Bad Guys Get Dead -Space Cadet: Galaxy Edition

Review by Karl Magi

Overall Album Impressions

Bad Guys Get Dead’s Space Cadet: Galaxy Edition revivifies the original Space Cadet 3D Pinball game and acts as an homage to the Visual Pinball X recreation as well. Bad Guys Get Dead reimagines the music for the game as an exciting journey across the universe, encompassing a galactic battlefield vast and deep. The mixture of classic hardware synth sounds with complex tonal and timbral interactions, along with Bad Guys Get Dead’s unique balance of musical styles, creates a listening experience that fills me with intergalactic thrills.

My first observation on Space Cadet: Galaxy Edition is that Bad Guys Get Dead evokes all of the danger, victory and emotion of a war across the cosmos. His atmospheric combination of different synth textures with intriguing sonic profiles and melodies that convey the story results in music that is immensely engaging. I feel compelled by the imagery of a battle for survival amongst the stars, complete with lurking threat and pulse-pounding action. As the tracks unfold, I am pulled deeper into the tale and find myself full of intense enjoyment.

Bad Guys Get Dead composes tracks which tell the story of Space Cadet: Galaxy Edition through well-crafted melodic imagery. Each melody captures some part of the tale that unfolds—from the initial contact with the enemy to pulse-pounding combat, and from a sense of deep fear to victorious energy. Each melody adds to the storytelling and propels the music forward with dynamism and deep respect for the original feeling that permeates the pinball game upon which this album is based.

The way in which the different synth music styles with which Bad Guys Get Dead is conversant combine on Space Cadet: Galaxy Edition adds to the complexity and completeness of the sound. He can move from thrilling cinematic-style tracks to portentous, terror-drenched dark synth with ease, and as he does so, the album gains from his skill and familiarity with the different genres of synth-based music.

My Favourite Tracks Analyzed

“Intro” comes to life as a narrator lays out the story of the game with drama as a raging synth lacerates and quickly twirling notes move above thick bass. The wildly twirling tones only add to the tense stress while subterranean sound pulsates. Intensely spinning notes move with the sound of a space launch, upping the sense of danger as the narrator unfolds the dystopian tale of terror. The slicing notes cut and the echoing vocals move.

A colossal low pulse and a laser zap open “Launch Training.” A mysterious, reverberating synth oscillates in a rapidly shifting pattern while round-sounding notes bubble and the beat seethes. Tripping notes bounce while a sense of intense concentration permeates the minor key, wobbling notes. The percussive pulse is ferocious while a snare drum leaps above it.

Now the wandering melody is joined by a dark choir, only increasing the sense of fearful emotion while the bass tears with sharp claws. The drums smoothly throb as the descending notes are rejoined by the open-sounding, disembodied synth which carries a portentous sensation and compels me as it does so. The track ends on crashing drums.

“Target Practice” commences as a fulminating rumble charges with unremitting force and a chopped-up melodic pattern ups the sense of rushing speed. The entire track accelerates with overbearing danger, creating a feeling of imperative action. The choppy synth trembles with barely contained power while the rhythm attacks. Elevated notes echo with worried concentration while the computerized-sounding synth moves in robotic lines.

The percussion-heavy track fills me with excitement, while the medium-high notes compel me to imagine a thousand alien threats. As a functional piece of game music, this creates incredible sensations of the need to act. It paints a vision of deep space combat with a deadly artificial intelligence entity.

Raging, cavernous sound slices with razor edges and distant sounds ring like a glockenspiel to kick off “Re-entry Training.” The propulsion is relentless as massive drums explode and the angry bass growls heavily. Tightly wound, bleeping notes flash as the grounding pulse propels the track forcefully. Glockenspiel-like tones echo as a hissing sound patterns through.

A feeling of being battered by gigantic forces permeates the music while the creaking synth rapidly rotates to contribute a sense of approaching challenges. I enjoy the way in which this track evokes the rough ride of planetary re-entry while the wandering, randomized synth slashes and fades.

“Satellite Deployment” opens as deeply undulating bass moves along with terror-laden synth, radiating dark menace. In contrast, the broadly waving synth pours out brighter tones, shaped by a surging undercurrent. As the bending notes catch with distorted light, they carry arpeggios which arc and slide with intense motion.

The tripping drums create a powerful pulsation while the piercing luminosity of the lead synth pours out light like a distant supernova. Tension radiates through the music while rippling synth shines with the brightness of a sun in the firmament of space. The heaving rhythmic pattern thunders as the ghostly synth drifts with peaceful but ferocious illumination and a reverent sound rises in the background before the track ends.

“Bug Hunt” starts with an oppressive sublayer pulsation and seething notes trembling above it. A sense of anticipatory threat permeates the music as the foundation bubbles dangerously, creating the sensation of approaching combat. The drums are massive as they punch flatly, and the angular note pattern vibrates with barely contained readiness. Smoothly rippling synth slides above the dark foundation while the drumbeat hits hard.

I’m drawn to the feeling of constant, creeping evil as the heaviness below batters. Fragile notes trickle while the attacking drums create a contrasting pulse. An impression of seeking out targets and striking them down fills the music before it ends.

Imperative, lacerating synth moves with assaulting drums to open “Rescue Mission.” The tonal pulse adds urgency to the colossal undercurrent, while the bass cadence locks in with razor-sharp notes rippling through, heightening the sense of danger. A guitar echoes, drifting into space.

