VGBA Explosion #7 - MyNewSoundtrack Triple Play

I'm finally back! For how long? I don't honestly know, but I do bring great tidings of awesome video game music with me! So let's ignore the absence and just leap right into the tasty jams.

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!

MyNewSoundtrack Youtube 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) 

Available on Bandcamp ($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)

Available on Bandcamp ($1)

Type of Album - Covers via the Sega Genesis sound set.
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)

Available on Bandcamp ($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~

VGBA Explosion #6 - Random 2015 Purchases

For this round of VGBA Explosion, I've decided to hit up a random selection of Bandcamp items I've had on the wishlist. I'll buy several items from my Wishlist and then list 3 or 4 of them that turn out to be winners! Now that this has been said... This is what won!

Do a Barrel Roll! - Boss Rush

Available on Bandcamp ($7)

Band - Do a Barrel Roll!
Sites - Bandcamp
Type of Album - Video Game Remix.
Genres - Rock. Metal. Funk.
Favorite Song - Those Who Still Fight On More Further (FFVII boss battle theme)

The band, Do a Barrel Roll!, is a random group I learned of that was going to MAGFest 13. (I didn't go myself... but I will attempt to someday!) I honestly didn't know anything about them beyond that. Their website seems down at the moment, but their album is still very available through Bandcamp. It's their first full album and was released early last year. But... what do I think? It's a really good start. They've got a great sound and decent selection here. I will eagerly await more of their material in the future! It's not a free album though, but it only costs you $7 for 9 tasty tracks. Get at it!

Droidekka - Droidekka

Available on Bandcamp ($4)

Band - Droidekka
Sites - Bandcamp
Type of Album - Original Video-Game Inspired Music.
Genres - Reggae with a twist of electronica.
Favorite Song - Blasto!

I've seen Droidekka a few times before down in Texas. (Oklahoma doesn't really have a video game music scene...) They're a pretty cool group, and they do quite a few video game covers live. As for their self-titled album... Not really any video game covers here. There's still a nice sound going on here though! It's got this reggae, electronica mixture that does them quite a bit of good. It's a good album for a kinda low-down, calm music. Something you could enjoy grooving on in the background. For $4? It's a cheap way to support a great band. Give them a shot for a different sound.
Here's a video I got of them when I went down to Texas for Party Madness 64.

Now on to the final album for this explosion...

My New Soundtrack - Mega Man 2X

Available on Bandcamp (Pay what you want)

Artist - MyNewSoundtrack
Sites - Bandcamp 
           Youtube
Type of Album - Video Game Remake/Remix. Will explain further down.
Genres - Chiptune.
Favorite Song - Air Man and Quick Man.

With the final album, I bring you yet another quite different idea! The artist who goes by MyNewSoundtrack (real name is Luis Sies) has spent their time making a huge assortment of video game covers making use of another game's sound style! In most cases, he uses the Mega Man X sound chip set to recreate other songs. He's got quite a selection on Youtube, and you should really explore that when you get a chance.

As for this album though, he focuses purely on all the music from Mega Man 2 and remakes it to sound like it was done with Mega Man X style. It's a very interesting and often quite awesome take on the series's music. Every song is redone here from the title music, to all the robot masters, and even the stage select and new weapon bits. It's a really awesome album, and part of me would like to hear this music while I play Mega Man 2. (See how well it syncs and all.) The best part of all? This album is "Name Your Price" and can be obtained for free if you feel such is fair. Personally, I'd recommend a few dollars towards a guy who does a great job. Regardless, this album wraps up my trio of random new buys!

And that's all I've got for now. Stay tuned and be prepared for more fun times at Recurring Fantasy!

~May the Crystals Guide Me~

VGBA 20 - Boar Knight

Legend of the Boar Knight

A Grand Story + Fantastic Video Game Covers = This Album!

Buy it here!

Band - Careless Juja

Sites - Home page. Facebook. Bandcamp.

Type of Album - Original story mixed with video game covers.

Genres - Alternative rock plus accordion. 

Favorite Tracks - In no particular order...

• Songs
• Matoya the Witch - Final Fantasy 1
• Title Medley - Mega Man Battle Network 1, 2, 3. 
• Sword Search - Link's Awakening
• Chapters
• Chapter 7 - The Hard Sell (Part 2)
• This Concludes Side One
• Chapter 16 - Cheater Can't Be Choosers

Review - Once again, I've been struck by the great presence of the Careless from the awesome duo of Careless Juja. He came along and slipped me an early release copy so I could give a review of another one of their fine albums. Nothing more to add here, so let's hop right into it!

     The Legend of the Boar Knight is a two CD album featuring video game coverss alongside an original story, full of various video game references. It sounds strange and different, but that's far from what it should be called! So that I can be fair to both parts of this album, I figure I should review both portions separately. (That is, take a shot at both the great music contained within as well as the story that is being told.) Let's start with the story and swing back around to the music.

     The story of the Boar Knight is the tale of a boar named Nathaniel. He journeys throughout the land in order to defeat the evil that abounds. Lichs, Dragons, Hipsters, and much more block Nathaniel's path to defeating the ultimate evil... an Undead Butcher! There's a lot of variety and game references contained throughout. That should be a given of course, but on top of that is still a lot of great jokes and humor. The Narrator is a very entertaining personality, and he even teaches us some random grammar lessons here and there. (Something many of us could probably use...)

     It's a very entertaining and well written story overall. If there were a larger and more detailed version of Legend of the Boar Knight, I'd read it to get the full story. The only problem I had... The story is neat and all, but after the first several listens, you almost want to skip the story and jump into the music. (Much like they discussed in the track "This Concludes Side One".) I still listen to them every go through the album, but I'm generally tempted to skip and keep going.

     Regardless of my minor complaint, I'd still say it is a fairly strong story with lots of great humor and good points. I'd rather listen to this than read some of the things I see every day. All in all, the story gets a pass in my book. And you best not forget... We still get to enjoy all that fantastic music!

     In between all the entertaining story segments you get your face blasted off with some amazing video game remixed covers! Of all the bands/groups/artists I've heard in the video game band genre, I'd say Careless Juja does the best about their variety of game music selection. We get your daily dose of Legend of Zelda and Castlevania next to random and awesome and uncommon titles like Mega Man Battle Network, Pheonix Wright, King's Quest, and Rogue Legacy. It's a smorgasbord of video game music!

     Even beyond the excellent selection given here, they show off their talents even further (Inside album joke - Learned something from the album after all!) with their skills and instrument capability. Each song is carefully covered and further improved through the various use of the accordion and many other instruments. They really match the beat and flow of every song. For me, each track is an explosion into a past video game venture (a nostalgia bomb of sorts).

     That being said, I do wish a few of the songs were slightly longer. And that's it for any remote form of negativity to be had with the music. Nuff said.

