OCRA-0040 - Final Fantasy VI: Balance and Ruin

[SalmonGod]

For what it's worth, this album was the first and only kickstarter I've ever donated to.

I've been listening to OCR for... I'm not sure... 9-10 years. So I guess I'd be considered one of the old hardcore fans. I've loved the work that comes from this community for a long time. And I'm not just here for the nostalgia for games I love. Some of my favorite OCR tracks are for games I've never played.

Even so, I think this is only my 5th post here. I kinda feel bad now about not dropping by more often to praise you guys. You definitely deserve it. I guess I'm just a generally quiet person, and don't go out of my way to say something unless it's substantial. Something with more content than a generic "great job!" But as an artist myself (non-musical), I should know better.

I'm here now because FFVI is super special to me. Maybe not quite as special as the guy a few pages back with the story about living in an orphanage, but similar. I got the game during a period where both my parents were too swamped with responsibilities to do much with me, my siblings were too much younger than me, and we were living in a small backwater town (a 45 min drive from the nearest store that sold video games) where I was heavily ostracized. Video games, books, and bug hunting was all I had, and I only got to buy maybe 4-5 games in a year. I think FFVI is actually my fondest memory from that period. It's easily the most nostalgic game in the world for me, and the music is a huge part of that. My favorite video game soundtrack of all time. So I was incredibly excited for this project from the very beginning.

And I'm still enjoying the hell out of it. I'm not going to post individual track reviews because I think the quality is incredibly consistent and fantastic all the way through. The only thing I'd be commenting on is my personal genre preferences. I will say that even with the variety here, there is only a single song that I haven't kept on my standard listening playlist (half of my sorted/rated library is not on that playlist), and it's a track that I do still appreciate the quality of. So that means a lot.

To be honest, I will probably never be so excited for another OCR album. You'll have to come up with some shocking idea to manage that. But I'll keep on enjoying your music regardless for as long as you keep on producing it. There's a lot of talent here, but what's more important is that both the musicians and listeners are here because of a shared appreciation for the source material. I can feel when I listen to OCR that you guys have the same love for these games that I have, and that makes it really special.

[Fureddi]

To be honest, I will probably never be so excited for another OCR album.

A FF Mega-Mix album akin to The Black Mages would blow me away idea wise.

[Argle]

Well the sad thing is that there is some sizable contingent of people that doesn't like how we tag our artist field with actual artists and instead wants us to just put OC ReMix there. Balancing site promo vs. artist promo is certainly something that Dave & Larry are constantly trying to figure out. I know the next version of the site will be placing more emphasis on individual artist social media for example and making it even easier for people to get more info about the mixers.

I always retag albums as "OCRemix", otherwise my mp3 player would be a complete mess.

[XPRTNovice]

I always retag albums as "OCRemix", otherwise my mp3 player would be a complete mess.

I actually do the same thing. Then if a song really catches my I ear I always go back and look up the artist.

[DarkeSword]

Hey guys, let's try to keep the discussion focused on reviews of Balance and Ruin.

[Argle]

Anyone taken a look at the B&R entry in the Dynamic Range database? It's interesting to see the stats. They have a lot of other albums from OCR as well.

Something I've been mulling over the past few days, doesn't ReplayGain sound the death knell for the Loudness War? In fact, the louder a track is the worse it'll sound when the gain has been compensated by RG, since the transients are all gone. The only problem with RG is it's not ubiquitous yet, and a lot of people aren't aware of it. Once any serious mp3 player on any platform supports it, not only playback but analyzing your library, I reckon the loudness war is dead. In fact I'm giving serious consideration to easing the fuck up on my own music in anticipation for that day, which I don't think is far off.

[DarkeSword]

Something I've been mulling over the past few days, doesn't ReplayGain sound the death knell for the Loudness War? In fact, the louder a track is the worse it'll sound when the gain has been compensated by RG, since the transients are all gone. The only problem with RG is it's not ubiquitous yet, and a lot of people aren't aware of it. Once any serious mp3 player on any platform supports it, not only playback but analyzing your library, I reckon the loudness war is dead. In fact I'm giving serious consideration to easing the fuck up on my own music in anticipation for that day, which I don't think is far off.

