Boss Battle Records acquired by Materia Music
Published 19 December, 2023
Melbourne, Australia & Seattle, Washington — Materia Music has inked a deal to acquire Australia’s premier video game music record label Boss Battle Records. Materia Music is the worldwide leader in distribution of video game soundtracks, music publishing, and rights administration. The Boss Battle Records catalog spans 7 years of music, including 423 recordings and publishing works across 23 soundtracks.
Founded in 2017 by game industry veteran Fabian Malabello (founder of The Otherworld Agency and GYLD), Boss Battle Records has led the Australian game music community via proactive initiatives in support of its diverse roster of game composers and artists. Fabian’s experience extends to more than 150 productions, including working on AAA franchises such as Star Wars, Metal Gear Solid, Honor of Kings, PUBG, Pac-Man, and Apex Legends.
“Materia Music has been the leader in video game music rights administration for nearly a decade, and I am thrilled to extend our expertise and unprecedented global support for Boss Battle Records and its roster of renowned artists and IPs moving forward,” shared Sebastian Wolff, Materia Music founder and CEO.
Boss Battle Records’s catalog is home to BAFTA-Nominated and Crunchyroll Anime Award-winning composer Kevin Penkin (Star Wars: Visions, Pokémon: Paldean Winds, Made in Abyss, Tower of God), among dozens of other notable artists and IPs; including soundtracks from “Warhammer 40,000: Regicide” InXile Entertainment’s “Wasteland Remastered”, Chucklefish’s “Wargroove”, and indie smash hit “No Straight Roads” by ex-Final Fantasy designer Wan Hazmer.
Acquisition discussions began in 2019 after the Victorian Music Development Office and Creative Victoria brought Materia Music CEO, Sebastian Wolff, to Australia during Melbourne International Games Week to gain a deeper understanding of the Australian video game industry and music landscape, and share expert insights with its game audio and music communities.
“We’re thrilled that Boss Battle Records is gaining global recognition through this exciting acquisition. We extend our appreciation to both Fabian and Sebastian for their ongoing contributions to Victoria’s music industry – their first collaborations, hosted by the VMDO back in 2019, were just the beginning. We look forward to seeing Boss Battle Records shine globally and to the continued development of the game music sector in Victoria, with the prospect of more exciting international collaborations.” – Aijia (AJ) Li, VMDO Director
“Following Materia Music’s investment in Boss Battle Records, we are thrilled to further our investment into the Australian video game industry as part of our international expansion, presence, and offerings to global video game audio communities.” says Sebastian.
Adding, “We consider this acquisition the first step of our growth plan to create label and publishing opportunities for Australia’s highly talented video game community. We see Australia as a hotspot for games, music, and creativity, and we are actively creating financial initiatives to bolster and celebrate its local talent.”
Moving into 2024, Materia Music will be exploring opportunities to include Boss Battle Records’s catalog among its extensive offerings of vinyl, CDs, sheet music, and other physical merchandise.