ReMix:Super Mario Kart "Koopa Nova" 3:14

We (sadly?) couldn't just keep posting ReMixes of FFX/Hurry or we'd become OverClocked HurryMix, which sounds even LESS sexy... here to break the two-mix trend is diotrans, aka Amy Hsieh, who recently rocked out on violin along w/ OA, Stevo, and Connor to 'Wanderer on the Offensive' as part of "OCR Live," a new portion of our panel we just debuted at MAGFest and hope to repeat elsewhere. It was rather epic. A lot of times I get to write about a ReMixer finally doing a vocal track, but this is the opposite - Amy's previous mixes from 2010 all employed her vocal talents, makign this her first instrumental! She writes:

"Super Mario Kart was one of those games I played the crap out of as a kid, so this soundtrack is very nostalgic for me. ^_^ I don't remember exactly how the idea for this remix came about. I just know that I've had in my head a bossa nova-style starman theme for a long time, and a bossa nova-style Koopa Beach for an even longer time. I guess I finally put it together and combined the two ideas.

I'm playing flute, acoustic guitar, and keys in this one. This is a totally new and different style for me, so I didn't really have a clear image of what the song would be like when I started it. There was a lot of exploring and learning new things, and the remix took me a long time to finish. But I had a ton of fun with it. I also want to mention that I was partly inspired by the Austin Powers soundtrack (which is surprisingly good, probably my favorite movie soundtrack).

Shout out to my OCR buddies Arcana, sixto, and others who encouraged me and gave suggestions, and especially Palpable who heard the WIP in various stages as it evolved and gave helpful advice along the way."

Great stuff; the warmth and detail that Amy's multi-instrumental performances add is invaluable, and really sells the genre, which works perfectly with the source tunes. Drums are perhaps just a little stiff/static, but that's probably accentuated because of the Real Live Instruments™; Vinnie evaluates his significant other with what I'll agree is some pretty objective, spot-on praise:

"I didn't help Amy with this one too much apart from telling her I liked the direction it was going in and adding one fill, so I think I can judge it objectively. I love the buildup of the song, starting with some very basic melodies pulled from the original, and by the end, morphing into a far more complex interplay of flute and guitar with heavier drums. While there's a lot of layer change-ups in the drums, it might have been cool to hear more volume adjustment and ghost notes so that the playing was more humanized. The live guitar and flute add a lot and the drums aren't quite at that level of realism. Regardless, this is a really enjoyable, laidback blend of the two themes."

What he said; okay drums, great arrangement, great performances, great mix. I'm really glad Amy put together an instrumental this solid, because I think it proves a point, too, and shows she can do vocal and non-vocal mixes and end up with great music either way.