Music and The Wheel of Time

[lt;(^-^)gt; - Member]

The purpose of this thread is to discuss music which you associate with the Wheel of Time.  Obviously different characters and nations in Randland give every reader a different feeling, and sometimes that feeling is shared with a musical genre, a band/singer, or a particular song.  It could be the rhythm, the lyrics, or a personal association that you have, but sometimes music just seems to fit.  Sometimes you can imagine a song being played in a tavern, or by a gleeman.  However, even modern music that has no place in the actual setting of the books can apply, in your imagination, to the series.

 

An example of a personal association for me is the music from "The Legend of Zelda" games, especially the N64 games.  I don't really know why, except that I played those games around the time I was first reading the series.  The "Gerudo Valley" music makes me think of the Aiel.  The famous title theme I associate with the series in general.  I know this is extremely nerdy but it's also kind of awesome.

 

I used to be really into Metallica (I still like them, but not as much), and I think some of their songs fit pretty well as far as the lyrics go.  "Of Wolf and Man" applied to Perrin is one example.  "Sad But True" could apply to the amalgamation of Rand and LTT.  Also, "Master of Puppets" for the TP and tainted Saidin:

"Taste me you will see

More is all you need

You're dedicated to

How I'm killing you"

 

When I think of music that could actually be played within the books (lol imagine Metallica playing a show in Randland), I jump immediately to traditional Irish music.  Maybe it's my love for my heritage, or just appreciation for great tunes, but Irish trad always makes me tap my foot and it seems appropriate for the series.

 

Also, on the subject of music, I thought I would mention that RJ has said that "Dance with Jack O' the Shadows" is sung to the tune of "Garry Owen", the official march of the US 7th Cavalry.  Here's a link to a few renditions of the real song.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oaaBN4Mm0Ok

I've sung RJ's lyrics to this tune, imagining myself the Band.  It's hard to say why, but it creeps me out a little.  I'm no military man, but it stirs up something...inspiring, but melancholy and haunting.

 

There're some delight in ale and wine,

and some in girls with ankles fine

but my delight, yes, always mine,

is to dance with Jak o' the Shadows

[MatsLuck - Member]

Interesting topic. I don't know that I associate any certain music with WOT, but I like how people on You Tube take movie scenes and make their own music videos out of them. Along those lines I have lots of visualizations of things I would love to see (and hopefully make for myself one day) Like Mat fighting the gholam to the tune of "Welcome to the Jungle" by GNR. Or how bout some cool AOL scenes set to "Paradise City." I think it would be cool to see the Forsaken doing some cool, badass Forsaken stuff with "Black Betty" playing in the backround. Or maybe some Mat and Tylin scenes set to "Dirty Little Secret" by All American Rejects ;D I even like the Avril Lavigne "Keep Holding On" you tube that they have here at DM. There are all kinds of possibilities. Hopefully the films will be well done and we'll get to see and makes some of our own interpretations someday in the future.

[lilspudnik - Member]

A lot of new age and "celtic" type of music works with Wheel of Time quite well.  I'm not sayin hey let's all throw on some Enya (although she is a good choice), but it flows along well with the less action oriented bits. 

 

Personally, I like listening to Celtic Woman while reading WoT.  It sounds like the type of music you might hear outside a tavern in Caemlyn on a warm summer night.  Orchestral music with female vocals, plus a violinist thrown in who rips out mean solos.  Lots of covers of older irish tunes (Mo Ghile Mear) and some newer ones as well (The Voice). 

 

Here's some youtube videos of an excellent performance you can sometimes catch on PBS.

 

The Voice - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sfO6JpR5Ip8

The Sky And The Dawn And The Sun -

Mo Ghile Mear -

Caledonia -

 

But dont take MY word for it! *levar burton shows up*

 

[Braus - Member]

Actually, not completly related, but still interesting imo. Tried to start this up in the wow movie thread but nothing happened(and it involves your topic :))

 

What kind of music should WOT have if it would become a movie, traveling scenes etc.. What kind of soundtrack. Im no expert to the kind of music like the LOTR soundtrack, but im sure there is other options out there. Modern music feels abit out of the question though? Wouldnt wanna hear metal or the likes in fighting scenes, right? need to be abit autenthic, right?

