Na na na nana nana na na na
I Don't need to say the title if you know, you know
Katamari Damacy came from an age where weird niche Japanese games lived in harmony with bigger releases
Namco could release this cult franchise and it's eight sequels. Yes eight
how did Katamari a game where you snow ball up everything from a plant pop piano and
Pedestrian into your sticky ball roll this far on the cusp of an HD re-release. Well dear viewers among other things
It's all about the rhythm of the beat
The game's soundtrack stands as its legacy as copies became rarer the OST only rose further into the heavens of the youtube
Recommendation machine it was cute catchy fun a great reflection of the ethos of the game director Keita Takahashi
A man from outside the world games who left University a sculptor to then become a game director at Namco
Seeing it as a unique opportunity to create for a mass audience
to make something different
Katamari is a reflection to his prior work from his superflat pottery that mixed humor with formal purpose
Takahashi has carved his own niche
his artistic outlook is what gave him the
Opportunity to direct the game in the first place as a novice to the industry a rare feat
To Takahashi removing the clutter of the interaction and the
Interface meant you could make a truer human experience. In this case that would focus on novelty ease of understanding
Enjoyment and humor which all came together with the development team who was small and not the most
Experienced were still able to to deliver
Keita's gaming philosophy
Including one member in particular Yuu Miyake an in-house
Musician at Namco as well as a sound director on the project who built most of the music in the world of Katamari
Miyake wasn't tied down with the project like other big Namco releases where there'd be a set rules to follow
He was free to experiment secure in the vision of Takahashi who he saw eye-to-eye with Katamari
Miyake said his work was a direct response to that vision
however
I believe there's more to it than just that if we dig deeper you can see
Katamaris' musical style derives from a richer tapestry the game picks from all over the place from its visuals to its soundtrack
Tying it all together with an absurd
Style like the cherry on top reminding me of a 90's musical genre from the shores of Japan
within the indie originated underground
shibuya kei it has its roots in anywhere from punk New Wave to bossa nova and who could forget
City pop the genre it mutated from it was a music made by record nerds
For record nerds in the late 90s mainstream Japanese pop was as pinnacle of his commercial might
so taking risks was worth it moreover shibuya kei was a product of
Record curators who had a lot of clout at the time and gave the movement a big push
Not dissimilar to katamari the genre got way bigger than anyone expected growing in all directions
So my cool damashii part of the genre. They wouldn't be wrong
But there is one band in particular that Katamari shares even more with but we need to go back
Ymo, yellow magic orchestra, one of the biggest bands to come out of Japan ever. They were groundbreaking
influencing much of the early video game landscape
Listening to this in mind the sensibilities of ymo from their upbeat personality
humour and use of old-school style synth melodies
Are all seen in Katamari, Miyake talked specifically about their first couple of albums
Impacting him as a child now yellow magic orchestra self titled was and still is a banger. Yet What put Yuu on the path to?
Videogames happen to be one of the band members solo material
Hosono's video game music a tape that a young Yuu would wear to the bone
He'd later work at the very company that was mentioned on that cassette tape
Namco starting his career mastering arcade machines
the limitations of these early machines meant they could only use a few channels of sound at once the people
Making the soundtracks were as much composers as the programmers
programmers on a shoe
String budget who needed to get by on a lot less so they simplified the rhythm the challenge became how do you attract an audience?
away from other machines with the caveat the audience was going to listen to these loops a
Nauseating amount of times so they better be great
The limitations actually helped these games more than they hindered them in use mind video game music
had gotten stale the more it gained and there's one particular study that backed him up a study on repetition by
Elizabeth Margolis and short it talks about the source of enjoyment in music coming from
Repeating elements the more stuck in your head. It becomes the more time
It has to grow on you on a general level finding those repeating elements
attracts us to
Music like a roller coaster when you know where and when all the drops and loops are coming
Sideways a in-depth look at the study
over here
So check it out. I guess it so happens damaShi's music loops
seamlessly with old-school
Simplicity you're going to hear these songs a lot. This game was made with arcade scoring in mind
You'll go from that's a weird song for after the third or fourth listen
You'll be singing it on the commute to work if you like it or not
So while the soundtrack was a return to classic video game approaches
Yuu still wanted to bring a punk?
