chumble spuzz Posted March 9, 2007 Share Posted March 9, 2007 http://marcelliswentz.com/music/chumblespuzz_TMNT4_WasteBoarding_wip.mp3 Updated 3/13/2007 So, I've been working on this off and on for quite some time now (some of you might remember this from when I first began working on it), but I think now I can safely say that it's near completion. I can never seem to please myself totally, so I never really get to the point of "Okay, now I'm done." There's always something. So, I'm taking it to fresh ears. What do you guys think--it seems "done," but is it "OCR done?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tenucha Posted March 10, 2007 Share Posted March 10, 2007 The URL doesn't work for me... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Villainelle Posted March 10, 2007 Share Posted March 10, 2007 Wow, awesome arrangement! Can't think of anything to suggest aside from production issues... I really like this and was bored, so I actually threw your MP3 into FL and messed with it a bit. You have nice clean levels and good dynamics in the mix--I'm just not sure why you limited at -6dB? That's on the quiet side for mixes on this site, esp. rock. The mix sounds pretty good, but a bit muddy overall, and drums are on the flabby side. I tried a moderately wide cut of -3.5dB or so at 500Hz and it did a lot to cut the mud. Any minor cuts there in the low mids would help to give space for the guitars and bring out some general clarity. Also, the drums could stand more compression imo. But yes. Minor quibbles aside, this is a rockin' track. I'm no judge but I think even if you just raised the volume this would very likely pass. Or pass just like this too! Again, really great arrangement and playing. Kudos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Theory of N Posted March 10, 2007 Share Posted March 10, 2007 Nice arrangement. I like it. However, I don't like that guitar you're using for the bassline. It sounds like a midi overdrive guitar almost. A funky-esque bass would probably sound better. I also think you should include MORE bass(different bass, of course). Other than the bass, it's awesome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Decoy Octopus Posted March 10, 2007 Share Posted March 10, 2007 Unfortunately, I don't think that this is "OCR done". I dig what you've done here (I wish more people would try their hand at the TMNT4 soundtrack) but I don't think it would be accepted as an OverClocked Remix. The first problem that I see is that it sounds a bit too MIDI-ish (especially the beginning of the song). The drums and the electric guitar at the end are great... but I think the other instruments could use something more. Secondly, I'm not so sure you've taken enough liberties from the original composition. It's kinda just a direct cover of the original song with some extra solo sections. I think you should try to give the guitar solos a bit more emphasis. On the plus side, I think the last 1:20 of the song is just great. Like I said, I love that electric guitar. With a bit more of your own personal interpretation of the song, you could have something to submit here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chumble spuzz Posted March 10, 2007 Author Share Posted March 10, 2007 Thanks for all the input, guys! Leah: Thanks! I'm kind of a production noob, so I'll take all the advice I can get. I was surprised at the effect of the 3.5dB cut at 500Hz, so I went through my tracks and eq'd accordingly. I've also reworked the drums a lot to make them more human-sounding. I just hope I'm mixing them well enough. ToN: I found a sweet slap bass sample just now, so that should make the bassline more exciting/funky. I might also rewrite the bass solo section to make it more interesting. At this point, it feels like the weakest link in the proverbial chain of my song, if I may. Decoy: NES and SNES music is the music I grew up with, so I tend to be a bit of a purist when it comes to VGmusic rearranging. For this reason, I tried to use a lead synth that sounded like the one in the game. But you're right, I could mix it up a bit more--maybe add a texture here and there...I'll think of something. Also, I'm glad you all like the electric guitar. It's a Slayer (with the exception of the bending at the beginning, which is a royalty-free sample), so I was a little worried I'd get the treatment. Looks like I did it right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Decoy Octopus Posted March 11, 2007 Share Posted March 11, 2007 Decoy: NES and SNES music is the music I grew up with, so I tend to be a bit of a purist when it comes to VGmusic rearranging. For this reason, I tried to use a lead synth that sounded like the one in the game. I completely respect that. However, my initial response when I listened to this is that it sounded a bit amateurish. I'm not saying that to insult you or anything. I just think that your "lead synth" needs to be honed down. I don't want to be distracted thinking it sounds like a MIDI, I want to be thinking that it's an aural reference to the SNES. I wish I could offer you offer you some more clearer criticism. I am not, however, well versed in any form of music. But keep up the good work, you've got something worth pursuing here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tenucha