Hey guys, let's try to keep the discussion focused on reviews of Balance and Ruin.

Seriously. Not the thread to discuss the Loudness War.

[TBsmasher]

Only listened to the first half of this so far. My favorite is the 3-part opera remix. Stellar job! The Queen fan in me cried manly tears! I wish I could still get my hands on a copy of this.

[Pavos]

To respond to the earlier discussion: although I know that there are not many people doing track-by-track reviews, I always want to know what people think of my tracks. Partially because I want to know if they like it of course, but even moreso because I can then see how good I've really become. The best way is to submit of course (which I've done by the way) to see what the judges say, but I really want to keep improving and getting feedback is the only way to do that.

That being said, here's my review of:

Disc 3

Flava the Chocobo (Joshua Morse): Takes some time to get into the source, but I really like the funk at the intro already. And right about the time I thought some variation was needed, you brought the entire source (with some excellent bass lines and septime chords). The part after that is also really awesome, the entire dynamic range is well used in this remix. And I'm always fan of sweet organs. The sudden transition to the (relatively) silent and slow piano was a bit too sudden imo, but the part afterwards was great especially when the piano starts to improvise. And I really dislike fade-outs, but still; this is an awesome rendition of the Chocobo theme, very well done!

Johnny's Got That Funk (Anti-Syne): Huh, funk and Anti-Syne? Ah, as soon as the song begins I can hear the raw electronics I know from Anti-Syne. But yeah, they really get into the funk at 0:23 when the - what would be guitar in traditional funk - comes in and it only gets better with every addition. The transition to the "silent" part is well done here and the part after with the unusal breaks and the piano is excellently (ha, I used the non-word again) written. The silent part after that and the big climax afterwards with maximum chiptunes and raw electro were even better excecuted. Very well done, mr. Lewis!

Gestahlian Sonata (Rexy): Ah, a Rexy song, meaning more solo piano It starts with an empty, hallow piece of the main overture (Terra) and then the Empire source comes in in a great dark and brooding style. I think the low chords should've been held a little longer so there's no silence between the chords to even more keep the ominous and feel of impending doom (hey, I'm a pianist too, so I'm a bit more critical when it comes to piano mixes ). The song sets in a lighter tone at 2:45 with some major chords and high notes. At 3:25 the left hand changes some mroe and you speed up a little, a much needed variation at that point (good timing for the change). The part afterwards is stylisticly very different from the rest of the mix. Let's look in your comments what the story is you wanted to tell with mix. Ah yes, the glimpse of light and the strenght to take matters into own hands. Well told with this piece, and the piece starting from 4:45 is very powerful and beautifully done. Great classical piano arrangement, bravo Rexy. There's quite a big issue with this however, and that's that there's a VERY annoying very high pitch that occurs when a certain note is played (at 4:51 for instance). I have this too when I'm not careful with noise reduction or other mastering tricks. It's really a shame because it gives me a headache when I listen to your song too much. Can you please render a version that doesn't have that? I'd be very happy

The Megiddo Brigade (djpretzel): The song we've been waiting for quite some time... because it was one of the last to finish Right at the start, the original industrial feel is there, with some military percussion beneath to make the connection to the empire even clearer. Then, violin and flute? Didn't saw that coming. It brings a bit of organicness into this industrial source. However, I find the soundscape a bit too empty. When the string attacks join at about halfway the mix, it really completes the soundscape and the parts afterwards has some great instrumental additions and some excellent varaitions on the source. I like the mix, but it really shines after it's halway point. The bell at the end is classic (albeit a bit cheesy)

There's Nothing Like Flying (DDRKirby(ISQ)): A very happy and playful chiptune take on the airship theme, which really fits the vibe of the original well. With this mix you can really imagine yourself flying around, don't know why that is exactly, but well done.

Mogstradaum (Brandon Strader): I've always found this mix (and the character) misplaced in the FFVI soundtrack, it was too wacky and not serious enough for the game imo. That being said, I like what you've done to the piece. You've given it a feel as if it's a serious mix, with still retaining the playful nature of the original (and the wacky style with the ukele).

