Earthbound

Events, Game Music

APPROACHING LIGHT SPEED: VIDEO GAMES LIVE LEVEL 6 (REVIEW)

November 28, 2018 | Ryan Paquet | 1 Comment Share this

Video Games Live has just released their latest album, Level 6 after yet another successful Kickstarter campaign. If you missed our reviews of the previous two albums you can read the reviews for both Level 4 and Level 5, which both earned high praise for the calibre of their arrangements and production value.

The latest album boasts 12 tracks and includes an arrangement of the Classic Arcade Medley that’s been featured during live shows since the beginning. Read on for my full track by track review.

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Chip Music, Game Music, Reviews

Chiptunes and Chiptars – Marshall Art Timeline EP (Review)

December 20, 2017 | Brenna Wilkes | Comments Off on Chiptunes and Chiptars – Marshall Art Timeline EP (Review) Share this

The combination of chiptunes and live instruments may not be a new thing these days, but the duo of Jeffrey “jmr” Roberts and Mikhail “streifig” Ivanov that make up the band Marshall Art helped to master the the concept in the past handful of years. Having released albums of both original compositions as well as arrangements of game music and even live performances at MAGFest, the chiprock team has created a synergy that sounds both retro and fresh at the same time.

With the recent release of their newest EP, Timeline, Marshall Art continues that trend while also bringing in the talents of post-rock musician Cory Johnson to craft a small tribute to old and new game music. The four-track album features arrangements of tracks from The Legend of Zelda, Chrono Trigger, Earthbound and Undertale that take a low-key progressive rock flavor interlaced with chip music that does homage to the roots of the track’s origins as 8 and 16-bit soundtracks while also keeping things sounding modern.

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Game Music

Tommy Tallarico Confirms Video Games Live Level 6 Album Kickstarter for February 2018

December 18, 2017 | Ryan Paquet | Comments Off on Tommy Tallarico Confirms Video Games Live Level 6 Album Kickstarter for February 2018 Share this

On December 15, 2017, Tommy Tallarico confirmed that the next Video Games Live Album is in the works. The confirmation was made on Twitter when he re-tweeted Franklin Richard’s tweet which we’ve copied below:

Interestingly, it was also noted that the new album will feature the vocals of Jason Paige who is known for singing the original Pokémon theme song. Original Sound Version gave the last album, Level 5 a glowing review which you can read here if you missed it. I popped over to the Level 5 Kickstarter page this morning which revealed even more details:

Yesterday we made our big announcement by confirming LEVEL 6 for 2018 and revealing that we have partnered with original Pokemon TV show “Gotta Catch Em All” singer Jason Paige to do a powerful updated extended symphonic rock version of the iconic masterpiece AND that Jason will be joining us on future tours!

It was also revealed that I will be producing Jason’s next album which will focus on ALL rock/symphony/electronic recreations of the GREATEST pop-culture hits of the 80’s & 90’s! The setlist and album which will be picked entirely by the fans! Theme suggestions to include Pokemon (duh!), TMNT, Animaniacs, The Simpsons, Power Rangers, Sailor Moon, Duck Tales, Tiny Toons, Digimon, Scooby Doo, Full House, Spider-Man and MANY MANY more!

Check out our interactive Facebook Live chat we had in which you’ll hear Jason do some hilarious on-the-spot singing and answering questions! Sorry about the muffled audio in the beginning! New phone… didn’t realize I had my finger over the mic! 🙂 Hope you’ll take part in LEVEL 6! Coming in February!!

Tommy Tallarico

I can only speculate what other games will be covered on the Level 6 album, but I have a strong feeling that Undertale, Earthbound/Mother and Katamari Damacy might be strong contenders. All three were included as possible stretch goal tracks for the last album and it wouldn’t surprise me if they made the cut this time. Personally I’ve expressed to Tommy Tallarico I’ve love to see Tim Follin’s Silver Surfer represented. And I have to say, Jason Paige’s new album in the works sounds radical dude.

Is there a video game soundtrack you’d like to see on Video Games Live Level 6?
Doujin, Game Music

Soundtrack to Earthbound Fan Game Mother 4 Now Available

November 27, 2017 | Brenna Wilkes | 3 Comments Share this

If you’re a Earthbound fan, you may have heard of the fan game Mother 4, which was a homebrew created as a unofficial sequel to Earthbound (aka: Mother 3). There’s a bit of history with the fan game, so if you haven’t heard of it before now, I suggest checking it out. The music for the game has since come out, composed by Shane Mesa, and includes both original compositions specifically created for the fan game, as well as licensed covers from the original Earthbound game.

