SEGA Tunes

SEGA Tunes SEGAbits Staff Spotlight: A.J. Rosa

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For SEGAbits’ 3rd anniversary I thought I’d devote this month’s Tuesday Tunes to choices from other staff members! This week we’ll be highlighting the host for the SEGAbits video series “My Life With SEGA” A.J. Rosa. His selection? Two songs from The Terminator for the SEGA CD, a game that he covered in My Life With SEGA as part of his Schwarzenegger double feature. Enjoy!

The Terminator for SEGA CD didn’t have any fancy scaling and rotation effects; it’s true. However, it did have a kickass soundtrack! That’s saying a lot, because I generally criticize movie-licensed games when they fail to include score from the actual film. While it does feature Brad Fiedel’s iconic theme, the score was written and performed by Tommy Tallarico. The man is a legend in his field, having scored hundreds of games, such as Earthworm Jim, Unreal, Robocop vs. The Terminator and Cool Spot. Rather than aping Fiedel’s destinctive style, Tallarico went his own way and wrote something more akin to rock opera. It’s bursting with wicked electronic guitars that kick-start your adrenaline, melodies that inspire feelings of foreboding and desperation….

That’s certainly appropriate.

This score is so fucking awesome that I made a copy for the car. I’ll listen to “Future Shock” on my way to work, “Destinations Unknown” on my way home. That CD didn’t leave my player for a month. So what you’re about to listen to is – essentially – my Going to work/Going home ritual. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

Check out the songs below the break!

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SEGA Tunes: Space Harrier

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Even when I first played it on Shenmue in 2001, Space Harrier was an incredibly unique game. Trippy, animated and hard as fuck, Space Harrier was one of my favorite past times in Shenmue…aside from forklift racing, of course. What really made the game experience, and what helped keep me coming back to spend my hard earned money that I should really have been saving up for Hong Kong, was the kick ass sound track.

The Space Harrier theme remains an all-time classic in SEGA’s library, and one that I hope continues to be revisited in future SEGA games. You can expect us to revisit the track plenty of times via official and fan remixes!

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SEGA Tunes: Project X Zone

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Now I don’t know about you, but I definitely didn’t see Project X Zone’s western release coming, especially given the fact that the last several crossover strategy games from Monolith and Banpresto never even made it out of Japan. So what better way to celebrate this crossover’s surprise localization then to post some tunes from the game?

Today, we’ll be featuring the epic main theme as well as the music from the trailer, “Brave New World”. In the future, you can also expect us to feature tracks from the variety of SEGA franchises represented in the game, including Sakura Taisen, Virtua Fighter, Resonance of Fate and Shining Force EXA.

Check out Brave New World after the jump.

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SEGA Tunes: Super Hang-On’s Outride a Crisis (Arranged Version)

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Compared to some of the other big SEGA racing franchises like Outrun and Daytona USA, Hang-On hasn’t really gotten all that much love in recent years. I’ve personally only played the game through Shenmue, having never even seen the arcade cabinet in real life. While I haven’t had much experience with the Hang-On franchise, that hasn’t stopped me from enjoying its soundtrack! When I was looking for new SEGA soundtracks, Hang-On was one of the first places I looked. SEGA’s arcade games always seem to have the most enjoyable and catchy tracks in SEGA library and this one did not disappoint!

Enjoy and please share your own memories of this track and the game itself below.

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SEGA Tunes: Astal’s “Let Me Try Again!” and “River of Dreams”

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Astal is a severely underrated game, even by Saturn standards. Even when people talk about the great underappreciated games, discussion of Astal never really seems to come up. It’s not hard to imagine why: Astal was an unapologetically two dimensional game released in an era when games that weren’t pushing polygons or where at the very least pre-rendered were all but ignored. That’s a crying shame, because Astal is not only a beautiful and well-crafted platformer, but also plays host to an awesome soundtrack.

The Japanese vocalized opening posted above was only the tip of the iceberg. Astal is a game loaded with spectacular tunes, which we will be featuring more of later in the year. Perhaps during a certain themed month of a certain console? Who knows!

