What I listen to while playing WoW

This week’s shared topic on Blog Azeroth comes from Amerence who writes

I know that the World of Warcraft game has its own music to play either we are in the caverns, the city, battlegrounds even in raids or pretty much anywhere. The background music loops and plays wherever you go. But I know some of you prefer to mute and listen to your own music while playing the game. I want to know what World of Warcraft Music Background you choose to hear or your own flavor of music while playing the game.

It’s not a secret that I love music and that includes the in-game music in WoW. As of right now I’m really looking forward to hearing the music in Warlords of Draenor, I’m so excited to see the login screen and listen to the main title for the first time, to be honest, that’s one of the things I’m most excited for prior to an expansion. I always play with the in-game music on while playing new content or zones because the music is like the soul of the game and it completes the excitement of exploring something new. I’m one of those who turn up the music volume and turn on the best quality of all the sound settings. Sometimes if I’m not flying or running around in the world with my camera zoomed in to first person and the UI hidden, then I’m sitting with my eyes closed and just listening to the music.  I don’t know any other way of explaining what the music means to me.

But sometimes while in the same zone for a long time with the music turned up really high and on loop, I might find myself turning the volume down because I can also get tired of hearing the same track over and over again for hours. This usually happens in the cities I spend a lot of time in, e.g. Orgrimmar, Dalaran and Shattrath.

I don’t play a lot through old content, but if I do, I always turn up the music. Like last week I boosted by boyfriend’s death knight alt through the Icecrown Citadel dungeons The Forge of Souls, Pit of Saron and Halls of Reflection. The music in those dungeons is amazing and we had to stop and listen to it several times.

I know some people don’t want the music on while they’re raiding because they have to focus and listen to ventrilo. But I had the music on back when I was raiding, not so loud that I couldn’t focus or hear ventrilo, but loud enough to hear the music because it made the fights so much more exciting.

Some of my favorite pieces of music from World of Warcraft

The only time I actually prefer to listen to my own music is when I’m doing PvP because the music I choose to listen to gives me the right mood and really gets me in “the zone”, it gives me confidence and motivation, and I think I perform better with that kind of music. It has to be loud, but not so loud that I don’t hear the in-game sounds, because I like to be able to hear when someone caps a base or a flag, but with my own music in my ears I might not hear the sound of a rogue or druid stealthing behind me.

My most recent addiction in music is Lindsey Stirling. She’s an amazing violinist and composer who really takes classical music to a new level! Just by listening to her and watching her videos on YouTube I get so inspired that I actually want to pick up playing an instrument again.

Besides her, one of my favorite bands are Machinae Supremacy. They’re a Swedish band that combines metal and rock with chiptunes, self-defined as “SID metal” (many of their songs use a SidStation that features the SID chip of the Commodore 64). They’re not that well known yet, but they have actually released five studio albums and they’re planning their first headlining European Tour this year. I first discovered them when they were supporting Children of Bodom in Denmark in 2011.

Sometimes when I play with my boyfriend, we listen to music on his computer, through speakers. We mostly listen to our own playlists on Spotify with everything from old and weird music from our childhood to our favorite bands/artists and songs. A band we’ve listened to a lot lately is Donkeyboy. A Norwegian pop band.

By the way, a good headset or speakers really do a difference.

Lindsey Stirling: Website, Facebook, YouTube

Machinae Supremacy: Website, Facebook, YouTube

Donkeyboy: Website, Facebook, YouTube

 

What do you listen to while you play WoW?

Music of Cataclysm

I think it’s about time to write another post about music, cause I love the in-game music so much and I know most people don’t listen to it at all, which is sad cause it’s really good. It’s like watching a movie without soundtrack. Or for me it is, the music is so important. I’ve told you about it before, how I sometimes just turn everything up on high and just listen, or fly around in different zones or instances and raids. I wish I could get people’s eyes, or ears, more up for the music in WoW.

We’re still early in the Cataclysm expansion, but there is already so much good music, and there is much more to come in the future patches I’m sure. So I’ve tried to pick my favorites, but it’s not that easy to pick just a few. So here is seven, I think.. Random order. And excuse my poor skills to describe music, I just say words which pop into my head.

Twilight’s Hammer (Eventide)

This is played in Blackwing Descent and in some zones where the Twilight’s Hammer are. Love this song. How it builds up from whispering. Then stronger vocals and the sound of the steel hammering. Wonder what the lyrics are, and if the lyrics mean something or if they are just for the sound of it.

Nightsong

This is played in Mount Hyjal, among other songs, sometimes just parts of it. This has to be the best song of Cataclysm. The vocal and music is just perfect! When I listen to it I imagine a night elf in the forest, singing, but when the tempo rises she starts running like the night elf in the WoW trailer. And we follow as she runs through the forest and when it slows down again you see her jump down a waterfall which runs out in a small river near the village where she’s from, a beautiful village where all the other night elves live.

Castaways

This is one of the goblin songs played in goblin cities and zones. This music fits the goblin areas perfectly, fun and playful, and very unique. My favorite part is from 3:38,  which appears in the main title The Shattering and the trailer where we first meet the goblins.

Orgrimmar (Reforged)

One of the songs played in Orgrimmar. I loved the old music, but I love this one more. With the intro. War music, drums, strong, very Horde.

Vashj’ir

The zone music in Vashj’ir. Beautiful, mysterious, watery, fits perfectly.

