ReMix:Mega Man "Light's Out" 3:52

By Game Over

Arranging the music of one song...

"Cut Man Stage"

Primary Game: Mega Man (Capcom , 1987, NES), music by Manami Matsumae

Posted 2010-12-17, evaluated by the judges panel


Today's actually Mega Man's 23rd birthday, and so to celebrate we've got none other than Game Over (!) with another one of their rock opuses; Wire writes:

"I started working on this arrangement in 2007 when I went on a US roadtrip together with Mr. MAGFest. I think I even showed my notebook to djp when we had lunch at Fuddruckers (I don't even know if he remembers this, hehe).

The guitars were recorded with a miced up Marshall Valvestate at my summerhouse. Due to the loud volume I had to run out during the takes, close the door to the cabin and sit on a rotted bench that even fell apart during one take. Getting the guitars right for this song was a bitch. At first it may sound like a standard rock song but the syncopation in this one is crazy. To make things even harder, we just had to do it so that there are two rhythm guitar parts playing simultaneously - one doing the riff and one playing the chords. Both are syncopated differently. This was of course quite challenging for the drummer as well. We never thought good old Cut Man would give us this much trouble. Even the lyrics were pretty hard to write because of the awkward rhythm. They were by the way inspired by Metallica's Disposable Heroes where soldiers are puppets and viewed as completely useless when injured. The soldier in this case is of course Mega Man who's being used as a tool by Dr. Light (hence the apostrophe in the title). In this song he cries out his disappointment over the betrayal of his creator. I don't know why it came out so dark in the end but I guess that's just Game Over in a nutshell. ;)

All members except for myself were replaced during the making of this song. The most significant change may be the new vocalist, Juggler. Light's Out also marks the debut of bassist Dasaten.

The current line-up consists of:

  • Vocals - Juggler (Marcus Carlén)
  • Guitar - Wire (Elisabeth Pezouvanis)
  • Bass - Dasaten (Dustin Shomer)
  • Drums - Egg (Mårten)"

Of course I remember good times with Elisabeth & Brendan back in '07 @ Fudd's - cool to know this bad boy has been in gestation for that long, and glad to finally be posting it! Every mix of Game Over's is larger-than-life, almost operatic rock/metal with original, contextual lyrics, and ever since 'Little Mac's Confession' introduced them to many OCR listeners, every mixpost has been like a mini-event. Shariq has this one covered:

"I do love me some Game Over. I can hear how the layered syncopation could be tricky to follow, but fortunately the production here is top notch, so the two guitars don't get needlessly mashed together. Plus things lock together when the chorus hits, which helps the listener re-orient. Great performances, fantastic vocals. Very nice."

OA adds:

"I think the lyrics are pretty solid, and the vocal performance was great. The track length was perfect, and overall I was feeling this. The arrangement was somewhat conservative, but vocals, harmonies, solos, and some unique riffage keep it very personalized."

I was digging the lyrics, vocals, production & instrumental performances, and the subtle/punny mix title is a nice bonus. It seems like the band has had a couple changes in lineup over the years, but they've always kept a consistent level of quality with their work, and this track's no exception. Rhythm guitar parts sound like they were especially challenging, but it lends a little more syncopation & movement than your standard rock anthem, and works well. Happy birthday to the Blue Bomber, and thanks/congrats to Game Over for an excellent ReMix from his debut game's OST!

djpretzel

Discussion

Latest 15 comments/reviews; view the complete thread or post your own.
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Black_Doom
on 2015-02-20 06:55:54

I love when good old VGM pieces are given good old rock treatment. Classic rock tune with some heavy shreddage, pounding drums and epic vocals. Simply amazing!

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bobby1983
on 2012-10-11 17:49:22

Too bad there's not more stuff from this band. Love how they take the video game music and mix it with old [early 80's metal] like iron maiden but more hardcore. Love the palm muting on the guitar, don;t know how to explain that technique but it's great. This song is so fun to sing to, especially if you;re one who has spent years singing in this sort of way. I can go higher notes with the vibrato , but this singer still does good. I can hear him trying really hard to go high [like at the end] but it sounds like he's just under the note he wants. singing in this style is not easy, and when I hear someone who is working at it i always say good work. any person off the street can sing, but only real singers can do the metal high note scream vibrato opera singing

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Hydrargyria
on 2011-04-01 01:17:28

Holy crap! He sounds like Rob Halford of Judas Priest at the end!

