ReMix:Super Mario 64 "Welcome to My Kastle" 3:58

DDRKirby(ISQ) hits us up with a sweet, chip-infused electronic take on SM64's Koopa themes that also works in some SMW, created using stock FL Studio components for the FL Studio Remix Gauntlet compo:

"Sooo, Jason Covenant's been running the FL Studio Remix Gauntlet as a sort of spiritual successor to the old FruityLoops Music Competition. As with FLMC, you're only allowed to use the basic plugins and samples that come with FL Studio, and I stepped up to the plate for round 3 with this mix, representing my team alongside Flexstyle and Ghetto Lee Lewis (the One Hour Conquistadors, yeah!).

Being someone who usually uses FL's 3xOsc for most of my synths -anyways-, this was right up my alley, and I pulled out a bunch of my accumulated tricks and techniques, such as using custom 3xOsc waveforms to get pulse waves of different duty cycles. For you FL users, feel free to check out the project file, which is still up for download in the FLSRG thread (along with the all other entries).

This project itself turned into something way more involved than I thought it would be. Being that I usually finish up songs in ~6 hours or so (~3 hours for the "core" of the song, another ~3 for all the tweaking), and I'm used to the workflow of One Hour Compo, it seemed pretty crazy that this one took a good ~14 hours of work. Part of that was a little issue that came up midway through, where I realized that Slicex wasn't actually allowed for the competition, so I had to hack out the same functionality using FL's more basic Slicer plugin, blahblahblah...

In any case, this song was a blast to make, and though it required a bit more effort than I would have liked in the end, everything ended up fitting together really nicely. My segueway into the SMW castle theme, for instance, was an idea I was throwing around in my head, but I didn't realize that it would mesh that well with everything else until, well, it happened. I'm also glad I was able to create some actually somewhat decent heavy dubstep-esque bass action after the second chorus, as I'm generally not an expert at that stuff and it's made even harder by having to rely on 3xOsc alone.

I know there's already a couple "Koopa's Road" remixes out there and they're already really badass, but hopefully I'm bringing something a little refreshing and new to the table with this one. Enjoy!"

Always room for one more, and yeah, I think the SMW transition/integration worked really well. It's amazing how much sound & depth you can get out of FL Studio as a stock DAW, especially when focusing on electronic styles. I dig the purity of this compo concept because, among other things, it helps to point out that great music can be made without every last plugin in the world, however shiny & enticing & awesome Native Instruments Komplete might be!! I forget this myself sometimes, so posting a mix as elaborate & complete as this is a good personal reminder. Larry writes:

"I learned really quickly after hearing Timmie's work on Balance and Ruin that this was someone who was already very far along the journey of making cohesive, polished-sounding music, and has got the 9-bit (™ halc) style down pat.

This piece was nothing but a thrill ride that playfully spiced up the instrumentation yet managed to retain the steady tempo and mood of the original including, at least in my opinion, the imagery of running down Koopa's Road for that eventual showdown with Bowser. The Super Mario World usage at 1:50 was a nice touch as well. This was great stuff from Timmie that shows off the power and depth of FL Studio, much like Rellik's done in the past with Zelda II's music!"

Agreed, and agreed. 9-bit doesn't require uber-plugins or mad crazy gear, just attention to detail & focus on arranging to make the most of more basic waveforms. This mix definitely shows off some skills in that arena, should be an inspiration to anyone who just bought FL Studio and wants to make some tunes straight away without installing ANYTHING extra, and is first & foremost a rockin', tick-tockin' chip tribute to some classic Mario castle/villain themes. Stay tuned for MUCH more SM64 coming soon, and in the meantime enjoy DDRKirby(ISQ)'s latest jam!