David Kanaga - DYAD (Original Game Soundtrack) (2013)

David Kanaga''s maximalist score for the video game ''DYAD'' fuses a breakneck array of sound events to rich, ambient segues of layered harmonies and melodic color. Like the ceaseless forward movement of the game itself, where the protagonist particle encounters cascades of oncoming enemies, the elements of the music also shift in concert with the events of the game. Kanaga casts a wide net stylistically; a kaleidoscope of influences ranging from from acid-fried happy hardcore, to jungle and drum-n-bass rhythms to re-applied fragments of Top 40 production tropes, not to mention more than several sublime passages of hazy, cosmic coloring. Importantly, even with this stylistic range, the soundtrack never veers from referencing the particular intensities of the events in play. The frenetic music shifts in accordance with the game''s own digital psychedelia, becoming on its own a kind of virtual stand-in for the game itself. Extensive liner notes include notations, schematics and game instructions hand penned by Kanaga himself as well as snippets of the code behind the music. Kanaga is continuing to explore interactive possibilities of music in games and other dynamic environments with a prolific stream of projects forthcoming. DYAD is an essential node in today''s expanding base of trailblazing game music by one of the brightest minds in the field.