Sir_NutS: +++++++++++++++++ (17) stringfield: +++++ (5) Chief: ++++++ (6) Chavous: +++++ (5) Extacide: +++++++++ (9) Simon Frisch: ++++++++++++++ (14) Kris Davis: ++++++++++++++++ (16) ------- Abadoss ------- Sir_NutS - I think that there is a lot of good to be said of this piece. It's well produced. It's got a nice groove. It has enough variety and doesn't try to stretch too little too thin or too much too thick. It fits the description that you gave. However, I had difficulty focusing on the sunrise aspect of it. stringfield - I think that, while this was a good piece, that it might have been a stretch with regard to the theme. I think spending some more time developing the concept would be a good thing. Chief - The arrangement is good, but, next time, you might want to take some time to work on the production end a little. I think you worked to build a very strong climax - although, you technically built about three. Chavous - My ear was caught off guard when I first heard this. The New Age feel is something that hadn't quite yet made it into the CMC yet, so it was nice to have that different feel. I think that you did a good job with your progressive movement. The build was pretty strong and it pretty strongly portrayed what you were going after - although, I had a hard time not thinking of some 80s Sci-Fi (no offense meant). Extacide - The guitar solo at the end really reminded me of Mega Man X - mostly because of the midi. I think you did a really good job with your piece. I really like how you handled the arrangement. Kinda had elements of trance that brought me back to my early high school years when I would listen to artists like "303 Infinity" and such. Anyway, it may have been my associations that kept it from feeling like it fit the theme. Simon Frisch - It's not often that people score for wind machine. It was interesting to hear you use it. The crescendo to/at 1:20 made me think of Paramount or one of those movie company's trademark logo. This piece is almost two different pieces; one beginning at 0:00 and the other at 1:00. There's definitely a very cinematic feel to this. As a matter of fact, this seems more like it would fit at the beginning of a larger work which, if it were, would help it. As it is, it doesn't really stand alone very easily. I do like it, however. Kris Davis - This reminds me of something off of Globe Trekker. I can definitely see some guy hitching a ride in some beat up car in some remote, but gorgous, location at the buttcrack of dawn. Amazing the power of association. First place: Kris Davis Honorary mentions: Chavous, Chief, Simon Frisch ------- stringfield ++ ------- Sir_NutS - Well, I thought the beginning and the end of this piece were really clever. It really got across the idea of beauty and power. Seriously well done for that! However, I didn’t like the bit in the middle largely because of the orchestration. IMO, the drums and the computery effects didn’t convey a sense of battle well. It wasn’t violent enough for me (I was expecting pandemonium, screams, swords clashing and brutal death) and the effects for some bizarre reason made me think of Friday night clubbing lol. Please don’t take that offensively, I really liked your piece its just the middle bit seemed a bit like the odd one out both in relation to your description and piece of music. Because of that I thought the whole Sunrise thing got a bit lost in that bit. But Well done! It was still a lot better than my piece lol. Chief - I’ve decided that I will give this piece an honorary mention. It just captured the essence of a sunrise ; it was really climatic, impressive and grand. I could almost see the sun rising. The only thing which I didn’t like was the quality of your mp3 (at my end it sounded very flat and computery because the notes weren’t fading like normal they were just continuing in sort of blocks of sound) but I overlooked that because its not a fair thing to judge on. Not fair at all. So congratulations. You’ve got a really nice piece there! Chavous - felt this one wasn’t quite strong enough on its own. I suspect that was why you had such a detailed description accompanying it. It was a bit sort of background musicy (please don’t be offended) ; it would have been GREAT if it was accompanying a film or something. The percussion use was really innovative and original and the idea of birdsong at the end was unspeakably beautiful and sad. However overall, for me it wasn’t quite striking enough. Sorry its just the way I feel. I’m sure many people will disagree with me. Extacide - I have similar feelings about this piece as I have about Sir Nuts’. It was really beautiful at