A brief musical voyage on the Keihin-Tohoku line

Story

During the summer of 2010, while working toward my Ph.D. in biochemistry, I took my first trip to Japan🇯🇵. 

For three months I conducted research at the RIKEN Yokohama Campus on a project sponsored by the East Asia and Pacific Summer Institutes. 

Everyday I commuted between the Ōmori Station (大森駅)  and Tsurumi Station (鶴見駅) on the JR Keihin-Tohoku Line.

Anyone who has ridden the trains and subways in Japan, especially in the Tokyo area, will have heard the train melodies. Or, as they more affectionately known, "eki-melo" ( 駅メロ (eki-melo) ). These melodies are played to alert passengers that a train is about to depart.

This ArtCart contains the melodies that I heard each day on my commute. The two melodies played at Kamata Station (蒲田駅) are my favorite 駅メロ eki-melo. Even now, having lived in Japan since 2014, I get nostalgic when I hear those melodies.  

駅メロ eki-melo are a charming part of the Japanese soundscape. The idea to share this cool aspect of Japan via an ArtCart was inspired by Robert Doman's YouTube video on alternative uses for GB Studio.

Perhaps others who have visited  or currently reside in Japan have their own favorite  駅メロ eki-melo. Feel free to share your favorite  駅メロ eki-melo in the comments below!

How to enjoy the voyage

The quickest way for departure is to click the "Run ArtCart" button above.

For the best experience download the "KHT Musical Voyage.gb" file below and play on a real Game Boy (DMG-01) using headphones. This requires a flash cart such as the EverDrive-GB X7 or the EZ-FLASH Junior. 

This voyage can also be enjoyed using emulators such as SameBoy or BGB. 

Analogue pocket version will be available in the future, currently waiting for mine to be delivered.

Controls Game BoyKeyboardMove cursord-padup arrow (or w)
down arrow (or s)Menu selectionA buttonz Notes

In the opening "cinematic" train sequence a melody should play, however due to an apparent bug in the emulator used for the web version you cannot hear the melody. The melody plays properly if you use the downloadable version.