[Braus - Member]

Actually there is already some fan trailers out there as you say, one of which is made by a guy on these forums i think, this one.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KV8sQrJa59I

 

Maybe the beginning could work, but not the middle parts(since honestly thats abit rough and modern for a movie like WOT)

 

Another type of song that something could be made based/similar to, would be Within Temptation - Mother Earth, then again there is only parts of that song that actually wouldnt fit under what i said before is modern music(to out of connection to the WOT standard of music) Like parts of the intro, and the singing(she does sing about TIME! :) if you listen to the song, actually abit fitting)

 

"

Sheeeee moveeeeeees, until the end of time, she goes away

Sheeeee moveeeeeees, until the end of time, she goes away

Sheeeee moveeeeeees, until the end of time, she goes away

"

 

here is another WT song, In perfect harmony.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FYYp10ho38

this lyric is kinda funny aswell, parts of it the way Rand grew up >.<

"

In a world so far away

At the end of a closing day

A little child was born and raised

Deep in the forest on a hidden place

Mother never saw his face

 

Ancient spirits of the forest

Made him king of elves and trees

He was the only human being

Who lived in harmony

In perfect harmony

 

Ancient spirits of the forest

Made him king of elves and trees

He was the only human being

Who lived in harmony

In perfect harmony

The woods protected, fulfilled his needs

 

Fruit by birds, honey by bees

 

He found shelter under the trees

He grew up in their company

They became his family

 

Ancient spirits of the forest

Made him king of elves and trees

He was the only human being

Who lived in harmony

In perfect harmony

 

Ancient spirits of the forest

Made him king of elves and trees

He was the only human being

Who lived in harmony

In perfect harmony

 

A thousand seasons

They passed him by

So many times, have said goodbye

And when the spirits called out his name

To join forever, forever to stay

A forest spirit he became

"

 

Just adapt the text abit :)

 

 

Sorry for half hi-jacking, but i hope this might fit into the topic aswell. No reason why people couldnt maybe say what kind of music they think about when thinking about WOT, and what kind of music would actually fit into a serious movie adaption(forexample rap would hardly fit, right? same with pretty much any modern music that involves to much electric guitar etc)

[lt;(^-^)gt; - Member]

rap would hardly fit, right?

I can see Mat or Taim with some hip hop in the background.

[Braus - Member]

rap would hardly fit, right?

I can see Mat or Taim with some hip hop in the background.

 

frodo/sam rapping

[lt;(^-^)gt; - Member]

Lol, FotC is hilarious.

Did you know that Bret was actually in the Lord of the Rings movies as an elf extra?

[Phariah - Member]

hmm... I can see Rand with a theme song from Ozzie/ Sabbath " Iron Man or Crazy Train or the Wizard "

Mat "Warpigs " also from Sabbath and i for some reason i can hear the " Devil went down to Georgia "  song for him also ,

Perrin i can hear "Sweet Leaf "  he is always going off to smoke a pipe of 2-rivers tobacco

oh ya another for Rand could be Marley's "3 little birds "

[mb - Member]

Some passages in the books have the lyrics of songs; some Mat POVs and some aiel POVs are ones I remember that had lyrics.

 

Music that would go well with Wheel of Time, music of other fantasy might fit.

 

[MatsLuck - Member]

rap would hardly fit, right?

I can see Mat or Taim with some hip hop in the background.

How bout a slow-mo entrance scene with all the Forsaken like in Kill Bill. And I think modern music could be used for some scenes, as long as it is done sparingly and tastefully. As far as the rest of a movie soundtrack, I'd say an original score of orchestral type music like LOtR or many other movies would be appropriate. But for fight scenes and the like, a little beat or  electric guitar is ok. It didn't ruin 300 for me, nor the opening fight in Gangs of New York.

[Thor - Member]

nah it's got to be some original composed orchestral instrumental music.

