djpretzel Posted September 30, 2005 Share Posted September 30, 2005 Hi I'm a new member of OC Remix and here's a remix I've written: Download link for remix: ----- Personal Info ------ Name: "cyberseth" [ Seth Jeffery ] Email: cybersethxp@hotmail.com Web: www.muscle-power.net ------ Song Info ------ Title: "Unsent Flames" Original: "Wandering Flames" from Squaresoft's FFX ------ Comments ------ Well, as the first remix that I've submitted I haven't a lot to say, only that I hope it goes down well, heh. I used Cubase SL 3 and a selection of various soft synths and samplers. The whole song, like the original, is really held together by the warm chords, but I added a nice swung beat to keep the pace moving. Didn't have my sax or clarinet handy so I mainly used EP and sampled guitar sounds for the melody, as well as other bits and bobs. K that's all from me, hope you enjoy it! - Seth Jeffery Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Orichalcon Posted September 30, 2005 Share Posted September 30, 2005 Well, I couldn't be sure when this mix started that I wasn't just listening to the original. The acoustic guitar over this certainly is pretty. The rhodes are too, the beat as well. But from what I can tell this is pretty much just layered over the top of the original. An extension of the source tune if you will. I'm strewn on this one. This is a really well put together chill-mix. The sound is clear, the guitar is well played. The drums are basic and very loopy, but in a chill mix like this it's not an amazing issue since they're just there to keep the beat. The rhodes (or EP) are clear and make a very nice backing in the mix. When the piano comes in, it's gentle and fits in the flow of the mix. I'm going to make an assumption in this paragraph that this is entirely original composition to judge this properly. The way the flute is utilised in this is unique in that it acts as a transition between rhodes and guitar, and acts as more of a backing, where as in the source it's really the only thing that showed face beyond the strings. Since the original was basically just the pads and the flute, there wasn't much of a source really to work with. What we have here is more of a work around the source, rather than on the source, where the instruments flirt with the chords and the notation, never taking a melodic shape, but keeping with the overall sound of the mix. Your typical chillout style. Overall, this is a nice sounding mix. I'm going to have to go with my gut on this one. I wouldn't be unhappy if this passed. I don't know if it's too close to the original to be accepted through to the site. But I'm digging the sound you've brought accross here, and it sounds acceptable to me. YES for now, unless some of the other judges can make this one clearer for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liontamer Posted September 30, 2005 Share Posted September 30, 2005 http://www.tzone.org/~llin/psf/packs2/FFX_psf2.rar - 407 "Wandering Flames" The pads used in the intro sound like very default sounds, and the sequenced guitar at :12 sounds very stiff and mechanical. The beats brought in at :34 are downbeat, but very default-sounding and looped to no end. I like the little additions here at :57. The way the source tune was handled, you attempted to go the expansion route, though I wish you didn't basically replicate "Wandering Flames" and then add stuff on top, as I'm sure there are ways to even change the arrangement of that. I liked the use of the piano at 2:04 to remix 1:55-2:08 of the source tune. Decent ending. The pad layering throughout the track was decent, though the pads during the fadeout were very exposed for their low quality. The track is put together fairly decently, but the way the pads move doesn't quite sound smooth (hard to articulate, but the way the pads move in the original was smoother), and the guitar and piano both sound defaulty and mechanical, the guitar being much more negatively impactful to me. The beats are too plain-sounding and unprocessed, and I feel they don't blend in well with the track. Needs to sound less defaulty and given more attention to fine-tuning the sounds. As it stands, the samples in play are of an inferior quality to the original, and aren't used as well as they could be. Good stuff so far, Seth, but it really needs polish to make everything more cohesive. NO (resubmit) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The wingless Posted October 1, 2005 Share Posted October 1, 2005 I thought we weren't going to fault people for ass-candy samples. Shame on you Larry Oji. You have forgotten the face of your father. I'm very fond of the "Chill" atmosphere created, but I can't help but feel there could have been a lot more done. I don't mean pounding the song with more samples, as it is a species of chillout ambient. I am saying that it could be much more ornate, and could do with some more embellishment. Grrr, I'm torn with The Seal of Orichalclon. So I will go with my gasto-intestinal organ [sic] and give it a YES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vig Posted October 2, 2005 Share Posted October 2, 2005 this sounds nice, but it really doesnt do a lot creatively. It's ambient, but without direction, which means it's boring. the samples are nice, but where's the cow-meat food product? NO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harmony Posted October 2, 2005 Share Posted October 2, 2005 The Good… - The guitar initially struck me as mechanical but it quickly grew on me. The riffs from 1:32-1:42 are nicely done and don’t take such an extended central role that their artificiality is greatly exposed. - The Rhodes entering at 0:35 is beautiful as well as most of the piano that comes in later. There’s an odd harmonic bobble at 0:50 that doesn’t sit well with me but overall nice job. - Nice chill beat. It certainly doesn’t take center stage but it’s a good backbone for the additive ideas in this mix. The Bad… - The pads are the most prominent element from the source used in this mix. Unfortunately, their adaptation here is very plain. The source tune is absolutely filled with wonderful harmonic melting and mashing of pads and oboe (source: 0:00-0:15, 1:36-1:52, etc). Much of that complexity is removed for this mix leaving the potentially engaging warm pads out in the cold. I enjoy the additions of the breathy pads at 0:58 for example but they only mirror, not harmonize with, the pads that are already there. - The additions aren’t that significant. Although the beat is fine, it is unassumingly repetitive and thus really shouldn’t serve as a key addition. Remove the beat and we don’t have much to go with except for the simplified chord progressions of the original and sparse melodic bits here and there. A lot more can be done to make this more “ornate.” …and the Vote. Great vibe, but exchanging harmonic complexity for a chill groove requires more expansion than we have here. A resub for sure. NO (Please Resubmit) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
analoq Posted October 25, 2005 Share Posted October 25, 2005 I'm very fond of the "Chill" atmosphere created, but I can't help but feel there could have been a lot more done. I don't mean pounding the song with more samples, as it is a species of chillout ambient. I am saying that it could be much more ornate, and could do with some more embellishment. in addition to being markedly curt, i do on occasion steal the opinions of others.. but the votes are always mine. no Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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