Latest Album Reviews

I'm always late, and that makes me somewhat useless when it comes to both big time mainstream media and timely album reviews. This isn't about my inability to stay fresh, this is about RKSG, the latest collection of beats from Raisi K. and based on the music and sounds of hit Netflix show Squid Games.

I’ve been a long time fan of piano renditions of game music. So many great game themes translate to the instrument so well, especially in the capable hands of a wonderful musician. That is exactly what the new album Annalisa Plays Chrono Trigger is all about. After hearing Annalisa’s take on these timeless tracks, you’ll agree this music was practically made for solo piano, as she breathes such a breadth of emotions into each track. Just as the original soundtrack did in game for anyone who has enjoyed the game.

There is not a better title for this album than A Happy Place. Whitely's 2021 album is exactly what I can use for this endless, climate induced, summer. An album like this blasts off some of the intense heat consuming the state I live in. Take me to that ice cold, extra chill, happy place Whitely…

It's 20XX (Hey, it actually is 20XX) and it's time for Noveliss and Mega Ran AKA The Maverick Hunters. The Capcom game Mega Man came out in 1987, with the spinoff Mega Man X debuting about six years later in '93. The original Mega Ran album came out in 2007, and Random has gotten questions about 'when are you going to do Mega Man X though?' from all us SNES kids for about 15 years. Now we got the debut of Zero, and the reawakening of Mega Ran, thanks to this new album from Noveliss and Mega Ran…

Pokérus Project, the five piece band out of Chile, returns with Kefkavarium. The band invites plenty of special guests to help tackle rearrangements of classic themes from Pokemon, Final Fantasy, Phoenix Wright, Animal Crossing, Donkey Kong Country, Legend of Zelda, and Smash Bros. I normally think of Pokérus Project as a metal group, but this album includes a healthy amount of funk as well. The combination of danceable grooves riding underneath some extra heavy guitars makes for a stand out album…

Antriksh Bali gathers an eclectic mix of local musicians with the WAVE: A Los Angeles Compilation. Besides Bali, we've got appearances from Lunar Drive, push.audio, Arma Puros, and Animals Over People. The whole soundtrack is worth a listen, and now I'm going to have to dig deeper into each of these individual talents as well…

Once again the Pennsylvania based duo of Amanda and Matt Caucci bring us five tracks of soft, sometimes lofi, melodic rock tracks. It's really difficult for me to believe their last album was way back in 2017. Of course, anything before 2020 feels pretty distant now, but also for the fact that I bumped that little The Mimmos EP for years, basically up to, and alongside this latest release…

t's a good thing I post about New Temp Sound Solutions / Shawn Phase once a month now, because that almost (but not quite) matches his musical output. I began temp sound solution Tuesdays in the apparently futile attempt to dig into the very, very extensive backlog of TSS albums I have never written about, or in some cases, even heard yet.

It's the long awaited debut studio album from Vancouver's The Runaway Four. The six song album reminds me of classic rock albums like Pink Floyd. I'm talking, the type of album that only has half a dozen tracks, but lasts an hour and takes you through a variety of genres and emotions.

30 years ago, Konami released a game called Castlevania. The horror themed adventure game came out in Japan for the Famicom Disk System on September 26, 1986. This also means that the soundtrack, composed by James Banana AHEM i mean Kinuyo Yamashita, has also existed for 30 years! In my personal opinion, the finest waveforms to ever flow out of the NES' 2a03 sound chip.

Even though I've been talking about 8 Bit Duane and the Amazing BrandO since 2008, it's been a long time since one of their albums has been in my album review periphery. To be plainly honest, I wasn't going to review this EP. I tend to review albums that could use my meager push, but D&B are killing it. Well, as killing it as you can be in this VGM niche. They don't need my help. OR SO I THOUGHT.

Despite the fact that many classic video game tunes are indelibly seared into my brain, it has become less and less often that I actually get to go back and hear the original music that made me start this website in the first place. Luckily the debut release, Boss Chamber Music, from the duo of Frog & Cid have collected and rearranged a variety of vintage RPG jams. F&C do them up right with live arrangements from classics like Chrono Trigger, several Final Fantasy titles, Pokemon, and the Legend of Zelda. Over a dozen tracks, including several intriguing medleys that will take you through not just different scenes, but different games entirely.

More than any other product, franchise, character, or story, I feel like Earthbound is the most malleable. Many people who play the game have a heartfelt relationship with the old gray cartridge. It's obvious to say that Earthbound has become an incredibly influential piece of work among video game fans.