[Astus - Member]

For some reason I always get the music from Survivor playing in my head when Aginor and Balthamel make their appearances. Right after the line, "I have found you at last".

The music from when a twist happens, I think one example was when Amanda revealed she had the Immunity Idol in the All Stars season.

 

I'll try and find it...

Yep -

Some time in that video.

 

I don't why, it just seems like that type of moment. Yeah, I'm insane :P

 

I guess something really sinister can work as well. That starts off with a bang and kinda descends into a creepy tone. One of my favourite in the series that is. Just awesome, I could imagine an old and creepy man with all this kind of power and Balthamel in his creepy mask by his side. Shame Aginor got less awesome when he got a new face =/

[The Doctor - Member]

Eye of the Tiger or Burning Heart.  The music from Survivor, right? 

 

I don't often think of particular songs when reading, but there are songs that when I hear them I associate them with the books, perhaps because I was listening to them frequently while reading.  King Nothing from Metallica always makes me think of Rand and his Crown of Swords.  The Beast from Twisted Sister makes me think of Mat and his luck and Perrin and his wolves, and Burn in Hell from Twisted Sister and The Hall of the Mountain King by Grieg, and Prelude to Madness from Savatage (HotMK heavy metal version) make me think of Demandred at Shayol Ghul and in the Pit of Doom.

[t-bag - Member]

Diana Ross springs to mind

 

ACoS Ch. 17 p. 342

[t-bag - Member]

Ralph Vaughan Williams music s?@t hot

[OptimusPrime - Member]

From Foo Fighters, Pretender:

 

Keep you in the dark

You know they all pretend

Keep you in the dark

And so it all began

 

Send in your skeletons

Sing as their bones go marching in again

They need you buried deep

The secrets that you keep are ever ready

Are you ready?

I'm finished making sense

Done pleading ignorance

That old defense

Spinning infinity, boy

The wheel is spinning me

It's never-ending, never-ending

Same old story

 

What if I say I'm not like the others?

What if I say I'm not just another one of your plays?

You're the pretender

What if I say I will never surrender?

 

What if I say I'm not like the others?

What if I say I'm not just another one of your plays?

You're the pretender

What if I say that I never surrender?

 

In time, or so I'm told,

I'm just another soul for sale, oh well

The page is out of print

We are not permanent

We're temporary, temporary

Same old story

 

What if I say I'm not like the others?

What if I say I'm not just another one of your plays?

You're the pretender

What if I say I will never surrender?

 

What if I say I'm not like the others?

What if I say I'm not just another one of your plays?

You're the pretender

What if I say I will never surrender?

 

I'm the voice inside your head you refuse to hear

I'm the face that you have to face mirrorin' your stare

I'm what's left; I'm what's right

I'm the enemy; I'm the hand that'll take you down and bring you to your knees

 

So, who are you?

Yeah, who are you?

Yeah, who are you?

Yeah, who are you?

 

 

As you can see, there are references to Moridin, Lews Therin, Semirhage blowing Rands hand off, and even the Wheel of Time itself! Its like it was written for this series

[Astus - Member]

As farfetched as it is, I'd love for Bear McCreary to compose the score if a movie version or whatever came to be. He did an awesome job on Battlestar and I could see his style fitting into a WOT medium.

[Xnoybis - Member]

nah it's got to be some original composed orchestral instrumental music.

 

agree wholeheartedly.

 

to incorporate modern popular music into it would ultimately destroy a chunk of the immersion. the scores to Star Wars and LOTR are part of what contributed to the long-term enjoyment of those movies and their Sci-Fi/Fantasy environments.

 

Luke cruising down the "alley" of the Death Star to Steve Miller's "Fly Like an Eagle" (A top 40 hit at that movie's year of release) wouldn't have cut it.

 

Just as the soundtrack to the battle for Helm's Deep being Five For Fighting's "Superman" would ultimately have cheapened that movie as well.

 

the movie has to be to a classical score with any "contemporary" music incorporated being what would fit the time of the movie, i.e. Mat and Rand's gigs playing the flute at inns...

