ReMix:Street Fighter II: The World Warrior "Sly Thai Guy" 3:23

By Tim Sheehy

Arranging the music of one song...

"Sagat (Thailand)"

Primary Game: Street Fighter II: The World Warrior (Capcom , 1992, ARC), music by Isao Abe, Yoko Shimomura

Posted 2008-09-01, evaluated by djpretzel


For their follow-up to the rather epic Super Dodgeball "No Balls, No Glory" EP, the Bad Dudes once again strike a balance between eclectic absurdity and musical dexterity, this time focusing their collective & considerable talents towards a SINGLE SONG. Remember that scene in Hackers when they all attack the "gibson" at the same time in a single, overwhelming, completely asinine, coordinated effort? This is like that, only it doesn't suck, the gibson is Sagat's theme from SF2, and Angelina Jolie is Dale North. So why would so many talented artists choose to release an album of arrangements all of a single song? Let's see:

"Throughout history, you'll find many great ideas - the printing press, for example. Or the theory of relativity. But all ideas pale in comparison to Dale North and Kunal Majmudar's joint brainstorm to make an album of nothing but arrangements of Sagat's theme from Street Fighter II. And the icing on the cake? Naming it Thai Guy."

Sounds like a couple someones were spiking their Thai iced teas with a bit o' the hard stuff; I do wonder if the "joint brainstorm" went something like this:

"Dude, know what would be awesome? A whole ALBUM with nothing but mixes of Sagat's theme!"

"Yeah..."

"I love you."

But I kid... the punchline to this whole Sagacious affair is that, as one in the know would expect, the music itself is awesome. Check out Bad Dudes - Thai Guy over at OneUp Studios for the full album if you don't believe me. You'll never feel the same way about Sagat again, unless of course you already worship the ground he walks on and have strange Freudian dreams involving his shiny bald dome and that sweet eyepatch. Tiger knee.

Right, then: I first learned of this latest Bad Dudes effort when Kaijin hit me up on IRC with his own piece, which he submitted. It's a ReMix of Sagat's theme, from SF2... in case you've been asleep or severely disinterested up to this sentence, but it also happens to be one of my favorite arrangements of Tim's, who manages to wrap his ballad/rnb style around the source material in a really effective way. A lot of what makes Tim's pieces work is the performance element; here he uses the "Sweet Flute" patch on his Motif to great effect, with higher velocities triggering an overblown/flutter effect that is, as the title promises, rather sly. It intros the piece with a funky, twirling variation on the source melody over acoustic guit backing, then yields to acoustic piano with a jazzier version. That becomes vibes, then meaty distorted electric guitar, before transitioning back to flute. The rock bits have an appropriate acoustic rock kit on drums, with the jazzier bits relying on more minimal cymbals and rims. Tim ties the whole thing together seamlessly, and at 3'23" you really feel like you're getting your Sagat's worth. Production is clean, playing - especially on piano, flute, and vibes - is spot-on, and the arrangement's actually a bit more liberal than the ReMixer's usual approach, proving he's definitely capable of more extensive source alteration. It's a great precedent for Tim, a compelling and - dare I say - poignant album for the Bad Dudes, and a memorable, fantastic mix for OCR. ดี,วิเศษ, สวย, อร่อย!

djpretzel

Discussion

Latest 15 comments/reviews; view the complete thread or post your own.
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Crulex
on 2023-12-05 16:53:54

Man, the ever so slight tempo increase and beautiful flute made me like this more than the source already, but then the guitar hit and I fell in love with the whole thing. This was excellent and highly recommended.

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avaris
on 2013-10-28 10:16:32

Love the track. So chill and groovin, excellent variations and originality. Track never gets stale or predictable.

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WesternZypher
on 2012-02-21 19:04:38

I love this song. Problems just melt away when I hear it.

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Vitor Machado
on 2008-11-05 23:49:44

Very relaxing stuff here...

It's like soaring through clouds while I listen to this ReMix.