the start because you had a really SOLID and strong melody and chord sequence. It’s not an easy thing to do that. The melody’s development was also really cool so well done. I also applaud your bravery in using the same chord sequence throughout because it’s a difficult thing to pull off. However, I did not like your representation of a battle or a battle halted. As with Sir Nuts’ I felt that it was not strong enough or brutal enough. I also wasn’t too keen on the computery effects or the drum patterns because for me they didn’t fit the scene. They reminded me a bit of a ringtone rather than a sunrise (pleases don’t take that offensively. If it was a ringtone, I'd probably buy it lol). They sort of clouded over the idea of the sunrise and its sheer power for me. But well done. The piece was on the whole really enjoyable. I preferred it to my piece lol! I just didn’t quite get the middle. Simon Frisch - I just thought everything about it was really good. The idea of the ominous interruptions in the cadence at the end were very clever and gave me a fright lol (in a good way) and it sounded like something from a film! It was just really good. Kris Davis - It was really good lol (if I could have given 2 pieces for first place this one would have been there). It was just amazingly catchy and its stuck in my head lol. First place: Simon Frisch Honorary mention: Kris Davis and Chief ------- Chief ++ ------- Sir_NutS - It was a cool piece and I felt that it matched the description well, but I also felt that it too lacked a big moment, which I think could have made it more interesting. stringfield - I give you credit for creativity. I never would have thought of doing something like that. Nice job. Chavous - Yours was also unique, but I felt it was a little repetitive, and it could have been bigger. It needed a big moment. Extacide - To me, this was the most enjoyable to listen to. But I think it could have had more, including that climatic moment that I keep mentioning. It also ended on an inconclusive chord. Simon Frisch - I felt that this piece had the most potential out of all the pieces. Kris Davis - I don't really have much to say about yours. It was well done and certainly had an oriental feel to it, and was also another very unique piece. First place: Extacide Honorary mentions: Sir_NutS and Simon Frisch ------- The Universal Call ------- Sir_NutS - Whilst Sir NutS happen to be my favorite artist (and he knows this) - after listening to all entries - I knew that I wasnt being biased when I thought to myself: "Yes, his contribution is the best". stringfield - It was too jolly, it was the theme of the song in all honour, but jolly^2 to say the least. Kris Davis - It was also somewhat unique but I since I did not at all enjoy it with all its indian- and whathaveyou-influences. First place: Sir_NutS Honorary mention: Extacide ------- Machinus ------- First place: Sir_NutS Honorary mentions: Simon Frisch ------- Extacide ++ ------- Sir_NutS - After listening to his piece and mine which both have similar themes, its very obvious that he definitely has an upper hand in software to write with, but this piece is excellent. I kind of get lost in the song as for the theme, but the rest of it comes back pretty quick. Its a great piece of work, energizing and inspiring. Chief - Out of all the submissions, he composed a song that directly describes a sunrise. Its not bad either. Props for it. Simon Frisch - Same as chief pretty much, his submission can be directly described to the actual rising of a sun, an also good piece of work here, more props. Kris Davis - Interesting theme, this song describes its theme better then any other song in my opinion, and it does it well. The indian vocals in the intro especially compliment the feeling of Morning, the feeling of going on with life. First place: Sir_NutS Honorary mentions: Chief, Simon Frisch, and Kris Davis ------- Bundeslang ------- Sir_NutS - I liked the balance and the part around 2:30. Great job. stringfield - I think the song is a bit boring, but it has some nice samples. Chief - The song starts slowly, the intro is almost half of the song. If the song was around 5:00 I would like this intro, but it's not that long. The end was to short. Chavous - Good start, nice and 'soft'. After a while, it gots boring. But I can see the sun coming. The song description really helps. I like it and I really get the feeling there's a new sunrise. The angels 'sing' well. Extacide - Powerful beginning with the strings, but not in a bad way. Overal they were too powerfull and the rest of the songs lost value. At 1:25 a good sample choice made it better and