I'm slowly learning more about Hollow Knight music. Today's lesson was: HK music can be VERY surprising. If you haven't seen my other Hollow Knight videos, they're over here: ua-cam.com/video/1uTcGHliPoc/v-deo.html
look at Nightmare king music, it's basicly the same as the grim troop but the boss is more powerfull so the music is more powerfull too (sorry for bad english)
Dont forget the Electric Guitar aswell. Correct me if im wrong but isint Grimm the only ost that has the Electric guitar in it? Also who composed Haunted Foes? Dosent that have Toms in it?
@@draw2death421 1up this - it's the only one that I can remember (and could find briefly listening through), though the drums do make a return in 'Nightmare King', which is nice!
“Disturbing” yet “glorious” is a very apt way to describe Grimm. Despite being so clearly inspired by Dracula and have a sinister appearance, he isn’t a villain. He is a performer who wishes to please the crowds. Yet he doesn’t want the praise and glory all for himself. He wishes to share it with the main character. “Dance with me, my friend. The crowd awaits. Show them you are worthy of a starring role.”
Exactly. What I love about Grimm is that he doesn't care if he loses since his death is part of the plan, and so he has no fear/remorse/etc, and that means that he's not there to fend off some invader, he's there to make a majestic exit, to terrify and to mesmerize the crowd and the player. And I love that
It also brings out the Nightmare aspect of the Grimm Troupe's existence without making them actively malicious. It feels more like a circus with dark origins but overall positive intentions. Compare that to a certain other boss that's effectively insane with rage against another god who probably never even saw her face in person.
When you take the previous events,conversations and the fight into consideration Grimm is actually getting hyped up with the 'dance' as Grimm calls it. As the knight is performing better and nearing the boss fight's end Grimm is getting more excited and looses himself to fight the battle he always wanted
@@NeuroatypicalKirby not sure if you’re adding to it or countering but what you said is very true, I did more than a hundred tries, took me 4 hours to stop trying to kill him and learn his attacks instead. I can’t even imagine how powerful Grimm is at his full potential with killing intent
Listen, if you liked the suspense and glory of grimm, the radiance's theme is where its at. It truly makes you feel what the game wants you to feel, a pipsqueak fighting THE *SUN.*
Nightmare King is basically what I would consider a phase 2 for this track where Larkin really emphasises on the terror. And it works wonderfully. Fight as a whole keeps you on your toes the entire time as minor slip ups can so easily cascade into loss of rhythm and panic inputs. Truly my favourite fight in the entire game, maybe along with Mantis Lords.
@@ImVeryOriginal NGK is honestly closer to dance you have to memorize and perform in front of the choreographer. Every little mistake you make in your performance is punished harshly.
I know a lot of people are suggesting you listen to more boss themes but I would highly recommend giving the song White Palce from the Hollow Knight OST a listen. It is really beautifully composed and I feel often overlooked as it appears in a very noisy area in the game.
Man, i suggested this before but screw it i'm gonna do it again. You really should do a video on Soul Sanctum. Based on the reaction to the Baroqueness and that sinister organ quality of this piece i imagine you'd really like Soul Sanctum.
Yes! Gosh this theme rocks and your analysis is making me rethink this theme again. Grimm as a character was inspired by a ton of things, he is like a circus leader, but also a spooky bat monster who likes to sup on the remaining fire of dying kingdoms. And the whole fight is supposed to be a dance sort of. Grimm is testing you if you are worthy to help him complete his ritual. So he fights you in his troupe tent and as you fight him an audience of his followers watches you and there are some cool theatrical details in the fight, like whenever you stagger him he turns into a bat for a bit and then returns with a drum roll followed by audience cheering and when he does a certain big attack the music goes full rock like in the second half of this theme for a bit as the whole arena lights up for the duration of the attack. But this fight is just a small taste of what's coming, once the ritual is nearly finished the last act is to defeat and actually kill Grimm himself in his true form "The Nightmare King" and that fight has its own theme titled "Nightmare King". "Nightmare King" has a bit more going on than this theme I think and it would be interesting to hear your thoughts on it. Thanks for the video, made my evening!
I agree in him being inspired by a lot of things. He gave me a lot of vibes from Dracula from Castlevania: Circle of the Moon. The attacks relate so well to the Dracula from that Castlevania game. One of my favorite boss fights so far!
Yes but actually no. Grimm doesn't want you to finish the ritual. He especially says that he doesn't need you anymore after you beat him. The ritual isn't here for Grimm, but for the Heart which feeds on the fight between the Knight and NKG. Fighting Grimm is a danse where he exhausts you to feed the Grimmchild. Fighting NKG is a fight for Grimm's own survival. Brumm guessed right, Grimm is nothing else than another slave of the Nightmare Heart. "Burn the father, feed the child !" is one of the saying of the troupe (Grimmkin lvl 2's journal entry). It is not metaphoric.
@@z8tr377 A'ight, now I'm angry. I played the game in french, and french translations when you beat Grimm is not at all what he says in english ! In french he says : "Sortez dans l’obscurité, mon ami. Quittez notre scène et laissez-nous performer notre acte final." which means "Leave into darkness, let us perform our final act" and "Et avec cela, je pense qu'il est temps pour nous de nous dire au revoir. Après une performance comme celle-là , de quoi d'autre le Rituel pourrait-il exiger de nous ?" which means "Time to say goodbye. What could the Ritual expect from us now ?" In english, he says "Go out into the darkness. Harvest the last lingering embers of this Kingdom. Then return to me and we will complete our dance." Now I don't know what to think anymore about it...
