War Games: The Sounds I Made For The Film

[@WoodyBReal]

Dang this guy IS the 80’s! I can’t believe all the iconic sounds he’s responsible for 🤯

[@therealc0rax]

He literally made everything that's good in our lives lol

[@WoodyBReal]

@@therealc0rax for real, i feel guilty for calling him “this guy” like he’s just another random dude 🤦🏼‍♂️. These sounds filled my childhood and teen years. Amazing

[@jennoscura2381]

Espen Kraft has the tag line "I am the 80s". But this guy might just have him beat on that.

[@nickolasyounker]

Yea, its a W.O.P.R ! 🍔

[@annother3350]

@@jennoscura2381 x1000%

[@RobbieStrike]

History Lesson is one of my favorites. I have it as my ringtone on my phone for years.

[@drigrid]

That film is a masterpiece on every level, including the music. Perfect balance of nuclear anxiety and teen adventure. That's a tough tonal mix, but the music really hits the mark.

[@amoricanseth8320]

well said 👏👏

[@DX5]

These videos are priceless and a piece of history, Anthony. We thank you!

[@AlmaLibreStudios]

​The fact that you remember all that you did, when I can't remember what I programmed yesterday its mind blowing and inspiring!

[@GlacierSound]

He must have photos or something right???

[@VarionJimmy]

Totally agree! 😁

[@JH-lo9ut]

​@@GlacierSoundyou do realize how photos were made in the 80’s right?

[@unduloid]

@@JH-lo9ut I think they used these things called "cameras."

[@bentinho]

@@unduloid i mean, he would've had to take the pics. drop them at the lab and wait 2 weeks hoping they turned out 😂

[@RomainBigeardGuitar]

As a big fan of Wargames and all things 80s, this is awesome

[@jz2188]

As a teenager in the 80's and growing up immersed in the advent of consoles, gaming and movies like Wargames, Tron etc. this just triggered a flood of memories, thank you so much for documenting the tools and stories from when you were in the thick of making these impactful soundtracks etc

[@TridentCapital]

When he put the floppy disk in, I was expecting the computer to read back "Would you like to play a game?"

[@LovevonMelenEkman]

This channel must be one of the most precious resources on the internet

[@AutPen38]

I knew the Synclavier was very powerful, for its time, in terms of its synthesis and sound design capabilities, but I had no idea of it's multi-timbrality and ability to play multiple sequences at once without using actual tape recordings. You must have blown people's minds with that thing. Thanks for the history lesson.

[@timoruohomaki]

It was such a relief to hear you have backups of the floppies...there's so much of the soundscape of the 80's in there. About the sound, the combination of FM and the military spec DAC's of Synclavier is still sounding so very good!

[@Flackon]

Did they really build them with military spec hardware?

[@dfglojkg]

Remember in the '90s when Apple introduced the G3? The military actually did shut down the project for a short interval. It's documented in 'zines like MacUser and MacWorld. Talk about the alchemy of lemonade from lemons! Apple - when finally given the commercial go-ahead actually used the anecdote about the Gov "shutting them down" to plug the G3 line.

[@sounddroid]

Yep, even the red control panel buttons came from military avionics, used on the B-52 bomber etc. That’s why they still work today! I have a 40+ year old Synclavier VPK controller that has never been serviced and still works perfectly. AMS Neve also used a lot of avionics parts on their DFC film consoles, and those buttons have been in daily use since the mid 90’s with very few (if any) failures. Also they have an unbeatable feel to them, just like the Synclav buttons.

[@TheRyanKirk]

Aside from everything else, what a lesson on maintaining your instruments, data, and backups.

[@Rr0gu3_5uture]

My uncle took a weekend job as a projectionist when our local cinema reopened in 1982. Whenever a new film came in, I got to help out when he was splicing the 35mm spools together. My reward was a bottle of Coke and popcorn and getting to watch the first screening in the best seats in the empty theatre. War Games holds quite a fond place in my heart as it was one of the first films I saw in a double bill along with Clash of the Titans. I think it was around the same time that I began noticing and loving the punchy, staccato, futuristic sounds of instruments like the Synclavier II, DX7, Oberheim DMX, and TR-808 that were starting to appear in movie soundtracks.

