DragonAvenger Posted April 15, 2011 Share Posted April 15, 2011 Remixer Name: Darangen Real Name: Michael Boyd Email: mike@darangen.com Website: www.darangen.com UserID: 8948 URL to Remix: Game: Final Fantasy 6 Songs: Gau’s Theme, The Veldt Original Soundtracks: Gau’s theme - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wdQn2ghMF7k The Vedlt - Comments: I’ve been out of the remixing loop for a good 5 years now due to life situations and time constraints (also read as time sinks) but I’m back and full of new ideas. I arranged these two themes long ago, back in 2004, but the result wasn’t received well due to the shaky nature of my voice and poor production quality. So that mix sat on my hard drive for me and close friends to listen to. However, the two themes are dear to my heart and now that I’ve developed more and learned a bit more about production, I’ve been itching to revisit them. This is the product of that desire. One neat tidbit about this submission is that the percussion is recorded live. I recently purchased a new fire wire interface (from zzounds through OCRemix!) that allows for multiple ins (and outs) to their own respective track. I was able to use 4 different mic’s simultaneously to get a very accurate sound for the djembe and 2 mic’s for the tambourine. I’m very happy with the results, personally. I also recently upgraded to Cakewalk Sonar X1, which this mix is recorded in. It was mastered in Adobe Soundbooth. There are lyrics to this arrangement. I personally fell my vocal abilities have improved since my latest arrangement. They are as follows: ----------------------------- I never thought those days would end Never thought hearts could mend The feelings inside of me The passions that burn to be I see clearly Things that once were so hard to find Hold them dearly To my side Everyone out there is lookin’ for somethin’ If you’re fallin’ from the sky then just hit the ground runnin’ No matter where you land Just keep your feet in the sand And face another day It’s just another day Every day passin’ is another day to roam If you start to feel lonely, know that you’re not alone I’ll always be here Know I’ll always be near No matter where you go You’re never alone Thoughts are rising Now advising Compromising You Pushin’ through the bad times, when you start to feel low The flower needs the rain, just as it needs the sun to grow In the face of all the pain Your will is not in vain Never stop going strong Just keep going strong Just keep your head up, keep your sights toward the sky Don’t listen to the others, just spread your wings and fly Always be true To the things you once knew Don’t give up on hope Never give up on hope Thoughts are rising Now advising Compromising You Always dreaming Thoughts are streaming Future gleaming Through ----------------------------- Hope you enjoy it! I certainly enjoyed creating it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DragonAvenger Posted April 16, 2011 Author Share Posted April 16, 2011 There's a lot of potential in this, but there are four things that I think are really holding this back. First is that there are a lot of timing issues, especially starting around 1:55. As a whole everything needs to line up better. Secondly, I'm unsure about the Veldt connection. I see what you're going for, but without being told beforehand, I would have never made that connection on my own. Thirdly, your intonation has improved from some of the other vocals I've heard, but it's not at a level it needs to be for this, where your voice is a lot more exposed. Lastly, as a whole I think the backing for the vocals could come down, and the rhythm guitars could especially be brought down to blend better and give the vocals some room to breathe. Good stuff: I really like the concept, and the lyrics are unique and appropriate for the track. The track is very personalized, which is also a plus. Hit up that stuff, and I hope I get to hear it again, NO (resubmit) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
halc Posted April 24, 2011 Share Posted April 24, 2011 I'm digging the intimate, live feel of this, esp. the hand-drums. Timing is off at times (as Deia mentioned, 1:55 is a problem point), and the vocals are eq'd a little high and dry and could use some more body. Not really catching the veldt theme in here, but Gau's theme is pretty clear and lends itself well to this style of arrangement. overall this is a solid track, and very close to a pass, but another look at the timing and vocal mixing/intonation (particularly in the lower register) would put this over. please fix this up and resubmit. I want to put my yes on it. NO(resub) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OceansAndrew Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 Gonna have to agree with the other judges. THere is a really nice base here, and I think the lyrics are good, and the soundscape appropriate, but there are a few minor execution details that need to be ironed out. The timing issues mentioned, as well as some of the more subtle vocal intonation issues. I also think that the vocals are a touch too buried by othe relements and could come up a bit more. I love the concept and would like to hear a resub, please. No, please resubmit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liontamer Posted May 12, 2011 Share Posted May 12, 2011 Opened up pretty close to the intro for a while. Weird production choices. I liked the effects on the intro, but when the bowed strings came in at :24, the strings were too far in the back, and it seemed like a whole slew of frequencies was missing from the soundscape, and all I was hearing were highs that were bordering on grating. Wasn't really feeling how the vocal stuff starting at :26 was produced. There was some delay on it, but it still was very dry and wasn't positioned properly in the soundscape. Yeah, something's totally off with the production. Once the vocals came in at 1:03, it was obvious. Lots of issues with the recording (e.g. obvious pop at 1:22), there's apparently no real low-end, and lots of areas need to be de-essed. Weird, akward key change at 1:53. The bass abruptly dropping out at 1:54 also was very careless/sloppy. Honestly, there was a surprising lack of attention to detail. Tambourine seemed to be lightly clipping as well, at last until 2:05. I respect you playing several parts in live, but this needed some quantizing; the timing was too loose to the point of being completely unacceptable for your skill level. 2:19-2:43 was an egregious example where the piano ended up behind, there was some sort of glitch at 2:23 where the vocal timing got throw way off by some sort of hiccup in the instrumental. But even before-hand, the piano was lagging behind and didn't sound right as a result, both here and again at 3:10. Gotta say though, very creative usage of the arranged Veldt chorus as the piano backing, first at 2:19. Totally changed the feel and mood of that theme and caught me off guard in a good way. Again, the transitions into and out of that theme didn't flow at all, but, in a vacuum, I really appreciated the unique spin you gave "Wild West." The key change at 2:44 moving back into Gau's theme wasn't smooth at all. These transitions really needed work. It could just be bias from the sections not really piecing together well, but the arrangement felt overlong and you could have cut easily 3:10's & 3:35's sections since it was just clunky and repetitive at that point. 4:22 brought back the la-la's of the intro, going for the parabolic structure as the track wound down. Very drawn out ending, again, much like the intro. The attempt's ambitious, Mike, but there's a lack of attention paid to details in the production, timing, and transitions that killed this dead. You heard from 3 nice judges, but, despite going NO, they were all way too nice and weren't critical enough with a bunch of glaring, dealbreaking issues. It's not that the ideas are crappy, but the execution was so rough that this wasn't anywhere near a pass as is, and several other judges who are more blunt would tell you the same thing. This would really need a lot of work (not a little) on tightening up on the timing, more sensible mixing/balance among the parts, and better thought out transitions between the two themes that actually flow together. The vocals themselves weren't horrible, but working the intonation issues that were also brought up would also be a plus, though that would be last on my list compared to everything else that stuck out. Don't be discouraged though. It's definitely awesome to see you back in the game and hopefully continue taking your work to the next level. I know you don't like resubmissions if you feel like you're compromising your original vision for the song, so definitely do not do that on this one if you work on it further. This was a risky arrangement that didn't pay off in the execution, but you can (and should) learn from this one. NO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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