"If the tritone is the Devil's interval, then the diminished seventh chord must be his summer house". You already won the crown for best quote of 2024 with this one
The melody actually uses triplet partials and not sixteenth notes at 5:38 & 6:10 which are my favorite parts of the cello solo and later choir section. adds some lovely variation
Not that it really matters for the purposes of this video, but: his mouth is not filled with teeth, it’s actually filled with EYES!!!! It has to do with the eldritch horrors he has seen, which is why he is transforming into the beast. So I guess it does relate to your overall point of the music, but I just wanted to add a bit more of the creepy context.
I'd love it if you could cover Gaels boss fight song from Dark Souls 3 one day. The way the track evolves during the 3 phases of the fight mirrors his pull between hollowing and lucidity in a really beautiful way.
My favorite from Bloodborne is definitely The First Hunter. The part where everything breaks down and you're left with only the highest and lowest voices is just so haunting. Then the choir comes in...
I am inclined to be lame and say Cleric Beast (/immediately reused at Amelia) is my favourite but I have not listened to them all in isolation recently
Probably my favorite fromsoft boss design, fight, arena design, and theme. Also a real difficulty spike that makes the eventual win that much more satisfying. I have nothing to add except that it took me multiple playthroughs and the art book to realize he has the sword on his back in the first phase, wrapped up the same way as when you have the weapon it's non-transformed state
My exact thoughts though i dont love the fight as much as some of the humanoid fights like orphan of kos and lady maria, still my absolute favorite boss ever
I absolutely love Lady Maria's music. Something about the staccato violin work reminds me of Mussorgsky's Night On Bald Mountain, or portions of Vivaldi's Four Seasons. Plus, I really feel that Bloodborne is at its absolute best when you, the hunter, are fighting against other hunters or human bosses--Lady Maria, Gehrman, Father Gascoigne, etc. Whether you prefer Ludwig, Maria, or another theme, they're all bangers!
I want that quote about the tri-tone and the diminished seventh chord on some merch!! When I heard that I wanted to laugh, but because I'm still recovering from surgery, I had to snicker instead. Very well written! I must say that very few things make me want to laugh out loud, but your sentence there was one such thing! I'm going to tell people this at my next rehearsal.
I didn't see it mentioned, so I wanted to note that the transition has several versions depending on where in the first half you are when you hit it, allowing for a smooth transition of the different elements into the intro of the second piece. I made a video compilation of it a few years back to show off some of them, but I'm pretty sure there were ones I missed: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-3OOqmJxYIzM.html
Although Ludwig's theme may be the most interesting soundtrack from a music theory point of view, for me personally the highlight is Laurence's music, which depicts all the desperation, ambition and misery of the game and closes the game with an absolute climax.
Something I've always felt with the transition between phase 1 and phase two, is that while phase 1 always had this sense of barely restrained madness, phase 2 was the moment where rather than succumbing to it, it felt like the music was embracing that madness.
God, I really don't think it's possible to overstate how incredible the transition is between phases for this boss, musically speaking. It creates so much hype and sets the mood so well, I don't think it's a stretch to say that this moment is the highlight of the DLC for a lot of players
Rykard’s theme from Elden Ring “God-Devouring Serpent” is I think one of the most complex pieces of music to ever come out of the Souls series. If you plan to cover another piece from these games that one would be a great option as it gives you more things to talk about.
Bravo! What a wonderful take, exploration and explanation! The music of Bloodborne is so often downright primal. It makes you feel your blood swimming in your veins. It makes you bear your teeth and hold your hands like claws. It makes you sway and moan. It makes you wail with grief and pain. The part of the clashing cymbals/swords is elegant and menacing at the same time. I used to do Kendo and Aikido and I can feel the clashing of swords in my body during that part. Special props to you using Gascoigne the hunter as your intro and outro. Another wonderful example of Bloodbornes primal/predatory drunkeness. =)
Even though I’m not involved with music academically anymore, and I don’t really plan on returning, I will always return to this channel to learn more about the music I love and see what makes it work. Thank you!!!
dude, PLEASE make more bloodborne analysis videos. I feel the soundtrack is a masterpiece, but most of the content reviewing it doesn't get into the nitty gritty, stopping at saying "omg it's so gooooood..." which I already know, and say myself, all the time. this type of scholarly review is so much more valuable. can I request "hail the nightmare?" the dissonance is off the charts.
Ludwig I had a real hard time soloing. I think I had to call in one of those phantom hunters to help me and even then it was close. The music was so amazing. Great vid.