You could do a whole series on every Hollow Knight track and it probably wouldn't get boring. "Hornet" and "Mantis Lords" are also heavily baroque influenced, as is "Soul Sanctum" - a foreboding ambient track that seamlessly transforms into boss battle music. The ambient tracks are great in their own right - "Greenpath", "Crossroads", "Crystal Peaks" are all beautiful pieces, creating unique atmospheres with their own sense of progression. And hearing "City of Tears" for the first time in the game while descending into the titular metropolis was a magical moment that made me fall in love with Hollow Knight. There's just too much great stuff to choose from. :)
Troupe Master Grimm is my favorite boss to fight. He's a fun fight to learn.... but have yet to even fight his Nightmare King variant, which makes him faster, more aggressive, and adds trails of fire to his attacks. Thinking on it, Grimm is a bit like Hollow Knight's version of Dracula from the Castlevania series. He even takes on a similar stance to what Dracula does when throwing out his fire balls.
I love seeing a composer reacting to this theme because the guitar drop always makes their chins also drop 💀 it’s by far my favourite hk song and boss/area of the game in general
I love this sooky theme. I actually listen to this song on loop when I do my homework because nothing is scarier than my homework and it psychs me up haha
1:50 You know, I heard an interesting theory about why Baroque-style music became associated with grim, sinister things. You might find the video about it interesting! ua-cam.com/video/WT934eTbmuY/v-deo.html In a nutshell, organs were instruments originally constructed for use within the church and generally only used for worshipping God and representing his glory musically. Later on, it became a common trope to have an evil or sinister character playing the organ, because it's like a representation of their desire for power and control, that they would claim the might of God for themselves, or that they even BE God themselves. So when you have a character like that, the organ music that represents them is not beautiful and glorious, but horrifying and unsettling.
This OST definitely feels like a deadly performance. With audience in the background and this intence glorious music it's really like a deadly dance we share with Grimm. The dance of Flame and Shadow. Wanted to suggest listening to Everybody's gone to the Rapture OST - Mourning tree or Carry me back to her arms. Jessica Curry - the composer of the OST - made a masterpiece, imo. Anyway, thank you for your reaction, you're one of many youtubers, that really explains how the music works and what it does to make us feel сertain emotions! You're great!
I don' think that that's a good description of Broken Vessel. It's not really metal or Grimm-like in any sense, it's a dejected and determined march using the vessel theme.
Christopher Larkin is a genius.His music is amazing. I really liked your analysis of this , and tbh of all the Hollow Knight music you have done ! Hollow Knight has quite a few "scary" pieces so to speak. I fully reccomend you the Nightmare King Grimm song , Soul Sanctum and for sth completely different i would reccomend Pure Vessel All are amazing imo
The interesting part about the metal sections is that in the game, they ONLY happen while Grimm uses his balloon attack, so you barely hear any of it but it makes his most hectic attack feel so much scarier! Amazing video again, I would love to see you compare Mantis Lords with Sisters of Battle.
The organ gives a spooky vibe, while the brass when hitting first makes you think of medivial castles and (mostly) vampires. The circus like base of the theme brings out the show aspect. So yeah, the usual "OH MY GOD ITS AWSOME"-stuff
Amazing series, love how you analyse these tracks! Hollow Knight has an amazing soundtrack, but is also an amazing game! Can we hope to ever see you do a playthrough on Twitch, discovering these tracks in the context they were meant to be discovered in. Would love a full playthrough with some interludes where you explain stuff on your keyboard or go more in depth about what you're hearing. Keep up the good job, hope to see more Hollow Knight content, that soundtrack is simply amazing. (If you need ideas for future Hollow Knight tracks, I'd suggest: White Palace, Hornet, Mantis Lords, Soul Sanctum and of course the amazing City of Tears!)
Very happy to see you reacting to more Hollow Knight tracks! I can't recommend City of Tears enough; it's the song that accompanies you as you walk around the area of the same name. I and many other players really fell in love with the game in City of Tears, and the music is a huge part of that. It has a different feeling in a lot of ways from other Hollow Knight songs you've shown on this channel but still features Christopher Larkin's signature composition style in a beautiful way.
Please do White Palace from Hollow Knight next! It's not a boss track, but god it's so beautiful. Easily one of the best tracks in the game, along with this and Sealed Vessel.
If you plan to do more HK themes, I recommend Hornet’s theme (called Hornet) and Radiance’s theme (called Radiance), both are great and I’d like to see you break them down :)
Very interesting video, as always! This piece is really cool and makes me want to play air drums! This fits perfectly with Grimm’s pompous, theatrical and unique character. I like the organ tone which goes very well with the Metroidvania game! I also like the chorus part which accentuates his charisma. I get the feeling that Grimm himself is conducting his band. It’s so brilliant that this piece has intense and overbearing vibes, and yet has catchy and playful vibes. Thank you for this video, Davi!!
Lol ikr. I love it though. I think it's more romantic to me. I know, I know, that is not close to many. But I think of the whole edwardian era. Which is very classy and romantic to me.
I sincerely recommend you to listen to the "Sisters of Battle" theme, it is a rearranged theme from another spectacular track (Mantis Lords) adapted for a more epic and glorious context which, in my opinion, puts it a few inches above the original track.
I will make a comment suggesting Pale Court on every video until you do it; it is such a masterpiece and it's a shame it doesn't appear ingame. Also Nightmare King Grimm is an obvious recommendation after this one.
There's a reason for terror, disturbance and all that, dude! This fight is INSANE! And after you beat him on your 100th try, maybe, shit gets real and it gets 10x CRAZIER!
I'm so glad you are doing Hollow Knight now! It's soundtrack is such a gem. Some tracks I'd recommend: Broken Vessel Nightmare King Grimm City of Tears Greenpath Pure Vessel Soul Sanctum
So happy you covered this! Grimm and NKG are by far my favorite fights of the game. Another two that are fantastic that I recommend are the Radiance and Soul Master themes.
