Level 225: Maclaine Diemer (Firmament)

It’s another delightful chat with composer Maclaine Diemer about Firmament from Cyan Worlds, the creators of Myst and Riven. The score is entirely synth with the exception of two or three other instruments, including an esraj and a Fender IV (technically a Squire, which only matters to people who know the difference). It’s atmospheric, ambient…

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Level 224: Peter Chapman (Workin’ Moms, Guacamelee)

Composer Peter Chapman talks about his music for the Netflix comedy Workin’ Moms, which just aired its 7th and final season in April. Peter worked with composer/singer Maylee Todd to create music for the series. The music has this energetically fresh, crisp and clean vibe, although there are many examples of grit and grime as…

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Level 223: Logan ”Biggoron” Tucker (VGM Cover Artist)

I stumbled across Logan “Biggoron” Tucker‘s music in early April ahead of VGM Con (which would be worth your time if you can attend next year!). He regularly participates in the monthly video game music cover contest held at Dwelling of Duels. Cover artists submit their piece anonymously and winners are chosen by the community.…

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Level 222: Lennie Moore (Mentors, Outcast 2)

Composer Lennie Moore talks about his newest passion project, a big band album called Mentors that pays tribute to his musical mentors, like record producer Arif Mardin, pianist Toshiko Akiyoshi and drummer Peter Erskine (who plays on the album). While we do briefly discuss the upcoming Outcast 2 (Lennie scored the first Outcast in 1999),…

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Level 220: Chris Rickwood (Brawlhalla)

Composer Chris Rickwood gets to write in the style of some of the most famous franchises in games and other media like TV, anime and more for Brawlhalla, the free-to-play platform brawler from Blue Mammoth Games and Ubisoft. In this episode, Chris and I talk about what it’s like to take the Brawlhalla main theme…

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Level 219: Hrishikesh Hirway (The Red Lantern)

** The soundtrack to The Red Lantern is getting a vinyl release. Anyone who is a patron of Level with Emily by midnight (12:00 AM CDT) on April 17, 2023, will be eligible to win one of 5 records. ** Hrishikesh Hirway is a composer, a recording artist, a podcaster (Song Exploder, Home Cooking, The…

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Level 218: Rob Kovacs (Straylight)

We’ve had composer Rob Kovacs on Level in the past to talk about his alter ego, 88bit. This time, he’s here to discuss his Prophet 5 modern 80s soundtrack for the VR game Straylight, and I love every minute of it. The music is fantastic, and Rob sits at his piano during our chat to…

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Level 217: Greg Nicolett (Potionomics)

Greg Nicolett‘s music for Potionomics is as colorful as the game, weaving in and out of various styles and palettes depending on characters and locations. The game is a 3D deck builder/management sim, where you (as Sylvia) brew and sell potions out of your own shop. And go on dates 🙂 Much of the score…

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Level 216: Alkemie Early Music Ensemble (Pentiment)

Pentiment is a 2D narrative adventure murder mystery set in the early part of the 16th century. Director/designer Josh Sawyer dreamed of making a historically accurate game set pre-Renaissance, and he asked Alkemie Early Music Ensemble to create a faithful musical score for the game. “Early music” at its simplest definition consists of music before…

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Level 215: Amos Roddy (Citizen Sleeper)

The music Amos Roddy wrote for Citizen Sleeper is too good for words. I love the music, I loved our conversation about it, and I’ve loved the game (not finished yet). I’m not alone – players raved about the entire package of gameplay, narrative, music, visuals and all the things that make it Citizen Sleeper.…

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Level 214: Jason Graves (The Dark Pictures Anthology: The Devil In Me)

Composer Jason Graves has a new score out, and it’s flipping scary. The fourth installment of The Dark Pictures Anthology, The Devil In Me follows a film crew trapped within a replica of H.H. Holmes‘s infamous Murder Castle, where he tortured and murdered more than two dozen unsuspecting tourists in town for the Chicago World’s…

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Level 213: Trevor Gureckis (Dead Space, 2023)

Composer Trevor Gureckis scored about two hours of new music (not all of which is on the soundtrack) for the Dead Space remake. EA kept Jason Graves’s original score intact, and Trevor scored the new cutscenes, battles and other content added to the game to fill out the story. And it’s great. It’s very Dead…

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Level 212: Nicolas de Ferran (Scrap Riders)

French composer Nicolas de Ferran talks about his groovy music for Scrap Riders, a point-and-click adventure/beat-em-up about a biker gang in the 80s. The last time we had Nicolas on Level, he went by the nickname of Nicolas Diteriks, and we spoke about an orchestral score he composed for the game We Are Billions. The…

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Level 211: Garry Schyman (Forspoken)

We always love having composer Garry Schyman on the show. His music is so darn great. This time, we talk about his gorgeous orchestral score for Forspoken, the new RPG from Luminous and Square Enix. Recorded live in Nashville, the music is full of energy slathered in soaring melodies that take you somewhere with each…

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