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Strange Tides: A Confluence (OST Comp Jam #7)'s itch.io pageResults
| Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
| Creativity | #4 | 4.435 | 4.435 |
| Impression | #17 | 4.200 | 4.200 |
| Overall | #17 | 4.207 | 4.207 |
| Composition | #25 | 4.247 | 4.247 |
| Quality | #34 | 4.259 | 4.259 |
| Correlation to theme | #118 | 3.894 | 3.894 |
Ranked from 85 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
Judge feedback
Judge feedback is anonymous.
- It is so nice to listen to something that so instantly grabs my attention and holds it throughout. I very much appreciated the eclectic instrumental choices as well as consistent variety of material and tone-- all while keeping a consistent identity-- no small feat that! It was a real treat to listen to the "rock-forward" music you so seamlessly work into the material. Bringing this kind of unique palette really makes your entry stand out-- you have a unique approach that I haven't heard anywhere else, I'm sure it will serve you well in the future! It is honestly hard for me to find anything to critique here-- perhaps the one note would be that I feel the distorted rock guitar parts occasionally feel like they need just a bit of a tuck into the mix, as at times I had to focus to really listen in to the other parts when they were really shredding-- but I suppose that could just be the way that style/genre works. "The Buzz Merchant" brought a smile to my face-- I will admit that at first it was a little "unique" compared to the other tracks, but then you bring in the drum kit and it just clicked into place for me, and the segue to the misbegotten gods is at once smooth and still appropriately dramatic. "Cavern of Dreams" was wonderfully evocative. "Confluence" opens with some seriously great textures-- wonderful work with the march-like snare against the lithe vocal line. It is a unique, interesting, and beautiful texture in a submission that is just a complete feast of them. "'Inside my world" rounded things out perfectly-- again bringing a unique approach to the whole without departing so much that I felt it came from some other work. The live vocals here are much appreciated and a brave choice. This whole thing had me smiling from beginning to end. Fantastic work.
Description
You awaken knowing two things:
1. This world is not the one you know.
2. Your beloved lies waiting in a prison in the sea.
Strange Tides: A Confluence is a narrative-first action-adventure game about fighting your way through the sea inside a strange new world. Combat fierce endemic life, meet a colorful cast of friends and foes, overcome obstacles of the natural and spiritual world, and find your way to the one closest to your heart.
The album for Strange Tides: A Confluence was developed for the OST Composition Jam #7. It is a genre-defying mix of various orchestral instruments and native instruments of various diasporas, amplified with modern synths featuring rock-forward boss fights.
The album is a brief 11 minute sampler of four tracks:
- Awaken by the Verdant Sea, infamous for the occasional Ironshank Rampage.
- Find the amicable and mysterious Buzz Merchant, but thieves beware: the shopkeeper does not tolerate Misbeegotten Goods.
- Travel deep through the Cavern of Dreams to face against the tyrannical Herald of the Maelstrom.
- Two souls meet in Confluence and lose each other Inside My World.
Strange Tides: A Confluence is made possible through Reason by Reason Studios. The electric guitar tracks were created with the Ample Metal Hellrazer VST by Ample Sound, and the jaw harp tracks were created with the Cowboy Harp VST by New Nation Audio. Vocals provided by Reed Coale and Amelia Giarusso. All other instruments, effects, mixing, and mastering was made and performed within Reason and its freely included Rack Extensions, including the Orkester Sound Bank, Humana Vocal Ensemble, and Klang Tuned Percussion.
Strange Tides: A Confluence is inspired by:
- The genre-bending melodic storytelling of Darren Korb (Supergiant Games), Yoann Laulan (Dead Cells), and Borislav Slavov (Larian Studios)
- The imaginative and dense worldbuilding of games such as the Monster Hunter franchise and Felix Isaac’s tabletop roleplaying game, The Wildsea.
Cover art by Reed Coale.
Message from the artist
To Reed, my confidant and muse, whose soul can fill an orchestra beyond measure.
Theme
How does it fit the theme?
“Inside My World” is both literal and figurative; your soul mate lies trapped inside their world as you travel deeper and deeper to the inside of the world to face them. The illustrated theme shows two people, two souls so close yet separated by the thinnest veil between worlds, drifting in an unfamiliar and colorful sea.
Link(s) of the submission on streaming services
https://soundcloud.com/amelia-ridz/sets/strange-tides-a-confluence-ost-jam-7
Number of tracks4
Genre
Soundtrack use permission
Any non-commercial project
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Comments
Okay, this is super cool. I love the concept of the song separated into 2 worlds, aka. 2 genres, and you pulled it off naturally. First song's beginning reminds me of Mirror's Edge ambient tracks and the bendy instrument really made it pop out. 0:50 of the second song went hard af, was certainly unexpected haha! Only critique would be that the drums in the last two songs lack air/high-end IMO even though they sounded good in the first two. The third track's time signature felt natural as well, legit something outta Hades.
Overall, a genuinely interesting and unique collection of songs.
Hot DAMN this is one of my favorites! I was NOT expecting that guitar drop in Ironshank Rampage to go that hard, but it was all smiles from me until the end of the submission.
Fantastic work!
Genre-defying? My goodness what an understatement. Bendy groovy cowboy keys from Ancient Egypt? Yes, please. Synthetic bird sounds? Wait is that Yanni, Mannheim Steamroller, or Lego Racers theme music I'm hearing? Oh so now you're going to flex chiptune?
This. Is. Rad. Literally typing this as I'm listening through the second time.
9/8??? Ok this has gone too far. Too powerful... Must pause before I'm sucked in...
The vocals in Inside My World are just the icing on top.
I suspect you had way too much fun making this OST. The joy and emotion seep at every corner. It's raw and powerful. Love it.
