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i swear i tried very hard to find things wrong with this so that the fact that i like the piece so much doesn't play a role in my decision but you know, i didn't find much. i found a rather conservative approach to an overdone theme and while that usually would can it for me, this is some smart rock n roll. there is a fine line drawn between a cover being a lack of interpretation and an almost-cover being an interpretation that pays tribute to what, essentially, is an already working/functional approach would changing it all that much more, REALLY improve it? there is enough interpretation and variation to keep it from being a potential OMG OMG MIDIRIP and yet it still rocks you into the ground. what really grabs me is how much better house has gotten at incorporating non-rocking elements into his music. eventually, this guy is going to write a massive rock opera that'll blow us all to oblivion. i also want to echo zircon in that this has to be one of the most interesting ff6 guitar remixes to date. i mean, come on, we've heard them... this may be close to it... but it isn't that close bada bing bada YES

alright. mood-bias in effect haha just kidding on a serious note; mood=A+. i can honestly say that i have never liked the source, i always thought it was too cheesy, too forced and just so typical of final fantasy. but man whatever you did here was spot on perfect for it. i have to echo what has been said so far and that's this is quite sparse. the beat is quite simplistic and the mood is by far the greatest benefactor of the track's overall simplicity. the stutter is not overdone and gives it that new-age electronica feel to it that eludes me when i'm digging through the CD bin. i enjoy this sort of music, a lot - it is calming in an otherwise intensely fast paced world. putting this on during your rush hour commute makes all those shitty drivers disappear and nothing but the colorful trails off the paintjobs of their cars are left. i'm going to yes this because it is a finely entertaining piece of music. YES

this is one of those moments where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts... as said before, i'll echo that there is not a whole lot in dan's review that isn't true. in fact, the orchestral aspects of this piece are cheesy as shit, goat. but you know what? i'd be damned if the song as a whole didn't make my underwear wet... and i'm sitting here at work trying my hardest to be a scientist and a OCR judge at the same time and... well... ugh, not working.... i can't no this. i just can't. its good... if i was goattess, i'd be humping you like bugs bunny leaving st. quentin after serving a 30 year assault with a deadly weapon charge... i'm glad dan took the initiative to make this 6Y because that is where it has to be. but as of right now, its at 5 YES

ahhh - the moment we've all been waiting for... zyko chimes in for what has become his role as house tiebreaker... let me get this out of the way, first: very nice band you got there, fellas. keep up the great work... we need more heavy vg bands; i, myself, was playing bass in a local vg death metal band and while i love the minibosses and chromelodeon and others, there needs to be some pure metal acts out there... so more power to ya now onto business. barring the very beginning moments of the intro, this is boring up until 2:32. i know that cue point has been brought up a ton of times already but it has for a reason; up until that point, its a cheap black mages knock off. you really don't offer anything new and in fact fail to achieve the same efficiency of their arrangement of the same theme. the intro itself up until about :34 is a problem area. the lead part does not sit well in the arrangement... not to mention that its WAY WAY too far back in the mix... while this may be an artistic decision on your part, i think it takes away from the track. except for some standard shred runs, the playing is decent and not always engaging... and like jesse mentioned earlier, there are points where the guitars slow down and speed up again and its confusing. the drumming is rad... i took a peek at bassil's kit and i can see why. the original material in the expanision is very reminiscent of swedish prog rock... namely mayadome so kudos on that so far, so good... (and knowing a couple of you guys are megadeth fans, here it comes...) so what. when all is said and done, you have some serious mixing issues here. i like this track, i really do... but you need to work on that intro, maybe tighten up the overall performance but most importantly... give that lead guitar some breathing room. you guys are mixing a rather thick mix, here... three fully cranked metal guitars and the weakest bass presence ever. i know the genre and i know how bass takes a back seat at times... but shit, fellas, the bass is fuckin chillin in the trunk (and i don't mean in the form of rockford fosgate 15's, either... i mean bound and gagged and screaming for help). because you have such a busy mix, you have to make sure your lead doesn't get murdered something to think about when you resubmit. you fix these things and you'll get a big fat YES from me. but as it is right now, i regretfully play death angel today... NO

hmm i don't know - the arrangement ideas are there... just needs more fleshing. bring the guitars out more or somethin... they're entirely too drowned out... they sound real but if they're not, you should get a real guitarist to play on this. but as it is, your instrumentation needs a little help - some better synths and percussion, also. the quotes and ideas are awesome but the product as a whole is lacking. i would have loved to see where this was gonna go. as of right now, this is a good idea executed sub par... i dig it but not enough to pass it, sorry NO

yeah, well i'm going to have be harsh on this one. its boring. the panning is far from the issue... i kinda like it this way, it stretches my head and it appeals to me in that regard. the guitar playing is flawless and i don't think its a human player as i don't hear a single human slipup... shoot me in the foot if i'm completely off but i just don't hear it. unlike arrangements that already are daring in presentation so i can let slide on a lack of arrangement ideas... this one does not get that luxury because a guitar arrangement of the source is not particularly mindbending. basically, you're gonna have to do more than just play it on a guitar. good idea but grossly underdeveloped NO

also just for the record larry - i don't think he meant that the new judges would make it an easier ride. i think he was only implying that new tastes and visions coming into the panel would shake things up a bit. which it does and has.

