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Well well well, we see that you have returned. It is fortuitous, because we are actually RIGHT HERE with another new episode of our famous* podcast, Video Game Grooves! And this week, we have a wonderful show lined up, wherein Anthony and Jeremy are joined by very special guest Grant “Stemage” Henry, who is no stranger to the video game music scene… and is now being swayed to the dark (classic black) side. To kick things off, Grant brings us the very special feature Galaxy Force II & Thunder Blade, from Data Discs. We explore our relationship with the arcade version of the game, as well as the involvement of the Sega Sound Team in a number of contemporary projects, and we put our finger on the pulse of “cool in Japan in the 90s. 🚬” We then shift gears to a different kind of rails shooter with Resurrection: Panzer Dragoon Saga 20th Anniversary Arrangement, from Brave Wave. The sheer unlikeliness of this project is only surpassed by its excellence, and we explore Saori Kobayashi’s composition and layering, and appreciate the production and love involved in the production of the release.
We carry on into the news, and we know it’s the most painful part of the show, but we’ll hold your hand. It will go quick, and your bank account is only a few hundred units emptier than it was before. You’ll survive. There are also a couple of pretty good rumors that you can trade for heroic deeds at the nearby video game tavern.
Finally, we sit down with Grant and examine him thoroughly, from his shocking opinions about Bubsy to his participation in “very welcoming” Steven Universe cults. We might even talk a little bit about music, including his preferred approach to video game cover music!
Outro: “Atolm Dragon” – Panzer Dragoon Saga, by Saori Kobayashi
Twitter – @vg_grooves, @walnutsoap, @jeremy_lamont, @ajohnagnello, @stemage
http://www.stemagemusic.com/
Links:
Celeste: Farewell (Ship to Shore) (Black Screen Records)
ESCISM (Ship to Shore)
Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines (Artist Arena) (Amazon)
System Shock (Limited Run Games) (sold out)
Jay and Silent Bob: Mall Brawl (Limited Run Games)
Mega Man 1-11: The Collection (Laced Records US) (Laced Records ROW)
Wild Hunt Live (2018) (Percival.pl)
Black Material Remake (Kickstarter)
Gaijin Blues II (Bandcamp)
Image Gallery
Hey guys, came for the Galaxy Force, stayed for the Panzer Dragoon. Great fun!
Few notes: the FM (frequency modulation) sound chips used in the Genesis, PC-98, FM Towns, and most of the arcade games of the late 80’s were Yamaha, not Panasonic. With GFII and Thunder Blade, Sega mostly used the FM sounds for synths. Almost everything else, including the bass, was sampled (earlier games like Space Harrier, Outrun, and Shinobi used mostly or only FM sounds). If you listen to both TB and GFII really closely, you can hear that multiple bass sounds are sampled, so the different slaps are intentional and used as they would be in real life.
The tracks in Thunder Blade are not selectable a la Outrun. The “Type 2” track refers to certain stages in the game that are top down. It’s been years since I played, but I believe every other stage was a top-down shooter where you could also move up and down.
Lastly, I’m happy to clarify your clarification: the Seinfeld bass is NOT a human voice. It’s a synthesizer. It’s obvious when you listen to it, but also the theme’s composer talks about it in this interview: huffpost.com/entry/seinfeld-theme-song_n_6893614 Every other part was done by mouth; maybe that’s where the confusion came from.