nice. I like the song more from that part. Simon Frisch - The beginning was too slow, I didn't like it. After a minute (1:15) the song 'starts'. The intro is too long for this song. Kris Davis - Nice intro, nice balance. I like the voices you used at the beginning. The samples are good for a sunrise. When the song starts becoming boring it gets a nice impulse, it's perfect-timed. I only didn't like the long end. First place: Chavous Honorary mentions: Kris Davis and Sir_NutS ------- Chickenwarlord ------- Sir_NutS - The feeling of the sun gracefully breaking through a barrier was very much the feeling I got from this. Very well produced and a great listen. stringfield - This piece would've made a good entry for the concept "Caffeine" but I wasn't at all feeling the sunrise here. Otherwise a solid composition (as stated, a tad on the obnoxious side). Chief - Definitely has the feeling of a sunrise or a wedding. I don't think the bells were entirely the right choice for the main building instrument. Chavous - I liked the fact that it was seemingly constantly building, but the repetition of certain elements just pushed it out of first place. Extacide - I loved the pacing and transitions in this one. It just felt like it should have been longer. The delay on the strings (I know this problem well) distracted from a very good piece. Simon Frisch - Very movie soundtrack-esque. I'm sure you know what I mean. But it feels like a background. There are glimmers of personality here and there, but for the most part I felt like there was something I should be watching. Kris Davis - Not feeling this through the scope of Sunrise at all. First place: Sir_NutS Honorary mentions: Chavous and Extacide ------- Frash ------- Sir_NutS - This is some good stuff coming from Sir_NutS, whom I like and respect. However, this track sounds to me like it's lacking of the right amount of emotion. Sorry. stringfield - Heh, I've figured myself starting my day with this song, and I've tried it: no way I can fit into it, not even trying to force myself into a fake happiness and joy status... The old radio effect makes it sound even more unrealistic for a sunrise and there are some tones which make it sound kinda riddicolous. It's not focused enough on the concept, in my humble opinion. Chief - The tune is quite good, shame for the poor quality of the digital samples. With some adjustments it could very well fit in some RPG. Chavous - It's not that this one lacks of the concept. It's just a bit repetitive. Might be good as an ambient music, or a soundtrack for a Wicca ritual . Err... yeah. Extacide - This sounds to me like some remix of some game soundtrack. It doesn't really fit with the concept and the midish overall effect plus the repetitiviness make it sound somehow cheap. It's a shame, because the main tune as an in-game-BGM might have sounded better. Simon Frisch - This composition is really well made, it sounds like if it comes from something bigger. Well, 2:20 are NOT enough. I want more of this honey :P Kris Davis - When I listen to this mix I think about frenesy of everyday's life in the shoes of a stoned person who watches everything that happens around him passively, as if he was watching those things using fast-forward. Really odd, but pleasant. Yes it gives the feeling of the infamous "tunnel". First place: Kris Davis Honorary mentions: Chief and Simon Frisch ------- Maquis ------- Sir_NutS - A great atmospheric piece; I love the sound of the opening measures. Nice use of the strings throughout as an anchoring point, and they really are a good-sounding sample. However, I get a little tired of the trance-like chord progression by the end. Overall, I get a sense of wandering around the same chords without really getting anywhere - I know part of that is the genre, but that's also why I haven't downloaded many trance remixes. Production is still great; the mix is clean and the processing is diverse. stringfield - You certainly went out on a limb with this one - and you got the annoying happy bouncy groove pretty well. I found the reverb and EQ on the drums distracting; it didn't seem to mesh well with the whole old-timey phonograph feel you had going. The tempo changes are abrupt and jarring as well. But I'm impressed you coaxed so much energy out of your samples. Chief - Since this is definitely MIDI based, I was trying to imagine hearing it in an SNES game. It's an impressive piece of arranging, especially that you keep it escalating from the beginning to the end. My main suggestion would be to experiment with some more open chords and some less crowded instrumentation. I know that, with MIDI, it's really hard