Hemophiliac

The whole concept of this piece could work well, and the Enya/New age-type vibe does come through well. However, I am in agreement with Prophetik on both points about the orchestration/part-writing being dense in the low-mids as well as the reverb being too much. Make sure the reverb has EQ cutting the lows to help it from creating mud solely from the reverb. When the pan flute first enters at 0:14, it starts to quickly sound like a flanger/chorus or distortion effect is applied on it. That kind of effect feels counter-intuitive to the smooth new age sound you're going for. This carries throughout the piece and dominates the soundscape. This really needs to be cleaned up, and the parts balanced more evenly amongst each other with possibly some low end parts reduced or cut. I appreciate that there was some thought put into the swelling of the background elements to help give them movement and energy, but the bass does get really big at times when it reaches it's fullest. I'm hearing the Metroid (something very closely resembling it) in the piano in the deep background 3:05-3:10, and then 3:11-3:30 it sounds like interpretation of that same part. Even with the timestamps, I'm not making out Metroid except for there. As is, the Castlevania parts feel much more dominant in the arrangement. Overall, more direction both in structure and melody would go a long way to keeping interest going as it does feel rather stagnant for a longer piece ~5 min. NO

While this could be a really cool idea to start out with this and expand into something more interpretative and transformative, this is not what OCR is looking for. This is too similar to the original with very little interpretation or transformation. You want to go in and see what more of your own flavors you can add to or change from the original source. Present the source in a new way. It could be anything from melodic embellishment, changing the chord progression, or changing the time signature even. There are many ways you can change it up and put your own spin on things. Or you can add completely new material to sit against the original source. Those are just a few examples of how you can do it, and there are many more ways that you can do it that I didn't mention. I'd encourage you to post in the workshop on the forums or join to the discord server to get feedback. NO

Pretty fun synthwave adjacent villages track. Are these villages adorned with neon lights and beaches that have massive sunsets with palm tree silhouettes? Didn't really care for the lead that enters at 1:43 so much. Something about it feels odd and slightly-off to me. It's a timbre choice, so I can't knock you too much. 2:40 a more substantial transition would have helped to make this feel more prepared before the new section, but it works as is. Overall, this gets the job done and is a pretty fun throwback to another age...exactly what synthwave is going for. YES

Vocal harmony!! I want more vocal harmony in the world, thank you for giving me some here. I not expect it to come from Fisherman's Horizon, awesome :) There's some minor pitch correction throughout, but nobody is perfect all the time. It's barely there, generally only notice it on the longer held-out notes. Ladyreemz's timbre works very well with the style and fits like a glove. This arrangement is fantastic and really takes us on a journey with a lot of development and orchestration throughout. I honestly didn't realize this was 7 minutes long until after it was over and saw the time at the end. 4:07-4:20 using the prelude as a background figure was good call and allowed the next section to be prepared by introducing the synth like that. Was that a tiny racing chocobos - place your bets cameo from FF7 at 4:42-4:44?? The only nitpick I have is with the mixing of the percussion. I feel like we could've beefed up the kick and snare and let them have more presence in the mix later in the track (3:53-5:49). As they seem to sit just under everything else rather then adding more energy. The final reprise is a great payoff for the track bringing in as many elements as you did including a bigger vocal stack including Marc joining in. FANTASTIC! YES

Been hearing this one for months since TSori has been working on it during development of the project. It's been a pleasure to hear it come together. Especially when the sources are very forgettable. The 70s semi-disco vibe is so great, and the performances from top to bottom are excellent. The mix is super clean and manages to balance out all of those parts amongst each other so well. Absolute slam dunk from TSori, Flake, and crew! I hope people enjoy this one as much as I do. Get up and "Think on Your Feet"! YES

Absolutely full as others have mentioned previously, but not so full that it's muddy or a chaos of cacophony. My main criticism of this is any time there is synth elements being used they are very thin and flimsy, making them have a hard time to have any presence or cut through the dense mix. 3:12-3:27 is the clearest we can hear the synths throughout the piece. I suggest layering the synth or using saturation to help it cut through more. This is by no means any issue to me at all, I just want to make a suggestion for possible use in future works. There could have been a bigger dynamic contrast for the sparser sections, but there is at least some semblance of a contrast with slightly lighter texture during them. The arrangement is pretty standard, but gets the job done with plenty of ThePlasmas guitar goodness injected. I'd say you took a pretty forgetful source and spiced it up into something more musical and entertaining rather than filler background music. YES

