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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOa4tXG4EQo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PAlsykuilJU
Listening to Retroforce Go! I'd always hear this at the end, and once I figured out what song it was it opened me up to the whole world of chiptunes. Fantastic.
Also, check out Dtoid New York for meetup plans. A ton of people will be there.
http://www.destructoid.com/blogs/DtoidNewYork
What isn't to love about mixed up beats with 8bit chiptune sounds thrown in, that's right there's nothing not to love, love it or it will destroy your soul <3
Link for great justice
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGYCWGYJsTY
http://trash80.net/files/8bp086-02-trash80-robot_sneakers.mp3
I had never heard any of Trash80's music until that night. I had recently broken up with my girlfriend of two years, so I was a bit of a wreck, and my friend Jeannette came with me to the Data Beez concert out in LA. Now first off, this is a big deal because just there's really never any chiptune shows out in LA. But also, I was out with a girl, having fun, we were dancing to some completely awesome music, and I was really happy. The next night when I finally got home, the first thing I did was find Trash80's website, download his Icarus EP, and blast it as loud as I could. I love this song.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q76EXuPy4Dw&feature=related
(Insane Time Signature!)
As far as the scene goes Nullsleep is my favorite artist. "Her Lazer eyes" makes me want to run through an 8bit field into the arms of the princess I've just saved from impending doom!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=41FgO77Acrc
mmmmmm
the megaband version is epic, but 8bit version is just as good
bleep bloop bleep blarp.
but srsly, just dropping this link cause stu is the closest chiptune artist to genuinely sound like music... although whatever im listening to right now is giving me a headache.
BLOOP!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VfkTmr28fXg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0n34-p0r1b8
http://www.8bitpeoples.com/discography/by/anamanaguchi
The reason I decided on Helix Nebula is twofold.
First off the song is nostalgic; though this is true for the chiptune genre as a whole and will probably be the central point of mention for many of the posts here, it's an important one to remember. It shows that games are now at a point where they are so deeply rooted into our culture that we are remembering and even referencing them in other forms of media, be it music or canvas or literature (which admittedly is arguable). Whenever I sit down and really listen to Anamanaguchi's Helix Nebula, I feel there should be a controller in my hand. I don't know if it's just the nerd in me, but I'm excited by that.
Second and more exclusively to this song, listening to it really makes me feel like I'm about to go on some sort of an adventure or begin a journey. This point ties back to the first, since many of video games' greatest songs (Mega Man 2's Dr. Wily Stage, Duck Tales' The Moon, Actraiser's Fillmore to name a few) try to do precisely the same thing. The catchy hooks and and fast pacing are secondary to the fact that I'm imagining the words "READY!!" or "GAME START" as the song's playing.
Also I guess there's a third reason which is Anamanaguchi is fucking awesome but far be it from me to post a fanboy comment and expect that to garner any credibility. Except I just did. Shit.
There was a section of the game which was described as needing info from Flex Busterman's wife, Annemone, and in order to get it, you had to get her off within a time limit. The tracks associated (Sex with Annemone) were hilarious, along with the digitized orgasm and fail state. The album was part love letter, part parody to games, and it was way better than I've seen of the newest wave of chipset music I've heard.
It even had a special effects track with 100 or so sounds.
Anyway, Flex Busterman was awesome, and I still listen to it regularly.
From: http://www.discogs.com/release/25251
"Up to 9 action-loaded levels, bonus rounds, 12 talking characters and a villian the world has never seen before. Great!!! - Fun Power"
He's about 60-something at the time, and it was my tenth birthday. He said he had a present that you couldn't just buy in a store. He then pulls out his laptop, and begins playing back a very highly stylized version of "Happy Birthday". Then he says, "This is what I got you. I made this for you."
Turns out he had heard about the style of music and how it's made, and having grown up surrounded by the early stages of technology, he decided to research and work on a song -- all for me.
He's still around today, in his 70's now. And he's still the most kickass person ever. He gave up chiptunes altogether after that day, but then took up gaming, and took up kicking my ass at every PC-based shooter on the market.
That present is still the best present I've ever had, and that chiptune is something I'll never forget.
