Mix CD #51 - Wasteland Soul: An Introduction To Miracle Of Sound

Hello and welcome to the, very late, first blog of 2020! Seeing as we are now living in The Future, I figured I'd treat you to some Post-Apocalyptical artwork (see more info below) just to remind that, no matter how shit the world seems right now, at least we aren't buying things with bottlecaps just yet.

Anyway, to the music. It's been a fair while since I did a themed mix, especially an artist-specific one (that was Regurgitator, almost two years ago now), so I present to you Miracle Of Sound!

Miracle Of Sound is actually just one man rather than a band as it may seem, that man is Gavin Dunne from Cork in Ireland. He sings, plays and records pretty much everything, though quite a few songs have guest vocalists and musicians on them.

The vast majority of his work is Geek (not Greek) themed, so video games, movies or cartoons etc. He tends to write his songs from the first person viewpoint of the protagonist (or antagonist occasionally) which gives them an immersive, narrative feel and draws you into their story. He also tends to tailor the genre to fit the song so his albums have a wildly eclectic sound. Though based around a base Alternative Rock sound, his songs veer wildly through Dance, Folk, Pop, Jazz Metal and weird Russian polkas.

Gavin 'Miracle Of Sound' Dunne

On top of that, every single one of his songs has an accompanying video, usually made using footage of whatever that song happens to be about. If you have a few hours to kill on YouTube, they're all pretty good.
Taking all that into account then it's no surprise that Gavin is a severely talented man. There's more to it than even all that though as his true strength lies in the fact that his songs are good enough that it doesn't matter if you're familiar with the subject matter or not. You don't need to know anything about Minecraft to enjoy Mining All Day Long, you don't need an encyclopedic knowledge of Far Cry to appreciate Welcome Home and it's not necessary to be familiar with Cortana or Master Chief to feel the sorrow in Reclaimer. In fact, half of the songs on this compilation are based on games I haven't played but I still love them anyway. He knows how to write a good tune and that's a far more important gift than any technical ability.

He also churns them out at an impressive rate too, releasing twelve albums, some of which are thirty+ tracks long, in nine years. For the sake of keeping things themed (and also to help trim it down to one CD's worth of compilation) I've not used anything from his instrumental album Vistas or his Metal album, Metal Up. I've only taken songs from his Level 1 to Leven 10 albums. A few of those albums have none geeky themed songs on them and I've avoided them too.

There's also a couple of songs that I would have included were it not for the fact I've already used them in the past:

The Ballad Of Clay Carmine - This Gears Of War themed song was the opening track on the first none themed mix I ever did for this blog, Mix #3 - The Devil's Right Hand

Friends - This cool, 70's Pop Rock inspired track is based on Guardians Of The Galaxy and was on Mix #18 - Top Albums Of 2016 Part One

This mix really does just scratch the surface of Gavin's music so if you like what you hear then please do follow up your listening pleasure by steaming/downloading/buying some more of his music, maybe buy yourself a T-shirt, modelled beautifully but Gavin himself in the photo above, check out his Bandcamp, add him on Facebook and all that. Links below!

Miracle Of Sound
Website
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
Bandcamp
Youtube
Spotify

Karliene (lead vocals on 'No One')
Facebook

One last thing. I had an idea of what I wanted for the cover of this, so I was trawling Google for Post-Apocalyptical images that I could half-inch to use. I found the above picture, loved it and thought it perfect (almost perfect. I had to trim it a little and make it black and white to fit in with all the other covers). I had a look into the source of it and it was created by a French artist/photographer/digital manipuliser who works under the handle of Midnight Digital. All of his stuff is really good, especially if you're into smashed up shit.

Midnight Digital
Website
Facebook
Instagram

As usual with these blogs, there's my tuppence worth about every track included in the mix down below as well as a link to download the mp3's as well as a link to the mix on Spotify too

Cheers
Luke
x

Tracklisting
Wasteland Soul
Reclaimer
Welcome Home
No One
Hard Cash
When I Swing By
Duke, You Used To Be Cool
Clockworks
Mining All Day Long
Roll Out
Dream Of The Sky
Upside Down
Wigglesticks
Commander Shepard
Shooter Guy
Never Alone
Keepers
Road Rage
Nord Mead
Deep Blue
Medal Of Honor: Doorfighter

