It may be more convenient to go to Deezer or Spotify to get my annual report, but I like the personal touch of a blog post!
So, here goes.
The First Top 10
…Or songs I listen to at least once a week! I don’t expect these to change a lot from this year to the next; these have stuck with me for a long time.
1. Far Horizons
I think this one has been at the very top since 2019! The story, however, goes back to 2011 when Skyrim first came out.
It’s an open-world role-playing game (RPG) with many, many possibilities and a wonderful soundtrack that feels like home to me. (And the piece is among my tools for better sleep.) That’s probably due to many hours I’ve spent immersed in the game, but that’s a topic for another day.
For now, you may appreciate the piece better if you picture yourself on a road with beautiful nature all around you. You’re walking the road not to reach a goal, not in a rush, but to see what those far horizons bring. It’s magnificent.
2. Rise
I don’t watch a lot of movies! And believe it or not, I watched Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight trilogy about a year ago.
Still, this piece managed to climb up my Most Played. I absolutely loved the story, and I still get goosebumps listening to it.
3. Lost But Won
Not a lot of people around me have watched Rush (2013). If you haven’t, please do! It’s about the legendary battle between Formula 1 drivers Niki Lauda and James Hunt.
I was actually introduced to this piece before the movie when they played it in Hollywood in Vienna: The World of Hans Zimmer. I loved their rendition, dug up the original, and I haven’t heard a motif quite rugged ever since. Give it a listen!
4. Suicide Mission
Now, back to being a gamer! One of the greatest pieces of video game music in history, Suicide Mission is the longest-standing piece in my Most Played from the first place in 2011 to fourth now.
All three Mass Effect games have astoundingly great music, but this from Mass Effect 2 is quite another.
“Attacking the Collectors would require passing through the Omega 4 Relay. No ship has ever returned from doing so.”
5. Elder Scrolls V – Skyrim: Far Horizons
That’s right; I love Far Horizons to a degree that I have two renditions of it in my top 5! But jokes aside, this is also one of the most memorable pieces of video game music in history.
Here, the people at London Philharmonic have managed to capture so many different emotions in it with a different arrangement and a piano solo. Once again, it’s magnificent.
6. Warning Call
This is the combination of two of my favorite things: Mirror’s Edge Catalyst and CHVRCHES. If you’re a fan of the latter, you’d know that they have a talent for making pieces that go with a standalone production. You may think of Death Stranding or even Nightbooks, but this is the crème de la crème.
The piece goes seamlessly with Solar Field’s all-electronic Mirror’s Edge music, it expresses the epitome of the story, and it’s pushed me to push on more times than I can count. Give it a listen!
7. Not The Chosen One
Dragon Age: The Veilguard came out two months ago, and I recently wrote about the Veilguard soundtrack. So, this position in the top 10 may change, but I think this and the next piece will stick around.
I identify with Rook, our protagonist in The Veilguard, who was not, by any account, chosen to be the protagonist. Still, they managed to improvise. Don’t miss the theme!
8. The Dread Wolf
Another one from the same album! “Not The Chosen One” may be ahead on the Most Played, but I sincerely believe the game should be nominated for a major award if only for this piece.
If not, just enjoy the beats to the theme for an ancient god.
9. The Council of Elrond Assembles / “Aníron” (feat. Enya)
Howard Shore, in his ultimate wisdom, composed the music for The Lord of the Rings movie trilogy not based on the movies, but on the books themselves. The movies are well-made, but the soundtrack is noticeably better.
I don’t know which I love about this piece most: that it describes the Council of Elrond Half-elven, that it features beautiful elvish lyrics, or that Enya’s the one singing? Listen for yourself!
10. In Hushed Whispers
Top 10 wouldn’t be complete with a piece from a different composer, either Solar Fields, Gustavo Santaolalla, or Trevor Morris! This year, it’s Trevor Morris with one of the most touching pieces of Dragon Age: Inquisition.
In fact, let me not describe the mission this time. You know it if you’ve played the game, but if you haven’t, what do you hear?
The Second Top 10
These are the tracks with lower competition, but it’s still hard to get here for new pieces.
11. The Road Goes Ever On…, Pt. 2 / “In Dreams” (feat. Edward Ross)
Back to just how amazing The Lord of the Rings soundtrack is! This one is based on a language J. R. R. Tolkien invented, but on dear Bilbo’s most loved poem of the same name.
You’re welcome to listen just to part 2 of the piece, but it also has an amazing prelude, which is part 1. The whole composition can be a ray of hope in “cold of winter” or when you feel like you’re coming “to end of days.”
By the way, if you’re a fan of Howard Shore, you may appreciate my list of top 5 The Lord of the Rings performances!
12. The Gathering Storm
I mentioned how I love The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim’s soundtrack at the beginning of the piece, but this one has a special place.
If I remember correctly, the piece is directly about Skyrim’s civil war (Imperials vs. Stormcloaks) and the ending is just a gloomy, sad premonition.