Aggresive Blue Magic (halc): You've taken the source and gave it more of a magic feeling in the beginning I think with the vibraphone (I think?) but then you go into sweet halc chiptune territory. However, I think the mix drags on a bit, and that's because of the slow and repetetive bass which is from the original. I think it would've been good to have changed that a bit in the course of the mix.

Pure Essence (José the Bronx Rican): Ah, the peaceful and calming Relm theme. I like how you maintained that "pure" feeling (and the piano and high synths accentuate that), but made it a little... weirder. Which really fits the character so it's a good thing. Some dissonance after the halfway mark which gives a good variation in the mix and adds a little to that "weird" overall feeling. At 2:20, you go back to the major chords and back into the calming, pure, careless vibe. This comes close to McVaffe's usual style I think. Nice work.

Illusionary (Sole Signal): I think you've really made the most of the 7/4 rythm of the song (which creates a disconcerting feeling) with the great beats that accentuate this. I really love the vibe here and I like that you didn't overcrowd this mix with all kinds of instrumentation, you really kept that feeling of the original without the mix feeling "empty". The melody lines that cross eachother also adds to that vibe. The synths get a little rawer at the end, and creates a feeling of doom coming closer and closer as the build-up of the mix is really good. Great (rawer) mix of this source!

Black Genesis (Rexy, Brandon Strader): Epic intro, you really set the stage for this one. We're in the darker songs of the soundtrack now and it's clear that you didn't go easy on this one. I'm surprised by the clean guitar however, which I guess otherwise would've been a lot more muddy. However, it does has as effect that this mix doesn't feel as dark or raw as it could've been. The synths work really well along with the main melody, but they also could've been a bit grittier in my opinion (although it stands out a lot less than the guitar). The inclusion of "Fierce Battle" worked well here and gave the mix some nice variation. The dark version of Terra (a bit) also worked well, but still: this mix doesn't have that badass feeling that you were (most likely) going for.

Meditations on an Apocalypse (zircon): The asian instrumentation seems a bit strange with this song (I was kind of worried when you called it "meditation" and feared that all darkness was gone from this mix), but it works really well. The beats and synths at 0:30 really convey the feeling of the original with an added asian vibe to it. At about 1:20, the mix takes a turn with bells and the synth bassline, which gives it a slightly brighter tone but it still has a dark vibe to it. At 1:51, a lot of major chords set in a give a more heroic feel to the mix. That part in the source still has that sense of impending doom and I'm kinda missing that in the second half of the mix. I think that at 2:28, the darkness should've been reintroduced to finish the mix with, now the feeling of impending doom is a little missing from the end and there's not really a climax of some sort at the end of the mix.

Evisceration (Flexstyle): Definitely an interesting take on the source, and it starts badass enough. I feared at 0:27 that those lead synths were going to stay, which were far from gritty. But, the song hadn't really started yet, because at 0:40 it is unleashed upon us. I still think that some synths should've been a little more, but the song sure is gritty enough for a boss theme. And then comes the chip/eurobeat part at 1:50, which is kind of weird imo (but it does bring some variation). I liked the ending where everything becomes more distorted and weird, it creates a nice climax for the song and the last notes are also delightfully chaotic/mad.

A Tranquil Rest (Forrest Powell): This is really something that could've been played at someone's funeral. It's a bit hard to recognize the source, but that's very short anyway (and I don't know it THAT well). Really peaceful, great performance, nicely done.

