C418 AKA DANIEL ROSENFELD
Composer and producer Daniel Rosenfeld is perhaps known most through Minecraft, an independent video game so popular that its original PC version registered 100 million users within two-and-a-half years. Known as C418, Rosenfeld was born in East Germany just prior to reunification and learned to make music with digital audio workstations like Ableton Live. By November 2011, when the full version of Minecraft was issued, Rosenfeld had built a modest discography. His releases, all instrumental, ranged from melodic electronic dance-pop to austere pieces that recalled the gentler output of early ambient music masters like Brian Eno and Roedelius. After self-releasing a few albums quietly to streaming services and his Bandcamp page, including Minecraft Volume Alpha and Minecraft Volume Beta, Rosenfeld partnered with Ghostly International in 2015 to reissue Minecraft Volume Alpha on vinyl and CD. The release garnered attention from proper music critics and the gaming community alike. “C418's catalog has leapt from its Javascript home straight into my heart.” shared VICE.
His latest solo effort, Excursions, contains all new original material, created with a different approach than previous releases. “All the big loud housey songs came from the idea of ‘I want to create the same song over and over again’,” shared Rosenfeld, “except that I've created each one in a different location, or a different mindset. And just purely based on that, they all turned out unique in their own way.” The album will be out digitally on July 20, 2018. Rosenfeld’s legacy does not end with Minecraft, and what’s in store next is not to be missed.
Website / Bandcamp / Twitter / Spotify
Niamh houston aka 'chipzel'
Niamh Houston,better known by her stage name Chipzel, is a musician from Northern Ireland. She is best known for making chiptune music, particularly with a Game Boy. She is also a video game music composer, and is known for the soundtracks of games such as Super Hexagon, Spectra, and Interstellaria.
Website / Bandcamp / Spotify / Twitter
FAMILY JULES
FamilyJules, or Jules, is an American guitarist best known for his video game music guitar arrangements on his channel at YouTube.com by the same name. He plays various instruments including Electric Guitar, Bass Guitar, Classical Guitar, Cello, Keyboard, and Ocarina and studied Classical Guitar in college. He has arranged, recorded, mixed and mastered over a hundred covers and medleys of his favorite video game music into various genres such as Rock, Metal, Acoustic and even Ska, Reggae and Jazz. He currently has over 200 videos, 150k subscribers and over 20 million total YouTube views.
Youtube / Website / Twitter / Twitch / Spotify
JIMMY HINSON
Big Giant Circles is the primary alias that video game music composer Jimmy Hinson has been credited by in his career. He has been a hobbyist video game music arranger since 2004 and a professional video game music composer since 2009 when he was recruited by legendary composer Jack Wall to help score BioWare’s blockbuster sci-fi epic game Mass Effect 2 along with the rest of the Wall of Sound team (Sam Hulick and David Kates). Jimmy was again subcontracted later by Wall to assist with the score to the massively popular Call of Duty franchise in Black Ops 2. Aside from working under Wall, Jimmy has written music for a variety of other games like Borderlands 2, and the smash mobile hit Threes. For a full list of his credits, please click here.
In addition to scoring video games, Jimmy has composed for a variety of other media, including television, film, and radio, and was most commonly heard on networks like HGTV, DIY, Fox Sports, and Animal Planet.
Website / Bandcamp / Twitter / Spotify
Danny Baranowsky
Danny Baranowsky is a composer, musician and larger than life personality living in Seattle Washington by way of Mesa Arizona. Over the past decade Danny has risen to the top of his field composing the music for best-selling games Canabalt, Super Meat Boy, the Binding of Isaac, Desktop Dungeons, Crypt of the Necrodancer and more. Danny’s music immediately demands attention with soaring melodies and complex harmonies. For this reason Danny has earned tens of thousands of fans worldwide and garnered acclaim from publications such as Kotaku, PCGamer and Destructoid. This year Danny looks to expand beyond video game scores - working on solo material and even a live set. No task is too tall for Danny (he is 6’5”) - look out for much more music and tweets on OLED monitors in the near future.
Website / Bandcamp / Facebook / Twitter
Gordon mcgladdery aka 'a shell in the pit'
Gordon McGladdery aka A Shell in the Pit is a composer and sound designer in Vancouver, Canada. Over the past decade Gordon has been working on projects such as Smarter Every Day and multiple best-selling independent video games including Rogue Legacy, Fantastic Contraption and Duelyst among many others. His distinctive and visceral soundscapes have been touted by the likes of PC Gamer, IGN, Euro Gamer, and many more.
Website / Bandcamp / Spotify / Twitter