The Verdant Sea/Ironshank Rampage is a good case of less is more. Very clever use of space and minimal instrumentation to help to actually make things feel bigger! Great job and good luck! :D
I love the variety in this soundtrack, how playful the first two are contrasted by how vibey and mysterious Cavern of Dreams is, the sound design and how well you blended all the aspects of this together makes it really easy to listen to. The vocals in Confluence are super cool, and i love the contrast between the two different parts of the song, going from a march into more of a rock very naturally!!!! I do with the vocals had a bit more to help them stand out because they don't feel as bright as they could be, I think this is a mixing thing and a matter of not enough high end but if anyone is more experienced on mixing and could provide feedback there that would be cool since this is not my forte at all. Overall super well done, enjoyed this a lot!
I love the unique approach you took with the music. Like, a new surprise around every compositional corner: Spy Thriller meets Indian meets Spaghetti Western meets Hard Rock. And then the vocalists at the end? Top notch. Wtf am I even listening to in the best way possible.
I loved the vibe of the Buzz Merchant, and the switch to Misbeegotten goods. Your compositions overall were very creative and I enjoyed the variety throughout!
Great entry! I love The Verdant Sea / Ironshank Rampage the most, but they're all great. All tracks combined have a lot of variety in them, but still very cohesive. Really fitting for specific areas and moments in a game. Excellent work, well done :D
this absolutely SLAPS wow
Wow, so far my favourite one! Great composition, arrangement and creative wise! Love the variety of instruments and expression! Truly great work!
Baaaaaaabe don't embarrass me in front of the jammersssss! (Hi I'm Amelia's fiance and the vocalist)
Is it too late to take back the dedication to you
Loved the unique instrumentation. Also a very interesting choice to go for strong theme switch-ups in the middle of each track.
I love it when you use an instrument that's very unexpected but is used perfectly, the jaw harp in particular was a favourite.
The mood shifts in all of them also feel very smooth despite often being quite a dramatic change in tone.
Wasn't expecting the vocals on the final track but they sound great and fit perfectly.
Great work all round!
Your diversity of sounds is insane!!! This was so fun to listen to!!
Nicely done, very original, The Buzz is such a change of pace its really funny sounding I love it. I think your drums can "POP" more, it was there but it can probably punch even harder. Last track Confluence, too much reverb on the voice at the beginning its getting all muddy we lose hwo gorgeous it can be, less EQ and a little reverb on the EQ to let pass some high end would help a lot. Good job !
Please I implore you, I NEED the boss battler roguelike that comes with this OST. What an incredible job I have nothing to say other than bravo, that was an amazing listen. God Ironshank Rampage & Inside my World are definitely being added into a playlist. Thanks!!
1- The Verdant Sea/ Ironshank Rampage - Great mix, melody and everything about it sounds sick as hell. Would like to see a sub bass in there but without it it still sounds great!
2- The Buzz Merchant/ Misbeegotten Goods - "Annoying" theme in good way? Gives off the same vibes of the Undertale track "Temmie Villag" and I love it. Mix is great too! Like the transition to the more energetic part a lot and the fakeout sounds really creative too!
3- Cavern Of Dreams/ Herald Of The Maelstrom - First. Go touch some grass. Second. Love the intro and the whole composition. Other than imo the guitars could use a bit more stereo and be a tiny bit brighter.
4- Confluence/ Inside My World (feat. Reed Coale) - I dont like the acoustic snare... But... It gives it a marching vibe which works so well! Still... the mix could be worked on a little bit more... Feels a little bit muddy and not too bright in most places. Like the vocal a lot too but it doesnt feel right in the mix imo. My least favorite track but it still stands strong.
Told you few times in the discord that I loved the vibe of the first track and I still stand behind that. Everything about the first track is almost perfect and sounds great! Overall the whole album imo is a 8.5/10
The opening string hits on Verdant Sea / Ironshank Rampage gave me original Shogun Total War menu screen flashbacks for a second before it heated up lol. Buzz Merchant correctly captures like a humorous bounciness (like, 'Black Marketing lets Gooooo!'). Cavern of Dreams has that 'it's about to get real lets do some subterranean grind sessions' going for it. The final track (the title) had impressive vocals and a real solemnity.
I can feel the consistent quality here. Super beautiful work. In my own work i'm just a silly bedroom producer with a Roland FA-08 who goes 'bleb bleb bleb' and hits save after doing solo manual performances... coming now to itch.io i can see the benefits of serious teamwork.
I love Ironshank Rampage‘s busy, yet calm and focused, intro. The following guitar-like instrument and its composition stands beautifully amongst the mix. And to follow it, comes a wicked guitar solo. As an enjoyer of progressive metal and Chris Christodoulou’s works, I’d love the drum kit to hit heavier to really tie things together.
Misbeegotten Goods: definitely a funky track, which would fit a funky scene very well. I feel like this track is too dynamic to be looping in the background of gameplay, which is why it’s a great theoretical shop theme. I listened to most of the track before reading its description, and still thought “yeah, shop theme”. The second half of the track gives me big Hotline Miami vibes!
I absolutely love Herald of the Maelstrom‘s composition. It reminds me of The Binding of Isaac with a hint of Celeste. Its mixing can be a bit harsh at points, and can do with some more high-end, but it’s nothing that can’t be fixed. As with Ironshank Rampage, I’d love to hear a more present percussion. The haunting synth combined with the heavy guitar goes hard. This is my favorite track of the bunch! (also descending chromatic scale ftw)
Inside My World is beautiful. It would work so well as a “climax” type track. Final phase of the final boss battle, escape sequence, exit music for a game, it would bring me to tears.
Great work. I love this album.
Really great vibe! I love the drunkenness of The Buzz Merchant. Great synths and instrument choices in all tracks