ARTIST: The OneUps
ALBUM TITLE: Intergalactic Redux
RECORD LABEL: OneUp Studios
RELEASED: January 18, 2011

By Eric Stuckart
Creator, Destroyer

Despite not getting a lot of mainstream attention, there is a pretty healthy community of musical artists that exist just for the purpose of covering and recreating video game music. However, a lot of them tend to fall into three very easily predictable genres: progressive rock, power metal and electronic. And while I could think of a number of artists that do the songs they recreate a tremendous amount of justice, there are plenty styles of music out there that could be explored and used to a great effect.

That being said, The OneUps have a very original take on video game music, opting to chill out a little bit and offering an innovative take on video game music. Playing a mellow style of jazzy funk, it goes down quite smoothly, I must admit. Part of that may be due to my recognition of their song choices, which include Castlevania III, Super Metroid, and The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, but it works in such a way that the average layman wouldn’t even suspect they were listening to video game music. In my opinion, that’s a nice tip of the hat to their originality.

Photo by Chris Serani. Courtesy of The OneUps.

The six song collection offers up a half hour of music that sits somewhere between smooth jazz and not-so-boring elevator music, punctuated with bits of keyboards that wouldn’t sound out of place in a John Carpenter film, and is entirely hummable, even more so if you actually know the source material. Like I said though, if you don’t know the source material, it works on its own without feeling hokey.

The EP hits a particularly high stride about halfway through, with the back to back combo of Super Metroid and A Link to the Past, both of which do a great job completely exploring the soundscapes of each respective game’s music. Never overstaying their welcome, the songs capture the essence of the music in a way that feels natural, mainly due to their epic pacing, and they both have just enough of the band’s own personal touches to keep them interesting.

While their jazz-funk stylings won’t appeal to all music fans, as it is quite mellow, if you’re looking for an interesting take on video game music that doesn’t fall into the same pitfalls that much of it does—not that there’s anything wrong with that—The OneUps are a truly unique band deserving of your attention.

RATING: 8/10