Hemophiliac

Piano trio you say? This is a helluva piano performance from David Russell. 100% steals the show and shines brightly through everything. Lucas really gave David a lot of space to do his thing and run wild between fragments of the source. If this were being played live in a lounge where people were eating appetizers and drinking coffee, the bass and the drums would get their chance to shine as well with some solos. That would have derailed this into too far from the source had that happened though. Lucas keeps the source as the main anchor throughout the piece, and the piano gets an elastic tether that snaps us back to the source right when David is gonna go too far away. I'm in agreement with Prophetik on both fronts about the drums and bass. Drums definitely sound like some overheads only, and that causes the kick to be nearly lost. The pocket and groove established by Louie is fantastic and the piano really locks in with it after a while. Some of the bass motion doesn't quite feel like the right time to be moving when it should be more static, and vice versa. Should have been more locked into the strong beat 2 like the snare is establishing. The other thing that I though was unusual but not a deal breaker to me was the piano being a bit to the right in the stereo space compared to the other parts. That all said, this is fun and stellar performance from David Russell and a solid arrangement. YES

It was only way down the line that I forgot another level of humanizing that I didn't do, which was automating the sustain pedal. That definitely would have helped with a couple spots that were mentioned by the judges. All I can do is learn from that and apply it to future work. Thanks for the love all :)

Thank you for the detailed breakdown I've only played Secret of Mana a few times (and didn't get very far), and I think I heard this source a bunch as a kid because I probably struggled to beat that first boss or understand how the game mechanics worked ?. The source is a perfect choice for a synthy-prog-rock goodness. Performances from both minusworld and Shea are excellent and highlighted well. I would've liked to hear a bit more from Shea's part in the mix during 4:54-5:16 as it was quieter then it seemed to fit for the section, though the crescendos she performs are fantastic. Also agree with the other J's about the flute being quiet as well, tough to have it cut through a mix with such power from all of the other parts, consider dynamic or textural contrast to have it cut through more in the future. Both of those two things are very minor nitpicks as the rest of everything is balanced very well and you oscillate around the source with ease. Chromatic percussion throughout is an awesome choice to keep fast aggressive chromatic runs going and gets the line passed around to more instruments. The 2:46-3:32 section is an credible contrasting break. The piano runs are lovely and give such a break from the chaos of the rest of the piece. What more can I say except YES

Too many cooks in the kitchen here, just kidding...everyone said, "YES CHEF!" and Zack + Emunator wrangled everyone in. It's incredible how all of the contributions from so many amount to this cohesive beast of a track. I particularly like the chip elements and how they fit into the mix, they fit very well into the chaos of everything. It's also very impressive how the blend and mixdown worked out as well. Nothing is too overbearing, too loud, or too quiet. As far as the arrangement, things dovetail in and out from each other very nicely in the first minute. Overall both sources are used very well, and transitions between them feel well prepared and not sudden at all. 1:10 sounds like a Sonic spin-dash! Excellent work all around, can't even nitpick anything here. YES

Reharmonization :)

The arrangement here is the star of the show. The intro sets the scene nicely with some sound effects and dark pads. Getting all of the parts throughout the track to work together from everyone's contribution in a week is no easy feat. Ending on a whip sfx is cheeky fun, especially coming from "Team Whip". I like how you worked the whip in as an actual percussive/rhythm element as well without over using it. I particularly enjoyed the recapitulation at 2:58. Unfortunately, where this went wrong is the mixdown. The bass is pretty subdued and seems to have a lot of it's first harmonic coming through (or it could be something doubling it an octave higher). At times it almost feels as if that octave is actually louder then the bass itself. At times I'm confused as to what the focus is supposed to be because everything is fighting to be the loudest thing. Not everything needs to be that, things can trade off and be either supportive or the lead. This is very evident during 2:31-2:57, I'm not sure which of the synths to focus on as a lead. They are also thin and very shrill in the upper range here. Compression would also go a long way to help balance everything out too because the whole track is rather quiet with a max peak of -2.1 but average RMS of 19.1. Great to have some dynamics but if it effects the overall loudness on a metal-esque track it suffers some for it. For me to pass this, I'd like to see better blend between parts in the mixdown and consider changing up some of the synth design for better blend with the other parts. NO (resubmit)

