djpretzel Posted March 19, 2005 Share Posted March 19, 2005 email sub file Brand New Retro - The Return of Black Mesa.mp3 Hi, first off I would like to apologise for having to attach the file, sorry about that Contact Info Your ReMixer name - Brand New Retro Your real name - Liam Fairclough Your email address - brandnewretro@hotmail.co.uk Your website - www.soundclick.com/brandnewretro ReMix Info Name of game(s) ReMixed - Half-Life 2 (The main theme) Comments - This is the first remix I've attempted to submit to OCR and finding this site inspired me to do one. This is a remix of the main theme of Half-Life 2 (which was also used briefly for the Valve intro on the original Half-Life) and I've used one reasonably short sample from it and evolved the track from there. The track reaches a climax at 2:37 and I really hope it doesn't get too repetitive before then I've used many effects and plug-ins but I hope these don't overpower the track as a whole. Anyway take your time and give it a listen if you can, thanks BRANDNEWRETRO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The wingless Posted March 21, 2005 Share Posted March 21, 2005 Somebody requested that I remix Halflife 2... to which I politely replied, "Sounds like you've never played the game." So I commend you, kind sir, on remixing what amounts to 2 notes, as per the original. And yet, I seem to recall (though their names elude me now) a few other avant-garde, adroit pieces. And this certainly is avante based upon premise alone. But the sound engineering is very well put together. Well enough so that the ear is never really bored. The two-note restraint is always being played with, advanced, detracted, varied. There's depth and texture and dynamics and, *gasp* forethought! I like this on two different levels. On one level, I'm very impressed that you have the cah-hoo-neeehs to even gambit such a remix. And on another level, I'm very impressed that, in my quasi-professional opinion, you managed to pull it off. YES --though I am feverishly curious as to what my other compatriots will say at this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malcos Posted March 21, 2005 Share Posted March 21, 2005 Yes, it is rather brave to sumbit a remix of a source tune that is so sparse in content. I love Half-Life 2, upgraded my pc just for it. But anyway I digress. While this mix is quite run of the mill in some aspects, it does suit the feel of hl2, and it will be one of the few hl2 remixes in existence. Some feel that the best remixes are those which could actually be put into the game, and in that aspect, this most definitely passes. A somewhat borderline YES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liontamer Posted March 26, 2005 Share Posted March 26, 2005 Want a copy of the source tune. Any help? Frankly, I don't think this one is that hot in the first place, but I'd also want to understand the level of arrangement here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danny B Posted April 4, 2005 Share Posted April 4, 2005 I had a lengthy review and IE ate it. So i'll summarize. It doesn't use the limited source (tee hee get it?) in a way conducive to being an actual song. It's an interesting experimental tune, not an OC ReMix. I'll elaborate if this vote gets protracted. NO -D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liontamer Posted April 10, 2005 Share Posted April 10, 2005 Thanks a lot for the source tune, Malc. Ok, so the source tune's pretty short from the clip that Stephen provided. The arrangement was relatively basic in that it involved the chords from the original being altered in feel and other ideas were introduced on top. The robo-vox that first arrived at 1:24 was really cheesy. Much more importantly though, the drums were the main offender here, as they sounded very pasted on top. The same with the cymbal work that showed up at 1:07. The faux electric guitar at 1:52 sounded really cheesy, not to mention robotic and distant. A lot of the sounds were very default-ish and dry. The various sfx clips & robo vox being used so repeatedly came off as tacky rather than bolstering the piece. The percussion continued to sit very poorly in the track, and the ambiance was decent but sparsely constructed on the whole. From 2:34 onward, and especially at 3:00 when you layered what sort of sounded like male choir vox, the background was especially loud and muffly. Alongside with the percussion problems, sound balance and processing/effects work are two important things you need to focus on. The arrangement wasn't a violation to me. Though it didn't function well on the interpretive side, Retro actually did a decent job with it in an additive sense. But the sounds are really flimsy, and any thickness in the sounds the track had came from a uh..."less than conservative" use of reverb and delay. Visit the WIP forum for more feedback on future submissions and consult the ReMixing forum to learn how to make better use of your sounds. NO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrayLightning Posted April 21, 2005 Share Posted April 21, 2005 I pretty much agree with danb's statement. On top of that, it's kind of wierd that there's such a wierd disparity going on here. You have some very wet stuff and then you have that beat which sounds so dry, dull and unprocessed sounding. Better than average, but it's not quite there yet, for reasons already stated above. NO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zircon Posted April 30, 2005 Share Posted April 30, 2005 Excellent effort due to the low amount of source material. The ideas here - dark ambient, groove drums w/ some breakbeats, a little industrial - are uncommon to remixes here, so the creative aspect is certainly good. However, the rearrangement factor plus good ideas alone can't really make up for some of the problems I thought existed in the execution of the mix. This is pretty clearly made in FL, as I hear a LOT of FL default samples and generators. Not necessarily a bad thing, but not only are some of these sounds overused, but they are outclassed by free sounds available all over the net on sites like kvr-vst.com and hammersound. The drums, for examples, are very dry (so is the pattern they play) and serve to do little more than keep the rhythm. The breakbeat drums that come in are basically an unaltered default loop from FL - I think it could have been used better. Try mixing it up a bit and rearranging the slices so it's not the same exact sound over and over. The Slayer guitar is also not very good, and neither are the pad-like instruments used to play the background chords. The robot voice effects also just make things cheesy, as Liontamer said. I want to repeat that I like where this is going. However, you need to work on polishing and refining your sounds and the usage of those sounds. For example, why make a boring drum pattern when you could have some sharp industrial drums contributing to the dark atmosphere you seem to be going for? As Liontamer said, the Remixing and WIP forums are the place to go for help on these subjects (you can also try the SoundTempest forums at http://www.soundtempest.net/forum/). NO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarkeSword Posted May 2, 2005 Share Posted May 2, 2005 Are you guys even listening to the same source material as I am? There's practically nothing there to mix. This feels more like an original song than a remix. Either way, I'm voting no, because the produciton on this piece is pretty bad. That piano is too loud and everything sounds ridiculously muffled. The disparity between dry and wet sounds Gray mentioned is very stark; a bit annoying, actually. Everything else has been said. NO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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