well quite frankly, i hope that wasn't targeted at me this is far from your best work. if you were trying to convince me that you thought it was, i'd call you on it. there are some extremely good experimental ideas in here and stuff that i wholeheartedly back you in doing... especially since the source is such a predictably arranged one (i haven't heard very many truly innovative bubble man remixes) but you, man... you went and pulled the full 180 extreme... and made it nearly inaccessible. there are stretches of synth work here that remind me of ray manzarek's organ work for the doors. the intro is insta-win... but this track just doesn't sound right. it tends to start off on a recognizable theme or path and then suddenly just jump off of it and into the bushes, offroad for a bit and then just hop back on the path again at a non-predictable time. i feel particularly bad when judging another's experimental work because its far more difficult to ascertain purpose and intent fairly when dealing with something that is experimental even to its creator... but i'm not gonna tip toe through your ego - i'd assume you knew i was being genuine with you and that i, as a fan of your work, don't think this is indicative of what you can offer. you know this was experimental for you so that's that. sorry bro but NO

well the intro is godawful there are stretches of the arrangement that does make up for it. i love the arrangement, itself... i disagree with the sounds as they sound too sharp, too abrasive and LOUD. but most of the sections i enjoyed were the original ones... when you go into the main theme, its actually kind of wonky and i don't know if the source fits well in that instance. like i said... there are some ideas here that i think were spectacular but the piece as a whole does not work for me. this is regretfully a NO

i heard this first a while back and was captivated by it. its charged and passionate. its unusual and brilliant. the vibe, as gray pointed out, is excellent. i'm going to disagree with my fellow judges on this one. the arrangement might not go to many places with this but does it need to? i don't think there's a standardized quality to "going places" necessarily if the track isn't intended to be progressive in nature. that said, i think it does, in fact, go places but in a different manner (the mood and vibe are just phenomenal) plus wasn't interpreting videogame music creatively the whole premise? have you heard anything like this in... ever? i dunno. i'm giving this a yes. its an extremely interpretive track as it is even if it isn't the musical ideas that are being interpretive... YES

basically the theme here is that you did not do enough to stand out in the crowd and that is not intended as a slight in any way... you have one hell of a bar to approach with how popular this theme is... check out the DoD month for metroid. all in all, this is not obtrusive. it sounds calming and gentle and i'll be keeping it but this doesn't bring enough to the table in terms of arrangement or ideas to be accepted, sorry. although i will say this, you should have taken your ideas with the oboe in the middle of the track further... i think it was easily your most triumphant moment in the piece. otherwise, this doesn't grab my attention. NO

i love the intro. the arrangement for the entire first part of the track is beautiful and i actually prefer this intrepretation to the popular ailsean remix of the same theme... unfortunately i'm probably alone on that i love how it picks up into the lead section and that wah solo. you do use the wah a lot on your leads and i've come to associate it with your music and your style which is good (i like to be able to recognize guitarists) the acoustic guitar is recorded and produced very nicely. the leads at the end reak of satchness and are well written and performed. i'm impressed. i don't see anything wrong with the few odd notes (yes it is odd and they seem out of place but i'm not going to question what is intentional and what is not) all in all this is good and the best work yet from darangen YES

poking my head out from under the heap of my life, right quick. the mood of this track is phenomenal - i love the syncopated bassline and the twirly pads and synths, very trippy. as far as the source material... i'm all for liberal interpretations and this still resembles the source enough where i dont' see why there's a problem with it. it does get repetitive but that's good for a lot of instances and this is no exception. there is something about overcoat's ability to turn pretty things into very haunting auras. but i dig the style and i dig the mood and ultimately love the song YES

first things first, this arrangement is simply the shit. i could not have better thought up that whacky ass game put into sound at when the clock comes in, i'm so far into this mix that i am in love with it regardless. to other people listening to this... if you can't hear the zelda overworld theme in there, you're retarded anyways, its a NO because the site does not acknowledge that liberal an interpretation.

