Quinn X5

I've always wanted to mix this tune, but never had the balls. Nicely done, I enjoyed this very much.

After years of never explaining... The fadeout was indeed rushed, but not quite because I didn't know what else to do with it. I was essentially beyond excited to have people hear it; I posted it to VGM within minutes of applying the fadeout. "Listen, listen, listen!!" I'm not a hater of fades.... many of my favorite recording artists and bands have done them for ages, but in this track, I certainly wish I had decided to spend another day or two with it; try to add more of my original nonsesne, etc., and give it proper ending. Still proud of it, though. Thanks to all who have listened and commented. ~Quinn

Yeah, I guess I'll nab 'Opening to Hell.' I've already started a remix of it.... From what I can see, it's not yet taken, so sign me up for that one. For good! ~Quinn P.S. 'Tamer, indeed.... my old moniker was Quinn X5, but there's no way to get that password back. Do what ya can, lemme know.... P.S.S. So strange...... Doom changed the way I played and judged a game, and the creator is a big fan of my music??? I could never have imagined such flattery.... Romero is a great guy, and I'll always envy him. I'll do my best on this project.

Count me in! I'll pick a track in earnest by Sunday, but I've needed something to work on, and this is right up my alley. Cheers!

I've seen Gray go from practially zero to hero in the last 2+ years, and I'd say that this is his best effort so far... The reason being is simple.... excitement, and PERCUSSION. In the past, even though we all knew that Gray's sound quality and mixing skills were tight, I often found the composition (sometimes) to be slightly dull, and more than that, the percussion could KILL a mix for me.... But that's all past. This is the best Gray mix I've yet heard.... perfect percussion, slick surprises, his best use yet of the asian instrumentation he's fond of, and compelling dynamics. The atmosphere is undeniable, and this music could work with a host a fantasies and visions. Excellent. (My only gripe was essentially the beginning.... I simply didn't like it as much as the rest of the tune...) But again, Gray's BEST work to date. Glad to hear it and play it loud. Nice work!!

The Good 1. Excellent sound quality, as usual from Gray... 2. Great instrument selection, especially love the pizzicatos near the end... 3. A ballsy, electronic section in the middle.... 4. Did I mention wonderful samples? The Not BAD, but Okay, Gray..... I'm going to cut to the chase here.... This particular piece strikes me in a very similar way to many of your others, in that while they sound wonderful and show respectful liberation, the actual composition is sometimes rather plodding, and for me, portions that are given a stomping, almost military feel are out of place. Time after time with your mixes, I keep waiting for a real BEAT, not just the (sometimes seemingly overhumanized) percussion elements. The electric area in the center of the song is a great idea, and I enjoy the switch, but I kept waiting for that chromatic, satisfyingly predictable, "boom-chick, boom boom-chick" of a snare and kick.... I just found this to be a slightly boring listen. It has moments where I perk up and find myself almost envious (the string swells, the asian fiddles and such), but I'm waiting for the moment when there's nothing orchestrated, cinematic, or 'new age' about a Gray piece..... I'm still waiting for you to just JAM, Gray! Ya hip? That middle section with the 'electronica' (which was a tight idea) sorely missed a solid, fierce drumbeat; I felt the percussion that was present was out of place. In the long run, this IS one of Gray's upper tier pieces, and I'm being a little hard on it, but only because it's not really surprsing me at all.... something Gray did a year ago quite often... it's still worth a DL to any FF fan, and I'm positive that many in this scene will appreciate it much more than I. It's not a bad piece of music at ALL, but this time I'm just not quite 'feeling' it. Sorry

I can't say much of what many others haven't, but I WILL say that this is pretty damned good! I remember the theme very well, it's interpretation is liberal yet respectful, and since I'm also a child of the 80's, hearing any reference to Trio is elation. Heh heh, "Sunday you need love, monday be alone..." Nice work, David, and a wonderful, eloquent write up. Cheers!

Very nice. What makes this the most enjoyable for me is the fact that you can easily picture Ecco exploring some huge, dark, mysterious underwater environment, something I loved about ALL Ecco games. Sound quality, instrument selection and balance.... all grand. The only thing that sort of bothered me was that without the image of Ecco and exploration, the song seemed to drag on a little, losing important energy more than midway through..... I felt there could have been more 'music' if that makes sense... However, this is made up with the final, and BEST, part of the song, the last minute. Atmospheric, slightly harrowing, and gorgeous sound qualities. I enjoyed it!

I really like the way this starts out. Percussion is brutal (in a good way) and the Asian instrument touches are very cool. At around 1:30, it looks like we start to visit more of the original tune itself, and I love the pads that fade in and eventually rise to a deep 'boom' of a transition.... nicely done. The bells sound a little thin, but not that there's anything wrong with the sample. I probably would have just gone with something meatier.... still, all of this is very cinematic and forces imagery... This is my favorite part, coming in at about 3:03.... the first time I heard it, I didn't like the repetitive 'boom-chick, boom-chick' bass and snare action; but after more listens, turns out I really like it. Those ethnic, almost harmonic bells and tweaks with the stomping percussion make it easy to picture Donkey Kong and tap my foot in a song where I didn't think I would be, and it even reminds me of some old Stewart Copeland work from the early 80's... very cool and almost myterious.... The rest of the song seems to just be settling down now, and it's hard to 'feel' the music unless you imagine the cinematic involvement in unison, which is not difficult at all.... hey, that harp/bell sweep at 4:32 is KILLER.... sounds like something out of NiGHTS.... I seriously enjoy whatever that combo of samples/effets was there... The brass samples are outstanding in this piece.... they sound much more convincing than just about everything besides the percussion.... startlingly realistic sounds.... Funny.... I still think this falls into the new-age category, although my idea of the genre may certainly be different from others.... It doesn't matter, because I very much enjoyed the music, and feel this is in the upper tier of Gray's work. Now.... for the last time, I'm begging Gray to try something upbeat, poppy, and faster. 85/100

Thanks to all who have checked this out.... it's an older tune, but I'm glad to see that it holds up moderately well. This mix was a blast to do about three years ago, and I guess I'm still slightly proud of it... Anyway, thanks again!