Excellent reaction. I really enjoy this piece from HK. If you plan in reacting to more HK music, I cannot highly recommend enough Soul Sanctum, Pale Court, White Palace, and Haunted Foes. By far some of my favorites
I loved your reaction to the guitar lol. You should check out Mantis Lords, very popular track. If these boss tracks are too short you could also do it alongside the Gods and Nightmares version of the track (mantis lords + sisters of battle). Personally though, Soul Sanctum would be an interesting track to look at.
i absolutely adore these videos, the hk song analyses are lots of fun to watch. if you were ever to analyze another good hk song that has plenty of organs, I recommend the soul sanctum or the soul master theme :)
Thanks for bringing the song back to my attention.. Sitting here: Goosebumps all over, coordinating the invisible orchestra and then hitting the multistep ascend to the metal part. Pure bliss! Really happy to see you get excited about good old Master Larkin's work ;)
There's another track from this DLC called Pale Court, it was never used in the game but I've been told it's the only song in the OST that's been orchestrally composed! It's so pretty(forgive my wording if I said that incorrectly I'm not a music person) But my favorite track has to be Enter Hallownest, and funnily enough, that one wasn't used either😅
I'd recommend listening to White Lady or Kindom's Edge from Hollow Knight, as you've listened to some of the more dramatic music, but these more calming songs are just as stunning.
Great video, as always. I really enjoy seeing someone with a music background break down these tracks and bring my attention to elements I hadn't noticed before. Hollow Knight is such a great game with amazing music/sound design. Grimm is a fantastic boss, and as others have mentioned he has another, harder form called "Nightmare King" with an entirely separate track. Would love to see you check that one out some time!
Yeah this one is a banger! It starts good but when it really kicks in it just elevates this fight to a whole other level. Btw, are you planning on checking out risk of rain 2 some time? Great video, hope you keep up the awesome analyses!
I think it's the calmest and most solemn boss battle music I've ever heard. When you think they couldn't possibly squeeze any more emotion out of the Hollow Knight, you get the gut punch of seeing it as it was before its corruption. One of my favorite fights in the game.
Your videos well and truly have made me come to appreciate Christopher Larkin's sheer talent and genius. Mad props to you for breaking his work down an teaching us so much greatness about his stuff!!! Really loving the Hollow Knight content, I've already loved the soundtrack so much before, but you just brought a whole new level to actually *understanding* the greatness of the music
Man, i really like your reactions, content and etc. I dont know shit about music except that there are 7 notes but your breakdowns are so satisfacting to watch for some reason
Thank you. Such a good video. Next Time please listen to Nightmare King. This track is from the same dlc and you should hear it right after this one. Also in my oppinion it is even better ;)
Desde que conheci o canal, sempre pensei "nossa... o sotaque dele parece de um brasileiro falando inglês..." só hoje entendi o porquê. Curiosamente conheci o seu trabalho pelo Matthew Griffin e como um fã de Hollow Knight e alguém que admira ver um trabalho bem feito, o seu é espetacular. Sucesso, meu conterrâneo!
Your analysis of HK music (and others) made me realize there was even more complexity here than I knew. Something this game does really well is create and mix leitmotifs, so look out for those and you can get a gleen into the story without even having had played the game!
Honestly, every part of the Hollow Knight OST is actually a masterpiece. Every one of the boss fights have music that's perfectly evocative of the fight and the story behind it, and every zone you explore has music that sounds exactly like the place you're exploring. A mysterious ancient cavern, an overgrown grove, and the literal crumbling edge of the kingdom, and so on. 10/10, perfection. But all the songs do contain a thread of despair or hints of loss... because the entire game covers a dying and forgotten kingdom consumed by madness.
Some of my favourite tracks of hollow knight, probably one of the things that made Grimm my favourite Boss fight ! Can you beleive I had goosebumps during the whole song ? The harmonics, the whole orchestra ! It's just incredible ! In a way it's logic to have this disturbing chords so different for the game's ambiance, Grimm troup aren't from the same world, they don't play with the same rules. When Hollow Knight is Light vs Darkness, a life of insects, Hallowness very dull and earthy, Dreams are bright and gold, but Grimm ? Grimm is Fire. Red and Dark, and actually kind of a bat, so basically thematically sooo different (he has this vampire aesthetics as well). Then you have "Dream" version >:) (shouldn't it be called Nightmare btw ? )
I really like your way of analyzing these amazing tracks. You are very humble and honest and give valuable information about the music and even play the chords on a keyboard to dive deeper into the materia. Maybe you could also analyze some Ori tracks as well? Would love to see them :)
You don't ever see it recommended because it's an OST for an unreleased game (HK Silksong - HK sequel) but breaking down 'Lace' would be awesome. Here's some incentives: 1. 'Lace' is currently #2 most viewed HK ost on youtube only losing to GRIMM + NK GRIMM combo ost. Not bad for a sample ost. 2. HK fanbase is VERY hungry for any hints including ones you can find in the ost. Especially for an unreleased game, your predictions/speculations can be very interesting. 3. It sounds very different from original HK ost. 4. All of the original HK ost was made (almost) solely by Christopher Larkin. For the sequel they used actual orchestra and real instruments. Hopefully you'll consider doing this one. Thanks.
As a hollow knight fan, I love these analyses! though the gameplay footage gives me the OCD I never had. Aside from that, I think it would be really cool if you checked out the sisters of battle track and the gods and glory track.
