Speed Racer (video game soundtrack)

Infobox Album
Name = Speed Racer: The Videogame Soundtrack
Type = studio
Artist = Winifred Phillips


Released =
Recorded = October 2007–April 2008 at Generations Productions studio in New York metropolitan area
Genre = Fusion
Length = 50 minutes
Label = promotional soundtrack
Producer = Winnie Waldron
Reviews =
*BuySoundtrax (favorable) [http://www.buysoundtrax.com/larsons_soundtrax_6_6_08.html link]
*GameMusicNow (favorable) [http://gamemusicnow.com/2008/06/25/here-he-comes-here-comes-speed-racer/ link]
*OriginalSoundVersion (favorable) [http://www.originalsoundversion.com/?p=56 link]
Last album = "Shrek the Third (video game soundtrack)"
(2007)
This album = "Speed Racer: The Videogame Soundtrack"
(2008)
Next album = The original musical soundtrack of the Speed Racer video game was composed by Winifred Phillips. [ [http://www.soundtrack.net/composers/database/?id=1125 "Soundtrack.net: Winifred Phillips"] Soundtrack.net. Accessed May 9, 2008.] The original music for the video game was produced by Winnie Waldron. [ [http://www.allgame.com/cg/agg.dll?p=agg&sql=1:53424~T3 "Speed Racer: The Videogame>Credits"] Allgame.com. Accessed May 11, 2008.] As of July 2008 it has not received a commercial release, although three tracks from the soundtrack are available for online streaming in the "High Score! The New Era of Video Game Music" section of Tracksounds.com. [ [http://www.tracksounds.com/specialfeatures/high_score/index.htm "High Score! The New Era of Video Game Music"] Tracksounds.com. Accessed July 15, 2008.] Tracks from the soundtrack are also available for listening via the composer's website.

Tracks

The soundtrack of Speed Racer: The Videogame includes the following tracks [ [http://gamemusicnow.com/2008/06/25/here-he-comes-here-comes-speed-racer/#more-7 "Game Music Now :: Soundtrack Review :: Here he comes, here comes: Speed Racer"] GameMusicNow.com. Accessed July 15, 2008.] :

tracklist
collapsed = no
headline = Track listing
title1 = Opening Cinema
length1 = 2:36
title2 = Zoom
length2 = 4:31
title3 = Thunderhead
length3 = 2:33
title4 = Onuris
length4 = 2:34
title5 = Chick-Chick-Chick-Ah!
length5 = 4:38
title6 = Fuji Helexicon
length6 = 2:35
title7 = Rev it Up
length7 = 4:34
title8 = Aurora Cryopticon
length8 = 2:34
title9 = Move It
length9 = 4:34
title10 = Cosmopolis Grand Prix
length10 = 2:32
title11 = Under the Hood
length11 = 4:36
title12 = End Credits
length12 = 3:39

Background

In an interview with Dreamstation.cc journalist Benjamin Ortiz, composer Winifred Phillips described the early stages of music production on the Speed Racer video game project: "On all my movie tie-in projects, the music had to be complete for the tie-in game long before it needed to be complete for the film. That means I’ve written and recorded all the music for the game long before the movie composer has even begun work on the film score... which makes it impossible for my music to incorporate elements of the film soundtrack... For this project, the game’s producer Andy Satterthwaite and I developed a music design document together, and then I started working on the tracks with my music producer, Winnie Waldron. Winnie makes sure that deadlines are met, offers creative suggestions and advice throughout the project, and ensures that the finished work lives up to the high standards that the game developers demand." [ [http://www.dreamstation.cc/features/features/speed-racer-interview-with-composer-winifred-phillips "Speed Racer Interview with Composer Winifred Phillips"] DreamStation.cc. Accessed July 15, 2008.]

In the official launch-day press release for the video game, Warner Bros. Games announced Winifred Phillips' role as the composer for the project. "Award-winning composer Winifred Phillips, created an original score for the videogame, fusing rock, classical and retro beats into a truly unique game soundtrack." [ [http://videogames.yahoo.com/news-1210456 "Go Speed Racer! Speed Racer: The Videogame In Stores Now""] Videogames.Yahoo.com. Accessed July 15, 2008.]

