Update: I... HAVE FOUND A NEW ALBUM!

I KNOW I HAVEN'T BEEN POSTING AT ALL LATELY...

Rest assured, I have not given up on this blog. All that's happened is that I've been having trouble finding new albums to review lately. Good thing I just found the OST for The World Ends With You yesterday, I'll have a review up within the next 2 weeks!

Check out my new YouTube channel, TheAmazingDaito, in the meantime. The link is to the right of this post.

Music: Talker

SO, THIS IS WHAT HAPPENED...

Sorry this took so long to post. Image pulled from SoundCloud, by the way. Also sorry about how short this is, I have a lot to do tonight.

A couple weeks ago, I was in Savannah for game design and visual effects classes, which I absolutely loved. When it was time to head home at the end of that week, I had to go from the Savannah airport to the Atlanta airport, and my flight from Savannah was delayed, so I was stuck at the gate. There was a guy with a Nintendo Switch who was also stuck there, and he invited me to play Mario Kart with him. Being the person I am, I accepted his offer; as you can probably guess, that person happened to be Talker. 

After listening to TRON Legacy: Reconfigured, I never thought I'd be able to enjoy listening to any type of "hardcore" electronic music again. I was proven wrong after listening to every track on Talker's SoundCloud page. I can't say that I have a favorite track, as I enjoyed all of them equally (which is to say, quite a lot). 

The most unique track out of all of them has to be Lul (First Edit), as listening to it just sends chills down my spine, though it isn't haunting in the slightest. 

Overall, I enjoyed Talker's work, and I hope he releases more tracks in the future!

P.S. - I opened the comments section to everyone, regardless of whether or not they have an account on some Google product or service. All you have to do to post a comment is answer a randomly-generated CAPTCHA question (I think).

New Patreon Goals!

Check My Patreon!

As many of you know, i have a Patreon page, as well as a DeviantArt account. On my DeviantArt account, I'm going to be posting chapters of the novel I'm writing, but only on one condition: I will only post a new chapter of my novel when I get an additional $5/month in pledges on Patreon. Check my Patreon for more details

https://www.patreon.com/AlexCossack

http://alex-cossack.deviantart.com/

Music: I am Gemini by Cursive

THANK'S FOR SUGGESTING THIS DAENIEL!

Image pulled from YouTube

Daeniel has been a friend of mine for a long time now, and he has unique musical tastes. Just one week ago, he suggested two albums for me to review, and I'm more than satisfied with his selection.

Firstly, this is quite a haunting album. Just listen to it, and you'll understand. Cursive accomplished this with far greater success than Trocadero did with the Red vs. Blue Season 13 soundtrack. I find it impossible to describe the feeling with words alone.

In each song, the lyrics and instruments complement each other perfectly, like crushed Oreos and chocolate ice cream (I'm eating that right now). Each time, chills go throughout my whole body.

Overall, I absolutely love this album. Thank you Daeniel for suggesting this, I cannot say it enough!

Update: COMING UP NEXT!

COMING SOON TO ACRM

Into the Sea by Attalus

I am Gemini by Cursive

SPECIAL THANKS TO DAENIEL DATU FOR SUGGESTING THESE TWO ALBUMS!

Also, how do you guys like my new profile picture? It doesn't risk copyright infringement anymore!

Update: BIG NEWS!

Remember my Splatoon review?

Well, whether or not anyone remembers that review, I still feel that making reviews of video games doesn't work in writing, so I started my own YouTube channel!

So, the first video goes up at 8:00 AM CST tomorrow. Check it out when it releases!

The link to my YouTube channel is here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqbNexZz9NQgiAd-PHhrm1w

Music: Denouement by Gates of Ivory

I've been alluding to this moment for about two weeks now

So, as those of you who regularly read this blog know, I've been wanting to review this album for quite some time. Well, I've been taking my time with this review, and so here it is! Image copied from CD Baby. Click it to go to the page!

As always, I made this review of my own accord. It has not been endorsed by Gates of Ivory in any way, as far as I know. I have not been paid to make this review, and I was not given a review copy of the album. 

I might as well say this before anything else: Gates of Ivory is absolutely one of my all-time favorite bands, and I'm hoping they come out with new songs soon. Some of you who know me in real life know that I tried to play The Deadly Poetic on acoustic guitar, which didn't go as well as I hoped it would. Still trying to improve though. If anything, I'm stubbornly persistent. 

