AWESOME SOUNDTRACKS:
Bastion
I guess this is the first review I've had in a while. Since I've been playing more games recently, I want to try a new thing where I check out some great soundtracks I've come across. So without further ado I'll start with the music to a game that I just finished recently.
Bastion is the flagship release from indie company Supergiant Games, and man what a great first impression. Set in a sort of alternate world in a Western style, Bastion takes place after a worldwide disaster by the name of The Calamity literally dismantles everything, including the once great land of Caelondia. You play a character simply known as The Kid, a Caelondian who wakes up in his room to find that everyone is gone and the world has been destroyed. He knows from plans that were made long ago, that if something like this were to ever happen, any survivors should proceed to The Bastion, a safe haven meant as a last resort when there is no where else to go. There you meet Rucks, a gruffy voiced, weathered old man who serves as a guide and overall narrator to your adventure, and you seek to find various crystals scattered around the world to restore The Bastion and unlock it's true powers; powers that would be able to fix what the Calamity has done. Along the way you meet survivors and uncover many secrets about the world and parts to the story as with what was behind this Calamity in the first place. One interesting part about the game is that the entire story is laid out by the narrator as you traverse the world, and while that may sound like something you would get sick of after a while, it makes it into one of the most unique storytelling experiences you'd ever find in a game.
The music for a game of this setting is something very interesting; it's described by composer Darren Korb as "Acoustic Frontier Hip Hop". Here you'll find alot of bluesy acoustic guitar mashed up with world influences like sitar and koto, electronic beats and foreboding but powerful strings, and the main thing here is that it all actually
works. I mean, it works to the point that you couldn't imagine the music of this game without all of those elements. It works to set the perfect mood for a game about picking up the pieces after a worldwide disaster. Now, according to the company Supergiant Games, they weren't going to initially release this soundtrack as an album, but after strong fan demand they decided to release a digital format available online. That's the biggest surprise really, as it feels like this was meant for an album release from the get-go.
This soundtrack starts off with the introduction
Get Used to It, a word from the narrator who reminisces about life in Caelondia while you hear some gentle guitar strumming in the distance. From there, you're thrown into
A Proper Story, which introduces you to alot of the musical elements that you'll see throughout this listen. After that comes my personal favorite track,
In Case of Trouble, which also serves as the main theme to the game.
Bynn the Breaker comes after that, a string heavy song which takes away the chill atmosphere of the last track and replaces it with tense feeling; one that tells of unknown danger that may be coming your way.
The Sole Regret features a number more string instruments in a more lonely setting, and
Twisted Streets throws flutes into the mix to provide more of that tense feeling from before, but this time in a more prepared way, as if you the player are actually ready to face what's coming. After this is
Terminal March, a more world influenced track with some nice hip hop layers to compliment the striking mandolin line that will stick with you.
Percy's Escape then busts in, taking some grizzly strings and combining them with intense percussion to increase the sense of danger and intensity, following into
Faith of Jevel, a dreamlike track which depicts more or less a drug induced haze that slows the album down(in a good way). After that,
Mine, Windbag, Mine, takes more strings and a scratching mandolin to fill you with a sense of adventure and awe as you try to take in the world around you.
Slinger's Song is the perfect western track, with lots of slide guitar and samples of stirrups complimenting the beats behind them to a slow and chill ride.
Being a soundtrack to a video game, you can expect there to be no vocals for the music, and for the most part you would be right, but the vocals that are there certainly leave an impression in the album as well as in-game.
Build That Wall (Zia's Theme) is a soulful ballad sung by Ashley Barret who has just the perfect pang of soul and pain in her singing to her voice. While it is only acoustic guitar and vocals, it perfectly fits into the tone of the soundtrack and fits perfectly in game when it comes on.
Spike In A Rail brings you back in with bluesy acoustic and electric guitar combined with an ensemble of banjo and harmonica that just rocks.
What's Left Undone takes the melody of Build that Wall and has it sung by the narrator, more or less a track solely for the game.
Brusher Patrol comes next with a swinging slide guitar line and a cool vocal sample that's works very subtly, as well as some strong electric guitar.
The Mancer's Dilemma takes a sole harp line and uses different waves of string instruments to build off of it.
The second song to feature vocals,
Mother I'm Here (Zulf's Theme) takes a page from Build That Wall and has a soulful ballad sung by Darren Korb that works off of minimalism. Once again this fits perfectly with the soundtrack as well as when you hear it in game. The Pale Watchers is next and has more of an electronic/trip-hop vibe than previous tracks, giving it a very dream inducing feel. The next song,
The Bottom Feeders, picks up the pace and maintains that trip-hop vibe while at the same time bringing back the world influences.
From Wharf to Wilds adds in some trumpet and heroic strings which help to push you as it is the music for the last level of the game. One of the most interesting parts about the next to last track
Setting Sail, Coming Home is that it takes the two previous songs Build That Wall and Mother I'm Here and combines the vocals and music into a duet that is as beautiful and striking as it is one of the best songs to end a game by. Really, this isn't just a simple mashup of the two songs as much as it is
a completed song that needed the two pieces to be combined together. Truly something I haven't really seen before, even in standalone albums.
This album does end with
The Pantheon (Ain't Gonna Catch You), a traditional blues song by the guy who plays the narrator, Logan Cunningham, that tells you how "you'll be sorry for what you've done". A simple song, really. Initially I didn't like this track, but after listening to it again I found the vocals smooth and relaxing. The only complaint I'd say would be that with the lyrics it seems like an odd way to end the album.
Best Songs: In Case of Trouble,
Terminal March,
Mine Windbag, Mine,
Build That Wall,
Spike In a Rail,
The Mancer's Dilemma,
The Bottom Feeders,
Setting Sail, Coming Home
Worst Songs: Get Used to It
In short, I give this soundtrack an enthusiastic
9 out of 10. This has got to be one of if not the best video game soundtracks that I've ever heard. You can just feel the love, care and attention that was put into not only having music that fit the feel of a game, but was also a joy to listen to on it's own. Very little filler, it was hard to find any bad or unnecessary tracks, with even the less stellar stuff still being great. The only complaint that I could honestly have is that, being a video game soundtrack, it repeats some parts of songs in order to keep the flow going in-game. So some tracks have points where they hit the halfway mark and start to essentially repeat the song all over again. Even so, this is a game soundtrack that surpasses alot of actual albums that I've heard in terms of cohesiveness and quality. Even if you don't play games at all, this deserves to stand next to albums in even the most discriminating record stores and owned by people who enjoy finely crafted and just great music. Don't believe me? listen to some tracks then
Oh yeah, and you should check out Bastion too,
I can't recommend it enough. It's a great gaming experience and a landmark in game storytelling.