I wrote this short piece a few months ago (back in July 2018) because I had an idea to create a full concept album with music based on video games. Since then, I got a new computer and haven’t had a good chance to record any more. But hopefully soon I will get back to it and have more to share!
For the uninitiated, Bloodborne largely takes place in dreams/nightmares. It is a bit vague as to whether the entire game is a dream or only the parts they straight-out tell you are. Either way, the main city, Yharnam, is an odd place. It is possible for hunters to beckon other hunters for assistance. To do this, they ring a “beckoning bell”, which may resonate with that of a “small resonant bell.” This brings together hunters for the purpose of cooperation. However, a beckoning bell may also resonate with a “sinister bell.” These are rung by hunters who mean to invade and cause harm to their fellow hunters. In select places through the game there are “bell ringing women” who “ring sinister bells.” These resound through the area in the game and give off a rather eerie sound, naturally.
It was not difficult for me to think of a simple starting point for a track when I decided that I was going to base at least one track off of the Soulsborne series. There is already a defined sound for the bells in-game, so I just looked for a sound in my library that was similar and made something a bit strange from there. I wanted to have a piece that sounded somewhat alluring at first, but soon changed to something much more dark and creepy. It also had to have a little bit of dissonance to give the feeling of something that you should not want to hear, for fear of what is coming your way next. It was very simple, but I was satisfied with it almost immediately.
