Ken Hisuag

The name Lifeforce caught my eye in my recommended, and it turned out to be connected to the soundtrack of Tunic. I'm familiar with Lifeforce from his Fastfall album, and despite that being ten years ago, there's a definite similarity in style. Most tracks begin with a balanced layered synth, but gain energy as they progress, either into expansive ambience or fast moving action. It's hard to tell how much of the music is from co-artist Janice Kwan, whom I have no familiarity with, and the sound reminds me strongly of Ben Prunty or Disasterpiece compositions. I suspect I'm not doing this soundtrack just representation; the game has a reputation for subverting expectation, and I have little doubt the music is as much a part of that as anything else. I may feel compelled to return to this another time, based on the possibility of my learning more about the context of the music.

Extremely late! My fault, though. Glad I already have these prepared . . . Hazama Yuutou - Bet on Death [EoSD Style] This is a "targetted" zunish, trying to transpose the source material into the style of a different entry in the series. While this isn't the best example thereof, it showcases the kind of changes that take place in the endeavor; the lead instrument, the accompaniment style, etc. It also demonstrates the potential of the PC-98 themes have to compare with the newer themes, for those who struggle with the unique sound. Elice - Rubrum Pythonissam The infamous Himorogi, Burn in Violet, but with an even more cryptic title. For as acclaimed as this piece is, I'm surprised I don't hear more remixes of it (granted, that could be said of many PC-98 themes). K2HAmu - Love Color Restraint I spent some time deliberating whether to consider Love Colored Magic and Love Colored Master Spark as separate remix sources. My decision was determined by the desire to find a remix that specifically credited Magic over Master Spark; they do exist, but they aren't usually worth the trouble to pick out from the rest. The only other track this should be relevant to is Maiden's Capriccio (Flower View's remixes are in too close proximity of their originals to differ by much, and I say this as someone who prefers the Flower View version of Phantom Ensemble).

Mega Man is one of many mainstream series that I've been too intimidated by to really delve into yet. I know a few of the more iconic themes, and I recognize motifs here and there; eventually, I'll have to get around to featuring something (assuming no one else covers it first). On that note, today's feature is from another one of those high-reputation franchises. From my previous experience with Kirby music, I had anticipated Kirby and the Forgotten Land to consist mostly of cheerful, friendly arrangements with interspersings of slightly more serious but still upbeat tunes. To be fair, there are tracks that fit this description; the overall style of the soundtrack, however, is far more varied, with a strong jazz influence and surprisingly balanced reliance upon leitmotif. The collection was also far larger than I was expecting, yet I did not feel a lack of variety to the tracks. In summary, I was impressed, and I look forward to checking out some of the preceding titles.

In relation to today's Musical Discoveries post, but then just cause: Some heavy metal, some synthwave metal, and some techno.

@Gou the frog Not the ambitious project, but potentially an honorary companion considering the volume: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLADHzEaWA6KAU6VfZBMmhErDn-qoe7fvO LndWnd - End of Daylight ~ Dawn of Dark I'm not confident in my genre identification for this piece (nor in my choice of artwork, but Noroiko is even harder to search for than Elis). Mama Purity - Power of Darkness RMX (Remake) I remember back when I thought this was the full extent of EDM; thanks to the tournaments, and especially Shionne, that is no longer the case. Stone McKnuckle - World of Empty Dreams Hidden gems like this are why I'm committed to this current project. The acoustic [hybrid] intro is enough to carry an arrangement on its own, but the main body of the track stands out just as much. There isn't much more Touhou in the artist's repertoire, but I'd still recommend checking out some of his other works.

Previous post indirectly led to me remembering another example of odd music, and I figure I ought to take the opportunity to fill this thread a little more.

