Grasshopper Manufacture

Game Music

Akira Yamaoka Talks Sine Mora, Offers Music Samples

March 15, 2012 | Jayson Napolitano | Comments Off on Akira Yamaoka Talks Sine Mora, Offers Music Samples Share this

I had a blast putting together a feature with Akira Yamaoka on his score for the upcoming shmup title on Xbox Live Arcade, Sine Mora, that hit Destructoid yesterday. In addition to featuring several clips of music from the game, Yamaoka offers insight into how he went about creating the game’s unique 1970s electronic funk sound using screenshots from the game that he was given very early on while working on the title.

Honestly, from what I’ve heard of the game’s soundtrack, it’s shaping up to be some pretty amazing stuff. While the stage theme samples are a little on the ambient side, some of the boss tunes really get down, and reminded me a bit of the Shatter soundtrack.

Head over to Destructoid for the full feature, but in the meantime, enjoy “Rising,” the theme for the sixth stage in the game courtesy of Destructoid’s Soundcloud. Also, let us know what you think of the game’s music thus far. Is it a surprise from Yamaoka?

“Rising” by Akira Yamaoka (From Sine Mora: Stage 6 – Tira) by destructoid
Game Music, Reviews

Damned if You Do: Shadows of the Damned (Review)

November 9, 2011 | Jayson Napolitano | Comments Off on Damned if You Do: Shadows of the Damned (Review) Share this

Yeah, we already reviewed the promotional soundtrack for Shadows of the Damned and loved it. It was actually quite an impressive sampler, featuring 12 tracks totaling around 30 minutes of music. Having loved what I heard, I was immediately excited when a full soundtrack release was announced.

We’ve listened, we’ve been surprised, and now we’re going to tell you about it.

Hit the jump for our review. (more…)
Game Music

Shadows of the Damned Full Soundtrack Release

September 7, 2011 | Jayson Napolitano | Comments Off on Shadows of the Damned Full Soundtrack Release Share this

For those who were left wanting more after listening to the pre-order soundtrack sampler from Akira Yamaoka’s score for Shadows of the Damned should be celebrating. Grasshopper Manufacture has printed 1,000 copies of a single disc soundtrack containing even more music from the game, and a number of those copies have been allocated for fans outside of Japan. Even more, those copies were all personally signed by Akira Yamaoka himself as an added bonus.

Grasshopper Manufacture is listing the soundtrack for $29.73 on their international store, and if the soundtrack sampler was any indication, it’ll be well worth picking up. There are only a little over 120 copies left at the time I prepared this post, so get on it if you want one for your collection! Head over to the official soundtrack product page or check out the Grasshopper Manufacture Facebook page for more details.
Game Music, Reviews

This is Hell: Shadows of the Damned Promotional Soundtrack (Review)

June 18, 2011 | Jayson Napolitano | Comments Off on This is Hell: Shadows of the Damned Promotional Soundtrack (Review) Share this

When Akira Yamaoka left Konami for Grasshopper Manufacture last year, everyone wondered what Yamaoka’s unique outlook on music as a sound design element would mean for Grasshopper Manufacture’s characteristically unique projects. While Yamaoka did contribute a couple tracks to No More Heroes 2 under a pseudonym, Shadows of the Damned, Grasshopper Manufacture’s new collaboration with EA Games is Yamaoka’s first full score with the company.

With that in mind, when it was announced that fans who pre-ordered Shadows of the Damned would receive a download code for a 12-track promotional soundtrack, I was even more interested. What would it offer, and would it live up to Yamaoka’s name, which has been extensively used to promote the title?

Find out in our review after the jump. (more…)
Game Music, Reviews

Margaret is Greek You Geek: No More Heroes 2 Desperate Struggle (Review)

January 10, 2011 | Jayson Napolitano | 17 Comments Share this

‘Tis the season, I suppose. This holiday season brought both the Opoona soundtrack and the No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle soundtrack, both of which I thought would never see a release. We covered No More Heroes 2 pretty extensively with both a game review and an interview with composer Jun Fukuda and sound coordinator Nobuhiko Sagara which I highly recommend reading before digging into our review, as it covers a lot of the artists that are featured.

So, does the No More Heroes 2 soundtrack live up to the quality of its predecessor? Find out in our review after the jump! (more…)
Game Music

GHM Store Relaunch: Limited Pressing of No More Heroes 2 Soundtrack Available

November 16, 2010 | Jayson Napolitano | 1 Comment Share this

This is exciting news. We loved No More Heroes 2 when it was released earlier this year, and even had the opportunity to speak with lead composer and sound designer Jun Fukuda and sound coordinator Nobuhiko Sagara about the soundtrack. We’ve known for some time that a mini-soundtrack would be included with the limited edition release in Japan, but GHM has now made the game’s entire soundtrack available via the revamped Gasshopper Manufacture Store. Yes, it’s available in North America and other regions around the globe, and you should know that only 1,000 copies have been printed, so get them while they’re hot!

Be ready for some excellent chip music from Fukuda along with tracks from numerous bands and Akira Yamaoka. Who knows, maybe they’ll officially credit him for his tracks, although it did seem somewhat obvious what his alias was on the soundtrack. The soundtrack features 3 discs of music and nearly every track from the game.

Will you be picking it up? Check out the official press release from Grasshopper Manufactuer after the jump! (more…)
Game Music

A Blast From The Past: The Original No More Heroes With Masafumi Takada

July 15, 2010 | Jayson Napolitano | Comments Off on A Blast From The Past: The Original No More Heroes With Masafumi Takada Share this

[Left to right: Masafumi Takada, Jayson Napolitano, Jun Fukuda (wearing Suda51’s badge!)]

Yes, it’s that time of month! “A Blast From The Past” is a series that rediscovers interviews I conducted while at Music4Games. The interviews are no longer available online, so I thought it would be appropriate to give them new life each month here on OSV.

This time we take a step back in time to GDC 2008 right after composer Masafumi Takada delivered his talk about his work up to that point. He spoke mostly about Killer 7 and No More Heroes, but we were able to sit down with him and discuss some of his other projects at Grasshopper Manufacture as well. I thought it was a good time to bring this one back after our awesome interview with Jun Fukuda and Nobuhiko Sagara back in May. I also have to thank Tommy Ciulla for contributing the majority of the questions to this interview, as I wasn’t really familiar with Takada’s past works at that point.

Hit the jump for a blast from the past! (more…)