Where the bits keep comin'
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Justin comes in with a jump off the top rope! BOOM! Mike goes down, and it’s ONE-TWO-11? Yes, 11 tracks of excellent wrestling music from video games are coming your way on this super-charged episode of XVGM Radio! Hear the guys chat about their Wrestling game (and Wrestling TV) experiences. Plus an extra special appearance by a few pals of XVGM Ra…
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Episode 113 – Robots GBA/DS Spotlight with Composer Ian Stocker
1:56:52
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There’s two things that don’t get the recognition they deserve when it comes to video games: Game Boy Advance soundtracks and licensed games. Today on XVGM Radio, Mike and Justin build up a musical tale to combat this inaccurate statement with a GBA soundtrack from a licensed game that rocks! Robots, based on the CGI family friendly flick, has a so…
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High score rankings have been a thing since the 70s in video games. But the music layered behind them didn’t really pick up until the 80s. Justin and Mike examine these tunes to explore the eastern vs western comparisons. Eastern composers tend to create much shorter high score music than western composers and the guys find a few tracks here and th…
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Episode 111 – Modern Retro Game Music
1:36:57
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Many of today’s indie and AA developers know their retro. That’s why there’s an abundance of amazing games available for modern platforms which channel the games of our pasts. Thankfully, game composers of the current era haven’t forgotten the roots of VGM either, as the amount of modern games which rely on catchy melodies, punchy drums and FM tone…
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Episode 110 – Musical Therapy: An Interview w/ Norihiko Hibino
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Music touches all aspects of the soul. It’s a large part of what makes us human. In tough times or happy moments and everything in between, music can be therapy in many ways and video game music is no different. On today’s episode, we sit down for a chat with Norihiko Hibino and listen to one of his favorite genre offerings: Jazz music. We listen t…
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Episode 109 – Emotional Damage VGM w/ Niko Tengoku
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It’s that time of year again! It’s January in a new year and as always with XVGM Radio, we bring in the big guns: NikoTengoku! Our old pal and honorary third co-host Niko joins us once again to ring in 2024 with a somber note: Emotional VGM. Whether the moments in the games touched our heartstrings or the songs made it look like we were cuttin’ oni…
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In 1994, video game system manufacturers were just starting to shift into the realm of 3D-based video game consoles thanks to the fifth generation. But one company decided to continue building upon the legacy of 2D in the mid-90s with their final console release: NEC. The PC-FX was host to 62 games which utilized 2D animated content, with a focus o…
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Episode 107 – Infernax w/ composer Jason Letourneau
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Though Halloween season is over, we’re still playing with gore! XVGM Radio sits down with VGM composer Jason Létourneau to discuss his music in the 8-bit modern retro classic, Infernax. Hear us grill Jason to learn about his process and how some of our favorite modern VGM composers helped him early in his game composing career. Rock out to some ser…
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They’reeeee bacccckkkkkk! The XVGM Radio boys are back for another haunting year of SPOOOOOOOOOOOOOKY songs to celebrate the holiday season! Join Mike and Justin on their 5th annual Spookyfest, complete with crowds cheering them on, buying Poltergust 4000 vacuums and gettin’ their sour pukes on! Two special Patrons make requests, the guys try their…
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Episode 105 – The Musical History of Natsume Part 3
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Continued from Episodes 99 and 102, Mike and Justin close out the musical history of the developer, Natsume Co. Ltd. After the split between Natsume Co. Ltd. and Natsume Inc, Natsume Co. Ltd. would continue to work on developing games, mostly on the Super NES and eventually handhelds like the Game Boy Color. Here is where we get to see a bigger shi…
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Wayforward’s Shantae on the Game Boy Color was the swansong release on the handheld and the beginning of a franchise in the making. Now, Shantae has not only blossomed into a 5 (soon to be 6) game series, but can be widely considered Queen of the indie game scene. One particular stand out in this game franchise is the stellar music by Jake Kaufman …
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PING! BLAM! DING-DING-DING-DING! CH-CHUNK! Pinball certainly has some exciting sounds. Video pinball brings the experience of pinball home to consoles, PCs or on the go. But what rarely gets discussed by video pinball aficionados is how great the music is in these games. Today, we’re getting our flippers ready to beam 11 exciting tracks up to your …
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Episode 102 – The Musical History of Natsume Part 2: Natsume Inc.