Not much else I can say to add to what everyone else has already. This has such a warm tone to the track, that it feels homely. Maybe that's what Balamb Garden felt like to the SeeDs? The reverb on the guitar is so very reminiscent of Pink Floyd, and that's exactly what you were going for, so kudos! The musicianship across the board is excellent in all performances. Siolfor is solid as a rock in the bottom, and the drums are steady and constant. The lead and synth both fit together very well. 4:16-4:17 ? IYKYK It's so great how you all bring it together for the big recap (4:35-5:30), introducing what might be big synth pads or strings to help lift everything up aside from everyone playing stronger and more forte. I think it's tough to pull off big energy for that long without it becoming tiring. You are successful in doing that here, and it feels so fitting to hold a big forte that long. Great job everyone involved! YES

Oh wow, this source is lovely. I haven't heard anything from Mega Man ZX before, so this is a nice surprise. The vocal pitch isn't perfect, but it's only a few brief moments. Both vocals could also have been brought up more as they are sitting under the guitars more then I'd like personally, and potentially could make the lyrics easier to understand. For both of those things, they are close enough to where they should be that it doesn't throw me out of enjoyment of the track. Guitar and bass are fantastic, and are mixed perfectly with each other. Balance against other things is the weakness, again still close to where they should be though. The source is well represented and has plenty of the Cyril funky bass I expect. Very cool. YES

This is a very well produced piece with great performances. The themes manage to intertwine very well, even the Moon in a macro sense (it's just the transitions that make it awkward). I appreciate the vocal harmony. The cello blends in so well during part 3, why don't we see more cello in metal? The organ was also another beautiful compliment during that section as well. It's a great choice to fill out some top-end frequencies without departing from the vibe. The singing feels fitting for the style and the backing supports it. You could make an argument for brining up the vocals 1-3db, but it wasn't a detractor for me. For me the weakness of the piece is the transitions: 2:30 key change was awkward for me, 3:47 was a fade, and 6:13-6:15 is a sudden new instrument introduction in a different vibe then everything else. Those didn't amount to crashing the car for me in the end. YES

Absolute joy here, Streets of Rage has such an awesome soundtrack. You've certainly done the 90s club vibes from Koshiro justice with this interpretation. I can see why MindWanderer felt that the lead can get very bright and shill at the end of the section, but you change it up and go somewhere else just when it's starting to get that way for me. You have a good sense about when to go somewhere else, and I appreciate that. The thing that I absolutely loved in this was the low brassy synth blats that start at 1:00. At first I thought they were brass samples, but It seems like there's some subtle filter opening on them just after their attack. Very cool choice and they fit right into the soundscape. Nice work. YES

This took me a while and multiple days of listening and coming back to this to get my head wrapped around both the sources as well as the arrangement. Even with the breakdown I struggled to identify most of what was coming through on Rise of the Robots. The only part of Rise of the Robots I recognized are the right-side panned bell arps during 3:03-3:23. With that said, there's plenty of Shinobi in there to cover the source usage, even with only picking out a little of the Rise of the Robots. 0:00-0:14 Intro (original) 0:15-1:55 Shinobi 1:56-2:06 (original) 2:07-2:36 Shinobi 2:37-3:02 (original) 3:03-3:23 RotR + Shinobi 3:26-4:09 Shinobi melody (left panned violin very quiet) 4:10-4:40 Ending (original) 192/280 = 68.5% source So with that said, this comes down to production for me. 3:26-3:46 and 3:48-4:10 is very fuzzy as was previously mentioned by both MindWanderer and prophetik. The wonderful live performances from SableProvidence and GameroftheWinds feel subdued rather then focused on, bring those out some more later in the song (After 2:10). For 3:48-4:10 the final time we hear the Shinobi melody some on the left-panned violin it's very quiet and slowly fades out over the whole section. I'm left confused as to what to focus on during 3:48-4:10 because there's a lot going on and it feels like the parts are fighting for control of the focus rather than working together. I know you can do it, because from 0:00-1:55 the parts feel balanced properly. Background elements blend with each other there and the lead melody is clearly the focus of the listener. You have the capability to make it work, this needs another go at the mixdown/balance of parts as well as looking at reducing the fuzziness towards the end of the track. NO

