Monday – Listen to Metroid Music, Make Notes + Research
Tuesday – Research into Atmospheric Music and Horror
Wednesday – Begin Research into Metroid Leitmotifs
Thursday – Begin looking at tools I can utilise
Monday 3rd March
Today is Monday, and I begin the first official stride into my project: I will research Metroid’s music, precisely the one in Super Metroid, for the SNES. While in the car, I took it upon myself to listen to famous film composers’ works, such as Hans Zimmer (Hans-zimmer.com, 2025), composer of films like Gladiator Pirates of the Caribbean, Harry Manfedini(Harrymanfredini.com, 2018), composer of Friday the 13th, and John Barry (Wikipedia Contributors, 2025b) composer of 11 James Bond movie themes(Wikipedia Contributors, 2025c) and John Williams (Wikipedia Contributors, 2019 )composer of Star Wars, Jurassic Park. What sets these apart is the mood in their tones and what lies under the beat. Whereas Star Wars was going for a much more broad, fantastical sci-fi adventure vibe, with the London Symphony Orchestra using a vast array of differing instruments, primarily string and wind variety, and with James Bond’s films encompassing a jazzy, smooth tone that we all associate with spies – Friday the 13th is different. You must break music theory as you know it to get a truly creepy, unsettling or otherwise tune.
What is meant by this is that while many of our favourite songs come from film and games alike, we never realise what makes them our favourites. It lies in the melody, arrangements, and instrument of choice to truly dig deep and understand these catchy tunes that fit right at home in Super Mario and The Legend of Zelda. Currently, I am listening to the Super Metroid (SNES) soundtrack composed by Kenji Yamamoto (Foundation, W. (5AD)), and what I can instantly understand is that these songs do not hold a catchy melody (save for a couple of tracks that are made for other reasons, such as the ending theme, and a few boss tracks. I will observe a couple, starting with the Final Boss theme, for Mother Brain, the primary adversary in Super Metroid.
Mother Brain (as seen above, a hulking, grotesque abomination)’s theme is meant to strike fear into the heart of the player the moment she appears on screen, as this Final Boss is a phase 2 of her stationary form, and she comes equipped with far more than a few projectiles. She moves toward the player, who controls Samus Aran, to claw, bite, kick, and even fire a laser at her to get rid of her once and for all. Being the ultimate test of skill, you need to keep your wits about you and remain calm. . .
But the music is doing everything in its power to fill you with anxiety and dread. It begins with the low, looming bass that I can only assume is played in a minor key to gain a more depressing, eerie vibe, which starts after a fakeout sequence as the player tries to catch a breath. It makes us scramble to pick up our controller, releasing our fight is not yet done, and first-time players are bound to sustain damage as we are, in essence, jump scared by how this thing could come back to life. The bass stays the same throughout the song, and while this song is relatively short (intending to loop), you can’t define where the music itself is going except the bass. I imagine this instrument personifies how dangerous things have gotten – you will not be safe in this fight. Focusing on the music does not help, as it will fill you with that anxiety, as mentioned earlier, so you need to do your best to tune it out as you try to finish the fight. It is a constant reminder of how you can and should die, trying to infest your mind with a repetitive two-bar pattern for a 1:12-long composition (and any loops you may encounter).
This is not the only element of the song that I wish to focus on because there are three instruments: a bass, a large bass drum, and what makes the song a nightmare: the (what I have deducted as) stacked and detuned church organ. After the first two bars of the low bass and powerful drum, these high-pitched minor chords and their unpredictable melody kick in, further unsettling most listeners, jumping around keys and taking brief pauses before beginning again. It, just like the bass, screams danger, but in a much broader way – we aren’t subjected to any build-up of the instrument, no idea that it is coming, and so a lot of people with their volume on high will get this shrill, loud and in ways ‘powerful’ chord progression in their ears. I like this approach over the slow build-up for a Final Boss theme, and it is bound to have taken generations of players off their best skills, even if only for a moment. What else is that when the chords drop off and have reverb added to them, they almost begin to sound like alarms, which can be noted as one of the most crucial sound design elements of the entire Metroid series. At the end of every game, the player must traverse back up to the planet’s surface with a few minutes to spare. Everything around them collapses, crumbles, and eventually explodes, which means that even more deadly omens are coming. This is a unique way to foreshadow future events because while leitmotifs are a crucial aspect of music theory and composition, this isn’t necessarily a leitmotif. It is just one instrument that, by ‘coincidence’, sounds like a warning to the player of everything trying to put its all into killing you. Below, I will link the Escape Theme for the game, but I will not analyse it, as this is for comparison in the two tracks. I will mention how the organ sounding like an alarm in Mother Brain’s theme is relatively slow compared to the alarm in Escape, which could be interpreted as the alarms indeed picking up as the planet approaches its demise. In music for film and games, opinion is subjective, and it is up to the player and listener to give their interpretations of the composition. The alarms were already set off when you fought Mother Brain’s second form. This, in the context of the narrative, could mean that the Final Boss was actually intent on killing you by any means necessary, and so if she had to take her own life in stalling you for the planet to explode, that was just what had to happen. This is what I love about the Metroid series: the music, while not catchy enough to be an earworm the first time, becomes a staple in your mind as it associates different tracks with different happenings, and you become more acquainted with different sound cues, and what could happen, the listener opens themselves to interpreting the tracks further, and this is what I intend to do.
