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Game Music

Amazon tantalizes Silent Hill fans with 3 track sampler from Homecoming

October 6, 2008 | J.P. Arevalo | 3 Comments Share this

In our very own interview with Akira Yamaoka, eternal composer for the Silent Hill series of survival horror games, Mr. Yamaoka mentioned that a soundtrack release would be available from Konami USA by the time the game hit shelves in North America. Well, we think he meant the game, so there goes that right? Maybe not.

As a HUGE fan of Silent Hill (I own 8 copies of Silent Hill 2), I am eagerly anticipating news of an official soundtrack release, and at this point, I don’t care where it comes from. A daily search revealed a small sampler of tracks from Amazon MP3 labeled, Silent Hill Homecoming Bonus Tracks. Contained within are three tracks, “Cold Blood,” “Witchcraft,” and a Mary Elizabeth McGlynn vocal track, “The Sacred Line.” Is this a hint that a full Amazon MP3 release is on the way?

Hit the jump for more speculation and ranting. (more…)
Game Music, Reviews

The Sweetness That is La Tale: Korean Synth Pop At Its Finest (Review)

October 2, 2008 | Jayson Napolitano | 2 Comments Share this

My love for the Korean music studio soundTeMP is widely known, and from the first time I heard La Tale, I knew immediately that they were involved with the game’s music in some way. While they didn’t work on this game as a group, soundTeMP member Jinbae “ESTi” Park, who you may have heard in Granado Espada or Ridge Racer 7 is a part of the team responsible for La Tale’s awesome soundtrack. Some composers I’m not familiar with also contributed, including DINY, be, NieN, and jo.

What’s La Tale, you ask? It’s a new 2D MMORPG by Actoz Soft in Korea that is being published by OGPlanet in the United States. After digging around for information about the game’s soundtrack, I discovered that the Korean website not only confirms the involvement of ESTi and the others, but also hosts the almost three hours of music featured in the game for free download.

Find out if the soundtrack lives up to the soundTeMP name after the jump. (more…)
Chip Music, Game Music

Smaze Original Sound Version Will Most Definitely Win Soundtrack of the Year

September 16, 2008 | Jayson Napolitano | 2 Comments Share this

Alright, maybe not, but I wanted to let you guys know that I’ve scored my first game. Smaze is a top-down NES-style game by Ludoko Studios, and it’s finally available for download. Even more, the team has been kind enough to upload a separate zip file containing the game’s music. It plays somewhat like Commando, except you get infinite lives which is definitely appreciated. Oh, and you can pump yourself full of drugs and see dead bodies all over the ground. Pretty sweet!

As I typically don’t write chip music, I found this project to be very challenging. I definitely couldn’t have done it without the amazing NES VSTs at Tweakbench (especially Peach VST), so thanks a ton to the guys over there who put this stuff out there for free. I hope that I was able to create something catchy that’s reminiscent of the old NES days, so let me know what you think! There’s a whopping five minutes and forty seconds of music here, so head on over and grab the game and the soundtrack.

Do you feel these kinds of independent games have made Capcom’s approach to Mega Man 9 possible? Do you think we’ll be seeing a lot more NES-style games in the future?
Demoscene

Kahvi Collective Unleashes More Quality Electronic Music From Poland and the US

September 8, 2008 | Jayson Napolitano | Comments Off on Kahvi Collective Unleashes More Quality Electronic Music From Poland and the US Share this

You can probably gather that we’re pretty big fans of the Kahvi Collective. They’ve released some of my favorite electronic music this year with Mikael Fyrek’s A Thousand Years and One and Aleksi Eeben’s Preserverence. They’ve been around for a long time (ten years this year!), and every single release is truly the best of what the demoscene has to offer.

This last week has seen two releases from the netlabel: Zerochoice by Polish electronic artist Tom Bragl and Whom by US-based ambient artist Curious Inversions. Bragl mixes acoustic instrumentation, electronic atmospheres, and clicky percussion for an engaging experience that is mellow yet productive. Curious Inversions, on the other hand, makes no aologies for the obvious Jean Michel-Jarre (one of my favorite artists of all time) influence that pervades this release, as layers of pads, fat basslines, and angelic belltones create a soothing accompaniment to whatever you may find yourself doing while listening. And hey, as always, it’s all free!

Are you a fan of the music that Kahvi Collective has been putting out? Has either of these releases found favor with your eardrums?
Game Music

Bad Dudes Strike Again: Ten “Arrangements” of Sagat’s Theme

September 3, 2008 | Jayson Napolitano | Comments Off on Bad Dudes Strike Again: Ten “Arrangements” of Sagat’s Theme Share this

Yeah, Dale is willing to share his love for game music on Destructoid, but when it comes to OSV, he leaves us in the dark! What’s with that? Dale and his merry men, known as the Bad Dudes, have released an EP titled “Thai Guy,” featuring ten arrangements of Sagat’s theme from Street Fighter II.

Arrangements, you say? Dale would prefer to call what they do to game music rape. Vulgar, I know, but they are pretty bad. And they are a bunch of dudes. Unfortunately Mustin didn’t put as much effort into his threats about donating for this release, so this one’s on the house I guess.

Is an EP featuring ten remixes of Sagat’s theme pure insanity? What are some other tracks you’d like to see raped… I mean, arranged in this fashion?

[via Destructoid]
Game Music

Diablo III: Free Music From Russell Brower and the Eminence Symphony Orchestra

September 2, 2008 | Jayson Napolitano | 8 Comments Share this

You heard me right. Blizzard has posted the “Diablo III Overture” we mentioned a couple months back at the Worldwide Invitational on iTunes for free. This is quite an unexpected surprise for fans, and is an awesome promotional move if I may say so myself.

Also note the credits here. Our good friends at the Eminence Symphony Orchestra appear to be involved with the recording, although it’s unannounced as to whether they’ll be involved with other tracks from the game. Doesn’t Russell Brower and the Eminence Symphony Orchestra sound like a pretty nifty band name?

So go and get it. It’s got the acclaimed Tristram theme included, although the epic orchestral approach may or may not be your thing. Do I smell a “more ambient music” petition brewing? Do you think it’s good to see a game company finally using music to promote their game?

[via Kotaku]
Demoscene

Eat Your Space Calories: Experimental Bit Pop Reminiscent of Earthbound and Sonic

September 2, 2008 | Jayson Napolitano | 1 Comment Share this

Well, here’s another shameless plug for Mephtik Netlabel. I hope you don’t mind, as we just released an awesome bit pop disc called Space Calories. Ariel Gross (Sleem, Funkymuskrat, sp00) serves up seven amazingly bizarre creations with funky basslines, groovy synths, computerized vocals, and what sounds to be some Earthbound and Sonic the Hedgehog influences.

Does the handle “Funkymuskrat” look familiar? It might. Ariel posted some masterful remixes of Sonic the Hedgehog’s “Green Hill Zone,” Chrono Trigger’s “Memories of Green,” and F-Zero’s “Mute City,” all of which are some of my favorite remixes of all time, and in constant rotation on my iPod. I highly recommend seeking them out!

Join us on this epic gastrointestinal journey in space after the jump. (more…)