Music/Músicas | Vagrant Bard

Smack My Bones Up

27 05 2011

Smack My Bones Up is a short “game-music video clip” I decided to create as a homage to the Mortal Kombat fighting series, the Mortal Kombat theme song, and The Prodigy. As a fan of the of all three, it was hard to resist not coming with something up after listening to the remix. In fact, I posted the video a response to the original remix, which is also available on Youtube. The main objective was to make a short video (between 1 and 2 minutes) comprised of Mortal Kombat 9 game footage in sync with the main beats of the song. I realized the high pitched scream from Prodigy’s Smack My Bitch Up would serve a nice cue for images of pain or characters screaming. However, since I didn’t plan on having Sindel screaming every 5 seconds, the x-ray combat moves served an ideal purpose. Not long after editing, the pun-like title came to mind and below you can check out the result. Let me know what you think and enjoy!

Smack My Bones Up é um curto “video clipe musical de jogo” que eu decidi criar como uma homenagem à série de jogos Mortal Kombat, à música tema do filme Mortal Kombat e à banda The Prodigy. Como um fã de todos os três, foi muito difícil escutar ao remix utilizado como faixa sonora e não pensar em alguma ideia. Inclusive, eu postei o vídeo como uma resposta ao remix original, que também está disponível no Youtube. O objetivo principal foi fazer um curto vídeo (entre 1 e 2 minutos) composto de cenas do jogo Mortal Kombat 9 sincronizadas com as principais batidas da música. Eu percebi que o grito agudo da faixa Smack My Bitch Up cairia muito bem com imagens de personagens sentindo dor ou gritando. No entanto, como eu não planejava ter a Sindel aparecendo a cada cinco segundos, me dei conta de que os golpes raio-x cumpririam essa meta de maneira ideal. Pouco depois de editar o vídeo, o título-trocadilho me veio à mente e abaixo você confere o resultado. Me diga o que achar e divirta-se!

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Tags: mortal kombat, music video, smack my bitch up
Categories : English, Games, Music/Músicas, Português, Videos

Music & Programming: ZhayTee Interview

3 04 2009

I recently had the pleasure of interviewing an indie icon I truly admire. Joseph Toscano, better known by the moniker ZhayTee, is a computer programmer and musician. Having already worked on the soundtrack for free game projects, his involvement with the MOD community stood out with the track “Absconditus” for Minerva: Metastasis (listen to it below). Now, having recently released the game “Luchi Garage Sale”, ZhayTee sheds light on his thoughts on inspiration, licensing, MODs, and future projects.

Arthur Protasio: So, for starters: name, age, nationality, and profession?

ZhayTee: Joseph Toscano, 26, American, Computer Programmer.

AP: I got to know your work, musical works to be more specific, through the HL2 MOD Minerva. How does that fit into your history and the “Computer Programmer” classification?

ZT: Actually, the history there is quite short and simple: I was browsing the Internet several years ago for nice-looking Half-Life 2 mods, and I stumbled across the work-in-progress that is now known as Minerva: Metastasis. I thought it looked quite professional, so I promptly e-mailed Adam Foster (the author of the mod). He was very receptive to the idea of original music for his mod, and so I went to work. The first song I produced is called “Absconditus”, and it was included in the game shortly after I finished it. After that, Adam Foster and I kept in touch and I produced several more works for Minerva during its final years of development. I didn’t expect anything to come of it, but Absconditus became well-liked by many fans of Minerva. Read the rest of this entry »

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Tags: Arthur Protasio, computer, creative commons, joseph toscano, license, luchi garage sale, metastasis, minerva, programmer, programming, tux racer, zhaytee
Categories : English, Games, Interviews/Entrevistas, Music/Músicas

World of Goo: Soundtrack

26 01 2009

World of Goo is no news for those who know what “indie games” are. In case you don’t, think of it as a nifty-wacky-weird-puzzle-physics game or, as one of its creators (Kyle Gabler) put it, “a physics-based puzzle game about building things with eager little talking globs of goo.”

What matters to this post isn’t the game so, though, but rather its soundtrack. Recently released, it was something I eagerly awaited for when I first had my chance with those slimy goo balls. Approximately 49 minutes of surreal immersion that make you remember many stages and relive awkward moments of tower building and goo killing.

Kyle cites many “big movie guys” like Danny Elfman, Vangelis, Bernard Herrmann, Hans Zimmer, and Ennio Morricone as his sources of inspirati. Though I agree, I can’t shake that taste of Team17’s Worms away. The tunes and the goo globs themselves, it just sounds so seriously-wacky with a bit of high pitched “weeeee” on top.

