JJT

hmmmm, been listening to this a lot. i thought the source was adapted well into a hip-hop setting, with lots of additions to the beat that were tasty (love that harp in the upper register). the new melody in the chorus fits well with the original. I thought the kick could've been a bit phatter, and the bass more of a presence, but those aren't deal breakers. in that line of thought, i didn't like how the bass lays out in the first transition to the chorus...thought it should have at least announced the chord change, as opposed to coming in a few beats later, but whatever. that synth with the delay on is sexy. i thought the lyrics were well crafted. as larry mentioned, some people will probably flip a lid over the MF bombs, etc, but whatever. i think the hook at the end is some of the best zykomizaka i've heard ("you wonder why, everybody says to keep out the veldt"). anyway, this is some sparse, funky, west coast hip-hop. like you'd expect from a zyko arrangement, the production is unconventional. this is too infectious for me not to pass, though. YES ps - am i the only one who hears it cut off at the end? is this intentional?

solid snake is a clone, and therefore ages much faster. he's probably in his 40s (i don't know if someone has an exact timeline). you'll notice otakon only looks a few years older since sons of liberty, where as snake looks decades removed.

pfffffffffffft.

chocolate rain....some stay dry the others feel the pain....

you have no idea. also, i love how you're in the foreground of the jamming clip, stubbornly playing guitar hero.

I can't remember if i got the chance to thank her. if i didn't, do it for me please.

recap: * the LA freeway system is as bad (see: worse) as advertised. i showed up sweaty, tired, and pissed off. luckily, everyone was pretty cool and affable, so i chilled out shortly. * hell probably looks like the compound level from Goldeneye * though I won't disclose who it was, I had my first sexual encounter with a hemophiliac this weekend. highly recommended. * phtithyssishstssius needs to change his name back. * paraphrased quote from analoq: "did you guys ever have your mom knock on the door and you're like 'go away...i'm synthesizing'" * trenthian is a real sweet guy and a great host, despite only knowing about 60% of the mute city theme. yes, i tested him on this. he also owns a tenor recorder, which is sorta cool but mostly frightening. * i still suck at smash bros. * accompanying analoq as he sang the ff6 opera song through his talk box was an experience. i'm extremely happy that wasn't recorded, as it's going to be much more awesome in my memory then it was IRL. * waleed, weed, and zyko are three persons within a person. kind of like the triune godhead. everyone should have the chance to meet them at some point. * jamming is fun. goes without saying, but yeah that was cool. * i need to fucking shave. wow. * despite the laid back atmosphere, i still handed out a NO OVERRIDE to trenthian (for his next submission) and a NO, RESUBMIT to Unforgiving Edges/phithystsitysidfysifysdihis (as a person). * i was able to find three different freeways that had been shut down to one lane on my drive home. that gave the day a nice bookended feel. (THERE ARE NOT SUPPOSED TO BE TRAFFIC JAMS AT MIDNIGHT. GAHHH) * chris roman finally explained to me what the "cumshot" was. the musical one, not the uh, real one. hmmmm, better move on. * both goetse man and tubgirl made their way into casual conversation, sadly. the latter creeped in during dinner, which was gross. * i did my best to prevent any "nice work" pictures or stuff like that, thereby keeping the meetup's geektitude at managable levels. if i can think of anything else, i'll post again. suffice it to say, i had a good time. if you enjoy both music and video games, then don't think twice about attending your nearest meetup.

got a little bit of a late start. assuming traffic's cool i shoudl be there between 2:00-2:30

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sX_Iij8Eyts The Bad Plus, covering Flim by Aphex Twin. If this doesn't own your face then I never want to talk to you again. edit: Also http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lb-bJlxXDbs&mode=related&search=

i can bring a ps2 if no one else can i only have two controllers though. edit: i'm also not staying the whole weekend (so bear that in mind)

the drums are pretty thin and dry. especially the cymbals and snare. the kick is passable. the snare is waaaaay too dry. doesn't sound integrated into the soundfield at all. also, there are sections where the drums have that "programmed" feel. it would sound good with some more drum-machinish samples, but since it resembles a real kit, it becomes distracting. almost like you can't decide which kind of sound you're going for (i.e. real vs synthetic). your crash samples are terrible. it wouldn't take too much time to search the net and find some better ones for free (e.g. hammersound.net) also agree with the criticism re: length. the arrangement could stand to be trimmed down if you're not gonna bring any more ideas into the mix. listen to Vig's comments on the attack for your string/guitar samples. spot on. this is a great foundation, but you need to upgrade your samples and programming skills to get this over the bar. also, hone that arrangement a bit more. sounds good. NO, RESUBMIT

This sounds great. Don't feel the need to go into detail. There's enough interpretation to put it over the bar. Nice work. YES

