Livin’ In The Sunlight, Lovin’ In The Moonlight –

Strawberry Tea –

After talking about some more serious material like Nirvana, sometimes it’s nice to just step back and cover something light-hearted, fun, and just plain silly. Enter this week’s record…

God Bless Tiny Tim (1968), by (you guessed it) Tiny Tim. Often remembered as one of the older novelty acts from the sixties, Mr. Tim (as he was often referred to as) would continue performing all the way up until his death in 1996. Literally, “until his death.” Sadly, he would suffer a fatal heart attack while performing his most famous tune “Tiptoe Through the Tulips” in front of a small crowd in Minneapolis.

Dangit! I thought this was supposed to be a more cheerful entry this week! Alright, even though Mr. Tim suffered his share of troubles and controversies, I’ll focus a little more on the lighter side of things.

Tiny Tim’s real name was Herbert Buckingham Khaury. Kinda like “Little John” from Robin Hood, Khaury’s stage name was something of an ironic title since he stood at well over 6 feet tall. While he could play several instruments, he is most easily remembered carrying around a small ukulele, which was made even more tiny when compared to Mr. Tim. The tall man with a tiny ukulele helped establish him as a novelty act, but there was one even more important factor that really cemented his status. His extremely high, warbling, falsetto voice. There really is no one else who truly sounds exactly the same as Mr. Tim (for better or for worst). But like his multi-instrumentalist abilities, his vocal range didn’t always side on the ridiculous end of things (just most of the time). He would often sing duets, but with himself covering the lower male part and his falsetto singing the female part.

The first song I chose, “Livin’ In The Sunlight, Lovin’ In The Moonlight”, opens up with Mr. Tim announcing that this is his first record. The song had been recorded by Bing Crosby prior to Tiny Tim’s release with a much slower tempo (and obviously at a much lower vocal registry), but most people just recognize this version nowadays. This song was my initial introduction to him, and likely the same tune that several others from my generation first heard from him. Why? Well because this song was actually used in the conclusion to the very first SpongeBob SquarePants pilot episode (just visualize SpongeBob serving Krabby Patties to a bunch of anchovies). Overall, the track is just silly fun and while there is an interesting version with just Mr. Tim and his ukulele, I really like the many musical colors that the full band brings to this mix.

But not all of Tiny Tim’s music was just for laughs. A good example of another side of his music is “Strawberry Tea”. A much more psychedelic pop tune with dreamy strings and surreal, vivid imagery in its lyrics; it stands in contrast to some of his other “silly” work. It’s surprisingly a song that wouldn’t feel too out of place on an early Bee Gees album. Now that I think about it, Mr. Tim’s vibrato voice actually does remind me of Robin Gib’s, but mixed with his brother Barry’s falsetto.

It’s been more than 50 years since Tiny Tim made his debut; and yet, he still manages to bring a smile to many a face. Throughout the years, his music has really developed something of a cult following for those who remember him for ALL his work, not just his more iconic novelty material. God Bless Tiny Tim gives a strong picture of both his silly side, his more serious side, and how they can still overlap in the most unusual of ways.

The Man Who Sold The World + Pennyroyal Tea –

Now that we’ve moved on from video game music, I wasn’t exactly sure what to pick for this week’s LP. In the end I decided to pick one of the records off of my “all-time favorites” list…

MTV Unplugged in New York (1994), by Nirvana. There are just a handful of albums that contain the same emotional quality that is present with this live performance.

Originally performed on November 18, 1993 and then aired on MTV the following month, the record from the performance would not be released until next November. This would be the first Nirvana release after Kurt Cobain’s tragic suicide in April earlier that year. This concert has a very special quality in as it provides both a glimpse into Cobain’s struggle with depression during one of his later performances and just how talented this band was.

Nowadays, this live performance is often held in very high regards, but it’s actually rather different than normal live performances. The performance is largely acoustic, the setlist (apart from one song) consists of lesser known Nirvana tunes, and to top it all off almost half of the songs are obscure covers of other band’s music. Nirvana was a band known for their abrasive, grunge rock. What fans would watch a show like this? Where were the crowd pleasers? Somehow, despite everything going against it, the concert was met with nearly universal acclaim from both diehard fans as well as others outside of the usual Nirvana circle. The striped down quality of the songs were able to highlight the quality of Cobain’s songwriting and emotionally charged vocals. In a rather ironic twist, these tracks have made a dramatic shift to become some of the most beloved Nirvana songs.

