ReMix: Xenogears 'Chasing the Phoenix'

Download MP3
5,570,560 bytes, 5:48, 128kbps

• Trade-in your Games or Anime DVDs!
• OC ReMix Shirts & Merch
• Games:
  • DS | GBA | GC | PS2 | WII | XBOX | 360
  • Imports & Pre-owned
• Anime:
  • DVDs & Merchandise

He of off-white electricity from on high presents his twentieth ReMix, the big two-o, which also happens to be the third and perhaps (?) final mix in his "phoenix series," this time from Mitsuda's beloved Xenogears OST. Before I get much further, I should mention that due to extended communications problems (as in lack thereof), Binnie aka Digital Coma is no longer on our judges panel. We're not looking to fill the slot immediately, but I thought it was worth mentioning because, especially earlier on during the many months he served as a judge, he was very productive and instrumental in coordinating (instigating?) voting, which was and is appreciated. As the first non-ReMixer or "listener" judge, he established with his earlier and prolific voting pattern that you didn't have to make mixes to know what to look for, and also assisted with standards revisions and the OCR4 redesign - credit where credit is due. Right then... of his newest mix, Gray states that he infused his usual new age/orchestral style with Chinese and Japanese elements, and specifically spent a good deal of time on the rolling stringed instrument (near koto family) he employs early on. This elaborate concoction is truly one of Gray's finest to date, sonically and compositionally - it segues artfully from motif to motif as gorgeous afforementioned rolling articulations are complemented by solo female vox and finally a full choir. Gray hand-sequences things instead of playing them, which is actually the way many mixers I've spoken with do things - I've never been able to understand how they can do it, as I play all my stuff live, at-tempo, and just layer it, but usually when I speak with them they can't imagine doing things the way I do. Clearly radically different methodologies can result in equally worthwhile results, and there's no detectable loss of humanism from the non-realtime process in this mix, that's for sure. There's a mixture of orchestral bombast, kabuki intrigue, stark Japanese imagery, Elfmanish lullabye, and action hero brass/string stab going on - really something for everyone, from the accelerating chromaticism of the intro to the resonating bell tone of the appropriate conclusion. This is compelling, daring stuff - moreso than some of Gray's other work, which hasn't ever rested on its laurels, so the relativism only says more. Gray spent a good deal of time on this, and unlike my own process, which tends to yield better results when rushed and achieved within a smaller amount of time, the extra time spent here shows. I can't fathom inputting some of the articulations here, but they sure do sound purdy, and more importantly, they work. If there's any downside to the mix, it's that no orchestral brass samples I've yet heard are truly up to the task of playing some of the faster, more exposed passages Gray's asking for here, but this is a limitation that I'm not convinced could be overcome either technologically or compositionally. There's at least a half-dozen transitions here, a couple right in the first minute, that I simply love, and the tempo track is a living animal which livies and breathes with the music. Gray's managed to merge the best aspects of his more structured mixes with his free-form arrangement approach that favors significant transitions every half-minute or so with this piece, which is one of my favorite from him. Not to be missed.

― djpretzel