Tag Archives: CHIPTUNE

ALBUMS, DANCE MUSIC, FUSION, GAME MUSIC, MUSIC

“Boogieman” — A Review of Jake Kaufman’s “Mighty Switch Force! 2 OST”

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"Everybody out!"
“Everybody out!”

Call up your folks and tell ’em disco ain’t dead, baby! Jake Kaufman‘s newest release, the soundtrack to WayForward‘s 3DS puzzle-platformer Mighty Switch Force! 2, harkens back to the glory days of dancehall greatness, yet still keeps things fresh by throwing in some of electronic music’s more recent innovations. Nearly every track on this album will make you want to stand up and get down. I guarantee it. So grab your white suit and let’s groove!

This album has a very distinct, classic dancehall inspiration behind it that strings the whole album together, but different tracks approach that unifying sound from various angles. Numbers like “Rainbow Love Zone,” “Got2BAStar,” and even the short little “Title” track bring the funk like only old-school-inspired dance music can. I honestly thought Maurice White or Barry Gibb was going to start singing when I cranked up that opener. You can imagine my surprise, then, when “Rescue Girl” comes around at the end and actually kinda delivers on that feeling, in the form of Kaufman himself singing with a couple friends, no less.

Meanwhile, other tracks take the album’s disco sound and brilliantly mix it into something more contemporary. “Exothermic” lays that sound over a drum-and-bass beat that slides into classic dubstep, but without following that old and busted build/drop formula that loses the beat. In fact, the closest thing this album has to a modern dubstep track is “Soak Patrol Alpha,” but even that song has more in common overall with 80’s pop music, and the drop isn’t even really a drop so much as a random section of wubs. Somehow it works, oddly as that may strike you.

Other tracks fit into a kind of gray area between these two extremes, and I think that’s where the album truly shines. “The Afterblaze” has got to be the catchiest thing I’ve heard so far this year, and gives “Exothermic” a run for its money in terms of being my album favorite. Tracks like “Soft Collision” and “Dalmatian Station” owe as much to 70s disco as they do to modern house music, yet both manage to synergize those two genres, rather than imitate one or the other. “Rescue Girl” is so incredibly fun to sing they probably can’t play it in countries where joy is frowned upon by the State, and “Glow” sounds like the opening theme to a Powerpuff Girls movie in the best way that sentence can be read.

My only real gripe with this album is that it can be repetitive at times, but that doesn’t even feel fair considering that’s my default problem with any video game soundtrack. “Title” forms the basis for much of “Got2BAStar,” while “Rescue Girl” is just a longer version with words. This isn’t inherently bad, but I could definitely understand people taking issue with it. Beyond all that, the album in general is built upon the soundtrack for the previous game in the series, which Kaufman also made. However, where the MSF1 soundtrack had chip, MSF2 has disco, so if you’re familiar with the previous OST, you may or may not prefer this one.

The album closes with several remixes by other artists of some the album’s core tracks, which are great from a standalone perspective but might feel repetitive if you’re listening to the album cover-to-cover. Under his “virt” handle, Kaufman turns “Rescue Girl” into a slow-jam R&B song, which was pretty rad, while his remix of “The Afterblaze” lives up to its “Bonus Chip Mix” subtitle. Coda drops the dubstep trappings of “Soak Patrol Alpha” and replaces the main melodies with delicious funk basslines. Finally, DJ Bouche‘s orchestral remix of “Glow” could easily be a tune in a Zelda game.

Just like the firefighter heroine of his song, Jake Kaufman is here to rescue us. His disco- and funk-inspired music rises above the jaded wastes of modern dance and reminds listeners that, in the future, electronic music can still have a soul. This is the music we’ll be listening to when we’ve all got virtual reality glasses grafted to our faces and we’re dancing in German diskotheks in the Metaverse. Except we haven’t left out living rooms.

 

Danwich once deconstructed a post-modern novel.  He is still too irradiated to risk personal human contact.  You can reach him through his email or his radio show’s page.

CHIPTUNE, EVENTS, MUSIC, SHOWS

Anamanaguchi live on Late Night Jimmy Fallon

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It is with great pride I post this embed code. Anamanaguchi the four-piece chiptune rock band from Brooklyn played a featured set on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. These hard-working dudes recently became Kickstarter’s most successful band and deserve all the success they’ve seen. I recently got to see them in Philadelphia with the show they put on with 8static, it was awesome. Check out the video below

Check out a version with better audio on Kotaku.

ALBUMS, CHIPTUNE, MUSIC

halc & Miearth: When Late Becomes Early

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When Late Becomes Early

I enjoy Chiptunes. From Anamanaguchi’s work to Jake Kaufman to the crew over Chiptunes = Win, Chiptunes are a great music genre and like dubstep there are good and bad examples of the genre. halc is an example of an artist who knows how the genre works. Today on Lost in the Music, I will be taking a listen to halc and Miearth’s latest album, When Late Becomes Early.