I love this type of jazzy songs, I wish there were more ReMixes like this. It's one of those songs you just have to sit down, close your eyes and let your mind travel in it's smooth waves.

And this has to be one of the best feelings music can give you. :-)

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Vidilian
on 2008-09-28 15:38:22

This could have fit perfect in "Blood on the asphalt". I'ts got the relaxing piano feel that Malcos added to that project aswell as the harder edge, later on, that the rest of the album had. Love it.

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Martin Penwald
on 2008-09-23 15:40:26

Well, I just love the smooth jazz the OneUps always manage to come up, so I of course like this song, too. Digging the flute big time. Acoustic guitar is very nice, too.

The rocking guitar was certainly a surprising addition, but works really well. Though I can totally see a version without it being awesome, too.

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kaijin
on 2008-09-16 11:23:20
Great energetic and ear-catching flute sound, it's an awesome way to start out a track. I loved the transition to the pads and then the more agressive bass, but was totally not expecting the guitar section. The transition could have given a little more warning, but I think it worked.

The high end was a bit piercing on the lead there, but sometimes to properly rock, someone needs to die. It's just the way of the world.

The juxtaposition of the flute and crunchy rhythm playing was killer; really a great sound. I really didn't want this one to end, I think a bridge section could have smoothed the transition to the rock part, but there's so much to love in this mix overall it's not really an issue.

I like to throw curve balls. What can I say?

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OA
on 2008-09-15 17:26:01

Great energetic and ear-catching flute sound, it's an awesome way to start out a track. I loved the transition to the pads and then the more agressive bass, but was totally not expecting the guitar section. The transition could have given a little more warning, but I think it worked.

The high end was a bit piercing on the lead there, but sometimes to properly rock, someone needs to die. It's just the way of the world.

The juxtaposition of the flute and crunchy rhythm playing was killer; really a great sound. I really didn't want this one to end, I think a bridge section could have smoothed the transition to the rock part, but there's so much to love in this mix overall it's not really an issue.

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Nobbynob Littlun
on 2008-09-15 01:12:08

I kept expecting it to break out with some rock guitar work. And then it did. And it was even more awesome than I expected.

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Mazedude
on 2008-09-11 21:24:04

Probably one of my favorite Kaijin tunes. Excellent work dude! We need more jazz flute, indeed we do.

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Culturekoi
on 2008-09-08 23:12:07

Impressive. Like the rest, I didn't expect the guitar, but it didn't feel gratuitous. Awesome shift.

Also, the entire project is choice. Great work, Bad Dudes. And I was just thinking I don't hear enough of Sagat... Ha, never again.

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DragonAvenger
on 2008-09-06 17:36:58

Slick combination of instruments. Wasn't expecting the bigger guitar section in the middle, but it fits nicely, sly work there.

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Sir_Downunder
on 2008-09-02 22:23:34

Really slick and smooth. I loved it

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ktriton
on 2008-09-02 21:02:32

This track really took me by surprise with the guitar part. Wasn't expecting to hear that from Kaijin.

Overall, it was a really strong addition to an already-well-rounded project. Great job, Tim!!

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joe_cam
on 2008-09-01 22:17:26

This whole project was sexy.

Sources Arranged (1 Song)


Primary Game:
Street Fighter II: The World Warrior (Capcom , 1992, ARC)
Music by Isao Abe,Yoko Shimomura
Songs:
"Sagat (Thailand)"

Tags (6)


Genre:
Jazz
Mood:
Chill
Instrumentation:
Acoustic Guitar,Electric Guitar,Piano,Woodwinds
Additional:

File Information


Name:
Street_Fighter_2_Sly_Thai_Guy_OC_ReMix.mp3
Size:
4,961,331 bytes
MD5:
2a2d93937ccdf1b0d079b96ed330caf2
Bitrate:
192Kbps
Duration:
3:23
Featured on album...

Thai Guy


album cover
Published 2008-08-23
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