ReMix:Golden Sun "The Lighthouse" 2:54

A couple weeks back, I provided light and dark ReMixes for the weekend. Now I'm at it again, this time going for the dark before the light. :-) After debuting back in 2020 with a beautiful take on "The Elemental Stars", Mental returns to Golden Sun with their visionary, cinematic edition of "Wintrly Imil"! Mental manifested something that had merely been a concept for a while, making full use of the source tune:

"I had this idea lying around for a long time. The Imil theme was one of the first pieces I learned for the piano initially and always loved this motive. Now, I'm back with some new toys and an uplifting arrangement!

The original track form is like ABC. I recycled the first bar of the A and, instead of the remaining A section, I invented an arpeggio and melody around it to fit the uplifting motive. Sections B and C, I used fully for this remix."

Good source tune choice here, and this had a lovely, intimate sound to start. I also liked Mental's decision to stick with just the first part of the source's A section. The strings at :25 were in the uncanny valley but still a sound solid. I was admittedly laughing a little bit, because the instrumentation and tone felt like I was watching a viral video on perseverance, motivation, or grind, at least until the change-up at :42. (If we ever make an inspirational video like that for OCR, I know which track we're grabbing for it... with credit, of course!) Really enjoyed the tension introduced with the transition at :42, including the vocals added at :50. A strong start with instruments and gradual intensity that impressed most of the judges panel, including Chimpazilla:

"I really like this beautiful track. The instrumentation is rich and full and emotive, the dynamics and energy are exciting and engaging, and the arrangement is beautiful. The samples are used well enough; a tad uncanny but not enough to detract from the piece at all."

We're indeed a flaws-and-all kind of community and try our best not to let the perfect by the enemy of the good, or in this case the *really* good, a sentiment exemplified by the praise of judge Joe "XPRTNovice" Zieja:

"Oooo I love the piano in the intro with the strings in the background, really nice choices made in the soundscape.

The long strings at :30 sound a BIT thin, but when the rest of the orchestra comes in they fit in nicely. [...]

Horn entrance at 1:20 was beautifully done.

Overall, I love the orchestra, I love how you balanced everything, the mix is solid, and the arrangement is moving and passionate. Instrumentation is great, and you know how to use em!

Great job."

Props to Mental's instruments again with an effective escalation of the energy at 2:11 in repeating 1:37 & 1:54's melody; each iteration sounded texturally different, changing from dulcimer to lower strings to higher strings. I really enjoyed those instrumentation changes to create dynamic contrast and keep the presentation fresh all the way from :59 when that section of the source was first used. Then 2:31 repeated the intro as a bookend.

I appreciated judge MindWanderer citing some timing and articulations as "too precise and consistent", which exposed the samples and ostensibly made things sound more like a mock-up and less organic/humanized. He wasn't wrong at what he heard and the room for growth, but most of the judges disagreed with how negatively those issues shaped up relative to our bar. When you side-by-side this piece with the source, the arrangement's majorly transformative and sufficiently developed, presented with more speed and a cinematic palette, an end result Mental should be very, very proud of. :-) VGM fans, it's time to get motivated with this one!