Now, I will analyse parts of The Rebuilt Headquarters or Tourian.
For context, Tourian is the final area in the game that you traverse, finding a laboratory and space pirate base that you thought you destroyed in the original Metroid – but for some reason, it is back. As you unearth what could have possibly done all this since your leave, this track gives you company, and it, too, does not want to hold your hand. It intends to unsettle you and make you dread what is to come. This isn’t an ‘in-your-face’ type dread, either, which is what Mother Brain’s final theme is with its high-pitched organ, but rather a more depressive, slowed pace, and it sounds like you are underwater when you aren’t. I think the one instrument (which sounds like one of the regular synths that the SNES Sound Chip has in its library) with reverb added to it also has a more damp tone, and for lack of a better term, I would describe this as it sounds like it is drowning. With the long-sustaining notes, thanks to the reverb, few keys are used in this motif, and it only moves up a few octaves at odd times in the song. Even after listening to it for so long, I still can’t call this a memorable track, but that is its beauty – being able to associate the sound, but your brain cannot actively remember it until it appears. This means players visiting Tourian are in for a hellish escapade, and the song’s sound effects (not even instruments) take the atmospheric aspect to a whole new level. To further intensify the feeling that you are alone, a wet, gurgling growl repeats at different time frames in the song, which could suggest that the player is being tracked. This is a stand-out effect to me because the player is assuming control of an Intergalactic Bounty Hunter – the hunter has most likely become the hunted, and you have walked into a trap, laid ready for you since you left the planet Zebes. In light of the gameplay, this sound design is intended to be a red herring, which, by definition, is a piece of information meant to be misleading. This sound design is genius because it encompasses the feelings of the character, Samus, as she needs to be ready for anything lurking in the dark that could jump out at her with an ambush. It further immerses us in the environment and keeps the player primed for sneak attacks. Ergo, Metroid is a leading game series in atmosphere and world-building. I cannot stress this enough. This motif used on the instrument is even taken from an earlier track in the game, the Chozo Statue Awakens, where the player associates these rooms with good things: you get items, a refill on ammo, but in one notable case, the very thing holding its hands out tries to attack you – and it reminds you nothing is your friend here. While you may think you are safe, as you descend to Tourian, you realise you are not in any Chozo room; you’re in someone or something’s lair, and there is nothing but pain to be found.
The bubbling is also another element that intensifies the sound: it isn’t a red herring, per se, but more of a key component in telling a story. As you are in Mother Brain’s lair (see the image below of her primary state), it doesn’t take much to interpret that you are actually in an organic facility, as the bubbling isn’t water but something that Mother Brain uses to stay alive. A phrase I would use to describe this track is: “into the belly of the beast” because you have traversed deep enough into the planet to come face to face with such horrors that it was hiding. This organic, fleshy track is hardly a song to me, and my interpretation of the music leads me to believe it, in every aspect, is a complete warning of the danger you have to face. There is no turning back. You are trapped and must fight your way out to keep your life.
ANALYSIS
While I intended to make notes about Metroid’s music, I now realise I put a lot of time and dedication into delving deep into the series’ music. Nevertheless, I went above and beyond what I originally intended- I have made an exceptional jump ahead in schedule, so I need to re-order what I plan to do. With Monday being the prelude to Friday (in the original plan), I have essentially completed most of that task and can push myself to complete more tasks ahead of time. I feel as if Tuesday and Wednesday will both be coherent with one another, as Horror Music uses atmosphere to intensify the feeling of its genre further. This means tomorrow, once I have completed this work (Tuesday and Wednesday), I can pull Week 4’s schedule back and be way ahead of things. All in all, today was very successful.
Tuesday 4th March
I will analyse one piece of music from the Friday the 13th Soundtrack, specifically the main theme from Part 3. I will not mess around and write exposition, as this is one of the largest horror franchises worldwide.
