VG Frequency

In an exclusive NGI interview, Andrew “OA” Luers sits down to discuss the upcoming OverClocked ReMix album ‘Final Fantasy IV: Echoes of Betrayal, Light of Redemption‘, his initial feelings on being a part of the OverClocked ReMix judges panel, his experiences with SnappleMan’s mom, and tons more! Don’t miss FOUR exclusive tracks: Two from the upcoming Final Fantasy IV album, Andrew’s new cut from SaGa Frontier 2, and remake of a remix originally featured on the ‘Radical Dreamers: Thieves of Fate’ album. Check it over at NGI!

Yesterday, I read Nick Chester’s post on Destructoid about GamerDNA’s Sam Houston maintaining a list of video game industry professionals and journalists using Twitter at Game Industry Tweet.

I love Twitter, and video game music is my passion. Since an important sector of game development was absent from Sam’s list, I’m maintaining a list of video game music professionals and enthusiasts on Twitter. More links will be added, and I’m sure there are folks who are absent from this list or want their info amended. If you need either, follow me & direct message me on Twitter, or email me at larryoji@ocremix.org.

If you’re not on Twitter, it’s a great platform with easy access to fellow enthusiasts, and it also encourages brief, effective communication. Get with the program and sign up.

Last updated: May 30th, 2009 - added chrisjhampton, esti_, gazms, gerdin, jgmusic, jasonchayes, masusu, masu_tom, neilvoss, ryuichisakamoto, whelchelphd, TracyWBush, virtjk, 8bitVGM, halc9bit, HaleaciousB, hatebunny, Nailhead, Nailhead_Gamer, nonsensicalexis, THE_Real_Chako, therks, Willrock07, danbrownpiano, dezolorfien, GenesisTribute, jason_vincion, shotanakama, SOU1, spamtron, thanatos_hn, Wizwars, xocnosaj, appiani, Axtuse, ffdistantworlds, SpiritofGamer, TheSIDStation

Since I put in the elbow grease to create this list, leading off is my bread and butter…

OverClocked ReMix (http://www.ocremix.org):

ocremix : OverClocked ReMix, composers for Capcom’s Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, world’s largest website for VGM arrangements & fandom, hosts over 1,500 free VGM ReMixes

djpretzel : David W. Lloyd, aka djpretzel, OC ReMix founder/president/designer/webmaster; co-composer & soundtrack director for Capcom’s Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, software engineer

LarryOji : Larry Oji, aka Liontamer, OC ReMix head submissions evaluator, assistant soundtrack director for Capcom’s Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, Tim Follin: Dirge for the Follin album director, creator of VGM radio show & blog VG Frequency, VGMdb staff

anosou : Mattias Häggström Gerdt, aka Another Soundscape, OC ReMix submissions judge, co-composer for Capcom’s Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, composer for OK Games’ Artoon and Onion Factory’s The Perfect Match

biggiantcircles : Jimmy Hinson, aka Big Giant Circles, OC ReMix submissions judge, co-composer for Capcom’s Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix,

darkesword : Shariq Ansari, aka DarkeSword, OC ReMix submissions judge, Kirby’s Adventure: Rise of the Star album director

zirconst : Andrew Aversa, aka zircon, OC ReMix submissions judge, Final Fantasy VII: Voices of the Lifestream album director, composer for Fittest, co-composer for Capcom’s Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, creator of music industry/business blog SoundTempest, former host of OC ReMix podcast VGDJ, fiancé of vocalist & composer Jillian Goldin (pixietricks)

Professional video game musicians:

8bitweapon : Seth Sternberger, aka 8 Bit Weapon, chiptune musician, composer for Nokia’s Reset Generation

awintory : Austin Wintory, composer for thatgamecompany’s flOw

Beatdrop : Dain Olsen, aka Beatdrop, former OC ReMix submissions judge, co-composer for Konami’s Dance Dance Revolution SuperNOVA 2, Universe 2 & Universe 3

bobbaffy : Bob Baffey, audio director at Backbone Entertainment, former audio director at Digital Eclipse, sound designer, composer for multitude of Game Boy Color titles

cdeenen : Charles Deenen, composer for Virgin Games’ M.C. Kids, co-composer for Interplay’s The Lost Vikings, senior audio director at Electronic Arts

chibitech : Jason Nisperos, aka Chibi-Tech, chiptune musician, composer for Marvelous’s Zero no Tsukaima: Fantasy Force

chrisjhampton : Chris J. Hampton, aka ast0r, composer for Two Tribes’ Toki Tori

christilton : Chris Tilton, composer for EA’s Black and Mercenaries 2: World in Flames

christophertin : Christopher Tin, co-composer for 2K Games’ Civilization IV

clswall : Cindy L. S. Wall, vocalist for Ubisoft’s Myst series, wife of Video Games Live co-creator & conductor Jack Wall

CoLDSToRAGE : Tim Wright, aka CoLD SToRAGE, former in-house composer at SCEE’s Psygnosis, co-composer for Psygnosis’s Shadow of the Beast series and Sony’s Wipeout series

ColinOMalley : Colin O’Malley, co-composer for Eidos’s Tomb Raider: Underworld

Dave_Clynick : David Clynick, in-house composer at Microsoft’s Rare, co-composer for Perfect Dark Zero

David_Wise : David Wise, career-long in-house composer at Microsoft’s Rare, composer for Wizards & Warriors series, Battletoads, Donkey Kong Country series, co-composer for Viva Piñata: Pocket Paradise

Disasterpeace : Rich Vreeland, aka Disasterpeace, lead composer for 16×16’s Rescue: The Beagles

doistovich : Gene M. Rozenberg, aka Ampersand/Doistovich, composer for EA’s Henry Hatsworth in the Puzzling Adventure

EminenceOnline : Eminence Symphony Orchestra, founded by Hiroaki Yura, Echoes of War album creators, performers for Blizzard’s Diablo III, Vanillaware’s Odin Sphere, Sega’s Valkyria Chronicles and Namco Bandai’s Soulcalibur IV

esti_ : Jin-Bae Park, aka ESTi, composer for Nexon’s TalesWeaver and NTREEV Soft’s Pangya: Fantasy Golf

gazms : Robert Stjärnström, aka Gaz, vocalist and former guitarist for band Machinae Supremacy, co-composer for Rake in Grass’s Jets’n'Guns

gerdin : Andreas Gerdin, aka Gordon, rhythm guitarist for band Machinae Supremacy, co-composer for Rake in Grass’s Jets’n'Guns