One of this album's greatest strengths is that it only has 5 tracks. 5 well-written tracks of indescribable awesomeness, none of which feel out of place. The instruments are utilized perfectly, the lyrics are quite fitting, and each song creates incredibly vivid and unique scenarios in my mind. 

Here is a screenshot of the first search I made regarding this album. Now I'm wondering if this means Denouement is Gates of Ivory's final album...

I don't want it to be.

Overall, I enjoyed this whole album (if that wasn't obvious already). If you like metal, I'd recommend buying it, and also searching up this album on YouTube so that you can follow Gates of Ivory there. Again, they did not endorse this review. I wrote it because I wanted to, and I was not paid to do so. I have no complaints when it comes to this album.

Gates of Ivory, keep making great music! You're one of the few groups left that produces real music!

Update: Back in...

Back in black? Back in business? Which one is it? Well, I have news for you!

So, I set up a Patreon page a few months ago (as evidenced by the link on the right of the page), and I discovered that it didn't work. Well, good news: I fixed it! If you've been trying to pledge money to me, but have been unable to do so, please go back to the page and try again, as any issues should now be fixed.

Remember: I need to pay for albums somehow!

Have a good day everyone, and here's a link to my Patreon page: https://www.patreon.com/AlexCossack

Also, I'm going to review a Gates of Ivory album now.

Video Games: Splatoon

I know I promised book reviews, and I'll get one posted soon enough, but I felt as if I just had to post my opinion on Splatoon for everyone to see. Here we go! I can't remember, but I think I pulled the image from one of Nintendo UK's sub-pages. 

By now, you've probably heard of Nintendo's quirky third-person shooter. After all, the "You're a squid now! You're a kid now!" memes were nearly everywhere on the internet for quite some time. 

First things first: the Inklings. You play as a kid that can turn into a squid, and while I won't get too much into the game mechanics yet, I will say that this is strange in concept, but was executed quite well. You fire ink at your opponents, trying to cover as much turf as you can in your team's color. To refill your ink supply, you swim through ink of your own color, which you can also do to move up walls and through grates. 

The controls handle quite well, although I would recommend turning off the motion controls, as they do make things... considerably more difficult than need be. 

The soundtrack is just as goofy as the game itself, which I absolutely love. No other way to put it.

If I have any complaints, they lie with the lack of customization options. The selection of clothing is limited, as is the color of clothing, and the preset weapon loadouts are quite lacking at times. Also, the skill gap between players becomes apparent if you play in Ranked. Then again, that's not much of a complaint.

I would go more into the game, but I don't want to spoil the fun for anyone. Overall, I actually enjoy it, and I'd recommend it to anyone looking for something fun to play on the Wii U. Stay tuned for more reviews, as I've been listening to songs by Gates of Ivory. 

Update: New Review Type!

Notice: I Like Reading

Originally, this blog was meant for music reviews, and only music reviews. However, I've been reading The Peripheral by William Gibson, and I'm enjoying it. Since I've been enjoying it, and want to make a post regarding my opinion of other books I've read, I have decided to begin writing reviews of books. I don't care if it's a novel, short story, or any other type of book, I'm going to post reviews of books!

Looks like I'll have to reread my collection of books, which is mostly made up of actual books, not files stored on my Kindle. 

NOT DONE YET!

So, I want to get an idea of what books you want to see reviewed, and thus I have set up a poll on my Patreon page. Check it out if you want. Link is below, poll ends Saturday, June 10. 

https://www.patreon.com/posts/11527669

Update: Downtime

ALERT! ALERT! ALERT!

I do kind of wish that I didn't have to say this, and I find it ironic that I'm making a post about how I may not be able to post for a while, but here it is.

I have finals coming up, and I also have quite a bit of stuff I'm doing during the summer that I have to prepare for, so I most likely won't be able to post any new reviews for a while. Don't worry, this'll only be in effect for about 3 or 4 weeks, but I figured I might as well say something. During that time, I'll be sure to find some great albums to review, so you won't be let down once I'm back!

If you're someone who writes, plays, or publishes music, and is looking for someone to give an honest review of your work, feel free to message me via Hangouts so we can discuss details. Can't guarantee that I'll respond right away, but I'll do my best. 

Music: Red vs. Blue Revelation Soundtrack

If you're wondering why all of my reviews this week have been for Red vs. Blue albums, I review whatever I feel like reviewing at the moment, and this is what came into my head just now. 