13. The Scar
Another one from Dragon Age Inquisition! This is the piece that got me thinking about the scars each of my beloved protagonists bear. I may delve deeper into it in another post, but enjoy the track for now!
14. Davy Jones
This is also another one of the playlist’s older pieces, and a familiar one if you have watched Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest.
I feel for Davy Jones. I think many people do. And the theme always makes me wonder what he could have been, as reflected at the beginning of the piece, if he hadn’t become a monster.
15. Thedas Love Theme
I love love themes, and I got to live this one having romanced Josephine in Dragon Age: Inquisition. It’s warm, sweet, ethereal, and fleeting.
16. You Have Everything That You Need
Again, feel free to read about the Dragon Age Veilguard soundtrack on my blog! I’m two months in and this one has not ceased to amaze me or lose its power. Simply powerful.
17. Benefactor
There was a time in my life when I listened to Mirror’s Edge: Catalyst music day, night, day, night, and day again! I’d be disappointed if someday, Solar Fields wasn’t on my Most Played.
This one is an all-electronic mission theme. Give it a shot! And of course, each of the game’s pieces (or shards) has a story behind it, which I won’t be able to summarize in this post. Maybe some other time.
18. Imagine the Fire
Another one from The Dark Knight Rises! The trilogy is full of memorable tracks, but for me, “Rise” is the culmination and “Imagine the Fire” is one step back from it.
I also use this one to change my mood; it has so many different beats!
19. Final Girl
Did I mention I love Lauren Mayberry and CHVRCHES? This one is from what I consider to be the best album of CHVRCHES, Screen Violence: Director’s Cut.
That entire album is mesmerizing. Why this and not another piece? It’s a little personal at the moment. I’ll get to it eventually!
20. Ashfall (Jeremy Soule, Skyrim: Dragonborn DLC)
See, it’s for pieces like this that I prefer to listen offline! This is a touching piece played at Solstheim, Morrowind, which perfectly describes the lives of dark elves after the eruption of Red Mountain.
The piece was never officially released, so there’s no widget. See if you can get your hands on it!
The Third Top 10
This is the most flexible portion of the playlist. Although many of these tracks are dear to me, this section will most probably be very different next year.
21. I Was Lost Without You
This is the love theme for Mass Effect 3, and it’s perfect. I have no more words to describe it!
22. The Path
Ah, finally, something from The Last of Us and Gustavo Santaolalla! I love the games and the composer, but I may have deliberately lessened my dose of music from them as an effort against depression. This one is rather carefree, though! Give it a listen.
23. X-X
I’m the kind of person who has not seen the movie, but has probably listened to the soundtrack! That’s the case for many titles like Amélie, Casablanca, and here, X-Men: Dark Phoenix.
I was told by a cinema expert friend that it’s not such a great movie, but I’ll probably end up listening to it because of Hans Zimmer. I mean, this is from the experimental, side album and listen to it!
24. Awake
This is one of the 5 most iconic pieces from Skyrim. And of course, Malukah has covered it and what a cover it is.
To refresh your memory, this is the singer who got famous with her beautiful rendition of in-game song “The Dragonborn Comes” and later got to sing in The Elder Scrolls Online. All that happened for a reason!
25. I Don’t Need Saving
I liked The Mentalist, either for the great storylines, the many things I learned from it, or the real characters.
This one serves as a theme for Agent Lisbon, and it plays on several occasions. If you’ve seen the series, you know!
26. Lemonia
Solar Fields is a genius. I’ve listened to nigh everything he has composed, and there are too many favorites to pick from.
Fortunately, my Most Played picks favorites for me sometimes! This piece really is part of the story told in its album, but the interpretation is always up to you!
27. First Steps Into Sunken Glades
Ori and the Blind Forest was a lovely title from many aspects, and that certainly included its music composed by Gareth Coker. It also won the year’s D.I.C.E award for Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composition.
Naturally, the album is full of great pieces. I love how uncertain and… hurt this one is.
28. Worlds That Never Were
Materia Collective, a group of musically-inclined gamers (or game-inclined musicians), got together in 2016 to make the album Song Cycle: The History of Video Games. Gamer or not, I advise you to not miss out on it!
Of course, you’d appreciate it much more if you remember the original tunes and just how brilliantly the collective has written the lyrics. For example, if you know the musical identity of Journey (which you should, it reaped every major music award that year) and/or have played the game, you’d be blown away at just how good this one is.
The song isn’t available on Deezer or Spotify, but you can listen to it on Archive.org below.
29. Shepard of the Galaxy
Jimmy Hinson may be one of the less appreciated artists who worked on Mass Effect 1 and 2, yet he has an album (under the name Big Giant Circles) that features unused music from the trilogy.
If you know your Mass Effect music, you’ll find more than traces from all three games in this piece. It’s epic in its very own way.
30. An End, Once and for All (Extended Cut)
I almost wish it was another theme, but in many ways, this is a perfect wrap for the article and the year. It’s from Mass Effect 3.