Oml Avishai Cohen is so good thank you for making me discover him
JenjenParibou
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Finally, a slightly more lighthearted submission! I know the theme "One Summer Night" evokes melancholy, but it's nice to see someone do something a bit more fun, it immediately makes it stand out. I'll leave notes on tracks that stood out to me:
I really like the guitars used in Wild Unknown, they're programmed very well and really bring out that far west mood, while the arcade-y synths reminds you that this place is all virtual. This song's definitely my favourite lol.
We're Not Playing Around Here is pretty swell, really got that all out, "anything's allowed" brawl feel to it. I like the piano near the start that shares the title theme's leitmotif. The switch up near the middle was pretty cool (I wish it was longer tho!) And the part after that was really well composed.
Resting Place's piano is probably the best played in the soundtrack, and I really like the organ playing there too. At first, it's not realistic but it feels just right for the alien feel of the place, before completely changing and sounding like a real church organ. These sacred grounds, while marvelous, should not be roamed for too long.
Big City Lights's just awesome, probably my second favourite. I love the flut-ish lead that plays near the middle, has that urban energy to it I can't describe. The piano really help in establishing that too.
The sudden high energy s witchup in Arcadia is a really great way to showcase the overwhelming feeling of the place, before ending on a (seemingly?) hopeful note.
Pretty cool how you decided to split up the tracks into different "Sections" so that they'd fit the story told more, it really helped in visualising scenes better.
I really like the short story told, it really fits the soundtrack like a glove. The world presented through the story is absurd and comedic yet the characters take everything happening there seriously, making for an endearing narrative. The implied visuals of the "Moving Building" are really cool, I'd love to see art of that. My favourite part was how it stopped right after RoseCrusher started talking, so what they look like and such is kept ambiguous. You have succeded in your quest of finding your love, what happens next is irrelevant to the story, no matter how good or bad the result was. I thought that was interesting. It's even showcased in Arcadia when the song sort of "powers down" at the very end.
Listening to this through the youtube video, I love how each track flows into one another as the "colour" of the video changes and effects are added.
The only part I didn't really like about the soundtrack was a specific part in "One Night Only" (I really like that one btw), at around 0:09 in the youtube video, the guitar is playing in a major scale while the background synths are playing in a minor scale, I think if you changed up the guitar's melody a little there (by making major notes play in minor, or something like that), it would've sounded less dissonant.
Overall a very fun time. Great job.
This soundtrack hits hard.
Anesthetized Agony felt like how we sometimes live life just... Going through the motions. Events happen around us, sometimes loud, sometimes quiet, but to use they're all the same: Just a droning noise that is bound to be silenced when we get to bed. Nothing we do matters.
But then, Ceaseless Searing remind me of those nights were you can't sleep. The beautiful guitar contrasts amazingly with the drums and almost broken synths playing throughout. I really like the chord progression used through this song, it's almost ethereal. The "humid" feeling of the soundtrack reminded me of the Distant Springs from Pikmin 1.
Cyclical Severance has some very dynamic and beautiful instrumentation showing through. It feels a lot more "natural" than the previous songs if that makes sense. Of course, the guitar steals the show as always, but I also very much enjoy the "alarm" like sound that plays throughout, like it's urging us to wake up.
Revival and Rejuvenation is "Peace" at its most primal form. gentle bells accompagny the strange singing synths, before being presented by the jovial pads and guitar. I think it reuses motifs from previous songs, but I'm not too certain haha. That Distant Springs "influence" can also still be felt.
For the first time, the guitar takes the lead role in the instrumentation right from the start in Transcendence from Chains, as we've been freed of all the oppressive energy of the previous songs. It's just a nice song to listen to after all of this. It felt
I very much enjoyed this soundtrack, Ceaseless Searing ended up being my favourite due to the melancholic composition, but all of them are really good. Masterful job.
"FINALLY, another electric piano enjoyer!" I thought as I lost myself listening to the Beach, Dusk. The choirs used during the halfway mark are absolutely beautiful.
Halcyon Docks is usually not the type of song I enjoy, but the few minor chords thrown here and there made it a really interesting listen. I enjoyed the celesta at the end quiet a lot.
Next comes Under the Summer Stars, the return of the electric piano, playing Halcyon Docks' melody along with what I can only describe as the sound of Orcas crying in the background, which sounds really cool tbh. (probably my favourite song honestly lol)
Saltmarsh made me understand this soundtrack's biggest strenght: Creating an atmosphere, making you feel like you're actually walking in the areas the songs describe. Saltmarsh felt like I was scourging through the beach, discovering secrets that had been burried for a long, long time. The bass that plays along with the marimba is really good, I love it.
Boiling Brine was good, it's basically Saltmarsh with a drum beat and a few instrument changes, but it works and does its job well. I prefer that over a battle theme completely disconnected from the area theme lol.
Submerged Secrets sounds like we've just uncovered something big, something underwater. Showcasing how one might feel before delving deep into the ocean.
Aestival delivers on what Submerged Secrets seems to imply, it reminded me of Zelda dungeon themes a lot. The strings that start playing around 1:50 minutes in are really nice.
Bringer of the Tides reuses the previous song's main melody really well, as one readies themselves for a great battle. I like the minimal use of percussion the start, really ups the tension as it all comes crashing down with the electric guitar. These songs really feel like they would compliment gameplay really well, even if they're still good as individual experiences.