I KNEW this would be a good one. Grimm was such a fantastic part of the game and his theme ROCKS (literally), its hard to believe it gets even more metal in the Nightmare King version. Larkin is phenomenal, and thanks so much for the video! :)
This channel deserves so much more subscribers I'm so happy that you heard this one, i can only hope that the next is either Nightmare King Grimm, or Sisters of battle(or mantis lords similar music the sisters of battle is slighlt better)
hey i just found your channel through the sealed vessel video and i've been loving the blind reactions (plus the videos in the corner to help the viewer with correlation, i'll definitely appreciate it when i start watching your videos on games i haven't seen ^^ if you feel like revisting hollow knight i would personally suggest the Broken Vessel, it's not as high stakes or flashy as sealed vessel or grimm but it's one of my favorites of the "lesser known" tracks
Hollow Knight have one of my favorite OSTs of the games, and i love the way you explains about how the music works and I'm enjoying these songs even more because of your videos i have a sugestion, my favorite music of Hollow Knight, the theme of Mantis Lords/Sisters of Battle
Your videos are really entertaining, it makes me appreciate the music I listen to even more. I would like to see a review of Laurence the First Vicar from Bloodborne since it is one of my favorite tracks.
Oooo you should react to the sisters of battle theme! The transition between the mantis lords to the sisters of battle is really cool because of how the music stops then goes to full force!
OMG! I've never payed the required attention to this track, that Metal vibe is awesome! The Knightmare King Grimm and Sisters Of Battle are my favorite themes, but this theme now is close to them!
I loved this video! it would also be super cool if you could one day listen to the city of tears theme from hollow knight. Nice work on the awesome videos.
Just found your channel from the video you did on Sealed Vessel. Hollow Knight is my all-time favorite game and the soundtrack is spectacular. My favorite track is Mantis Lords and I think that you would get a kick out of analyzing it.
I'm slowly learning more about Hollow Knight music. Today's lesson was: HK music can be VERY surprising.
If you haven't seen my other Hollow Knight videos, they're over here: ua-cam.com/video/1uTcGHliPoc/v-deo.html
Thanks for bringing attention to one of the best video game soundtracks there is.
Now go and listen to the variations made for Nightmare King Grimm, the hard version of this boss. It's even more metal!
look at Nightmare king music, it's basicly the same as the grim troop but the boss is more powerfull so the music is more powerfull too (sorry for bad english)
dude PLEASE do mantis lords it’s so cool
@@sdjtlch the first half is the regular Grimm and the second is nightmare king Grimm.
If you love this theme, youd adore his other theme, Nightmare King
Ah, thank you for suggesting it!
@@DaviVasc it’s awesome
@@DaviVasc Be prepared and to give you some background of how disturbing this group is, their phrase is “Burn the father, feed the child.”
absolutely
Oh yeah its awesome
One of the rare times Christopher Larking pulled out drums in Hollow Knight :D It's so different yet manages to fit the game and the battle so well
Ah, I was wondering if there were any other tracks similar to this
Dont forget the Electric Guitar aswell. Correct me if im wrong but isint Grimm the only ost that has the Electric guitar in it?
Also who composed Haunted Foes? Dosent that have Toms in it?
@@draw2death421 1up this - it's the only one that I can remember (and could find briefly listening through), though the drums do make a return in 'Nightmare King', which is nice!
@@DaviVasc there's Nightmare king, it's this but more powerfull
@@DaviVasc how about absolute radiance ost from hollow knight
“Disturbing” yet “glorious” is a very apt way to describe Grimm. Despite being so clearly inspired by Dracula and have a sinister appearance, he isn’t a villain. He is a performer who wishes to please the crowds. Yet he doesn’t want the praise and glory all for himself. He wishes to share it with the main character.
“Dance with me, my friend. The crowd awaits. Show them you are worthy of a starring role.”
Exactly. What I love about Grimm is that he doesn't care if he loses since his death is part of the plan, and so he has no fear/remorse/etc, and that means that he's not there to fend off some invader, he's there to make a majestic exit, to terrify and to mesmerize the crowd and the player.
And I love that
@@theweaverofworlds if he's going down, he's going down in style
@@shrekiscool4743 Exactly. He's just there to dance his final dance. And god dayum is this dance majestic.
It also brings out the Nightmare aspect of the Grimm Troupe's existence without making them actively malicious. It feels more like a circus with dark origins but overall positive intentions.
Compare that to a certain other boss that's effectively insane with rage against another god who probably never even saw her face in person.
The circus leader that feeds on the misery of dreams and tries to kill you………yup, definitely not a villain.
One of my absolute favorite transitions , it's like Grimm himself is getting into it
When you take the previous events,conversations and the fight into consideration Grimm is actually getting hyped up with the 'dance' as Grimm calls it. As the knight is performing better and nearing the boss fight's end Grimm is getting more excited and looses himself to fight the battle he always wanted
@@NeuroatypicalKirby not sure if you’re adding to it or countering but what you said is very true, I did more than a hundred tries, took me 4 hours to stop trying to kill him and learn his attacks instead. I can’t even imagine how powerful Grimm is at his full potential with killing intent
One of my friends described this song and his other theme perfectly as a “rock opera”
Actually rock circus opera
this isn't really what rock opera is. rock opera is already a thing, and this song doesn't match that pre-existing definition
The mantis lords have an amazing theme that i think you’ll like
Mantis lords is great, but sisters of battle edges it out imo
@@sajvinderbolina7006 I prefer mantis lords because it's simpler but it still retains that vibe.
@@sajvinderbolina7006 Sisters of Battle honestly sounds a bit too “epic” and it loses some of what makes Mantis Lords sound so fun.
Mantis lords is definitely the better of the 2, and probably my favourite track of the game
@@sajvinderbolina7006 Yeah, I love the choir.
Listen, if you liked the suspense and glory of grimm, the radiance's theme is where its at. It truly makes you feel what the game wants you to feel, a pipsqueak fighting THE *SUN.*
oh _yeah_
but to fight the sun u need to *git gud*
@@ivanpavic3355 hope I can *git gud* before I reach Radiance. Hell, before I reach the Mantis Lords
@@lolloblue9646 Oh ,you poor soul. Many a thing must happen if you wish to beat the Mantis lords as your third boss...
Yes *Gitting gud* is one....
