DJ Cutman

Chip Music, Game Music, Indie Music

Groupees returns with 10th Chiptune + Charity Bundle

July 1, 2016 | Shawn Sackenheim | Comments Off on Groupees returns with 10th Chiptune + Charity Bundle Share this

Groupees’ Chiptune + Charity Bundle returns for the 10th time this Summer to spread music and money to benefit the Children’s Cancer Association’s MyMusic Rx program. For a minimum of $2 you’ll get ten chiptune albums and soundtracks featuring Jake “virt” Kaufman, tiasu, ToyCompany, DJ Cutman, Jamatar, coda, bignic, Please Lose Battle, BigGiantCircles and Kubbi.

Highlights this time around are the entire Retro City Rampage soundtrack from “virt”, “Norrin Radd” and “Freaky DNA” and an exclusive EP album from DJ Cutman featuring original music. Mystery albums are added as donations hit $1,000 levels so there’s more bonus music to come, the first of which will be the ToyCompany album Playroom Vol.2.
Doujin, Game Music

MOBIUS Album Celebrates 25 Years of Sonic Music

June 22, 2016 | Brenna Wilkes | 1 Comment Share this

It’s hard to believe that it’s been 25 years since a certain blue hedgehog graced the screens of our living rooms and became the flagship title for the Sega Genesis. However, as of tomorrow, that’s exactly what anniversary it is – Sonic the Hedgehog came into being on June 23rd, 1991 and helped change video gaming for a generation. Likewise, the music of Sonic the Hedgehog became as iconic as its contemporaries such as Super Mario Bros., Legend of Zelda and Mega Man.

To celebrate this momentous occasion, the video game record label group Materia Collective have put together a tribute album that spans so much of the Sonic franchise and some of the most well-known music within the series. MOBIUS: Sonic the Hedgehog Remixed features a whopping 58 tracks of arranged Sonic music from a wide variety of musicians and performers within the game music community, such as Stemage (Metroid Metal), DJ Cutman, Videri String Quartet, John Robert Matz (Gunpoint) and a whole lot more!

“Sonic the Hedgehog is quite literally one of the main reasons that I became a musician. It was also one of my earliest musical influences. Now that I have three kids of my own (who are also Sonic fans), and I am actually a working musician for my career, and it’s the 25th Anniversary of Sonic…there was no way I couldn’t do an album like this as an homage to where it all began.” – Stephen Robert Froeber, MOBIUS director and producer

The album has a huge assortment of genres its draws from, as can be heard within the preview clip. Jazz, electronica, orchestral and rock are just a sampling of what you can expect to hear from the 80 contributing artists attached to the project. MOBIUS: Sonic the Hedgehog Remixed launches tomorrow, June 23rd on the Materia Collective website. Speaking as a girl whose first introduction to video gaming (and thus, video game music) was Sonic the Hedgehog on a snowy Christmas Day in 1991, this should be an album worth checking out.

Materia Collective – Website | Twitter
Chip Music, Experimental, Game Music

April Fool’s Joke turns into Nightcore Remix Album

April 5, 2016 | Shawn Sackenheim | Comments Off on April Fool’s Joke turns into Nightcore Remix Album Share this

The best kinds of April Fool’s gags are the ones that wind up becoming real things. The Mega Man tie and the Tauntaun sleeping bag spring to mind but this year’s gag-to-grab is VGM NXC 001. Released by GameChops, the 17-track album is the work of “international video game remixing super group” Party Members. The guilty parties behind the music include DJ Cutman, Ben Briggs, Mega Flare, Grimecraft, RoBKTA, DJ Mykah, Ralfington and many more.

Leading up to the release several of the artists renounced their chiptune and electronic heritage in favor of nightcore, the increasingly misinterpreted act of speeding up electronic tracks close to 200 beats per minute. However you feel about the sub-genre the album is worth a listen offering spastic remixes from Final Fantasy, Cave Story, Undertale, Animal Crossing, Katamari Damacy and more.

