Other Game Music

[Ken Hisuag]

Almost forgot (it's been a while, after all); I intended to link this thread for posterity's sake, same way I link some Touhou music threads to Musical Discoveries. I prefer to have things organized and consolidated for ease of reference.

 

[Ken Hisuag]

I don't normally post out-of-schedule here, but given the missed week and future plans, I want to avoid wasting a regular slot on a Fracture Feature, and I'm trying to get these tracks off the to-do list.

Spoiler

Noteblock's compositions for Danza include several interludes for attacks that, in theory, add up to a fuller piece. In reality, they don't fit together too well, mostly due to tempo fluctuations. Nonetheless, a few attempts have been made to rectify them to each other, and this is so far the best version I've found. Ideally, someone would make a remix incorporating all the parts with the freedom of custom arrangement.

 

Spoiler

A recent update to Crypt of the Necrodancer added Hatsune Miku as a playable character, and more importantly featured an curated playlist of songs for the levels. While not technically a proper soundtrack expansion the way the Danganrompa crossover was, Baranowsky did compose two new pieces for it.

 

Spoiler

Finally, Celeste team produced a short spinoff game earlier this year in the N64 style, appropriately titled Celeste 64. Raine returned as composer, and as expected the resulting tracks are masterful. While the highlight is certainly Next Steps, I think it's more appropriate to feature Cassettappella for the novelty.

 

 

[Ken Hisuag]

A few names hold an unofficial honor in indie game music for their work in the emergent times of the industry, back when indie developers were considered more amateur. I got used to seeing Ben Prunty, Austin Wintory, and Laura Shigihara high up on lists of the most important people in the development of indie game music, and I took this as an indication that I ought to seek out their work. My expectations were set by a different stage of the industry, however, and it took me some time to understand what made these soundtracks special apart from other projects. The one that confused me most was Plants vs. Zombies.

This is a relatively simple soundtrack, with limited instrumentation, lesser quality VSTs, and little variance in style. On the other hand, the melodies are competently constructed, and the leitmotif usage is excellent. While not [initially] a mobile game, the sound is similar to mobile game projects; few mobile games of similar size would put this much effort into their music, however. I'm left wondering about the significance of this title when it released, and whether it incentivized a greater degree of effort in the wider indie game industry.

Spoiler

 

 

[Jaz:3]

Doki Doki Literature Club is one of my favorite games. It belongs to the meta horror genre (thank you that video for letting me know what genre these games belong to), basically just 4th wall breaking stuff. You think I'm gonna share DDLC ost right? WRONG. This is gonna be about Irisu Syndrome, which is a game that the creator of DDLC even said to be his inspiration while making DDLC.

Irisu Syndrome is also one of my favorite game, the deep layered story (how I feel) makes me relate to it. It's a puzzle game with falling blocks that you shoot at, and the music accompany with it is relaxing AND very good....and sad? Sometimes sad I guess.

But yeah this game is apparently the first meta horror game. The whole soundtrack is awesome.

Spoiler

 

Timestamps for songs that I picked out:

00:00 About 10 hours looking at the ceiling

03:36 I Didn't Talk to Anyone Today

11:07 A Cat, a Rabbit, and a Old Story

14:23 USAGI Note

Also leitmotif all over the place, well, in some songs. 

Kinda wanna add the last song with the last timestamp from the vid tho, but it kinda spoils a bit because of the theme and whatnot.

Oh well....too much trouble....whatever... (reference from the game lol)

Edited April 19, 2024 by Jaz:3
I edited this 2 times

[Ken Hisuag]

^

I don't usually have anything significant to say about other features, but just this once I want to emphasize how much I appreciated this. Granted I come across quite the variety of things in my searchings, but there's still plenty of soundtracks I'm unlikely to ever encounter normally, specifically with less propagated titles and especially in game genres that I'm less engaged with. I don't imagine I'd ever have heard of Irisu Syndrome on my own, and I really enjoyed it; so thank you!

[Ken Hisuag]

Randomly coming across a piece of music from a game I've never heard of has consistently led to some of my most memorable findings. Nonetheless, I was some reluctant to follow up on the piece I found from Melty Blood: Type Lumina, due both to the odd name and my past relatively disappointing experiences with other fighting games (much as I loved specific pieces from Killer Instinct and Guilty Gear, subsequent investigation didn't turn up as much as hoped for). I finally decided to bite the bullet though, and for once I was blown away.

