ReMix:Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune "Driver's Delight [Dweller's Duelight]" 4:52

Happy 40th birthday to OceansAndrew (Andrew Luers)! We've got not one but two superb mixes from him today, to start the week off right! This epic, high-energy rock/pop anthem is his FIFTIETH featured mix and our FIRST arrangement of music from the Wangan Midnight racer series, featuring the work of Yuzo Koshiro! He-who-is-now-over-the-hill writes:

"I was going through my iTunes playlist and saw that this song had 134 plays, and I hadn't even considered remixing it. Well, time to fix that! The original is about as perfect of a trance song can get, so I would need to take a left turn (while drifting hard, obviously) on the arrangement. Adding a metal edge and keeping the trance elements was a really fun revelation for me, meaning I could have a bunch of powerful and precise polyrhythms under the saws and pads, and it was a perfect match. Add in some trance-style breakdowns, a few solos, and an original section to compliment the already great song, and we are off to the races!

In my pit crew was the ever-excellent Nabeel Ansari, who helped me tremendously in getting the exact drum sound I was looking for. I couldn't have gotten across the finish line without him! :-)

More car puns."

Can't have too many car puns; I love how Andrew blends modern EDM component with an uplifting, anthemic rock/metal backbone, here - the intro/outro synth bits, awash in ambient verb, contrast with the crisp, crunchy, & precise electric guitar hits for a soaring, high-impact jam. The production on this leverages what OA's picked up in the EDM space over the last several years against his formidable rock/metal roots in a way that I haven't heard before, and it fits Koshiro's enduring, rousing melody like a leather racing glove. Judges were unanimous; Rexy killed it with both analysis AND keeping a theme going:

"I like my late 90s EDM, so I thought the source material was serviceable for the game - but that's not the reason why I'm here.

Andrew, you revved up that arrangement with so many sharp ideas! I spot a different key, genre change, a framework that fits your signature rock style, letting the chords from the original sit under some tight solos, and even the ending at 4:25 stripped said sources' chords to as few notes as possible for a calming podium finish. I don't expect anything less coming from you at all.

Even the production has gone through many chicanes to keep the guitars and synths complimenting each other. It sounds clean, balanced and crisp - and try as I might, I actually couldn't find any engine faults with it myself.

No pit stop required here - we've got a thrilling ride from start to finish that not only speeds past both arrangement and production fronts but also respects the source material's origins with its direction taken. That chequered flag will await the track on the front page.

Even more car puns."

As advertised :) Amazing elevation & reimagination of a deserving melodic source from a lesser-mixed game - regardless of whether you've ever Wangan'd in the midnight, this is indeed some maximum tune. Luers' 50th is one of his very best & we hope he had a great 40th & keeps aging like a fine wine; highly recommended!