For this round of VGBA Explosion, I've chosen to cover a specific artist, MyNewSoundtrack.
This artist is a very different take on the usual format of the kind of music that I review/talk about. Instead of just covering it like rock, metal, or electronica, the artist instead redoes music in various video game styles. I'll get to the examples of this soon enough, but it's something along the lines of chiptunes but... more awesome in what it does and how well it is done!
Now the review here is going to be going over this person's recent album releases, but he has quite a few tracks up on Youtube, so you should definitely check out the channel!
There's quite a bit there to take in and... it is all awesome! Now, if you didn't already click and explore the channel, I'll briefly go over what the artist does.
Like previously stated, most people cover or remix songs through a rock, metal, or electronica styling. True some people explore beyond that, but those three are the most common from what I've seen. MyNewSoundtrack takes random tracks (namely video game but there's a random selection of other music in there) and redoes them using other sound chip systems. Examples of this include Power Rangers theme song done in the styling of Mega Man X music or various Mega Man X themes done through the Sega Genesis sound set. There's a huge variety of what MyNewSoundtrack does, but it's all a really great listen. He has released a few albums in the past, (Mega Man 1 and Mega Man 2 music redone in the style of Mega Man X) but he's finally released a few compilation albums. Let's check them out!
Best MMX Hits (Volume 1)
Type of Album - Covers via Mega Man X sound set.
Favorite Song - Power Rangers Main Theme
The first album (and probably my favorite) is the Best MMX Volume 1. It contains a variety of music from Castlevania, Legend of Zelda, and other classics. On top of that are a few oddball (but very awesome) selections from Mighty No 9 (unreleased), Shovel Knight (awww yeaaaah), and Power Rangers (see Favorite Song). It's one of my favorite listens because the Mega Man X series is easily one of my favorite game series, and the first one is at the very top of that. Many of the songs are pretty close to sounding like a stage from the series too, so that's a nice bonus for me. I could put this album on repeat or next to the actual game (Mega Man X)... and I'd be pretty happy.
Best Genesis Hits (Volume 1)
Type of Album - Covers via the Sega Genesis sound set.
Favorite Song - Spark Mandrill (Mega Man X)
Favorite Song - Spark Mandrill (Mega Man X)
This is a very interesting and different take from the first album I talked about. While the first one focused entirely on one game's sound, this one focuses on the unique and jamming style of an entire console, the Sega Genesis. Funnily enough, many of the tracks on this album are Mega Man and Mega Man X songs. My favorite one listed above is my favorite because it's just a great song. Even before the Sega Genesis modification, Spark Mandrill's got a killer stage track. Give it the Genesis Twist, and the magic is going down in my ears. The remaining selections on this album hit even more of the oddball (but very awesome) with tracks from Touhou, Batman (NES), and Take On Me by A-Ha. This is a very thrilling and fun to listen to album. It's like Sonic has come out to jam for us... Wait a minute.
Best 8-bit Hits (Volume 1)
Type of Album - Covers via 8-bit style (I think it's towards the NES more than anything.)
Favorite Song - Chemical Plant Zone (Sonic 2)
The explosion begins with a band and ends with a slightly smaller bang! Not saying this album is lesser than the other two, but it probably is in third place of the three. Regardless, it's another spectacular edition to the lineup. Now, you might be thinking "Isn't this one quite a bit more chiptune than the others?" The answer is "VERY CLOSE YEAH BUT DIFFERENT!" True, there are people who do "8-bit" covers of songs all over YouTube, but these covers feel quite a bit better than those. They have a very specific style they're going for (I feel NES but might be wrong), and they don't feel like kinda half-assed or generic. They have a lot of depth and feeling put into them. And the selection? It's easily the most varied of the three albums! True it has some of the same items like Sonic, Zelda, and Mega Man, but there's some different choices with titles like Dragon Ball Z Budokai and Mario & Luigi SuperStar Saga. There's even a track from Shantae and Actraiser! A very fun and entertaining listen all around.
These are all great albums and currently on my listening list (also set to repeat), so I highly HIGHLY recommend them! If that's not enough, consider this... Each album is only $1. That's $1 for 15 awesome covers... remixings? reskinnings? However you wish to see it, they're all a huge bargain and super amazing! I look forward to future volumes from MyNewSoundtrack. Hopefully soon...
UNTIL THEN! We always got fairly frequent new releases on the channel like...
PS - Thanks for reading and to any of those who stuck around and came back. Going to give it a shot to write again. No promises though. T-T
~May the Crystals Guide Me~
