It’s my birthday!
To celebrate, I’m releasing a very special chiptune! It’s a collaboration with An0va, an all-gameboy cover of EDM producer and performer Deadmau5! This is an extra exciting track for me, as it is an 100% legal cover thanks to mechanical licensing. It is also (by far) the longest I have spent on a track on LSDj, and working with An0va was a blast!
You can pick up the two versions of this track on Bandcamp!
The Spriters Resource is a heaven for video game and pixel art. Hundreds of games with character, background and item art isolated perfect for art projects, animation, or websites.
A huge database spanning multiple consoles and generations, The Spriters Resource is unparalleled in depth and meticulously organized. If you’re into sprite art, or creating video game based art yourself, you’ve got to check out The Spriters Resource.
The Smithsonian Museum of American Art is holding an exhibit on the art of video games, from the early 1970s all the way up until today. Five eras of video game graphics, from the dawn of the video game, to 8-bit, through the 16-bit “Bit Wars” era, transition to 3D graphics and up until today. The exhibit runs from March 16th, 2012 to September 30th, 2012.
From americanart.si.edu:
The Art of Video Games is one of the first exhibitions to explore the forty-year evolution of video games as an artistic medium, with a focus on striking visual effects and the creative use of new technologies. It features some of the most influential artists and designers during five eras of game technology, from early pioneers to contemporary designers. The exhibition focuses on the interplay of graphics, technology and storytelling through some of the best games for twenty gaming systems ranging from the Atari VCS to the PlayStation 3. Eighty games, selected with the help of the public, demonstrate the evolution of the medium.
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2/12/12 will mark the release of the next chapter in the ChipTuneMusic saga, which began almost two years ago. Chiptopia serves to be a new chapter in this musical journey, so let’s take a moment to reflect the past two volumes.
ChipTuneMusic is a free dj mix series by Dj CUTMAN, highlighting some of the best chiptune and chipmusic songs from around the world. The first installment, Sounds From 20XX, served as a primer for the world of fun, upbeat chiptune music. Featuing artists from the funk-oriented Mr Spastic, up through dance music marvels such as FantomenK, Sounds From 20XX was based on the breakthrough live shows of a young Cutman in upstate New York. The mix landed him a spot at Otakon 2010, which at the time was his largest show, with an attendance of almost 3,000.
Second in the series was Dubtropolis, released shortly after the Otakon performance in August 2010. It was the dawn of a new era for electronic dance music, a genre called Dubstep was just starting to crack the surface of America. Skrillex had just released his first EP via MySpace and, to most, the style was still unknown. Dubstep influence had penetrated Chiptune communities, and a wealth of dubby chipmusic fueled the production of a new mix from Cutman. Dubtropolis was a clear juxtaposition from 20XX, defined by syncopated wobbles, harsh bass and dripping atmosphere. With a focus on artists adept at creating space in their songs, tracks like Smiletron‘s Gemini and Superspink‘s Robot City set the tone, while ahead-of-their-game producers like Mizuki’s Last Chance blasted through with cutting edge dubstep and chiptune sounds.
Dubtropolis was a particularly significant mix, as it marked an era of collaboration between Cutman and other DJs. Underground dubstep and tech house DJ Doctor Z brought his unmistakable sound mixing talents in the form of a minimix. Doctor Z drew influence from Cutman’s track selection, and created a gritty and atmospheric interlude for Dubtropolis.
Next tuesday, Chiptopia will be released. As the third Volume in the series, it serves to provide yet another view of the world of ChipTuneMusic. Inspired by the place where Cutman first began producing electronic music; a town of infinite venues, shows, and opportunity known as Ithaca, New York.
“When I first came to Ithaca, it was unlike any place I had ever been before. There was music everywhere, nearly every venue and restaurant had a stage, there were performers on every street corner, in every gazebo. No matter where you went, there was new and different live music to be heard.”
Drawing from life experience and a wealth of Creative Commons music from composers around the world, Chiptopia is shaping up to be a promising new addition to Cutman’s repertoire.
