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Minecraft – Volume Alpha

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Minecraft – Volume Alpha
Close-up image of a Minecraft grass block rendered in 3D, viewed from the corner.
Soundtrack album by
C418
Released4 March 2011
Genre
Length58:59
Label
C418 chronology
Life Changing Moments Seem Minor in Pictures
(2010) 		Minecraft – Volume Alpha
(2011) 		72 Minutes of Fame
(2011)
Minecraft soundtrack chronology
Minecraft – Volume Alpha
(2011) 		Minecraft – Volume Beta
(2013)

Minecraft – Volume Alpha is the first soundtrack album by the German electronic musician Daniel Rosenfeld, known by his pseudonym C418. Created by Rosenfeld for the 2011 video game Minecraft, it is the first album to come from the games soundtrack and primarily consists of simplistic ambient music that predominantly uses piano. The simplistic nature of the albums music was caused by technical limitations of the Minecraft sound engine, which prevented numerous early concepts for more elaborate music from happening. Volume Alpha was released digitally in March 2011 as Rosenfeld's first commercial release, with a physical release issued by record label Ghostly in 2015.

Since release, Volume Alpha has been met with critical acclaim, with many considering it to be a major part of Minecraft's popularity as well as an example of Rosenfeld's work. Due to its association with Minecraft, it has been considered an influential album, as well as one of the best video game soundtracks ever made. A second Minecraft soundtrack album, Minecraft – Volume Beta, was released in 2013. In 2022, Volume Alpha experienced a resurgence in popularity and appeared on numerous charts, leading to Rosenfeld reaching number one on the Billboard Emerging Artists chart. In 2023, Volume Alpha was labeled Certified Gold by the RIAA, with the track "Sweden" receiving its own certification as well.

Background[edit]

Volume Alpha was the first album to come from the soundtrack for Minecraft, a sandbox video game developed by Markus Persson and released in 2011.[1] Prior to making the album, independent music artist Daniel Rosenfeld (known online as C418) was a small artist mainly producing albums inspired by Aphex Twin that he described as "making no sense."[1] During the development of Minecraft, Persson met Rosenfeld via an indie game development forum, and the two became friends. When Persson began showing the game to Rosenfeld, he requested that Rosenfeld become the games sound designer, which he accepted, and began work on the game's sound effects and music.[2][1]

Production and composition[edit]

Volume Alpha consists primarily of simplistic ambient and acoustic music that mainly uses piano and strings.[3] This design was caused by the technical limitations of Minecraft's sound engine, which Rosenfeld described as heavily limiting the capabilities of the games sound design. Originally, Rosenfeld wanted music in the game to range from more epic music that would play during fights, to music that would play depending on what type of biome the player was in and music that would play exclusively in caves, all of which were not possible as music was played randomly.[2]

"Sweden"
A 21-second excerpt of "Sweden," considered the most popular song in the Minecraft soundtrack.[4][5]
Problems playing this file? See media help.

Instead, Rosenfeld opted to create more quiet, simplistic music, with his approach being inspired by Dwarf Fortress (2006), where lower graphical quality that would otherwise be a turn-off was backed up by guitar music that would intrigue the player, possibly encouraging the player to continue playing the game.[2] The titular track, "Minecraft", was the first one made by Rosenfeld, and was used as the basis for other compositions in the album.[6] Not every track in the album followed this design, with ones such as "Cat" and "Dog" instead being upbeat chiptune themes.[3]

Rosenfeld primarily composed the soundtrack using Ableton Live in combination with other software and plugins, as well as synthesisers such as a Moog Voyager. After every track was composed, Rosenfeld organized the final versions of the music in a way where each track would naturally lead into the next, sometimes extending tracks as to achieve this. The goal of this was to make it where Volume Alpha could present itself separately from Minecraft, as well as listened to in one sitting as a single piece. In an interview with Vice, Rosenfeld stated that the albums track order was designed with a narrative in mind, though had forgotten what the was.[1] Despite this ordering on the album, the music in Volume Alpha present in game is played randomly, with no set moments where specific tracks are supposed to play.[2][1]

Release[edit]

Volume Alpha was first released digitally on 4 March 2011 via Bandcamp.[6] It was Rosenfeld's first commercial release. The commercial release of the album contains several tracks not included the game, ranging from those cut from the game (such as "Excuse") to ones from Rosenfeld's previous albums (such as "Droopy Likes Ricochet").[6] The albums cover art is of a 3D version of a Minecraft block of grass.[1] On 23 June 2015, a physical release of the album was announced by the record label Ghostly International. Alongside the standard CD and LP releases, a limited edition version was announced that came in the form of a transparent vinyl, with only 1,000 units being produced. These were released on 21 August 2015.[7] Those who purchased physical releases also received the album digitally.[8]