[@russ254]

protectionists are always overshadowed by the more glamorous projectionists - you guys are great!

[@lmoore3rd]

As soon as I heard that opening riff from War Games my mind went back in time to my early childhood in the 80's watching it on VHS. Great memories.

[@vulvaether5169]

What a legend! Thank you for the great content.

[@MPDLR]

The music and soundtrack were and are awesome BUT the sound effects----man, iconic and so memorable to this day.

[@chenguefer156]

You are very kind sharing this fantastic Synclavier and your music, it looks brand new!

[@davelightman]

Fantastic. Have a lot of love for this movie, and great to hear this story. Also, love all that equipment!

[@bradfordkeithmadison953]

Oh how my heart leapt at seeing the floppy disk in use!!! And once again… FAR 2:14 more than just a “how to”!!! FAVORITE SHOW ANYWHERE!!! Now I’m inspired to go try resurrecting my E II and QX1 and see if I gear to hear that beautiful sound of loading floppies again!!!

[@johnnybegood2693]

This is something amazing you are working on showing to the Next Generation.. 🖖 Thank you!

[@curtisunit]

I really enjoyed the detail you share with us tone dorks. You’re a gem. Today I’m just learning about you by pure chance whilst looking up iconic bass lines. You’ve heard it thousands of times but this is what the tube is all about in the best sense.

[@NJDrew]

Amazing! One of my favorite movies, thank you for sharing this with us!

[@r.t.5425]

This was incredible. A great soundtrack that can’t be forgotten.

[@Isoquant]

Absolutely love the soundtrack for Wargames. What a treasure! Thank you for sharing!

[@jayceeloop]

I can’t believe you’re behind this iconic song from this iconic 80s movie 🎉 omg so amazing ! Thank you very much for sharing this! ❤

[@issiewizzie]

I got my first computer after watching that film .... also fancied Ally Sheedy😀

[@personalwatching9312]

Boy these sounds really are so early 80s huh. Come so far in the last 40 years. Crazy to think we could do a hundred times this on our phone now.

[@pierrenic.7682]

But you miss the point..l you can play and edit stuff in your phones … but tried to mix an album with your phones…

[@personalwatching9312]

@pierrenic.7682 nah I'm making the point of how far tech has come. A little Luke talking about the computer power they used to send people to the moon. :)

[@ischmidt]

Amazing. I watched WarGames so many times on VHS in the 80s, and those sounds were a huge part of making the movie feel right.

[@lundsweden]

VHS: Very Horrible System!

[@russ254]

@@lundsweden VHS was great when the alternative was nothing at all (yes, I know about betamax). It made possible the pron industry, and you could record the Dukes of Hazzard and rewatch it as many times as you like.

[@lundsweden]

@@russ254 True, I remember when VHS became popular in the 80s, I thought it was so cool, and a lot of my pocket money went to buying blank tapes. VHS was still viable until the early 2000s, but then DVD, TVRs and Web based video kinda took over. I got rid of my tapes around 2006, gave them all to a neighbour!

[@bingdong8571]

Oh man! You made so many influential things!!!!!!!!

[@ssommerfeld]

This is amazing. Keep up the videos and track breakdowns. Totally remember this movie. Thank you!

[@yorgle]

Such an underrated soundtrack to. :D Love this!

[@rosalindwebb7729]

The sounds and music is wonderful.

[@mikewalker2274]

War Games and Wendy Carlos' iconic score for Tron were what got me into electronic music. To think I am watching the actual dude who did this in 2023 is pretty rad! Thank you, sir!

[@emveeoh]

For us audio nerds, it would be fun to hear your experience working with Bruce Swedien. Maybe, share with us some of his techniques that you might have observed? A video where you talk about the studios of the '80s and the '90s would be fun. Thanks again for sharing!

[@thirstyCactus]

What an amazing / beautiful machine. It must have been such a charge working with the Synclavier when it was the apex of synth tech. I feel that the 80's were the golden age of synthesizers, in terms of innovation (and lust). Thanks for sharing your stories and knowledge!

[@jeffjfindley4802]

OMG how am I just now finding this?!

