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The Impact of Jungle Music in 90s Video Game Development

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Re: The Impact of Jungle Music in 90s Video Game Development

#281

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJ9QHGaxdig Tempest 2000 was probably more acid house influenced, but there was also a lot of early breakbeat hardcore/jungle tunes in there too.

The most demoscene inspired game ever? Is there another? It's beautiful.

Re: The Impact of Jungle Music in 90s Video Game Development

#282

As someone who was so non-conformist in the 90s that he refused to listen to the music for non-conformists, I am constantly surprised that jungle doesn't sound the way it's named. Every time I expect EDM with Afro-Caribbean percussion, like bongos and steelpans and marimbas, realize it's nothing like that and promptly forget what jungle sounds like until the next revelation.

While not a perfect match, Ragga Jungle is a subgenre that hits the afro carrib mark https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5yiLR4IAByc

Re: The Impact of Jungle Music in 90s Video Game Development

#283
Can't help but drop these--

For easy listening jungle/Drum N Bass, excellent for work, search for "atmospheric drum n bass" or "liquid drum n bass". Artists: Photek, LTJ Bukem, DB (some), etc. Best atmospheric mix w vocals ever: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GAXnFZ3anlE

For a tour of jungle over time: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UgK8h9xRFls

For a famous jungle dj/vocalist pairing: AK1200 moonshine over america https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqRNrhQvYEc

Also, you may recognize Goldie, a pioneer of the genre, who turned actor, turned model, and more recently launched a record label

Re: The Impact of Jungle Music in 90s Video Game Development

#284

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Thanks for the heads up. It's funny how we encounter different sources telling us different things about the history of these subgenres. I'll go back and review/expand that paragraph soon.

It seems quite silly to mention it, but the the phrase 'EDM' here really made me more upset than it possibly should. Call it 'House' genericlly, call it 'techno' generically, but please don't call it EDM generically, as that as many other's have mentioned is a sub genre coined way later to describe a bland watered down distant cousin of 'House' music. It really detracts from the great article in a Steve Buscemi with…

this is also incorrect, EDM has multiple meanings over time and space - are you being annoyed at the contemporary American use of it to mean "inoffensive dance music"?

wikipedia has a whole section on it: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronic_dance_music#Termino...

Re: The Impact of Jungle Music in 90s Video Game Development

#285

I've recently been into game development, and I needed music which lead me to discovering synthesizers--I was hooked the first time I saw so many buttons, knobs, and flashing lights--and now I've gone off on a huge tangent and am studying music theory instead of making my game. Oh well, it's all for fun. Does HN have any advice on how to get started with synthesizers, with an eye towards creating a game soundtrack?

> I was hooked the first time I saw so many buttons, knobs, and flashing lights

I fell down the synthesizer rabbit hole during covid. And the urge to acquire more hardware is real. Resist! Try not to chase synth youtube gear cycles. Remember, synthesizers make sounds, not music. Not that there's anything wrong with enjoying sound design, it is fun. But if your goal is to make music, it can be a trap.

> Does HN have any advice on how to get started with synthesizers.

For me, synthesizers didn't click until I got my first super basic knob-per-function synth. There was just so many things I didn't know, that a VST like Vital had way too many options. Once I figured out most synths are just oscillators -> mixer -> filter -> amp, plus envelopes and LFO's for modulation... I could use pretty much any synth.

Here is Wendy Carlos explaining the above concepts in under 4 minutes. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4SBDH5uhs4Q

Once you understand those basics, maybe look at videos that show you how to recreate famous sounds. Probably start with simple classic sounds so you get a feel for how the synthesizer controls shape that sound.

Here is Anthony Marinelli showing you the bass sound from Madonna's Holiday in under 8m. He does a good job explaining why you use a certain setting. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mVedA7H4qpQ

My last piece of advice: the online synth community can be a bit toxic reddit. Ignore them and just do what feels fun. It's a hobby after all!

Re: The Impact of Jungle Music in 90s Video Game Development

#286
post #254

Earlier quoted context omitted.

People making entire mixes with two amiga 500s between a mixer and entirely new tracks https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2k9eMuRwGw

This is awesome. I used to run a Jungle night, and once we booked Paradox to play. He brought his entire Amiga set up and we had to replace the decks with it for his set. He had to load each track from a floppy disk and it took like 2-3 mins whilst the beat of the previous track would play out and the crowd waited for the next track to load. Crazy seeing a whole dancefloor chilling waiting for a floppy disk to load u…

This is the trick now:

https://www.ami64.com/product-page/gotek-usb-flash-drive-for...

Re: The Impact of Jungle Music in 90s Video Game Development

#287

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Vengent is indeed a legend.

Wait, wait, wait! I think I got the wrong USB! Chaos ensues. He's so great! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z9-p06yiJ6Q (Wheels on the bus)

Ah this explains the Halloween candy hiding a USB stick meme

Re: The Impact of Jungle Music in 90s Video Game Development

#288
post #199

GTA III MSX FM

Timecode step inside the zone. Out to the Moving Shadow crew. Goes out to the robots and the Scott, it’s the Gav and to the Julia long time. 101.1 MSX FM in your manor. Right across the border, your time rude boys, yeah out to the email crew, msxfm@movingshadow.com , direct link up with us, phone line crew 0 double 7 47 114 553 yeah show dedication, all across Liberty, all Liberty City massive, south east north and t…

Guy called Gerald was definitely on SF-UR in later volumes

Re: The Impact of Jungle Music in 90s Video Game Development

#289
post #273

I've recently been into game development, and I needed music which lead me to discovering synthesizers--I was hooked the first time I saw so many buttons, knobs, and flashing lights--and now I've gone off on a huge tangent and am studying music theory instead of making my game. Oh well, it's all for fun. Does HN have any advice on how to get started with synthesizers, with an eye towards creating a game soundtrack?

Hardware synth route: Korg Minilogue XD is a great box that you'll likely keep forever. For a less traditional but fun experience, Arturia Microfreak or for more $, the Minifreak (which comes with a Minifreak VST!). To save money, see what's available second-hand locally and Google each to see if it's beginner friendly. Software route: Get a midi controller with plenty of knobs and buttons that is supported for easy…

> Novation Launch Control XL is plug-n-play friendly if you download an addon from their website

What does this mean? How is software plug-n-play?

Re: The Impact of Jungle Music in 90s Video Game Development

#290

Author here. Thanks for sharing the blog post on HN; it was a nice surprise to see it in the first page.

You have gotten the history here dead wrong: > The techno scene originated in Germany, reached the UK, and it was later associated with the Chicago & Detroit EDM scene in America. Techno was invented in Detroit, house music in Chicago. Germany like techno. In no sense whatsoever did they invent or originate it.

Honestly it's more complicated than that. At the same time that techno was being created in Detroit, EBM was being created in Germany and the UK. When techno came back over from Detroit, it as influenced by those things. So modern techno can be said to have both European and African American roots independently. I would say its more accurate to say it originated in Detroit since that is the main basis for the sound, but it is extremely transatlantic.
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