Board 8 > 21 albums and 21 games from 2021

(+) Yeah! (+)

bump

Cool idea, too bad I'm only seeing it now.

I'll keep doing this if people want me to

colliding posted...

I'll keep doing this if people want me to

Hell yeah!

i was reading the music stuff, just didn't have anything to comment so far.

4/21

Eastward x girl in red - if i could make it go quiet

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQziZUGuEFE
girl in red "you stupid b-----"

A love letter to 8-32 bit jrpgs, Eastward is a rare nostalgia game that is able to be more than just a nostalgia game. There are elements of and references to Zelda, Illusion of Gaia, Earthbound, Mario and Luigi, and Final Fantasy throughout. More obviously, there's a game within a game - Earthborn - which is basically a speed-run-esque mini Dragon Quest game that's surprisingly complex. The plot of the main narrative is a sometimes off-putting blend of dystopian sci-fi and shonen anime that isn't afraid of being surprising.

The most common complaint levied at the game is that it's over-written, with a ton of "unnecessary" dialogue and poor pacing. While these complaints have merit, I also feel like this is one of those "buyer beware"/"careful what you wish for" complaints often directed at "old school games." Meaning people say that they want a retro experience and when they get it they end up missing the modern day QoL aspects of game narrative. But yeah, the story is often long winded and dry, and the ending is kind of a mess, but overall I thought it was very good.

Why girl in red? Well... the second protagonist of Eastward is a little girl who sometimes appears as a "red version" of herself. Yeah, that's the only real connection here. In a year where Olivia Rodrigo was the "it artist" for a while, girl in red has a similar approach with better results, in my opinion. Blending pop-punk, bedroom pop, and contemporary pop, girl in red offers up catchy tunes that are windows into being a depressed and sexually frustrated queer teen.

5/21

Final Fantasy VII Remake: Intergrade DLC x Floating Points and Pharoah Sanders - Promises

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mn8x0QbN4f8

On the surface, pairing up Remake's frenetic and bubbly Yuffie DLC with this year's most critically acclaimed jazz record makes no sense. The album, a collaborative effort between a British producer/electronic musician, the London Symphony Orchestra, and a renowned jazz saxophonist is perhaps the most "chill" record of the year. Droning strings and electric echoes open up like hallways between Sanders' fluorishes, inviting the listener to lull themselves into a quiet meditation. This - of course - never happens in FF7 remake, much less in the roughly 2 hour long DLC.

Weirdly enough though, what I remember most from the Yuffie episode is its soundtrack, which features "The Runaround," a five part track that interprets FF7 tunes through a jazz ensemble, and is heavy on the sax. On one hand, this is insanely cheesy, but on the other, there are movements of "The Runaround" that would have felt right at home on a bebop playlist (or on an episode of Cowboy Bebop for that matter). If you pair "The Runaround" with Promises, we can see the variety/scope of jazz as a genre. Jazz is more than just Shoji Meguro.

I'll also say that Yuffie's DLC ended up being surprisingly dark! So in that way, perhaps FP&PS's lamenting makes a bit of sense. I was really into the Yuffie stuff in the game, and hopefully Remake part 2 isn't too far away. Let's get team attacks, let's get a FFXV-esque open world, and let's get another fifth of the way through the main narrative!

6/21

Guilty Gear Strive x Turnstile - Glow On

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bykzM2UQ3Hk

Turnstile's probably the best band in hardcore today. Before the pandemic, I had the "pleasure" of going to a few Turnstile shows, and they're pretty much the definition of controlled chaos. Massive circle pits, non-stop stage diving, bunch of idiots acting like fools. Unlike a lot of hardcore bands, Turnstile's brand taps a vein of brotherhood, acceptance and compassion. It's hard to explain, particularly to those who don't listen to hardcore/punk. Cause if you listen to the tracks they sound plenty aggressive. The new record, Glow On, pairs the aggression with some real groove too, which invites somewhat unflattering (?) comparisons to 311/Incubus/RATM.

