You Battled! is a collection of original, sample-based beats that channel the sonic aesthetics of my favorite video game of all time, Earthbound. When deciding on what type of music I wanted to make, I thought, “I want to create stuff that reminds me of Earthbound.” So that’s what I did!

This is not a traditional covers album, but rather a collection of funky beats that evoke the general mood and feeling of Earthbound, especially the battle music of Hip Tanaka. Call it Earthboundwave or something. However, Earthbound fans will be able to hear references to certain tracks and areas of the game, as well as some sampled SFX and other easter eggs. You will also hear lots of fretless bass, pitch-wavering synths, 808s, UFOs (slash LFOs), and hyperactive delay and panning--essential qualities of the EB OST in this fan’s opinion.

The style is rooted in sample-based hip-hop and electronic music, with influences from house, ambient dub, synth funk, boom bap, lofi, vaporwave, and trap. In choosing samples I sought sources that either reminded me of the EB aesthetic or were cited by the composers themselves as influences on the game’s soundtrack. Seeing as how Earthbound was one of the very first game soundtracks to use sampling as a technique (and shoutout to Starmen.net for uncovering their sources!), I felt it was only appropriate to pay tribute through sampling.

On a personal level, this album is the product of an adventure I’ve taken relearning (and IMHO, surpassing) my production skills after too long a time away from making music. I spent about 3 years working on this in whatever time I could sneak in on lunch breaks or at the end of full work days. I was grinding exp. Sometimes, like our guy Ness, I lost all motivation in battle, but I battled on. You’re gonna battle listening to all 18 tracks here. We’re all battling