[@theokingshango]

Just your appearance brings us back to 1983🤣

[@sheppertonstudios8253]

Brother, History Lesson and Video Fever are the soundtrack to my younger self when I was getting into programming. I looked for the "proper" soundtrack record for Wargames everywhere back then but none of them contained your tracks. Thank you for inspiring me into becoming what I am today, a professional game developer. You rock.

[@yeshello2528]

synclavier is actually insane. I definitely need to get onto Arturia one

[@KRAFTWERK2K6]

They are also producing a new hardware model, all handmade by the original creator.

[@benanderson89]

​@@KRAFTWERK2K6woah, what!? Any news about that you can link to?

[@KRAFTWERK2K6]

@@benanderson89 it's called the Synclavier Regen. Some synthesizer testing folks here on youtube have been testing it a few months ago and i think the creator of it has a KZbin channel too :=)

[@VIRGOLEGACY]

Man I’m so glad I discovered this channel and it’s good to hear anybody talk about the score for Wargames 👏🏾👏🏾

[@theedxqboi]

Thank you for the inspiration! I've shared the video with my friends.

[@mateosmusiclist2119]

Anthony, couldn’t agree more on how this can add to our modern music palate. Love your site!

[@mjsschad3776]

Thank you for sharing all this priceless information! Amazing knowledge you have and you describe it perfectly

[@sssyntax]

That vibrato synth sound is amazing!

[@Legoflymaster89]

Wargames and Blue Thunder are my favorite scores of Arthur Rubinstein! You and Brian Banks were masters performing the Synclavier II!!

[@DavidSmith-ne1zp]

Thanks Anthony! I grew up listening to this music, and now at 60yrs old, Im thrilled to be learning how to play and recreate this music! Vintage synths are so cool!

[@PJVBLS70]

Unbelievable and Fantastic content !

[@christianrottler]

My youth put in sounds 🤩☺️

[@DarrenSangita]

Wow! Phenomenal insights. Had no idea you contributed to this awesome film. It was very influential in our lifelong computing journey. You had a hand in so many important productions! Thanks for the show.

[@JamesMyddelton]

Fascinating overview, thanks Anthony !

[@nkogliaz]

The Beepers! Wow it's great to see this video, I loved the movie Wargames, it was the very first film I ever owned as a child on VHS back then (the second one being the Disney movie, 'Flight Of The Navigator', another film with incredible synth work!), I now own the film on VHS, DVD and Laser Disc, the soundtrack for it was so impactful on me as a child, and the songs by The Beepers had a huge influence on me on my early life obsession with music and specifically, synthesizers, when the synclavier hit the scene back then, I feel like it totally changed scoring and pop music (the EMU-Systems Emulator / Emulator II also!), it was such a powerful platform and literally tons of people were trying to get their hands on them (honorary shoutout to the Fairlight CMI also!), I'd read soo much about the production of this film over the years since the advent of the Internet, and so many things have fascinated the hell out of me about it, like Joshuas voice was actually recorded backwards and then cut up and sequenced to give it that really quirky monophonic quality to the sound of it, it is so cool now with the Internet that we can go back and reexamine films and music now with much more access to information now in 2023, it was much harder to obtain back then before the Net and it has changed so much about every aspect of life, I would have loved to have been able to read more about this film when I was a kid, turns out I only had to wait over three decades to get more insight on it, better late than never, haha! Thank you much for this video, it's awesome to see the sequences on the synclavier (I have become a total synth nerd / musician myself along the way), and hear the sounds on the actual hardware once again, I searched high and low for the Wargames OST and finally recentlly, acquired a copy of it, and it's been an absolute pleasure to go down that wormhole again, big respect to you Anthony, and thank you very much for the tunes!

[@jdmresearch]

Please do a similar one with "History Lesson". The montage in the movie with it it's truly amazing!

[@paultuffy]

This is pure gold. Thank you Anthony

[@GloveBunniesVideos]

I love how the floppy disk has tape over the write tab so you won't accidentally erase it. Classic!

[@EmilyKresl]

I've never been so happy to see a floppy disc so hard before! I could watch another hour of you simply breaking down the history lesson song and maybe give us a little taste of the lyrics that were originally for the tune but were taken out. I had no idea you were the beepers! I love you guys!!! I've been that one person listening to the wargames soundtrack for the last decade on KZbin.

