ReMix:NiGHTS: Journey of Dreams "Lucid Dream, Latent Gate" 3:17

With our FIRST ReMix of the 2007 NiGHTS sequel for the Wii, newcomer sci writes:

"ok, so: fun story time! November 13th, 2010, shortly before midnight, my sister (who goes by Zelter online [/plug]) shows me this awesome new game she found: NiGHTS: Journey into Dreams. She shows me a video of the gameplay, commenting about how fun it looks, and mentions that the music is great too. She plays me her favorite track. I listen and notice: it is awesome. I must remix it.

And so, I spent the 14th - my birthday - laying down the basis for this track....and then the next three months making it better. (thank you everybody that commented on this in the WIP forum!) At some point, I got my sister to provide her vocals, which I used extensively. ;) The sound and style of the song was influenced by Aphex Twin's "Cliffs" and "Xtal", and also Pogo's "Tunnels".

...and finally, in the event this does get posted, I'd like to shout out to Mazedude: thanks for not only getting me into remixing, but for getting me into making music entirely. You're awesome. :D"

Hmm, Mazedude... wait, I know that guy!! ;) Cool that we just posted Chris' Battletoads mix; nice juxtaposition. This is definitely on the ambient side of ambient electronica, so don't be expectin' no mad beats or breakdowns; actually reminds me more of The Orb, but my genre knowledge is limited. With a mix like this, it's more about texture than notes - although the source is identifiable, it's the tentative, playful, surprising context it's been adapted to that makes it work. There are some unexpected, very lively textures that have an "indie game OST" vibe to them... for whatever that means. I guess it means that 1. There's a lot of attention to sound design & texture 2. There's a sporadic melody played on a bell/chromatic percussion instrument and 3. You can't dance to it. But I kid - the aesthetic here is very intentional, and very well done, and sci deftly avoids things feeling static or repetitive by varying the intensity, giving the piece some structural definition. Larry writes:

"Was definitely feeling the overall minimalism here, and loving the mood and dynamics of the piece the entire way. I love how this one's leaving all the YES's pretty speechless. Count me in, this is strange, awesome stuff that I can't describe. It's interpretive and it works. I love it."

A couple judges (OA, Vigilante) were bothered by perceived dissonance on the bass, but I have to admit, I wasn't hearing it. zircon adds:

"Interesting mix. This reminds me of the ReMixer Radiowar or artists like Zero 7. Kind of a minimal style but it works with those nice backing pads. The production isn't flawless (kick is too loud) but the arrangement is cool and there are plenty of little touches that make up for the blemishes. Good stuff."

The original has sort of a Yoko Kanno vibe, and is definitely a quirky, very contemporary sort of source to arrange, so I think sci's done an excellent job & gone in the right direction. This is certainly something unique and refreshing, and I think fans of NiGHTS - new and old - will appreciate it, as will anyone looking for something unorthodox, creative, and transporting!