ReMix:Chrono Trigger "Save the Future" 4:40

Happy birthday to legendary game composer Yasunori Mitsuda! And globally, but especially in the USA, also a day for remembering MLK & what he stood for. This prog/metal Chrono Trigger ReMix from newcomer StormSkuggan (Joakim Stenmark) kinda checks both boxes, as the title - "Save the Future" - feels very relevant to the goals our nation & our planet still face. It often feels like the future is refusing to change, but hope + progress + vigilance remain our best tools to make the Dream a reality. This mix has a lot of energy & spirit and does a good job chanelling integrity-in-the-face-of-adversity, PLUS it eschews electric guitar and uses a distorted Hammond organ for makeshift chugs, which earns 2,000 bonus points in my book:

"This remix started as a fun side project among my school friends where each of us would make game music remixes for the Christmas holidays. I decided to take mine further and try to get it submitted to OC ReMix. The song is a progressive metal rendition of the Chrono Trigger theme where one of the goals was to achieve that metal sound but without guitar. Instead, I used a heavily distorted Hammond organ for the rhythm section and synthesizers for leads.

I experimented a lot with time-related special effects and production, for instance on the piano and some percussion. I also initially had sections at the beginning and at the end where music would speed by in reverse to signify time traveling which sounded really cool. The aim then was have a story of a hero fighting to save the future, failing, and then reversing time to try again and again in a cycle. I ended up cutting it since I couldn’t convey the time traveling without making the song drag out unnecessarily.

Anyway, thanks for listening and continue being awesome!"

Very smart & narrative use of time-based FX, including a slowing clock tick which creatively ends the piece. Judges had some accurate production nits, but the majority felt none of them were showstoppers. Sir_NutS sums things up nicely:

"Remixing a theme that has been done hundreds of times and making it truly your own is not an easy task, but I think you managed to do just that here. I am pleased with how far you went with the interpretation but somehow you kept the feeling of the original there at all times. Then you coupled your arrangement with details like the slowing clock at the end and the reversed piano and effects in the intro to make this one of the most interesting remixes of this theme I've heard."

Joakim put some real thought into the application of FX here, elevating an already-energized metal package. Beyond the temporal angle, which works beautifully, I think the grungy organ really holds it own & not only survives, but thrives, in its role. Add to that a focused but substantive duration that says what it needs to, and some rather nice synth leads, and I feel like the future is in pretty good hands. EQ & mastering might be a little rough around the edges, but the concept & the energy shine through. Congrats to Joakim on taking a fun tradition w/ friends and polishing his contribution into a wonderful & imaginative tribute.