"This place is filled with mean ladies!" -Private Michael J. Caboose

I kid you not, that was the first few seconds of Agent Tex, and then you have Tucker shouting "What's so hard to understand about swish swish stab?!" and "Step away from the idiots!" I can't stop laughing at that. I have a good feeling about this soundtrack (I'm listening to it as I write this review). So far, Agent Tex one of my all-time favorite tracks from the entire series. 

Now we listen to the 49-second track, Prelude, which is also awesome. I do wish that this was made into a 5-minute track... okay, now Boss Battle is playing; it is a theme of epic proportions, and for some reason, it reminds me of the motorcycle chase theme from Final Fantasy VII. 

I do not know how to describe just how well Plagam Extremem Infligere sounds.

The Pelican Has Landed: pure awesome. Also, it brings back memories of the Portal 2 OST. 

Rally (Sarge's Speech) is a track that I don't remember hearing in the show, but I can always go on YouTube to find out. Note: Just watched a clip of the speech, and Rally was playing in the background. Quite fitting. 

Red vs. Blue (the track), has incredible lyrics. Just listen to it, and you'll see what I mean. I won't say anything more about this song, I don't want to spoil it.

I won't say anything about the other tracks, since I definitely recommend that any fans of Red vs. Blue (the show) buy this CD. Buy it off of the RT Store, not iTunes. On iTunes, it costs $9.99, while on the RT Store it costs $4.95, so you're better off buying it from the RT Store. Rooster Teeth is also better off that way, since as far as I can tell, they don't have to share any profits they get from purchases on the RT Store with Apple. 

Overall, the Revelation soundtrack is unforgettable. Each of the tracks sound amazing, whether you listen to them on their own, or they play in the background of the show. Few things have made me laugh and get this sense of epicness at the same time. I can't stop laughing after listening to Forge World, Your Best Friend, Sarge's Blues, and I'm Am The Best, which are all exclusive to this soundtrack, meaning they were not played in the background in any episodes of the show.

Music: Red vs. Blue Season 13 Soundtrack

So maybe I'm watching Red vs. Blue a little too much, or maybe I'm just bored, have nothing to do, and decided to look up this album on YouTube so I could review it. Either way, I still don't have any posters to put up on the wall behind my desktop monitor, which isn't too surprising. 

I'll say it outright: this soundtrack captures the atmosphere of the entirety of Season 13, and although I didn't enjoy this album as much as I enjoyed the Season 9 and Season 10 soundtracks, I still found some degree of satisfaction here. Still, I think that there's some merit in the idea of bringing back Jeff Williams for Season 15, and getting him to work with Trocadero on the soundtrack. I might be wrong (meaning Wikipedia might be wrong), but I think that Jeff Williams was the keyboard player for Trocadero at one point in time. 

Okay, I just found one word to describe this soundtrack: haunting. Just listen to it, and you'll get what I mean, especially with People Person, and Absolute Control.

Overall, this wasn't my favorite RvB soundtrack, but it wasn't "bad" by any means. If anything, I believe it fit the season very well, but it just doesn't sound quite right without visuals from the show accompanying the music. If you like the haunting sounds of the Chorus Trilogy seasons soundtracks over the quite varied tones of the Project Freelancer seasons, then this album is for you. But, if you prefer Project Freelancer's tracks, then consider carefully before buying this album. 

Music: Roses and Violets by Trocadero

And now, for something those of you who have been reading my blog since the beginning were probably expecting...

If you've read my first posts on here, or know me in real life, you'll know that I'm a huge fan of Red vs. Blue. The only reason I don't have the Church-isms and the Caboose-isms posters yet is that I simply don't have the money for it! Still working on that.

Anyway, some of you might've been expecting this review. After all, I reviewed the soundtracks of seasons 9 and 10 (Project Freelancer), which I thought were pure awesomeness of an unfathomable degree, and I'm kinda sad that Jeff Williams is no longer the composer for the series. 

Going in, I wasn't expecting this album to be as enjoyable as it is. After all, this is the soundtrack from the early years of RvB, and I remember skipping the opening theme after the first few episodes, but listening to the music without the visuals from the show accompanying it is a different experience entirely; it's an experience that I thoroughly enjoyed. 

