Peter Zimmermann – Through The Night (Part 1)

Florida Skyline – The Green Tapes

Arcade High – New Impressions

Megadrive – 199XAD

Billy Mays Band – Introspection

Betamaxxx – Lost In A Dreamworld

Powerglove – Playback

Top 10 Retrowave Albums of 2019

10. Lucy in disguise – Sunset Radio

9. FM Attack – New World

8. Tonebox – Cloud Highway

7. Futurecop! – Voltrana

6. Akuma II – Alex & Tokyo Rose

5. Com Truise – Persuasion System

4. Waveshaper – Artifact

3. Quixotic – Flamingo Drive In

2. Michael Oakley – Introspect

1. Ollie Wride – Thanks in Advance

Top 10 Retrowave Songs of 2019

10. McRocklin & Hutch – One of Them

9. Michael Oakley – Push It To The Limit

8. FM Attack – Dark Blue Sky

7. Futurecop! – Star (feat. Computer Magic)

6. Kalax – Let Go (feat. Anton Vic)

5. Timecop1983 – My Delorean (feat. Primo)

4. FM-84 – Bend & Break

3. Wayfloe – Fractions (feat. Jessie Frye)

2. SYML – Clean Eyes (The Midnight Remix)

1. Ollie Wride – Back To Life (Official Video)

ev.exi – Forget – Artist: ?

Filmmaker – Somber Realm – Artist: Faunes

Protector 101 – Killbots – Artist: Serhiy Krykun

10. Fixions – Sleepwatcher – Artist: Atomcyber

9. Peter Zimmermann – Vapor Disco – Artists: Riccardo Sabatini & PUNKSY

8. Trevor Something – Escape – Artist: Trevor Something

7. Quixotic – Flamingo Drive In – Artist : Sonny Five

6.Hotel Pools – Constant – Artist: ?

5. Megadrive – 199XAD – Artist: Sean O’Neill

4. Billy Mays Band – Introspection – Artist: Atomcyber

3. Stilz – Hyperspace Drifter 3 – Artist: Atomcyber

2. Simple Circuits – Simple Circuits – Artist: STRNGR

1. Waveshaper – Artifact – Artist: Xurxo G Penalta

Honorable Mentions:

Brojak

Douze

Top 10 Retrowave Newcomers of 2019

10. Marsilius Kreutz

9. Vast Hill

8. Autokira

7. Lukhash

6. Florida Skyline

5. Siamese youth

4. SJ Bravo

3. Wayfloe

2. Yota

1. The Night Hour

Top 10 Retrowave Collaborations of 2019

10. DJ Ten & Lost Nights – Creation

9. Wayfloe – Spirit Bomb (feat. Violette Wautier)

8. FacexHugger – Power Unleashed (feat. Street Cleaner)

7. Futurecop! – We Belong (feat. Parallels)

6. Jay Diggs – Ready (feat. JJ Mist)

5. YORU 夜 & Turbo Knight – King And Queen (feat. Polemic Heart & Starquake Synthmaster)

4. Michael Oakley – Now I’m Alive (Feat. Dana Jean Phoenix)

3. NICOLAAS – No Stranger Thing (feat. Lucy Mason)

2. To Live & Die In LA – Remember (Feat. Dana Jean Phoenix)

1. Brandon – She’s on Fire (feat. SJBRAVO)

Carpenter Brut – Blood Machines
(The only reason this isn’t #1 is because it technically isn’t a music video, and it’s currently not available to stream. Check out the website here to see it when it becomes publicly available!)

