This is it. All official and major unofficial albums have seen their day on this blog, except for this one. Up next is Strife!, a solo album by Joren “Tensei” de Bruin.
Spoiler alert: I didn’t leave this one ‘til last because I dreaded the review. Buckle in for a wild ride.
By Joren “Tensei” de Bruin
There’s some songs that work together in pairs. When some radio station sells out and plays ‘We Will Rock You’ but not ‘We Are the Champions’, it makes my skin crawl.
The first two tracks on Strife! are one such pair. Stormspirit is a subdued, simple piano introduction for the crazy, electric metal that’s soon to follow. Great way to kick off the album, and the transition into Heir Conditioning is absolutely seamless.
By Joren “Tensei” de Bruin
Image source: Homestuck.
From the calm, directly into the storm. It’s a crazy combination of chiptune-synth, rock guitar, and a few more eclectic instruments like piano and trumpet. This track amps up the energy, and it doesn’t really let off from here on out.
Heir of Grief
By Joren “Tensei” de Bruin
I’m about to run out of albums to review, but that doesn’t mean that the Homestuck music scene is dead. It’s somewhere between possible and probable that one more album will be released as the comic draws to a close. In fact, some of the music team has already begun making new tracks for Homestuck Vol. 10, if indeed it does become reality.
Tensei amongst them. This track was released about a year ago. It’s not released yet in an official capacity. And it’s such a cool jam, it’s a shame it hasn’t seen more attention. Heir of Grief, the song featured in the video, is a different take on Heir Conditioning: a little more measured in pace, but with just as much driving force behind it.
Listen to the extended solo that starts around 4:15. The song’s more of an anthem than a thrash, and Tensei just crushes it.
By Joren “Tensei” de Bruin
Image source: Homestuck.
Fiddle-driven rock insanity. The general structure’s and sound’s similar to Heir Conditioning, though it cools off just a little bit around 3:00 for a harpsichord ditty.
Although it hasn’t found a home in the comic proper, Andrew Hussie chose this track to back the video for the Homestuck Adventure Game Kickstarter.
By Joren “Tensei” de Bruin. Remix of “Beatdown” by Curt Blakeslee and “Black” by Toby “Radiation” Fox.
Image source: Homestuck.
Dave takes the reins next and runs the turntables through a couple of old favorites. The song’s built around two remixes: Beatdown first, around 0:50, and then Black later on. The instrumentation’s what stands out on this song: they’re used sparingly, but holy shit, there’s so much raw power behind the horn section.
Overall, though, my favorite moment is the pause around 2:45 that leads directly into an extended guitar solo.
All together, it makes for the perfect backing track for a memorable Flash in the comic, which takes many of its cues directly from the song. It’s my top track for the album.
By Joren “Tensei” de Bruin
Image source: Homestuck.
It’s a little mellower than the preceding tracks (although using the term ‘mellow’ is quite the stretch). A little more wide-ranging, too, with some changeups in instrumentation and an oriental vibe. Love those deep, deep drums.