Sonic the Hedgehog "The Caterkiller's Jam" 2:52

It's not still 4/20 over here, is it??? I must be on a contact high with some good stuff, because Portland newcomer (and for real "for real" DJ) DJ-J-RAD is allll about altering those rhythms with his helter-skelter sendup of ya boi Sanic's "Marble Zone". It's a trippy, liberal treatment, but s'there, so listen carefully! If it wasn't apparent from the title, DJ-J-RAD's objective was a bop for the aminals [sic], in this case the Robotnik-transformed Caterkiller:

"This track was completely remade from scratch using modern drum samples along with the VST chipsynth MD. The very beginning of the original "Marble Zone" track is sampled along with some sound effects from the Marble Zone level in Sonic the Hedgehog. A Caterkiller is a common enemy in that level that can only be defeated if you manage to hit its head. This is the music I picture the Caterkiller listening to as they slink along the grassy hills. I enjoy making tight, playful tracks like these that use very little reverb. It gives the mix a very clean feel and really compliments that Genesis/Mega Drive sound.

At :49, the stutter-style lead melody is the same notes of the B section of "Marble Zone", though I admit it's not as recognizable as the lead section in my remix. At 1:47, however, while it again is using the lead notes from the B section, it is, in fact, less recognizable. If it's overall not close enough for OC ReMix standards, I totally understand. Either way, thanks for giving it a listen!"

Nothing's wrong with transformative arrangements as long as they're grounded in the source tune and the usage is apparent to our (evil) judges, so the more the merrier! It's nice to have some company for Parker Walker's ReMixes, also lovingly involving chipsynth MD, and how apropos that, with 8 Sonic series ReMixes to her name, judge and RadioSEGA DJ Rexy was our closing vote, clearly a co-sign from another kindred spirit and mutual Sega lover:

"It has a funky FM-sounding groove, starting well with splicing the original bass intro and allowing for melodic transformation from 0:20 onwards. The A-section ended up fitting a reasonably straight-forward adaptation, the B-sections at 0:49 and 1:47 relied more on splicing the opening component of that melody into a transformed melody line, the solo spot at 1:16 served as a fun break, and the return to the initial A-section at 2:22 felt gradual with the bass and drums placed in. It sounds like Marble Zone, without necessarily sounding like Marble Zone - which makes little sense in writing, but please deal with it. :)

Now, the mastering is definitely in the loud zone, and if it had more than the three-tone polyphony setup, it could border on sausage-fest with the instruments on hand. Thankfully, nothing sounds over-compressed or overly distorted. All tones and percussion are crystal clear, like the waters of Labyrinth Zone, and the choice of synths has as much power as that well-known Green Hill wrecking ball. I wholly respect your decision to go as bone dry as possible [...] You made a track with the intent to make badniks (and everyone else) go dance, and it's a solid presentation all around. Nice going!"

Kudos to Bev invoking more of the Sonic 1 zones in her comments, which had me cheesing with nostalgia. :-) No doubt, this is nice stuff for robots, in this case via DJ-J-RAD's very deliberate tempo and narrower dynamic curve. "This is a really weird, unique and cool take on this source", according to fellow judge Chimpazilla, and the rhythms during the extended synth soloing at 1:15 had me head-bobbing, so be sure to sit with this one and let it do its work. Quite a nice chonk of low-key funky flow for DJ-J-RAD's debut, even if I still wanna jump on the Caterkillers to release 'em from their Badnik forms! :-D