Jack Stauber – Baby Hotline

Confrontational – Happy Children

Korine – Elegance & You

Top 10 Retrowave Music Videos of 2019

10. Deadlife – Nothing Left But Pills

9. Morgan Willis – Lets Go Together

8. Futurecop! – We Belong (feat. Parallels)

7. Starcadian – Freak night

6. Glowline – Glow with Me

5. Carpenter Brut – Leather Teeth

4. Com Truise – Ultrafiche of You

3. Alex & Tokyo Rose – Affliction

2. Ollie Wride – Back to Life

1. Michael Oakley – Left Behind

10. Von Kaiser – Glossy

After they started releasing music late last year, 2019 saw Von Kaiser improve with each release. The balance between atmosphere, melody, and groove on the four songs on Glossy are stellar. The multiple vocalists work well together and the longer track lengths never wear out their welcome.

https://vonkaiser.bandcamp.com/album/glossy

9. MoTER – Last Train to Synthville

Don’t let the hokey EP title fool you. Last Train to Synthville is one of those releases where it is immediately apparent that an excessive amount of care and consideration was put into each note and each production technique. There’s pretty melodies throughout and enough production flourishes to make this one of the more unique EPs of 2019.

https://moter.bandcamp.com/album/last-train-to-synthville

8. Magic Sword – Awakening

Magic Sword are a pretty unique musical presence in the scene, and that’s to say nothing of their aesthetics. With compositions that show them working more as a band than a lone guy behind a laptop, Awakening sees the group bringing in a more lighthearted vibe, but one which stays true to the highly cinematic and often funky nature of their songs.

https://magic-sword.bandcamp.com/album/awakening

7. Megan McDuffee – Barely Covered

A quick glance at Megan McDuffee’s credits section of her website makes it immediately apparent that she is one of the busiest artists in the scene. The fact that she created an EP as cool as Barely Covered in the midst of that is an even more impressive feat. The Siouxsie Sioux-esque crooning over songs that pairs well with the upbeat grooves and catchy melodies and real sinister streak under its tracks.

https://meganmcduffee.bandcamp.com/album/barely-covered

6. Straplocked & Turbo Knight – Electric Angel

2019 was the year of incredible collaborations, and one of the best was the trans-Atlantic pairing of Straplocked and Turbo Knight. From a sound design standpoint, few releases could touch this one. The synths and the impeccable mixing throughout the EP are strong on their own, let alone when they’re used on songs teeming with these cool retro-future vibes and lush leads.

https://straplocked.bandcamp.com/album/electric-angel

5. Duett – Version II

In a way, Duett’s Version I and Version II EPs have a unique advantage in that these are songs that Duett has had in their backlog for a decent amount of time. On the other hand, those EPs, and in particular Version II, are just some unbelievably well-crafted and produced pop songs. The three “Night Version” tracks are particularly strong.

https://duett.bandcamp.com/album/version-ii

4. Danny Madigan & Alpha Chrome Yayo – Grangeweird

What can be said about Grangeweird that wasn’t said in our review? Well, months removed from Halloween, it still winds up being one of the EPs most warranting revisiting. It’s fun and catchy, and filled with well-constructed songs beginning to end.

https://alphachromeyayo.bandcamp.com/album/grangeweird

3. Hotel Pools – Pacific

This one is a later release of the year, but Pacific is an incredibly strong EP for Hotel Pools to end the year on. It’s synthwave-meets-chillwave approach which channels the likes of Com Truise and Tycho still creates something fresh and unique. This EP is hard to put down. You’ll find yourself listening to it on repeat.

https://hotelpoolsmusic.bandcamp.com/album/pacific

2. Moonraccoon & Gryff – Ride

What do you get when you combine one of the best melodic producers in the scene with one of the best vocalists in the scene? One of the definitive releases of 2019. With “Ride”, a high-energy instant classic, “Promises”, a new wave ballad, and a Rocky IV soundtrack cover song, this EP immediately sticks with you. Check out our full review here.

https://moonraccoon.bandcamp.com/album/ride

1. Power Glove – Throwback

Power Glove could just release the same EP and it would still be one of the best and freshest releases of the year. The Australian producers catalog shows evolution, and Throwback is their best work to date, and represents some of the best that the scene can offer. It’s cinematic and epic in a way that other releases aspire to, and is the kind of release that could kick-start someone’s desire to make music in this wonderful synthwave genre.

https://powergloveaudio.bandcamp.com/album/throwback

10. Fallen World (Valiant Comics)

It doesn’t take long into one’s journey through the criminally underappreciated Valiant universe to notice the parallels between Rai, the mainstay of Valiant’s future timeline, and Bloodshot, the popular character with an upcoming feature length-film. Fallen World could have been a simple conflict story between the two characters, but the way that it weaves in characters like the Geomancer and War Mother, and the delicate attention that writer Dan Abnett gives to the world of the story elevates it significantly.

