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Minecraft – Volume Beta

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Minecraft – Volume Beta
A dark model of a block of grass from Minecraft, surrounded on the edges by a much larger black and orange cube, with a black background.
Soundtrack albumby
C418
Released9 November 2013
Genre
Length140:48
Label
C418chronology
One
(2012) 		Minecraft – Volume Beta
(2013) 		0x10c
(2014)
Alternative cover
A highlighted and more vibrant model of the same grass block from the original cover.
Lenticular cover as seen on vinyl pressings
Minecraftsoundtrackchronology
Minecraft – Volume Alpha
(2011) 		Minecraft – Volume Beta
(2013) 		Minecraft: Battle & Tumble
(2016)

Minecraft – Volume Betais the fourthsoundtrack albumby German electronic musicianDaniel Rosenfeld,known by his pseudonymC418.It wasindependentlyreleased on 9 November 2013 as thesecond installment of the soundtrackfor the video gameMinecraft,and has been physically released by record labelGhostly.[3][4]The album peaked twice at number 14 on theBillboardTop Dance/Electronic Albums Chartin 2013 and 2023.[5][6]

Like the album's predecessorMinecraft – Volume Alpha(2011),Volume Betacomprises most of the music featured in the game, including dedicated music for the game'snetherand main menu. It also features music from trailers, and instrumentals not in the game's final release.[7]A completed third instalment remains unreleased due to licensing issues withMojang StudiosparentMicrosoft.

Composition and release[edit]

In 2011,RosenfeldreleasedMinecraft – Volume Alpha.[8]For this next release, Rosenfeld was again given complete creative control on the soundtrack that would be implemented as part ofMinecraft's November 2013 "Music Update".[9]

The mostlyambient albumhas a generally darker tone than its precursor. Rosenfeld described the track "Alpha" as a medley and "a celebration of past music fromVolume Alpha."The first song he had composed with the clear intent for the game's" creative mode "to have a distinct soundtrack was" Blind Spots ".[7]The track "Taswell" was created as a tribute to Rosenfeld's friend, the late Ryan "Taswell" Davis, co-founder of American gaming websiteGiant Bomb.[10]Rosenfeld stated he "didn’t want to remember them for their death, but the happiness they showed every day of their life."[7]Rosenfeld admits that the record is "extremely varied", being "much morepercussive,melodic, andprogressive"thanVolume Alpha.[11]Several songs on the album are remakes of themes from the prior soundtrack albumVolume Alpha;"Ki", "Moog City 2", "Mutation", and "Beginning 2" are remakes of the songs "Key", "Moog City", "Minecraft", and "Beginning", respectively. The average song onVolume Betais far longer than its predecessor[4]– at the time of the album's release, it was Rosenfeld's longest ever work.[12]

Volume Betaalso contains the music of nine collectable discs withinMinecraft.[13]A stark sonic departure from the rest of the soundtrack, these discs often rely onsynthesisersand percussion instruments.[14]Among these records includes "Stal", asmooth jazzcomposition reminiscent of the1930s,"Ward", which begins with asampleof "Chopin's Funeral March"and transitions into an eerie electronic melody, and" Far ", afantasy-based composition resemblingThe Legend of Zeldamusic.[15]

In August 2020, record labelGhostlyreleased the first physical versions of the album, inCDandLPformats.[16]The album's artwork features an extremely dark 3D model of a block of grass fromMinecraft,surrounded on the edges by a larger black and orange cube. On some vinyl pressings,lenticular printingis used to give depth to the blocks in the image and highlight the inner grass block.[17]

In October 2020,Monstercatproducer Protostar released a drum and bass remix of the track "Aria Math", which marked the first official remix of aMinecraftsong. Protostar remarked on his work, "It's an honour to be able to remix any song from Minecraft's iconic soundtrack, and I hope I did this one justice."[18]

Critical reception[edit]

The staff teams of several news outlets have considered theMinecraftsoundtrack, includingVolume Beta,to be amongthe best video game soundtracksof all time. These include the editorial teams ofNME,[19]Digital Trends,[20]GamesRadar+,[21]andVG247.[22]

Online publicationDigital Trendsspecifically praised the album for moving "beyond pieces that are simply 'peaceful' or 'sad' and creates tracks like 'Taswell' and 'Kyoto' that feel like distinct performances", and believed thatMinecraftmight not have been as successful as it was if it were not for the work of Rosenfeld, includingVolume Beta.[20]Richard McDonald of music blogOriginal Sound Versioncalled the album "an amazing achievement".[23]TheLos Angeles Timeswrote that the album "showcases C418’s ability to make grander, more sonically diverse ambience".[24]Jack Moeser ofThe Michigan Dailyfelt the closing track, "Intro", imparts a "somber yet hopeful feeling [...] reminiscent of how I felt the first few times I playedMinecraft,which I think I can now describe: the feeling that the next chapter of my life is about to begin ".[25]

In the bookFour Ways of Hearing Video Game Music,Michiel Kamp wrote that the sandbox nature ofMinecraftalso applied to its music, believing the randomness of how the soundtrack is presented would lead to what he viewed as the game creating unique, personalized moments that weren't intentional.[26]Writing forGame Rant,Cameron Pippin ranked the track "Taswell" as the best theme inMinecraft,feeling that it "instills a feeling of power and euphoria that is incredibly motivating", and praisoing it as "one of the most relaxing themes in the game". He opined that its "memorable [and] heartfelt" nature owed to its context of being a memorial to Ryan "Taswell" Davis, Rosenfeld's late friend, editor forGamespotand co-founder ofGiant Bomb.[10]

Track listing[edit]

Charts[edit]

