Level with Emily Reese

It's been far too long since we had composer David Housden on the show. Last time, we talked about Thomas Was Alone and Volume.

David's music for Disney Illusion Island is quite different from those scores, as you'd expect. Complete with cartoon humor and sweeping melodies, it fits perfectly.

The game is a multiplayer platformer/Metroidvania and it is SO. FUN!! I highly recommend it, as much as I recommend the fantastic music.

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PLAYLIST by David Housden for Disney Illusion Island unless noted otherwise

00:00 Illusion Island 01:07 The Sky Below 03:46 The Post Officer 10:25 MOPS 16:50 Crater’s Bay 18:17 Downtown Gizmopolis 19:28 Crescent Hamlet 24:02 Forgotten Farmlands 25:00 Forgotten Farmlands 26:11 Forgotten Farmlands 28:22 Grayzar’s Workshop 34:31 Shallows 42:54 Future Town 48:39 Illusion Island 50:58 The Library 51:51 Illusion Island 53:22 Head of the Highness 54:22 The Library 55:31 Grayzar 56:41 Service Tunnels 1:07:28 Downtown Gizmopolis 1:08:10 Other Sprouts by Sam Keenan

This is Part Two of my chat with scntfc / Andy Rohrmann about his music for Oxenfree and Oxenfree II: Lost Signals.

And it's another episode packed with music and back stories. We can't wait to have Andy on the show to talk about more music in the future!

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PLAYLIST / PART TWO
by scntfc for Oxenfree (I) or Oxenfree II: Lost Signals (II) unless noted otherwise
00:00 Epiphany (I)
05:09 Lost (I)
06:36 music from the ARG for the cult Parentage
06:48 Lost (I)
11:14 The Beach, 7AM (Magnetophone) (I)
11:48 The Beach, 7AM (Magnetophone) (I)
13:38 The Beach, 7AM (Magnetophone) (I)
16:12 A Block A Rock A Grave a Cave (II)
17:42 A Block A Rock A Grave a Cave (II)
18:51 A Block A Rock A Grave a Cave (II)
20:15 Cleanslate (I)
23:27 Cleaned Slate (II)
24:48 Kanaloa (I)
33:03 Catbird Station (I)
34:48 Towhee Grove (I)
35:34 Epiphany Fields (I)
37:52 Epiphany Fields (I)
38:36 Baby Carrots (II)
39:30 Epiphany Fields (I)
41:26 Against The Rocks (I)
42:08 Against The Waves (I)
44:37 To The Summit (I)
47:49 Cold Comfort (I)
48:58 Cold Comfort (I)
50:48 Found (II)
53:35 Beacon Beach (I)
54:38 ***Changed Beacon Beach*** courtesy scntfc
58:08 Beyond the Space Gates by Morgan Kuhli from Infinite Psychic Translations
58:55 ***audio of Morgan Kuhli on the radio***
1:00:17 Can You Hear The Quiet Flames by Morgan Kuhli from Infinite Psychic Translations
1:01:19 The Hanford Reach by Burn A Pale Fire (scntfc + Morgan Kuhli) from Undone
1:06:07 Arcadia Station (II)
1:07:07 Catchpole Station (I)
1:10:29 Best Friends from Virtual Virtual Reality + AR + 2
1:15:45 Towhee Grove (I)
1:16:42 Other Sprouts by Sam Keenan

Oxenfree and Oxenfree II: Lost Signals are fantastic games with phenomenal music. The games are scored by scntfc, a.k.a. Andy Rohrmann. And I can't ever get enough of Andy's music.

I love these games so very much, from the art and story to the music. If you haven't spent time listening to these scores, treat yourself.

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PLAYLIST / PART ONE
by scntfc for Oxenfree (I) or Oxenfree II: Lost Signals (II) unless noted otherwise

00:00 To The Valley (II)
06:40 Beacon Beach (I)
09:58 Nightfall, Camena (II)
12:22 Berenson Creek (II)
14:15 Atwater Station (II)
16:28 Arcadia Station (II)
17:41 To The Island (II)
19:06 Atalanta Third (II)
23:33 20 Days Past (I)
27:20 Baby Carrots (II but not on OST)
29:22 Baby Carrots (II but not on OST)
31:14 Journey of a Bird by Morgan Kuhli from Infinite Psychic Translations
35:00 Blacklake (II)
37:37 Cleaned Slate (II)
38:27 Change the Station (II)
42:15 Garland (II)
43:36 Lift (II)
44:40 Lift (II)
46:52 Lift (II)
48:31 Epiphany Fields (I)
49:08 The Beach, 7AM (I)
50:01 To The Valley (II)
51:49 To The Island (II)
54:31 To The Valley (II)
55:22 The Stars Are On Their Side (II)
56:32 Ghosts Of The Pacific Northwest (II)
57:22 Ghosts Of The Pacific Northwest (II)
58:06 To The Valley (II)
59:07 Blacklake (II)
1:00:21 Garland (II)
1:04:20 Garland (II)
1:05:46 Transmissions (II)
1:08:20 Transmissions (II)
1:11:19 Exit (II)
1:12:33 Copper Creek (II)
1:14:35 The Caves (II)
1:16:28 Atalanta Third (II)
1:18:43 Galvanic (II)
1:19:22 Other Sprouts by Sam Keenan