On the other hand, the composition made up clearly reveals how different songs made for different purposes can fit in with game themes. There’s no way people can criticize games for having a specific-tuney-like soundtrack. By putting together a clever compilation, games like Jonathan Blow’s Braid and World of Goo defy that notion. You’ve got original compostions that never thought of accompanying gameplay, even if they might have been made for films.

Enough of my babbling, you just want the soundtrack. What? Pay? No no no! The current trend is “free“! So click here and start by listening to “Regurtitation Pumping Station”. At least, that’s what I’ve done for the past hours or so.

May the game development culture evolve on this path with a strong community relationship. Seriously, we’ve got free goodies. How could this go wrong?

Comments : 3 Comments »
Tags: 2d boy, braid, community, Danny Elfman, developer, Ennio Morricone, Games, Hans Zimmer, jonathan blow, kyle gabler, licensed, music, original, Ron Carmel, soundtrack, Team17, World of Goo, Worms
Categories : English, Games, Music/Músicas

Keytar, Drums & Art

2 03 2008

As already known, I’m a fan of Daft Punk. Being one since 1997, the sound of Around the World (among other tunes), eletronic beats, and synthesized melodies never stopped being my favorite musical preferences.

In 2003, Interstella 5555 was released. The animation gave Daft Punk’s album, Discovery, a whole new feel, accompanied by the art of japanese studio Toei Animation which set a no-dialog narrative from the first to last track. Amazing.

Now, in 2008, although shorter, that same experience returns. Kap10Kurt‘s “keytar-and-drums digital art” makes it into animation. Produced by french studio Mathematic, the song Danger Seekers, has its own video clip, being already defined as something in between manga and “motion design”. I simply define the combination as sublime…both audio and visually.

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Tags: Around the World, Captain Kurt, daft punk, Danger Seekers, Discovery, Interstella 5555, Kap10, Kap10Kurt, Kurt, Mathematic
Categories : English, Music/Músicas, Videos

Um sitetizador, uma bateria e arte

2 03 2008

Como um fã de Daft Punk desde 1997 ao som de Around the World, a música eletrônica e sintetizada nunca deixou de estar no topo das minhas preferências musicais.

Em 2003 foi lançado o Interstella 5555, que dava uma visão animada ao já consagrado álbum Discovery do Daft Punk. Um longa metragem narrativo, no estilo anime, acompanhado pelas faixas do CD. Sensacional.

Agora, em 2008, as animações com trilha sonora eletrônica retornam. Kap10Kurt apresenta seu clipe animado para a música Danger Seekers. Produzido pelo estúdio francês Mathematic, o vídeo é definido como algo entre o mangá e o “motion desgin”. Eu defino a combinação simplesmente como sublime…audio e visual.

Vodpod videos no longer available.

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Tags: Around the World, Captain Kurt, daft punk, Danger Seekers, Discovery, Interstella 5555, Kap10, Kap10Kurt, Kurt, Mathematic
Categories : Music/Músicas, Português, Videos

Human After All (?)

23 04 2007

Being a fan of Daft Punk, their show is hands down one of, if not the best, I’ve watched. At the 2006 performance in Rio de Janeiro their finale was flawless. While the song “Human After All” played, images of people, animals, and nature were shown on their digital pyramid. It all had a postive and happy vibe about it. But then I thought the opposite. What if “being human” isn’t necessarily good? This is the result, spanning from the first world war to present time.

Sendo um fã de Daft Punk, o show deles é um dos, se não o melhor, que já assisti. Em 2006 na performance deles no Rio, o final foi impecável. Enquanto a música “Human After All” tocava, imagens de pessoas, animais e natureza eram mostrados na pirâmide digital. Tudo tinha um clima positivo e feliz. Mas ai eu pensei no oposto. E se “ser humano” não é necessariamente uma coisa boa? Esse é o resultado, abordando desde a primeira guerra mundial até hoje em dia.

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Tags: daft punk, human after all, humanity, politics, society, war
Categories : English, Music/Músicas, Português, Videos

Battlefield 2142: Alternate Intro

5 11 2006

One of the advantages computer games offer is the fact they allow users to customize them. That’s what I did when I realized I didn’t like the intro movie or the soundtrack to Battlefield 2142. Therefore I made my own alternate intro and substituted the original. The result is a mixture between a slightly edited E3 2006 trailer, the original Battlefield 1942 theme, and a remixed version of the Battlefield 2 theme song. Enjoy.

Uma das vantagens dos jogos de computador é que eles permitem modificação por parte dos usuários. Foi isso que eu fiz quando eu percebi que não gostava do video de introdução ou a trilha sonora do jogo Battlefield 2142. Assim, eu fiz minha própria abertura e substitui a original. O resultado é uma mistura de uma versão levemente editada de um trailer da E3 2006, a música tema original do Battlefield 1942 e uma versão remixada do tema do Battlefield 2. Divirta-se.