Despite the games apparent aesthetic, the music favors a variety of dynamic jazz tunes with creative instrumentation and fair progression, with an overall mood I'd describe as "energetic chill." This doesn't mean the soundtrack is strictly limited to one style though; rock, electronic, and orchestral compositions are scattered through, all maintaining the tone while still being unique. I wasn't able to find much information on the composers for this title, other than the lead composer being someone named Raito; given the cohesiveness of the collection, I wouldn't be surprised to hear he did most of the work himself.

This was one of the times I enjoyed a soundtrack so much that I went looking for its distribution. Surprisingly this is one of those situations where the soundtrack never got officially released, and by now it's unlikely to ever be. As an odd consequence, I had a harder time deciding which tracks not to include, given that I wouldn't be able to hear them much going forward without actively looking for them. Hopefully no one minds the larger feature.

Spoiler

 

Next month is another series theme. I'm locked in now, whatever my reservations.

[Jaz:3]

4 hours ago, Ken Hisuag said:

^

I don't usually have anything significant to say about other features, but just this once I want to emphasize how much I appreciated this. Granted I come across quite the variety of things in my searchings, but there's still plenty of soundtracks I'm unlikely to ever encounter normally, specifically with less propagated titles and especially in game genres that I'm less engaged with. I don't imagine I'd ever have heard of Irisu Syndrome on my own, and I really enjoyed it; so thank you!

 

I'm glad you enjoyed it so much that you wrote to thank me! I'm doing my part on making this game and the music more known to other people cuz I like da game. It's nice to see someone enjoy something as much as I do. omg... I had an impact on someone's life! (even if it is very small). Just like how I get to know some music thx to people sharing it out of their passion? I think that's what it is.

 

4 hours ago, Ken Hisuag said:

and my past relatively disappointing experiences with other fighting games (much as I loved specific pieces from Killer Instinct and Guilty Gear

 

Ain't no way you play fighting game tooooo!!! AND you know/listen to guilty gear? Didn't expect to see an FGC person here...wait...idek if u play fighting games that often, oh well, but I think I saw somewhere that u did a feature on guilty gear already tho...I think it was Xrd (haven't listened to the osts yet).

 

4 hours ago, Ken Hisuag said:

Next month is another series theme. I'm locked in now, whatever my reservations.

 

U know what? I'm calling it Right NOW! the next series is definitely, will be, absolutely, no way mistaking, can't be wrong, must be, have to be GUILTY GEAR!!!! STRIVE (cus u did killer instinct already if im correct, somehow i remembered)

Im sorry if I couldn't hold my thoughts, it's too much and now it's overflowing.

 

[Ken Hisuag]

I appreciate the speculations, they're fun interactions. I don't want to mislead, though; I play very few of the games I feature soundtracks for, and since my focus is the often the music regardless, I tend to refer to the production as a whole in both contexts. I'm pretty sure the only proper fighting game I've even touched is Touhou 15.5, assuming that even counts; I am a fan of Rivals of Aether, though.

I've done two features on Guilty Gear: Guilty Gear XX on 04/14/21 (14/04/21) and Guilty Gear Strive on 04/12/22 (12/04/22). The latter was what I was referring to in the latest post, in addition to the Killer Instinct feature from 07/19/23 (19/07/23). The linking factor was vocal tracks; you can figure out the rest.

The month-long series features of late have been an opportunity to force myself into becoming familiar with iconic franchise soundtracks that I just wasn't around to discover when they first came out. It's one thing to look into a single soundtrack, but something else entirely to choose from several related soundtracks that somewhat depend upon familiarity with each other for full appreciation. Last year I did Legend of Zelda, Mega Man, and Pokemon, and thus far this year I've done Kirby; in future I hope to cover Castlevania and Sonic (since I'm only familiar with select entries of those series), as well as Metroid and potentially Fire Emblem. But none of those are the plan for next month. I've mentioned in the past my struggle with SNES soundtracks, and this is especially true for one of the most iconic soundtracks from that era. I'll leave it at that.

[ShionYorigamiEnjoyer]

Saw fighting games were mentioned and decided to share some Eyes of Heaven soundtracks I think slap (One or so for each part). Kind of sad the game is pretty much dead at this point but hope a remaster like ASBR comes for this one. One of my favorite things about EOH and ASB is the direct song and stylistic references that are based of the name or stand of a character. Quick example of what I mean: Fugo's theme mimics Jimi Hendrix's style (mainly Purple Haze}

Spoiler

 

Might do a ASBR one later.

