﻿﻿Ace of Space by Wolf and Raven

Even within a music genre dedicated to nostalgia, few artists capture the same sense

of childhood wonder and magic as Wolf and Raven. Pulling influences from ‘80s-era

rock and metal, video games, and anime, the duo puts their own unique spin on

outrun and delivers it with dynamic synth melodies and high-powered guitar solos. I

had the pleasure of interviewing Chris and Anthony–the brothers behind the

project–about their creative approach, favorite video games, and what the future

holds for them and their exciting style of synthwave.

1. Your music is unique and very recognizable within synthwave. How did you

begin making music in this particular style?

(Chris) – Well, I’ve always loved ‘80s music in general. So when I found that

there was a scene out there that actually cared for the type of music I loved, I

really wanted to be a part of it and share our style with everyone. My brother and

I always enjoyed electronic music so being able to work in a style we truly enjoy

is awesome.

2. Your albums have prominent influences from video game soundtracks. Who

are some of your favorite OST composers?

(Chris) – There are a ton to go through but we will just list a few of our favorites.

David Wise, Chris Hülsbeck, Yasunori Mitsuda, Nobuo Uematsu, Hiroki Kikuta,

Koji Kondo, and Yuzo Koshiro. Many more I can’t think of off the top of my

head. Many of them are from classic RPGs we played. So there is definitely a

huge influence from many Japanese musicians.

3. Are there any synthwave artists you respect or look to for inspiration?

(Chris) – Oh absolutely, there are quite a few we listen to! My main go-to is Mitch

Murder. He is actually the reason that brought me to the scene. I was at work and

a friend was going through some tunes he thought I would enjoy. He was literally

just playing a few seconds so I could get a feel for the style but one stood out

from all of them. I heard just a few seconds of it and told him to go back. I asked,

“Who is that artist?” He said, “Mitch Murder.” I remember in that instant just

thinking that this guy definitely knows how to write what I consider the true ‘80s

sound. I haven’t really found anyone else that compares honestly. He is just on

another level by himself. So I definitely look towards his music to get inspiration

everyday.

Some other synthwave artists we listen to regularly are Myrone, Satellite Young,

Droid Bishop, Chaconne, Phaserland, Robert Parker, Forêt De Vin, Bart Graft,

Sebastian Gampl, Vincenzo Salvia, and Ultraboss to name a few. All are really

awesome in their own style as well. Definitely some of our most played along

with others.

4. What are some other influences on your style?

(Chris) – We listen to all types of music really so there are way too many to name.

It really is that extensive. But to keep this simple, another big influence would be

the big hair metal genre from the ‘80s as well as some of the heavier metal. That

is ultimately what I fell in love with the most while learning to play guitar. I still

listen to all that stuff, so I am sure I will love it forever. I also do have quite a bit

of influence from the ‘70s rock scene. Led Zeppelin was a band that first got me

into guitar to begin with.

To name a few for those out there wanting to check some bands out: (No

particular order) Scorpions, X Japan, Ratt, Warrant, White Lion, Van Halen, Skid

Row, Cinderella, Winger, Mr. Big, Racer X, Ozzy Osbourne, Judas Priest,

Slaughter, Night Ranger, Extreme, Def Leppard, Iron Maiden, XYZ, Dio, Accept,

Autograph, Vinnie Moore, Jason Becker, Marty Friedman…and so many others so

just look up ‘80s metal! I love it all really.

As I mentioned though, there is a ton I could talk about on this topic alone that’s

outside of the metal genre. I listen to a ton of pop in general, K-pop, J-pop, J-rock,

jazz fusion, orchestral, classical, techno, EDM, future funk, Eurobeat, etc. Just

about everything except country music. That may be the only type I can’t listen to

at all. My brother is essentially the same way. I haven’t really heard anything he

has played that I totally hated. We both just love the majority of music, retro and

modern.

5. What is your background in music like? Did you have any projects before

Wolf and Raven?

(Chris) – The background for both of us consists of us just playing and practicing

on our own. Neither of us has any training whatsoever. All of it is mostly done by

ear mimicking popular tracks and improvising. We have learned some basics just

from online tutorials over time, but it has all been self-taught. I didn’t have any

other projects prior to Wolf and Raven. Just some random game covers here and

there. It was mostly just a hobby for a while.

(Anthony) – I used to be a drummer for a band called “Offset Sunset” which was

an acoustic folk cover band. I love drumming, but I was always drawn to the

piano because of the way it can express any type of emotion. The band ended in

2012 and that’s when I began messing around with the piano, which is when I

started getting into writing orchestral music. I write very emotional pieces due to

the anxiety I faced for many years, which helped me overcome the fears I faced,

and so I started writing music to help others who might be currently where I used

to be. My brother started up Wolf and Raven not long after that, and it was so fun

to write music similar to music we grew up with.