     A special note before I wrap up this review though... Holy cow there are a lot of guests here! I know that a lot of the voices were done by Juja, but there's a lot of guest voices included as well. I directly recognized Brentalfloss's voice (and double checked in their credits) during the Shop Salesman bit in Chapter 6 and 7. I don't recognize everybody on their list, (Available on the bandcamp page as of right now.) Beyond the voices contained within is a plethora of instrumental guests. I know a few of the people on the list. Brandon Strader, Lauren the Flute, and... that's it actually. I don't recognize any of the other artists directly, but I bet I've heard their material before. (Most likely on a previous Careless Juja album!) /end special note

     The Legend of the Boar Knight is the album you didn't know you wanted. It's got a great story. It's got great video game music. It's the all-in-one package with an explosion of greatness. There's a lot of material to get through, but it's more than worth your time. With enough love and laughs to get you through the evening, Careless Juja (and a pile of guest musicians) has brought us another winner!

Pros - Original story with fun jokes and a lot of wit. Huge variety of video game music contained throughout. Well done covers. Huge list of fantastical instrumental and vocal guest stars. It's everything you wanted in a video game cover album and more!

Cons -  It's hard to want to listen to the story tracks every time you go through the album. Some of the tracks are pretty short, and I wish they were longer. (So I could rock out more!)

The album will drop on March 7th. I've already pre-ordered my copy, and you should get on down and get yours too! Thanks for the read and I'll see you next time... ON RECURRING FANTASY!

~May the Crystals Guide Me~

VGBA 19 - Heartbeats in Hyperspace

Heartbeats in Hyperspace

Funky beats + Electronica + Space setting + ???? = PROFIT!!!

Buy it here

Band - Crunk Witch
Sites -

• Facebook. 
• Youtube. 
• Bandcamp. 
• Soundcloud.

Type of Album - Original Electronica.
Genres - Electronica. Rock. Chiptune. Dubstep.
Favorite Songs - Moonbase Blues and Clash Of The Droids.

Review - I realize doing two groups in a row that are video-game-like but not actually covering video game stuff is silly... However, I'm doing it anyways. Despite these reviews being Video Game Band focused, I don't mind branching out to some highly related bands, like electronica and chiptunes, that deserve some attention and love. I wouldn't bring this to your attention if I didn't think it was worth your time. And guess what? Crunk Witch fits that exact bill.

Now, up until a little while ago (around a week or so from this post's post date), I only knew Crunk Witch's name and hadn't actually given their music a shot yet. I regret not looking into them earlier. I saw them live alongside a favorite/friend of mine, Doug Funnie. (I've reviewed his material not too long ago right here.) The group is just a two person act consisting of one Brandon Miles and one Hannah Colleen. They seemed like delightful people and put on a pretty dang good show, despite the venue's lack of... I don't know what it was supposed to be. Interesting enough music that I'm glad I picked up a few of their albums. Enough about the people and places though, let's jump into the music!

Crunk Witch brings a very unexpected sound to the table. I'll be honest. I had no idea what their sound would be. Based on their name, I expected something a little more... crunk I guess? Like rap with some heavy wubs or hardcore dance music. I DON'T KNOW WHAT I WAS EXPECTING! IT's like some kind of strange milkshake made with chiptunes, dubstep, punk, rock, and a couple other flavors. Despite this sounding like a strange shake, the flavor that came out was something not only different but really good and quite tasty. The best comparison I could think of was something like Professor Shyguy but with a dash of punk mixed in.

From the album's very first song, you truly get a feeling of being blasted into space. You explode into the atmosphere on a tasty chiptune-ary and then thrown into a great space battle with dubsteping. You almost can't help but want to get on down to the music. (Already beginning to see the reason for the name Crunk Witch...) There's so much beat and rhythm that you can feel it wash over your body as you try to hold back breaking down. As each wave of sounds hits you, you can taste all of the flavors of the music contained inside. It's pretty dang tasty to me, but it's not for everybody.

 Even beyond the great beats and sound, you still get some interesting and catchy lyrics. It's not hard to take a great beat and ruin it with vocals and lyrics, but these guys hit a really great mix between the two. Each track comes and goes with its own little story of adventures through space and time. There's a lot of romance-based ones, but that's a given considering the name and all. (Not a bad thing either!) Heartbeats in Hyperspace comes with a lot of story  The adventure through love and space is quite visible. You've got heroes, robots, bandits, lots of love, love spats, betrayal, intrigue, and still rocking with that killer beat. And when the final track comes to a close on Hyper Magic... You get this ending credits vibe from it and almost hate to see the journey finally come to an end... NOW!

Would I say this album is worth your time? Very much so.
Would I say that Crunk Witch is worth your time? Incredibly yes.
Thus, you should go out and scrap up a little Crunk Witch to get down and boogie with!


Pros - A very space-tastic album with a very incredible and original sound. Good rhythm and beat. Great vocals with clever and catchy lyrics.
Cons - Not much here if you can't accept the crazy milkshake of music and style contained within. I eagerly await more things from them!

~May the Crystals Guide Me~

VGBA 18 - The Cover Up

WELL! The original plan was to have this a few days after the release, but then I completely dropped the ball. Here it is regardless though!

The Cover Up

The Protomen are covering up something... classic rock!

The best I could find for album art at the moment.

Buy the album here!

Band - The Protomen
Sites - Home. Facebook.
Type of Album - Rock cover album.
Genres - Rock. Metal. Things along that line.
Favorite Song - The Trooper

Review - Time for something a little different! For those who don't know, The Protomen are a video game band of sorts, but rather than cover material from games, like most bands I review, they went out and crafted an original video game rock opera of sorts based on the Mega Man series. (Thus the name Protomen taken from the name Protoman.)

Now, generally the material The Protomen produce is original and goes kind of all over the place with genre. (Generally sticks to something of an 80s rock sounds though.) In more recent years though, they have been playing music covers and even released a couple cover albums. The first one was A Night of Queen. It was a live show of Queen covers. Great stuff! Definitely go give it a shot. And while we slowly wait for them to complete the epic tale of The Protomen in Act III... We are currently given a small taste of tasty Protomen beats with The Cover Up.

This cover album is filled to the brim with quite a few great and even some lesser known (to me) classic hits. For ease, I'll list what tracks are on here plus their original artist.

1. Pick Up*
2. Because The Night - Patti Smith Group
3. Princes of the Universe - Queen
4. Mr. Roboto - Styx
5. No Easy Way Out - Robert Tepper
6. Last Stop*
7. In the Air Tonight - Phil Collins
8. I Drove All Night - Cyndi Lauper
9. Total Eclipse of the Heart - Bonnie Tyler
10. Hunted*
11. The Trooper - Iron Maiden
12. I Still Believe (Great Design) - The Call
13. Results*
14. Danger Zone - Kenny Loggins
15. Silent Running (On Dangerous Ground) - Mike + The Mechanics

* - These are skits.