GKMarino : Gerard K. Marino, co-composer for Sony’s God of War series

Godspeed_ViViX : Masahiro Aoki, aka Godspeed, co-composer for The Law of Contradiction

grantkirkhope : Grant Kirkhope, audio director at THQ’s Big Huge Games, former in-house composer at Microsoft’s Rare, co-composer for Rare’s GoldenEye 007, Donkey Kong 64, Perfect Dark, Banjo-Kazooie series & Viva Piñata series

harwood9 : Stephen Harwood, Jr., composer for Ubisoft’s Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30

iwadon : Hiroyuki Iwatsuki, composer for Natsume/Hudson Soft’s Omega Five (see also: iwadon_ldrlog)

jgmusic : Jason Graves, composer for EA’s Dead Space

jasonchayes : Jason Hayes, co-composer for Blizzard’s StarCraft, Warcraft III and World of Warcraft

jonathancoulton : Jonathan Coulton, composer of “Still Alive” for Valve’s Portal, nerdcore singer-songwriter

JoshuaMorse : Joshua Morse, composer for GameOn’s Anna’s Ice Cream, creator of album Ragnarok Online: Hybridism

kevinrieplmusic : Kevin Riepl, composer for Microsoft’s Gears of War (see also: DamageVault_K)

madfiddler : Mark Knight, aka madfiddler, composer for EA’s Warhammer: Dark Omen, Bullfrog’s Populous: The Beginning and Dungeon Keeper 2, Lead Audio Designer at Codemasters Software, member of band Stuck in D’80s

Malcos : Stephen Malcolm-Howell, aka Malcos, co-composer & assistant soundtrack director for Capcom’s Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, former OC ReMix submissions judge

mark_griskey : Mark Griskey, composer for LucasArts’ Star Wars: The Force Unleashed

masusu : Masashi Yano, composer for Bullet Witch and Suiheisen Made Nan Mile?, co-composer for Cave’s Puzzle! Mushihimetama

masu_tom : Tomas Nilsén, drummer for band Machinae Supremacy, co-composer for Rake in Grass’s Jets’n'Guns

McVaffe : Michael Vafeas, aka McVaffe, OC ReMixer, co-composer for Capcom’s Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix

M_Minoshima : Masayoshi Minoshima, co-composer for Makura’s H2O: Footprints in the Sand, founder and owner of Alstroemeria Records

Mustin : Mustin, OC ReMixer, composer for Telegames’ Ultimate Arcade Games: Treasure Hunters, leader of band The OneUps, creator of record label OneUp Studios

nakataka : Takayuki Nakamura, co-composer for Sega’s Virtua Fighter series and Q Entertainment’s Lumines series

neal_acree : Neal Acree, co-composer for Blizzard’s Warcraft: The Burning Crusade and World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King

neilvoss : Neil Voss, composer of H2O Entertainment’s Tetrisphere

neostormx: Anthony Marin, aka Neostorm, OC ReMixer, co-composer for Capcom’s Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix

nrvststpilot : Paul Taylor, aka nervous_testpilot, composer for Mode 7 Games’ Determinance, freelance music journalist

orchetect : Steffan Andrews, OC ReMixer, co-composer for EA’s FaceBreaker and PowerUp Studios’ Night of a Million Billion Zombies

REDALiCE : Akai Hito, aka REDALiCE, composer for Dokodemo Sukishite Itsudemo Sukishite, veteran VGM arranger

Richard_Jacques : Richard Jacques, composer for Sega’s Sonic 3D Blast, co-composer for Sega’s Jet Set Radio series, BioWare’s Mass Effect and Sega’s Sonic and the Black Knight

RyanAComposer : Ryan Arndt, Lead Sound Designer/Composer/Studio Marketing & Development at Somatone Interactive Canada

ryuichisakamoto : Ryuichi Sakamoto, co-composer of Square Enix’s Dawn of Mana

SeanBeeson : Sean Beeson, composer for Silver Sphere Studios’ Eternity’s Child

ShaelRiley : Shael Riley, OC ReMixer, co-composer & soundtrack director for Capcom’s Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, member of nerdcore band The Grammar Club, cast member of ScrewAttack’s The New Adventures of Captain S, brother of Devon Riley

sklathill : Vincent Diamante, composer for USC Interactive Media’s Cloud and Konami Mobile’s Castlevania: Order of Shadows, Interactive Media Division adjunct professor at University of Southern California

soundofjw : Josh Whelchel, aka TwiTerror, composer for Natomic Studios’ The Spirit Engine series (see also: whelchelphd)

TheMightyFatMan : George Sanger, aka The Fat Man, OC ReMixer, legendary professional VGM composer, leader of Team Fat, creator of game music summit Project Bar-B-Q (see also: fmandcg)

TheRealBeano : Robin Beanland, audio director at Microsoft’s Rare, co-composer for Rare’s Donkey Kong Country, Killer Instinct series, Conker series and Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts

toksin : Sascha Dikiciyan, aka toksin, co-composer for Ubisoft’s TMNT, co-composer for Flagship Studios’ Hellgate: London, musical collaborator of Cris Velasco

TommyTallarico : Tommy Tallarico, Guinness world record holder of work on the most video games, co-creator & host of Video Games Live concert series, founder of Game Audio Network Guild (G.A.N.G.)

TomSalta : Tom Salta, composer for Ubisoft’s Tom Clancy’s: Ghost Recon Advanced Warfigher 1 & 2

TracyWBush : Tracy W. Bush, co-composer for Blizzard’s Warcraft III and World of Warcraft

virtjk : Jake Kaufman, aka virt, composer for Capcom’s Shantae, Neon Studios’ Legend of Kay and Konami’s Contra 4, founder of band The Smash Brothers, husband of Kristi Kaufman

wall_snd : Jack Wall, co-creator and conductor of Video Games Live concert series, composer for Ubisoft’s Myst series, BioWare’s Jade Empire and BioWare’s Mass Effect, husband of vocalist Cindy L. S. Wall

zhaytee : Joseph Toscano, aka ZhayTee, OC ReMixer, composer for Sunspire Studios’ Tux Racer

More OC ReMixers (http://www.ocremix.org/remixers/):

8bitVGM : 8 Bit Instrumental

adrianholovaty : Adrian Holovaty, creator of Super Mario Bros. 2 ‘Gypsy Jazz’, creator of open-source web application framework Django

AkumajoBelmont : Rabbie Sabo, aka AkumajoBelmont

audixmusic : Greg Michalec, aka Audix, composed starting lineup themes for Valparaiso University and University of Virginia basketball teams

b_knox : Langel Bookbinder, member of band aneurySm, member of band Warmth

blizihizake : Blake Perdue

bogusred : Susie Sahim, aka BogusRed, has drawn cavemen for Google

BrandonBush : Brandon Bush, aka Harmony, former OC ReMix submissions judge

brfuk : Richard Whitelock, aka richBRF, co-creator of Super Mario Bros. ‘Dirty Mix’, photographer

brightflashes : Kassi Kennedy, aka Kassi/Kassie!, wife of The OneUps‘ violinist Greg Kennedy

choweee : Joseph Liao, aka Fatty Acid

CoolCoreAudio : Cool Core Audio, Swedish game audio by OC ReMixer Fredrik Häthén and Calle

cotmm68030 : Matthew Newman, aka Children of the Monkey Machine, former OC ReMix submissions judge, photographer

cyborgjeff : Pierre Martin, aka Cyborg Jeff

DaleNorth : Dale North, former member of The OneUps, News Editor at Destructoid, Editor-in-Chief at Japanator, Editor-in-Chief at VGM news blog Original Sound Version

