It’s unimaginable to think about Simogo’s ingenious library of video games with out conjuring the works of composer Daniel Olsén in your thoughts. From the chilling Yr Stroll, the hyperpop aesthetic of Sayonara Wild Hearts, or the mysterious Lorelei and the Laser Eyes, this catalog of indie titles take root in our minds partially due to how thematically their soundtracks match the gameplay and surroundings.
To learn how Olsén thinks about his initiatives, we reached out to him as a part of Polygon FM, our theme week celebrating the intersection of music and video games.
Polygon: Was there a sport soundtrack or tune that impressed you to pursue creating sport music? Are you able to set the scene of what that felt like for you, and why the music was so efficient?
Daniel Olsén: There wasn’t only one soundtrack that impressed me. I grew up within the period of 8-bit and 16-bit consoles and Commodore 64 — and like many others I used to be taken away by the NES classics like Tremendous Mario, Zelda, and Mega Man. I feel one of many nice issues about online game music is that if you step away from a sport, the one factor you continue to have with you is the melodies, chords, and rhythms. I didn’t personal my very own consoles as a child, however I’d all the time stroll round singing my favourite tunes and that will transport me again to the sensation of the video games. I did personal a C64 and generally I’d simply begin video games to listen to the music from video games like The Final Ninja, Delta, and so forth. Truly, generally, you simply wished to progress to listen to extra of the music. Even at the moment, I usually attempt to recreate the sensation I received from lots of these soundtracks.
Are you able to break down one in all your personal songs and its influences? Was it impressed by sport soundtracks, different music, or one thing else?
In “Interrogation” [from Lorelei], I used the theme from “Lady on the Different Aspect”, one other tune from Lorelei and the Laser Eyes. It was additionally impressed partly by Angelo Badalamenti’s strolling baselines and sluggish jazzy drums in “Audrey’s Dance” from Twin Peaks. This scene within the sport additionally resembles the interrogational facets of our earlier sport DEVICE 6, so it felt becoming so as to add some gritty surf guitars to make a connection between the 2.
In the course of the tune, we go between an interrogation with a gun to the top to strolling round in dreamy, noisy previous recollections and again once more. If the music doesn’t observe it feels very flat, so we opted for dynamic music on this a part of the sport. We wished to have the layers be completely different sufficient to permit for a various dramatic expression. From dry vinyl crackles to dreamy piano to a horror vibe, even the sound results are a part of the ultimate musical impression. While you’re strolling round within the recollections, we additionally modified the footsteps to vinyl noise and crackles to suit the theme.
What are the principle devices used to file the soundtrack for Lorelei? How did you select these devices?
The concept was to have two sides — the clearly digital, and the clearly human/analogue. As a result of the artwork fashion of the sport mixes analogue photographs with damaged digital artwork, we wished the music to replicate the identical factor. So many of the songs are primarily based on very digital-sounding devices blended with cello and vocals carried out by Linnea Olsson, or guitar by Jonathan Eng. I spent a number of time making these sounds distinctly completely different, however on the identical time harmonizing with one another.
Is there anything I ought to learn about your strategy to composing online game music?
An important factor for me is that the music suits with regardless of the sport is, reasonably than being good by itself. It’s a must to create a form of universe for the music that may add to the lore of the sport. It’s like an extension of the online game universe. It provides you the possibility to inform tales a few greater world and it provides gamers the chance to think about components that aren’t portrayed within the sport. I usually hear nice music in video games, nevertheless it doesn’t match the vibe, or the songs will not be in the identical coherent universe. That may make the impression of the sport really feel a bit disjointed.