47 réponses à ce sujet

[Sacae]

How is Jack's theme?

[Macq Daddy]

Just out of curiousity (I've already bought it but haven't had the chance to listen yet), do they reprise the "Mass Effect Theme" as well? That was one of my favorite tracks from the first soundtrack largely because of the orchestral nature (That and "Spectre Induction").

[Lucazius]

Tali: My track's amazing Shepard!

[wrexingcrew]

RVonE wrote...

About 80 or 90 percent of the tracks try to capture this really epic, combat-heavy feel and there is little room for some more slow moving, melodic, or otherwise atmospheric tracks--something that the first Mass Effect soundtrack succeeded in very much. This makes listening to this soundtrack very exhausting because it tries to be tense and epic most of the time.

Good observations all around, OP, but I think you're particularly spot on here (the preceding paragraph touches on the ME1-ME2 differences nicely too). It doesn't have the eminently listenable quality that the ME1 score had - and the near-constant orchestral bombast is a bit of a letdown after the nuance in ME1. "Exhausting" is exactly right.

It's certainly well done for what it is. We'll have to hear how it sounds in the context of the game.

Modifié par wrexingcrew, 20 janvier 2010 - 03:45 .

[Sir Ulrich Von Lichenstien]

Only heard a few tracks so far and I am really looking forward to getting the digital soundtrack on 29th. Out of the ones I heard so far, Suicide Mission tops it, but that pretty obvious because Final Assault was my fave from the first game and it definitly has that same sort of epic feel to it. Really motivational as if to remind the player it is do or die time.

I really can't see them changing composers for the last one, I mean he won awards for the first, most likely will for this... bit stupid to change an award winning composer for the final part. Well as long as there is no 'Yub-Nub' 

Edit: @Macq Daddy, yes there is parts in some of the tracks that bring that theme into it. Including the one I mentioned above

Modifié par Sir Ulrich Von Lichenstien, 20 janvier 2010 - 04:03 .

[Euker]

I haven' bought the OST, but I am wondering whether or not the song from the "E3 Sizzle Trailer" is in it. Does anyone know?

[Taradil]

Great review. Btw do you know which song on the soundtrack which is the song at the end of the cinematic trailer?

[RVonE]

Euker wrote...

I haven' bought the OST, but I am wondering whether or not the song from the "E3 Sizzle Trailer" is in it. Does anyone know?

You're talking about that song with the electric guitar? No that isn't on the soundtrack. Kind of a shame, right?

Taradil wrote...

Great review. Btw do you know which song on the soundtrack which is the song at the end of the cinematic trailer?

If you are talking about the part where Shepard runs up the ramp and sees the giant ship, that song isn't included in the soundtrack. The only two tracks that incorporate a choir are 'The End Run' and 'Suicide Mission'.

Modifié par RVonE, 20 janvier 2010 - 01:11 .

[Bebbe777]

Suicide Mission is absolutely Epic. I love that song!

[RVonE]

Sacae wrote...

How is Jack's theme?

Interesting. It's a very dynamic track with some tempo changes and a good mix-up of electro and orchestral work. The track starts out with a nice film noir kind of feel to it but then something cool happens: it builds momentum with a very short orchestral segment and then abruptly transitions into an electro part with an awesome, almost mechanical, sounding beat. The second half of the track switches back and forth between synth and orchestral and often the two come together. The second half has a kind of adventurous feel to it but the first half is the most interesting part, in my opinion.

[SurfaceBeneath]

Good review. I think I genuinely like this soundtrack better than the first game, as I feel like the songs themselves are more coherent as a whole and stand alone better than the first soundtrack's, which were on average very short and didn't get as much across from track to track as the new ones do. I am also very much digging the higher energy that each track exudes. The themes especially are a real wonder to behold and I think are going to serve well in connecting you to the character they represent.

Modifié par SurfaceBeneath, 20 janvier 2010 - 01:28 .