to make music sound full without doubling every note in two kinds of strings and three kinds of brass, but you lose all sense of a realistic texture and just get a blatty chunk of sound. Try choosing two instruments for the bass range, another for midrange notes, something else for the highs - vary it up when you want to change the sound. Another thing that can take a lot of work depending on your interface, but is extremely rewarding, is to experiment with changing note velocities and with continuous volume controllers for more realistic expression. Great work, and I hope to hear more from you! Chavous - There's a clear sense of intentional development here - layering the elements piece by piece. However, my first impression was that it started to get a bit busy and repetitious before it really got around to the climax... sort of like a cutscene that goes on way longer than is healthy for the game. Maybe if there was some other chord progression, or some melody that came in to give the piece more direction as it works its way toward that epiphanal chord - the different elements could trade the melody off, modulate it, what have you. When you got to the climax, I knew it - a good audible burst of light. I'd like to hear it even more powerfully, though. A moment like that could steal your breath away. Extacide - The string chords provide a nice, strong foundation, and the delayed piano is a nice companion. I don't really like your choices of leads, though - neither the synth brass (I think) nor the synth guitar (I think) seem to fit the texture of the song. I kept wanting to hear the background break into something fatter with a full-blown drum beat, or change textures altogether and go into something symphonic. The mix is just a bit too sparse for my ears. Simon Frisch - I think what pushed this one to the top of my list is the extraordinary care and expression that went into it. I'm in awe of your patches, but I'm equally in awe of the realistic instrumentation, the symphonic movement, the restraint, and the performance that went into each part. The execution, at least to my marginally-trained ear, was flawless. It's hard to find this kind of subtlety on OCRemix. Kris Davis - Probably the most creative concept in this contest. The vocal samples clearly stand out, but this would have been a formidable piece of music even without them. It has great energy, even with a fairly repetitious bass line and rhythm - the performances of the guitar and the (dang it, Indian stringed instrument, not a sitar - completely escapes me now) keep driving the momentum. Production value is superb; the acoustic instruments truly sound acoustic, and the mix is full and warm throughout. First place: Simon Frisch Honorary mentions: Kris Davis and Sir_NutS ------- joret ------- Sir_NutS - It is a good piece that deserves more points than I can give. stringfield - A Charlie Chaplinesque piece that brings back memories of reruns of old movies. But not my cup of tea. Chief - A nice piece, but I feel as if it's underdone. Could have added something more. And given it more bravado. And the volume was to soft. Chavous - A well planned piece. That does give the feeling of sun rising. But it didn't peek, nor blow me away. It got too, for the lack of a better word, scripted. Extacide - A piece that does represent the melancholy of darkness, and passing of a new day. I liked the way it had sad undertones to it, and then turning a bit more optimistic. Simon Frisch - Reminds me of a John Williams piece. Especially the scene from Star Wars episode 4, when Luke yells at his uncle and runs out to cry. A soft, but good piece. Kris Davis - Has a fresh outtake on the interpretation. A well thought piece that actually does work. It hits the eardrums as a fresh breeze in the morning. First place: Kris Davis Honorary mentions: Sir_NutS and Extacide ------- glenji2k4 ------- Sir_NutS - Dark, ominous intro. Paints the picture of a battlefield, with bodies strewn about as the lone warrior picks his weary self off the ground as the sun comes up. Good synths, nice melody, percussion a little 'too much' at times. 8/10 stars. stringfield - Sounds very 50's. Not my cup of tea. Actually I am not a fan at all of stuff that sounds this retro. Everything has an odd reverb to it as well. 6/10 stars. Chief - Decent intro, though you can tell the strings and other instruments are fake-sounding. Pretty good composition, fits the theme well, just could use better samples in my opinion. 7/10 stars. Chavous - Interesting. Like the pad in the background, though can do without some of the sound effects (the clock-winding in particular) . Very ambient sounding, which I like. I like the synth at 1:44. A nice, warm piece. 