Elegy for a Ruined World (Derek Oren, Jeremy Robsen): It begins a little less dark and post-apocalyptic than the original, but it's great that it starts with a dark version of Kefka's theme. I really appreciated that and the build-up is great for an intro. The bells and the staccato only background really convey the empty feeling. After that, the choirs after that work really well, although I don't really like the sound of the string hits. It's a bit serene in that part, with sometimes added church bells and low strings with adds the darkness to the mix. This has some Danny Elfman-sounding parts and it really keeps interesting, a great journey while keeping something of the original all the time. This is really a great arrangement, fantastic work. The part of 4:40 adds some epicness before going to the brass and leading to a more peacful part. The part at 5:30 then again is briliantly empty with Elfman-esque additions that keep it interesting. Ah, the choirs, bells and strings at about 6 minutes are beautiful. Really, the vibe practicly always keeps the smae of the original thourhgout, with some departures only to come back. At 6:30 it builds up to a great beautiful serene and optimistic part with parts from "Awakening". Then it goes back to darkness with a piece of "Catastrophy" which is also beautifully done (with again, some Batman/Elfman-esque variations). Oh really? Dancing Mad in there aswell? The different "cameo's" work really well. The part at 9:10 is a very nice, violin variation on teh source and also has an empty feel with it. It is later again complimented with choirs and bells and ends peaceful, yet slightly disconcerting. And awesome, the lone wind at the end... Guys, awesome stuff, really well done. This song is a journey that REALLY well captures the feeling of the source, adds so much more (incl cameos) and has a great build-up. Excellent stuff.

Event Horizon (Palpable, OA): Oh yes, this one has been on my playlist for quite some months already aswell. I can't add much objective and constructive feedback to this, becuase I've heard it so many times. But it's really awesome, it also keeps the exact feeling of the original but has a great sound to it and has a great groove. The additions work really well and the build-up of the mix is also excellent and provides a lot of variation while never deviating too far from teh source. I also love some of the counter-melodies... it's just really good

Blackjack's Breakup Bossa (Calum Bowen feat. Xarnax42): And we end this disc with another version of the airship theme. WHich is a bit odd on one disc, but it has nothing to do with the song itself of course. Haha, what is this for remix? WAY different from the earlier take on the source, it's an awesome bossanova take with great singing performance and some great violin performance. I see myself sitting in a bar in the '60s while this is on. It destroys the vibe of the original, but we already had a true-to-the-original-feeling-mix. Do we even have bossanova mixes on OCR that have vocals? Some nice stuff that puts a smile on my face every time I hear it.

Depending on the take/genre I can say a little or a lot, but I hope you also appreciate the review even when I'm not really constructive in my feedback. Anyway, I kind of thought that the best tracks were on disc 2, but this disc had some excellent stuff on it as well. I also like the general flow on the album (with a few exceptions). My review of disc 4 will probably come soon since I've heard most of the songs on it several times already. I've yet to listen to the beast that is Omen, so disc 5 will take some time probably.

Question though: don't you need all of the artists' adresses for the physical copies zircon? And does that also include the bonus disc or is it just the first 4 discs?

Edited July 18, 2013 by pu_freak
Typo's

[Palpable]

Event Horizon (Palpable, OA): Oh yes, this one has been on my playlist for quite some months already aswell. I can't add much objective and constructive feedback to this, becuase I've heard it so many times. But it's really awesome, it also keeps the exact feeling of the original but has a great sound to it and has a great groove. The additions work really well and the build-up of the mix is also excellent and provides a lot of variation while never deviating too far from teh source. I also love some of the counter-melodies... it's just really good

Awesome to hear you like it so much. It's easy to feel in an album of so much good music that one's track gets lost, so reading something like this really makes pouring hours into a track worth it.

I'm planning to do a track-by-track review too when I get some time, but in short, this album is on a different level than anything the site has released before. Unreal good.

[Falco98]

I just found out about this album last week and I'm in love. FFVI was the game which got me interested not only in "serious" RPGs but also in game music in general.

Incidentally, in the late '90s i randomly met a guy on ICQ and we chatted about game music arrangements as well as Hans Zimmer soundtracks; he even sent me some of his original compositions. His name was Chad Seiter... We lost touch eventually but I was super excited to recognize his name in the credits of ST2009, and I'm pumped that he has a piece on this album.

I have one last comment concerning the album - whoever entered the album's info on its last.fm page, put in track names which are *completely* inconsistent with the track name tags from the official download. As a result, at least 99% of the plays for this album in the last.fm community aren't actually counting towards plays for the album or OCRemix. I have no idea who can fix this, but someone should address it.

Edited July 18, 2013 by Falco98
stupid misspelling -- d'oh!

