ReMix:The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages "Fate of a Goddess" 4:17

Fate was key to our previous mixpost, and so it goes for our next. :-) Gaspode honors his eighth Zelda series title on OCR with a variation-laden vamp on "Nayru's Song" from Zelda: Oracle of Ages! According to the ReMixer, this one isn't huge on direction:

"I stumbled across this beautiful melody, which is only 15 seconds long. But I tried to remix it anyway.

Over time, the remix grows in a strange kind of way. Unlike a real song structure, this is more like meandering."

"Meander" is often used as a pejorative, although it's accurately defined as following a winding course. Starting off with an extended original intro that's not connected to the source material, things do take a minute to arrive to the source theme, but when Gaspode does, there's a lot to love with his "Nayru's Song" treatment, as judge prophetik music attested to in his play-by-play:

"agree the opening is extended and doesn't appear to be directly related to the original. with such a short original, though, i don't mind. the chord pattern at 0:34 starts to fit the original (not exact), though, and then we start to get the melodic content in a very expanded method at 1:10 or so. i really dig the beat here, and the use of big wide chord stacks with tons of high-end content is a really neat way to represent this.

there's a big break at 1:42 or so, and this is a good thing to give some space to the opening section's heavier beat. it also provides nice contrast to the big blocks at 2:15 and gives them more impact. that section has a ton of verve, and the following bouncier section at 2:54 has some neat new sounds that fit the vibe well. key change at 3:30 helps keep things interesting, and it's a straight shot to the end from there.

this is a great adaptation of a simple, short original. there's a lot of variety of synths used within a fairly narrow palette, and i appreciate the overall shape of the track as well as it flows from section to section. nice job."

Not only are the melodic variations fun, with various bits & bobs of complementary doubling and original writing throughout, but Gaspode's careful sound design is also a large factor in why this was an enjoyable listen. Like proph, fellow panelist Emunator also praised Gaspode's deep toolkit of instrumentation, which keeps this groove engaging the whole way through:

"Shoutouts to the Zelda series for really encouraging people to make the most of these 15 second sources - gems like this are all over the place in the series and I love hearing what people can do with them!

This is some classic Gaspode action right from the start - bright, crispy synths with some varied electro-industrial percussion loops and a meaty bassline. The big chord stabs give this more of a synthwave feel. The breathy synth lead at 1:45 was certainly a sound design highlight, which then leads into a really cool syncopated rhythm at 2:20 that also stood out to me. We're barely halfway through and you've already explored so many possible avenues to expand on the source, and there's still a brand new synth brass lead, some low piano bass notes, and a whole keychange. None of this feels off the beaten path for you, but the way you brought it all together still feels ambitious and fresh.

No notes, this is great stuff Gaspode!"

So, are you convinced yet? It takes talent to do a lot with a little, but you'll find that with brief VGM themes, OC ReMixers ain't scared of nothin'! And for Gaspode in particular, who knows? You may hear him extend another brief Zelda theme in due time. Send a prayer to the goddess for it. ;-)