Release Me feat Serena Sun
As the adages go, time flies and life gets busy. It's been six years since "Know You (Voices Remix)", but with Serena back in town, we're excited to give music another go!
In "Release Me", Serena whispers, protests, and wrestles over how her last relationship ended. I backed her words with long, drawn-out chords, limping rhythms, and wandering textures. We made sure to structure the song for pop-centric listeners as well. It's different, but we're both quite pleased with how it came out.
That said, we haven't abandoned our old sound! I recognize that "Know You" had a following (thanks largely to Isosine) and I wanted to do a remix that leaned on that same minimalistic, keys-and-drums approach.
Ready to grab your own copy? You can find "Release Me" and its remix on all major stores. We also put together wallpapers for your computer and phone, and a press kit, should you want to cover it.
As always, thank you for listening and for all of your support, friends!
6 Skills You Need to Compose Video Game Soundtracks
Writing game music was the childhood dream, so it's always nice to talk about process. The good Dante Fumo invited me and a few of my peers to talkabout our workflows. My excerpt:
"Games are magical because of the agency they offer. In linear mediums like music albums or films, you're swept along the narrative. But in games, the players guide the story—and everyone's story is different, so game music must be malleable. Since the player dictates the pace, songs must be broken down into segments that can repeat indefinitely, as well as climax or attenuate at a moment's notice. This is done by adding or removing layers or transitioning into new segments on the fly."
If you're interested in hearing more , you can give the article it a read on Reverb.com.
Thanks so much again to Dante and Reverb for having me in this article and good job to all those involved!
Splash Spiked Sparkling Water
Here's a quickie: I just finished the music for this Splash Spiked Sparkling Water commercial with the good crews at 123w and PostPro Media. Establishing tone was a bit of an iterative process, but as always, with 123w at the helm, we pulled through exactly as we needed to.
Necrobarista — Gameplay Trailer Release
Now this one has been a VERY LONG time coming.
Back in 2017, I was making my rounds through Taiwan when I was approached by the good crew at The Otherworld Agency. I normally handle music end to end, but they wanted me to produce for another composer – some guy named Kevin Penkin – on a visual novel called Necrobarista. Coming off a successful run with them on Obliteracers, I gladly obliged. Little did I know that Kevin was a prolific anime composer (he also did that stunning soundtrack on Florence) who would shake up the way I write music. Oof.
I’ll save the details of that romance for another time, but I’m happy to say that after 27 months, we have our first gameplay trailer out and boy is it GORGEOUS. (I’m biased, but come’on, that’s one striking art style. Great camera movement too.)
The developing team, Route 59, are crazy talented and have been wonderful to work with. The whole crew, really. Kudos to everyone and I can’t wait for this to drop in late 2019!
Gadgeteer: Soundtrack Release
For a long while, I've been eyeing a project in development by my friends at Metanaut. Then called Ruberg - and now Gadgeteer - it promised to be a VR sandbox for building gold ruberg machines. As a kid who grew up with marbles chutes and legos and train tracks galore, it's appeal to me was strong and immediate. At the first opportunity, I jumped at the chance to score it - and thankfully they gave me the chance!
An unusual soundtrack for me, the music is mostly comprised of guitar and xylophones. I won't spoil it for you, but there's a distinct narrative arc in the puzzle mode, and the music follows suit. The songs start out simple - almost childlike - but by the end, there are a few twists, just like the contraptions players will face.
Today, I'm proud to say the game is out, and so is the soundtrack! The music is available everywhere via this universal link, and if you'd like to try your hand at building your own dream machine, the game is available on Steam and the Oculus Store.
The soundtrack is 27 tracks deep, so if you need a place to start, here are some of my favourites:
- 02. Sandbox in the Study
- 07. Late in the Day
- 09. The Missing Element
- 10. The Midnight Conundrum
- 12. I Want to Be Like You (Together Version)
- 22. I Worked Away (Action Version)
- 26. The Moment of Truth (Action Version)
(A bit of trivia: the Action versions of the songs play when the machines are running, but stop as soon as construction begins again.)
As always, thank you for listening, and I hope you find something you love in there!