9. Usagi Yojimbo (IDW Comics)

If you listen to the NewRetroWave comic book podcast, you know that the IDW relaunch of Stan Sakai’s longrunning series is a monthly favorite. It knows exactly what it wants to be and executes its stories well along those lines. It may not always have the loftiest ambitions in terms of art or storytelling, but at the end of the day being able to tell a compelling story with a compelling lead for over two decades is a greater ambition than most books and creators can hope for. The relaunch has been one of the most consistent and entertaining books of the year.

8. Sonata (Image Comics)

When I read Monstress for the first time I was overwhelmed by the world within its pages in a way that I hadn’t by other comics before. The first comic to captivate me with its world since has been Image Comics’ Sonata. While this comic could have sat comfortably on the creativity of its world and the strength in the art depicting that world, it ramped up significantly by making a level of intrigue between its characters that each issue has been hard to put down.

7. Ruby Falls (Dark Horse Comics)

Another title that shouldn’t be a surprise to NRW Comic Podcast listeners. Series writer Ann Nocenti shows her considerable skill at both characterization and strong thematic storytelling in equal measure with this mini-series. All of the characters in this story are memorable and likable, but Lana is one of the most relatable protagonists of 2019. She manages to have obvious and apparant flaws that the readers are usually able to find in some measure within themselves, and to see her attempt to solve the mystery of a decades-old murder in a town that seems stuck in the past makes for some great reading.

6. Blossoms 666 (Archie Comics)

If there was ever a time to strike while the iron is hot for Archie Comics, and for the Archie Horror imprint in particular, its 2019. With outstanding art and a killer story from Cullen Bunn, Blossoms 666 delivered up devilish fun in 2019 with its story of Jason and Cheryl (and even a mystery third Blossom heir) and their quests to become Riverdale’s own Anti-Christ. The Archie Horror imprint has some of the best comics of the past decade at their helm, and Blossoms 666 is right at home.

5. The Plot (Vault Comics)

Oh look, another book raved about on NRW’s Comic Book Podcast. (Please listen to it) The Plot managed to be not just the best book from a publisher who drastically has delivered quality titles for the past two years, but one of the five best books of the year. Its gothic sensibilities married to its 70;s horror aesthetic makes this easily the most atmospheric book of the year. It might be wrapping up it’s initial run now, but this is going to be the kind of trade paperback that people who don’t typically like comics are going to love.

4. Ascender (Image Comics)

The Jeff Lemire-written and Dustin Nguyen-drawn series Descender was consistently one of the best books on shelves during its 32 issue run starting in 2015. How could the team follow such a beloved, original, and stylish sci-fi series? By bringing several of the series’ beloved characters into an equally original and stylish sequel, but one which shifts genres toward fantasy. The results are compelling in a way that few books are, and the unique identity between the original and sequel manage to be significant while not feeling wholly disjointed.

3. Going to the Chapel (Action Lab Comics)

Another favorite here at NRW. As you could tell from our review of the debut issue, this comic started with a bang. If you listened to the recent NRW Comic Podcast interview with Going to the Chapel writer David Pepose, then you know that the series has maintained that level of energy and has spent four issues endearing readers to its robust cast of characters. Balancing something as intense as a hostage situation with jokes and levity is no easy task, but Pepose and the art team of artist Gavin Guidry and colorist Elizabeth Kramer deliver.

