Speeding Towards Adventures: 25 Years of Sonic the Hedgehog Comments from album director Stepan Sudilovskiy (Black_Doom), co-director Jorrith Schaap (Jorito), visual artist Davy Owen (Odai), and ReMixers Album freely available at http://sonic25.ocremix.org Sonic has always been my favorite video game series. It has always meant a lot to me. I clearly remember the day when I asked my parents to buy some game and they bought Sonic Adventure DX. Of course, my reaction was nothing but fascination! The fast-paced addictive gameplay, vivid stages, and, of course, catchy music made my first experience of diving into Sonic universe one of the most memorable parts of my childhood. Then I started to learn more and more about Sonic the Hedgehog games, and they were all amazing to explore, but music remained the most enjoyable part of this entertainment. A few years later, I started to look for the soundtracks on the internet and downloaded almost every album existing at that time. I was listening to them on a daily basis, and I was listening to nothing but this music -- that's how obsessed I was with it! In the middle of 2012, I came across a remix of "Special Stage" theme from Sonic the Hedgehog 3, "Red Sphere, Blue Sphere" by Ben Briggs. Apparently, I had to head over to the Project Chaos website, grab the whole album and listen to it. That was another experience that changed my life drastically -- the idea of giving all-time favorite video game music a completely new life impressed me a lot. So, a few days later, I visited OCR and started to wander around. I was really surprised by how many arrangements and arrangement albums were published there! Finally, in the beginning of 2013, I joined the community. It was also the time when Temporal Duality was in development, so I was following the progress very closely. I'm a Sonic fan after all, so how could I miss something like that? So I must admit that this album inspired me to start this recruiting this album! Big shoutout to SuperiorX and Phonetic Hero! ;) Finally, about a year after registering on the OCR forums, I decided to start the album project. My vision for this project seemed to be simple: I wanted to cover as many games as possible (with up to 3 tracks per each game; yes, we ended up having 4 Sonic the Hedgehog 3 tracks, lol) as well as to represent a variety of music genres to represent the variety of Sonic's journeys. The project immediately started to gather lots of people, and that's not surprising at all, given how popular the Blue Blur is. And I understood that I needed some help, since the project was not going fast enough. This is where I asked Jorito to step in to direct the album along with me. Luckily, he agreed to help me, and that was one of those decisions that completely changed everything. From that moment, the project started to develop with immense speed. I just don't have enough words to express my gratitude -- he helped me so much! If I start to list everything he did for this album, I will probably never stop. Also, big thanks to Odai for such nice art, big thanks to the Sega composers for their work, and, finally, big thanks to all the musicians who contributed to this outstanding album. Directing it was a blast! Enjoy! - Stepan Sudilovsky (Black_Doom) Even though I have been part of this album for quite a while as a ReMixer, it was pretty late that I joined as an album co-director. And I'm glad I did, because it was an exciting and interesting experience to witness the creation of an album from "the other side." Since I'm no expert on things Sonic-related, I have to give mad props to Stepan for defining the vision for the project and doing a lot of the prep work that set things in motion and Odai for really capturing the Sonicness of Sonic. I was happy to be able to contribute some of my "get stuff done" skills, and helping guide the album and all the people who collaborated towards the final product was a blast. Really proud of the final result and I'm sure you'll enjoy the album as much as I did! - Jorrith Schaap (Jorito) OK, so I'm a Nintendo fanboy (boo! hiss!), so Mario was the icon that I grew up with. But when Black_Doom approached me to art an album commemorating 25 years of another extremely well-recognised childhood game character, how could I turn it down? My allegiances and rivalries were soon forgotten. When I approached the design process of this album cover, it didn't take me long to realise I wanted to pay homage to Sonic the Hedgehog as he is most recognised. Within minutes, I was sketching up the concept of our blue friend busting through that oh-so-memorable winged star ring from the menu screens. No time for wagging fingers and badass posing. Let's get down to it! And the back cover displaying a modified level start screen naturally followed suit. This whole procedure was a very organic one for me and I thoroughly enjoyed it. With only mild suggestions from the directors, it didn't take me long to complete the whole thing, and I must say I'm pretty pleased with it. I think it captures and reflects the fun-loving, bright and adventurous themes of both the games and the character, and is a good balance for the ReMixes that have been made for the album. - David Owen (Odai) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1-01. Jorito feat. Trev Wignall, Hank "The Spank Tank" Jankerson, The Nikanoru - "Gotta Start from Somewhere" Sources: Sonic the Hedgehog - "Title," "Invincibility"; Sonic the Hedgehog 3 - "Title" Original Composers: Masato Nakamura, Tomonori Sawada Black_Doom: Our journey starts with an incredible take on some classic Sonic jingles by Jorito with some assistance from Trev and Hank "The Spank Tank" Jankerson. I've been looking someone to make an album opener for a long time, but nothing worked out. Then I asked Jorrith to make the introduction to the album, and finally things started to happen. To be honest, I wanted to get something rather short and simple, just like in previous Sonic albums, but Jorito went above and beyond my expectations, and made this track. The quirky blend of EDM, violin, clarinet, accordion, and sax is probably not what you expect here, but I bet you'll love it :D Mad props to these guys for such a sweet start! Jorito: Stepan wanted an opening track for the album, in the same spirit as previous OCR Sonic albums. He asked me to create a remix of the iconic Sonic the Hedgehog title theme that started the series, and how could I refuse? Unfortunately, my ambition got the better of me and I didn't want to settle for a short opening remix for the album. Instead, I opted for a full-length track, but that proved to be quite a challenge, since the source tune is only 11 seconds long. So I cheated a bit and blended in the Sonic 1 "Invincibility" theme, as well as the Sonic 3 "Title" theme, as well as some EDM style builds and drops. And, of course, no Sonic opening track would be complete without a "Sega" opening choir, so I recorded myself and got some help from The Nikanoru to welcome you to the album. At the time I started on this track, I was mesmerized by the track "Caravan Bowser" by Flexstyle and