@@UnicronicHerald Surprisingly enough, I beat them first try
This song teally makes you heart beat go wild while dodging
It must be crazy to listen to it in-game
It's my favorite workout boss, before going for the 5th pantheon. Just to listen to the music once more.
@@DaviVasc You will be adrenaline thumped in game fighting him( and dying a LOT). Worth every penny this game.
“Heart” you say?😏
Nightmare King is basically what I would consider a phase 2 for this track where Larkin really emphasises on the terror. And it works wonderfully. Fight as a whole keeps you on your toes the entire time as minor slip ups can so easily cascade into loss of rhythm and panic inputs. Truly my favourite fight in the entire game, maybe along with Mantis Lords.
NKG was the most frustrating fight in the whole game for me but once you start getting it, it becomes very rewarding.
@@ImVeryOriginal NGK is honestly closer to dance you have to memorize and perform in front of the choreographer. Every little mistake you make in your performance is punished harshly.
@@ImVeryOriginal The coolest thing about NKG is that every one of his attacks are in time with his music
@@ImVeryOriginal I LOVED THAT FIGHT!@
@@ImVeryOriginal I did it ONCE and could not again but it was soo much fun
I know a lot of people are suggesting you listen to more boss themes but I would highly recommend giving the song White Palce from the Hollow Knight OST a listen. It is really beautifully composed and I feel often overlooked as it appears in a very noisy area in the game.
*sound of getting hit* *sound of getting hit* *sound of getting hit* *sound of vessel dying*
@@JanbluTheDerg *sound of buzzsaws*
Good suggestion! It is indeed a beautiful theme.
Kind of piggybacking off this I REALLY want him to listen to pale court. I don’t feel like it gets the attention it deserves
My favorite part of the game
Man, i suggested this before but screw it i'm gonna do it again. You really should do a video on Soul Sanctum. Based on the reaction to the Baroqueness and that sinister organ quality of this piece i imagine you'd really like Soul Sanctum.
Cool, thank you for suggesting it. No worries about suggesting stuff again, I'm cool with it.
Yeah... Soul Sanctum is clearly underrated!
When you listen to Soul Sanctum knowing the lore behind it is terrifying
@@kurusu1614 Terrifying with or without lore.
@@DaviVasc PLEASE do soul sanctum is has such interesting rhythms and it's one of my favorites
Yes! Gosh this theme rocks and your analysis is making me rethink this theme again.
Grimm as a character was inspired by a ton of things, he is like a circus leader, but also a spooky bat monster who likes to sup on the remaining fire of dying kingdoms. And the whole fight is supposed to be a dance sort of. Grimm is testing you if you are worthy to help him complete his ritual. So he fights you in his troupe tent and as you fight him an audience of his followers watches you and there are some cool theatrical details in the fight, like whenever you stagger him he turns into a bat for a bit and then returns with a drum roll followed by audience cheering and when he does a certain big attack the music goes full rock like in the second half of this theme for a bit as the whole arena lights up for the duration of the attack.
But this fight is just a small taste of what's coming, once the ritual is nearly finished the last act is to defeat and actually kill Grimm himself in his true form "The Nightmare King" and that fight has its own theme titled "Nightmare King". "Nightmare King" has a bit more going on than this theme I think and it would be interesting to hear your thoughts on it. Thanks for the video, made my evening!
I agree in him being inspired by a lot of things. He gave me a lot of vibes from Dracula from Castlevania: Circle of the Moon. The attacks relate so well to the Dracula from that Castlevania game. One of my favorite boss fights so far!
Yes but actually no. Grimm doesn't want you to finish the ritual. He especially says that he doesn't need you anymore after you beat him. The ritual isn't here for Grimm, but for the Heart which feeds on the fight between the Knight and NKG. Fighting Grimm is a danse where he exhausts you to feed the Grimmchild. Fighting NKG is a fight for Grimm's own survival. Brumm guessed right, Grimm is nothing else than another slave of the Nightmare Heart. "Burn the father, feed the child !" is one of the saying of the troupe (Grimmkin lvl 2's journal entry). It is not metaphoric.
@@stevenselvini8759 Up to one's interpretation bucko!
@@z8tr377 A'ight, now I'm angry. I played the game in french, and french translations when you beat Grimm is not at all what he says in english ! In french he says : "Sortez dans l’obscurité, mon ami. Quittez notre scène et laissez-nous performer notre acte final." which means "Leave into darkness, let us perform our final act" and "Et avec cela, je pense qu'il est temps pour nous de nous dire au revoir. Après une performance comme celle-là , de quoi d'autre le Rituel pourrait-il exiger de nous ?" which means "Time to say goodbye. What could the Ritual expect from us now ?" In english, he says "Go out into the darkness. Harvest the last lingering embers of this Kingdom. Then return to me and we will complete our dance." Now I don't know what to think anymore about it...
@@stevenselvini8759 If you are too lazy to look things up yourself (like I am) just watch a lore video, like one of mossbag's videos and be at peace.
You could do a whole series on every Hollow Knight track and it probably wouldn't get boring. "Hornet" and "Mantis Lords" are also heavily baroque influenced, as is "Soul Sanctum" - a foreboding ambient track that seamlessly transforms into boss battle music. The ambient tracks are great in their own right - "Greenpath", "Crossroads", "Crystal Peaks" are all beautiful pieces, creating unique atmospheres with their own sense of progression. And hearing "City of Tears" for the first time in the game while descending into the titular metropolis was a magical moment that made me fall in love with Hollow Knight. There's just too much great stuff to choose from. :)
Troupe Master Grimm is my favorite boss to fight. He's a fun fight to learn.... but have yet to even fight his Nightmare King variant, which makes him faster, more aggressive, and adds trails of fire to his attacks.