What constitutes a "series?" I keep thinking of franchises that only have two or three entries, or even just one primary entry and a variety of spin-off material. Still, there are a few ideas I can confidently say apply. I was a huge fan of Brian Jacques's Redwall while growing up, especially the book Mossflower. It was, as far as I can recall, the first fandom I got involved with, especially in regards to fanfiction; the writing side of the fandom used to be quite active in the early 2010's, though it became significantly less so as time went on. I remember a specific story called The Sword and HIs Flowers that had a profound impact on my perception of storycrafting, and may have been the beginning of my fascination with story theory. Unfortunately, the author took all of his works down at some point, and I've been unable to find a copy of it elsewhere. I have good memories of reading the Anne of Green Gables series with my family, which took quite a few years for us to get through. It's very difficult to carry a series solely upon the depiction of everyday relationships, and this series manages it across an entire generation-and-a-half. There isn't cinematic drama or tension, but rather charming slice-of-life that is nonetheless relatable and compelling. My favorite book was Anne of Windy Poplars, though the nature of the series makes it best (though not necessary) to read in order. Doctor Who comes to mind, but with a regrettable stipulation of distaste for the recent direction the series has taken. I didn't mind the initial reboot, and appreciated the new approach of giving a complex character arc to the titular character. Unfortunately, once that arc had run its course, the series collapsed in on itself, with initially following episodes throwing out random ideas and failing to explore them, and more recent arcs being heavily weighed down by extremely obvious agendas lacking appropriate artistic presentation. Comparatively, the classic series may not have had much depth to it, but it was still fun and engaging. Most stories took a flat-arc approach (i.e., main character is the agency of change in the world around him), and worldbuilding was accomplished slowly and naturally. But I digress. Every Doctor has a specific episode [chain] that best showcases their character, but for me the highlight of the series is The Key to Time saga and The Five Doctors. That's already quite a bit, even just for three, so I'll leave off for now (maybe more on the 'morrow?).

Inspired by Gou's recent Musical Discoveries post: I've come across tesla coil arrangements before, and so far this is the best one I've found. On a side note, there ought to be a tesla coil Crimson in the Black Sea ~ Legendary Fish. After the meme songs, that is the most obvious piece to cover, no?

I'd intended to feature something else this week, but the listen-through has turned out to be a larger endeavor than expected. So instead, Guacamelee! While there's a very obvious Mexican flamenco influence, the instrumentation features a variety of synth and orchestral elements. Most tracks have two versions: a "default," and a darker, heavier synth version to correspond with the "spirit world" mechanic. Rather than use a filter, the composers adjusted the arrangement of each piece in this process to achieve the desired effect. In gameplay, this allows the tracks to contrast each other while being switched between.

Holding this off till last minute (this time intentionally). The show must go on! situation report (feat. Merami Pop & Yui Katsuragi[?]) - Broken Dreams The vocalists sound like they're competing with their different melodies toward the end, and this works really well with the arrangement's dark metal. Not something I'd expect for a PC-98 theme, but it works really well. Artifex - Hakurei ~ Eastern Wind (Remastered) Technically, this is the first song in Touhou for a proper curtain fire level. There's the ominous build up into leisurely melody, followed by a rapid series of close-together notes before dropping suddenly back to the opening build up; there may not be much to it materially, but all together it makes for a perfect introduction. Himi no Yuri - Attack! Attack!! Attack!!! I'll always have less to say about pieces I had to post, since I've necessarily said something already in the description. It was completely coincidence that I had a Eurobeat piece prepared for today; be sure to check out busker's feature in the post above.

Illusion ~ Duet of the truth and lie from the album "白くてしましまでうさぎっぽいの" (It's White, Striped, and Like a Rabbit).

About time I feature some releases from this year. The electronic/pizzicato blend from ITORAH surprised me, not so much for its instrumentation (I am aware of my preference for folk hybrids), but for its rustic arrangement style. I hesitate to use the word "tribal," as it does not technically apply; nonetheless, the perception is there, reinforced by its percussion and strings even as it's contrasted by its progression. I've developed an unfortunate habit in drawing too many comparisons to other soundtracks while listening to new music. While not unusual, it isn't technically fair; the same styles and genres have been around for quite some time, and I'd rather estimate the music as close to its own merits as possible.

Time is short today, so I have to get this in when I can. Also, reviewing earlier posts reminding me of alternative post formatting options. Oshio Hakumu - Swordsman of a Distant Star Possibly my favorite TH1 themes, though remixes rarely do it justice. This piece, though labeled as dubstep, has a restraint to it that creates a surreal tone; this compliments the pizzicato lead instrument, keeping the melody distinct. Violet Delta - Reconciliation Violet Delta hosted an album project for multiple remixes of this track, but this is my favorite. Hard to go wrong with VD synthwave. Northwich Committee of Magic Researches - Shrine of Tempest The forgotten track, replaced by the infamous Theme of Eastern Story in the Untouched Scores. This remix features heavy percussion reminiscent of the Oriental style, and I think it manages to balance out (perhaps a bit chaotic in the last third).

Himno is a little roguelite platformer with no objectives, meant to be a relaxing pastime. Part of crafting this experience is providing an ambient background sound that neither distracts nor becomes tiresome. This is true ambient music, as opposed to the melodic ambient that I usually prefer; it has little to no progression, and its patterns are simple. This limited structure makes it the perfect sort of music to accompany more mentally intensive tasks, as it does not take up the attention.

Holiday post:

I've been experimenting with different searching strategies to see if I can get different results. Doing the same search in Japanese seems to be somewhat effective; I've become as familiar with the appearance of "アレンジ" as I've previously been with "東方." In future, I intend to try VPN effects. Happy Resurrection Day!