The Mother 4 Soundtraaaack!! features 60 full tracks, with 8 being from previous Mother/Earthbound games. Composed by Shame Mesa and Mastered by DJ Cutman, the album is a ridiculously dedicated tribute to the Earthbound series as a whole, which was originally composed by Metroid‘s Hirokazu “Hip” Tanaka, Hiroshi Kanazu and Keiichi Suzuki.

<a href="http://music.gamechops.com/album/mother-4-soundtraaaack">Mother 4 Soundtraaaack!! by Shane Mesa</a>

<a href="http://music.gamechops.com/album/mother-4-soundtraaaack">Mother 4 Soundtraaaack!! by Shane Mesa</a>

Currently available under the Gamechops license, the Mother 4 Soundtraaaack!! can be purchased digitally on Bandcamp, iTunes and Google Play.

Update: I was a bit confused by the details. Turns out the game itself is changing names due to copyright and will be getting a different soundtrack for its full release, but this is the original soundtrack Mesa created before leaving the project. Thanks DJMiniboss for the information.
Doujin, Game Music

EarthBound Gets Psychokinetic Remix Albums by The Bad Dudes

April 27, 2017 | Brenna Wilkes | Comments Off on EarthBound Gets Psychokinetic Remix Albums by The Bad Dudes Share this

A remix album paying tribute to Nintendo’s MOTHER series titled “Psychokinetic” has been released by video game cover band Bad Dudes. Originally a part of the “You Are Now EarthBound” Kickstarter campaign run by Fangamer in 2014, the album is now available separately for the first time.

“Fangamer’s Kickstarter aimed to deliver the ultimate EarthBound fan’s dream package – a guidebook for the game, a documentary about the effects of EarthBound in the United States, a fan zine, lots of collectible knick-knacks, and our album.

Backer Emile Rosales challenged me by requesting two pieces of short, ambient music from EarthBound to arrange: ‘Crossing Space and Time’ and ‘The Place.’ I drew from my experience playing the game and applying my senses of both wonder and terror as you learn the true nature of this cave and what it means for your party.” – Mustin, Bad Dudes Founder

<a href="http://baddudes.bandcamp.com/album/psychokinetic-i">Psychokinetic I by Bad Dudes</a>

Separate of the Kickstarter campaign, a limited number of physical copies produced for the campaign are still available, housing both Part 1 and Part 2 of the digital collection in a sleek DVD case alongside a booklet containing credits and track commentary, along with digital copies of the albums available on several digital outlets.

You can purchase the physical copies of the Psychokinetic double album on the Mustin Enterprises website, with Part 1 and Part 2 being available on both Bandcamp and Spotify.
Doujin, Game Music, Reviews

Coming Up All 7’s – Part Seven by The OneUps (Review)

March 28, 2016 | Sebastian Urrea | Comments Off on Coming Up All 7’s – Part Seven by The OneUps (Review) Share this

The OneUps have just released their seventh studio album, appropriately titled “Part Seven”. The OneUps are a video game music cover band that performs arrangements of a wide variety of music, oftentimes in variations of jazz and rock styles. Their latest album, released just prior to this past MAGFest last month, continues this trend with new covers in a funk rock style. It includes a nice selection of songs, including some fairly familiar ones and some less so. Read on for the full review.

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Game Music, Japanese

Musical Tribute to Satoru Iwata Released for Charity

November 6, 2015 | Brenna Wilkes | Comments Off on Musical Tribute to Satoru Iwata Released for Charity Share this

A tribute arrangement album titled Prescription for Peace has been released by Scarlet Moon Records and features the renowned duo of Metal Gear Solid composer Norihiko Hibino and AYAKI, also known as Gentle Love, paying musical respect to the late Nintendo President, Satoru Iwata.

“It’s with great sadness and respect for the recently departed that Scarlet Moon Records makes available a soulful musical tribute to late Nintendo President and CEO Satoru Iwata and renowned musician from the Niigata region of Japan Eiki Oshimi. Prescription for Peace: A Tribute to the Departed features GENTLE LOVE, the musical duo comprised of Metal Gear Solid series composer Norihiko Hibino and pianist AYAKI, and covers the Onett theme from EarthBound–also known as Mother 2 in Japan–a title that Mr. Iwata had a significant role in developing. The second track, “Sincerely Yours,” pays tribute to Mr. Oshimi, a musical mentor to the Hibino family who passed within a few days of Mr. Iwata.

The tribute is being sold for $1 to cover licensing fees to Nintendo with any additional revenue generated to be donated to the American Cancer Society. It’s available now from LOUDR and from other digital retailers”

Part of the “Prescription…” series of empathetic and soul-soothing arrangements, Prescription for Peace is a fitting memorial to the beloved Iwata-san.

GENTLE LOVE of Loudr

Source: Scarlet Moon Productions