DiggiDis : Frank van ‘t Ende, aka Diggi Dis

DJComet : Alex Morrow, aka DJComet

drjaxx : Patrick Jacks, aka JAXX

DrumUltimA : Doug Perry, aka DrumUltimA, Percussion major at Johns Hopkins Peabody Institute, son of Principal Violist of the Hartford Symphony Orchestra Sharon Dennison (MomUltimA)

fatpollard : Matt Pollard, aka mp

Feanyx : K. Dani Davis, aka Cuddly Battleship Kattywampus

ffmusicdj : Haroon Piracha, aka FFmusic Dj, sound designer at High Impact Games including Secret Agent Clank and Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters, former QA

Freijman : Sebastian Freij, aka AeroZ

frizico : Aurora, television meteorologist

GamerSymphony : Gamer Symphony Orchestra, University of Maryland student performers

halc9bit : Andrew Wheeler, aka halc

HaleaciousB : David Ryan Clark, aka Hale-Bopp

hardgrove : Craig Hardgrove, aka tycho, Marathon enthusiast, geophysical research student

hatebunny : Rab Townsend, aka Aetherius

Hornpipe2: Greg Kennedy, aka Hornpipe2, violinist of band The OneUps

HyBound : Tyler Carson, aka Hy Bound

ikadmium : Jesse Higginson, aka Kadmium

Jason_K : Jason Koohi, aka Strike911

joecamnet : Joe Cammisa, aka Joe Cam, EarthBound: Bound Together album director

Kumeelyun : Andrew Babb, aka Zelig

kwix29 : Dustin Kulwick, aka k-wix, Cave Story Remix Project album director

mainfinger : Jesse Gregory, aka Main Finger

markedone : Steve Olofsson, aka GaMeBoX

mikesacco : Mike Sacco, aka Shonen Samurai, Game Master for Blizzard’s World of Warcraft

moonove : Reynald Deliens, aka moonove

Nailhead : Eric Fullerton, aka Faze (see also: Nailhead_Gamer)

nicole_adams : Nicole Adams

nintendometal : Elisabeth Pezouvanis aka Wire, lead guitarist of band Game Over

nonsensicalexis : Alexis Kitchen, aka nonsensicalexis

nykad : Mike Klinkhamer, aka nyKad

philstrahl : Philipp Strahl, aka texx sound

platonist : Jonas Loman, aka Platonist, creator of netlabel Reuniverse

RansomRath : Ransom Rath, member of band PlanetSkill

roggah : Roger Matthews, aka Roggah

RyoLion : Ryo Takahashi, aka Ryo Lion

schlr_physcn : Oli Horton & Steve Dawson, aka A Scholar & A Physician

SketchHurricane : Paul Ford, aka metaphist

sgtrama : Doug Arley, aka SgtRama, creator of VGM news portal ThaSauce, immortalized in EGM (R.I.P.) #156 for his Kirby Super Star OC ReMix ‘Green Greens (Contagious Eye Infection)’

sgxmusic : Danny Adler, aka SGX, creator of electronic music label Protagonist Records

SonicSkillz : Duane Thorpe, aka DCT, creator of hip-hop/R&B netlabel Urbanizm Music

starlainjury : Starla, aka injury

subtonic12 : Dan Studnicky

suzums : Ty Guenley, aka Suzumebachi

Tansunn : Tansunn

terhechte : Benedikt Terhechte, aka Zeratul

thabisnit : Martin Binfield, aka Binster, artist & animator at SCEE, co-lead animator for Sony’s Heavenly Sword

thegirlnextdork : Candy Bullard, aka Juverna

the_junk : Marc Junker

themegas : Mega Man tribute band The Megas (Eric von Doymi [MEGAEric], Greg Schneider [ megasgreg], Josh Breeding [ breeding], Mike Levinson [ MegasMike])

THE_Real_Chako : Trevor Fulton, aka DjChako

TheoryOfN : Dustin Lagaly, aka Theory of Nonexistence

therks : Rob Saunders

thesaxprophet : Bradley Burr, aka the prophet of mephisto, Radical Dreamers: Thieves of Fate album director

TheWingless : John Burnett, aka The Wingless, former OC ReMix submissions judge, user interface artist at EA’s Pandemic Studios, former user interface artist at Midway

TimSheehy : Tim Sheehy, aka Kaijin, Contributing Writer at VGM news blog Original Sound Version, former customer service rep at Blizzard

tumult : tumult, member of band PlanetSkill

Ubik2501 : Brian Davis, aka Ubik, dressed as Karnov for MAGFest 7, spits hot fire

vergo890 : Philip Schwan, aka Tepid

wdelgenio : William Del Genio, aka munky

Willrock07 : William Harby, aka Willrock

YellowArcher : Kevin Stephens

younghahn : Youngjin Hahn, aka Ziwtra

zyk0 : Waleed Hawatky, aka zyko, former OC ReMix submissions judge

More video game musicians:

Atsushio : Atsushi Ohara, arranger

beefyness : Keith Moore, aka Beefy, member of nerdcore band The Grammar Club

binary1230 : Dominic Cerquetti, aka binary1230, Programmer at Firaxis Games, creator of JamSpace music performance area for MAGFest, member of band Rare Candy, road member of band Temp Sound Solutions

c64glen : Glen McNamee, aka c64glen, Commodore music arranger & enthusiast

cacomistle : Brian Vanek, aka cacomistle, chiptune musician

computeher : Michelle Mitchell, aka ComputeHer, chiptune musician, wife & musical collaborator of Seth Sternberger (8 Bit Weapon)

danbrownpiano : Dan Brown, aka Kareshi

DevonRiley : Devon Riley, cast member of ScrewAttack’s The New Adventures of Captain S, brother of Shael Riley

dezolorfien : Johan Hedlund, aka Dezo, bassist for band Machinae Supremacy

dj_skitz : Paul Hadrill, aka Dj Skitz, Commodore music arranger & enthusiast

doctoroctoroc : Levi Buffum, aka Doctor Octoroc, creator of 8-Bit Jesus VGM-inspired Christmas chiptune album

GenesisTribute : Brian Davis, arranger

glenncase : Glenn Case, co-composer for Capcom’s Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, former member of nerdcore band The Grammar Club

GrantHenry : Grant Henry, aka Stemage, creator of Metroid Metal

Infamousuk : Christopher Bailey, aka Infamous, Commodore music arranger

jason_vincion : Jason Vincion, arranger

KirbyPufocia : Mike Molnar, aka Kirby Pufocia, road member of band Metroid Metal

KyleJCrb : Kyle Crouse, aka KyleJCrb, Tales: Summoning of Spirits album director, creator of VGM radio show Nitro Game Injection

lidbjork : Henrik Lidbjörk, aka Lie Mutherpluckin’ B, creator of Sex, Drugs N’ Nintendo & Nintendosploitation albums

megadriver_bass : Rubens Stulzer, bassist for band MegaDriver

MegaRan : Raheem Jarbo, aka Random/Mega Ran, underground rapper, creator of Mega Ran, American Gamer and Mega Ran 9 albums

