ReMix:Mega Man X2 "Dusty Dune Devil" 3:10

Vurez! We saw Don in July of last year with an MMX cut off Maverick Rising, and here's another MR track from MMX2 that rocks out, blends genres, and features some superb mixed instrumentation that the ReMixer is known for:

"This is one of my tracks for the Maverick Rising project. I had originally intended it to be a desert sounding rock song, but when I added violins, the track took a turn towards Irish/riverdance and I decided to just go with it. So now it's three genres in one."

Album director Wesley Cho writes:

"Vurez taps into his melding of folk music with electric guitars, this time with a more Middle Eastern and Celtic flair. It has a pretty nice flow, although it might leave you wanting more, because of how short it seems to be. I think this speaks to how well his style works in general, and how memorable his work can be, which all his tracks on this album are."

I definitely dig how Don realized the potential for the genre infusion and just WENT with it, and part of what makes that work is the strength of the violin sequencing - might not pass for real to the observant, but his craftsmanship ensures that verisimilitude (or lack thereof) doesn't get in the way whatsoever. Great vocabulary word if you're stuck with too many i's in a game of Scrabble. Writing believable parts for a wide variety of instruments is a hallmark strength of Vurez' work, and lets him genre-hop and play around quite a bit - it's a pretty emancipating skill, from an arranger's perspective, and he's always used it well. This mix is no exception; Deia's not a fan of the source, but digs the revised version of the mix that Don sent in based on panel feedback:

"Huge improvement here, and overall a way unique approach to this theme (which I never liked!). The balance is much clearer, and the interplay between the instruments is great. There's a lot of detail here, and the drum sequencing really helps bring things together nicely. Thanks for bringing it on the improvement!"

Fun stuff, a little on the short side as Wes notes, but it develops the idea and delivers on the concept in the allocated time, and makes for a fun romp that puts a creative spin on the source that only Vurez could have dreamed up & executed so well!