itch.io

The submission on Soundcloud : https://on.soundcloud.com/OYHhPWYCgrb8lXjYSG

Thank you! I'm really trying to improve on my orchestral writing, so I really appreciate your feedback!

A very modern-horror take on the instrumentation! I really like the blend of the cello with the super electronic production! 

Awesome!

Oh you nailed the spooky atmosphere! The way you combined the orchestral and rock instrumentation reminds me  a bit of The Wedding from LittleBigPlanet (which is a great track imo).

Great job!

Really cool chord progression! Great melodies and really nice production.

This feels like it could be a song or something.

Very well done!

The track on soundcloud : https://soundcloud.com/ilaytsa/spoopymart-demo?si=f8418ec366534cd79ac5b6e4152e38...

Thank you so much! I'm glad the contrast did it's job well haha 

Thank you so much! I'm glad you liked the piano, 'cause just being able to record on it was probably the biggest hurdle of this jam lol. I'm also glad you liked the processing, since that's a skill (along with producing in general) that I've beem trying to improve on for years now.

I totally understand what you're saying about the harmony being more dissonant in order to amplify the feeling of anxiety, and I'll definitely consider that if I'll polish this piece into a "real thing" (which is something I do plan on doing).

Thanks for all the feedback! I really appreciate it 🙏

Beautiful! What a gorgeous composition for a gorgeous combination of instruments! I love the baroque-y vibe, and how you kind of juxtaposed it with the filter you put on the video (which makes it look a little gameboy-ey). 

Well done!

Very pretty! It's a shame you weren't able to finish it in time, but I'd love to hear the finished piece when you complete it!

Nice!

Extremely well done ambient track! I love the combination of guitar and contrabass here. I also have a little bit of a soft spot for music with ambient sounds in the background (like rain, or in this case crickets and such).

Great job!

Thanks! I'm glad you liked it, since that juxtaposition was one of the most important part of this track haha

I really recommend to visit the project page if you'd like to see some details about the submission!

A link to the track on soundcloud : https://on.soundcloud.com/2iQZMwo9IQ8wLY3vf9 

Thank you very much! Good luck to you too!

ohhhh that's so cool!

Nice atmosphere, and really interesting concept. Well done!

Really cool atmosphere! I can see this being a really nice and chill indie platformer. I like submissions that do a lot of synth-stuff, and this one didn't let me down. Very nice!

Track 1 : I really like all the cool harmony tricks you did to make the intensity work, and when the drums enter everything really feels complete. Is this by chance in 24tet?

Track 2 : Bringing in a motif from the first track? Genius! This feels both mystical and a little intense - there's a lot of underlying pressure.

Track 3 : I'm loving the way you develop motifs - melodically and harmonically. By this point, everything feels so off it's uncanny. Is this also 24tet?

Track 4 : Dies Irae????? Every musician's dream haha. This starts like a choral for the end of the world (which makes sense for it being the Dies Irae), but devlops into a depiction of dread and a downward spiral. Love it!

Track 5 : And again with the motifs! Truly genius. The way layers keep coming in and build upon each-other sucks you in and makes sure you really wallow in the atmosphere! And then it breaks down and builds up to show off some crazy harmonies - it's so weird, but makes so much sense considering the rest of the OST! Pretty long track, but worth every second in my opinion. I would love to hear this track in a more "orchestral" setting!

Overall, you managed to create something almost no one does in such a short time - an incredibly cohesive piece of music, the develops into something deeply emotional and meaningful. And just like I said for the fifth track - I would love to hear these pieces orchestrated, or at least played with live instruments (maybe like a midwest-emo setting?).

Amazing job!

Ahh yeah that's totally fair, and the music turned out great!

I love the name, the story, the open-ended ending, and how everything is very abstract (which is a really good idea for game jams, in my humble opinion). The choice to limit yourself to just a string quartet was genius, and it allows for the story to be expressed dramatically but not over-dramatically (and I also just love string quartets, 'cause who doesn't?).

I would love to hear this live - because the midi strings definitely don't do the music justice - but I'm very impressed and satisfied with this too!

Great job!

I definitely get the atmosphere you went for, nice job! I kind of wish I got to hear more about this story and how it correlates to the theme you chose, but this being a jam and all, it's already good to have a concept and a setting.

Well done!

Thank you so so much! I really appreciate all the compliments and details you noticed (and just so you know, a lot of the things you listed were echoing what my buddy who let me record at his place, and recorded guitar, said he liked too haha). 

