NiGHTS: Lucid Dreaming

NiGHTS into dreams was a unique kind of game, memorable for it's fantastic 3D flight-based gameplay and it's dreamy musical score. Arranged NiGHTS music may not sound like a good fit. It's the kind of music that one may not even want to have remixed for fear of straying too far off from the source material. However, NiGHTS: Lucid Dreaming, OverClocked Remixes' 26th album manages to put it's own spin on the beloved NiGHTS tunes while still sticking closely to the original tracks.

Spanning 3 digital discs, NiGHTS: Lucid Dreaming contains remixes of favorite tracks such as Message from Nightopia, Paternal Horn, She Had Long Ears, and the unforgettable vocal track, Dream Dreams. With Dream Dreams being a fan favorite track, it's no surprise that it received as much attention as it did on this album. There are no less than four different versions of Dream Dreams to be heard here. The first one, Dream Dreams (Disco NiGHTS Mix) is a fast, shorter version of the original track. Even though the original tune is more slow going, this is still a superb arrangement and one of the best tracks on the album, which is already saying a lot. Slumber on a City Corner (Dream Dreams : In Silent Memory) is a jazzy, non-vocal tune, taking things much slower in contrast to Disco NIGHTS Mix. More good stuff there. The third version of Dream Dreams, The World is Dreaming is probably the closest of the four covers that's the mirrors the original song and it's nothing short of brilliant with phenomenal voice work and music to match, making it one of the best arrangements of Dream Dreams. The final version of Dream Dreams is a Karaoke version of Disco NIGHTS Mix. I got so used to listening to the vocals on Disco NiGHTS Mix that it seemed a bit odd not having them in the background, but I learned to appreciate both tracks and ended up putting both on my MP3 player.

So what about the tracks that aren't remixes of Dream Dreams? Reverse Rain (The Amazing Water), which was one of my favorite tracks in NiGHTS, is outstanding and maybe even more beautiful than the original (please don't lynch me, NiGHTS fans, I did say maybe.) From Dusk til Dawn (Fragmented NiGHTS) makes me long for more piano arrangements from OCR. She Had Angry Pixels is a wonderful chiptune cover of She Had Long Ears, one that I actually prefer over the original. Sixto Sounds hits another remix out of the park with Beyond the Dream (Gate of Your Dream), one of the most stunningly beautiful arrangements I've ever listened to. Speaking of Gate of Your Dream, A Dream, the close out song of disc 2 is another fine remix of said tune and as cliche as it sounds, the track feels just like that, a dream. A very, very good dream.

In case you couldn't tell, there's a lot to like about this album. I've greatly enjoyed listening to it on repeat numerous times. NiGHTS: Lucid Dreaming is without a doubt, some of the best work to come out of OverClocked Remix and is a shinning example of just how talented the fans of video game music are. I like to think Naofumi Hataya, Tomoko Sasaki, and Fumie Kumatani, the original composers of NiGHTS' music would be proud of this arrangement album. It's a splendid love letter to their work. Head on over to the homepage below, download Lucid Dreaming and enjoy.

NiGHTS: Lucid Dreaming