'The music in video games is less memorable now than it was in the old days," says Midori Kurihara, vocalist with YMCK, and she should know: Her Tokyo three-piece band emulates the sound of classic scores to games on the 8-bit Nintendo Famicom console (known in the West as the Nintendo Entertainment System) that gave "Super Mario Bros." to the world in 1985.
"These days video-game music is more cinematic," counters Tomoyuki Nakamura, who co-writes the band's music and handles animation for their suitably pixelated music videos. "But it's not as impressive as before."
"The music from games such as 'Mario Bros.' or 'Dragon Quest,' we can still sing along to those," agrees Takeshi Yokemura, the unit's driving member, who writes most of the music and lyrics and also crafts the band's sound.