Another entry from Lufia II: Of Gods and Men created back when album creator Bahamut was originally directing the project, it's one more extraction from ye OCR time capsule! A true franchise fan, Darangen shared his nostalgia for Lufia II and eagerness to tackle "The Prophet" in spite of its humble, minimal composition:

"I've always enjoyed the Lufia series. I even bought a DS just to play the remake of the first one. The source for this doesn't have a lot of material to work with, but it's such a beautiful theme that I always found myself setting the controller down for a while just to listen to it.

The title -- "Hello, Goodbye" -- is based on the character of Iris in the game, for which this theme is used, because it always seemed that, by the time she said hello, it was already time for her to leave again. She'd drop in and give you just a tidbit of information, then leave you before really explaining anything.

I always wanted to make a lyrical remix of this source, and though I have lyrics written, the melody just gets too repetitive even for my tastes when words are used. Maybe someday down the road I'll integrate it with another source and see if something happens.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy it!"

Darangen's definitely known for introspective vocal treatments in his time here, so fingers crossed that his lyrical Lufia concept eventually arises (the world has never been flatter too, as far as collaborations, so he wouldn't have to go it alone). Album director Gario praised Mike's ability to achieve multiple moods:

"One of those sources that really stand out in a game that has a lot of great music, Michael Boyd uses a good blend of rock and synths to cook up something that can either be face-melting or subdued, depending on what it decides to do. The variety is welcome, and the licks do a good job rockin'."

It's a small thing, but the dropoff and subsequent rebuild at 1:45 was such an effective way to contrast with the higher octane feel of the first part of the song before ramping back up at 2:50, energy that then-judge DragonAvenger was on board with:

"Love the tone you set out with this. The guitar comes in with some sweet grunginess that really digs into the emotion of the track. The approach to the melody is generally straightforward, but there's a ton of changes to the backing tracks and it's definitely a strong arrangement overall."

The track says hello with a genteel yet attention-grabbing intro and says goodbye with a fadeout that rocks out; some say Darangen's performing those guitar riffs alongside that organ line to this day... :-) Props to his honorific arrangement for the mysterious Iris, only one of the 29 titanic tributes to Taito's 16-bit tearjerker awaiting you in Lufia II: Of Gods and Men! As we keep the featured album ReMixes coming, be sure to explore the full two-hour album for a great mixture of pieces from several classic contributors just like Darangen!