MissTrueStar : Kristi Kaufman, kickass knitter, wife of VGMix founder & Konami’s Contra 4 composer Jake Kaufman (virt)

pongball : Shannon Clark, aka Pongball, chiptune & MIDI musician, former VGMusic staff, wife of David Clark (Hale-Bopp)

q_pa : Jon Heiman, aka q-pa, VGM club DJ

raublekick : Andrew Rauble, aka Rauble, guitarist for band Armadillo Tank

richtaur : Matt Hackett, aka Richter, Sonic the Hedgehog 2: Hedgehog Heaven album director, Senior Frontend Engineer at gaming social platform Raptr

RyoOhnuki : Ryo Ohnuki, arranger

shawnphase : Craig Jakubowski, aka Shawn Phase, creator of band Temp Sound Solutions, former drummer of band The Smash Brothers

shotanakama : Shota Nakama, director of Video Game Orchestra

skyriser : Lix/Skyriser, arranger

SOU1 : SOU1, arranger

spamtron : Guerin McMurray, aka Spamtron, chiptune musician and arranger

sumppi : Juha Kaunisto, aka sumppi, Commodore music arranger, web developer

thanatos_hn : Thanatos, arranger

WaveTheory : Wave Theory, electronic/hip-hop band led by Alex Esquivel (AE)

Wizwars : Kevin Hagge, aka Wizwars

xocnosaj : Jason Cox, aka Xoc, multi-talented arranger, creator of album SMW

Yamajet : Yamajet, arranger

ZenAlbatross : Joshua Kopstein, aka ZenAlbatross, chiptune musician

Video game music events/news/PR/radio/education:

Aktrez : Becky Young, aka Aktrez, Events Director for Video Games Live concert series, host on VGM webstream Game Music Radio, creator of the Girls Entertainment Network

appiani : Thomas Boecker, executive producer of Merregnon Studios, producer of concert series Game Music Concert, Drammatica, Symphonic Shades

arcubalis : Jayson Napolitano, Managing Editor at VGM news blog Original Sound Version

Axtuse : Brett Wooley, aka Axtuse, host of Meteor Radio at KBYO 92.7 FM (Monroe, LA)

C64Takeaway : The C64 Take-away, created by Remix.Kwed.Org founder Jan Lund Thomsen (Kwed)

cocoebiz : CocoeBiz, VGM retailer founded by Kahori Ezaki (Coco)

CocoVader : Kahori Ezaki, aka Coco, founder of VGM retailer CocoeBiz

dekubar : dekubar, creator of VGM news blog dekunology

ffdistantworlds : Final Fantasy: Distant Worlds, international concert series featuring the music of Nobuo Uematsu conducted by Arnie Roth

Gameodactyl : Patrick Gann, Associate Editor at VGM news blog Original Sound Version

genoboost : Anthony Ruybalid, aka Genoboost, creator of VGM and VG-inspired music news blog & netlabel Game Music 4 All

hexWarrior : John Carter, aka Hex, creator of nerdcore music news blog & concert series Nerdapalooza

hipsterplease : Z., man of mystery, contributor at Wired.com’s GeekDad, creator of nerdcore news blog Hipster, please!

Jeriaska : Jeriaska, creator of VGM news portal Nobuooo, freelance writer for Siliconera and GameSetWatch, microlender & futurist

justinj212 : Justin Johnston, former PR Director for the University of Maryland Gamer Symphony Orchestra, host of VGM radio show 8-Bit Radio at WMUC 88.1 FM (College Park, MD)

MAGFest : MAGFest (Music and Gaming Festival), yearly 3-day Washington, DC-area festival/convention/concert celebrating gaming & game music, created by Brendan Becker (Mr. MAGFest)

Music4Games : Music 4 Games, VGM news portal, created by Greg O’Connor-Read

Nerdapalooza : Nerdapalooza, nerdcore music news blog and concert series

Nobuooo : Nobuooo, VGM news portal created by Jeriaska

Sitorimon : Simon Smith, creator of VGM news blog Higher Plain Music

siven7 : Kenley Kristofferson, aka siven7, creator of academic VGM podcast Into the Score, music teacher

slayradio : SLAY Radio, VGM webstream featuring live shows, focused on Commodore arrangement community, created by Kenneth Mutka (Slaygon)

SpiritofGamer : Carl Larson, staff at VGMdb

superquarky : Stephanie Prader, Guest Coordinator for MAGFest

thasauce : ThaSauce, video game music new portal created by Doug Arley (SgtRama)

TheSIDStation : The SID Station, Commodore 64 radio stream created by John “Dr. Bongo” Taylor

vgmdb : VGMdb (Video Game Music database), world’s largest catalog & information source on video game music albums, run by Ken Moore (Secret Squirrel) and Gigablah

yaku : Yaku, Administrator of VGM news blog Noctilucence

Jillian Goldin - Notes #13 - November 7th, 2008

Hi, friends!

It seems like an eternity since I sent out my last newsletter in September.  What have I been up to?  Well, I mentioned last time that I would be coming out with a Christmas album this season.  Like a mad scientist, I disappeared into the laboratory to work on my masterful new creation!  It’s true.  I locked myself away from the world - shunning food and almost all forms of human contact (with the obvious exception of our one-and-only zircon) - in order to bring you….

---

Through Sand and Snow - Christmas album preorders!

The holiday season is filled with a special kind of magic: trees glisten with
freshly fallen snow, families are reunited for the traditions of gift-giving and
mealtime stories, and age-old carols imbue the air.  But how often do we have
the chance to steep our thoughts in solitude?

Through Sand and Snow brings the listener on a nighttime journey through the
aura of mystery and awe that Christmas so quietly inspires in our hearts.  A
vast nature surrounds us in these colder months, longing to be explored…
Sometimes, it is only after we have that our own homes feel even warmer.

Release Date: November 25th, 2008
Preorders Available: TODAY, at JillianGoldin.com!
Price: $9.99
Songs Included:

• Prelude
• I Wonder As I Wander
  
• What Child Is This? (a.k.a. Greensleeves)
  
• God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen
• Walking In the Air  (from the classic animated film “The Snowman”)
  
• Silent Night

…Woo hoo!  So what are you waiting for?  Go hear the previews on my music page, and ensure that you are among the first to receive the new album!  :D

Now for some more good news: in anticipation of the holiday season, I have set up  all sorts of discounts and specials offers for both CD releases.  With every copy of Through Sand and Snow that you preorder, you’ll also receive a complimentary gift card featuring the winter song “Walking In the Air.”  You can pass it on to a loved one… or even send it out with your holiday cards this year, for that extra special touch.  It’s a beautiful winter song (non-demoninational), so anyone can enjoy it!

