Soundtrack brilliance

[ABlackEyedPea]

I want you guys to take a good listen to the "Pounding Fathers" track from Season 1, and then take a good listen to "The Office."

Pounding Fathers (skip to 0:15)
Office

Jared-Emerson Johnson is awesome, and this just makes him awesomer.

[doodinthemood]

Are you pointing out the similarities? In which case yes, have a search around in the other tracks too. Jared has only written about 3 independent tunes over all the seasons

[Jake]

Originally Posted by doodinthemood

Are you pointing out the similarities? In which case yes, have a search around in the other tracks too. Jared has only written about 3 independent tunes over all the seasons

Haha ouch! There are actually a ton of melodies throughout the games, but there are a lot of callbacks and covers. So,e of them, are subtle and some aren't. Did people notice for instance that the music in the clone chamber in 305 is a very extended and Jamed Bondified version of the same theme that plays whenever Flint crashes into a room in season two?

[Falanca]

Originally Posted by doodinthemood

Are you pointing out the similarities? In which case yes, have a search around in the other tracks too. Jared has only written about 3 independent tunes over all the seasons

That was mean. Mean mean mean.

[Shwoo]

I think the driving music and the office music are both variations on the same theme. And that tune from Pounding Fathers plays a lot at the end of the cases in the first two seasons. The first time was near the end of 102 when they go on Myra!. There was something in the musical commentary about it. I can't remember exactly what it was, something about how it was supposed to sound like a band on the set was playing it.

Did people notice for instance that the music in the clone chamber in 305 is a very extended and Jamed Bondified version of the same theme that plays whenever Flint crashes into a room in season two?

I didn't! But I haven't listened to the Devil's Playhouse music that much.

Here's a list of musical references that I know. There's only a few from season 2 because I don't feel like looking through all the cutscene suites right now.
-The music that plays in the final battle in 101 (Attack the Dog) is a more sinister variation on the first season opening credits.
-The music in front of the Black Hole is a more subdued version of the music to Hugh Bliss's inner sanctum in 106.
-The Soda Poppers have music associated with them. The best song on the soundtrack to hear it is Rushmore, Lush, War (I didn't notice they had theme music until my second or third playthrough of the first two seasons, shut up)
-The music that plays whenever Jimmy does something is very similar to the Whack-A-Rat music from Hit the Road. You can hear it on the first season soundtrack in Skinbodies Rule The Streets and Whack Da Ratz.
-The music on the White House lawn (Lincoln vs. Max) is an arrangement of Hail To The Chief. Pretty obvious if you know the song.
-The music in the Oval Office (Consecutive Offices) is apparently a super jazzy version of the Star Spangled Banner, but I don't really know the tune, so I wouldn't know. It also becomes more sinister when Max becomes president.
-The music that plays when Bosco gives you the truth serum (неудобство) is a muzak version of... a Russian song I don't know anything about. But I know that it is.
-The music in Banco Lavadero is an 8 bit version of the music that often plays when Sam and Max solve a puzzle.
-The music on the moon (Moonscape) plays briefly whenever you try to launch a missile at Bosco in 104.
-The opening credits music in the second season is from the music that often plays during final puzzles (Freelance Panic).
-The music at the North Pole (Arctic Hush) has some of the melody of the Carol of the Bells.
-The music in Jurgen's club (New Location Unlocked (Midtown Cowboys Remix)) has some of the melody of the Midtown Cowboys theme. It's most obvious from about 2:45 on.
-The music that plays in 305 when Max sacrifices himself is a sadder version of the music that opened every episode of the second season except the last. I'm not sure if it's right at that moment, but I know it's in that scene.

[doodinthemood]

^ I hadn't noticed a load of those, awesomeness I love the little references.

[PetiteBiere]

Originally Posted by Shwoo

-The music that plays when Bosco gives you the truth serum (неудобство) is a muzak version of... a Russian song I don't know anything about. But I know that it is.

It's the Anthem of Russia

[Eyeball]

Indeed, the soundtracks of Telltale's games are easily one of their best features, the jazzy tunes of S&M being very fitting and excellently written.

You wanna hang on to that Emerson fella, I see him going places! He even voices the C.O.P.S to hilarious effect, making them some of my favourite characters in S&M.

[Chainsaw_bunny]

Wow Shwoo, a lot of those are very interesting. Thanks for sharing them.

