After the release of Fittest last year, I began working on concepts for a new album. Though I have dozens of WIPs and unreleased completed songs lying around, it is only recently that I’ve really settled on an album concept and begun working on it seriously. My next album is going to be focused on dramatic, score-like pieces with lots of dark ambiances, atmospheres and textures, as well as more live and organic components.
I chose this theme for a few reasons. First of all, a number of my previous albums were more upbeat in mood and more focused on dance beats, so reigning in the tempo and paying more attention to detailed textures and intricate parts is a great artistic challenge. I’m using many new tools, synths and techniques on this project which makes it very exciting to work on! Another reason for this theme is that lately I’ve been inspired by compositions by a variety of film, video game and anime composers, and so I wanted to write pieces that call to mind more visual imagery. My goal is to try to get this music in actual film and game productions, too!
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I’ve just returned from the annual Game Developers Conference in San Francisco where I spent five days hanging out with some of the nicest people in the video game industry! This was my first time at the SF GDC, an event that is geared toward video game industry professionals (or aspiring professionals), audio guys included. It is also home to the Game Audio Network Guild award ceremony, hosted by Paul Lipson and Tommy Tallarico.
Before I go into more detail about GDC itself, I’m very excited to announce that I’m working on the soundtrack to the recently-announced LucasArts game, Monkey Island 2 Special Edition: LeChuck’s Revenge! Much like the first Monkey Island Special Edition, MI2SE is a remake of the original MI2, featuring all-new high-definition graphics, an integrated hint system, improved controls and, of course, an updated musical score. I’m working with Dan Reynolds, Jeff Ball and Will Roget on this project, which spans over 80 minutes of music. The game will be available this Summer on XBLA, PSN, PC, iPhone and iPod Touch!
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Last year, I formed a video game company called Space Whale Studios with three fellow Drexel students/grads and my good friend Mike Worth. The goal of our studio is to create small-scale, retro-inspired games with modern twists that have enough depth to appease both casual and hardcore gamers alike. Last night, we finished an alpha version of our first title, Return All Robots!.
RAR! is an action-puzzle game where the player takes the role of a hapless intern working at a corporate-funded laboratory. The game begins when The Intern arrives at his lab only to find it in chaos with robots and animals running amok, fires burning, pools of acid everywhere, etc. He is given a single directive by the lab’s corporate headmasters: retrieve all company-owned machinery and ensure their safety. You can read more about our game concept, look at screenshots and watch a video at the Microsoft DreamBuildPlay contest website.
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