this one is a winner. i love the tightness of the arrangement and the playing. the tone of the guitar is so perfect, its ridiculous. the drumwork and basslines are intelligent and a good backbone to the mix the lead guitar is his best work yet, i think and very impressive. smart and flawless and at times, awfully creative arrangement. i love it. YES

i'm sorry but boring doesn't begin to describe it. i am a fan of the intro, i think its spectacular but talking about losing steam.. or was any even there to begin with? i like what you did until you showed that you weren't intending on taking us anywhere with this track. there are a lot of places this could have gone but you have a godawful sense of dynamics as this pretty much carries one intensity throughout. genuine effort that falls short of our standards NO

timid is just about the best word to describe this song. it doesn't have any personality - its extremely laid back almost to the point of anonymity. its "cute" but it doesn't grab my attention and is predictable from start to finish its also a mix that i honestly believe benefits mostly from the source material... the original melody is what makes this work... otherwise, you couldn't tell this from anything else. sorry, NO

no. it sounds godawful... there isn't a drop of reverb anywhere... i'm being punched in the face with a computer. this also goes nowhere. sorry. NO

holy shit. i have a splitting migraine - there are so many good ideas in this... especially that break that vig is talking about... its peaceful and gentle and i dug it but too late, man. seriously. this split my head with its poorly written percussion (too much going on, its too intense and they sound like shit). half the instrumentations are the originals and everything is so bright and intense i feel suffocated. UGAHFbgfob you had somethin and you obliterated it. NO

ok come on. i can't believe we're having this much of a debate over this... this is as groovy as it needs to be. there is no meat to this piece at all and that irks me but i love how frail it sounds and i think it embodies the "whole package" very well. very ghostly, spooky, hollow and groovy as all shit. it isn't particularly epic or impressive but its solid and somethin i'd love losing minutes to YES

i think it really did go out and do something entirely different with the source than had been done before but i question how well it accomplished that. i don't agree about the stutters; they sound fantastic to me as they really are limited to the main melody phrase and is used as a token identifier rather than something that is in your face, necessarily throughout the piece its very awkward and unusual at first but its experimentally sound and is very groovy in its weird, seemingly sensless way. however, i think the mix is too empty behind the stutters forcing the gating to stand on its own... and that really hurt the mix, i think. there's too little going on behind it... those strings are stale even for intentionally stale electro strings. the bass register of this whole mix is missing somewhere... i'm sure its there but it left this thing sounding so incredibly hollow the arrangement doesn't do much, sorry. i liked where it was goin the first 30-40s or so and then realized a minute later it was still doing the same thing. sorry but despite how much i enjoyed some of the stutter effects, nothing else in this stands out as noteworthy NO

i don't think we should discredit the arrangement on the basis of the length of the source. this may be on the opposite end of a midi-rip on the see-saw but there are a lot of great arrangement ideas in it. i love the guitar tone, its edgy and rough. the player can clearly shred the instrument and i personally dig the experimental approach to what is a quintessential "short" source tune. with enough listens, i've come to appreciate that. the path back into the group after the cleverly syncopated breakdown is lined with a lot of metal... and eventually a bitchin solo the drums are good. i'm digging the DnB thing you're doin as much as the guitar and the two go well together very nicely. this is a definite YES in my book.

good ol follin music mixed in with good ol binster music. say what you will about groove bias but this is damn groovy and i dig subdued melody? sure - but some pieces of music aren't meant to glorify the standard of melody, anyways. what i hear here is quality and funkiness. i liked the vgmix version but i like this new synth a lot more, dude - very grunkly i don't see any problem here. this is nice. YES

like larry said, if you aren't familiar with dennis' work, you are missing out on perhaps the best metal mixer in the scene. that said, bias plays no role here. this is quite simply quality work. from top to bottom, this is excellent; arrangement is brilliant given that castlevania has this tendency to lend itself easily to metal... but what's this? a fresh and original take? noo... it can't be. but it is. and its courtesy of dennis mott and excellent drum programming, flawless guitar playing (very underrated guitarist, by the way), and awesome lyrics and vocals (i'm going to hunt whoever said metal vocals don't require talent because you have a seriously damaged brain) recognizable and not at the same time. rock on YES

this is awesome. the intensity is there. the arrangement is definitely there... touches upon the strengths of the source and exploits the subject matter perfectly. the quality is also superb. i loved this soundtrack... i was working on a collaboration with some of these same melodies so i'm familiar with their potential badassness its neat how the track begins on a very modern note... the drums and bass and breaks very indicative of modern electronica. the bass is powerful. the orchestra hits are tastefully done. then the track shifts into a section that goes even further back... it now takes me back to the mid-80's and there is no mistaking the power of nostalgia in this section. i like how seamlessly the two seemingly different sections connect so well and give you the illusion and possibly reality that they belong together. the ending is cool. i like how you focus on the bass while everything else pulls out of view and the listener is exposed to the backbone before it hits away. good stuff. YES