It's a really diverse selection of songs. I only knew half of the tracks original artists and had to look up the rest. It's nice to see a group try to look around and pick a variety when they do something like this. It's the same awesomeness that came out of the Queen cover album. True, they did pick some well known and liked Queen, but they also went out of their way and picked a few lesser known (but still awesome) tracks.

Honestly? I don't have much more to say about this album. The only true negative I have to say... It's not Act 3! But if you are a Protomen fan, you know they are getting close to finishing it. They've been working on it for a while now... only 6 years. Like many fans, I've just been eager to get my ears on that new tasty album....

ANYWAYS! Beyond that, this is still a great album. Definitely worth a listen for those who enjoy some classic rock mixed in with a few extras. It's also got some bits for the true Protomen fans as well. On top of it all, you can get yourself a tape cassette (you read that right) copy of it alongside your digital copy for only $10! Do yourself a favor and get this great album while you wait in anticipation for Act 3.

Pros - Another great release from the legendary Protomen. Really well done covers of some classic rock songs. Still manage to throw in some story bits even among all the great covers.
Cons - It's not Act 3.

~May the Crystals Guide Me~

VGBA 17 - Player Select

Warning, this post is going to probably be a bit swear-y compared to my norm. Just know that it's all in fair relation to the album at hand. Otherwise... ENJOY!

Player Select

Starbomb Returns With a Blast of Profanity and Swearing Fun!

Buy it on multiple sites! *Links below*

Band - Starbomb
Sites - Home page.  Facebook.
Purchase Sites

• CD Baby
• Amazon
• iTunes

Type of Album - Video Game Comedy Parody.
Genres - Rock. Rap. Comedy. Parody. And quite a bit more really.
Favorite Song/Songs - Smash! and Minecraft Is for Everyone

Review - Now, I'm going to take on something a little wilder/profanity filled than usual. I already warned you at the top of the post, but I'll restate it here. Things are going to get a bit swear-y, but it's all in favor of and with the album to be reviewed.

Now, for those who don't know, Starbomb is a musical group composed of three people. There's Egoraptor (his Youtube channel and Game Grumps) and the comedy musical duo of Ninja Sex Party. (Haven't really listened to any of their stuff, so don't have an opinion ATM.) And now things are going to get weird for you...

The trio combine their awesome abilities and vast talents to create some hardcore kickass shit! We get the fuckin' hilarious video game nonsense next to your killer raps and dope music jams. Unlike those other unmanly bands, we get a face-splosion of tasty tunes to satisfy our thirst (and lust) for awesome-ality. Let's be honest. Your face might not be able to handle all these songs, so you should probably leave the blog now before you lose the ability to not have a melted face.


Where was I... OH YEAH! THIS ALBUM IS PRETTY AWESOME! You've got a great selection of jams from many games. (Out of character for a moment, the songs aren't quite as based on the video games they represent as most video game bands I review. Still great music though.) Player Select is the second album  We got all the basic shit you need for a video game album. Here's a list of all the damn fine tracks on this hot ass album.

1. Intro
2. Smash! (Smash Bros)
3. Robots in Need of Disguise (Transformers)
4. The Hero of Rhyme (Legend of Zelda)
5. Toad Joins the Band (Mario skit)
6. The New Pokerap (Pokemon)
7. Glass Joe's Title Fight (Punch Out!)
8. Mortal Kombat High (Think this is self-explanatory)
9. Inky's Lament (Pac-Man)
10. God of No More (God of War)
11. Atari Mystery Hour (Skit)
12. Minecraft is for Everyone (Again, self-explanatory)
13. The Simple Plot of Metal Gear Solid (Self. Explanatory.)
14. Outro

Check out that fuckin' awesome list of all dem tunes. You're thinking... How come I haven't heard of this amazing shit yet? Because you are still here! You should get out there and start listening! We'll start off with one of the first songs revealed for the album... Smash! (Video incoming...)

(Really hope that video posts right... Also going to cut out the swearing bit and get to the point.) If that got you going, you might check out the rest of the album's songs. Most of them are floating around Youtube at this point. 

Overall, Player Select is pretty funny and surprisingly well done for what it's aiming to be. That song Smash! is a pretty good example of what takes place throughout the album. The album is going for a mixture of electronica-80s-ish rock-rap that is well written, great sound, and fun to listen to. I will say that regardless of how well a light I put this in, this album will either immediately entertain you or just make you shake your head. 

The material they go over ranges from fairly tame to kinda raunchy at times. It's never going to make you go "DID THEY JUST SAY THAT!?!", but something to keep in mind while giving the album a listen. Lots of great tunes with some good comedy covering all of your basic video game universe. 

Outside of the profanity contained within, the only problem I can have with this album... It's really not as great as the first one. There's a few reasons I have for this. It is mostly personal opinion above all else, but I think there is one thing worth mentioning. There's a few small elements that require a listening of the first album, self-titled Starbomb, to fully get. It's mostly small jokes, but there are a few songs that build off songs from the previous album. Beyond that? I just like the first album more. Can't really make any kind of argument here...

Hell, if you like what you've heard so far, get both of them! They're both pretty entertaining and great listens. However, I would say get Starbomb first and then come back around to Player Select. Regardless, I see a bright future for Starbomb and eagerly await more from them!


Pros - Overall, very funny album with catchy well-written lyrics. Plenty of comedy. Interesting mixture of electronica, 80s rock, and rap. Bitchin' tunes. Just overall lots of fun to listen to.
Cons - If profanity bothers you, just stop now. Not quite the punch of the first album. Many of the songs require knowledge from the first album to get.

~May the Crystals Guide Me~

VGBA 16 - Speed Runs

Speed Runs

Never has an album been truer to it's name!

Pay what you want here!

Band - Lame Genie
Sites - Facebook. Bandcamp.
Type of Album - Hardcore Video Game Covers.
Genres - Experimental. Hardcore. Rock. (Kinda wanted to not include any of those periods...)
Favorite Song/Songs - Donkey Kong Country 2 (Dixie Kong Victory Theme)

Review - This is just a random little tidbit I got linked to from one of the various video game bands I follow. (Can't remember who at the moment...) Like I joked at the top, the album's name is pretty true to what it is. It's under seven minutes and covers a large variety of random themes from Nintendo games. A short album like this means I'm going to have to speed run this post!

I realize that sounds stupid/crazy/ridiculous, but it's pretty awesome for what little length it has. Many of the songs aren't even longer than 10 seconds! Despite the length of the songs and album though, there's some pretty awesome and powerful stuff to hear here.

The selection? Full of a variety of both well known (Castlevania, Contra), lesser known (RBI Baseball, Rock And Bullwinkle), and highly surprised by (Friday The 13th, Excitebike). So again.. It's chocked full of a great variety from all kinds of games.

