ReMix:The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time "The Guru" 5:00

Ladies & gentlemen, it is an honor and a privilege to introduce you to our first posted ReMix from The OC Jazz Collective!

We never get enough jazz VGM love here on OCR, and Wiesty (Dylan Wiest) DID something about it, coordinating with some familiar faces, bringing together an insane amount of talent, and using the full power of the INTARWEBS for some long-distance collaboration that sounds natural & sublime, arranging 'Windmill Hut' to perfection:

"Having been a member of OC ReMix since 2005 when I was only 14 years old, video game music has played a major role in my development as a musician and arranger. When I began attending university for music and playing in different jazz groups in my city, I wanted to find a way to bring my two passions together: video games and jazz. One summer, I was playing in a quartet that played weekly at different restaurants and other venues; just simple cocktail music gigs. I threw together a quick arrangement (just chords and melody) of "Song of Storms" from Zelda: OOT and brought it to the gig for my quartet to play. I was amazed at how well it worked, and how closely it resembled a piece that might have come from one of Miles Davis' or John Coltrane's early 1960's groups.

Fast-forward a few years later, and I began trying to put together a jazz big band on the OC ReMix forums. The first chart I threw together didn't really jive as well as I had hoped, and the effort involved with coordinating 15+ musicians quickly became an impossible task. Thus, I had the idea to pull out my simple chart for "Song of Storms" and arrange it for a jazz octet. The six musicians featured in this recording (Wiesty, XPRTNovice, Fratto, Sir Jordanius, Anthony Lofton, audio fidelity) were all original members of the OCR Big Band. It has been such a pleasure to work with musicians from the video game music community who share a passion for jazz, video games, and can play their instruments like no one else's business.

My hope is that our group can create a larger appreciation in the community for live-performed tracks as opposed to heavily-sampled/electronic remixes. Every instrument in this track has been recorded live by one of the group members and pieced together like a sort of giant music puzzle. My concern at first was that the groove would be lost, since we had never actually played together in one room, but I think the quality and feel of the track will speak for itself. I would also like to add that production on this track is credited to audio fidelity. I hope you enjoy this first glimpse of our group, The OC Jazz Collective, and we look forward to making more sweet music in the near future."

These guys have some other amazing work in store for the not-too-distant future, but this introduction is stellar in & of itself; such a syncopated, swingin' take on the theme, with a Dave Brubeck kinda sound to it. For me it was love at first listen, and I think many others will feel the same, hearkening fondly back to the days of Neskvartetten. Great job from Jay on mastering, as the end result really sounds like a unified whole, even the parts were all recorded separately; this isn't an easy feat to accomplish. Performances are spot-on and breath life into the arrangement, which is chill, playful, and celebratory. I feel cooler as a person just listening to this mix :) Emunator writes:

"Wow guys! Ever since I heard talks of the OC Jazz Collective, I was apprehensive about how well it could work as a cohesive unit, but this track removed all traces of doubt in my mind. This is masterfully assembled, with great performances from all involved and a sweet lo-fi production style that serves as a perfect homage to the 50's/60's style of jazz you were trying to emulate. You'd never know this wasn't all recorded in one single concert hall with all musicians present at once.

The source is treated with a level of reverence, and while there are extensive solo sections, the backing piano chords keep this closely tied to Song of Storms at all times so it never feels like it's going too far off-rails. Absolutely fantastic work guys :-) You've gained yourself a new fan and I'm now eagerly anticipating what you put together next!!"

If this debut ReMix is essentially a proof-of-concept, then consider the concept thoroughly proven, with change to spare. Fantastic, much-needed stuff that offers a breath of fresh jazz air & brings together some serious musicians for some serious music, providing a new classic for OCR that arranges an old classic with reverence & style. Let 'The Guru' into your life; highly recommended!