Video Game Remixes

Video Game Remixes & Arrangements

I'm a huge fan of video games, and I believe that video game music is often underappreciated. Certainly, anyone who has played "Super Mario Brothers" or "Tetris" will recall the memorable melodies of the games - but because of the 'low quality' of the music due to technical restraints, the music is often scoffed at. Sites like OverClocked ReMix are dedicated to changing that, by creating a community for talented musicians to reinvent and reinterpret classic video game music in a number of different styles. I am an active contributor to OCR (as it's called), and below you will find the remixes I have created.

Mega Man 2 - Nuclear Flash - IAny Pendulum fans reading? This remix is heavily inspired by that band's unique approach to drum and bass - the enormous, booming drums and distorted bass are a given, but also thrown into the mix are over-the-top guitars and orchestral colors. I took that, applied some surf music riffs and crazy synth solos, and ended up with a seriously bombastic take on Flash Man's theme. The guitar parts here are all expertly performed by fellow ReMixer Juan Medrano, better known as Sixto Sounds. If you liked "Lunatic Moon" or any of my heavier electronic tracks like "Warhead", you're gonna love this!

Final Fantasy 6 - Dirt Devil - I did this remix for a Nobuo Uematsu tribute arrangement competition at Squaresound.com. It won 1st place! The mix itself is really crazy, using everything but the kitchen sink in terms of production and instrumentation. I spent the most time doing the hyperactive lead lines, which carry the melody throughout, and even though I was pretty constrained by time I think the final result is really fun.

Final Fantasy 7 - Deliverance of the Heart (Heart of Anxiety) - A collaboration with pixietricks (Jill GoldIn) and the opening song of the "Voices of the Lifestream Project". Since Jill and I already wrote up our thoughts on the piece for the OCReMix page, I'll be brief; it's electronic, it's new age, it's got beautiful vocals, and we're very proud of it!

Final Fantasy 7 - Nomura Limit (Fight On!) - Oddly enough, in the course of the "Voices of the Lifestream" project, no one really stepped up with a completed remix of the boss theme, "Still More Fighting". So, within the last few weeks of the project, I decided to handle it myself. The most notable part of this track is the change from the 3/4 feel in the original to 4/4 with lots of varied rhythms - especially the main riff. The style could most accurately be called 'synth rock', heavily inspired S.S.H. - if you like over-the-top leads, synth guitars, drums, and... harpsichord... give this one a listen.

Final Fantasy 7 - Lunatic Moon (Red XIII's Theme ~ Cosmo Canyon) - This mix of "Cosmo Canyon" and "Red XIII's Theme" was not initially my idea. It was conceptualized and started by Sixto Sounds, a fantastic guitarist and ReMixer. We wanted to give the original theme a nice, heavy metal treatment while also incorporating electronic bits such as drums and synths. I contributed to those aspects primarily, as well as the ethnic parts that perhaps most naturally sum up Red XIII's character. Sixto handled the sick guitar work and heavy drums. \m/

Streets of Rage 2 - Above Reason - Another collaboration with tefnek, this mix actually started out in 2005 with the help of the remixer Rellik. We wanted to do a huge, big beat arrangement of my all time favorite tune from SoR2, "Under Logic", and did finish most of it.. but it wasn't until this year that we tied things up after a long hiatus. Everything was roughly split in terms of sound design and arrangement between tefnek and myself, with Rellik contributing some cool sounds here and there (he requested not to be properly credited, however). The end result is a track fully loaded with over-the-top drums, synths, e.pianos, pianos, organs, guitars... and 110% of your daily value of badass.

Super Mario World - Monstrous Turtles! - After listening to the original tune from SMW (the castle theme) I got very nostalgic and decided to do a fun little arrangement of it in my favorite combination of styles. Phat beats, screaming synth leads, chuggin' distorted guitar, and of course, orchestra. Can't go wrong!

