Shuffled #30: Interview with Sun Sister

Every other Wednesday either Matt or Alex C-Y share their love of music in an assortment of ways. Shuffled is a podcast whose format is as varied as their tastes in music, so hopefully you won't ever be bored and everyone can find something to enjoy.

We're back and with a brand new band interview! This week Matt ventures out to the into the depths of Fitchburg Mass. to bring back a little chat with Sun Sister. The four piece dream pop/rock set are pretty laid back. The interview reflects their loose feel, much like their hazy reverb soaked EP featured in this episode.

Game Review: Gridrunner

Jeff Minter has been making Gridrunner games for thirty years, putting it in the company of icons like Pac-Man, Mario, and Space Invaders in terms of longevity. While there haven’t been as many entries in the Gridrunner series as there have in those better known franchises, Minter has arguably kept his game fresher, with increasingly intense and psychedelic overhauls. While the series’ newest installment on iOS isn’t quite on par with the mad genius of 2009’s Gridrunner Revolutions (for PC), it is almost certainly the best original shooter in Apple’s marketplace.

Game Review: Avernum: Escape from the Pit

Starting Avernum: Escape from the Pit slowed me down. Reeling from a number of console games, I began my adventure in this world, immediately noticing it was quieter and demanded more focus. I spent about half of my time in Avernum at this pace. For this, I must partially blame my lack of experience with computer RPGs. Learning the games systems, introducing my player-self to new townsfolk, and simply surviving battles took time. But the game seems to change a third (guessing—I haven’t beat the game) of the way through. Fights begin and end faster. Quests are notched off en masse. And at this point, the game competes with brand-new RPGs.

A rewrite of a rewrite, Escape from the Pit was released in December 2011 over a decade since its last rendition. You control a party of four, whom you create, through the underground world of Avernum, a scantly inhabited land to where the above-ground Empire sends people it doesn’t like. Other species, hostile and friendly, have found their way in, too. Naturally, your characters want to know what this place is like, and maybe even how to escape.

I Come to Shanghai - Tied Down Music Video

We here at Cerebral Pop do love I Come to Shanghai, so it's good to know that the duo Robert Ashley and Sam Frigard are still piecing together some far out tunes. This week saw the official digital release of Eternal Life Vol. 2 after wrapping up a short, but very successful, Kickstarter fund drive. Even better still, the band released a new music video by Benj Braman, aka adventureface, to the tune 'Tied Down'. Watch it below in all its full screen, thrift store style glory!

Unoriginal Soundtracks Podcast: Mass Effect 3 Edition

Every other Wednesday, I share a playlist of songs tangentially related to a single game or series. Songs about alien sex for Mass Effect, world leaders for Civilization, and so on. Searching for relevant terms on Spotify is a great way to discover new music and uncover hidden gems. Make requests to @USPodcast on Twitter.

Mass Effect 3 finally delivers its threatened galaxy-wide extinction of spacefaring life when the reapers start their slaughter in London. In desperate attempt to stop it, Shepard meets oppressed robots, homeless aliens, and space zombies. All of this makes for a spoiler-filled playlist of punk, ska, and jazz.

Shuffled #29: Ode Canada!

Every other Wednesday either Matt or Alex C-Y share their love of music in an assortment of ways. Shuffled is a podcast whose format is as varied as their tastes in music, so hopefully you won't ever be bored and everyone can find something to enjoy.

This week we take a listen north of the border and sample some tracks from our neighbors in Canada. We've featured many Canuck's here on Shuffled before: FM, Barenaked Ladies, Rush, Klaatu to name a few. There's a lot of material that comes from our friends up north, and while this playlist doesn't have the likes of Arcade Fire or Neil Young, you may just find something new here to like.

Can't We All Just Stop with the Spoilers, Please?

I was standing in a comic book shop in the summer of 2005 when I watched as a customer smugly spoiled the ending of the newest Harry Potter book to his friends. His justification was that they would enjoy it anyways and who really cared about a dumb kiddie book. What he didn't see was the 7 year-old behind a rack of books who was crying into his mother's thigh. He looked like he had just been punched in the stomach.

I can't stand spoilers. I believe all people dislike spoilers in some way or another and the personal attachment to the subject being spoiled definitely factors in. For me, I like to be surprised by everything. An action scene that some may find exciting in a trailer just tells me what I can expect at some point in the movie and that can have an effect on my enjoyment of earlier scenes. Maybe this is a little extreme. I think most people probably fall into a looser category.

Unoriginal Soundtracks Podcast: The Darkness 2 Edition

Every other Wednesday, I share a playlist of songs tangentially related to a single game or series. Songs about alien sex for Mass Effect, world leaders for Civilization, and so on. Searching for relevant terms on Spotify is a great way to discover new music and uncover hidden gems. Make requests to @USPodcast on Twitter.

The Darkness 2 was the most uncertain sequel of this generation: rumors of a sequel rumbled for years without an announcement, Digital Extremes got their hands on it instead of the prequel's proven developers Starbreeze, and made some bold stylistic changes. Those gambles paid off, and Digital Extremes kept the focus on first-person storytelling while improving on the first-person action. They also provided a reason for a playlist of songs about demons, angels, and Hitler.

4 Bands That Should Dip Their Toes in a New Medium

With The Aquabats' show premiering, and the mc chris cartoon on its way, it seems like musicians are stepping out of their normal routine and dabbling in new forms of media. That might not work for every band, but there are plenty who could benefit from trying out some new ways to entertain. Here are four bands that I'd love to see put out something other than music.

GWAR -- TV Show or Video Game

You knew they'd be on my list. GWAR has quite a storied history of sometimes completely nonsensical mythology behind them. Whether it be from their live shows, countless DVDs, or actual music, they're always telling wacky tales that beg to be made into an equally goofy, adult-oriented cartoon. Just look at the popularity of Metalocalypse for proof that this show could work.

I'd love to tune in weekly to see who GWAR was doing battle with next. Maybe they're feeding the human filth to The World Maggot; Maybe they've gone to space in search of Cardinal Syn; Or perhaps they'd just be sitting around their Antarctican fortress snorting crack. No matter what, it'd have to be entertaining.

If that doesn't work, make it a video game. Brutal Legend is your example there, just, leave out the RTS elements. Apparently people don't like that stuff.

Shuffled #28: Not to be Confused with...

Every other Wednesday either Matt or Alex C-Y share their love of music in an assortment of ways. Shuffled is a podcast whose format is as varied as their tastes in music, so hopefully you won't ever be bored and everyone can find something to enjoy.

What's in a name? A miserable pile of secrets! No wait, I think I may have my lines crossed

How important is a name to a band? I know every time I try to figure out one for Rock Band I come up with something lame. This week we take a closer look into bands with similar or the same name. Creating something from scratch, like music, is a tough job. I don't believe in giving flack to the copycats out there when it comes to creating an identity to a specific sound. Just keep making awesome tunes to grove to. That's my philosophy. Be sure to check out some of the links after the jump. There you'll find extra tracks and other bands (some for free!). Who knows? You might find something new to like!