MShipley88 wrote:I went to the link and listened.



I really like Lake of Tears....checked out their stuff on Amazon.



  They do not sound like an 80's hair band. There is no high, girlish shrieking. There is no fixation on retarded sexuality. There is no idiot bluster.



  They sound more like a melodic version of Iron Maiden (who were not an 80's hair band).



  I thought they were easily the best of the three bands on the web site.  8)

Being an Iron Maiden fan from back in their early days a phrase I never thought I would hear is "a melodic version of Iron Maiden". And yes they were no hair band...metal that told a story. I remember them being popular with a large number of gamers back in the 80's.

When I say "melodic version of Iron Maiden" I mean that Lake of Tears like to tell a story, and are interested in fantasy and historic themes....but there is a greater likelihood that you could actually hum one of their songs.



    Trying singing (if you have a voice) one of the Iron Maiden songs to yourself.  Most of them are pitched so high that only an opera tenor could reach them.  (One wonders how they were performed live.)



    When you listen to an Iron Maiden song, you are left with the impression that what you just heard was brilliant...but try to hum the melody!  



    Usually, all that you are left with is the impression of a massive assault of metal and snatches of really good lyrics...and possibly memories of pre-teen nightmares from the album covers.      :)



    668 the neighbor of the Beast!

odin2121 wrote:I would definitely have to agree with the Conan soundtrack.  Basil Pouledoris rocks.  Eerily reminiscent of Carl Orff.  I had a GM while playing Gamma World that insisted on Vangelis and Tangerine dream.  Music certainly enhances game play if used correctly.

   I have to agree on this one, odin2121.  



*Glances up to see both Conan soundtracks high up on his CD tower*



   I don't think the similarity to Carl Orff is an accident.  This movie was made in the years immediately following Excalibur.  The triumphant use of his Fortuna Imperiatrix Mundi (from Carmina Burana) (sp?) created a benchmark in fantasy movie soundtracks, IMHO.



   Ironically, some have ridiculed Pouledoris for a weak Conan soundtrack.  In fact, the reviewer in Jugdes Guild's Dungeoneer magazine really hated it.     (Although his other criticisms were right on the money.)



    I have heard pieces of this great soundtrack used in a number of places since, including sports broadcasts and commercials.



    Back when my ears could stand background music, this was a favorite soundtrack to many a gaming session.