Sounds of 2016, nos. 35 to 31

Into the top third of the Equestrian Trot 100's chart of Pony music for 2016 we go! (Okay, strictly it's roughly December 2015 to November 2016, but close enough.) While songs right at the top of the chart will be featured come what may, we're still low enough in the rankings for me to go by my usual inclusion rules:

Rule 1: Still available in the same or (1b) similar form direct from the/an original artist.
Rule 2: Available from a third party, with reason to believe the artist is fine with this.
Rule 3: So famous that it would be plain silly to leave it out.
Rule 4: Being unlisted is not, on its own, grounds for exclusion. 

Here's the list of songs. As you'll see, there's one absent this week, which is a pity but unavoidable. The other four make a pretty good selection, though:

35: Sayonara Maxwell ft. MiatriSs – Magic Everywhere
34: Spectra – Luna's Future (remix)
33: PrinceWhateverer – Spectacular
32: Aurelleah – The Magic Inside (remix)
31: skipped

All right, enough with the yattering and on with the music!

35: Sayonara Maxwell ft. MiatriSs – Magic Everywhere

Rule 1: uploaded to YouTube 16 May 2016
Not all of Sayonara Maxwell's MLP songs are still officially available, so it's really pleasing that this one is. Made, as often in collaboration with MiatriSs, it's a bouncy, catchy song about Twilight. Lots of vaguely Japanese console-adjacent sounds, bloops and bleeps, vocoder-y vocals and an overall upbeat and cheery tone. The magic of friendship is quite something, if this song's lyrics are to be believed. Even better, this song is still available – as a name-your-price track – on SayMaxWell's Bandcamp.

34: Spectra – Luna's Future (remix)

 

Rule 1: Uploaded to YouTube 9 Jun 2016

As you just might have noticed by now, remixes of songs from "A Hearth's Warming Tail" were a big part of 2016's music scene. Spectra really leans into this, with a trance remix of the relatively short "Luna's Future" that runs for more than eight minutes. While trance tracks tend to be a bit on the long side, that's still pushing it a little. Don't get me wrong, I like this remix a lot – there's an acoustic guitar-led section about three minutes in that hits hard – but I think five or six minutes would have done the same. The HQ version is a name-your-price download on Spectra's Bandcamp.

 

33: PrinceWhateverer – Spectacular

 

Rule 1: Uploaded to YouTube 21 Sep 2016
A loud, extrovert, punkish rock cover from PrinceWhateverer? Say it ain't so! Okay, it is so. This is a cover of "The Spectacle" song from "The Mane Attraction", but extended to include original sections as well. According to the artist, it was originally intended to be part of an album of his, but couldn't be because of unspecified "copyright issues". Fortunately, they didn't prevent it being released as a single! It's under three minutes long but packed with energy. You can get hold of "Spectacular" for £1 on PrinceWhateverer's Bandcamp.

 

32: Aurelleah – The Magic Inside (remix)

 

Rule 1: Uploaded to YouTube 14 Apr 2016

Another song from "The Mane Attraction" – a very popular episode musically, though that's hardly surprising given that Lena Hall was the guest star. This remix of Rara's triumphant song is given an orchestral pop twist by Aurelleah, and it really works. It's not a hugely changed sound from the original, and it wasn't intended to be, merely a slightly different angle on it. The piano part had assistance from PegasYs, so two big names in the mix here. Sadly the remix is no longer available on Bandcamp, but it is obtainable from Aurelleah's SoundCloud.

31: skipped