The famous Swedish chiptune extraordinaire zabutom has been chipping it up with the best of them for over a decade now, having been part of demoscene groups like Share and Enjoy, Fadeout, Fyllece as well as others. His music isn’t just limited to electronic releases, he has also toured the world with his music, appearing at Blip Festival in New York City in 2008, placing him in the elite of chip music talents. But despite his fame and experience, zabutom has yet to release his very own full length album.

Ubiktune has luckily come in to save the day by finally releasing an all new album by none other than zabutom. Having been in various degrees of production for over 10 years, the album is an 16-bit space journey oozing of melody and voyageristic atmosphere. Despite being described as a 16-bit release, it is as if the Swedish tech-wiz used all the best elements of MSX, Amiga and SNES, showing shades of old Konami Kukeiha Club, Zuntata and of course filled with demoscene arpeggios to craft one of the coolest chiptune albums so far this year. It is not to be missed for any demoscene, chiptune or retro shooter game fans, a true must have.

Available at: Bandcamp ($5)

[Above: Akio Shiraishi (left) and Izumi Tsukushi (right)]

It’s that time of year again, and we’re here with our most anticipated feature of San Diego Comic Con. This year’s interview with Square Enix’s product licensing division head Izumi Tsukushi and music licensing division promotion’s manager Akio Shiraishi marks our fourth annual sit-down with the two (see 2008, 2009, and 2010), and while we’ve been slowly trickling out tidbits from the interview of the past couple weeks, we’ve got the transcript here in its entirety with more information for your enjoyment.

We talk about many of the releases over the past year as well as some upcoming releases. We also follow-up on questions from previous years which offer some surprising answers. Anyone interested in that Piano Collections Final Fantasy I-III CD we suggested last year?

Find out what the two had to say about this and more after the jump. (more…)

Remember a few months back when we announced that Norihiko Hibino had formed a new unit called GENTLE LOVE? Yeah, not the album series featuring Hibino on sax performing Japanese, Chinese, and American standards, but a duo featuring Hibino on sax and pianist Ayaki Saito performing relaxing and therapeutic music.

As it turns out, Hibino Sound Therapy Lab, the company behind the iPhone/iPod Touch app Prescription for Sleep (which came packaged with a music CD in certain regions that Patrick reviewed some years back) has published a second volume, but rather than featuring Hibino on his own, the album is actually GENTLE LOVE’s debut.

So, how does the duo perform, and do their collaborative efforts live up to the Prescription for Sleep name? Find out in our review. (more…)

We have more to tell you from our interview with Izumi Tsukushi and Akio Shiraishi from Square Enix. I absolutely loved Chill SQ last year even though it was incredibly short, and when it was announced that Cafe SQ would feature the same chillout vibe, I was immediately interested. Strangely, however, we’ve heard nothing about the album since it was announced, and even more strange is the fact that it was announced before SQ Chips, which will be out in just about a month.

During our chat I asked about the status of Cafe SQ. As it turns out, only two tracks are completed and ready to go thus far. We weren’t told how many tracks would be featured overall (there were seven on Chill SQ), but it doesn’t sound like they’re very far along. Still, of note is the fact that it is Izumi Tsukushi’s most anticipated album coming from Square Enix Music right now that’s announced. I’m with him in having high hopes for this album.

Oh, and if you care, the album cover was illustrated by Black Butler artist Yana Toboso. And excuse the grainy image, as is there is no high-res cover art available yet.

Are you looking forward to Cafe SQ, and are you surprised by the fact that it’s been announced with so little progress being made?

We mentioned a few weeks back that Square Enix was preparing a trio of albums to commemorate Fuji TV’s 2011 United States of Odaiba event. These included previews of the upcoming SQ Chips album and Final Fantasy Type-0 soundtrack as well as a sound effects collection CD. I was excited for all three, and the 500 Yen asking price made them an affordable treat for anyone who could make it out to the event.

So what do they offer? While you’ll be able to enjoy SQ Chips and Final Fantasy Type-0 in their entirety in a matter of months, the Square Enix Sound Effect Collection is a release that is unique to the event.

Are they worth you putting in the effort to track them down? Find out after the jump! (more…)

While talking with Bill Trinen, a product marketing manager at Nintendo about the Zelda Symphony concerts coming up in a few weeks (you can buy tickets to the show as of yesterday!), I also took the chance to ask why North America has been getting the short end of the stick in regards to the exclusive music CDs that Club Nintendo offers fans in Japan. I’m talking about the recently-released Donkey Kong Country Returns soundtrack, the Super Mario Galaxy soundtracks, and even the Touch! Generations music CD. I thought the recent release of the Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D soundtrack would have paved the way more more music releases, but perhaps I was wrong.

As Trinen explained, by making music CDs like these available in the United States, it opens up the gates for people to start asking Nintendo about licensing and the ability to use the music for other purposes (commercials, radio, etc.). Nintendo isn’t currently set up to handle these requests (i.e. nobody has the time to deal with it), so that’s why they’ve been reluctant to release their music here. I guess this makes sense given the stories that many of the game music cover bands and doujin groups will tell you about times that they’ve tried to reach out to Nintendo to “do things the right way.”