2013 chart performance forMinecraft – Volume Beta
Chart (2013) Peak
position
USTop Dance/Electronic Albums(Billboard)[5] 14
2023–2024 chart performance forMinecraft – Volume Beta
Chart (2023–2024) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[27] 68
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[28] 10
UK Independent Albums(OCC)[29] 49
USTop Album Sales(Billboard)[30] 78
USTop Dance/Electronic Albums(Billboard)[6] 14
US Soundtrack Albums (Billboard)[31] 23

Release history[edit]

Release history forMinecraft – Volume Beta
Region Year Format Catalogue Label Ref.
Various 2013 Digital download, streaming – Independent [7]
United States, Europe 2020 2×LP GI-360LP Ghostly [32]
2×CD GI-360 [33]

References[edit]

  1. ^"C418 – Minecraft Volume Beta".Boomkat.Retrieved21 September2022.
  2. ^Moeser, Jack (6 February 2022)."'Minecraft' gave us the soundtrack to a generation ".The Michigan Daily.Retrieved21 September2022.
  3. ^Patston, Manning (18 June 2020)."Minecraft fans alert: C418's legendary soundtrack is getting a physical release".Happy Mag.Retrieved20 September2022.
  4. ^abRosenfeld, Daniel."Minecraft Volume Beta".C418.Retrieved20 September2022.
  5. ^ab"C418".Billboard.Retrieved14 December2022.
  6. ^ab"C418 Is No. 1 on Emerging Artists Chart".Billboard.Retrieved13 January2024.
  7. ^abcd"Minecraft – Volume Beta, by C418".C418.Retrieved20 September2022.
  8. ^C418 –Minecraft Volume AlphaAlbum Reviews, Songs & More | AllMusic,retrieved20 September2022
  9. ^Adams, Nathan (16 November 2013)."If you restart Minecraft, it'll become a whole bunch more awesome thanks to C418's latest works:)".Twitter.Retrieved21 September2022.
  10. ^abPippin, Cameron (18 September 2023)."10 Best Minecraft Themes".Game Rant.Retrieved30 June2024.
  11. ^Callwood, Brett (1 July 2020)."C418 Offers Block-Rocking Beats".LA Weekly.Retrieved20 September2022.
  12. ^"Who Is Minecraft's C418?".Lifewire.Retrieved21 September2022.
  13. ^"Minecraft Soundtrack Review from Katy and Ian".NSULA Gamers' Guild.Archived fromthe originalon 28 September 2022.Retrieved23 September2022.
  14. ^"How To Get All Music Discs Minecraft & Full Rank From Best To Worst".GuruGamer.com.11 November 2021.Retrieved20 September2022.
  15. ^Coles, jason (23 December 2020)."The best songs in Minecraft".PC Gamer.Retrieved1 July2024.
  16. ^C418 – Minecraft Volume Beta,14 August 2020,retrieved23 September2022
  17. ^Ghostly (18 June 2020)."Announcing the first-ever pressing of C418's Minecraft Volume Beta..."Twitter.Retrieved23 September2022.
  18. ^Scilippa, Phil (1 October 2020)."Listen To Protostar's Drum & Bass Rework Of" Aria Math, "The First-Ever Official Remix Of a Minecraft Song".EDM.Retrieved22 June2024.
  19. ^Barker, Emily (20 July 2015)."23 of the coolest ever video game soundtracks".NME.Archivedfrom the original on 4 January 2017.Retrieved8 June2024.
  20. ^abGurwin, Gabe; Michael, Hicks (24 October 2021)."The best video game soundtracks of all time".Digital Trends.Archivedfrom the original on 25 August 2017.Retrieved8 June2024.
  21. ^Bentley, James; West, Josh (25 June 2022)."The 25 best video game soundtracks of all time".GamesRadar+.Archivedfrom the original on 25 November 2020.Retrieved8 June2024.
  22. ^Raynor, Kelsey (22 April 2022)."The best video game soundtracks to revisit in 2024".VG247.Archivedfrom the original on 3 September 2023.Retrieved8 June2024.
  23. ^McDonald, Richard (28 May 2014)."Minecraft - Volume Beta (Review)".Original Sound Version.Retrieved20 September2022.
  24. ^Tsai, Raymond (17 May 2019)."Review: German musician known for Minecraft soundtrack C418's latest, 'Sweden'".HS Insider.Retrieved21 September2022.
  25. ^Moeser, Jack (6 February 2024)."'Minecraft' gave us the soundtrack to a generation ".The Michigan Daily.Retrieved22 June2024.
  26. ^Kamp, Michiel (14 December 2023).Four Ways of Hearing Video Game Music.Oxford University Press.pp. 68–71.ISBN9780197651254.
  27. ^"The ARIA Report: Week Commencing 3 July 2023".The ARIA Report.No. 1739.Australian Recording Industry Association.3 July 2023. p. 6.
  28. ^"Austriancharts.at – C418 – Minecraft - Volume Beta"(in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 May 2024.
  29. ^"Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50".Official Charts Company.Retrieved 25 May 2024.
  30. ^"C418 Chart History (Top Album Sales)".Billboard.Retrieved14 March2024.
  31. ^"C418 Chart History (Soundtrack Albums)".Billboard.Retrieved14 March2024.
  32. ^"Minecraft Volume Beta".ghostly.com.Retrieved21 September2022.
  33. ^C418 - Minecraft - Volume Beta,retrieved21 September2022

Notes[edit]

  1. ^abAlthough there is a music disc titled "11" found in game, the track "Eleven" is different from the in-game music disc. On the track, the start of the music disc can be heard, but this is then interrupted by a record scratching sound; the track then switches to a calm piano piece not found in the game.
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