Mega Man: The Wily Castle Remix Gauntlet 2013

[Phonetic Hero]

Brandon I think I've found your

for the past round

EDIT: Also your track is fucking hilarious

Edited August 6, 2013 by Phonetic Hero

[KingTiger]

YES /10char

[Brandon Strader]

EDIT: Also your track is fucking hilarious

That's kinda insulting because it was meant to sound like legit heavy metal but I'll admit the lyrics are pretty cheesy/comedic sometimes, but pretty dramatic at other times

[Phonetic Hero]

That's kinda insulting because it was meant to sound like legit heavy metal but I'll admit the lyrics are pretty cheesy/comedic sometimes, but pretty dramatic at other times

Oh sorry man, I just assumed the entire track was one giant innuendo. Since it's called "Going Commando," I imagined a naked man running around threatening people with his... "cannon"

Don't get me wrong, it sounds great

[Brandon Strader]

That IS what it's about! Doesn't mean it's not serious or emotionally engaging!

[Jamphibious]

If we use multiple Stardroids, do we put them all in the filename? Like (Pharaoh Man, Naptune, and Terra)? Or something like (Pharaoh Man and The Stardroids)? Just wondering since I don't really see that anywhere in the first post, maybe I'm blind.

[Mirby]

Naptune?

Is that a tune you listen to while napping?

[MindWanderer]

It's anything downloaded from Napster, of course.

Just voted. Really, really tough call. I was able to narrow it down to 7 with a fair amount of confidence, but then it really could have gone any way. There were a couple that were almost heartbreaking not to rank.

[DrumJ8]

It's kind of funny cuz, after I finished my track, I listened to it a bunch of times and I was like "aw yiss I'm proud of this it actually sounds pretty good" but after going thru the other tracks one by one and then came upon mine again, the production quality on mine all of a sudden sounded so inferior in comparison. not sure what smiley goes with this.

[KingTiger]

Lol yeah Kuolema we're the only idiots doing it so far

Goddamnit challenge accepted.

Already doin it and ya'lls are goin' down

[MindWanderer]

It's kind of funny cuz, after I finished my track, I listened to it a bunch of times and I was like "aw yiss I'm proud of this it actually sounds pretty good" but after going thru the other tracks one by one and then came upon mine again, the production quality on mine all of a sudden sounded so inferior in comparison. not sure what smiley goes with this.

You think you feel that way? I think this is quite possibly the best piece I've ever done, and then the track right after mine in the playlist is done in almost the exact same style only about 1000 times better.

I'm still pretty pleased with the arrangement, though.

[shadow24]

You think you feel that way? I think this is quite possibly the best piece I've ever done, and then the track right after mine in the playlist is done in almost the exact same style only about 1000 times better.

I'm still pretty pleased with the arrangement, though.

Don't feel bad dude. Only way to go is up from here. Also remember we are mixing in a shorter amount of time too. One week as opposed to two in your competitions. My problem is I get sick of my mix after working on it all afternoon for three days straight and it still sounds worse than the seasoned veterans in the competition. Hopefully, that feeling will go away / I'll become quicker / or something else will improve.

Edit: BTW who else uses Logic as their DAW? Just curious.

Edited August 7, 2013 by shadow24

[KingTiger]

who else uses Logic as their DAW? Just curious.

I do, but I'm guessing you already figured that out.

[MindWanderer]

Also remember we are mixing in a shorter amount of time too. One week as opposed to two in your competitions.

The whole reason I do that is to keep it in a similar timeframe: One week to make a mix, then a second week to get and apply the advice of your mentor. At least, that's the way I'd approach it, because I feel like my arranging is OK but my production needs a ton of work. If you need arrangement advice, you'd probably work more closely with the mentor earlier on.

My problem is I get sick of my mix after working on it all afternoon for three days straight and it still sounds worse than the seasoned veterans in the competition.

Until now I haven't felt that way, because none of my competition has ever used a style similar to mine. But now ShrackAttack & co. have given me a good piece for the next time I want to A/B an epic orchestral score-type piece.

What I really need to do is learn how to work with synths. Most successful entry-level remixers start there rather than with soundfonts, it seems, and there are more people I can compare to in that regard.

[ShrackAttack]

Any time you want some help MindWanderer, you can just send me a pm or ask me on Skype (pretty sure my nick is the same). Though my sequencing for this one was rather mechanical since I was limited on time due to having to go out of town for part of the compo (and had to have Jason/GLL finish out the rest of my track for me due to it), I can still prob give you a few pointers on sequencing techniques and such.

Hopefully I get to finish my track the next time it is my turn .

The whole reason I do that is to keep it in a similar timeframe: One week to make a mix, then a second week to get and apply the advice of your mentor. At least, that's the way I'd approach it, because I feel like my arranging is OK but my production needs a ton of work. If you need arrangement advice, you'd probably work more closely with the mentor earlier on.