Thinking on it, Grimm is a bit like Hollow Knight's version of Dracula from the Castlevania series. He even takes on a similar stance to what Dracula does when throwing out his fire balls.
Grimm is absolutely a nod to the genre's roots in Castlevania
Plus the nkg deals 2 masks per hit.
Glad to see more HK songs! Its cool to see someone who actually knows what they're talking about react to something
Yes! This is one of my favourite tracks. You also break things down so well, even though I don’t understand music theory.
My intended audience is people that don't know music theory, so I'm happy you like the video!
I love seeing a composer reacting to this theme because the guitar drop always makes their chins also drop 💀 it’s by far my favourite hk song and boss/area of the game in general
bro was really using hive blood in a boss fight
it was played by someone else... 😶
I love this sooky theme. I actually listen to this song on loop when I do my homework because nothing is scarier than my homework and it psychs me up haha
lol
1:50 You know, I heard an interesting theory about why Baroque-style music became associated with grim, sinister things. You might find the video about it interesting! ua-cam.com/video/WT934eTbmuY/v-deo.html
In a nutshell, organs were instruments originally constructed for use within the church and generally only used for worshipping God and representing his glory musically. Later on, it became a common trope to have an evil or sinister character playing the organ, because it's like a representation of their desire for power and control, that they would claim the might of God for themselves, or that they even BE God themselves. So when you have a character like that, the organ music that represents them is not beautiful and glorious, but horrifying and unsettling.
Thinking of how Ganondorf plays the organ in Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.
I too thought that immediately.
Interesting!
@@Techhunter_Talon also Davy Jones plays his theme with an organ
You are the reason I got into hollow night and it's lore...thank you! It's been very fun!
Ah, that makes me happy. Thank you Myna!
This OST definitely feels like a deadly performance. With audience in the background and this intence glorious music it's really like a deadly dance we share with Grimm. The dance of Flame and Shadow.
Wanted to suggest listening to Everybody's gone to the Rapture OST - Mourning tree or Carry me back to her arms. Jessica Curry - the composer of the OST - made a masterpiece, imo.
Anyway, thank you for your reaction, you're one of many youtubers, that really explains how the music works and what it does to make us feel сertain emotions! You're great!
1:33 bruh, you're spot on, that tune literally plays during a different point in the grimm troupe story
I highly suggest you listen to "broken vessel"
Its like a combination of the metal part of Grimm and the sad part of sealed vessel
I'd put nosk in with it on the scary and yet creepy scale
I don' think that that's a good description of Broken Vessel. It's not really metal or Grimm-like in any sense, it's a dejected and determined march using the vessel theme.
@@cobusvanderlinde6871 kinda like the jaws bit with the cello, making the sad reality of the vessels twist into a predator-esk battle
@@cobusvanderlinde6871 it probably was ngl
Cool thing to note is that in game his theme turns into the symphonic metal part only when he uses a special attack then goes back to orchestral
Christopher Larkin is a genius.His music is amazing.
I really liked your analysis of this , and tbh of all the Hollow Knight music you have done !
Hollow Knight has quite a few "scary" pieces so to speak.
I fully reccomend you the Nightmare King Grimm song , Soul Sanctum and for sth completely different i would reccomend Pure Vessel
All are amazing imo
or hive knight
Ah yes, chromatic mode, or as I like to call it, "I paid for the whole keyboard, I'm gonna use the whole keyboard"
I’m loving this hollow knight music reaction series
Would love to see an analysis of “City of Tears” next!
The interesting part about the metal sections is that in the game, they ONLY happen while Grimm uses his balloon attack, so you barely hear any of it but it makes his most hectic attack feel so much scarier! Amazing video again, I would love to see you compare Mantis Lords with Sisters of Battle.
Love this track so much!! I really like how you break down what is going on and being used in the tracks!
Thanks man!
The organ gives a spooky vibe, while the brass when hitting first makes you think of medivial castles and (mostly) vampires. The circus like base of the theme brings out the show aspect.
So yeah, the usual "OH MY GOD ITS AWSOME"-stuff
I always think of this one as phase 1. Nightmare king is when it gets crazy !
Amazing series, love how you analyse these tracks!
Hollow Knight has an amazing soundtrack, but is also an amazing game! Can we hope to ever see you do a playthrough on Twitch, discovering these tracks in the context they were meant to be discovered in. Would love a full playthrough with some interludes where you explain stuff on your keyboard or go more in depth about what you're hearing.
Keep up the good job, hope to see more Hollow Knight content, that soundtrack is simply amazing.
(If you need ideas for future Hollow Knight tracks, I'd suggest: White Palace, Hornet, Mantis Lords, Soul Sanctum and of course the amazing City of Tears!)
A playthrough on Twitch or YT would be fun but at the moment I simply don't have time. Some day!
Very happy to see you reacting to more Hollow Knight tracks! I can't recommend City of Tears enough; it's the song that accompanies you as you walk around the area of the same name. I and many other players really fell in love with the game in City of Tears, and the music is a huge part of that. It has a different feeling in a lot of ways from other Hollow Knight songs you've shown on this channel but still features Christopher Larkin's signature composition style in a beautiful way.
Please do White Palace from Hollow Knight next! It's not a boss track, but god it's so beautiful. Easily one of the best tracks in the game, along with this and Sealed Vessel.
He'd have to play a buzzsaw in the background to get the full experience lol
bump
*buzzsaw sounds*
Or the pale court, is the upgraded version.
If you plan to do more HK themes, I recommend Hornet’s theme (called Hornet) and Radiance’s theme (called Radiance), both are great and I’d like to see you break them down :)
I second the Hornet recommendation! it's one of my favorite tracks in the game
Very interesting video, as always! This piece is really cool and makes me want to play air drums! This fits perfectly with Grimm’s pompous, theatrical and unique character. I like the organ tone which goes very well with the Metroidvania game! I also like the chorus part which accentuates his charisma. I get the feeling that Grimm himself is conducting his band. It’s so brilliant that this piece has intense and overbearing vibes, and yet has catchy and playful vibes. Thank you for this video, Davi!!