Check below the fold for another awesome track from the game, “River of Dreams”.

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SEGA Tunes Anniversary: Phantasy Star Online 2

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A few months ago, someone suggested to me that I use Tuesday Tunes to introduce people to the more obscure works of SEGA’s music library. I was told that my choices were often too predictable, and that I was focusing on works people were already familiar with. That person was right. Since it started in its new form a year ago, Tuesday Tunes has spent much of its time focusing on newer games and games that SEGA fans are more familiar with. Though many of the games that person suggest I feature were games I had either already featured or were games I am currently saving for future themed months I’d like to do, the criticism had convinced me to two things: feature more obscure tracks from a wider variety of games and other SEGA related media, and to also think about just what Tuesday Tunes was supposed to be about. You saw the results of the former last week. As for the latter, well, I came to that decision this week as I was reflecting on a year of Tuesday Tunes for the purpose of this article.

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SEGA Tunes Holiday Special: Featuring Sakura Wars and Shenmue!

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How do you know something is big in Japan? When the above exists. I’m sure many of you have heard of Sakura Wars, SEGA’s series of strategy/dating simulator games that until recently never made it outside of Japan, but did you know that the franchise has also been used as the source material for a variety of stage shows dating all the way back to 1997?

The above video is from a Christmas stage show that the cast of the games performed back in 1998. In it, you can see many of the core cast members of the original Sakura Wars being portrayed by their voice actors as they sing a variety of Christmas tunes. Its hard to believe that there was once a SEGA franchise big enough to warrant this amount of production.

So pour yourself some eggnog, sit back and enjoy some pleasant Christmas-y SEGA tunes. Given that this is Christmas, we can’t exactly just give you one song now can we? Check below the fold for more Christmas music from both Sakura Taisen and Shenmue.

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SEGA Tunes: Sonic Generations’ Casino Night Modern Remix

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The Sonic series has played host to a wide variety of musical styles over the years, ranging from the old school chiptunes of the Genesis era to today’s modern cheese rock from bands like Crush 40. Never, however, have I ever thought to associate Sonic the Hedgehog with swing music. That is, until Sonic Generations was released.

Anyone who’s been paying close attention to Tuesday Tunes may know I have an affection for old school American genres like jazz and swing. So, when I first heard this track play in Sonic Generations 3DS, I was blown away. This is a really great piece of swing, serving as the perfect backdrop for the remake of Sonic’s first casino stage. Easily my favorite remix to come out of the Sonic Generations games.

Of course, it helps that the original track from Sonic 2 was also pretty kick ass. Nice example of what the Genesis could do musically in the right hands. Go ahead and see for yourself below the fold!

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SEGA Tunes All-Stars: Burning Rangers’ Angels With Burning Hearts

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The inclusion of a Burning Rangers course is easily one of the biggest surprises in Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed. In addition to a surprisingly dynamic stage that has you racing through an underwater water park that is slowly falling apart and filling with water over the course of the race, you are also treated to an excellent remix of the game’s main theme; Angels with Burning Hearts, courtesy of Richard Jacques.

This week I’ve decided to go with the Japanese version of the track, given that I’m sure you’ve all heard the English lyrics ad nauseam while racing through the course. Keep an ear out for the awesome saxophone solo at the three minute mark! Check out Richard Jacques’ remix of this track after the break.

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SEGA Tunes All Stars: Space Harrier Main Theme

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This track acts as the perfect book end for a near perfect SEGA tribute. Much like After Burner, Space Harrier is an arcade classic with an awesome soundtrack. Are you feeling down today? Do you need a little pick me up? No worries, because I’ve brought an extended version of this song today. If you’re feeling blue, just sit back for 15 minutes and let this little tune wisk you away to a far off place with dragons and giant floating heads and some blonde dude inexplicably floating in mid-air with a giant laser gun.

So as to not get the hopes of anyone who hasn’t beaten the game yet up, Space Harrier is not in this game. Just the soundtrack, which plays on a track I don’t intend to spoil.

