We all love lists.  They are especially good whilst on a subway, or in a car, or in class, or my favorite: sitting on the toilet.  This is because they are the perfect size for a portable data device (like a blackberry or a PSP), and also because one can peruse the list's picks in a brief span of 10-20 minutes.  I however sit on the toilet for longer stints upwards of an hour, so lists for me are opportunities to dissect and break down the process by which the selections are chosen.

After a recent bout with a local Indian restaurant, I found my bowels in severe disarray and decided to compose a list of my own:  the greatest soundtracks of all time. So? What aboudit?

This list comprises a number of games, across a number of platforms, so stick with me as I am going to be jumping all over the place.  Also, DISCLAIMER: This is by no means a complete list.  These were just what I came up with in a little under an hour.  As a matter of fact, I deem this list: The First Ever Sh*t L*st.  Sh*t Lists usually have a very negative connotation.  Like when a waitress spills a drink on you, or if a colleague publicly embarrasses you, they are put onto your shit list.  Well for me, a Sh*t L*st is just that.  A list I made while...you get the picture.

Kingdom Hearts: When your task is to compose a soundtrack that will be heard against the sonorous backdrop of Disney masterpieces, it is probably a somewhat daunting task.  I mean how on earth are you going to create anything that could come close to being remotely as good as Disney masterpieces like "Beauty and the Beast" or "This Is Halloween"?  You don't.  And that is exactly what composer Yoko Shimomura intended to do.  Some composers, like many musicians I know, are unaware that most people don't care about what they are doing.  Shimomura's humble approach to composition is what makes the score to Kingdom Hearts so impressive.  Seriously, this lady's resume is enough to send just about any contemporary composer packing.  Her approach, as stated in this interview was to make gamers "feel good" and "in tune" with the music that supported the various action sequences and cutscenes in Kingdom Hearts.  Great pun Yoko, great pun.  There are so many composers out there who would take on this task and try to jam their music down our throats with overtly romantic melodies or angular dissonances in order to compete with the musical giants that make up the Disney soundtracks.  That just isn't Shimomura's way I guess, and it is for those reasons that she has garnered a spot on my Sh*t L*st.

Next up is Shadow Of The Colossus.  Whoa.  Talk about a great soundtrack.  The game is truly an artistic experience to begin with.  It is visually breathtaking, the gameplay is...AMAZING, and the soundtrack is nothing short of revolutionary (as far as games go). The musical component of SOTC sticks out more than in most games.  That is because when you are riding that damn Last-Unicorn lookin' horse, the soundtrack halts so that you can hear the booming sounds of silence and solitude as you ride across the game's world.  Shadow Of The Colossus is truly an orgasm for your ears even when the music isn't playing.  The first time I played the game it was on a TV set that, let's just say didn't have very good speakers.  I could have plugged the red and white RCA cables into a chicken's ass and it would have sounded better.  The second time I played the game it was in 5.1 surround sound.  If you have not had the incredible experience that I have had doing this, then you need to visit your local GameStop or switch over to Amazon Marketplace and pick up a copy of Shadow Of The Colossus.  Then go to Target and pick up even a cheap surround sound system and start playing.  You will not regret it.  So few games actually are a totally visceral sensory-overload, and the ones that are usually feature in-your-face elements like God Of War.  Great game, good soundtrack, but if I'm playing as a Spartan trying to be a God, I could do without the Heavy Metal (though Byzantine Chant wouldn't really mix well with the overall tone of the game).  Ko Otani (SOTC's composer) had to understand the "time period" so-to-speak.  We definitely aren't in modern day, but we aren't really in some time period from history are we?  It's more dream-like than anything, and that is exactly how I would describe SOTC's soundtrack: euphoric.  The soundtrack clearly pays homage to the impressionistic composers of the Romantic era like Debussy and Ravel, with its rich harmonic textures and attention to the instrumentation.  No section of the orchestra is over-used or under-used.  Otani clearly knows his way around the ensemble, and his orchestrations should be standard study materials for any serious musician or composer.  Ko Otani, awesome job, you have successfully composed one of the best soundtracks of all time.  Also congratulations you've made it onto the Sh*t List.

Let's see hear...(get it?!)  How can we possibly come up with a list of great game soundtracks without the mention of Sonic The Hedgehog 2.  Seriously.  This is THE definitive soundtrack for all games out there.  Maybe not necessarily the best soundtrack of all time, but composers Yuzo Koshiro and Masato Nakamura took the barebones materials they had and composed a series of masterful jams that never got tired.  Back in the days when I was a giant uber-noob I spent a great deal of time slugging my way through Sonic 1 and 2, and if the soundtrack got boring I would have been bored.  It's those subtle elements to a game that really end up either putting the icing on the cake, or taking a hammer and smashing your way through the Fondon/Funfetti.  What I mean to say, is since I was already pissed off from dying so many damn times, if the soundtrack sucked it would have made it even worse. If you have a chance you should really pick up the soundtrack to Sonic The Hedgehog 2 from either Amazon.com or another vendor.  BUY it, it really is worth spending money on, and there are so few things out there that actually are.  It's a great jam in the car, and there are tons of remixes across the digital waves that will surely have your head bobbing and your feet thumping.  Also, there is a rumor circulating the information superhighway that music god and King of Pop Michael Jackson was directly involved with the compositional process of Sonic 3.  Don't believe me?  Check it out here. My personal favorite from Sonic 2 though has to be from the Mystic Cave Zone or the Chemical Plant Zone.

