Silent Hill 3 Original Soundtracks

	Album Title: Silent Hill 3 Original Soundtracks
	Record Label: Konami Music Entertainment
	Catalog No.: KOLA-038
	Release Date: December 18, 2002
	Purchase: Buy at CDJapan

Overview

Two years after Silent Hill 2, Silent Hill 3 shows up and enjoys a fair amount of success. Konami chose to link this game to their original in several ways. One way was to give ambience a bigger role in this soundtrack, so Yamaoka had created a great number of ambient themes which helped in giving Silent Hill 3 a more terrifying dimension of realism. Sadly very few of these themes made it on the soundtrack CD, but what’s on there is still worthy of mention.

Body

The first track to grab one’s attention is “You’re not Here”, which accompanies the opening FMV. Mary Elizabeth McGlynn gives an amazing vocal performance while Yamaoka’s composition shines with the electric guitar. The song itself is comprised of well-thought lyrics and they flow perfectly with the sequences in the FMV. “Float up from Dream” is the title theme, which bears similar qualities to the one on Silent Hill 2. There is a narration telling of some cryptic apocalypse about to occur, which is annoying at first, but you get accustomed to it in time.

With respect to ambient themes, “Breeze – In Monochrome Light” has the organ playing an eerie melody, backed up by metallic effects, then a steady backbeat moves the piece until it is accompanied by a light piano. The piano itself, while being beautiful, also hides deceptive qualities, as the track plunges further into a sorrowful tone. Another track that really stands out is “A Stray Child”. It starts off with the creepy SFX you’d hear in the abandoned mall basement. In-game, you’d hear eerie howls but instead we get a backbeat/organ piece, which has occasional sound effects here and there; while the theme is simple, it complements the vision of being powerless, stuck in a dark and dreary nightmare. A violin joins in and adds more emotion of fright, depression and loneliness as it progresses.

The most disturbing track is by far “Prayer”, which has male chanting, metallic sounds, and buzzsaws cutting away followed by a howl. This entire collage of sounds is enough to get one paranoid while listening. “Flower Crown of Poppy” is another industrial noise-based track, with constant metallic clanks, which soon has an eerie spiritual chant. I don’t know where this plays in-game, but I hope I won’t be there long, as this theme really freaks me out. “Uneternal Sleep” is the last ambient track, which has some loud *honk” noise going every now and then… The third noise is accompanied by sounds that something is closing in on you as it closes.

The soundtrack has two more vocals. “Hometown” is sung by Joe Romersa, whose odd voice is an acquired taste. The piece itself is a faithful arrangement of the Silent Hill opening track, for which Yamaoka uses the mandolin, along with the acoustic guitar. The final track is a second vocal by Mary Elizabeth McGlynn, which was used during the game’s promotional trailer.

Summary

So here we are, while Silent Hill 3 doesn’t quite surpass Silent Hill 2, there is still a lot to love on this soundtrack. Like Silent Hill 2, it’s readily available from online shops, but chances are you got it with the game as a bonus.