Acid for Blood

Interview: David W. Lloyd, Director, Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix Official Soundtrack

On 25 November, Capcom released Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix on the PlayStation Network for the PS3 and Xbox Live Arcade for the Xbox 360. The official soundtrack of the game was released on the videogame community, OverClocked ReMix, a community of fans who rearrange classic videogame music and make their creations available for all the world to hear. The project to create the official soundtrack to high-profile commercial release like Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix was a huge achievement for the videogame music remixer community. One of the Directors for the album and the founder of OverClocked ReMix, David W. Lloyd, also known as djpretzel, was kind enough to take some time out of his day for a short email interview to briefly discuss OverClocked ReMix's first commercial endeavour.

How did you get involved with Capcom?

We put out an album of Street Fighter II ReMixes several years ago and Capcom stumbled across that and contacted the project Director, Shael Riley, who contacted me. They were originally gonna hire someone to do the soundtrack, but apparently it was taking too long, and they liked the existing mixes from our album just as much, so they figured it was a no-brainer.

How much freedom did Capcom give to rearrange their original themes?

Capcom didn't make us color between the lines too much in terms of actual arrangements, but each stage theme had to be two minutes long, which meant trimming out a lot of interpretive, original solo stuff and going for the "meat" of the arrangement -- stuff that was easily identifiable. In Jose's case he had hip-hop tracks with rap vocals, and he had to cut the vocals because they were too distracting in-game, but the backing tracks work really well regardless. I'd say, based on what would be expected for a game like this, that Capcom gave us a pretty impressive degree of artistic control.

Are there any themes you're particularly curious about in terms of how hardcore Street Fighter fans will respond?

Well, I think certain tracks -- Ken in particular - have had a pretty universally positive reception, where others have been more "controversial"... whenever you try to work in hip-hop or reggaeton or jazz, you'll always run up against more friction than with rock or techno, but I feel like each artist's approach really makes sense for the stage. Vega (claw) always had a bit of a hip-hop vibe going on, DeeJay clearly is in Jamaica so the reggae-ish vibe was appropriate, and Balrog (boxer) in Vegas... Just had to be jazzed up. We might have been able to put together tracks that more people were okay with, but I'd rather have strong reactions -- both positive and negative -- while preserving what OC ReMix is all about, embracing multiple styles.

This is the first commercial collaboration for OverClocked ReMix. What hopes to you have for the future for more commercial releases?

We're open to anything and everything. I'd love to work with Capcom again, as they seem the most interested in community outreach of this nature, but I could easily see other companies catching on as well. There's a lot of space to explore, with Xbox Live and PSN, where indie and downloadable games can take more risks, which might be more appropriate. Of course, if you ask me, we've got plenty of ReMixers who'd do a perfectly fine job scoring the next blockbuster.

Who is your favourite Street Fighter and why?

I'm gonna be boring and say Ken. He's meat-and-potatoes, sure, but he's living the life, and he takes bright yellow hair and bushy, dark eyebrows and somehow makes that contrast work. There's a ReMix on our site called "The Ken Song," and once you hear it, you never really think of Ken the same way again.

Finally, what is one of your favourite themes on the album and why?

AE & Prozax put together a mean version of Ken's theme that was used for the title screen, but I actually like AE's take on Blanka even better. The first time through the melody, it's straightforward, but later on he plays with the intervals in some really cool ways, keeping it recognizable but really exploring the tune. Great stuff.

Thank you very much for your time, David.

The entire official soundtrack to Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, made entirely by hardcore videogame fans, is available for free download on OverClocked ReMix.

Music Review: "The OneUps Volume 2" (and a Bit of "Volume 1")

For various reasons, I was only able to see videogame cover band, The OneUps (N.B.: this link goes to MySpace) play one song at PAX 2008. It was their final song for the evening, a theme from Duck Tales. However, having seen them last year and having followed their career for some time, I wasn't utterly bummed out out that I missed them. I did purchase their latest, and long-awaited, release, "The OneUps Volume 2".

Full disclosure: I'm not an expert at music. I don't play any instruments, and I don't consider myself a music critic. I'm just a fan who enjoys videogame music.

If you are familiar with The OneUps, "Volume 2" will have the same familiar sounds: piano, saxophone, acoustic guitars, violin, and drums of course. Unlike Metroid Metal and the Minibosses, The OneUps' sound is not heavy on the electric guitars. Instead, their sound has jazzy elements and I suppose some of their renditions could be considered almost lounge-y. It's good music to relax to, and you could probably even play some of the more down tempo songs at a dinner party and without detriment to the ambiance.