I can instantly hear a very pop-disco-type arrangement, which, for such an old slasher movie, is actually relatively common. With Friday the 13th Part 3 being released in the early 80s, it’s no secret that a lot of media was influenced by the King of Pop, Michael Jackson. This tells me that music was rapidly evolving thanks to the catchy beats of MJ, and thanks to such influence, it helps us step into the shoes of the characters in the movies. While this isn’t a red herring but still a distraction, it is something widely popular then, and it could be used to remind us how ordinary our protagonists are. They are regular people, and so are we. This is something the characters would listen to – and if you imagined this playing over the backdrop of the film, this would fit as something coming from a radio. Not only is this an important feature to help immerse us in the period and setting, but another factor leading into how the sound is done so well is that we can hear the infamous “ChChCh AhAhAh” (which is misinterpreted, it is the Ki Ki Ki Ma Ma Ma) chant, crowned as Jason’s reoccurring sound cue to let you know he is close. This plays the opening of the song, only for a brief moment as we get to listen to the rest of the arrangement.
This song isn’t without its ‘warnings’, however. While there is a catchy amount of bongo drums, a disco beat on the drum kit, and a low, funky bassline, I would like to bring attention to the synths that we hear repeatedly throughout the song in the bridge. These reverberating sci-fi notes could be a nod to the otherworldly status of Jason Vorhees himself, as his situation is rather unique. This nigh-indestructible force of nature, revived from a lake once drowned in, is a chilling backstory as he takes out his pent-up aggression and bloodlust on innocent teenagers that did nothing to him – this is not a regular lifeform, and neither is the instrument of choice. For my music, I could perhaps take this as inspiration, and with the idea of the detuned organ, maybe detune some other instruments and try to play them through the program. One more thing to touch on regarding this theme is that while we are getting into a groove and enjoying the track, the buildup, thanks to the bridge,e adds some more horror elements to remind us of what we are apart of (since the movie was widely shown in 3D across the globe, new technology at the time). Harsh sounds, known as stingers, are a quick reminder of what we are listening to and what genre it accompanies.
The next track I want to analyse is an atmospheric piece from the Silent Hill 2 Soundtrack, composed by Akira Yamaoka. I won’t have as many words on this piece as I do others, as I am not familiar with the story of Silent Hill 2 or any of the franchises. So, what I can do is interpret and try to figure out what this track can be used to signify.
The title stands out to me instantly. “A World Of Madness” isn’t particularly pleasant, and while listening to the track, it is almost an antithesis of the entire title. Perhaps this implies that while most of the instruments are calm and slow, suggesting peace and a place to rest, the underlying theme is much more sinister, perhaps a commentary on how things seem fine when they aren’t. This could be closely related to the mental health of the character you play – pretending they are safe when things are still quite dangerous. As a free-thinking species, humans are prone to ‘gaslighting’ themselves into believing things will be okay at the moment when all they need is a moment of respite from the chaos around them. This could go both ways for this interpretation, as maybe the music is linked to our character’s attitude, appearing calm and confident on the outside, but deep inside their heads, everything is not okay. I like this approach more, with the music being their demeanour, as even the greatest liars slip up eventually. This track, while peaceful, sounds . . . wrong, as multiple instruments play over one another, drowning out some of the deeper sounds, which could be the character burying their inner emotions in an attempt to seem stalwart in an otherwise unwinnable situation. I am not sure when this plays in the game, but if I were to put it at some point in the series, I would use this when the character is in a dreaming, almost lucid state, or perhaps when they have just split up from another character in the game.
I like the idea of multiple layers of instruments being stacked over each other as the character tries to progress and cope with the reality of the situation. They are scared but try to bury it deep, creating more conflicting feelings and a more muddled thought process, actually to their disadvantage. If we try to listen to the track and focus on those more profound thoughts, it can almost be chaotic, and we have trouble making out all of the notes played, which is why it could be titled “A World Of Madness”, representing an emotional state. Even though I have only listened to this a handful of times, if I had to cope with this song playing for more than an hour, I, too, would go mad. Even the most peaceful points of life, being left to our thoughts, can be another enemy, just as dangerous as a monster that wants to hurt you. This track plays with your head much further and in more ways than Super Metroid can because this is a red herring, a reoccurring phrase I have been giving specific arrangements throughout my research. Perhaps I could use this to my advantage in my music and see what I can develop to help push my track further.
ANALYSIS
I analysed the horror and atmospheric tracks to my standard, with ample glimpses into how they intend to make us feel, rather than just looking at a chord progression or what instruments were used. I understand now that immersing the listener is one of the key elements of creating a successful track, and if I want to succeed with this project, I will have to take many leaps and attempt to utilize skills that I have yet to learn. I hope to look at this when I begin my whole track next week, and I think researching the techniques will be helpful to me. I am happy with my progress, as I have done the Tuesday and Wednesday work in one load, so my Week 4 schedule can begin roughly 3-5 days before I get to that week.
