1. Betwixt Th' Waves 'n Stars
   Souperion
2. Chrono's Cabana Vacation
   Wassup Thunder
3. Magical Beats
   TheVideoGamer

Chrono's Cabana Vacation - I kinda want some steel drums. If anything this (to me at least) is more reminiscent of the Rabanastre theme in FFXII. I do feel there is muddiness in the low mids though that could have been cleaned up some.

Magical Beats - Man where is the space on things. Everything is really just up in front in your face. There is no dimension to the piece. Nothing in front nor in back. They're just all there :( It also does not help that many of the sounds are similar in that they're relatively harsh. There isn't much contrast in the overall synth sound choice except for that bass. Gotta say I dig the bass sound.

Betwixt Th' Waves 'n Stars - I don't mind this nice and laid back. Decent job on the mix too. Could probably have used more reverb (room or whatever) to better position the sounds themselves in the overall soundstage, but yeah not tee bad.

A Lesson in Dance (Chill Rumba-Afrobeat Mix) - Well this an interesting take. Though I am not a fan of the clipping happening in many places. Plus there is the issue of space again. It just does not have any space in the mix really. Everything is more or less right in front of me rather than being built around a few core elements :(

1. Magical Beats
   TheVideoGamer
2. Betwixt Th' Waves 'n Stars
   Souperion
3. A Lesson in Dance (Chill Rumba-Afrobeat Mix)
   TheVodouQueen

TheVideoGamer: When you brought in the real rhythm and beats halfway in, I was sold. I loved the various synthetic sounds that sounded reminiscent of pipes and harmonicas kinda. The added beat and bass pronunciation made a unique and satisfying touch to the song that made it so lively.

Souperion: You really capture a kind of wistful and contemplative air, it indeed made me think of sailing by starlight. The gentle drone beneath the woodwind and strings blended well with everything while still sounding clear and lovely. And them wave sounds...

TheVodouQueen: I loved the variations of taking the lead guitar melodys and putting them in the lower sound spectrum! The tuned percussion (all of the percussion really) reflavored the parts with a lively new rhythm and beat! (reflavored is not a word, evidently, but I'm using it anyway). There may have been some sound clipping issues, but those can be fixed. I felt this approach was real appropriate, as I understand the original song was some kinda in-game band's performance. Nice work.

And who's this Wassup Thunder guy just strolling in here, posting music with bad guitar samples?!

1. Betwixt Th' Waves 'n Stars
   Souperion
2. Chrono's Cabana Vacation
   Wassup Thunder
3. A Lesson in Dance (Chill Rumba-Afrobeat Mix)
   TheVodouQueen

After considering, i think Souperion should win. Let's take it from the top.

Wassup Thunder - This is a really nice take on the source. I love the sounds here, especially with the awesome use of reverb. I like how it really fits well together. The sounds themselves are just great, even that guitar, that is a well chosen guitar sound. Now for me, honestly this is just a straight cover. I feel that way, throughout. Nothing sticks in terms of interpretation, it's pure 1:1. Nothing wrong with that sure, but it definitely highlights, how...too close it is. Branch out, and explore, to make it less a HD remake. Other than that though, i love the sounds, they were just perfect. Really this was the only reason i picked you second. Well done!

Souperion - The reason i picked you first, is that this has the perfect balance between originality and conservation. I really like the sounds in this one a lot. I love how it has a lovely balance of sounds, nicely mixed. Now you've said this is more like a sea shanty, which is fine, but i feel it's more of a Medieval styled track. Like early Britain. Still though, that doesn't make it bad, it's just interpretation. If i were to point out some flaws, then...er...honestly i can't really find any. I think you've done an amazing job on this. Well done!

TheVodouQueen - Ok this is a great attempt, i actually think this is a great idea. The one thing i have to commend you for, is how awesome that Latin guitar (In the intro) is. It definitely suits the feel, and makes the whole thing stand out. The level of creativity shines here, i love it. Maybe it's too creative though, this ventures a bit too far out in the realm of MnP, however just barely, it still retains the tempo, and one or two instruments. The main melody is sadly lost in this, but the beats are groovy. Also some of the instruments are a little too sharp. I did get a knack out of the sample intro though, this was just a lovely attempt. That guitar though is worth points on it's own. Well done here!