XPRTNovice, and I thought it'd be interesting to try that style for the title remix. I dove into the electro swing genre and tried to create a vibe similar to the band Caravan Palace. I'm not sure I succeeded in exactly that, but I think the overall track is very enjoyable and it's definitely helped by the awesome performances by Trev and Aaron (Hank "The Spank Tank" Jankerson). It also was a good excuse to grab ye olde accordion and record some parts myself. I really dig the solo part where Trev and Aaron shred out and hype you up for the rest of the album adventure to come! Trev Wignall: Once again, Jorrith asked me to play some violin and I just had to oblige! His Sonic title remix was so much fun to play and shred on, and I had a blast. It was a great change of pace to bust out a fiddle solo over an upbeat EDM-style remix too! 1-02. Jorito feat. Final Kingdom, Tuberz McGee, Furilas, Azzykay316 - "Speeding Towards Adventure" Source: Sonic the Hedgehog - "Green Hill Zone" Original Composer: Masato Nakamura Black_Doom: Ah, the lovely "Green Hill Zone," one of the most recognizable VGM tunes and probably one of the most recognizable Sonic tunes in particular. It's been covered so many times in so many genres, so it's almost impossible to create a refreshing take on this classic theme. Initially, GHZ was claimed by Eino Keskitalo, along with "Bridge Zone," but he quickly dropped it. Then Jorrith asked whether he could claim this track, and I agreed, of course, but I didn't know what to expect. So when I heard what he had done, I was simply awestruck. The guitars, the drums, the vocals, the whistling -- everything clicked immediately. It's certainly one of those cases that make you ask "Could you ever imagine this track remixed this way?" Well, I guess there's now one more awesome take on "Green Hill Zone." :) Jorito: I originally missed this album project on OCR entirely! When I noticed that Eino Keskitalo had to drop his claim on "Green Hill Zone," I immediately jumped on the opportunity to remake this track, a classic of the Sonic series. Actually, also the one Sonic track I remember best from playing the game with a friend on his Sega Game Gear. Since "Green Hill Zone" has been remixed a gazillion times already, it was hard to to try to add something new to it. Inspired by Pharrell William's song "Happy," I thought a upbeat vocal pop track in that style might just work. The initial MIDI mockup was finished quickly, but for this kind of track MIDI ain't good enough. So I went on a recruiting spree on the OCR forums, starting with the vocals. I luckily found Final Kingdom willing to sing on the track, and she also was a tremendous help in the lyrics. It was also a good excuse to team up again with my regular collaborators Tuberz McGee on guitars and Furilas on bass. Last but not least is Azzykay316, who offered his services as a drummer on the forums and really made the track groove and the drum solo rock. Many thanks to my temp bandmates that were so cool to hop on this adventure with me and really make the track shine. I hope we managed to give a fresh take on "Green Hill Zone" and that you'll enjoy it a lot! Final Kingdom: This is my first collaboration on- or offline, and it was a great experience! I learned a lot about recording do's and don'ts and how to contribute to someone else's vision while still maintaining my own style. I've become more confident in my singing, thanks to Jorito's absolute faith in me delivering a good performance. Because the Sonic series holds a special place in my heart, I'm glad that my first contribution to this site could be this ReMix. Furilas: This was fun. I'll be pleased to groove along to it as I drive down the summer highways of Colorado in my Mustang convertible, both of which Jorrith said he'd pay me with. What a sport! Tuberz McGee: Jorrith called me in for the strumma strumma and I had a great time. <3 For a Sonic tune that I groan at whenever I hear it, this is a really fresh take on it. It's cool stuff. I love working with Jorrith, his arrangements are so dope and always find myself groovin' to them. This is no exception. Plus, that B section with the 3, 3, 3, 3, 2, 2 subdivision is soooooo cool. No way I could pass that up. 1-03. Eino Keskitalo - "Siillin melankolia" Sources: Sonic the Hedgehog (GG) - "Bridge Zone," "Green Hill Zone" Original Composers: Masato Nakamura, Yuzo Koshiro Black_Doom: I've never played 8-bit Sonic games a lot, and I'm not really familiar with some of the music, but there are, of course, some nice tunes, with "Bridge Zone" being one of them. The original song has a great sunny vibe, somewhat similiar to "Green Hill Zone." However, Eino gives it his own spin, adding a great touch of sadness, which may not be typical for Sonic music, but works here for sure! The contrast between darker and lighter parts creates a very neat atmosphere, so Eino's goal to evoke the sense of melancholy with this track is certainly achieved. After all, the song title can be translated as something like "Hedgehog's Melancholy" (I used Google Translate, so it may not be too accurate :p). Jorito: Eino brings us a dark and broody take on an upbeat original, and gives it his own twist, in typical Eino style. There's great use of sound effects, distortion, and other subtle effects in the background that work really well to set the mood, and, overall, the soundscape, the textures, and the occasional sparseness all serve the purpose of instilling a sense of melancholy in you. I really dig the "Green Hill Zone" cameo; it makes for a great ambient break and blends in very well without breaking the mood. Overall, I love this arrangement for its contrasting mood and vibe, definitely an interesting take on the original. Eino Keskitalo: I'm old school in my taste for Sonic. Less characters and less dialogue the better. Even Sonic 2 seems to have too much. To be fair, I haven't played that much Sonic outside the first one (in 8 and 16 bits), but I did grab Sonic Rush Adventure recently-ish and I would've definitely preferred about 25% of story and characters there! But I digress. I think I must have played Sonic first on a friend's Master System. Another friend got a Mega Drive (and Sonic, of course) a little later, and if I had played the 16-bit version first, the slower, more traditional platformer pacing of the 8-bit version would feel weird to me. But it doesn't, and I can vouch for the 8-bit Sonic 1 being a great game for the platforms. Though I know it as a Master System game, it was developed for the Game Gear first (confirmed by Yuzo Koshiro in The Untold History of Japanese Game Developers: Vol. 1). Koshiro's company, Ancient, handled the conversion, and he did the music. Some of the soundtrack consists of SN76489 renditions of the 16-bit tunes (such as "Green Hill Zone," which is also featured in this arrangement), and some are original tracks composed for this version (such as "Bridge Zone" music). The conversions are good and everything is quite chirpy and poppy, "Bridge Zone" being rather a cheerful track. It segues well from GHZ, same key and tempo and everything. I'm not sure why, but