The Floating Tower of Shirotatsu

Soundtrack for my imaginary game, The Floating Tower of Shirotatsu, created for the OST Composing Jam: Crunchtime 03. 

The file available for download below contains a zip file with the 8 tracks composed for this jam. All of the tracks can also be found on Bandcamp or on my website.

The theme had me imagining a sprawling cloudscape in which the protagonist rides their dragon toward the titular Tower of Shirotatsu, named after the Japanese words for 'white' and 'dragon'. In this game, the protagonist would have to help their dragon take back its ancestral tower from its onyx-scaled counterpart. 

My style involves blending orchestral instruments with pop synths and percussion. I'm less drawn to overt melodies and generally go for a more atmospheric approach, using instrumentation and orchestration to tie the themes together along with traditional leitmotifs.

Intro (Azure Sky)

This is the title track which would play upon starting the game and in the main menu.

Cumulus

The first level, simple and calm. I tried to capture the bounciness of clouds with this one.

Cresting Space

Originally I called this track 'Airship'. The theme of the jam lead me toward a Castle in the Sky-inspired approach, and while this track isn't musically inspired by that soundtrack, the airship imagery in that movie was in my mind as I wrote this. Kinda went for the maritime-y analogy that fantasy often uses for air-/space-travel.

Clouds as Hills

This would  be for a level somewhere around the middle of the game. Sunny vibes with some shady chords thrown in for contrast.

Sky City Alleyway

A 'shop theme' for a smewhat gritty backalley merchant somewhere in the Laputa-esque metropolis I imagined. Moss and fog have taken over these secluded corners of the city.

Shirotatsu's Lament

This melody is what I imagine would be the main theme of the game, and aspects of this track were incorporated subtly into some of the other tracks in this OST as leitmotifs and similar chord progressions, like in "Clouds as Hills", "Cresting Space", and particularly, "The Floating Tower of Shirotatsu".

This track was adapted from a tune I originally composed for another game I developed last year (found HERE). I felt it captured the emotional energy of a later-game plot point. While the tune was precomposed (by me), the orchestration and structure is completely original to this soundtrack.

The Floating Tower of Shirotatsu

This would function as the final level of the game. The heroes have made it to the tower but their journey isn't over yet. Peril awaits the protagonist in this ancient, crumbling tower in the sky. 

Yin VS Yang

The final boss of the game. Obviously channelling a certain japanese monster-catching game with this one (always seems to happen).

The last showdown between the white and black dragons. As they duel above the clouds, bands of light dance and shimmer across the landscape (skyscape ?).