 

 

Composer Doyle Donehoo wrote a fantastic score for the newest game in the Alien franchise, called Aliens: Dark Descent.

His music shares several hallmarks but is uniquely his music, and his fandom for this franchise runs so deep it comes off as a gorgeous, if not appropriately creepy, love letter.

Doyle saw the first film, Alien, in the theater in 1979. I've told many friends about the story of his experience that night - hilarious. And much later in our conversation, we chat about how he was one of the first in the world (yup) to see Star Wars, an equally engaging tale.

If you've played Warhammer, you've likely heard Doyle's music. This score is just as epic yet in the most delicate way possible - the dynamic range alone can put you in that terrifying universe.

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PLAYLIST
by Doyle Donehoo for Aliens: Dark Descent unless noted otherwise

00:00 Aliens: Dark Descent Main Theme
07:18 They Keep Coming
08:26 Main Theme
13:00 That’s Just Creepy
16:52 Desperate Escape
26:20 Running Battle
28:31 Industrial Disaster Aftermath
31:37 Alien First Encounter
35:37 The Queen Must Die
40:08 Check Those Corners
50:25 Revelations in the Dark
54:48 Desperate Escape
1:05:48 Running Battle
1:06:20 Other Sprouts by Sam Keenan

Composer Wilson Brown is part of an audio studio called Antfood, and the studio is responsible for the delightfully chill soundtrack for the Minecraft-esque roguelite, Let's! Revolution!

One of my favorite parts of the soundtrack is the percussion - a lot of organic sounds, like body percussion, Latin, South American and other world instruments, mixed with synthetic samples. It's a cold drink on a warm day or a warm drink on a cold one, take your pick. It's pleasing!

PLAYLIST
by Antfood for Let’s! Revolution! unless noted otherwise

00:00 What An Adventure
07:26 Crowns & Loafers
11:21 The King’s Clutch
12:25 The King’s Clutch
14:51 The Woodlords
19:58 Aquila
26:44 The Woodlords
37:19 Bearded Dragon
41:01 Crowns & Loafers
48:48 The Friend
55:54 What An Adventure
59:20 Salty Wounds
1:00:24 Salty Wounds
1:05:03 The Gym For Tiny Critters
1:10:37 Civil Oaks
1:11:14 Other Sprouts by Sam Keenan

It's always a delight having Oleksa Lozowchuk on Level. This time, we're talking about his music for Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores.

I love hearing him dig into his process for composing. We talk about the important soloists on the soundtrack: singers Julie Elven and Melissa Kaplan, along with cellist Blair Lofgren.

Quick ask: we're getting close to monetization on YouTube, so send some friends over to our channel and watch our videos, including this one with Oleksa! And thank you, as always!

PLAYLIST
by Oleksa Lozowchuk for Horizon: Forbidden West Burning Shores unless noted otherwise

00:00 To the Burning Shores
04:22 To the Burning Shores
06:02 Coldest Time of Year from Dead Rising 4
09:24 Titan’s Wake
11:22 To the Burning Shores
14:47 Steel Snare
17:16 Steel Snare
23:09 To the Burning Shores
25:08 For His Amusement
28:16 For His Amusement
30:17 The Idea of Home
35:25 Above and Below
36:18 Above and Below
39:56 Above and Below
42:10 Above and Below
44:18 Someone I Once Knew
46:10 Someone I Once Knew
48:02 Someone I Once Knew
49:28 Titan’s Wake
54:32 Titan’s Wake
1:00:18 The Idea of Home
1:02:52 The Idea of Home
1:04:18  Ruin’s Rise
1:07:01 Ruin’s Rise
1:08:14 Steel Snare
1:12:32 For His Amusement
1:13:10 Above and Below
1:13:30 Other Sprouts by Sam Keenan

Composer Vinicius Barbosa Pippa has held many jobs as a musician working in media.

