Keiji Yamagishi

Chip Music, Game Music

Brave Wave’s Ninja Gaiden Albums out April 13th

April 11, 2017 | Shawn Sackenheim | Comments Off on Brave Wave’s Ninja Gaiden Albums out April 13th Share this

First announced last November, Brave Wave’s definitive soundtracks to the original Ninja Gaiden series are finally ready for release on Thursday, April 13th. The two-volume collection features the arcade original and its NES counterpart on Volume 1 and the NES sequels — The Dark Sword of Chaos and The Ancient Ship of Doom — on Volume 2. Both albums will be released on vinyl and CD and like past entries in their Generation Series the physical editions will feature archival artwork, composer photos and interviews. Digital versions will also be available on Bandcamp, iTunes and streaming services including Spotify.

The production of both albums is based on new digital recordings from original hardware with the supervision of Ninja Gaiden composer and Tecmo sound engineer, Keiji Yamagishi. It also marks the first time a commercial version of Ninja Gaiden III’s music has ever been available.

<a href="http://store.bravewave.net/album/ninja-gaiden-the-definitive-soundtrack-vol-1-2">Ninja Gaiden The Definitive Soundtrack Vol. 1 + 2 by Koei Tecmo Games Co., Ltd.</a>

To commemorate the launch of these albums Brave Wave is also offering 100 limited edition vinyl box sets. Including all 4 LPs, the $100 set comes with a numbered art card designed by Ninja Gaiden illustrator Masato Kato and signed by composers Keiji Yamagishi, Ryuichi Nitta and Kaori Nakabai. Take a look at more of the gorgeous packaging at Brave Wave’s official site and sample some of the 100+ tracks from both albums above.
Featured, Game Music, Indie Music

2017: My Most Anticipated Video Game Music Albums

December 14, 2016 | Ryan Paquet | 4 Comments Share this

I love writing about soundtracks I’m excited for, and usually do it following E3 every year. You can read my most recent list of most anticipated soundtrack following E3 2016 here.

This past year I’ve learned about a number of soundtracks that are in the works, and I’ve collected a list of them for you. I know 2016 isn’t over yet but let me know what you think, and please let me know about all of the great upcoming album’s I’ve missed!

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Game Music

Brave Wave gives Ninja Gaiden the Deluxe Treatment on Upcoming Albums

November 22, 2016 | Shawn Sackenheim | Comments Off on Brave Wave gives Ninja Gaiden the Deluxe Treatment on Upcoming Albums Share this

Brave Wave has announced the next entry under their Generation Series label and it hits the same nostalgic center of the brain as their previous offerings. Following their lavish treatments of Street Fighter II and Shovel Knight, the team at Brave Wave is now working closely with composers Keiji Yamagishi, Ryuichi Nitta and Kaori Nakabai on a double album release focused on vintage Ninja Gaiden.

Ninja Gaiden Vol. 1 features both the original arcade version of Ninja Gaiden and its NES counterpart. As you’d expect, Ninja Gaiden Vol. 2 continues the timeline with both Ninja Gaiden II: The Dark Sword of Chaos and Ninja Gaiden III: The Ancient Ship of Doom. Both albums will receive the same elaborate vinyl and CD treatments as previous releases with archival art and liner notes featuring interviews and essays by game historian Ray Barnholt.

The production will once again be based on new digital recordings from original hardware with supervision this time by NES lead composer, Keiji Yamagishi. Yamagishi also created the sound driver for the NES series and has brought in Ninja Gaiden II and III composers, Nitta and Nakabai respectively, to shoot for authenticity on these releases.

More details on price, tracklist and the inevitable lavish packaging will be revealed soon.
Game Music

BRAVE WAVE Continues to release awesome music: Retro-Active Pt. 2 by Keiji Yamagishi is here!

February 6, 2016 | Ryan Paquet | 10 Comments Share this

After a year of exhaustive work, Ninja Gaiden composer Keiji Yamagishi is back again with “Retro-Active Pt. 2”, the followup to his chart-topper debut Retro-Active Pt. 1. The new album finds him exploring various styles and genres, in addition to a special collaboration with Ninja Gaiden II composer Ryuichi Nitta. “When it comes to musical expression, I believe there’s a greater potential to be found within the chiptune genre”, says Yamagishi about his new work. “I expanded on the ideas found in Retro-Active Pt. 1, and I tried to fuse different genres in an effort to make a unique soundscape.”

