ReMix: Chrono Trigger 'Town Life'

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Chrono Trigger

So, we were hanging out at Jill's apartment in Baltimore for a combination OCR meetup/VGDJ episode/zircon birthday shindig, and Taucer started playing this great acoustic guitar arrangement from Chrono Trigger. Instantly, I wanted to do a vocal for it. I listen to a lot of folk/folk-rock material, from Jim Croce to Indigo Girls to Shawn Colvin, and Taucer's arrangement really struck me as a piece that could go in that direction with an original vocal and melody on top. This is something of a first for video game remixing (to my knowledge), and I have no idea how it'll be received, but I'm glad to have a song that represents the singer/songwriter folk genre on OCR, at any rate. This was also my first finished collaboration, though I've got another piece started before this that's not yet complete. Taucer sent me an initial recording, I did the first two verses, then he re-recorded and I did another take after writing the third verse. It was somewhat difficult finding a melody that fit into an existing framework, but thankfully the lyrics came much more easily - they're inspired by both Talking Heads' Naive Melody and Creedence Clearwater's Long as I can see the Light, and have a combination of longing and serenity to them; they're the best I've yet written, for whatever that's worth.

So, the only thing giving this mix any potential mass appeal is the fact that it's from Chrono Trigger; I don't think solo guitar/vocal folk songs are exactly sweeping the nation, and I wouldn't expect the genre to be popular with gamers in particular, but I've been wrong before. Nevertheless, it's a mix I'm damn happy to have gotten the chance to work on, and I'd like to personally thank Taucer for that. I'm trying a lot of different approaches this year in particular with ReMixing, and this is a piece that goes in a totally different direction than what I think people have in their minds when they hear "game remix" - to me, that can only be a good thing.

― djpretzel

Discussion: Latest 15 comments/reviews; view the complete thread or post your own.
Really well placed lyrics djp. Quite romantic. I'm a big fan of vgremixes where the lyrics are of their own character and story. It's a bit of 'a gimme' to write vocals to a megaman mix about shooting robots with your cannon arm. It takes specific and poetic skill to craft, as you have here, imagery that might apply to the characters of Chrono Trigger but really doesn't have to.
It's something special all on it's own. It helps us gamers to keep us from embarrassing ourselves a little.

- Less Ashamed Of Self on November 14, 2010
Has a very distinct 70's singer/songwriter feel to it, which is something we should hear more of on OCR. The guitar performance is solid but more of a utility role, and the vocals are well done.
I think the treble is a bit much though; it's not flaying the flesh off my body, but it could stand to be a little warmer.
edit: woah, Cyril'ed!

- OA on September 1, 2010
I have the original instrumental on my computer.
My only complaint with this great mix is that I feel there is too much treble in there. I prefered the warmer sound of the original.

- Cyril the Wolf on June 19, 2010
I often come back to this song. It is easily my favorite CT remix on the site, and possibly at the top of my list overall. The feelings of warmth and sincerity that go along with the themes of great adventure and loneliness in this song are moving at the very least, and the most this song expresses one of the fundamental trails we all go through as we come of age. A fine, heartfelt interpretation of excellent source material and a true example of what a wonderful thing a ReMix can be.

- DJMetal on January 29, 2010
THESE LYRICS ARE SEX and the song is too...
Thank god you guys are so awesome.

- Cyril the Wolf on July 20, 2009
Such a moving and beautiful rendition of the source...I actually find myself singing this sometimes.
Uh, not in public, of course.

- Lucentas on December 6, 2008
For great lulz

- Geoffrey Taucer on September 5, 2007
THought I'd already posted this here, but I guess not.
I don't have tabs, and probably won't make them in the near future (though with as many requests as I'm getting, I might make tabs eventually).
I can, however, give you the chords:
Am, C, D, G,
Am, C, D, G,
G, Am, C, D, <---Main melody starts with this line
G, Am, C, D,
Em, Bm, C, G, D,
Em, Am, C, D,
C, D, G, D, E,
Am, C, D, G,
Am, C, D, G,
Then it repeats (minus the first two lines) two more times. The brief interlude between the first and second verses is just G, Gsus5, G.
A couple of the C chords have a D thrown in on the B string, but otherwise the melody falls almost entirely within the voicing of the chords.

- Geoffrey Taucer on August 27, 2007
I've listened to this song a lot since it was originally posted, and since then I've gotten better at playing the guitar. My genre of choice is the ol' folk/folk-rock style, and I've had an urge to learn to play it. Any chance you could write out a tab, or send me some sheet music for the guitar part of this?
It would make a great addition to my slowly-growing repertoire.

- Orion_Black on August 23, 2007
As some people must've noted, I was also immediately reminded of Green Day's "Time of Your Life" when I first listened to this remix. While DJP voice isn't as good as Pixietricks, that doesn't make him a bad singer by any means. The singing really compliments the feel of this remix and the meaning behind the lyrics becuase I can almost feel the emotion behind DJP's voice. The pain of being away from your hometown and yearning to get back...it's actually conveyed through the singing. The guitars are also very organic and well-played.
Ultimately, this is a very relaxing, simple, short and sweet remix that doesn't need any synths or effects to sound great. That's what we need more of in OCR.

- SwordBreaker on April 10, 2007
I would rank this song among my 2 personal favorite remixes,FFIV's Tororian Love Song, and Shen Mue's Dreaming while I wake. I cannot tell you how grateful I am that you did this. Words cannot express how beautiful I've found this song to me.
Thank you so much for this work of true beauty. You truly are a talented artist. Consider me now a huge fan of yours.

- Superrpgman on March 11, 2007
It's more DJP greatness, but he's with a great guitarist now too. Is he the holy ghost, or Thou Divine Son, O Lord of All Things Salty and Pretzelely?
Regardless, lovely mix, lovely singing. It has my vote, for what it's worth.

- ph0sphorousgobu on December 25, 2006
MegaKitsune wrote: This is the kind of stuff my parents listen to, man... 0_0. I mean, it's like those hippie songs that go nowhere. It could use drums and an electric guitar, maybe even an acid bassline, but it was produced very good and the vocals don't suck. Good job.

lol
maniater wrote: this is very confusing i dont like it that much and the singer... i cant understand one word

LOL
Tanamoril wrote: Just wanted to say, belatedly, to the people bashing the lyrics, that they relly do make perfect sense, but only in the context of the game Chrono Trigger. It's not just a song about being away from home that uses some chrono trigger music, it's a song about Crono's own journey.

[b]LOL[/b] (actually I don't know, but it just sounds like original lyrics to me)
But still. 3 lols in a row, from me is pretty crazy.
djp needs to hurry up and delve into every genre so he can go back to the funk!
Better than it could have been. I'm not going to keep it because of personal preference, but I like how it develops even if it doesn't really go anywhere, and how the guitar seems to conclude at points, but then continues, echoing the vocals.

- Audity on November 1, 2006
Tanamoril wrote: Just wanted to say, belatedly, to the people bashing the lyrics, that they relly do make perfect sense, but only in the context of the game Chrono Trigger. It's not just a song about being away from home that uses some chrono trigger music, it's a song about Crono's own journey.

I'm not able to look at things that deep. Care to explain?

- HourGlass on October 18, 2006
Just wanted to say, belatedly, to the people bashing the lyrics, that they relly do make perfect sense, but only in the context of the game Chrono Trigger. It's not just a song about being away from home that uses some chrono trigger music, it's a song about Crono's own journey.

- Tanamoril on October 13, 2006