ReMix: Sonic & Knuckles 'Sand in My Shoe'

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Sonic & Knuckles

And here you have it, folks: The Final ReMix of 2008! It's appropriate that it comes from Mr. The Bronx Rican, as he played a huge part in Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, which was definitely the highlight of the year and a huge step forward for the community. If you've beaten the game with anyone other than Guile, you've heard one of the many endings José put together for the project, in addition to his stage themes for Vega and DeeJay. He says:

"After varying degrees of success working on HD Remix and "Freshly Baked," I learned enough about my soft studio to gain confidence in creating decent tunes in far less time than usual (though still looking for better sounds on the cheap). This is the result. The bare-bones WIP Dave heard way back at Baltimore Meet '07 was finally worked on again, and, a month later, it's finished.

I've been dying to do another Sonic tune. "Sand in My Shoe" is unapologetically 80's: an R&B sound inspired by England trio Loose Ends, specifically their 1986 hit "Stay a Little While, Child." I emulated that song's style of production. Its middle-Eastern influences, "Lawrence of Arabia" vibe and irresistably incessant 808 drum loop I thought were perfect for an arrangement of Sonic & Knuckles' "Sandopolis" BGM. Every little thing programmed and mixed in FL Studio."

It's great to hear/see him being more productive; his previous mixes have been few and far between, but always something to look forward to & representative of refinement, craft, authenticity, and sincerity.

But first, a word about 2008. I never did a "State of the ReMix" address for 2007, summing up its ups and downs, but if I had, the pinnacle would have been Voices of the Lifestream. It was a juggernaut the likes of which I hadn't anticipated or even realized until I heard the finished product, at which point I realized it would - and more importantly, should - be a huge release for us. At the time, I figured we'd have at least three or four albums released in '08, that I myself would have completed half a dozen new mixes, and that we'd finally roll out the significant site changes we've been working on since mid-2007. In actuality we released three albums, one of which contained a lot of updated material from BotA, I only released two ReMixes, and our planned site improvements are now likely to be rolled out in mid-2009. We posted only a couple more mixes this year then we did last year, and seriously need to do better in 2009. Bottom line is, we had tons of awesome mixes, we scored our first commercial videogame, and we released Radical Dreamers and Doom II albums, but I still feel like 2009 will be our very best year yet. There's more where that came from, and I am hellbent and determined to upstage every previous year this site has existed and make our tenth anniversary our best year yet. Stay tuned...

... but in the meantime, if you can't make MAG, if you're looking for some wicked play this NYE, and if you want some killah S&K mixage, this joint is for YOU. I'm a little busy drinking (omg responsibly) atm or I'd regale you in far more splendid detail how José's outdone himself, but you can just as easily hear for yourself. Awesome work, awesome year, see you at MAG... see you all in '09, our ten year anniversary beckons!

― djpretzel

Discussion: Latest 15 comments/reviews; view the complete thread or post your own.
Exhibits a lot of freshness, despite the fact it is based off an 80s sort of sound. The infused ethnicity of the instrumentation is what injects this with a really refreshing sound, working with and against the largely digital bass and beat formula that is oh so 80s. Parts of this remind me strongly of certain lava levels in Super Mario 64, but definately moves away from that and onto more unique things.
The arrangement is top-notch; full of variety, brimming with new things to try, and that's just something every listener can hope for. Not only does it move from one section or solo to the next, but it does so with a cohesion that I for one really appreciate. This is not an assembly line arrangement; a lot of care and discipline obviously went into it.
On the surface, this probably appears as Sandopolis done 80s-style, but there is way more too it than just that. The Middle-Eastern influence, the pristine quality of the sound and the impressive arrangement all do justice to Jose's short but excellent back catalogue. A great listen.

- Marmiduke on November 15, 2009
that's a good groovy song !

- cyb0rgjeff on February 16, 2009
José definitely managed to nail the Loose Ends sound; 12 seconds into this remix, and I thought I was listening to LE's [i]Hangin' on a string (Contemplating)[/i].