Describing the influences that inspired her musical approach, Phillips told Japanator interviewer Jayson Napolitano, "I wanted to capture the essence of the 1960s cartoon, while at the same time I wanted to introduce a contemporary spin to the music that would bring Speed Racer into the modern world. In doing research for the video game project, I went back to the original manga by Tatsuo Yoshida, and I also did a little digging on what his inspirations had been. When I read that he’d been inspired by the James Bond car, I focused on that concept." [ [http://www.destructoid.com/interview-with-winifred-phillips-composer-of-speed-racer-the-videogame-88232.phtml "Interview with Winifred Phillips, composer of Speed Racer: The Videogame"] Destructoid.com. Accessed July 15, 2008.]

While Phillips' video game score paid homage to the techno musical traditions of the racing game genre, her approach to the score for Speed Racer: The Videogame employed both retro and futuristic styles, juxtaposed against orchestral and choral textures and enhanced by sound design elements intended to evoke the sensation of intense speed. [ [http://wii.gamezone.com/news/05_12_08_12_40PM.htm "Music at 350mph: Composer Winifred Phillips Talks SPEED RACER: THE VIDEOGAME - Wii News"] Gamezone.com. Accessed July 15, 2008.]

Promotion

Phillips' score for the video game was used extensively for marketing purposes, both before and after the release of the game. The "Gameplay Footage" trailer showcased a medley of Phillips' music from the game set against a montage of racing sequences. The second released trailer featured a choral excerpt from "Grand Prix", transitioning to the high-energy "Move it" track. The "Stunt Racing Trailer" used the music Phillips created for the opening cinema of the game on the Nintendo DS. The official web site of Speed Racer: The Videogame uses that same opening cinema music as its musical background.

Critical Reception

The music of the Speed Racer videogame has received positive reviews. Randall Larson of BuySoundtrax.com described the music from the videogame as "a high-octane, fast-moving, rollercoaster of a score that keeps the adrenalin pumping and the accelerator charging." [ [http://www.buysoundtrax.com/larsons_soundtrax_6_6_08.html "Randall Larson's Soundtrax"] BuySoundtrax.com. Accessed July 15, 2008.]

In a review on the "GameMusicNow.com" site, the musical soundtrack is described as "true to the movie trailer style... the overall style of the Speed Racer video game soundtrack can be described as a techno mash hit by an orchestra of sound and energy." [ [http://gamemusicnow.com/2008/06/25/here-he-comes-here-comes-speed-racer/ "Game Music Now :: Soundtrack Review :: Here he comes, here comes: Speed Racer"] GameMusicNow.com. Accessed July 15, 2008.]

While some game reviewers have mistakenly attributed the music of the video game to film composer Michael Giacchino [ [http://www.gamepro.com/nintendo/wii/games/reviews/182629.shtml "Speed Racer for Wii on GamePro.com"] GamePro. Accessed May 9, 2008.] , game journalist Christopher Coleman of Tracksounds.com correctly identified the game's composer and commented, "While composer Michael Giacchino's score for the film has proven a bit of an orchestral-shock to me, veteran-video-game composer, WINIFRED PHILLIPS' score for the SPEED RACER VIDEO GAME is much more along the lines of what the film's trailer appeared to be setting us up for." [ [http://tracksounds.blogspot.com/2008/05/composer-winifred-phillips-scores-speed.html "Composer Winifred Phillips Scores Speed Racer (Game)"] TrackSounds. Accessed May 9, 2008.] In his review of the game's soundtrack for TrackSounds.com, Coleman wrote, "The player's envelopment into the SPEED RACER: VIDEO GAME is made absolutely complete by the vibrant score." [ [http://www.tracksounds.com/reviews/speed_racer_video_game_winifred_phillips.htm "Speed Racer: The Video Game (Video Game Soundtrack) by Winifred Phillips"] TrackSounds. Accessed August 3, 2008.]

References

External Links

* [http://speedracerthevideogame.warnerbros.com/ Official Speed Racer: The Videogame Web Site]
* [http://www.winifredphillips.com/ Winifred Phillips' Website]
* [http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=159412392 Winnie Waldron's MySpace Page]
* [http://www.mobygames.com/developer/sheet/view/developerId,181549/ Winnie Waldron's Developer Listing in the MobyGames Database]
* [http://www.myspace.com/winifredphillips Winifred Phillips' MySpace Page]
* [http://www.soundtrack.net/composers/database/?id=1125 Soundtrack.net Profile of Winifred Phillips]