I really love the chosen setlist for this concert and I decided to highlight “The Man Who Sold The World” and “Pennyroyal Tea” which follow one another in the performance. The first track, “The Man Who Sold The World”, is a solid example of one of the covers they performed that night. The song is the title track of Bowie’s 1970 album by the same name, a record that Cobain listed in his diary as one of his all-time favorite records. The song features a man who is struggling with identity, eventually sells his soul (or his “world”), and has lost meaning his life. Cobain probably related very closely to the character from the song, and his admiration of the album is what probably convinced him to pay it tribute.

For a change of pace, Cobain handles the following track “Pennyroyal Tea” completely by himself on guitar. Stripped down to only Cobain, the song provides a much deeper impact through his sorrowful lyrics. The subject of the title, Pennyroyal tea, is a tea brewed from a natural herb that can be lethal to consume. While it is no longer professionally administered, it was used long ago by some women as a means for abortion. Cobain describes his own physical and mental health issues within the song, and drinks the tea in an attempt to make the pain go away.

Nirvana really nailed their performance that night in New York City and they did it all in just one take (which was actually unusual for MTV Unplugged). After the show, Cobain got into a disagreement with an MTV producer after the performance who wanted him to go back out and do an encore. In the end, Cobain argued that he had nothing that could possibly follow up the finale “Where Did You Sleep Last Night”, an old blues number from Lead Belly that often goes by the title “In The Pines”. This is a track I almost decided to chose to feature, but instead I opted to link footage of the song performed on MTV. The song is chilling all the way up until the end when Cobain briefly opens his eyes with an almost crazed stare before finishing the song.

Where Did You Sleep Last Night –

Intro Song –

Underwater & River Rocket –

Alright, so this soundtrack is kinda diverting from this month’s theme of video games since this one is actually for a movie. BUT I did kinda start this month a week early with the Journey soundtrack, so I’m gonna break away and finish the month with something a little different ^^

Swiss Army Man (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (2016), with music by Andy Hull and Robert McDowell. What a movie! And one that I believe would not nearly have had as strong of an impact without its sublime soundtrack to accompany it.

Hmm…how to describe Swiss Army Man? I feel like either my description would not accurately cover its weirdness, or it would be so detailed that it wouldn’t make any sense. Roughly speaking, the movie follows a stranded man lost on an island and a dead corpse of a man who possesses these rather unusual talents that allow him to be used like a “human Swiss army knife” (hence the title). If that doesn’t sound weird to you yet, things manage to get even more complicated as the movie progresses. Overall the film covers topics of loneliness, depression, social norms, and what it means to be alive. It does all of this through a rather surreal lens, while staying refreshingly humorous even during its more serious moments.

The movie’s music was written and performed by Andy Hull and Robert McDowell (with some additional vocal parts from the two main actors Paul Dano and Daniel Radcliffe). Andy and Robert are the singers/songwriters/guitarists that make up part of the Indie rock band Manchester Orchestra. For this soundtrack though, they were tasked with making and performing songs that only use vocal parts. This was to match the stranded nature of the main characters and allows the music to become part of the story itself. This isn’t just an accompanying film score, but music that the characters are making themselves to keep themselves occupied and sane. The often silly, sometimes sad, songs perfectly pair with the movie’s surreal imagery and gives it just the right amount of playfulness and imagination.

The soundtrack is a blast from start to finish, but I had to include with my picks at least the first track used in the intro sequence aptly titled “Intro Song”. The intro sequence for Swiss Army Man is one of my favorite movie intros as it perfectly sets the stage of what to expect from the dark, bizarre comedy-drama you’re about to watch. “Intro Song” gradually builds and layers more and more vocal parts on top of one another as the scene progresses before breaking out at its climax only to come crashing down in just the next moment.