The best part? For what little you hear, it's all really awesome and super powerful. It's like BLAM! ROCK IN YOUR FACE! SO EPIIII- done. It went by so awesomely and so fast that you have to listen to it again and again to get your fix. Seriously, for what little content seems to be here, there's a lot going on.

And really... That's about what I have. It's seven minutes of awesome music, and it's even Pay What You Want! Be a butt and pay nothing. Be an amazing and pay $1. Be crazy ama-za-za-zing and pay $2 or more! GO NUTS AND PAY ALL YOUR MONEY! (That'd be cool of you, but don't go that nuts.) So stop reading this and go download that album RIGHT NOW.


Pros - Great variety. Quick and awesome. Pay what you want. Nintendo Experimental Hardcore Rock.
Cons - It's super short. We're looking at less than 7 minutes. But pay what you want so get over it!


Side Note - And at the time of this writing, I just now realized they had a full album as well. Going to buy that soon!

~May the Crystals Guide Me~

VGBA Explosion! #5 - Random Late 2014 Releases

Time for another EXPLOSION of Video Game Bands and their releases! There have been a pretty large number of releases since I've been able to do anything. On top of that, I keep getting behind on my purchases. I could buy more and more, but I try to only get a single album at a time and give myself time to enjoy it.

Why? Because in the past, I have bought a group of albums and then ended up passing most of them by because I can't get myself to focus on one album long enough to enjoy it. (Since I bought several and want to get my moneys worth and all.)

THUS!... I'm going to list off several new release here. (I figure somewhere in the ballpark of five different albums.) You should know that I've only had the time and money to get a few of them below. I'll try to give each one a listen before giving any thoughts on them though. Let's start off with an interesting and quite enjoyable freebie!

Super VG Christmas Party

Available for free on Bandcamp

This album kind of came out of the blue for me, and it's so amazing and such a large selection. There's so many bands and artists on here, and I don't think I know more than maybe a third of who all is on here. The variety of both genre and video game selection are crazy. You'll see so much here and probably haven't even played them all! (Or I sure haven't) Great remixes of a huge assortment of video game music to fit your yuletide celebrations. To top all that off? IT IS ABSOLUTELY FREE!

As far as music genres go, I don't know any other type that releases as much free music as Video Game Bands and Video Game Remixers. Seriously, if you know of another genre of music willing to learn and play awesome music and costs you nothing, then please let me know.

If I had any special highlights here... I honestly don't know if I could choose. There is one song that really sticks out here. (FYI, I decided to choose one that wasn't just one of my favorite bands on the album like Random Encounter, Armcannon, The Returners, or Codename Trigger Thumb.)

The song I'm going to highlight is Dragonborn's Shout (TES V - Skyrim) by Psycho Crusher. I happened to enjoy the original song, but their version just... feels so amazing. Easily one of my favorite songs from the album. I plan to look into more of these groups when I get a chance.

Next up...

The Descendants of Erdrick - Advent

Available on Bandcamp ($10)

The Descendants of Erdrick (another clear favorite VG band of mine) released their latest album, Advent, a couple weeks ago. I will say that the style has changed a bit from the previous album, but that's because the band lineup has changed quite a bit as well over the past year. That aside, we're still getting quality material from these guys. It's a bit heavier than their previous material, but every song is well chosen and just well thrashed... which is good I think for metal? If not, just know that I'm being positive here. I like the album. I really do. 

In all honesty, I had planned to do a full VGBA review of this album, but I never got around to it at release, so it ended up being pushed back until now. I don't have the time to make individual reviews for this and the other two or three albums that released recently. They do deserve your attention though. Advent brings us some great metal-ified version of songs spanning Legend of Zelda, Final Fantasy, Dragon Warrior, and many other RPG adventure games. (The group's main focus at this point) 

My favorite song off of the album has to be Shinra Oppression. It's the song I remember the most from both the actual game and the album itself. Regardless, get on down to the Bandcamp, give it a listen, and buy yourself some awesome metal!

OldStyle - Baroque Remixes

Available on Bandcamp ($5)

From the great Dj CUTMAN comes a very unique and interesting take on classical music. It's classic music meets chiptunes. There's really not much to add here, but I would like to say... It's pretty dang cool. Despite how you might think that mixture would go, it's actually pretty cool to hear. It's got a really funky jamming vibe that also seems pretty classy at the same time. It's the right mixture of old and new to create something so amazing your ears will be confused.

None of the songs really stand out here to single out, but they're all pretty amazing, so I just had a hard time choosing here.

It's a quick album with a really unique sound and interesting to just hear it out. For the low price of only $5, you can enjoy a bit of history both past... and present.

The Returners - Immune to Silence

Available on Bandcamp ($10)

The first release from the great new VG band, The Returners. (Got their name from the fictitious rebellion group from Final Fantasy VI.) They bring us a very different selection of songs from video games and even a few TV shows. (Combined into one track called Epic Saturday Morning.) We come across some of our usual contenders (Final Fantasy, Zelda), but we also get a nice taste of things I haven't seen covered as much, like Phantasy Star, Starcraft, and Lufia. There's definitely a great selection of music here.

As for their overall sound, it's leaning more towards rock than metal. It's really easy on the ears and a great listen that won't just blow your ears off with loud or boisterous. (It makes for pretty great background music.) They also have the flute-est... flute-er... flute expert, Lauren the Flute. This is her main band after she left Descendants of Erdrick (or so my understanding goes).

I can be honest here. I haven't listened to this album as much as I'd have liked. Mostly just time versus number of albums I tend to get. Not in any way negative though! It's got a great sound and overall some really good covers of video game music. It's definitely worth a listen (and your money), so I'd highly suggest it.

If nothing else, my favorite song "Epic Saturday Morning" is pretty awesome by itself. It combines the Gargoyles opening theme followed by the X-Men (older) opening theme, and then followed by a final one I haven't seen (The Knights of Justice). 

Give The Returner's a shot and let your mind be blown... by the rock!

DKC Mix't Ape '94

Available on Bandcamp (Pay what you want)

Now for my final selection... An item I haven't listened to yet! Why do I list it? Because I love me some Donkey Kong Country music! This is another great free compilation by a few groups I've heard of (Droidekka, The World is Square, Super Guitar Bros) and many people I've never heard of. I plan to get it soon enough, and I figure it's worth recommending now!

I still really enjoy some Donkey Kong Country music. The original soundtrack is great. OCRemix has remixed the first and second games music as part of their free albums. (Kong in Concert, Serious Monkey Business... I reviewed that one.) They did the third game as well, but I haven't really played that game enough to recognize the music. Regardless, this is another free album that's definitely got to be worth a listen. I shall get it soon enough... YES, SOOOOON.