Download the mix HERE
Listen on Spotify HERE



Wasteland Soul
Song Theme: Fallout 3
Watch the video HERE

I played and enjoyed the first couple of Fallout games in the '90s, as well as spin-off games like Brotherhood Of Steel but Fallout 3 for me was the pinnacle of the series. It got a lot of flak when it came out for being so different to the previous two main games as it's a first-person, real-time style game rather than overhead, turn-based but for me that made it way better and it's easily in my top 5 games. Its open world was so immersive and well designed, it really felt like you were in a post-apocalyptical world. The use of real places and streets in Washington DC also helped I think. I sunk hundreds of hours into it and its expansions. 
Wasteland Soul is at first quite forgettable compared to some of his more attention grabbing songs but it's gradually become one of my favourites. It's a mid-paced, fairly simple Rock song that kicks in a little more once the first chorus arrives, and what an emotive, hope in a time of hopelessness, chorus it is. Like the rest of the song, it's not immediate and takes a couple of listens to really sink in. I really love this song, both as it is and the way it fits the viewpoint of The Lone Wanderer (the protagonist of the game)

Reclaimer
Song Theme: Halo 4
Watch the video HERE

The Halo franchise is a massively successful one but perhaps not one that the average person knows too much about, other than it's a video game. Halo: Combat Evolved came out back in 2001 and personally I still think it's the best FPS I've ever played. The graphics still hold up pretty well today, The gameplay was fun, the NPC's and villains (The Flood were terrifying) were interesting and well voice acted and the story was surprisingly excellent. The ending is still one of the tensest I've ever encountered.
Master Chief is a hulking, mostly cybernetic supersoldier who could quite easily have been an arrogant meatheaded action hero (see Duke Nukem below) instead he was a lonely, melancholic soul who was resigned to the fact he was going to die. As the games (and novels) progressed more of his depressing back story emerged and his relationship with his only companion, the A.I. Cortana, developed. Unfortunately by the stage of Halo 4, her data chip began to degrade and her personality became dangerously erratic. I don't want to spoil anything but the ending is very sad.
That's where the song Reclaimer* comes in. Sung from Cortana's point of view, it's a sorrowful farewell note urging Master Chief to carry on without her and it's actually a pretty rocking and loud song for such a heartbreaking subject matter.

*Reclaimer is one of Master Chief's many names and titles, this one bestowed on him by 343 Guilty Spark, a peculiar little robot that acts a guide in the Halo Array's library.

Welcome Home
Song Theme: Far Cry 4
Watch the video HERE

The only Far Cry I ever played was Far Cry 3 on the original Xbox, I wasn't mad struck on it to be honest and probably just went back to playing KoTOR again. I am pretty mad struck on this song though, it's one of many that highlight the fact that Gav's songwriting surpasses knowledge of the subject matter. This Industrial-tinged Alternative Rock song is flavoured with some weirdly catchy sitar to reflect the Himalayan setting of the game. The song ebbs and flows with an underpinning, groovy riff and another massive chorus. Loving this song so much makes me want to give this game a go.

No One
Song Theme: Game Of Thrones - Arya Stark
Watch the video HERE

As I've said before, he tends to write the songs from the viewpoint of a certain character, when that character is female he often, not always, employs the use of a guest vocalist. No One features Karliene, a Celtic Folk singer from Ireland. I'm not hugely familiar with her work but her voice is perfect for this orchestral, haunting folk song, she sounds a little like a less harsh Kate Bush. Karliene takes on the role of one of my favourite characters from Game Of Thrones and Arya's journey from cheeky tomboy to master assassin is one of the few character arcs that doesn't end up hugely disappointing.

Hard Cash
Song Theme: Grand Theft Auto V - Michael
Watch the video HERE

The Grand Theft Auto series of games is another one that saw a transition from 2D to 3D over the years and, as you probably noticed, became a lot more successful and notorious, possibly of the way it was possible to do things like employ the services of a prostitute then beat her to death with a golf club instead of paying. Just because it was possible to those things didn't mean you had to! 
The stories of these later games, particularly GTA IV and GTAV, are intricate and details while still ever shifting depending on your actions. Michael is one of three protagonists in GTA and is a retired bank robber who becomes less retired. Hard Cash is a synth-heavy, mid-80s style Pop song about Michael's reluctance to get old. I think Gav does a fine job vocally on this one.

When I Swing By
Song Theme: Marvel's Spider-Man
Watch the video HERE

Whilst this catchy little Pop Punk song is based on the latest video game incarnation of one of the most well known superheroes, it's easily transferable to whichever Spider-Man is your favourite. It captures his more carefree, youthful side well and avoids some of the trauma and sadness in his life and is just about him swinging about the city, web-slinging and helping people and making their day better. Not the crooks though, he makes their day go bad.

