pixelseph

Coming in fresh on this one as well! This track uses all the meat on the bone and then some between both source tracks. Durandal has a lot of repeated parts for its 3-minute runtime, and the Infinity theme is a quick A-B in under a minute. Intro uses a creative interpretation of the Durandal B section string backing; A section builds with the Durandal A section and some pauses. 2:42 finally introduces the Infinity B section, which leads to the outro at 3:45 with Infinity’s A section. I’m enjoying the attention paid to the dynamics of the track - ambience in the right places (:00 - 1:07, 2:42 - 3:45), synth bass stabs as builds (:56 - 1:17), four-on-the-floor kick drum in the “choruses” (1:25 - 1:41, 2:11 - 2:41, 3:45 - 4:28). There’s a story being told by the piece to guide the flow, and for the most part, everything is in service to that premise. There’s more room for variation within each section, as there are some sections that are copy pasta (1:41 - 1:56 and 2:11 - 2:26 are identical in the waveform). Even something as small as changing the drum fills in one of the sections makes a huge difference. The build-ups and downs are great, on the other hand! The way the space is treated at :56 is especially good when it uses the ambience to make space after introducing the phrase. For me, the instrument choice and implementation need more attention. I think the strings are serviceable for their role in the piece (no crazy fast articulations here, just swells and padding) but the guitar programming is not. While the parts at 1:40 - 2:00, 2:10 - 2:27, and 3:44 - end are hitting harmonically sound pitches, they lack realistic expression and articulations. Except for the bends, all of the notes are articulated the same way (down-pluck, no round-robin (sample swaps to create variation on the same note), no slides or hammer-ons/pull-offs (legato)). Look for ways to embellish these articulations on the guitar's phrasing, and I can sign off on this one! NO (please resubmit!)

This remix is a fairly conservative, semi-chiptune take that would've been right at home in the late ‘00s OCR. No question about source usage here. Source has an intro-ABC, where the intro is reused as a tag in the C section to loop back to A. Timestamps for the remix using the source A section (:00 - :40, 1:01 - 1:21, 2:02 - 3:02), source B section (:41 - 1:00, 1:21 - 1:41), and source C section (1:42 - 2:01). Sections have been swapped around from the usual ABC loop, with filter builds and breakbeats. The drops at 1:41 and 2:02 are stylistically appropriate, as is the resonance sweep on the reese bass at 1:01. The breakbeats are handled well, though each distinctive breakbeat loop (sounds like there are 2 total, and a third drum loop for the chip refrain at 2:02) seems to be only about 4 bars long. There aren’t enough variations in the loops throughout to make each section feel distinct from a percussion perspective; this can be achieved by doing unique chops of the snares at the end of every loop, or adding different fills. The overall structure is solid, and the arrangement has enough variation compared to the source so I'm satisfied on that front. I agree with my fellow Js that the mixdown and additional variation on the leads and drums are the biggest things to focus on to get this one over the bar. Add some more snare chops and fills for variety, balance out the mids to bring the lows and highs back, and address the phasing on the pan. There is plenty of room to add more stereo ear candy as well, after addressing the previous points. NO (resubmit)

Thrilled to hear this available on the site! Working with @ZackParrish was a treat - enough leeway in the composition to add small embellishments in the second half of the piece but enough structure to stay focused. Is there more Parrish & Pixels content to come? Who knows!!

Hi Banana! That lead in the source is cursed. Detuned and awkward for sure - the tracks has a vibe, nonetheless! You've built a great intro and A section, though I'm wondering if there's a B section you could come up with for some variety. The vibe is right for what you've got built, it just structurally says everything it needs to say in the first minute and then loops for another 30 seconds with nothing different. The sub-bass information on the bass instrument also has some mud happening on some of the lower information. A different oscillator might be the right call for the lowest notes, but that's also a taste thing - if you are digging it, no reason to change it! Keep making cool stuff man! Have a wonderful holiday!

I'm all in on this concept! Some of my favorite tunes are the credits themes and I don't see enough representation for them (SotN's ending theme, "I Am the Wind", or Metal Gear Solid 2's "Can't Say Goodbye to Yesterday" are great examples).

Awesome!! Looking forward to it :)

This was a lovely piece to put together in under a month (arranging took a couple of days, recording another couple of days, and then Connor mixed it all in maybe 10 days or so?) Each and every collaborator was awesome to work with, and I’d collab with them again in a heartbeat!!

Guitar: Cute Emily SG Shreddage 3 Stratus Unreal Instruments Metal-GTX (requires Plogue Sforzando) Bass: Shreddage 3 Precision MODO Bass 2 Amp Sims: Ignite Amps SHB-1 (SHB-1 is a boutique tube amp sim for bass guitar; comes with it's own cab IR built in) Ignite Amps Emissary and NadIR (Emissary is their boutique tube amplifier sim, NadIR is a cabinet IR sim that can be used with ANY other amp sim) Guitar Rig 7 Shattered Glass Audio ACE IK Multimedia Amplitube 5 Pedal VSTs: TSE Audio 808 TSE Audio R47 Plugin Boutique Face Bender

I highly recommend against ASIO4All in general, though if it does solve your problem, it’s worth it!

Hi Audiomancer! If your mix is sounding drastically different between project and bounce, there’s an issue with the codec being used by the DAW. You’re using FL Studio correct? What format are you mixing down to - 44.1k/128 bitrate I assume?

I love this! Can't tell if it's samba or bossa nova vibes but it definitely nails the island vibe even without steel pan.

Hi Virtual! Great start on this mix so far - it's got a vibe reminiscent of Final Fantasy 8's Balamb Garden. I do have some suggestions to get it to the next level: The percussion feels static and locked to the grid, and not just because it's the same loop being played in the A section. I like the it drops for the B sections, but adding more percussive elements (tambourine, shaker, tabla, etc) would help add more interesting movements into the piece. I would also recommend shifting elements away from the grid, like the hats and snare. The plucky guitar patch, similarly, runs arpeggios for the entire piece. While it does change between the A and B sections, you could introduce more constrast by switching from arpeggios to strummed chords (whole-note chords for the B sections, for instance). This would allow your B sections to open up and breathe more, which in turn will make your A sections feel more like "home" A reverb bus for all your instruments would help glue the entire piece together. I'm not sure if there is reverb in it - perhaps just on the synth parts - but adding a bus and sending some of each instrument to it, along with some EQ to shape it afterward, makes the entire piece feel like it's in the same space. You're off to a great start with this one! Looking forward to seeing where you take it next. :)

Hi Ruku! This is a total banger!! Very tasteful glitching, really enjoyed the drum swap from that '90s hyper-compressed vibe to something more chilled out. The instrument trade between the guitars and synths/keys was great as well. 10/10, no notes. Keep doing what you do 'cause it kicks ass!

Hi Ruku! Definitely understand taking this one in a phonk direction. I actually want to disagree with Mokram and say that this has a ton of the source in it. I was hoping to hear more personalization besides the genre flip in here as well as a more definitive ending. The vibe is exactly what I was looking for, though, and the mixing is excellent! Looking forward to more!

Hi Heel! Really dug the way the track builds. Good use of dynamics to keep the interest across such a long track length. I would have loved to hear more timbral variety in the last couple minutes, as it started feeling stale before the resolution. Shaving down the last round of the A section before the out is another solution, though I would rather hear the former over the latter. I did notice when I brought the export into SPAN that there are a LOT of instances of clipping between +0.1dB and +0.9dB. No artefacts thankfully, just wanted to mention that if you plan to submit this to the panel, you're better served bouncing out a mix that caps at 0.0dB max. Great stuff duder! Looking forward to hearing more from you!