this arrangement is the fifth time I'm dabbling with "Bridge Zone." It's not really a favourite piece of VGM for me, but it's a good one, and I really like the game. Unlike the original, this arrangement is a bit dark. It started with an experiment on the keyboard, to see if the melody of the A part would work in minor key, and I would say it does. The A part has a ABAC-type structure, but I found repeating the melody of the first two bars built up a nice tension in the minor mode. After a bunch of attempts trying to shoehorn the B part of the original in the minor mode, I went with the original progression, which does give a nice contrast to the darker verse. (These attempts did yield a usage of a bit of the B part melody as a countermelody in the verse.) I felt I needed a bit more material, so I dipped into the intro part of "Green Hill Zone," utilizing the four-note arpeggio and the melody, but having it follow a changing chord structure, so that this part, too, turns dark. I'm pretty sure this track was at some point an attempt of doing things quickly, but that rarely succeeds for me. The chorused bassline utilizes samples of my own playing from "Miljoonamiehen muistelmat." I tried to keep the beat simple and allow myself some copy-pasting and previous drum sound usage. I think the resulting stiff groove is all right. I put in plenty of electronic drum samples and noises to provide some colour. The rest of the instrumentation is pretty much just e-piano, regular piano, Mellotron, and a cheap synth sample from an oooold FastTracker 2 tune of mine. Dealing with the last one took a good amount of work and some feedback from the project directors Black_Doom and (regular collab partner) Jorito. I also added some subtlish atmospheric samples (thunder sheets and rainstick from freesounds.org) after Black_Doom's comments. Source usage part by part: 0:00-0:18 - No source in the intro. 0:18-0:35 - A-part of the source begins, repeating the first two bars of the melody (with some variation). 0:35-0:52 - The melody of B-part plays as a countermelody, and at the end the A-part material resolves to use its B portion. 0:52-1:09 - Source B-part, used fairly straightforwardly. 1:10-1:25 - The A-part is followed in full "ABAC" structure. 1:25-1:42 - A-part goes "ABAB", with the Mellotron providing the B-part countermelody. 1:42-1:58 - I hope the "GHZ" intro is recognizable! 1:58-2:15 - "GHZ" intro is taken through some chord changes. 2:15-2:32 - First half of the bitcrushed synth solo is original... 2:32-2:48 - ...until here "BZ" A-part is either in the background or at the front (apart from 2:40-2:42). 2:48-3:17 - B-part of "BZ" is repeated twice. 3:18-3:31 - The tail end of the outro has no source. That's about it! This was my second attempt at producing an 8-bit Sonic 1 arrangement for the 25th anniversary project, and I'm glad I was able to finish it. Thanks to the directors for steering & feedback and running the project in general! 1-04. Marvin Valentin - "My Frozen Gallery" Source: Sonic Lost World - "Frozen Factory - Zone 1" Original Composer: Tomoya Ohtani Black_Doom: We don't have an Ice Cap remix for you in this album (how dare we?!), but instead there's something equally cold, frozen, and less cloying. Here, Marvin doesn't reinvent a wheel and turns a dance track with a strong Christmas vibe into a lighthearted rock track with a no-less-strong Christmas vibe. While this remix sticks to the original a lot, you will love it anyway. The conservative vision here makes everything just better! ;) Jorito: After Eino's melancholy track, it's time to pick up speed again. After all, gotta go fast! The original track, "Frozen Factory," is very reminiscent of a Christmas song to me, opening with sleighbells and a catchy melody that sticks in your brain without you wanting it to. Marvin retains that Christmas feeling in his remix but it also treats us to a rock vibe that works well with the source material. I could totally imagine this remix being in the game, and that's without even knowing the game myself :) Marvin Valentin: This is one of the few tracks I remixed on my own. I always do it with others musicians, and this the first time doing the song on my own for this style. It is a beautiful song with a nice progression. xD 1-05. YamaYama - "Trouble in Watertown" Source: Sonic the Hedgehog 3 - "Hydrocity Zone: Act 2" Original Composers: Bobby Brooks, Brad Buxer, C. Cirocco Jones, Darryl Ross, Doug Grigsby III, Geoff Grace, Jun Senoue, Masaru Setsumaru, Masayuki Nagao, Michael Jackson, Sachio Ogawa, Tatsuyuki Maeda, Tokuhiko Uwabo, Tomonori Sawada, Yoshiaki Kashima Black_Doom: Much like "Green Hill Zone" from STH and "Chemical Plant Zone" from STH2, Hydrocity Zone is probably the most iconic stage of Sonic 3 (Ice Cap you say? What's that?), so it's obvious it had to be to included in this album. One of YamaYama's members, Milo Fultz, asked me asked whether his band could cover this source. Being a big fan of their songs (and jazz in general), I simply couldn't resist his offer, so I accepted it with big pleasure! The final result is a classic YamaYama jazz/fusion track with fluctuating tempo and nice lounge feeling. Jorito: Hydrocity Zone has great music. Especially Act 2 is a very fun and funky track and makes me wanna groove. Of course, that gives high expectations to what YamaYama can do with it. Fortunately, they don't disappoint, with a very varied jazz/fusion style track with some great performances (I dig the sax!). Awesome to have a track with a full band on the album, it definitely feels very alive! Milo Fultz of YamaYama: Besides mixing my love of (maybe) Michael Jackson and my love of VGM into one epic soundtrack to an equally epic game, I have no comment. :) 1-06. DusK - "Hedgehog Elimination Engine" Source: Sonic & Knuckles - "Boss" Original Composers: Howard Drossin, Jun Senoue, Masaru Setsumaru, Masayuki Nagao, Sachio Ogawa, Tatsuyuki Maeda, Tokuhiko Uwabo, Tomonori Sawada, Yoshiaki Kashima Black_Doom: Every now and then, Sonic encounters enemies on his way, so it's time for the first boss battle! When I asked Dustin to claim a track, his pick was the boss theme from Sonic & Knuckles. It was not much of a surprise, and I'm really glad he went with this source. It perfectly lends itself to some heavy shreddage with screaming synths and pounding drums -- a classic DusK track. Not much else to say -- rock on and eliminate everything! \m/ Jorito: Time to kick up the adrenaline levels with some heavy guitar shreddage and DusK's signature sounds. He did a great job bringing out the energy of the original and adding to it with hard-hitting drums, chugging rhythm guitars, and heavy leads that all bring out the aggressiveness you need to battle the evil robots Eggman sends your way. Go, Sonic, go get 'em! DusK: Sonic & Knuckles is, bar none, my favorite game of all time. I have a lot of fond memories of laying on my grandmother's floor in front of her huge (for the time) TV, with my Genesis hooked up and just spending hours blasting all the way through the game. The music still hits me right in the feels whenever I hear it. One piece that