[MyrmidonX]

Incidentally, in the late '90s i randomly met a guy on ICQ and we chatted about game music arrangements as well as Hans Zimmer soundtracks; he even sent me some of his original compositions. His name was Chad Seiter... We lost touch eventually but I was super excited to recognize his name in the credits of ST2009, and I'm pumped that he has a piece on this album.

Wow, how friggin' cool is that, to come across a guy randomly like that and to come across him again on an album this awesome! Totally cool! I hope Chad gets on here and says Hi to ya! Like everyone else here, I am thoroughly impressed with the quality of this album. To be honest, I have not been crazy about every OCRemix album released, as some have not really been my cup of tea... but this one has really set a new standard, a standard so high that it will be the bar that every other album will be measured to from here for years to come.

Just incredible stuff, and as someone who has enjoyed OCRemix for several years now, it is inspiring to see just how much talent can be brought to bear on an OCRemix album these days. FF4 was my first real RPG love, but this game was a true classic, with one of the best soundtracks of all time. I am so glad to see it given the treatment it deserves!

[Fureddi]

I have one last comment concerning the album - whoever entered the album's info on its last.fm page, put in track names which are *completely* inconsistent with the track name tags from the official download. As a result, at least 99% of the plays for this album in the last.fm community aren't actually counting towards plays for the album or OCRemix. I have no idea who can fix this, but someone should address it.

Without having my Pen Drive with my copy of balance and ruin with me I can't check in full detail but it looks fine to me, unless someone else beats me to it (as I'm not going to be at my computer till Saturday night at the earliest,) I'll investigate fuller when I get home.

[Falco98]

Wow, how friggin' cool is that, to come across a guy randomly like that and to come across him again on an album this awesome!

Yeah, it's a small world!

Without having my Pen Drive with my copy of balance and ruin with me I can't check in full detail but it looks fine to me, unless someone else beats me to it (as I'm not going to be at my computer till Saturday night at the earliest,) I'll investigate fuller when I get home.

Basically the issue is this: all the track titles on the album (official download) are in the format "Song Name (source song name)", such as: Aggressive Blue Magic (Strago), etc. The album tracklist on last.fm is missing the parentheticals at the end (so just Aggressive Blue Magic) - this is the case with every single song, as far as i can tell. I don't know which format people around here consider as "proper", but for scrobbling consistency, the track names should exactly match the file title tags. Notice that on the album page, the "number of listeners" for each song is very low - but if you go to the song page for any of the properly-tagged tracks (like here), the number of listeners is in the hundreds.

Edited July 19, 2013 by Falco98
added some screenshots for context

[Pavos]

Going on!

Disc 4

A Glimmer of Hope (Joshua Morse feat. Jeff Ball, Laura Intravia): Very peaceful piano intro, that has little to do with the source (but follows the alternate chords for this mix). The source really sets in at 1:35 when the mix gets sped up and the flute enters. WHile the performance is excellent, I think this mix is too thin on the soundscape, too "empty". The source has little instrumentation aswell, but the very dynamic (and more on the front) bassline makes up for it. In this, I keep waiting for it to really get unleashed. It seems that way at 2:48, but the added percussion is too little imo. I really miss a lower frequency, a more promant bass (the one you hear most is the low piano notes, but they are very limited). The ending with piano only and the synths on the background then, is good and full. Although I can't really appreciate those dissonant violin there. All in all, some nice performances, but the song's missing something in my opinion.

Go-Go-Gadget Gonkulator (XPRTNovice): Interesting opening, but the mix really opens when the carnival-esque organ starts in the background. The clarinet here also adds to that "wacky" feeling, which fits the character well. There's a build-up improvisation piece and then the mix gets in full effect at 2:02 complete with wacky sounds and manic cymbal bashing. Very nice take on the theme, which fits extremely well.

Katabasis (Forrest Powell feat. Laura Intravia): Starts with some some beautiful strings accompanied by the beautiful violin performance. After that, the flute is added and it keeps a very serene, calm and peaceful tone. Really beautiful and captures the spirit of the source very well. I don't like the bass notes that enter around 2:40, they seem a bit intrusive. While it's a beautiful mix, I think it's a little too long because there's not really a build-up or climax in it.

