Sonic & Knuckles "Million Dollar Death Trap" 2:33

He ain't never rep a set, baby, and he ain't do no wrong. Seth Skoda cleans up good for you with this smooth ReMix of "Death Egg Zone" from Sonic & Knuckles! "Million Dollar Death Trap" is a smooth R&B send-up to the 1994 Genesis platformer. Though the influence of "Million Dollar Baby" rings throughout the song, it's by no means the only style inspiration for this mix! Seth writes:

"2016: I was already making beats while renting a room in a boarding house. Dude in another room said I should make "Death Egg Zone" into a beat. So I did. Started the intro with "Lollipop" by Lil Wayne as the style base. Mixing was a hot mess, but mission accomplished regardless.

Fast-forward to 2024: I hear a song that blows me away with its retro vibe and use of FM synthesizers: "Million Dollar Baby" by Tommy Richman. Like, this beat is fire. Best hip-hop/R&B I've heard in a very long time. I start working on a Sega Genesis version of the song (for my YouTube channel). I upload a demo of the cover as a short.

Mid-2025: I get an overnight job, which gives me more time to work on music. So, I'm doing stuff, resub "High Voltage", get rejected. Meh, I'll get it next time. Then, something clicks in my head to completely redo my remix of "Death Egg Zone". But this time, I'll use "Million Dollar Baby" as the style base. I can literally hear it in my head. I get to work on it and post a demo in the OCR Discord 2 hours later. Other people there approve.

Some number of hours of work later, here we are. I hope y'all enjoy this.

BTW, a little inspiration to do this based on Cannon Fodder "Cannon Straits" and Sonic Colors "Everybody Wants to Rule the Wisps" which are also style-based remixes."

I'm a sucker for interpolation of non-VGM pieces in VGM arrangements, especially when it takes two great works and transforms it into something new and fresh. It's also great to see how other ReMixers can inspire other folks to approach their craft in new ways. Shoutout to the OCR community for weighing in on Seth's demo in the #workshop channel before he sent it off! By the way, have you checked out the OCR Discord yet? You should!

Judge Hemophiliac weighs in:

"This is very cool, I personally don't like the genre very much but I enjoyed this one. It's short but gets the job done. [...]

The source is clear to me and there's plenty of great personalization not only in genre adaption but in soloing. 1:24 synth guitar was an example of new part writing that fit in with the track. Excellent transitions at 0:54 and 1:50. Nice work Seth!"

Seconding Hemo on the soulful synth guitar. Did not expect it given the source inspirations, but it works so incredibly well with this piece!

While doing research for this writeup, I found out that Seth and I are practically neighbors in the nebulous "Philadelphia Metropolitan area" LinkedIn seems to designate for us. We've had a fair amount of ReMixers rep Philly throughout the years, but it's about time Seth gets the limelight with this million dollar jawn. You made it, Seth!