ReMix:Octopath Traveler "Octopath Unraveled" 3:04

Evan Wardell debuted last October with the memorable & memorably-named "Bolero of Bolero of Fire," and returns (with company!) for our fourth featured ReMix of Octopath Traveler, serving up an epic, high-spirited symphonic rock take on the main theme:

Credits:

• Arranger: Evan Wardell
• Lead, harmony & rhythm guitars: jmabate
• Drum set VST reprogramming/processing: Soul in Sadness
• Mastering: heavymetalmixer

Evan writes:

"The main theme of Yasunori Nishiki's soundtrack to Octopath Traveler, rearranged as a battle theme! This was written as part of the Pixel Mixers community tribute album to Octopath Traveler, Echoes of Eight! I'm a huge fan of Yasunori Nishiki's style of writing for boss battles in this game with heavy orchestration on top of rock elements, and I also love the lush, adventurous main theme. That being said, one of my favorite things in game music is when a boss battle theme is a more dramatic arrangement of another theme within the game, and I wanted to try doing this for the main theme (while still keeping some of the writing conventions Nishiki uses in the actual boss themes). I ended up veering a bit more rock-heavy at a few parts (with the great help of fantastic guitar performances by jmabate, and a drum kit VST swap/submix by Soul in Sadness), but hopefully it results in the same imagery - our eight protagonists having a hell of a fight. I can't thank my collaborators from this community enough for their incredible contributions to this track. (Special thanks to heavymetalmixer for a fantastic mastering job on the album!)

AHHH, so glad to have been a part of this, absolutely blown away by every track!!! Collab album really shining through with some fantastic performances. Check out the rest of the Pixel Mixers community album here!"

Adventurous, well-produced, and I liked the harpsichord flavor as one of many textures/timbres given some time to shine. Lovely harp glissandi on the intro, and some heroic moments that reminded me of The Last Starfighter's score. With symphonic rock, and I suppose almost any hybrid genre, it's always interesting to see if one style is favored over the other(s); not as a bad or good thing, just to get a feel for the arrangement & intent. This leans a little more orchestral, but it's a satisfying blend, and in a little over three minutes, it's amazing how much sonic territory is covered. Liontamer evaluated:

"Excellent concept and an easy call in terms of executing and nailing the intent. This absolutely felt like an in-game battle theme reprise; you sure this isn't just taken from the game? :-) Strong way to introduce Pixel Mixers' Echoes of Eight album, which I also recommend picking up. You can never have enough representation of modern classic soundtracks! Nice work from Evan, Jean Marc, and Stefan, as well as John on the mastering side; quite the elegant battle music, something Nishiki could be proud of!"

Well said! Enjoy the mix & check out the full album for more!