always stuck out for me is the minor bosses BGM from S&K, which carries over to Sonic 3 when the cartridges are linked. I always thought it would make a great metal remix, so here I am, taking it on. I gave it my own stylistic touch, with the heavy breakdowns and shreddy rhythms that I tend to do for a large chunk of my remixes, as well as a sizable injection of synth work reminiscent of some of my early mixes. I wanted to bring my style back to its roots, just like S3&K does for me every time I play it. 1-07. Sterlyng Powell - "The Power of Choices" Source: Sonic Advance 3 - "Options" Original Composers: Fumie Kumatani, Hideaki Kobayashi, Kenichi Tokoi, Masaru Setsumaru, Tatsuyuki Maeda, Tomoya Ohtani Black_Doom: I haven't owned a Game Boy Advance, so the Sonic Advance series was mostly unnoticed by me. Although, I remember asking my friends to give me their consoles just to take a look at the games and complete a couple of levels as well. Anyway, after an excellent in-your-face track, it's nice to change the pace and take a listen of something light and calm. Menu/options/other screen themes aren't supposed to be long and creative songs, and the source track here is no exception. However, Sterlyng's take on an expectedly repetitive "Options" theme is great stuff with a really cool (pun intented!) vision and tons of polish. Jorito: After DusK's epic boss battle and guitar shreddage, it's time for a break. Due to its nature as a bit of menu music, the "Options" source track is quite short and repetitive, but Sterlyng managed to create an attractive soundscape that keeps the interest. I dig the ambiance in the mix, which makes me want to chill (instead of making a choice in the game menu), especially when the main part with the bell lead and the piano arp kick in while the rhythm keeps you moving along. Sterlyng Powell: Sonic the Hedgehog has remained my favorite video game character since the day I started playing video games. He's had his highs and his lows, but through it all I've defended him among my friends and family on various occasions. Everyone I know can tell you that the love I have for Sonic is real. Not to mention the classic comics, bookbags, hats, and shirts that I wear on a daily basis to show support and so everyone knows that I'm a true fan. I've always liked the music of Sonic, and the difference in system is no exception. Sonic Advance 3 came a little later than other classic games in the Sonic franchise, but the music throughout the game is fantastic, especially the options screen. Many games have great tracks as far as options screens go, but this is one that stood out to me among others. And just like having options, the way I envisioned making this piece is definitely not how the finished product came out, but I'm glad for it. I could've chosen to stick with the formula given or change it up, and I'm glad I made the right choice :) 1-08. zykO - "The Long War" Source: Sonic the Hedgehog 2 - "Oil Ocean Zone" Original Composer: Masato Nakamura Black_Doom: Ah, Waleed! Taking this guy on board was a matter of course, since the album really needed something epic, something mesmerizing he is capable of. With this remix, Waleed takes listeners to the very far past of the place where Oil Ocean Zone now resides, and tells us the story of this place. Listening to this track, you can easily imagine ancient people crossing a desert on their camels. The sun is burning and the desert doesn't seem to have an end. Poor people. And, so, thousands of years passed by until the oil was found there, and now there's an ocean of this damn oil which flooded the beautiful desert. Jorito: Time for to shift gears again with some epic ethnic music. Waleed brings out the Arabian vibes in "Oil Ocean Zone" and tells us a tale of battles long past, with lots of dynamics and movement. I didn't know what to expect when I first heard this, but the cinematic story of this track grows and grows on me the more I listen to it, and I get lost in the Middle East for a bit. A track that really stands out from the rest of the album, in a good way. zykO: Sonic 2 was very easily one of my favorite games growing up; like a top three comfort game sort of "favorite." I played developmentally stunting, stifling, countless, repetitive, and obsessive hours of it. As you'd expect, a substantial part of that was due to the fantastic music and Oil Ocean Zone's track is near the top of that list. I always knew I'd eventually arrange it and flesh it with oud, duduk, darbuka, and ney -- throw in a splash of groove and some acoustic guitar. Maybe some classical Western players like a piano or cello. Rolled it around in some wind-cured sand and ended up with "The Long War," a track about everything and nothing at all. Dig it. 1-09. WillRock - "Electromotive Skyforce" Sources: Sonic & Knuckles - "Flying Battery Zone: Act 1," "Flying Battery Zone: Act 2" Original Composers: Howard Drossin, Jun Senoue, Masaru Setsumaru, Masayuki Nagao, Sachio Ogawa, Tatsuyuki Maeda, Tokuhiko Uwabo, Tomonori Sawada, Yoshiaki Kashima Black_Doom: When I was recruiting people for this album, there were some ReMixers I knew I had to invite and WillRock was certainly one of them. Luckily, he agreed to join us and claimed an iconic track from Sonic & Knuckles -- "Flying Battery Zone." And nothing had been happening for more than a year, yeah. But then he managed to come up with a finished track in less than a month! All in all, this is a classic WillRock track -- there's some cool vintage stuff, wild synth soloing, a bit of neat guitar shreddage thrown in for a good measure, and whatnot. Don't lose your consciousness when listening to this track, especially if you're afraid of flights and/or badass music! Jorito: Will was a silent claimer for a long time, but when he delivers, he delivers! In true WillRock style, we get treated with his crazy synth arps, signature solos and typical arrangement flair to keep you on your toes. What more could you want? During the creation of the track, he posted a snippet of his work on SoundCloud, where he mashed up his WIP with Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance." That mashup will be burned in my brain for ages to come and it can't be unheard anymore, but I'm happy to say that, without the vocals, this track is even better. WillRock: I made a remix! ^-^ 1-10. Unknown Alias - "Zero Unit's Remaining" Source: Sonic Adventure - "Theme of 'E-102γ'" Original Composer: Fumie Kumatani Black_Doom: Sonic Adventure (the PC version, to be specific) is the first game of the series I've ever played, so it means a lot to me. It may be a bit cheesy by today's standards, but I love it a lot, and some of Sonic fans share this love with me for sure! I think it was quite groundbreaking for its time with 6 different playable characters (and unlockable Metal Sonic), each with their own gameplay, 7 stories (including the final), and other great stuff. Of course, the music is one of the most memorable parts of this game. This game also introduced a bunch of new characters, and one of them is E-102 Gamma, a robot built by Dr. Eggman. While Gamma's story isn't the