You found my home on the web!
Jake Almond - Audio Designer
Hello and welcome!
My name is Jake Almond, and this is my website.
This simple site exists to provide information about me, show examples of my work, and allow you to get in touch.
Please navigate using the menu on the left, or just scroll down with your mouse wheel!
Thanks for visiting!
My full name is Jacob John Almond. Most people call me Jake, and that’s the name I am credited as in quite a lot of stuff, so it’s the name I settled on to represent me.
I live in England, and I am an audio designer. At the time of writing I am currently a freelance audio designer.
As a child, I took up piano lessons, and I dabbled with guitar as a teenager. I first became interested in creating electronic music when I discovered ‘Scream Tracker‘ – again, as a teenager.
When Windows 95 was released, I began experimenting with programs like Acid. These programs were pretty mind-blowing to me, as they introduced me to things such as timestretching. As time went on, I bonded with various programs, such as Reason and Cubase, before finally discovering Ableton Live, which is my current DAW of choice.
I have also been an avid video gamer for as long as I can remember, and my education is in computer science. A few years ago I had something of an epiphany, and began wondering why I hadn’t combined these skills and interests together. Working as an audio designer within the video games industry was the most logical, and exciting choice.
My foray into this ‘specialization’ began quite humbly, and naively, as I imagine it must have had to. I started approaching companies with a CV and basic portfolio, and quickly realised previous experience was essential. I actually came quite close to landing a junior position at one company, but positions of that nature were (and are!) very rare, so I had to rethink my strategy.
I started visiting sites like Mod DB, in the hope of becoming involved with game mods, and other independent projects. In 2008 I contacted Jesse Venbrux after playing one of his games – Karoshi 2 – on a PC Zone cover disc. I was pleasantly surprised when he responded very promptly. We soon got to know each other and began working on free indie games.
Three of these games were recently published by YoYo Games. I was excited by this as it meant I was now credited as an audio designer on some ‘commercial’ projects. They are for sale on iDevices, Android, Nokia N8 and the Sony PSP.
I am currently still working on various games which I hope will increase my experience and bolster my portfolio. Please visit the portfolio section to see examples of my work. I have also been involved in location recording and scoring / Foley on some independent film projects, and hope to soon release an EP.
Thanks for reading about me. Please get in touch if you would like to collaborate or have any audio design needs.
Published Games
Examples of my work can currently be heard in three published games:
Free Indie Games
I have also worked on several other projects with Jesse Venbrux.
Although these games are not commercial, they contain some good examples of my work. Here’s two:
Focus was a fun project to work on. Upon initially starting the game, its game play is quite relaxed and has a sense of mystery and exploration. The music reflects this, and as the intensity of the game builds, the music does too. I was particularly happy with the ‘warp’ sound effects in this game. I used Camel Audio’s Alchemy to design these.
Focus was recently ported to Flash and is playable directly on the Armor Games Website.
Maru is fairly minimalist in its audio design. Jesse said he wanted something which sounded alien, and distant. As the character in the game attracts ‘souls’, a melody fades in gradually, which brings comfort and friendliness to the otherwise lonely ambience.
Foley Design
A good example of my Foley Design work is an ‘audio test’ I needed to perform for a job application – Foley work on a clip from Wallace and Gromit. The requirements stated I was to only create sound effects, not a voice track or music. All assets were created from scratch using a variety of techniques which are explained in detail in the link below:
****Please click here for the notes that go with this piece****
Scoring Work
I have also had experience with scoring video content – below is a clip from my friend’s web comedy series ‘Hand Island’. I was asked to create a piece of music which resembled the TV show ‘Prison Break’. This piece was scored directly to the video, and I used percussive elements to highlight events in it. Please be warned there is a naughty word at the end! 
Other Audio Examples
Finally, below are some examples of my work in audio-only format. Each is a piece written to a descriptive brief – these briefs are summarised by the name of the track:
Please feel free to contact me. I am always happy to hear from people, and always interested in collaboration!