The next track is actually two tracks that play back to back in the movie (as well as on the soundtrack). “Underwater” and “River Rocket” take place just after the midway highpoint of the film and go through a large variety of sounds. The scene features a variety of emotions from lonely sadness to triumphant happiness. Okay, I admit it, that sounded a little cheesy, but its definitely a scene that really revels in taking your emotions and giving them a good shakeup just because it can. This song actually uses a melody introduced earlier in the film as a lullaby that Paul Dano’s character can’t remember the lyrics to, so he constantly just makes up new words for it. That along with a few other tunes all wrapped up into these two tracks make for a complex song structure that is a real joy to listen to.

Swiss Army Man is definitely one of the films that I’ve seen that I cannot honestly suggest for everyone to see. I’m fully aware that it’ll just be “too weird” for most and its seems to target such a specific niche group as well. But if you’re interested in something a little odd and definitely pretty original, I can’t suggest it enough. The directors Daniel Scheinert and Daniel Kwan (commonly known as the “Daniels”) are known for directing music videos, and their excellent choice of music and placement for this movie is perfectly on cue.

One final note, this vinyl version of the soundtrack is once again another product from the creative house of iam8bit. While they do tend to focus on video game related material, they also feature a few movies and TV show items. This record was printed on a nice blue vinyl and contained several pop-out paper dolls and props from the movie that you can do with as you please. The second photo features the Dano and Radcliffe dolls that are included. It’s a rather fun and unusual design choice that excellently matches up with the feel and peculiarities of the film.

The Silence of the Daylight –

Bloody Tears –

Continuing on with our video game soundtracks, I knew I had to include at least one chiptune (or 8-bit) soundtrack. A little late at night to finally getting around to posting this week’s LP, but I suppose it fits with this record in a weird way…

Castlevania II (1987), a game by Konami, composed by Kenichi Matsubara. A classic game title from the NES library that has its fair share of praise and critique. A direct sequel to the previous year’s successful Castlevania, it made several additions that would become staples of the series to this day.

Castlevania is a game series that often focuses around its whip-wielding heroes, the Belmonts, as they hunt down vampires and other creatures of the night. In this game Simon Belmont has been cursed and is seeking out the remains of Dracula to undo the curse and seal him away for good. While the gameplay is very similar to the first game, there are some notable differences. The game is still a very difficult platformer, but the game now contains a non-linear map to explore and RPG elements where the player can obtain better items as they progress through the game.

These new changes have now become almost synonymous with Konami’s Castlevania video game series, going as far as to define a game genre known as “Metroidvania” (pulling the “Metroid” part of the name from the other series that is similar in design). However, these now series staples are also one of the game’s biggest weak points. The game is often too cryptic and it is nearly impossible to figure out where to go or what to do. On top of this the game also features a poor selection of boss fights, which is an area where the series normally excels at.

In retrospect, the game is often praised for pioneering where the series would eventually go, while simultaneously criticized for less than smoothly making these additions. One of its larger praises though tend to get laid upon the soundtrack composed by Kenichi Matsubara. This would be the only Castlevania game that Matsubara would write music for and one of the few video games soundtracks he would have his name credited to at all.

“Bloody Tears” is an instantly recognizable tune from the series. Along with the popular tune “Vampire Killer”, this is one of the most likely tracks that a fan would pick out. It starts off immediately with several fast high pitch notes that mimic an organ’s sound, before slowing down to carry a more distinct melody. The other track is titled “The Silence of the Daylight” and also became a very common mainstay for the rest of the series. The track doesn’t contain the same amount of sheer speed and drive that “Bloody Tears” bears, but it is the track that is played during the day when enemies are weaker and less dangerous, so it does a solid job of matching its setting well.

This vinyl print was created and published by the talented people over at Mondo, who create custom poster prints and vinyls, primarily for movies, but also for some video games. This vinyl copy of Castlevania II contains the full NES soundtrack (or the US version) on the A-side and the Famicom soundtrack (Japanese version) on the B-side. I mixed both versions of each song together so that the tracks begin with the Famicom version and then fade into the NES version roughly around the one minute mark.

While the Famicom was released before the NES, it actually contained several technical advantages over the NES. One such perk was the ability for the game cartridge to take the sound outputted by the system’s sound chip, run it through an additional sound chip in the game cartridge, and place more sound layers over it before outputting it through the TV. This allowed developers to create a more complex soundtrack. However, while this helped several games like The Legend Of Zelda, it is kinda infamously known for making Castlevania II‘s soundtrack possibly “worse.” Several of the more complex songs like “Bloody Tears” become almost too muddy with all the extra layers and don’t have as much of a punch to its staccato notes and rhythm parts.