Brave Wave

You can listen to the new album which spans a total of 7 tracks below. I have listened to the whole thing already and can say that its a wonderful follow up to the first album. Stemage provided the guitar work for tracks 2, and 4 to 6. The seventh track on the album is a sweet remix of the album’s sixth track “Eastern Sky” by Saori Kobayashi, who is currently working on her next Brave Wave release TERRA MAGICIA.

<a href="http://store.bravewave.net/album/retro-active-pt-2">Retro-Active Pt. 2 by Keiji Yamagishi</a>

Retro-Active Part 2 is available at Brave Wave’s online store as a digital download for $8 USD. What do you think of this latest release from Brave Wave Productions?
Chip Music, Featured

Keiji Yamagishi’s Retro-Active Pt.2 Coming February 5th

January 11, 2016 | Shawn Sackenheim | Comments Off on Keiji Yamagishi’s Retro-Active Pt.2 Coming February 5th Share this

Keiji Yamagishi’s Retro-Active was originally planned as an overarching, three-album journey to be released across 2015. While we got the first installment on February 5th with Retro-Active Pt. 1 the follow up has taken a bit longer than expected. One year, to be exact.

Brave Wave has revealed that Retro-Active Pt. 2 will be released on February 5th, 2016 bringing listeners back to Yamagishi’s “futuristic emotional chiptunes world”. Along with new solo tracks the famed Famicom/NES composer will be teaming up with Ninja Gaiden II composer Ryuichi Nitta. The first track from the album, “Chaotic Code”, will be released on January 14th to give listeners a taste of Part 2’s sound in advance of the full album release on February 5th.

For now we’ll have to settle for the new album art above which is a continuation from Part 1. That’ll make for one sweet panorama once the final part is released. Are you excited to finally hear Retro-Active Pt. 2? Did you pick up the original album or the remix album? Let us know in the comments below.
Game Music

Exile’s End Original Soundtrack Available Now from Brave Wave

September 2, 2015 | Ryan Paquet | 89 Comments Share this

Brave Wave Productions just released the soundtrack to Exile’s End by composer Keiji Yamagishi known for Ninja Gaiden. The game was developed by Magnetic realms and published by Marvelous Inc.

Exile’s End is an homage to early 90’s action-adventure PC games like Flashback and Another World, but with a Japanese flair. The core of the game is from Australian game maker Magnetic Realms with art, cutscenes, and music provided by legends of the 8 and 16-bit eras from Japan. It draws its thematic influence from the science-fiction films and anime of the 80’s and its gameplay from classic Amiga and Commodore 64 action-adventures.

When tasked with composing the game, Keiji Yamagishi delved into uncharted territory by experimenting with moody, ambient electronica — a welcome departure from his signature style.

Brave Wave Productions

The album is available as a digital download from Brave Wave for $7.00, or as a bonus DLC if you buy the game on Steam during the first week for $9.34 (15% Off until September 7!) From what I’ve heard so far it is a fantastic release. Let us know what you think!
Chip Music, Featured

Composer Keiji Yamagishi Launches A New Solo Music Project

January 23, 2015 | Michael Hoffmann | Comments Off on Composer Keiji Yamagishi Launches A New Solo Music Project Share this

Famed Famicom/NES composer Keiji Yamagishi has a new music project that will be released this year. The Retro-Active Experience is a set of albums which will be coming out in three parts over the course of this year and feature brand new compositions by the composer. Inspired by his earlier work on the original Nintendo Entertainment System, these albums will have an emphasis on chiptune and electronic genres, with a healthy blending of modern instruments.

The first part of this multi-album project is titled Retro-Active Pt. 1. A handful of the tracks on this first album feature collaborations with other composers and musicians like Stemage, of Metroid Metal, and Manami Matsumae, composer of the original Mega Man soundtrack. There will also be a few remix tracks from Takahiro Izutani, Riki Arai, and Smoke Thief included on Part 1.

Retro-Active Pt. 1 is currently available for pre-order on the Brave Wave music site. Pre-ordering the album will get you early access to 4 tracks for download (Tracks 1, 2, 7, and 9). The full album will receive its official release on February 5th. So if some new tunes by one of the great Famicom/NES composers sounds like something up your alley, check out the first entry of this new music project.