Its been a while since I've found an album that's entirely enjoyable and has tracks that I especially enjoy. In Roses and Violets, that track is definitely Steady Ride (Gun Metal Green), for several reasons. The lyrics are memorable and well-written, and the instruments used for the song are used effectively. 

Overall, I loved this whole album. The tracks are short yet memorable, and for me, create quite vivid scenarios inside my mind. Looks like I'll be listening to this several times over just for the sake of it. If you like Red vs. Blue, I'd recommend buying this album. 

Music: Megaman Unlimited OST

Finally, I Have Found it!

Some of you who know me in real life know that I love Mega Man.

Some of you who know me online also know that I love Mega Man.

However, even if you already knew that I'm a Mega Man fan, you probably didn't expect THIS!

That's right everyone, I downloaded Megaman Unlimited, an unofficial Mega Man fangame made by MegaPhilX, and then decided to listen to the soundtrack. I'm writing this review as I listen to the music, so this post might have a few awkward bits, self-contradictions, etc. 

Overall, I enjoyed this album. Each individual track feels as if it would fit perfectly into an official Mega Man game, yet has more than enough originality to be worthy of being called unique, and this extends to the cover art as well. The feeling even extends to the bosses, the stages, the enemies, basically the whole game. By the way, I am not playing the game as I write this (go for Nail Man first, the Nail Shield is incredibly useful). 

I have to say that Trinitro Man's theme (Frenzied Superheat), is by far my favorite. I cannot explain why, but it just is. Getting hyper from listening to this soundtrack. 

Okay, the album just ended. I'll have to end here before I have trouble getting to sleep because of how awesome this soundtrack is. 

Music: TRON Legacy: Reconfigured

Note: I've been unable to post recently because I seem to have come down with a cold. So far it's just a runny nose, and I hope it stays that way. 

Well, I think I've lost it. 

You might be asking "Alex, out of all the albums in the world, why did you have to review this one?" 

All I can say is that I have regrets when it comes to listening to this album, mostly because of just how loud it is. For those of you who've played Borderlands 2's Thanksgiving DLC, imagine Torgue's screaming. Take that, multiply the loudness by a couple hundred, remove the words so that all you hear is screaming, and change out the screaming with laser noises. That is what this album sounded like to me, and if I said I liked it, I'd be lying. If I said that I can appreciate the music on this album, I'd also be lying, as this does not sound like music to me; that, however, is just my opinion. 

Admittedly, I used to enjoy listening to this album, but that was when it first came out, and I was a lot younger back then. At the time, I wasn't sensitive to sounds and smells (I cannot be in the same room as an air freshener, or someone using cologne or perfume). Now I am, and I have a splitting headache stemming from listening to the entire album. 

If you are thinking about buying this album, and you believe that your taste in music is similar to my own, I would not recommend buying this album. You'd probably be better off watching TRON: Legacy, which isn't a bad film. It does have its flaws, and I do think they tried to use the whole "we're inside a video game" idea far too often, but I still found it enjoyable. 

By the way, please don't forget about my Patreon page! I'm still here!

Music: Pokemon Black 2 & Pokemon White 2 Super Music Collection

Disclaimer-Like Thing: Yes, I play Pokemon, and I love it. Started with Heart Gold.

Where do I begin with my all-time favorite Pokemon soundtrack? After all, the soundtracks of Black, White, Black 2, and White 2 are the most incredible Pokemon albums by far, at least in my opinion. 

As I mentioned earlier, this soundtrack is incredible. From the opening theme and Signs of the Beginning (An Adventure is Beginning, in other versions), which both give you the sense that you're about to begin a journey of epic proportions, to the high-energy, all-eyes-are-on-you theme of the Nimbasa City Gym, each track fits its context perfectly. 

When you set foot in Floccesy Town, its theme conveys the feeling of a small town where the days go by without anything of worldview-changing significance occurring very often, where the residents are friendly, and everyone knows one another. 

Infiltration Into the Plasma Frigate! has to be one of my favorites. Listening to it gives me the feeling of breaking into a heavily-guarded area, trying to remain unnoticed, as if even a single heartbeat will lead to failure, making everything leading up to that point mean nothing at all. Everything is on the line, failure is not an option, and just maybe someone who you thought was your enemy was your ally all along, working behind the scenes to make sure that this operation can be pulled off. 

Overall, I love this whole soundtrack. There's no other way to put it.

