Hotline Miami Soundtrack (various)

HOTLINE MIAMI OST

by

assorted authors

01	Horse Steppin	10:10	by Sun Araw
02	Hydrogen	04:49	by M|O|O|N
03	Paris	04:17	by M|O|O|N
04	Crystals	04:49	by M|O|O|N
05	Vengeance (Return of the Night Driving Avenger)	05:00	by Perturbator
06	Deep Cover	08:05	by Sun Araw
07	Miami	03:19	by Jasper Byrne
08	Hotline	03:11	by Jasper Byrne
09	Knock Knock	04:04	by Scattle
10	Musikk per Automatikk	02:49	by Elliott Berlin
11	Miami Disco	04:31	by Perturbator
12	Release	06:02	by M|O|O|N
13	A New Morning	02:28	by Eirik Surkhe
14	Flatline	02:14	by Scattle
15	Silver Lights	06:36	by CoConuts
16	Daisuke	02:32	by El Huervo (feat. Shelby Cinca)
17	Turf	05:04	by El Huervo
18	Crush	02:39	by El Huervo
19	Electric Dreams	04:45	by Perturbator
20	Inner Animal	03:40	by Scattle
21	It's Safe Now	02:43	by Scattle
22	To the Top	01:39	by Scattle

IT'S JUST AFTER MIDNIGHT AND TIME TO DRIVE, YOUR TAPE DECK BLARING DARK DISCO WHILE YOU SPEED DOWN THE MIAMI FREEWAY. A HOT TIP TO THE NEXT BIG SCENE, A DEN OF INEQUITY TO BE PUNCTUATED BY BLOODSHED. AT THE CURB YOU PULL A FACE FROM YOUR POCKET AND GRIP YOUR BLOODSTAINED BASEBALL BAT. BORN TO DIE; LIVE TO KILL.

Part of indie darling Hotline Miami's irresistible charm is its pounding soundtrack, a mix of works from electronica artists alongside a few psychedelic rock tracks that excel at establishing its heady atmosphere. From the menu music of Sun Araw's "Horse Steppin" to the closing strands of Perturbator's "Electric Dreams", every mood is set, most prominently the incredibly danceable tracks that form the majority of the collection. The OST isn't exclusively synthwave, but it introduced me to the genre via Perturbator, and I couldn't be happier. It's still a fantastic collection and each track well worth listening to.

You'll find all of M|O|O|N's self-titled debut EP here in all its simple yet hypnotic glory. "Hydrogen" is my personal favorite but all four tracks are great. There are also some choice cuts from Perturbator, all of which eventually saw release on his EPs. "Miami Disco" fits the tone of the action, but I prefer the elusive "Vengeance", admittedly telling too strong a story on its own to work for Hotline Miami. Sun Araw's two pieces are long and dreamy, well worth sitting through. I don't know much about CoConuts, but "Silver Lights" is the flipside to Araw, painting the stuff of nightmares with a similar brush, creating a dark, psychedelic drone.

Jasper Byrne has a pair of offerings, "Miami" being my preferred with its soft opening leading to hard bass beats, but "Hotline"'s more chill atmosphere and trippy beat is a nice contrast. Berlin's "Musikk per Automatikk" is unlike anything else on the soundtrack just in how overwhelmingly electronic it is; I wouldn't really know what to call it owing to my lack of experience with electronic music in general, but the boor in me identifies it as something more rave-ish. Fellow Swede El Huervo's contributions are varied, from the relaxed "Daisuke" to "Turf", heard in several points but most memorably backing the climax of Jacket's story. It's very lo-fi in Huervo's use of distortion and an amazing finish, and one of the few tracks exclusive to this album (unless you were one of the fortunate fifty that bought his double album in cassette format).

Eirik Surkhe's "A New Morning" is another great single from a prolific video game composer and a great way to close out the alternate chapters. The rest comes from Scattle, composing an EP's worth of material, including the mellow yet driving "To the Top". Scattle's tunes are short and sweet, with an overall relaxed tone that is backed by an army of funky beats. It's a nice way to round out a soundtrack featuring significant tension and strong psychedelia, and even gives Jacket's levels their own particular tone.

WHY YOU NEED THIS ALBUM: Well, truth be told, there is only one reason to buy the Hotline Miami OST. You won't find "Turf" anywhere else (without some prying), and it's essential to the Hotline Miami sound. The rest can be found on Bandcamp or from other digital outlets, scattered across six EPs, four LPs, and one single. This album is a fantastic collection, though, and a great gateway into several genres of music you may have never even given a thought. Plus, if you loved playing Hotline Miami, you'll probably be listening to this on repeat for awhile.

WHERE TO FIND: If you own Hotline Miami, you already have most of the soundtrack as .OGG files in the game's directory (with "Turf" edited into two different segments). If you want to buy the official soundtrack off Steam, it's listed as DLC for the game. I don't know if you need to already own Hotline Miami in order to play it, which would be kind of a ripoff considering you technically have most of the music. If you'd prefer to just collect it yourself, I've done most of the work for you - click on the author links up on the track list. You may find yourself spiraling out of control while exploring music genres previously left untouched... Not that that's a bad thing, mind you.

I WAS BORN IN THE USA