YMCK: Japanese 8-bit Virtuosos, Music Videos
It would be unfair to mention the free Magical 8-bit Plug-in without acknowledging who created it: the insanely talented Japanese chiptune band, YMCK:
YMCK Official Site [English]
YMCK Events [Japanese]
YMCK @ Myspace
And, most importantly:
Their style is a unique mash-up of the tightly-quantized, hyperactively cheery iconic Nintendo music with even more densely-packed jazzy harmonies than Mario could muster. It isn’t about gimmick: this sounds like someone who was practicing 8-bit at age four the way some people practice violin. Or, as they put it:
While the sound is cheap, the song compositions are influenced by jazz from the 1950’s and 1960’s, with a clear and feather-light 4-beat rhythm underlying sophisticated harmony progressions. The experimental combination of these two features has resulted in the unique YMCK sound, which is neither techno music nor jazz. YMCK uses limited 8-bit sound to take you out for dreamland.
Yeah, pretty much that last sentence. The trio includes a talented 8-bit animator, so prepare to spend the next hour in dreamland on YouTube. Just a couple of quick examples:
Muchas gracias to “Pants” in comments for bringing this to our attention, and, best of all, noting that you can get their albums outside Japan, along with plenty of other gems, at:
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6 Comments
Leave a CommentCreate Digital Music » 8-bit Nintendo Sounds as a Free Windows/Mac Plug-in (Add an NES to GarageBand, Stompbox NES FX)
[...] Updated: The only thing cooler than this plug-in? The band that built it, YMCK [...]
July 11, 2006 @ 11:41 am
mike
i saw them live once in tokyo (shimokitazawa, opening for motocompo). they were using several famicom controllers, pretty fun.
July 11, 2006 @ 1:07 pm
Pants
Anyone who makes music that great and that fun… and then donates their personal tools for the common good deserves recognition I think. Thanks for taking note.
July 11, 2006 @ 5:48 pm
J-chot
that’s…really not that great, I like xik’s tunes better….
http://www.wayfar.net/0×000000_mp3.php
(it’s the guy who MAKES the midines!)
go listen to “transmission”
there’s another song by him called chippin, that’s really awesome but I can’t find it
July 12, 2006 @ 10:25 am
Create Digital Music » Free YMCK Magical 8bit Plugin Now Universal for Intel Macs
[...] Japanese 8-bit Virtuosos, Music Videos 4 NAMM Music Gear Gallery on CDM flickr Pool; Post Your Photos or Enjoy OursNAMM: Vestax VCI-100,Heavy Metal MIDI Controller for the DJ [...]
January 25, 2007 @ 12:12 am
YMCK - 8 Bit experiences at Hearlulu.com : Hear Lulu! : MP3 Blog : Podcast
[...] lebih lengkap tentang mereka. official site myspace wikipedia videos @ Youtube kalau tertarik bikin musik seperti mereka. coba download plu-ins nya nya disini >>> [...]
February 11, 2007 @ 1:39 am
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