[Ken Hisuag]

^
I keep record of every feature on this thread, as a way of assisting myself and others in tracking down discoveries. This means I will always do a bit of research into any soundtrack someone else posts, with special attention to track names (Monster Hunter has given us an unusual amount of trouble with this). Eyes of Heaven doesn't seem to have official track names, likely stemming from its lack of an official soundtrack release. I wonder if the composer had names for the tracks, or if she only thought of them by their usage in game as they seem to be labeled here?

[Ken Hisuag]

For as long as I've been following VGM as a hobby, I have remained intimidated by the Final Fantasy series. Nobuo Uematsu is possibly the second biggest name in the industry (next to Koji Kondo), yet when I initially went hunting for examples of his work, I wasn't initially appreciative of it. With the passing of time, I've come to the conclusion that this first impression had little to do with the quality of compositions themselves, and were more caused by my lack of familiarity with the hardware limitations and arrangement styles of the times; more specifically, I was told to start with FFVI & FFVII, and subsequently lacked some of the background knowledge I should have had. Nonetheless, this initial experience has kept me distant from the series, and it remains one of the most major blind spots in my VGM repertoire. So this month, I'm going to try and remedy that.

We start with the very first entry of the series, understandably but retrospectively ambiguously titled Final Fantasy (commonly clarified today as Final Fantasy I). As an NES game, this first soundtrack was composed in early chiptune form (I think it's 8-bit, but that term suffers from its own ambiguity; also it only seems to be three-channel, and I thought NES could handle four-channel?). Each piece features a melody line, harmony line, and base line; while relatively simple, these tracks remain memorable through their imaginative progression and carefully curated tone. I was surprised to realize I recognized the motif of Opening, though I couldn't say where I knew it from. Despite not hearing much about this particular entry in the past, it seems to me that several significant leitmotifs originated from it, making it indispensable context to the evolution of the series' music.

Spoiler

 

 

[Ken Hisuag]

While it may seem hasty to follow up FFI with Final Fantasy VI, I only get five features total for this month, and there's a lot of ground to cover. Uematsu returns, this time composing for the SNES (though not for the first time), the sound system of which supported instrument sampling. I've had difficulty in the past appreciating the style of music made for this system; many composers would attempt to replicate an orchestral sound, but fail to balance the layers, seeming to prioritize instrumentation over tone. I suspect this was a consequence of system limitations being better than ever before while still unable to match ambition. In my opinion, the best soundtracks composed according to their limitations, adopting a unique style for the system.

That being said, FFVI has surprised me in that it seems to do both. Many parts of the soundtrack are clearly inspired by cinematic orchestral arrangement, but succeed where other attempts have failed by keeping the melody clear and the atmosphere consistent. At other times, arrangements utilize a wider range of options for the system, incorporating and even relying on sounds that are very un-orchestral to achieve their tone. Perhaps in the several years it's been since I last tried this soundtrack I've become more acclimated to its sounds; regardless of the reason, I appreciated it much more this time around.

I should also note the strong usage of leitmotif throughout the soundtrack. I don't claim to be especially skilled at recognizing leitmotifs, but there were enough obvious ones here to alert my attention. Every main character has a unique theme, and many of these motifs are integrated into other pieces, presumably for the relation of events to character arcs. I don't normally hear the technique used on this scale, and I'm not sure I'm capable of representing it here, but it impressed me nonetheless.

Spoiler

 

 

[Ken Hisuag]

Final Fantasy VII remains one of, if not the, most legendary video game releases of all time. I say "legendary," because while other titles may be more iconic, influential, or even prolific, I can't think of any that are held in such high esteem outside their general fandom. Well beyond the playerbase, there is an almost reverent familiarity with the characters, important moments, and music of this game.

Uematsu was once again in charge of this soundtrack, which was adapted for the PlayStation system, but may have begun composition with the SNES still in mind. While the instrument sampling is more clear, it still retains an artificial sound that must be worked around to achieve the desired effect. Genre variety is more obvious, either because of the aforementioned sound improvements or possibly due to further experimentation by Uematsu. This works in the game's favor, allowing better tone and mood capturing through the music, but also weakens the soundtrack's cohesiveness as a collective work. For this reason, I think I prefer FFVI's OST, even as I acknowledge FFVII's as being the more technically superior production.

Spoiler

 

 

[Ken Hisuag]

Before this week's Musical Discoveries post, I have a few miscellaneous VGM tracks I want to share. I'm thinking giving Fracture Features a more off-schedule function, so that I can share the little discoveries without needing to wait for an available slot.

