ReMix: Final Fantasy VIII 'Fantasy Rush'

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I think I liked this a bit better than most of the judges panel; I admit that when I listened on speakers I had some of the same issues they did regarding sample quality, but it sounded much better on headphones. I try to listen to most mixes both ways, because in my opinion you really do come across the occassional piece that sounds better (or worse) on phones. Not dramatically enough to make it a totally different track, mind you, but enough to make a difference. Marc Star mixes layered, quick beats (nice hi-hat action, sometimes reminiscent of Shaft only sped up 40-50bpm ^^) with orchestral flavors and a jazzy bass and synth fusion lead in this short hybrid piece. I particularly like the transitions and breaks: drums play along with where the melody goes, and strings and brass augment and follow as well, creating some nice unity. Nice wee funky bass break around 1'40", and the addition of a respectable harp patch doing some triplets and concluding the piece with a single (thank you) iteration of the infamous prelude arpeggio works nicely. The dynamics on the hi-hat and strings come off well, even if the strings and in addition brass aren't the highest quality samples in the world. I think the length here works to the mixer's advantage; things keep changing up, there's variety on multiple levels, and you never feel like it retraces its quick, shuffling steps. Anyone familiar with the Toto portions of the soundtrack to Lynch's Dune might hear the similarity I did to the ending bit at 2'06", interval-wise. Brief but inspired stuff from Marc Star; I personally recommend headphones, but maybe that's just me. At any rate, this is a nice shorter mix that packs quite a few musical ideas into two and a half minutes, without seeming - as the title might have suggested - rushed. Groovy.

― djpretzel