[@mathumphreys]

It's true, I used to program a whole nights performance (40 songs) for my cover band in the early 90s and it felt so much more direct and connected than what I do now with my DAW.

[@cleekersneaker]

My heart jumped when Anthony grabbed the floppy out of the drive.

[@dbroche]

“Be the artist” - best advice of all time 😎

[@flowmaka]

Not only is the guy responsible for War Games but so much responsible for the great sounds and programs of Michael’s synth sounds! Amazing dude!

[@spincitynyc809]

His studio reminds me of a mix between Fueris Bueller and Wargames bedrooms. The bedroom of my dreams in the 80's.

[@EmilyKresl]

Ferris having a sweet computer setup was definitely John Hughes giving a nod to wargames!!! "I asked for a car, I got a computer. How's that for being born under a bad sign?"

[@emveeoh]

Thanks for sharing these videos with us Anthony! Hearing this song from War Games affected me more than hearing the Thriller stuff. I never knew your name before doing these videos, but now I realize you pretty much defined my learning years with your sounds. 🎉

[@andrewbonica]

One of my favorite movies and soundtracks! Thank you for making the soundtrack as well as this video! ☺️🙏🎹🎵🎶

[@ryanschooley]

Iconic film and soundtrack!

[@midiman369]

This is fantastic! Thank you for sharing the breakdown of these iconic sequences.

[@laynehoward2870]

When the Synclavier came out, I was 18 or 19. I called them to ask about availability and price. Imagine my shock when the guy told me it was about $62,000.00. It was juuuuust a bit out of my price range.

[@jimbotron70]

Lol, imagine that guy answering multiple times the same answer over and over again to random people shocked and hanging up the call.

[@ericMT]

It was crazy how much the new gear was. I had the same experience but with the Fairlight CMI. It just wasn’t accessible to “normal” people like it is today.

[@paulschilling2996]

Love it 🤩 Have seen this movie so many times. I included my take on two of your WarGames sounds in my factory bank for the Regen, as a tribute to your Synclavier work (Principal’s Office Echo and New Grade Lead) 🙏

[@paulschilling2996]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/r3OzdJJqocyhms0

[@Bent6]

Paul - I'm really digging your patches in the Regen (really enjoyed your patches in the Sync V too!). They're serving as a great tutorial for me to build my chops up! Thanks!

[@paulschilling2996]

Here is my “New Grade” lead for the Regen kzbin.info/www/bejne/r3OzdJJqocyhms0m43s

[@jeffsawada9227]

Beautiful work. Amazing that your files, disks, archive and hardware are all in perfect condition decades later. Thank you so much for sharing this insider look.

[@johncarter2741]

Loved war games. I was only 13 when it came out and the soundtrack in the arcade scenes was great. Loved it. Cheers for putting this up on the choob.

[@DavidLee07]

Definitely agree that playing and printing while you're recording gives you an immediacy and also makes you commit and get it one shot rather than endlessly fiddling later and finding you're only going sideways.

[@jenn8147]

So it was you, do you realize you defined my love for electronic music for a life time with your sound track ? THANK YOU !!!

[@joej7431]

I was working as a broadcast radio tech, the radio station always had movie premiere tickets available, I saw War Games and its always been a favorite movie of mine. I got into electronics because of synths in music and movies and now I 40 years later I can appreciate where the sounds of the sound track came from. I appreciate all Anthony's you tube informative videos! excellent!

[@Fishies125]

I love Wargames and I LOVE the music. Rubinstein was absolutely brilliant. Thank you for doing this.

[@fender1000100]

The synclavier is a dream machine to me. Even today I would take it over anything. So warm and wonderful. And capable. Thanks for this Anthony.

[@gileswhiteheadartist]

War Games is a brilliant film and the music is perfect. I had the LP record soundtrack when I was a teenager and I loved the combination of music, songs and clips from the film. It’s brilliant to hear the story behind it and hear these lovely sounds coming together.

[@pascaldeshayes5459]

You seriousness and dedication is a lesson in itself.

[@Stephen_Lafferty]

I am very thankful for stumbling across this video on Friday December 1st 2023! Is War Games really 40+ years old? It's one of my favourite 80s films! Thank you, Anthony, for this great deep dive in to this iconic soundtrack!

