Music to Write to

I've been going through my ipod and YouTube account recently and while I've been studying/writing I've had different music playing in the background as I work and I'm finding that in both cases its really helpful when you have music playing in the background in each case, unless you get too caught up in the music of course!

I personally like both heavy metal and classical music. Though it is on the extreme opposite end of the music spectrum heavy metal can actually be both relaxing and something that keeps you energetic and motivated. Or at least it does in my case. When I'm relaxing listening to metal I usually just have the rythm wash over me and just enjoy it. But when I'm letting it get me going I just listen to the lyrics and usually awesome guitar solos!

One group that I really enjoy is Sabaton. They are a heavy metal band from Sweden who write songs exclusively about battle or war/fantasy related themes! A really cool song that I must admit I listen to when I'm musing about villains is the piece 'Shadows':

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3zjhkUaSJ0

The piece is about the Nazgul of course. It has wonderful lyrics and throaty metal mixed with a truly phenominal guitar/pipe organ theme. Uniquely dark and interesting! Perfectly nice to relax to!

Another piece is called 'The Final Solution' which if you hadn't guessed is about the Holocaust. It lives up to the name really well, played as a haunting piece with sad lyrics and a sharp chorus talking about the death of liberty and of course the millions that burned in the death camps:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Z_Vc23GEGY

The sad part is that the piece is actually a masterpiece of metal and when I'm listening to it I can find myself headbanging along before guility stopping. The piece is just that good! In fact the band themselves noticed this and for that reason do not play it anymore in concert.

Then there is another Sabaton song 'Panzerkampf' which is about the truly epic battle of Kursk. The song really speaks for itself:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UyxADZ2x9RU

Then there are songs like those done by the Welsh group, Skindred. They have a wide variety of awesome pieces that are absolute joys to listen to. One piece is called 'Stand For Something', which is a truly phenominal piece with a kick-ass music video that I highly encourage readers to watch!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8IJnV4i5Vw&ob=av3e

Another song done by Skindred is 'Rude Boy for Life' which considering the main singer is originally from Jamaica and had been a member of the rude boy culture that had taken hold among Jamaican youth does wonders for listening to it. Rude boy culture was, and is, what we might associate with gang culture or rap in the US and Canada, but bears a subtle difference in that it evolved around jazz and hip hop in Jamaica. Listening to the song can help you get a feel for what someone growing up in that environment might feel:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9u9U1XuDoaU

Then of course I do also listen to softer music. Instrumental country actually is something I like to listen to, since it lacks the usually depressing lyrics which usually acompany the wonderful playing. A lovely little piece like this one is nice, though it has a mix of other fine pieces in there I quite enjoy it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lr2PPlyRvkU

Then there are some other lovely pieces like this one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4sA7l9TC-0&feature=related

And this is just an inspiring piece which matches what its attached to perfectly!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrAS20mNZUE

So these are just a few pieces (and one total nerd reference) which I like to listen to when I'm either doing work or relaxing. I hope they provide a decent contrast to each other and that I can convince some people just how amazing they are! It's certainly what I like to listen to and though it won't be perfect for everyone's taste I'm certain that you'll be glad you listented to at least one of these songs!