Fantastic video! I’ve been watching your stuff for only a little while, but as an aspiring game dev and composer, these videos have been awesome in learning all ‘bout music. Btw the Ys series has some great music, and the first two games have some great classic tunes, both on their original consoles and in the remake. Don’t gotta be a video on ‘em, but I recommend takin’ a listen at them, they’re great! Stay makin’ great stuff man.
One of my favorites from a soundtrack full of amazing songs. Another of my favorites would be Hail the Nightmare and the Mars throwback Living Failures.
Great analysis. Never heard Holy Blade before, just gorgeous. The climax gives me 'His Dark Material' vibes, I guess for when the choir kicks in for its intro theme? Also the general tone probably, beautiful and majestic but bleak at its core.
I’ve been playing bloodborne for the first time and literally just a couple days ago I fought Ludwig and thought “man I’d love an 8bit music theory video about this music” and here we are.
Oddly enough, as striking as this piece is. It has a way to bring a tear to my eye. A man who has lost everything, still clinging to what little he has left of himself, in such a grandiose way.
Having not heard the track before, it was an interesting experience watching this video and getting the analytical "this is why this track is good" at the same time as the emotional "damn, this track really takes off, this sounds so good".
Truly spectacular vid... Would love to see you cover an analysis of other SoulsBorne stuff, like Lady Maria, Abyss Watchers, or even Slave Knight Gael. (All coincidentally written by Yuka Kitamura hahaha.)
Damn, never got a chance to play Bloodborne and that song is insane. The breakdown always helps appreciate these songs more, even ones I've already heard a ton of times, lets me appreciate them more. Here's hoping 8-Bit or some patreons agree with me, cuz I'd love to see some of the following covered one day: - Super Contra, just for how bizarre and chaotic and even non-melodic the melodies are, yet rather uniquely so compared to basically any other game music I've otherwise come across. - A Dos and Don'ts or similar video discussing how to remain true to a song's (or entire soundtrack's) original melody when the game is being remade/remastered. Secret of Mana's remaster compared to Trials of Mana (SoM2) would be amazing to compare originals to remasters to. The SoM remaster sounds like an absolute mess, some sounding like an OCRemix track, others like bad covers, others losing their very essence, meanwhile Trials of Mana is IMMEASURABLY faithful to the original orchestrations and it is light years better for it. - Outward, at the very least the Chersonese Region theme. Being the first region you enter from the starting town, you effectively on the brink of being banned from your home and forced to adventure to save yourself or carve your own path, it captures not only the beauty of the region, but also the emotions of such a situation. The intense anxiety and caution one would feel in a new and unfamiliar situation, only to build up over time to realize how they might actually like it, and how much to see and explore is in front of them if they'd only brave those first steps, absolutely remarkable piece. - Something out of left field, there are some MMORPGs out there that got some crazy good music. I remember BDO's launching theme fondly for while I played it. Lost Ark's "Swords Crossed" is about as intensely heroic a tune as you could hope to find, and Brelshaza raid gate 4 (formerly 6) is absolutely intense amazing (latin choir AND opera singer it goes hard). Anarchy Online could even be an interesting cover, at least as part of a larger whole, with how its combat music would grow bigger and more intense the higher level the mob attacking you was.
The old hunter's dlc is some of the best dlc ever made. It has 7 of my top 10 bloodborne boss fights, making it top most of the ones from the base game. It didn't just give us more, but it gave us better. And the music accompanies that as well.
To me this song is one of the absolute best pieces of music ever written. It elevates the boss battle to top tier with the sum of all the other elements you mentioned of the lore and how it is staged.
I have done this gruesome dance with Ludwig and boy is it a rough one. Just reliving the fight through the music was something. The second phase has that eloquence to it but upon vanquishing Ludwig, that long drawn out crunchy chord is almost like nails on a chalkboard. It's prolonged. You know what you've done. You've ended another beast. And as the chord fades away, the tightness in your chest alleviates and you're able to take a deep sigh of relief. It's over.
Would love you to take a look at Octopath Traveler 2. That game has a phenomenal soundtrack, with each character having their very iconic themes and there are some real good battle and sad themes.
14:36 Me: Bang my head to this absolute masterpiece *10 seconds later* 8bMT: The sigils kind of work like a drumset that can be use to make a compelling rhythm to bang your head to. Me: Ooooohhhhh so that's why.
Love Bloodborne's soundtrack, but Dark Souls 2 has my favorite pieces. Majula is incredible, and Aldia's Theme is melancholy, intimidating, relaxing, and scary all at the same time.
Hands down my favourite boss fight in gaming. He’s so meticulously designed, including the music. I wish it was easy to replay this boss fight again and again, but alas, that’s not how FromSoft games work - they do nothing easy 🤣.
