Liontamer Posted August 5, 2016 Share Posted August 5, 2016 Dear OC Remix, My name is Greg and I really respect what you all do as far as bringing video game music from one artist to the millions of fans worldwide. I'd like to join this community as an artist as well as a fan. I am submitting the first track entitled DestinyDivine from the album i made inspired by "The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time". The album is called "VictoryVirtueValor" and features a variety of genres that fit the parameters that judges from the OC Remix community are looking. I wanted to see if you'll accept the album - complete with artwork - is to your liking. Thank you for the opportunity and the privilege. Greg a.k.a. Seven X https://soundcloud.com/seven-x/destinydivine ---------------------------------------- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liontamer Posted August 5, 2016 Author Share Posted August 5, 2016 Started out feeling like a nice-sounding by a good genre adaptation with a more cover-style approach, so we'll see where it goes. Not the most unique sounds I've ever heard, and one could argue the melody got too repetitive, but, after a few listens, I thought this actually did well creating subtle dynamics within a relatively fixed level of energy, with very understated textural changes. There's also the lead synth gradually getting more interpretive with grace notes and rhythmic changes from 1:51-on before going into more of an original comping route on top of the source from 2:26-3:42. Good usage of the shimmering chromatic percussion SFX throughout; some may argue it could have been used more judiciously, but it set a nice mood and I had took no meaningful issue from it. The main Zelda theme reference from 3:42-3:49 sounded awkward, and I didn't thin it made a good fit. It just sounded like a hiccup that should have went straight to the source's chorus at 3:57. That said, it was a minor speedbump. A little long for me given the deliberate tempo, but that's just personal taste. Nice work to Seven X on creating this evolving soundscape. I wasn't sure I'd be on board when this started, but I think it works nicely! Good luck with the rest of the vote. YES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gario Posted August 8, 2016 Share Posted August 8, 2016 Very jazzy style to this, and it's something that I dig. Taking this source and building off of it as a base for some slick lead improvisation is pretty neat. It's quiet, but it's also calming and interesting throughout. I found the synths to be a bit simplistic, but all things considered you utilize them very well, for the most part. The lead works well as a relatively plain synth, and the background e-piano is smooth, if a little repetitive. While there's quite a bit of subtle variation of the backing textures, that e-piano could've made minute changes from time to time to make it a bit more interesting. The drumwork is very interesting in this - subdue'd, and it never gets brought to the front, like I expected it to be. Interestingly enough, considering the rest of the soundscape I thought it worked surprisingly well, so kudos to that. Since everything else is pretty soft, the synth that comes in at 1:15 (and elsewhere in the track) pierces rather painfully. The highs in that should be taken down a notch. At 3:46 the melody is off. The run that plays the original overworld theme a little bit uses a major 3rd, where it should've utilized a minor third in order to match the rest of the harmony under it. It clashes, and sounds rather awful, at that point. On the subject of that instrument, it has a tendancy to be far too loud in comparison to the rest of the mix, which just makes it sound out of place (especially at 4:23, where it shoots waaay above the levels of everything else). You'll need to mix that element down considerably, as it drags the end of this track down quite a bit. Overall, it's too quiet. I don't mean that stylistically we won't accept quiet, subtle tracks, but it's very easy to push more volume by just... raising the volume. There are no points in the mix where it peaks out (even at the aforementioned loud part mentioned above), so raising the volume provides no downside to this track. If you mix that other instrument down, in fact, you could easily push 3 or 4 dB out of this without risking production errors, so you should do so in order to better match the levels of other calmer, quieter songs on OCR. I think it's great, but I think there's a little bit of TLC that needs to go into this before I can give it my thumbs up. The wrong note at 3:46 really affects this track, and the overall loudness of that instrument that pervades the entire ending of this track takes this one down, for me. Be sure to also raise your levels, and give that background e-piano a little bit of variety. I think this is very close, but I'm going to have to pass on this, for now. NO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chimpazilla Posted August 16, 2016 Share Posted August 16, 2016 I like the idea of this, a smooth groovy rendition of this tune. I agree with Gario about the overall volume (just needs a bit better mastering) and the sour notes at 3:46. The lead does sound a bit loud/piercy but it's not killing it for me. What does kill it for me is the repetitive nature of the backing instrumentation and writing. The lead does some very nice and interesting soloing, but the backing doesn't change much throughout the entire 5:25 of the track. You've got the panning organ thing, a string pad which plays only two notes, and a super-simple bassline. Other than some occasional whooshy sfx there's not much going on back there other than those few elements, and after awhile they sound too simplistic for me. I'd sure like it if the chord structure actually changed at some point, as the source does at 1:02. That said, some change in the soundscape, maybe an extra pad layered in or just more sfx and/or ear candy would push it over for me. NO (resubmit) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jivemaster Posted August 19, 2016 Share Posted August 19, 2016 You've taken an already mellow track to further levels of chill. Sound wise things are a bit of a mixed bag - the rhodes/organ you have going on has a nice feel to it. In contrast, I felt your lead sound was a bit weak and could have done with a bit of low end, either via some EQ or perhaps even an additional oscillator octaved downwards. This brings us to a couple other problems: Across the mix, there is a slight feeling of muffledness, with the lead sticking out and everything else kind of blending together in the lower end. This is probably made more prominent due to the above mentioned lead lacking in low end. Arrangement wise, I like what you've done with your lead - it walks a lot with bits of riffing and soloing. However the other elements such as the backing sounds don't change all that much (and what they do play is quite short), leaving the track to rely heavily upon the lead for any/all track progress. The synthy string accompaniment that plays with the lead occasionally gets peaky/resonant and too loud in comparison to the other parts. I feel this mix is a little lacking with regards to arrangement content, especially for a mix duration of over 5 minutes in length. Yes there are little sounds and FX here and there, but they're very subtle and don't feel like quite enough. Along with some of the other problems mentioned, I think this falls a little short and should be revisited. NO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MindWanderer Posted January 3, 2017 Share Posted January 3, 2017 I liked the creative interpretation of this theme a lot, but the fact that it took about two minutes to get there was disappointing. The shrill note at 1:15 and other places did bother me, although I personally felt that sour note was subtle enough that it wasn't a big deal. And as others have said, some more variety in the accompaniment would benefit this arrangement a lot. I don't think this falls very short of the bar, but I do think it falls short. Follow Gario's and Chimpazilla's advice and I'll be happy to add my stamp of approval. NO (borderline) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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