Arrangement and concept is the star here. The source is well represented and there is plenty of personalization throughout. You've done a great job creating a soundscape that is wholly unique to the source. I have two major issues with this that I want to bring up, one is the production/mixing and the other is the part writing in one section. As Liontamer had pointed out previously, the high bells during 2:10-2:31 don't feel like they are supporting the rest of the harmonic context. During the section that immediately proceeds (1:49-2:10) the bells work better here because there's less things going on for the bells to conflict with. In the earlier section (1:06-1:49) you have piano countermelody parts that support the harmonic context, so you are capable of creating other parts that support and aren't the lead. Throughout the piece I feel that the lead melody is buried behind other parts, not so much that it's inaudible but it no longer feels like the main focus of the piece. For example (1:07-1:49 low violin or could be viola, panned some right), that seems to be the melody from the source is much quieter then the sleigh bells, hihats, shakers, piano, and other percussive elements. During the next major section (2:11-2:31) synth lead cuts through better then the violin from earlier, this is how you want the earlier lead to sound. It is both louder and sits within the mix in a better spot to allow my ear to immediately recognize that it is the focus. This same volume/focus issue comes back again for the final section (3:36-3:56) in the high violin and (3:57-4:06) in the low violin. They feel like they are the melodic/lead focus but again are quieter then the other parts. I'm surprised that this hasn't been mentioned yet, but from 1:06-4:07 there is a constant barrage of high end frequencies that really get tiring to my ear. The sleigh bells, hihats, shaker, synth bells fill the top end (above 4k Hz) so much that some EQ reduction would do wonders on reducing the brightness. Not all are playing at the same time, but if one of them drops out another one of the high-end instruments takes it's place. Those highs are so forward in the mix it's hard to appreciate the lovely melody from the source below them. If you can tame those highs and bring the focus back to the melody more I could get behind this incredible soundscape. But for now I have to say NO (resubmit).

An honor to be involved in this in any way. Glad my minor contribution was worked in as this was an awesome team effort. Emunator drove the car and the rest of us just hung on white-knuckled. Love the track, it develops in such an organic way and the build up is fantastic.

Warm, lush, minimal. 3 words I expect from lo-fi, even though two of those are opposites of each other. Lushness of the parts filling the spectrum and minimal parts used to do it. The very slight detuning and subtle filter sweeps throughout are really highlights for me. They add so much despite being very miniscule in the amounts of each. The arrangement doesn't overstay it's welcome and we get variation and changes to new sections right when we need them. The subtle hints at the main Zelda theme also were a nice touch for 1:47-1:59, right before we get the final recap. YES

Synthwave is one of my favorite things to listen to from the last few years, and I love all of the live elements in this. The sax, flute, and guitar are all superb. I really want to hear more people add live elements to synthwave styled tracks, and your choice to add them is great. Very cool. No issues with the arrangement as you cover all the bases with it and you have done so much to add to it by adapting the genre alone. I like that have some clear contrast between sections with actual dynamics that are more then just loud and soft as well. I do however, have to concur with Chimpazilla on this though. The mix is very rough with a heavy imbalance between the parts. The leads are much louder then the other parts. They could all be brought back by attenuating their channels ~2-4db each, and/or utilizing side-chaining can absolutely help them sit within the rest of the mix better. Let them sit back into the mix so everything can work together and create a wave for the listener to ride on. The kick is also quieter and feels like it's lacking some punch/weight to it. I want to see this through, but I can't in the current state with the mix imbalance between the parts. NO (resubmit please)

Do Chee-TUH-men carry glowsticks for weapons? These ones do. Fairly thick and full sound design from the get-go and that's the biggest strength of the track. The synth lead is borderline vanilla for me, but for some reason it doesn't seem to be focal point of the track and other instruments take over often enough that it doesn't become and issue. Would've liked more melodic embellishment or variation to change it up from the first source during 2:54-3:25 to help give the final recap something to differentiate itself and/or add more energy to it. Because it was a short section it wasn't a huge deal for me because it's gone so fast. The added lower harmony in the build up to the final recapitulation 2:49-2:54 did at least give a very subtle variation from the first initial build ~0:39-0:45. The production is strong, and your interpretive melodic rhythm changes were appreciated. YES