Return to the sea is triumphant yet calm, quietly appreciating our victories as we make our way back home.
The Beach, Dawn, which uses the same melody from its younger sibling, feels like recollection. We take a look at all of our previous actions and past trials one last time before moving on with our lives. Cool stuff.
Overall I liked the sountrack, a lot of songs were pretty long but they managed to stay interesting nonetheless. Could really see this used for a game and working really well.
Well done.
Probably the best review I've gotten, honest criticisms and good feedback. I totally get the rewriting your message thing while listening to the soundtrack to make it coherrent. Before reading this I was proud of how many tracks I managed to come up with, but in retrospect, yeah not there's like 200 other submissions left, and I definitely could've slimed the soundtrack down, I'm shooting myself and whoever actually listens to my stuff in the foot at this point lol. No matter how much time you think your idea deserves, people (me included) will definitely prefer something shorter and more concise. If I participate next year and you happen to find my submission, hopefully you won't go through too much suffering lol.
Honestly, the flash waking up the villagers and/or alerting the guards sounds like an interesting mechanic, would make the game a bit stealthy. (Can you tell that the story was very last minute? lol)
As for the chiptune nonsense, I would tell you that I used it to make Calypso and the Dalmas feel like those old, almost alien figures roaming in the dark that throw off the natural sound of the world just by existing... But the truth is I just wanted to experiment with chiptune and pairing it with more realistic instruments lol. I'm glad you enjoyed it despite the weirdness of it. I'm very happy someone noticed details like that among with other stuff I've put here and there, makes it worth putting thought into making your songs.
I knew there was something wrong with Grand Finale but couldn't point it out. I'll definitely keep it in mind when writing more energitic tracks.
Thanks a lot for this review, dude, it made me feel emotions. I'm so glad the timer was extended by a day lol, I'll make sure to rate your submission too
Instant 5 stars on impression. What an incredible guitar playing. The track itself is calm and invites you to investigate the game's world further, "Curious" is what I'd use to describe it.
Overall the tracks succeeded in what they set out to accomplish, I can see them fitting very well as background for ongoing conversations. Even so, they're all very interesting to listen to on their own, which I can't say for a lot of more "Background-y" tracks lol. The quality of the instruments along with the composition made this a great time. I also noticed some light leitmotif usage between tracks, always a treat.
Well-Oiled Rinew Milieu was definitely a big favourite, the violin is used really well in that track along with the piano, tho every track is really good so it was hard to choose haha.
Koniologer's Garden is my personal favourite, I love the chord progression in that song, it fills me with wonder for this location that I've never visited.
Well done!
You captured the feel of your potential game really well, as soon as the first song started playing I felt like I was watching a fantasia movie lol.
The synth in Footprints in the Fog was an interesting choice, it surprised me quiet a bit. Although to be fair it took me out of the 1940's Noir mood a little. Still a well composed track. Nice job overall.
This soundtrack reminded me a lot of a somewhat obscure PS2 game I played that kiiiind of used that concept: Ape Escape Pumped and Primed. The game was a lighthearted party game that eventually became dark and "currupted" after finishing the first cup. You did a really good job conveying that through your soundtrack
For the first half, my fav track was probably the main fishing theme, it really reminded me of those sega fishing game osts, and it felt really nostalgic to listen to. I also loved how the shop theme used the same melody as the tutorial, made me think that both areas of the game were managed by the same character
Something I liked a lot about the second half was the strange choirs that played through a lot of the track, that with the song sometimes tripping over itself actually made me feel like I was in hell haha
Fishing Hell is a really good track, the percussion used for it is really interesting, it reminded me of the purified zones from OFF (the original ost of course, I haven't listened to the new one lol) and I liked the leitmotif used there from the previous songs
I also enjoyed Death Shop, really cool bass and percussion work. It kinda sounded like a diss track instrumental lol
Overall a nice time and a really cool concept, second submission I give 5 stars in creativity for sure!
Despite the focus on being orchestral, the strange analogue like sound effects really help in building a unique atmosphere and make this soundtrack stand out! My interpretation of the tracks was also pretty close to what you intended for them, so that was nice. A few of tracks felt a bit simillar-ish but it also makes the listening experience more consistent so it's fine. Light Up was my favorite, I love the drum loop used and the progression of the song.
Overall good job!
You did a great job at capturing a certain "spiritual" energy in your songs, I'm not sure how to explain, might be how beautifully the piano and strings that were used in most of them. It's most evident in Starfall, along with the interesting choice of starting the soundtrack in a 5/4 signature.
The Starry Sea's choirs and violins really bring that track on another level, I adore it, probably my favourite of the bunch. The small whispers feel like the spirits talking in words familliar yet alien to the protagonist
I like how despite Shooting Star's urgency, you didn't resort to like adding breakcore drums or something, it feels right at home with the other tracks with the minimal percussion.
What surprised me the most about this submission was the lyrics in One Summer Night. They're really elegant and sad yet still hopeful, and aided by the beautiful instrumental... A lot of people named their tracks "One Summer Night", but I think this one is truly deserving of the title.
The video's presentation and overall editing was impressive and really helped in selling the wonder implied by the songs. No one else I rated did something like that so it makes this submission really stand out: Amazing job
Also it was nice seeing someone else use cubase lol
A really good time, could totally see this being in an actual game a la Hollow Knight. keep composing!
