Video Games Live has just released their latest album, Level 6 after yet another successful Kickstarter campaign. If you missed our reviews of the previous two albums you can read the reviews for both Level 4 and Level 5, which both earned high praise for the calibre of their arrangements and production value.
The latest album boasts 12 tracks and includes an arrangement of the Classic Arcade Medley that’s been featured during live shows since the beginning. Read on for my full track by track review.
HMV Canada is offering 2 for $20 ( with the exchange rate roughly $14 USD) on several CDS including game soundtracks. I visited the downtown Toronto location recently and noticed the majority of game soundtracks they stocked on the Sumthing Records labelled was included in this incredible deal. HMV stands for His Master’s Voice, which is associated with the famous image associated with RCA Victor and a dog starring at a gramophone. When I hear about a sale on game music CDs it gets my attention.
You can check the store stock at a location near you using the their website. However, each store’s selection may vary and you might just have to go in person to see what is available. In order to be eligible for the sale the CD must have the Yellow 2 for $20 stickers in the above picture of the CDs I purchased. The titles I saw on sale included many titles in the Assassin’s Creed series, Borderlands, Bloodborne, Castlevania Lords of Shadow: Mirror of Fate, Metro: Last Night, Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles, and The Last of Us.
If you’re living in, or planning on travelling to Canada you may want to check on a HMV location to see if you can snag yourself some great game music. Do you own any of these great soundtracks on CD?
For this entry of Arrangement of the Week, we’ll be looking at an arrangement from a more recent game. The Last of Us, like many great games, boasts a wonderful score. The game’s main theme “The Last of Us” is a beautiful and mournful piece from composer Gustavo Santaolalla, that sets the mood for the game’s world and story perfectly.
The arranger for this week’s selection is nckmusic who presents his own acoustic interpretation of the main theme from The Last of Us.
Much of what nckmusic does with music isn’t too far from the tone of the original soundtrack. If anything, this version is much more solemn. The arrangement begins with the piano playing the opening arpeggios that were previously performed on guitar. When the strings come in to accompany, they create a haunting ambient boom in the lower register, helping build on the sorrowful atmosphere. At 1’37” a solo cello enters with another solemn presentation of the original melody.
What I like most about this arrangement is how small scale and intimate it stays. While later parts of the track do build up with percussion, and even a few siren effects, it maintains its haunting and somber tone throughout. Overall, a wonderful adaptation of an already excellent piece of music.
Have any favorite game music arrangements, remixes, or covers? Let us know in the comment section. You can check out nckmusic’s “The Last of Us” arrangement on OC ReMix.
During this past week’s Game Developer’s Conference the Game Audio Network Guild (G.A.N.G.) held the 12th annual G.A.N.G. Awards. These awards focus on the audio and music produced in games during the previous year. The guild also takes this time to honor and recognize important figures in the game audio industry. This year’s 12th annual awards were recorded and will be broadcast on the Video Games Live Twitch channel at a later date. For those of you who can’t wait, the winners have been announced. Read on to find out who this year’s winners were. (more…)
Covering and promoting discussion of composers and music with a focus on video games and other contemporary media entertainment