Speaking of spoilers, though, you’d best have beaten the game by next Tuesday. For the last three weeks I’ve been sitting on music for a course that Sumo kept under wraps so as to not spoil the surprise. Next week I’m spilling the beans. So you’d best have beaten Career Mode by then!

Still want more music from the fantasy zone? Check below the fold for a remixed vocal version of the Fantasy Zone theme from the 1996 SEGA AGES release! Its pretty sick.

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SEGA Tunes All Stars: After Burner theme, Bayonetta Remix

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I think there are two things any group of SEGA fans can agree on: After Burner is pretty awesome, and the After Burner easter egg in Bayonetta is one of the coolest moments in the last decade of gaming. After years of dormancy, the After Burner franchise has seen a resurgence of sorts over the last several years, including the XBLA/PSN release of the latest superb entry in the franchise After Burner Climax, as well as cameos in four games including SEGA Superstars Tennis, Shinobi 3DS, the aforementioned Bayonetta easter egg, and of course Sonic & All Stars Racing Transformed.

This track is easily my favorite rendition of the Afterburner theme. It’s a shame they didn’t use this version in All Stars Racing Transformed. Check out the original theme after the break.

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SEGA Tunes All Stars: Vyse’s Theme

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With All Stars just a week away, now seems like the perfect time to start posting Tuesday Tunes again, focusing tunes for the characters and tracks featured in the game.

Skies of Arcadia is an upbeat game that eschews the usual heavy drama common in Japanese RPGs for optimism and a thrill for adventure. Embodying this is Vyse, a young idealistic air pirate who wants explore the world and do things no one else has ever done before. The above track is the perfect theme for the character, embodying Vyse’s energy and optimism.

I’ve got Fina’s character theme below the fold for another dose of Skies of Arcadia auditory glory!

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SEGA Tunes: Daytona USA “Let’s Go Away -H. version”

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In this month’s Tuesday Tune, we’re going to upload some familiar Sega racing tunes to our readers as Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed will be hitting our local game stores in two weeks. To fill your racing mood for November, the first Sega tune will be the remix “Let’s Go Away -H. version” sung by none other than Takenobu Mitsuyoshi, composer for Sega Corporation who is known for his awesome musical scores on several Sega titles since 1990 such as Virtua Fighter & Shenmue. Mitsuyoshi-san uploaded this video to promote the rerelease of Daytona USA for digital platforms. One thing that has been bugging me for a while, why hasn’t Sumo have this awesome man to sing a theme song for Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed? That would fill the mood for me to race players online. How about you guys?

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SEGA Tunes: A Ghost’s Pumpkin Soup & Revenge

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Halloween is kickin’ tomorrow with a bang. Just for this special occasion for this eerie holiday, The SEGABits staff and I decided to give you to classic tunes from our beloved Sega franchises. A Ghost’s Pumpkin Soup from Sonic Adventure 2 composed by Tomoya Ohtani and lyrics sung by Hunnid-P. I’m not a huge fan of rap but with Knuckles stages in Sonic Adventure 2, I can groove to. The song describes Knuckles going through the haunted hills fighting off Boos (ugly looking creeps that really like to scare the **** out of you). The song gives out that eerie feeling to it mixed with rap and I believe it gave out a memorable feel to Sonic fans during the time. I still remember playing this stage on the Sega Dreamcast for the first time. The first time I heard this song, I nod my head going through the Church only to be chased away by a ghost. After the break, we go within the hallways of The House of the Dead.

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SEGA Tunes: Rhythm Thief Month “Melody of Hope”

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Melody of Hope is a very dynamic, beautful track. Despite it’s name, it does not start out as an optimistic song. Indeed, from the offset it’s quite foreboding. Then, about midway, it begins to change it’s tone. There is some genuine conflict in the song as it evolves into something truly optimistic and uplifting. This is the kind of track that can really be appreciated on it’s own, even without a game, and highlights just how spectacular the Rhythm Thief soundtrack can be. It also goes very well with its plays in the game’s storyline, which I won’t elaborate upon so as to avoid spoilers.

Below is Moon Princess, Marie’s first song in the game and alongside Melody of Hope, also one of the its best tracks.

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