Well I included both back to back so you can come to your own conclusion. Let me know which you prefer!

Federation –

Rockmen –

Lost Ship –

So as noted in my first two blogs about Journey and Bastion, music can really go a long way in creating a mood, building a world, and telling a story. But can music designed for a game (or a movie for that matter) really be impactful when separated from its intended use? Well to help address that question, I chose a soundtrack from a game that I personally don’t have much playing time with…

Faster Than Light (2012), a game by Subset Games, composed by Ben Prunty. For being a big Indie game fan, I have surprisingly spent very little time with Faster Than Light (often abbreviated FTL). However, the same could NOT be said about its soundtrack. I’ve taken many a relaxing hour with FTL‘s gorgeous music playing somewhere in the background, nearly absent from my mind. And while it can be excellent study music, it also possesses much finesse and fine tuning upon closer inspections.

Since my personal playtime with FTL is so low, I’ll keep the game portion fairly brief. Faster Than Light finds the player commanding a starship deep in space. Your ship contains vital knowledge about the opposing rebellion forces, which you are fleeing from in (you guessed it) “faster than light” travel. The game contains several characteristics found in the “roguelike” genre, like procedurally generated events that are different upon each playthrough and “permadeath” (or “permanent death”). If your ship is destroyed, you must start the game over with a new ship and crew.

But the music is what we’re taking a closer look at today. Ben Prunty was brought onto the project to provide just a few tunes during the game’s early stages. After a significant crowd-funding success on Kickstarter, designers Justin Ma and Matthew Davis were able to commission an entire soundtrack for the game from Prunty. Prunty began with an older song he created back in 2008 titled “Colony Ship”, altering it into what became the main theme “Milky Way”. He then very cleverly ties the overall music together with multiple references to this musical theme throughout the soundtrack.

The soundtrack was constructed in such a way that there are two versions of (almost) every track. The first half is placed under the title of “Explore” where tracks are more laid back and ethereal. The second half is labeled “Battle” where the same tracks are reworked with more driving percussion elements and a heightened sense of tension. The game will crossfade between each version depending upon what is currently happening in the level. In an attempt to give you a little taste of both, I recorded both versions, overlaid them, and made some minor mixing changes.

The first one is titled “Federation” and is the song from the bunch that best showcases the melody from “Milky Way” that was previously mentioned. The song does such an amazing job of rising and falling in energy. If I had to pick only one, I’d probably point to this one because it is able to very accurately paint a picture of what the rest of the soundtrack sounds like. This is one of the few tracks that does not have two versions of itself, and the only one from the three I chose that does not.

The second and third ones are where I jumped into some amateur-level sound mixing! “Rockmen” is the second track posted here and, in my opinion, sounds a tad different than most of the other tracks on the album. The song begins fairly quiet (like several tracks on the album), but it quickly shifts gears around the 40 second mark to have this almost playful quality with an emphasis on syncopated rhythms. However, this sits in stark contrast with the darker musical tone, creating a haunting feeling. This may just be my personal bias though since for some reason it tends to remind me of the music from the Sonic Heroes level “Hang Castle Zone”, which is set in a haunted castle.

I included a third bonus track this time around since the soundtrack had a small extension with a handful of new songs titled FTL: Advanced Edition. This song is called “Lost Ship” and I did a (little more) amount of editing on this one. The beginning starts with both versions already playing, but with the “Battle” version two beats behind the “Explore” one. Once the track speeds up and becomes more complex, both tracks fall back into line and only fade in and out at specific times. It’s definitely nothing special, but it was fun to give each song such a close look to find how best to mix and arrange each one to sound just a little different.