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shawnphaseoftss
on 2011-01-20 16:39:39

this is a delicious take on megaman music and im proud of my sweetie and game over for coming up with this on the little blue guy's birthday! so great.

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Martin Penwald
on 2011-01-09 14:57:05

Rock solid rock song (pun intended). Reminds me of the stuff friends of mine were listening to back in the 90s, bands like Running Wild, Grave Digger etc.

The "pling" e.g. at 0:34 and 0:39 is somewhat annoying, though.

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Platonist
on 2011-01-03 15:08:47

new singer is definitely better than the old one :)

I never liked Game Over - now i might ^^ :nicework:

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Crulex
on 2011-01-02 19:26:22

I think maybe he sounds a little bit like Geoff Tate.

Oh, yeah, I think that's what he reminded me of. Thanks.

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GameOver
on 2011-01-02 16:05:32

Thanks for all the positive comments! We really appreciate it.

A lot of people have asked me about the ending. I guess it sounds like any random White Zombie song. Light's Out was inspired by a totally different rock song though, but that's a secret.

My idol Ralphis has a crush on me, that's pretty cool!

But god, that singer's voice sounds like another one that I've heard, especially near the end and I can't remember who it is.

I think maybe he sounds a little bit like Geoff Tate.

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Zye
on 2010-12-30 17:15:45

A friend and i were wondering, during the refrain, is there any alterations to the vocals? or just the vocalist singing in different keys played at the same time? Great remix btw.

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Crulex
on 2010-12-30 10:24:08

Whoo! Loving it! Pretty good song for Mega Man's birthday, and yet another example of a vocal ReMix done right. But god, that singer's voice sounds like another one that I've heard, especially near the end and I can't remember who it is. That's going to bother me all day now. Excellent guitars, nice darker lyrics, ace drums and a good rock song overall. Very, very nice.

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Ralphis
on 2010-12-28 07:10:49

I have a crush on Wire

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Vilecat
on 2010-12-27 16:40:21

3333333333333333333333333

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Level 99
on 2010-12-19 10:59:04

Crisp guitars, catchy vocals layered with nice harmonies during the choruses, and killer performances all around. Gotta say it's a little hard to understand whats being sung but regardless the melodies are awesome. It's definitely one of the most inventive takes on Cutman's theme that I've heard. You usually can't go wrong with Game Over, and this track is no exception to that. Can't say I liked the ending though, but besides that, KICK ASS.

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DragonAvenger
on 2010-12-19 10:42:21

I love the lyrics for this, they really bring to mind a much darker theme to Mega Man as a whole. Along with that, the lines are relayed convincingly, and the rest of the track is gritty enough to really back it up.

Nice work.

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Master_Yoshi
on 2010-12-19 04:38:14

Awesome post! I like the new vocalist, it gives a new feel to what they produce, and that can only ever be a good thing!

Also, "lights out" is brilliant as a vocal line. Carry on, good sirs!

Sources Arranged (1 Song)


Primary Game:
Mega Man (Capcom , 1987, NES)
Music by Manami Matsumae
Songs:
"Cut Man Stage"

Tags (6)


Genre:
Metal,Rock
Mood:
Instrumentation:
Electric Guitar,Singing,Vocals: Male
Additional:
Lyrics > Lyrics: Original

File Information


Name:
Mega_Man_Light's_Out_OC_ReMix.mp3
Size:
5,657,676 bytes
MD5:
1471354a56f387f7fb8e5b7255aabd29
Bitrate:
192Kbps
Duration:
3:52

In my hour of distress
I suffer in my lonliness
I'm
Hanging on by a thread
Not a sound but the blood pounding in my head
You left me without a trace
Treated me like a disgrace
My life
Is slowly fading away
As it flashes before my eyes I feel betrayed

Chorus:
Kill
Go to war
Fight 'til you can't fight no more
That's what it's all about
When the veils of darkness surround you
Light's Out!

We fought the battle side by side
Against creations you denied
Left
Was just an army of one
Indoctrinated machine was what I had become
A servant at your beck and call
Loyal, always standing tall
A pawn
Bred to lay down my soul
Lacerated and wasted, left out in the cold

Chorus

Chorus 2:
Kill
Go to war
Fight 'til you can't fight no more
Death's what it's all about
I feel the veils of darkness around me
The image of you as the enemy
Light's out I bid my farewell to the world

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