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Episodes
Great conversations about music in games, as well as voice actors, musicians, developers, audio directors, and more
Episodes
Friday Mar 10, 2023
Friday Mar 10, 2023
Pentiment is a 2D narrative adventure murder mystery set in the early part of the 16th century. Director/desinger Josh Sawyer dreamed of making a historically accurate game set pre-Renaissance, and he asked Alkemie Early Music Ensemble to create a faithful musical score for the game.
"Early music" at its simplest definition consists of music before the year 1600, when tonality wasn't how we westerners understand it today, and instruments were ancestors of what's common to find in an orchestra now (these instrumental developments continued well beyond the year 1600).
And Alkemie's soundtrack is fabulous.
**And they've provided Level listeners with a coupon code to watch their most recent concert at any time!! YOU CAN WATCH their most recent concert online FREE, anytime, HERE by using the coupon code "Level"**
I spoke with co-founders and performers Sian Ricketts and Tracy Cowart, who are both professional early music scholars and professors; they're multi-instrumentalists and singers too. And I'm so grateful for them both, their bandmates and their music!
You can find a playlist and support Level with Emily on Patreon. Join us on Discord for free. Find this conversation on YouTube and Twitter. Patrons have access to special Discord events and special guest playlists.
Friday Mar 03, 2023
Friday Mar 03, 2023
The music Amos Roddy wrote for Citizen Sleeper is too good for words. I love the music, I loved our conversation about it, and I've loved the game (not finished yet). I'm not alone - players raved about the entire package of gameplay, narrative, music, visuals and all the things that make it Citizen Sleeper.
To list my favorite tracks would comprise the entirety of the album, which is a fun thing to discover as you listen through a soundtrack. Each passing track sounds like the joy of discovery.
You can find a playlist and support Level with Emily on Patreon. Join us on Discord for free. Find this conversation on YouTube and Twitter. Patrons have access to special Discord events and special guest playlists.
Friday Feb 24, 2023
Friday Feb 24, 2023
The fourth installment of The Dark Pictures Anthology, The Devil In Me follows a film crew trapped within a replica of H.H. Holmes's infamous Murder Castle, where he tortured and murdered more than two dozen unsuspecting tourists in town for the Chicago World's Fair in 1893.
The antagonist in The Devil In Me slowly herds his victims into traps, and Jason's music reflects this slow terror walk. It's fantastic.
You can find a playlist and support Level with Emily on Patreon. Join us on Discord for free. Find this conversation on YouTube and Twitter. Patrons have access to special Discord events and special guest playlists.
Friday Feb 17, 2023
Friday Feb 17, 2023
Composer Trevor Gureckis scored about two hours of new music (not all of which is on the soundtrack) for the Dead Space remake. EA kept Jason Graves's original score intact, and Trevor scored the new cutscenes, battles and other content added to the game to fill out the story.
And it's great. It's very Dead Space, and is unique to Trevor's style. At the time of recording, I was provided 3 tracks, and they were all quite different. I loved doing a deep dive on all 3 with Trevor, and we hope you enjoy the conversation!
You can find a playlist and support Level with Emily on Patreon. Join us on Discord for free. Find this conversation on YouTube and Twitter. Patrons have access to special Discord events and special guest playlists.
Friday Feb 10, 2023
Friday Feb 10, 2023
French composer Nicolas de Ferran talks about his groovy music for Scrap Riders, a point-and-click adventure/beat-em-up about a biker gang in the 80s. The last time we had Nicolas on Level, he went by the nickname of Nicolas Diteriks, and we spoke about an orchestral score he composed for the game We Are Billions.
The Scrap Riders score is very different stylistically, with a lot of 80s vibes and grooves playing off each other. And he gave us this fantastic audio from this voice memo he recorded one day as he was out on the street - you'll hear it. It's so good!!
You can find a playlist and support Level with Emily on Patreon. Join us on Discord for free. Find us on YouTube and Twitter. Patrons have access to special Discord events and special guest playlists.
Friday Feb 03, 2023
Friday Feb 03, 2023
We always love having composer Garry Schyman on the show. His music is so darn great. This time, we talk about his gorgeous orchestral score for Forspoken, the new RPG from Luminous and Square Enix.
Recorded live in Nashville, the music is full of energy slathered in soaring melodies that take you somewhere with each new phrase. It's so fantastic.
You can find a playlist and support Level with Emily on Patreon. Join us on Discord for free. Find us on YouTube and Twitter. Patrons have access to special Discord events and special guest playlists.
Friday Jan 27, 2023
Friday Jan 27, 2023
Composer Jonah Senzel talks about his music for Inscryption. He wrote in a handful of different styles, from music heavy with sound effects to the simplest, slow chip-tune chords. The game also is a bit of a mash-up of styles - a deckbuilder with escape room elements and a bit of horror.
It was great chatting with Jonah about his music!
You can find a playlist and support Level with Emily on Patreon. Join us on Discord for free. Find us on YouTube and Twitter. Patrons have access to special Discord events and special guest playlists.
Friday Jan 20, 2023
Friday Jan 20, 2023
The show itself is an absolute delight and it's almost inexcusable if you don't watch it (the episodes are brief enough that you could binge all 3 seasons in a day). And with comedic animation like this, the music is intertwined with the visuals that you really need to just watch it. It's SO worth it.
That's my endorsement. As for Ego's music - he fumbled through the restrictions of the pandemic like any composer, finding musicians capable of recording themselves as far away as Greece. It sounds so good and the energy he still managed to capture is electric.
You can find a playlist and support Level with Emily on Patreon. Join us on Discord for free. Find us on YouTube and Twitter. Patrons have access to special Discord events and special guest playlists.
Friday Jan 13, 2023
Friday Jan 13, 2023
I met video essayist Jacob Geller during my occasional appearances on The MinnMax Show to discuss the best game music of a given year. Meeting him led me on a journey through his videos, and I absolutely adore his videos. We talk about why in this conversation!
You can find a playlist and support Level with Emily on Patreon. Join us on Discord for free. Find us on YouTube and Twitter. Patrons have access to special Discord events and special guest playlists.
Friday Jan 06, 2023
Friday Jan 06, 2023
Composer Thomas Cipollone writes 8-bit scores for games that release on NES cartridges. He has to adhere to all the rules composers followed in the 80s, constricted heavily by the size of his audio files and the voicings he can compose.
And he does so brilliantly, with creative textures, great grooves and fulfilling melodies. We spoke about four of his scores, some of which have been released, some of which are still in the process of getting released: Garbage Pail Kids: Mad Mike and the Quest for Stale Gum, Full Quiet, Unicorn and Beyond the Pins.
You can find a playlist and support Level with Emily on Patreon. Join us on Discord for free. Find us on YouTube and Twitter. Patrons have access to special Discord events and special guest playlists.