With the resurgence of vinyl, and many classic game soundtracks seeing a re-release on the format, the Flickering Myth writers look back at some of their favourites; next up is Robert Kojder with Silent Hill 2…
“Silence is a sound” Akira Yamoaka
Silent Hill 2 is the very definition of a masterpiece. The franchise is highly regarded for its storytelling (among other obvious reasons that we will get into), but outside of this sequel (which is essentially unrelated to all of the other games outside of actually happening in the namesake town), the standard psychological terror is elevated by extremely dark thematic content dealing with mercy killing, murder, rape, child molestation, and guilt. The media loves to spin a narrative that Grand Theft Auto 3 was the title responsible for the industry transitioning into more adult oriented entertainment, but the truth is that Konami was pumping out intellectually stimulating content way before then.
By the way, discussing the story of Silent Hill 2 is necessary even in an article like this, because nearly all of the compositions are meant to trigger an emotional response regarding the narrative, character motivations, and the suffering occurring. Every game in the series sees its protagonist tested psychologically via distorted, demented version of the otherwise peaceful town, filled with monsters and creatures that are the manifestations of locked away trauma. The writing in many of these installments is generally outstanding, with Silent Hill 2 packing second to none, unparalleled storytelling for the video game medium, but it would most definitely lose its edge without someone like Akira Yamoaka conjuring up synthesized scores, depressing melancholy melodies, and hard rock music to drastically heighten the impacts of the experience.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5Lis6LnVbk
Starting with James Sunderland himself (and the very beginning of the game), his voice-over narrates a letter from his supposedly 3-years deceased wife of a terminal illness, that is somehow pleading with him to return to their special place in Silent Hill. The problem is that the whole town was special to them, making it a very secretive spot to locate (along with a lot of ground to cover for the player). The piece of music playing over the letter reading scene however (which coincidentally is just titled Letters) is very soft, poetic, and almost depressing, yet features a hint of optimism. It’s most definitely a combination of happy and sad, but more importantly, one that inspires the player to embark on this quest.
Similarly, there is a montage that will play if you let the game sit idle at the main menu (it’s essentially a cinematic trailer) that plays a straight up rock song, that once again contrasts depressing and uplifting tones. Even without getting into the complexities of the song, all you really need to know that The Theme of Laura, as it’s titled, is a flat-out awesome piece of music that stands on its own.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JxvgxuD_lcs
There are also themes specific to each character, and while going into each and every one would take ages (although I might end up doing that because I do have a bit of an obsession with this franchise and entry in particular), I will touch on the ones that will most likely stay with you forever. They are great songs by themselves, but like most everything else about the game, it’s really the blending of the tracks with what is transpiring on-screen that result in a force that gets hammered into your mind.
Anyway, Angela Orosco is one of the game’s few supporting characters (the people James comes across during his odyssey through the town are real and meant to test him in some way or bring about a realization to his conscious), and she’s a bit of a basket case. She is in the town searching for her mother, but speaks and goes about everything with the personality of a child, even going as far as referring to her mother as “mama”. Generally, the music accompanying her presence and scenes are hallucinogenic and dreamy, as a representation of her loopy state of mind. She is also consistently suicidal throughout the game, which is also where one of the game’s most impressive pieces of music comes in (Promise – Reprise). Angela has very harrowing reasons for her psychological condition, and Akira Yamoaka knows how to feed on that.
It is now time to dive into super spoiler territory, considering that there is really no way to talk about most of the music without discussing how it directly relates to the game’s many twists and realizations.
James is journeying through hell and back to reunite himself with his wife, but along the way he’s encountering monsters that are sexual in design. The infamous Silent Hill nurses with crazy zombie cleavage definitely count, but that’s not an exclusive creation to this installment. The most common enemy throughout the game are female mannequins with two sets of legs attached to the top and bottom of the body. James also meets a fairly gorgeous woman that looks exactly like his wife, with her name being Maria, which isn’t too far off from Mary, his wife’s actual name. There are also demons walking around in a straight jacket made of flesh that also sort of vomit poison, which is supposed to be reminiscent to a side effect of the disease his wife died from.
