Hello everyone! Today I’m sharing a piece of music off of the Rakuen OST called, “The Spirit Envoy.” This track only plays once during the game, when the Leeble Blacksmith warns you about a group of mysterious beings called the Envoy. Residents of Morizora’s Forest (the fantasy world from the Boy’s favorite storybook) describe the Envoy as “between this world and the next.” Sometimes harmless; merely passing through… but sometimes unpredictable and frightening when they’re overrun with negative energy.

I had a lot of fun composing this track, as it was originally supposed to be battle music for the game. Rakuen went through 3 iterations… at first it was a crafting game, then it became a jrpg, and now it’s an adventure game with point-and-click/room escape style puzzles, Zelda-like dungeons, and some mysteries that revolve around having to talk with the characters. There are however, no battles or fighting… So the only time I get to play this track is when you’re being briefed on the dangers of this one cave you need to navigate in order to reach the Forest Guardian, Morizora.

But because it started off as battle music (and because you were fighting against the Envoy, who can have drastically different motivations and energies), I had the (in my opion) fun challenge of making it feel fast-paced and exciting, while at the same time unsettling and mysterious. I composed sections that felt uplifting to represent the Envoy who were focused on traveling to their next destination… As well as sections that were dark and eerie (represented by uncomfortable melodies) that represented the Envoy who had unfinished business and were lost between worlds. I hope you guys enjoy!