Music for the Geeky Mind

We geeks are a privileged lot. We are the ones who write some of the greatest stories in the world. Fantasy, sci-fi, or even modern-day fiction is best told by those who loved dragons growing up. Keep your 50 Shades of Grey and give me the entire library of R.A. Salvatore, or let me read through the Night Angel Trilogy for the fifth time.

While our imaginations are usually working overtime when reading or gaming, you can't deny that it creeps in to other areas of life as well. I've looked at a construction site and thought "man that would make for an awesome Left 4 Dead map," or I've looked at the clouds and saw the Starship Enterprise. One of my favorite invasions, however, is when I listen to music. I love music that leaves me with an impression or lets me picture a story during the song. Most modern music exists on the surface, but there are a few gems that have spoken to my imagination.

Below are some songs and what happens in my head when I hear them. Give them a listen before you read my commentary, close your eyes and see where your imagination takes you!








Let's start when an easy one. Mock me all you want, but I love Dragonforce. I could have picked almost any of their songs for this, but Where Dragons Rule is my absolute favorite for some geek-out music. I'm a huge fan of fantasy paladins, and this song single-handedly creates an entire world in my mind.

Virtuous warriors have been defending the land from all manner of evil. Exhausted and few in number, they think their fight is at an end when a distant explosion shakes them on their return home. An enormous silhouette paints itself across the sky - a great dragon of legend has returned to the world. Why? How? No one knows, but only these few battle-weary warriors, their once-white armor now caked in blood and mud, can save the kingdom from total annihilation. They ride to battle, knowing one way or another it will be their last.

I love it!






Dubstep is an amazing genre when done right. I don't like the stuff that sounds like club electronica - I like the stuff that tells a story or leaves an impression without using words. When I heard ShutEmDown by Celldweller, I was treated to a lone, katana-wielding swordsman battling a legion of vampire samurai in a decaying Japanese city. Why vampires? Why samurai? I have no idea, but the entire battle was done in an anime art style. It was bloody, and it was glorious.






Two Step From Hell is a group I randomly discovered one night, and I've loved listening to them when I need to feel invincible. All of their songs are done on an epic scale, and rarely does a song disappoint.

United We Stand, Divided We Fall is a song that should play during every battle scene in movies. It starts with two armies of men and monsters charging toward one another. They collide and it's a collaboration of bloodshed and heroic deeds. Champions on both sides cut a swath through the enemy, expertly attacking, feinting, and parrying their way through field of falling bodies. Trolls and minotaurs swing monstrous weapons, cutting down dozens of men at a time before finally being overwhelmed. And at the very end of the song, as the numbers grow thin on both sides, two blood-drenched foes lock eyes across an opening in the battle. Each charges, weapons clutched and feet moving at an impossible speed. They leap at one another, their weapons meet, the scene freezes and the song ends.


Close your eyes for this next one, because I can guarantee you won't want the actual music video getting stuck in your head. If you want to listen to the song a 2nd time, watch the video and explain to me what's happening because I have no idea.



Before playing The Last of Us, this song took me on a tour through a zombie-ridden, post-apocalyptic wasteland. Everything around me is falling apart. Streets have been destroyed by bombs, cars are rusting out, bodies litter the ground, and the undead are everywhere. This isn't a world of "fear the living, kill the dead." There is no other living person to fear. There are no government safe zones, no rumors of a cure, and nothing to live for. Wake up, survive, go to sleep. Welcome to the new age.

Of course after playing The Last of Us... I just picture The Last of Us.



So where did your imagination take you? Do you have any other songs that fuels your geeky mind?


See you tomorrow!

Remember to follow me on Facebook. I'm doing a blog post every single day for 2013, and Facebook is a great way to stay up-to-date as well as take part in my monthly giveaways!