This gift card offer also applies if you preorder Through Sand and Snow with a      copy of Origins, in the 2-CD Combo Pack deal.  :>

And finally, both CDs are now set up to offer discounts in bulk - so you will    automatically get 2-4 dollars off each additional CD that you buy!

---

I know how hectic the holiday season can be, and that is largely why I was inspired to start this project in the first place.  For Andrew and I, it has been a whirlwind of music-making, track-mixing, and hair-splitting… But the result?  A breath of fresh (albeit cold) air.  :>

Enjoy the preeeeviews,
Jill

Great stuff from Chris of Square Enix Music Online, lining up the first English-language interview on the upcoming Chris Hülsbeck concert series tribute, Symphonic Shades. Producer Thomas Böcker spoke at length about what led to the concert’s creation, working with a host of top industry talent like Arnie Roth and Yuzo Koshiro, as well as what to expect, including nearly all-new orchestral arrangements from Jonne Valtonen and the upcoming CD complementing the concert.

Böcker also went into detail on why there won’t be a sixth Symphonic Game Music Concert at Leipzig’s Games Convention, certainly of interest to fans of what was seemingly an institution at GC until recently. A great job and a very thorough read courtesy of Chris and SEMO, check it out.

…because The OneUps are also gonna be bringing The OneUps Volume 2!

Indeed, if all goes according to schedule, Mustin and OneUp Studios will have everything for the upcoming 2-disc album produced, packaged and ready to go.

So if you missed them last year, no worries. If you’re not sure whether you’re gonna plunk down for the double CD at PAX when you get to Seattle, just check out their performance and see if you’re convinced. No pun intended, they’re planning to hit you twice as hard for Penny Arcade Expo 2008!

Released today at the Minibosses forum of The Shizz, Shawn Phase of Temp Sound Solutions has quickly put out the recording of TSS’s concert last night from the Sidebar Tavern in Baltimore, Maryland. Now that I’ve moved back down to Atlanta, not even being close by to stuff like this rips me apart! :-D

Alongside Shawn last night were Dominic Cerquetti, housethegrate and Kirby Pufocia to round out the TSS lineup. The 10-track album features what Shawn claims to be the first-ever live performance of Mega Man III’s “Hardman Stage”, along with other eclectic cuts like Gauntlet, U.N. Squadron, Moon Crystal, Faxanadu and Journey to Silius. When you have time, go out of your way to grab this and all the other live music available from TSS!

About Aksys Games
Based in Torrance, California, Aksys Games is a third party licensee of Nintendo of America. More information on Aksys Games can be found online at aksysgames.com.

Thanks to UMD’s Justin Johnston (the host of 8-Bit Radio), for the news.

The University of Maryland Gamer Symphony Orchestra will hold its Spring Concert on Tuesday May 13th at 7:30PM. It will be held at the Kay Theater in the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center on the UMD campus. Admittance is FREE for everyone!

The details are:
Who: The University of Maryland
What: Our Spring Concert Featuring Pieces from Zelda, Chrono Trigger, Portal, Final Fantasy, Secret of Mana, Metal Gear Solid, and more!
When: Tuesday, May 13th 7:30-9:30PM (doors open at 7PM)
Where: Kay Theater, Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center, University of Maryland College Park (map)
Cost: NONE! FREE FOR EVERYONE!
Website: www.umgso.com
Contact: umgso@gmail.com

That definitely sounds like a good time, and it’s free! I’m certainly gonna be there right before I move back down at Atlanta. To check out the GSO in action, visit their Recordings section, where they have MP3s of the previous Spring and Fall 2007 performances!

For Immediate Release
April 1st, 2008
Contact: Tyberius H. Guenley, (suzumebachi@gmail.com)

BELEN, NM–ReMix:ThaSauce, in cooperation with Dupaszef, LLC, is proud to present Super Mario Land 2: Tremendous Achievement. Super Mario Land 2: Tremendous Achievement is an achievement unlocked in video game music remixing. Such a great achievement to have been achieved is truly an achievement in itself. Super Mario Land 2: Tremendous Achievement is the remixing community’s first official Super Mario Land 2 remix project, an honorable achievement. Also an achievement, is the incredible talent involved in this achievement. Greatly achieved artists, such as:

• Beatdrop
• injury
• Children of the Washing Machine
• that Mexican guy
• Emmanuel Samuelson IV, Esq.
• MC TOAD
• OverCoat
• that Swedish guy
• OverCoat

This achievement is available to the public at:

http://remix.thasauce.net/sml2/

Downloading of this achievement is free on the condition that you share this achievement with your unachieving friends. After downloading this achievement, users are allowed to select songs from this collection of achievement and listen to them. The act of listening to these songs is an achievement all on its own. Tell your friends. And your mother. Ty Guenley, ThaSauce Admin, ReMixer, Forum Troll, IRC Troll, World of Warcraft Player, Haver of Basic Skills, Project Director for Super Mario Land 2: Tremendous Achievement (http://remix.thasauce.net/sml2/), and Generally Standup Guy, writes:

“This is totally a crowning achievement. Not unlike the crowning of a newborn child, or like the King of Canada or something.”

Founded in 1979, Dupaszef, LLC is a company.

Attending Game Developers Conference 2008, Destructoid’s Dale North had the scoop on No More Heroes composer Masafumi Takada’s presentation detailing his methods in composing for games. Featured in the presentation were several major titles in Takada’s portfolio, including Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles, God Hand, Killer7, and the critical hit No More Heroes. Be sure to read up for some informative details on Takada’s creative processes, as well as Dale’s quick account on a couple of other surprises!

Pianist and speedrunner Daniel “Kareshi” Brown has released his first non-promo arrangement album, the Final Fantasy VI piano tribute Mystic Awakening.

The album art’s nothing to write home about, but that’s not selling point. The approach according to Dan is to “honor as many original details (keys, tempi, registers, chord voicings, sound layers) as pianistically reasonable.”

On his website, Brown went on the further state that he “felt that these tracks deserved more faithfulness and respect to the “original sound” versions than is usually heard in Final Fantasy piano arrangements.”

So basically, none of this. For all the cover bands in the scene, there really aren’t that many strict “cover pianists” so-to-speak. It’s inadvertently innovative, no? If you’ve got the dough, and want to hear this classic SNES soundtrack adapted to the ivories, see if you’re in for a Mystic Awakening.

Michael Gluck, more commonly known as Piano Squall (www.pianosquall.com), spoke with Andrew Aversa (zircon) recently about his album GAME and some of the logistics involved in licensing and royalties when it comes to selling game music arrangement albums:

“If you decide to release your own album, remember that royalties are only one of the many expenses involved. You also need to consider retailer margins, production costs, advertising costs, website development, photography, packing, shipping, inventory space, PayPal/merchant fees, and manufacturing costs. And of course, an album can take months to create, so you need to prepare for a substantial time investment.”