A lot of submission in this jam start with an sea ambience followed by soft, distant melodies. But this one takes the cake in my opinion, the added small guitar strums carefully drive the melody without being overwhelming, as the melancholic piano establishes the general mood of the upcoming game: A beautiful village with a terrifying secret.
Familliar Faces is absolutely amazing, I managed to get what was happening without even having to read the title or description of the song lol. The guitar playing is absolutely phenomenal lol, reminds me of songs you hear in the background of chill animes. Of course, the bossa nova drums is the icing on of the cake haha.
A Lively Catch is defo one of my favs, it's very jazzy and energetic in all the right places, the electric piano really goes nicely with the guitar. While simillar to Familliar Faces, the melody is a bit somber this time around in a few places, forshadownig something more sinister.
Then Run it Back starts playing.
The friendly and uplifiting mood of previous soundtracks has been corrupted and mangled together, the only coherrent sound you can make out is one of an incessant clock. Ticking and ticking to no end, driving you crazy. You can hear quiet, sad guitar strums, reversed and delayed through the song, letting you know that it's not just you, but the whole village that is stuck in this cycle of torment.
Please Don't Touch the Electronics feels like it's straight up lifted from the Nonary Games' soundtrack lol, exploring an alien-like laboratory full of oddities and mysteries. It also slaps.
Of all the Buttons to Press reminded me how great this OST is at telling the story without needing words lol, you succeeded really well in that front. I could FEEL the countdown while listening to the song. The motifs from the previous song playing through it was a really nice touch, too.
There's Nothing in the Water has some really cool ambience going for it. That with the reversed piano sounds and alarm life risers makes for a terrifying experience as you explore the cargo holds
A Really Big Shadow smartly uses a lot of the previous song's ambience as backdrop while introducing powerful drums and strings, instead of focusing on the scare factor, this song focuses on intrigue: What is this great monster we're chasing? What lies at the end of this path we took? Is it worth it? Nevertheless, we're still determined to see things through.
The long awaited return of the accoustic guitar gives one confidence in overcomming the odds. This song is probably my favourite, it uses a lot of familliar melodies and instruments: the plucks from the lab, the ambience from the ship, the piano from the intro... Along with really cool breakcore drums. Really good final boss material. I also enjoyed how the "big scary monster" was actually helping you out the whole time, this game's story is pretty nice.
The fact that all of this was made in a week is astounding lol, a really great time. I can imagine a version of "Surface Level" playing at the end of the game after all our trials. I honestly don't have any critiques for this one lol, I enjoyed all of it, terrific job!
also your screenshots are very fun god i wish i did something like that for mine
If there was one word I'd use to describe this submission, it would be "haunting". It's like listening to the thoughts roaming around someone's subconcious as they travel alien and unfamilliar lands. Like a vintage movie's soundtrack, it evolves through so many different feels: The deep bassoon drowning Willow-worm's timid choir, creating a sense of unease, but also appealing curiosity through its lighter flutes and oboes. Meadow of Woeful souls, while not shy of rivaling the previous track's unease, is instead more focused on recollection: remembering sadder times one would rather forget, as the beautiful strings and cellos, singing as if they were being tuned, remind our traveller of decisions he could've made. The oboes pick up on that, showcasing a brighter what-if, but are brought down to reality by the other instruments rather quickly.
Suddenly, Lost-Thought River introduces a brighter piano, weaving us for the first time into a sense of peace... Twisting itself in the process. Beautiful harp-like instruments pan to the left and harp as gentle pizzicatos accompany the piece, as if lost you're in thought... But these peaceful thoughts are often interrupted by harsher, more sudden bursts of conciousness. It is hard to find inner piece in these tumultuous places we're visiting.
Soon enough, as we reach the Fields of Fading Memories, these lapses in one's thought are replaced by utter confusion: It becomes harder to know what evokes hapiness and sadness. The once confident strings are now overshadowed by trumpets. Overpowering the composition before just as quickly fading away, leading to utter chaos... Yet that chaos is still somewhat controlled. A small part of our conscious still clings, refusing to be forgotten.
Entering Mezmar's Maze. Chaos now reigns free, guitar strums surprise the listener, as voice in the darkness try luring away their minds. This damp, uncomfortable labirynth that further tries to corner your mind, does not contain the small yet reassurring moments of peace that the other tracks at least pretended to showcase...
Soon, however, the nightmare ends. The tranquil shore finally lets us rest, as we look back on our journey and beyound... Finally able to recollect. Hints of tension still remain, the journey is not yet over... But at least we can appreciate those fleeting, tender moments while they last.
These reason these tracks resonate with me so much is probably due to the excellent quality of the samples used, and the skill in tweaking and changing each and every note and sound until everything feels authentic. No stone is left unturned, not a single string or key sounds out of place, I know damn well how hard it is to make an orchestra actually sound like one, and this album delivers masterfully. If I didn't know this was made in a DAW I would honestly believe an actual orchestra recorded this lol.
A really stand out submission and an amazing time, well done!
Hi, thanks for you feedback. I honestly don't mind the length of comments, I just happen to yap a lot during my own lol. Even short 1 phrase comments mean a lot to me, cause someone made an effort to say something haha. I appreciate you listening to the ost a few more times considering it's length. I'll make sure to check on you too, your stuff's awesome.