2. Excellence (Image Comics)

Has there ever been a book so perfectly titled? Writer Brandon Thomas and artist Khary Randolph deliver a world that is as fascinating as it is thematically rich. Main character Spencer Dale navigates a world where he experiences pressures from his society and his family, and his conflicts in this world get heightened with artist Khary Randolph’s incredibly fluid and stylish panels. Colorist Emilio Lopez rounds out the team and makes this book one of the most can’t-miss titles of 2019, and of all the titles on this list, this is the one that feels most likely to jump to other mediums.

1. House of X / Powers of X (Marvel Comics)

For a publisher that’s pretty egregious with their use of large-scale events, House of X and Powers of X is the first time in my life as a reader that a comic story has lived up to the name ‘event’. There really is no writer better suited to injecting the X line up with new energy and new ideas than Jonathan Hickman, and this two-as-one series showed exactly why. These books were electric with an energy rarely found, and following each book was the mountain of discourse from the rabid X-fan community who seemed to finally all agree that something huge was here for their favorite heroes. Whether Hickman’s relaunch lives up to this hype remains to be seen, but HoXPoX is some of the best that this medium can produce.

#10

D1896

(Arkhouse Telegraph, released 11/15/19)

This is, at its most basic level of comparison, a high-quality Castlevania clone. It has only recently come out, and has yet to receive a flood of attention on Steam, but I felt it bore mention due to the buzz it has created on YouTube among fans of this type of platformer. D1896 isn’t just a game. It’s art, it’s inspired by art, and it’s gorgeous. D1896 claims to be directly inspired by Georges Méliès’s early silent film Le Manoir du diable (House of the Devil), considered by many to be the first horror film despite its comedic overtones. (It’s 3 minutes long, get some culture, here.) The game is a rich yet minimalistic platformer with most of the bells and whistles of the expected matroidvania stripped away; D1896 is simple, challenging (fucking HARD, actually), and eerily engrossing. Everything is represented in ephemeral black and white, yet there is no lack of detail or texture to the game elements. Couple this with a masterfully claustrophobic piano (and piano only) soundtrack, and you’ve got a game so enchanting and macabre that it will hold you spellbound. It is, as I said, incredibly difficult, however. You’ll die a lot and the bosses are exercises in the developers’ sadism.

#9

Demon’s Tilt

(FLARB LLC, released 12/13/19)

There’s a true spiritual successor to Naxat’s classic series of virtual pinball games. It’s every bit as gnarly, gruesome, and action-packed as its forebears, and features a driving bit-crushed musical soundtrack along with some killer sound and sleek visuals. Still in early release, This game looks more than capable of living up to its legacy. It maintains the occult vibes of Devil’s Crush, but has its own dash of flash in the form of its neon-and-darkness motif and old-meets-new aesthetic. Plus it’s a ball to play. Yes, I made a terrible pun on purpose. Flay me alive, please.

#8

River City Girls

(WayForward/Arc System Works, released 9/5/19)

This is exactly what it fucking sounds like, and it’s awesome. This beat em up is a spin off of the Kunio-kun franchise, which gave us River City Ransom, one of classic gaming’s most memorable and engaging punch-and-kick titles. This time, it’s the ladies stepping up to the plate to save their hapless boyfriends from mysterious kidnappers. The story plays out alongside the action in an elegant waltz punctuated by the impacts of fists on faces, as Misako and Kyoko beat the shit out of whoever crosses them while exploring River City for their beaus and the kidnappers who unknowingly signed their own death warrants. The art style and soundtrack are a new take on the original theme, and they both play a role in making this game a knockout. River City Girls is every bit the solid beat em up River City Ransom was, with a dash of the modern for flavor. And girl power!

#7

Katana Zero

(Askiisoft, released 4/18/19)

Katana Zero is dripping with neon-noir style, an action-adventure game that immerses and amazes. You play as a sword-wielding assassin whose psychiatrist gives him drugs that allow him to do bullet-time and see the future. The game has a rich story worth paying attention to, a narrative that gradually unravels a mystery within the absurd yet dire game world. Work began on it in 2016, but it has officially been released this year to very favorable criticism. This game is beautiful, uncompromising, and fun just to watch, let alone play.