1. Betwixt Th' Waves 'n Stars
   Souperion
2. A Lesson in Dance (Chill Rumba-Afrobeat Mix)
   TheVodouQueen
3. Chrono's Cabana Vacation
   Wassup Thunder

WT: I like the arrangement, especially the flute, cello, and bagpipes (?). Unfortunately the guitar samples are a little rough, and sound a bit out of tune when they first come in.

TVG: Good development over the course of the piece. However, long stretches of it felt kind of lifeless and flat. Try some volume automation and/or changing up voices to help give it more life.

Soup: Liked this one. Very pleasant.

TVQ: Really neat interesting take on the piece. Liked the drums a lot. The steel drums towards the end are out of tune though.

1. Magical Beats
   TheVideoGamer
2. Betwixt Th' Waves 'n Stars
   Souperion
3. Chrono's Cabana Vacation
   Wassup Thunder

A well-done to everyone is in order, this round. :D I had to get very nick-picky this time around however, to justify who placed where, because all 3 songs were so different in genre, but also very unique and not just 1:1 renditions of "Magical Dreamers" (which I thought was incredibly impressive considering you all said you were unfamilar with the source material--I played through all of Chrono Cross, but you all did spectacular with the source nonetheless). It was tough, but had to be done (especially tough between spots 1 & 2). :( Sorry in advance--it's not done to be mean. Also sorry if some of my critique is shorter than normal. Had a very rough time for the past week or so due to partner being positive for COVID and I myself, I think, am coming down with it. :/

Also, to preface this--I am glad I'm the only goofball who fell for using any guitar for the main melody off the bat. xD It's refreshing, insofar as at least not everybody did the same thing.

----

1) 'Magical Beats' - TheVideoGamer

Pros:

* You're right--this song definitely called for some advance drum-play, and you nailed it. I'd say that was partially you falling into the niche of your drum & bass / hip-hop skills, but for some reason, in this instance, I didn't feel it detracted from the song or made it feel like you "could've done more".

* I like the deep, more meaty drums and percussion that accompanied the beat and melody. Almost felt like they became the backdrop to the drum & bass becoming the main focus. I'm not saying this on the standpoint of I love drum & bass--I think it was just a nice new flavour on a song that primarily, when I see people talk about it and do renditions of it, focus a lot on the melody and harmony works, and very little to the background sounds.

* I like the mini-change ups you do throughout the song (dropping certain sound elements, the change at 4:20 or so to shift for the ending repeat, etc.) It keeps the song fresh, despite it sounding almost like a simple loop. You did well to keep it from being that. :)


Critique:

* The beginning (0:00 - 0:30) was a bit sharp-ish to me. Could've possibly done with some pairing so the sound wouldn't be so stabby to the ears. It was appropriate and led into the kick drum beat very well, but nonetheless yeah...just a bit of pairing down.

* I really do like the wub-wub, funk guitar slaps to the harmony / midground sound (what carries the main melody), but I felt more could've been done with that. Increasing the sharpness of it to give it that weird video game 'buzz' sound effect was good, but I mean even if you adjusted where the notes were to give it a higher tone at times might've done it. I know it's the bassline essentially, but maybe some note play to churn up the pot a bit would've been nice. Still real funky, tho.

* I don't have much more to say. I think the song is the staple 'you' but you put enough variance in it, (to me), that that didn't detract from the lot. Well done. :D



2) 'Betwixt Th' Waves 'n Stars' - Souperion

Pros:

* OMG, hurdy-gurdies. I love the weird droning sound they have in effect, but it's such a unique sound, and so hard to pull off in music (without either completely eclipsing or dulling the overall tone.) I'm actually highly impressed someone used the medieval instrument for this, and it gave it such a cool sea-shanty feel. :)

* The soft waves that accompanied the beginning and end are splendid. When the song kicked in with the tams, I half-expected some old sea dog to start singing a shanty (wish someone did!) That said, your setup leading into Magical Dreamers main melody was gorgeous.

