Stories from City 17 is a musical reinterpretation of the aesthetic and narrative universe of the Half-Life videogame saga, composed as part of a Master's thesis project at Berklee College of Music in Valencia, Spain.

Recorded on June 11, 2023 at AIR Studios Lyndhurst, London.

Music composed, conducted, mixed and mastered by Daniel Osiewala.

Stories from City 17

Demo of a Rhodes Piano preset designed for the Roland RD 2000 by Danyl Daniel.

RD 2000 - **1979 Tines

FREE | "Bunk" | HipHop X Sampled Type

Mmm, yeah…
You point your finger,
But I ain’t the only sinner.

You tell your friends I’m the one to blame,
Every little story, always my name.
But sugar, look who’s talking loud,
Acting so righteous, playing to the crowd.

You say you’re tired, you say you’re through,
But honey, I’m just as tired of you.

Shame on me? Are you kidding, girl?
You’ve been spinning lies all over the world.
Don’t play that saint, don’t twist the truth,
Shame on me? No, shame on you.

You cry at night, but it’s crocodile tears,
Drama on repeat for a couple of years.
You talk of vows, but you broke them first,
Pointing at me just makes it worse.

Don’t preach to me ‘bout love and pain,
When you’ve been running the same old game.

Shame on me? Are you kidding, girl?
You’ve been dancing lies in your shiny pearls.
I won’t chase, I won’t play the fool,
Shame on me? No, shame on you.

You throw the stone—
But your hands ain’t clean!
You wear the crown—
But you’re no queen!
We built this fire, both struck the match,
Now you’re crying ‘bout the scratch.

Shame, shame, shame… (uh-huh)
On who, on who? (not me, not me)
You say my name, (say my name)
But girl, look at you!

Shame on me? Are you kidding, girl?
You’ve been spinning lies all over the world.
I won’t beg, I won’t be your fool,
Shame on me? No, shame on you.

Mmm, shame on you…
Not me, girl…
Shame on you.

Shame on me ?!? (Motown reload)

C'est un chemin de terre, le soleil s'est couché
Dans les bois sombres, je me suis engagé
Les arbres sont grands, ils touchent le ciel
Et dans leur ombre, j'ai peur, je chancelle

Mon cœur bat fort, au rythme du vent
La forêt bouge, elle me guette, on dirait un géant
Y a des yeux partout qui me fixent dans la nuit
C'est les monstres qui viennent, on m'avait prévenu, je suis cuit

J'entends un cri bizarre, c'est pas un oiseau, non
Quelque chose me suit, je le sens, c'est pas une illusion
Un truc velu, avec des griffes bien trop longues
J'ai envie de courir, de me jeter dans les ondes

Mon cœur bat fort, au rythme du vent
La forêt bouge, elle me guette, on dirait un géant
Y a des yeux partout qui me fixent dans la nuit
C'est les monstres qui viennent, on m'avait prévenu, je suis cuit

Je pense à toi, ma belle, c'est ma seule lumière
J'aimerais être avec toi, loin de cette galère
Ce bois maudit, ces créatures étranges
Je veux retrouver le chemin, et que tout change

Mon cœur bat fort, au rythme du vent
La forêt bouge, elle me guette, on dirait un géant
Y a des yeux partout qui me fixent dans la nuit
C'est les monstres qui viennent, on m'avait prévenu, je suis cuit

J'ai peur, j'ai peur, j'ai peur... Dans la forêt sombre, sans un mot, sans un pleur J'espère que demain, le jour se lèvera Et que ces monstres de la nuit disparaîtront, enfin, pour de bon

Patrouille nocturne en forêt

[Verse 1]
I brewed jet-fuel coffee to wake the dead—
’cause the living here keep smashing snooze.
Drone sirens stitch the Nordic sky,
we call it “peace,” we just changed shoes.
Paper tiger, paper bear—
same zoo, different handler’s stare.
“New world order?” Same old tricks,
fresh paint on the same old bricks.

[Pre-Chorus]
What’s the point? I ask again.
Is it us who pay, or the stacks of men
crying when their mountains stall—
poor dears, their money won’t grow tall.