I've found myself rarely giving 5 stars on impression (only done so for 2 guys so far out of 32), but the first track of this submission is absolutely insane. It's wayyyyyyyy too good as an intro lol. Short, sweet, musically interesting, and a bop. What more could you want? Defo my favourite track
This album is really good at representing very specific moods and convey them in musical form. The electronic percussion in "i'm lost" feel like the gears in your head turning and hitting themselves as you try and figure out your surroundings in an unsettling area, represented by the somber piano melody and the demented yet somehow calm synth work.
The haunting ambience of Corrupt Zone makes me think I just entered a villain's lair in a James Bond movie. This ost hinted at blues with the Crow's Theme and it's certainly delivering haha
The soundtrack goes in a completely diffrent direction with Eternal Sunset, it feels like I'm walking through a dream as I listen to it, and then I read the track's description and found out I was right! I'm not clasically trained enough in music theory enough to articulate exactly how that works, but it really reminded me of this song from Napple Tale, a game that's really good at making you feel like you're in a dream. I think 8-Bit Music Theory made a video about that specific soundtrack, although I haven't watched it yet.
Dead Village strikes a nice middle ground between the previous two tracks, in that it's gothic and mysterious, but still somewhat whimsical. Forgotten memories aren't necessarly a bad thing, after all. "It's sometimes better to forget", this made me think.
Birdsong seems to imply some sort of bittersweet end, maybe something to do with remembering a sad past, although I like the open-endedness.
I noticed a subtle reuse of common motifs here and there in a few songs, always a treat to find those out.
I kinda wish this had more tracks lol, the stuff that's there's really good and I CRAVE for more. Had a really good time, keep composing!
Always great to hear VRC6, ever since Shovel Knight I haven't been able to get enough of it. Really nice soundtrack, while I did find the start a bit slow, it really picks up near the middle of Lightbringer (the way the chords evolve around 1:00 was beautiful) and when Jellyfishes starts playing (which was my favourite. I assume this plays a lot through the game so this is a good thing haha). I really enjoyed Lighthouse, the notes volume going up and down reminded me of an actual lightouse, with its light spinning around it. And Afterlight is a really cool ending track, reminds me of the original stuff from Megaman Maker.
The story told through the album was simple, but effective. It didn't overstay its welcome.
Overall a really nice time.
Thanks for responding. The fact that you're still new to all this DAW stuff is pretty cool, and honestly the strong composition does help in mitigating the scarce mixing problems. Listening to your soundtrack, here are a few stuff I'd recommend (Assuming you don't already have those) (These go from most likely to be useful to you to maybe not as important, I also assume you already have a soundfont player, but if you don't, Sfzorando is a popular pick, I personally prefer Juicy, it's more simple and to the point):
- The SGM Soundfont is the gold standard when it comes to soundfonts in general. It has probably the highest quality instruments out of any other soundfonts I've used (the pianos are really amazing on this one lol). Of course, as with any soundfonts, it will require you playing with velocity, pitchbending, volume control and effects to get the sound you're looking for, but this one stands out as it already sounds really good out of the box. I wouldn't be surprised if you had it already. If you're not gonna use anything else from this list, I recommend downloading this
- There's a ton of other soundfonts out there that some might recommend, usually a lot of older games have soundfonts made for them by fans, so if you for example played Mother 3 and wanted to use the instruments from that game, you're in luck!
Some soundfonts I use often:
- Airfont, it's a bit like SGM, although some people swear by it. I find its instruments a bit hit or miss, but it has a really nice harpsichord. the Arachno soundfont is simillar in that regard.
- Unironically, the Undertale soundfont is really good. While it has a lot of the instruments for the SGM one (Undertale uses that soundfont a lot) it has other stuff which I think really help it stand out (Most notably the Earthbound soundfont). The 17 violin in particular is one I used a lot, it plays longer, held notes at low velocities, and sharp, short notes at higher ones. It's amazing. (I think it's supposed to be an instrument from some expensive orchestral plugin but I'm not sure)
- 126 Hip Hop Soundfonts (There's a file in there called +Hip Hop Combo that basically combines them all together, use that) has a lot of weird little instruments and sounds that I quiet like, even if they don't work a lot of the time. The drums found there are okay, but they don't have any velocity control which sucks a bit.
- The Touhou soundfont has a lot of nice instruments (it has the game series famous Romantic Trumpet, which alone makes it worth downloading). I've never actually played the games much myself though lol, I find them too hard
- The free instruments from LABS, lots of really good stuff there. It's mostly famous for it's soft piano instrument, which I find myself using a lot. There's also a few drumsets there I find myself using often (One in particular can be found in the Undertale soundfont lol) as well as some nice guitars and strings.
