Grind Stormer
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Album Title: Grind Stormer |
| Record Label: Pony Canyon |
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| Catalog No.: PCCB-00120 |
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| Release Date: May 21, 1993 |
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| Purchase: Buy Used Copy |
Overview
Grind Stormer (aka V-V) was a futuristic shooter released in 1993. Composed by Masahiro Yuge, its soundtrack is one of the most esteemed of Toaplan’s discography. It was initially released as a stand-alone album by Pony Canyon and later compiled in the Toaplan Shooting Chronicle.
Body
Starting with the first stage theme, “Wonderful Dreamer” is an upbeat and cheerful chiptune with some nice melodic development. It gives off the feeling of flying as well as a dreamy soundscape. It doesn’t provide much of a catchy melody though, compared to other stage one themes, but it does provide a fulfilling experience overall. The boss theme, “Night Bird,” offers quite a funky rhythm and some sinister tones. It features a mix of more industrial synthesizer tones in the accompaniment, as well as some slick synthesizer solos in the melody line that would work well with a nice keyboard set up or an electric guitar.
“Heads Up” offers some intricate rhythms and some very progressive rock style melodies. It has a very dark tone with a very chaotic melody line at times, offering what sounds more like improvisation on occasion, while at the same time, offering some slightly worldly influence during its duration. “Large Charge” is another track with some slick rhythms. While the melody line isn’t the greatest at times, it does manage to provide quite a variety of tones, from more industrial ones to more cheerful ones. The keyboard solo sections, though, are definitely the highlight of the track. “Free At Last” also features a very upbeat melody that contrasts with a lot of the soundtrack. While it does mirror the atmosphere heard in “Wonderful Dreamer,” I think it does a better job of grabbing the listener’s attention with its stronger melody and overall accompaniment.
“Pepercussion,” perhaps a misspelling or typo of Repercussion, offers some industrial tones, but overall, I find the melody to be a bit lacking and the accompaniment to be a bit basic compared to a lot of the soundtrack. Lastly, “A Poisonous Snake” features a dark atmosphere with some pretty groovy rhythms. While the melody isn’t always the forefront, I think it offers some great passages when featured with its progressive rock nature. Following the brief ending themes, the release closes with a sound effects collection.
Summary
All in all, a solid soundtrack for one of Toaplan’s best games. However, keep in mind that the album is no longer commercially available and most listeners would be best checking out the Toaplan Shooting Chronicle instead.
Do you agree with the review and score? Let us know in the comments below!
3.5
Posted on August 1, 2012 by Don Kotowski. Last modified on August 1, 2012.
About the Author
Don Kotowski Currently residing in Philadelphia. I spend my days working in vaccine characterization and dedicate some of my spare time in the evening to the vast world of video game music, both reviewing soundtracks as well as maintaining relationships with composers overseas in Europe and in Japan.
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