Reception[edit]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[9]
Mojo[10]

AllMusic's Andy Kellman wrote Volume Alpha to be one of "many immersive aspects" of Minecraft, and believed that the album had a good variety of tracks, ranging from simpler piano medleys to upbeat pop tunes. Highlighting this track variety, Kellman believed Volume Alpha had replay value, writing "none of the recurring elements are pronounced or simple enough to become fatiguing with repeated play." He also believed Volume Alpha to be a good demonstration of Rosenfeld's work, one that made it "easy to hear [...] why he has been compared" to influential composers such as Erik Satie and Brian Eno.[9] Stephen Worthy of Mojo was indifferent, believing Volume Alpha to be an album that highlighted the "simplicity and unique personality" behind Rosenfeld's work, as well as one that diverted expectations in comparison to other soundtracks behind popular video games, which Worthy found to typically be large scale orchestras instead of vignettes. He described Volume Alpha as one of the most influential albums of recent times due to Minecraft's widespread popularity, as well as some of the "loveliest."[10] Digital Trends believed that Minecraft might not have been as successful as it was if it were not for the work of Rosenfeld, including Volume Alpha.[11]

Original Sound Version's Richard McDonald highlighted the album's usage in Minecraft as leading to "very strong emotions that few games manage to master, or even hint at", which he viewed as consequentially being heavily nostalgic. He described the similarities between most tracks in the album as being beneficial to its presentation when it came to "providing an overall style while keeping each track unique," while also finding the composition of each track to be a style that he "couldn’t imagine the game without." He believed that Volume Alpha was "one of the most stand-out game soundtracks" of the 21st century, and one that was an "example of beautiful, elegant, and strongly emotional composition that transcends the game music genre into something much more."[3] Evan Tridone of The Review described Volume Alpha as "the best ambient album to be released this decade."[12]

Legacy[edit]

Several staff teams of different news outlets have considered the Minecraft soundtrack, including Volume Alpha, to be among the best video game soundtracks of all time. These include the editorial teams of NME,[13] Digital Trends,[11] GamesRadar+,[14] and VG247.[15] Volume Alpha has been found to be a popular album to listen to while studying or working due to its calm nature;[16][17] Marquette Wire considered Volume Alpha to be an example of video game and movie soundtracks improving focus due to their purpose of keeping listeners engaged.[16] "Sweden," considered the most popular song in the Minecraft soundtrack,[18][4] is one of the most streamed video game tracks on Spotify, having over 143 million plays.[4] On 22 August 2023, "Sweden" was labeled Certified Gold by the RIAA, having sold half a million confirmed units.[5]

The album has been considered by Rosenfeld to be his most important and successful work, and the one that helped him create his career as an independent music artist.[6] A second Minecraft soundtrack album from Rosenfeld, Minecraft – Volume Beta, was released in 2013.[19] In 2022 and 2023, Volume Alpha experienced a resurgence in popularity, leading to its appearance on numerous global charts and causing Rosenfeld to reach #1 on the Billboard Emerging Artists chart.[19] On 14 December 2023, Volume Alpha was labeled Certified Gold by the RIAA, nearly four months after the individual certification of "Sweden".[5]

Track listing[edit]

Awards and nominations[edit]

List of awards and nominations for Minecraft – Volume Alpha
Awards Year Category Result Ref.
Billboard Music Awards 2021 Top Dance/Electronic Album Nominated [20]

Charts[edit]

Certifications[edit]