Spoiler

A fun video about tweaking number data in game programing featured a clip from this in-production game called Sushi Ben. No idea what it's about, but the music caught my attention, so I looked it up later. So far this seems to be the only track released for it. It's a bit short, but still pleasantly bouncy. By the channel name, I presume Ian Navarro Silver is responsible for the piece.

 

Spoiler

Expect a full feature for Chambers when it releases, because this track snippet tells me everything I need to be invested. As of yet I don't know who the composer is, which seems somewhat fitting given I don't even have the full piece to feature.

 

Spoiler

Since I couldn't find anything better than a 10-minute extended video for this track, I thought it best to place it after the 1-minute short, even if it does a disservice to the audio quality by comparison. What the Fog is set up to be an extremely forgettable release overall, but I personally want to remember this track. As it lacks an official release, I can only speculate as to the composer; previous work in the franchise has been handled by Michel April, but is not usually in this style.

EDIT: A day later someone posted a proper length video, so I'm fixing the link but leaving the order the same.

 

 

Edited May 20, 2024 by Ken Hisuag

[Ken Hisuag]

Final Fantasy X marked a significant change for the series's music, this being the first entry to feature additional composers. Most of the soundtrack is still Uematsu's work, but with several arrangements and additional compositions from Junya Nakano and Masashi Hamauzu. The platform this time around was the Playstation 2, and it's at this point I begin to question the absence of live instrument performance. So many of these tracks are obviously VSTs, and while there isn't technically anything wrong with that, by this time the hardware should have been able to handle more, and the series certainly had the necessary clout to justify it. I hesitate to assume this to be a conscious decision on the part of the developers; more likely there's simply more to the process then I'm aware of.

The soundtrack itself is significantly subdued overall compared to the previous entries covered. While this fixes the cohesiveness problem I mentioned in FFVII, I feel this goes too far in the other direction, lacking sufficient range for such a large collection. That being said, individual track quality is still impressive. I've deliberately avoided using final boss themes for these features, and I'll continue to do so here, but I felt this iteration was particularly well suited as a musical point of culmination. I also mustn't neglect to mention the primary leitmotif the pervades throughout the soundtrack, that being of Zanarkand, which serves to tie the music together with the story in an exemplary way.

Spoiler

 

 

[Ken Hisuag]

Initially I chose a five-Wednesday month for Final Fantasy because I was struggling to decide which entries to cover, and figured having an extra week would be advantageous. Having covered four, however, I remained conflicted over what the fifth feature ought to be. FFVIII & FFIX both seemed viable, but would also result in all the features being from a specific part of the series rather than being spread out more. On the other hand, modern entries have only gotten larger, resulting in soundtracks that would take a lot more time for me to listen through. I even briefly considered spin-offs, but I have no context off of which to judge relevant impact. So ultimately, I've decided to take a slightly different approach to wrap up this series.

Despite being a franchise, leitmotifs are inconsistent across entries, each soundtrack being mostly its own entity. The few musical themes that are consistent stand out for this reason, and none more than Uematsu's iconic "Prelude." I hesitated to include any iteration of this piece in the previous features due to its relevance being more toward the series as a whole rather than the given entry within which it was contained. In some ways, its the perfect piece for this purpose; its relative simplicity lends itself to customization without risk of losing its core features, allowing it to always represent aspects of both the franchise and specific iteration. My personal favorite is FFVI's, but FFX's showcases more strongly how versatile the piece can be.

Spoiler

 

I left out FFVII's for being too similar to FFVI's, but in compensation I can utilize it for the other major leitmotif of the series: the "Chocobo Theme". This one have far less thematic relevance, but is nonetheless considered iconic, and lets me wrap up on a lighthearted note. FFVII had several iterations of this piece, so I've just gone with my favorite out of them (even if it isn't necessarily the best representation of the motif).

Spoiler

 

 

[Ken Hisuag]

It's still Wednesday where I am, and I have one more feature to add to this month. As I've listened through these soundtracks, an inevitable comparison has been in my mind to what I would consider the quintessential Final Fantasy soundtrack; not FFVII, not FFVI, nor from any other entry in the franchise, but which nonetheless captured the spirit of the project in the best possible way. I also realized at some point that I'd never done a proper feature for it since a brief mention way back at the beginning of my time here, to which mention I had later noted an intention to return thereto. Well, I couldn't ask for a better opportunity than this.