- Martin Penwald on January 21, 2009
Ah, classic sonic with classic hip-hop containing the classic desert theme. I'd say this is a classic example of how classic music can be stylized in many different classic genres and still have that classic feel. And I must say, Jose, that this tune for me is an instant classic, in case I hadn't gotten the point across.

- Opterion on January 18, 2009
This is exactly what I've been looking for in hiphop, man. When I listened to it the first time, I didn't appreciate it because I was dying of tiredness, but even then I knew that the music was good. The second time it stole me.
I notice that it's best enjoyed when you do two things: 1. Don't focus too hard on the music, just let it be subtle; 2. Play this on a beach with your friends and a bunch of hot women. I can't do number two right now because I'm stuck in Michigan with a bunch of college students.

- Salluz on January 13, 2009
I think this is my favorite Sandopolis mix I've heard so far. Totally keeps to sonic.
The Arabian sound mixed with those 8i0's beats fits together really well the way it was done. And whenever you almost think its going to get repetitive he switches it up enough to keep it kicking.
The intro is fun and kicks into everything pretty smoothly, the meat of the song is funky and I really like the last groove that comes in right around the 4:00 mark.
goodstuff, definitely getting onto my sonic playlist!

- Red-Rupee on January 8, 2009
This track has such a strong sonic signature (pun not intended, for once), that I don't think i'd ever mistake it for another track. Awesome combination of seemingly disparate styles into something that really works. I chuckled a bit with some of the drum machine sounds, but once things got going, it wasn't a distraction.
I love the great rhythms in just about every instrument. No whole notes for Jose! I think the textures are incredible, though it's hard to fully appreciate them on the first listen. Four listens later though, it really is apparent how it all gels.
The panning is really subtle in this, but adds a lot of interest, and the more I listen, the more impressed I am with the arrangement.
The sounds used may be 80's and could be misconstrued as kitschy, but this is really highbrow stuff.
Props.

- OA on January 8, 2009
This is a great atmospheric piece, really gets me in a desert-y mood. Love the percussion and the instrument choices, it's nice ambient music.

- Lucentas on January 5, 2009
Music tested, OC approved.

All I gotta say. However, the first 10-20 seconds was effy but rest was awesome. Can music edit it.:nicework:

- ChaosPlayer on January 4, 2009
A bit scattered in the beginning, but it settles into a nice groove very quickly. I'm really digging the beat on this one--the percussion's probably my favorite aspect, at that. Only (very minor) issue is that much of what goes on between the 2:00 and 4:00 mark sounds like it repeats, and likely could've been shortened.
Funny timing on posting this, too. I heard about it from q-pa as he was checking the site, not five minutes before heading into the Howard Drossin panel at MAG. KF

- Kizyr on January 3, 2009
Wow, this mix really has a lot going on for it. I love any song that can pull off a genuine 80's feel to it, and this song does just that.

- MechaFone on January 1, 2009
i really like this remix. It has an "E-40ness" feel too.
Good stuff

- kablammyman on January 1, 2009
I've always loved Arabian instrumentation, so this mix is a plus for me. I thought this was very nice - I didn't even get tired of the drum loop. This is probably one of my favorite source tunes from the game as well. Nice job - an excellent way to end the year.

- LuigiFan on January 1, 2009
tipulsar85;491608 wrote: Sounds like it actually could come from Egypt.

heard any music from egypt lately? lol. Still, I agree that it does remind me of traditional egyptian music.
But, all traditional-music-stereotyping aside, this was highly enjoyable.

- SoulinEther on January 1, 2009
Gosh I really don't know what to say about this. It like manages to stay true to the original, but at the same time adding a groovy, funky, 80s twist in it. I like, very much. Ha, I wouldn't be surprised if me and my "crew" felt like using this in one of our bboy showcases later on in the future, it really is a funky tune.
But man, yeah, it's like a mix you would find on a "Sonic & Knuckles HD" game, if you know what I mean. Remix is awesome.

- SynthesizedStampede on January 1, 2009

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