One thing in the game industry that has gotten massive appreciation over the years is music. We’ve heard a number of awesome compositions make its way into AAA titles, as well as some rad Chiptunes in indie titles. And one person that’s left his mark in this area is Barry Leitch.
The Scottish music composer has been around since the good ol’ days of gaming, making soundtracks for games like Gauntlet: Dark Legacy, Twisted Edge Extreme Snowboarding, American Gladiators (remember the SNES version?!) and countless other titles across platforms like the Spectrum and Commodore 64. Now he’s lent his talents to Aquiris, not only producing a great soundtrack for its hit racing game Horizon Chase Turbo, but also its upcoming sequel, Horizon Chase 2.
Leitch joins us now to discuss his career, his involvement with the Horizon Chase series, and what could be next for his illustrious, finely (ahem) tuned career!
First and foremost, how did you get into creating music in the first place? Did it first start out as a hobby, or something else?
I was entranced by the technology, the idea that someone could make music using a computer as opposed to actually taking the time to learn to play an instrument, then perform and record it. It was the dawn of a new era.
I started making tons of cover tunes, learning how they were put together, and eventually started writing my own tunes.
What is probably your favorite sound chip to work with when it comes to old-school platforms? Or do you have a particular one you prefer?
I loved the Roland MT32 soundcard for the PC, circa 1990.. it was just so much more powerful than anything else we had seen at that time. It was basically a Roland JV1080 synth, but had about 25% of the processing power.
What do you think about the focus we’ve seen with video game music over the years? It used to be so simple but has now grown into full orchestral compositions and such (though many still just enjoy the “chiptunes” of old.)
I think the charm of chiptunes is that it lets your brain “fill in” what it COULD sound like, and with limited polyphony, melody is your only tool. It’s fun to write big orchestral versions, but there’s a LOT of instruments in an orchestra, and it’s much easier to write something with only 3 notes playing at a time. (wink)
Do you have a particular favorite soundtrack that you worked on over the years that still stands out? Is it different from what you think the fans would choose?
I think TFX stood out to me as my first “coming of age” as a composer. It was full of long interesting pieces, they stood together as a unit cohesively, and as such, sounded like a complete album. It wasn’t cutesy platform game music, it was almost like a film score. (at least that was my intention) Since then I’ve written a lot of stuff though, and perhaps people will prefer something more fun like Horizon Chase or HC2. My work on Gauntlet Dark Legacy was one of my favorites too, but there were 4 other composers writing for that too, so there’s a TON of music in that.
How did you get involved with Aquiris and their work on Horizon Chase Turbo?
They shot me a message on Facebook, and I was so impressed with their passion and excitement, how could I not get involved.
Did you find inspiration from other racing games? Not sure what it is, but Magical Sound Shower from Out Run always stands out to us.
I always liked that track, There’s one track in HC2 that’s a bit of a nod to Out Run, that and I took a drive down to the Florida keys to get inspiration for it. The track practically wrote itself.
Were you also involved with the soundtrack for Horizon Chase 2, just as you were with the first?
Yes, I wrote a load of new music for it, Paulo Bohrer, their in-house audio guy, was tasked with acting as producer for that, and brought his considerable experience and skills as well as live guitar for the tracks. We did the final mixing and mastering for that when Paulo came up from Brazil to visit and we worked solid for a few weeks putting it all to bed.
What are you working on next? Or can you tell us?
I just did the trailer music for Life By You, but I can’t say anything else regarding that…. yet. (smiles)
What advice do you have for up and coming musicians looking to make a splash in the video game industry?
It’s a tough business! I’m not sure how I could advise someone.. Just make the music you want to make, and hopefully it’ll find a home, or someone that likes it.
Horizon Chase 2 arrives on consoles this fall and is available on Apple Arcade now. Thanks, Barry!