And that's what I got for this Explosion! We got five albums here, and they're all pretty varied with what they offer you. Give these a listen and be ready for another Explosion! soon enough. (Not this month, but I'm backed up enough on albums to need an Explosion! over a plan review.) Hope you enjoyed the post and got yourself some tasty new beats to keep you satisfied.~

Until next time...

~May the Crystals Guide Me~

VGBA 15 - NES JAMS

Going to keep it quick and simple with an oldie but a goodie!

NES JAMS

NES Chiptunes + Piano Jams = Piano Chiptunes!... Wait

Pay what you want here!

Artist - Shnabubula
Sites - Bandcamp. Facebook.
Type of Album - Piano + Chiptune Mixture
Genres - Chiptune, Piano, ...That's it really.
Favorite Song - Stage 1 (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles)

Review - Ever so often, you're introduced to something new and unique. When this happens, you tend to go one of two directions... You find it strange and walk away, or you bite in and become addicted. With Shnabubula's NES JAMS, you can very much say I became addicted.

From the very first song, I'm immediately grabbed into this album. It's got the sounds of the old mixed with a very lively and happy piano jam. You feel like you're playing the games of old while a classy gentleman accompanies the sound with his fantastic piano work. It sounds crazy, but it works incredibly well.

As the album goes, all of the songs contained within are NES games. You've got quite a selection here as well. It's not composed completely of one series or another. You have the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle games (looove these), a couple Mega Man songs (can't have NES tunes without Mega Man), Castlevania, Little Nemo, and much more. I don't have experience with every single game on the album, but I can just say... This album makes me interested to hear them first hand. (Well, in all fairness, I've heard a lot of the songs on here firsthand.)

And that... is all I really have to say honestly. It's a unique album with great sound all around. It takes an interesting concept of mixing NES chiptunes with a jamming piano to bring you a fantastic and unique sound. It's fun, lively, and just super catchy to boot. The only problem? I don't have five more albums of this!

To top this all off? The album is available on Bandcamp as "Pay what you want". Pay $1, $5, $20, or even free! You can't beat free on an album this great. So get download this album and start jamming today!

Pros - Fantastic piano work. Great selection of NES chiptunes used. Incredibly unique sound and feeling. Blends together really well despite what you would initially think.
Cons - The only Con is that you aren't listening to it right now! Oh, and I wish there was like five more albums of this amazingness.

~May the Crystals Guide Me~

VGBA 14 - Metal Gear Solid: The Mixtape

That's right. It's time for another VGBA! This time, we're stepping into the arena of one of the strange but very amusing and awesome genres called... NERDCORE!

To quickly and accurately describe it? It's basically Hip Hop meets Nerd Culture. It can get a bit more varied than that, but that's the general idea here. Back to the actual item at hand...

Metal Gear Solid: The Mixtape

Doug, Can you hear me? Doug?... DOOOOUUUUUGGG!

Buy here!

Artist - Doug Funnie.
Sites - Home Page. Bandcamp. Facebook.
Type of Album - Metal Gear Solid Tribute/Remix.
Genres - Nerdcore. Hip-Hop. Video Game Remix.
Favorite Song - Plisken.

Review - Here we are with another VGBA! Now, I should warn you, I'm taking a bit of a detour from the usual thing. (That's a good thing though!) As I explained above, this album is Nerdcore. It's pretty much rap but with nerdier themes. Now, you might not be the biggest rap fan... Honestly though? I'm not either. I could go so far as to say I hate it. However, Nerdcore holds a special place in my heart despite what I previously said.
     Doug Funnie is a nerdcore rap person from Texas. I've met the guy a few times, and he's pretty cool. I wasn't sure about his kind of music at first, but after hearing it live, I'm a fan. It's not quite the same coming off of a CD, but I'd still say it's great stuff!
     Back to the album at hand! Metal Gear Solid the Mixtape is... SURPRISE SURPRISE a Metal Gear Solid tribute. Not being the largest MGS fan (or one in general), a lot of the references are most likely lost on me. However, I still recognize a lot of the material, and a friend of mine who knows the series well enough was immediately impressed at the depth after just a short listen.
     Starting from the very beginning, we're jumping right into some MGS characters talking and some remix happening. It's a good beat going here and really opens up the album. (This was done by a DJ R.O.C.K.M.A.N.) The music builds up and starts going into this orchestra bit. Makes me think I should look into the Metal Gear Solid soundtrack... I know it's got some pretty memorable pieces. This drops off into "VR Missions".
     I know what VR Missions is. (Long story short? It was on the PS1 and was just virtual missions you did for performance. I don't think there was a story...) This song is pretty straightforward here. It's rapping about the game in general. It's a nice beat and flow of course, so I can dig it. The next song up was a "Plisken." Now, based off what I've heard on the track, Plisken is a character. Unfortunately, past that, I didn't glimpse much information... Then I looked it up! Turns out it's one of Snake's aliases he takes on during the games. (Look at me! I'm learning about Metal Gear Solid.) This is easily one of my favorite songs off of the entire album. As it heads on to the rest of the tracks, I'm not as much into those as previous tracks. Regardless though, it always keeps a really great beat to the album.
     Probably the greatest pleasure of this album is the lyrical ability of Doug Funnie. Again, I'm not super familiar to rap, but I feel like most rappers try too hard to find words that rhyme as opposed to finding words that actually fit. As far as The Mixtape goes, I'd say he does a great job keeping the wording and lyrics on topic for each song. I don't ever feel like he's going to throw in random words to fill up the rhyming.
     A nice thing about nerdcore in general? It doesn't try to just be "gangsta" or whatever. It's being realistic and nerdy. Although it's mostly video games, there's just a lot more realisticness to the genre than anything I ever glimpsed from regular rap. I guess it helps that the ideas and themes he is rapping relates to me as a person. I figure that's the same for your other kinds of rap and rappers. ANYWAYS!
     Just when I thought the album was slowing down? Then in drops "Konami" that's listing off and talking about all the great Konami games that came out before. The classic "Konami sound" is just... so much nostalgia up in here. The song before that "Arcade" is talking about how Konami used to make all these great arcade games. But... what happened to that? (I miss those great old Konami games, but Lords of Shadow 1 was pretty great too!)
     Well, I've gone on for long enough here. So basically? This is a great album. It focuses pretty highly on Metal Gear Solid, so if you don't know that, you will miss out. However, for Nerdcore in general, it's a nice album to start off on. Throughout the album, Doug Funnie brings in a great set of lyrics to an epic beat and flow. The mixture of Metal Gear Solid's epic setting and fantastic music meets a man with a vision... and rap-bility. Looks like I might need to go out and explore more nerdcore soon...
   

Pros - A fantastic Metal Gear Solid tribute. Really great sound, beat, and flow. The lyrics are quite dope. Unlike rap, I can relate to nerdcore, so this stuff just sounds and feels right.
Cons - It's a lot of Metal Gear Solid reference, which I don't really get. (Not so much a Con for the album as a Con for me in general.) The album feels a bit short.

