ReMix:Soul Blazer "I'm the Soul Blazer" 2:48

Glorious. Transcendental. Resplendent. I am just so damn glad that, in this shared reality we all inhabit, there's now a hip-hop/rap arrangement of Soul Blazer. Titled "I'm the Soul Blazer," no less. Some mixes just NEED to happen, and this was one of them. HoboKa (Alex Shtokalko) credits his co-conspirators:

"We did an RnB/rappy remix of the underground theme for Soul Blazer. BrothaDom wrote the lyrics, but I found his vocals to be wanting, so I wound up hiring Smooth4Lyfe to do 'em up for me. And, man, can Smooth4Lyfe rap AND sing!!"

First off, this is only the second Soul Blazer mix on the site, following a dry epoch dating back to 2002 (!) & Israfel's debut. The Internet didn't even exist back in 2002, and computers had just recently been invented, so this has been a long time coming. Conceptually, this is a win on all levels, but the execution is pretty damn tight as well - slick vocal FX, infectious chorus repetend, sing-song C section, and contextual lyrics:

I know you think you're some kind of hellraiser
but you can't outlast the spirit of the Soul Blazer

This is my new personal mantra.

Sir_NutS writes:

"Man those lyrics are pure cheddar. I think the arrangement is groovy and the arrangements ideas keep the track fresh for the most part, the effects put on the vocals mid-way were pretty cool as well. The whole thing doesn't overstay its welcome either."

Judges were unanimous in their approval but did have some other production nits to pick; I think this is an instance where "strength of concept" clears away most hesitation, at least for me. The actual accompaniment is relatively conservative and leans on the cool main melodic descending motif - as it should - so the interpretation is largely in the additive nature of the genre adaptation. The flow is strong; Dom's lyrics strike the right balance of cheddar & legit, and Smooth4Lyfe sells them. This song's gonna get stuck inside my head, no doubt. Sinister laugh transition to wide-panned vocal FX EVIL VERSE is a high point & creates just the needed variety to distinguish. Alex, Dom, & Smooth have given us a killer tribute to a more obscure SNES game with some great tunes - bravo, gentlemen!