Wednesday 5th March
While I want to research the leitmotifs that the Metroid series uses, I am unsure where to start. I will search for videos on YouTube to see if these have been analysed already and also scour the internet for any resources that may prove helpful to me, but I have had no luck so far. Even analysing one of the videos I gave in my proposal form did not come back with much, and my lack of ability to read sheet music does not help, as these limited resources are all I have at my disposal.
While this video helps me understand what leitmotifs appear in the game itself, I cannot do much with these as I cannot discern the notes played. I can only tell that the series is avid fan of using Suspended Chords, Minor Chords, and sometimes a Major Chord. This seems to be the first roadblock I have encountered in my project, yet I won’t allow this to stop me from trying. When I am in college tomorrow, I will seek help from the tutors and expand this section further to better understand these leitmotifs that will help push the storytelling aspect of my tracks even further.
While many other leitmotifs are few, only repeating a handful of times through different entries in the series, the Samus Appearance Fanfare is a central recurring leitmotif in every game. It is key that I understand this one at the bare minimum, as most themes lose their charm without this small arrangement of notes. From what I can make out with my listening (and I don’t have the ‘perfect pitch’ skill), this seems to be one of a few tracks that want to use significant chords, signifying that the story’s hero has arrived. It feels triumphant, and in the story’s context, it reminds us that we are here to do good to the galaxy.
ANALYSIS
I am upset with the number of results I have from trying my best to understand the leitmotifs today, as I can only hear and guess the types of chords they use—but this is not something that halts my progress. I can seek help in college on Thursday, and I intend to research the AI tools I can use while amending and tweaking the work I have already done. Though this is a negative, initially, I can turn this around for me in a positive way – I can focus on my other tasks until I have the answers I seek and get an even further headstart on planning my tracks or EP, as I realise that I can call it that with how many tracks I intend to put out (that I have developed myself).
Thursday 6th March
As I look into AI tools for part of my project, I have revisited the many names I mentioned in my final essay about the development of AI in Music. I will also be reviewing again (Tousley, 2024), where I found numerous AI tools that will be useful in creating my tracks. The three stand out for me tools.
Two that stand out to me instantly would be Soundraw (AI Music Generator SOUNDRAW, 2025), purely because their generated music is royalty-free, which makes it copyright-free and doesn’t give artists the power to sue. While this initially seems like a worrying statement, as it could maliciously be used to take producer’s and musicians’ tracks, they train the AI Model by feeding it their in-house produced beats and melodies, which the original composers claim are royalty-free. I like this outlook on not taking other artists’ music to train their AI, which is a strong contender for one of the models.
The second would be Landr (MxGenius, 2024), as it has various AI-driven Modules, including Composer and Mastering, Studio, and an AI-powered sample library.
I presented a PowerPoint presentation on my final project, my initial thoughts I will be updating the feedback received, and my thoughts on what I need to review and change. It went rather well, and I look forward to what I can accomplish in the next week.
Friday 7th March
Today, I ordered a book from Amazon Music Production 2024+ edition (Swindali,2023). After reviewing it, I hope to find this helpful information, as it covers significant information on pre-production, recording, and realising tracks.
References used:
Foundation, W. (5AD). Kenji Yamamoto. [online] Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenji_Yamamoto_(composer,_born_1964) [Accessed 3 Mar. 2025].
Harrymanfredini.com. (2018). Harry Manfredini: Home Page. [online] Available at: https://www.harrymanfredini.com/ [Accessed 9 Mar. 2025].
Hans-zimmer.com. (2025). Hans Zimmer Website. [online] Available at: http://www.hans-zimmer.com/ [Accessed 9 Mar. 2025].
Wikipedia Contributors (2025b). John Barry (composer). [online] Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Barry_(composer).
[Accessed 3 Mar. 2025].
Wikipedia contributors. (2025c). John Williams. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Williams
Toulsey, E. (2024) Best AI tools for Music Makers: Top 20 picks for 2024, De Novo Agency. Available at: https://denovoagency.com/blogs/insights-and-strategies-for-the-modern-musician/best-ai-tools-for-music-makers-top-20-picks-for-2024 (Accessed: 06 March 2025).
Ai Music Generator SOUNDRAW (2025) AI Music Generator SOUNDRAW. Available at: http://soundraw.io/ (Accessed: 06 March 2025).
The Best Music Production Bundle for creators (2024) LANDR. Available at: http://www.landr.com/ (Accessed: 06 March 2025).
Swindali, T. (2023) Music production 2024+ edition: The professional studio guide for producers, songwriters, artists & audio mastering engineers. Fortune Publishing