Composer for Street Fighter X MegaMan A_Rival has just released his full-length album TRUTHCANNON. This ten track chiptune / electrohouse album is concentrated was EDM bangers.

Track after track hit hard with polished production and inventive sound design. Tracks like Phoenix and OMF speak more to A_Rival’s chiptune influence and experience with game music, while tracks like DEAD are gritty and vicious dance music, with haunting melodies and screaming synth-work.

Three remixes push the album to 13 tracks, including GameChops artist bLiNd and chiptune legend Trash80.

For only $5, TRUTHCANNON is definitely worth picking up.

Sonic the Hedgehog is perhaps one of the most memorable and exciting games in console gaming history. As we’ve looked at the  best Megaman Hacks before, I thought why not take a look at some of the amazing Sonic the Hedgehog hacks that are out there. These are just a few of the many great hacks out there for Genesis and other classic consoles. There’s even a 8-bit NES Sonic in the list!

You can grab a Sega emulator and get any of these games up and running without messing with patches or anything like that. I won’t go into Emulators too much here, but I do recommend Gens/GS if you don’t know where to start.

In the 2000′s there were a number of Sonic hacking/remake contests. Most of these games are winners or runners up from that awesome contest. You can find lots of info on these and other hacks over at sonicretro.org.

BuskerDroid’s totally free Odio Tutto EP does not disappoint. If you’re looking for some chip-influenced electrohouse, this 2-track EP is nine minutes off crazy chips, throbbing bass and powerful production. Lots of changes keep things interesting, EDM fans and chiptune heads alike can get down to this one. Download for free from Mediafire

Anamanaguchi has certainly made a name for themselves in the world of chiptunes. I doubt many would argue that they are one of the biggest chiptune/rock bands out there. With their latest 22-song release, paid for by the fans themselves via Kickstarter and not involving any record label, Anamanaguchi is showing just how versatile and dynamic they really are.

If you’ve heard their previous releases, you’re familiar with their fun Weezeresque-rock + NES lead instrumental sound. It’s fun, upbeat and always full of suprises. The Scott Pilgrim Vs The World: The Game soundtrack expanded the pallete to using Gameboy sounds and a bit more “video game” styled songs.

However, this time around, on Endless Fantasy the guitars have taken the back seat for the first half of the album. You might be in for a shock at how danceable this album is. Live drums and guitars have been dialed down for great chiptune sounds and vocal samples that might remind you more of Daft Punk than Weezer. Tracks like Prom Night and Japan Air feature guest vocals and could easily be played on the radio next to the latest electro single. It might not be what everyone was expecting from them, but its hard to deny how great it all sounds.

And don’t worry, the guitars do make a come back on the second half. Spf 420 and the obvious Weezer-homage titles In the Basement and Space Wax America are classic Anamanaguchi goodness that will make you smile. Every track is full of suprises and you’ll surely find your own personal favorite amongst all the variety. This is their most professional sounding album to date, and I’d suspect any fan of VGM or Chiptune will find something they like here.

Buy Endless Fantasy on iTunes!

The music video for Meow!

If you haven’t heard of The Flight Away, you need to get their amazing EP “If I Could Reach the Sky”, an awesome emotronic album that blends sunny emo vocals and guitars with classic 16-bit and 8-bit tones and basslines. Not content to just create the same sound over and over, The Flight Away’s newest release, SEGA Swing is a bit of a departure from the sounds of If I Could Reach The Sky.

Music in the late 80’s and early 90’s (pre-grunge) had a very distinct sound. Those big gated drums and synthetic baselines and synth pianos just scream ending credits of an 80’s teen movie. The SEGA Swing album aims to capture some of this sound. The entire album is made up of instruments ripped straight from Sega Genesis soundtracks as well as drums that mimic the style of the era. It’s a double dose of nostalgia with the song style and the sounds from the 16-bit console of the era.

It’s not the most commonly imitated time period, but I think we’ve reached the point where it can be enjoyed in a nostalgic way. The romantic and pop-infused tracks of SEGA Swing will remind you of everything from New Order to Michael Jackson to EMF. It sounds weird but it also reminds me of Toad the Wet Sprocket. Total 90′s new jack swing styled thing going on throughout it. Also Dance Fight is a somewhat hilarious bonus track that reminds me of Haddaway and Night at the Roxbury.

The stand out tracks in my opinion are The Endless Loop and I Can’t Take (This Feeling), which emulate everything that was amazing about New Order in the 1980s. There’s not a bad song on here and it still feels like something by The Flight Away, not some huge digression from their core style. Grab it today!

