Grant Kirkhope Tribute

by Illusivebroker on Apr 24th, 2014

Grant Kirkhope Tribute

Grant Kirkhope is a remarkable man with a remarkable talent. I only recently discovered that he was the composer on most of Rare’s titles. With the likes of Banjo-Kazooie, 007 Goldeneye, Perfect Dark and Donkey Kong 64 being only a few of them. There is so much artistic talent to this man and the works that he’s provided. So in honor of this I’ve decided to do a tribute to him in this article, so do please sit down and enjoy.

First hearing Grant Kirkhopes works:

One of the very first games I heard Kirkhopes tracks in was ironically in the last ever game he did for Rare; Banjo Kazooie: Nuts and Bolts. This was the first in the series of Banjo-Kazooie games that I played, later going on to download the previous two titles in the series.

One of the strongest elements of Nuts and Bolts was its soundtrack. For a game that seemed so unfamiliar in the way it presented itself from the other games in the series it was the music that made it still sound like a Banjo-Kazooie game.  Kirkhope composed an orchestra for this game which means the level of music in the game seemed a lot more fresh and re-modelled in comparison with the digital sound editing of the previous games. The charm and cheeriness in the tracks seems very reminiscent of his earlier works in the series, as nearly every track has segments related to previous soundtracks from the previous games.  This is where Kirkhope really wanted to cement the legacy he had with the other games, so he would implement into the tracks references into a new orchestrated tune that made it feel nostalgic yet somehow new and fresh.

Out of all the remarkable tracks he did for Nuts and Bolts it was Banjoland which had the greatest feeling of new and old in its mix. With the level itself being a sort of museum world based on Banjo and Kazooies previous adventures Kirkhope took the main bulk of the old music and blended them into the main track for this world. Using the themes from: Click Clock Wood, Freezeway Peak, Mad Monster Mansion, Gobi’s Valley, Cloud Cuckooland, Mayahem Temple and Rusty Bucket Bay.

What impresses me is how the track works so well in the way it’s set out. Kirkhope blends each track into a mix of reminiscent tunes that feel new and fresh. It fits Banjo Lands theme and concepts perfectly as you feel reminiscent in so many ways from what you see in the level and what you hear in the soundtrack. Kirkhope outdid himself on the soundtrack in so many ways, as his final game you could really tell that he was paying homage to the past thirteen years of works with Rare.

What makes his music work?

As a composer Kirkhope has an excellent talent with making music. He is able to understand the themes and concepts that each world in each game needs to present. Understanding the themes and concepts Kirkhope is able to compose tracks that correspond with the type of feelings or tunes that would represent those themes.

When it came to  Goldeneye 007 Kirkhope was given access to all the films music so that from them he could work and compose tracks that would suit their style.  Goldeneye was set in a dark, cold-war setting, so from these settings there were general concepts and themes that Kirkhope was able to work off. Archives was a very notable piece that he worked on. With the level set in soviet Russian archives Kirkhope implemented a great sense of urgency and espionage to the tracks themes.

With the 007 theme playing during certain areas of the track in the background you could hear ticking and a constant beat that seemed deep yet very fast. Then once or twice the music would be halted and a loud tune would play for a few seconds.

From all those different combinations of tunes and themes Kirkhope made the level feel exactly like it needed to feel; Quick, Kickass and Urgent.  It’s a great sense of similarity to the soundtrack of the actual movie as well, as Kirkhope did base a lot of the music from the game in a similar manor to the films yet not so much that it felt like a copy. Kirkhope really went out of his way to make every track work from his own perspective on how it would be played out.

That’s why his music works so well, it comes from his own understanding and interpretation of what themes were meant to be seen and felt from the levels that you played.  Banjo-Kazooie, Donkey Kong and Viva Piñata all had a positive and cheery feel to them most of the time while still having an odd dark theme here and there. So Kirkhope would present each track in their own unique style while offering positive feelings and tunes out to work with the theme that each level tries to give off. Also Kirkhope took in his own understanding of the level design and the themes it seemed to be generating in order to create a tune or song which would be able to incorporate these themes through the medium of sound. This was a trait Kirkhope could use very well, and it showed in all of his soundtracks.

While games like Goldeneye 007 and Perfect Dark had a much darker theme to them. Kirkhope managed to implement a soundtrack to both of these game which felt similar in some ways but also distinct in many others.

Final Thoughts

There is no man who has contributed towards all our childhoods like Grant Kirkhope did. He made you feel a variety of feelings and emotions all through the use of his music. Without this man Rare games wouldn’t have had the effect that they’ve had to this day, and maybe they never will again. The way Kirkhope understands the music in video games is so interesting as he is able to incorporate exactly the right amount of elements into a games soundtrack in order to make it feel fitting  and just right. My only hope is that Grant Kirkhope continues to make music for games so that we can still enjoy his work for the years to come, and if Mr Kirkhope ever reads this, just know you have  big fans here at Rare Gamer.

Allow me to finish this tribute with my all time favourite track that Kirkhope ever did:

Categories: Features