Before you go, consider checking out my Patreon page! I'd really appreciate some support there, since I'd rather buy actual albums from reliable sources instead of listen to YouTube playlists. With YouTube playlists, I generally don't have a clear idea of the answers to these questions: "Are all of the tracks here?" "Are there excess tracks that are really just sound effect clips?" and "Did someone just take a video on their phone at a concert, and then replace the visuals with an image of the album cover?"

Music: The Wastelands from Last Ninja Preview by Matt Gray C64

This is a single, not an entire album. That's why this review is shorter than my usual work.

Matt Gray is at it yet again, remaking music from The Last Ninja for the Commodore 64. I listened to this track, and knew that I just had to review it.

This whole song is very upbeat, with a bit of anxious heroism. It's as if everything is on the line, and you can't afford to fail your mission. It gives the idea that if you fail, "The whole world could explode." (Agent Washingtub, Red vs. Blue Season 6) and I love it.

Okay, after quoting Red vs. Blue, I just started thinking of ways to fit this song into its soundtrack. Needless to say, none of them actually worked. Now I really want to watch all of RvB again...

I enjoyed this single, and I'm somewhat sad that the whole album won't be released until... September 2018, according to the Reformation 2 Kickstarter page. That's right, this preview is for an album that won't be released until next year. 

Finally, please don't forget that I have a Patreon page now! Please check it out, even if you don't want to pledge any money. Clicking the "Become a patron" button on the right side of the page only takes you to my Patreon page, it doesn't force you into paying for anything. 

Music: Double Brutal by Austrian Death Machine

Notice: I do not regret listening to this album

Quick message to all first-time readers: my first review of an Austrian Death Machine album, Total Brutal, should be easy to find. I'd be happy if you read it before you read this one, even though you don't really need to. 

To everyone else: I couldn't find anywhere to link to except for a YouTube playlist, so that is what I linked to. 

More Schwarzenegger jokes, more references in the lyrics, and another hilarious album cover. Just what I expected to run into when I looked this up, and I do not regret doing so. I'm still laughing at all the jokes in between the tracks. 

I don't have any favorite tracks in this album, as I enjoyed each one equally. That means either this is a quality album, or I was laughing at the Schwarzenegger jokes too hard to pay attention to the album. Probably both, as when I start laughing, it's difficult to stop me. I should probably end this right here before I start making bad jokes (which I do a lot). 

Just kidding, this is the final paragraph, promise. Overall, the album was great for the same reasons as Total Brutal, which I also reviewed, but cannot be bothered to link to the review of. So, if you want to read the Total Brutal review, just find the search bar on the page and type in "Austrian Death Machine."

Announcement (Please Read)

As some of you may know, I now have a Patreon page. What is Patreon? Well, to put it simply, Patreon is a site where creators can make revenue from pledges made by fans (pledges of money, not allegiance). In return for the money, the people who make those pledges (they're called Patrons) get rewards chosen by the person they support. In my case, you can get rewarded with access to my original writings, such as poems and short stories, by pledging $1 per month. Keep in mind that you have to pledge at least $1 to gain access to my writings on my Patreon account. I'll make some publicly-available ones of equal quality to show all of you just what you can gain access to. 

Don't worry, all of the content on this blog will remain free forever, and you'll still be able to suggest any albums you think I should listen to. To check out my Patreon page, click on the logo at the bottom of this post. All of the Patron tiers, as well as the rewards that come with them (more money = more rewards), are there. 

Consider supporting me!

Update: READ IT!

Support Me (if you want)!

Hi, I'm Tachikoma Alex Cossack, as you all know. Most of you, however, probably don't know about my brand-new Patreon page! This is where you can support me by pledging to give me an amount of money of your choosing each month. Minimum for rewards is $1, and the rewards get better and better as the price gets higher and higher (currently, highest is $5/month). Supporting me means that you get to see my original writings (poetry, short stories, reflections on life, etc.), as well as pictures of my dog (he's a schnoodle, which is a mix of schnauzer and poodle). Don't worry, there will be way more writing than doggy pictures. In fact, I already published a patron-only post. Want to see it? Pledge at least $1! Hooray for shamelessly trying to get people to give me money!

Don't worry, my content here will remain free for as long as it exists. I just thought that it might be time to start making an income from something I enjoy doing, even if it isn't that much.

Also, I run a Discord server now.

Click the little logo below (which I copy/pasted from the Patreon help center), and you'll see my Patreon page! I plan on making visual improvements to both this blog and my Patreon page over time.