Behind the new soundtrack for Until Dawn

The opportunity to rescore Until Dawn was as exciting as it was terrifying. The musical legacy of Until Dawn is highly regarded and we set out to both respect and honor the high watermark of the original score through musical innovation and elevation. We wanted to move Until Dawn on to its own path, bringing new composers and songs into the story to help distinguish it from other narrative horror titles. Between a new score and carefully chosen licensed music, every aspect of the soundtrack has been handcrafted to further immerse the player while creating a defining identity for Until Dawn in 2024. Here are some key aspects of the music to lookout for as you survive the night on Blackwood Mountain…

A song of death

When revisiting the title sequence the development team knew they needed a song to do justice to the beautiful, eerie visuals. We were fortunate enough to discover a then unsigned artist called Mae Stephens who had the unique quality we were looking for. She relished the opportunity to explore a darker, cinematic sound than the upbeat pop songs of hers blowing up on TikTok. Her first demo sent shivers down our collective spines…. A few months later we had ‘Out of the Shadows’, a bespoke song alluding to themes of trust, key iconography from the game and the ultimate fate which befalls us all. The song is built around the new theme motif, which bursts through as grandiose strings towards the end of the song.

“Out of the Shadows” releases digitally on Friday October 18. Check out the teaser for the Until Dawn inspired music video below – full video out tomorrow!

A legendary composer

We conducted an extensive demo process which looked at composers with unique contributions to the horror genre. From here we found Mark Korven, a Canadian composer with well-established roots in the horror genre with films such as The Witch and The Lighthouse. Mark created the Apprehension Engine, a custom instrument that has become a key sound for contemporary horror scores.

This was Mark’s debut score for videogames and he worked in close collaboration with the PlayStation Studios Creative Arts Music team to help translate his music into an interactive medium.

A new theme

Key to the score was a new thematic motif, a simple but haunting pairing of melodies which weave throughout the score and newly created songs. It is an ominous omen of horrors untold, a malevolently playful melody that draws you into the world of Until Dawn. You can listen to the track below.

Note: the below contains spoilers for Until Dawn’s story

Locations and antagonists

Each location in the game has its own musical identity. Listen out for a more acoustic, organic sound in the lodge and forest. The Sanatorium has echoes of its past buried in the mix (lush romantic classical phrases and 50s-esque refrains) alongside a more desolate, haunting palette in its abandoned state. The musical textures for the mines contain metallic scrapes and rock textures, with a scattering of the Wendigo palette.

Speaking of which, each antagonist in the game has a unique sound. The Stranger is a murky, grimy mixture of woodwind and percussion that alludes to their uncertain allegiances. The Wendigo have a defined musical motif, a screeching string stab that alerts players to their presence whether seen or not. Finally, the Psycho (which you can listen to below) is a distorted blend of guitar, percussion and piano including a motif that may give players a clue to their identity.

Setting the scene with song

It may sound odd but here in 2024 Until Dawn is a period game, set between 2014-2015. Key moments felt open to considered needle drops to crystallize the emotion of a scene, or simply bed the game in the music of that time.

A newly recorded version of In For The Kill, which soundtracks the cruel prank sequence, speaks to the dual perspectives of Hannah and her ‘friends’, alongside a myriad of evil forces out for blood. (You can subtly hear the theme in this recording as well).

Tracks from Purity Ring, SG Lewis, Maverick Sabre and more give a deeper insight into other characters and their music tastes. Each song is carefully implemented in each scene – more on that later. And there might even be an easter egg for patient fans, a nod to the previous incarnation of the game, to discover…

A deadly design

Being able to revisit every aspect of the music of Until Dawn gave us the chance to go deeper in terms of music design and implementation. Here are some parts of the music design to look out for during your stay at the Washington Lodge.

The branching nature of the story means there are hundreds of edits throughout the game, each supporting the player’s choice.

A key moment where this is visible is the Snowball Fight, early in the game. The moment involves a licensed track – SG Lewis’ song ‘Warm’. As with several songs in the game the track is placed positionally at first, playing from Jess’ phone. As the scene progresses it becomes non-diegetic, underscoring the scene. The scene has good and bad outcomes; if the player kills the bird the licensed music drops out, seamlessly transitioning to score to underline the sad moment. However, if the player makes the right choices and ultimately decides to kiss Mike the lyrics of the track playout – a musical reward of sorts for achieving the ‘best’ outcome.

There are a number of themes that relate to each character – if that character dies, so does their thematic material.

Scares are a big part of the game and the music elevates these with stingers and risers. These risers are often interactive, increasing as a player gets near to a potential jump scare. And sometimes we’re deliberately building to nothing – keeping the player unable to predict when the fear is justified.

Dr Hill is a fan favorite character and we wanted to maintain the veneer of uneasy calm in his sessions. The classical piece playing changes over the course of the sessions, representing the degrading state of his patients’ mind. The piece itself is a Prelude and Fugue derived from the Until Dawn theme motif.

Lastly, we also wanted the end of the game to feel like you’d watched a horror movie of the time. So listen out for another bespoke song – ‘Forgive and Forget’ by So Below – that turns the Until Dawn motif into a dark gothic credits track. Musical catharsis after the terrifying events of one night on Blackwood Mountain.

We hope you enjoy the game, now on PS5 console and PC*. Look out for the official soundtrack release, coming to all major music streaming services in the near future.