"Volume 2" comprises two full CDs of videogame music goodness. I enjoyed this album, and both volumes currently reside in my car. The discs take up half of my car's CD magazine, which tells you something about how much I like videogame music and The OneUps. Some of the tracks are also quite soothing, which is nice for unwinding whilst driving home from work.

One of my favourite tracks is "Green Hill Zone" from Sonic the Hedgehog. I have always loved this theme, and I have heard many, many remixes of it, so its inclusion in "Volume 2" was welcome. It's a fantastic cover.

I was surprised to hear the "Brinstar" (the area of the game that has a lot of vegetation) theme from Super Metroid on this CD. I have found find that remixers prefer the Brinstar theme from Metroid rather than Super Metroid, so it's more common to hear that instead (though people can correct me if I'm wrong, as I haven't checked OverClocked Remix for quite some time). The OneUps' remix was pretty unique because it features the violin prominently. The song having a faster beat, most remixes I have heard are either electronica-flavoured or of the metal variety, so this fresh take on Brinstar was cool to hear.

Another song I liked was "Mii Channel", which they performed live at PAX 2007. The music that you hear on the Wii Mii Channel is fairly typical of The OneUps sound, so the inclusion of "Mii Channel" was a natural fit for the band. They did a good job of this cover as well.

For those who like SquareEnix RPGs, this double CD set won't disappoint. There are songs from Chrono Trigger, Secret of Mana, and Final Fantasy VI (the oft-covered, Terra theme). Other videogames covered include: Street Fighter II, The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (the best and only Zelda game I have completed), StarFox, and Castlevania II and III amongst others.

I'm glad I bought this CD at PAX rather than wait to order it through the post. This is off-topic, but When I bought the at the booth, one of the band members, Mustin (also the producer), saw my ArenaNet shirt and commented that one of the other band members had been in one of our Guild Wars tournaments that weekend. Awesome.

If you check out "Volume 2" you should definitely do the same with "Volume 1". Stand out favourites of mine from "Volume 1" include "Katamaritaino" from Katmari Damacy, "Aquatic Ambiance" from Donkey Kong Country (my fave song on the CD -- I must have listened to this song hundreds of times), and "Green Greens" from that classic GameBoy game, Kirby's Dream Land.

E for All and VGL

I have returned from the trip down south to attend E for All 2007 on Saturday and Sunday. I also attended the Video Games Live concert on the Friday.

Video Games Live is a concert of videogame music performed by an orchestra and a choir. I enjoyed Video Games Live. At times I thought that the montages of video game scenes played during the orchestral performances distracted from the music, but at other times I thought the images complemented the music. I thought that the audience participation games were unnecessary and to me they were unwelcome interruptions in the muscial performances. To a certain extent, I also thought that the on-stage introductions before certain pieces of music were unnecessary. I would have preferred it if they distributed programme books with the set list or found less intrusive ways of telling the audience the games which the music belonged to. As a whole, the performances did not flow well together because of all the interruptions. Highlights: Video Game Pianist playing ten themes from the Final Fantasy games, performances of music from Metal Gear Solid, Sonic the Hedgehog, World of Warcraft, a triumverate of Konami creators (creators for Castlevania, Silent Hill, and the music director for DDR) coming on stage, and composers coming on stage to introduce their music.

The attendees really enjoyed E for All. The industry types were unimpressed with E for All. The bottom line is that E for All is for consumers, not for industry. I heard a bit of whining from the industry professionals who missed the excess that was E3. I do agree that the new E3, which was held a few months ago, needs some re-working, but I disagree that the old E3 was the best format. Certainly, a central location should have been the way to go, but the ridiculous amount of money thrown into building the most flashy and loud booth, with the least-dressed and most attractive models hawking products, at the old E3 distracted from the heart of the event -- the games. I think they should combine new E3 and E for All into one four-day event, with the first two days being for industry-only, and third and fourth days opening it up to the public (or maybe even just the last day).

[Video Games Live Photoset]

[E for All Photoset]

PAX: The OneUps

The only music concert I attended last night was the opening act: The OneUps. They're one of my favourite videogame music remix bands, and if you haven't bought their music, you should. Right now. Before it goes out of print again.

I missed the first 30 minutes of the show, unfortunately. Anyway, the show was really great, but the acoustics in the hall were not so great. I don't think the band sounded as good as they could have. This was my main problem with the performances. Freezepop sounded less than stellar in this live setting. I overheard one person say that they must have turned the "suck dial all the way up" for Freezepop. I definitely think that the performances with vocals sounded much worse than the acts that did not have singing.