Meanwhile, Guilty Gear Strive's the best fite game this year and it's not particularly close (even if it's lacking some of what made Xrd so cool). That being said, I fully admit I'm just a casual Guilty Gear fan, so I don't really know anything about the story/characters. I just play the game cause it looks and sounds cool. Like Turnstile, a lot of the tracks in strive seem to blend genres, mostly metal/pop hybrids. Not a perfect match, but perhaps similar in the way they blend good vibes through aggressive music.

Tag

This makes me want to do a top 25 Albums of 2021 topic (which I've already been considering, but now even moreso)

7/21

The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles x cfcf Memoryland

Game of the Year

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wTt0S5rTkGw
cfcf - Memoryland (full album)

Another link to a full album for you to enjoy. If you like what you're listening to, please support cfcf, aka Mike Silver, on bandcamp. A producer who's previously worked with the R&B artist How to Dress Well, cfcf specializes in house/dance/electronic music that sounds straight out of the 90's and early 2000's. Put Memoryland on in the background and prepare to vibe. Riyl: Aphex Twin, Jungle (the house music), Massive Attack, trance.

Why connect it to GAA? Well, let's hear it from cfcf himself: "I see a loose narrative across the album: your early 20s, a new city, new people, new temptations and new traps. Losing your sense of self to the whims of your surroundings and trends in music and fashion; the wrong people, and trying to dig yourself out of that hole." Sounds a lot like the journey of Ryunosuke Naruhodo, newly arrived in Victorian England.

Maybe it was this board, or maybe it was the internet at large, but I was not looking forward to GAA because I had been convinced it was bad. Perhaps I only paid attention to the discourse behind the first game (which certainly has its problems). However, the package as a whole ends up being the third best Ace Attorney game in the series. For me, a large part of its appeal is the skillful way the narrative captures themes associated with racism, xenophobia, class, and colonialism. It's certainly the "smartest" Ace Attorney game. The way Takumi uses a well-established literary icon - "Herlock Sholmes" - to reconcile disparate cultures is inspired.

While not perfect (the character designs and multi-person testimony sections need work), it's pretty close. Much unlike my knowledge of alphabetical order, which should've placed this game before Guilty Gear (whoops).

8/21

Loop Hero x Madlib - Sound Ancestors

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eyRw2zqesSk
Madlib -Sound Ancestors

I had a pretty fun time with Loop Hero, though I really only played it for a weekend earlier on this year, when I was bored as sin and desperate for something to waste time with. If you're looking for a time turner that speeds up time, you can't go wrong. Hours fly by playing this; you can also just let it go in the background while doing something else, which feeds a need for multitasking.

Madlib is kind of a "loop hero" on this record. *groan*. Exceptional sequencing showcasing a variety of sounds and textures, fusing hip hop, jazz, and world music.

I don't really know how to write about this one. I knew of Madlib through Madvillainy, the record he did with MF Doom, who passed away in 2020. At first Sound Ancestors just seemed like a pretty standard beat tape to me, but it stayed with me and I keep coming back to it. I'm a teacher who had to record a lot of video lectures this year, and I definitely used a lot of these instrumentals as background music. Listen to it!

9/21

Mario Party Superstars x Faye Webster - I Know I'm Funny, Haha

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eyRw2zqesSk
Faye Webster "Better Distractions"

It took them a few years, but Nintendo finally figured out Mario Party for the Switch. Not much to say here really... it's Mario Party. Would've like a larger selection of playable characters and even more boards, but here's hoping that Nintendo actually offers up more boards as free updates/DLC (spoilers: they won't).

Playing Mario Party with your friends/family is mostly a warm and fun experience. However, every once in a while you'll have to screw them over, or you'll playfully steal a star from them, or you'll completely dunk on them from a place of love. That's Faye Webster's aesthetic to a T. She'll sing about getting dumped while at the same time making a joke about it. Often smug, sometimes sad, Atlanta-based Webster's album is capital I Indie, and I generally like it, even if I don't enjoy her voice very much.