Certifications for Minecraft – Volume Alpha
Region Certification Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[36] Gold 500,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e f Pangburn, DJ (30 June 2015). "Minecraft's Composer Explains Why the Music Is 'So Weird'". Vice. Archived from the original on 31 May 2022. Retrieved 20 September 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d Stuart, Keith (7 November 2014). "How Daniel Rosenfeld wrote Minecraft's music". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 3 November 2015. Retrieved 20 September 2022.
  3. ^ a b c McDonald, Richard (29 April 2014). "Minecraft – Volume Alpha (Review)". Archived from the original on 9 February 2019.
  4. ^ a b c Simpson, Katie (30 November 2023). "Minecraft: 10 Best Songs, Ranked". DualShockers. Archived from the original on 8 May 2024. Retrieved 8 June 2024.
  5. ^ a b c "American certifications – C418". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 29 August 2023.
  6. ^ a b c d Rosenfeld, Daniel (4 March 2011). "Minecraft Volume Alpha". C418.org. Archived from the original on 22 September 2022. Retrieved 8 June 2024.
  7. ^ Cox, Jamieson (23 June 2015). "One of Minecraft's soundtracks is getting a fancy physical release". The Verge. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
  8. ^ Hall, Charlie (23 June 2015). "Get one of 1,000 special edition vinyl Minecraft albums before they're sold out (update)". Polygon. Archived from the original on 28 September 2023. Retrieved 8 June 2024.
  9. ^ a b Kellman, Andy. "Minecraft Volume Alpha Review". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 11 January 2022. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
  10. ^ a b Worthy, Stephen (20 November 2015). "Less computer game soundtrack, more instant ambient classic" (PDF). Mojo. p. 89. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
  11. ^ a b Gurwin, Gabe; Michael, Hicks (24 October 2021). "The Best Video Game Soundtracks of All Time". Digital Trends. Archived from the original on 25 August 2017. Retrieved 8 June 2024.
  12. ^ Tridone, Evan (12 May 2019). "Five fantastic albums to put on when studying | The Review". Archived from the original on 20 September 2022. Retrieved 20 September 2022.
  13. ^ Barker, Emily (20 July 2015). "23 Of The Coolest Ever Video Game Soundtracks". NME. Archived from the original on 4 January 2017. Retrieved 8 June 2024.
  14. ^ Bentley, James; West, Josh (25 June 2022). "The 25 best video game soundtracks of all time". GamesRadar+. Archived from the original on 25 November 2020. Retrieved 8 June 2024.
  15. ^ Raynor, Kelsey (22 April 2022). "The best video game soundtracks to revisit in 2024". VG247. Archived from the original on 3 September 2023. Retrieved 8 June 2024.
  16. ^ a b Drewel, Izzy Fonfara. "Music of Midterms: Students' favorite songs for studying". Marquette Wire. Archived from the original on 8 June 2024. Retrieved 20 September 2022.
  17. ^ Antrim, Rayne (17 February 2023). "The Top 10 Best Game Soundtracks for Studying". Paste. Archived from the original on 8 June 2024. Retrieved 8 June 2024.
  18. ^ Pippin, Cameron (18 September 2023). "10 Best Minecraft Themes". Game Rant. Archived from the original on 6 February 2024. Retrieved 8 June 2024.
  19. ^ a b Zellner, Xander (3 August 2023). "C418 Hits No. 1 on Emerging Artists Chart Thanks to 'Minecraft: Volume Alpha' Soundtrack". Billboard. Archived from the original on 24 April 2024. Retrieved 8 June 2024.
  20. ^ Atkinson, Katie (15 May 2022). "Here Are the 2022 Billboard Music Awards Winners: Full List". Billboard. Archived from the original on 15 May 2022. Retrieved 20 September 2022.
  21. ^ "Australiancharts.com – C418 – Minecraft - Volume Alpha". Hung Medien. Retrieved 24 November 2023.
  22. ^ "Ultratop.be – C418 – Minecraft - Volume Alpha" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
  23. ^ "Ultratop.be – C418 – Minecraft - Volume Alpha" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
  24. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – C418 – Minecraft - Volume Alpha" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 15 July 2023.
  25. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – C418 – Minecraft - Volume Alpha" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  26. ^ "NZ Top 40 Albums Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 27 May 2024. Archived from the original on 24 May 2024. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  27. ^ "Veckolista Album Fysiskt, vecka 21". Sverigetopplistan. Archived from the original on 24 May 2024. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  28. ^ "Official Album Downloads Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 1 July 2023.
  29. ^ "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
  30. ^ "C418 Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 25 July 2023.
  31. ^ "C418 Chart History (Top Album Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved 14 December 2022.
  32. ^ "C418 Chart History (Top Dance/Electronic Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 14 December 2022.
  33. ^ "C418 Chart History (Soundtrack Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
  34. ^ "Soundtracks – Year-End 2023". Billboard. Archived from the original on 22 November 2023. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
  35. ^ "Top Dance/Electronic Albums – Year-End 2023". Billboard. Archived from the original on 22 November 2023. Retrieved 24 November 2023.
  36. ^ "American album certifications – C418 – Minecraft Volume Alpha". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
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