orkybash

Can we get this out of the backlog!?

Man, that lead instrument is waaay too overpowering. I couldn't tell how it matched up with the other instruments cause I couldn't even hear them! Other than that though, I really don't have a problem with this. Nothing revolutionary, maybe, but I think the OCR community would enjoy it. Yes

I don't hear anything wrong here - maybe a bit too much bass and not enough treble, but the equalization isn't as bad as some other mixes we've let through. Ending took me by surprise, but again, we've let worse through. The sounds are well used, though, and those drum samples are just tight. Yes

Chiptunes are *very* hard to pull off (don't start telling me that that this isn't exactly a chiptune cause of the precussion or whatever). And unfortunately I don't think this is pulled off well. Something about the way the sounds are used just rubs me the wrong way. Not just rubs me the wrong way - more like hurts my head. I think it's the long, drawn out notes that really get to me. If you're going to go retro like this, practice making it sound good. For now, No.

Well, I don't like the ocarina solo (i think it would work better with some instruments backing it up) and the guitar sample sounds more like a banjo, I have to say that I really liked this one. The arrangement quality more than makes up for some poor samples - hell, that piano more than makes up for the poor samples! Yes

Mix was posted, moving to Judge Decisions....

Mobile Suit Gundam Wing: Endless Duel 'Heavyarms (Let Me Lift This Load)' Well, I've never had a good ear for picking out default FruityLoops samples, probably because I've never used them. So this ain't bad, and in fact I'm kinda liking it. But it's really nothing innovative or attention-grabbing - just your basic techno. And that's fine, but I think if more work was put into making this stand out from the rest of the crowd it could be so much more.

Phantasy Star III 'Nial and Nowhere' Well, I can't compare it to the original, but this is overall a very strong effort. It's short, but there's one fine arrangement packed into the two minutes this song runs. However, two things really ruined it for me. The first was the way the song faded - I've never liked fades, and this was implemented especially poorly (next time, give the user some clue that the songs about to end). Also, the engineering is way off. This needs some major EQ work to put some highs in, since it sounds really muted right now. But if you can get past the flaws, this really is a worthwhile download.

Doom II 'Gothic Sandy' So much quality tonight! Pretzel, you're gonna have to post some real stinkers to make up for this. j/k, of course. Anyway, Mazedude is quickly elevating himself to one of my favorite mixers. Not much to say about this one, other than it's doom, it's techno, it's Mazedude, and it's perfectly executed, and if you can't find a reason to download it in that list then there's no helping you.

Marble Madness 'Sphercular Kinetics' This one kinda reminds me of mutagene's work in terms of sonic depth. While what's going on with the main instruments is pretty simple, there's so much ambiance in the background (especially the wind), as well as attention to detail in the drums that serve to keep this interesting. Though it's not the kind of thing I'll listen to regularly, it's definitely staying on my HD for when I wanna trip without all the nasty side effects!

Silent Hill 'Nay Tomorrow' Beautiful. My only gripe is that the nay sounds a little thin, but even that adds a rawness to the mix that's an advantage on it's own. That, and the ending sounded cut off. But for a first submission this is excellent!

Blaster Master 'Into the Earth' While I don't care for the plucked string sound (is that a default FruityLoops sound? I certainly hope not!), the rest of this mix sounds very nice. It's a far cry from Nine's other rave submissions, airing towards more atmosphere rather than danceability. It's pulled off very well, methinks, with just the right amount of reverb to make it atmospheric but not too indistinct (as can happen if there's too much of it.) I think the title fits very well, also - I can definitely see myself descending into some huge cavern or something. At any rate, I think I'm just gonna leave it at that, and say that I really recommend this.

Final Fantasy VIII 'Desperados' Cool. I don't like the intro that much, but one the remix gets going its better. Something's still wrong with it, though... After listening through it, I think it's the mixing. You can hardly hear anything other than the drums, the bass, and that first synth loop that comes in. Which isn't bad, it just means that it's repetitive. I'm liking the break in the middle, though. Overall, I kinda like this, but kinda feel like it could use some more work. If I could dance without embarrassing myself, I would definitely be dancing to this mix. It's not the kind of thing I'd just listen to sitting down though.

As Malcos said, the guitar samples are a little dodgy, and I thought the voice sample was a tad overused. But the arrangement's pretty good, and there's no really major problem that's holding it back. Yes

No I have issues with a lot of the samples used, and it's way repetative (though not as much as it could potentially be). The fact that the constantly looping background synth sounds is obviously a pre-recorded loop is the icing on the cake.

This could definately use some EQ work to put some highs in there. Other than that (and the poor ending) it's short but sweet, and something i'd definitely post. In the end I'm dubious, since this could be vastly improved by just a little EQ work. I'm not gonna vote for now, but if my vote's sorely needed I'll cast it.

This sounds a tad messy in some parts where there's a lot going on, but aside from that I like it. Not a stunning mix, but I think it's good enough to post. Yes

Moving to Judge's Decision, since no one else is...

Sounds a lot like a MIDI of the original with a drum loop. I could be wrong about that, though, so I'm not gonna can it based on submission violation. I will can it, however, based on the fact that the sound quality is sub-par and virtually no work was put into making it distinguishable from the original. NO

ActRaiser 'Thy Followers' Wonderful! Though I've never played ActRaiser, this sits really well with me. I might go so far as to say this is one of the best orchestrations on the site. I can tell Russell really knows what he's doing here. I could go on and on about how it strikes me as being a serious piece of "classical" music rather than someone deciding to remix using orchestral instruments. Anyway, I would highly recommend this. Edit - almost forgot: yes, I dd hear the clipping at the end. I heard some earlier on as well, but I'm too lazy to go back and find it.

7th Guest 'Fat Dance' Well, can I even begin to say anything bad about this track, what with it being the original composer's own remix? Hell no! And would I want to? See previous answer. Very well produced, very professional sounding (I should hope!), and all around very, very cool. I enjoyed it even though I'm not familiar at all with the 7th Guest soundtrack. So overall, I would highly recommend this. BTW, when I get to be a major figure in the videogame industry </wishful thinking>, rest assured I'll be doing the same thing!

Doom 'Synthetic Demon' Quality track, as I've come to expect from Peeples. You should download it if only because it has his name on it. Love the orchestral/techno fusion - that kind of style always gets me going.

Super Mario Bros. 3 'Staff Battle' Very... funky. And cool, but I do have one gripe with it. The whole thing got pretty repetitive, since the bassline didn't change much. Nor did the drums. But there was obviously a lot of effort put into making this interesting even with such repetitive elements, so the end result isn't very boring at all. I really liked it overall.

Star Ocean: The Second Story 'Rena Lanford of Arlia Village' A fast made techno shit if I ever heard one! (Old-timers should get the joke). But seriously, I am always awed by the perfection Dale North always seems to achieve in arranging *and* producing a song, and this is no exception. If you don't download this, I will personally come to your house and flog you. Don't think I don't know where you live!

Crystalis 'House Leaves' I must say that the intro had me very worried, but then at 0:17 it breaks out into some nice house groovage and I realized I had nothing to worry about. Few of the elements (save for maybe the drums) seem really cookie-cutter here. I especially like the trills that djp mentioned in his write-up - they really do add interest to the track. Overall, a job well done.