OceansAndrew Posted June 15, 2011 Share Posted June 15, 2011 * Your ReMixer name: Draconiator * Your real name: Justin Landry * Your email address: musicphreak48@yahoo.com * Your website: http://www.youtube.com/draconiator * Your userid: 20634 Submission Information * Title of Mix: Suncoils * The remix: I've attached it * Name of game(s) arranged: Mega Man 7, Mega Man 10 * Name of individual song(s) arranged: * This is my entry for the Grand Robot Master Remix battle 2011, first round. I really didn't feel that comfortable at first when JakeSnke17 urged me to enter, and I kind of felt like I leapt before I looked, to be honest. But as it came closer, I started getting excited about it. I was so excited that I knocked this one out in 1.5 days once the contest got going,. I got paired up with Prophetik, who had Spring Man. This is in the form of a pop song. It has 2 "verses" and two "choruses" and a bridge. Each verse is 4 or 8 (depending on how you look at it) lines long, and each line is split in half as far as what robot master I used, Solar Man first, then Spring Man. The chorus has Spring Man with some original writing. The bridge is all Solar Man. I had to be creative with the interpretation because both songs are in a different key, and I wrote this in yet another key. Solar Man's Stage ( )Spring Man's Stage ( ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OceansAndrew Posted June 20, 2011 Author Share Posted June 20, 2011 This is pretty fun, and has a cool swagger and a good integration of themes and a pretty solid soundscape. Things aren't gelled 100%, but it's damn close, and has a good attention to detail with strong transitions, interesting breakdowns, and some cool effects. There was definitely more Solar Man theme present, as far as I could tell, but both were well incorporated. Overall I feel this is a pretty solid mix. Yes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vig Posted June 27, 2011 Share Posted June 27, 2011 Alright. This is fine, it's just so...straightforward. There's really nothing grabbing my attention making me want to keep listening. The lead is really uninteresting and a bit too far up front. You need more nuance and energy with the arrangement and the sound to make this a keeper. NO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DragonAvenger Posted July 2, 2011 Share Posted July 2, 2011 I'm going to admit that it took me a long time to wrap my head around the arrangement, especially how you incorporated Springman in there. Now I've got a better grasp on things, but it was more than a few listens to be honest. The arrangement is clever, and as Andrew mentioned, it's cool, although at times it doesn't quite gel all the way. There are a couple moments of space that feel a little uninspired, namely the introduction, and 1:50ish, which I think is part of what Vig is getting at. Another issue I see is that there is very little change to the soundscape in terms of instruments and volume, which gets a little uninteresting. Based on that, I'd like to send this back to you so you can really pull this together and make it more solid. NO (please resumbit) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liontamer Posted October 14, 2011 Share Posted October 14, 2011 Pretty powerful beats to open up. Good stuff at :14. Not really getting any hint of some themes, but at least the song is gradually building with a good sounds. Solar Man's at :45 with a fairly generic-sounding lead. It sounds almost dissonant in places. I'd honestly change that up to something that isn't as harsh-sounding and also pull back the volume a bit, since right now it's almost overbearing compared to the other instruments. Reading Vig's comments after I wrote this, we're on the same page: The lead is really uninteresting and a bit too far up front. You need more nuance and energy with the arrangement and the sound to make this a keeper. Pretty much. I liked the crystalline counter-melody at 1:15 though; very nice choice there to add some new flavor to the soundscape. I had a hard time making the A-to-B connection of this chorus to "Spring Man." It seemed too liberal, but I'd appreciate some insight on the usage. Right now, I can't fully get behind the arrangement side as far as source usage, so I hope I'm just missing something obvious. I see where Jesse's coming from with the arrangement being straightforward, but I can't say it bothered me offhand. The dynamics being kind of flat was more of a problem for me when coupled with the lead. The dynamics were subtle, but overall it felt like the song was in basically 1 and half gears and the sonic palette lacked variation. The dynamics can work if the sound palette isn't an issue. Switching out the harsh lead for part or all of the song (you had chances at 2:01 and 2:34), and then also having some other subtle but noticeable instrumental variations could lend just the right changeups to keep this otherwise steady groove fresh. And now reading DragonAvenger's crits, she nailed it: Another issue I see is that there is very little change to the soundscape in terms of instruments and volume, which gets a little uninteresting. I love when we're hitting the same points independent of one another. 3:02's change up was good as far as keeping the same tempo but changing the mood some, but again, needs some sonic variation with the lead if this beat and this groove are gonna coast on. Great stuff so far, Justin, this is clearly something you could refine and get passed with just a little extra TLC. Loving the results so far, this is some awesome potential that just needs some tweaks to get the balance among the instruments right and help this steady groove not get tired after the 4 1/2 minutes. You can definitely get it there. As long as the Spring Man stuff is overtly used, don't change the arrangement, just work on the levels and sound of the lead so it's not bland, too loud and too repetitive. NO (refine/resubmit) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nutritious Posted October 19, 2011 Share Posted October 19, 2011 I'll start off to say I'm really digging the feel you've started at :15 and the fade in of the sidechained stuff later. Not to beat a dead horse, but I'm really not digging that lead either. Maybe you were going for a kind've spring-y lead sound to go with the OST? Really liked how you handled the bass synth by the way. It really compliments the groove you've established. Arrangement-wise, I'm also really having trouble with the Spring Man connection. I think I hear what you're going for, but it'd need to be more overt usage to be called a source connection in my book. So you've established the groove and backing effectively, now work on the lead and a little arrangement and you should be good to go. No, resubmit please Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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