ReMix:Sparkster "Simmer Down, Sparky!" 2:58

WillRock is back to thrillrock! After an unreal T-Square-inspired Super Mario Galaxy track that kicked off this month (along with a fun Discord event with him & DaMonz about their Battle Shapers game score), we've got some old gold: Will's super-sized Sparkster stage 1 synthrock that covers both the Genesis & SNES versions AND includes solo slaying from the legendary Juan Medrano! Still no formal representation for Rocket Knight Adventures on the site yet (go buy RKA: Re-Sparked before it's gone next week, BTW), but we're happy to have Sparkster fly through OCR once again after nearly a decade away! According to Will, he seemingly sourced this song from the combined knowledge of the community:

"This is an older one! This was actually a request from a long-time fan of my work, and, for a long time, this one has stayed on the shelf for various reasons, but 5 years on, I think it might be worth submitting to OCR.

So, this one is notable for having probably the most indirect amount of OC ReMix artists influence the end result.

So, to start with, the drums were recommended to me by bLiNd, I now use them in... most of my productions - if you want to know what drums to get to make your productions better, bLiNd is the guy to ask. ;)

So, Shreddage is also in this one - I layered it with my own guitar parts, but ISW has had its stamp on this one. Next up, there was some Synth1 patches in this one from a soundbank created by lazygecko, It's called Gecko Soundbank, I strongly recommend it.

Last, but not least, we have Juan contributing an absolutely blazing guitar solo that's far beyond my measly skills. Style-wise, this is more of that 80s Vince DiCola-like synth rock you guys should come to expect from me, so, yup.

In terms of source usage and that stuff - source usage is a little sparse - I actually cut out the original intro so it passes the 50% source check (it's about 1:33 of source overall?), so it should pass on that. The track has a lot more in common with the Genesis version, but I took the melodic complexity of the SNES version to make it a little more interesting.

The production is also a bit muddier than I would have liked, but hopefully it'll pass. If it doesn't get passed the judges though, I won't hate you all, LMAO. Hope you all enjoy it!"

Translation: If the judges rejected it, he'd have hated us. ;-P He'd know because he originally hated the judges after first submitting to OCR, and, after graduating from Git Gud University, he's also been on OCR staff on the judging side as well. (Once you gaze into the abyss, the abyss gazes back!) Hard for WillRock to go wrong 1) using sample recommendations from one of OCR's finest alums, 2) using sample packs from some of OCR's finest alums, and 3) collaborating with one of OCR's finest alums! Fellow evil judge Chimpazilla evaluated this one, and, dayum, look at how mean she was:

"Just an ordinary submission by two no-talent ass-clowns... yaaaawn... no wait, this is really good! The soundscape is immediately Will's typical 80s rock, luscious and confidently crafted. The arrangement is unique and the writing is varied while keeping the source material dominant, until... THAT SOLO... yikes that's good. Just stupidly, stupidly good. This arrangement fires on all cylinders for sure. [...] So glad you necro-submitted this one!"

She's such a meanie-face; if I didn't know any better, I'd think she truly felt these bros stunk (judges r badmen), but when you hear this track, you'll know she's just playing, and you'll be as impressed with this rocked out Rocket Knight treatment as she was. WillRock's synth playing is wild, and the beats go hard, and -- just when you think Juan's melted your face after he arrives on guitar at 1:32 -- Will then immediately goes ham on the synths from 2:10-on, going out in a blaze of glory with some insane runs! "Simmer Down, Sparky!"??? Who *really* needs to simmer down after cooking our ears like this? :-) Awesome job, boys!