Jon Schindehette just wrote a really interesting article about how art can capture the "essence" of D&D. There's already a thread about that, but one post decided to look at a different kind of art: Music. I was going to just reply in that thread, but I thought it would be more interesting to start a different thread specifically about the topic. What music do you think captures the "essence" of D&D? Here are some of my favorites:
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It's been my experience that people tend to simply cite their favorite music in threads like this, as long as its lyrics arent' obviously anachronistic.
For me, "D&D music" is the music I was listening to when I first got into the game. So I'll be citing a John Williams movie soundtracks, Tina Turner's "We Don't Need Another Hero", and Bruce Springsteen's "Badlands".
"D&D" music, to me, is the music I've repurposed for use in game sessions, regardless of its original source. So, for example, the heavy metal arrangement of "Dancing Mad" from Final Fantasy VI is now "D&D" music for me because I used it during a campaign closing epic boss fight. Likewise, several songs from Disturbed: The Sickness and Evanescence: Fallen are "D&D" music for me because they remind me of scenes from a D&D campaign where I used those songs to illustrate the twisted relationship between a PC and her archrival as both were captured and tortured by a third enemy. On a similar note, Johnny Cash's Ring of Fire is associated with Vampire: The Masquerade for me because I used it to illustrate and inform the theme of a campaign set in the 1960s.
So, anything could be "D&D" music, I suppose, depending on the mood you wish to inspire.
Quentin Small WotC Online Community Coordinator All around helpful simian
These are some songs I seem to come back to time and time again. As you can see, all three are songs that raise the sense of tension in the scene. Real great stuff.
