Final Fantasy VII "Stay Away" 4:30

Steel yourself against dark, nihilistic thoughts! It's a transformation you don't wanna take as Final Fantasy combines with Resident Evil for a track that doesn't feel right, but it's in your veins. Brought to you by these collaborators infected by DoD's Franchise Fusion Month:

• Arrangers: Xaleph (everything but the solo section), paradiddlesjosh (2:19-3:14)
• Mastering: ZackParrish
• Guitarists: pixelseph, ZackParrish
• Bass Guitar: ZackParrish
• Drums: paradiddlesjosh
• Vocals: Xaleph (everything but growling), pixelseph (growling)
• Lyrics: Xaleph

Lead arranger Xaleph explains how his mind got zombified and moved him outside his comfort zone:

"OK, so... normally, I don't sing a lot and I'm pretty self-conscious of my voice. I did a lot of singing when I was younger but not so much in the last 10-15 years other than in the car, at church, or in the shower. We wanted this competition piece to be a curveball where it wasn't really clear who did it. We also wanted the sages to do a song together, thought it would be fun! We really enjoyed this song, would love to talk about the process of writing it, performing it, and all the in/outs beyond what I wrote here. This song, we tried to make it one of the more complex songs we've written given the ridiculous time signature changes in both pieces. It was such a blast to write, perform, write lyrics for, and produce.

Crafting singable and captivating lyrics for FF7-RE2 proved to be a formidable challenge. The introductory section is set in 6/4 time, transitioning to a bridge in 5/4, and is followed by a loop of 8/4 (two measures of 4/4), 7/4, 7/4, and 7/4. I also re-recorded certain parts rather than merely copying and pasting to infuse more emotion. This complexity is partly attributable to my arrangement of the song, as we aimed to create one of the more technically demanding pieces to perform while maintaining its catchiness. The drummer, guitarists, and bassists all executed their parts brilliantly. In reference to the RE2 "Malformation of 'G'" theme, the chorus vocals overlay this motif/theme atop the FF7 line. The intricate time signature changes in RE2, when mapped onto the equally complex signatures of FF7, required considerable effort to achieve a natural song flow. We wanted this to be a hidden flex to those perceptive musicians, drawing inspiration from Tool, known for their complex compositions."

Much like Tool, judge Hemophiliac is always an appreciator of messing with time sigs:

"I love how Xaleph is always willing to xpand and play with time when it's appropriate. 2:37-3:14 was a particular highlight for me because of how the familiarity of the FF7 source's melody is broken up in creative ways to fit the time. Unexpected and it fit the track very well. The ending call and response between singing and growling is a neat way to wrap everything up."

Fellow judge Emunator, a collaborative vet with all of these folks himself, marveled at the band's ability to execute on all fronts:

"Matt, your Maynard impression is pretty damn on-point, and you also came prepared with the FX processing to nail the iconic Tool sound. Major shoutouts to Seph on the screams too, I didn't know you had that in you! [...] Everything is crystal clear and sitting in just the right spot. The bass and guitar tone, in combination with the vocal processing, are the perfect mix of sludgy, aggressive, and clean at all the right moments. And it should go without saying that the instrumental performances are incredibly tight across the board - I can tell you all had a lot of fun with this. [...]

Easy yes on all fronts, you guys are powerhouses at your craft!"

Indeed, four accomplished & proficient powerhouses delivering strong stuff, from the guitars and drums from ZackParrish and the twin magic of Pixels & Paradiddles (including screamo Seph!), and very gratifying to hear Xaleph, who's so well-rounded already, adding another wrinkle to his game as a vocal performer. :-) Xaleph's such a nice guy, I'd never have picked him out of a lineup as someone who'd create this kind of music, but here we are! Quite the interesting twist, taking the urgency out of "Hurry Up!" and giving it a more tortured & cerebral lyrical rock approach, thanks to the zombie influence of the G-Virus. If you feel your brain melting on account of this, don't choose violence!