[Flyingman356]

Jared Emerson-Johnson voices Superball as well as the cops If I remember correctly.

And superball has an awesome voice.

[Falanca]

Originally Posted by Flyingman356

Jared Emerson-Johnson voices Superball as well as the cops If I remember correctly.

And superball has an awesome voice.

No, Superball is voiced by Peter Barto, who also voices Peepers.

Jared voices the full roster of C.O.P.S -except Chippy, but I wouldn't be surprised if it turns out to be that he's also voicing him-, but I'm unsure if he voiced another character from Sam and Max games. He did voice Marquis DeSinge from ToMI though and it sounds nothing like any of the COPS.

[Hubert]

Originally Posted by PetiteBiere

It's the Anthem of Russia

When I heard that on the soundtrack disc...it had me scratching my head for weeks. I KNEW what it was, and that I'd heard it, but I just couldn't get to the spot in my brain where it was stored(with all the times I've seen Rocky IV and The Hunt for Red October)...and eventually I FINALLY remembered; but man, that drove me CRAZY, lol.

I STILL didn't know WHY it was in the game until the next time I played the game it was in...then went, "Oh, DUH!"

[Jake]

One of my favorite music self-references in the series is the music in the lava pit Sam & Max find themselves in in the "Christmas Future" of 201 -- it's a demonic cover of the Soda Poppers' jingle (heard throughout season 1 including when Wizzer eats the ketchup cake, and when he drinks soda in the Oval Office) intended as musical foreshadowing. Nobody seemed to notice though, which is probably for the best. We were hoping that retroactively people would catch it but hey

[Zeek]

Originally Posted by Jake

One of my favorite music self-references in the series is the music in the lava pit Sam & Max find themselves in in the "Christmas Future" of 201 -- it's a demonic cover of the Soda Poppers' jingle (heard throughout season 1 including when Wizzer eats the ketchup cake, and when he drinks soda in the Oval Office) intended as musical foreshadowing. Nobody seemed to notice though, which is probably for the best. We were hoping that retroactively people would catch it but hey

Comparing the two tracks, Jared did a very nice job changing it up so much that it went unnoticed. Slower tempo, deeper tones, but the same basic melody. It's really difficult to notice without actually listening and comparing the tracks, unlike the Bond version of Flint's theme or the sad piano version of this Season's theme.

Then again, I didn't realize the Charlie Ho-tep song was a demonic version of "Pop goes the weasel."

[Ash735]

Speaking of sounding similar, it might have just been me, but some of the renditions of the songs that play inside Monster Max, such as the Lounge area, Gym (especially this one) and the Games Room sound like a reworked, jazzed up and up tempo version of the Train Station theme from 205/301.

[Chuck]

Originally Posted by Jake

One of my favorite music self-references in the series is the music in the lava pit Sam & Max find themselves in in the "Christmas Future" of 201

Nuh-uh, the best is using the Midtown Cowboys theme as dance music in Jurgen's Zombie Factory.

[Jake]

Originally Posted by Chuck

Nuh-uh, the best is using the Midtown Cowboys theme as dance music in Jurgen's Zombie Factory.

Haha that is the best one. And probably the least noticed.

[Jake]

Originally Posted by Ash735

Speaking of sounding similar, it might have just been me, but some of the renditions of the songs that play inside Monster Max, such as the Lounge area, Gym (especially this one) and the Games Room sound like a reworked, jazzed up and up tempo version of the Train Station theme from 205/301.

I believe that is the case. Not sure why that one happened to be honest. Maybe Jared decided to use it whenever characters were in cavernous tunnel systems? Maybe he just had it around and liked it. I know it showed up a tiny bit in the cutscene at the end of 304, whenever Max was normal for a few seconds, between bouts of his powers taking over and mutating him.

[DrRocketGenius]

Originally Posted by Jake

One of my favorite music self-references in the series is the music in the lava pit Sam & Max find themselves in in the "Christmas Future" of 201

Any idea what song that was? Was it released as a seperate song on the Soundtrack?

Also, I have no idea if there are any similarities to anything else, but I freaking love this track.

[Shwoo]

It's very similar to the final battle music from 205, but with less vocals, and that's on the soundtrack under the name Absorptio Bullenscens Fatiscores Daemona.