I have a lot of favorite chiptune songs, but I chose this one because it fits how I'd feel if I won the tickets. I've been meaning to go to blip fest for the past 2 years but I just never made it. I've turned a lot of .sid files into mp3s so I can listen to them when on the go, and it magically makes the world a happier place. When Brutality 4 comes on i can't help but smile, just reminds me of my childhood, blue skies and the vividness that childhood seemed to have. I love the bassline, and the melody is killer, I love all the slidey bits in it. No other genre of music makes me feel the way the majority of chiptune does.
Other great chiptune that I love is all the stuff by Rob Hubbard, especially the Road Rash 1 music for the Genesis! And Radix, man do I love everything that guy makes. Bit Shifter ofcourse is awesome as well, I saw him at a basement show with one speaker blown, and the sound was unbelievable I felt like I was in the future, I got to shake his hand afterwards, and there was a naked dude walking around too. Crazy night.
I'd love to go to blip fest this year, and I will go if I win or not, depending on if I have the money of course (Ramen for dinner here I come)
links: Trianglular: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUaJw_ZIVYE
Polygon Sun (live): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4STyJ_HPb5M
Polygon Sun (not live, excuse video): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZu4F0zybUM
Why? It is perhaps the most 'emotionally' charged 8bit track I have ever heard. And while I have total appreciation for people that can make super energetic music, or dancy music, happy, sad music.. etc (all of which are arts on their own), Chromelodeon remain one of the rare few that somehow surpass those feelings. They make me feel the whole "i can't explain why i like this so much" feeling that can come from pretty much any media and is often unexpected. I was (and am still) so happy that that"feeling" popped up for me in chip music, of all places. ;)
Honorable mention? The total ear-fuck last song Nullsleep played at Shea Stadium last Saturday with Starscream and Graffiti Monsters. I would totally lose even more of my hearing just to hear those sounds again.
Who here can admit that the Tetris theme song does not go through their mind every other day? No one. So catchy, I would attempt to type it out, however, I am afraid that my monitor and/or eyes might explode from it being written. The new stuff just does not compare.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Atez4NnLOl8
I first heard this song at a show during Folk Life festival in Seattle and fell in love, it's exactly what you want in a chiptune song, bass, dancy tunes, and bleeps. Also this is what one looks like after dancing for an hour straight at a Fighter X show.
and you can get it heeeer along other fine releases
[url http://goto80.blipp.com/goto80-6-proot-records-mp3[/url]
best regards, and see youse at bleep.
ph
this crazy song made me jump ALOT from friend Taxi Nouveau von MTL'scene.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rONk0jMa74A
MP3: http://www.8bitpeoples.com/mp3/get/448/8bp071-05-virt-choppastyle.mp3
Live Version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6OOEFFLkpkk
I heard this live at MAGFest two years ago and it's pretty much what made me decide to start making music. Virt creates some of the most catchy, stylized and compositionally rich chipmusic out there, and I know close to a dozen people that have completely changed their opinions on chipmusic after listening to 'FX3', myself included. The things this man does with a NES soundchip are the stuff of legends.
Layered counter-melodies - Dynamic drum solos - Soaring, jazzy leads... Until a few years ago, these were things I would never expect to hear from decades-old videogame hardware. Hearing Virt's music not only challenged my perception of the hardware's technical limitations, it introduced me to a whole new world where seemingly soulless pulsewaves could be transmogrified into screaming guitars, singing saxophones or melancholy violins.
..and yeah, Ary. That Nullsleep piece from the other night would be a close second for me too. The raw talent and bold innovation that comes from people in this scene will never cease to amaze me.
http://www.8bitpeoples.com/files/8bp065-07-anamanaguchi-power_supply.mp3
I LOVE IT SO MUCH I LEARNED ALL THE LYRIX! HERE THEY ARE: BLEEEEP BEEPBEEP BRIIING BLOOP (repeat x3)
This track is absolutely amazing and emotional. The atmosphere this song creates is one that drives me into an indescribable nostalgic dream. I can imagine a busy world that is either from another planet or tightly wired into my old NES. This album got me interested in researching other chiptune artists, however Anamanaguchi remains my all time favourite. I never get tired of listening to Power Supply, and have seen them live over 25 times in the past 3 years. I look forward to supporting them in the future and shaking my booty fast and hard at all of their beatz. Namely this one. Shit's amazin'.
I lost my virginity while it was playing.