Duke, You Used To Be Cool
Song Theme: Duke Nukem Forever
Watch the video HERE

Duke Nukem saw the height of his popularity in the early '90s in a couple of Shoot 'Em Up style games. The character, as you can probably gather was based on the larger than life action heroes of the '80s, Rambo, Action Jackson,  John "I Lied" Matrix from Commando and so on. Duke, You Used To Be Cool is one of Miracle Of Sound's heaviest songs outside of his Metal Up album with Thrashy riffs, brutal blastbeats and a snarly vocal from Gavin. It's regarding the not so successful reboot of the franchise and all its faults directed at Duke as if he were the one to blame. As heavy as the riffing may be, the chorus is one of the catchiest and addictive that Gavin has ever written.

Clockworks
Song Theme: Dishonored 2
Watch the video HERE

The sequel to Bethesda's Stealth game set in a Steampunk world improved both the gameplay and the narrative of the original. It gave the protagonist Corvo a voice as well as an optional female alternative in his daughter Emily and also improved mechanics and situations that help the player to complete the game in a non-lethal manner. The song is Gavin at his ominous and atmospheric best. Most orchestral built on a clockworklike, rhythmic, marching beat. It fits well into a Steampunk setting as it feels both magical and mechanical. 

Mining All Day Long
Song Theme: Minecraft
Watch the video HERE

Another charming and cheery little Pop Rock song all about the charming and cheery little game, Minecraft. It happily transcribes all the fun Gav has building his own little pixilated world and how it rekindles an enthusiastic sense of joy in him, not felt since he was a kid. 
To be honest, as happy and singalong as Mining All Day Long is, it sounds very much like he's in denial about quite a serious gaming addiction. If I were his parent I would be writing a frothing and unreasonable letter to the local newspaper about it, along with a photo of me pointing at the computer with a face full of forlorn entitlement.

Roll Out
Song Theme: Transformers
Watch the video HERE

Talking about an enthusiastic sense of joy, here's a song about some Robots In Disguise that I lovee very, very much. Transformers, particularly the G1 comics, were a massive influence on my childhood, possibly even more than Star Wars, What started as a glorified advert for a toy developed into a full blown universe saturated with hundreds of interesting characters and storylines that were as often thought-provoking, bleak and moving as they were action-packed. Whether it be Bumblebee's lack of self worth and paranoia or Ultra Magnus' love of nature and his struggles overcoming his PTSD following several losses in battle to the insane Decepticon, Galvatron, or several characters, Autobots and Decepticons alike, sacrificing themselves to save others, there was plenty of life lessons to be had that I still remember 30-35 years later. 
Roll Out takes influence from the iconic theme tune of the cartoon, name checks a wide array of Transformers and adds in a dig or two at Michael Bay's expense. It even has a cameo vocal from the Decepticon's Chief communications Officer, Soundwave. By the golden spires of Iacon!

Dream Of The Sky
Song Theme: Bioshock: Infinite
Watch the video HERE

The third installment of the Bioshock franchise was actually a prequel of sorts and took the game away from the claustrophobic and terrifying underwater city of Rapture, up into the skies and the Steampunk world of the floating city, Columbia and straight into a class war. 
Dream Of The Sky is probably MOS's most ambitious song that weaves its way through several musical change ups that kind of follow the plot of the game somewhat. Beginning with a gentle American Folk acoustic melody that soon descends into chaos and an uprising style chant of 'Revolt' before careering off into an Irish jig and then a haunting, magical section. 
Around halfway through, Gav is joined on vocals by a woman called Lorna Dollery and an already great song gets even better,  ramping it up by calming things down. This quieter, stripped back section with her vocals is fantastic, especially the final section where pretty much everything drops out apart from her breathy, cracked voice whispering "I am lonely wherever I go". Mind your feels.

Upside Down
Song Theme: Stranger Things
Watch the video HERE

Upside Down takes the heavily 80's inspired synths of Stranger Things theme tune and wraps them up into a hugely anthemic song that sounds like it could be a classic theme of an old 80s movie itself, maybe something like The Lost Boys. It's a brilliant Synth Rock masterpiece that's both creepy and addictive, much like the TV show which, if you didn't know is about a nightmarish mirror of our world that sometimes, awful things creep out of. They would have gotten away with it too, if it wasn't for those meddling kids.

Wigglesticks

Song Theme: Resident Evil 6
Watch the video HERE

At first glance, a song called Wigglesticks might seem a little incongruous with the renowned Survival Horror franchise that is Resident Evil. It's actually about the atrociously haphazard and clumsy controls in this particular game "You hammer the buttons and wiggle the sticks". This short little song showcases how Gav is just as good at daft comedy songs as he is at the serious, emotive ones.

