ReMix:Final Fantasy VIII "A Scar to Match" 3:15

I'm reminded of a certain scene in True Lies, as we resume our SeeDs of Pandora intro flood with this stellar, seductive tango arrangement of "Rivals" from newcomer colorado weeks, collaborating with Chromatic Apparatus (cello), Flake (accordion), & Shea's Violin (violin, intuitively!) - the artist writes:

"This is my remix of the song "Rivals" from Final Fantasy VIII, which was created for the album Final Fantasy VIII: SeeDs of Pandora. Seifer is a character who's brash, impulsive, and wears his heart on his sleeve; I wanted to reflect those qualities when approaching the arrangement of this track. The original "Rivals" is a brooding track that has a subtle undercurrent of seething jealousy. In my arrangement, I wanted to bring those emotions to the forefront and scream them from the rooftops. With all of this in mind, I chose to arrange this piece as a tango. It's a fiery, passionate genre, and the theatricality of it felt appropriate for a character that's in pursuit of their "romantic dream".

Speaking of theatricality, I really wanted to lean into the dramatics of this piece. I did my best to push the envelope of "over-the-top" wherever I could in the arrangement, almost as if this was a dramatic retelling of the opening duel from Seifer Almasy's perspective. The title "A Scar to Match" seeks to reflect that, and is intentionally ambiguous; however accurate this retelling may be could be left up to interpretation.

This piece was filled with firsts. This was my first time writing a tango, and I quickly learned about the wide gap between familiarity with a genre as a listener and actually sitting down to compose the dang thing. Moreover, this was my first time collaborating with other musicians: Flake (on accordion), Chromatic Apparatus (on cello), and Shea (on violin) were gracious enough to lend their talents to this piece, and provided plenty of feedback about the arrangement and performance.

Special thanks to Shea, Chromatic Apparatus, and Flake for their contributions, and to the album organizers Darkflamewolf and Jorito for facilitating all of this. I am so thankful for all of their contributions, suggestions, and their patience. I couldn't have pulled this off without all of you!"

First Tango on Pandora :) For a first effort in the genre OR a fiftieth, this is an amazing, playful piece that leverages rhythmic precision, tautness, & seasoned, flavorful performances. It's tuxedo-with-rose-in-mouth time, basically, and it all sounds wonderful - you get the supple, sly lead string melodies over tight, staccato accompaniment, as accordion inhales & exhales to the meter; I'm no expert, but this delivers the things I look for & expect in a tango, and does so in a hella creative, interpretive context. Album director Jorito writes:

"colorado hopped in the album Discord one day, saying something like "Uhm, could I claim 'Rivals'? I'm feeling like it could work as a tango and I'm not sure I can pull it off, but I'll give it a try." I'd say it was a success. It's not every day that you hear a VGM remix as a tango, especially not one with many live instruments. While the source has a bit of a darker undertone and a lot of tension, to me "A Scar to Match" is a much lighter track, yet also more dramatic and flamboyant and oozes style. For a track with a lot of firsts, I'd say it worked out great!"

Yes, it certainly did; DFW also observed that this isn't necessarily one of the more memorable/arranged tracks from the OST, but colorado & co. have turned it into an absolute standout on this album, with their transformation. It's almost like life advice: Why brood angstily.... when you can TANGO instead?? How true that is... Chimpazilla evaluated:

"Wow, what is this? What a totally unique approach, and the performances are dynamite! Love the little pizzicato sections. This is making me want to do some dramatic yet silly tango."

Those urges are natural, and we should all heed them. Every album has its surprises, and a drop-dead gorgeous tango from a newcomer, elevated by superb live performances, is but one from SeeDs of Pandora - highly recommended!