Written by Angelina Bonilla
How Music Tells a Story
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Music often tells a story better than images can. It’s unsurprising when video games have a good soundtrack because oftentimes that’s what they’re known for. Many gamers have their favorite soundtracks, composers that they follow and rave about their music. This is why Life Is Strange is so unique in this regard, because it doesn’t just have a single composer, it has multiple indie/alternative artists contributing their songs to the game’s soundtrack. From the opening song “To All of You” by Syd Matters being played over the game’s opening sequence to “Mountain” by Message to Bears being played over the heartbreaking moment where Chloe rushes to find Rachel Amber’s body. Life is Strange’s soundtrack tells the story almost better than the game does. Which is why dissecting each of the songs’ lyrics in direct parallel to the episodes they’re played
DECEMBER 2019 | LEVEL STORY
in provides another insight into how Dontnod crafted the story and what they wanted to convey to the players. I will do this with three songs that manage to perfectly convey the story itself.
To All Of You Let’s start at the beginning. In the song “To All Of You,” we are treated to the opening credits, allowing us to walk through the hallways of Blackwell Academy, watching the small interactions between other characters as well as getting a feel for Max herself. There’s been criticism of Max’s character, stating that she is yet another blank slate for us to project onto due to the choice heavy nature of the narrative. However, I find, “To All of You” Illustrates an interesting point about Max herself because she’s listening to this song on her mp3 player..
