At Brave Wave, we pride ourselves in supporting the work of video game composers by producing and publishing their original albums while granting them full creative agency over their masterful compositions. Our passion is most evident in our Billboard-charted restoration of the Street Fighter II soundtrack, which we recorded from the game's original arcade boards before restoring to an unprecedented level of sound quality—all under the watchful eye (and ear) of original composer Yoko Shimomura.
We applied this model again in our Ninja Gaiden soundtrack restoration, where composer Keiji Yamagishi (alongside series composers Ryuichi Nitta and Kaori Nakabai) assumed control of the project and approved our newly remastered restorations of both the NES and Arcade soundtracks, each polished to perfection by Brave Wave’s in-house engineer, Marco Guardia. Keiji Yamagishi also worked closely with Guardia and label director Mohammed Taher on his first-ever solo albums "Retro-Active Pt. 1" and "Retro-Active Pt. 2," produced and published by Brave Wave to critical and fan acclaim. Yamagishi also served as a showrunner at MAGFest 2018, where his solo albums were performed live for the first time by Brave Wave’s in-house band, comprised of Stemage (Metroid Metal), Dino Lionetti and Kev Ragone (Cheap Dinosaurs), and Steve "ap0c" Lakawiscz.
From top left: Brave Wave's BizDev Alexander Aniel, Kev Ragone (of Cheap Dinosaurs), Ninja Gaiden composer Keiji Yamagishi, Ninja Gaiden director Hideo Yoshizawa. Bottom left: Steve 'ap0c' Lakawicsz, Dino Lionetti (of Cheap Dinosaurs), Grant 'Stemage' Henry (of Metroid Metal).
We’re always working towards our goal of connecting the world’s most talented video game composers—and by extension, their music—with the rest of the world. Today, we’re honored to introduce two incredible additions to the Brave Wave roster, and we’re very excited to share their music with our fans and clients alike!
David Wise
David Wise is a UK-based multi-instrumentalist and composer who has been making music since the 8-bit era. His work includes composing for games such as Battletoads and Snake Rattle 'n' Roll for the NES, but he notably rose to fame after composing the music for the Donkey Kong Country series on the Super NES. Recently, Wise leveraged his considerable talent to produce the scores for Nintendo’s Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, Playtonic’s Yooka-Laylee, and Sumo Digital’s Snake Pass. Under the Brave Wave banner, Wise will be working on a fully original solo album, including tracks made in conjunction with Brave Wave’s Japanese composers. He is also contributing to the Brave Wave mega-album "World 1-3," collaborating with the likes of world-class musicians Manami Matsumae (Mega Man), Lena Raine (Celeste), Stemage (Runner3), and more.
Akari Kaida
Akari Kaida is a Tokyo-based musician celebrated for her compositional work on a wide variety of Capcom games, most notably Breath of Fire III, Mega Man & Bass, and the inaugural Mega Man Battle Network. Kaida went on to compose for games such as Resident Evil, Dino Crisis, Onimusha 3, Okami, Mega Man 10, and more. Under the Brave Wave banner, Kaida will be working on her first-ever original solo album. She will also be contributing to the Brave Wave mega-album “World 1-3,” remixing Manami Matsumae’s “A Thousand Leagues Below” from Yacht Club Games’ hit game Shovel Knight.
Label director Mohammed Taher is currently directing and executive producing the next Brave Wave compilation album "World 1-3" (tentative title), following the label's renowned compilation albums "World 1-2" (2013) and "In Flux" (2014). The new album will include original tracks as well as video game remixes by label newcomers David Wise and Akari Kaida, as well as Manami Matsumae (Mega Man), Keiji Yamagishi (Ninja Gaiden), Ryuichi Nitta (Ninja Gaiden II), Kaori Nakabai (Ninja Gaiden III), Masashi Kageyama (Gimmick!), Takahiro Izutani (Bayonetta), Monomirror (Octahedron), Lena Raine (Celeste), Stemage (Metroid Metal), Dino Lionetti (Cheap Dinosaurs), and many more. Keep an eye out on our Twitter and Instagram accounts to follow the album's latest developments.