Music for a Dark Muse

It’s no secret that I’m a music lover.  I was raised by parents who fed me different kinds of music for most of my life.  When I hit age sixteen, however, I discovered heavy metal…and didn’t look back.  Although I still love the music from my youth: The Monkees, The Doors, The Who…The Rolling Stones, Bob Seger, Rod Stewart…..I could go on and on.  But there is just something about heavy metal that feeds my soul, makes me happy, and sometimes, even soothes me.

About three years ago, a friend of mine introduced me to the Finnish band Nightwish.  And I was completely wowed by them, so much that I went out and bought every album they’ve ever made.  For those not familiar with them, their music is symphonic metal, a kind of fusion between heavy metal and symphony style.  Typically, these types of bands have female singers, although that’s not always the case.  They use keyboards and have lyrics that explore more fantasy-like things.  They’re much more epic.  Some symphonic metal bands have dark and creepy music, which is something my muse really, really likes (this is not a surpise, knowing her). 

So after discovering Nightwish, I began looking for more symphonic metal and/or gothic bands.  I discovered a band called Epica and another one called Sirenia, both of which have female singers.  Epica is Dutch and Sirenia is Norwegian.  Both are out of this world.

Then I began looking at more gothic bands.  That’s when I discovered Kamelot and Xandria.  Kamelot has a male lead singer, and their music is dark and sad.  I remember when I heard a song by them on Pandora and it gave me goose bumps.  Kamelot is American, while Xandria is German.  They even have a song about a vampire.  Totally cool.

And let’s not forget the Greek band Elysion that wowed me recently, or the Russian band Dark Princess whose album Without You became the soundtrack for one of my novels.  Or how about the Italian band Domina Noctis (which means Lady of the Night in Latin)?  I’ve had them on repeat lately because they feed my muse.

But wait, I have more!  Sonata Arctica is Finnish, with a male singer with an epic voice.  Lacuna Coil is Italian, and I discovered them on Pandora.  Then there’s Lunatica, a Swiss symphonic metal band.  They have quite a few amazing songs.  And lastly, there’s Tarja, who used to be the lead singer of Nightwish.  I have one of her albums and I can’t get enough of her operatic voice.  It is so beautiful.

I still try to find new symphonic/gothic metal bands all the time.  I just can’t get enough of them.

Music, for me, is intimately connected with the writing process.  Sure, I can write without it, but it’s more difficult to get into the proper mindset.  Because my stories are all dark in some way or another, this type of music works so well.  It gives me new paths to follow and inspires me like nothing else can.

Right now, I’m listening to Domina Noctis.  And I’m gearing up for a great writing session today.  I can feel it.

Writers, what kind of music gets your muse excited?  Non-writers, have you ever heard of these bands?  What kind of music do you like?