Beatscribe is a full time indie composer, musician and writer. By day he creates soundtracks and sfx for various mobile gaming companies, by night creates megaman-inspired chiptunes, in the afternoons he drinks tea. Check out his latest releases, tutorials and retro ruminations at www.beatscribe.com.

Chiptune’s ‘official’ Mexican exporter, Chema64, has returned with a new collection of tracks spanning four years and four consoles. Released on his own label, 56kbps Records, Chema64’s infectious jams are sure to remind the world that, along with Pulselooper and Chilean Analog, South America should not be underestimated as a producer of chiptune. One thing ‘Zapotecno’ does well is traverse genres. Tracks ‘Machines of Loving Grace’ and ‘Fin del Mundo del Fin’ both contain nods at metal a la 90s VGM faux-thrash (think Duke Nukem 3D’s soundtrack). Elsewhere, album closer, ‘Quetzalli’, has a euphoric Saturday Morning theme tune pop atmosphere, with the accompanying hook-laden melodies lodged within its crevasses. The apex of the release really does come past the mid-point, however, and to be honest if the first four tracks had been cut the five remaining would have created a far more cohesive and powerful statement. The sounds present within ‘Dubtrip’ and ‘Featherblade’ are one of a kind, in fact the horn-like glissando harmonies on the climax of the latter sent goosebumps shooting up my arm. The spaced out atmosphere and throttling basslines of ‘Datavoid’ created a nice chunk of variation, and ‘Quetzalli’ has quite possibly one of the greatest selections of melodies to be released this year. Whilst on the first few listens the sometimes repetitive and often hap-hazard sounding melodies might deter future listens, I would implore you to persevere. Unlike the adrenaline ladled ‘unce’ of most of his contemporaries, Chema64’s real strengths lie in his understated melodic hooks. What on first listens might appear like a jumble of erratic notes will quickly become nine tracks of greatly varying character and undeniable brilliance. So, with the amateurish tones of ‘BROWNWAVE’ and dud melodies in ‘Megameng II’ aside, this release is fantastic. Given the time, ‘Zapotecno’ will likely become a mainstay in your listening repertoire, and such a unique one at that. If this is the level of quality produced elsewhere in South America, the rest of the world should definitely take note.

Grab the release here.

Written by Andrew Kilpatrick for his blog The Waveform Generators.

Here’s the gorgeous hard copy version of the Piko Piko Compilation.

Piko Piko Detroit is a net label run by Pikoboy and Snesei, two hard-working musicians and fans of VGM and chiptune. These two guys have pretty much have single-highhandedly created an active and exciting chiptune scene in Detroit. They recently put out a big call for all midwest chip musicians to join forces and create a compilation of epic video game tracks representing the region. The Piko Piko Midwest Compilation is available here for your download.  Here’s a quick review of what to expect in this massive 49-track album!

There is a lot of variety on this album. I can’t even begin to explain the differnces in styles and music. Tracks range from straight-up LSDj tracks to remixed tracks. Both of the Piko Piko founders contribute totally awesome tracks, SNESei’s track, Virtual Epilepsy is a great dance track that keeps your head moving. Pikoboy’s track, The Truth has some awesome effects-laden vocals that will get stuck in your head. I also really enjoyed Saskroch’s track Found, with a lot of chip flavors and some dynamic changes. Komissar’s Dynamite Girl is a standout Gameboy track as well. The two Sega Genesis FM synthesis tracks by Plants>Humans and Diode Milliampere also stand out; you’ll swear its a track from Sonic when those first drum of Plant>Human’s notes hit.

Some of the more blended chiptune fusion tracks also add some variety. My Life Is Pixels track sort of reminds me of Snow Patrol mixed with some chiptune sounds. Happenstance’s track has a chill  Trentemøller-styled vibe that I can’t get enough of. Awkward Terrible’s rocking song, complete with vocals, is also a dynamic and exciting stand-out track. I really wish I had time to write something about every single track. There really isn’t a bad track on the disk. The straight-up hardware tracks are interesting, inventive and full of suprises and the fusion tracks mix things up in a good way. Check it out today!

Piko Piko isn’t done yet. In fact, they’re hosting a 2-day 8-bit festival in downtown Detroit at the end of the month. Detroit is where lots of underground music started and blew up (I mean, techno, for one!) It looks like it’s going to become more than a blip on the map of the chiptune scene too. Check out their upcoming events at pikopikodetroit.net!

Beatscribe is a full time indie composer, musician and writer. By day he creates soundtracks for various mobile gaming companies, by night creates megaman-inspired chiptunes, in the afternoons he drinks tea. Check out his latest releases, tutorials and retro ruminations at www.beatscribe.com.