I feel if music makes you think, then it is doing its job and doing it well. I enjoy it when an album has you become more introspective, thinking about life and the universe. Although the answers I get aren’t what I am looking for, the journey to find the answer is fulfilling. That is what halc and Miearth did with When Late Becomes Early. It has me think, but it also tells a story in its way. The music seems to be something out of a cyberpunk story, except the main character is an average salaryman, not some angst filled hero, bent on toppling some corrupt corporation or government.

When Late Becomes Early does what I feel many Chiptune artist omit from their work and that is making the music atmospheric. Don’t get me wrong, groups like Anamanaguchi and Jake Kaufman are fantastic at their craft, but they don’t have me feel as if I am in the music. With them, I am merely experiencing it while halc and Miearth, draw me into the music. They have me feel as if I am drawn into this cyberpunk world.

It is rare that i get drawn into an album in such a way. While other artists have me visualize a story, it is rare for me to feel as if I am part of the actual world. The last time this has happened was back in 2003 when I first heard the Lord of the Rings soundtrack. Through Howard Shore’s work, I felt I was actually in Middle Earth. Ten years later halc would provide the same feeling. 

That is the mark of a great artist.

I have said that in the past that there have been individual songs that have brought me into the world that the artists have made, but that is it. With When Late Becomes Early, it was the entire album that made me feel apart of the world, not just a single song.

Is When the late Becomes Early worth picking up? Yes it is. When the Late Becomes Early is a great album to pick up. halc and Miearth did a fantastic job with this album, successfully weaving both Chiptune and Dubstep together. Very few artists can do that without making the song sound like a distorted mess, but halc is talented enough to know how to make the songs mesh and make them sound good.

I know there are people out there who are getting tired of Chiptunes, but before they give up on the entire genre, I would like to suggest that they give this album a listen to. It draws you into the world and has you become lost within the music.

You can find When the Late Becomes Early over at Bandcamp. I strongly suggest you pick it up.

This is Daimo Mac and I am lost in the music.

Also, Dj CUTMAN has an IndieGoGo campaign going on now for some sweet GameChops Merch. Donate for some awesome gear from GameChops.

ALBUMS, CHIPTUNE, FUSION, MUSIC

Bringing the 80s Back to the Future: A Review of One: A Telefuture Compilation Album

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One: Telefuture AlbumAmidst the commotion of fast-paced 21st-century life, 80s-inspired record label Telefuture reminds their listeners of a more optimistic time, when we could only just begin to glimpse at what technology might become. Over the last year, Telefuture has strived to keep alive the ideals and sounds of the 80s.  A celebration of the label’s first anniversary, One: A Telefuture Compilation Album is an hour-long musical ride that pays homage to the golden age of wayfarer sunglasses, hairspray, and video arcades.  The eleven songs showcased in this album re-imagine 80s auditory tropes for the listeners of today by capturing neon-lit nostalgia through the use of classic analog sounds and samples.

The album leads off with “Gemini,” an exquisitely introspective track by Nashville-based Makeup and Vanity Set. The song draws us in with its subtle buildup of atmospheric synths coupled with delicate percussive pops, while also sparking Cosmos-like visions of exploding stars and faraway galaxies. Moving on through time and space, the album next invokes the era of the Brat Pack with Le Cassette‘s “Tonight.” No album inspired by the sounds of the 80s would be complete without a throbbing vocal ballad and Telefuture’s inclusion of “Tonight” definitely does not disappoint. Flashing back to an electronic love affair long gone, “Tonight” shines bright as the only song on the album with vocals at the forefront; the track blends buttery backing synths with smooth vocals into a delicious sonic simulacra of an 80s-style ballad.

One leverages the combination of different musical artists to great effect; the songs combine old and the new to the point where it is difficult to tell where one era stops and the other begins. With its bouncy, upbeat synths and delightful underlying rhythms, Arcade High‘s “One Year Ago” summons up an especially jubilant acoustic throwback to the coming-of-age films of the 80s.

While there are many bright moments to be savored on this album, not every song completely hits the mark. Planted squarely in the middle of the album, Swedish musician Linde‘s “M.Y.S” clocks in at just over eight minutes. Wading through the track’s psychedelic echoes and ethereal arpeggios, though they are at times gripping and always interesting, constitutes an exercise in patience. By the seventh minute of languid electro synths, there exists an almost palpable desire for a jolt of musical rejuvenation. Thankfully, this jolt comes in the form of the track that follows “M.Y.S.” – lpower’s “Passage.” “Passage” recovers the album’s energy and recaptures the spirit of chiptune as it draws upon the power of bassy and driving melodic synths to pack in an energetic, addictive blend of dance beats, chip harmonies, and an intense boss fight wrapped up all in one.

The end of One does not impress as much as the beginning; this is not to say that the latter songs on the album do not deserve as much credit, but in the wake of the earlier musical heavy-hitters they remain at an auditory disadvantage. Overall, the album is a fantastic and thoughtful tribute to the sounds of the 80s, where the sincere efforts of the musicians on the album pack a punch as powerful as He-Man himself. With one ear in the present and the other in the past, any listener will find Telefuture’s first anniversary compilation to be a memorable musical marvel.

Find out more about Telefuture on their Facebook page, Soundcloud, or bandcamp.