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LittleTemple

Q & A - Abiageal O'Meara

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Our friend has gotten ahold of Abiageal O'Meara for Q&A and since she's involved musically in our wadfile "Projekt Xero" we thought we would share! =)

We hope this is the right place to post this and please let us know if not!

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My name is John, I’m a friend of Marcus Dudek who’s working with his friends on a mega-wad for the old and godly 1994 computer game, DOOM II.
Talking with me today is Abiageal O’Meara. She has the honor of composing the soundtrack for the mega-wad.


Q: Hello, Abiageal! How’re you today?

A: I’m grand! Thank you for asking, though, it’s night here for me =)

Q: Hehe, okay, first rattle out of the bag, I’m curious how you came to be the composer for the Projekt Xero mega-wad.

A: A lil over a month ago, probably two months now, I uploaded a short 51 second song to YouTube called “The March”. A day later, I got an email from a friend whom said a jewish guy contacted him and asked him to ask me if I’d be interested in doing an original score for a game.

Link to The March - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fDfs5IL7lDw&feature=plcp

Q: What was your reaction to that?

A: Thrilled! I mean, I’m a nobody and to have someone see a simple little song and go all American uncle sam “WE WANT YOU” was pretty amazing.

Q: Did you accept the offer right away?

A: No, I didn’t. Once I found out it involved DOOM II it was a bit of an Oye moment. I’d never played DOOM II before, wasn’t even sure I’d heard of the game. It took a few days and in that time I’d played it albeit horribly I decided to accept. I uploaded another song on youtube called “Interlude” and they said they wanted that too. It wasn’t long after that I found out it would be the song for the title screen.

Q: I heard they are actually paying you, is that true?

A: Aye, it’s true. I didn’t ask for money or any payments in fact I turned them down but, they insisted. Basically they paid me in advance for two more soundtracks in the future.

Q: And you’re excited about that?

A: Oh yes! I love music and if I have other people whom enjoy it, it makes it all the better.

Q: How did you get started with music?

A: When I was at the wee age of 11, I was given a beautiful baby-grand piano. I played and played and played, learned music and I was off. For my thirteenth birthday I got a harp and later that year I got my first computer handed down from family. It came with logic pro installed and I started messing with the built in software keyboard. For my fourteenth birthday I got a used synthesizer from family and it was like a whole new world had opened up. I could use software instruments I could only dream of owning, pitch bend them, distort them and morph them, I was ecstatic. So, you could say music has really been a big part of my life throughout the last year in a whole new way.

Q: What was the first track you wrote specifically for the project and how did it go?

A: I believe the first track was Dark Origins which was used on MAP01, The Dam. It’s a very simple track really. My track on youtube called “Breathing Decay” was my first foray into ambient creepiness. They never said do ambient, I just read the draft of the story and thought of a dark and gloomy place. The beginnings of something pure evil.

Q: I’ve listened to the track a few times on Youtube and I have to ask you, how did you make it?

A: Haha, it’s a bunch of industrial drum synthesizers in a pitch bend of about -20. The other two tracks are high octave horns, a base line and a electric guitar synthesizer with an organ backing it. It actually took all of a few hours to finish because, like I said, it’s really REALLY simple.

Link to MAP01 track - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j4b4PrXdiZY

Q: What’s your setup?

A: I have a little Mac Mini with Logic Pro installed. The keyboard is an older Roland Juno-Gi. I don’t actually use any of the synthesizer sequences in the keyboard itself. I use that for writing the notes and use Logic Pro to add the actually instruments.

Q: The second track for the wadfile during the ventilation level is very very industrial and reminds me of “something” pounding on pipes. How’d you go about that one?

A: Thanks! I was going for that! To answer your question, it’s the same style I used for Dark Origins only some of the sounds are recorded from real life objects. For example, one of the sounds is actually a distorted recording of me taking our letterbox which someone knocked over with their automobile and putting it in a aluminum garbage bin and shaking it around.