main story of the game, I suppose that it's definitely the most touching one. It's all about friendship and sacrifice, which is especially awesome considering the fact that Gamma is a robot. His theme seems to be representing the essence of his storyline quite well, but UA's take on it is so wonderful that it fits the game much better than the original. It sounds just perfect with all these wonderful piano licks, sick sax solos, and sweet organ goodness! Jorito: Sonic Adventure is one of the very few Sonic games I actually played and own, and I listened to (and enjoyed) the Sonic Adventure soundtrack a lot. So it's good to see SA have a presence on the album. Unfortunately, I didn't play the game enough to fully enjoy E-102 Gamma's story, but I appreciate what Unknown Alias has done to tell the story. It just has this vibe in it that both reminds me of Sonic and JRPGs for some reason, in a good way. Unknown Alias: The Dreamcast probably has more character to it than any other console I've ever played. A lot of the games on the console just give me a really nice feeling whenever I think about them. It gives off these wonderful visions of blue skies and airy synth pads. One of the biggest proponents of that feeling comes from Sonic Adventure. Even to this day, the game is still very unique and fun (aside from a silly camera). While it's very popular to say Sonic didn't make a good transition to 3D platforming, I'd have to argue that, even though some things from the original series are lost in the translation, I feel the things they replaced it with have their own charm and aesthetic. While Jun Senoue gets a lot of love for his work on the soundtrack, I feel that the other composers don't get enough credit for some of the work they did, especially Fumie Kumatani. The most notable tracks she made for SA1 include theme's for the Chaos, Big, Amy, and E-102 Gamma. If you listen to the four I listed, they all have incredibly diverse soundscapes and tone. Her tracks range from light pop songs to jungle/DnB with "Goin' Down!? ...for Speed Highway," which has a great classic acid baseline. E-102 is without a doubt my favorite of hers though. The song follows a very lively drum beat and baseline, with what sounds like some Solina string machine doing the chords. I'd hesitate to call it jazz, as there's not really a traditional jazz chord progression going on. However, the song has the same flare and character of a good, fast-paced jazz song. I absolutely love the hammer-ons she composes before some notes on the piano, which give so much more impact to the already greatly composed melodies. The song takes a very different turn during the halfway point and goes from chromatic movements and a very minor sound to an incredibly soft and beautiful major chord progression that really turns the track into something memorable for me. I was incredibly happy to work on a remix of Gamma's theme for the 25th anniversary album, and pay tribute to what I consider the best 3D game in the series. 2-01. Pl511 - "Never Fear the Fall" Source: Sonic the Hedgehog (XB360) - "His World ~Theme of Sonic the Hedgehog~"; Cameos: Mega Man 9 - "Galaxy Fantasy (Galaxy Man Stage)," Sonic the Hedgehog - "Green Hill Zone" Original Composers: Tomoya Ohtani, Yu Shimoda, Masato Nakamura Black_Doom: This game was obviously my first choice when it came time to buy some games for the then-brand-new Xbox 360. I remember having a lot of problems when I was playing it -- and it's not just because the game is kinda broken. :p The music there, despite that fact, is fantastic, and Sonic's theme is one of my personal highlights of this soundtrack. It just perfectly fits him -- fast-paced, heroic, anthemic -- one of the best Sonic themes, IMO. So what Pl511 did here probably reflects the major point of remixing stuff -- taking a song and giving it a completely new life. She turned "His World" into a mild orchestral track with such an ease, that you would never believe that the original is a badass punk-rock track with some rap thrown in. This game definitely needs more attention in terms of remixing, so mad props to the ReMixer for the effort! Jorito: One of the hallmark songs of Sonic '06, and despite the game not being very well received, "His World" is probably one of the best parts of that entire game. PI511 gives us a calmer take on the original punk/rap track, and the slower pace and the orchestral instruments make it an almost soothing, peaceful journey with just the right amount of tension. Not something I'd immediately associate with a Sonic track (which normally screams guitars and loud noises to me), but I love the contrast with the original and the way it flows. Pl511: I have been wanting to work on an arrangement of "His World," and recently I finally felt like I could do this track justice. This arrangement is a little slower than the original, with an emphasis on some pretty powerful percussion and brass instruments. I really enjoyed working through almost every part of this arrangement, including a little bit of "Green Hill Zone," a little original composition, and even a short little quote from Mega Man 9's "Galaxy Man Stage" in the introduction. This whole arrangement is loosely based on the piano parts I wrote for Plasma3Music's remix of the same track, which you can find on his YouTube channel. I hope you guys enjoy this. It's really been a continuing work-in-progress for quite a few months now and I'm really pleased with it! 2-02. Audiocolor - "The Path Less Trampled" Sources: Sonic the Hedgehog 3 - "Competition Menu," "File Select" Original Composers: Bobby Brooks, Brad Buxer, C. Cirocco Jones, Darryl Ross, Doug Grigsby III, Geoff Grace, Jun Senoue, Masaru Setsumaru, Masayuki Nagao, Michael Jackson, Sachio Ogawa, Tatsuyuki Maeda, Tokuhiko Uwabo, Tomonori Sawada, Yoshiaki Kashima Black_Doom: Just like in the case of Sterlyng Powell, I didn't really know how this track would turn out when I let Justin make his claim. And, just like in the case of Sterlyng, the source track here isn't the longest thing at all. Arranging such short tunes as menu themes must be really difficult, since there's not too much material to work with, and this track proves it. It has been in the work-in-progress state for a veeeeeeeeeeeerrry long time (about 1.5-2 years), but in the end we received something worth having in this album. Pretty interesting take on a simple original -- give it a listen. P.S. Speaking of arrangements of this theme, I must mention Rexy's "Schumacher Bar" -- one of my favorites from Project Chaos, one of my favorite works of hers, and just one of my favorite solo piano works. <3 Jorito: This track has come a long way since the first version I heard. That first version went over quite a few iterations to get it in its current shape and form. Of course, Audiocolor didn't make things easy for himself by picking a source track that's notably low on usable material, but, with a few rounds of feedback on the flow of the track and the mixing, I think the final result turned out pretty well. Audiocolor: Over a year ago, I dusted off all my equipment and started making electronic