~May the Crystals Guide Me~

VGBA Explosion! #4 - GameChops Mega Trio Random Selection

Okay! So this should be the final music-related update before I truly get back on schedule. I do apologize for the delay, but I'm trying to get my gaming palate a bit cleared up before jumping on the next big plan for the blog... However, here is not the place to discuss that. We're here to cover more Video Game Music Magicalness!!!

For this time, I've chosen a few more items from my ever-growing and constantly expanding selection. The chosen albums for today all come from one of my favorite labels! (I don't normally memorize music industry labels like this, but they're an exception in my opinion.) I bring to you three random yet carefully chosen GameChops albums in...

Video Game Band Awareness Explosion! #4

GameChops Mega Trio Random Selection 

As with all the VGBA Explosions!, I'll be keeping this short, sweet, and full of fast-takes of lotsa good video game music you should totally drop down on and get! But first, let's go into the intro of what GameChops is.

GameChops is a netlabel, created by Chris Davidson (Dj CUTMAN), for video game music peoples. All of the music released through GameChops is focused on remixing classic (not necessarily old) video game music. There's a pretty good variety of artists, video games remixed, and styles of remixary. There's just about something for everybody!... Everybody that enjoys video game music. Heck, if you don't believe me, go check out their site and look around at what all they got.

GameChops 

Now it's time to explore a few of those albums and give my suggestions. I tried my best to pick these at random and not follow any specific pattern. Now, GameChops used to be almost exclusively on Bandcamp (my main site for video game music in general really), but they've since moved to Loudr for various reasons. (My understanding is that Loudr offered an easier option for getting the video game music copyrights or whatever.) They still list their stuff on Bandcamp, but it basically points you towards the other site for actual purchase and downloading of it. HOWEVER! Bandcamp still allows you to fully listen to the song whereas Loudr only gives you a sample. So I'm going to post links to both!

Another minor note before I get into the albums, Loudr does this "Get Loudr!" thing where you pay more money for the album that they're asking. In general, it supports the artist more, but with most GameChops albums, if you "Get Loudr!", you're rewarded with an additional album or two depending on how much you're willing to give. It's just something nice to keep in mind, and you generally get a good deal out of it while also supporting the artists more! Hurray! ANYWAYS~

 For the first album, I chose...

Dj Jo - Tales of EDM

$5 on Loudr

Artist - Dj Jo
Sites - Listen at Bandcamp / Purchase on Loudr
Game Choice - Tales of Symphonia
Genres - Dubstep, Drumstep, EDM, Electronica.
Favorite Song - Beat The Angel

Now, I did play quite a bit of Tales of Symphonia back in the day. Unfortunately, I never beat it. Even got to the final boss... (Story for another time.) Tales of Symphonia (and "Tales" series in general) are pretty great RPG time. It's also hella long RPG time, but that's besides the point. Tales of EDM offers a small selection of them Tales' music, but it's been... ELECTRONICA-FIED! The mix here is a lot of Dubstep, so if that's not your thing, I'd say give it a chance regardless. Really, REALLY like Beat the Angel here. It's just so much fun and in your face! To be honest, I didn't remember the music so much until I got this album. I also proceeded to purchase the HD Collection almost purely because of this. Haven't played it much yet, but what I did play really brought back memories... 

Next up in our album selection is a jump from RPGs to CASTLEVANIA!

Joshua Morse - VLAD

$4 on Loudr

Artist - Joshua MorseSites - Listen at Bandcamp / Purchase on Loudr
Game Choice - Castlevania series.
Remixed Genres - Chiptunes, Dance, Dubstep, Electronica, Techno.
Favorite Song - Vampire Snap 2 (Castlevania - Vampire Killer)

The Castlevania series is well known for it's vampire escapades and often highly challenging but fun-to-the-core gameplay. The flagship title in the series still remains to be Symphony of the Night... AND FOR GOOD REASON! It defined great action-platform-RPG-ary with plenty of exploration and pushing you to do better and better and BETTER! Seriously, there's a pair of sunglasses that if you don't get, the game ends on the worst possible ending. If you do get them, you're thrown at one of the greatest ideas ever! You do the entire castle again... UPSIDE DOWN! (The genius of it...) I've nostalgia'd enough here though. Only other statement is to do yourself a favor and play Lords of Shadow. (First one. Second one is just okay in comparison.)

Beyond the actual games, Castlevania has always brought along some great music. I know that several of the first games introduced music that's pretty prevalent in the video game music scene. (Tears of Blood, Vampire Killer, Wicked Child) Now, VLAD brings in some pretty heavy dubstep elements, and I know how people can feel about that.  I'd still highly recommend it though since you get some dope remixed Castlevania beats out of this. (If it's all still too much for you, do yourself a favor and listen to the originals. Too good to miss!)
I believe the kids are saying "epic drops", "totally killer beats", and other various music slang word stuffs. VLAD's an album that even one of my friends, who isn't a VGM nut like me, really enjoys. Get your dancing vampire on with... VLAD!


Now we come to the (previously planned) final album, and it's Final Fantasy-related!

Mykah - Final Fantasy - Triple Triad

$8 on Loudr

Artist - Mykah

Sites - Listen at Bandcamp / Purchase on Loudr
Game Choice - Final Fantasy VI, VII, and VIII.
Remixed Genres - Chiptune, Dubstep, Electronica, House.
Favorite Songs - The Man with the Machine Gun and J.E.N.O.V.A.

That's right. I actually brought around some Final Fantasy remixes to mah Final Fantasy style blog. Triple Triad is aptly named after the card game in Final Fantasy VIII. (Easily the best card game in a game ever!) Alongside FFVIII are various songs taken from FFVI and FFVII. The variety contained within is pretty astounding really, and the title track, although based on the card song, is pretty damn dope. Personally, I prefer my two favorite songs, but I also really enjoy the originals.

Every song has been remixed with plenty of love and care. You get a nice mixture of the old sound which is then dropped down with some great bass sounds. Again, it is dubstep, but I'd say that 90% of the songs are handled and mixed so well with the dubstep-style that you won't even notice. They're just really well done and a great listen for any fan of the games and songs covered here. I'm going to be honest. This is easily one of the best GameChops releases to date. I enjoy almost every album that comes down the line, but this is among one of my favorites albums and offers great repeated listenings. Enough said.


