Emunator Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 Original Decision Hey Judges, ReMixer name: Savino Real name: Will Savino website: https://soundcloud.com/will-savino/ userid: 53881 name of game: Fallout 3 name of arrangement: Megaton Rock Name of song: Main Title Composer: Inon Zur Original: youtube link here After my original submission, I went back to the drawing board to really remaster the whole thing. I realized my drum sampler was set to mono... Yikes. Tried to humanize the drums a bit, but I also wanted a bit of a electronic feel to contrast with the jazzy harmonies. I also made a lot of EQ changes to make everything less muddy. Boosted the overall volume, got rid of the weird click at the beginning, toyed with the fills, added and removed reverb where necessary, and made the synth bass that comes in halfway through a lot cleaner. My friend also had the idea to put a bandpass filter on the ending melody to give an old timey radio feel. Overall, I tried to bring out the stuff that really shines here (the Rhodes, the organ, the synth bass) and pushed back some of the dry drum samples. I think now this is much more what I wanted to begin with. The transition at the halfway point really gets me going, and I like that it's basically the same form as the first half but with more in-your-face instrumentation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liontamer Posted January 6, 2016 Share Posted January 6, 2016 Definitely a noticeable improvement, so I heavily encourage other Js to actually listen to the old version to hear the difference. The textures are fuller, and the track's more impactful. Thanks for clarifying on the style and intent of the drum machine; it still has that jerky aspect to it compared to the other parts, but the writing there's markedly more interesting now, so it all pieces together much more effectively. There's still some lo-fi aspect of the production that doesn't sound right, and undermines some parts later on, like on the Rhodes at 1:21. I really liked the build of the string swells beginning at 1:50, which I didn't notice before due to the mixing not allowing it to shine. They still sound very lo-fi though. When things get fuller until 2:17 though, you can hear how the various parts mud together, so the potential isn't realized for that big climax, though the writing itself was stronger. So the track's LESS muddy, no doubt, but there's still issues with the densest sections lacking clarity. Good call by your homie on the bandpass filter for the "I Don't Want to Set the World on Fire" cameo/finish at 2:17. The energy level can feel slightly underwhelming due to the percussion choices, but overall the arrangement's OK. Things are obviously improved, and I'm on the borderline of passing this. That said, IMO, let's get one more pass at cleaning up and brightening up the mixing. If that can be done, that would also allow the Rhodes and organ to sound more distinct, and also let the old-timey finish have more contrast with what came before it (which currently doesn't sound sharp/clean enough). This is close, Will. If this doesn't make it as is, see what the musician Js say regarding production suggestions and perhaps take this to the Workshop. But DO NOT give up on it. You can pull this up just a bit further and get posted with this. The arrangement is already on point, and the production is a significant step up from the first version. NO (resubmit) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OceansAndrew Posted January 13, 2016 Share Posted January 13, 2016 This is definitely close; I think sidechaining the percussion with the bass and the rhodes would help give things the room they need, and would help things feel higher fidelity. The arrangement is solid, but I think the one change is what this needs to put it over. I definitely could see this getting some yes votes, but I think the "one weird trick" of sidechaining will have such a big impact on this that it's worth a third submission to get it sounding amazing. If you want more details, hit me up via PM and I can give you specific compressor settings I think would work well. No, please resubmit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Palpable Posted January 19, 2016 Share Posted January 19, 2016 Bass is really heavy here - the rhodes and piano notes are fighting each other and the song sounds pretty unbalanced. I also thought the drums in the first section were pretty flimsy. When it got to the transition section, the drums sounded better and I was anticipated a really cool second half. The energy increased, but it went back to those same flimsy drums. I think having drum machine sounds is fine actually, but what you have here is too low in the mix and missing body (bass is fine though). It's the right drums for an ambient, quiet piece, not something jazzy and bright. The song sounds a little adrift as a result. The strings also sounded pretty low-quality but the concept is good. I think the arrangement is pretty cool, if strange, and passable. Just tighten up the production a bit more and I can see a pass. NO (resubmit) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts