Currently in the midst of a rousing hardware upgrade & failure featuring two HDD’s and possible faults in the main board. Catch you on the flip side.
Hardware failure
// April 1st, 2008
Duck Tales - The Amazon
// March 30th, 2008
Most of the cheer for this NES-era soundtrack is leveled at the Moon stage but the other locales are just as deserving. While maybe not the most amazonian melody in existence, the daydream idyll still works in-game and it’s easy to spend a happy hour or two hunting for loot.
Legend of Heroes IV: A Tear of Vermillion - Bonds
// March 28th, 2008
More high quality digital orchestration from Nippon. The piece is pretty sweeping for its relatively easy going melody, the tune feeling like some traditional village dance while still supporting the framework of a much larger world. A great blend and a great piece.
Lethal Enforcers - Shoot Into the Streets
// March 25th, 2008
Remember this one? Like the game this tune’s a real product of its time, straddling the decades a little uncomfortably and not really helping the transition along. A little heavy for the 80’s, a little light for the 90’s. Just right for pink revolver lightgun action?
Crusader of Centy - Hot Daisy
// March 24th, 2008
Here’s a well executed tune from the Genesis days. Short, energetic, and unbelievably catchy. I sincerely hope this locks itself in your head for the next few hours at a minimum.
Vandal Hearts - Peerless
// March 22nd, 2008
This is, I feel, the strongest and most accomplished work from the soundtrack. The quality derives in large part from an extreme versatility and a willingness to catch the listener unawares. Tamawari tries rapid shifts in tone and instrumentation while also making close friends with discord. The result is unexpected, expressive and more than the sum of its parts, bestowing a fine end to the adventure.
Ground Control - Human Space Pod
// March 20th, 2008
Very mellow chill right here… Ha, tricked ya’! It’s actually a street scene. Yes, those are urban vibes co-existing with interplanetary conflict in a post-WWIII scenario. How sweet it is.
Puyo Puyo Fever - Taisen
// March 19th, 2008
A regular Japanese explosion. Bright, bustling, colorful, and over before you knew what happened. There are quieter moments, sure, but it is agreed that is not the usual way to handle puzzlers in this land. Let the sound run forth, dancing through the air like so many idiot, blue-eyed squirrels hoarding smiling acorns while technicolor golfers tee off in the distance.
Medieval Total War - Arab selections
// March 16th, 2008
Ah, Total War and the ethnic crossover. I have here a bit of action and ambience from the Arabian side of the conflict. The first is one of the fight themes, thrusting listeners into rhythmic Eastern clutches almost as quickly as it pulls them out. The second is journey music, or rather the calm before the storm (and the chill out that implies). They may be styled in 21st century digs but both fit to expectations of the time and place. Throughout the series van Dyck presents the sound of conquest.
Battle 2 (Arab)
Mobilize (Arab)
Kirby’s Adventure - Starbound
// March 15th, 2008
Another fine arrangement, this time based on the hyperactive world of Hal. Much of the original music is filled with staccato effects and brisk melodies distinct to the Kirby franchise, a quality chthonic follows up on extremely well. He uses orchestrated elements more familiar to a modern Nintendo era and blends together that world with the 8-bit platform it started on. Well worth a listen.
Starbound (Theme of Dream Warrior)