I agree with LT and Malcos. Beyond the genre adaptation, this needs more variety and more original ideas brought to the table. The structure of the song is pretty good (probably because it follows the structure of the original so closely). There just isn't enough interpretation of the source going on. NO

My advice would be to decide whether you want your guitar sounding mechanical or sounding realistic...its the fact that you toe the line that is so distracting. I'm guessing you'd prefer people to be thinking "that's a cool sounding guitar line" as opposed to "is that guitar supposed to sound real or fake?" The former draws people into the music while the latter separates them from it. The other main problem I have is with the middle section, where that acoustic guitar line gets swallowed up by the orchestra. It's a little muddy, and at times I'm unsure of what's supposed to be in the foreground and what's supposed to be supporting material. Also, I agree with the criticisms that the snare sounds a little thin for the genre. It's not neccesarilly a deal-breaker for me, but it does sound a little out of place. In the end, my biggest impression is that when I listen to this remix, I'm spending more time thinking about the production choices you've made, and less time appreciating the arrangement.. It's a good arrangement. It's also cool sounding, at parts. You should be proud of what you have already. You'll just need to address the criticisms that have been made if you want it posted on OCR. As much as I'd love to flame you for the content of your last post, I'm too tired right now. I'll just say that if you want to call out individual judges, the WIP forums are not the place to do it. Take it up via PM. If David Lloyd's personal website isn't running fast enough for your taste, then feel free to start your own. You wouldn't be the first. Lastly...I want you to know that I really do like this remix. You're a great musician, and it'd be a shame if you didn't spend some more time tightening the screws on it. That's it for me. -jon

i was going to rape you. shit.

omg do that one song!

Where are these people, exactly? If anything, you should be happy your thread's getting bumped.

i listened to this on the panel but didn't get around to voting. my bad. give me a day and i'll have some constructive feedback for ya.

I was in an instrumental funk band in high school, so this brought back some great (and not so great) memories. Good arrangement, but I've gotta agree with the other NO votes. Your bass player isn't doing his job. He needs to focus more on holding down the groove, and less on playing pentatonic scales in the middle register. Hint: there are already 3 instruments at any given point doing that. Restraint, my friend, restraint. Study some more funk recordings, and be more deliberate about your role in the band. I can hear the keyboard clipping near the end. Watch those levels. Also, Vig is right. You guys should either learn a new scale, or solo less. Sorry if this seems harsh. You're on the right track, you just need to take a step back and impose a little more order on your performance. There are so many moments in this recording that feel like a free-for-all. Funk is dance music. Make people dance, don't make them try to differentiate between different 4 solos/melodies in 4 different registers. NO

the arrangement isn't interpretative enough to put it over our "bar". this isn't bad electronica, but as larry said, beyond the genre adaptation, this doesn't do anything memorable with the original either. there are some good ideas, but this needs a lot more work if it's going to be an ocremix. according to your submission email, that wasn't your goal...so...do with this information what you will. NO

for as much as this track is groove-oriented, i really wish the drums would evolve with the arrangement, or even change just a little bit. for example, at 2:48. switch to ride cymbol, or something! the entire track is changing its feel minus the drumkit, and that doesn't make any sense to me. also, the way the drums sound is a bit harsh and bright for my tastes. i also agree that the arrangement feels a little overlong. this is sooooooo close. tighten the screws, and resubmit ASAP. NO

yeah, those posts were pretty juvenile. must be from inexperience.

JJT's method of remixing vgm (may vary from remix to remix): 1) learn the chord structure and melody on a piano 2) play said chord structure/melody many times 3) write a simple drum/bass track in FruityLoops 4) record either guitar or piano parts over drum/bass tracks 5) go back and refine drum/bass tracks to compliment what i've recorded 6) do the same for guitar/piano/whatever tracks 7) repeat steps 5 and 6 as long as neccesary touch ups (re-record some parts, edit some parts etc) 9) mix/master 10) ocremix!

Perhaps, but you already stated that you couldn't tell why it was rejected. That indicates to me, as a judge and an ocremixer, that you don't have a good enough ear to be doing music production. This does not mean you are a bad person. This does not mean that I think you're uncool. This does not mean that your life is a waste. I'm sure there are things that you're quite good at. This is not one of them. It's okay. I was cut from the soccer team in high school. I wasn't very good. I found other things to do. If it makes you happy, go ahead and keep making submissions, but I think you'll spare yourself a lot of time and frustration if you find something else to channel your energy into. Also, bear in mind that my views do not represent that of the judges panel, or ocremix as a whole. This is just me, Jon, telling you what I would tell one of my close friends, because I think you'll be better off in the long run. Hope you won't hold it against me.

Being able to hear rhythm has nothing to do with music theory. It should be obvious to an untrained ear as well. If you can't hear that it's off, then I'm sorry man. This just isn't for you.