Not that I am any expert, but usually when people who are doing orchestral music think they have a problem with production it isn't the production. It's almost always a problem with the writing/arranging. Most of what it takes to get a solid song for orchestra stuff is simply writing properly and keeping instruments in their appropriate ranges, even with soundfonts.

[MindWanderer]

Not that I am any expert, but usually when people who are doing orchestral music think they have a problem with production it isn't the production. It's almost always a problem with the writing/arranging. Most of what it takes to get a solid song for orchestra stuff is simply writing properly and keeping instruments in their appropriate ranges, even with soundfonts.

Fair enough. I'm much less of an expert than you are! I can certainly the difference in production quality between my track and yours, though, and it's not all sample quality. I know that my sequencing was also mechanical, and that I screwed up the volume balance between the parts in my final attempt to improve compression, but both of those I could have fixed--or at least improved--given time. I would love to hear from you on what else I could have done to improve it, arrangement and production both.

[Sir_NutS]

We're putting our top man on this assignment.

[KingTiger]

We're putting our top man on this assignment.

well then you're SCREWED because your top man sucks.

who's your top man again?

(loaded question)

[Jivemaster]

It can be whoever you want it to be KT.

[KingTiger]

It can be whoever you want it to be KT.

Nice dodge

[Jamphibious]

Gonna put the finishing touches on my mix soooooon. This was a cool round, there were so many options so it should be an interesting batch of mixes!

[timaeus222]

Phew, started halfway through the week, almost done. Might even be better than my last entry, who knows. Definitely more adventurous in terms of composition.

Edited August 10, 2013 by timaeus222

[Ethan Rex]

Here's the reviews:

Zerothemaster - Snare comes in a bit too hot and stays relatively thin throughout. I like the sound of the moon lead. Some key issues between sources.

Xarnax42 - this is a really neat idea. It seems like time was an issue here. Some of the vocal percussion seemed out of time in places.

ToN - really neat intro here; i dig the voice over. nice metric modulation. The moon lead sounded a little bit harsh in the high end at times. Source usage is recognized but interp't well.

Shrack - really really cool soundscape and aesthetic here. Everything sounds real nice, that concrete man trumpet could come out a little more i think. transition to piano is done well, and it sounds real smooth. Transition back to strings seemed a tad bare, but that's a nitpick.

shadow24 - soundscape is interesting and perhaps even eccentric, which is pretty neat at times. my main problem with this mix is that it seems to wander around. Try to fit clear melodies and establish an architecture to the song arrangement.

MindWanderer - your production has improved quite a bit since even B4C2. String stabs seem a tad mechanical, and it seems like there's a general lack of phrasing in the instruments. Arrangement is pretty neat; I love when you vertically integrated both the moon and toad man. Ending seemed a tad drawn out.

Wildfire - Man i love tornado man's theme. Beat is boppin and things have energy. The leads seem thin in some places. I'm not a big fan of trance, but things kept changing up to keep my attention. Dig that lead in the section at 2:45.

Jakesnake - Some heavy Hotline Miami vibes here man. Bass hits hard in the best of ways. Neat Stone Man interp, but the Moon theme transitions can seem a bit awkward (mainly the one at 2:20 just because it seemed to change moods so suddenly).

Gario - really diggin the sounds in here. Harmonies are tight, and the melody drifts with a lot of detailed attention to it. I couldn't hear jewel man a lot until well into the piece, but it was there and done well, so it doesn't really matter.

DrumJ8 - Pan your sounds to get a thicker mix; everything is centered here. drums could use a little more punch. Some weird tone/harmony issues popped up when the moon came in.

Cosmic Sounds - nice jump in production from B4C2. Sounds are interesting, and i like the musical motifs used throughout. I wanted more moon though, but crystal man is interp't well.

Brando - Solid energy. Vocals were awesome, and i loved the use of the moon B part as a guitar solo. transition between the sources were pretty much seamless; the transition at 3:09 seemed a little sudden though, and the "I am the fallen sky" seemed to drop in volume. Those are nitpicks though, this was a rockin mix.

Andy - I'm diggin the bass here, and everything sounds real pretty and clean. Things have a chill groove to them, and while at times I wish things would've picked up in energy a bit, the groove and the writing kept things interesting and pleasant to listen to.

[Troyificus]

Holy shazab Jakesnke17; were you possessed by the spirit of Vince DiCola while making your track or what?

Excellent tracks from everyone this week. If I were able I would do a detailed breakdown review but sadly old Father Time has deemed that I should forever have slightly less hours in the day then everyone else on the planet (at least that's what it feels like).

Can't wait to see what next weeks source(s?) is/are going to be!

[Brandon Strader]

the "I am the fallen sky" seemed to drop in volume. Those are nitpicks though, this was a rockin mix.

Thanks for the kind words and giving me your justifiable first place vote oh yes, OH YES

As for the volume drop-off, I did it on purpose with automation. I thought the volume on the vocals by themselves was too loud. It might have just been my headphones auto-correcting the difference in volume. I'll take another look at it before I sub to OCR.