- MT Power Drumkit is a free drumkit tailored specifically for more rock oriented tracks, but is still really versatile. Its samples are high quality and I find myself always resorting to its hi-hats and cymbals, they're pretty good. It even contains pre-made midi drum patterns that you can use in your songs. While the plugin is free, it does have a weird little "intro" screen that requires you to skip it each time the vst is loaded. The intro screen goes away if you make a 9 dollars donation to the team who made the plugin. It's a bit annoying, but it's more than worth it considering that thing is free (I'm sorry to say that I never made the donation myself haha)
- Kontakt 8 is basically a plugin reader: Letting play other plugins made specifically for Kontakt. There's free and paid stuff in there that tends to be of high quality. The caveat is that Kontakt itself isn't: There's a version of it called Kontakt Player that is free, but will only work for 15 minutes each session before needing to be re-loaded, which is really annoying. Add to that the fact that some free plugins only work in the PAID version of Kontakt, and you've got yourself a few problems. If you're willing to deal with the free Kontakt Player's quirks, the SAM Orchestra has some really nice sounds to it
- I'm not sure whether or not this really fits your style, but S8QL has some really nice retro synth presets you might like. Actually using this thing is pretty hard compared to a more modern synth like Vital, I often find myself just tweaking the presets.
- Similar to last entry, Lokomotiv is a nice synth with cool presets, although they can be quite harsh in actual songs even if they sound good by themselves.
- Last and maybe least, the VST I use the most is Xpand!2. It doesn't have the best instruments and it's not free either: You could only get it for free for a limited time in 2017. However I always use it as a starting point for a lot of my tracks, and I grew attached to its weirder synths. Some of its instruments are also pretty good, to be fair.
I don't recommend buying it (It's like 100 dollars it's really not worth it lol, people often say it's just a worse version of a plugin called Omnsiphere, which I've never used), but I thought I should at least mention it.
- You can probably find other cool stuff if you go to websites like Plugins4Free, although it's very time consuming. A lot of stuff there just straight up sounds horrible or is literally unusable lol. But if you're bored one afternoon and you don't have much else to do, it can be fun to look there for free stuff.
That's all for the stuff I use, maybe others can point you in the right direction. You already got the important part figured out, which is the composing, so all of this should be a breeze lol
Good luck!
Nice chiptune. I'm sure you had fun working around the NES' limitations. I'm not sure what to think about the more dissonant tracks like Lorsque la Nuit Tombera, but I generally had a good time. If you plan doing more chiptune in the future, I recommend looking at adding vibrato on long held notes, it can really make them pop, as well as pitch bending notes up and down to emulate regular instruments like violins. Still, a lot of the songs feel pretty "full", if that makes sense, it can be hard to do that, so good job. I'm a big fan of the NES and the C64 chip myself (Megaman 3's soundtrack is absolutely phenomenal, check out the title theme if you haven't already).
My favourite track was probably Kesäsota, it's simple but it works really well, I loved it.
I enjoyed how some of the titles were in french, makes them stand out more than other song titles. I mentioned it on Discord, but I learned french before english so I felt like I understood some kind of secret code lol
Overall, nice job. I'll be sure to check out your other works, I'm curious what your stuff sounds like when you're in your comfort zone haha
Ta musique est phénoménale! Continue sur ce chemin et ne t'arrête pour personne!
Nice chiptune. I'm sure you had fun working around the NES' limitations. I'm not sure what to think about the more dissonant tracks like Lorsque la Nuit Tombera, but I generally had a good time. If you plan doing more chiptune in the future, I recommend looking at adding vibrato on long held notes, it can really make them pop, as well as pitch bending notes up and down to emulate regular instruments like violins. Still, a lot of the songs feel pretty "full", if that makes sense, it can be hard to do that, so good job. I'm a big fan of the NES and the C64 chip myself (Megaman 3's soundtrack is absolutely phenomenal, check out the title theme if you haven't already).
My favourite track was probably Kesäsota, it's simple but it works really well, I loved it.
I enjoyed how some of the titles were in french, makes them stand out more than other song titles. I mentioned it on Discord, but I learned french before english so I felt like I understood some kind of secret code lol
Overall, nice job. I'll be sure to check out your other works, I'm curious what your stuff sounds like when you're in your comfort zone haha
Ta musique est phénoménale! Continue sur ce chemin et ne t'arrête pour personne!
A really great soundtrack, it actually felt like I was listening to something from a game. I really enjoyed it. I left my thoughts on a few of the tracks, but to sum it up:
The composition for all of the tracks is really strong, and I never got bored while going through the soundtrack. Every song felt distinct and conveyed its intended feeling perfectly, and a bunch of them were just straight up bops lol. On the other hand, the instruments that actually play these beautiful melodies felt a bit inconsistent. Some of them feel very soundfont-esque while other are from "higher quality" vsts (I recognised the BBC Symphony Orchestra clarinets and bassoons at the start of Bike Ride for example, if I'm not mistaken), combine that with a few instruments that are a little too loud, and it can make the experience occasionally feel a bit muddy, especially in earlier tracks (Later tracks fared off better I in that regard I think). It's not a big issue, but it's certainly worth talking about. I feel like if this soundtrack had better instruments and mixing, it would be absolutely masterful.
One Summer Night is a really good main theme. It sets up the game's emotional core perfectly.
Bike Ride is a great track befitting of a cutscene. Some stuff like the bike sound effects feel a bit too loud, but I could actually picture the cutscene in my head while it was playing. Awesome stuff.
City Streets is really good, fits the busy city landscape from the point of view of a small character really well. It reminds me a bit of this song.
The theme songs for each characters are very distinct and recognisable. Rehearing that one part from the opening cutscene when listening to Robert's track was a treat. Same thing can be said for Karen, altho I like hers more, personally.
