ReMix:Super Metroid "Binary Stars" 3:18

Contemplative Metroid pieces are so in this week, so let's tee up another one! Judge Emunator took part in a Pixel Mixers compo and tried out a more aggressive arrangement approach than he was used to. Did it phase him? Not when plenty of collab partners breathed life into Emunator's mingled pair of orchestrated star themes from Super Metroid & Secret of Mana!

• Emunator: arrangement, orchestration, piano, mixing, mastering
• Gamer of the Winds: alto flute, shinobue
• Shea's Violin: solo violin
• Lucas Guimaraes: backing vocals, rhythm guitar

Emunator explains how this celestial confluence came together:

"This remix was created for the August 2023 Pixel Mixers "Two Songs, Two Series" remix competition, though the roots of this concept really date back much further than that. Ever since I started arranging video game music, these two themes have been perpetually stuck in my head as possible source material, but I never found an approach that stuck. My hard drive is littered with half-baked takes on both themes spanning the past decade that never went anywhere. It seemed fitting that the first arrangement I managed to complete is a fusion of both! All things said, this track came together in 6 days, which I think is a personal record for fastest start-to-finish time on any remix I've submitted thus far.

I took major inspiration from the soundtracks to Hollow Knight and the Ori series, both of which feature lush, intimate orchestration that heavily relies on solo performances and small ensembles, combined with unique instruments from all around the world that aren't typically featured in an orchestral setting. It was a challenge writing an arrangement that featured a huge instrumental range while always maintaining ample room to breathe and never feeling overstuffed.

The cast of collaborators really brought this concept to life for me. Greg is an absolute rockstar on winds and has already helped me on several other arrangements (and certainly many more to come), coming in clutch with performances and improvisation on both the alto flute and shinobue. Shea's Violin is a new collaborator who also delivered a beautifully rendered solo violin line that tracked my section string arrangement, as well as original soloing during the outro. Lucas heard this WIP and offered to lay down some guitar tracks and a massive vocal stack at 1:36 - these little extra details really helped flesh out the texture of the track overall. I'm so grateful to all three of you for your contributions!!

As for the title, there's several levels going on. In astronomy, binary stars are two stars bound in orbit by each others' gravitational pull that are perceived as a single entity to the human eye. In a sense, these two sources felt intertwined to the point where they practically morphed together in my mind. The arrangement itself frequently uses call and response between the two themes played on different instruments, occasionally playing motifs from both at the same time. Also, there's the serendipitous fact that both sources happen to have "star" in their name!"

Stars arranging stars over here! Emu couldn't help but sing praises for Greg, Shea, and Lucas, and the judges panel were in complete agreement full of glowing verdicts including Chimpazilla's:

"Seamless mixing of these two themes. Performances are stellar, everything is super cohesive and emotive, mixing is perfection, mastering is appropriate. So many bells, metals, and delicate textures floating in and out of this soundscape, this is beyond lovely. Really nice work!"

Judge MindWanderer seemed starstruck this go around as well:

"This is gorgeous from beginning to end, with beautiful expression and a dynamic arrangement that isn't content to sit in a mellow groove. This will be a favorite of many, I think."

Will it be a favorite of yours? There's only one way to find out if you're caught in the gravitational pull of the "Binary Stars"!