My 25 Favorite Chiptunes, Part 1

A List in No Special Order

By Feryl

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Part One of Five

No. 25: High Waisted Skirts by Ro-Bear

One of two Ro-Bear tracks on the list. His style is very tight and distinct. With a bracing melodic atmosphere and a fantastic intro that you wouldn't guess from the title, this is one of my favorite Ro-Bear tunes. It's also a cut from his album "Three Years," which came out in 2012. A new album or EP would be nice to get at some point.

No. 24: Only the Beautiful Survive by 4mat

4mat is one of the few active veterans of the chip scene, and he's still churning out thoughtful albums. Not bad for a guy who started tracking all the way back in 1989. "Beautiful" is from his comeback album "Decades," which is already four years old. I remember eagerly streaming the record when Matt put it up on his (now defunct) blog as a preview. There's a welcome bit of glitchy drumming and harmonizing going on here.

No. 23: Sunday by Chipzel

This one definitely had to go on the list. I've enjoyed Chipzel's high-energy work since I bought her debut album in 2010, but this song is a nice change of pace from her usual spunk. Bright, sunny, and extremely well-composed, Niamh's first attempt at using a DAW with a GameBoy is well worth checking out. You can find it on "Spectra" as a bonus track, but it's good enough to sit with the main tracklisting. Another interesting tidbit: when she put it on SoundCloud before the album came out, Niamh revealed that she was sick of "Sunday" after critically analyzing the thing for a university project.

No. 22: The Memory's We Made by Reborn.nsf

They don't make 'em like this anymore. Reborn's oddly-misspelled "Memory's We Made" is from a dated and messy album that I first heard years ago, but this song and "When Im Gone" have stuck with me for some reason.

No. 21: 70s Literary Youth (Sunny Day Remix) by Aonami

This five-minute remix from Aonami is yet another highlight from a very solid release. Baifan's "Natural High" is still one of the best chip EPs I've ever heard, and this is one of the reasons why. With stellar production and some intriguing melodic work, this is one guest appearance you shouldn't skip out on. Just imagine what a full-on Baifan / Aonami split would sound like. These guys need to get back in the game.