In addition to his work in games and film, he garnered an Emmy nomination for his work as a music editor on an animated show called Go! Go! Cory Carson. And he was the music supervisor on a different animated show that aims to introduce Star Wars to kids called Star Wars Galaxy of Adventures (definitely check this out if you haven't, they're fabulous shorts!).

I loved chatting with Vinicius about his music, his projects, Portuguese and more!

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PLAYLIST

by Vinicius Barbosa Pippa unless noted otherwise

00:00 Night Life
16:20 Lemon Tea
23:32 Clues
29:49 One Last Time
32:37 The Intercept
33:52 Blood Vow
43:58 Graveyard End Credits (From the film Graveyard)
48:16 Idee Fixe II
50:05 Dream Come True
50:31 Other Sprouts by Sam Keenan

Composer Brent Meyer talks about his music for Katoa, a mobile game where you build and manage an underwater ecosystem. A portion of the money spent through microtransactions goes toward charities that support the climate.

The main theme Brent wrote is a sweeping, melodic orchestral romp. Once you begin gameplay, the texture simplifies and the music becomes more ambient to support the visuals.

I loved the gentleness of the more ambient tracks, and thoroughly enjoyed talking with Brent about his music, and our shared geography :)

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PLAYLIST

by Brent Meyer for Katoa unless noted otherwise 00:00 Beings of Light (Katoa Main Theme) 03:21 A New World 11:53 Beings of Light (Katoa Main Theme) 15:17 Gaia 18:30 Beings of Light (Katoa Main Theme) 27:31 A Reef in Trouble 34:32 A New World 41:41 Ocean Lullaby 48:34 A Reef in Trouble 49:13 Other Sprouts by Sam Keenan

It's always a great time having John Robert Matz on to talk about his music. This time, we discuss Tchia, an open-world adventure of a young girl on tropical islands inspired by the real location, New Caledonia.

The music is such a joy. John Robert captured a colorful, simple and memorable island vibe with his soundtrack.

The game is fantastic too. This isn't some hundred hour open world sprawl either; it's digestible and easy to take breaks.

Music is woven into the gameplay is unique ways, and you can play chromatic triads on your ukulele using the controller.

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PLAYLIST by John Robert Matz for Tchia unless noted otherwise

00:00 Main Theme 12:32 The Pilou 15:04 Weliwele Town 30:41 Underwater Reef 35:10 The World 37:22 An Audience with Meavora 42:03 Aemoon City 43:36 Weliwele Town 44:49 Song I - Ö ngo eka 48:03 Song I - Ö ngo eka 49:54 Song II- -Lapa ië 54:25 Song IV- -Chez nous à Weliwele 58:53 Sailing 1:00:57 Main Theme 1:01:38 Song II- -Lapa ië 1:02:43 The Maano 1:04:16 Hunahmi Arrival - Hunahmi Village - Meeting the Chief 1:05:51 Into the Banyan Tree - Echoes of the Past from Tchia: The Beach Sides 1:07:48 Gutu Island from Tchia: The Beach Sides 1:09:12 Madra Noj Lake 1:09:52 Tingeting Village 1:12:17 Tingeting Village 1:18:46 Forests from Tchia: The Beach Sides 1:20:14 A Day with Tre from Tchia: The Beach Sides 1:31:34 The Sea Race 1:32:46 The World 1:33:28 Other Sprouts by Sam Keenan

I love these games! And Sander van Zanten's music does a fantastic job capturing the wonder, loneliness and splendor of being in space.

If you haven't played Deliver Us the Moon, I highly recommend it. And then play Deliver Us Mars! The gameplay is so engaging and Sander's music is a great part of it all.

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PLAYLIST by Sander van Zanten for Deliver Us the Moon (Moon) or Deliver Us Mars (Mars) unless noted otherwise

00:00 Prelude (Moon) 07:08 First Light (Moon) 12:06 Light At The End Of The Tunnel (Moon) 12:56 Uprising (Moon) 16:46 Renaissance (Moon) 20:42 Warnings And Alarms (Moon) 22:40 Prelude (Moon) 24:37 Spirit (Mars) 30:10 Spirit (Mars) 35:54 Home (Mars) 37:52 Home (Mars) 34:50 Sarah’s Song (feat. Nola Klop) (Moon) 48:30 Sanctuary (Mars) 50:01 Sarah’s Song (Moon) 53:40 A Spark Of Life (Moon) 57:40 Autumn Falls (Mars) 59:20 Hummus On Flatbread (Mars) 1:03:56 Odysseus (Mars) 1:06:02 Rupture (Mars) 1:17:42 The Great Escape (Mars) 1:18:20 Other Sprouts by Sam Keenan