Seeing the connection between Lennertz and Mass Effect 3 is interesting, especially when taken alongside his work on Starhawk: Original Soundtrack from the Video Game. The two games both occupy the sci-fi genre, but feel completely different. Mass Effect 3’s score has a glossy, “sci-fi” sound, while some tracks from Starhawk would probably feel more at home in a western. Of course, if you’ve played Starhawk, you’ll know this actually fits the game rather well and makes for a great soundtrack.
Starhawk does a lot of things right – so many, if fact, I had a really hard time picking it apart for any sort of flaws. I wouldn’t place it in any sort of “Top Ten Soundtracks” listing, though it managed to find regular rotation in my “While I Work” music list and even earned a spot on my PS3’s hard drive. Not a big deal for most, but I watch my disk space like a hawk, so it’s a big deal on my end.
The entire soundtrack is filled with guitar riffs and other orchestral sounds. Again, the soundtrack plays up the western sounds, but still has the undertones you’d usually expect to hear in a sci-fi themed soundtrack. Even without the game to back it up, Starhawk’s soundtrack has a nice energy to it. I also like that each song is able to stand on its own, but also fits together with the rest of the hour-long album, creating a much larger musical piece. Much of this has to do with the re-use of a few melodic bits throughout the entire score. Once you know the tune, it is easy to identify each song as being part of the Starhawk soundtrack and not a random piece of music.
Even if you haven’t played the game, Starhawk is a fantastic addition to any videogame soundtrack collection.
