Music for Zombie Gaming - Part 7

Bear McCreary is a name that has popped up quite a bit in recently years, if you're a bit of a nerd. The American born composer and musician lives in Los Angeles California. Not only does he have an awesomely manly name, he is also responsible for the soundtracks for the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica, The Walking Dead and Agents of S.H.E.I.L.D. among other things.

He also composed the theatrical film score to Step Up 3D... which is actually rather good... but less talked about, certainly by most Walking Dead fans.

Although he studied under the legendary Elmer Bernstein he has undoubtedly created his own sound which, whilst clearly versatile, shows a superb understanding of pace and timing and is quite distinctive.

Bear McCreary normally works with a limited pool of musicians, typically around 10, often using less traditional instruments, with a considerable emphasis on percussion and the deliberate inclusion of discordant counter harmonies, his themes are subtle and build into considerable crescendos.

Bear McCreary's instantly recognisable opening theme to The Walking Dead is a great example of how this works and is a perfect mood-enhancer for any Zombie Board Game, Card Game or  Zombie Miniatures game.

Music for Zombie Gaming - Part 6

The video game itself was kinda Marmite, some loved it, and some really couldn't get along with it.

I was in the former camp and from a score perspective it set the scene perfectly.

The Walking Dead Video Game's score is full on small town America gone sour, slow lilting melodies, minor key strings with hints of mournful bluegrass guitar reminiscent of Ennio Moricone's spaghetti western years.

Jarred Emmerson-Johnson's accompaniment to the game is a slow burner and is far less dramatic than many other zombie themes but it's great for game build up and those character driven moments where you're just not sure if one of your favourite characters is going to make it. I've painted to is numerous times, just don't expect it to leave you feeling happy, hopeful or in any way good about surviving the apocalypse.