<a href="http://music.gamechops.com/album/vgm-nxc-001">VGM NXC 001 by Party Members</a>

VGM NXC 001 is available on Bandcamp for whatever price you want to pay or you can listen on SoundCloud or check out the entire album in this hyper-bouncy YouTube video. Did you come across any other noteworthy April Fool’s game music or remixes over the weekend? Let us know in the comments below.
Game Music, Indie Music

New GameChops Release, Button Masher Remastered, Out Now

September 28, 2015 | Shawn Sackenheim | Comments Off on New GameChops Release, Button Masher Remastered, Out Now Share this

New from GameChops this past week is the second release from electronic artist, Doni, following his 2013 Mario RPG remix EP, Goombette. His latest release, Button Masher Remastered, is a full length album that pays tribute to the video game music of the 8 and 16-bit eras as well as the styles of electronic music popular at the time. The ten tracks feature console and handheld favorites reworked in the styles of deep house, techno, chill-out and more. Here’s the full tracklist:

01. Try Hard (Donkey Kong Country 2 – Stickerbrush Symphony)
02. Icy Strings (Secret of Mana – A Bell is Tolling)
03. Midnight Mass (Pokemon Red/Blue – Lavender Town)
04. Mario’s Garage (Super Mario Kart – Rainbow Road)
05. Deep Freeze Shuffle (StarTropics 2 – Ice Age)
06. Hard to Choose (Mega Man 3 – Stage Select)
07. Impending Something (Marble Madness – Stage 2)
08. Staring Off (Final Fantasy X – Mt. Gagazet)
09. The Bubbledrone (Mega Man 2 – Bubble Man)
10. Nostalgic Tides (Chrono Cross – Dream of a Shore)

You can sample some of the tracks and hear both “Try Hard” and “Icy Strings” in their entirety with the playlist embedded above. When you’re ready for the full album you can grab it on iTunes, Google Play and Loudr for $7. If you chip in $10 or more on Loudr you’ll also get the Goombette EP.
Chip Music

Chiptunes = WIN: Volume 4 Released

July 21, 2015 | Brenna Wilkes | Comments Off on Chiptunes = WIN: Volume 4 Released Share this Chiptunes = WIN: Volume 4 Released

If you’re a fan of the Chiptunes = WIN nation and albums, then you’ll be happy to learn that their fourth album has officially been released!

Chiptunes = WIN: Volume 4 continues the tradition started three years ago by Brandon “President Hoodie” Hood to create a community of chiptune artists and enthusiasts that are able to gather, create and critique the art of making chip music.

“Volume 4?? VOLUME 4!! 3+ years after the first comp and we’re still having a blast! Thus onward & upward it goes! ^_^ \m|♥♥♥♥|m/ “ -President Hoodie

The current incarnation features a whopping 51 tracks featuring a plethora of new and old chiptune artists, including CarboHydroM, Auxcide, Phonetic Hero and a ton more. The whole album was mastered by DJ Cutman, with all proceeds staying internal and going towards the production of future albums. This fourth full edition is the 12th album in the Chiptunes = WIN library, all of which serve as compilations from the chip community and beyond.

Chiptunes = WIN: Volume 4 is at a name-your-price purchase level, with a special limited bundle pack available at $25 for the diehard enthusiast. You can learn more about Chiptunes = WIN and join in the chip madness on the community’s blog.

Chiptunes = WIN – Website| Facebook | Vol. 4
Miscellaneous

Watch Cutman Interview Brentalfloss while playing Mario Kart

July 19, 2015 | Shawn Sackenheim | Comments Off on Watch Cutman Interview Brentalfloss while playing Mario Kart Share this

When he’s not busy producing some of my favorite bangin’ video game remixes, DJ Cutman can be found playing through a ton of games on his YouTube channel. It’s here that he’s launched a new series called SmashTalk where he chats with other personalities from the gaming community while they play a competitive game.

The pilot episode features comedian/songwriter Brentalfloss and is as amusing as you’d expect for an interview conducted during a game of Mario Kart 8. Alongside complaints about red koopa shells there’s a good discussion about Brentalfloss’ academic education, his favorite childhood games and a message to others trying to break into the YouTube scene. He also lays out the history behind Wario while winning a race; the guy is talented. Check it out up above or over on YouTube.
Doujin, Game Music

Fan Arrangement Album for Splatoon Released

June 30, 2015 | Brenna Wilkes | Comments Off on Fan Arrangement Album for Splatoon Released Share this

If you were hoping for an official soundtrack from the game Splatoon, you’ll at least be able to get your hands on an fan arrangement album while you wait for the official release. The group GameChops have gone ahead and released Splatunes!, which features 14-tracks of remixed goodness from group founder DJ CUTMAN, as well as fan arrangement artists such as bLiNd, Benjamin Briggs, Ralfington and more. What’s more, it’s fully licensed by Joypad Records, so no Nintendo law patrol will be after our fine GameChops friends.

SPLATUNES is a celebration of Nintendo’s new video game SPLATOON! The GameChops “Squid Squad” came together to create this mixtape of remixes and re-imaginations of some of our favorite tracks off of the Splatoon soundtrack.

The album is currently “Name Your Price” up on Bandcamp and is sure to keep appetites satiated.

GameChops – Bandcamp | Twitter