Posted March 12, 2007 Share Posted March 12, 2007 It finally worked for me! Now I dont know how much help I can be... I have never composed a song, I'm not even sure I have enough rhythm to do so. And honestly... Final Fantasy IX's "Black Magic Synthesis" blew out my 4 speakers on the computer with the bass... so I literally can only hear tribel. That said... It did sound good! I also agree that it sounds a bit like a midi. I grew up in the NES and SNES days also... infact the one Turtle game I owend was TMNT2: Arcade on NES. Ahhh memories... However the reasson I kept check out this site and then eventually joined the fourms... These artists took the 32bit midi music from the game and traslated it into a new medium. Your song has a geat start but you need to bring it out of the 32bit and into the surf rock genre it seems to want to be. Make it sound like something you can throw on a mix with bands like Slayer and so on (well... you used a guitar sample atleast). I did like the voice sampling also, it worked well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zircon Posted March 12, 2007 Share Posted March 12, 2007 This is actually really cool stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnappleMan Posted March 12, 2007 Share Posted March 12, 2007 The arrangement really kicks ass. I'm gonna try and contact you directly, chumble spuzz. I got alot of detailed critique to lay down Mainly, you're missing the most important element that makes the quality of any song skyrocket.... DECENT SOUNDING DRUMS! I mean, the drum sequencing is fine, but they sound like assmilk. Oh, and a slapped bass would make this sound like turds. Keep what you already got, sounds decent enough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zircon Posted March 12, 2007 Share Posted March 12, 2007 Yeah, I agree with Snapple. Other things; * NORMALIZE IT! It's like 10db quieter than it could be. Just normalize it and it will sound better. * Roll off the low end on the lead guitar a little more and try to bring it to the forefront of the mix. Could be more cutting. * Try some simple pads or synth arps at different points in the song. More "stuff" to fill it out. Really though... this rocks. Listened to it about 15 times tonight already. Edit: Here's what it might sound like with some hotter mastering. I can master it for you if you want this kind of sound (it's not hard, but some people have an aversion to mastering for some reason). http://www.soundtempest.net/wasteboard.mp3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chumble spuzz Posted March 12, 2007 Author Share Posted March 12, 2007 Hey, thanks for all the great critique, guys! I've been working on the song a ton this weekend, so I'll have a new version up soon, but likely with an empty bass solo section. I'm feeling like I'm on the tail of a sweet idea, but it's been elusive these past couple days. In the meantime, I've sprinkled in various little...pieces of flair (it's late) around the nooks and crannies of the song to keep things interesting all throughout. Fun surprises. There's still a few areas I'd like to spice up in similar fashion, but I can't leave that bass solo unattended. Not when I'm so close! Oh, and I've got new drum samples now. They're much better. Because, I can't imagine assmilk is something we want in our ears. Update coming soon... EDIT: Oh, and I listened to your hotly-mastered version, zircon, and liked it. For some reason, the "how" of getting this sound alludes me. I took Leah's advice, and it's louder now, but I was surprised to find that your's was louder, still! Ah, I'm just glad it's mastering I have trouble with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnappleMan Posted March 12, 2007 Share Posted March 12, 2007 I love that guitar solo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Instrumental Light Posted March 12, 2007 Share Posted March 12, 2007 this pretty kick-A**. i dont know, this might be able to make it to OCR. of course there are always things to fix(i dont mean that in a arrogant way, i just mean that were not perfect so there are always things to improve) but keep on working on it, your doing awesome. great job! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chumble spuzz Posted March 13, 2007 Author Share Posted March 13, 2007 http://marcelliswentz.com/music/chumblespuzz_TMNT4_WasteBoarding_wip.mp3 New version is up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zircon Posted March 13, 2007 Share Posted March 13, 2007 Mixing is definitely way better. A few comments; 1. Hats are a little too loud, reduce by maybe 2-3 db and attentuate the high freqs slightly also. 2. Snare has a bad phasing sound to it, but otherwise the timbre is good. 3. Tone down the mix's low end in general, as well as the bass instrument itself. It's only slight but the bass is crowding a bit. 4. I like the new synth additions!!! 5. The various different theme quotes are awesome. 