Some of The OneUps' standout performances were:

• Silent Hill 2
• Final Fantasy VI (Terra's theme)
• Wii Mii theme, complete with Miis of Mustin, Dale North, and Penny Arcade's Gabe and Tycho playing Wii Tennis

I spoke to Mustin earlier in the afternoon at their booth. When he found out that my handle on the internet is "Brinstar" he told me they'd be playing that theme at their show later that night. Sadly, it must have been during the first 30 minutes, because I missed it. Now I have to go back to their booth and ask them which Brinstar theme it was, as there are four: two from Metroid and two from Super Metroid.

Not all of the songs they played, most notably themes from recent videogames (Silent Hill 2, God of War), are actually on their The OneUps Volume 1 CD, so I'm hoping for a new release soon.

One of my cohorts commented that they are a Nintendo-centric band. It's kind of true. Whilst they did play mostly old school Nintendo songs they do have a CD called The Very Best of Sega and they have a Yasunori Mitsuda tribute CD as well. Their Xenogears Light re-arrangement CD is very good. I've never played Xenogears, but I have heard some of the theme music. The music found on this disc is very enjoyable.

I totally did not think of bringing my OneUps CD for the band to sign. Doh. That's all right. Being able to see them live is more important than getting a piece of paper signed.

[Pictures]

GW: EN Soundtrack Coming Soon

According to a post on Jeremy Soule's MySpace page, the Guild Wars: Eye of the North soundtrack will be available soon on DirectSong. The folks at DirectSong are currently testing it for the final release. Soule states that his score on Guild Wars: Eye of the North is the best work he has ever done for Guild Wars.

He goes into a bit more detail about the music production of Eye of the North:

This is also the first Guild Wars music to feature a new high resolution instrument control. Even though it is sometimes subtle, musicians and soundtrack lovers should be able to hear more definition in the orchestral performances. How much more advanced is it? Well, it is featuring a system that is over 100 times more powerful than what I had at my disposal for Guild Wars Prophecies.

He has posted a clip of the Dwarf theme from Eye of the North, "Tome of the Rubicon", to his MySpace page for all to enjoy.

Unlike the other soundtracks for Guild Wars, which you could get as a CD by purchasing the Collector's Edition of the game, the GW: EN soundtrack will not be available physically. There will be no Collector's Edition of GW: EN, and the soundtrack is only available by download from DirectSong. DirectSong is a portal for videogame music. You can download full soundtracks (DRMed of course) as well as get expansion "paks" which add more music to your gaming experience.

I have the Guild Wars Battle Pak 1, as well as the expansion paks for the Collector's Editions of Prophecies (EU only), Factions (EU only) and Nightfall. The music in the expansion paks are every bit as superb as the existing in-game soundtracks, and in some cases some of the songs provided are even better (IMO) than what you would hear in the standard game. "Weight of the World" from Guild Wars Factions, for example, is one of my favourite themes from the game. You could not get this song in the Collector's Edition CD soundtrack, but if you bought your Collector's Edition game in Europe, you were given an access code to download a special music pak.

I'm looking forward to the soundtrack release. If the Eye of the North music from the new character selection screen is anything to go by, Mr. Soule is correct and we have some great listening experiences in store for us.

EDIT - 06 August 2007 - 23:14: Jeremy Soule just announced that the The Guild Wars: Eye of the North soundtrack is now up on DirectSong.

The Ataris Lead Singer Sells NES Collection, etc. for Rent Money

Kris Roe, lead singer/song writer of The Ataris, former pop punk band turned "alternative rock" band, is selling his entire NES collection on eBay:

You are bidding on my personal Nintendo NES game console with over 70 games included!!! It works great! You also get two standard NES controllers, two NES Max controllers, one Game Genie with Book of cheat codes, all of the cables needed and AC power supply. What more could you want??! Try collecting all of these games seperately, it would take you forever.

I guess album sales of Welcome the Night (released February 2007) haven't been going so well for ol' Kris, because in one of his other auctions, for the original handwritten lyrics to "San Dimas High School Football Rules", he says that the proceeds will be going towards his rent. Mind you if I could afford it, I would be engaging in a heated bidding war. Blue Skies, Broken Hearts... Next 12 Exits (1999) is one of my all time favourite albums, and "San Dimas High School Football Rules" is a great song. He is also selling his handwritten lyrics for the mediocre, but radio-friendly song "In This Diary" from their equally mediocre, but radio-friendly album, So Long Astoria (2003).

I came across this knowledge via the following MySpace bulletin:

From: The Ataris Date: 15 May 2007, 09:02 Subject: Kris is selling some things on Ebay. Check it out. Body: Selling some things on ebay that should definitely be of interest to all of you. A few completely one of a kind items! So make sure that you go check out my Ebay auctions! Items for sale are: The original hand written lyrics to both "In This Diary" and "San Dimas"!, My personal gold record for "So Long, Astoria"! and A load of awesome effects pedals. More items will be added later. SERIOUS BIDDERS ONLY! DO NOT BID IF YOU HAVE (0) FEEDBACK!!!

