Music for the 1.3 Community Project

[sabrebattletank]

http://soundcloud.com/output-1

My friend Nick (also aka'd as "The Output") mentioned to me that we were welcome to use his music for the CP -- it's worth a look anyway, even if the community says no go. It's hard to describe his music -- it's I think the most accurate way he described it to me was "electro-drone/video game music." More information on that later -- for now, listen, and ask yourself if it's worth considering.

I think it might be premature to decide on a soundtrack before we even have a storyline, but it's something to keep in the back of your minds.

Songs I recommend listening to:
Questionable Discontent
Dance Please

Songs I, personally, would vote against:
Where did you go cover by Ticio Sante (REMIX) --> the version that he's remixing totally ignores rhythm. It's not his fault, honest.
10 AM Automatic (Black Keys Cover) by Harbingers of Cool --> that's nick's version of a song my band covered. it's interesting, but I don't think it'll fit in as a video-game soundtrack.

[Mr X]

Just listened to a few,

Ensemble A1 sounds very alienesque sci-fi to me.

And I think that Dance please would definately be good for use in fast-paced action situations.

[TheJamsh]

saves me doing it during college next year

[ScrapPool]

I dunno, I'm kinda partial to selections from this... or better yet...
And this...
(I DO expect that all three videos will be watched to completion!)

No seriously Dance please is great... reminds me of the menu cycle from FE.

I also really do think that some of the chord progressions favored by arrangers in DCI can be harnessed to the effect of great drama- as that is what they are designed to do.

[AHadley]

I'm more of a rock guy, really, but still, some of this stuff is pretty sodding awesome. And I agree with MX on Ensemble A1


My band could possibly provide some atmospheric instrumental rock... but dont count on it

Which gives me an idea of a mini community project, similar to what Black Mesa: Source are doing. Call on the community to compose its own music for its own project.

[VSMIT]

I dunno, I'm kinda partial to selections from this... or better yet...
And this...
(I DO expect that all three videos will be watched to completion!)

No seriously Dance please is great... reminds me of the menu cycle from FE.

I also really do think that some of the chord progressions favored by arrangers in DCI can be harnessed to the effect of great drama- as that is what they are designed to do.

While I'm glad that people do pay attention to DCI, most of the music played is too "in your face" to be good background music.  A large bugle line like that doesn't provide the correct sound for game background music usually.

[ScrapPool]

While I'm glad that people do pay attention to DCI, most of the music played is too "in your face" to be good background music.  A large bugle line like that doesn't provide the correct sound for game background music usually.

Haha I was doing a poor job of being sarcastic.

I actually said:
"I also really do think that some of the chord progressions (favored by arrangers in DCI) can be harnessed to the effect of great drama- as that is what they are designed to do."
Note the use of the phrase 'chord progressions'. Not 'bugle line'.
This is why I try to be thorough when I post- that strategy is better for sharply defining what is going on in my brains so that it is easily transmittable to your brains as information. 

A more thorough elaboration of what I said might be:
AS Someone with decent experience in the matter, for me it is worth putting forward that the chord progressions used often in DCI are designed to profoundly interact with the brain in a chemical sense on a level which is not normally achieved with "normal" M, m, or IV chords seen in "everyday" music. Versus the nonstandard, yet intricate and explorative chords.
In short, DCI chord progressions are a means to project interesting chords in a non-boring way.
It is also worth noting that I never suggest their use in actual looping, background game-play music. It was instead implied that they could be used as a constructive tool during independent times of intricate story development (via the use of the term "drama"). (Maybe a cutscene is an example?)

[sabrebattletank]

While game-playing, I usually listen to Pandora: often it's a various post-rock station, perhaps Pelican Radio, Isis Radio, Mogwai Radio, or something. I'll even go Philip Glass or Burzum sometimes. Or Tool. Tyr as well.

I kind of the think the in-game music for this CP should be exploratory and unusual, not a standard "rock music." I would be willing to whip up a track or two to submit as well.

That's assuming we are composing/putting it together it ourselves -- something I kind of assumed we would do.

Thoughts?

[Nielk1]

Music, if done at all, is a final phase addition. So are movies, or at least the final movies timed for music and dialog.

[bb1]

I must humbly disagree. Movies could be built around music, take George Lucas for example.

Setting the atmosphere for a game is very important. If you ever play with CD music turned on, the same map can be played in a totally different light depending on the track playing. An eerie silence with a few wildlife noises would add to the low mist and ponds on Mire, for example.

This isn't to say it should be first priority. If anything, music and sound FX should be done on a second branch of the CP alongside the development of assets and story, rather than "the next step." A small team devoted to the music could interact with the story developers to try and capture the mood of the map and mission.

[TheJamsh]

People greatly under-estimate the power of soundcubes... i use them all the time.

[Clavin12]

I think this community project should have a lot more sound. In the previous ones they kind of slacked off on the amount of sound effects.

[TheJamsh]

yeh but you try making/finding them. it aint easy.

[Clavin12]

Nope. But we have tons of people signed up for this. Don't you think we could come up with a few more?

[sabrebattletank]

Read the quote here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweet_Sweetback's_Baadasssss_Song#Music

I think we should take this approach: For each cutscene, for each battle, for each level, for each race, we should be asking ourselves "What should the music be here? What tone, quality, and color should it have?"

If we do that as we design the levels, maps, races, ect, I imagine it will flow together nicely.