ethos to the game to do something different with it an idea appeared a tune expressed by
Humming singing was going to be the key
Miyake believed vocal musical scores had never been done well in video games
So he decided to use them for every track of damashii to accomplish this he used artists. That hadn't been in the spotlight
for years in Japan
So they'd still be recognisable to that Japanese audience bringing them from all backgrounds to give those genres an authenticity
they wouldn't have otherwise an
earnestness the composer drew from outside
the trenches of modern video game trends to give us an OST that
Understood the timeless qualities that made videogame music in the first place being both
Classic and unique to the genre the main theme defines this experience in a heartbeat. It's a joke
That's such a large Orchestra will be used for such silly
Nonsensical lyrics and chorus repeating the title again and again order the lyrics mean nobody knows with these royal trumpets
Contrasted with a drum machine tapping out a break beat. It's like old and new coming together, but under all that grandness
We have a synth with this silky
bassline that pushes the groove into good places
Danceable places it all comes together with this ludicrous imagery to stop you in your tracks
You'll say this is weird. This is
intergalactic, this is
Katamari Damacy
They knew this too because this melody is then used throughout the game as a light motif
So even when the soundtrack is spinning off into orbit, it feels connected
As great as the title theme is and even the OST a game is not like a CD or a film
The music is a living performance. And you the player are the conductor
No one could make you move that controller the audio and visual is coming together to make an experience beyond the sum of its parts
Thus sound effects are part of that experience
Feedback is a big deal
if it's the king speaking in DJ scratches
The springy noises are picking up items off the floor the alarms you get for approaching something too big to pick up
Well, these are simple techniques they help create
Satisfying responses to the world in such a way. It wouldn't be impossible to play it the game blind
Well, I mean like the first level maybe it's it's a pre is pretty tough later and none song who's good at the game could
Even when you remove the visuals, you can still hear unique sounds for each item
Like the people who screech and shout or the officers who fire their guns and in that moment it reflects the outward. Kawaii
aesthetic with the horrifying truth underneath for them
This is a colorful catchy Judgment Day
But for you it it's just Tuesday this duality is the heart of the game and the sound design
Understands this the victory screen song is one of the most satisfying
Experiences after an intense haptic level. Just just give me a minute for a second
It's only made more satisfying after dealing with the
torment of the sirens of their similarity to Sonic 2's water timer
It ramps up the tension hitting that target and need a length away from the counter. Ah shit. So close. So close
I want to try that again
failure leads to an absence of music only
ambience and rain the King talks down to its
unsettling
miles away from some of the biggest tracks in the game such as lonely rollin star an
Instant tune with a sweet vocal chorus alongside a splash of melancholy coming from its story of two lovers
One having to go off and leave because of how passionate they are about
Rolling stuff up with their sticky little ball with the other lover left behind in. Woe
But they know one day they will roll back to them
What sells the story is that sad?
Synth lead that's left after the chorus to make you reflect on this
it may even have something to do with the level because it's
Possibly the last part of the game where you spend within the house within that
Comfortable location you spent so many levels getting used to and now you're going out into the the wider world of Katamari
I mean it's simple and short and such a deadly manner that it makes your life a living hell if you got stuck in that
Level it never happens. It never ends. The song will never leave you
What about something like Angel gifts, which is this chaotic intense?
Anxiety inducing piece with layers of fuzz and distortion you could call it shoegaze in its execution
It's a far cry from anything else in the soundtrack
It's definitely the most intense song and one of the larger and more difficult levels
But once you leave that level it's followed by the most serene
Song in the game almost like a payoff roll me in
calm
soothing and
Easygoing. What about a track like Katamari roll where they have the talents of Charlie Kosei of Lupin the third Fame to
Bring this jazzy
smooth victorious ballad in english' of all things were lounging away
On the home stretch one level away from the moon
What once was an overcoming challenge for our small prints is now in his grasp?
Katamari rollers a highlight showing how songs can be used as thematic to the players experience?
Seen again in the final stage where it all comes full circle
Like like poetry it rhymes the OG theme and outro
Variation are used to tie everything back together again. What a
victorious end it is the music's diversity or tying it back together is not dissimilar to
Damashi's playing style the OST does a great job of being accessible for all types of people winning over critics and fans alike
Including the Titans of game reviews and a year full of high-profile games
Katamari was the breath of fresh air a game almost not released in the West
But made it just by the charm of the conference and demo alone
Takahashi once said I definitely think Katamari didn't have a chance at being popular or a cult favorite
without the music
Going forward the series hasn't done as much as it could to use the music in new and inventive ways in line with
Takahashi's idea of gaming you could also argue at sequel. We love Katamari was better expanding on the mechanics and
Refining for his music trying to push into new boundaries, but no one could argue that the first game left the bigger impact
Especially the soundtrack in such an iconic way
The series could never escape it going forward that music is important to people it goes to show the potential power of video game music
Having the right tracks in the smallest games can lead to the biggest stars
Oh
yeah now supposed to say something about
Patreon. Yeah, I have a patreon. It's cool. If you want to support the work I do use the patreon
Maybe you could do this full-time. That'd be great work. Your job sucks. Don't like it big
Thanks for to Cole Davies and Fernando Diaz
As always you make this a lot easier to do the dubis should be on the way soon enough
Probably have a video out for Christmas too. And
If you like Katamari pick up the new HD release, I'm sure it'll be great
I'm definitely playing it right now in this moment when I'm recording this one of the
Coolest things I found while doing research for this project is something called bossfight books. They're these little
novellas that
document the history of certain video games as well as interviewing the people that made them talking about the impact and cultural stuff or
Personal reflections on the games. They're a great read they have plenty of them
Definitely check it out. So everyone have a really nice day and roll up someone into your life and have a great time
Katamari
forever
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