Commodore Remix

People seem to think that a SID+Drum remixes can be done in 5 minutes. Yes, they can be...just like Sid covers or re-orchestration can be too...BUT will it sound good?? Every one knows how to use a pen and paper, but how many people will write a great novel with them??? Not allot...

U have all sorts of factors to take into consideration with SID+Drum remixes, that u don’t with just another "cover/remix" tune. There are timing issues, tonal issues, noise issues, etc...The list goes on & on. Things that you cant just rewrite or edit out. Many of these factors you'll be stuck with from start to finish in some cases. All of this makes your task of adding any extra drums, or tonal melodies a difficult task...I like to think of it as a challenge. Most SID's are stubborn bastards...their way or the highway...heheh...which makes remixing in the SID+Drums a real pain in the ass...

However, if u are one of the unfortunate(or fortunate depemnding on who you are) souls that are tone-deaf, this wont be a problem for you...lol...in that case...it IS EZ...Especially if you have no rhythm, that way you wont have top spend countless hours trying to beat-match the wav's to the tempos! lololol...

If u are one of those people who look down on SID+Drum remixes I dare u to DO IT, & DO IT GOOOOD! I wanna hear it...I think you'll find that doing a GOOD SID+Drums remix...is harder than u think...

Cheerz,

-naughtyboy

<<<
If u are one of those people who look down on SID+Drum remixes I dare u to DO IT, & DO IT GOOOOD! I wanna hear it...I think you'll find that doing a GOOD SID+Drums remix...is harder than u think...
>>>
I think I made the same point in my editorial, didn't I Seth?
Got some extra webspace, so if anyone does any good SID + Drums I'll
host them. Perhaps Seth can be the jury

Chris

Seth, you did a good job with 8-bit Weapon, but as Chris said it is difficult to nail down a score out of 10. I hope I haven't put anyone off going to http://www.8bitweapon.com to download the album...

Hah! was gonna reply to the editorial but there is no need real need to do it proper now. I started my first remix yesterday (shock, shock, horror horror) and it will probably sound like one that Chris could do in half an hour I will submit it RKO and even if it gets a puke smiley Ill probably still do another one. Im not doing it for anyone else but myself. Im using FruityLoops and have no idea what Im doing, if I should be doing it another way, should I make long wav fx rather than use several etc etc but as long as I get the tune at the end of the finished production I will be happy and will be even happier if just one person says they think its "not bad for a first attempt."
Ive been listening to SID Mixes for a long time now (thanx for Kenz introducing them to me as I didnt have a PC at the time) and always thought that I would never be able to do one. But I just finally decided that I might as well have ago the same as I thought that about SID music and coding on the C64, these were never awe inspiring but they pleased me and still do if I ever watch/listen to them which will probably be the case for my mixes too.
And yes, Im using SID2MIDI to get the notes right (altho I dropped it an octave) cos I dont wanna make a real hash of my first demo, it wont be a straight port of the tune but wont be far off but hey! its about enjoyment right?, the enjoyment of putting the thing together and the enjoyment of listening to a final product.

There are already some great SID+Drum mixes... d0d0's Turbo Outrun remix for example.

I hope people got from the editorial that I think there _are_ some good SID+Drums, and there are some remixers, like Seth and D0D0 who put some creative skill into it.

My point was that there are so many people who submit to RKO with just crap SID + Drums that you don't want to risk encouraging them! At least
on a site with limited disk space and bandwidth!

Did I make it clear?

Chris

At the risk of getting yelled at, I'm going to mention Zombie Nation again. It's catchy, contemporary, but certainly has the feel of "anybody could have done it". Two things: 1) nobody else did; that may seem obvious, but plenty of people reckon they could have done something, but don't, and; 2) the unique sound of the SID is something that can be used on the general public, as it's different to anything else out there, whereas the sounds used on RKO often aren't. This is important in differentiating Commodore 64 remixes against "chart music" in some ways.

You won't catch me yelling at you Craig: I know how A&R people think

> 1) nobody else did; that may seem obvious, but plenty of
> people reckon they could have done something, but don't

And, as Dirk Gently pointed out, it's a very telling fact
It was one of the reasons I was making a case for a remix to be
considered in terms of the end result rather than how much work went
into it...

Chris

Andrew, I liked my review. I agreed with most of the points u made. I disagreed with a few too..hehe...but thats the nature of our artist & reviewer relationship. ;D

I liked your editorial as well chris. I just though I'd fill in some of the blanks of straight SID remixing that most folks take for granted....like the tuning problems and the noise etc...

I will be doing another volume of 8-Bit weapon tunes in the next couple of years im sure...no worries there m8z!

BTW, I'd just like to say...what a great experience it is to be part of such an open minded community...we may not all agree...but at least we agree to dissagree..;D

In all seriousness...I love you guys~!

love,

-naughtyboy

the great thing is here, that there's so many ideals shared by so many different people. Some like SID with Drums, some don't! Some like to use Sid in remixes, and some don't! some like to use no sid and some don't!

viva la difference

Depends what you mean by open-minded...

Seriously though, I'm glad there's no hard feelings between Seth and me about the review It's difficult enough to get quality feedback, let alone carry on an e-mail conversation about a review.

I love you guys, too!


P.S. dan, looking forward to your remix, give it a go and see what happens. Now's not the time to worry about critical response. Have fun!

merman wrote:P.S. dan, looking forward to your remix, give it a go and see what happens. Now's not the time to worry about critical response. Have fun!

Thanks for the support Merman!

I was actually thinking about this kind of thing recently ... I've got a huge folder of my fave C64 remixes and after listening to a lot of highly polished and lovely orchestral mixes and kick ass dance style remixes (which I also love) one of Seth's tracks from his CD played - and I really enjoyed hearing that raw beepy 8-Bit sound. It was a great contrast to the other tracks I had been listening too.

Oh, and good luck with your mix Dan - I look forward to hearing the fruits (hoho!) of your labours.

Kenz wrote:Oh, and good luck with your mix Dan - I look forward to hearing the fruits (hoho!) of your labours.

Thanks Kenz....but that joke was just terrible!

Kenz wrote:I really enjoyed hearing that raw beepy 8-Bit sound.

That's what a lot of people miss: the fact that the SID's unique sound is often what makes a track special. IR seems to have gotten that right, but other remixers sometimes smooth stuff over too much, removing the all-important edge from the original compositions.