Yuzo Koshiro on Composing for Streets of Rage, Techno and Programming

Yuzo Koshiro, the composer behind the Streets of Rage games, was a pioneer when bringing the sounds of the clubs into games. The Streets of Rage soundtracks are amongst the most highly regarded of the 16-bit era and rightly so. Whilst The Orb, The Prodigy and Orbital were getting into the charts, Koshiro was applying the music styling of the genre into his soundtracks.

I have all three Streets of Rage soundtracks on vinyl and they are awesome!

I have all three Streets of Rage soundtracks on vinyl and they are awesome!

In an interview for Red Bull Music Academy, Koshiro discussed the early days of his career, how he and Motohiro Kawashima sought inspiration in nightclubs for Streets of Rage and why he never let limitations stop him from pushing forward. At nearly an hour and an half it’s an informative and interesting in-depth discussion about a very singular creator.