ReMix:Chicory: A Colorful Tale "Dear Wielder..." 3:31

Navi (Navid Azeez) breaks his fourteen-year hiatus with a vulnerable, cerebral, and multi-dimensional take on the Supper Woods theme from Lena Raine's fantastic score to Chicory: A Colorful Tale. With assists from guitarist Ryan Buell and some additional percussion by Klopfenpop, we are greeted with an arrangement that reflects decades of personal growth, simultaneously sounding like the synthesis of a hundred possible influences, and also like nothing I've ever heard before.

Chicory's narrative is, at its core, a meta-commentary on the relationship between a creator and their creations, and what happens when the same passion that once fueled creativity suddenly becomes the catalyst for self-doubt, anxiety, and depression. It has been said that the ones who are closest to us also wield the power to hurt us the most. I think nearly anyone who has even dabbled in the creative arts can understand how that concept applies here. Adding yet another level of meta commentary to the conversation, Navi channeled these feelings into a Chicory arrangement of his own. Have we come full-circle yet? Here's what he had to say about the process:

"Chicory: A Colorful Tale is a coloring book RPG about artists antagonized by their feelings of inferiority - how your demons can be a greater foe than anything the world can throw at you. While art-making can often lead to the highest highs, it can also lead to blocks, stress, self-doubt, and emptiness. How do you grow through that, learn from it, and keep going?

I have the unfortunate joy of having my first attempts at musicmaking ~ nearly 20 years ago! ~ mummified on this site for the world to hear. Back then, I would blaze through ideas and move on without any real thought towards the sustainability of that practice. As I am very older now, I'm constantly working to balance and tame the more extreme natures of my creativity and its effects on my mental health (ie: how to properly harness a spark of inspiration and resolve it in a way that's both satisfying and healthy).

This song takes the themes (melodic and otherwise) presented in Chicory and reimagines them as an internal conversation between an artist and their idea: from the spark, to the doubt, to the flowstate, to the afterglow... an arc of inspiration and resolution~.

Or maybe it just a song. IDK, take what you want from it. <3"

Musically, this feels like catching up with a long-lost friend -- a lot has changed, and some of the topics of conversation feel unfamiliar, but at the core, it's still the same friend. You can still identify elements of hip-hop, funk, and ambient music that characterized Navi's prior submissions on a surface level, but really, it's raw creativity that has always truly defined his body of work. “Dear Wielder…” is a more melancholic, heady take on those same influences that, if I had to draw any direct comparisons, reminds me most of zykO, another brilliant remixer who often used his arrangements as a means of unpacking internal struggles with creativity. Liontamer (Larry Oji) offered his encouragement and personal support during the judging process:

"It feels like this track's a living, breathing organism. I have no idea what led to the sound design choices here, or what to call this genre, but it's super-creative and on point; you literally want to swim in this. At any point, this could have went super bombastic and it WOULD have made sense, yet Navi exercised restraint instead. Wow, awesome stuff, and a hell of a return here, in a remarkable collab with Ryan and Klopfenpop.

Never be ashamed, stay proud of your old gold too; look at where it's lead you, with a track in the here and now that you can sincerely point to as legendary. May you continue to grow musically and feel creatively satisfied yet thirsty to explore. I genuinely cannot wait to hear what else you've got cookin', and I'm just extremely proud of you. This is pro work."

Composer Lena Raine, whose birthday is today (!!!), was the real gift-giver today, bestowing some kind words of admiration for Navi's creativity and ambitious arrangement, as well:

"As soon as I heard the opening riff I knew emotionally where we were going, and I definitely wasn't prepared for such an imaginative group of sounds. So cool! I love the mix of guitar & sound design percussion with the floaty synths. The development as it goes is so cool and inventive."

I empathize deeply with the feelings Navid expresses through his remix and submission letter, and also how poignantly Chicory speaks to these struggles. He even captures the self-doubt that arises when you ask the question “is this all getting too serious for a video game remix?” Personally, I don't think so, but whether you approach this as a standalone piece of music, a therapeutic tool for processing your own creative struggles, and/or a window into the soul of a creator, there's a multitude of layers to this one. It's good to see you again, friend.