Chiptune, also known as chip music, is a style of synthesized electronic music made using the programmable sound generator (PSG) sound chips or synthesizers in vintage arcade machines, computers and video game consoles. The term is commonly used to refer to tracker format music which intentionally sounds similar to older PSG-created music, as well as music that combines PSG sounds with modern musical styles. It has been described as "an interpretation of many genres" since any existing song can be arranged in a chiptune style defined more by choice of instrument and timbre than specific style elements.
Video game music is the soundtrack that accompanies video games. Early video game music was once limited to simple sounds of early programmable sound generator (PSG) chips. These limitations have led to the style of music known as chiptune, and became the most popular sound of the first video games.
Gravis UltraSound or GUS is a sound card for the IBM PC compatible system platform, made by Canada-based Advanced Gravis Computer Technology Ltd. It was very popular in the demo scene during the 1990s.
Les Savy Fav is an American indie rock band based in New York City. Their style is influenced by art punk and post-hardcore. The group is known for the stage presence of lead singer Tim Harrington. The band is signed to Frenchkiss Records, which is owned by the band's bassist, Syd Butler.
Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse is the third Castlevania video game produced for the Nintendo Entertainment System. It was published by Konami in Japan in 1989, and in North America in 1990, and in Europe by Palcom in 1992. It was later released on the Virtual Console for the Wii, Nintendo 3DS, and Wii U.
"I Will Follow" is a song by rock band U2. It is the opening track from their debut album, Boy, and it was released as the album's second single in October 1980. Lead singer Bono wrote the lyrics to "I Will Follow" in tribute to his mother, who died when he was 14 years old.
Hot Chip are an English synthpop band formed in London in 2000. The group consists of multi-instrumentalists Alexis Taylor, Joe Goddard, Al Doyle, Owen Clarke, and Felix Martin. They are occasionally supplemented by Rob Smoughton and Sarah Jones for live performances and studio recordings. The group primarily produces music in the synth-pop and alternative dance genres, drawing influences from house and disco.
Nullsleep is an American electronic musician and computer artist currently residing in New York City. In 1999 he co-founded the low-bit art collective 8bitpeoples, and has served as its lead director since its inception. He is best known for his high-energy Game Boy pop songs.
Pixelh8 is the stage name for Matthew Applegate, a British chiptune composer.
"Wild One" or "Real Wild Child" is an Australian rock and roll song written by Johnny Greenan, Johnny O'Keefe, and Dave Owens. While most sources state that O'Keefe was directly involved in composing the song, this has been questioned by others. Sydney disc jockey Tony Withers was credited with helping to get radio airplay for the song but writer credits on subsequent versions often omit Withers, who later worked in the United Kingdom on pirate stations Radio Atlanta and, as Tony Windsor, on Radio London.
8-Bit Operators: The Music of Kraftwerk was released in 2007 by the group 8-Bit Operators on Kraftwerk's US label Astralwerks and EMI Records worldwide. It features cover versions of Kraftwerk songs by several prominent chiptune artists. Inspiration for the project as quoted by Jeremy Kolosine "Well the first thing that comes to my mind when I saw a gameboy show was Kraftwerk's Computer World Tour from 1981, where four of them played various handheld devices during the song 'Pocket Calculator'. Plus it came up in a print from a Glomag quote, and an 8 Bit Weapon April Fool's joke that backfired.." This Kraftwerk covers compilation was somewhat unusual in the fact that Kraftwerk's Ralf Hütter selected the final track line-up, "So Jeremy was a little nervous when meeting Kraftwerk's Ralf Hütter after a concert by the group in New York last year. He passed along to him a sample of the compilation. Later Hutter said he enjoyed it and even offered some editing suggestions" In a subsequent interview, when asked about the 8-Bit Operators release, Ralf Hütter responded, "It is mind stimulating, the minimum/maximum coming from sound levels and thoughts and ideas. Like Autobahn and Trans-Europe Express are very basic and elementary ideas, but they offer a pattern or concept for improvisation."
8bitpeoples is an artist collective and netlabel centered in New York City that focuses on chiptune aesthetics, which is heavily influenced by vintage videogames. 8bitpeoples was founded in 1999 by Jeremiah "Nullsleep" Johnson and Mike "Tangible" Hanlon. It is run by Johnson and Joshua "Bit Shifter" Davis.
A ROM cartridge, usually referred to in context simply as a cartridge, cart, or card, is a removable memory card containing ROM designed to be connected to a consumer electronics device such as a home computer, video game console or, to a lesser extent, electronic musical instruments. ROM cartridges can be used to load software such as video games or other application programs.
The Blip Festival was a festival that celebrated chiptune music with musical performances, workshops, and screenings of movies. It was held annually starting in 2006 in New York City. In recent years, there have been international versions of Blip Festival held in Europe, Asia, and Australia. The festival is curated and organized by 8bitpeoples, one of the foremost labels in the chiptune scene, as well as local arts organization The Tank. The New York festival has switched venues several times, beginning in 2006 at 15 Nassau Street in Manhattan, then moving to Eyebeam Art and Technology Center in 2007, and then being held in Brooklyn at The Bell House in 2008 and 2009. It went back to Eyebeam in 2011 and then the Gramercy Theatre in 2012.
Machinefabriek is the musical nom de plume of musician/sound artist and graphic designer Rutger Zuydervelt from the Netherlands.
George Alan O'Dowd, known professionally as Boy George, is an English singer, songwriter, DJ, fashion designer, photographer and record producer. He is the lead singer of the pop band Culture Club. At the height of the band's fame, during the 1980s, they recorded global hit songs such as "Karma Chameleon", "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me" and "Time ". George is known for his soulful voice and his androgynous appearance. He was part of the English New Romantic movement which emerged in the late 1970s to the early 1980s.
ill-esha is a Canadian electronic music artist, producer, singer, and DJ known for her work in the bass music world, as well as her unique style of singing and DJing simultaneously.
Next Life is a Norwegian progressive, electronic- and rock-based band led by guitarist and composer Hai Nguyen Dinh, together with Tormod Christensen on bass and Anders Hangård on drums.
Goto80 is a Swedish music artist and researcher. He has been described as one of the key players between glitch and chipmusic, as well as an active demoscener. At the turn of the millennium he was one of the first to bring chipmusic to a wider audience, and was also an early adopter of live Game Boy music. He has an extensive back catalogue of free music – often open source – with a wide span of musical influences. He currently focuses on research and art, and maintains a number of blogs and labels such as Chipflip and the text-mode tumblr.
sleepmakeswaves are an Australian post-rock band who formed in Sydney in December 2006. The group is currently composed of guitarist Otto Wicks-Green, drummer Tim Adderley, and bassist/keyboardist Alex Wilson. To date, they have released four full-length studio albums. The band have achieved notable success internationally for their energetic live performances and modern approach to the post-rock genre. They are currently released through Australian independent record label Bird's Robe Records, which is distributed through MGM in Australia and independently worldwide. In 2013, UK label Monotreme Records licensed their debut album for an international release across the UK, Europe, and North America.
Sydney, NSW, Australia 