Category: Multiemedia Monday

I’ve talked about Anamanaguchi before. They are a chiptune group, who have gone on to do things like Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World: The Game (the soundtrack). Recently, they’ve been taking part in a Kickstarter event – hoping to make their new album, Endless Fantasy, more than just an album. I contributed to it as soon as I had found out about it (it exceeded funding goals pretty quickly). Before I knew it, even before they had a chance to realize what was happening, they raised over a quarter of a million dollars.

The band already released the album as a digital download for their backers. Just by that process, they were able to track enough sales to debut the album at Number 1 on the Billboard Heatseakers charts, and #2 on the Dance Chart (putting them even above will.i.am). Anybody looking to get in on it early can order Endless Fantasy on Amazon, as an MP3 download, a CD, or even on vinyl.

This album strays from some standard chiptune fare. It has a few tracks featuring vocals, other talents of the band are highlighted beyond their standard backing with the chiptune as the main act, and Endless Fantasy doesn’t force every track to be a pop song. Some of the tracks are a bit more introspective, a little bit slowed down – not like the fast action fighting game stuff we heard in the Scott Pilgrim game sound track. But that certainly doesn’t account for the entire album which, I’ve neglected to mention thus far, is 27 tracks. The tracks often drift one in to the other and in the end I’m always left with a positive experience. I might not feel excited and energized the same as after some of their previous work, but I certainly feel refreshed. And that’s exactly what this album is. Refreshing. Different enough from their previous work to not be “just more of the same” – and certainly different from anything else out there. Even other chiptune artists. Anamanguchi’s Endless Fantasy is yet another reason that they are one of the leaders of the genre. And if all that isn’t enough, then check this out: They sent a slice of Pizza in to space. Just because they could. No really, watch below.

Don’t forget to check out Anamanaguchi.com to find out when the unique experience of an Anamanaguchi show will be coming to your town. Further setting themselves apart from anyone else out there right now, they aren’t afraid to cater to their digital fans by animating their album cover art and tour poster!

Almost two years ago, I bought this giant box set of my childhood. It was the G.I. Joe A Real American Hero: Complete Collectors Set [The Complete Series]. GI Joe was “the toy” I played with in the days before video games. I watched the Ninja Turtles cartoon, and I was one of the few who may have liked GO-Bots more than Transformers – but when it came to having a ton of any one kind of toy? GI Joe was my weakness.

The GI Joe cartoon was an early morning addiction. I have a childhood memory of waking up in the middle of the night and going in to the living room, then turning on the TV. My parents came out of their bedroom and sent me back to bed. I just wanted to watch GI Joe, but it was only about 4:30 in the morning and not 7:30! Oh the days of being a child, without even having a clock in your room! I just lived for all-things GI Joe. I’ve handed my toys down to my cousin’s children, and when we talked about our memories, we came to found out we both bought the same mini-footlocker of DVDs to relive our childhood! These GI Joe episodes were so memorable, and I think I’m going to rip and digitize my collection in the near future. So I thought I would share and see if anybody else remembered the GI Joe series! If ever there was a promo for a must-have toy, GI Joe was it, and they had me hook, line, and sinker. I even had the game for my Commodore 64! The least you can do is relive the good ol’ days, with some nice bonus treats found in the G.I. Joe A Real American Hero: Complete Collectors Set [The Complete Series].

I’ve mentioned The Grammar Club before. I talked about their 2008 album, Bremelanotide. It’s a pop album featuring rap, chiptune, and blending genres into something simply head-bobbingly enjoyable.

One of the rappers on the album, Beefy, said that the group may never make another track like “Balloon Fight” or “Alternate Ending” – but he was quite happy with how these tracks came out on their newest album, Bioavailable. I’ve only had a chance to listen through it once, and I was admittedly a little distracted, but I had to let people know about it, because I really keep finding this super-group of nerdcore songwriters the kind of music I keep going back to.

And if you’re the kind of person who likes remixing music or making mashups, you can pick up the Accapellas or Instrumentals. Even if you just want to listen to the regular Bioavailable album, it’s all available on BandCamp at a Pay-What-You-Want rate. You can get it for free. Or, you can pay ten bucks like I did and just do a little something nice for these guys!

Archer. A cartoon that isn’t for kids. At all. It is an animated series about an alcoholoic, womanizing secret-agent defends the world from evil, while dealing with repressed mommy issues. And every minute of it is hysterical.

I knew the show had promise, but now that we’re four seasons deep in to this show, it just keeps getting better. One of the things I love is that each episode is just stuffed full of great comedy moments. The show is a run away success, but they aren’t trying to drag it out with pointless side plots and new story arcs. There is one main plot, and each episode is going to make you laugh, whether it progresses the story or not. It’s not trying too hard to be anything other than what it is. And every week it pushes the envelope of what you thought you could get away with on television.

Archer: The Complete Season Four is available for pre-order on DVD – or, if you’re more tech savvy than your friends, you can easily stream it online in HD, along with HD versions of seasons one, two, and three. It’s not for everyone, but it is something that I enjoy immenslely, and I encourage anyone who hasn’t watched it yet to shut up, sit down, and binge watch these four seasons!