Pretty damned impressive, Gray.... I'm not leaping too far, I think, by labeling this as your best remix. Not only does my affection for it include the bias of being a loyal SF veteran, but it reminds me very much of Holst, and his 'Planets' symphony. This, I garuntee you, is high praise. Keep up the great work; moving fast.... how about a Panzer Zwei mix, eh? Love the voices...

Summons some really great memories. I played Xenogears around the time it was released, and it still remains my favorite RPG on the console. I played it during a....hectic time of my life, and for that reason, it's embedded in my memory in a way that many other games aren't....only Lunar : Eternal Blue (SCD) stands higher in that regard.... As such, it's a great RPG for a rainy day, and this music is as well....appropriate since it's been raining like madness here in Indy for the last few weeks. There's an undeniable sad, blue theme to the song which lies under a subtle yet massive 'field', so to speak. I remember this music better than I thought, from memory, and this remix helps. THIS is the kind of drama a GrayLightning mix should create; not that of other diatribes in sister forums. This is an individual that without question has improved dramatically in the last year, and if the pace keeps, we can expect some very nice things from Gray in the next year or two. This remix might be a tie as my favorite GL mix, with Dexoris Winter, but it evokes memories that the previous didn't, so it makes the mix a little more.....bright. So in other words, I love the mix, I'll never delete it if I can help it, and the song choice is superb. Keep at it! ~Quinn

Thanks again to all who downloaded and listened, and even more thanks to those with extremely kind, encouraging comments. Beyond appreciation. ~Quinn

Well, I'm admittedly an amateur on guitar, and I'm not the greatest recording engineer, so....yes, of course, it was a real guitar! ~Quinn

Thanks for the listen, everyone....and thrice as much for enjoying it Yeah, I'm in agreement that the fret noises are much too loud....but as it was my first stab at a guitar driven mix, I honestly didn't even notice how annoying it was until someone mentioned it.... I won't remaster this one, I don't think, but it'll be a good step in helping my next guitar mix be better. Once again, thanks to all who listened and commented. Makes the world mine for a few minutes.... ~Quinn

Very, very, very nice work. Inspiring! ~Quinn Fox

Pretty cool. MY favorite portion was in the center, where the meat of the original melody was really kicking in. Lots of neat ideas, and well executed. My only problem with this mix was that I would have liked to have heard more of the original bassline intact, at least at some point. That's one of the most delicious bass riffs in NES history. But as it is, neat ideas....nice change of pace and direction, and GREAT song choice. I also dig the neat sax swirls and guitar wahs.... 8-10 ~Quinn Fox

Just to set the record straight should anyone hinge on a doubt... MALE. With that out of the way, just want to say "thanks" to those who are listening, and double thanks for the encouraging words. While doing FF6 is fun, I'm back in Phantasy Star mode now. Hope I can still manage to do it some sort of justice, that legendary Phantasy Star series...... Cheers to all Phantasy Star fans, everywhere. ~Quinn

I've not heard the entire population of Schala mixes out there, but I've certainly heard more than several....after awhile, when I start to notice the same song being remade over and over again, I stop clicking on it. If you're already here perusing reviews to weigh your download options, hesitate no longer. It really is quite beautiful, and even though there ARE those tons of aforementioned mixes out there, it doesnt mean they're all as good as this one. Some thoughtful swimming outside of the song's original pool, and an undeniable remixer presence. I know for a fact that Gray has and CAN do better, but this is among his top tier works. Watch out for this guy, people, he's moving fast. Great to see the song at OCR, Gray, keep up the nice work. ~Quinn

Unbelieveable work. One of my favorite game tunes growing up, and you've done it as much professional justice possible. A tad too long for my tastes, and the only thing that seemed out of place to me was the drum/effect solo. But you pulled it along well. Love the 80's analog synth lead. Incredible. ~Quinn Fox

Thanks to those of you who checked this tune out, very appreciated. I only wish there were more Lunar fans. As it is, anyone who knows this music well, or can pop in their Sega CD and check it out will immediately hear that I did much, MUCH more than just plug this in through MIDI and let it fly. Many new parts were added, and it was made completely from ear. Once again, my thanks to the listeners and reviewers. Have a great one! ~Quinn Fox

Man? I'm a Gyno-American, thank you very much. Oops, I just visited your website and discovered the appropriate gender moniker. In that case... ::saxophone plays::: "Love the website, baby...." Just kidding, ~Quinn

Thanks again, man. I can only hope my future remixes please as many ears... ~Quinn

BTW, I actually have done a Mystery Remix before. I might send it to OCR someday, but if you'd like it sooner, feel free to drop me an email, and I'll get it to you. Thanks again, everyone! ~Quinn

I'm still trying to figure out where people are hearing piano, since I didn't use any semblance of the instrument in the entire remix...maybe people are thinking of those high pitched harps.... Anyway, thanks for listening, glad you liked it! ~Quinn P.S. C'monn, ONE listener? Maybe I should do more Squaresoft/Sony remixes if I want ears.....