6. Have the two of you always played music together?

No, this is the first music project we have worked together on aside from the

random jam sessions.

7. How did you decide on the name Wolf and Raven?

(Chris) – It was mainly an idea I came up with that played some role into how my

brother and I work together for this project. The majority of it is me, and my

brother will contribute a few tracks. He has his own project that takes most of his

attention, but I figured it would be good for this one to have some of his ideas

included as well. As they say, two heads are better than one. So with that in mind

I looked to animals that had similar relationships when it came to survival or just

coexisting. Wolves and ravens have a lot of aspects that feel similar to how this

project felt for me, so we decided on that. There is quite a bit of information on

the relationship they have and they are found in a lot of mythology from different

cultures, which I thought was really interesting.

8. What was the first song or album you were really drawn to?

(Chris) – I cannot pick one album in particular. But one song that truly surpasses

many in my opinion is by X Japan called “Art of Life.” It’s a 30-minute

masterpiece by some artists far ahead of their time. Yoshiki, who is the main

writer, is an absolute genius for all his work. If you enjoy ‘80s metal at all I feel

you will love this band. All their work was ahead of the game but they are mostly

known in Japan. Awesome twin lead guitars mixed with extreme technical drums

and beautiful orchestral compositions. It is a haunting yet beautiful work of art

overall, and I highly recommend giving it a listen. These guys are in my top 3 best

bands of all time for sure. They are one of the best live bands out there. If you can

find time, you should just check out X Japan The Last Live video. One of the most

amazing shows I have come across.

(Anthony) – It is so hard to narrow it down due to the fact that my music taste is

all over the place. I will say that the first album I had ever owned was Eiffel 65

Europop. Listening to them made me wish that I was in that band playing in front

of thousands of people. It gave me a vision for music and that has stuck with me

to this current day.

9. Do you have any go-to sources for motivation when you’re writing music,

such as albums, movies, or artwork?

(Chris) – I’m sure it is the same as many others within the scene as most of the

influence comes from ‘80s and ‘90s video games, movies, and cartoons/anime. So

I suppose it’s not much to mention as there isn’t anything really different there

from others regarding the retro culture. We do like a lot of old school anime

though which has influenced a lot of the writing style as well as the artwork we

like to showcase. A lot of the music in anime is really unique and a good source

for inspiration. I think that is one thing we have that sort of gives us a different

identity.

10. Do you guys have any favorite foods or snacks for writing and recording?

(Chris) – Often there are many late nights for me when I am recording, so snacks

can be anything I can find! I try to keep it healthy but it’s good to indulge here

and there. I do love Monster Rehab Peach Teas. Best energy drinks out there. No,

this isn’t a paid sponsorship, but I’d take one even if they just paid me in Rehab

Teas!

(Anthony) – When I’m writing and am in need of a snack, I always have a peanut

butter sandwich with a banana on the side and a glass of milk. If not that, I always

just have fruits or nuts to keep my mind alert. I cannot write when I get hungry!

11. What are some of your favorite video games (any era)?

(Chris) – My favorite game of all time is still Chrono Trigger. It is one of the only

games I’ve ever been happy and sad about when it was completed. For its time,

everything about that game to me was so amazing so I say it’s definitely a must

play.

(Anthony) – This one’s a tough one. I loved Zelda: A Link To The Past on the

Super Nintendo because of the music and how it captured the atmosphere in such

a beautiful way. I remember being so scared entering the dark world and feeling

the sense of sadness. A few games do this right and for me being a little kid when

I played this, it set the bar high on other games to create such a beautiful story

through visuals and song.

12. How about favorite video game systems or generation?

(Chris) – This is a bit tough for us to answer as we have always been gamers. I

really like a lot of the modern gen only because of the online access to friends.

But I’ve been hating some of the business practices these days regarding micro-

transactions and extra purchases. It seems like they release games that aren’t even

fully complete and still charge for full price. It is super annoying and I have

bought fewer games on release because of it. I will say that the original Xbox and

Xbox 360 had some of the funnest times for us since we went to so many LAN

parties. You can’t beat a house full of friends in every room, with random TVs

and systems connected by cables, playing on the same game.

13. Do you have any creative side projects you want to mention, music or

otherwise?

(Chris) – I don’t have any other projects I’m personally working on. Sometimes I’ll

work on some digital paintings on the side that I upload to our Instagram. But

most of the focus just goes towards the music for Wolf and Raven. My brother

does have a project that he tends to. He works on orchestral/piano compositions

mainly aimed at helping those that deal with anxiety. They are all really great

works and you can search him up on YouTube under the name Anthony’s

Melodies.

