Queue is Full
Hey! It’s been a while, hasn’t
it? How about those current events, all like, happening and such?
I’ve topped off the music queue again
(well, Drafts, to be perfectly honest). I’ll probably drop one review every few
days. Homestuck’s still in its ‘not done yet’ phase of development, so there’s
not much new on that front. But some of the music team have been busy with
other projects. So let’s see what they’ve been up to. I’ll hit up a couple more
deep Homestuck tracks too while I’m at it.
And then there’s Undertale. If
you like Homestuck’s music, you’re gonna like the soundtrack from Undertale. And I’ve really been looking forward to talking about it. In
my reviews I won’t spoil anything significant in the game, but I’ll tag
anything that could be considered remotely spoiler-y anyways.
By Toby Fox, with guitar by Stephanie MacIntire
If you haven’t played Undertale, skip this song for now. Trust me. If you can, go pick up the game: it’s only ten bucks on Steam. You only have to play through it once to hear this tune (though I suspect afterwards, you’ll want to try out some of the other game routes too). It’s worth it to go in unspoiled.
Undertale is an apt title for the song itself. In an interview Toby mentioned that this was one of the few songs that went through multiple iterations, and the extra effort shows. This track fits the game as a main theme better than any other, and it’s my favorite song on the album.
Its two main melodies are teased early on as a motif for two important characters. It’s no accident that this is the bit you have to tap out when the piano puzzle comes up. It’s Chekov’s melody: the puzzle baits you into memorizing the song to open a locked door, but that reward is just window-dressing. The purpose of the puzzle is to plant the memory of that song in your head. And you’ll inevitably associate those first eight notes with a sad, cold monument, devoid of life, deep in the underground.
So when that same melody comes back along, the contrast is jarring: it’s warm, cheery, and full of life. It’s the same song, but before something terrible has happened. And your prior encounters with other characters make you all too aware that the approaching end will require a good person to die.
Like many, the first time I heard it was in-game. And the scene floored me. It’s been a long time since a piece of fiction has had that sort of effect on me. At that moment in the game, the storyline hits a superb, sad climax, and this song makes it all the more shattering.
The soundtrack to Toby Fox’s game Undertale can be purchased from Bandcamp.
By Toby Fox
A big part of Undertale’s success relies on its pacing. And this song’s moment in the game is a great example of that.
First you’re forced to suffer through a melodramatic performance of this song where all you can do is listen and watch. Then, moments later, you’re dropped into a manic race through an impossible puzzle maze while the timpani boom out the imminence and pointlessness of your demise.
It’s a really well-paced bit of gameplay. The drawn-out first bit is absolutely essential to making the second bit as funny and memorable as it is.
The soundtrack to Toby Fox’s game Undertale can be purchased from Bandcamp.
By Toby Fox
Ah, Papyrus. I think this is the only ‘boss fight’ I could play a dozen times and laugh out loud every single time. There’s so many variations. Flirt with him. Threaten him. Play fetch with him. Lose to him. Lose to him again and watch as a sort of reverse Stockholm Syndrome starts to take hold in his mind.
All while this goofy, quasi-malicious theme plays in the background. I’ve brought it up before in relation to other songs, but the tone reminds me of the Edison family theme from Maniac Mansion: antagonizing, but in a bumbly Snidely Whiplash kind of way.
Like much of the soundtrack, it’s fertile material for variations and covers.
Violin-based version with an Eastern European vibe? Check. Wobbly Silent-era cartoon version? Got that too. Heavy metal version? But of course.
That last cover’s off of a whole album of Undertale metal cover songs, recently released by RichaadEB and Ace Waters. It’s a little bit like a Gary Hoey Christmas album, but for Undertale, and well worth a listen.
The soundtrack to Toby Fox’s game Undertale can be purchased from Bandcamp.