ReMix:The Legend of Zelda "Shadows of Hyrule" 5:58

It's time to head toward OC ReMix #4500, and we're doing it with a focus on the family! No, not the evil, fundamentalist kind, the good VGM arrangement kind. :-) First up in our trio of tracks is veteran arranger and Anime Remix poobah Xaleph alongside his burgeoning musician progeny, Audiomint, as they shift Hyrule's underword in a psytrance/darksynth direction! Xaleph explains how OCR's historic first-ever (!) father-daughter collaboration takes inspiration from an oooooooooold-school OC ReMix:

"I loved the OC ReMix "Link's Underworld Pressure Cooker" from wRenchpilot and I wanted to create a more darksynth/psy-ish take on it.

Also, listening to "Mercenary" by F.O.O.L, I realized that darksynth is basically psytrance just slowed down from 140-150bpm to 100-105bpm. I wanted to have fun with this!

* I took the darksynth style and sped it up for fun
* Added a few psy squelches, something I haven't ever used before, so it was exciting to learn how to make those
* I tried some of the textures I've been wanting to add to the long break
* I wanted to use some new (to me) filters on Audiomint's voice, which I used when she sings in the slow break
* For the second tempo change, I speed it up from 143 to 206, and then drop to half speed. This was to give the illusion of "going uphill both ways" - instead of slowing it back down to 103.
* For Hemophiliac - I added that 5/4 skip after me saying "heh".

Audiomint obviously did all the singing. She had multiple recording sessions to get it the way she wanted it to sound."

For the full list of gear used and the arrangement breakdown, be sure to dig through the MP3's comments, especially you aspiring musicians. Even with the extensive experience he's had as a producer, it's rewarding to hear Xaleph learn and employ some new tricks while also introducing us to the next generation with Audiomint's eerie vocal debut. Fellow girl-dad XPRTNovice tipped his cap to the execution:

"Great job here. Production is clean as hell. Arrangement wise this is great. Lots of variation in the theme, and it's a fun take on a classic. You always get the sense that you're in the theme, but you also take lots of liberties and departures that keep it interesting, even with a piece pushing 7 minutes of content off an essentially 45 second theme."

Chimpazilla came into the music game not as a daughter but as a mother, and, as our community's mother hen of mastering (OK, she's not fussy, just roll with the wordplay), she had heaps of praise for Xaleph's shadowy sound design and arresting arrangement:

"I love this so, so much. Hard-hitting techno, tons of detail and ear candy, and variation in sounds used. Soundscape has that "empty yet full" feel that I love. I agree the leads could have been just a touch louder, but I get why they aren't, I suspect it is a stylistic choice to keep the soundscape feeling empty and hopeless while focusing on the core groove. The soft vocals add just the right creepy atmosphere. This is a very strong arrangement and I dig it maximally."

Quite the fun journey, with an extended showcase of vibrant sounds along with (hauntingly) nice vocal moments from Audiomint. Xaleph always delivers, and it’s a genuinely meaningful milestone to have our first father-daughter collaboration too! :-)