Wednesday 4 May 2011

The Sounds of Tomchi


Whilst chatting with Tomchi briefly this evening, he was telling me about a new chiptune he has started for the r0x zer0 menu screen and I thought that it would be nice to show him a bit of support by showcasing a few of his recent tracks in this blog.

As an introduction, Tomchi (aka Nicolas Flandin) is one of the new school of Atari ST tracker musicians, still dedicated to the machine years after it's commercial demise and relentlessly striving to create fresh new sounds on the very limited YM2149 chip.  We met whilst working together on our r0x game project, and (despite his previous activity in the scene) it was here that I was first introduced to his music.  Since then, I've been hooked.

One of the things I rate particularly highly about his distinctive style is the way that he combines acid noises with breaks and dark melodies to create music that would work as well in a soundtrack as it does in a video game or demo release; his portfolio of tracks are full of attitude and complex patterns that capture the listeners interest and hold it until the last bleep fades out.

Well, enough hype - if you are still reading I guess that you're interested in hearing some of his releases.

Another Kid Story (MJJ Prod, 2009)


Although cut short for this particular demo (the original version is actually six minutes long), 'Another Kid Story' is arguably his best work to date.  I've heard it dozens of times now, but as far as I'm concerned, I'll never tire of it (in fact it is currently the title score for our WIP 'Droidz' game project).

Download the SNDH file here (SNDH Archive)
Download the Jam SNDH player for Windows here (Cream HQ)


ChipVenture (RGCD/NoExtra, 2010)


ChipVenture was RGCD and NoExtra's joint contribution for the Silly Venture 2010 demo party held in Poland.  Thanks to the help of RGCD collaborators Ptoing and Ilkke we managed to quickly upgrade the release from an SNDH file to a simple cracktro-style demo with party scroller - and considering the short amount of time that went into it, we were all quite happy with the end result.  Despite the nice pixels, Tomchi's music is what this release is really about, with fat beats riding a squelchy bassline and complimentary melodic loops floating over the top.  It's just a shame it ends so soon.

Download the SNDH file here (SNDH Archive)
Download the Jam SNDH player for Windows here (Cream HQ)


AC Invi'tro (NoExtra, 2011)


Sounding particularly special on a real Atari STE, Tomchi's most recent contribution to the scene is this particularly uplifting piece, full of his trademark melodic patterns and beats and bass, and complimenting a particularly nice party invitation.

Unfortunately there's no SNDH download yet, but the demo itself can be grabbed from the NoExtra website.

In conclusion, I know that Tomchi is not going to approve of this post - but hey, credit is due.  Even with the recent birth of his son, he still manages to find some time for coding and composing on his STE - which is always good news for the Atari scene.

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