13th Floor Demonstration (Flexstyle): Wow, the mix starts as a very grand and epic version of the original with the heavy orchestral drums. Afterwards, it goes into Flexstyle...style. Hm. Anyway, I really like the heavy percussion throughout, it gives the mix a somewhat grand feeling. There's enough variation here to keep things interesting and it has a nice build-up (with a calm part at about 2:20), especially towards the ending. Never cared much for the source, but this is a mix that really makes it quite good.

The Narshemellow (XPRTNovice): And we've come to XPRT's last track on the album. Well, the entire savage feeling has been erased from the mix. This is a laid-back, acoustic, kinda gypsy guitar version of the yeti's theme. So... about completely the opposite of the character It's a nice song, but I would play it sooner as background music than when I actively want to listen to music. Not entirely my thing.

The Endless Stair (Argle): Endless indeed, crappy, stupid tower *grumble... died way too much in there*. Ahem. The track start by setting the mood: creepy, ominous, like you're being watched. The original was more empty (and had really weird choirs), but this sets teh tone better for the stairs imo. The choirs add the cult-feeling to it, the industrial adds the Kefke/empire feeling to it and it has really just an awesome mood. I know you guys will hang me for saying this but: this is how the music SHOULD'VE been. Better than Uematso. Yes, I've said it. I still hate that stupid tower by the way, but it would've been much better with this music. Although then I would probably think I would die at any second even more.

Trauermarsch (Derek Oren, Jeremy Robson): Hmmm the mix doesn't sound really clear, like it's being played in the room next to me, which is really a shame. It begins by setting the same vibe as the original and by staying really close to the source. The part at 0:59 is a little more heroic than the original and it slows down after that. Then comes the Terra part, with serene and beautiful flutes and strings, with altered chords to keep in line with the rest of the song. The song has a lot of major chords that are then altered to a minor, just when you think that the song is going a more positive route, it gets turned back to realize that this is - in fact - Kefka's tower. However, I think that the playing around teh source in a relatively same style is a little too long here for a final dungeon/madman's tower. At the four-minute mark, the piece gets a real sense of urgency, which the mix needed I think, and it was really excecuted well. At 5:13, it changes into a more militaristic feel and feels epic and really befitting that last dungeon feel. The mix certainly feels more epic from here, like it's really started. Then, a silence at the six-minute mark, and the Elfman-esque build-up (with another Terra cameo) to what was essentially going on around the 2-3 minute mark. It's quickly then turned into a part with some great writing for strings which follow quite unusual chord/bass lines for the source, which really work well.At about nine minutes, the more postive version of teh song (with major chords) sets in, which then get transformed into a very urgent vibe. A very happy version of Terra's theme suddenly sets in at the 10-minute mark, which was a little strange. A very well excecuted cameo of the opera sequence followed it, injected with that great sense of urgency. Afterwards, a awesome and peaceful cameo the the "B-part" of Terra's theme sets in, as if the sun finally begins to shine at the tower. The last part has really some nice positive parts, which are undone in the final notes of the mix which gives off a last ominous feeling. And then I jumped up at the last loud brass notes. Really guys, I skipped a heartbeat there, did you really have to do that . All in all, I think there's some "filler" at about the 2-minute mark which lasts for a minute or two. I also don't really get the direction of the mix at about the middle part... it gets urgent (which was great), goes into a militaristic style, and then drops at the silence at 6 minutes. It's then as if the song reboots and starts the build-up all over again (better in this part imo), with a soft part, with something more in line with the original, with Terra and some really nice variations with the strings to very urgent again. Then (aside from the over-the-top happy Terra), it sets into a nice and positive ending. I think you guys told a better story or journey with the previous song, which had more logic to me. Anyway, still a good piece, but it's a shame of the sound quality, which isn't as bright as it could be.