6. The new mixing pushes the lead guitar solo down a little bit, try to bring it up a bit more. Great improvements overall though. Keep polishing it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Decoy Octopus Posted March 13, 2007 Share Posted March 13, 2007 Sounding good. I'm going to admit a mistake that I made. The whole comment about it sounding too MIDI-ish... I was wrong. I was definitely hearing it when I first listened to the track but after listening to it 20-30 times since, I'm not sure why it was bothering me so much at first. I guess another thing is that no one else seems to have thought it was a problem. Therefore, the problem was certainly with me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnappleMan Posted March 13, 2007 Share Posted March 13, 2007 I guess I underestimated my own powers of suggestion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tenucha Posted March 13, 2007 Share Posted March 13, 2007 I agree with Snapple.... The guitar solo rocks alot!! This track has come a long way (I only listend to the first version). It's very fun and I can't wait for a final version! I really like the begenning part where it almost sounds like you may have used that 'lil into distortion thing from the 80s cartoon theme. I cant really judge the rest of the song as all I can hear on the drums are the cymbols and the bass section is bascelly lost over these speakers... thats only 'cus there blown, its not your song so no worries Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chumble spuzz Posted March 14, 2007 Author Share Posted March 14, 2007 zircon: Thanks for the crits, as always. You've been a huge help. decoy: No worries, we all have different tastes. I did alter the lead synth's waveforms a bit after reading your first crit, and I think they turned out better. (That might be why you like them now ) snappleman: You're probably a jedi or something. I dunno. tenchua: Thanks! So, I fixed a ton of stuff according to zircon's crits and some of my own ideas. I fixed the weird phasing issue with the snare and tuned it up to match the key of the song, and I added more 'quotes' from other themes for funtimes' sake. So here's what I got thus far (other links are updated as well): http://marcelliswentz.com/music/chumblespuzz_TMNT4_WasteBoarding_wip.mp3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zircon Posted March 14, 2007 Share Posted March 14, 2007 Cool!!! Again, good updates. There are only two things I'd suggest now. One would be toning down the bass instrument just a tiny bit more, like 1-2db. Then, if you could pimp it out with any additional synths, even just one well placed pad or gated effect here and there, I think it would stand a much better shot. Besides that I'd say it's OCR-quality and would have a fighting chance on the panel even now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avaris Posted March 14, 2007 Share Posted March 14, 2007 I listened to this when you first posted and the mastering def sounds much better. Alot of the composition in in this is pretty sweet. :59 I def think the bass is a lil loud here and starts to overpower things. 1:30 Would be a great place for a gated pad. That part with the guitar solo kicks ass. Maybe towards the end of it you could reintroduce a gated synth in the background, just an idea. Besides that this is one of those damn songs that's really catchy for some strange reason, prob has to do with all the lil things you've thrown in here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcanis Posted March 14, 2007 Share Posted March 14, 2007 I really like the arrangement, but it still sounds like its right out of the game. I think if you got some electric guitar instruments in place of some of the synths (for example) and maybe some more convincing drums it would really make a big difference. I'm not saying ditch all the synths, cuz actually I think electronic and rock mixed together sounds cool. Aside from that, you might play with some panning effects or something spiffy like that, but I don't have much to suggest in that department. Toodles, and keep up the good work -Arcanis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Villainelle Posted March 15, 2007 Share Posted March 15, 2007 Wow, this is really coming along. Awesome work. Agreed w/both Avaris's and zircon's latest advice. I'll just add that I think the snare should be a bit louder and really smack. Finally though, I have one thing to recommend trying. This sounds pretty awesome overall, but I think you could polish it a little more by adding some very light tube saturation/distortion to the master buss, or selectively across a few groups. The mix still has a kind of digital edge to it, and there are some things that stick out a bit (the very airy/hollow sweep near the beginning, for instance). I've heard this called "gluing" the mix together--giving everything the same sort of warm, lightly distorted overtone to make it mesh together better, and sound less digital/sampled/whatever. There are tons of plugins you could try for this. Here are two free ones I know of: Camel Crusher Luxonix LFX-1310 Or any compressor that gives a warm distortion would work too, like Blockfish, Endorphin, Vanilla Compressor etc. (all free). Just an idea that I think might work well with this sort of mix. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
-MZ- Posted March 15, 2007 Share Posted March 15, 2007 This is an excellent mix! It should definitely make it to the panel. However, I'm sure it'll get passed. I'd use different synths to make it seem less like a chiptune. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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