My love affair with djpretzel's music has long been chronicled. Back at the apartment of 711N, Jerry and I would joke that djpretzel was a rather rotund fellow with a cheeto stained sweatshirt who spent all his time on Fruityloops, or some equivalent laser/UFO sound effect program. Such was not the case. Judging by the man's looks he'd be quite able to crush the skulls of both Jerry and myself together and still have time to get to the photoshoot where he'd pose for the cover of the next GQ. If there's a man out there who's more stylin' and profilin' (barring JL) then I don't want to know.

His curious history aside, djpretzel has put together what I consider to be one of the greatest videogame remixes of all time. My love for King of Fighters is not a secret and djpretzel apparently sees fit to heighten my joy. The mix At 2'38, the song is short enough to keep you interested. The length and general mood make it feel absolutely suited to the closeout credits of some really excellent movie. The man himself, djpretzel, says that it's related to the source material in only the basest of ways and this is nothing but the honest word of truth. If you play the intro to KOF98 (available on your Dreamcast) and sit with your ear RIGHT next to the speaker then you'll likely be able to pick out the basest hint of this song.

But a song doesn't need to adhere perfectly to its origins to be good. The consistant vinyl scratching in the piece does sound a little fake, but it in no way takes away from the charm of this staticly charged hip-hop ensemble. If you find yourself privleged to have access to a system with enough bass, treat yourself with a cranking of the volume, especially in the first third of the song. You will be pleased. Of specific interest to me is the quick rise 0'58, the breakdown at 1'21 that continues to a rather electricfying moment with the synths at 1'45 and returns to the original theme at around 1'53. This carries us right home and the rest of the song is just gravy. If you're anything like me you'll be fidgeting for the "back" button on your mp3 player when that last drum hit comes, because two and a half minutes just ain't enough time to spend with a miracle!

But Could I Drive To This?: There's only one scenario that can be envisioned with a song like this. You've just spent an excellent night with your lady love and, for whatever reason, one of you has to leave early. As you get into your car and slip your CD into the deck this comes on. In the dawn hour the streets are empty and you decide to give the town a little wakeup call. As you roll your window down to rest your arm on the sill you know that you are the coolest dude in this city. You could own it if you wanted, but you've got better things to do. You pull into your spot at home just as the sun is rising in the horizon and the final thud of the song hits home. You sigh to yourself as you turn the engine off. A serene sense of victory ensconses you. Everything is right with the world.