Review - "Zeta Force" (Zabutom)

Niklas Sjosvard, commonly known under his music handle Zabutom, has been writing chip music for a good number of years, and has finally unveiled his debut album "Zeta Force" for chiptune fans everywhere. The seven-track, demoscene-influenced collection of mixed modules turns out to be a pleasant and melodic trip that is well worth taking.

The release starts off strong with "The Legend of Zeta Force", which sets the stage with a strong main theme and enough variance throughout its three-minute running time to keep things interesting. "Blast Off Into Space" is another gem, and even includes some hard-driving rock instrumentation along with the riveting melody. "Zeta Force (GameBoy Version)" takes the old conceptual theme that I remember from Zabutom's old titular module and revisions it as a solid GameBoy tune, even if it is an interesting change from the other tracks, which are all module chiptunes.

"Final Blast", while a bit long and perhaps not the artist's best effort, closes off the album in style. Overall, Zabutom's debut chip music release is a very solid and well-composed work, with enough oldschool module-tune influences and high production values to make it a worthy purchase.

The mixing is nice, the melodies are enjoyable, and the brief length gets the job done. Niklas makes a very nice return to form with the 8-bit journey through space which comprises "Zeta Force".

SCORE: 8.5 out of 10 - "Great"

Review - "Bunnymajs" (Bunnymajs)

The opening five tracks of Kristian Caldwell's self-titled album "Bunnymajs" serve to introduce a relatively unknown artist with style and energy. Despite not being a household name or going for typical dance vibes with LSDJ, Bunnymajs has clear talent when it comes to writing solidly composed, plugin-based chip music. Consequently, it's a bit of a stroke of misfortune that the rest of the album simply doesn't measure up to the laudable intro that Kristian provides.

The initial track "Blippblipp" is quite adequate with its lighthearted melodies and clever arpeggios, while the subsequent "Dreams" is more of a melancholic, trance sort of a track with memorable bass and drum work. "Reminder" is another solid effort with its dance-floor beats and staccato-based compositional style. Track five, simply titled "Reason", includes a fantastic buildup and solid vibe to keep the album rocking.

The next two tracks, however, usher in a bit of a change. Both attempts at being playful and lighthearted, they simply don't deliver on the high production values of the preceding tracks; but neither are they terrible songs in their own right. From there, it's a bit of a so-so journey with a couple standout tracks, including the bass-progressive "Masked Devil".

Kristian's debut release, while not flawless, is nevertheless a fairly firm step in the right direction. Though the majority of the album can't quite match the brilliant five-pronged opening, Bunnymajs has sufficiently proved his competence as a songwriter. His musical journey is worth a listen for those interested in unique and catchy chip music from a talented new musician on the rise.

SCORE: 7.3 out of 10 - "Decent"

Review - "Surrender" (4mat)

4mat is a genius.

Just check out "Surrender", his sophomore chip music album. Listening to this work of art for the first time, I was blessed with the single most powerful experience I've ever had with an 8-bit album. Throughout the eleven magnificent tracks of the record, you'll discover that this humble genre can become something simply masterful in the right hands. Matthew Simmonds, commonly known under his artist handle 4mat, knows exactly what he's doing here in the fullest sense of the phrase, and provides lo-fi electronica fans with an exquisite form of musical bliss to "Surrender" to.

The album opens with the beautifully-titled "La Pluie Tombe Dans Mon Coeur" (French for "Rain Falls in My Heart"), which introduces the record on a uniquely symphonic note, with ethereal saw waves playing in harmony with subtle, yet effective, orchestration in the background. From there we are led directly into "Montreux"--a brilliantly danceable tune with heavy drum beats and a riveting bassline that sounds best when played loudly.

"Porcelaine", track four, is another winner with its beautiful melody and harmonic work, while "Surrender", the title track, left me thoroughly impressed with its mesmerizing intro and wondrous main theme that serves the title well. In addition to his thoughtful melodies, Simmonds has always striven for a remarkably high level of polish and coherence with his work, and "Surrender" is no exception. Tracks lead intro subsequent tracks quite cleverly, such as with the mellow "Starfields".

"Chipmusic Is Dead" should be regarded as one of the finest chiptunes ever composed. The bold, yet somewhat true, title serves to enhance the tune's beautiful recurring theme, which is played loud, low, high, and soft at different intervals, to great effect. After the heavy beats of the first eight tracks, Simmonds tones the album down to a mellow level with tracks like the fittingly-titled "Pretty Prairie", which includes a well-chosen sample of birds chirping. The record closes off with "Vilette", a short track that, while not 4mat's best, does include some further polish and high production values to enjoy.

