✨dedeco✨ mixes electronic video game music DJ sets that make you dance, chill, or consider the genre’s relationship to video games in a new way. Check out his YouTube channel to hear sets that dive deep into subgenres, or find sets that feature classics like WipEout and Bomberman.
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/dedecoVGMDJ
SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/youngpadawan64
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/dedeco/
Discussions of video game music may conjure memories of the chugging guitars of DOOM E1M1 or the delicate harp found in the Final Fantasy theme. dedeco, however, is creating video game music DJ sets that dive deep into an underappreciated music genre that grew alongside the video game medium: electronic music.
To date, dedeco has mixed over a dozen sets of about 30 minutes in length. Videos typically group game music into electronic sub-genres like drum ‘n bass, jungle, garage, techno, and breakbeat, among others. Other videos ditch the confines of genre and instead feature music only from platforms or games, like a PlayStation 1 mix, or a strictly WipEout mix.
Each set features a thoughtful commentary through the YouTube closed caption system that shares information about the sometimes-obscure games being showcased, or personal thoughts from the DJ himself. The WipEout commentary stands out, as it features an interview with the game’s composer, Tim Wright, known as CoLD SToRAGE.
dedeco’s video production is lo-fi meets hi-tech. Captured game footage is generously filtered with a VHS aesthetic, and his DJ cam overlay has modern keying and layering effects. In fact, some videos feature playful motion tracking over game objects, like in the DoDonPachi: Dai-Ou-Jou (Arcade) clip seen below.
When describing his own work, dedeco “want[s] to make something that will show electronic music enthusiasts just how cool and important for dance music history video game soundtracks are.” Certainly, some games featured in these videos, like Ridge Racer and WipEout, are known as much for their soundtrack as their gameplay. Though, these mixes and captions show that electronic music in games is not set dressing to interactive software, but instead is influential electronic music in its own right.
If you like dedeco’s work, you can support him on Patreon. To keep up to date with his DJ set releases, follow him on YouTube and Soundcloud, or follow him on social media at Twitter and Instagram.