Oh yeah, this is definitely air drum inducing haha. Thank you Aya!
David Vasc: talking about how SPOOOKY and ”DISTURBING“ the music is
Me: i thought he was just trying to make some Circus vibes:/
Lol ikr. I love it though. I think it's more romantic to me. I know, I know, that is not close to many. But I think of the whole edwardian era. Which is very classy and romantic to me.
I sincerely recommend you to listen to the "Sisters of Battle" theme, it is a rearranged theme from another spectacular track (Mantis Lords) adapted for a more epic and glorious context which, in my opinion, puts it a few inches above the original track.
When you know this battle is a dance, a spectacle, you can interpret the theme like a show and the metal moment is clearly a Climax
I will make a comment suggesting Pale Court on every video until you do it; it is such a masterpiece and it's a shame it doesn't appear ingame. Also Nightmare King Grimm is an obvious recommendation after this one.
There's a reason for terror, disturbance and all that, dude! This fight is INSANE! And after you beat him on your 100th try, maybe, shit gets real and it gets 10x CRAZIER!
You playing along with the captions made me crack up. Subbed. Love your dissection of music.
I'm so glad you are doing Hollow Knight now! It's soundtrack is such a gem. Some tracks I'd recommend:
Broken Vessel
Nightmare King Grimm
City of Tears
Greenpath
Pure Vessel
Soul Sanctum
You've gotta listen to Soul Sanctum from HK. Easily one of my favorite pieces in hollow knight and a pretty underrated song in the soundtrack
YES
So happy you covered this! Grimm and NKG are by far my favorite fights of the game. Another two that are fantastic that I recommend are the Radiance and Soul Master themes.
oh hell yeah i waited for more hollow knight! thank you its so much fun watching these videos
Excellent reaction. I really enjoy this piece from HK. If you plan in reacting to more HK music, I cannot highly recommend enough Soul Sanctum, Pale Court, White Palace, and Haunted Foes. By far some of my favorites
Thank god someone else is talking about pale court. I don’t even know how I would begin to describe how that track makes me feel
I loved your reaction to the guitar lol.
You should check out Mantis Lords, very popular track. If these boss tracks are too short you could also do it alongside the Gods and Nightmares version of the track (mantis lords + sisters of battle).
Personally though, Soul Sanctum would be an interesting track to look at.
I loved this video just like the other Hollow knight reactions
Looking forward to hear your reaction about City of tears soundtrack
i absolutely adore these videos, the hk song analyses are lots of fun to watch. if you were ever to analyze another good hk song that has plenty of organs, I recommend the soul sanctum or the soul master theme :)
Christopher Larkin is a really amazing composer. I can't wait to hear his Silksong soundtracks xD
I’m so ducking happy he’s reviewing our beloved fandoms beautiful music along with GRIMM it brings me so much joyyyyy🥰
Thanks for bringing the song back to my attention.. Sitting here: Goosebumps all over, coordinating the invisible orchestra and then hitting the multistep ascend to the metal part. Pure bliss!
Really happy to see you get excited about good old Master Larkin's work ;)
I love your expressions whenever a song decides to go full ham. It's a delight to watch and listen to!
There's another track from this DLC called Pale Court, it was never used in the game but I've been told it's the only song in the OST that's been orchestrally composed! It's so pretty(forgive my wording if I said that incorrectly I'm not a music person)
But my favorite track has to be Enter Hallownest, and funnily enough, that one wasn't used either😅
I'd recommend listening to White Lady or Kindom's Edge from Hollow Knight, as you've listened to some of the more dramatic music, but these more calming songs are just as stunning.
Great video, as always. I really enjoy seeing someone with a music background break down these tracks and bring my attention to elements I hadn't noticed before. Hollow Knight is such a great game with amazing music/sound design. Grimm is a fantastic boss, and as others have mentioned he has another, harder form called "Nightmare King" with an entirely separate track. Would love to see you check that one out some time!
i love your explanation and analysis.. thank your for the video! hollow knight have really great soundtracks
Yay, so exciting! Hope you liked the track :) Thank you for the amazing video!
Thank you for suggesting it :)
Yeah this one is a banger! It starts good but when it really kicks in it just elevates this fight to a whole other level. Btw, are you planning on checking out risk of rain 2 some time? Great video, hope you keep up the awesome analyses!
Was waiting for this one! As always GREAT break-down man!
It's been long time I checked this channel and it's growing, keep it up
I recommend Pure Vessel! Easily my favourite boss theme, and absolutely the most meaningful track in the game, in my opinion.
I think it's the calmest and most solemn boss battle music I've ever heard. When you think they couldn't possibly squeeze any more emotion out of the Hollow Knight, you get the gut punch of seeing it as it was before its corruption. One of my favorite fights in the game.
I recommend “the rain formerly known as purple” from Risk of Rain 2, its not really lore base, but just a good song in general
Your videos well and truly have made me come to appreciate Christopher Larkin's sheer talent and genius. Mad props to you for breaking his work down an teaching us so much greatness about his stuff!!! Really loving the Hollow Knight content, I've already loved the soundtrack so much before, but you just brought a whole new level to actually *understanding* the greatness of the music
Man, i really like your reactions, content and etc. I dont know shit about music except that there are 7 notes but your breakdowns are so satisfacting to watch for some reason
I’m loving this series. If you do mantis lords I may explode from happiness
Thank you. Such a good video. Next Time please listen to Nightmare King. This track is from the same dlc and you should hear it right after this one. Also in my oppinion it is even better ;)
That was awesome! Everyone was waiting for this video! Grimm has another theme, called Nightmare King, btw.
