Arrangement of the Week: Flicky’s Night Out

For this week’s Arrangement of the Week, I’m going to take a trip down memory lane. Most of you probably remember your first game experience, or at least the experience that left a strong impression. For me the first Sonic the Hedgehog on the Sega Genesis was that game. The original soundtrack by Masato Nakamura always gives me a good nostalgia hit, so I decided to select an arrangement of its soundtrack for this week’s post.

Today’s selection comes from artist Rexy and is titled “Flicky’s Night Out.” The piece is an arrangement of “Star Light Zone” from the original Sonic the Hedgehog game, with some instances of “Green Hill Zone” thrown into the mix. Flicky, if you didn’t know, is a reference to a bird protagonist in Sega’s 1984 arcade game, titled Flicky. The blue bird makes appearances in many of the Sonic the Hedgehog games.

The piece starts off with a simple set of bell synths and light percussion, but quickly ramps up into an energetic dance arrangement. The rhythmic guitar strums, drums, and catchy bass line provide a great grove, but what really sells this mix is the flute lead synth that soars above the rest of the instruments. The entire arrangement evokes a wonderfully upbeat, celebratory mood. It’s definitely a good reflection of the mood I’m in when I finally get to the Star Light Zone.

The flute lead takes a break for some violin solos and a few references to the “Green Hill Zone” at around 1’20” before returning to the original “Star Light Zone” material at 2’14.” The flute lead also makes one last appearance before the final wind down of the piece. Overall, a fun, energetic, and uplifting arrangement of Masato Nakamura’s original music.

Have you listened to any interesting game music remixes, arrangements, or covers recently? Let us know in the comments below. You can listen to and download “Flick’s Night Out” on OC ReMix.