Chrono Trigger. There.  I said it. One of the best and most versatile soundtracks of all time.  The battle music is kick-ass and the overworld music is equally awesome.  Sometimes it seems composers bust their musical nut on boss battles, but not so for composer Yasunori Mitsuda.  My personal favorite from Chrono Trigger is the 600 AD Medieval Theme.  Each time period features music that may be a little anachronistic, yet perfectly suitable for the theme and mood of each time period.  Chrono Trigger features a very well thought-out and executed score despite the instrumental limitations.  The use of synthesized pizzicatos and melodic counterpoint create a beautiful aesthetic that doesn't trample the expectations of the listener.  Rather, it subconsciously creates an aural experience within the musical confines of an RPG that moves the soul.  Chrono Trigger is an artistic masterpiece, and the score not only adds to the foundation of the game, but provides a necessary accompaniment to one of the best games ever created.

Any true gamers know that a conversation about music and games must include Vectorman.  It's seriously an incredible game, years beyond its time, and the music is what I would consider a mature version of Sonic's music.  Vectorman takes the musical aesthetic of Sonic the Hedgehog and adds a touch of House or club music.  The beats are fantastic, and the melodies are astounding.  Another game that must be played with surround sound.  The Ocean Level in Vectorman has the best music of all the levels in the game, and hands down is one of the best "level-songs" that I have ever heard.  It thumps like you would not believe, and trust me if you can find the remix on YouTube you will find yourself raving uncontrollably.  The bass is nuts.  If only I were high on Ecstasy and in the middle of a German nightclub, that might really take Vectorman to the next level.  Since each level is so starkly different in both gameplay and visual style, from the previous, Jon Holland, Vectorman's composer, kept up with the dynamic art style of Vectorman by composing unique drum and bass-style anthems for each level.  Unfortunately I couldn't really find much info on Vectorman's composer, though I did search for quite some time.  If you do find more info on this d00d please feel free to PM me or comment.

On to Final Fantasy 7.  What makes FFVII one of the greatest examples of awesome music in games, is simplicity.  The average time it takes to beat FF7 is anywhere from 40-60 hours, and that is just the main storyline.  100% completion is upwards of 70-100 hours at least, as the complex intricacies of the game are as endless as they are challenging.  In a game like this it is very believable that a composer would accompany complex gameplay with equally complex music.  Nobuo Uematsu, composer of most of the FF games including FF7 decided to take a musical route that totally juxtaposes the gameplay and graphical counterparts of FF7.  From the introductory Prelude to the Boss Battle music to the World Map music, everything is made up of open harmonies, succession of arpeggiated chords, and spun-out melodies rather than dissonant harmonies, thrashing guitars, and atonal melodies.  It is no wonder that Uematsu has become one of the most highly respected names in the world of video game music as well as in the world of modern composition.  His music has been performed by many of the worlds most famous orchestras, and he has given countless concerts of his commercial and non-commercial compositions.

Lastly, my personal favorite- Zelda: Ocarina Of Time.  In my personal opinion, Ocarina Of Time contains the best soundtrack of all time.  Not only is music an essential element to this game, the music-making process in Zelda never gets old.  For instance, I found myself traveling to the Water Temple just about every 5 seconds just for the music, and let me tell you, that temple sucked.  The orchestrations are fantastic!  I loved playing the ocarina, especially when you get the cactus feature.  I would try to transcribe pop melodies, and different songs I liked -- thats what us music nerds do after all.  By far the best part of the musical aspects of the game were after you successfully played a tune on the ocarina; the orchestra would come in and beautifully play an orchestrated version of the melody you just played.  The Serenade Of Water, and the Prelude Of Light are my personal favorites.  If you go on Amazon or just google Ocarina Of Time Soundtrack, I am sure you will be hit with about a million links to places you can purchase the MUST-HAVE soundtrack for Zelda: Ocarina Of Time.  For you young'ns who have not had the pleasure of playing Ocarina Of Time, you need to.  I recently was talking to my parents next door neighbors' children and when I said Ocarina Of Time to them they went cross-eyed and had basically no clue what I was talking about.  Everyone needs to play this game, if not for the incredible gameplay and story, for the beautiful art direction of Eiji Aonuma, and Koji Kondo's amazing score.

Well that's it for Sh*t L*st #1, stay tuned for Sh*t L*st #2, which I guess is kind of repetitive...

Runner Ups:

GTA3

Marvel vs. Capcom 2

posted by Brian Biederman - editor of TheSpoonFeed