music again. This was right around the same time I stumbled across this album in the forums. I thought it would be a great project to warm myself up on, as well as it being my first submission to OC ReMix. Sonic 3&K is my favorite game in the series, and I originally had the idea to remix all of the competition tracks, the menu being the first. Seeing how I already had the base of it down, it was my selection for the album. I went through plenty of trial and error, but, thanks to the input from Jorito and Black_Doom, I feel like I finished something cool! 2-03. Tuberz McGee - "By the Seaside" Source: Sonic Heroes - "Stage 01 : Seaside Hill" Original Composer: Jun Senoue Black_Doom: Sonic Heroes was my second attempt at jumping into the Sonic universe. This game has a lot unique stuff, like the team-based gameplay, and it just holds a special place in my heart, because, just like Sonic Adventure, it made my childhood great. Do I even need to mention how great the music is? Every track there is just amazing, but "Seaside Hill" will always remain the most iconic one. Callum's rock take on this track is quite conservative -- there's not too much departure from the source track, but that's the beauty of it, seriously. Also, it has some ridiculously good vocals thrown in for good measure. Classic Callum stuff, 'nuff said. <3 Jorito: Aaah, "Seaside Hill" from Sonic Heroes. Heralded by some people to be as iconic as "Green Hill Zone," Callum created an energetic, upbeat rock version complete with vocals and geeky lyrics that lives and breathes the vibe of the later Sonic games. It especially reminds me of the Sonic Adventure soundtracks for some reason. I had the privilege of mixing and mastering this track for Callum (a payback for all the times he helped me out with guitars in my crazy music) and tried to bring out the energy that he hid within. The final result is very enjoyable and it's probably one of my favorites on the album. Tuberz McGee: I played Seaside Hill a lot as a kid. I had the Sonic Heroes demo on my PC and I played this level like... a million times. This music is imprinted in my brain as much as my times-tables. I always used to make up my own lyrics and sing over it, so I just unearthed an idea from my youth and ran with it. Thank you, 9-year-old me. You're a champ. Eat your vegetables. I rustled this track up and (unfortunately) I was running out of time as I was completing my honours thesis at the same time, with the due dates around about the same time. Though I couldn't finish the track off, (fortunately) Jorito was able to step in and save the day (again). Jorrith saves my ass a lot. I really ought to buy him a drink or something. But yeah, enjoy~! Find out the things that matter, after the Sega Saturn. <3 2-04. jnWake - "Chemical Fusion" Source: Sonic the Hedgehog 2 - "Chemical Plant Zone" Original Composer: Masato Nakamura Black_Doom: When jnWake told me that he wanted to claim "Chemical Plant Zone," I knew it would be something very interesting, but I didn't expect this at all. Unlike most of his tracks, this one is heavily inspired by various fusion bands, which is quite an unexpected approach to this popular theme, but it works very well. I'm really glad I asked this guy to be a part of the project. :) Jorito: Another Sonic track that has been remixed to death, making it hard to come up with something fresh. I really love what jnWake did here, the rock fusion style he chose is reminiscent of T-Square and works really well with the source material. Filled with crazy solos and breaks, it makes for a very cool and original take on the track and an overall very cool listening adventure that has me nodding to the beat in approval. jnWake: So, this'll be a slightly weird thing to say for a Sonic tribute album, but I've actually never been a Sonic fan. Well, I guess that's because I never owned a Sega console, so I didn't get many opportunities to actually play Sonic games as a kid. Despite that, I do have vivid memories of playing Sonic 2 and failing spectacularly and frequently at the Chemical Plant Zone stage. While the memory itself isn't particularly pleasant, it also comes with awesome background music! When the opportunity came to participate in this album, I immediately thought of covering one of Sonic 2's most obscure and less remixed tracks: "Chemical Plant Zone"! Uh, something's wrong with that affirmation... I tend to like covering tracks that aren't that popular, but I couldn't help myself this time, since this track is simply phenomenal. So, when I started doing the mix, I listened to the many (many) remixes of it that exist both here and on YouTube. To my "surprise," a large percent of them were what some people would call "technomanga." OK, that isn't really surprising, but this song is actually pretty funky, so it surprised me a bit that nobody (that I could find) actually had done a more "conservative" remix, style-wise. With that in mind, I went for a more conservative take on the track inspired by its jazzier/funkier roots instead of the dance-oriented approach most other remixes went with. Talking about the remix, I also settled on a small goal: using FM patches. To get a bit of that Genesis feel, I tried my hand at crafting some patches with FM8 for this remix. The bass patch and the two synth leads were born this way! I'm no expert at using FM8, but I like how they came out! On the arrangement, I didn't go for anything really complex, but I'll detail it here anyway: 0:00-0:30: Pretty straightforward take on the first section of the source. 0:30-0:45: Based on the second melody of the source. Chord progression is "original." 0:45-1:27: Synth/guitar solo duel! Backing chords are an alteration of the first section. Also, drum solo! 1:27-1:43: Straightforward take on the second section of the source. 1:43-2:09: Based on the melody of the previous section. 2:09-2:34: Based on the third section of the source (the transition that ends the loop). 2:34-end: Based on the first section of the source, taking some liberties here and there. Hope you like it! 2-05. Faseeh, Jorito feat. Joshua Taipale - "Minecart Adventures" Source: Sonic Rush Adventure - "Coral Cave (Act 1)" Original Composer: Mariko Nanba Black_Doom: Sonic Rush series isn't my favourite part of the franchise, probably due to the fact I never owned a Nintendo DS. Although I still managed to play some levels from Sonic Rush and its sequel, Sonic Rush Adventure, using an emulator. Both games are quite important for the series, because they introduced some new characters and gameplay features, but, hey, who cares? The most important thing is that both games have exceptionally unique soundtracks, not quite common for Sonic games -- they have an unapologetic chunk of funk thrown in, and it just works! Originally, this track was a collab only between Faseeh and Joshua, but about 1.5 weeks before the final dealine he asked someone to take his track and spice it up quite a bit. And then Jorrith stepped in and saved the day! Hooray! So, yeah, enjoy this energetic funky blend of EDM and rock. Jorito: A few days before the deadline, Faseeh posted to the