The idea of combining a book with a soundtrack sounds so intuitive, I’m surprised it hasn’t been done before.
Eric Steuer and Tim Molloy worked together on the book, called How to Break Bad News, about a reporter who goes undercover at a fast food restaurant chain to expose labor abuses – but then finds he prefers working there to being a reporter.
The soundtrack is being distributed for free, and matches the tone that the authors wanted to set with each part of the book.
I hope this becomes a tread, because everything’s better with a little music.
World of Goo has been an indie gaming sensation, and now Kyle Gabler has made the soundtrack that he created for the game available as a free download.
The majority of the instruments you’ll hear are computer instruments, with a few live performances on top to add a bit of warmth. For the older music, I used one of those Sound Blaster cards that let you load samples into memory. More recently, I’ve been using the freeware sfz soundfont sampler. I have an m-audio keystation 49e midi keyboard for picking out melodies. Influences include Danny Elfman, Vangelis, Bernard Herrmann, Hans Zimmer, Ennio Morricone, and all the big movie guys. I grew up listening to them, and they remain a big influence in everything I write.
Many of the songs were written specifically for the game, but a few were also salvaged from previous projects that he had worked on, but if you’re looking for some interesting music to get you through the day, then give the World of Goo Soundtrack a try.
If you’ve always wanted to have your own soundtrack, then check out SynchStep for the iPhone and iPod Touch.
SynchStep taps into the iPhone and iPod Touch’s motion sensor, and matches your music library to your pace. The result is that “every step you take lands in-time with a drum hit, a bass pluck, a piano chord”.
Unfortunately the beat that follows your feet is only available in “sucktacular beta” for now, but when the SDK goes live, prepare yourself for tons of fantastic apps just like this one.
Usually around the third or fourth iteration of a popular game, the designers decide that there are enough fans to warrant a special collector’s edition.
Though collector’s editions usually filled with a bunch of stuff that no one needs, they’re gobbled up by hard-core fans that want to raise their 1337 level by a few points at the next gaming get-together.
Apparently Grand Theft Auto has reached that point, because with the release of GTAIV coming up, they’ve announced a pre-orderable special edition that comes with a metal safety deposit box, special packaging, an art book with never-before-seen production artwork, a soundtrack CD filled with exclusive material, a Rockstar keychain, and a duffel bag to hold it all. Plus, order through Amazon, and you’ll even get a Liberty City license plate to round out the collection!
In addition to being one of the best films of the year, Juno also has a few more things going for it:
1. One of the best opening title sequences I’ve seen in a while. The hand-made sequence was created by Shadowplay Studio, and lends itself nicely to the quirky and creative tone of the film [...]
Whoever designs the packaging for The Simpsons disks must not know anything about the typical shelf, because they seem to prefer things that are more round than square.
The soundtrack for The Simpsons Movie is no different, and it comes in its own donut.
Looks tasty. (And unstackable!)
