Based on the fact that I have churned out two blogs about Red Dead Redemption in two days, I can defiantly say that it is the best game I’ve played in a very long time, and it is quickly inching up to my number one, best game of all time, but I will not make that call until I’ve finished the single player story. However, I’m not writing this blog to talk about the game itself, but rather, the game’s soundtrack. I was unable to play the game today but I did have a few minutes to download the soundtrack from Itunes and I have been listening to it all day and frankly, I can’t stop… The soundtrack has a brooding, western feel to it, but it also contains a dark and alluring tone that gives it a modern feel. It is the culmination of these two aspects that sets the Red Dead Redemption’s soundtrack apart from that of other Rockstar titles, and videogames in general.

Rockstar has had a sterling reputation as far as musical production goes, they selected appropriate music for the setting and tone of all of the Grand Theft Auto games, with a few original bits of music here and there. However, most of the music in contained in Rockstar’s games had been obtained by licensed, premade, content from recording artists That all changed when Bully was released, composer Shawn Lee was hired to compose a score for the boarding school shenanigans of Jimmy Hopkins, during his time at Bullworth Academy. The Bully soundtrack is top notch. So, naturally I was excited when Red Dead Redemption was announced. I was hoping that Shawn Lee would take the reins of musical composition for Rockstar’s new Wild West adventure. Sadly, I was, at the time, let down. I soon found out that virtual unknowns, Bill Elm, and Woody Jackson, would be handling the majority of the musical composition on the project. I was extremely skeptical at this point but when I finally got my hands on the game I was pleasantly surprised. The two gentlemen did a fine job on the soundtrack. The score is able to both stand on its own as well as compliment the Wild West atmosphere the game.

One of the best things about Red Dead Redemption's soundtrack is its ability to take the classic western musical style (as heard in a lot of western films) and give it a sort of modern edge. Players of Red Dead Redemption will hear piano ballads and what I like to call “western whistling” as they are roaming the open range, but they will also hear ominous electric guitar riffs, and moody horn section, as they engage in lawbreaking, and gun combat. The music is slow and easy, like most western films when it needs to be, but it is also fast and heavy like the music in most action games as well. In my opinion, the two styles strike a fine balance between the old and the new. The old vs. new feeling of the soundtrack also helps to convey the tension between a new, rapidly growing, government and the withering world of the American old west in the year 1911. Rarely does a soundtrack become relevant to the ideology of a game’s story but in the case of Red Dead Redemption, I think that the choices in musical production styles and overall cultural message of the game run parallel. The message is that the western United States is undergoing a gradual change. The subtlety in the music compliments this idea quite well. All that being said, the thing that impresses me the most about the game’s soundtrack, is its ability to stand on its own like not many original game soundtracks can.

Some may argue that most game soundtracks can stand on their own, but bear in mind that those of you reading this are at least moderately invested into games, and probably own a few videogame soundtracks yourself. When I say that the soundtrack can stand on its own I don’t mean that it can function as background music for daily activity but I mean that you a person would be able to interpret the soundtrack as its own entity. I suppose what I’m getting at is that if this soundtrack were to be an album in a universe where Red Dead Redemption never existed, I would definitely pick it up. That’s what I mean why I say that it stands on its own.  An example of a game soundtrack that does not stand on its own is the Army of Two Soundtrack. I own it… but I would have never even bothered with it if the game had never existed. It is this ability to exist on its own that makes the soundtrack to red Dead Redemption truly memorable.

In conclusion, I’m not here to preach, I’m just stating my opinion which is that I believe that Red dead Redemption has one of the best soundtracks of all time. If you have been living under a rock and have not played the game at least check out the soundtrack. Who knows, maybe we will will be delighted once again by another splendid soundtrack form one of Rockstar’s future Wild West themed game. Cross your fingers. All I know is that Red Dead Redemption has a “hell of a soundtrack”.
 
Itunes link to the soundtrack:  http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/red-dead-redemption-original/id371357204