#6

Amid Evil

(Indefatigable, released 6/20/19)

A dark fantasy FPS built using the Unreal engine, Amid Evil is another game that took the baton and ran with it in 2019. An homage to classic FPS like Heretic and Hexen, gameplay is nonlinear and requires you to both explore and kick ass. You play as an anonymous “Champion” called upon to cleanse the lands by defeating a mysterious “Evil Force.” What the game lacks in storytelling depth it more than makes up for in terms of gameplay. In both the regular game and Survival Mode, you must face off against a variety of terrible otherworldly creatures and wield an array of strange weapons. Level design is high-caliber and the nonlinear gameplay adds layered challenges to your quest. Amid Evil is worth taking a harder look at if you haven’t already.

#5

Cadence of Hyrule

(Nintendo, released 6/13/19)

If you ever wanted to play one of the iconic early Zelda games like Link to the Past, but wanted to put a whole bucket of spit and polish on it, this Switch title is for you. Cadence of Hyrule gracefully blends old and new ideas, making it a 2D action RPG that will entertain modern and classic fans alike. Devious puzzles, A delightful soundtrack true to the series’ spirit, and an eclectic mix of old and new elements all mean that Switch gamers are missing out if they’re missing this title.

#4

Gato Roboto

(Doinksoft, released 5/30/19)

Another monochrome pixel game whose true colors are its design and its fun factor, Gato Roboto is essentially a super-polished Metroid-style game in which you play a cat. Your owner’s starship crashes, and he sends you, a cat, to investigate the distress signal that initiated the original journey. Thankfully, you get a robo-suit with a gun arm. You can (and need to) enter and exit the suit at various times, find other “vehicles” in certain parts of the game, and unlock power ups while exploring the strange world you’ve landed on. While this is very strictly a Metroid clone, it’s a really fucking good one, and it’s both cute and challenging. Fans of Metroid and similar titles must check this one out.

#3 Hypnospace Outlaw

(Tendershoot, released 3/12/19)

This game is a very self-aware and irreverent parody of the 90s’era incarnation of the World Wide Web. You play as an enforcer of rules and propriety for the users of an online service called Hypnospace, solving puzzles and mysteries as you traverse this giggling love note to the early Internet. The focus is more on story, theme, and adventure than action; Hypnospace Outlaw is another title that is as much an artistic statement as it is a game. The visuals and atmosphere are painfully authentic, rendering the 1999 of another reality in vibrant colors. Hypnospace Outlaw is very strange, but it’s the kind of strange you need in your life.

#2

Nova Drift

(Pixeljam, released 3/27/19)

Nova Drift is an arcade-style shoot em up and an action RPG combined into a future classic. Your ship is eternally customizable, and the open world is so extensive that hours at a time can be lost just exploring. There is an amazing depth of variety in every element of Nova Drift, and you will not get bored. Ever. Vividly colored game objects are stylishly rendered, accompanied by sharp audio elements in a truly gorgeous end product that will provide a universe of adventure.

#1

Reventure

(Pixelatto, released 6/4/19)

Its tagline tells you the most impressive thing about it: 100 different endings. The simple plot has you as an adventurer on a quest to find a magic sword and rescue a princess from a dark lord. Reventure offers players 100 different ways to finish the game and its story, ranging from the simple and comical to the complex and theatrical. Lots of nods to previous action/RPG games can be easily seen, and the blend of action and puzzle is extremely well-balanced. One interesting twist is that, to reach certain endings, the character must be careful what items he picks up, since each item makes his jumping height lower due to encumbrance. Therefore, which item sets reach which endings is a puzzle in and of itself. Action is present in adequate amounts, but Reventure is all about problem solving. It’s lovingly pixelated and incredibly detailed, with a sense of humor to boot. It has caught fire on Steam, and it’s worth getting if you like video games at all. Just play it.

Well, that’s good enough for government work, folks. Happy Holidays, Auld Lang Syne, and Stay Retro!