This is a total throwback. Almost feels like it would be what we would call a "sound upgrade" for the time period the game came out in. While I understand why Liontamer felt the sound design is underwhelming there's still things Gaspode did to liven up the synth choices. There are multiple filter sweeps that are either programed to hit the top or bottom of their peaks and valleys right on the beat. They are either automated by hand to do that or tempo-sync'd. That tells me there was at least some thought and care put into those decisions rather then presets chosen. I agree with everyone else that they could be improved but do not detract from the overall piece. The sources are well adapted and the book-ending with the "danger" sample is a great choice to start and wrap up the piece. YES

I've played more Diablo II then I care to admit, and because of that I'm excited to see what this has in store. This reminds me of the opening intro to A Clockwork Orange by Wendy Carlos or even some of the work of Vangelis. I wonder if the subtle filter sweeps were performed live because they have a very nuanced artistic quality to them. Each time I listen to this, I pick up on an interesting different element that I didn't catch on previous loops. The opening chords hit and the detuning is very apparent, a choice to emulate a throwback feel akin to analog synthesizers. While it is almost over the top with the amount of detuning used, I enjoy it. In terms of arrangement this is highly conservative and remains very close to the source in both structure and melody for the first half. In the last section before the ending (5:07-6:08) is when we get the most new material added in the rhythm/chords. The ending does cut off on an awkward beat and leaves me hanging and wanting more closure after a long 6 minute journey. I think if we had got one more beat to end on one, it might have helped with that. Many of the decisions you made feel very intentional despite them causing muddiness, but are textural and add to the progression of the piece. These don't come off to me as violations, but as artistic decisions. This will not be everyone's cup of tea, but I can get behind the synthesized "analog" warmth. YES

You've replaced the lava and acid underneath Lower Brinstar with smoke and water with this reharmonization. The reharmonization is biggest strength in this arrangement and those chord changes fit very well. The sparseness of the arrangement isn't a factor as you fill the space with the percussion and SFX. Because this is a short compact arrangement everything is really needing to fire and all cylinders. I would've liked to have seen some melodic embellishment in the second half to help differentiate it from the first half, but not necessary. The ending with the shaker isn't feeling 100% complete, this could have been stronger. The shaker is very wet with reverb in comparison to the other percussive elements. I'd like to see the drums matched so that they share the same amount of reverb. The snare is very much the same from hit-to-hit, and needs variation in velocity or even just alternating between different samples. You've shown that you're capable of doing that in the usage of the shaker, it has accents and deemphasizes the weak beats. More variation in the drum pattern would also help this track progress as it feels fairly static in the percussion. I can see this one going either way, but I can't get past the drums as the snare and other percussion issues detracts from my overall enjoyment of the piece. NO (resubmit)

The story and journey are the great strengths of this track. I especially like how you’ve brought the Battle Theme 1 as the “B section” that starts at 3:01 and then builds back up to a recapitulation of Towering Mountain. The main source however is the Towering Mountain theme and it’s the one that the majority of this is built on. There are some nice contrasting sections that have less going on so when we get back to the full sections they really feel big. For me a highlight of contrast is the switch to longer bass notes at 2:34, coming from the shorter length notes makes these ones feel much more impactful (that might even be a different bass sound too?) The arrangement's structurally well put together and my only gripe with the arrangement is that the ending does lose a bit of energy as it comes to a close. Maybe the ending could have been shortened some to help keep some of that energy, start it out very quiet and have a long crescendo until the final reset, or some crazy effects build up? There are some production issues that do need to be mentioned. The bass is lacking presence and the mids are scooped out making the top end feel hot. You could bring the mids up and the highs down, as this is the area they generally sit in. That could help to give the melody more clarity. Those imbalances are there, but they aren't so off to me that it takes away from my listening to it. I get swept up in the cacophony and hold on for the wild ride hoping that it's not going to reset on me and start over. YES (borderline)