As I've said before (but must say again because it makes for a convenient intro), I struggle to appreciate the majority of English vocal VGM, due to my habit of analyzing the message of the lyrics while listening. As such, I tend to avoid soundtracks that are mostly made up of English songs (SA2 is still waiting for a feature). That being said, I wanted to try stretching myself a bit by featuring a quality soundtrack that I may not personally enjoy. I've heard a lot of praise for the music of last year's Guilty Gear Strive, and after listening to a few songs determined I could probably do it justice. I'd categorize this as a progressive rock collection (assuming I understand prog rock), and a creative one at that. Considering my previous experience with the series was limited to XX, I had expectations of a trend into heavy[ier] metal that were not met, nor to my dissatisfaction. As to the lyrics, I was impressed with the balance of meaning achieved in each song, being both about the character while also being vague enough to work out of context. Still not something I could enjoy listening to regularly (especially concerning specific songs), but a technical accomplishment nonetheless.

Recent random something from an artist I follow. Perhaps a bit too close to its obvious inspiration for an "original," but arguably unique enough to be distinguished from an arrangement. Is there a comprehensive term for that?

The whole shrine is so much more active now, it's hard to keep up! Can't say I mind though; some of these conversations have been really thought provoking, and I'm always excited for music shares. So even if I'm less active, I still appreciate seeing the activity. Anyway, continuing my plans for now.

Having featured each of the official Cave Story soundtracks, I will finish with some brief features for the major unofficial versions. There are three I am especially impressed with, potentially more so than with most of the official comparisons, for various reasons. I earlier alluded to SoloMael's "Wii-Balanced" soundtrack. Despite claiming to be a mere "equalization," the by-hand process used resulted in a slightly altered collection. While the arrangements themselves are still technically Cruyssen's, the revamped balance of instrumentation and adjusted effects give many tracks a unique sound from their counterparts. Some have argued that this is the definitive version of New, but I personally prefer to consider it on its own merits; for example, I prefer Mimiga Town (New) to Mimiga Town (Balanced), but consider Mischievous Robot (Balanced) the better version of the track. As the Balanced soundtrack may be compared to the New, I estimate DynamiteMan.EXE's "VRC-6" against RushJet1's Famitracks collection. Without an intimate knowledge of chiptune arrangement, I can't speak to which of these adheres closer to an authentic emulation, but I can say that DM.E's arrangements sound more like I would expect them to. More importantly, the arrangements work with their sound, as though they constructed to compliment and be complimented by the style. As one of the more obscure unofficial soundtrack, it deserves more attention. Finally, no coverage of the music of Cave Story would be complete without the arrangements of "DM Dokuro." Aside from its creative arrangement and unique style, this album stands out for possibly having the highest production value of all versions of the soundtrack. It does suffer somewhat from overly high energy (similar to Remastered), but focuses on being a musical experience more than an actual soundtrack. This is highlighted by Dokuro going the extra mile with additional tracks, such as unique versions of Last Cave for its regular and hidden variants. While it may not fit the game too well, it is arguably the definitive tribute to the game's music and legacy. I hope these features have helped others appreciate the variety of music this game has generated and inspired, and encouraged further exploration into them.

Running late tonight, but I'm here.

Posting a day early this week. Artifex is a good ZUNish musician, with both covers and original works. Among his discography are complete cover albums for High Responsive to Prayers and Story of Eastern Wonderland.

I was doing some cleanup to the RT playlist, and I couldn't find a replacement for TatshMusicCircle's paraguas. I did, however, find a video for Paraguas ~ The Great Eastern Cleaning Edition. For all intents and purposes, it seems identical, so for now I'll use that.

. . . Don't mind me, just business as usual. The second soundtrack unique to the Switch port of Cave Story was a chiprock arrangement collections by the band "Ridiculon." This version is often incorrectly labeled as rock or heavy metal, but is in fact equal parts rock and chiptune elements. Due to the restrictive nature of Switch software, a properly mastered and edited version of this soundtrack is difficult to locate, but I've done what I could. This is possibly the most unusual of the official soundtracks, utilizing an unintuitive style in a nonetheless skillful way. Conceptually, this compares with the other soundtracks reasonably well; if the Remastered soundtrack excelled in production value, and the New in creativity, then Ridiculon balances out these two aspects. While I would rather they have committed more heavily to one or the other, the result is still appreciable for its successes on both sides. Though not featured here, I would additionally recommend Labyrinth Fight and Balrog.

I had an idea. I foresee complications, but I'm committing to it for the time being.