In this post:
1. I took that test again. And…
2. James Kochalka’s live chiptunes (at least in NYC) debut!
3. Once again, Zip Car + New Jersey = wacky!!!
4. And a bunch of random game related links.
So, how was everyone’s weekend? Mine was the same old, same old…
- Friday night I re-took the census-taking test. Didn’t get in nearly as much study time as I had hope, much like the week prior, but wasn’t completely unprepared either. In addition to knowing what to expect this time, I was able to relearn basic, 5th grade arithmetic via assorted YouTube videos. Seriously, I watched a bunch of videos like this.
For better or worse, the entire process itself wasn’t half as eventful as before. In place of that crazy old vet from last time was some ratty looking dude who appeared to be homeless (not that there’s anything wrong with that of course, and in fact, the very notion of a person trying to get off the streets by acquiring a job is obviously commendable). Though his growling and biting the air around him early on did signify the possibility of a spectacle that would be amusing at first, but ultimately drag the proceedings out and become annoying, much like the aforementioned old guy. Though in the end, he was just another eccentric New Yorker, nothing more, nothing less, so no real stories to share on that end. Otherwise, the only thing left to mention is my score, which was a 95! Only got two questions wrong, and even though I was aiming for a perfect 100, I’m pretty sure I’m in good standing and will get the call when work finally becomes available. Mostly, I just don’t feel like blowing a third Friday night in a row for such a thing.
- The very next evening was the first Pulsewave of the year 2010. And a special one at that; this particular gathering of chiptuners at The Tank saw the True Child Till Death 2009 Awards. Peter Swimm, the man who runs the chiptune related news and review site, was on-hand to help run the show, which was similar to most other ceremonies you’ve probably seen; between the awards being handed out were several live performances.
Things kicked off with a short set by the awards’ musical director, Oxygenstar, who I had never seen or heard of before, and who I need to see again; dude was something terrific. Immediately afterwards, the MC for the evening, Glomag hit the stage and sang an awesome rendition of the Tom Jones classic “Isn’t It Unusual”, followed by the first round of awards. All the winners had their accompanying hacked NES graphics, which was neat to say the least…
The second performer of the night (not counting all those who played during the chiptune open mic, which I completely missed out on) was Mark Denardo, who like always, did something a little kooky, and totally different; while sitting on an amp (or perhaps just nearby, it was hard to tell from my vantage point), he soulfully strummed a guitar to create a soundscape for a really old (to the point of being public domain) cartoon projected on the big screen, featuring a panda and his animal friends in ancient China. It was actually quite nice, but the audience didn’t quite dig; everyone was rather listless and lost in conversation. I think it might be better suited for a slightly different occasion and crowd, and hope that happens soon!
Got the chance to talk with the star attraction before he hit the stage, with whom I’ve chit-chatted with numerous times, but at indie comic shows (in fact, last time it was at SPX, about his Pocky & Rocky covers). The funniest part there was when I introduced him to Josh Davis, and didn’t realized till after their exchange that it was the world renown Bit Shifter! Who then immediately had to find him out and tell him “btw, I didn’t know who you were, I am a BIG fan of your music!” But yeah, Mark’s set was fantastic and I get the chance to see it again, in a slightly more conducive atmosphere.
Next up was the second round of awards, including the one for best visuals, which prompted Nullsleep to hit the stage the deliver the quote at the very top. But afterward was the aforementioned superstart, James Kochalka…
… I’ve seen James perform countless times, back in the day, when he used to do shows in the city with his rock band. This was back when I was in school and his album Monkey Vs Robot had just come out. I’m afraid that I haven’t done the best of jobs keeping track of his musical output, though I did discover a while back that he had dabbled in chiptunes, and we even talked about it at SPX 08 (mostly over his rather nifty Pocky & Rocky cover that I had heard “somewhere”). So when I discovered that he was finally going to perform Game Boy music live, and for the first time ever (outside of his hometown, mind you), I simply had to be there. Not just to see Kochalka, but also to witness how the audience would react; Pulsewave might not be as high profile as the Blip Fest, but it’s still a very major deal in its own right.
Before his performance, I asked James if he had ever gone to a chiptunes show before, and the answer was no. And when I inquired as to what he thought, he was fairly blown away, almost overwhelmed. James noted that he was pretty nervous since he always had his band to provide back-up, and this time it would be just him on-stage. I also went into the detail about the performance aspects of chiptunes and what the audience expects, especially a seasoned crowd, like those who show up to Pulsewave or any NYC chip show. Even though everyone understands that much of the audio is pre-programmed (via special cartridges that act like music trackers, like LittleSoundDJ and Nanoloop), or because of it, the audience wants some improvisation if possible. The actual performance is quite important, at least to chiptune aficionados, and I guess I count as one..
Finally I asked what his plan was; he had brought his GBA and accompanying tools, as well as a back-up iPod in case anything went wrong (which unfortunately is a common occurrence; sometimes a flash cart might totally freeze and all the night’s music is totally gone with it). In the end, James simply sang and danced around, while Peter played songs on command…
… Not gonna lie; as much fun as it is too see the man go crazy on stage and interact with the audience, I was really hoping to see him directly interact with the hardware. But anyway, how was Kochalka’s NYC chiptune debut? Truth be told, somewhat awkward, at least in the beginning. For whatever reason, he went with plan B, maybe because there was a technical issue or perhaps he wanted to do something more performance based. Things were fairly rocky in the beginning; since Peter hadn’t been briefed on how to properly fire up the songs, one song kept playing before James was ready, which forced a bunch of restarts. There was a point in which James had to explain in minute detail what he wanted exactly, which was rather uncomfortable; at first the audience thought it was part of the act, but soon it was clear that this was not the case.
