ReMix:Wild Arms "What's Left" 3:56

By Radiowar

Arranging the music of one song...

"Agitation to Destruction"

Primary Game: Wild Arms (Sony , 1997, PS1), music by Michiko Naruke

Posted 2011-12-22, evaluated by djpretzel


Ooohhhh. As a big fan of 'Lanterns' and Alex's work in general, I was psyched to see what he'd come up with for Wild Arms. Just looking at the artist roster for this album ALONE makes me happy, when I see all the names from across the site's history & think about all the distinct and complimentary styles that have come together. For this arrangement, he's blended orchestral with more deliberate electronica, plenty of ambient background fx, and a plucked string melodic motif that's virtually guaranteed to stick in your head afterwards. The opening chord progression on strings just sets this specific, very particular mood - a combination of beauty, sadness, contemplation, and raw emotion - and while things progress from there into more of a groove/jam-oriented track, that feeling is never lost or forgotten. He writes:

"Seems like I am drawn to these minimal sources lately. I think part of the fun of arranging tunes like "Agitation to Destruction" is finding out how much mileage you can get out of rearranging and expanding on a small number of musical ideas. On the other hand, there's a sense of desolation in the original that I wanted to retain in the remix as much as possible. Hopefully, the track manages to convey that sparse, bleak atmosphere while the added rhythmic and harmonic momentum brings out its emotional qualities."

It does.

Jade writes:

"Being a BIG fan of "Leafcutter," I knew Radiowar has expertise in sound design. This song is a great example of his source interpretation: he yields a talent of improving any source and making it solid. I can hear some Linkin Park and Nujabes influences, which enhances the experience for me. I can relate to this, inspiring me to feel I am in Japan on high land because of its dramatic and powerful climax. Thank you for making this song the essence of musical profusion in Wild Arms. :)"

She said Linkin Park and that makes me uncomfortable ;) But the groove does have a hip-hop kinda vibe that I can hear Nujabes pertaining to, and whether he yields or wields his talent, Alex has come up with a sensual jam that's chill and straightforward but at the same time full of nuance, tension, & texture. Excellent work.

djpretzel

Discussion

Latest 10 comments/reviews; view the complete thread or post your own.
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Black_Doom
on 2014-09-28 03:31:01

Oh, damn! That intro hooked me! Awesome etnic downbeat ambient jam with some kickin' beats and OMG dat bass at 1:46. I dig this a lot. The atmosphere is slick combination of tension and sadness. I can listen to this all day, sweeeet!

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Bahamut
on 2012-07-06 21:59:43

I like this approach to the source, it has a distant feel to it - the title sort of accentuates this further, getting the listener to think about what else is out there. There's some ethereal quality to it, although I feel the beat sort of detracts from that aspect - perhaps it was intentional with a different idea in mind.

Solid track regardless though!

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delbuster
on 2012-02-23 23:26:03

dang. i like radiowar's last 2 submissions a lot. keep it up, good stuff.

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duskvstweak
on 2011-12-27 19:04:01

I tend to have a few remixes that I start my listening with, the one song to start hours+ I'll play OC tunes on. This song has taken the role as of last week.

I had never heard the source but after listening and falling for this mix, I went in search of it. It's impressive how much you've added to the tune while not straying from the source or tone at all. I get such a lost, searching feeling to this mix and I love the reoccurring string rift. I've never played the game, but this mix does a great job of making me think it might be worth a look.

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ryankeeton
on 2011-12-26 20:57:43

Pretty intro, and I was pleasantly surprised with the transition into a hip hop style beat. The lead entering at 1:11 was very engaging, same with the transition around 1:53. The beat stopping around 2:34 and the shimmering synth coming in sounded great. Good stuff

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Rexy
on 2011-12-23 11:06:50

Given that the original was some element of oriental minimalism, I can see how it would work in a mix of a similar style, albeit with more precise sounding oriental instruments.

It's a tricky one to work with arrangement wise as well, given how there seems to be so little to work with, but what he managed to do was pick apart the rhythm parts and used them as groove foundations for a more expansive electric work complete with chord substitutions to give it that lift. I do indeed sense some Linkin Park influences in there given some of the synth and piano work; does make me think a lot of their methods taken through Meteora and some of the more electric works handled in Hybrid Theory. It's a well-produced effort as well; though it didn't quite excite me as much as the arrangement did, there's definitely been some care and detail made to make the whole setting work.

I think we've got a track that may split an audience due to exactly how far you can arrange such a minimalist source, but I quite dig this :)

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Loning
on 2011-12-23 08:42:13

I love this track!! Great job Radio War! Keep up the awesome work.

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Crulex
on 2011-12-22 20:10:46

Wow, this has a really cool beat! And it's a good ReMix to just jam to. Those strings were interesting and I do hear some Nujabes around it. To me, it sounds as though it's not completely chill, but it's also not overly upbeat. It's somewhere right in the middle with it's energy, which is something I find that Radiowar excels at with his music and I love it. All in all, another great groove-like electronica piece and another A+ for Radiowar.

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Jewbei
on 2011-12-22 20:00:08

ive been waiting for this to be posted for a min. this is one of my personal favorites from the album i really love the overall groove of the track and i can def hear some Nujabes influence ima def keep my ears on you!

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djpretzel
on 2011-12-22 18:58:08

What did you think? Post your opinion of this ReMix.

Sources Arranged (1 Song)


Primary Game:
Wild Arms (Sony , 1997, PS1)
Music by Michiko Naruke
Songs:
"Agitation to Destruction"

Tags (6)


Genre:
Ambient
Mood:
Dark
Instrumentation:
Electronic,Strings,Synth
Additional:
Regional > World

File Information


Name:
Wild_Arms_What's_Left_OC_ReMix.mp3
Size:
7,008,797 bytes
MD5:
c8891e4191506b65a26d7d4ad9b63b3a
Bitrate:
234Kbps
Duration:
3:56

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