ReMix:Elemental Master "Flaming Hearts" 3:26

I'm a huge fan of Dj Mystix's debut mashup of Revenge of Shinobi & Lost Odyssey - the word "mashup" is misleading because it's not aural, but compositional, and it's not really mashed up per se, but instead beautifully and articulately intertwined. Well, he's done it again, this time providing our first ReMix of Genesis SHMUP Elemental Master and adding some Eternal Champions and... Chrono Cross!? Because WHY NOT. Actually, what may seem aribtrary on first glance makes complete sense when you hear this shuffling rock jam with hip-hop rhythmic elements, half-tempo breakdowns, and overall great energy & hustle. The artist writes:

"I know... wth right? please bear with me. I initially wanted to do a remix for "Elemental Master." Despite having one of the best soundtracks of its time, I could not find different tunes from the game to merge together so I had to a look elsewhere. It's primarily Stage 1 remix but then what's an "Elemental Master" remix without the awesome intro music? After that, I decided to extend it with Eternal Champions title theme which I thought would fit in perfectly. But I needed a very powerful ending to make the mix memorable for the listener because I know not many people are familiar with Elemental Master (and to some extent Eternal Champions as well). Although I would totally agree with the argument that Time's Scar deserves a standalone mix but once again, I believed it would make my mix's ending perfect.

So that's how I ended up with these sources. As for the style, you probably know by now that I love to experiment with different genres; so it's basically 80's Rock met 90's Hiphop and they hanged out with today's RnB. I hope I made it unusual enough to sound fresh............ and likable.

If you accept this mix, I request you accept it for Elemental Master. That game deserves more attention because it was not only a great game but has an amazing soundtrack."

Love this guy; when the end result sounds this natural & planned-out, it really doesn't matter if the sources came from totally different games. I've heard plenty of arrangements of multiple sources from the SAME game that weren't nearly as tightly integrated, so I think he's done a great job. As for the blend of 80's rock and 90's hip-hop - TOTALLY hearing that, and loving it. OA writes:

"ok, yeah, I definitely facepalmed when I saw all the sources. However, this is actually pretty good. The lead guitar is definitely fakey, but it feels charming to me rather than annoying, maybe because of the rest of the track being synthetic as well. The solo was tastefully sequenced and the arrangement of each section was minimal, but there was a lot of personal flair, and solid flow between themes."

halc adds:

"nice lead sequencing, very expressive. definitely not bothered by the sample quality. as for the rest, pretty solid stuff as per your usual. the transitions between sources were nice, and I loved the inclusion of the chrono cross song. nice stuff, keep up the good work."

Mansoor really has his own thing going on, hand-picking sources AND genres to custom-build each of his mixes using EXACTLY the ingredients he wants; I feel like certain ReMixers have done that for a track here or there, and it CAN certainly be dangerous, but Mystix is making a habit of it, and so far it's working wonderfully. Very cool.