The chords you asked about are F-Em-Ebmaj7, but just for context, the chords for the C part they're in (from 2:20 to 2:48) are : 

Bm7(b5) - E7 - Am

Bm7(b5) - E7 - A - Dmaj7

Bm7(b5) - E7 - F - Em - Ebmaj7

Dm - Dm7(b5) - C

Once again, I really appreciate all your feedback - thanks a lot!

Haha yeah, I definitely should dive deeper into jazz vocalists. Thank you for the compliments and feedback! 

We actually intentionally made the 2nd track's vocals dry, to make it sound a bit more improvised, but I can hear how it might sound odd.

Nevertheless, thanks for the feedback!

haha thank you very much! Good to know I matched the atmosphere 😄

Thank you so much! I'm really glad you enjoyed it!

And yes, that's exactly the pun I wanted to make lol,

Oh wow, thank you so much! I'm really glad you liked, and that you even "went back for seconds" haha! I really appreciate the kind words :)))) 

First of all - thank you very much! I really really appreciate it!

I just added a ton of info about the songs and their creation process, so you're welcome to check it out! :D

Finally got to this submission, the one I wanted to get to the most! 

From the get-go, just the aesthetic of this submission is divine - so creative and quirky (which is very fitting for the story and music), and the art itself is super endearing! The tracks titles, the way the project and submission pages are designed - it's all so awesome! The story here is also really cool, and all of these aspects come together to create the most enticing thing i've seen in a while!

Now for the music itself,

ur only welcome HERE : Awesome beat, and sets up the vibe for the entire OST. I'm gonna mention it more, but the sound design is incredible - the instruments are produced perfectly, and the added sound effects are fantastic! The build here is awesome, and it all reminds a lot of Toby Fox's music (which I personally ADORE). Very quirky, very fitting.

slow 'n steady... : Love that baseline! Using Harpsichord is also a surefire way to make me LOVE a track. This one definitely gives off major sneaky vibes. I also really like the break in the middle, and the sound design is still fantastic!

...DOES NOT WIN THE RACE. YOU BETTA RUN! : Hell yeah! This one is super energizing, and serves its purpose very well! I really like the super chromatic melody, and the dynamic builds and changes are great (on all three tracks)! And of course. the sound design here is so perfect! The ringing (which was also on previous tracks), the train-station-y announcement in the middle, the crash in the end - perfect!

I wish I could write more, but I really have to go, so I'll just say this is a fantastic submission, and I wish ya'll the best of luck!!

Thank you! I'm really glad I was able to replicate the sound well :D

Thanks haha! 

For me, a lot of the times (and in this case) I just think of a theory concept (in this case, the mario cadence, which to me kind of encompasses the feeling of freedom) and give it little twist (in this case, not resolving it immediately). Then I just kind of play with this idea on a piano or something till I have a more complete idea - melody, harmony, maybe lyrics - and then I just start translating it to sheet music or recording it into a DAW. 

For folky tunes, I find that using modes is really helpful (espcially Lydian and Dorian, they have a very folky sound), and writing melodies that are more lyrical and easy to sing, Hope that helps lol (sorry if I rambled too much, I just really enjoy talking about the process)!

Thanks! Yeah, there were some tuning problems that I wasn't able to fix due to time restraints 😬

Thank you very much! Yeah, it was a bit of a stretch, but it couldn't have happened if I didn't have such quick-to-respond friends! 

Thank you! I've been finding out from this jam that apparently I'm a pretty solid whistler haha! 

Thanks! Yeah, that's exactly it - if I only had more time lol...

Really? That's very interesting. Regardless, it fits the track perfectly!

So creative and erratic! This is what I think of when people say psychedelic music lol. I really enjoyed your approach to the theme, and you still managed to sneak in some really good melodies, within all these free sounds.

The vocals and effects were on point, and it all comes together to make a very unique experience!

Well done!

First of all, the experience you described of asking you mom for the cool looking NES game - is exactly what happened to me lol. I saw the cover picture you chose, and I was like "This looks badass, I wanna listen to this one".

Second of all, this track is fantastic (in more ways than one haha)! It's upbeat and energizing, but also incredibly dynamic with it's mood and atmosphere. The NES aesthetic here was a great choice, and it reminds me of the music of the Follin brothers ( I'm not super familiar with they're music, but from the little I've heard).

Great job!

Very interesting. These minimalistic tracks really sell the idea of being stranded, and they're a little erratic, which to me feels like a deliberate choice to really set up the atmosphere.

They also both kind of remind me of Minecraft's legendary piano pieces haha.

Well done!

Very interesting! I like the story here, and the genres used to depict it are a very unique and fitting choice! The production is very well done (which is almost necessary for such an electronic OST), and each track nails down the atmosphere very well.

Also, a side note, I really like the picture you chose. It goes incredibly hard!