Mr Grizzles' theme is a treat, it's one of my favs, especially the bass + guitar combo with the amazing drumwork. Although the brass at around 0:50 and 1:26 is way too loud lol
The forest is really great. The melody is melancholic and somewhat beautiful, I also find that you got better at mixing the different instruments' volume on this one. It doesn't really have any problems in that regard.
I haven't commented on the boss fight themes, I think them being just the normal themes with stronger percussions and buildups is pretty fun. I enjoyed the electro swing feel on Grizzles' one.
Shoreline is really great, probably my favourite simply because of the guitar. It's amazing.
Karen's boss theme, instead of just adding onto her normal theme song like the other one, is a full on complete remix reusing her leitmotifs. The electric was a big surprise considering the rest of this soundtrack's more orchestral. I caught on a few other leitmotifs here like the main theme's and Grizzles, good job on that.
The big, triumphant orchestral intro of reunited followed by a reprise of the main theme felt really cathartic after going through the soundtrack. I hope someone can make this into an actual game someday lol I'd love to see this play out. The very last notes played by the cello and string was the icing on the cake.
I hope you keep making more music, your stuff has a lot of potential.
While the melodies and chord progressions can feel simplistic at time (a lot of them are repeated throughout the tracks without much change, especially apparent in Rolling Thunder), these tracks still feel well composed and are mixed really well. There's just the right amount of everything, it feels very professional. Cicada stands out as the best in my opinion. An overall nice listen!
A more hopeful take on a post apocalyptic scenario which is always good to see, the guitar playing is really impressive for most of the soundtrack. A few tracks that stood out to me:
Boardwalk Halo is such a good song, I really like it. The bass near the middle of the song is absolutely phenomenal, it really reminds me of Hylics 2. Beautiful stuff.
Beach Games capture the mood of... Well, beach games, really nice. I actually got reminded of the last time I went to the beach to play ball with my pals lol
Twilight's Farewell remixes Boardwalk's melodies really well, it's a nice song, although I do prefer the latter's energy haha. Your insight on reversing the flute and violin was interesting to read.
With this being your first project in mind, I really enjoyed listening through it. Although I can't say I'm a big fan of the instrument you used for A World Left Behind, it feels a bit too loud. A minor gripe on an overall great soundtrack. I also enjoyed the story quiet a bit, this would be a rad game to play through. Well done!
I actually find your thought process behind the theme really interesting, a lot of people in this jam (me included) only took light inspiration from the theme and the picture before interpreting it in different ways, which has led to the creation of a lot of varied, different soundtracks. But you seem to have taken the time to really analyse what has been shown, to come up with something that really fits no matter how obtuse it might have seemed, and created a story and musical identity around it. I think this shows that everyone's thought process is different, and makes this submission stand out a lot for me.
The music itself is charming, although the plugins can feel a bit stock-y (the (the strings at the start of Gathering the Town are a stark example). I really liked it though, Gathering the Town has some really great stuff going for it, with the violin and brass seemingly dancing around each other, and the little Piano + Marimba combo makes me think of children playing around in the village. I think it's really impressive you managed to come up with this considering your background and this being your first time composing.
I also enjoyed where people used to be, I could never quiet tell which direction the song was going, and having to keep guessing is a lot of fun. I was really caught off-guard by the sudden change in melody for the piano around 2:46, with the rain sounds growing louder, it really felt like the place has now been deserted.
Anyway, this soundtrack, while short, is pretty good, and a really interesting listen. I hope you keep composing!
Pleasantly surprised by how good this turned out to be, I'll share my thoughts on some of the songs
I love "Going Around Town", the chord progression is just very fun, and the main melody is weird and whimsical which I think capture that Earthbound charm perfectly. It's probably my favourite of the bunch
Inside the Conveniance Store's dark undertones are really subtles and can be easily missed if you just focuse on the song as a whole, which I like honestly, this is more of a cozy experience than a really stressful one. Also it's just a bop honestly lol
Crop Circles and especially Stargazing show to me the soundtrack's greatest strength, in being able to capture small, intimate and emotional moments to showcase the bound between the two protagonists (This can also be said for departure to an extent)
The minigame soundtracks are good and are well composed, but I think they could benifit from a stronger percussion, which while it fits the more calm tracks, feels a bit too weak on the more energitic ones. (except Fight the Man, which instead could use a louder, more pronounced bass, but is still pretty fine honestly)? Although maybe they could fit more gameplay wise, as music should only serve the gameplay anyway? I'm not sure, I just like loud drums lol
The main Leitmotif being accompagned by that desceneding melody heard in the title is really cool honestly, I love it
Finally, the art made for this is really sick, I love it a lot
Awesome job!
Thank you! I've gotten simillar critiques before and I'll be sure to improve on them for next time. I tried to link most of the songs by the usage of the electric piano and strings and I realise now that it's not really enough.
I also agree on the loops part, a lot of time I just slap em into and don't change much haha, but thank you still.
Definitely a nice listen, I don't listen to ambient, calm stuff much so this was a nice change of pace, and the few more energitic tracks stood out quiet well
The one thing that really stood about this is how all the tracks flowed into each other, downloading this and putting it on foobar2000 felt like listening to one big song. The way the lighthearted feeling of the soundtrack faded when going from Sine to Gaia, and entering Thunder and hearing "normal" hi-hats after all the ambient tracks felt really cathartic.