[biggiantcircles]

I think a lot of impressions might change slightly when the music is heard in game. I believe there's going to be a lot of ambient, atmospheric stuff that will be heard in game that simply might not have been able to fit in the (really huge!) soundtrack. Just be patient

RVonE, that was overall a pretty well-thought out and objectively-written review. Thanks for sharing! I'd love to hear your additional thoughts on the music after you've heard them in game, as well as all the other themes that didn't make the cut into the purchasable soundtrack.

*edit*
(also, Samara's theme has Choir in it, at the end)

Modifié par biggiantcircles, 20 janvier 2010 - 05:50 .

[Annihilator27]

Illusion man might be my favorite track, Gotta listen to the whole thing again. I enjoyed it very much. Feels more engaging to me.

[Naltair]

Sacae wrote...

How is Jack's theme?

Excellent one of my faves lots of change ups, a good use of synth in my opinion.  But also tragic sounding.

[SpectreSebz]

Can you give us some short reviews for each of the character themes?

I'm specially interested in Mordin and Legion.

[Mister Mage]

Wait, some people actually PREFER synth over orchestral music? I mean, think of the films of the tradition that Mass Effect comes out of. Especially Star Wars and 2001:A Space Odyssey. The synth isn't TERRIBLE, mind you, but as a kid I was given the impression that space was filled with orchestral swelling and fanfare.

[Demigod]

Just in case you gals and guys want to listen to it it is up on lastfm

[Annihilator27]

I need to own some huge corporation and have the "Illusive man" track playing

[RVonE]

Mister Mage wrote...

Wait, some people actually PREFER synth over orchestral music? I mean, think of the films of the tradition that Mass Effect comes out of. Especially Star Wars and 2001:A Space Odyssey. The synth isn't TERRIBLE, mind you, but as a kid I was given the impression that space was filled with orchestral swelling and fanfare.

I don't prefer synth over orchestral music or the other way around.

You say that we should think of the tradition that Mass Effect comes out of. Okay, Blade Runner. While you may have childhood memories of orchestras playing in space, much of 70s and 80s sci-fi was accompanied by synthesized music (don't forget that some orchestral music in sci-fi was actually synthesized instead of played with real instruments). The kind of electro that ME1's soundtrack had--the kind that is heavily influenced by Blade Runner--was one of the reasons that made it stand out from the crowd. It most certainly captured some of the atmosphere of the old sci-fi movies and series.

The last couple of years we've seen a lot of games move into the whole orchestral music thing. While that is perfectly fine, it seems to me that they all try to capture a certain 'O Fortuna'-esque epicness that makes a lot of soundtrack sound generic and similar. ME1's soundtrack stands out to me because it is different from most of its contemporaries and also successfully takes its cues from classics such as Blade Runner.

That said, I hope you read that I'm not saying that ME2's soundtrack is bad at all. One of my main critiques of this soundtrack is not so much the move away from the synth-heavy old school sci-fi vibe--although I must say that it is a shame that they decided to go a somewhat different route--it is mostly about how the soundtrack tries to be very bombastic and epic all the time. This makes for a very unbalanced soundtrack (by which I mean an album that can stand on its own outside of the game) and makes listening to the whole thing somewhat taxing. That said, when you listen to each track separately, they're all very well crafted.

[xMister Vx]

To me there's as much synth as before, it's always present as a sort of dark undercurrent of the melodies. Orchestral themes make this a lot more elaborate than the ME1 soundtrack. And while I still remember the ME1 tunes well, these are better.  As mentioned, some are well integrated partly as "dark remixes" into the new soundtrack, like the old intro into Attack.