[@jeffleonhardt7173]

It's so nice to see someone who, for most of us, was behind the scenes being able to share their craft with us today. War Games was such a unique soundtrack and further fueled my love of synthesizers. I got my first, a Korg Polysix, the year before this came out. Thanks so much for sharing!

[@stephenanthonythomas3533]

Thanks for this! Always loved that movie. I remember in 1983 the synclavier was for the Pros of pros. It was the stuff of Royalty. The masses were using a DX7’s and 4 track cassette machines!

[@bignz721]

This is great. Always loved that song & never would have guessed its a synclavier. Amazing what these then-state of the art machines costing more than an ultra-luxury car could do, still can do, & not really be replaced without precise MIDI cloning today

[@relentlessrescue260]

I just watched the movie for the first time. The background sounds are awesome. I noticed all of them. It’s crazy that I’m watching a video explaining them. Great job!

[@keymad4]

awesome

[@pijanola]

I really enjoy this channel! 😍. I read that the Score for John Carpenter's Starman was almost entirely made on the Syncavier, sounds programmed by you and Banks. That angel choiry theme made my hair raise, and still do. I would love to hear that made and performed here.

[@Trendwatch_2016]

You put just me back in the theatre in 83. Amazing!

[@PhilBennett3D]

Nice demonstration. It's great to learn about more production uses of Synclavier FM!

[@bigglesfm]

Amazing instrument and your compilation. Nice to see and hear the floppy loading. The seek head sound takes me back to the bbc computers we had here in the UK. Thanks for another great video.

[@mwright80]

Dude! I remember seeing you in Keyboard Mag. I was stunned when I saw the Synclavier. A producer I knew had one in his tiny apartment. Thanks for showing how durable floppies are!

[@mudi2000a]

Love that you show sounds on the synclavier. There is so few material out there featuring the Synclavier.

[@williamtell1477]

Too cool. Big fan of that movie. You had a synclavier back then! Amazing life you led.

[@distprod]

I grew up watching WarGames and listening to the soundtrack. It's so awesome to hear how you programmed the identical iconic sounds for the movie on the Synclavier and various synths. Thanks Anthony, totally made my day!

[@rcpaskus83]

Crazy. This movie makes up such a huge part of my brain … awesome to see this video being made. Thank you!

[@ghidrah76]

No way!! That’s awesome. Loved War Games as a kid. Grateful that you got to work on this

[@Tremuoso]

gem of a channel for studying the genesis of true authentic 80's sounds down to the nitty gritty detail. What a legend, Anthony.

[@manonbassguitar]

Reminds me of Oingo Boingo & a little bit of DEVO🤘🏼

[@lundsweden]

Masterpiece of a track, loved the movie too!

[@bobsmith3790]

Your videos are really fun to watch, and I appreciate all the knowledge you share. It’s fun to imagine what it was like sitting in a control room making all of this historic music. Thanks for this. It’s a wonderful treasure.

[@simonbarber]

This is such an unbelievable gift. As a fan of the music from the movie since childhood, I never imagined ever getting to see this. Thank you so much for your efforts!

[@pvanukoff]

Very cool! One of my favorite movies, great to see this is all archived still.

[@ldelcarmen]

Wargames was so influential to me and that music was so much a part of that movie! It’s so quintessentially 80’s

[@fakshen1973]

I got into post-production audio in 1994. It was almost the perfect time. It was at the cross-roads of digital vs analog. We were hot-shizzle with 12 channels (mono) of Pro Tools on a Nubus Macintosh. Plus we had an assortment of 2" tape, 1/4" 2 track that could sync, an Adam Smith Synchronizer (I loved that thing)... oh and three ADATs in all their glory and infamy. Locking up three tape-chewing ADATs was like needing 10 seconds of lock-up time just to get everything to play. I do miss the amount of technical skill and prowess it took to keep everything in sync and working. I think we had a couple of Sample Cell cards and a copy of Studio Vision Pro running on a different boot drive than Pro Tools. They didn't like to live together on the same system. Man was that crazy.

[@hansblooeyribbon4207]

Nice to have found your channel. Speaking of of gear from the past, after sitting for 20 years I just reinstalled that Trident console you sold me in the 90's.