My PAX East 2011 Coverage Roundup

Posted on March 22, 2011 by Nathan Meunier

I love going to PAX East. Walking amongst so many fellow nerdfolk for three days is both refreshing and exhausting, but it’s always a good time. This year I covered the convention for GameSpy, and during my many travels and appointments, I was able to check out some awesome games and meet some great folks. Here’s a round-up of a bunch of my PAX East-related coverage from the past week. I’m still working on a few other pieces that’ll be published in the next week or so, but this is the bulk of it.

Mega-PAX East Roundup Feature @ GameSpy [Read it here]
I explored many facets of the convention and glob it all together in this massive feature that touches on a wide range of topics and events throughout the show.

PAX EAst 2011: Indie Gaming Extravaganza [Read it here]
There were so many awesome indie games out on display at PAX East that it was hard to catch them all. I spent a lot of time running around to check them out, and here’s a write-up highlighting some of the best I stumbled across.

Portal 2 Preview [Read it here]
The first Portal was awesome. Portal 2 is going to be 400 percent more awesome. I saw the first 6 hilarious minutes of the game at PAX East and also sat down for a lengthy interview with one of the games main writers. Here’s my impressions and rundown of the preview. My interview will be going up soon.

Gears of War 3 Multiplayer Hands-On [Read it here]
I spent some pew-pew time with GoW 3’s multiplayer beta. Good times. GameSpy Editor Will Tuttle grills me about the hot details in this Interrogation Room preview piece.

There are a few other PAX East related things still in the pipeline, so stay tunes.

“Robots. Lasers. Awesome.” is Now on iTunes!

Posted on March 17, 2011 by Nathan Meunier

My new album “Robots. Lasers. Awesome.” is now out on iTunes, which is very exciting and, well, awesome. You can preview tracks and purchase the full album or individual tunes by hitting the button below to jump to the album page on iTunes. Very cool. This latest release kicks things up a notch from my e.p. “The Beacon” without losing the similar vibe and tone. Most of the songs were written with LSDJ on an old school Game Boy (DMG) and I also play guitar over all of those good blips, thumps, and bleeps. If you enjoyed The Beacon, you should dig this too.

Chip-In: Japan Fundraiser Compilation

Posted on March 16, 2011 by Nathan Meunier

The situation in Japan is dire. Being absorbed fully by the vortex of PAX East for three days, it wasn’t until I was on the bus ride home from Boston that I really had a chance to watch the news and soak up the exact nature of what is happening over there. I was floored by the devastation and horrible loss of life. What’s awesome is that so many people across the globe are rising to the occasion to offer aid and donations to help out in Japans recovery efforts…which will be ongoing for a very long time.

Led by Pixelh8 and True Chip Till Death‘s Peter Swimm, the international chip music community is rallying together with its own fundraiser to gather funds for the Red Cross to support Japan. By donating money via a secure page setup through Firstgiving, you’ll gain access to a link to download a massive, multi-volume chip music compilation. Volume One comes out today and features over 35 tracks from a huge range of chip music artists. One of my new tunes is featured on the first volume alongside awesome artists like 8bitweapon, Little-Scale, ComputeHer, Pixelh8, br1ght pr1mate, and more. I suspect a second volume is in the works too, and I know they’re looking for more donations and chip music artists to contribute songs for the project.

As of this writing, the comp has raised $1,000 of its $5,000 goal, so please take a moment to donate funds, spread the word, and contribute in any way you can. All proceeds go to the Red Cross for Japan relief efforts.

You can find out more about the project and how to donate RIGHT HERE.

Check out my new chip rock album: “Robots. Lasers. Awesome.” !!!

Posted on March 10, 2011 by Nathan Meunier

It’s here! My new album is wrapped up, and you can buy it as a digital download over at CDBaby right this very second. “Robots. Lasers. Awesome.” is a rocking collection of indie tunes crafted with guitar, LSDJ, and an original DMG Game Boy system. The album will soon be up for sale on iTunes and other distributors shortly, but you can nab this 9-song album of rocking chip music for $8.99 right now. Feel free to tweet, facebook, write a review, and spread the love if you dig it. Thanks for the support! Anyone interested in doing a review can get in touch for a review copy.

Check it out HERE on CD Baby. And you can stream the first track, Doomlaser, for free down below:

Doomlaser – A track from my new album

Posted on March 7, 2011 by Nathan Meunier

I’ll be releasing a new album of Game Boy rock stuff very soon, called “Robots. Lasers. Awesome.” I’m currently waiting for the album to be available for digital purchase via iTunes and other online distributors. In the meantime, here’s a super rocking track off the CD to stream online. Like most of the tunes on the album, this was made with an old-school original Game Boy, LSDJ, and guitar. Enjoy!

New Chip Rock Tune from my Upcoming Album

Posted on February 22, 2011 by Nathan Meunier

It’s been a while since I’ve put together new solo material, but new 8-bit indie songs are in the works,. I’m planning on releasing a full-length album on iTunes in the coming months. Unlike my free e.p. The Beacon, it’ll cost money, but the quality of the recording and the tunes themselves will be much beefier. This new album will feature the same Game Boy/Guitar sound combination featured in my previous work, though I’m making some songs with LSDJ on an old-school DMG and others on a Game Boy Micro with Nanoloop 2.3 (which I used for The Beacon). Here’s a new tune from the upcoming album. Enjoy!