This actually adds a new layer to speculating about characters.
- The Illusive Man sort of surprised me by how subdued and not really ominous it was (perhaps because it might play in the menu, as far as I know). Even Miranda's beats him there (hers isn't too remarkable).
- But Jacob's is the real surprise. It sounds like it'd be at home in a gothic fantasy tale (I'm serious, call it The Dark Elves Advance or something, that's the image it conjures up in my head - not that it's a bad thing, at all, it just suddenly made me more interested in the character).
- Thane's is kind of mysterious and more melancholy at times. Fits what we know about him.
- Garrus' also fits his infiltrator profile (I wonder if there won't be a sort of professional rivalry between them?), but is much more dynamic than Thane's. I came up with an awesome idea, actually - an all-assassin team (all three of us being infiltrator-like, surely we will be able to handle anything).
- Samara's is also pretty intriguing, different from the rest and more high-spirited.
- Grunt's is surprisingly not brutal, and suddenly changes rhythm in the middle, becoming almost hopeful.  I wonder if they were trying to represent his youth, and perhaps... something to do with curing their, eh, problem? (in one of the recent vids there's something with a Krogan and a lab; that could just be coincidence though)
- Tali's is satisfyingly unique without being overtly exotic like Samara's, and quite dynamic and bright compared to the others. Hell, my Shepard's going to risk it... even if I don't really know what's behind the mask.
- Mordin's sounds... evocative of old-style science fiction, for some reason. For some reason I'm getting Star Trek TOS vibes from some parts of it, but there are darker parts of course.
- Jack's is also quite unexpected; a part of it resembles a march, another is fast and rhythmic, another is slower and somewhat ominous. It changes quite often too, to reflect her unstable personality, I bet.
- I kind of get a KotOR/general SW vibe from Legion's track, with some mechanical effects (and a little of ME1's OST) thrown in. It actually sounds pretty glorious and surprisingly reminiscent of classics.


Doesn't this mean Zaeed should be getting his own track?..

It's hard to pick favourites, but I think that apart from the character tracks, Crash Landing and especially End Run and Suicide Mission have that great "you-know-it's-gonna-be-EPIC" feel to them.

So to sum up:
+ you know they weren't kidding about the "darker" chapter;
+ every character has a very distinct soundtrack, which proves that game really is devoted to its NPCs - as it should be;
+ the complexity, dynamism and a darker feel (and chanting in appropriate places!) certainly make it sound several times more awesome than the ME1 soundtrack , - which was also very good, but let's face it, quite tame in comparison. I can only imagine that in-game it will sound even better.

It's clear that (for some people at least) the melodies of ME1 will be more memorable, but that's just the effect of it being the first part. 

[magimix 2000]

xMister Vx wrote...

To me there's as much synth as before, it's always present as a sort of dark undercurrent of the melodies. Orchestral themes make this a lot more elaborate than the ME1 soundtrack. And while I still remember the ME1 tunes well, these are better.  As mentioned, some are well integrated partly as "dark remixes" into the new soundtrack, like the old intro into Attack.

I like the cut of your jib, Sir!  I agree with your summation.  I'm surprised you didn't talk about the track, 'Legion'.  At the moment, this is the stand-out track for me. 

There are elements of Saren and Sovereign themes from the first game.  There are melodic moments, frenetic, kinetic moments - there is all sorts of stuff going on.  Its so...  Varied, almost conflicted - as it were at war with itself.  Makes me want to meet the character it is named for, thats for sure! 

Modifié par magimix 2000, 20 janvier 2010 - 11:11 .

[wrexingcrew]

RVonE wrote...

You say that we should think of the tradition that Mass Effect comes out of. Okay, Blade Runner. While you may have childhood memories of orchestras playing in space, much of 70s and 80s sci-fi was accompanied by synthesized music (don't forget that some orchestral music in sci-fi was actually synthesized instead of played with real instruments). The kind of electro that ME1's soundtrack had--the kind that is heavily influenced by Blade Runner--was one of the reasons that made it stand out from the crowd. It most certainly captured some of the atmosphere of the old sci-fi movies and series.

From Vangelis to John Carpenter to Goblin, I think that's exactly right.  Even some of the less obvious visual influences for ME - like Logan's Run - were incorporating significant electronic elements into their scores.  To me, a heavy synthesizer/electronics presence just fits the look and feel.  That's aside from the scarcity issue - heavy orchestral scores are in most AAA titles these days.  It was incredibly refreshing to hear something (ME1's score) that was more focused on texture and space than maximum emotional power in the manner of most AAA titles and Hollywood films.  Obviously, orchestral scores could achieve those same things - emulating Ligeti instead of John Williams is one way - but few do or even try in games.