[Chorus]
Brew it black—wake the dead. (Pour it straight, no chaser.)
Tip the cup on every head. (Burn the script, not the neighbor.)
No vodka in my mug today—
I want nerves that feel, not fade away.
If power’s just a stage and set,
pull the rope—make the curtains sweat.

[Verse 2]
Europe looks like lab-coat art,
mixing codes that tear apart.
Maybe there’s a grand design—
or just a boardroom selling time.
Politicians front-row proud,
mics turned up, truth tuned down.
Actors nail a world that’s fake;
backstage bosses take their take.

[Pre-Chorus]
What’s the point? The question bites.
Let folks be folks; fix what’s in sight.
If suffering’s profit, tally this:
we’re rich in pain they’ll never miss.

[Chorus]
Brew it black—wake the dead. (Pour it straight, no chaser.)
Tip the cup on every head. (Burn the script, not the neighbor.)
No vodka in my mug today—
I want nerves that feel, not fade away.
If power’s just a stage and set,
pull the rope—make the curtains sweat.

[Bridge]
Left wing, right wing—same bird leased,
branded hope with a hidden lease.
Newsfeed gospel, click and kneel;
truth’s paywalled, pain is real.
Seeds of “fear from overseas”?
Please—panic ships in every breeze.
Their favorite war is you vs. you;
fight the mirror, they walk through.

[Breakdown]
Strong coffee, bitter beans—
wake the ghosts inside the screens.
No more hush, no friendly lies;
open eyes are weaponized.

[Final Chorus]
Brew it black—wake the dead. (Pour it straight, no chaser.)
Let the fog run out of thread. (Cut the cue for the faker.)
No vodka in my mug today—
keep it harsh so truth can stay.
If power’s just a stage and set,
drop the lights—make the puppets sweat.

[Outro]
Paper tiger, paper bear—
same parade, new vacant stare.
We won’t drink to dream instead—
serve the world strong coffee—
wake the dead.

Strong Coffee for the Dead (Accidental Release)

Heartbeat Back Home

Golden gravy sea rising, warm beneath electric skies
Currents shimmer round our bodies, soft surrender in our eyes
Pulled into the surface tension, feel the motion take control
Everything is shifting now, the wave begins to roll

Drums flicker gently in the deep warm glow of night
Gravy drifts in liquid ribbons, thinning into light
We float inside its texture, letting every border fade
Heat dissolves the edges where the rhythm’s softly laid
The tide becomes our heartbeat, a pulse that pulls us through
In this moving ocean moment, every path leads back to you

Gravy tsunami rising, all we are falls into flow
Bodies melt in waves of tender overflow
Lift us high, let the world dissolve beneath the beat
The wave arrives, where motion and surrender meet

Tempo lifts, the current turns and runs beneath our skin
Layers drift apart like whispers carried in the wind
We ride the glowing pressure, snares cut clean and wide
Liquid murmurs guide us deeper through the tide
Taste the shifting moment, feel the warmth beneath the sweep
Inside the rolling gravity, chaos turns to something sweet

Gravy tsunami rising, all we are falls into flow
Bodies melt in waves of tender overflow
Lift us high, let the world dissolve beneath the beat
The wave arrives, where motion and surrender meet

Subsurface glimmer, shadows bending in the night
Warmth becomes an ocean, rising steady into flight
Let the current take the tension you still hold inside
The wave breaks open softly and we surface with the tide

Gravy tsunami rising, all we are falls into flow
Bodies melt in waves of tender overflow
Lift us high, let the world dissolve beneath the beat
The wave consumes, where final liberation meets

Gravy tsunami rising (Garage Rock reload)

The entire sound is in my hands. I write cyber poetry, produce, and compose every track ready for Immersive 3D. Every beat is crafted for spatial and next-gen headphones.
Intimate lyrics, total immersion, every track.

For 30 years I kept unfinished demos to myself, never letting them out. Now I finish what I start and release it the moment it’s alive.

I use every tool available, human or machine, as an instrument.
Technology doesn’t replace creativity. It expands it.

"My Beats are dummy thiccc, bish." - KracKill$

Chicago born, Pgh Based producer/content creator. Specializing in unique hip-hop and electronic music production, mixing and mastering. Releases with Magic Music, Melodic Bassment, Exult Records, and more...

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