ReMix:Sonic the Hedgehog 3 "Thinking Cap" 5:16

PLATONIST!! Jonas had some great mixes posted in 2008 & 2009, but then... quiet. Since 2013 has been the BEST YEAR EVAR!!! for long-term comebacks, I'm rather glad to be posting a fourth mix in the form of this percolating Sonic 3 'Ice Cap' electronica cut that he broke radio silence for with the following:

"... bzzt.... beginning transmission..
oh shi-, not you again #000#.... bzzzt.. [access granted]...
...lasttimeloggedin:~004yr....bz
bzzt....reading.data...impulse.clones...dryads....
....theonethatdeniedtechnologyandscience....
submission received..logging off.... bzzt"

My first thoughts were "SNAKE? SNAAAKKKKKE!" but then I realized it was just his cryptic, Swedish way of submitting a new mix, and I laughed heartily. S3ICZ is one of those sources that usually carries with it a lot of obligatory disclaimer language about how you've "heard a ton of mixes, but this one is DIFFERENT!" Well, it IS, but I think we can skip a lot of that and focus on the music. Things start off almost comically simple, but when the little electro tom-snare starts pitch-bending up @ 0'07" you know it's gonna develop. The lead synth used for the melody here has a weird internal rhythm & granularity to it, reflecting Jonas's attention to the very small & brief aspects of texture in his music; the "micro-" and "nano-" prefixes are relevant. Think shimmery, digital, shiny... the whole mix makes me think of the PPG, in a good way. Larry writes:

"Jonas's previous 3 mixes have all done a great job employing subtle dynamic shifts and development to justify the length, and I felt he did it again here. While the main beats were too static to me, I appreciated the ear candy and subtle sonic variations (a pun!) used throughout the piece. Just when I felt I'd like to hear something else, 3:05's section pulls out a lead that gives off the imagery of playing Sonic on a classic Game Boy (as impossible at that would have been back in the day). I also enjoyed the final minute from 4:17-on with some added writing and variations to keep things energetic and fresh for the finish."

The beat certainly isn't emphasized as much, but I too was digging the additional writing & expansion more prevalent towards the end, and the overall mix has a way of feeling simultaneously old and new. While the melody is prevalent and often relatively unaltered, it makes you pay more attention to the changes & additions Jonas has thrown in. I'd certainly like to hear more, and hopefully we get a follow up mix in less than "~004yr," but either way it's good to be posting something from Platonist, and I think you'll enjoy what he's cooked up!