My favourite track was probably Nkumo Atoll, it tells the story of arriving on the foreign island, looking for and finding your brother, running away, then embracing the sun despite all your trials wonderfully. I actually wanted to ask what your inspiration was for naming the song that way, I couldn't find much about the word "Nkumo" online (except a website that translated it to "forehead", I'm not sure if a forehead shaped island was part of your vision lol)
All in all, well done!
An absolutely delightful experience. A lot of orchestral music sometimes blend together for me, but the tracks of this album are distinct and each inspire so many different feelings. It does so well at alternating between feelings of grandeur, whimsy, impact, sadness, longing... Really made me understand the importance of wind instruments, you can sometimes take them for granted.
The usage of leitmotifs here is very clear and well done, I managed to catch them on my first listening for once haha. I like how versatille it is, a clear example would the Empress' theme, which uses it in a very dark, foreboding way compared to the other tracks.
If I had to pick a favourite, I'd say it's Heart of the Mountain Town, it's just so fun to listen to. The pizzicato strings along with the short string snippets throughout the song make it really memorable, and the part at around 1:30 was just astounding.
I also liked Lumina, the way it starts with the booming brass before quieting down with the celesta/music box really helped in picturing a cutscene of a beautiful figure emerging out of the water before it's revealed that it's a silly lil' dolphin haha. The track then picks up again in volume to show the importance of this being and you aquiring your powers, I dig it.
I also thought Love You, Farewell would be absolutely perfect for both reuniting with a loved one and ending your long journey. It honestly felt like something you'd hear in a movie
Awesome stuff, I'm glad I listened to this.
A really well composed submission!
"An Ode to Her" is such a good song, the piano is played so well and it left a big strong impression, while Out of Here explored the idea more by adding more instruments (I'm a sucker for that accoustic guitar) while also adding dark undertones here and there. The drums in "Ono & v Minore & v Majore" were really stand out I think, and I liked how the melody was used in later songs. The "Descent into Insanity" aspect was interpreted interestingly, as instead of just using sad melodies, you tried all different types of chords and time signatures.
The cover art for this submission is pretty cute lol, I've learned to appreciate Roblox over these last few months and it's really cool how people can use it to portray their artistic vision, and honestly it fits pretty well
Overall good submission, the only complaint I have with it is that I'm not sure how well it corrolates with the text theme, although I can kiiiinda see what you where you were going for with the picture theme's "vibe". Awesome stuff!
A short but sweet submission, this really feels like it could be a good game honestly
I liked the contrast in accordion usage in the first and third track, during the first one, it was lively, upbeat and center stage, but in the third one it took a backseat, letting the piano shine, which gave the track a real feeling of loneliness
Interesting Choro influence at the start of the second track, definitely innovative considering what I've heard so far. It's also a banger!
Good job, keep composing!
It's a shame this has so few ratings as of now, this is a really great submission
The chord progression in In Search for You is beautiful, a great sense of melancholy all throughout that track that is nailed really well. and I loved the reversed strings at the start (even I could hear a few noticeable pops lol)
Memory feels like reminicing of good times that ended tragically, it's conveyed pretty well
Out Past the Wave I think is the most interesting, instead of focusing on the sense of wonder exploring the sea can give, it instead focuses on danger, uncertainty, loneliness... It feels like you're out there in the sea, but you don't really want to explore, you're instead looking for something, or according to the project page's story, someone.
Overall, good stuff, wish it had more tracks though, it really seems interesting, but it is what it is. I've rated like 15 submissions so far and this is the second one that only uses the picture theme. I think it'd be worth it to re-explore this idea sometime.
Good OST, I enjoyed how well the songs transitioned into each other, and the bullet hell genre was captured well through the energetictracks, as well as the story. I don't have much else to say beyond that it's good stuff, but I really like the cover art for this album, it feels like a better version of what I did for mine lol
Keep composing!
Impressive sound design all around. As an example, Desperation Lane really brought out the idea of a poisoned rain, and the alarm like sounds near the end of Crash Theory sounded like a ship that lost control and entered a planet's orbit. Not only that, the composition is fairly great, all the songs feel like they belong with each other, although I do admit that they tend to blend together a bit after a while.
Great stuff.
This is such a mysterious submission lol, the streaming link is dead and there's no text to accompany it, but all the tracks are really beautiful. The piano feels lifelike, and the composition is masterful. It feels like songs made explicitely for the theme and the picture. While every other submission interprets the theme in their own way, this one reflects the thought of "One Summer Night" at its purest. The lack of flavor text, if intentional, actually really brought this out for me as it let my imagination run wild lol
A masterful use of music ideas and leitmotifs here, as well as some really great instruments. Squall is definitely my favourite of the bunch (I just like how it sounds haha) but all of the tracks are amazing in their own right. All of them also feel distinct despite using very simillar instruments. This whole soundtrack reminds me a bit of Rimworld's.
Definitely up there for me as submissions go.
Pretty good soundtrack, I like how you conveyed the story through the instrumentation, how each song seems to decay near the end. Speaking off, I liked the open-endedness of the story, too.
Definitely captured the horror vibe pretty well, although I did find the baby crying a bit too overbearing in Smell of Iron lol, but that's just me.