Your videos are interesting as they explore things that are so well hidden but create a huge impact on games.
Glad you like them, my friend
Nightmare King is a masterpiece, I really suggest you to hear it, one of the best tracks in the game
Desde que conheci o canal, sempre pensei "nossa... o sotaque dele parece de um brasileiro falando inglês..." só hoje entendi o porquê. Curiosamente conheci o seu trabalho pelo Matthew Griffin e como um fã de Hollow Knight e alguém que admira ver um trabalho bem feito, o seu é espetacular. Sucesso, meu conterrâneo!
Saw a video of one of my favorite channels breaking down music from a game I loved, just leaving a comment to say thanks.
Your analysis of HK music (and others) made me realize there was even more complexity here than I knew. Something this game does really well is create and mix leitmotifs, so look out for those and you can get a gleen into the story without even having had played the game!
Honestly, every part of the Hollow Knight OST is actually a masterpiece.
Every one of the boss fights have music that's perfectly evocative of the fight and the story behind it, and every zone you explore has music that sounds exactly like the place you're exploring.
A mysterious ancient cavern, an overgrown grove, and the literal crumbling edge of the kingdom, and so on.
10/10, perfection. But all the songs do contain a thread of despair or hints of loss... because the entire game covers a dying and forgotten kingdom consumed by madness.
Some of my favourite tracks of hollow knight, probably one of the things that made Grimm my favourite Boss fight ! Can you beleive I had goosebumps during the whole song ? The harmonics, the whole orchestra ! It's just incredible !
In a way it's logic to have this disturbing chords so different for the game's ambiance, Grimm troup aren't from the same world, they don't play with the same rules. When Hollow Knight is Light vs Darkness, a life of insects, Hallowness very dull and earthy, Dreams are bright and gold, but Grimm ? Grimm is Fire. Red and Dark, and actually kind of a bat, so basically thematically sooo different (he has this vampire aesthetics as well).
Then you have "Dream" version >:) (shouldn't it be called Nightmare btw ? )
Love hearing you dissect Hollow Knight and Elden ring music! Keep up the great work!
I really like your way of analyzing these amazing tracks. You are very humble and honest and give valuable information about the music and even play the chords on a keyboard to dive deeper into the materia. Maybe you could also analyze some Ori tracks as well? Would love to see them :)
You don't ever see it recommended because it's an OST for an unreleased game (HK Silksong - HK sequel) but breaking down 'Lace' would be awesome. Here's some incentives:
1. 'Lace' is currently #2 most viewed HK ost on youtube only losing to GRIMM + NK GRIMM combo ost. Not bad for a sample ost.
2. HK fanbase is VERY hungry for any hints including ones you can find in the ost. Especially for an unreleased game, your predictions/speculations can be very interesting.
3. It sounds very different from original HK ost.
4. All of the original HK ost was made (almost) solely by Christopher Larkin. For the sequel they used actual orchestra and real instruments.
Hopefully you'll consider doing this one. Thanks.
I think Bonebottom would be more interesting personally.
As a hollow knight fan, I love these analyses! though the gameplay footage gives me the OCD I never had. Aside from that, I think it would be really cool if you checked out the sisters of battle track and the gods and glory track.
I KNEW this would be a good one. Grimm was such a fantastic part of the game and his theme ROCKS (literally), its hard to believe it gets even more metal in the Nightmare King version. Larkin is phenomenal, and thanks so much for the video! :)
I’m so glad you did a video on this song. It’s not only my favorite in hollow knight, but maybe my single favorite OST song from gaming.
Am I the only one that's focusing more on the gameplay and judging it
If you are looking for other Hollow Knight soundtracks, some I'd reccomend are:
-Hive Knight
-Hornet
-Mantis Lords
-Dung Defender
-False Knight
This channel deserves so much more subscribers
I'm so happy that you heard this one, i can only hope that the next is either Nightmare King Grimm, or Sisters of battle(or mantis lords similar music the sisters of battle is slighlt better)
hey i just found your channel through the sealed vessel video and i've been loving the blind reactions (plus the videos in the corner to help the viewer with correlation, i'll definitely appreciate it when i start watching your videos on games i haven't seen ^^
if you feel like revisting hollow knight i would personally suggest the Broken Vessel, it's not as high stakes or flashy as sealed vessel or grimm but it's one of my favorites of the "lesser known" tracks
Hollow Knight have one of my favorite OSTs of the games, and i love the way you explains about how the music works and I'm enjoying these songs even more because of your videos
i have a sugestion, my favorite music of Hollow Knight, the theme of Mantis Lords/Sisters of Battle
I am stunned, your description are so accurate I sometime can't belive you did not play the game or seen a video good job
Your videos are really entertaining, it makes me appreciate the music I listen to even more. I would like to see a review of Laurence the First Vicar from Bloodborne since it is one of my favorite tracks.
Ótimo trabalho ai man, espero que seu canal comece a crescer q seus videos sao mto bons
Oooo you should react to the sisters of battle theme! The transition between the mantis lords to the sisters of battle is really cool because of how the music stops then goes to full force!
OMG! I've never payed the required attention to this track, that Metal vibe is awesome! The Knightmare King Grimm and Sisters Of Battle are my favorite themes, but this theme now is close to them!
ngl one of the best soundtracks ever made in video games! aboslutely love your analysis of it!!
I’ve been waiting for this
I loved this video! it would also be super cool if you could one day listen to the city of tears theme from hollow knight. Nice work on the awesome videos.
Thank you, my friend!
Just found your channel from the video you did on Sealed Vessel. Hollow Knight is my all-time favorite game and the soundtrack is spectacular. My favorite track is Mantis Lords and I think that you would get a kick out of analyzing it.
Came for the song. Stayed for the breakdown. Very entertaining keep it up
Another great video. Hope you take a look at nightmare king as well