ReMix:Final Fantasy X "Time Slips Away" 4:22

By DarkeSword

Arranging the music of 2 songs...

"At Zanarkand", "Hurry!!"

Primary Game: Final Fantasy X (Square , 2001, PS2), music by Junya Nakano, Masashi Hamauzu, Nobuo Uematsu

Posted 2011-01-20, evaluated by djpretzel


Oh no we didn't... MORE 'Hurry!!'?? Sure, why not... while we usually endeavor to mix things up a bit and not post two mixes from the artist or game, much less the same exact song, the juxtaposition in this case is interesting, if only to experience the diverging paths each artist took while grappling with the source tune. You've heard Rozo and Strader, now it's Darkesword's turn:

"I checked out the song Hurry!! when I saw Larry post about the YouTube shenanigans on the OCR forums. It seemed like a fairly simple, straightforward track, mostly based on building tension through a repeated string line and some sustained dissonant brass. I tried to scale back the bombastic aspect of the song and go for something more tense, as well as utilize some high-quality samples of instruments from around the world (Indian drums, Japanese koto). Melodic content of Hurry!! was low, so I decided to bring in the classic To Zanarkand theme and play around a little with the melodic line. What we end up with is a kind of east-meets-west piece of music with a measured-yet-driving tempo, maintaining the intensity of the original piece without any of the frantic pacing. Hopefully the listener enjoys."

The listener puts the lotion on its skin, or else it gets the hose again... technically Shariq "cheated" a bit by working in an additional source that has a (great, memorable) melody, but ultimately it's all about the end result, and having melodic materials to work with certainly enhances most mixes. There's still plenty of 'Hurry!!' here, and I'd even say it dominates, but the Zanarkand bits are put to good use to give the arrangement more direction and flow. The mix title here makes me think of a certain Steve Miller song the US Postal Service used in ad campaigns years ago, but the genre is ethnic/cinematic, albeit with a more sequenced, hybridized feel than Brandon's arrangement. The plucked glissandos add a really nice flair & atmosphere, and I like the drum dropouts to a single, elegant wood-blockish metronome of sorts. Shariq did a great job of making the source more palatable and having it develop a bit more by blending in a second theme, resulting in a mix that, contrary to the imperative nature of its inspiration, takes its time, establishing a lush, delicate soundscape that's got substance and depth.

djpretzel

Discussion

Latest 15 comments/reviews; view the complete thread or post your own.
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Necrox
on 2015-12-27 22:53:16

Once again, good cohesion between world instruments and electronic sounds (check out his Persona 4 work). It sounds nice from a mixing perspective too, but it also feels repetitive. Decent mix overall.

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Crulex
on 2012-10-11 14:50:13
Five hours, start to finish, on a Sunday night.

Holy hell that's fast! And this ReMix is simply awesome considering how much is actually in it for how fast it was done. The quality of the sound, the arrangement and the general idea are all damn near flawless here. I love the use of some Japanese and Indian instruments for this one. Very nice blend there. Yeah, this is going up there in my top DarkeSword mixes.

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OA
on 2011-08-29 18:08:52

Can't believe i haven't commented on this one yet. Shariq has a ton of great mixes, but this one is probably my favorite of his of late. It just flows so well, and has some great counter melody writing. Well done, sir. :-)

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urdailywater
on 2011-01-30 23:28:24

I love this song. DarkeSword never fails to impress me.

I never expected to find this album, and was surprised. But Ioved it.

The source tune always stuck out to me in the game. It's not something I'd be humming afterwards, obviously, but it always got me pumped up (which was good seeing as for the first few weeks of owning the game, I had NO memory card... so yeah... I know the prologue inside out.)

This is a nice, sort of chill take on the theme. Very nice mixture of instruments. The harp (?) kind of reminds me of Okami. In fact the whole mix does.

Btw, was the sudden volume change at 3:00 intentional? O.o I think I'm just misunderstanding what happened there. It sounds awkward on my headphones, at least.

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KnightOfTheRound
on 2011-01-28 02:22:50

This remix is stoopid good. Perfect blending of the 2 tracks, which creates a feel that neither of the originals had. 10/10

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BlackPanther
on 2011-01-27 10:36:29
Five hours, start to finish, on a Sunday night.

Please share some of your skills with the rest of us xD.

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DarkeSword
on 2011-01-24 13:42:06
I don't know how long he spent on it. It must've been no more than a day or two.

Five hours, start to finish, on a Sunday night.

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Arcana
on 2011-01-24 00:34:18

Darkesword was a surprise entry. I basically logged in one day and he was like, "I got a song for you. Here it is."

I don't know how long he spent on it. It must've been no more than a day or two.

This was a very amazing track. It's universally-liked. It's so clean, so crisp, and immediately invokes emotion in the listener.

I hope you guys check out the rest of the album!

http://hurryffx.kngi.org/

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Ursa Major
on 2011-01-23 18:00:51

I love how darkesword has his own style with the different mixes he does. It's definitely apparent in this one, and like always, I love it. It's always a treat when one of his mixes is posted!

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ElementDuck
on 2011-01-22 23:43:05

This is really nice. If I had to use three words to describe my first impression, they would be "frigid and isolated" – which is the type of location I'd imagine hearing this at in a Final Fantasy game. I particularly like to listen to this kind of music every now and then.

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Acolyte
on 2011-01-22 16:14:31

Really really enjoyed this piece, it is very different to what I have been listening to lately and it really drew me in, the softer parts are what makes it!

Keep up the good work.

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BlackPanther
on 2011-01-21 11:33:27

You're music is always so chill and relaxing, I love it which is crazy because you're like the complete opposite when I see your posts I would think that you're music would be more edgy and stuff haha =P.

Great stuff though Shariq, keep makin music =)

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JenZ
on 2011-01-21 01:17:02

Third time's the charm? ;-)

Darkesword did a fanastic job executing the source. This has got to be one of the best mixes by him, I must agree. I'm very impressed with the production and arrangement.

Awesome job Shariq! Been listening to your music for -years- and you only keep improving!

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Melbu Frahma
on 2011-01-20 22:28:27

Definitely get the tenseness coming through; I was on the edge of my seat, waiting to see where the song went next. Loved at 2:08 when the song sort of steps back and then gradually works its way back in, and the strings are truly beautiful. One of my favorite mixes of Shariq's, and that's saying something.

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Neblix
on 2011-01-20 20:17:34

In terms of production quality (on OCR) I think this really stands out from your other stuff. Not to say that your other stuff isn't good quality, but this certainly sounds tighter and more polished. :nicework:

The horns and when the glissandos come in are great, and when everything literally just cuts out at 3:03, it's a really cool touch. Never gets boring, either, and the strings add that epic movie cue feel to it.

All in all:

Cool song, bro.

Sources Arranged (2 Songs)


Primary Game:
Final Fantasy X (Square , 2001, PS2)
Music by Junya Nakano,Masashi Hamauzu,Nobuo Uematsu
Songs:
"At Zanarkand"
"Hurry!!"

Tags (3)


Genre:
Mood:
Dark
Instrumentation:
Strings
Additional:
Regional > World

File Information


Name:
Final_Fantasy_10_Time_Slips_Away_OC_ReMix.mp3
Size:
5,597,652 bytes
MD5:
37b0ab94ba8031680aa659ee53fdcd5b
Bitrate:
168Kbps
Duration:
4:22
album cover
Published 2010-09-03
Arrangement

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