8-Bit Snippet: “The Beacon” in 2PP’s Uncharted 3 Documentary Short

Posted on December 13, 2010 by Nathan Meunier

Color me psyched. So Naughty Dog rolled out the first teaser for Uncharted 3 at the Spike Video Game Awards. While that’s pretty awesome stuff, what I’m really pumped about is this cool mini-documentary that 2 Player Productions just put out featuring some behind-the-scenes action with the Naughty Dog folks. The 2PP guys were nice enough to include a short snippet of my 8-bit music right as the credits kick in, which is super awesome. They used the title track for my e.p. The Beacon. You can still download the thing in its entirety for FREE right here. Feel like streaming it online? Hop on over here at the Free Music Archive. I’m gradually working on more 8-bit music and will be releasing more jams in the future as time permits, but I’ve been pretty busy between freelancing, working on my book Geek Beat Manifesto, and playing with my actual live (non 8-bit) band.

You can check out 2 Player Productions’ Uncharted 3 documentary over here at Joystiq.

Chip Bits: The Depreciation Guild – Spirit Youth

Posted on July 14, 2010 by Nathan Meunier

I first stumbled across Famicom indie rockers The Depreciation Guild way back in 2006 before the first Blip Festival and was immediately sucked into their absorbing, 8-bit infused shoegazey rock sound. While many artists drawing from the chip music world focus on a purist approach revolving around a favored piece of old school gaming hardware, this group used the retro bleeps and noise hits to drive a very different kind of musical vibe awash in reverb-laden guitars and subdued melodies. Their second full length album, Spirit Youth, showcases an incredible amount of polish and a substantive evolution in the band’s sound.

Listening to Spirit Youth, it’s clear the band has grown and undergone some changes over the years. Where their first album In Her Gentle Jaws showcased more of a raw, edgy sound that was bathed heavily in the pleasant sounds of the Nintendo Famicom, Spirit Youth ventures into musical territory situated on the poppier, safer end of the spectrum. The 8-bit sounds are frequently relegated to the background on most tracks, leaving the listener wondering if there even there at times. That’s a bit disappointing, considering how prominently they factored into the earlier songs – something I enjoyed immensely about the band’s music. But the familiar 8-bit sounds do shine through the highly polished studio mix, and the songwriting remains as tight as ever.

It took some time to adjust to the melded sound, but Spirit Youth got it’s hooks in me soon enough. While the opener, My Chariot, immediately fired off an introductory barrage of NES synth arpeggios, it was the upbeat and melancholy bounce of Crucify You that first grew on me. Midway through the album, the melodic Sonic Youth-esque guitar licks in Trace blended nicely with the subtle downward synth drone in the chorus, making for another standout track. Through the Snow‘s urgent, driving beat and strong undercurrent of pulse channel noodling was equally appealing. Other songs filled in the gaps pleasantly, showcasing the band’s tight musicianship, meticulous guitar work, and ample vocal prowess. There’s not a dud among the lot, though the stylistic peaks and valleys between tracks doesn’t seem as stark as those found among the group’s prior work.

Compared to In Her Gentle Jaws, The Depreciation Guild’s latest effort is a very different animal. It’s a big departure that perhaps plays it safe a little too often. Yet this follow-up album is a tightly crafted effort that I can highly recommend nonetheless. You can pick up a copy of Spirit Youth from Kanine Records.

New 8-bit Indie Tunes Free Download

Posted on July 12, 2010 by Nathan Meunier

Ok, I’ve been “chipping” away at writing and recording some new 8-bit indie rock tunes using my old school Game Boy DMG, LSDJ, and my trusty old six string. I’ve got three new tunes recorded at the moment for what will be my next full album, and I’m posting this here for regular readers to check out, download, and provide feedback on. These tunes don’t have names yet, they’re not necessarily the final mixes, and they’re simply the first pass at recording and mixing the tunes. I’d love to get some feedback on these few songs, particularly in how they contrast to the six songs on The Beacon e.p. (which you can still download for free, by the way, but I do like $3 donations for the effort). In any event, here are the three new songs for you to check out and critique:

Song 1 (download here)
Song 2 (download here)
Song 3 (download here)

8-Bit Indie Rock: Download The Beacon e.p. For Free

Posted on May 10, 2010 by Nathan Meunier

Most folks who know me from around these parts are probably only familiar with my writing and video game-related work. Prior to making a go of being a writer, I spent many years as a musician playing in bands, putting out albums, doing shows, touring, etc. I don’t do much of that anymore, but I recently got back into writing and recording tunes while doing research and interviews for Geek Beat Manifesto. While exploring the ins and outs of LSDJ and Nanoloop, I also dusted off a few old guitars and started playing. Happy with the sounds I was making, I sat down and started recording everything. The result is my first instrumental 8-bit indie album, The Beacon, which I’m releasing today through my website as a free download. You can freely download all six tracks over at the album’s page here. If you enjoy the music, please consider making a $3 Paypal donation via the button found underneath the download links to help support future albums I’ll be writing and releasing. Please feel free to pass around the linkage and spread the word. Thanks for listening.