OCR04078 - *YES* Super Mario Land 2 "Seeing Stars"

[Gario]

Seeing Stars, remix of Star Maze from Super Mario Land 2

Remixer name: Quasartur

 

[MindWanderer]

This is some pretty solid electro, if a little by-the-numbers.  Production is mostly fine, though the sidechained pad is a bit loud (and overused) and some of the leads are a bit quiet.  The sine arp is a little too over-present, too.  I don't think anything is dealbreaking, though.  Not the most memorable remix but I don't see a strong reason not to post it, either.

YES

[Liontamer]

I agree with MW that this can come off as relatively basic, but the genre adaptation here was solid, and this was produced reasonably well for the first part. Not sure why the kick from 1:48-2:19 had no high end, but it detracted from the texture as a result because it occupied the same frequency range as other parts; then again from 2:33-3:36 with the melodic synth also sounding lossy and distant.

OK, now hold up, if this is going to be an extended issue, I'd rather this was a conditional YES upon some mixing refinements, because from 2:33 until around 3:50, you have this lossy sound to the track once again; it's just too much. Sharpen up the soundscape and you'd have a full YES vote, but I need to stay conditional YES on this for now. Good arrangement, and let's make sure the production is reasonably clear enough.

[Rexy]

You got a stable arrangement going on despite the simple genre adaptation.  Not one section maintained the same IV-I chord progression as the original, with a simple I-IV sequence leading up to 1:17 and its change to a more complicated main pattern for the rest of the track, allowing the melody to get played around with during that 16-bar structure.  It's a simple idea but a very effective one.

With the production itself, it's a clean mix where all instruments are identifiable, and that side-chain on the synth pads is an effective way to manage frequency space among the mid-section.  But on the other hand, the soundscape felt like it was missing some much-needed sibilance, particularly with the kick, pads and sine arp.  It doesn't feel so bad initially, but once you get to 1:48 with the addition of a morph lead and tubular bells, it does start to feel more deprived - and becomes even worse off at 2:35 with the poly-synth as the lead, and again at 3:05 with the key change, where the sounds become their hardest to identify.  

Your arrangement framework and sound palette are perfect, so keep them as they are - but I honestly feel another mixdown to remedy the lack of high-end will push it over the bar for me.  It's so close, and I'd love for people to hear it on the front page!

NO (resubmit)

[prophetik music]

hey, this has some fun energy. it feels nice and peppy and holds that through the entire track. i really appreciated tight snare on the kit too - it really was a good feel that helped propel the track forward.

i agree that the arrangement is enough to get over the bar, but i do feel it's only barely over - it's not doing any favors there. that initial whistle playing the arpeggio is on so much of the track, and it never seems to change other than a note here or there for a few of the altered chords underneath the melody. the bass has the same problem - it's essentially the same the entire track, and never does anything other than the same pattern. the sidechained pads are ever-present as well, and it's only with the statement of the theme at 2:33 in the multisynth that we get some real arrangement. while i liked the downtempo section at 1:47, between the new chords and the key change at 2:33, it's this section at 2:33 that really carries it over the bar and keeps it there.

from a mastering perspective, i found the LFO filter on the melodic lead at 1:47 to make it hard to hear the melody. similarly, the multisynth at 2:33 is hard to hear because there's just no place for it in the soundscape. the melody needs more bite in both places to let it speak, or it needs to be set in the soundscape better to allow it to speak out despite the timbral changes. toning back the sidechained pads would help a lot here - they're so strong throughout and there's only a focus for maybe 30 seconds at 1:18.

spending some more time leveling and EQing your synths will help the overall track significantly. focus on what is the important parts in each section (melody, harmonies, etc), and level to those rather than just keeping everything the same the whole track. you'll have a much stronger submission as a result.

 

NO

[Gario]

I'm with MW on this one - the sounds are pretty vanilla, but they're used very well throughout, and the track never feels empty or dull because of it. Some instruments are overused (like that sine, though nice work not making it too piercing while making it audible, that's not easy to do), but overall it does change it's soundscape enough to avoid being too static.

I hear Larry's concern about the lead mixing after 2:33 (it does get buried into the arrangement), but I don't think it's enough to sink the piece, nor do I think something is at all a small or quick fix to justify a conditional YES (mixing is a delicate issue to deal with - it's never something an artist can just touch up in a few minutes). If this gets kicked back, I would definitely appreciate the lead to stand out more against the rest of the track at 2:33.

It's not perfect, but I don't think our bar is so high that the lead blending with the texture a little too much and one texture being over-represented is reject-worthy. The arrangement does good work, the production is pretty good, and overall the track keeps me bouncing in my chair. I say give this some front page love, with the caveat that the artist learns from our opinions and mixes the lead better next time.

YES

[Sir_NutS]

This is a simple remix that just works.  Simple arrangement and sound palette but used pretty well, the mix isn't perfect but not terrible either imo.  Some of the synths kinda blend with each other but I can still distinguish the parts, and I find the track is fine EQ-wise.  It definitely starts to get repetitive by the end but it knows when to wind down and end.

Not every track needs complex arrangement or instrumentation, and this is a fun little ride.  I'm ok with sending it to the front page.

YES

[Chimpazilla]

I agree with the crits of all my fellow judges, the instrumentation is simple, the mixing could be more clear and the sine and bass patterns are overused as is the sidechained pad, but none of that is dealbreaker to me.  It's a fun tune and I think it belongs on OCR.

YES

[DragonAvenger]

Joining the train that is on the "Would be a nice fix but isn't super necessary in the end" train. The track is nice and bubbly and extends the original without overstating. I'm on board

YES