Pastelland Forum

I’m not really into horror, but I find Submachine horrific. I’m the kind of person who looks into the stars and loses her balance (physically) when trying to really grasp the infinity of the universe. So for me, the horror is in the realization that the Submachine is unfathomably large and unwieldy, and that you aren’t much more than an insect within its cogs and gears. And unlike most insects, who have a hive and a community to rely on, you are alone, isolated, and left to decode this sprawling expanse on your own. One of the best touches is the music, provided by the ambient soundweavers ThumpMonks. Somehow, they’ve incorporated all of the creepy sounds of horror (creaking doors, scratching, static hissing) and amplified the effects to make them otherworldly. I once coached a friend through Submachine 2 while he was stoned. The combination of marijuana paranoia and the otherworldly creepiness overtook him, and the ThumpMonks soundtrack is a big part of why.