Link to MAP02 track - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j4b4PrXdiZY

Q: Is there other examples of you doing that?

A: Aye. Another example is the track that plays during intermission, when you finish a level. There is a little sound that plays right before what many people call the electronic “gong” sound that is actually me ripping a newspaper.

Q: Very interesting! The track for the second level goes very well, how did you manage it?

A: I was sent screenshots of a very early beta of the level. It’s much different and more complex now but the track still fits. A good example would be the water droplet sound and that’s because every screenshot I had received at that point had areas of water near the beginning of the map.

Q: Well, you did a great job! How far along are you in the soundtrack so far?

A: I have exactly 14 tracks so far. Which is a little less than half because it will total to 38 tracks when I’m done. The first few tracks are very small and there is even a 25 second one for when you die. They specifically asked me to do a track for death and I thought, well, that’s curious but, it turned out to be a very fun track.

link to death track - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IVdu3-7qs2M&feature=plcp

Q: You mentioned they didn’t specifically ask for ambience. I noticed the track in place for MAP03 is more industrial techno. How do you know people will like the back and forth moods of the soundtrack?

EDIT: Link to map03 track - http://www.freefilehosting.net/1-08enteringthebeastresearchlabmainhallmp3

A: Hmm. I don’t, actually. The folks contacted me, and told me to compose a soundtrack that I thought fit with the respective levels and so that’s what I’m doing. People will either love it or hate it and that’s just the way our world works.

Q: What if the majority of people don’t like your soundtrack. Would it be possible that the group would decide to replace your soundtrack all together or just not use your work in the future?

A: You know, I really can’t say to be honest. That is completely up to them.

Q: How would it make you feel if people said well, this soundtrack is horrible.

A: Well, it would certainly make me more careful in the future. I’d suppose it would be a matter of taste. I am doing what I think fits and the group likes it so, there is nothing much else I can do at this point.

Q: What about feedback, have you gotten any?

A: I’ve asked the group, Marcus, specifically to ask people to give some feedback on the tracks so far but, I haven’t gotten any really. Marcus may have forgot to ask and it isn’t a huge deal. Just that if people hate the tracks, it would help to know ahead of time, haha.

Q: You have an album, don’t you?

A: Aye. It’s called Souls & Secrets and I’ve been meaning to add the entire thing to youtube but I’ve been busy. I have tracks 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6 of 12 so far.

Q: Track 4 “The Sneakers” sounds like something out of the projekt Xero soundtrack. Is it?

A: Aye. It was originally part of the Projekt Xero soundtrack but I felt parts of it didn’t fit so I decided to take it out. I liked the song enough to keep it though so I put it on the Souls & Secrets album. So yes, if people listen to it and think, that’s odd, seems a mix of sorts then it’s because the DNA of projekt xero was seeping a bit into my regular album in the end. Thankfully just on that one track.

Q: How long do you think it will take to finish the soundtrack?

A: Well, they gave me until June of next year. More than enough time so I won’t be rushing at all. Could be April, could be May.

Q: Last few questions. You’re irish right?

A: Aye. Born and raised in the Republic.

Q: The rest of the team, or, at least Marcus are polish jews that migrated from Poland about ten years ago. Does your religion play well with that?

A: Haha. Um, aye? Why do you ask?

Q: Well you’re irish I’m assuming you’re Catholic or protestant.

A: We get along fine. Religions can get along and to be honest, seeing as how respectful the Pope is of the holocaust and the fact that John Paul II was polish, that stereotype needs to go the way of Ted Bundy to be honest.

Q: Of course, I didn’t mean any offense. Anything else you’d like to add?

A: None taken really. Uh, nope, it’s late here and I just want to wish everyone well!

Q: Well, thanks for sharing! If I think of anything else, can I email you?

A: Of course, abbey0237@gmail.com . Let anyone else know they can ask questions of their own as well!

J: Will do! Have a great night!


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