Eternal Champions - Perpetual Motion - You might remember Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat, but the Sega Genesis game Eternal Champions was a bit more forgettable. It did, however, have a great soundtrack that I thought deserved a cover. The remix is in a sort of amalgam of genres, primarily electronic in nature, focusing on the strong baroque-style melody from the introduction theme of the game. I actually did not have access to about 90% of my samples when I created it due to a hard drive crash, so it was something of a challenge to work under limitations I was not used to!

Super Street Fighter II Turbo - Flying Heaven - This track is actually part of a Super Street Fighter 2 remix project entitled "Blood on the Asphalt", featuring a range of different artists and a common theme of gritty 'urban' sounds. I decided to go with a down-and-dirty big beat approach, with the phattest synths and drums I could think of. The original melody (Fei Long's stage) was pretty short and simplistic so it was a little hard to get a deep and creative arrangement. However I made sure to vary up the electronic stuff with some ethnic flavor in order to keep things interesting, and I think the final result is pretty enjoyable.

Sonic & Knuckles - Lover Reef - This remix of "Lave Reef Zone" was conceived entirely in one night between myself and four other remixers after the OverClocked ReMix meetup in New York City right before New Year's. pixietricks (Jill Goldin) worked on lyrics and sung the female vocals. GeoffreyTaucer (Jeremy Waters) covered all of the acoustic and electric guitar parts. D-Lux (Steve King) wrote and performed the spoken voals, and shonensamurai (Mike Sacco) worked with Jill on the sung lyrics and did the sung male part. My role was to put it all together with my own material for the final product. We all had a great time doing it, so I hope you enjoy it!

Chrono Trigger - Subterranean Opus - This remix was a pretty big undertaking for me. I wanted to arrange a theme (the sewer music) that hadn't been touched by anyone yet, and incorporate a lot of different musical ideas. I consider this to sort of be the 'sequel' to Calamitous Judgment (see below) as it has some similar motifs, and even briefly cameos the Trial theme in one section.

Zelda: Link's Awakening - Clash at the Mountains - This is just a fun, upbeat arrangement of one of the most memorable themes from the first good Zelda handheld game. Over-the-top synth guitars and big beats.. you can't go wrong!

Final Fantasy VI (III US) - Shadows Among the Ruins - My entry for the RPGamer "Sonic Revolution" contest, a remix of Final Fantasy 6's 'The Day After' theme. This was the winning entry. It is in a similar style to some of my other remixes, incorporating electronic, acoustic, and orchestral elements, but it also uses lots of subtle arrangement and processing techniques to give a rich and fresh sound.

Chrono Trigger - Calamitous Judgment - The first remix of mine to be posted on OverClocked ReMix. It is an arrangement of "Kingdom Trial", one of the best themes from Chrono Trigger. One of my more popular works.

Chrono Trigger - When All Hope Has Faded - I worked on this arrangement of "The Day The World Revived" with a friend of mine, Tyler Heath (aka 'Unknown'). It is even more popular than Calamitous Judgment, with over 8500 downloads to date on VGmix and a number one spot on the charts at Ormgas Radio.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time - Waste Water Wipeout - - This was a collaborative effort with tefnek, an extremely talented musician specializing in awesome big beats and screaming synthwork. Unlike my collab with Tyler Heath, this one involved much more sharing of samples and instruments, and we really worked together on every part of the song. Lots of fun - check it out!

Final Fantasy VI (III US) - A Nightmare Before Kefka - My first fully-orchestral video game arrangement. The song remixed here is "Kefka" with a cameo of "Wild West" from the same game and Tyler Heath's original piece, "Zombies Ate My Dingo". The title should make sense once you hear the style of the song - it's dark and mischevous, much like the music of Danny Elfman, one of my favorite composers.

Donkey Kong Country - Faunophonic - Part of Kong in Concert, an arrangement project covering the entire Donkey Kong Country soundtrack. I covered the "Forest Frenzy" track.

River City Ransom - Chain and Tire - A remix of the main theme from River City Ransom. It's pretty simplistic in comparison with the above three remixes, and definitely doesn't require much thought to enjoy, but I think it accurately captures the cheesy atmosphere of RCR, which is undoubtedly the greatest beat-em'-up of all time.