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Post by clockworkmonk on Feb 5, 2012 20:26:29 GMT -8
So I've got a week before my next game session and I'm toying with the idea of having some background music as I GM. Does anyone else do this? Any recommendations for music to have going in the background, specifically movie or TV (or hell, even anime) soundtracks? For flavor, my game's a fantasy/steampunk-ish game with lots of airships and trains and magic. If that helps at all.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Feb 5, 2012 22:37:32 GMT -8
There's a band called Abney Park that's all steampunk rock. It's a little too self-serious for me, but if you like steampunk you might think it's rad.
Now having shared that, is it a good idea to play music during a session? I don't know, it depends on the group. I get a little distracted by music, and as a GM you don't want to be a DJ, messing with tracks for each encounter or scene. Have a mix that doesn't get in the way of the conversation at the table and doesn't clash with any particular moment of the game, emotionally or in terms of action.
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HyveMynd
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Post by HyveMynd on Feb 6, 2012 4:32:28 GMT -8
Abney Park is pretty kick ass. Who doesn't love steampunk rock? Well, I mean except sentinel. Plus, there's actually an RPG for it. I approach GMing from something like a movie director's standpoint; I get scenes in my head that I want to run in game, and I usually find some song that fits the mood or emotion I'm trying to create. It's great brainstorming material for when you're planning a session. But, like sentinel here, I've found that music is pretty difficult to incorporate into the actual play session. I've only had it work out well twice so far. First was in a Changeling game where I played low-key classical music in the background while the characters had a meeting with the Spring Queen in her gigantic rooftop rose garden. The second was when I played funk music during our blaxploitation themed Cosmic Patrol game. Both times I made sure that there weren't any vocals so that the players would focus on what the characters were saying and doing and not the song's lyrics. That's probably why it worked as well as it did. In other sessions we've played the Conan and Lord of the Rings soundtracks (for fantasy games, naturally), but there's the occasional disconnect when the tone of the music doesn't match what's happening in the story. It's kind of weird when some stirring battle music comes on during the middle of an RP encounter or you get some quiet, contemplative music when you're taking down the big bad. Someone always requested a song change, which broke the fourth wall a bit. I usually prefer to play without background music at all just for that reason. If you're set on using music though, I would recommend that you use it as a quick tone setter rather than have it playing non-stop throughout your whole game. Find a song or a piece of music that captures the feeling of some of your key scenes, preferably without lyrics, and play them at the start of those scene. Don't worry about having enough music for the entire scene or trying to time the scene to the song, just let the song end and continue playing. I think that would help your players quickly identify the emotion of the current scene without forcing you to be both GM and DJ at the same time.
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Post by ironnikki on Feb 6, 2012 7:28:10 GMT -8
I've found that music is only particularly helpful for games that have a definite setting/feel and for groups that are interested in immersing themselves in the mood of the game. For example, playing music during a Pathfinder game that I was running didn't seem to help much, since I hadn't bothered to really flesh out the setting in many other ways, and there wasn't really a particular mood that I was going for. It was just a run-of-the-mill fantasy style game. On the other hand, when I was running nWoD for the same group, I dimmed the lights and played a spooky playlist in the background at a low volume (I think that most of the tracks were from Disparition). This really enhanced the mood, and I think that it overall added to the game.
As far as musical selection for a steampunk game, I don't have any suggestions. If I come up with something though, I'll be sure to let you know!
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Post by jazzisblues on Feb 6, 2012 7:36:13 GMT -8
I've used music in games, but I usually keep it low key and not particularly specific more of a mood setting aid than anything.
JiB
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Post by clockworkmonk on Feb 6, 2012 10:24:14 GMT -8
Mmmm. Well, yes, I was planning on keeping it on for mood setting, but this discussion is definitely having me reconsider a few things. Actually, there have been times in another game I was running where I wished I had the music on hand to punctuate certain scenes--a car speeding down a highway after tossing a Molotov cocktail at an enemy's car to end the session seems like a perfect moment to play something like "Highway to Hell" or some other riff-heavy classic rock song. But you can't always predict things like that are going to happen, and you really can't assume you'll have that perfect song on hand.
I've heard of people actually using those repeating video game soundtracks in their games, especially from RPGs, because they basically are designed to be in the background and atmospheric. I'm listening to Abney Park right now, which ... actually is pretty kickass! I do feel like the lyrics would be distracting in a game session, though. Sigh. If they had more instrumental music, though, it could work out well.
I am sort of tempted now to see if the soundtracks to movies like Van Helsing or League of Extraordinary Gentlemen would be useful, despite whatever feelings one might have for the movies themselves...
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Post by daeglan on Feb 6, 2012 13:11:27 GMT -8
Avoid music with lyrics.
Movie scores are awesome for this as well as game soundtracks.
Keep the music low and in the background.
come up with play lists. action music for action scenes, somber music for somber scenes, chase music for chase scenes.
From what I have heard well done music adds a lot to the game.
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Post by uselesstriviaman on Feb 9, 2012 7:20:20 GMT -8
You can try Duel of the Fates or Where Eagles Dare, but the absolute best possible music for a flying airship = Flight of the Valkyries. Period. Daeglan is right, movie soundtracks are your friends. LOTR, Harry Potter and Star Wars are easily recognizable, sure. But throw some Narnia, Batman, Pirates of the Caribbean, Hitchhiker's Guide, or even How to Train Your Dragon. ...and pretty much anything non-Christmas from Trans-Siberian Orchestra.
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Post by Forresst on Feb 9, 2012 11:50:16 GMT -8
You might also consider Juno Reactor. They're more techno, I suppose, but they do a lot of instrumental or minimal-lyric songs, and a lot fo their music is already on soundtracks anyway.
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HyveMynd
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Post by HyveMynd on Feb 9, 2012 16:20:05 GMT -8
I'll totally second that Juno Reactor recommendation. Though as forresst said, it's electronic sounding, so would probably work best for a sci-fi game.
The sound tracks for Pirates of the Caribbean was awesome too. It totally made me want to run a pirate game, both realistic and steampunky.
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Post by daeglan on Feb 9, 2012 17:00:46 GMT -8
setting up play lists ahead of time will allow you to set the appropriate mood at the right time.
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Post by Forresst on Feb 9, 2012 17:29:13 GMT -8
Oh! I also thought of something that by now has enough creative commons recordings you can get it for free with a little digging!
The Planets - Gustav Holt is a suite of... I forget if it's 6 or 7 songs based on interpretations of the planets. They've been cribbed for so many movies you've probably heard them ALL before, but they're totally classic. I really like Jupiter, bringer of Jollity.
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Post by inflatus on Feb 9, 2012 19:53:10 GMT -8
I have never run a game with music in the background. I would like to play in a game that has it to see how the ambience changes.
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Post by Stu Venable on Feb 10, 2012 16:11:24 GMT -8
The closest I did to a sound track in recent times anyway, was to play a bunch of1920s and 30s music during a pulp game.
Sent from my LS670 using ProBoards
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Post by kaitoujuliet on Feb 10, 2012 16:57:25 GMT -8
Not necessarily good for a game soundtrack, but as long as we're talking about steampunk music, I have to put in a good word for the Clockwork Dolls: www.last.fm/music/The+Clockwork+Dolls
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