Last week I told you about the Amphiletes and how they had released their new single "Where is the Light" as a basic video game. It wasn't anything groundbreaking, but lately I've been finding more and more people interested in using simple games to showcase their songs rather than music videos.
Jason Oda illustrated his obsession with the Perfect Strangers them song with Nothing's Gonna Stop Me Now, Robot Unicorn Attack forever changed the way people listen to Erasure's "Always," and Bjork released an app album.
The idea of using video game as music videos is very innovative. It utterly engages a listener on several different levels, including visually and kinetically. Plus, offering prizes for high scores is a great way to garner interest. I don't think it will ever catch on a standard release medium, but it might be interesting to see a young, daring record label churn out a game sampler for their artists.
Or... maybe some of our hometown heroes could sweet-talk a designer or two into pixelating them into greatness.
6. Two Star Symphony: With four members, our favorite classical group seems like the perfect team for an old-school, side-scrolling beat-'em-up with their awesome scores playing in the background. Rather than traipse through the city fighting crime, TSS would be sucked into the silent films they so often perform music for live. Imagine bow-whipping rage across the lush landscapes of Metropolis, Nosferatu and The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari.
5. The Manichean: Cory Sinclair and Justice Tirapelli-Jamail are absolute masters are creating songs and sound experiences that immerse listeners in a world of their own unique creations. Only something cutting-edge like Thomas Brush's Coma could do justice to the warm madness of the Manichean's music. It wouldn't be an adventure, it would be a dissolution of reality.
4 .Black Leather Jesus: On the other hand is the mindfucking disturbofest that is Black Leather Jesus. You'd think their music has no video-game equivalent, but thanks to Japan that's not true.
The video above is a PS1 release called LSD: Dream Simulator. It has no plot, no objectives, and all you do is wander around an ever shifting and insane world that was based off a decade of dream journals by the creator. I think it's time for a sequel starring BLJ that focuses exclusively on nightmares.