* Everything is so pretty and enthralling to hear, as per usual. ...This is why I kinda don't like what I am about to say and actually feel grossly bad for it, and a part of me doesn't want to. Please, though, don't take it all too much to heart and think I'm dissing you or don't like your work. Far from it--I admire your work ethic. A lot of the time I feel bad for my own work and stuff because I think you're so good / so much better than what I can do (hooray for poor self-esteem, lol.) And in that, I mean, every song I've heard you present so far in MnP and PRC have been pretty much rough obstacles to contend with, because they're so goddamned beautiful most of the time...


Critique:

* Unfortunately, that all being said, I had the exact opposite effect with this song than I did in the 1st pro for Gamer. It feels harsh saying this, (and it's real nick-picky), but I felt more could've come from this. I honestly couldn't nail anything specific with the individual pieces of the song as being "wrong". Your grasp in the mixing process and focus on that is evident.

* ...But I think what forced me to swap you and Gamer out for 1st and 2nd was maybe expectation. I think you could've pushed the bar a bit more. I know you were focusing to sharpen your skillset / toolset, but in the end I felt sad cause it felt like you were hiding in your niche a bit too much this time around.

* And by 'pushed the bar a bit more', I think even subtle (or intense) changes in tempo would've done it for me. I know hurdy-gurdies have a tendency for even tone and no real shifts in tempo, but a lot of sea-shanties I hear do get faster and faster as the song goes, since they're workmen songs, and increasing the beat increases the quickness of their workload getting done. I think what the main issue for me was that Magical Dreamers is supposed to be a real uplifting song (story-based reasons in the game--no spoilers--), and although the beginning slowness was beautiful and very unique, it would've been nice to have some increment quick-step or a general slow increase in tempo.

The song itself, with its individual parts, is a beauty. But it's an expected beauty, based on your previous songs. I want just a bit more. :( Sorry.



3) 'Chrono's Cabana Vacation' - Wassup Thunder

Pros:

* Flute at the beginning, paired with the violin, is very pretty--I like this intro, possibly even more than from the other two songs. Unsure if it's fitting for the genre you're trying to express here, but it is very pretty. ^_^

* I liked the general percussion and drum works. It gave me the feeling to move about and dance--so that's a good start.

* The trumpeting variation to the melody around 1:30 - 1:55 was very creative. :D I heard a bit of variation and play with the notes throughout the song. Some good stuff there.


Critique:

* Hurdy-gurdies are meant to be droning in sound, but somehow...I am unsure, but the trumpet in this seemed real flat, and more droning in effect than Soup's strings. I don't know what happened. I got that 'cabana' feel, but the 'cabana' feel felt kind of sad and oddly low-key for the genre. I looked back and used Barry Manilow's "Copacabana" (1978) song as a reference (because I am not wholly used to the genre outside of hearing it in mid-1970s to 1980s movies like "Saturday Night Fever", "Scarface", etc.), but the brass section is real lively and loud with cabana songs (as with most Latin derivatives). The brass here sounded out of steam. :( Cabana songs are pretty much the Spanish version/equivalent of general Disco--so that might've been a good reference to pair it with when making the song, perhaps.

* From about 2:00 onwards, some of your elements in the song, with the sound, started to blend for me. It was mostly your low-key percussion and whatever you're using as your piano template. It sounds like they're all in the same tonal range, and I think that's the issue with the song as a whole. There's a lot of lows, a little bit of mids, and almost no highs. And for Latin-genred songs, that's a killer.

* Song might've benefited with a broader use of percussion as well. I heard bongos and a bit of xylophone play, but no shakers / maracas, clavs, etc. I think even some kettle / steel drums might've helped it just that tad. I just think the piece--for happy vacation--was too low. Needs a lot more high-key tones.

The electric guitar BTW was fine and sounded great--doesn't really fit the style you're going for--but it wasn't warped or bad sounding. A bit odd when you changed up the notes towards ~3:10, admittedly, but there were so many other odd elements the guitar was the least worry.

Sorry if this seemed like I tore you a new one. :( I did like the song. Good work on it. ^^

1. Betwixt Th' Waves 'n Stars
   Souperion
2. A Lesson in Dance (Chill Rumba-Afrobeat Mix)
   TheVodouQueen
3. Magical Beats
   TheVideoGamer

Sorry for the lack of comments, I'll try and toss some on the forums but I wanted to at least get my vote in.