Zanobard Reviews

Ludvig Forssell’s score for Death Stranding 2: On The Beach builds and expands upon the chaotically atmospheric sound of the first game to mesmerising effect; with memorable themes and an album overall that’s equal parts deep and wondrous as it is frantic and thunderous, there’s plenty to entertain in this uniquely styled sequel soundtrack.

At long last, Death Stranding returns! I’ve always been a big fan of the first game; Hideo Kojima’s wackily dramatic worldbuilding is fascinatingly done, and the gameplay of delivering packages to increasingly dangerous environments, particularly around BTs (Beached Things) is a lot of (sometimes very nerve-wracking) fun. And central of course is Ludvig Forssell’s score; equally loud and dramatic as it is gentle and ambient, his synth and electronic-heavy music does a lot of the heavy lifting in setting the darkly fortitudinous tone of the story, and standout tracks “BB’s Theme” & “Strands” should tell you a lot about how exquisitely atmospheric the whole thing is. As a result, I for one have been excitedly anticipating the composer’s sequel score ever since it was announced, and now happily, finally – here we are. So let’s get started. The nearly four hour album begins with “Should We Have Connected?” and a gently wistful piano opens the track with the Strands theme – heard prominently in “Strands” from the first game – front and centre. “Over The Dunes” then quietens with vocal and synthy tranquility to start before building with orchestra to an emotive BB’s theme crescendo, and overall it’s got to be said; even just two tracks in Forssell has already perfectly re-established the gorgeous atmosphere of the first game. Even just the style of it is recognisably Death Stranding, though themes are of course certainly present too. Strand-type music.

The theme for the antagonistic Higgs Monaghan loudly arrives in “Higgs”, with eerie strings and increasingly imposing vocals swirling and leaping alongside drums and electronics to build the motif with frightening intensity until a deafening crescendo brings it to an end. Gentle synthy ambience then occupies “Terminals” and “Drawbridge” – sounding very Vangelis’ Blade Runner-inspired too, I might add – before the six minute “We Should Not Have Connected” brings back the Strands motif for an extended and dramatically upbeat reprise, with the creepy theme for Higgs also making a malevolent appearance in the back half. Eerie electronic atmosphere with echoing vocals and strings then occupies “Womb” with gentle piano adding hope somewhat in the subsequent “Neil Vana” before Higgs’ theme intriguingly heads into death metal-esque territory in the deafening “Crimson Steel”, hinting heavily at musical thunder to come too. The boss battle music really is something special in the original Death Stranding, and happily this sequel score doesn’t leave us hanging; “Good Old Fashioned Boss Fight” puts Higgs’ theme front and centre for a fast-paced, frantically electronic and deafeningly vocal-heavy action setpiece that reaches thunderously epic levels towards its end, and the album is only just getting started with tracks like that.

Before the thunder returns though the music withdraws into quiet solemnity with hints toward BB’s theme in “Dollman”, and both the Strands and Higgs motifs also reprise in the serenely piano and vocal-focused “Soaring Shadow”. The echoingly tranquil Blade Runner-esque synth reprises in the eight minute “Calamities”, with additional frenetic electronics, vocals and drums speeding things tensely up in the back half. Hauntingly shrill vocals then open action track “Crab Battle”, with rising distorted electronics powering away in the background alongside percussion until the entire ensemble then crashingly crescendos at the end of its four minute runtime. Some rather creepy music box notes take the forefront in “Death’s Grip” with Higgs’ theme villainously in tow, and action then kicks thunderously off again a few tracks later for parts one, two and three of “One Last Fight”. The first focuses on deafening vocals and dramatic electronics riffing off of both the Strands and Higgs motifs to devastatingly dramatic effect, with the second then switching things up as BB’s theme enters centre stage with vocals sung by non other than Troy Baker himself, and the instrumentation rallies behind it for a heroic electric-guitar infused last stand. The third part then starts where it leaves off with continuing echoes of BB’s theme, instrumental ones this time, and the action comes to a gentle finish at just before the three minute mark.

A ghostly ambience settles in “A New Continent”, with echoing vocals and serene strings playing centrally alongside wistful synth notes throughout. “The Road” then turns the mood a little more sorrowful, with pensive strings and echoing hints toward the Strands motif playing before “BB’s Theme (2022)” reprises the titular catchy theme in full with Troy Baker’s vocals from earlier reprising. The risingly ethereal piano notes from earlier return in “You Have To Save Her” with echoing atmosphere then following in the tranquil “APAS”. The triple threat of “Package Patrol”, “Package Play” and “Package Plan” then up the tension, with the first cue utilising wary vocals and moody electronics in a slow, foreboding manner, the second launching into action territory with the addition of loudly emphatic and frantic percussion, and the third crashing everything to a gigantic crescendo finish with an electric guitar in centre stage. Distorted electric thunder is then the focus of the fast-paced “Parcel Pillaging” with the equally in-your-face “Burdenless Bonehead Bashing” – what a track title – performing similarly in style with the addition of an electric guitar, and also reprising the now rather epic Strands motif.

The distorted action continues into “Manufacturing Mayhem” with some serious death metal vibes as the electric guitar returns and the intensity practically reaches infinity, with the subsequent “Weaponised Wanderers” also following in a similar vein. “Resisting Remnants” then calms the chaos somewhat with a more focused electronically upbeat approach to the Strands motif before “Stranded Souls” brings us back to the land of eerie ambience as coldly unsettling vocals and moody synth occupy much of its almost four minute runtime. “Watchers” continues this stylistic idea with horror-like strings and wary percussion now in tow, and the rather chilling “Hold Your Breath” then infuses this ominous vocal-heavy atmosphere with the serene Blade Runner-esque synth from earlier. Distorted action then returns in “Horrid Husk Hunting” with deafening electronics and in-your-face vocal chants before the rapid pace settles for the impeccably ghostly “Desolation Destination”; here eerie vocals echo and almost seem to swirl about you, which dials up the immersion quite considerably as a result. To close out the album, “Travesting Travesties” opens in much a similar style to that of the prior cue until shrill vocals and tense percussion arrive in the back half, making for a decidedly dramatic finale to the album.

Overall, Ludvig Forssell’s score for Death Stranding 2: On The Beach is equal parts deep and wondrously atmospheric as it is frantic and thunderously chaotic, and somehow – much like the music for the first game – it all just works. The more serene, sometimes sorrowful and sometimes almost sinister side to the album (heard in tracks like “Terminals” and “Stranded Souls”) is simply sublime to listen to, with the deep synthy ambience of those pieces keenly evoking the beautiful abandoned landscapes of the game as they sprawl out in front of Sam Porter Bridges. The much louder and sometimes distortedly deafening, sometimes breathtakingly epic side is just as entertaining too, with “Good Old Fashioned Boss Fight” and “We Should Not Have Connected” being the electronic best of the bunch there. There is noticeably more action this time too with the music overall feeling more battle-hardened and tenser than the prior game’s, and leading much of that is the theme for Higgs, a dramatically malevolent piece that engages in frequent orchestral battle with both the exquisite Strands and BB themes, and thematically these all help to bring a excellent sense of narrative cohesion to the album as well. Admittedly, the more deafeningly distorted side of the action does make for some hard listening at times, but that’s more than made up for with the frankly epic other action setpieces as well as the score’s excellent themes and utterly sublime serenity, so all-in? It’s another absolute Strand-type music success by Forssell.

Score: 8/10

Standout Cues: Good Old Fashioned Boss Fight/We Should Not Have Connected

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