Grammy-winner Button Masher (aka Jake Silverman) has been a constant presence in the chiptune and electronic scene for almost a decade, with his clever music video format that builds up a chiptune jam within a minute. When he isn’t teaching or arranging music, he’s composing it, and he has announced his latest original album, ‘Super Button Masher’, will arrive on 4th September. The album aims to bridge 90s video game influences, notably the Super Nintendo, with modern-day musical complexity. His jazzy solos will be omnipresent, I expect, as Button Masher fuses 8-bit,16-bit, and modern electronics into a single sound.
Speaking about the album, Button Masher says:
“Growing up in the 90s my brother, myself and all the neighborhood kids loved playing video games. Our first console was the Super Nintendo. My upcoming album Super Button Masher is my attempt at merging the nostalgia of those timeless memories with all that I’ve learned over the years as a working musician in the DMV, New York and LA. I hope this album will take you back to simpler days.”
The lead single is the fantastic ‘Magic Dragon Ride’. From the opening moments, we’re treated to soft, rounded synths and 8-bit pan flutes. I was instantly transported to Secret of Mana and Hiroki Kikuta’s compositions of the era. As the track evolves, the softness is joined by more virtuoso bass grooves, skittish percussion, and some jazzy synth-brass and keyboard moments. Silverman says this track is his tribute to Hiroki Kikuta, Yasunori Mitsuda, and Nobuo Uematsu. He has strong memories and emotional ties to their contributions to what he feels was the “JRPG golden age”. As always, the fun with Button Masher’s music is hearing a simple melody twist into a complex beast, and each transition is silky smooth. It’s a bit like a magic dragon ride… *boom tish*.
‘Magic Dragon Ride’ is out now. ‘Super Button Masher’ is available to pre-save and preorder. For more information about tours, releases, and other projects (Jake is in many other chiptune-related projects), visit Button Masher’s website.
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