally they are used very well. Mixing and balance are appropriate. The arrangement is very nice, source is present throughout and you captured the vibe of the original quite well while making it your own as a vocal track. Impressive and beautiful. YES

This is a tough one, Vinnie is right it is a well produced track. I find it very conservative and similar to the original, but there are fun additions made. The problem is sheer repetitiveness of the arrangement. The original is clearly background music, and this mix doesn't do that much to make it other than upgraded background music. I'm having a hard time thinking of suggestions on how to fix this track up for OCR, it's pretty complete as it is but I'm not sure if it fits our standards due to it's repetitive nature. I'm going to withhold my vote for now. edit 4-20-15: Listening again. This is a very well put together track! But it is still just background music, it is essentially leadless for the majority of it. As I'm listening I hear untapped potential to write some wild soloing right over the top of what is here! WOW that could be so cool: varied lead writing and timbres to really distinguish the sections and remove the repetitiveness. But in this form, it doesn't feel complete without more meaningful leadwork. I totally understand if you feel this track is done... but, it could be fun to add leads? I'd love to hear this one again with leeeeeeeads! NO (resubmit)

Theory of N has agreed to tackle "Choose Your Seeds," yay! We are back to fully claimed. Keep going guys, the progress is excellent!

The track is indeed mastered too quietly. For a track of this nature, I'd expect it to sit closer to 0db most of the time, this track is hitting -3db most of the time. Too conservative for a dance track. The track will have SO much more impact with better mastering. A light touch of a multiband compressor to emphasize the lows and highs, and a bit more gain on the limiter. Be careful not to squash. The intro is a little bare with just kicks, how about a swoosh or reverse effect or something to sort of introduce things? Nice writing and arranging. Great sounds used, it's a fun listen. I agree with Vinnie that the fadeout feels out of place because you're fading out during an exciting passage. I agree with him, soften it back up and then fade out if you must (I really don't care for fadeouts, I find them a cop-out, but they aren't dealbreakers if they are done right). Sourcewise, I'm struggling a bit, the mix is liberal and in a different key. It sounds like enough but I haven't done a breakdown. Regardless, I think just a few improvements will make the production passable, it is a very good track and will be awesome with a few tweaks, better ending and better mastering. NO (resubmit)

If you're completely happy with it, go ahead and submit it. I have no idea what will happen at album release time, at this point. So go ahead and sub.

Thanks to everyone who came up with either an update or a concept wip at the last minute! We got great concept wips from Rexy and djp, got nice updates from Wizard and Brandon, Chernabogue completed his mix, and Avaris's mix passed the panel! PROGRESS. The next check-in date is May 10th. We still need to hear from you Sir J, where are you, I hope you're doing ok. Really need you on this album. Your wip is too good not to finish! Redg, let's finish our mix. As for Brandon's other mix (Zombies on your Lawn), and WillRock's claim, I know you can both do your stuff at the last minute (but I curse you for making me wait!), so for now your claims are safe. DjjD is unable to commit to his mix, so Choose Your Seeds is open for audition. A posted ReMixer can make the claim (with you as the primary ReMixer), non-posted just send a concept wip. Good job guys/gals, let's keep up the motivation!

There are some cool elements in this track but Vinnie is right, it ends up sounding undeveloped. When the drums kick in at 1:00 it seems there should be a kick on the 1 beat, but if there is, it is mixed too quietly. This sounds like Damage drums which I love! But the snare is mixed very loudly and the kick too softly. I also like the section from 3:03-3:27 but I agree there should be a section similar to this (energy-wise) earlier in the track as well. It is a slow build up and 24 seconds of excitement isn't quite enough of a payoff. Something else of interest is needed before 3:03, like at 1:24-1:48, that section could have faster drums or some other backing element added for excitement. Very cool ideas but not quite there for me either. NO (resubmit)

Vinnie is right, this IS really lovely! The samples are handled well... not perfectly but really very well. The oboe lead seems a little bit quiet. I agree with Vinnie's main gripe though, the track is really finished and wrapping up before it hits the two minute mark. That's really short for a dreamy orchestral piece, while it might work for something fast and furious, for THIS track if leaves it feeling undeveloped. One more section, even a short one, before the outro, would make it feel more complete. Sounds great, though! NO (resubmit)

Yay! I'm super glad to see this posted! It's really a great track.

