ReMix: Mega Man X 'String Chamellotron'
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- Game: Mega Man X (Capcom, 1993, SNES)
- ReMixer(s): Brandon Strader
- Composer(s): Makoto Tomozawa, Setsuo Yamamoto, Toshihiko Horiyama, Yuki Iwai, Yuko Takehara
- Song(s): 'Sting Chameleon Stage'
- Posted: 2012-06-11, evaluated by the judges
- Album: Featured on Mega Man X: Maverick Rising
Check out the preview trailer, released today, for our upcoming album Final Fantasy: Random Encounter, directed by Brandon Strader and featuring artists from The Shizz & OCR!
While we're on the subject, Mr. Strader follows through on his mix title's wordplay in this MMX arrangement off Maverick Rising, including ample portions of Mellotron, the tape-based "sample playback" instrument of 'Strawberry Fields' fame. He was ironically (& unnecessarily) concerned about judge criticisms regarding sample quality, but the Mellotron is really a sound unto itself, and is usually distinct enough to be readily identifiable as a retro/psychedelic component as opposed to just an unintentionally lo-fi, static sample library. Brandon writes:
"The inspiration for this song was mainly the Mellotrons. I acquired and used GForce M-Tron quite heavily on this song. Mellotron vibes, flute, strings.. even Mellotron fuzz guitar and ebow sounds. This may be a grey area on the panel concerning sample quality, but come on. Mellotrons are the best sounds ever, there's a type of nostalgia and legitimacy you get by using these sounds. It brings a tear to my eye. I love good Mellotron sounds so much. Ah yeah the rest, some stormdrum, acoustic guitar and electric bass, some electric guitar... Superior 2 drums.. I even used the acoustic guitar as a drum at the end. I spent almost a year on this song, sweat and blood. I hope you like it. I claimed this song because it was one that hadn't been claimed yet on the MMX project. I like making band-oriented songs that sound real, performed by humans... think as if you are listening to this in the 60s."
The initial version of this had some timing & balance issues that Brandon fixed before it was then unanimously passed; good deal, because you can definitely still feel the natural, organic sound he mentions, but it's more focused. Heavy tremolo vibes intro us in before an acoustic rock jam (with a FAT electric bass) kicks in. Nicely panned strumming fills out the stereo spectrum, acoustic guit also takes the lead, and then a cornucopia of Mellotron textures round things out - this isn't just a cutely titled track with a couple brief Mellotron cameos; the instrument more or less dominates the accompaniment.
At 3'12" the entire arrangement almost does a genre shift - the instrumentation basically stays the same (more distortion) but the structure & rhythms go from 1960's rock to, well, 1980's metal. Or whatever decade you want, after that, but the momentum & downbeat are definitely more of the head-banging than the mind-expanding variety, which struck me as a little odd. Certainly anachronistic, if that sort of thing bothers you, but I also just didn't think it was necessary. Your mileage may vary, though, and it did function as a nice way to up the intensity and introduce some grit & edge. Brandon certainly has a lot of diversity and usually has a pretty different vision for each mix, and this Mellotronized rock jam with some late-breaking metal attitude is no exception.
Discussion: Latest 6 comments/reviews; view the Definitely my favorite remix at the moment, and probably goes in my personal top 20 of all time.
I recommend checking it out even if you're not a fan of the source, it has a very different feel than the original (which is pretty average, in my opinion).
- Seven on June 12, 2012
Now all he needs to do is get some of those Planet Wisp mixes posted onto OCR as we all need some Sonic Colors lovin'.
- Lucavi00 on June 11, 2012
And this is one of my favorite songs from Brandon, Mello ooooh Mellotrooons:mrgreen:
- BONKERS on June 11, 2012
This version has quite a bit of polish compared to some of the previous takes of it, and I'm thankful Brandon decided to revisit it and smooth things out since this version is superior to older versions. It was a welcome addition to Maverick Rising!
- Bahamut on June 11, 2012