7/10 stars. Extacide - I really like the intro and the melody. The backing strings give me a sense of a sunrise - "time to wake up and start your mission." This is my favorite track so far. All of the synths work together quite nicely as well. I just wish it was a bit longer. 8/10 stars. Simon Frisch - I see what you mean by 'atonality.' Makes me think of the original "planet of the apes" or another old movie like that. Very toned-down at first, I especially like the way it builds up though, can definitely see this in a movie ost. Ending is quite nice as well. A good effort. 8/10 stars. Kris Davis - I like the eastern flair this has too it. Very professional sounding recording. Live instrumentation obviously. The vocals are nice too. Not my usual genre of choice, but this fits the theme quite well. It makes me think of a sunrise in Africa or somewhere like that, with a whole bunch of dancing going on. I have to say I was blown away by this piece. Nice work. Don't really like the vocals that come later on, but that is personal bias. 9/10 stars. First place: Kris Davis Honorary mentions: Extacide, Simon Frisch, and Sir_NutS ------- Simon Frisch ++ ------- Sir_NutS - Ooh, very dark; not exactly thrilling as per a battle, but intense. Sound is crisp and gripping. Somehow, though, the piece just left me feeling like there was a lot unresolved; momentum was built up but it didn't really climax, and when it ended there was a very distinct change in texture but I didn't so much feel the satisfaction of seeing the risen sun as...well I dunno, this critique is badly written enough as it is, but I don't want to start getting into weird abstract concepts. Essentially, I think this piece would benefit from a better sense of "this is where it's going and this is where it's changing and this is where I want to listener to realize that now we're finally at peace." (yeah...that...) stringfield - Hehe that was intensely happy. The arrangement was very nice and smooth; I'm assuming that the reverb and mastering was very intentional, and it was effective at evoking a certain sort of recording quality. Chief - Well I'd recommend getting something a bit nicer than MIDI but no doubt you've heard this, and so to be fair I'll just consider this compositionally. I feel like I've been saying this a lot but my suggestion would be to broaden your base of material; there is no complete or recurring melody that gives us something to remember the piece by. You use the four note motif a lot, and it's really nice how the piece builds based on that, but what I'd like to hear is some expansion and elaboration. Regardless the effect is powerful; I think if you take melodic progression into consideration more, the overall sense of structure and direction will improve considerably. Especially considering this is MIDI, good job on keeping it pretty much sleek and enjoyable. Chavous - To be honest (though I can't, of course, verify this) it seemed to me that the timeline was created after the piece itself. The atmosphere is certainly mystical; excepting the casual introduction of instruments and voices, little happens to the atmosphere itself to suggest changes as significant as those mentioned in the story. That's just a small sidenote but it leads me to my main suggestion, which would be to simply bring out more of the possibilities with the piece. The repeating harmony was a stylistic choice but for the sake of consistency with the idea of the piece (as written in the story) I think more variety melodically, harmonically, and rhythmically would make the piece much more rounded. I don't mean to say, go against all original intent behind the piece and just make everything nutty and wild; rather, make occasional changes that can be large or small, but significant somehow, and keep the listener attached. Well blended though, great feeling. Extacide - For such a dramatic accompanying storyline, relatively little happens in the music itself; it remains the same background throughout, with a variety of solos placed on top. A more elaborate harmonic base would help a lot methinks; you have conventional triad stuff going on in the back and so it might be fun to tackle a bit more complexity. I won't say that there's anything "wrong" with the piece because it's not that, it's just that I think you should go a little more nuts with various aspects of composition. Kris Davis - Excellent mixing, voices were awesome; the blend of cultural instruments and some modern touches was well done. It's certainly an interesting take on a sunrise. First place: stringfield