I don't get the pleasure of hearing where this came from to see the growth that everyone talked about. I trust them all and believe them when they say it. So with that in mind I'd also like to reiterate what some have said about being proud of the progress you have had. It's very important as an artist to occasionally reflect on that, see/hear the gains :) I like your interpretation of the source melody. By taking it and shortening it down it brings a different energy that the original does not have, that's a great way to inject yourself into this track. Unfortunately the repetition of the melody and drums causes the track to be static. A couple suggestions on how to improve that could be changing up or pass around the lead instrument to another or move it up or down and octave. Or you can also cut a repetition or two. The drums are fairly repetitive and change up between sections. They would definitely benefit with small variations within each sections to help keep them progressing. Overall, there is enough interpretation of the source for me, but what holds it back is the static-nature of the development. Another thing of note is the drums and the synths have very different reverbs going on. The drums have a shorter reverb and the synths have a longer tail. This is making them feel like they are occupying different spaces. I would recommend reducing the reverb tail on the synths as the reverb on the drums feels ok where they are. To summarize, the interpretation of the source in the melody is not bad and brings a different and unique energy than the original. What needs to be improved upon is the static feeling the overall arrangement has and the reverb amount on the synths. NO

Welcome to the forums @Nicole Tanner It's very nice and exciting to see first-time posts from long-time followers. I did a very quick listen through and I agree with what you said, there is one big thing that would not work out. https://ocremix.org/info/Submission_Standards_and_Instructions Under Section 4. Arrangement: Aside from the sound effects it does sound like the original sliced up in the background as well. This is well done but would not work as a submission, not everything needs to be submitted. This is a sweet vibe though, and thank you for sharing. I hope you post more things in the future :)

Enjoyed the loose and mellow vibe from this one. The melodic embellishments were very fitting and was a really good way to put your own spin on this classic Uematsu tune. The bass tone is very warm and round, and feels like it would fit right into a track from the 60s. It's perfect for this style. I loved the structure of the arrangement, except for the ending. It really sounds like you’re about to take off on another, higher energy solo at 2:00 and instead it stops. It’s not abrupt because you resolve the phrase, but I was definitely not expecting an end already. While this is short and could be expanded on further, the length itself was not a deal breaker to me as there was very fun rhythm changes in the melody throughout to give it the loose feel. Where this goes wrong for me is the limiting on the track and a couple small drum issues. Ease off on the limiter to let those parts breathe and create space in the track, it shouldn't be brickwalled and have the peaks be clipped. This is an organic performance and that should be highlighted. The ride cymbal sounds like it’s getting cut-off, not sure if it’s just the sample itself or the reverb tail being cut by something else. It happens at various points through the track, but it’s more noticeable during the sections where the drums pick-up the energy such as 1:38-1:56. The tambourine that starts at 1:13 is very dry and seems to occupy a different space/room then the rest of the band. In the end this was a couple issues that compounded on each other in the limiting and minor drum issues. I'd like to those fixed-up and the track sent back as this is a vibe I can enjoy and chill to. NO

To open the synths feel dry. The open hat sizzle is hot, bring that down ~2db. The arrangement is solid with plenty of interpretation, but the production is what needs the most work. The parts don't feel like they blend together for cohesion so much, they feel like they are all the foreground and I'm not sure what I'm supposed to focus on. The panning is favored to the right it seems, I think it's the open hat just standing out so much. Open sections like 0:58-1:11 and 2:25-2:54 could benefit from having another soft lead play a countermelody or pads with filter sweeps to fill the space in. You give us textural contrast by dropping out parts to create less going on but what about dynamics? Could definitely use some dynamics with the track staying at close to the same level throughout. Fade out? After 4 minutes, it'd be nice to have a more refined and conclusive ending. After all of that it's gonna sound like I'm really ragging on this, but it has potential and I want to see you develop it more.

1:06 gets muddy for a little bit and then comes back shortly after. Not bad to do that momentarily, but I just want to point out that it does happen. The elements pulled in from the source are nice and don't overstay their welcome. Nice interpretation and nice solo.