1:40:41
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Continued from Episode 99, Mike and Justin hit the dusty trail of Natsume’s musical history for a second time to uncover the North American-based publishing (and sometimes development) side of the company. Splitting from Natsume Co. Ltd. in 1995, Natsume Inc. began publishing a wide variety of games mostly in North America. From tales of what happe…
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Episode 101 – Elevator Action Returns
1:30:53
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Step into the world of Elevator Action Returns: A place full of guns, explosions and most importantly…elevators! Justin and Mike climb back into the world of Taito’s in house band, Zuntata; more specifically Yasuhisa Watanabe’s stellar soundtrack for this exciting sequel to the original arcade classic, Elevator Action. From funk elements to jazz an…
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WE DID IT! 100 EPISODES OF XVGM RADIO! We’re still thrilled to be able to bring you engaging topics and themes, a wide variety of VGM related guests and of course, fun wacky times with a dash of game music knowledge. Thanks so much for listening to our little show! In celebration, we decided to let you all pick the music! This episode’s tracks were…
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Episode 99 – The Musical History of Natsume (Part 1)
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It’s Technostasy! Since 1987, Natsumi, a company created by ex-Konami employees, has been one of the best developers from the 8 and 16 bit eras of gaming. However, their history has been muddled by confusing ownership and history to the common fan. Today on XVGM Radio, Mike and Justin uncover the truth behind Natsume’s story in part 1 of a multi-pa…
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Episode 98 – Arwing Odyssey w/ Ro Panuganti
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Star Fox 64 is sometimes viewed as the evolution in the Star Fox franchise’s musical journey. But with this more cinematic orchestral vision, the sounds of a more popular style of music has disappeared. But with musician Ro Panuganti’s prowess, Arwing Odyssey is born. A Progressive Metal thematic voyage through most of Star Fox 64’s music, Panugant…
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Episode 97 – Super Famicom Japan Exclusives w/ NIKOTENGOKU
1:40:10
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New Year! New Episode! Starting off 2023, our 5th year as a podcast, we’re joined once again by our good pal, NikoTengoku! The Super Famicom (or as we know it outside of Japan, the Super NES) is host to a COLOSSAL list of excellent game soundtracks, but the Japan exclusive stuff usually gets overlooked. Niko helps us pick 10 awesome tracks that we …
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Episode 96 – Slayin’ 2 with composer Matt Creamer
1:42:29
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Matt Creamer (AKA Norrin Radd) has been one of our favorite guests (and composers) for some time now, but he’s been holding back from us. He’s unleashed his final musical form in the mold of Slayin’ 2’s original soundtrack and it is A BANGER/ROCKER! Now it’s time for you to feast your ears on over a dozen epic tracks that perfectly merge the worlds…
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It’s well known that Sony’s Playstation 2 dominated sales during the 6th generation of gaming. However, this was also during the era where Sony attempted to take on the task of toppling Nintendo’s handheld juggernaut abilities. Enter the Sony Playstation Portable, Sony’s first major foray into the handheld market. Many games from the PS2 were given…
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It’s that spooooooooooky time of year again! Celebrate Halloween with the video game music podcast hostesses with the mostestes….that’s a word. Justin and Mike host Spookyfest each year and now that they’re back to their normal outdoor festival activity, you’re in for a fright of a good time! From discussions of Peanuts characters becoming VGM comp…
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Episode 93 – X-Men Game Music w/ Carlos from Heroes Three
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Marvel Comics’ X-Men series is a franchise that means a lot to millions all over the planet. In the 90s, it was the pinnacle of X-citing, engaging storytelling coupled with a major media boost thanks to the comics, collectible cards, Saturday morning cartoons and of course, video games. On today’s episode of XVGM Radio, Mike and Justin invite fello…
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Episode 92 – Nicole Marie T Composer Interview
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Indie composers of video games are leading the way with their creativity, ingenuity and hunger to create the next wave of classics. One such composer is Nicole Marie T, who we had the pleasure of interviewing. From her love and appreciation of Sega to her evolution into a Sony fan, Nicole’s video game upbringing shines through her music as she chur…
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If you had to pick four legendary composers that best represents you…as well as all of video game music, who would you pick? Well, that’s the question that our pal Bedroth from VGMVGM (Very Good Music Video Game Music) Podcast asked the community of VGM podcasters…and we broke the rules and picked a bonus one, because we’re rule breakers. Yeah, tha…
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Nostalgia can be a powerful thing. Growing up in the 80s and 90s, there was plenty of stuff Mike and Justin reflected on in this episode from their youth. Though as always when they pick a topic, sometimes they approach the idea differently for fun results. Episode 90 is a perfect representation of this method of madness. Listen to the guys wax nos…
