Koki on 11/1/2012 at 20:15
I keep reading how epic and awesome Skyrim's music is on the official forums, which puzzles me greatly because it sounds like normal "banal shit boring" Soule goo to me.
Of course since it's the official forums there's very high likehood of fanboys being retarded as usual, so I'll thought I'll ask about general opinion here.
YcatX on 11/1/2012 at 21:26
Personally I loved Dead Red Redemption music, especially for the zombie version. As for Skyrim, I didn't really think it was something to write home about, but I guess they are running out things to praise.
Kreeps - Bad Voodoo
(
http://youtu.be/h-08KZo4KXM)
I have to admit that Bard songs are a nice touch. I feel sorry for each of the voice actors. I know how much of a pain in the ass it was to get my voice actors to do a full AI script. I can't imagine me trying to make them sing. However, having an almost identical script would make things easier...
"Some people call this junk, I call them treasures..."
scumble on 11/1/2012 at 22:23
It probably comes down to taste. I would personally say someone who calls Jeremy Soule's music dull isn't actually listening properly, as Skyrim's music is probably the best of his I've heard. It's fair enough if you don't like that type of music, but I'd say dismissing it shows a lack of musical perception. Also quite a bit of it is fairly ambient in character and not intended to be too distracting during play. If you pay attention to it there is quite a lot to appreciate.
Well I guess it seems that way to me as I'm quite interested in musical composition and I've listened to rather a lot of orchestral music...
I think the trouble with Morrowind and Oblivion was that there just wasn't quite enough music there for a game that would involve hundreds of hours of playing time, but the Skyrim music has about four times as much compared to Oblivion. However, it would have been sensible to produce more of the short battle music cuts because there are only a handful of those and the repetition is a bit more obvious.
Dia on 11/1/2012 at 22:25
I thought the music of Skyrim was exceptional; especially the way Soule blended the Oblivion theme into Skyrim's main theme. When I listen to different selections from the soundtrack I can almost see the sun rising over the Velothi Mountains, or hear the whisper of the eagles wings as they fly over Solitude, or watch in my mind's eye the water flowing from the mountain waterfalls down through the canals of Markarth. I agree with scumble that a fair amount is meant to be ambient, but there are selections that almost tell a tale on their own. So no, I definitely don't agree that this music is 'normal "banal shit boring" Soule goo'; not in the least. Just because you don't like something doesn't mean it's not good.
As always, it depends on an individual's tastes.
Briareos H on 11/1/2012 at 22:44
I find Jeremy Soule has been overusing his themes since Morrowind, and losing in originality what he gained in professionalism. My favourite soundtrack of his remains Total Annihilation, even if it shows youthful mistakes in the detail of the compositions.
Skyrim's music is undeniably bolder than Oblivion's but it's still mostly made of (flawlessly composed/arranged - mostly) Morrowind rehashes and generic atmospheric layers. I feel the vocal parts are too few and too similar to really make a difference. Still, there are a few specific tracks which I really like a lot. Once I manage to find the whole soundtrack somewhere I'll get the titles.
smallfry on 12/1/2012 at 01:51
Yeah I think there are a few really great songs that fit the game really well, like the one with the woman singing, and a few of the ambient ones. And I love the music in the inns- not the bard songs so much, mostly because the bards don't sing them very well, but the plunking guitar music in the background. Then there are some utterly generic pieces of trash that make me want to throw myself on my sword, like that one that plays in Whiterun, you know, with the noodling flute that can't make up its mind where it's going. In addition, all of the combat and dungeon music is entirely forgettable which is a real shame.
I use a mod that increases the amount of the music. The guy just added some different songs onto the end of the current songs, from movies and whatnot. It's a little weird hearing a song from gladiator when playing skyrim but I was getting tired of the same old music.
Quote Posted by Briareos H
My favourite soundtrack of his remains Total Annihilation
Hell yeah! So many amazing tracks on that soundtrack.
Dia on 12/1/2012 at 02:50
Wow! How did I manage to miss that one? Excellent! Thanks for sharing wonderfield. :thumb:
YcatX on 12/1/2012 at 03:41
Don't get me wrong. I like Skyrim's music in reference to the genre. I doubt I would ever listen to any of the music outside of Skyrim, however, I might listen to the Bard songs out of amusement. Its more like old Folk songs. I wouldn't go driving down the street, cracked up loud with windows rolled down. I mean, any video game music gets 4+ stars in my book, when I don't need to mute it out, or have to play other music on top of it.
If they really wanted to push the music they could have included the soundtrack with the Collector's Edition instead of the Making of Skyrim DVD. I know my daughter loves the music. I've bought three copies, Collector's Ed (Xbox) for the dragon and book, a copy (Xbox) for my daughter, and the PC version for shit and giggles.