So as noted, I decided to include both the original soundtrack from the game, as well as the free DLC Advanced Edition. Both are intrinsically connected in my mind and it’s hard to envision one without recalling tunes from the other. Both vinyls are from the great folks over at iam8bit and they feature two exclusive album covers designed by the fantastic Leif Podhajsky. Podhajsky is an Australian art designer who is known largely for his album covers for bands like Tame Impala and Of Monsters And Men. His rather Neo-Psychedelic style compliments Prunty’s distinct synth-wave music to a stunning effect. I’ve already gushed about how I enjoy colored vinyl, but these have an excellent splatter color scheme that highlights the covers perfectly. Also did I mention that both feature some very shiny covers, so much so that it was a little bit of a bother to get a good photo of each (but they look super cool in person!)

Of course, I do still believe a video game’s soundtrack should be best enjoyed within the context of the game it was designed for, but I also wouldn’t even begin to suggest an OST holds no value on its own. I think that the people who adore works by John Williams, Hans Zimmer, Ennio Morricone, Joe Hisaishi, or the multitude of extremely talented composers who write film scores, would also agree with that point. Sure, I have sadly played very little of FTL, but considering how much I’ve enjoyed its soundtrack (and piecing together my small experience with the game), I’m confident that it suits the game’s design rather well ^^

I’d hesitate to suggest a game that I personally haven’t played much (even if it’s been critically well received), so instead I’d like to direct you to the soundtrack on Ben Prunty’s Bandcamp, the company responsible for the vinyl pressings iam8bit, and the designer Leif Podhajsky’s personal site. Enjoy!

Get Used To It + A Proper Story –

Setting Sail, Coming Home (End Theme) –

Ha, so remember how I mentioned I didn’t choose the obvious first and last song that most people are familiar with for the Journey OST? Yeah…well that’s bascially what I chose this time around from this week’s LP ^^;

Bastion (2011), a game from Supergiant Games, composed by Darren Korb. It’s funny, as for the actual game, Bastion is almost a complete 180 from Journey. While both games take very unorthodox methods of telling their stories, their similarities end there. With Journey, not a single word is spoken or written, but with Bastion, the entire game and the player’s interactions are constantly being narrated by an elderly, gruff-voiced man.

The story is largely narrated in the past tense creating the illusion that the game is some famous folk-tale being told generations later. The player controls someone the narrator refers to only as “the Kid” after an event called the Calamity destroyed and fractured the great city of Caelondia. You are armed with the knowledge that in times of trouble people were instructed to gather at the titular “Bastion” at the heart of the city, which would presumably be a safe location. And from there, the rest of the action role-playing game unfolds.

The game’s story and world is fascinating, but it’s the inclusion of Korb’s excellent soundtrack that really help bring even more character to the game’s decimated landscape. The music sits somewhere between the Wild West, the Far East, hard rock, and electronic hip-hop. It makes extensive use of acoustic instruments to give it that frontier sound, but also underlays several drum samples and string parts to give songs a distinct drive and atmosphere. A single song will effortlessly switch from an acoustic guitar, to an Eastern-styled instrument, to a violin, and then on to an electric guitar. Once all pulled together, the music is able to help paint the unique fantasy setting of Bastion.

I chose the first song off the album “A Proper Story” and included the spoken opening to the record “Get Used To It”. The spoken part is voiced by the actor who provided the narration to the game and I wanted to include it to give you an idea of what that sounds like if you weren’t familiar with it. The music kicks in with a lone guitar played in an almost bluegrass styled manor before bursting open with a wall of sound and other instruments.

The second song chosen for this blog entry is titled “Setting Sail, Coming Home” or also known as the “End Theme” since it is played during the credits. Personally I feel like this one is a little harder to appreciate just by itself. Its brilliance actually lies within the two songs it combines. Not counting this song, there are only two other songs with lyrics (plus a third bonus track added on the album). These two songs act as two different themes for two of the surviving individuals discovered in the story that clash in ideals and background. Without explicitly spoiling the game’s ending though, this track beautifully combines and overlays both sets of lyrics on top of one another and reworks the score to compliment both. Darren Korb provided the male vocal performance along with the very talented Ashley Barrett (who would return on Korb’s next soundtrack Transistor).

While it has actually been a few years since I have played the game, it’s story, characters, and especially its music have since stuck with me. There is very little music out there that sounds even remotely similar and the record consists of over a solid hour of music. Even if you’re not a gamer, I’d encourage you to go give Bastion‘s soundtrack a good listen through at least once ^^