Akira Yamaoka
Akira Yamaoka
Artist Information
- Name: Akira Yamaoka (山岡晃)
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/AkiraYamaoka
- Born: February 6, 1968 in Niigata, Japan
Profile
For 15 years, Akira Yamaoka was one of the biggest composers at KONAMI. Getting his start with the company as an additional composer on KONAMI games such as Sparkster in 1994, Akira really broke out when he became the music composer for the 1999 PlayStation game Silent Hill, which received accolade at the time for its gameplay, and especially its soundtrack. Akira continued to compose for all later games in the franchise, becoming so synonymous with the franchise that he even became its producer in later years. He continued to compose for the series up to the 2009 game Silent Hill: Shattered Memories, which was released right before his departure from KONAMI. Akira also worked on the soundtracks to SHIN Contra, the third game in the Winning Eleven series, and Rumble Roses XX.
In BEMANI Akira was best known for his work in the beatmania IIDX series, his music style ranging everywhere from techno, industrial, trance, minimal, rave, and even J-POP. He even released an album of mostly BEMANI material, iFUTURELIST in 2006. Akira was also for years active in pop'n music, and even contributed a bit to DanceDanceRevolution.
In December 2009 Akira Yamaoka left KONAMI. He currently works for Japanese video game company Grasshopper Manufacture, where he continues doing video game soundtracks to this day.
Trivia
- Akira Yamaoka did a remix for one of J-POP group M.O.V.E.'s songs, FREAKY PLANET. Titled FREAKY PLANET (rosy mix remixed by AKIRA YAMAOKA), it appears on their GRID album, which was released January 2006.
- Akira's music from Silent Hill 2 was performed live in 2005 at the third Symphonic Game Music Concert in Leipzig, Germany.
- Akira's music reflects that of industrial music.
- Akira also performed music from Silent Hill at the world-premiere of PLAY! A Video Game Symphony on May 27, 2006 in Chicago, Illinois, and accompanied the orchestra with an electric guitar.
- Akira frequently collaborates with singer Mary Elizabeth McGlynn.
Aliases
- DETROIAN
- DE VOL
- ric (name of vocalist)
- riewo (name of vocalist)
- "AQUI LA JAMAOKA"
- ヒロシ＆チー子
- 新谷あきら (member of, with Sana)
- ガキ大将ティーム (collaboration with DJ Yoshitaka)
- 中央値算出チーム
- 秋山巴美とパパドンドン