Just cut and paste the links below.

Good luck bidding! -Kris

There you have it, folks. If you want to buy a NES that was previously-owned by Kris Roe, minor celebrity and lead singer/songwriter of The Ataris, now is your chance. He is also selling musical equipment and a gold record he got for selling lots (500 000) of CDs. Everything is listed here.

I know this is a bit tabloidy, but I couldn't resist. I actually do like the band, and respect Kris Roe as a songwriter. The band's musical style has changed for the better since their 2003 album, IMO. I hope you make your rent, dude.

EDIT - 15 May 2007, 23:07: Can I just say that it's a fucking travesty that "In This Diary" is going for a higher price right now than "San Dimas High School Football Rules"?! Clearly it's the newbie fans who are bidding right now. WTF.

Basshunter: Of Bots and DotA

Basshunter (also known as Jonas Altberg), a Swedish Euro dance musician and DJ, was signed by Warner music in April 2006. He later released his debut album entitled LOL < (^^,)>.

His first single, "Boten Anna" ("Anna the Bot"), was released last May. In the video, he tells a story about the IRC bot on their channel, Anna, who uber at banning spammers. Later on, Anna tells him, "I'm not a bot, I'm a really nice girl" but he says that she will always be a bot in his eyes.

A second single, "Vi sitter i Ventrilo och spelar DotA" ("We're Sitting in Ventrilo, Playing DotA") was released at the end of August. DotA, which I didn't know until just now, is short for Defense of the Ancients, a custom map created for the real-time strategy game, WarCraft III: Reign of Chaos. The "Vi sitter i Ventrilo och spelar DotA" video features shots of a massive LAN party, and a lot of attractive women dancing around. Basshunter, who isn't so bad himself (must be the Swedish genes), is surrounded by dancing women. I don't think this would happen at a real LAN party, but it is a music video and I think the presence of attractive women is required.

The subtitles for the second one seemed lacking, and I found this translation that reads a little better:

We're sitting here in Ventrilo, playing a little DotA. We push and harass, we're toying with the opponents. We're stting here in Ventrilo, playing a little DotA. Running around and creeping, while the opponents are sleeping.

[Official Basshunter website]

Thanks to Brized for sharing the link to the DotA video on YouTube.

PandoraFM

Pandora + Last.fm = PandoraFM.

Last.fm's streaming radio is generally sub-par. I enjoy hearing new music, but prefer to listen to artists that play similar styles of music. Pandora is great for this. If you want to listen to music in the same genre, but not necessarily the same musical style, Last.fm is the way to go. Unfortunately, listening to music through Pandora does not update my Last.fm profile with my music charts. The solution: PandoraFM.

[Via shindakun dot net]

World of Musicraft: Jeremy Soule

GameSpy chats with Guild Wars music composer, Jeremy Soule:

...I had kind of a strange education. I took piano lessons when I was a kid, and everyone realized pretty fast -- including my dad, who taught music in the public schools -- that I needed to go the university route, so I started private university studies with professors from Western Illinois University when I was in the sixth grade. I pretty much earned the equivalent of my Master's Degree in Composition before I was out of high school. Though I didn't get the degree because I hadn't been enrolled in the school. So I already had a fair amount of skill when I graduated high school. I then took a year off to build a portfolio, which is what I sent to Squaresoft.

[Read]

Finland Must Win

Finland's entry into this year's Eurovision Song Contest is by Lordi, with a song entitled "Hard Rock Hallelujah". By virtue of the zombie cheerleaders alone, Finland should win. The song is quite catchy actually.

Look at them. How do they not deserve to win?

If you live in Europe, and plan on watching Eurovision on 20th May, vote for Finland*!

From the Wikipedia entry for Eurovision Song Contest:

The maximum duration of each song is three minutes, and although musicians of any genre can play, the musicians and songs selected for the Contest tend towards very commercial pop (often called 'Euro Pop'). Some viewers of the Contest view the event as a combination of camp entertainment and a musical train wreck (a fact played upon in the UK broadcast with the sardonic BBC commentary of Terry Wogan) and a subculture of Eurovision Song Contest drinking games has evolved in some countries.

[Thanks, Vidiian.]

* Except if you're from Finland, of course, since you can't vote for yourselves.

UPDATE: Brilliant!!! Lordi won the 2006 Eurovision Song Contest!

[Wikipedia entry for Eurovision 2006]