The point of all of this is that James is not a hero, but rather a despicable human being. As the game rolls to its climax, James finds a videotape in a hotel that clear as day shows him suffocating his wife with a pillow as a mercy kill. Only it’s not a mercy kill. If you read between the lines (or just watch the behind the scenes stuff, which is readily available on YouTube now), the character of James is driven by sexual lust, perverted impulses (there’s even a quick scene where you can catch him looking at Maria’s ass as she bends over to pick up something), and netting good-looking females. He’s really suffocating his wife so he can finally discard her for good, as he can no longer receive sexual satisfaction from her.
What the majority of the scenes surrounding this contain are numerous pieces of music that relay appropriate emotions; seductive themes to go along with Maria, and music playing that is incredibly and intentionally distorted once James comes to acceptance with his actions. There is a very depressing theme that basically just feels rotten, almost as if it’s meant to disgust the player for helping out a character that is far from a good person.
The character of Maria is also killed countless times throughout the game by Pyramid Head (more about him in a bit), meant to symbolize that he cannot protect anyone he loves, even if that love is shallow. And despite everything we come to know about James, it is genuinely upsetting once she is killed for the final time, as it is the point in the story where James has once again come to terms with his heinous actions. The other reason the towering town executioner with a triangular metallic head and giant axe keep stalking the duo, particularly to keep killing Maria, is because Pyramid Head is a symbolic reflection of James; a man that murdered his wife. Our introduction to this ultimate villain even mimics his sexual desires, showing him raping a pair of those aforementioned female mannequin monsters. Just for good measure, there is also another scene depicting the sordid act.
James’ only shot at redemption is to care for a young girl named Laura that he meets at various junctures in the game. Her and Maria are also the only characters James (the player) never really finds newspaper clippings or background information on, leaving the deduction that neither character is actually real, with one representing the angelic innocence of his wife, whereas the other is a physical manifestation of his undying lust. The game also contains multiple endings; one where James lives and escapes the town with Laura, one where he is unable to fully atone for his wrongdoings and decides to stay in the town with Maria (his ultimate fantasy dream life), and even one where he becomes so guilt ridden he commits suicide by driving into a lake. As you can bet, each ending has its own theme that fits in line with the story being told. The suicide ending track in particular is heavy metal, whereas the good protector ending naturally elicits a sensation of redemption along with its rocking guitar strings.
It also needs to be mentioned that there are times throughout the game where no music plays of all, ergo the quote at the top of the article. Effective use of silence can be just as impactful as actually inserting music for dramatic effect. In this case, Akira Yamoaka loves to use silence to trick the player into feeling safe, when in reality something very dangerous is right around the corner, but not necessarily always. Still, there is a moment in the hospital portion of the game where Pyramid Head begins a hallway chase at the most unexpected and shocking time; it is literally a shit your pants terrifying moment.
All of this is just a taste of what the original soundtrack for Silent Hill 2 has to offer, So if you found anything here fascinating you should definitely seek out the game. Maybe you have played it and just didn’t realize how deeply disturbing the story actually is. Either way, Akira Yamoaka would continue to go on scoring Silent Hill soundtracks until the last entry in the franchise where he was replaced, but along the way he produced many more emotionally powerful melodies that hit hard. He would also be partnered with vocalist Mary Elizabeth McGlynn, creating songs so brilliant that they deserve their own 2,000 word article. To close this out however, here are some samples of their music together, along with other classics from the franchise.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZmMD84XpCs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wk5qVluwMc8
Robert Kojder – Chief Film Critic of Flickering Myth. Check here for new reviews weekly, friend me on Facebook, follow my Letterboxd, or email me at MetalGearSolid719@gmail.com
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https://youtu.be/b7Ozs5mj5ao?list=PL18yMRIfoszEaHYNDTy5C-cH9Oa2gN5ng
