ReMix:The Lord of the Rings, Vol. I "A Long Road" 4:02

Happy birthday to Hobbit and Lord of the Rings author J.R.R. Tolkien! Tolkien's books have awed and inspired countless high fantasy fans, so it's only natural that its spinoff entertainment has done the same, including the video game adaptations. Now, newcomer SynthSage (Peter Mitchell) finally fulfills a long-held wish to gain a spot on OCR with a majestic & cinematic rendition of the Lord of the Rings DOS game's title theme, a song with childhood memories as powerful as the One Ring, as he explains:

"Hi, all! It's been a while! My career has taken off, but in the back of my heart and mind I have had such a special place for video game music, esp. the games that meant a lot to me when I was a kid. Plus, I freakin' love Lord of the Rings. Plus, I've had a now... I guess lifelong-dream of getting a mix on OCR. I've looked up to the musicians on OC ReMix since I was a teenager. I can't imagine the work it has been to curate the goodness that OC ReMix is, but it has made a huge impact to me. So, here we are, my friends.

This game was one of my first introductions to the Lord of the Rings universe -- the game is long and has really frustrating gameplay mechanics, but I have fond memories of it because it was one of the few games my dad would play with me and my brother.

I've always thought there was something compelling about the main theme. I hoped to capture the haunting reality of a quest that is dangerous and unfathomable, full of adventure, but also full of longing for peace and home.

All the instruments are Native Instruments except the tin whistle, which I played and recorded. Brought to you by FL Studio."

Congrats to SynthSage both on his programming career success and for taking the time to pursue his music hobby! From the looks of Peter's online presense, he dives into challenges with an open mind and a full heart, evidenced by the fun he had during the COVID-19 pandemic with his Sound Adventurer YouTube series, getting his mits on loads of unique instruments and interesting gear and giving them a whirl. He even tried the tin whistle on for size and make great strides that carried over into the live element of this arrangement. If this game is ever remade, judge prophetik music believes SynthSage struck the right tone for a next-gen adaptation:

"this one is interesting. i initially was turned off by the long sustains and very empty orchestration method, but realized it was more intended to be a cinematic / braveheart approach when the whistle came in. it works although i do think the orchestration is simple to a fault. i would very much have preferred a richer background with less layering and more uniqueness than stacks of sustained chord tones. as it is, though, the whistle playing is recorded and mastered well, and the track sounds like it could easily be used in a fan trailer for the game."

As far as I'm concerned, stack these sustained chords all day; what's here has a very lush and dynamic structure, striking a respectful and delicate balance between intimate and grandiose sections. With many interesting textures to move through, the tin whistle together with the low brass from 1:38-1:54, as one example, was an interesting blend of whimsy and menace; a lot was going on with a little. And while I'm not enough of a geek to have read, played, or watched any Tolkien media, British judge DarkSim co-signed the authenticity of SynthSage's presentation:

"Great job upgrading this ancient game (from 1990!) that I'd never heard of, and remixing it in a style befitting the LOTR universe. [...]

Overall I enjoyed this one a lot; it's been handled well, and the result is a solid, emotive piece that definitely evokes Middle Earth."

Respect to Peter for eagerly embracing his love of learning, the musical gains of which helped result in a very spirited fleshing out of this theme. Orchestration can be a difficult thing to pull off with samples, but, between the piano, harp, bowed strings, drums, mallet percussion, wind chimes, brass, live tin whistle, and more, this engaging arrangement's a thing of beauty where the journey, in the best way possible, sounds longer than its runtime -- Sauron would be proud! :-)

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That's not a good thing?!? I told you this stuff wasn't my bag(gins). ;-P