ReMix:Donkey Kong Country "Drowning in Brambles" 5:08

Want some MORE "Stickerbush"? What if I told you it was combined... with "Aquatic Ambiance"? 744 (Ben Brownlee) follows up his previous mixes from 2017 & 2018 with this chill synthwave take on BOTH classic DKC series themes:

"So, two of the most remixed tracks on all of OCR are "Aquatic Ambiance" from DKC and "Stickerbush Symphony" from its sequel, but as of this submission, no one's attempted to combine them yet. They're both terrific tracks and fit their aesthetic perfectly on their own, and are easily two of the most memorable David Wise compositions so far. These themes make the games themselves much more memorable and it was cool the SNES could pull them off. From childhood, having played these two games for endless hours, I know both these themes so well, I was able to transcribe them from memory (albeit not in their original keys).

So, originally this was going to be just an "Aquatic Ambiance" synthwave mix, mostly to see if I could produce one that would meet the high standards of the mixes that were already up. While Logic was playing an early version of this back, I accidentally hit one of the media buttons on my keyboard and iTunes queued up "Stickerbush Symphony" by chance. At that point I decided, why not go for it - two of the most remixed tracks on OC ReMix, but lump them together somehow. Both tracks in this mix borrow elements from each other; "Stickerbush's" expanding bass synth and percussion play during the "Aquatic" section, for example, while the "Stickerbush" section borrows "Aquatic's" arpeggio and ornamentation. But I still wanted to go with a cheesy, reverb-soaked 80s snare, warbly synths, slightly glitchy pads, and punchy bass for that heavy synthwave feel.

With this track, I envision a dark bramble-themed underwater level full of bright, neon purple grids and random yellow, green, and hot pink shapes floating around in the background."

Indeed. Stickerbush Ambiance or Aquatic Symphony, take your pick, but either way Ben's done a great job gluing (not lumping!) everything together with a slick 80's sheen & satisfyingly thick drums & synths. Rexy writes:

"First of all, I love your concept of blending two well-loved sources! The structure itself is by the numbers with one run-through of Aquatic Ambiance, one interpretation of Stickerbrush Symphony and back the other way for the ending. But the way both themes integrate backing elements from the other is sublime and have locked together in one cohesive arrangement.

Even the sound design is cohesive and appropriate for the synthwave direction. The retro-sounding drums, the synths and even the lo-fi-sounding EQ molding contributed to a track that sounds like it's tailor-made for a 1980s boombox."

This is all true. While it doesn't color outside the lines much, and probably could have just a little bit more, this is an enjoyable & creative take on blending the themes in a synthwave style, which suits *both* of them quite well. Fun, accessible, & chill - great stuff!