 

 

 

as far as what i listen to while reading the books, the celtic music works, as does just ambient music in general (i.e. Proem, Steve Roach) if i'm reading in bed while my wife is sleeping.

 

if out on the couch with a degree of soundproofing, i'll put on some doom metal (Shape of Despair, FAAL) or other similarly dark and sinister music... which is also fitting considering how many various folks and forces are scheming against the protagonists.

[lt;(^-^)gt; - Member]

I would love to see a fantasy movie where the music strays from the traditional orchestral style.  Electric guitar, keyboard/synth, and other modern instruments and effects can create a totally unique and satisfying feel.

 

If you played Half Life 2 or the new Metroid games, the ambient atmospheric electronic rhythms really fit well.  I know those games are sci-fi not fantasy, but I think the style could work in a fantasy setting also.  They have obvious classical influences, but modern instruments are added for a unique effect.  The perfect example of what I'm talking about is the music from the game "The Last Remnant".  Here's an example:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LjWfUTBQWLM

 

At the risk of showing a little too much Metallica love, S&M is also a great example.  They blend classical and modern instruments in a way that could work in a fantasy movie setting:

 

I loved the LotR soundtrack, but the movies themselves would have been much better if they didn't deviate so much from the books.  "Let's hunt some orc"?!  Seriously?

[drizzt_scimitar - Member]

One band I've been getting into lately is Blind Guardian. I think what I love about them is that they have a huge variety to their sound; they can be heavy metal, a bit more orchestral, bard-esque, and just about everything in between. That and Hansi Kursch's voice is amazing.

 

Anyway, song that reminds me of WoT:

 

Skalds and Shadows: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CpBedoM59Jo

When I first heard this song, I immediately thought of Thom coming to Emond's Field in tEotW. The song is about a bard singing tales of old, etc., and it really was spot on with Thom, IMO.

 

My personal favorite songs by Blind Guardian, just because:

 

Heavier Metal:

 

Mirror, Mirror:

Just a really great epic song, not much else to say.

 

Time Stands Still:

Great song, based upon part of the Silmarillion.

 

Power ballad:

 

The Maiden and the Minstrel Knight:

Based on Tristan and Isolde, I think. Great song about love and loss.

 

Bard-esque Song:

 

The Bard's Song:

Really emotional song, also reminds me of Thom (and gleeman in general)

[MierinWru - Member]

 

My personal favorite songs by Blind Guardian, just because:

 

Heavier Metal:

 

Mirror, Mirror:

Just a really great epic song, not much else to say.

 

Time Stands Still:

Great song, based upon part of the Silmarillion.

 

Funny, both of those were from the "Nightfall in Middle Earth" album. I hear those songs in my head whenever I read the WoT.

Back when I read the books the first time in the mid-90's I was listening to Blind Guardian (and that CD in particular) while reading. I'd just put the CD on repeat and read/listen for hours. ;)

 

I started listening to Blind Guardian when I read the Silmarillion which was kinda perfect since the album deals with that story. But well... WoT is just waaaay longer so I spent way more hours reading WoT while listening to BG.

[Surrealwraith - Member]

Try some Eluveitie.  They are "folk metal".  Metal with clear Celtic influences, complete with a hurdy gurdy.

 

This song works well for me.  It's called "You're Gaulish War" (the song is embedded in their homepage):

http://www.eluveitie.ch/

[42Bonzo88 - Member]

    Lots of good stuff. I agree with traditional irish music and any music with old fashioned instruments such as the mandolin and others. I think the Tavern "Nine Horse Hitch could do with some Limericks :D

 

    One band that wasn't mentioned that has some music that sounds old fashioned is Led Zeppelin. Thier second album has a song "Ramble On" that deals with The Hobbit. The song that reminds me of Rand fighting the Seanchan in Illian is "No Quarter" from Zeppelin's Houses of the Holy album.

 

    A couple other songs that seem to fit are: "Misty Mountain Hop" "In my time of Dying"

[OptimusPrime - Member]

Nothing Else Matters by Metallica is Rand talking to Min after TG, with Lews Therin chipping in.