Commander Shepard
Song Theme: Mass Effect
Watch the video HERE

This is the song that started it all for me and a lot of others, I was right into that first Mass Effect game and, while geeking about on Youtube, I stumbled onto the video for this ace, catchy and amusing Dance Rock tribute to it and had to find more, 200+ songs later and here we are. Mass Effect is an RPG/FPS Space Opera set in a future where Earth has finally made contact with several other humanoid races and suddenly become a little fish in a very big bowl. What begins with an incursion into a human colony by a mechanical race called the Geth gradually becomes much darker and more serious with the fate of the Galaxy at stake, Obviously. The setting, the other races and the story of Mass effect are all intriguing. While there are similarities to both Star Wars and Halo it's a fantastic setting in its own right. 

Shooter Guy
Song Theme: First & Third Person Shooters
Watch the video HERE

This Country-infused Rock song is both an ode to and a gentle ribbing of some of the more clichéd and silly tropes that are present in a variety of shooting games such as: Conveniently finding a rocket launcher on the ground just as an assault helicopter attacks, being completely invulnerable when standing behind a small wall, enemies standing next to explosive barrels and the simple joy of teabagging your enemies' bloodied corpse.

Never Alone
Song Theme: Death Stranding
Watch the video HERE

Death Stranding is another post apocalyptical game, this time the world has been ravaged by giant, invisible, extra-dimensional monsters and humankind almost wiped out. Sam Bridges makes deliveries to and attempts to reconnect the isolated pockets of survivors whilst not getting eaten by said monsters. 

Never Alone is a stirring, anthemic Synth-Rock song that effectively sets the scene of the game but always just as well as a healthy message about today's society in general, times are getting darker, more ominous and how we need to work together and support each other to get through the depressing weirdness.

Keepers
Song Theme: Seven: The Days Long Gone
Watch the video HERE

Keepers is from yet another game set in a post-apocalyptical future, this time one that has reverted to near medieval civilisation, though with elements of technology dotted around. It looks and sounds a bit Steampunky to me. If I remember rightly, Keepers was written specifically for, and features in, the game itself. It's a cool little song with kind of a Deep South/Chain Gang vibe to it. It's a combination of ominous strings and twangy slide guitar with a great chorus about trying to keep some beauty in a world full of ugliness. So I guess it's similar to Never Alone in that it can be applied to our own little pre-apocalyptic world too.

Road Rage
Song Theme: Mad Max: Fury Road
Watch the video HERE

Christ, Nerds really don't hold out much hope for the future, do they/we? Here's a song set in the Mad Max world which is, well it's not set in an idyllic paradise, I'll tell you that much. 
Road Rage is a dirty, Industrial Rock song, full of pounding, tribal drums and some hefty Rob Zombie vibes. It perfectly encapsulates the feel of  Mad Max: Fury Road, the sand choked wastelands, the menacing vehicles of Immortan Joe and his War Boys. Listen to it loudly in the car and try not to ram other drivers off the road.

Nord Mead
Song Theme: Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Watch the video HERE

I've been playing Skyrim pretty much constantly since it first came out in 2011 and still haven't done or found every little thing (stupid Crimson Nirnroots) in its frosty climes. The very handsome chap in the picture above is my current character, Greylag, chilling in his home, Windstad Manor, thinking about maybe crafting some daggers.
Nord Mead is a fun track that's Folky, Punky and perfect for quaffing to. Nords are the hardy folk native to Skyrim and curiously similar to Vikings. As you might imagine Nord mead is a drinking song about their favourite tipple. It also unfavourably mentions several other drinks available such as Balmora Blue, Alto Wine, Cyrodilic Brandy and the addictive, not to mention illegal, Skooma.

Deep Blue
Song Theme: Subnautica
Watch the video HERE

Subnautica is, as you could probably figure out, is a game that's set underwater. It's an aquatic, survival type game that's set in the oceans of some faraway alien planet. The strange environment is beautiful to look at but filled with unknown dangers and pitfalls. Presumably one of the dangers is a huge, four eyed octopus-spider thing. 

Deep Blue is a relaxing, tranquil song with a wafting feel of serene ocean waves. It's some nice, gentle, new age Electronica that soothes the soul and eases the heart. And probably smells of patchouli.

Medal Of Honor: Doorfighter
Song Theme: Medal Of Honor: Warfighter
Watch the video HERE

So to finish then, here's an awesome blast of stupid, chest-beating Gonzo Rock that sounds like it's from a boys toy advert in the '80s. Apart from the swearing obviously. It's a cheeky swipe at the fact that in the game you often have to smash down doors that any sane person would have just opened with the handle. After marveling at the impressive punning in the song title, take some time to appreciate lyrics like "They're shitty. And wooden. I hate wooden shit!" sheer poetry.