This is really very good! Me likey!

This is brilliant, and not a moment too soon. This will save everyone loads of time. Bravo! The red arrows I find to be especially helpful, for those of us with older, tired eyes, to really appreciate where the new genre tags will appear in the postings, and I'm glad that the yellow highlighting will be a permanent feature. Thank you for this, Dave. For that future time when we whittle the list down to one, might I make a suggestion for one appropriate catch-all category: "technOCR" Thanks again for this Dave, superduper change to the site.

This does sound great indeed! But Vinnie is right, it is too repetitive. I copied and cut the track at 1:25 and layered it with itself, and I found out that 0:00-1:25 is identical to 1:25-2:42 with the only exception being the fadeout ending. For OCR this is not enough development in the arrangement, one playthrough cut and pasted into two just doesn't make it. What is here sounds great though, if you can make some changes to the second half, add a wicked solo section or something, that would make the arrangement interpretive enough to work. NO (resubmit)

Wow, I love your thoughts about us not playing God and messing with black holes, and I agree with you... *looks askance at what CERN is currently up to...* Regarding this mix, I agree with Vinnie pretty much completely. The drums really need some changeups in the first half, but I'll add that I'm not sure the swing in the second half really works with the vibe of the song either. I also share his feeling that the track doesn't develop enough melodically. Once the backing and lead writing are established, they just stay the same throughout. You've got some great synth sounds going, but they just end up plodding along after awhile. Also, I feel like the distortion effect introduced in the intro doesn't need to continue throughout the rest of the track. Starting at 0:56, the distortion could be replaced with something else, some sort of glitching or different effect than in the intro, then do something completely different again for the final part of the track. As it stands, the distortion/alien radio effect just goes on way too long, giving the track a lossy effect. I'm also not a fan of it being panned left, hard panning of things always sounds odd to me. If you're going to leave this effect in, I suggest having it pan left and right slowly throughout the track, or leave it centered and wide, with some additional sfx coming in from time to time. How cool would that be? I don't care for fadeouts, but as Vinnie said, fading out at 4:28 would work better than starting back up with the A section. NO (resubmit)

This is a very unique take on this source, I like the idea! Very cool. But I agree with Emu, it needs a major eq overhaul. You've got a lot of sounds in the same frequency range, guitars and the upper end of the bass too. And definitely too much low end content in that kick, those fast kick passages sound mushy and overwhelming in the lows. I really like this arrangement. I think one more pass at the mixing will get the job done. NO (resubmit)

The drum machine right away sounds repetitively programmed, as does the bassline. You've got instruments hard-panned right and left, I don't understand why people do that. The main lead sounds piercing, and the vibrato goes a little too wild on the longer notes. The arrangement is very conservative and simple, although there are clearly improvisations made to the melody. I think this would need a mixing cleanup as many of the frequencies are competing for space, and that panning really isn't working for me. Still, some promising ideas here. NO

Hi, My name is Ace Waters and this is my first time submitting a song to OCREMIX. I make music under the name "Motive Makes a Man" so, I suppose that would be my ReMixer name. My music is a unique blend of analog electronic equipment and natural instruments. I started making VGM with my youtube channel, and each song is actually made for a video, including the submission below. This means that most parts are recorded in one continuous take, to allow the video to look more natural. You can watch the video here if you like: My submission is titled Numinous Cavern. It is a reworking of Mystic Cave Zone from Sonic the Hedgehog 2. I hope you enjoy it! As stated, I have a youtube channel (https://www.youtube.com/user/acewatersthe3rd) that I update weekly with cover videos, VGM, and original songs. I also have a website here: http://motivemakesaman.com/ That contains all of my original music. ----------------

I love the concept of this, very cute and upbeat! The vocals sound really good and I like the lyrics. But I really don't like the rhythm guitar panned all the way to the left, and that repetitive hat and also the crash panned all the way right, snare all the way on the left. I mean, why? Also the bassline is very quiet and the bass timbre isn't knocking my socks off, it doesn't seem to fit. The vocals are great here, but the rest of the track I feel needs some adjustment and improvement. The drums are really very drab and repetitive. There are a couple of sour notes here and there as well, mostly in the final section where the guitar is the lead. I hope this can be fixed up! NO (resubmit)