While Uematsu notably contributed a number of tracks toward the end of production, the majority of Chrono Trigger's OST was composed by Yasunori Mitsuda. As a SNES release, the soundtrack is most immediately comparable to FFVI. The comparison is a fair one; both are strong in imaginative arrangement and variety. FFVI, in my opinion, makes stronger use of musical theme, having more prevalent leitmotifs throughout. Chrono Trigger, on the other hand, succeeds in an area I've yet to see matched: instrumentation. As I've mentioned before, a lot of SNES arrangements suffer from over-ambition, trying to capture a sound that's just out of reach. The better SNES soundtracks are played to their strengths as a blend between classic chiptune and synthesized instrument sampling. This Chrono Trigger does excellently, balancing its orchestral tracks against hardware limitations in a way that, ironically, invokes more accurately the feel of orchestra.

Chrono Trigger is one of my favorite soundtracks of all time, not because of nostalgia (of which I have none, having yet to play the game), but simply out of respect; it had been and will continue to be the standard by which I judge the music of the classical gaming era.

Spoiler

 

But this isn't technically Final Fantasy, is it? Lest I cheat the month, here's one last piece for the road, a particularly impressive remix I found during the month.

Spoiler

Pun intended :)

 

[Ken Hisuag]

I do not generally interact with the horror genre, as it is usually by nature a glorification of blatantly evil things. That being said, horror is also utilized as an aesthetic nowadays, with the actual elements of horror being relatively minor. What actually constitutes as "horror" as opposed to merely horror-related can be a bit ambiguous, as I think will be clear by the end of this month.

My relationship with Dead by Daylight is, by my own admission, bizarre. I can honestly say I've been following its development since its release, albeit without actually playing it, despite everything about it being seemingly in conflict with my beliefs. Admittedly my investment has nothing to do with its aesthetic, but rather a fascination with its asymmetrical framework and as an example of the complexities in live-service game design and community maintenance. More relevant for this thread, however, it its exemplary sound design; music and ambiences composed by Michel F. April serve a vital role in both gameplay and atmosphere, while also advancing the artistry of the project.

The officially released soundtrack is limited to compositions from the earlier years of development; while menu theme variations were released for later years, much of the in-game music remains unavailable except through gamerips. Some of the best music this game has is unfortunately also the hardest to procure properly, but thankfully much of it has been archived through Youtube, allowing me to share it here. Note how the layering works in the last two tracks; this is a better representation of the strengths this soundtrack has.

Spoiler

 

In addition to the music actually used, some scrapped compositions have been leaked over the years. One in particular has stood out in my memory for years now, and is probably my favorite piece associated with the game despite not technically being part of it. While there is no official title, it was datamined around the same time as an in-game function called the "Archive" was in production, so it is associated by most with that.

Spoiler

 

 

[Ken Hisuag]

Someone had this idea to create a Mario Kart style fangame as a Bloodborne spin-off. Random though this idea may sound, those behind it were enthusiastic enough to see it through to production, including an entire soundtrack, though it ultimately did not see release due to copyright. The soundtrack was published thereafter, and while it had merit, it did not appeal as much to me (I'm not familiar with the motifs of Bloodborne), so the matter seemed settled there. Then the team decided to rebrand their game into something more original; while it would retain its aesthetic inspiration, direct references thereto were reworked to make the project safe to release. This also resulted in the soundtrack being remastered, with the new version being significantly more fine-tuned in instrumentation and arrangement in my opinion.

Evelyn Lark (a.k.a. The Noble Demon) is the composer for Nightmare Kart, and her chosen style for the project is reminiscent of other racing games, being high-energy and extremely jazzy. A slight horror element is also infused, though more strongly in some pieces then others; having seen some footage of the gameplay, I'm surprised this was the preferred accompaniment, though I'm anything but disappointed.

Spoiler

 

 

[Ken Hisuag]

I don't normally associate Castlevania with horror, but there is an undeniable connection given its subject matter; mainly, vampires are a horror concept, therefore vampire hunting is a horror related concept, if otherwise lacking horror themes. Hitherto I'd never listened to the soundtrack for Symphony of the Night, simply because the most lauded tracks of the franchise come from other games (e.g. "Bloody Tears," "Vampire Killer," "Divine Bloodlines," etc.). I am aware that this game is one half the foundation of the metroidvania genre, and that being a favorite of mine, you'd think I'd have taken time to look into it sooner.

