ReMix:Xenogears "You and I" 3:18

By Dale North

Arranging the music of one song...

"SMALL TWO OF PIECES ~Broken Shards~"

Primary Game: Xenogears (Square , 1998, PS1), music by Yasunori Mitsuda

Posted 2012-07-07, evaluated by djpretzel


Dale North's been doing amazing things as an editor over at Destructoid, but he's also still managed to find time to make mixes - last year we posted an excellent, emotive vocal ballad from Lunar:SSSC, and now we've got this instrumental pop/R&B take on one of my favorite Mitsuda themes, 'SMALL TWO OF PIECES ~Broken Shards~,' aka 'Broken Mirror' - the very first song we added to the OC ReMix database, way back when. I am currently 1. sick as a dog and 2. in Philadelphia, about to attend a wedding, so I'm gonna keep this writeup pretty short. Smooth EP, hip-hop/r&b beat, and a glide-sine synth intro us in, and then piano quickly takes over the lead melody. The piano itself has a thinner sound that's bolstered by forte playing, appropriate for the genre, and production is generally polished, with the sine synth coming in on the chorus, along with string pads, and cymbal rolls leading us in. It's familiar territory, but Dale does it very well, and I think the key thing here is that Mitsuda's melody is given space & room to shine in the context of a different genre, with a different flow & some nice full harmonies/voicings on the piano part. Short but oh-so-sweet, this is a straightforward instrumental R&B ballad take on a classic Xenogears track which nevertheless packs in a lot of emotion. Speaking of weddings, this would be a great track for any gamers looking for event-appropriate VGM for their special day - beautiful work.

djpretzel

Discussion

Latest 15 comments/reviews; view the complete thread or post your own.
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Crulex
on 2013-12-16 10:25:36

Ooooh, man, so smooth! Wonderful RB arrangement of one of my favorite sources from Xenogears. I feel like this ReMix has enough emotion to almost have a soul of it's own, if you get my drift. Just good feelings from this all around.

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jaxx
on 2012-10-05 19:04:28

Damn Dale, I love this...

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Verile
on 2012-09-30 21:48:06

It's been too long since my last Dale North fix. Hard to believe I've been obsessing over this guy's stuff for over a decade. Listening to this mix takes me back to the fields of Prontera in RO for some reason. Thanks for the upload, it's beautiful.

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Shhteve
on 2012-08-01 07:41:25

Dale never fails to disappoint. Initially I thought the RB concept was going to be a turnoff, but you managed to nail it really well!

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timaeus222
on 2012-07-22 23:42:55

I really love the harmonies in this mix! Especially chords like those at 1:43, 1:56, 2:05, and 2:37. :D I just wish there was an upgrade to the percussion after 1:51, but that's alright. :)

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XxSwtDreamerxX
on 2012-07-20 10:48:46

Ah, it is always a pleasure to hear music from DaleNorth! We don't see a lot of mixes from the old crowd. I miss hearing mixes from Evan Pattison, Jared Hudson and Starblast amongst others.

Great arrangement!

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Bahamut
on 2012-07-15 22:16:47
Well, I AM the guy who did "Home Again" LOL!

I lol'd.

I have a soft spot for this source, and some of the rearrangements of it out there. I think Dale did a nice job with this take on it, albeit sans vocals, which leaves a bit of a hole at times with the given arrangement. The song still feels heartfelt, retaining and enhancing that aspect of the original in some ways while having a Dale North feel to it. I only wish it were longer and soared to another level like the original did.

Great job on this RBish take!

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DaleNorth
on 2012-07-14 21:07:15
Awesome arrangement for a great song!! Dale North you guys should do a vocal arrangement of this song with the guy that did Earthbound's "Home Again"!

Well, I AM the guy who did "Home Again" LOL!

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Vincent Valentine
on 2012-07-11 23:02:25

Awesome arrangement for a great song!! Dale North you guys should do a vocal arrangement of this song with the guy that did Earthbound's "Home Again"!

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Airon
on 2012-07-10 06:02:11

Fine arrangement and performance. Thanks very much for sharing.

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DCT
on 2012-07-08 18:59:00

I would definitely have Dale North's children.

-D

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SuperiorX
on 2012-07-08 11:17:13

Beautiful song and a stellar arrangement!

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Blue Magic
on 2012-07-07 23:49:43

Man, this is truly inspiring. Really good stuff.

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Melbu Frahma
on 2012-07-07 20:09:08
I just want to say that this is an awesome arrangement.

Seconding this. It's one of my favorite arrangements to get posted here lately, to be honest, and of a source that I have very little experience with.

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Wina A. Kamlongera
on 2012-07-07 16:16:04

I just want to say that this is an awesome arrangement.

Sources Arranged (1 Song)


Primary Game:
Xenogears (Square , 1998, PS1)
Music by Yasunori Mitsuda
Songs:
"SMALL TWO OF PIECES ~Broken Shards~"

Tags (5)


Genre:
Ballad,Hip Hop
Mood:
Mellow,Romantic
Instrumentation:
Piano
Additional:

File Information


Name:
Xenogears_You_and_I_OC_ReMix.mp3
Size:
5,204,804 bytes
MD5:
f63bc2565c9e9d713ce2293b6250ba55
Bitrate:
207Kbps
Duration:
3:18

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