I have to say that it’s a little discouraging, but I still think the Ocarina of Time 3D CD is a step in the right direction. What do you make of the situation?

I still have a giant backlog of Soundtrack of the Month articles I want to do, but it’s about time I got around to one of my favorite Final Fantasy titles and soundtracks of all time. Perhaps the recent release of the Final Fantasy IV The Complete Collection has brought this one to the forefront of my mind, but I think most fans would agree that this soundtrack is deserving of this honor.

Join us as we take a trip back in time and highlight some of the best that Nobuo Uematsu had to offer with Final Fantasy IV. (more…)

That’s right. One of the most interesting exclusive bits of information we got from Izumi Tsukushi and Akio Shiraishi this year at Comic Con was the fact that there’s another unannounced NieR album in the works in addition to the already-announced NieR Tribute Album -echo-. The two noted that they weren’t all that surprised by popularity of the music from the game, but have felt pressure to give the score more attention after the popularity of the 8-bit remix on the More SQ CD.

In terms of what the NieR Tribute Album -echo- is all about, we were told that it will be a multi-artist arrangement album. I asked if it would essentially be “NieR SQ,” to which the two chuckled and said, “Yes, kind of like that.” They would not confirm which artists are involved.

Are you looking forward to the NieR Tribute Album and this unannounced project as well?  Isn’t it cool to see the soundtrack on sale on the floor with a placard about it being named soundtrack of the year (from OSV and other sites!)?

For chiptune enthusiasts, Ubiktune is now one of the most thriving and exciting labels in their minds. For several years, the little net label has grown considerably from a small Russian Speccy establishment into a fully realized chiptune label, featuring concept albums with a unique and fulfilling flow that the chiptune albums often lack. This year alone, Ubiktune has been responsible for some of the best electronic based albums of 2011.

At the front of this label is C-jeff, the Russian chiptune artist who time and time again has impressed listeners with his incredibly creative process and product. Catchy melodies with an underlying melancholy is his special trade, but in the midst of this darker take on arts, you’ll find a very interesting, cheerful and interesting individual. I had the pleasure of having a long and very interesting talk with C-jeff where we discuss at length his music, Ubiktune, the chiptune scene and growing up in Russia. Of course, we also discuss his upcoming album and the surprise appearances it features.

Read our interview with C-jeff after the jump! (more…)

Nintendo recently gave out some basic information about the upcoming Zelda concert tour that was announced at E3. The tour will be hitting North America on October 21 at the Panages Theater in Los Angeles with ticket prices starting at $35. At Comic Con this past weekend, however, I had the chance to speak with Bill Trinen, a product marketing manager at Nintendo, regarding the concerts and got a few more details about the tour.

As it turns out, the shows in October, referred to by Trinen as the “25th Anniversary concerts,” will hit Los Angeles, Tokyo, and an undetermined European city, and should be thought of as an entirely separate entity from the 2012 tour that will be headed up by JMP Productions.  Kondo had already been planning the October shows, and it’s likely that the set lists will differ from the global tour that’s set to start in 2012.  It hasn’t been decided yet as to whether or not video screens will be featured as a part of the show or how long the tour will last, but Nintendo is at least committed to supporting it through 2012.

In the meantime, head over to the tour’s official website to hear a streaming sample. What do you think of the two seemingly-separate concerts, and will you be making it out to the October concerts or waiting for the full-scale tour to hit your town?

[via Destructoid]

Comic Con was just this past weekend. That means we had the opportunity to catch up with Izumi Tsukushi and Akio Shiraishi at Square Enix and pick their brains about recent and upcoming soundtrack release from Square Enix’s internal label (see our past interviews from 2008, 2009, and 2010). While asking a question about Mitsuda’s comments about wanting to create a Myth 2 album if the first one sold well (I’m still pulling for the album to be called Re:Myth), we were told that while the album was very successful, and that they’d like to do a second album, that this would not happen until the Chrono Cross arrangement album is complete.

While I doubt we’ll see the Chrono Cross arrange album this year, I still think it’s great to see pressure from Square Enix along with fans to get this album completed. By no means do I want to see Mitsuda rush the album, but I think it’s been on his back-burner for way too long.

Are you looking forward to the Chrono Cross arrange album and to a second Myth album that may be planned for a later time?

With the North American release of El Shaddai right around the corner, Ignition UTV decided to throw a launch party this past weekend at Comic Con 2011 in San Diego. At the lively event that featured music, previews of the game, exclusive swag, and of course lots of alcohol, designer Sawaki Takeyasu was on hand to speak a bit about the game. We had the chance to ask him about some rumblings we’d heard about an arrangement album for the game’s soundtrack, and he confirmed that this was in fact in the works.

When I tried to pry for more details, I was told that the project is still in the works, and that composer Masato Kouda would be heading up the album. Multiple artists will apparently be featured, but I for one am curious as to how they’ll go about arranging an orchestral soundtrack that was so ethereal and atmospheric without a lot of catchy melodies to reinterpret. I’m still excited about it though!

What do you think of the prospect of an El Shaddai arrange album? Are you looking forward to the game early next month?