forums that he wasn't fully satisfied with the track he submitted, and asked for somebody willing to collaborate on the track and improve it. I was able to step in at the last moment and played around with the arrangement a bit and tried to improve the flow of it. Since Faseeh already had some funky guitar elements in there, I thought a bit more funk wouldn't harm, so I added some more funk guitar riffs as well as some e-piano and some leads and SFX. Overall, I think it worked out pretty well, and I'm happy to have contributed to this track. Also the first time I ever remixed a remix! Faseeh: The Sonic the Hedgehog series has marveled me since the age of 10, and, to this day, the Sonic games remain my favourite video games. Without Sonic, I'd have not gotten into music production at all. Thank you Sega, Sonic Team, and Sonic, for changing my life. When I was unhappy with my rendition of the track, Jorito came in and really provided the facelift it needed. Thank you to Black_Doom and Jorito for the support throughout this project. I dedicate this remix to everyone who has supported me throughout my music journey thus far and the brilliant musicians in the Sonic franchise, who have inspired me. 2-06. Bowlerhat feat. audio fidelity - "Underwater Jog" Source: Sonic Colors - "Aquarium Park - Act 1" Original Composer: Tomoya Ohtani Black_Doom: Water-themed levels are now quite common for Sonic games, so if the game's concept is based around amusement parks, there must be a place for an aquapark. A giant one, of course. The original track has a cool beat-driven groove to it, but the remix Jorik gives us here is completely different from its roots -- the amount of energy was decreased, and the tempo was slowed down, so now we have a very good relaxing track with some sweet piano, nice percussion, light flute soloing, and acoustic bass assistance from Jay Yaskin, also known as audio fidelity (who also did the mixing here). This is actually another track that has been in the WIP stage for a long time, but after lots of feedback this track finally got to what it is now. Enjoy your underwater jug... eh, I mean jog. Jorito: Another track that has been long in the making. Jorik and Jay did a good job turning the original DnB-inspired track into something relaxing with a jazzy vibe. And since it's played fully with live instruments, it has that extra bit of life in it. The track needed quite a few iterations of feedback, re-recording, and deadline extensions to get it into its current shape, but I'm glad it made it on the album after all the hard work that was poured into it. Bowlerhat: I started working on this track two years ago. In those years, my abilities have grown a lot, and I think that's nicely reflected in my mix. I nevertheless couldn't have made this track without the wonderful help of Jay, who immensely helped me out on bass and mixing. I'm also very thankful to Black_Doom and Jorito for always giving me feedback and endlessly extending the deadline for two years in order to compensate for my lack of experience and expertise. I've learned so much by making this track, and I hope everyone will enjoy listening to it. audio fidelity: Jorik asked me to help her with her track. I was reluctant with my schedule, but ultimately felt I had something to offer and appreciated the contribution with Chronology. I'm glad I did. I think we have a really sweet piece here that came out great. She basically did everything and I just helped her achieve her vision through production and adding some bass. Thanks, Jorik, and glad to see this work out for the best. 2-07. Sbeast - "Of Cruelty and Mustache" Source: Sonic the Hedgehog 2 - "Robotnik Battle" Original Composer: Masato Nakamura Black_Doom: The Sonic the Hedgehog series has a bunch of awesome boss themes for sure. The boss theme from Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is probably the first tune that comes to my mind when someone says "boss battle theme." It has been covered just lots of times, and most of the arrangements are rock covers, so it's quite difficult to create a surprisingly new and fresh take on this theme. Scott managed to come up with an awesome track, an energetic blend of blazing rock and majestic military march. And it's hard not to enjoy, isn't it? Jorito: It's time to bring out the guitars and shred our way towards the last part of the album. The source track would have made for a pretty straightforward metal remix, but I'm glad Scott didn't choose that route and instead opted for a metal + orchestra style (a combination which I like). There's some quality shreddage in here, especially near the end. The title still makes me smile because of its sheer brilliance whenever I read it, so bonus points for that. Sbeast: It was difficult choosing a song from the Sonic series to arrange because there are so many great ones, but I decided to go with the boss theme from Sonic 2 in the end. Originally, I was going to make a standard metal arrangement of this track, but I later added some orchestral elements and synths to make the song more interesting to listen to. Because the original theme is relatively short, I decided to make several dynamic, texture, and instrumentation changes throughout to add variety to the arrangement. I think it turned out pretty well in the end and I am pleased with the result. 2-08. HeavenWraith - "Pax Eggmanica -Sear & Reave-" Source: Sonic the Hedgehog - "Scrap Brain Zone" Original Composer: Masato Nakamura Black_Doom: Can you feel the sunshine? No? That's right, because we're entering the final stage of our adventure right now! So prepare for your worst nightmare, ahahahahaha! Um... anyway, "Scrap Brain Zone" is not the most popular material from this game, judging by what OCR has for this game. And there's not a single metal rendition of this track on OCR at all! Luckily, we have Antanas with his brutal, face-melting remix of this fantastic source, and now justice is done! Enjoy if you can. Jorito: Screeching guitar shreddage and symphony orchestra? Yes, please! HeavenWraith gives us a very diverse arrangement with lots of variation and movement. Antanas said it's mostly inspired by Nightwish, but it also reminds me of Motoi Sakuraba's work for some reason (and that's a good thing!). Also dig the carnival-like part at the ending that gives it a nice atmospheric-but-creepy turn before picking up the energy again and rolling on to its ending climax. HeavenWraith: This track started off as rather simplistic prog metal, instruments being that of a metal band plus a few synths. Over the course of the song, I noticed that some of the synths did not sound well when under the spotlight and I just needed that heavy brass sound... and the Pandora's box was opened -- BAM -- almost full-blown symphonic orchestra. While the arrangement was very taxing to do, it was also interesting to work on. Combining all the different elements into one cohesive soundscape was quite a challenge and mixing was, admittedly, more than I could confidently handle. Nevertheless, even if it's not perfect, the mixing job is still better than my previous works, so I'm just happy that I've improved. Incidentally, this is the first track I have recorded with my first guitar that isn't garbage -- Schecter Hellraiser C-1. And, oh boy, as some of you could've guessed, that thing has a Floyd Rose. I really abused the thing in some of the solos and divebombs. Inspirations? Mostly Nightwish. A sort of fusion of colder atmosphere Oceanborn style and bombastic symphonic feel of the later albums. Some of the orchestration techniques and tricks I picked up from Hirano Yoshihisa (Hunter x Hunter [2011], Ouran High School Host Club, Death Note). To wrap up, when looking back, I believe I made several mistakes when planning this track which are too late to fix now, but I believe it's still a decent piece of music and can provide good times for those who enjoy prog metal and/or symphonic metal. 