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Everything posted by DarkeSword
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Prepare to be open minded. A lot of critics have raised very valid points about why the movie isn't awesome. Go in with low-expectations and just enjoy it for what it is.
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I saw it last night and I thought it was really awesome. Not superomgamazingawesome, but still awesome. The comedy throughout the entire movie was a riot. It was a nice change from the epic dark LotR-style fantasy that Hollywood is so keen on shoving down our throats. It felt like a return to old-school fantasy movies. Also, Michelle Pfeiffer is one of the most beautiful women in the world, and is pretty damn gorgeous for most of the movie; too bad things ended up the way they did. Definitely gonna get it when it comes out on DVD.
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Yeah I've played Megamix, it's incredible.
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argh its out by i can't play it because i'm at work
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OCR01606 - Castlevania "Vampire Spanker"
DarkeSword replied to djpretzel's topic in ReMix Reviews & Comments
A lovely piece of work. Nice job guys. -
Might help if you posted some of your own stuff so that people know what you're capable of.
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OCR01606 - Castlevania "Vampire Spanker"
DarkeSword replied to djpretzel's topic in ReMix Reviews & Comments
I hit up a YouTube video of the song in question, and while it does have some similarities, I'd hardly say it's the exact same thing; the ending of the remix is just a natural extension of the rest of the song. I believe this is just another case of some listener finding something in a song that isn't there; like how they find Ice Cap Zone in like every single one of my goddamn remixes. Jerks. If someone wants to check an actual MP3 of something off the E.P. go right ahead, but I don't think you're going to find anything. -
I thought it was all pretty clever.
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Well, that is what I'm here to do.
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*NO* Dragon Ball Z Budokai Tenkaichi 2 'Next in Line'
DarkeSword replied to Liontamer's topic in Judges Decisions
God I love this game. So much fun on the doing kamehamehas with the wiimote. As for filling out the beats, here's something that will help: try conga drums. Syncopated hand percussion can give your boom-tsss beats that extra edge of grooviness. Some lightly processed choir pads might also color the soundscape a bit. That transition at 2:22 works really well. Nice. Larry's on the mark here; this mix is almost there and overall it's a nice piece of work, but it needs more. NO for now but resub this asap. -
*NO* Super Mario Bros. 3 'Party at Toad's'
DarkeSword replied to Liontamer's topic in Judges Decisions
Who'd've thought you could do this with that song? Very groovy, and yes, you seem to be channeling daknit for a bit of these. I'm pretty much in agreement with Larry on this one, but I just want to add that it'd be great to hear some rhythmic variation of the melody; break out of the 8th note mold get some syncopation going. It could really help. NO but totally definitely work on it and resub Also, Toad is one of the Bloods. -
OCR01637 - *YES* Flashback 'Memory Leak Suite'
DarkeSword replied to Liontamer's topic in Judges Decisions
This does suffer from medlyitis. Those transitions near the end are nonexistent; things just switch gears. Fortunately the gears are shiny and well oiled, otherwise it'd be a huge problem. I think the track flows pretty well overall, aside from the transition issues at the end. The interpretation and arrangement is right up there; feels a bit like a Metal Gear game. On the production side, I felt it was a bit heavy on the reverb, especially with the splashy bombastic brass stuff. I'd've liked to hear that a little cleaner, but to each his own in this case. Sources check out; great arrange and nice sound. YES -
*NO* Final Fantasy 4 'Feel the World Beneath You (bP Mix)'
DarkeSword replied to Liontamer's topic in Judges Decisions
Hard panned percussion on the left, hard panned bassline on the right, both of them heavily distorted and far too loud. I was hoping things would center themselves eventually and we'd hear some sizzling hot beats; alas, I was mistaken. This song grates on my ears. The gated, warbly lead wears out its welcome after the first iteration of the melody, perhaps even sooner. It's far too loud and resonant. The arrangement is nothing to write home about either; the melody is repeated three or four times and then finally goes to the B section. It ends the same way it starts, with lots of dead space between percussion hits. I had trouble listening to this all the way through. It's very abrasive, as Larry said, and I don't think there's a lot of real arrangement going on aside from that short bit with the arpeggios adapted to the main theme chord progression. You need to do a lot more interpretation, as well as provide some contrast to the harsh sounds. Don't use BloodOverdrive so much. NO -
*NO* Romancing SaGa 'Dance Like You Want to Win'
DarkeSword replied to Liontamer's topic in Judges Decisions
The texture here could be so much richer. There's a lot of empty space behind the lead and the arpeggiating line. Throw a pad or some mid-range appegio stuff back there. You can't really get away with just lead, bass, and beats here. As mentioned, things are just too repetitive here to justify the length. The second half has an attempt at breaking down and rebuilding, but its just the same thing defiltering; the beats don't even change their pattern, they just drop out certain elements and re-add later. You need to interpret the source and explore things way more than what you've done here. NO -