Regardless, I've taken the time now, and have been suitably impressed; far from the outdated soundfont style I expected, the arrangements sound almost modern, with full orchestral and electronic elements. There is a slight resonance issue that gives away its age, but I find this highlights the atmosphere as an unexpected boon. I was previously familiar with Michiru Yamane from Bloodlines, which for some time has been my favorite soundtrack in the series, but as that game was for very different hardware I didn't base my expectations off of it. She was also involved with Bloodstained, but I hadn't previously paid as much attention to which tracks she worked on; I'll be sure to check back on that now.

Spoiler

 

 

[Ken Hisuag]

Indigo Park's first chapter/demo was not something I expected to interest me musically, but has turned out to be one of the better soundtracks released so far this year. RecD commits strongly to the main theme leitmotif throughout, but with sufficient variance to keep it fresh. Each composition suits its situation perfectly while also contributing to the overall tone of the game, striking an excellent balance between musical variety and thematic consistency. I have high hopes for the future of this project.

As for the horror theme, of everything featured this month this is probably the least aesthetically dark, at least thus far in its production. Despite being self-identified mascot horror, neither the music nor visuals are particularly disturbing imo. I'm inclined to think that most genres, whatever media, have flexible boundaries; while this arguably makes for more difficult categorization, it also facilitates creative range, so it's probably for the best.

Spoiler

 

 

[SoullessEmperor]

So, just recently, I've listen to a song that was from a super mario world rom hack, Super Kitiku World (Brutal Mario). I've never thought the final boss music was so good for this hack. When I decided to look up for the soundtrack of that rom hack, I've found out the original name of that song was the last battle from Romancing SaGa 2. I never knew that song was so good. I've played that game myself and I'm thinking of trying it out myself. Listen to it yourself.

 

[Ken Hisuag]

Bears in Space is one of those titles which immediately catches attention, but these days doesn't invoke so much interest as mere curiosity. I expected a minimally creative run-and-gun with a small soundtrack of mostly metal, and when I discovered the music wasn't initially readily available, I put it on hold without too much hope for it. I recently came across the OST on Bandcamp, and finally got the chance to hear its merit. To be sure, Dan Goodwin favors metal influences throughout, and his compositions don't "progress" so much as they "build-up" on themselves, usually ending with the same energy, tone, and motif with which they began, just with "more." It is by no means "simple," however; each piece is fully layered with strong presentation, and there's enough tonal variety throughout to warrant a full feature.

Spoiler

 

 

[Ken Hisuag]

Updates are in the works for Mental Omega, and while I never technically stopped listening to the associated music, the recent devlog did increase my attention toward it again. It's been a while since my features here, so I think I'm justified in briefly refreshing one of my favorite soundtracks. For balance, I've stuck with one track per primary composer, i.e. Black Ice 9, Frank Klepacki, and Vladimir Kuznetsov a.k.a. World Beyond Soundtracks. I also included a PrototypeRaptor track that was included in the project, as an example of the various additional tracks present therein. I have a bit more freedom here than before, as I'm not restricted to the official skirmish tracklists; for all that I spent an entire month on this soundtrack before, I'd argue it only scratched the surface of what's available, and there's presumably yet more to come.

Spoiler

 

 

Edited July 10, 2024 by Ken Hisuag

[Ken Hisuag]

Fracture Feature! What random selection will be showcased this time?

Spoiler

Scratchin' Melodii is not something I'm likely to follow further than what I've seen, but some of the music nonetheless has stuck with me. Compositions seem to be vocaloid-focused, which makes for an interesting effect when balanced right, but can also have a negative impact if not. LJ LephemStar has certainly demonstrated capability, but there were still tracks I thought a bit messy. As I already have prejudice against English vocals in VGM, I've decided to make note of the project here and leave it at that.

 

Spoiler

In direct contrast, I am most certainly keeping tabs on Breeze in the Clouds. The only reason it's getting a Fracture is because it's not likely to come out for some time, and I wanted to make sure I won't forget it. The soundtrack is primarily jazz, with ranged cast of contributing composers, all clearly experienced in the genre; this particular track is a collaboration between Tudd and Carlos Eiene. Ten tracks are already released, so I have every reason to expect the finished project to be worth while.

 

Spoiler

The somewhat sleazy content connotations of Friday Night Funkin' have somewhat discouraged me from remaining invested in the franchise, but the music can be appreciated independent thereof, so I've kept interest from a distance. There are a lot of tracks that I've appreciated, and my use of this particular one by TaeSkull is intended to represent the wider activities of the fandom.

 

 

Edited July 13, 2024 by Ken Hisuag