The full interview is available at:

http://www.ocremix.org/info/Interview:_Michael_Gluck_%28Piano_Squall%29

We at OverClocked ReMix thank Michael for taking the time to provide some very valuable information on the commercial side of game music arrangement!

- djp

OC ReMix Announces Voices of the Lifestream Music Video Contest Results

For Immediate Release
February 24, 2008
Contact: David W. Lloyd, dlloyd@ocremix.org

FAIRFAX, VA–OverClocked ReMix announced results from its music video competition for Final Fantasy VII: Voices of the Lifestream (ff7.ocremix.org) today. This was the first official competition held by OC ReMix, with 17 entries in three categories: “FF7″, “Anime”, and “Original.” OC ReMix partnered with Piano Squall (www.pianosquall.com), and eStarland (www.estarland.com), to offer prizes including signed limited edition promotional copies of Voices of the Lifestream, signed copies of Piano Squall’s album GAME: Game & Anime Music Emotions, Final Fantasy VII merchandise, and OverClocked ReMix shirts & hoodies.

A complete, streamable listing of all music video entries is available at:

http://ff7.ocremix.org/videos/

Voices of the Lifestream Director Andrew Aversa expressed his enthusiasm at the fan-made music videos this fan-made album has elicited: “The average level of quality and creativity among the videos was really outstanding. I’m glad that the entrants were so inspired by the music of VotL! Congratulations to all entrants on amazing work!”

Winners in each category are as follows:

- Final Fantasy VII Category -

• Winner: “Compiled Memories” by sayde (David Lee)
• Runner-up: “Black-Winged Angel” by slkdragon (Chris Cook)
• Honorable Mention: “Wheels of Lifestream” by Big Paul (Paulo Augusto)

- Anime Category -

• Winner: “Final Moments of Clarity” by Mindeffects (Saša Tarbuk)
• Runner-up: “Sweetest Embrace” by Phantasmagoriat (Chris Studer)

- Original Category -

• Winner: “Stone Eyes” by Zethzen (Ian Cofino)
• Runner-up: “Lunatic Hero” by backseatstuff (Matt Furbush)

Videos are available online at http://ff7.ocremix.org/videos/ and will later be distributed via bittorrent in higher quality. Entrants will be contacted shortly with details regarding prize distribution.

Founded in 1999, OverClocked ReMix is an organization dedicated to the appreciation, preservation, and interpretation of video game music. Its primary focus is www.ocremix.org, a website featuring hundreds of free fan arrangements, information on game music and composers, resources for aspiring artists, and a thriving community of video game music fans.

Rap fans who enjoyed DCT & Just Us’s Sonic the Hedgehog 3 OC ReMix, “Memories Frozen in Time” wanna check out the new mixtape from two out of the three members of Just Us. Andre “N00dle” Rainey and Steve “Feature MC” Roberts have teamed up as Escape Route for their newest album, Change Gonna Come…

With guest appearances by a number of artists, including fellow Just Us member VanElliott “CYPH-LOW” Chambless, N00dle has been pimping the album left and right to anyone who’ll listen. If you’re a rap fan, you won’t be wasting your time.

For some of the tracks, the production lacked some polish that I would have pushed for, but favorites of mind included “Give Me Wings”, the slick beats of “Another Everyday”, and the subtle bass work of “What’s Goin On?”, and the groove-driven “I’m a Ride”. Besides the great music sampled and reworked for the mixtape, every one of those tracks plays to Escape Route’s most significant strength: fashioning personal, heartfelt, intelligent lyrics. If you don’t believe me, listen up:

Following in the footsteps of 8 Bit Instrumental only a few days prior, The Megas have posted their thanks for everyone pre-ordering their new Mega Man 2 arrangement album, Get Equipped, featuring renditions of the classic soundtrack with the group’s original vocals. If you order the album now and throw in a few dollars more, you get the option of having the physical copy shipped to you once they’re pressed.

The guys have already submitted their Airman arrangement, “The Annihilation of Monsteropolis,” to OC ReMix, so even the cheapest of cheap on the fence will get a free preview down the line. Earlier today though, the band thanked everyone who’ve actually plunked down for Get Equipped so far:

The album has been out for a week now, and the response has been overwhelming. Thank you guys so much for supporting us - we had no idea how far the message from Dr. Light reached. We’ve taken orders from all over the US, as well as a few from outside the country! If your state isn’t painted blue yet, then step up!

We spent a lot of time (and money!) on this album, trying to make it as good and professional a tribute as it could possibly be. Getting back even a fraction of that investment from you guys is awesome… and makes continuing the fight much easier.

We’ve got some things in the works that we’ll be announcing as soon as we have concrete dates - some interviews, a couple gigs, and other fun stuff. It’s going to be a mega year…

Now keep the orders coming in! We promise you won’t regret it.

Brazilian foursome 8 Bit Instrumental have released their newest album arranging the Mega Man 2 soundtrack. Entitled Beat the 8 Super Robots with 8 Bit Instrumental, the new album is the most focused effort from the band yet, who follow up their previous albums The Song Remains the Game and Altered Bit with their take on a sin

In the tradition of Arm Cannon, vertexguy and Select Start, 8 Bit Instrumental has also performed at Video Games Live through the invitation of Tommy Tallarico. Check them out performing from Metroid and Street Fighter II when the concert stopped by Brasilia, Brazil this past September:

Of course, you can also check out their debut ReMix at OverClocked ReMix yesterday with their Top Gear arrangement from the Altered Bit album, “Rockabilly ~ Dark Gears ~ Surfing Gear” (lovingly titled by me from the names the band gave each section). They’ve got more material coming OCR’s way, so keep an eye out for these guys as they continue to represent Brazil, the bastion of video game music fandom in South America.

On January 19, 2008, Joshua Morse, along with fellow video game arrangers Anthony Lofton and Posu “po!” Yan, released a free album called Ragnarok Online : Hybridism, arranging nine tracks from the Korean MMORPG Ragnarok Online. The game, composed by the Korean sound team SoundTeMP, has its share of fan arrangements by Japanese artists, but has thus far not had many arrangements on the Western side.

Morse did the most work, being personally involved in each of the nine tracks, and each of the arrangements has the same groove flava as his OCR material. My biggest problem with the album is that some of the tracks feel listless, just kind of coming and going perfunctorily. Part of that comes from the sound side, through the use of weak sounds (the guitar in “Nano East” is the most prominent example) and relatively flat production, leaving most of the dynamic changes to come only from instruments coming in and dropping out, which doesn’t always happen that often. Oddly, I did enjoy the extremely low-key “Watery Grave,” which uses its slow lack of energy to create a more ambient groove, with some nice EP and guitar licks. It felt intentional in that case, whereas tracks like “Ancient Groover” felt like they meant to do more than they actually did.

However, the groove bias is strong in this one, and when everything clicks, the result is pure sex of the musical kind. The track that sticks out the most is “Out of Curiosity,” the one track which all three arrangers tackled. It’s also the only track that features the saxophone stylings of Lofton in a soul blazing solo, and backs it up with rapid pan flute action and some nice lo-fi synths. “Samurai Discotheque” is another winner, rocking the bass and keyboards with a nice Oriental flow.

