Chiptune Masterpiece Theatre

There's one game that I've been wanting to buy for a while: Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. It's a River City Ransom-esque game where, as Scott Pilgrim, you work your way through the evil exes of your love interest, Ramona Flowers. It's gotten great reviews, and it's got online multiplayer, which is always a big plus for games like this. But what caught my eye most on IGN was this part of the review, where they discussed the music:

"All of this goes down while listening to a brand-spanking new soundtrack from chiptune band Anamanaguchi. The music alone is worth the price -- seriously, this has got to be one of the best game soundtracks I've ever heard. It fits so perfectly, but stands strong on its own. You'll love it. And if you don't, frankly, you don't deserve this game."

Now I'm a BIG fan of chiptune music. I'm also a big fan of quality video game music. Apparently the way to a man's heart is through his stomach, but a well placed chiptune mixtape will suffice in my case. I love the music from the Megaman series and just about any soundtrack from the Super NES catalog (Pilotwings, anyone?). Anyways, what this means is that I had to check out the Scott Pilgrim soundtrack, even if I didn't buy the game.

Anamanaguchi, by the way, is a chiptune band. You hear normal rock band instruments in their arrangements, but the lead is almost always in 8 bit. To say the least, I wasn't disappointed at all.

The music sounds like it comes straight out of some NES/Super NES hybrid, which is a great thing. Boss themes are hard and driving, and most stage music is peppy and theme-appropriate. After a few listens, it became my favorite soundtrack in my music library. Because there's no lyrics, I use it as a study and workout aide- there's always a song in there to keep me going. By the way, if you haven't checked out the Anamanaguchi catalog, I suggest you do. They have a lot of great stuff.

Top 5 Songs on the Album:
2.   Another Winter
8.   Cheap Shop
11. Bollywood
19. Party Stronger
23. Just Like In The Movies