This Sinclair Manual has nothing to do with my post exept for the dark retrophuturistic atmoshere.

Sources of inspiration #1
In 10 out ot 10 interviews, even thouse 3 questions to Dubmood ones,  I always get asked about my insperation, and especially my chipmusic sources so I thought writing about it once and for all wouldnt be a bad idea.

Since my first chipmusic experience is synonymous with my first music experience I didnt have any real references to other music. Growing up in a home were the radio was always tuned to news, debate, culture or science instead of music and a combination of science fiction and political literature sat a standard of a pretty desolate future atmosphere.  This is why I have always preferd the wet, cold and sad sound of the Atari ST soundchip before often more prefered machines as the C64 (popular because of the good sound and nostalgie) and gameboy (for the accesibility and hype). The music  from the YM2149f chip was so much more honest and atmospheric, but not only thanks to the oscilators in the chip, but also for the many great composers and their scores or interpretations of scores on the Atari. I used to record all the songs to my sony walkman and listen to them for hours while reading books by Assimov,  Lem, Clark and Herbert.  Then ofcource as every little brother I tried to copy what my brother was listening too, like Prodigy and Kraftwerk – wich isnt a bad combination at all.  Now maybe the picture clears up abit.

But then, it would have been much easier to just copypast my audioscrobbler (last.fm?) stats,  if only my atari could scrobble tracks =)

Anyway, I am going to share a few of thoose to me important videogame scores with you. A little personal selection of retrophutureblipblop.

Paul Shields – Tetra Quest - Straight on my earlier description.  Sad and simple sound and honest harmonies, great athmosphere and, what we love, long scores with some small medleys in the end before looping. This is probably my favourite game score ever. All of Paul Shields made is teh dysotopique retrophuture bomb.

Jas C Brooke – Starquake – Before quake there was starquake, or atleast a little green man with a flying skateboard who shoot pewpewlines on evil flying darts to find parts for his crashed ship. The music fit so good with the poor fellow in the game, and the composer is also the author of a few timeless classics like Ikari Warriors and Outrun.

Matt Furniss – Badlands - I dont care if it sounds alot like Withackers Elevator Action. The song rules, fit perfect to the game, retrophuture Deathrace2000 style racing-game ages before quarantine, carmageddon (and GTA) and if Matt Furniss was only 16 years young when composing it!

Fred Gray – Stargoose – A less fitting but still great uptempo song to a very very stylished game. Wireframe tunnels, chromed spaceships and a goose. little else was composed by same author on the Atari, exept for the great blacklampscore wich is just an interpretation of some ol english elizabetian theme (?).

Wally Beeben – R-type -  Orignal by Satoshi Miyashita.  But the atari St version fits the armageddon-themed fight against the bydo perfectly. In fact, its worth checking in the score for the SuperNintendo version of this game too, spite the cheesy sounds from the SNES chip its alot of great compositions.  Another great song (and game) by this author is Roadwars.

Uncle Art – Afterburner II – Couldnt find this one in the SNDHarchive, sorry.  Also worth listening to the score from the first game, a rock(chip?) classic.

John Michael Phillips – Eliminator – I remember this game as being so fucking difficult. I never get far, but the music was tense! Also the second game with a score by this guy on the Atari: Nebolous, very cool, very very difficult.

Jochen Hippel – Thrust – THRUST, ooooomg o/ O/ O/ thrust! This song is so awesome on so many levels that I had to post it even though its so known. Pure jewel of the dysotopique retrophuture ST style. And madmax made it sligtly better than the original Rob Hubbard c64 version. For some reason my cracked version of Thrust was stripped of its music so I always listend to this song by the Stargoose Crackintro (by the replicants?)

David Withacker – Xenon – And a second very known but still have to mention score. What is missing is the great perpetude one (?) voice.

Alister Brimble – Mig29 – Finishing of wih this coup de ceur. I always wounderd where the interlude comes from, anyone? I remember rediscovering this song as it featured in a Hybrid Crackintro in the mid90s.  Still sounds best on Atari Though.

SSo there goes my early childhood chipmusic insperation.  Hope you like the songs I linked.  If you dont have your SNDHplayer,  get CreamHQs Jam player since its the most true replayroutine outside the Sunnyvale hardplastic box.  Next post will be on my non-game chiptune music insperation.  Or something else. We will see (TM Terminator).