ReMix:Firelord "Galaheart's Journey" 5:56

Glyn R Brown is a newcomer to OCR but has been making amazing C64 arrangements for 15+ years, and we're thrilled to be featuring this epic orchestral take on Ben Daglish's main theme from Firelord:

"Orchestral remake from the 1986 Commodore 64 game Firelord by Hewson. Original 8-bit SID tune composed by Ben Daglish. This version had to be written to work & be played live by a real 80-piece orchestra for Chris Abbott's 8-Bit Symphony.

I think I used Metropolis Ark 1 choirs (Men + Women) & Aurora Choir by Aria Sounds. Also, lots of layering. :)

Galaheart is the name of the character in the game, apparently. :)"

This theme has a strong "Kiss From A Rose" energy, at least for me - obviously Daglish came first, but I could almost see Glyn's mix as this... elaborate symphonic arrangement of *just* the intro from Seal's hit. Good news is, either way it's great; Rexy writes:

"Thanks for reminding me that I should've been at the 8-Bit Symphony debut concert at Hull last year. I keep hearing about how much dedication and passion there was to not only the symphonic performances of C64 music, but also the arrangements that supported them. Firelord is a more simple BGM from that home computer, and yet Glyn took its nature and developed it across varying moods with a well-sculpted dynamic framework. Even in a synthetic orchestra setting, every instrument contributed beautiful articulations, the mixing is clean, and I can identify all parts within the soundscape. It's an overall beautiful package that would make Ben Daglish proud if he was still with us today!"

RIP; Rexy's in the UK and yeah, that would have been a fantastic event. A live orchestral performance of this arrangement would obviously be powerful, but Glyn's rendering & skillful use of some very solid sample libraries like Metropolis make this no slouch on the production front, achieving the intended dramatic effect through superb dynamic contrast & vast, sweeping instrumentation. Renaissance/chamber-style bits trade bars with giant, waltz-march bombast, the choral elements bring additional gravitas, and there's a good blend of solo & ensemble writing tying everything together. Liontamer adds:

"I've been a fan of yours since my old college radio show days 15+ years ago when I'd play R:K:O material along with other VGM arrangement scenes. It's an honor to have you submit something to OC ReMix. :-)"

Very cool, agreed, and for what it's worth: we LOVE C64 & Amiga mixes at OCR, so I'm thrilled to see a veteran of the Commodore scene send something our way... and it just happens to be a huge, rousing, orchestral juggernaut. Enjoy!