This music is special to me as it was the first Cataclysm music I heard cause I was questing in that zone on the beta when they first implented.

Call of the Elements

This reminds me of the tauren house which was south of Silithus before Cataclysm, a version of this music was there and I always wanted to know which song it was, cause I don’t think it appeared anywhere else before Cataclysm. But that house had been there for a long time, maybe since vanilla, was the music that old too? But when I listen to this song I think of where I sat in that little tauren house in the middle of the night, with a fireplace, warming your hands on it, dark outside, the fire is the only light.Warm and cozy. I made a post and a video with in-game sound on of that place, so you can hear what the music there was like and how it reminds me of this new song. Here is the post and the video on YouTube.

Skywall 2

This is the music playing while fighting the bosses in Throne of the Four Winds, Conclave of the Four Winds and Al’Akir, so I always turn up the music volume when we’re there. Love the part from 2:21. There is more Skywall music, the part which plays in The Vortex Pinnacle which is more heavenly, slower tempo, you can find it here.

So those were some of my favorite songs of Cataclysm, until next content patch.. But I also have to mention Curse of the Worgen, Tanaris, Pirates Surrender, Elemental (Deepholm) and Cold Mountain.

You can buy the music here.

Cataclysm main title: “The Shattering” + interview

I’ve been waiting for this since they announced Cataclysm and last week the music was finally out on YouTube, from the beta files I guess. Blizzard’s music department don’t like that people do that, but they understand we’re excited and I’m one of those who couldn’t wait for the launch to hear it.

I had really high expectations cause I loved the music from Vanilla, Burning Crusade and Wrath of the Lich King. I’m a huge fan of classical, orchestra and choir music from games.

I have many favorite tracks, but I will try to only list a few ones here. Ok, that’s too hard.. I’ll pick some favorites from Wrath of the Lich King:

1. Invincible (unlocked in the WoW anniversary)
2. Arthas My Son (Wrath of the Lich King cinematic)
3. Wrath of the Lich King Main Title (login screen)
4. Ebon Hold (Death Knight)
5. Ulduar Exterior Action (Razorscale)
6. Bronze Jam (Forge of Souls)
7. Fall of the Lich King ending cinematic music

So I started to listen to the Cataclysm music. Most of the tracks are from new and old zones, some themes for races and events. I haven’t heard them enough times yet to say what I think about them, and kinda need to hear them in-game, in the zone with ambience etc.

But what I can write about is the Cataclysm main title, oh my, I’ve been looking forward to this for such a long time.

I remember when I first heard the WotLK main title, my jaw dropped and I had goosebumps all over. The music made me so excited and happy, it still does. I listened to it all the time, like every day, everywhere, on my phone, PC and the mp3 player I had back then. Had it as ringtone till I got my iPhone and sometimes when I log into WoW I wait a bit with the authenticator to listen to the music.

I think it’s hard to explain how music makes me feel sometimes, how I hear and experience it, I don’t know if anyone will understand how excited I am about all this music. I have never met anyone else who love this music as much as I do, but I bet there are some out there somewhere.

I found a video with the music and footage from Cataclysm beta made by 1Nefti1, very good quality and the music and clips fit perfect together.

0:00-0:40 –

0:40-1:31 –

1:31-2:40 Legends of Azeroth

2:40-3:22 Stormwind Cathedral

3:22-4:47 Cold Mountain

4:47-5:27 New Moonglade

5:27-6:00 Goblin

6:00-6:40 Legends of Azeroth

6:40-7:38 Invincible

7:38-8:36 Eye of the Vortex Theme used in shattered areas

8:37-9:28 Worgen

9:29-10:04 Gunship

10:05-10:57 Ulduar (Thaurissan’s Reach)

10:58-12:06 Vanilla main title (Legends of Azeroth)

(not confirmed)

Now I’ve been listening to this music for hours, over and over again. First time I heard it was like two days ago but I didn’t really have the time to sit down and listen so carefully, so I did it first now.

And I’m so impressed! I had very high expectations and thought I would get disappointed because of it but no way, I didn’t.  This music brings back so many good memories from the first time I saw the WoW trailer, played the game, heard the “Legends of Azeroth”. I love how they re-use “old” songs in the newer expansions, they did the same with Wrath of the Lich King and Burning Crusade.

Some of the songs here, the worgen part 8:37-9:28, reminds me of Disney movies, not sure which ones and why, but it’s only positive. The Gunship battle music is my favorite boss fight music in Icecrown Citadel cause it’s just so perfect and exciting, not that the fight is very exciting at the moment, but the music sure is!

Uldum is the land of the titans and Ulduar was also made by the titans, so I hope they will make similar music in the Uldum instances with choirs, cause I loved the Ulduar music and was so happy when I heard it in the main title. It sounds so powerful and I really wonder what the lyrics are, if there are any, maybe it’s only made up lyrics for the sound of it. Saving one of the best parts to the end: Invincible! Nothing can ever beat this song. What else can I say, it fits perfectly in.

But the most epic parts are the goblin part 5:27-6:00, especially 5:45, so beautiful! And the Vanilla main title part 10:58-12:06, especially from 11:35. Goosebumps!!!

Just have to say: Thank you, Russell Brower, you’re the best composer ever!

 

Have to add that The Instance podcast had their #200 episode August 23rd, with special interviews with Russell Brower, Veronica Belmont, Felicia Day and Tom Merritt. Check it out here.