14. Your Platforms EP is quite a bit different than your other releases. What was

the inspiration behind that EP, and do you think you’ll do other releases like

Platforms and Cursed that branch off from your usual sound?

(Chris) – Platforms is mainly inspired from the (SNES) Donkey Kong Country

series. David Wise is one of those artists whose music just really stuck with us. So

we really wanted to work on a release that had very similar tones but for our

future Mayan/Aztec setting. The tunes in that EP were actually completely done

about 6 months before the release of Renegades. However, I didn’t want to release

those tracks until we had some sort of establishment in the synth scene.

The style is different enough where I really didn’t know how it would be received.

It has definitely given us some of the best feedback regarding our style, which

always means a lot to us. Even more so with that release because of what the EP

is paying tribute to. We definitely are looking at releasing another iteration in that

style in the future. So for now I can say there will be a return to Platforms! As for

other interesting releases, it is a definitive yes. The EPs or singles are a way we

like to showcase our range in style. So expect more after this next album release!

15. You’ve released two full-lengths and three EPs over the past two years, and

they’re all great. Do you have a personal favorite album you’ve released so

far?

(Chris) – I really love all our work. Every time a new idea comes up I get super

pumped to keep adding to it and they always turn out so fun. But for a personal

favorite, I think I would say the Ace of Space album. Mainly because we were

able to showcase more with our style and establish more towards our signature

sound. My personal favorite from that album is “Space Strippers” since I was able

to get a bit of that ‘80s hair metal I’ve been aching to add more into our work!

(Anthony) – I love the album Ace of Space. Mainly because I feel like we have

finally passed that stage where we don’t spend as much time trying to figure out

how to use the programs we record in. We are able to just focus on the sound and

storytelling. This album captures the sound we’ve always sought after and to

create game-like soundtracks was super fun. It just proved to ourselves that we are

capable of being like the artists we grew up listening to.

16. Wolf and Raven has rightfully earned a loyal following over the past couple years. Has there been anything that really surprised you or stuck out to you,

like letters from fans?

(Chris) – Anytime a new follower discovers us and starts telling us what they love

about a particular track or what it reminds them of, it always gets us stoked.

Especially when it is coming from fans across the globe. It just blows our minds

how far some of the music has reached! But that is what is getting us to where we

are now. The fans ultimately hold part of the reins. Even in the beginning when

we barely had any follows, we would still have those few fans loving our stuff

and for us that was perfect to just keep making tunes. We are still far from some

other guys out here as far as fans go but we hope to continue building a base up.

The future of it looks very good so don’t expect to see us go away. We love

making our music anyways so that alone keeps us pushing!

17. Any big plans for Wolf and Raven in 2018 and beyond?

(Chris) – We have an album in the works as of right now. I won’t be giving any

dates until I know for sure we are able to. But it is very close to completion so

definitely be expecting something announced very soon! This release will still

have a lot of our style but we are also trying some other things that I don’t think

anyone in the scene is doing. Not any that I know of anyways. Everyone seems to

be continuing the palm trees/sunset feel, but we are definitely heading in another

direction. Still retro inspired of course but we are working on building a different

self-image as a whole. I think our fans will love it so we are excited to get this out

to everyone!

18. Anything else you want to mention?

(Chris) – The only thing left I would like to say is a big thank you to all the fans

and support out there! We are extremely thankful to those out there building a

community around this scene with various projects, videos, games, radio shows,

websites, and reviews like yourself! Without any of that, it is very hard to get the

work out there to those fans who could really appreciate it.

So definitely a thanks to those who have helped bring our music to the forefront.

Much thanks to Sofa King Vinyl for helping us get Ace of Space on vinyl. We are

eagerly waiting on our copies to come in the mail as well as others I’m sure.

Special thanks to the following: everyone who worked with Synthetix Sundays,

Andy from Beyond Synth, Drive Radio, Those Lovely ‘80s Synthwaves, Neon

Dystopia, Neon Order, NRW, The ‘80s Guy, The Prime Thanatos, Neon Nights,

and you as well with Iron Skullet. I am sure it is difficult to be a reviewer, getting

praise and hate when most of it really is subjective. Regardless of what any

reviewer says I think it is good to have people out there willing to take time out of

their day and present their take on the music and what they felt. We understand

that not everyone will love our music but it is still valuable to see what

perspective people take when they hear it. And for those that do enjoy it,

we have much more incoming!

Support Wolf and Raven

Bandcamp

Soundcloud

Facebook

Iron Skullet website