So how did I come up with the idea for my forthcoming animated musical comedy feel-good smash blockbuster?  I shared earlier that the idea came to me on a plane back in September 2011, but I want to give a few more details, largely because I think the details are amusing.

I’ll start with some vulnerable self-disclosure:  I sometimes like to listen to soundtracks of video games.  I’m not much of a video gamer these days, but I am partial to the music.  (Is that kind of like saying I only read Playboy for the articles?)  And not only that:  I actually compose video game-style music, as I’ve shared here and here.

One of the soundtracks I’m into is that of a series called Guilty Gear.  The games have nothing to do with guilt or gears, as far as I can tell — they are basically Street Fighter 2-like 2-D fighting games.  But most importantly, they feature a driving hard rock soundtrack by famed video game composer Daisuke Ishiwatari — here’s a particularly rockin’ example.

The First Song’s Epic Origin

I was listening to the tune I just mentioned, and I was imagining what it would be like if that song were used as the backing track for video clips of people doing really tedious tasks in an office setting.  The song would be tearing it up in the background, in other words, while people typed, stapled and copied their way to white-collar success.

Then I started to imagine:  what if the office workers in the video started to sing along with the aforementioned Guilty Gear tune while still in the midst of their stultifying routine?  Maybe, I thought, they would sing about how exciting it is to check e-mail, code in JavaScript, and load documents into the scanner.  And the audience would wonder:  are they serious, or are they displaying faux passion for the boss’s benefit?

The result was the first song I came up with for the show, “Maximized,” which is sung mainly by Steve’s coworkers at NextComm, the software company where our story begins.  The song is jam-packed with the most irritating software industry jargon I could come up with, such as “my workflow solution’s always best-of-breed.”  In the middle of the song, Steve arrives at the office (late as usual) and expresses his impassioned disbelief about how his coworkers can enjoy any aspect of what they do.

I can’t wait to share that song, and two others, with you, when Episode 1 of Steve’s Quest is released within the next few months.

Related posts:

1. New Song From My Musical, “Give Her The Tour”
2. New Song from My Musical: “Maximized”
3. Your Opinion On A Song
4. Yes, This Is Actually Me Singing
5. Is Guilt Good For You? (Part One)