ReMix: The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past 'A Rose For Zelda'

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So, after one of OCR's longest posting droughts in our fairly continuous, contiguous five years, which I thank ye kindly for bearing with us through, I'm back from Sin City, also known outside the realm of Frank Miller as Las Vegas. Stayed at the Luxor but spent most of my time at Mandalay for Devconnections. Met up with some truly superlative people and... well, as they say, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, but there's a certain tax accountant from Connecticut whose tattoos I'm having an amazingly hard time getting out of my mind... yes... Back on track, though, and ready to roll: it's hard to be lukewarm about newcomer Tepid's Zelda submission, which has a tropical, strawberry daiquiri feel to it most of the time, but mixes in some shimmering, icier, verb-drenched electrics to create a soundscape that's both mellow and striking. Acoustic picked and strummed dominate the first two minutes, after the ocean fx intro, but Coldplay-ish background textures are employed at the two-minute mark, evoking a sort of "laid-back guitar ensemble with Brian Eno cameo". Some of the textures, especially the really quick strumming that fades in at 3'37" overtop reversed electrics, are particularly edible. Primary concerns from panelists centered around simplification of the source material (not necessarily an issue - it's better than using it verbatim, at least) and repetition. Brandon addresses aspects of this critique:

"Compositionally, I understand the claims that this is repetitive. The simple recurring strumming patterns and melodies team up with the waltz-time and limited number of instruments to make for a very static feel at times. There’s a lot going on though that makes up for compositional simplicity. The performance is absolutely nailed in the sense that the off-tempo strumming and picking add complexity rather than clutter, human variety rather than human mistakes."

Gray adds:

"The source material was short and basic, but this mix really captures the spirit of the original, yet takes it into new uncharted territory at the same time. The vibe and the texture of the mix is wonderful and like a rose, as it goes on the mix continues to bloom. The section especially at around the 2 minute mark was wonderful as the textures continued to evolve and expand."

I think the simplification suits the enhanced dynamics, textural work, production, and performance perfectly; had this been much more complicated, it would have lost the serenity and lullabyeish nature it possesses. There's a childlike sense of exploration and vastness that well serves the source material and the Zelda universe itself; a truly unique piece that's helping me come back down from cloud 9, Nevada, and will remain a go-to track for moments of reflection and chillin'. A cool mix from Tepid.

― djpretzel