A warm welcome ChipWINners, and thank you for joining me for this first Stokin’ the Forge of the new year! The last month has been rife with great releases, and Lawrence Power (lpower) has helped put an endcap on an amazing year of chiptunes with the final installment in his Abinox trilogy.

The idea for the Abinox project came from a desire to create an amazing ModPlugTracker setup for himself. That setup combined self-ripped samples with his favorite sounds and duty setups for a variety of sound cards and consoles.

The approach lpower took in making the first installment of the trilogy was taken from how he had made his previously released soundtracks. Seeking to drill down and explore elements of VGM that inspired his own music making, he said that Abinox is a soundtrack about what he likes in game sound tracks. “I wanted to recall the feel of Sound Team JDK soundtracks, but also include aspects of minimalist synthesizer music I like, or synthesizer movie soundtracks”.

Abinox II built upon this idea, with lpower seeking to build his own little video game orchestra. He added more samples, different drums and basses, and new synthesizers as he tested himself against the two minute loop. He wanted to create compositions that would probably never make it as a video game soundtrack, avoiding loops and “weird breaks”, and put forth Front Line as the track where he felt he accomplished his goal.

As is befitting a finale, lpower wanted to push his work in Abinox III to the absolute limit. Just how many 8 and 16 bit samples could he add to a track without everything collapsing into cacophony? A lot. Adding the VOPM, EVOL, OxeFM, and MDA electric piano to the mix of synths, in addition to different drums, and a touch of SynthPlant, lpower had to incorporate stereo panning into manage all the notes and accents being played simultaneously.

The result was two free standing tracks, each a thirty minute juggernaut of musical accomplishment. Both vary widely in their themes, as they shift pacing, feel and instrumentation in a fashion that will keep the listener on their toes.

The Storm opens the album with tension, delivered in the form of repetitive, sharp, high pitched twangs with the pacing of the heavy rain drops that precede a summer deluge. Quickly, lpower’s astonishing ability to smoothly transition between musical themes becomes apparent. In the first ten minutes, the track moves from tense anticipation, to face-forward determination, and then to an almost gentle apprehension.

I stop there, because at the ten minute mark, lpower pulled off a musical feat I was personally impressed with. An energetic and driven combination of drums and bass continues in the background, never really fading from hearing. At the same time, a quiet and accepting theme plays built from synthesizer choices that simply ooze with 80s glory. Instead of clashing, the two themes left me with the distinct feeling of someone coming to peace with a chaotic situation unfolding around them.

From here, the next ten minutes transition between themes of tension, determination, defeat and victory. The track then closes by moving between sounds the invoke feelings of relaxation, trepidation, and finally beaming excitement and self assurance.

‘The Storm’ by itself shows just what lpower can do when he pushes himself to the ‘absolute limit’. This track alone could stand as a veritable fully orchestrated accompaniment to a theater production.

Abinox III by lpower

While thematically different, ‘The Calm’ stands as an equal next to its sibling piece on the album. ‘The Calm’ contrasts ‘The Storm’s chaotic undertones with a serenity that ventures into the realm of the eerie. Those wonderful anthem portions are just as present, but those eerie and downright space-y sections twist the fundamental feel of the track spectacularly. It is less a battle against a chaotic force, and more a struggle to overcome a sapping, tenuous force of nothingness.

Like its sibling, ‘The Calm’ closes victoriously, but contrasts that victory with a deeper sense of reflection and acceptance. In a way, the conclusion here feels more hard fought, whose triumph contains significant reward and a profound feeling of inner peace.

Abinox III by lpower

If you have a spare hour and change to indulge these audio monoliths, I highly encourage you to take it. Turn the lights down low, lean back with your favorite beverage of choice, and let your ears really soak up all the music has to offer. Take your time, it’ll be worth it, I promise.

As always, you can snag a copy for free directly from Pterodactyl Squad’s website. However, if you feel like supporting your “local” (I mean, we’re a global community, are we not?) Chipmusicians, ‘Abinox III’ is available at Bandcamp for the extremely reasonable donation of £3.

Either way, get out there, spread the love, and make some chip!

VF

lpower

webpage | soundcloud



Pterodactyl Squad

ptesquad | bandcamp | facebook | twitter | blogspot



Abinox III by lpower

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