Remix Review: Oneus - Valkyrie (Rock Version)
Sorry about posting the review kind of late today. It gets busy at times.
Regular readers probably know I skip reviewing remixes as much as I can, and initially, I thought I could do that for the new remix of Valkyrie on Oneus's new album. I was kind of wrong. As less than a month later, it is arguably one of my favorite releases this year, if not my favorite. It won't count for the end-of-year song list, but I need to write about it anyway.
The original Valkyrie is a solid song. It is driven by mysterious EDM synths and makes you wait for its true moments. Thankfully, those moments are worth the build, and it creates a dark yet hopeful atmosphere. If there was one major criticism about it though, it was that the trap breakdowns often destroyed the atmosphere and build, despite the final breakdown building towards a worthy song reveal moment.
The rock remix, on the other hand, abandons the classy build and goes full-on rock anthem. Despite that, traces in the verses reveal a strong build while still showing itself as a strong rock anthem. The rock hits hard, while the synths now have an almost rotating sound, to complement the rock. Now, the pre-chorus garners extra synth-strings, adding to this futuristic rock anthem.
Initially, the chorus feels slightly underwhelming, as the build and explosion is now gone, but it much more streamlined, leading to a strong sense of underlying, overall growth, coming up sooner than later.
The second verse chooses to reveal the guitar a little later, as it initially relies on surging drums and the mysterious synths that made the original even better. The trap rap now is given a guitar makeover, letting become a stand-out moment, rather than a momentum killer.
However, the true gem here is the re-worked pre-chorus, which ups the mysterious intensity to a crazy level, with drums banging galore. When the chorus hits again, it absolutely explodes this time, with an energy rarely seen. The breakdown in the bridge is still not perfect, but the guitar gives it a minor edge too.
But it is after that the song jumps into the stratosphere. The pre-chorus repetition in the bridge is ornate and imposing, like a finale to a long TV show, the build is amazing. After that, we get a gritty rock guitar breakdown, leading to the classic gunshot moment.
The chorus initially feels more of the same until Kanghyun of Onewe appears to double the intensity for one of the modern time's best rock riffs, and easily one of the top two from this year (just short of Jian Zhen Jiang Hu).
Valkyrie was always an adventurous song with a sense of scale, just let down by minor errors. Now, finally, we get a new and improved version of Valkyrie, which is practically near-perfect. I just love this remix, and it is hard to put it into words. The climax absolutely explodes, and satisfyingly concludes the song's build. That rarely happens, especially in a remix as massive as this.
Yes, yes and... well, YES! Absolutely obsessed. Very excited for this upcoming Onewe cb too.
ReplyDeleteSame here, I guess it is not too hard to tell that I love this song.
DeleteLooking forward to the ONEWE comeback. I hope that they have songs such as one with this epic guitar riff, an End of Spring successor, and more ballads!
I'm shocked! REALLY SHOCKED at the REVIEW. I prefer the original one which is in my opinion a 9. But the rock version attenuates the sheer power and creativity, ONEUS has. I mean come on if you look at their discography you can see the output is glaringly breathtaking. Yeah, it is quite western and "safe", but think of it as a facade to the lyricism they do bring. Props to ONEUS! 🤯
ReplyDeleteWow, surprised you refer the original version. I feel the rock version adds that nice edginess. But regardless of that, I think we both can agree that the basic tune is A-Grade.
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