I'm amazed at how Sonic Adventure 2 perfectly encapsulated the music is in this genre of Sonic. Jun Senoue, Tomoya Ohtani, and some other talented folks like Kenichi Tokoi, Fumie Kumatani, Ted Poley, Tony Harnell, Everett Bradley, and Tabitha Fair all had a hand in creating the music, whether it was instrumental or vocal. I had no idea music could be this good, especially for a game released in 2001. They were up against tough competition like Super Smash Bros Melee and Final Fantasy X, but still managed to snag the 2001 IGN's Editors' Choice Award.

Not suprising, considering the amazing Escape From The City, Aquatic Mine, and especially Pumpkin Hill and Metal Harbor.

to add on to what you've said, sonic adventure 2 also did a great job in expressing different genres and styles of music, giving each character and their stages a unique feel. it's to the point that I'm sure you could play a track from any stage for someone and ask them which of the SA2 characters it belongs to and they would probably guess right! it all gives an extra layer of personality to the characters and I also liked that it felt like there was "smth for everyone" to enjoy in the OST

take for example rouge, her stages have jazzy-lounge music which reminds me a lot of lupin iii's '80 theme which helps w/ associating her and her music w/ thievery

shadow's music stands out the most to me bcuz a lot of it is darker and more experimental, synth based w/ either guitar, or drum and bass influence

... there's more I could say abt other character's themes and stage music but I'd love to hear other ppl's opinions as well on the multi-genre OST!

(03-07-2024, 08:47 PM)hooligan Wrote: to add on to what you've said, sonic adventure 2 also did a great job in expressing different genres and styles of music, giving each character and their stages a unique feel. it's to the point that I'm sure you could play a track from any stage for someone and ask them which of the SA2 characters it belongs to and they would probably guess right! it all gives an extra layer of personality to the characters and I also liked that it felt like there was "smth for everyone" to enjoy in the OST

take for example rouge, her stages have jazzy-lounge music which reminds me a lot of lupin iii's '80 theme which helps w/ associating her and her music w/ thievery

shadow's music stands out the most to me bcuz a lot of it is darker and more experimental, synth based w/ either guitar, or drum and bass influence

... there's more I could say abt other character's themes and stage music but I'd love to hear other ppl's opinions as well on the multi-genre OST!

The use of music in Sonic X perfectly captures the essence of each character. Sonic's upbeat riff with the bass guitar reflects his optimistic nature, while Knuckles' serious tone adds depth to his character. Rouge's jazzy tune further enhances the overall dynamic. The music choices for each character are spot-on and make perfect sense in defining their personalities.

Agreed. The music in that game is straight fire!

(03-07-2024, 08:47 PM)hooligan Wrote: to add on to what you've said, sonic adventure 2 also did a great job in expressing different genres and styles of music, giving each character and their stages a unique feel. it's to the point that I'm sure you could play a track from any stage for someone and ask them which of the SA2 characters it belongs to and they would probably guess right! it all gives an extra layer of personality to the characters and I also liked that it felt like there was "smth for everyone" to enjoy in the OST

i agree! i love the variety of genres in sa2, it gives the game's ost such a distinct identity.

my personal favorite aspect of the soundtrack is the incorporation of vocals into the level themes. i love being able to get a glimpse into a character's thoughts during any particular level, and it does a lot with making the levels more memorable for me. playing city escape for the first time and hearing escape from the city in its natural environment was such a mind-blowing experience for me after all the times i've heard that song used out of context over the years.

my favorite level themes are definitely shadow's, though, because of how well they capture specific moments of his character arc in the game. like during his frantic rush to save rouge in white jungle being accompanied by rhythm and balance, & the various repeating lines of him saying that he isn't scared at all, despite it being clear that, on some level, he is scared for rouge. and then in final chase, after being told he may not really be who he thinks he is, the following level theme vehemently denies that notion, and he assures himself that he is the ultimate lifeform, that nothing can surprise him, that he's a "flawless existence." like he's overcompensating for his own self-doubt after seeing proof that his memories may not be real after all.

i could go on, but for the sake of this message not being longer than it already is, i'll leave it there, lol. there's just so much to analyze in regards to the sa2 music, and i find it super fun.