So much to love here. Actually love how free flowing this is and how loose the playing/tempo is. Letting Marble Gallery be the main shell that contains everything was a wise choice, especially considering the misery that is Environmental Mystery. Speaking of...did I hear Lucas say "Environmental Mystery" and "Marble Gallery" in the intro talking? Is that like the remix version of a rapper calling out their name in a track? XD Everything is very forward into the mix, but feeling like they occupy the same room. Very clean sound, excellent work on that mixdown. I want to echo something prophetik mentioned about chord voicing on the piano in this context. You can easily remove the 1 and 5 from a chord and still retain the quality/function. The bass will often be taking that 1, and the 5 doesn't actually pull very much so it allows you to put in so much more to add color. I'd be happy to talk more with you regarding this if you'd like to. When you switch to comping it's effective in accenting and deemphasizing various implied rhythm. Though the rhythm is not the focus here, it's the atmosphere. I like how Environmental Mystery was worked in a B section because it's so dramatically different from Marble Gallery. The transition and development into bringing us into Environmental Mystery is so important in getting us ready for such a big change, great job there. It's just a huge contrast no matter how you look at it. No real complaints here at all. Would've preferred hollow body guitar sound, but that's not for me to determine what's correct. YES

What pristine performances from Medlix, Gamer of the Winds, and Steven Higbee. How the themes intertwine and pass off is relatively seamless, handled very well. Arrangement is the star. The tempo change at 1:38 really stands out. 2:01-2:30 has really lovely texture as the lushness really shines along with some small chromaticism. The dynamics are relatively flat throughout and don't stray much. In turn this feels like a slog to listen to. Even more change from high to low would help contrast, IE more bass/celli. They are there but very quiet and soft. It's all light and no darkness, with maybe a touch of mystery or suspense. That's really a creative decision and not a knock on the quality of the piece as a whole or something that must happen. In the end I love that you really let your performers shine through and the arrangement is strong. YES

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

When I heard this for the first time during the GSM voting period, I nearly jumped out of my seat when it started. I could not believe how well this adapted The Gorillaz, but also managed to intertwine both Metroid Prime and CV3. The singing fits this stylistically like a glove, perfect; kudos. The production is absolutely pristine, I expect nothing less from RID-LEY. At first glance there might not seem like a ton of source in there, but it's ALL over the place. It's just camouflaged as The Gorillaz. Absolutely fantastic work. 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

More like Infinite Sausage Clippings. ? The source is well represented and I like what you've done to expand on it. The source is very minimal to begin with so everything that was added both in terms of parts and sound design were welcomed. The arrangement is good enough for me. Where I do have problem is all in the production. Wow did you make this loud. I generally don't have to touch my volume knob on my audio interface, but I had to turn it down here. 0:18-0:42 absolutely has some overblown kick and bass combination here. Again we get some heavy distortion that is getting overblown at 1:34-1:45, 1:53-1:57, and 2:02-2:25. You're gonna have to play with it some to get it to a spot where the track is still loud and powerful but the tops aren't getting clipped too much because it does feel to be affecting the way the overall sound itself is supposed to be. I suggest reducing your master limiter to -0.5db like Chimpazilla recommended. Consider reducing the amount of volume or distortion on that bass/kick combo at times, because it gets to be too much for me. This one is close. NO (resubmit)

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

I'm surprised that Silent Light has not been represented on OCR yet. I really like the source and it's so cool to see it represented here. Adapting both sources to this style works so well, and there's a great build of energy from beginning to end. Highlights for me were the contrast between energy like at 2:02 and 2:53. The laid back groove in 6/8 in the second half is awesome with Silent Light. I agree with Chimpazilla that the piano would benefit from more exaggerated humanization, especially when there is less going on around it. The bass is less present and quieter then the other parts in the mix and could use a boost. I feel like i'm picking up some pumping from a compressor in the beginning with the piano on the downbeats from 0:12-0:57 and later 2:53-3:22. My guess is there's a side-chained compressor reducing the piano. I don't notice the compressor pump when a lot of other parts are playing which says that the amount of pump is not much. It's only when things are exposed that it stands out. This one is really close for me, it's a case where smaller minor issues added up to more. I'd like to see this back with some changes if possible. NO (please resubmit!)

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