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Episode 89 – The Best & Worst of Gems Driver Songs (w/ specia guest Dya)
1:53:40
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The Sega Genesis GEMS Driver is often considered one of the worst drivers created for video game music. However, we are optimists when it comes to most chips, so today, we’re taking a deep look into the GEMS driver. Who created it, why it was important to Western composers, the benefits of it and the downfalls. Justin and Mike aim to examine the go…
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It should be pretty obvious if you’ve heard the show before that Mike and Justin LOVE comedy. So on this episode, which just so happens to release on April Fools for no specific reason, the guys get deeply personal and share never before heard stories before. Listen to some wacky tunes about sunflowers, finding secrets, slippery little things that …
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Episode 87 – Super Nintendo: ORCHESTRATED with Orchestral Fantasy
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The Super Nintendo is known for having some of the most lush compositions in 16 bit history. But have you ever wondered what these tracks would sound like with real instruments? Our guest today is Andrew Thompson who runs a musical project where he answers that very question and the results are EPIC! Mike and Justin sit down with Andrew to discuss …
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It’s that time of year again! NikoTengoku joins us for his third return as the unofficial “third host” of the show…and he’s ready TO DANCE! We let Niko pick the theme this time around and he wanted to get down! We’ve all picked a variety of dance tracks to listen to from all walks of dance music. From almost gabber-like songs, to borderline industr…
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Episode 85 – Dimo’s Quest CD-i Spotlight
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While single games have been covered before on XVGM Radio, never before have we went into a soundtrack without hearing it period. Taking a page from our pal Ed Wilson over at The VGMbassy, we’re doing a “Blind Listen” episode where we pick tracks we haven’t heard, and learn about the game as we go along. The end result is a hilarious episode where …
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Episode 84 – Yakuza Games w/ Alex From A VGM Journey
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On XVGM Radio, we generally are pretty knowledgable about the subject matter of both game music and the game series we discuss. But what about when we’re not familiar with a franchise or its tunes? We bring in someone who’s played them all and in this circumstance that would be patron saint of video game music podcasts and leader of his own show, A…
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It’s that time of year again! Spooooooooooooookyfest has returned for it’s 2021 festival! Join Mike and Justin (and lots of zombies) for the most ghoulish “live” music event of the year! We’ve picked some really devilish tracks for you to sink your teeth into this Halloween season! From brand new Sega Genesis games to creepy crawly C64 classics, th…
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Episode 82 – An Evening with Barry Leitch
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Barry Leitch is mostly known for his compositions on the Top Gear racing game series, and more recently, Horizon Chase Turbo. But if you dive deep enough, you’ll uncover a wealth of video game music magic from a man who was inspired by the greats of the C64 era. Starting out as a teenager, his earlier creations aren’t as fondly remembered by the co…
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Episode 81 – Consoles VS Handhelds (Same Song Different System)
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The difference between consoles and handhelds can be immense…..or….there’s not much of a difference (if we’re talking about redbook audio, at least.) But what happens when we DO compare these two regarding the same composition, but different arrangements? What sacrifices need to be made to make the underpowered consoles stand out? Today on XVGM Rad…
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Episode 80: Free Picks 解き放たれた第四 (The Fourth Unleashed)
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The XVGM Radio guys go WILD…..with their fourth rendition of their Free Picks series of shows! Every 20 episodes, Mike and Justin pick whatever tracks they want to showcase, plus they flip a coin to determine the order of who introduces the episodes and picks the first tracks. How exciting! With a wide assortment of music at their fingertips, Mike …
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Episode 79 – The music of Blaster Master
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The original Blaster Master on the Nintendo Entertainment System was host to plenty of nostalgic memories for those of us who grew up during that era. But there’s a surprising amount of games that have been released for the game-turned-franchise and on this episode, Justin and Mike dive deep into the legacy of the series and how Naoki Kodaka helped…
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Episode 78 – Super Smash Bros. Music w/ The VGMbassy
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It’s a teamup of EPIC PROPORTIONS! Mike and Ed of XVGM Radio join forces with VGM Podcast minister and community mastermind, Ed Wilson (current host of The VGMbassy and previously co-host with Mike on PixelTunes Radio) to listen to some truly smash-tastic tunes. The guys pick their favorites from the Super Smash Bros. franchise, songs that recaptur…
