The Tony Hawk's Pro Skater series debuted in the late 1990s, and its soundtrack is often considered to be one of the best video game soundtracks ever; particularly the soundtrack for Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2, which many considered to be the best one out there.
The soundtrack in the Tony Hawk's Pro Skater series has also inspired other sports-related series to add some headbanging music to their games, and fans of these series look forward to listening to the music as much as they look forward to playing the games.
When Skater XL was announced, players wondered if this new title would also deliver on this particular department, especially since gameplay wise the game has already caught the attention of skateboarding game fans; all the game needs now is a proper soundtrack to make the game even more epic.
Today, Easy Day Studios, the game's developer, has finally revealed the list of bands that will be featured in the soundtrack for Skater XL, and all of these will, more than likely, make fans of skateboarding video games even more excited for the game — which, by the way, is becoming available in less than two weeks.
According to Easy Day Studios Marketing Director Jeff Goforth, they "really wanted the soundtrack to reflect skateboarding culture, as well as pay homage to some of the artists that provided the soundtracks to some of the most influential skate videos of all time. Music is such a huge part of skate culture and by incorporating the artists that created the sound of some of our favorite video parts, and have a connection to skateboarding, it just made so much sense."
The list of bands that will contribute to the game's soundtrack is the following:
- Modest Mouse: Exploring a jagged, lo-fi post-rock after forming in the mid-’90s, Modest Mouse became unlikely chart-toppers with a volatile mix of punk-inspired rawness and simmering atmosphere in the following decade. The band first broke through to the mainstream audience with the platinum-selling ‘Good News for People Who Love Bad News,’ their fourth full-length, in 2005.
- Band of Horses: Emerging in 2004 with a blend of woodsy midtempo rock and reverb-laden vocals, Band of Horses gained an audience in their native Northwest before ‘Everything All the Time’ made them indie rock darlings.
- Getter: Entrepreneur, Creative Director, Label Owner - just a few titles American music producer Tanner Petulla, professionally known as Getter, can claim. With the launch of his own clothing line Trippy Burger, the creation of his own creative hub “Shred Collective” - Getter has become a household name.
- Interpol: Since their emergence in the early 2000s, Interpol have occupied a unique space within indie rock. They helped kick-start the post-punk revival that has endured.
- Future Islands: Led by crooning frontman Samuel T. Herring, the members of Future Islands started out making electropop music together in 2003 while attending East Carolina University’s art program. Along with Herring, the initial members of the group were Adam Beeby, William Cashion, Gerrit Welmers, and Kymia Nawabi, and they played shows around campus as Art Lord & the Self-Portraits.
- Animal Collective: Animal Collective is a group of four best friends who grew up playing and recording music together in Baltimore County Maryland. AC continues to make music after 15 years, 10 studio records and three live records, that combines a love of sonic free form electronic horror gospel hip hop soul pop madness.
- Silversun Pickups: With their organic but richly atmospheric sound, Los Angeles alternative rock band Silversun Pickups helped put the über-hip Silver Lake scene on the map with their critical and commercial success in the 21st century. Debuting in 2005, they were indie radio favorites until their mainstream breakthrough, Swoon, arrived in 2009.
- STARHEADBODY: An open-ended musical collective, established and led by professional skateboarder, and Skater XL playable character, Evan Smith. Living by the motto “Everybody In,” each STARHEADBODY release features new collaborative artists, allowing Evan to capture audio snapshots of the many adventures that he finds himself in through experimental compositions and recording environments.
- Built To Spill: Built to Spill were one of the most popular indie rock acts of the ’90s, finding the middle ground between postmodern, Pavement -style pop and the loose, spacious jamming of Neil Young. From the outset, the band was a vehicle for singer/songwriter/guitarist Doug Martsch, who — heavily inspired by Dinosaur Jr.’s J Mascis — helped keep alive the concept of the indie guitar hero.
- Cende: Indie rock group Cende delivered a stirring brand of power pop. The trio began playing together in 2013 after discovering a shared appreciation for garage punk outfit the Marked Men.
- Kratos Himself: Honoring the rituals of his home, and reflecting the tones, moods, and life cycles dependent on circadian procession, Kratos Himself binds his melancholic meditations to the patient, ancestral soundscapes of the forest and countryside.
- The Shivas: The Shivas are a rock and roll band from Portland, Oregon formed in 2006. For The Shivas, the show has always been the thing. That thing being a bombastic, explosive and thoroughly communal live rock and roll experience where barriers between the performers and their audience seem to dissolve into the sweat and sound.
- Westkust: The Swedish shoegaze/noise pop band Westkust build their songs out of wall-of-sound guitars, mix in strong, swirling melodies, and top it off with yearning vocals straight from the indie pop playbook.
Skater XL is the evolution of skateboarding games and moves the genre towards expressive, physics-based gameplay. Players will experience unparalleled board control and responsiveness while they skate legendary real-world skate spots. With ground-breaking and intuitive controls, skateboarding in a video game has never felt more authentic, fluid, and responsive.
Skater XL is expected to release for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC(Steam) on Tuesday the 28th of July; Nintendo Switch release date to be announced.