Demon, Fiend & Goddess (zircon, Sixto Sounds): I've got a confession to make... I don't really like the original (except for the first part, as an intro). The Distant Wolds version is certainly better, but still... I find the different parts too disconnected, there isn't a true build-up to a climax (yes, there's the more rock part of it, which is good, but the build-up isn't really there) and it's just too long for my taste (yes, I should be hanged - again). That being said, I LOVE this Deep Purple-esque version of the song. It's been shortened, which really helps, it has an overall cohesive feeling and it has a great build-up while still including the source. And it's WAY more fitting as a boss battle. This also reminds me a bit of Bowser's theme from Yoshi's Island, which is always a good thing. Sure, the church/god feeling is gone, but this way the great original arrangement really shines imo (and the added parts really complete it). The organ solo's are awesome, and the crying guitars at the six minute mark are also really fitting and perfect. And it ends with classic church-organs in teh style of the original. Love this rendition (eh... was that a West Side Story cameo in there by the way?).

Ending Suite (Shnabubula, Gabe Terracciano): The ending theme, a medley and homage to of all character themes, like a final goodbye to everyone. And it feels the same with this album, as a medley or homage to all the great character mixes that have been on this album. And the way in which it is done is beautiful. It really feels as a peaceful ending, the end of a long journey (and yes, listening to the first 4+ hours feels like a journey, especially with all those awesome mixes). It's fairly simple (just piano and violin), but that make the truly excellent performances stand out even more. The rythm from the piano changes really well to fit every character and the synergy (yeah, I used that word) between the piano and violin is excellent. Beautiful stuff, especially with the more emotional themes, the mix is really so beautiful there. Oh and I always love it when Shnab goes wild on the piano.

Humble Beginnings, Great Expectations (Disco Dan): And the disc ends with... the beginning? The menu-music from all Final Fantasies. Perhaps it's an introduction to the oh-so-important disc 5 DD sets a peaceful and kinda serene background synth with a mellow groove which really sucks you in. A bit like "Remember" on disc one. At 1:52, a nice beat joins the lead synth that plays the well-known motif. At 2:40, the secondary melody is added, with some more synths on the background. It has a really nice build-up and adds something new before it gets repetitive. At 3:40, the song takes back a little energy with some original writing, which works really well. Slowly, the main motif is added and at 4:30 the beat is added again. Everything flows really well with eachother (and also here a small Terra cameo). The song has a break at about 5:20 and then gets back into its full energy. The mix nicely and slowly builds down towards the endGreat mix of fairly simple and short source material.

Disc 4 didn't have many songs, but still some very lengthy ones and clocked in over an hour. Again, some great stuff in here. Now to the final disc which is ironically the longest.

[derako]

Pu_freak,

Thank you for the in depth review of Trauermarsch. I dont really understand what you mean when you say the mix doesn't sound clear. Make sure you download the FLAC, maybe that will help. Thanks again.

[Fureddi]

Basically the issue is this: all the track titles on the album (official download) are in the format "Song Name (source song name)", such as: Aggressive Blue Magic (Strago), etc. The album tracklist on last.fm is missing the parentheticals at the end (so just Aggressive Blue Magic) - this is the case with every single song, as far as i can tell. I don't know which format people around here consider as "proper", but for scrobbling consistency, the track names should exactly match the file title tags. Notice that on the album page, the "number of listeners" for each song is very low - but if you go to the song page for any of the properly-tagged tracks (like here), the number of listeners is in the hundreds.

Maybe it's your copy, my tagging from looking at the properties has it fine... then again last.fm could be pulling the wool over my eyes and autocorrecting like it does with one of my InMe tracks which is spelt wrong on last.fm =/

[DarkeSword]

Yeah, it's a small world!

Basically the issue is this: all the track titles on the album (official download) are in the format "Song Name (source song name)", such as: Aggressive Blue Magic (Strago), etc. The album tracklist on last.fm is missing the parentheticals at the end (so just Aggressive Blue Magic) - this is the case with every single song, as far as i can tell. I don't know which format people around here consider as "proper", but for scrobbling consistency, the track names should exactly match the file title tags. Notice that on the album page, the "number of listeners" for each song is very low - but if you go to the song page for any of the properly-tagged tracks (like here), the number of listeners is in the hundreds.