10/21

Metroid Dread x Deafheaven - Infinite Granite

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZfT4KfF4Evs

I've said this to eyerolls and ignores elsewhere, but I'll reiterate: Metroid Dread has problems, none of which relate to its "difficulty" (spoilers: it's not difficult). The main issue is its exploration/environments, which tend to be a bit bland/lifeless in my opinion. Also the game is surprisingly linear, and actively discourages exploration by introducing random blocked passages to prevent backtracking. It's almost as though Mercury Steam wanted the game to just be played/enjoyed by speedrunners.

All that being said... it's a new 2D Metroid, so we should celebrate. Dread takes place mostly within labs/research installations on some weird planet (I've already forgotten its plot, which is another weakness of the game). This setting lends itself to a soundtrack full of flange/reverb, something like Deafheaven's Infinite Granite. For this record, the black metal/indie fusion band went full shoegaze. "Never go full shoegaze," they say, but Deafheaven mostly succeeds with this record, which fits right at home between Hum, New Order, and Ride. I think their earlier records are a bit more experimental / interesting, but this is their most pleasant listen.

11/21

Nier Replicant v. 1 x Eydis Evensen - Bylur

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MhY7mVCIU6Q
Eydis Evensen - Full Performance (Live on KEXP at Home)

I don't necessarily like putting remasters/ports on this list, but Nier Replicant is enough of a full-on remake to warrant considering it on its own merits. This is definitely the best way to play the original Nier, and the added ending content was pretty good. Getting there is still a pain, what with beating the game multiple times/collecting weapons, but it's less of a chore here, where QoL changes make getting around the world a bit more fun. In the remaking though they perhaps made the game a bit too easy.

Nier is well-known for its soundtracks and for good reason. I wouldn't dare suggest players listen to anything else beside the game's OST while getting their hearts ripped out and souls torn apart by Yoko Taro's misery porn. However, if there's one album I listened to this year that felt like a Nier soundtrack it's icelandic composer Eydis Evensen's Bylur: Mostly piano and cello driven, the songs here are "intensely peaceful" in that paradoxical way. Obvious comparisons might be made to Sigur Ros, but Evensen is much more traditional. Good album to write/study to.

Just noticed I messed up the link for Faye Webster, so here she is again:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYUB0O0No0A

12/21

Persona 5 Strikers x BADBADNOTGOOD - Talk Memory

Album of the Year

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRDmyRJsPwM
BADBADNOTGOOD - "Love Proceeding"

For my album of the year, I'm going with "jazz" group / renown hip-hop collaborators BADBADNOTGOOD's new record. Known for their work with Tyler the Creator and Ghostface Killah, as well as providing the soundtrack to some of adult swim's best bits, they mature their sound somewhat with Talk Memory. Less of an instrumental hip-hop record and more of a bona-fide jazz album, the record is the fullest realization of their sound to date, echoing their influences but also sounding new. "Jazz" is in quotes here, because what they do isn't really jazz so much as it is instrumental beat making, though I'd argue that TM is the closest they've come.

I'll pair this with Persona 5 Strikers, a game that has no business being as good as it actually is. Like BBNG, Persona/Shoji Meguro is often labeled as jazz or jazzy by youtube commenters and video game journalists. Well, if you like the work of Shoji Meguro (or the Atlus sound team to be more precise), consider checking out BBNG, which is a great modern day entry point to begin looking at their influences. After all, whether it's "jazz" or not really doesn't matter if it introduces listeners to great music.

Anyway... Persona 5 Strikers might be the best direct sequel to a JRPG ever made, and this is coming from someone who dislikes musou games. Not that it has much competition in that area, as most direct sequels have been historically terrible. There's not much replay value on this one, but the characterization is pitch perfect and it's pretty fun the first time through. I could very much see a second season of the Persona 5 anime dedicated to this one.

colliding posted...

BADBADNOTGOOD - Talk Memory

I've been kinda lazy about keeping up with listening to the songs, but this caught my eye, and I can safely say you've sold me on at least one album.

oh, badbadnotgood was in song of the week at one point!

don't remember what i said about the nominated song but i'm pretty sure i liked it.

up

another bump just in case you still want to finish this.