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Plenty of video games have only had certain releases in exclusive territories but PAL territories are home to some pretty oddball selections of games; some of which we’ve chosen here to highlight their amazing music. Who let a bunch of Yanks in to chat about PAL exclusives, anyways?! No idea, but you’ll soon forget about all that when you tune in t…
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Episode 76 – The Wonderswan & Wonderswan Color
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We’re no strangers to covering obscure stuff on XVGM Radio…but this might be the most obscure thing we’ve chat about: Bandai’s Wonderswan family of handhelds. Going after the Game Boy was a lofty goal, one which made the Wonderswan succumb. But today, we dig up the grave of Bandai’s Wonderswan, the Wonderswan Color and the SwanCrystal, to delve int…
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Episode 75 – Adventure Island vs. Wonder Boy (feat. Rhythm & Pixels)
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In an epic battle for Justin’s soul, Mike and Justin teamed up with Rhythm & Pixels to discuss the wild, wacky world of Adventure Island and Wonder Boy games and their funky fresh music! From heavy metal chiptune boss bangers to Dorabian Night arabic themes (yes, you read that right), the guys showcased some absolutely killer tunes this time around…
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What do didgeridoos, surf rock and discussions on bellbottoms have in common? Well, they’re all featured bits of conversation taking place in Episode 74 of XVGM Radio, where the XVGM guys are chatting about spy and espionage games and their video game music! Listen to Mike and Justin get super nostalgic for the Get Smart TV series, the debate about…
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The Legend of Zelda is perhaps most famous for being one of the flagship franchises on Nintendo consoles, expanding into the third dimension and consistently innovating as time has marched on. However, the franchise has also had its fair share of exploration on handhelds beginning with Link’s Awakening and continues to this day on the console/handh…
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Episode 72 – Vanillaware w/ Pragmatik
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The story of Vanillaware, an Osaka-based Japanese game developer, is one that could’ve been showcased in failure. The company’s first game almost shut down the company, but they later would regroup and continue working on video games, putting out some of the most original and interesting titles on more recent generations of consoles. Today, we sit …
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Episode 71 – Card and Board Games 2
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Going all the way back to Episode 3 where they covered Board and Card Game based titles, Mike and Justin are back at it, revisiting the theme but adding in some new twists and turns. This time around, they’re focusing on featuring video games that are board/card games utilizing gaming’s top franchises. From conversations about how Eddie from Mega M…
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Episode 70 – Paradise Killer w/ Composer Barry” Epoch” Topping
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Every now and then a game comes out that features a soundtrack that puts the fire back in our VGM lovin’ hearts. Paradise Killer is exactly that kind of OST. The XVGM Radio guys are joined by Barry “Epoch” Topping, the composer of (what Mike considers) the best VGM soundtrack of 2020. From the vocal-infused, saxophone wailing on the intro theme “Pa…
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It’s time to dim the lights, snuggle up with your favorite person and…put on some VGM?! In a post-Valentine’s Day delight, Mike and Justin have set up a playlist of games involving sexy characters and their equally sexy songs. The music choices here range from smooth jazz, sultry salsa, hard rockin’ and hip-hoppin’! Listen to discussions about hot …
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Episode 68 – Anime Game Music w/ G to the Next Level
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What happens when video games and anime collide? You get video games based on anime, of course! Mike and Justin are joined by fellow-anime lover and Sega mega fan, George aka G To The Next Level, where the guys really hit it off celebrating video games based on anime and their stellar music. Diving deep into their own nostalgic memories of how they…
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HADOKEN! GET OVER HERE! C-C-C-C-COMBO BREAKER! All of these are sounds of the arcade and fighting game scene in general. But what about the fighting games that we didn’t play to death? On this episode of XVGM Radio, we dive into the music from fighting games to which we have zero nostalgia. From heavy discussions about balls..er…ballz, Alice Deejay…
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Episode 66 – Amiga Music w/ Nikotengoku
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New Year, New Niko Episode! 2020 was a rough year on all of us, but before it got out of hand, Niko had stopped by for an episode in January and there was discussion at the end of that episode to cover Amiga the next time he stopped by. We didn’t forget his suggestion, and so this episode of XVGM Radio sees the NikoTengoku himself is back with a sl…
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Episode 65 – Winter Trax 2: Icelectric Boogaloo
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Happy Holidays to all! For the final episode of 2020, in what’s been an absolutely bonkers world, Mike and Justin take a moment to sit down and enjoy the holidays together (socially distanced, of course.) What follows is a celebration of winter and holiday music of the video game variety, discussions about getting dat nut, Prehistoric Turtlesaurus’…
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