Dead Space 2 Composed by Jason Graves
Lakeshore Records (2010)
Rating:
7/10
Soundclips below from AmazonMP3
“Where the first DEAD SPACE made use of its surprise factor to bludgeon its
audience with frequent “boo” moments and a constant state of high tension,
the sequel plucks some pages from the Amnesia and BioShock books of fear
and delivers a far more sophisticated and evenly paced experience
that ends up being more rewarding as a result. The music reflects
this paradigm shift,...
”
The Art of Darkness
Review by Marius Masalar
Depending on your preferences for horror, EA and Visceral Games’ 2008
sci-fi title DEAD SPACE will have struck you as either ideally terrifying
or blatantly gruesome. I don’t think the developers would mind either
interpretation. The game’s critical acclaim was easy encouragement for a
sequel, so it’s little surprise that 4 years later we’re ready to jump
back into the creepy world of protagonist Isaac’s nightmarish career.
Where the first DEAD SPACE made use of its surprise factor to bludgeon its
audience with frequent “boo” moments and a constant state of high tension,
the sequel plucks some pages from the Amnesia and BioShock books of fear
and delivers a far more sophisticated and evenly paced experience that
ends up being more rewarding as a result. The music reflects this paradigm
shift, and if you’re a fan of JASON GRAVES’ innovative and evil approach
to scoring the first title, you’ll be in for some more surprises with his
sequel score.
“Welcome to the Sprawl” (1) pulls us back into the mood and introduces
GRAVES’ fresh instrumental direction: a string quartet. Though it seems,
at first, like a strange move to advance the music by making the ensemble
smaller, GRAVES’ choice is very deliberate and very well reasoned. As the
musicians cry out the game’s plaintive theme, we are drawn by the intimacy
of the ensemble; we feel small, alone, and unprotected. As the cue
progresses, we also meet some bells — the significance of which will soon
become apparent — and, of course, the growling monster of an orchestra
that we remember from the first game. You didn’t think it was gone, did
you?
I sure hope not, because there’s plenty more where that came from in DEAD
SPACE 2. “Much Ado About Necromorphs” (2) shows a sense of humour in its
title. And only the title. The music here is visceral, primal, and
extremely tense. For those of us whose ears have been refined by hours of
listening to the first score and this one, there’s been a subtle change in
these aggressive sections. While still positively evil, they feel less
scattered and imprecise. Now they are still terrifying, still propulsive,
but somehow more organized and determined — as is Isaac himself, to whom
the Necromorphs are no longer a surprise. The more delicate second half of
the piece leads innocently into “Nice R.I.G. If You Can Get It” (3), an
oppressive and percussive action sequence.
Luckily there is some respite to be had in “Canonical Aside” (4). The
string quartet returns for this cue, and delivers a stirring and lilting
development of the main thematic ideas. This is where we begin to
understand the strength of GRAVES’ idea to have the two ensemble sizes.
After seeming like a strange curiosity in the opening track, our encounter
with the angry orchestra of the first few cues now emphasizes the contrast
and reveals its impact. We are the string quartet; we are Isaac, upset and
determined, hopelessly outnumbered.
Driving the point home is “Rest in Pieces” (5), where more orchestra hits
pound away under unsettling string smears. The cacophony dissolves into a
very quiet, prickly atmosphere that almost imperceptibly leaves us in “The
Cassini Towers” (6). Here, whispered voices and heavy choral moans welcome
us to the world of Unitology. Rather than represent this menacing church
with a theme, GRAVES portrays them with textures. The twisted choir, those
bells we met in the first cue…whenever we hear them, we can be sure of
whose influence haunts us. It’s a subtle and very effective tactic.
As if to directly discuss the conflict between Isaac and the Unitologists,
“It Had To Be Unitology” (7) opens with our familiar string quartet and
begins a slow confrontation with the bells. Low woodwinds punctuate
nervous silences, and ever so slowly the full orchestra unfolds its
dreadful claws and chases us to the next track. “Say Hello To My Little
Friends” (8) sounds like a twisted nursery rhyme until the orchestra comes
trampling in. But you’ll notice that these sequences are sounding more and
more controlled as the score — and plot — progresses. Strong brass leads
the way and keeps everything together despite the churning beneath it.
The solo bass at the top of “Awesome Hulk” (9) precedes one of the most
ferocious builds of orchestral noise you could ever imagine, and the
ensuing madness of skittering strings and muted brass certainly reflect
conflict with a huge foe. With barely a pause, “You Got Nill” (10) carries
the action forward at a more march-like pace, with prepared piano and
cymbal and gong strikes joining the fray prominently. Extremely low male
choirs, bass woodwinds, heavy bells, and other moody low-end contributions
suffuse the latter half of the cue.
The album’s closing stretch contains some of the most frightening music
you’re ever likely to encounter. “I Only Have Eyes For You” (11) is a
deceptive piece that frequently erupts with violence only to die back down
to a false sense of security. It passes the torch to “You Go To My Head”
(12) where all the various elements of horror that we’ve encountered apart
so far come crashing together. The stakes are clearly high here, and the
interplay between indomitable orchestral violence and persistent string
quartet offerings is powerful. The score itself concludes fiercely with
“Come Rain Or Come Convergence” (13). Expect some truly beautiful
development of the main theme here, as well as one of the only moments of
true purity and beauty on the entire album.
The final track is unique in that it is actually a segment from a longer
concert work that GRAVES composed during the scoring of the game. It, of
course, is very much in line with the mood of the score and develops its
thematic material in a sophisticated manner. Bits of this “Lacrimosa” (14)
ended up used throughout the game’s more sympathetic moments, and it
served as the iconic piece used to represent the game for its London
premiere, where it was performed live in concert. The suite provided on
album is an excellent and manageably sized segment that brings the score
to a close with intelligent poise.
The obvious caveat with a score like DEAD SPACE 2 is that, for all its
sophistication and craft, it simply isn’t nice to listen to. But for what
it is, the score is brilliant. I wouldn’t want to attend a dinner party
where this was setting the ambience. I won’t soon be exercising to it
(though, upon reflection, it may provide the necessary motivation to
actually take up jogging). Like its predecessor then, JASON GRAVES’ work
here is something to be appreciated and admired — especially in the
context of the game, where the implementation is fantastically organic —
but not really enjoyed, per se. Still, it joins the ranks of excellent
modern horror game scores alongside BioShock, and Dante’s Inferno, and
showcases JASON GRAVES as a multi-faceted talent with the creative
ingenuity to see a project like this through to a satisfying conclusion.
