411 Games Interview: Frank Klepacki
Posted by Chris Evans on 02.18.2008
Frank Klepacki - Universe at War, Red Alert, MMA and much more!
In an ideal world I would have done this interview face to face, me and Frank one on one discussing anything and everything under the sun. As it is I was lucky enough to do this very nice, very good, very frank interview with Frank. (No pun intended!) We talk about everything from the G.A.N.G awards, the Universe at War soundtrack, working with Petroglyph, Red Alert 3 and much much more..read on my friends!
Chris ’Evo’ Evans -First off thanks for doing this interview with me Frank =]
Frank Klepacki - No Problem!
Chris - Congratulations on the nomination for the G.A.N.G awards, how do you feel about this nomination?
Frank - It’s really nice to know that enough people on the advisory board, who are all pros in their own right, believed that track should be among the nominations. So I’m very thankful for that.
Chris - What are your thoughts on the song that got you the nomination – ‘Divine Intervention’?
Frank - I’m very proud of the track, it’s something different I was able to do for a change, a sort of hybrid of epic meets contemporary sound. It’s the defining song for Universe At War, the rest of the team picked up on that as soon as I wrote it.
Chris - The Universe at War soundtrack has been released for a free download, why did you go down the free route? (More info on the soundtrack.
Frank - We wanted to do a formal release, but couldn’t seem to make any headway going through the proper channels, so we figured in the end that if die-hards will ultimately find a way to extract it from the game, might as well make it free so everyone could enjoy it.
Chris - I must say it is a damn fine soundtrack, how did you go about making it?
Frank - I was excited to do something original again, and the initial approach was to do different styles for the different factions. I discussed it with Adam, our Creative Director on the game, and we decided on the styles in theory, and so it was then up to me to provide some examples and see how they felt in context. The first thing I did though was go back to some of the old C&C fan favourites to do some homage tracks for fun. I established the Hierarchy theme right away, Doom of the Aliens. It had a nice string hook that I liked immediately. The first track I wrote for Masari was Divine Intervention. Home run on that one right away, and everyone else felt that too. Zap is Novus’ theme, and it’s actually the very last Novus track I wrote. Reminds me of when I worked on the first C&C and didn’t establish GDI’s theme until the last track I wrote for them, which was Airstike.
Chris - What is your favourite track for Universe at War?
Frank - I have a bunch of them. My favourites are Divine Intervention, Masari Suite, Damage King, Doom of The Aliens, Composite, and Bass Case.
Chris - If you could take a different approach to the soundtrack for the game, what would it be?
Frank - I’m pretty happy with how it came out, so I wouldn’t imagine another approach. I tend to hybridize influences and styles as it is, even when I’m trying to stick to one style. I can’t help it, especially if I have creative freedom to do it. So I take full advantage of that. If there’s anything more I would have liked to do on this soundtrack, it would have been to get a real orchestra and choir to perform the Masari tracks.
Chris - Universe at War – thoughts on the game in the form of a few song lyrics?
Frank - Reaper Jones – my name is Reaper Jones!
Chris - It seems that many of the game soundtracks you have worked on have been made by Westwood or Petroglyph, what is it about these guys that makes you want to work with them so much?
Frank - It’s like being in a band. I’ve worked with half these guys the majority of my career so it just works seamlessly for me. We know what each other is capable of and so it’s easy to get on the same page in that regard.
Chris - Most gamers recognise and know you for the great tune, Hell March. What do you think about that track now? What is your favourite game track you have made?
Frank - That’s one track I’ll never grow tired of. It’s as timeless to me as it is to the fans, I remember the day I wrote it as if it were yesterday. I felt that it was a kick-ass tune right after I finished it, so I’m grateful that it’s resonated with so many people. I couldn’t possibly name one track in my whole career that I consider my favourite. I mean how can you pick one out of 80 albums worth of material? ;)
Chris - Command and Conquer Red Alert 3 has just been announced and I have already seen numerous fans clamouring for you to do the soundtrack, can you comment on this?
Frank - The flood gates opened up on my fan mail right after that announcement.
Regarding RA3, I've heard about it just as you have, so I've not been contacted. Ultimately EA would have to ask Petroglyph to use me on it, and then it would be up to Petroglyph to allow it. If those things align, you better believe I would score that game, no question!
Chris - Have you listened to the songs in Command and Conquer 3? If so, what did you make of them?
Frank - I played it, listened to it, what can I say, I’m biased.
Chris - What game soundtrack would you most like to work on?
Frank - I’d really like to do an Unreal Tournament game, it’s my favourite FPS of all time. Also would love to do a Transformers game. I grew up with the original Transformers series and the animated movie from 1986 is one of my all time favourites, including the soundtrack.
Chris - I see you have dabbled with work for UFC, any future projects lined up along these non-gaming lines?
Frank - Not only does UFC continue using my work (at least one track every show), I’ve also scored all the custom music to other MMA shows including HDNET Fights, and the commentary show, Inside MMA.
Chris – What are you working on next?
Frank - We’re getting the 360 version of UAW wrapped up, beyond that I can’t mention. I am also working on my 5th solo album, and a 2nd album with my side project, The Bitters.
Chris - Cheers Frank and good luck with the G.A.N.G awards!
Thank you Chris!
- Frank
Thanks to Chris at Petro for setting this up. Also check out the Universe at War Soundtrack - linky.