Overall, "Surrender" is an excellent album that is not to be missed by the true chip music fan. The production values are high, the mastering is expertly handled, and the polish is extraordinary. Do yourself a favor and pick up a copy as soon as you can--you may find yourself pleasantly dumbfounded by just what your hear in the next half-hour.

SCORE: 9.4 out of 10 - "Outstanding"

[4mat's "Surrender" can be purchased from BandCamp here:  http://4mat.bandcamp.com/album/surrender]

Review - "Today" (Freezedream)

How many chip music albums do you know of that have been released on an original cartridge? One of the very select few in existence happens to be Freezedream's "Today"--a mellow, ambient exploration of the limited 16-bit sound chip of the SEGA Genesis.

Using absolutely nothing outside of the Genesis' musical features, Freezedream has created an interesting and highly unique chiptune experience through nine brief tracks of IDM-style music. Though it may not be particularly impressive from a compositional standpoint, the release is nevertheless a rewarding and interesting one to listen to, taking into account Freezedream's interesting take on what a chip music album can be.

"Winter in July" opens up the album on a soothing and ambient note, while "Realtime Love" introduces listeners to more conventional chip music with distinct bass, melodic, and percussive layers rendered through the Mega Drive's scant six channels. "See You Next Tuesday" and "Cardioid" don't do the album any huge favors, but the atmospheric vibes of "Luer" and "Iridescence" succeed pretty well in creating a downbeat style of music that you wouldn't expect from the unusual hardware used.

"Today" is a short record, consisting of nine two-minute tracks; but that actually turns out to be for the best in the end. Freezedream's foray into the rarely-used sound chip of the SEGA Genesis won't revolutionize the way chiptunes are composed, but it does do a decent job of setting a dreamy and atmospheric tone that is too often missed in the modern chiptune scene.

SCORE: 7.5 out of 10 - "Good"

Review - "Rise of the Obsidian Interstellar" (Disasterpeace)

Over four years ago, Disasterpeace began writing a song called "Jump Error"--a song which, in due time, would be the first he would compose for a twelve-track, Nintendo NES and demoscene-style album that would mark a turning point in his continually evolving musical style.

Known in real life as Rich Vreeland, Disasterpeace has aimed for an uncommon style of chip music composition since he began writing his 8-bit tunes around 2005. "Level", his previous release, was a melodic and even symphonic kind of effort, that combined emulated tones with interesting canned drum samples as percussion, such as you'd hear coming from the Nintendo Entertainment System's WAV channel.

Rich's new album "Rise of the Obsidian Interstellar" continues that trend, but for this record, Disasterpeace has pursued a style more reminiscent of old demoscene music, with recognizable square and saw waves somewhat similar to the pleasant tunes of Radix and Cerror. The effort is a solid one, despite a couple mediocre melodies or slightly uncomfortable changes of pace from time to time.

"Prologue" quickly introduces us to Disasterpeace's latest musical journey, with an ethereal, staccato-based melody and slow drum beat, before launching into "Jump Error", a happy and catchy tune with a Radix-like feel and head-bobbing bassline. "Club Wolf", track number three, isn't the best of the record, with an occasionally dissonant melody; however, the intro is fun regardless.

"The New Formation", my personal favorite, is where things start to get really interesting. First comes a pleasant, recurring theme that sounds reminiscent of Martin Galway's filtered melodies of old, and then the tune launches into a nicely dancable bassline with a cool beat and enough style for its lengthy running time. "Beta's Brilliancy" begins as a soft, harmonic track that eventually grows louder and louder before--very cleverly--leading directly into "Ensis", a rather hard-driving track that, while opening well enough, soon gives way to a less-than-perfect melody and six-minute duration. Nevertheless, the track does recover for the final two minutes before giving way to "Day of Reflection": a soft, soothing melody that successfully provides a respite from the previous upbeat material.

In a few instances, Disasterpeace does resort to blending dissonant notes with his sometimes understated melodies--for a certain period--in both the ninth and tenth tracks. Still, he also treats his listeners to moments of melodic reward and pleasant themes that help the album remain a solid effort nevertheless. The penultimate track "Submerciful" has a nicely mellow feel to it, and "Constellations" ends the record with a mysterious lo-fi rendition of a theme that I'm pretty sure I've heard somewhere before.

Overall, "Rise of the Obsidian Interstellar" is a sufficiently rewarding, but not entirely flawless, chiptune experience, that thankfully manages to warrant more than a few listens with its solid selection of unique tunes. Several melodic hiccups and slightly awkward changes of pace do mar the experience somewhat, but Rich's remarkably high production values and demoscene-style musical cues ultimately win out in the end. If you're a Disasterpeace fan, you'll most likely be very pleased with this release; if you aren't, I would suggest checking out full preview tracks on the BandCamp page before deciding whether or not to make a purchase.

SCORE: 7.6 out of 10 - "Good"