Look out! Wild ARMs Project by JaDE ARaN HaRuNo Appears!

Wild Arms Project

You might have heard, but OCReMixer bLiNd’s wife has started a serious shake down for her Wild ARMs ReMix project tentatively named: Overture of the Vigilante Wild. I had over-heard via Facebook that she had manage to net AmIEvil, a name I hadn’t seen mention in QUITE some time, and today while browsing the Artists’ Updates tab, I saw they she has managed to get McVaffe on board as well!

While most people are already excited about the upcoming DKC2 Project, the Wild ARMs project is quickly ramping up to be just as exciting.

You can follow the project, as well as see the full list of tracks and artists, on the thread on the OverClocked ReMix forums.

First MAGFest 8 Bands Announced!

From Magfest.com:

Good news MAGFans, we’re revealing our first two musical guests that will be playing at MAGFest 8. They’re both veteran bands to us, so they’re well versed in the art of rocking out. May we present you:
Metroid Metal: Originally a solo project by Grant Henry, this excellent metal tribute to Nintendo’s Metroid series became a live band and made its full-on debut at last year’s MAGFest. Currently playing at PAX 2009 in Seattle this weekend, they just released their new album “Varia Suite” and you can both become a Metroid Metal sponsor and get Varia Suite from the Metroid Metal site. They’ll be returning this year to attach to your head and drain all your energy, so get your ice beam ready!
Arm Cannon: An internationally renowned 5 piece band from Buffalo NY, these guys have definitely made their mark remixing video game classics. They skillfully reincarnate classic melodies of yore into a progressive-metal triumph of nostalgia. An Armcannon show will reawaken your inner child with the unmatchable power of rock. They’ve been wowing MAGFest attendees since our 5th year in 2007, and are glad to return this year. They also just released their second CD, so now you can purchase (and enjoy) Armcannon 2: The Return of the Attack of the Legend of Pizzor.

For some fresh new videos of Metroid Metal with terrific remastered audio, and other great videos of bands and happenings from past MAGFests, check out the MAGFest youtube channel by clicking the YouTube link to the left. And remember folks, this is just the beginning! We’ll have plenty more bands and guests to announce in the coming weeks. Make sure to pre-register for MAGFest now and save $5, plus you’ll get admission to our New Years Eve party!

Also, MAGFest will be sponsoring the music at the upcoming GameX Industry Summit in Philadelphia this coming October. GameX is a national game consumer show designed to draw from national, regional and local audiences of game players, film and TV fans, comic book buffs and tech enthusiasts. High-value consumer content is being provided by exhibitors and sponsors, including major media and entertainment companies seeking to build their brands with the core games audience. MAGFest will be in charge of the music, so come see bands including The One-Ups and Arm Cannon.

VGM Spotlight ñ Game rips worth your time

From anosou.music:

Quite a few games never got a soundtrack release but have been brought
to the mighty internet in form of game rips, either from the ROM or
direct audio recordings. Here I’m gonna mention a few that’s worth
looking into. From Software’s extremely overlooked Lost Kingdoms II (known as Rune II in Japan) has some quirky music.

From Software head composer Kota Hoshino is joined by From Software regular Yuji Kanda and Takeshi Yanagawa
of Culdcept fame for the soundtrack, never released in stores, and it
certainly has it’s moments. A strange blend of ethnic, electronica and
classic RPG music that makes up for the lack of sample quality with
unique compositions. Highlights include Battle, Gromtull Desert and Kendarie Fortress. A must if you’ve played the game.

Whoopee Camp’s PS1 cult hit Ore! Tomba also has
some fantastic music. Happy-go-lucky music based mainly around
mallet-type sounds and percussion with really strong melodies. This
soundtrack went great with the crazy art style of Ore! Tomba, the
pink-haired little boy battling against evil pigs, solving mysteries
and helping people. Highlights include Dwarf Forest, Village of all Beginnings and Phoenix Mountain. Harumi Fujita
(Pulstar, Blazing Star) and Nao Hatsutani really made a memorable
soundtrack and it’s a shame it goes unreleased. Since Ore! Tombe (or
Tomba! or Tombi! as it’s also known) is such a rare game many people
will miss out on this so hunt down that game rip NOW!

Future Tactics: the Uprising might have been a bad game, I don’t know, but goddamn the music is groovy. Tim Follin,
one of the best NES/SNES composers out there, finally got his hands on
some real samples and made some fantastic tunes. The soundtrack is a
groovy, funk-inspired blend of jazz flute infested jam sessions,
extremely atmospheric semi-ambient pieces, folkmusic and
balls-to-the-wall rock. The instruments sound authentic, the riffs are
strong and Follin really showed why he was one of the greats (he’s now
retired from game music). Find it, enjoy it and beg to a god of your
choice that Tim Follin gets back into game music.

Long story short, there’s a LOT of good VGM out there that never got
a soundtrack release. That doesn’t mean all hope is lost, game rips is
fan effort at it’s best and will give you hours of listening pleasure.
It’s probably not legal in SOME way but damnit, I fail to see anyhting
wrong with it if the game never got a soundtrack release. Anyway, if
you have any personal favorites be sure to let me know and I’ll check
them out.