baiyon

• Experimental, Japanese, Reviews

  Time To Get “In The Collaborations” – Vol. 01~05 (Review)

  August 22, 2012 | Patrick Gann | Comments Off on Time To Get “In The Collaborations” – Vol. 01~05 (Review) Share this Time To Get “In The Collaborations” – Vol. 01~05 (Review)

  

  So baiyon released a series of four singles between December ’09 and April ’10, each one had him working with different artists. Of note to the VGM community was his “Hue / Saturation / Brightness” single (vol. 03) where he collaborated with Hip Tanaka.

  The series seemed be over after the fourth volume. Nothing happened through the rest of 2010 or any of 2011. But then, in June 2012, baiyon surprised everyone by dropping vol. 05, “Take Away My Eyes,” a track that sounded so thoroughly like a PixelJunk Eden tune that one cannot help but wonder if this track was an outtake from PixelJunk 4am (a game whose soundtrack I’m still anxiously waiting for…).

  After the jump, we’ll be exploring all five “In the Collaborations” singles and speculating on what might come in volume 06. (more…)

• Indie Music, Japanese, Reviews

  Electro-Nostalgic: baiyon’s “Like a School on Lunch Time” (Review)

  August 21, 2012 | Patrick Gann | Comments Off on Electro-Nostalgic: baiyon’s “Like a School on Lunch Time” (Review) Share this Electro-Nostalgic: baiyon’s “Like a School on Lunch Time” (Review)

  

  I remember when one of my best friends introduced me to “noise” as a genre. He started me off with Hanatarash(i), a 1980s group featuring this dude who went by the name “Eye.” This was some pretty hardcore stuff. All noise samples, no tonality whatsoever.

  Since then, I’ve heard “noise” albums with different layers or levels of tonality mixed with the non-musical sounds. Many of them come from electronic artists. I was a big fan, for example, of Michael Bross’ “Subway Meditations” — nothing but hand-picked samples mixed in different ways.

  After the jump, we’ll take a look at one of baiyon’s contributions to the genre with his 2006 album “Like a School on Lunch Time.” (more…)

• Featured, Game Music, Japanese

  Introducing!! baiyon week

  August 20, 2012 | Patrick Gann | Comments Off on Introducing!! baiyon week Share this Introducing!! baiyon week

  

  A few months ago we did a special week’s worth of content focused around one musician, Jim Guthrie. That was a lot of fun. Let’s do it again, shall we?

  No, not a second week for Jim. He’s a cool cat, for sure. But this week we’re going to focus on baiyon.

  Born Tomohisa Kuramitsu, baiyon has gone on to become a major influence in electronic music all around the world. He and his art have been presented at events in Japan, South Korea, USA, Canada, Mexico, Ireland, and elsewhere. He is best known, at least among gamers, for his work as audio-visual lead (all music, plus the art styles for each level) in PixelJunk Eden, which we reviewed after its Steam release earlier this year.

  One thing baiyon and Guthrie have in common, besides having a week’s worth of content written about them for OSV, is Sword & Sworcery. Guthrie is the composer, and baiyon arranged a track on the Scythian Steppes remix album, which we also reviewed this year.

  Throughout this week, we will be taking a close look at all of baiyon’s original works, including various EPs and LPs he’s released, the “in the collaborations” series, and we’ll even discuss his work (among the work of many others) for DARIUSBURST. So stop by each and every day this week to learn more about baiyon and his music!

• Experimental, Game Music, Reviews

  Come Out, Come Out! PixelJunk Eden + Encore OST (Review)

  July 2, 2012 | Patrick Gann | Comments Off on Come Out, Come Out! PixelJunk Eden + Encore OST (Review) Share this Come Out, Come Out! PixelJunk Eden + Encore OST (Review)

  

  In 2008, a physical CD print was released for Baiyon’s PixelJunk Eden Original Soundtrack. I had always been tempted to pick up the album, but there was one chief thing that stopped me: the encore.

  PixelJunk Eden Encore was the sole DLC released for the game, and it included five new and absolutely breathtaking levels, complete with new audio tracks. So, why would I buy this CD if it was missing my favorite bit of Baiyon’s work?

  Patience paid off. In February of this year, PixelJunk Eden + Encore was released on Steam for $10, and for an extra $6, you could procure the entire soundtrack: 12 tracks from the CD, plus the 5 tracks for Encore, totaling to nearly 2 hours of catchy, trippy electronica.

  After the jump, I’ll try and sell you on why this music is so marvelous, why the Steam version of the game surpasses the PS3 version, and why I still must lament the current status of the soundtrack’s availability. (more…)

• Featured, Game Music, Japanese, Reviews

  Seven Sword-Swinging Beats: The Scythian Steppes (Review)

  June 26, 2012 | Brenna Wilkes | Comments Off on Seven Sword-Swinging Beats: The Scythian Steppes (Review) Share this Seven Sword-Swinging Beats: The Scythian Steppes (Review)

  

  Last year, an indie adventure game was released for iOS called Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP that ended up being an underground hit amongst indie gamers. It ended up winning Independent Games Festival Mobile Achievement in Art award, and gained more notoriety by being included on the Humble Indie Bundle V pack last month. It was also ported to PC and is now available on Steam.

  Not a bad go of it for Capybara Games or game composer Jim Guthrie by any means.

  Now that Sword & Sworcery is about to be released in Japan for gamers in the land of the rising sun to enjoy (with big thanks to the two-way localization house 8-4), some of their local and best-known composers have decided to put their particular spin on the game’s music for the localized debut with the arranged album The Scythian Steppes. The names of these composers should ring a bell with some: Yamane, Yamaoka, & Suzuki are just a few of them.

  Take a listen to the new spin on Guthrie’s “Thrillmarillion” soundtrack after the jump.

  (more…)

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