ReMix: Final Doom 'Clairvoyant Elegy'

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TO teams up with Bladiator on piano for another excellent Final Doom mix, two of which have previously come in from Dj Redlight and one from TO himself. Something about Final Doom seems to lend itself to consistently excellent ReMixes - go figure. TO's style works REALLY well with Bladiator's piano, here, which has sort of a Bruce Hornsby-style chord-heavy melody feel to it. The ReMixers write:

Bladiator: "When Lee asked me to add some piano to this track, I wasn't sure if he was asking the right person. Thankfully, his groove style and my new age style somehow locked together to make something we're both really proud of. This was an enjoyable collaboration."

TO:"I originally started this remix by request from the requests forums. It's from the wormhole level music in final doom (My second FD entry.) I'm not sure what genre you'd put this kind of music under, though we believe it fits under a groove/new age genre or even just chill music. It involves a completely rewritten drumline with some crisp drum sounds, heavy backing strings, belltones, synthstrings for the main melody and a bassline to kick the main section. I collab'ed with Bladiator to bring in his miraculous live-piano skills."

I wouldn't particular characterize Bladiator's playing in this mix as New Age, as it could just as easily be in a pop tune, but both mixers certainly have formed a symbiotic relationship in the construction of this arrangement. It wouldn't work as a piano solo, and the accompaniment wouldn't be nearly as cool without a solo instrument of this depth covering the melody, but with the two combined... TO gets his peanut butter in Bladiator's chocolate, and like the Reese's slogan of old boldly claims, it's two great things that go great together. Nowadays, of course, there's no wrong way to eat a Reese's, but the point being that this is a very solid collab with a cool piano lead that's full and has just the right amount of soul in terms of timing that it sits perfectly in TO's surroundings. There are a couple key changes that do come off a bit odd - 1'47" in particular is the most abrupt, and does take some getting used to. Not sure what I would have recommended to handle a transition as dramatic as that (perhaps a piano cadenza, who knows), though... Baranowsky cites some over-aggressive compressing, which other judges noted as well, but signals an overall verbal high-five:

"...I think in this case, the compression is a mixed blessing. It has a very focused, clear sound. But the mix as a whole seriously lacks dynamic contrast. There could definately be a solid ABA structure to the dynamics, and that would very much aid the transitions between sections. That's my only main beef, as the rest of the mix is an excellent example of adept piano usage combined with energetic and interesting electronic elements. The percussion is pretty basic, but in this instance, less is definately more. Synths are slightly above average, but mixed very well and arranged in a way that many new electronic artists can't seem to master - in context. They fit the more organic elements of the tune like a glove, and it really makes it seem much more cohesive experience. Not much to critique, only nitpick. Great job, dudes. This is a rare one that will be playing in my car. Thanks."

I'll echo that sentiment - this is a pair I'd love to see future collaborations from, and a Final Doom mix that continues the .600 batting average of FD submissions to date. Download it today, and make your elegy clairvoyant, too.

― djpretzel