I think that the chipmusic scene is saturated with a ton of folks simply trying to make good music. Disasterpeace definitely achieves this goal, while at the same time managing to accomplish so much more with each track he releases. Each song feels as though it's telling a story - accompanying each melody, beat, and chord with a narrative. Counter of the Cumulus is one of those songs that sends goose bumps down my back each time I hear it. Not only because of its sheer beauty, but because of the song's ability to inspire an almost disturbing sense of sadness and despair. As if holding the most beautiful thing you've ever witnessed two minutes before your own execution.
In short: Disasterpeace fucking rules. Whoever wins these tickets is going to have their mind blown when they see him perform at Blipfest.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-X-34ItjC0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PRCqzJEA0yw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0VCjEAb-etk&feature=related
It has this amazing upbeat essence to it that really gets you into the game and motivates you to beat it. Just listen to it and you'll see how catchy and fun it is. Although I chose just that song, I encourage everyone to listen to the whole video, which plays a sample of each song on the soundtrack. I also really like "The Lonely Tower" which is the first song played in the video and a close second to "Indignant Divinity" if not equally as awesome. To hear other amazing chiptunes from flashygoodness, the briliant creator behind these sounds, check out this library of his I found here:
http://flashygoodness.deviantart.com/art/Flashy-Music-Gallery-v0-46-117339174
I'm not really entering in the competition, cos there is really no way I could get to New York...It's not exactly a bus trip from Scotland. But, y'know, if folk are using this to find interesting new chip tune / electro acts, then, yea, She or Saberpulse.
OOOOH! Or FireBrand Boy. He's Scottish, so he gets bonus points! "Three Mile Wish" makes me tingle in my pants:
http://www.last.fm/music/Firebrand+Boy/_/Three+Mile+Wish
Simpler times. The music is so quaint and joyous it makes me wish I could really reformat the planet and relive those days when my only concern was if my batteries would last me the way home.
http://www.last.fm/music/Bit+Shifter/_/Reformat+The+Planet
Simpler times. The music is so quaint and joyous it makes me wish I could really reformat the planet and relive those days when my only concern was if my batteries would last me the way home.
http://www.last.fm/music/Bit+Shifter/_/Reformat+The+Planet
Simpler times. The music is so quaint and joyous it makes me wish I could really reformat the planet and relive those days when my only concern was if my batteries would last me the way home.
http://www.last.fm/music/Bit+Shifter/_/Reformat+The+Planet
Simpler times. The music is so quaint and joyous it makes me wish I could really reformat the planet and relive those days when my only concern was if my batteries would last me the way home.
http://www.last.fm/music/Bit+Shifter/_/Reformat+The+Planet
http://www.myspace.com/ymck
magical 8bit tour is still one of my favourite chiptune songs because it manages to create wonderful pop music out of all of our favourite by-product of consumer pop culture.
also, the 8bitpeoples AXEL F covers are bad ass, particularly the mix by Ten and Tracer, because they managed to get into a weird 'detuned-analog-reminiscent-of-boards-of-canada-and-their-ilk' thing.
although, i think this is due largely to the fact that ten and tracer is not infact chiptunes, and makes use of those lovely analog darlings, jp-8000, jx-10 etc.
also, beep.
http://www.8bitpeoples.com/files/8bp065-05-anamanaguchi-fast_turtle.mp3
First off, I really like how the band uses an NES for their music. The sounds that come out of that magical machine make me feel nostalgic and want to take my shirt off and start curling on the floor like a dry fish. I love how they mix in their own instruments into the song so you can get that feel of playing on an old cartridge while having some of the new mixed into it. This song makes me smile, which is what makes it so special because other brands of chip music aren't usually able to incorporate the kind of physical emotion into the track like this band does.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYTCb64lns0 (Kirby's Dream Land, Final Boss)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_-HvB3zbC4 (Super Mario Land, Overworld)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_N7__8-9r0 (Donkey Kong Land, Underwater Theme)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxDy8oNSqno (Super Mario Land, Underground Theme)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fj6r4lff0-o (Milon's Secret Castle)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T0JVI11Eo6Q (Pocket Bomberman, The Jungle)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kY5G_3zIf0g (Super Mario Land, Submarine Theme)
These are just a few examples of the great video game music of the 90s. Pick any of these songs as my entry, they are all great. If I am really required to choose one, I suppose I'll pick the last one for no particular reason. Just hearing them again puts me in this state of immense nostalgia. God I want to be five again...