Check out this new tribute to some undermixed material and groove along yourself.

Darius Remix was released on December 29, 2007. As I reported earlier, the album was published by SuperSweep in honor of the twentieth anniversary of Taito’s sound team, Zuntata. The album contains arrangements of Darius and Darius II, arranged by members of SuperSweep, the video game music and sound production company founded by Shinji Hosoe, and Basiscape, a similar company founded by Hitoshi Sakimoto.

Ayako Saso and Hosoe arranged a total of six of the thirteen tracks on the album, and while they were competently done, I felt that, given their talents and the source material, they really could’ve blown me away. As they are, the mixes just sound a bit phoned in, with pretty standard sounds and grooves. Still most certainly listenable, but not terribly notable.

Two of the more veteran members of Basiscape, Kimihiro Abe and Manabu Namiki, each turned in a solid arrangement. Abe’s cover of “MUSE VALLEY (Mercury Scene)” alternates light, jazzy sections featuring acoustic guitar and synths with more frenetic and driving sections, all on top of some excellent percussion and bass. Namiki’s “BOSS SCENE 7 (THE LAST BOSS)” starts off laid back, developing a lush texture, before switching lo-fi at the halfway point to very similar instrumentation to the original piece, except with additional lines and much more pumping energy.

What most impressed me were the tracks done by the young guns at Basiscape. The album contains Yoshimi Kudo’s first ever credited work at Basiscape, a sinister and slightly off-kilter arrangement of “BOSS SCENE 6 (IRON HAMMER)” which keeps the rhythm changing from start to finish. Azusa Chiba previously ported the music from After Burner II to the cellular phone with Kimihiro Abe, turned in a breezy arrangement of “Planet Blue (Earth Scene)” with EP, acoustic guitar, flute, and various upbeat synths.

The highlight of the album for me was the track by Noriyuki Kamikura, who has a few brief composition and arrangement credits under his belt. His most significant composition credit is Shijyou Saikyou no Deshi Kenichi: Gekitou! Ragnarok Hachikengou, translatable as “Disciple of History’s Strongest, Kenichi: Fierce Battle! Ragnarok Eight Fist-Gods” and co-composed with Manabu Namiki. The game’s music is excellent, with funk and rock flavors, and Kamikura’s arrangement of “WAR OH! (Boss Scene 1)” would be right at home in the game, with cheesy brass blasts and sexy EP work.

“WAR OH! (Boss Scene 1)”
Composed by Hisayoshi Ogura
Arranged by Noriyuki Kamikura

The album is still freshly purchasable at VGM World. As part of Basiscape, which has scored such recent games as Odin Sphere and Final Fantasy XII, Kudo, Chiba, and Kamikura will certainly get more work in the future, and I look forward to more work by them.

Patrick “Bucky O’Hare” Todd has made the rounds of the community promoting some rare material by the now-defunct Philly band Chromelodeon. (I saw them perform at MAGFest 5 last year and they were amazing. Props in particular to synth player Dino Lionetti.)

Under the group’s VGM tribute band alias, Sprite Slowdown, the group recorded several VGM arrangements, many of which only seeing a limited release while they were still active.

Luckily, Patrick’s got your back with the digital release of Sprite Slowdown v2. Besides the arrangement scene mainstay of Final Fantasy VI, the EP has got some very intriguing material, many selections of which I could safely say have never been arranged before in the fan community. Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure on the Atari Lynx??? Yeah, I can safely say.

Bucky provides what you need to know:

I played drums on this short vgm tribute, and it was recorded a little over a year ago. With the band having broken up since, and this ep never having a ‘proper’ release, I decided to put it up for download. It was very much rushed for release at magfest 5 (and never performed prior to recording), but having just listened to it again more recently I appreciate it more than when I first heard it. A bit rough around the edges, but not as bad as I recalled!

Some of the track selection may be a bit on the esoteric side, hope you enjoy.

Track Listing -
1. Final Fantasy 6 (SNES)
2. Fire ‘n Ice (NES)
3. Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure (Atari Lynx)
4. Kenseiden (SMS)
5. Abadox (NES)

As mentioned in part 3 of my thoughts on MAGFest, Brad “the prophet of mephisto” Burr coordinated the latest album release over at OC ReMix, released the day of our panel presentation. Arranging music from some of the more forgotten lore in the Chrono series, the Radical Dreamers arrangement project Thieves of Fate is released and ready to download (featuring some beautiful art by OA).

I helped coordinate some minor aspects of the release, so I actually promoted the album a little via VGMdb prior to it going public. Besides the prophet, the album features a lot of emerging talent in the OCR community with DrumUltimA, Geoffrey Taucer, Level 99, OA, ellywu2, Ross Kmet, Darangen, Avaris, DragonAvenger, Abadoss, Fishy, and Tweek all on board, all having achieved success in the VGM arrangement community after 2005.

Personally, I think the overall results are on the rough side, so as some of these tracks make their way to the judges panel, I’m only gonna continue to drop the hammer like nobody’s business. A lot of these bros (and girl) are only going to improve further, while some have really hit their stride. Originally conceived as an all-collaboration album, you’re getting a good cross-section of talent treading on some under-remixed ground, many of the tracks featuring multiple artists. For over 70 minutes of action, be sure to pick up Thieves of Fate.

After missing Day 2, I was definitely ready to get back on the horse for MAGFest. OC ReMix had its panel that day, so of course I represented my homebase. Along with djpretzel and myself, fellow judges zircon, pixietricks, Big Giant Circles and CHz were on board the panel presentation that day for an impressive show of staff power.

Rather than going through our traditional presentation for the uninitiated, we were in front of a crowd where the major majority of people were already familiar with OverClocked ReMix. This year, we highlighted all the important developments at OCR for 2007, including Voices of the Lifestream, attending Video Games Live, the debut of the Content Policy, revising the Submission Standards and Instructions and developing translations of our most important information for several languages. OCR’s latest album project, Radical Dreamers: Thieves of Fate, released during MAGFest itself, was given a preview to the audience by director Brad “the prophet of mephisto” Burr, to an excellent reception.

Highlighting upcoming developments for 2008, we’ve got some great stuff on the way. Our first live full orchestra arrangement from Wild ARMs is on the way, we’ve got our first mother-son ReMix collaboration as well from Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories. djp showed off his plans for swanky new composer pages that’ll show off a lot more information about the men and women who inspire the contributors to OCR, using Tim Follin to give the people a look at how composers are laid out with more information than ever; look for that to go live in the next few days. We also pimped some AMVs including clips of some of the Voices of the Lifestream AMV contest (soon to be judged so that we can get those swanky prizes out there) as well as the Spittin’ Narcissism fanvid by Psycosis91. Plenty of good stuff to promote, not even taking into account our bread and butter of posting creative, free ReMixes.