And this final listing is why I said "previously planned" up above. I had planned for only three albums here, but then I realized I could do four. Thus, I end today's little VGBA Explosion! on another great GameChops album that takes from possibly one of my favorite game series of all time... Donkey Kong Country!

halc - Club Kong

$5 on Loudr

Artist - halc

Sites - Listen at Bandcamp / Purchase on Loudr
Game Choice - Donkey Kong Country series.
Remixed Genres - Chiptunes, Electronica, Jazz Fusion.
Favorite Song - Swept Away (Aquatic Ambience)

I'm going to try and keep this one short since I tend to droll on where I shouldn't. Club Kong opens with a nice funny bit from brentalfloss, and then it goes on to cover a couple songs from Donkey Kong Country. Now, that series has some incredibly amazing music to it. Seriously, hit up the Youtubes and look up Donkey Kong Country. (Personal suggestions would say Aquatic Ambience, Stickerbrush Symphony, and Kannon's Klaim.)

The track selection is limited (kinda short album), but they're all really good picks. Rather than doing a huge assortment, we're given a great taste of what music at this "Club Kong" most possibly sound like. I can tell you right now... I'd definitely go to Club Kong, but I also really enjoy the Donkey Kong Country series. Thus, I'm a bit biased.

You'll be happy (I think) to know Club Kong goes a bit different than the other albums in that... It's not dubstep! So if you were shying away from the rest purely for that reason, than look no further! (I'm giving dubstep quite a bit of heck on this review, but I mean it no ill harm. I just know that opinions on it are pretty well split.) Club Kong brings us in with a final club-y style to a great conclusion on an amazing set of albums.


The best part? There is sooooo much more to explore from GameChops! Don't stop here with my paltry list of four albums. You should go out and explore the rest of their library. Who knows, you might find something you like more than what I've listed here.

So! What does this post really say? That GameChops consists of a large amount of Electronica. I'd say that's completely fine, but I wouldn't mind seeing a bit more variety. Of course, this is like 50-60% of video game music remixes in general. The other half is generally rock and metal. I know there's something in the 5% margin that really gets out there with acoustic or something way different, but here's not the time for that. Maybe... MAYBE NEXT TIME! (Or something else, you'll just have to wait and see!)

And so we see the end of another explosion of Video Game Band Awareness. I could go on and on for hours and list a countless number of albums to post up and talk about here, but that just means I've got more for next time! LOOK FORWARD TO IT!

~May the Crystals Guide Me~

VGBA 13 - Professor Layton & the Bay Harbor Butcher

I realize I just recently did one of these, but that bullet has been in the chamber for a while. That, and it's been so long since I posted that I've obtained and gone through so many, many new VGBA material! I figure I'll do one more after this one, but this post is special for a few reasons. I'll get to those later since it's mostly irrelevant in general.

And for today... I bring you!

Professor Layton & the Bay Harbor Butcher

I believe this murder can be solved... WITH A PUZZLE!

Buy it here!

Band - Careless Juja.
Sites - Home Page. Bandcamp. Facebook.
Type of Album - Video game rock covers featuring an accordian!
Genres - Video Game Music. Rock. Alternative.
Favorite Songs - Running (Mega Man Battle Network) and Tyrian The Level (Tyrian)

Review - Today is a great day in Video Game Band Awareness! Why is that I might add? Because I get to review another magical and awesome album!

But what's so special about this? Beyond it being pretty damn good, this album and review thereof is hopefully a large fire underneath me to get this blog going again... BUT ENOUGH ABOUT THAT! Let's get on with the review.

First off, what's the story behind the album? I took a bit of time to look into this, and this is what I found out. Careless Juja was originally an act consisting of TWO guys... Codename Careless (of Random Encounter) and Codename Juja (of himself). They met online and began to make beautiful music together. Eventually they met in person, struck up even MORE music, and continued onwards into greatness! Now, keep in mind, they're a duo (and randomly sometimes a larger group) that seems to only rarely meet like when a unicorn fights a slightly rarer version of a unicorn. So they don't often get together, but when they do, it's pretty magical. (There's also a pretty epic/amazing/crazy story that goes into the album's making. You get a PDF copy when you purchase it from bandcamp. I won't reveal it here, but it's worth a read!)

Secondly, Careless Juja threw up a Kickstarter back in late 2013 to produce a new album, Professor Layton & the Bay Harbor Butcher. (link here) Basically, they had most of the material together, but they needed the funding to make their wondrous vision a true reality in sparkling high definition CD! With some help of some cool people (Sad to say, I wasn't part of it this time...), they were successful and created the great musical album I'm here to review today!

Now we finally come to the part where I actually review it!

Starting off, this is a pretty large album! For video game music standards, were' looking at 25 tracks if you get the full experience with all the goodies. Keep in mind, some of these are short-style, bonus-type tracks, but it's still a pretty large selection.

When you first being the trek of this album, you're greeted with a very humorous little track involving various animated characters speaking about the successful Kickstarter to fund the album. It's mostly in thanks but pretty funny what all variety goes down. I won't spoil who is all there, but it's definitely worth a listen while going through the album for a good chuckle. Then you're smacked in the face with the title track... and you realize the journey has just begun.

Now, I'll be honest. I didn't get the reference from the album at first, but I just looked it up. It's a cross-reference between Professor Layton (clearly) and Dexter (not as clearly cause I never watched it). Regardless of the lack of reference knowledge, it's still an enjoyable song.

Then we charge into the multitude of great video game music! I could go every single song in detail, but as per my usual standard and rule, that would be a bit much. Instead, I'll list up the songs on the album and highlight some of the greater awesomes and surprises contained within.

In order by track...

1. An Introduction... From the Future! (Lots of animated character references here. Namely... "future" ones.)
2. Professor Layton & the Bay Harbor Butcher ( Professor Layton mixed with Dexter)
3. Puzzle Theme (Professor Layton)
4. Electric De Chocobo (Final Fantasy VII)
5. Birth of a God (Final Fantasy VII)
6. Devil's Lab (Final Fantasy VI) - Easily one of my favorite songs from FFVI!
7. Safe Chambers (Resident Evil 1 & 2)
8. Ending Theme (Resident Evil)
9. Running (Mega Man Battle Network) - Looooove it!
10. Tyrian the Level (Tyrian) - Super unexpected and a huge treat.
11. Battle Theme 2 (Chrono Trigger)
12. Battle Theme 1 (Chrono Trigger)
13. SeinSnail'd (Snailiad)
14. Lux Lirata (Snailiad)
15. Bout (Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!)
16. Corneria (Star Fox)
17. Protomans' Castle (Mega Man V)
18. Golgo 13: Top Secret Episode (Golgo 13: Top Secret Episode) - Pretty straightforward there. 
19. Miss You (Random Encounter) - It seems that our friends the Random Encounter has made an appearance! Not a surprise considering Careless is a member of that band.
20. Onett (Earthbound) - Earthbound is always a treat~
21. Miss You [Instrumental] (Random Encounter
22. Sherlock Holmes Variety Hour - This and the following 3 tracks are all featured from a web show parody bit involving Sherlock Holmes. I watched it to see what was up. Not really my thing, but I'm not much for Youtube-style shows. The music is good and catchy though~
23. Sherlock Holmes Variety Hour [slow]
24. Sherlock Holmes Variety Hour [rock]
25. Reporter Marcus (Sherlock Holmes Variety Hour) 

There you have it! All twenty five tracks listed out and with identifying parenthesis to identify what they're from. I'd like to say I'm incredibly happy with the variety here. I realize it's hard to resist sometimes, but it's nice to see an album that isn't all just the core set of video game music cover-y. Even worse is when someone does the core set of video games, and then they set up for the even MORE core set. (IE doing Mega Man 2 versus any other Mega Man title or... Maybe I'm just nitpicking.) Regardless, it's nice to see a large variety like those above!

