Recently this month we took some time to ask Anthony from GM4A some questions about his site. This interview was actually supposed to be done a some months ago...but with the site going down for redesign and such, we had to postpone it until now. Enjoy the reading and soak in some information you won't find anywhere else, well that's until GM4A becomes super famous.

The Gamer Studio: How did Game Music 4 All come into existence?

Anthony Ruybalid: Well it came about a couple years ago, early 2006. I had just discovered chiptunes but at that point I had to search for everything on my own. You know, checking out one bands myspace page, seeing what bands were in their top friends, going to that page and on and on. Finally I just decided that there should be a website so people can have an easier time finding artists and downloading their music

The Gamer Studio: That's pretty commendable and noble of you. That takes a lot work and effort, do you do it alone?

Anthony Ruybalid: For the most part It has been a one man operation. When I first started out, my friends Jake and Corey helped out with some aspects of the site, before moving on to other things. Also my good friend Joe Allen of the band Spheres of Chaos and Gamewave Podcast started contributing articles here and there, picking up albums and news that I sometimes miss. Also, earlier this year I was lucky enough to find Mary Anne, who writes as Chibi Ma. She contributes amazing reviews and other lengthy articles and news since joining GM4A a few months ago. Also just recently added one Kyle Mistry on board as a photographer and artist for our site.

The Gamer Studio: Yeah, Chibi Ma does some pretty amazing posts when she does write. I forgot there were so many to the original cast. Seeing you as the prominent contributor to the site, where do you come across all these amazing albums?

Anthony Ruybalid: Every so often folks are kind of enough to email me about when they release new albums. Most of the time though is just keeping tabs on various websites, communities, and netlabels. Forums like theshizz.org and rhymetorrents.org are great places for VGrock and nerdcore hip hop respectively. Not to mention netlabels like Pause, and other blogs like Hipster, Please!. Basically all you can do is surf the web, and usually finding one new site will lead to another great site.

The Gamer Studio: That's pretty cool. Speaking of albums, I see that you have compilatons and mixtapes on the main site. Could you tell me about those?

Anthony Ruybalid: Well, first of all people should download them! Besides that, basically each album has a certain concept behind it based on video games in some way, whether it is a tribute to a certain game, genre, or system. Except for our anniversary compilations, which are just a healthy smattering of what every VG inspired artist does best.

The Gamer Studio: What kind of music can people expect to hear on those compilations?

Anthony Ruybalid: Most of them are very eclectic albums, with music from nerdcore hip hop, to video game metal and rock. Even folk music and techno. You never really know what kind of music will make it into an album. The projects that come out of GM4A pride themselves on the variety of styles we have, and the endless styles of music made by the VG inspired artists everywhere.

The Gamer Studio: Can you throw some band names and artists that people would find on these compilations?

Anthony Ruybalid: Haha, if I did that it would just be every artist on every compilation I have put together. All the artists are amazing, but I guess a few GM4A compilation staples would be Temp Sound Solutions, Videogame Orchestra, Dual Core, Elfonso, and Doctor Octoroc.

The Gamer Studio: Those guys are awesome! So, are we looking at a near future compilation in the works here?

Anthony Ruybalid: Well, the slightly delayed third anniversary compilation is currently wrapping up. Also some projects with other websites like Nobuooo. Also I would say this is a good time to announce the F-Zero International album, which will be a VG rock rearrangement of the SNES F-Zero compilation. That should hopefully be out this fall!

The Gamer Studio: F-Zero Compilation? Greatest news of the century! We'll definitely be looking forward to hear that compilation, as well as the others you have coming up. Well, that's all the time we have for today. It was a real pleasure having this interview with you Anthony. Any last words or anyone you wanted to give a shout out?

Anthony Ruybalid: Well, anyone interested in this music is definitely encouraged to join the community! Check out sites like theshizz.org minibosses forums, or rhymetorrents.org! The folks who enjoy and create VG inspired music are very inclusionary and the nicest people I have had the pleasure to meet, so don't be afraid of jumping right in! Also want to give another shout out to Chibi Ma for her very enthusiastic articles. MisterB as well, for they both podcast with me via the Letters VS Numbers podcast. Also Joe Allen for contributing articles, and Miz Calamity for having me write articles for The Start Screen. And finally you and TGS for taking time to chat with me!

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