I’ve talked about my love for terrible Sonic music, or really Sega music in general. But if there’s one soundtrack from them that I can call great, it’s the music from the Jet Set Radio series.
As someone who doesn’t know much about music, it’s hard to describe. A good chunk of it is an electric techno thing that uses a variety of voice samples. But there’s also other genres shoved inside as well. “Oldies But Happies” is one of my personal favorite tracks and I have no idea what genre it even falls in. For over a decade tracks like “Let Mom Sleep,” “Birthday Cake” and “Sweet Soul Brother” have remained burned into my head.
Occasionally it can seems like a mess of instruments and sounds, but somehow comes together in a way that’s charming. It also perfectly fits the game’s rebellious, playful and wacky vibe. Hideki Naganuma is the composer and his unique style can be found in his other games, like Sonic Rush. But the Jet Set Radio series feels like the whole package.
Splatoon is the only other game I can think of that pulls off a bizarre musical track just as well. It’s similar in concept, but goes even further with its oddly chosen mishmash of instruments, sounds and samples. I don’t like Splatoon’s music as much, but I’m not a huge fan of the game’s style in general. However, it’s certainly well-made.
Quick shout out to S4 League, a free to play third person shooter. It has a bit of the spirit of Jet Set Radio in it.