After a huge dinner with the OCR meetup group, it was time for the second and final night of concerts. Let’s go short and sweet: The moshing this year was definitely toned down a great deal compared to last year. Not that anyone was cracking down on it, there just wasn’t nearly as much this year as last. Let’s not also forget props to NO CARRIER and noteNdo for the NES-created visuals that adorned both nights of performances. You’ve got to see it to believe it, they were a nostalgic acid trip.

Powerglove was excellent. They always have an unbelievable amount of energy to their performances, including some badass costumes. I personally hate the Power Rangers theme, but when they played it for some brief non-VGM material, they definitely got the crowd going. I would have loved to have seen Chris Marchiel’s Guitar Hero synth in play, but was perfectly glad “settling” for some awesome material from Metal Kombat for the Mortal Man, including Sonic the Hedgehog 2’s “So Sexy Robotnik“!

I was legitimately worried that Select Start, in their first MAGFest performance, wouldn’t be as much of a draw with the crowd, who are used to rock and metal VG cover bands acts, but the masses turned out in a big way. We probably could have used some chairs during their set, since there was no reason to stand up for the whole thing. They put on a really classy performance. Frontman Austin Harley started off a little shaky with the opening solo on one track, but regrouped with a joke and was off to the races. The best part of the set had to be when the crowd exploded with whooping and applause to the end of the first track, which visibly took the entire sextet by surprise.

When I talked to violinist Elaine Li after the set along with Big Giant Circles, she confirmed that the group had never received that kind of reaction ever before in their history of live performances, and that it was great to be in an atmosphere where everyone already knows and respects game music, making it so much easier to get immersed in the performance. Indeed, hearing Metroid “Kraid’s Hideout”, Chrono Trigger “Theme of Frog’s” and Final Fantasy III “Eternal Wind” live was a big highlight. Along with Mustin and ktriton joining in for one song, the crew did a great job with their first MAGFest appearance, so hopefully they walked away already thinking about how to return next year.

This Place is Haunted played their final show with guitarist Michael Motorcycle, who’s leaving the band to begin medical school. Who would have pegged him for it? (We at VGF wish him the best of luck, to be sure.) The band’s set was a lot more of a balance between VGM and other retro material (The theme to Sanford and Son??? Let’s throw it on there!); I’ll admit I’m partial to VGM and would have appreciated more…exclusivity on that level. I mentioned to Shael Riley, who’s a big fan of the band, that This Place just has some impeccable chops. Both Michael Motorcycle and Epileptic Peat were playing some really involved runs and solos with just pro precision; it was quite a sight to behold being so close to the stage. Here’s hoping these bros regroup somehow so that they can keep putting out quality material, especially because they spotlight tons of otherwise obscure VGM to arrange.

Last but not least, the final band of the night was The Smash Bros. Running strong from their performance at the 2007 Final Fantasy XI Fan Festival, MAGFest’s house band took on a new flavor with ktriton replacing Shawn Phase on drums and doing an amazing job; there was definitely a great amout of synergy between him and the rest of the band. Before the set started, we were all instructed to listen to the noise playing over the speakers. A few of us thought it was rain SFX until a wonderful smell wafted across the concert hall. In between tracks, Pappy and Joe Cam were cooking bacon outside the hotel and feeding it to the crowd! Enhancing the experience was a microphone brought over to the pig meat so that the entire crowd could hear it sizzling. I was able to snag a full-sized strip of bacon in the first wave of free pork before the bros had to start cutting it up to offer it to everyone. Definitely a hilarious bonus, the crowd chanted “Bacon! Bacon!” with ferocity with every break. The eclectic VGM set of the Bros. (Ailsean, ktriton, Midee, norg, Prozax, Roy McClanahan & virt) included U.N. Squadron, Phoenix Wright, EarthBound and Contra 4 in easily the most diverse set of the festival. They need to record their shows via the mixing boards at MAG and sell, sell, sell.

Anyone who doubts whether or not they should attend MAGFest would become a believer if only to experience the greatness of even one night of the concerts, and that’s only one night out of four days. I’ll be back tomorrow to wrap up the rundown of my time at MAG.

After calling it quits with OverLooked ReMiX in 2005 with his seemingly first AND last OLR album project (Final Fantasy Mystic Quest: Misstik Kwest), Joe “Joe Cam” Cammisa has returned to OLR with his second album project there, SPLUNK!

What could combine zyko, virt, Zeratul, ktriton, Mazedude, and more bringers of earhurt? Only a truly awful game could bring the Cam and his posse back. Spelunker for the NES was that game. Joe and his way with words whet your appetite for the album:

Spelunker.

One of the shittiest games I can remember for the NES.

Seriously, you died if you fell like half the length of the size of your character’s sprite. It was pretty asstastic.

The music was pretty meh and repetitive as well, but the game has a name that is fun to say, so needless to say I felt it deserved to have an entire remix project devoted to it, but it’s not like it deserved a GOOD remix project, so OLR was the place to go.

If you want to know more about the album, visit the SPLUNK! page and educate yourself. The highlight of the album has gotta be Mustin’s already-legendary “You Just Fucking Died”. Yes, it’s barely been out and it’s already achieved that status. Now you’ve got no reason to ignore this gold. Go get it!

In the beginning, there were Cheetahmen. And life was large.

For no particularly good reason, Japan seems to have taken a fondness to the in-game music from Cheetahmen II, as you can see from quite a few videos on YouTube. While such solo efforts are commendable, they are not adequate tribute to the great Aries, Apollo, and Hercules. We need something more glorious.

What we need is an entire Cheetahmen II arrangement album.

Ladies and gentlemen, I bring you:

Cheetah in the Dark, a six track doujin arrangement album, set to be released on December 31 at Comic Market 73. The official page for the album (Japanese) has a crossfade demo of three tracks:

Can the finished album possibly live up to the hype and cover art? Only time will tell.

Distant Worlds: music from FINAL FANTASY is a new concert tour celebrating the twentieth anniversary of Final Fantasy. The game was first released in Japan on December 18, 1987, and the concert premiered in Stockholm, Sweden on December 4, 2007. The inaugural event was attended by Nobuo Uematsu himself, who was interviewed before the concert started by Johan Köhn of Spelmusik.net.

How did you approach the challenge of composing an opera piece?

- It was very interesting, because I had never listened to opera music when I was asked. I didn’t have any knowledge on composing such a piece, so I did it in my own style. When Dragon Quest composer Koichi Sugiyama found out about the opera part in Final Fantasy VI he called and asked me why he hadn’t been told about this great idea earlier, so that we could have worked together on it (laughs)!

Ah, but who cares about that. Let’s get to the good stuff:

I know you’re always getting this question, but how is it going with the third Black Mages album?

- Yes, I get that question very often, but I would now like to promise to people that the album will be released in March 2008.

THE BLACK MAGES II The Skies Above, the last Final Fantasy series rock arrangement album by TBM, was released three years ago, so their third album has been a long time in the making. Hopefully it will be released on time.