*NO* Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 2 'Blazin in My RX-7 FC'
DarkeSword replied to Liontamer's topic in Judges Decisions
This is fairly meh sounding in comparison to the high energy of the original, though I do like the softer take. You should consider working in some more instruments to accentuate that and build a more interesting and unique texture. As Larry said, the original stuff is nice, so lets hear more of that along with a more expansive approach to the soundscape. NO, but rework and resub -
OCR01627 - *YES* Final Fantasy 5 'Wicked n' Floating'
DarkeSword replied to Liontamer's topic in Judges Decisions
Wow, this is really solid. I agree that it's liberal, but I don't think it's overly so. I can definitely hear the melody in here, albeit heavily riffed on; it does manage to retain its core though. This is a great example of how to really explore a simple melody. I love all the rolls in the square lead, and everything integrates rather nicely. Nice percussion + bassline interaction too. YES PS: I'd love to see what you could do with the soundtrack to Riviera: The Promised Land, a GBA RPG. -
*NO* Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 'Time Over Time'
DarkeSword replied to Liontamer's topic in Judges Decisions
This meanders way too much. There's an attempt at melding different themes together, but the problem is that most of those themes don't seem to sound like anything from Ocarina of Time. I thought maybe temple music because that's quite minimalist, but I didn't find anything. Sounds to me like a lot of liberal ideas thrown in with a play on the Song of Time. Quoting Hyrule Castle sounds out of place and doesn't really work in the context of the song. I don't think the development is very good either. Sounds like you came up with an arpeggio line and then just messed around over it a bit. Samples are weak and the sequencing lacks any kind of humanization at all, especially the descending triplets in the piano. I'm gonna say NO, on account of its overly-liberal arrangement, poor structure, and boring texture. If someone can point out full sources to the themes in this piece, I'll be happy to edit my vote, but I looked and I couldn't find anything. -
Fantastic texture and evolution throughout; there's not much to the source, but you guys managed to take what was there and bring something solid to the table. I'm not so crazy about the reverb on the percussion, but perhaps that's just a characteristic of the genre that I'm not familiar with. That guitar rocks out. YES
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OCR01635 - *YES* Chrono Trigger 'Gale of Ages'
DarkeSword replied to Liontamer's topic in Judges Decisions
I like it. The opening is very emotive and delicate, and it's all played so well. YES, but let's get a new render so that the ending sample doesn't cut out. -
OCR01669 - *YES* Myst 'Unraveling the Mystery'
DarkeSword replied to Liontamer's topic in Judges Decisions
I felt like this could have been stronger with better samples, but you made good use of what you had. Malcos was right; this mix feels like one cohesive piece, and you did a good job of avoiding medly-itis. Nice variation throughout and excellent percussion. YES -
Is Retro Sonic really coming out, finally? I've been waiting for a new release for AGES. I know that Taxman has been working on it an completely rewrote it in C++, but it's still been a long time since he updated anything at all related to the project.
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Why was Chris Kline/Vertexguy rejected?
DarkeSword replied to dragonwriter's topic in General Discussion
Snape killed Vertexguy. -
Thanks. Gotta agree with Larry on this one. Sounds a lot like an upgrade, and the soundscape feels sparse and lofi. The percussion particularly sounds like it's stuck in a small room; it doesn't integrate well with the rest of the synth-laden mix. I realize you're going for that synth-rock sound, but it comes off sounding weak. There is a nice groove to the track, with good part-writing though. It's not like a rip or anything. Still, NO for now.
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*NO* Bubble Bobble 'Bub Does Club Space (Noise Mix)'
DarkeSword replied to Liontamer's topic in Judges Decisions
That bit at 1:42 is gratuitous and pointless. In no way at all does it even attempt to interpret the source tune. Now, I'm not saying that every single part of a remix should be OMG SOURCE, but still, it's a boring, repetitive, atonal synth "breakdown" that accomplishes nothing but making the song a little longer than four minutes. The actual Bubble Bobble theme here is pretty much the original. And then you've got standard, generic, four-on-the-floor beats underneath. The synths are, as Larry stated, vanilla. That detuned saw lead in particular is way too messy; reminds me of my own meager attempts at synth design (see: twinkle park classic). What you need to do is break the song down into its most basic components: the melody and the chord progression. Then, start writing your parts from there. Think about how you can fill in spaces with a counter melody or a percussive fill, think about writing something more than just a standard octave jumping bassline. It's okay to be inspired by certain artists and to try and emulate their ideas, but don't forget that YOU are arranging the song, and that YOU have to bring something of YOURSELF into it. NO -
What do I use to listen to the source?