(06-03-2024, 11:09 PM)sundrowned Wrote: i agree! i love the variety of genres in sa2, it gives the game's ost such a distinct identity.

my personal favorite aspect of the soundtrack is the incorporation of vocals into the level themes. i love being able to get a glimpse into a character's thoughts during any particular level, and it does a lot with making the levels more memorable for me. playing city escape for the first time and hearing escape from the city in its natural environment was such a mind-blowing experience for me after all the times i've heard that song used out of context over the years.

my favorite level themes are definitely shadow's, though, because of how well they capture specific moments of his character arc in the game. like during his frantic rush to save rouge in white jungle being accompanied by rhythm and balance, & the various repeating lines of him saying that he isn't scared at all, despite it being clear that, on some level, he is scared for rouge. and then in final chase, after being told he may not really be who he thinks he is, the following level theme vehemently denies that notion, and he assures himself that he is the ultimate lifeform, that nothing can surprise him, that he's a "flawless existence." like he's overcompensating for his own self-doubt after seeing proof that his memories may not be real after all.

i could go on, but for the sake of this message not being longer than it already is, i'll leave it there, lol. there's just so much to analyze in regards to the sa2 music, and i find it super fun.

totally agree w/ the idea behind vocal themes! Shadow's stages being a prime example of that bcuz the vocals in his stages really help build his character and literally "sets the stage" for him, haha

I wish I still had a link to the interview I had found before w/ one of the ppl involved w/ the music of SA2, bcuz (heavily paraphrasing from memory) they talked abt how they purposely chose an experimental style for Shadow and his music, incorporating not only guitar in some songs but also DnB and just really playing w/ the idea that Shadow and his themes, can't really be pinpointed as one single style of music bcuz he is unsure of himself during SA2's story and such!

someone also pointed out interestingly, that Supporting Me, the song that plays while Shadow is fighting the Biolizard alone, has the melody from Live and Learn in it

something I really like doing is looking up the lyrics to SA2's vocal themes on Sonic Wiki Zone (for example: Supporting Me) bcuz they talk abt how the lyrics are connected to the game and its story and I just really, really love all the care and detail put into SA2's music; from genre, to vocals, to leimotifs... ah!

(06-03-2024, 11:09 PM)sundrowned Wrote: i agree! i love the variety of genres in sa2, it gives the game's ost such a distinct identity.

my personal favorite aspect of the soundtrack is the incorporation of vocals into the level themes. i love being able to get a glimpse into a character's thoughts during any particular level, and it does a lot with making the levels more memorable for me. playing city escape for the first time and hearing escape from the city in its natural environment was such a mind-blowing experience for me after all the times i've heard that song used out of context over the years.

my favorite level themes are definitely shadow's, though, because of how well they capture specific moments of his character arc in the game. like during his frantic rush to save rouge in white jungle being accompanied by rhythm and balance, & the various repeating lines of him saying that he isn't scared at all, despite it being clear that, on some level, he is scared for rouge. and then in final chase, after being told he may not really be who he thinks he is, the following level theme vehemently denies that notion, and he assures himself that he is the ultimate lifeform, that nothing can surprise him, that he's a "flawless existence." like he's overcompensating for his own self-doubt after seeing proof that his memories may not be real after all.

i could go on, but for the sake of this message not being longer than it already is, i'll leave it there, lol. there's just so much to analyze in regards to the sa2 music, and i find it super fun.

my favorites are knuckles, and it goes on like "she's sexy and smooth" and how much a stir that caused in the community, and the "give up the Emeralds or die, I don't love you" just showed how much knuckles really despised her in the game. and in pumpkin hill, the line "(This is Knuckles, who fears no one... Bein' real bad when it comes to my name kid)" which just shows what he thinks of rouge. in the levels afterwards, he just stops dissing rouge, which goes to show he actually cared. and I agree with your out of context thing, because ive heard pumpkin hill out of the blue too many times.
 (This
Bein' real bad when it comes to my name kid)