What’s up nerds. Rhyphte here, and we got new tunes to talk about. Coming at us straight from London, we’ve got a ripe new release by Shirobon. Aptly titled ‘Rebirth,’ it’s a true return to form for the artist, being primarily based on LSDJ x1. While it’s not the flashiest album Mikey has ever debuted, it’s certainly one that I enjoyed, primarily due to my unbridled enthusiasm for quality LSDJ music. Without further delay, let’s dive right in.
It’s been a hot minute since I’ve heard the name Derris-Kharlan, so when Brandon notified me that an indie game with a soundtrack by this seldom-featured artist had been released, I was intrigued. I was quite excited to see what the project is all about, and wanted to familiarize myself with some of his previous compositions prior to this review. In perusing his Bandcamp page, I found the bizarrely comical Sonic Art series, a track released through the GameChops label, and I was reminded of his track on the classic ChipWIN Expansion Pack. Needless to say, his releases are few and occasionally far in-between. The excitement I had for this album spurs, however, from an iconic chipmusic album I love deeply – Ubiktune’s 2010 ‘Wintertunes‘. Derris-Kharlan’s contribution, ‘Reconciliation‘, is a piece that has always been special to me. It would play on my commutes to my college courses, or while I was studying or heading to work when I was just getting into chipmusic. I’m excited to have the opportunity to review ‘Rogue Singularity’, and I’m prepared to see what lies beyond the shroud of the stars!
This month’s review is ‘The Land Behind’ by Brick BRKer (AKA Neil Williams). While this was first published on ‘Chip Bit Sid’, after listening to it plenty of times, I decided to expand my review and include two more tracks. ‘The Land Behind’ is Brick BRKer’s 2nd release, created on LSDJ v6.8.2. According to Brick BRKer, ‘The Land Behind’ is a collection of tracks written over a period of 5 years. They are a record of growth, change and graduation in the Ozark mountains. Being someone who used to live in the countryside, I welcomed the approach from Brick BRKer. I enjoy constantly remembering memories through England’s Northern greenery. So without further ado, here are just a few tracks that I absolutely loved.
Last month I talked about chiptunes4autism, a group founded by Gustuf ‘Asperkraken’ Young, which holds events and puts together music compilation albums for charity causes. These aren’t the only charity compilations I’ve discovered through Gustuf’s work, however. ‘Lavender’ by pprincess records is an absolute treasure I discovered through browsing his Bandcamp fan collection. Not only does this release feature a stellar 7-and-a-half minute Asperkraken synth odyssey, but as a whole it’s one of the most unique compilation listening experiences I’ve heard – transporting you to a world where lengthy electronica mood pieces are followed by short and serendipitous acoustic guitar. One track is a mellow lo-fi hypnosis (‘Miss You’), another is an energetic and sudden pop punk jam (‘Hate Triangle’). The latter refers to god as a “landlord”, and the way it does so is quite funny. Also, all of the proceeds from this album go towards clean water in Flint, Michigan. It’s enlightening hearing all of these tunes in the same space. There are a lot of gems in there, so, well, um, please check it out.
I’ll be getting a little personal now. This is my last article for The ChipWIN Blog, and I do want to make it count, but it’s… hard to write about. A lot of things are difficult to explain, even for a writer. Music helps me do that.
What’s up, avid chip blog readers! Ya boy Rhyphte here. If you’ve come this far, you already know what to expect. I’m excited to report that the last ten tracks are at least as badass as the ones you’ve already read about and I’m pumped to dive into this final set with you. Let’s take a look at what we’ve got going on here!
As I’m sure you’ve no doubt noticed in and around ChipWIN-Land™ as of late, we’ve been promoting the tomato lovin’ heck out of the latest entry to our summer Volume compilation. Quite appropriate for us to do I reckon, as it is a brand new ChipWIN compilation, and also, incredibly fabulous! ♪♫♬ (ˇ_ˇ”) ƪ(˘⌣˘)┐ ƪ(˘⌣˘)ʃ ┌(˘⌣˘)ʃ ♬♫♪
That said, the chiptune side of Volume 8 isn’t the only part worthy of extended promo and celebration. The art contest entries this year are equally tomato-tastic (literally: including a 🍅 somewhere in the work was an entry requirement), and you can feast your eyes upon their collective splendor via the following slideshow.
To discover more amazing works from the artists (and hey, maybe ping ’em for an art commission for your own projects and/or enjoyment!), dive into the links section underneath the artwork. Enjoy! (ﾉﾟ0ﾟ)ﾉᵒᵐᵍ ＿〆(。。)
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