Syd Matters 2005 album Someday We Will Foresee Obstacles borrows its title from the poignant lyrics of it's 2nd track: “Obstacles”. The intricate but carefully articulated guitar patterns weave through layers of reflective vocals to perfectly capture the feeling of early Autumn in the Pacific Northwest. It's probably for this reason that the track features so prominently in Dontnod Entertainment's now classic 2015 graphic adventure Life is Strange. Pitched somewhere between Twin Peaks and Groundhog Day the game follows protagonist Max Caulfield as she uncovers the sinister plot underlying a recent spate of disappearances at the seemingly idyllic seaside town of Arcadia Bay, Oregon.
While a number of Syd Matter's tracks were used in the finished game, “Obstacles” sticks out for it's prominent placement over the game's opening credit's. The song takes over the scene Max puts in a pair of earphones to drown out the constant noise that permeates the corridors of Blackwell Academy. The track's melancholic folksy feel is representative of the band's sound which draws reference from the calming tones of 60s and 70s folk forefathers like Tim Buckley and Cat Stevens. The track tempers these earthy roots with moments of quiet transcendence through euphoric instrumental swells which seamlessly integrate acoustic and electronic sounds in a celebration of a youth long since passed.