We didn't put anything up on Last.fm. We stopped putting information up on Last.fm ages ago, when they killed embeds. You can tell it's unofficial because whoever put it up has us listed as "OverClocked Remix" instead of "OverClocked ReMix." Larry and I are far too obsessive over branding to let that lowercase M fly.

Not much we can really do about it. Your beef is with whatever fan decided to muck around with the metadata when he or she was putting the album up.

[WillRock]

Yeah, it's a small world!

Basically the issue is this: all the track titles on the album (official download) are in the format "Song Name (source song name)", such as: Aggressive Blue Magic (Strago), etc. The album tracklist on last.fm is missing the parentheticals at the end (so just Aggressive Blue Magic) - this is the case with every single song, as far as i can tell. I don't know which format people around here consider as "proper", but for scrobbling consistency, the track names should exactly match the file title tags. Notice that on the album page, the "number of listeners" for each song is very low - but if you go to the song page for any of the properly-tagged tracks (like here), the number of listeners is in the hundreds.

Not a problem. Tracks that are played on itunes with a scrobbler are automatically put on the database if its not already there, which means there is always going to be tracks with incorrect info scrobbled, but as you pointed out, the tracks with correct tagging will dwarf the ones that don't in plays. Just look at tracks from ANYONE. Look up the beatles and you'll find tracks scrobbled with incorrect info. Thats just last.fm for ya.

[Fureddi]

Not a problem. Tracks that are played on itunes with a scrobbler are automatically put on the database if its not already there, which means there is always going to be tracks with incorrect info scrobbled, but as you pointed out, the tracks with correct tagging will dwarf the ones that don't in plays. Just look at tracks from ANYONE. Look up the beatles and you'll find tracks scrobbled with incorrect info. Thats just last.fm for ya.

Am sensing that is also why the InMe album I had was like that... tho that may have actually been my mistake as I had no internet when I ripped the album and misspelt "Guardian" before I uplodaded... :S

Anyway, that all aside, nice work on your track, I do enjoy your work non-album or album WillRock

[Falco98]

Maybe it's your copy, my tagging from looking at the properties has it fine... then again last.fm could be pulling the wool over my eyes and autocorrecting like it does with one of my InMe tracks which is spelt wrong on last.fm =/

That's not really it. My complaint wasn't that my tracks are tagged wrong, it was that whoever entered the track names for the album entry on last.fm, put in track names not consistent with the title tags of the official download. But then...

Your beef is with whatever fan decided to muck around with the metadata when he or she was putting the album up.

Yup, you're right - if it wasn't officially put up by you guys then I have no complaint here, sorry for pestering you about it =)

Edited July 22, 2013 by Falco98
clarifying my language

[Falco98]

Is there a way to make Omen on Disc 5 have gapless playback in Foobar2000?

I noticed myself that this didn't play gaplessly in Winamp. And taking a look at the waveform for the beginning of Omen part 2, i can see why - it's not edited correctly :-/

[Fureddi]

I noticed myself that this didn't play gaplessly in Winamp. And taking a look at the waveform for the beginning of Omen part 2, i can see why - it's not edited correctly :-/

It's the same throughout, having to listened to this suite a few times recently. I believe the same happens between 3 and 4.

[Falco98]

It's the same throughout, having to listened to this suite a few times recently. I believe the same happens between 3 and 4.

Yup, I confirmed at the beginning of track 3 as well - but by that point I was assuming it would be the same for 3 and 4 . The good thing about having the FLACs, though, is that a competent user of Audacity could trim the waveform and save themselves a new lossless "master" as well as a lossy copy with no transcoding drama.

Edited July 22, 2013 by Falco98
oops, only 4 parts not 5...

[norg]

Yup, I confirmed at the beginning of track 3 as well - but by that point I was assuming it would be the same for 3, 4, and 5 . The good thing about having the FLACs, though, is that a competent user of Audacity could trim the waveform and save themselves a new lossless "master" as well as a lossy copy with no transcoding drama.

well crap. that sucks hardcore. ): sorry about that. i don't think we knew there was a gap when it got split into segments. at some point we'll have to find a way to have an mp3/flac available of the entire thing without gaps.