As for special mentions, I'm going to start with a track that came with super impeccable and awesome timing. Running from Mega Man Battle Network was just such a pleasant surprise that I didn't know how to react. On top of that, Mega Man Battle Network had just seen a release on the WiiU online store. (They've been re-releasing GBA games on there because that's such a great use of the WiiU's power.) I was playing through it, and then I got this album and... BAM! Greatness achieved.

Following that track was an even GREAT surprise to see a Tyrian cover! I don't always play shoot-um ups, but when I do, Tyrian is easily the top on my list. That game has such great music that I would start it up right now purely for the music. (You can actually buy that album on Bandcamp right here, or get the full game for FREE on gog.com by simply opening an account.) Do yourself a favor and go play it. Classic shoot-um up that holds up even today!

And like previously stated in the listing, the Earthbound track for Onett makes an appearance and proves that Earthbound is always a treat. That game is easily one of the greater SNES RPGs (among a list of many, many great SNES RPGs), and it's a personal favorite for purely the setting. Not many games have been able to pull off the modern-ish setting without throwing in so much fantasy it isn't funny. Only other series I can think of that comes close is Shadow Hearts. (Great looking series but only played the second one. Need to get back on track though!)

Among the special mentions comes a game I ended up looking into since I was clueless about it. Snailiad is a browser game that plays something along the lines of Metroid with Snails. I wasn't sure when I first loaded it up, but I gave it a bit of time and it surprised me. The game was genuinely fun, interesting mechanics with the snail wall climb-ary, and offered a challenge here and there.  The music was good too, so I can see why they decided to cover it. I'd give the game more time now, but I just can't seem to spare what time to do what I want as is. 

The final mention I'd have is for Devil's Lab. Now... pardon the next statement, but for one who doesn't love Final Fantasy VI as much as the REST of the Final Fantasy community, this is easily my favorite song from the game. I've heard a couple different variances on the cover of the song, and I enjoy all of them! It's a nice evil, brooding laboratory vibe and sound going on. I like it. I really do. Just... not as much in love with the game as other people. /end that thought

Now, as I've said before, I'm not the best at like describe the musical characteristics of the tracks. I will say that, much like in Random Encounter, I do greatly enjoy the accordion being on board. It just works so well with so many video game songs! Beyond the accordion, the song covers are mostly along the sound of rock music.

I can admit... I don't love every song, but that's because I'm unfamiliar with the soundtracks of some of the games included. Despite that though, I will say I enjoyed every single song on the album in one way or another. Just more connected to those I know versus the ones I don't.

Thus, in the end, I'd say that Careless Juja brings us a great video game music cover album. You got a great selection of songs done in the rock style with the addition of the accordion. Once again, I've found myself in another video game rock album that I can't NOT like! I look forward to purchasing their other album (Pixel Glass) and future releases from this crazy duo. If you're looking for a hot new listen in your video game band rock list, then buy you some Careless Juja and prepare to be blown away!

~May the Crystals Guide Me~

VGBA 12 - History Repeating Red

It's been some time since I posted... No point making any kind of excuses or apologies though. Let's dive into something good! And that good...

Video Game Band Awareness #12 

History Repeating - Red

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Band - The Megas.
Sites - Site. Facebook. Bandcamp. 
Type of Album - Mega Man II Rock/Metal Remix Tribute Album.
Genres - Metal. Rock.
Favorite Song - Harder Than Steel.
Review - I've gotten new music here and there since my last VGBA, but this one is definitely among the top of my newest musical recruits. The Megas have returned with the part two to their epic coverage of the Mega Man 3 soundtrack and story. Now, for those who are out of the loop, The Megas are a video game band (obviously) whose work so far has been to cover a large number of various Mega Man music. This includes several songs from Mega Man 1, the majority of Mega Man 2, and with History Repeating Red, they've wrapped up the loose ends for Mega Man 3.

The goal of the History Repeating combo was the cover the entirety of Mega Man 3. The first album did the first half of the story focusing on Mega Man, Omega, and four of the eight Robot Masters. (Spark Man, Magnet Man, Top Man, and Snake Man). History Repeating Blue was just so much greatness. It did fantastic re-imaginings of the various songs that it covered. However, that was quite some time ago. The original plan was to make one giant album, but they decided partway to release one half then come back around for the final half... And that final half is History Repeating Red!

They've blasted back with the remaining Robot Masters (Hard Man, Gemini Man, Shadow Man, and Needle Man), and to save the best for last... We get some Protoman up in here! Of course that brings us to the obvious question... What did I truly think about this album?

The album starts off strong with a song about Rush and Mega Man. Well... that's if you hear it outright, if you really listen to it, it's a kinda sad song. (I'm not going to delve completely into the album, but much like its sequel, there's more than just the surface.) With that song's end comes easily one of my favorites on the entire album... HARDER THAN STEEL! (Hardman's theme). It takes a lot of inspiration from boxing movies and their themes. It's just a great beat all around here and awesome listen.

From here, the album kinda loses steam for me. I still really enjoy it overall, but most of the songs from this point just don't hold up as well. GeminEye is really cool sound and interesting take on Gemini Man's theme, but it doesn't compare to the previous two songs.

Then we journey through some great Shadow Man and Needle Man covers to find us at the Proto Man songs. The first thing I felt when I heard these was... Didn't the Protomen already do a set like this? (They're really similar some two or three songs from The Protomen's first album, or at least the style and song-story-stuff going on is.) Keep in mind!... That's not a bad thing. Pretty awesome actually.

When the album finally wrapped up, I still really loved it. It's not quite the level that History Repeating Blue brought to the table, but it's really damn close. However, being my style, I can't bring myself to be all berating of it. Is it better than Blue? Nope. Is it worse than Blue? Nope! It's a great sequel and finale to this long tale of The Megas and Mega Man II.

Of course, I no longer "rate" these albums, and I almost ALWAYS love them so... GO BUY IT! It's a great album by a great band. If you asked me to choose between Blue and Red (and not talking about Pokemon), I'd tell you to grab Blue. It's the better album of the two, but it's also only a single piece of a two-part epic. Do yourself a favor and download History Repeating Purple! (The band's name for purchasing both albums together.~)


~May the Crystals Guide Me~