My fav was idontknowwhattodoidontknowanymore, it slaps. (also what a title lol)
This is really, really well made considering the time constraints and how long you've been doing this! You genuinelymight have some hidden musical talent that was uncovered thanks to these jams, I'm kinda jealous lol. You must've practiced a lot for this to come to fruition. When I was 1 year into making music I was still figuring out how to add reverbe to multiple instruments in my song without crashing Cubase lmao.
The main theme works really well, it may not be the most groundbreaking thing ever, but it sets up the mood perfectly
I've already commented on your battle track in the server, but I noticed you've added a lot of embelishments to it that really make it pop. I especially liked the whimsy touches near the middle
Eryndor's Madness was really something, it felt really cinematic. The violas representing the hero was a really nice touch, and the build up was amazing. I'm not sure how I feel about the battle theme coming back, at first it felt a little abrupt, but hearing it evolve into a completely different song sold it for me.
I hope you come back to this project and add a few other songs to finish your vision, cause the stuff that's there is really something.
Another fantastic soundtrack all the way through!
The first track of this submission left a really strong first impression. Especially the way it builds up, and it all comes crashing down with the electric guitar (which sounds incredible considering it's a plugin, you must've done a lot of tweaks). Same goes for the percussions, really good stuff. The use of the Khaen was definitely interesting, I had never heard of that instrument before so it was a nice learning experience.
Summer Heat and Night at the Docks fit their purposes and fit them well. I liked that the momentum built by Days Like Today wasn't lost, even in these calm tracks, there is a subtle, underlying sense of urgency and melancholy, which is helped by the well crafted main leitmotif. Night at the Docks felt really "Indie", I'm not sure how to explain it. It reminded me a lot of tracks heard in Hylics 2, if you've heard of it.
Speaking off, what a well made main leitmotif it is! Usually these can feel really forced, but it's really well placed through the soundtrack. The way it's split both into the bass, the guitar and the strings was a nice touch
My favourite track was definitely Days Like Tomorrow, it's a really well made remix of the first track, the electric guitar and strings were really powerful all the way through. I liked how it started without a massive buildup like the first, it really felt grandiose. It really fits the story told.
I enjoyed One Summer Night (The guitars in that song felt amateurish in a good way) although I couldn't wrap my head around where the lyrics started and ended lol, it'd be cool if you released a subtitled video that showed where the lyrics were supposed to go. (Unless that was the intention? I'm not sure haha)
Had a great time with the soundtrack, and the last track is definitely going in my personal playlist. (speaking off, the first few notes on that track sound a bit like a very specific part in Megaman 2's Willy Stage 1, I thought it was funny)
Amazing job overall!
Man, it's been a whiiiiile since I've heard anything on beepbox (ultrabox in this case?) definitely an interesting choice. I wouldn't say I really enjoy its instruments but you did pretty well with what you had
Thinking really has those Ace Attorney vibes that are hard to replicate, props for that
To me Ballerina and Undigging were standouts, especially Undigging, probably my favourite of the bunch after Finale
I liked how Cute Track transitioned into Finale, which was a really good way to end this soundtrack. At first I wasn't sure whether I liked the main leitmotif or not, but Finale really used it beautifully, and it transitioned really well into Ballerina's.
It was definitely enjoyable. The only track I didn't enjoy that much was the first one, the notes and melodies were alright, but I'm not a big fan of the instruments used? Especially for the main lead that plays from start to finish. I'll chalk it up to Ultrabox's limited soundbank.
Had a good time overall, keep composing!
A pretty good soundtrack overall, I like the story being told, although I have a few things to say.
This has been pointed out by 0mni, but the orchestral plugins you've used for this seems to be in detriment of your overall composition skills. I'm not saying it should be realistic, but the strings and brass especially felt really robotic, which harms especially the first track, although I think you got more comfortable with it on the second track, which I liked a bunch. The bells at around 0:25 in Winter are really well implemented. Summer had a thing were a lot of few melodies started and ended very suddenly, it felt like you were using a synth instead of a string ensemble
The third track, which takes a more electronic approach, was pretty good. Strangely enough it didn't feel jarring since you combined previously used instruments into it. I have a feeling you were in your element when making it lol, not to undermine your previous tracks of course. I still think Winter is my favourite, the composition for it is really interesting and capture the mood you tried to convey really well
Pretty alright soundtrack overall, just needed a few tweaks here and there. You sound like you were busy in your personal life though so it's understandable lol. Keep composing
Thank you for your comment and feedback!
You're not alone in your complaint, one of my friends told me that some songs like "Grotto" and "The Lighthouse" felt like they didn't fit despite being alright. I tried using an electric piano and strings to tie the tracks together but I'll admit that I didn't try as hard to stay consistent (this has been a bit of a problem recently when making songs). I'll keep that in mind for next time, though, I still have a lot to learn, even if this is my fifth year making songs now.
About the quantity... Ehh I'm not sure, I've listened to soundtracks in this jam that felt a lot more thought out than mine. I guess that's it, "thought out" instead of "quality", I guess? You can still have good songs, even on a short timeframe, but a few songs that are really thought out can really be special in my eyes. I was afraid people would get suspicious that I started composing before the jam lol. I didn't really have a lot going on these past few days so I basically spent every waking hour working on this, which I must say is NOT healthy, but I did have a lot of fun!
I guess everyone has a different speed at which they go about things. At the end of the day though, it's the final product that counts, no matter how fast or slow you are.
Maybe I'll do some kind of devlog lol, that could be fun