2-09. Chernabogue feat. Furilas, Tuberz McGee, Hank "The Spank Tank" Jankerson - "Skabotnik" Source: Sonic the Hedgehog 3 - "Final Boss" Original Composers: Bobby Brooks, Brad Buxer, C. Cirocco Jones, Darryl Ross, Doug Grigsby III, Geoff Grace, Jun Senoue, Masaru Setsumaru, Masayuki Nagao, Michael Jackson, Sachio Ogawa, Tatsuyuki Maeda, Tokuhiko Uwabo, Tomonori Sawada, Yoshiaki Kashima Black_Doom: So here we are! This is the final stretch! All we have to do is to face the final boss. However, Alex does it here with style and finesse -- he takes an army of his friends (a sax player and a bunch of guitarists) and turns everyone's favorite final boss theme into an awesome ska/surf rock track. The final boss has never been so fun and entertaining before! Originally, I asked Alex to claim Sonic 3's credits theme, since he's good at making orchestral stuff as well, but he quickly dropped his claim, and started remixing this track. And I'm glad I allowed him to drop the credits theme, since this is now easily one of my favorite remixes of this boss battle theme. Mad props for this work to him and his assistants! Jorito: Originally, Alex claimed the Sonic 3 credits theme, but had a bad case of writer's block and switched to the Sonic 3 final boss theme. I'm happy he did, because what he came up with is a good infusion of rock melded with funk married with bits of ska! That might sound like a weird combination, but it does work great. Alex was very open to feedback on mixing (which I gladly provided) and I was glad I could hook him up with Aaron (Hank "The Spank Tank" Jankerson) for the sax parts, because a track like this really comes to life with real instruments. As Stepan puts it: "Dang, this is so addictive -- I can't get enough of it." Chernabogue: This track was a ton of fun to make, despite a big creative meltdown at the beginning. It's a big mix of blues, ska, rock, and whatever you want. Once again, I must thank my collaborators (Callum, Mac, Aaron) for allowing my arrangement to sound super-mega-awesome (and not like a MIDI pile of crap). You guys rock. Thanks to Black_Doom for letting me going over many deadlines and to Jorito for his precious time and help and Discord discussions. Hope you'll like this remix as I liked making it, minus the deadline stress and mixing problems! 2-10. KingTiger - "The Light at the End" Source: Sonic the Hedgehog 3 - "Ending"; Cameos: Sonic the Hedgehog 3 - "Title Screen," Sonic & Knuckles - "Title Screen," "Ending" Original Composers: Bobby Brooks, Brad Buxer, C. Cirocco Jones, Darryl Ross, Doug Grigsby III, Geoff Grace, Michael Jackson, Tomonori Sawada, Howard Drossin Black_Doom: Sadly, every adventure must come to an end, and so we have to end our adventure here, with this awesome electronica take on the ending theme from S3. I remember my feelings when I heard the source for the first time -- it simply left me speechless. The slightly repetitive, but unbelievably catchy melody, the soul-touching bittersweet atmosphere instantly made it my favorite Sonic tunes of all time. So when I was looking for people to claim stuff, I wanted to find someone to tackle this track in an orchestral fashion -- this was just my dream. I asked Chernabogue to remix this track, but he quickly dropped it, and then it was picked again by KingTiger, who wanted to create an uplifting trance track. It's not what I originally wanted to have, but things seemed to turn out pretty nicely, and I really dig what Corey made here. Well, hope you enjoyed this adventure, see ya~. Jorito: When Chernabogue dropped his claim for the ending credits, KingTiger stepped in with the suggestion to do an uplifting trance kind of track. Not quite the orchestral ending Stepan had in mind originally, but, listening to what Corey created, that's not a bad thing, not at all. Corey had some trouble finding the time to work on his track, so it was a big rush to the deadline. It was worth it though, and I think it makes for an excellent album closer that instills you with positive vibes and an appropriate sense of closure. KingTiger: I was eyeing this Sonic album for quite some time, hoping to have time to jump in on a source somewhere -- more specifically, a source meaningful to me. Thankfully, that opportunity presented itself when Chernabogue requested to drop the Sonic 3 credits theme and take on the S3 final boss theme instead. Jorito and Black_Doom had specified that any credits theme from any Sonic game could be chosen for the album, but they were *really* hoping to get a ReMix for the S3 credits theme, specifically. Seeing as this source has always been a favorite of mine, I seized the opportunity and created this epic/soaring progressive trance mix, doing my best to include lots of creative twists and ideas. (I also threw in, a la jazzy-Rexy style, the melodies from the opening themes from Sonic 3 and Sonic & Knuckles, as well as the beginning melody from the Sonic & Knuckles ending theme.) It's been 4.5 years since my first serious attempt (http://youtu.be/QyF-Cf_zTWs) at progressive trance, and judging from how well this remix turned out, I'd say I've grown quite a bit. :) Like I said above, the S3 credits theme is one of my favorites, primarily because of how it makes me feel: accomplished, excited, hopeful, looking forward to what's next, etc. A very "I did it!" feeling, if you will, like you've made it through a very difficult ordeal. I've been dealing with many, many hardships in my life lately, so this source is even more meaningful to me now, and this is hopefully represented in the celebratory, joyous tone I attempted to create; that's also why I chose the title I did. Hope you enjoy :) 3-01. Jorito feat. Tuberz McGee, Furilas, Azzykay316 - "Speeding Towards Adventure (Instrumental)" Source: Sonic the Hedgehog - "Green Hill Zone" Original Composer: Masato Nakamura 3-02. Tuberz McGee - "By the Seaside (Instrumental)" Source: Sonic Heroes - "Stage 01 : Seaside Hill" Original Composer: Jun Senoue 3-03. KingTiger - "The Light at the End (Club Edit)" Source: Sonic the Hedgehog 3 - "Ending"; Cameos: Sonic the Hedgehog 3 - "Title Screen," Sonic & Knuckles - "Title Screen," "Ending" Original Composers: Bobby Brooks, Brad Buxer, C. Cirocco Jones, Darryl Ross, Doug Grigsby III, Geoff Grace, Michael Jackson, Tomonori Sawada, Howard Drossin