Thankfully, it didn?t last long, and James managed to win the crowd back with an improvised, acapella tune that showered love and affection towards his brand new sound guy. Though what really won everyone over was his selection of songs written by one of his sons, whose very own chiptune band recently played at his grade school talent show. I believe one was about robots versus bears…
… And here he is explaining to everyone what a blog war is, for his song “blog war”. Kochalka also explained a bit about himself, like how he’s used to performing live music with a band for many years, but has also experimented with chiptunes for some time now as well. And how when he approached his band-mates about the idea of performing chip music together, they gave him a very less than amused and resounding “no”. His passionate and reasonable arguments as to why chiptunes is so awesome went completely ignored, hence why Kochalka decided to strike out on his own.
There was also another song about his son his love for eating pussy (and yes, both of his sons are no older than five or six it I’m not mistaken) that got the crowd shaking. Another made this girl next to meowing throughout… might have been the same one, I forget. Later on, he went into the audience and gave everyone a hugs, and that was sweet.
Now, some of you might have noticed that James is slowly shedding his clothes. Well here is, singing about some big, golden bird, half naked…
… His set ended with him going ape-sh*t on the floor. I’m surprised that he didn’t get totally nude (which he did once, many years ago, at one of those performances I mentioned before). In the end, those who had been long-time fans of the man’s music (or simply comics) were not disappointed, and all those who had no idea who this guy was in the beginning, were made into converts. Here’s hoping he comes back for Blip Fest 2010!
Kochalka was immediately followed by additional awards, and… a chiptunes stand up comic. Now, anyone whose been to any sort of science fiction or fantasy convention might have encountered a sci fi, fantasy, or comic book comedian. And those people already know that it’s hell on earth (hence why I’m glad to have never encountered a video game equivalent, at least not yet). So when Peter Berkman-, I’m sorry, Skip Reynolds hit the stage, I had no idea what to expect. But the guy was actually hilarious! The best part was his impression of Bit Shifter, driving a car, and getting in a ski accident…
Here’s one last pic, of Bit Shifter and Nullsleep, accepting the best label award. It’s blurry and dark as all hell, but since they posed for it, I feel like a jerk-off for not including it…
… And if I end up going to GDC (I know it appeared to be a certainty in the past, but this have somewhat changed on my end, so it’s looking like 50/50 at this point… actually 30/70, unfortunately), a new camera will be part of the deal. I think. I hope.
Unfortunately, couldn’t stick around for Trashman (who made a surprise return from this triumphant showing at Blip Fest 09) or Animal Style, because I had to get up nice and early the next day, for…
- Katie and I rented another Zip Car for yet another day in Jersey, and this time we brought Colleen with us! There’s really not too much to say here, so I’ll just let the pictures do the talking; first stop was Party City, to pick up stuff for me & Katie?s big party next weekend. We mostly just tried on funny hats and masks…
… Though there was plenty of other wackiness to gawk at…
… Next stop was the Korean superstore, where funny hats could also be found at the gift shop…
… Remember that gigantic Zeta Gundam that I had my eye on? Finally asked how much it was; woman behind the counter gave a chuckle and stated “well over $200″ under the assumption that I would find such a price ridiculous. And actually, I don’t! Katie also wanted me to take a picture of that mutant chicken leg, also from before, that looked like it was from the Planet Zebes, but alas, it was nowhere to be found. So instead, check out all this kimchee!
At the snack counter; some “extreme” M&M’s…
Next we hit Toys R Us…
And then Ikea…
… Not to much show from the rest of the trip. Went to Mitsuwa, of course, but didn’t pull out the camera because there was no Mudkips!
- Anyhow, been meaning to pass along another massive link-dump (or as Eric from Tiny Cartridge calls them, my round-up of alternative gaming news/media, which sounds 100% classier) for the few days now, which would cover the rest of January to kick off February proper. But here it day two into the new month, and I’m so woefully behind on so many things that it just ain’t happening anytime soon. Mostly because I’m THIS close to beating No More Heroes 2; I was afraid that as awesome as it, perhaps pound for pound better than the first game, it might not have a boss fight that’s as magnificent as Bad Girl’s, till I came toe to toe with the Russian astronaut late last night. Holy sh*t, is it ever awesome (and I officially need the soundtrack STAT).
So instead, here’s just a few random, game-related pics that was going to be included, and perhaps has a better chance of being seen since they aren’t all deep and buried. First is something that’s definitely making the rounds, and which Katie first alerted me to…
Next, a picture from Slonie‘s recent trip to Japan, and long dream finally realized; a snapshot of himself, in his custom Taitovision tee along side the two-screen wide Darius…
This one is also from Slonie, I think?
And here’s something that Joe Salina recently tossed into the forums. I have no idea what it is going on…
Via Tumblr…
And via 4chan…
Finally, recently came across a random Japanese image board that had a f*ckton of awesome Darkstalkers pics. Gonna post the best ones (IMHO) over at Life Meter later tonight, but here’s my fave that might be too hot too hand for the generally speaking, all-ages portal…
- Speaking of too hot to handle, I recently got the 99% completed version of the FORT90ZINE’s centerfold, illustrated by Hilary, and good God is it hawt. Can’t wait to share it! And I just got an 85% version of the new cover as well, from Kinuko, and it too looks absolutely amazing! Gonna be the best issue yet, y’all. Just saying.
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