ReMix:Mega Man X "Rolling" 3:48

Jorito (Jorrith Schaap), Eino Keskitalo, and Tuberz McGee (Callum Kennedy) by their powers combined formed the mighty whole that is "Maverick Astley," ravaging MMX compos everywhere by pooling their varied talents & consistently referencing Rick Astley. Did I just write that sentence? I believe I did. This vocal prog rock jam with original lyrics almost waxes d'n'b at points, employing a speedy beat & fair helping of synths to form a slick hybrid whole that benefits from nifty DSP on the vocal lines and plenty of nuance/detail on the arrangement. Jorrith writes:

"When DarkeSword announced the Sigma Fortress Remix Gauntlet, me and Eino got pretty enthusiastic about it after our good team experience in a previous compo. SFRG, however, required a team of 3 people, and we were short one musketeer. Fortunately, Eino managed to bribe/convince Tuberz McGee to join our li'l group, we came up with the name Maverick Astley, and essentially that meant all the 9 tracks we submitted had a reference to Rick Astley's classic "Never Gonna Give You Up."

"Rolling" is no exception in that respect, just listen closely to the lyrics. "Rolling" was Eino's contribution to round 1, and since we wanted to kick off the compo big time, all 3 of us contributed. Eino did the basic arrangement, played guitar and bass, we discovered that Callum is actually a pretty good singer so we got him to do vocals as well as his usual guitar business, and I ended up with most of the keys and synth stuff, as well as adding SFX and production duties. Overall, Eino did a great job with the concept and glueing the 2 source tracks together in an interesting arrangement and Callum's vox and guitar solos really helped the track come alive. From a production standpoint, this was a very interesting track, since half of it lives in Renoise and another half in Logic Pro, and on their own these halves sound… well, half, and mixing these parts together was an interesting technical challenge. Worth it, tho.

I love working with these guys, very inspirational! We were a great team during the compo and if it's up to me you haven't heard the last of Maverick Astley yet. A++, recommend, would team up again."

So if you've noticed subtle-to-blatant Rick Astley refs in MMX mixes on the site, here's your backstory :) To their credit, the Astley was incorporated smartly & musically in all regards, which is good because these have all been compelling, creative arrangements. This mix is no exception, successfully blending artists, sources, & genres for a surprisingly cohesive whole that feels every bit like it was destined to be. Eino adds:

"Well, I can only concur what Jorrith's saying about the teamwork here and throughout the compo. I was especially crazy to join the gauntlet in probably the busiest time of my life so far, and thankfully I was able to lean on my teammates to make it out alive...!

I'm not sure I can really remember much of the process. How did I find the time to record all those guitars and basses anyway? Plus placeholder vocals, which Callum thankfully replaced. I mean, I got a nice skeleton of a full track done by myself, which I'd been happy with as a compo submission, but Jorito really put the flesh on the bones and Callum breathed life into the monster here.

Post-compo, we fixed a few things -- there was some harmonic conflict (at least I felt so) in the writing and sometimes the mix was too busy. I re-recorded a bit to unhairify the transition from the middle prog part to the final part, plus spent a ridiculous amount time fixing the bass timing - guess it was done in a hurry or something? It was all about ironing out the little warts and kinks that happen when three people work on a somewhat complex harmony/arrangement in the space of one week. I think this is nice and polished by now and I find I can simply enjoy listening to it. Thanks to timaeus222 for mastering this track as well!"

Really glad this had the revision cycles necessary to get it to this state; it's the type of ambitious, conceptually complex ReMix where we're often left wondering what might have been if the production had been refined. In this case, we don't have to wonder, and the full scope & grandeur of the vision comes through. Searing synth solos juxtaposed against a thereminesque lead on top of a bed of warm, sustained organ chords were a highlight for me, and I also REALLY love how these gents paid attention to transitions, so everything is glued together tight & smooth. Vocals have a rich ensemble/harmonization thing going on that feels right for the track, and FX are used to add interest and differentiate sections. In short? Many superb decisions were made. Tuberz writes:

"Eino and Jorito are some of the best peeps I've had the liberty of making music with. Even when it's just vocals and guitars I feel so fulfilled in their arrangements. This song is no exception. I had great fun recording close inversions of 11th chords. If there's one thing I've learned from working with these two... it's that whatever we are up against, we will never desert the fight. <3"

Source breakdown:

• 0:00-0:02 - swoosh!
• 0:02-0:15 - bass and that little arp from "Frost Walrus Stage 1" :10-:24; downwards melody from "FW1" :24-:35
• 0:15-0:29 - chords from :10-:24 are added
• 0:29-0:42 - (verse) bass from "FW" with vocal melody taking after "Sigma Stage 1" melody from :25-:50, adjusted to chord changes of "FW"
• 0:42-0:56 - bass from "Sigma Stage 1" (simplified and adjusted to "FW" chord changes)
• 0:56-1:10 - (chorus) :49-1:01 from "Sigma Stage 1," with the descending melody from "FW"
• 1:10-1:24 - continues into the "Sigma Stage 1" intro/post-chorus part (1:02-1:13)
• 1:24-2:19 - verse and chorus repeats
• 2:20-3:00 - proggy take on :27-1:08 of "FW Stage 2"
• 3:00-3:14 - "Sigma Stage 1" intro (:00-:11)
• 3:14-end - uses the same material as the verse

Dig the chord/progression work; this was already a significant undertaking in merging different contributions, vocals, original lyrics, genres, & sources together, but on top of that the actual arranging itself is pretty dense. Add the clever-clever Astley love letter into the mix, and I'm personally pretty blown away. Judges were a bit more critical of production than I could ever manage to be; given the scope & breadth of what's going on, I'm rather sold. So is compo ringleader DarkeSword:

"Strong track with great performances and an interesting take on the sources. Loved this when it hit the SFRG."

I think it's very easy - and perfectly fine, of course - to just listen to this mix and enjoy it for what it is. On repeated listens, when I think about everything going on and the insane & unlikely sequence of events that allowed an arrangement like this to come into existence and not only avoid being a production trainwreck, but sound pretty damn awesome to my ears, I've got only one word: Bravo.