After a trembling, computerized tonal pattern tumbles, the deep tones continue to slash and the drums guide with angry strength. A sense of palpable rushing grabs me as an elevated minor-key melody squelches and snarls. The main line has a determined quality as it presses forward, infusing the track with a mission-driven energy before it ends.

“Nexus Probe” begins with a juddering weight as a ringing xylophone joins broadly trembling 8-bit tones drifting with smooth, ghostly grace. Warm notes levitate like starlight while the jumping bassline and drums lock into a steady heartbeat.

A wistful emotional touch fills the music, flowing with encouragement and positive energy. I feel compelled by the melodic content as it jumps with a laser-like edge. Oscillating tones move beneath happily singing bells that exude crystalline light. The underpinning shifts as springy synth ripples between stereo channels, flooding the track with radiant energy. Sharply flashing sounds glimmer like light from a planet’s edge while contrasting chords add a faint shadow before the piece ends.

Thundering, thumping drums join a wildly flashing synth that creaks and tumbles to commence “Andromeda.” The main melody twists while the sonic bedrock rumbles with dramatic authority beneath pulsing drums.

Bending synth rapidly wriggles as the low end heaves ferociously. Computerized tones rebound with spaced-out energy, shaping a strange atmosphere against the muscle below. I enjoy the steady swing of the bottom end as flaring, slicing tones rove through the track and the drums explode.

After a brief pause, bizarrely twisted synth echoes as the drums slap hard. The piece is imbued with oddity and an otherworldly strangeness as percussion throbs with steady force. Above it, alien synth leaps and writhes before silence falls.

“Xara Multiball” comes into being as typing sounds move with harsh digital grating and a slightly broken supporting framework. A violent launching sound begins as vocal cuts move with the galactically churning synth that slices cleanly above massively hitting drums and thick bass.

The bright synth scuds past with choppy energy, radiating light as orchestral hits jump with barely contained force. Jittery dynamism fills the throbbing music as the drumbeat pounds. Angular notes jam through the track while the shifting architecture explodes with massive motion. Computerized notes with a blue-screen glow glimmer as heavily cascading underpinnings growl. Weight and muscle define the bottom tones while the cascading percussion bursts onward. A palpable gut punch hits me as the track slams to an end.

A warning message starts “Black Hole Threat” as surging sounds fill the track with dark import. Twirling arpeggios contribute to a sense of ever-growing danger as the bass adds forceful fear.

Churning notes scream with horrified tension as the rippling synth entangles with another layer of terror. The low sonic fabric is steeped in cosmic horror while the continually spinning arpeggios heighten the sense of approaching menace.

The way this piece exudes pure darkness draws me in and fills me with unease. A tightly wound synth deepens the dread, while flatly shivering notes add palm-sweating anxiety. Guitar notes churn and growl as the screaming synth howls with unmitigated fear, low sound creeping like shadowy fingers to grip the listener before the music finishes.

“Escape Destroyer” opens as rapidly speeding bass is joined by calling sounds that float into the void. The seismic pulsation steadies and drums strike with punk rock energy.

Urgent notes shift in tremulous lines, creating a sense of dramatic acceleration. Synth chords are impatient and powerful as the tumbling meter repeats. A sensation of fending off relentless attackers radiates through the music as the drums smash.

Slowly drifting tones roam with haunting sensations while the broadly vibrating bass locks in with an endlessly repeating, alarm-like motif. The track shatters to an end with unbelievably ferocious energy.

Reverberant drums move with a cascading, slashing synth and sharp-angled bass to kick off “Recon Mission (Alien Menace).” The synth slices with razor-sharp anger as a quickly churning root vibration presses forward.

Lurking enemies loom out of the darkness while ferocious, raging notes cut deep. The track seethes with anger and shadow. Beneath it all, I feel myself filled with nervous energy as the unwinding synth shivers and gashes, radiating pure menace before silence falls.

“Security Breach” opens as rushing metallic noises clash into the void. The drums bounce as the underpinnings reverberate with Stygian heaviness and raised notes wriggle uncomfortably. As the bottom-end pattern rumbles and throbs, a twisting guitar howls with nervous emotion and a spinning synth weaves together distinctly unsettled sensations.

The percussion wells up as the cascading synth is joined by blinding notes that exude terror as they smear through the music. The deep low tones throw up as the synth slashes angrily and the guitar roams with spectral sensations, filling me with worried anticipation. The raised notes shatter like glass as the beat smashes and the guitar churns with barely contained horror before the track ends.

Shimmering notes join the charging guitar with aspirational dynamism to flicker like a ship’s hull in the light of a distant sun to commence “Maelstrom (Triumph).” The xylophone radiates victorious luminosity, shining like the hull of a spaceship as the glistening guitar flashes with uplifting positivity.

The percussive throb presses hard while the guitar cuts through the music cleanly, carrying me along with a feeling of triumph and successful battling. As the shards of light splinter like refractive starlight above the heaving support structure, open-voiced notes vibrate and the track leaps to an end with uplift.

Conclusion

Space Cadet: Galaxy Edition soars across vast galactic structures in a ferocious space battle. I am drawn into the tale and injected with an adrenalin rush as the album unfolds.