Character Theme Song Challenge

[Emily]

It's easy to find a theme song for a character when you have all the music in the world to choose from. Where's the fun in that? Over in the discord, we recently came up with a better challenge, to really test how we think about our characters. What if someone suggested a specific pool of songs, an artist, album, or playlist, and everyone had to find songs within that space that represented their characters.

By restricting the pool of music, we hope to really think about our characters and find some aspect of their personality, appearance, or general vibe, that can be properly represented.

Challenge One

First to take the reins was Cat, who suggested Amalee, a singer who mostly does English covers for anime opening and closing songs. She has also released an album of original music, which I think I might have been the only person to utilise. Here were the results:

Cat

Spoiler

• Alyson:
  
  
  
• Micah:
  
  
  
• Florimel:
  

[close]

Emily

Spoiler

• Reverie:
  
  
  
• Allura:
  
  
  
• Sable:
  
  
  
• Ekik:
  
  
  
• Ariadne (purely on vibes):
  

[close]

El:

Spoiler

Ciel:

Fajar:

Gao:

Cherri:

VaVas & Dgin:

Lucius:

[close]

Challenge Two

The second challenge, issued by me, went through a couple iterations due to low participation, but I honestly think that was more due to the fact that the chat we utilising for the challenge was also used for other things, so people lost sight of what was said.

The first attempt was for Skyhill. My direct quote summarising them was this:

Skyhill is one of the many Dan Avidan projects, and one of the few Dan Avidan bands that isn't comedy based. They had two albums, Run With the Hunted in 2007 and Out in the Moonlight in 2020. There is a song on the Out in the Moonlight album, Fireflies, that is a remake of this version from 2015, and I think the original is better, but you can obviously use any version you want.

I also summarised all my characters like this:

Spoiler

• Reverie: Howling at the Moon
  
  
  
• Ekik: From Dust
  
  
  
• Ariadne: Live Another Day
  
  
  
• Allura: Vague Lines (I think). I'm not certain about this one, but it feels pretty good.
  
  
  
• Sable, I think, is Run With the Hunted
  

[close]

My second attempt, slightly more successful, was TWRP. TWRP is an eclectic jazz fusion/electronic/funk band originally hailing from Halifax, Nova Scotia (Canada), though they now live in Toronto, Ontario (Canada). Their first EP, The Device, and their 2024 album Digital Nightmare, are somewhat dark and foreboding, but the rest of their music is notoriously upbeat and positive, even if some of their songs can be sad. My original quote:

You can find a full list of their music here: https://twrp.bandcamp.com/music It's a little jumbled in the middle, so I'll point out the major releases to make things easier. Their major albums are:

• Together Through Time
  
• Return to Wherever
  
• Over the Top
  
• New & Improved
  
• Digital Nightmare
  
• The Longest Weekend
  
  Their EPs, which have fewer songs but are just as high in quality, are:
  
• The Device
  
• 2nite
  
• Believe in Your Dreams
  
• Guardians of the Zone
  
• Ladyworld
  
• Friends of the Blues
  

The results were as follow:

Emily

Spoiler

• Allura
  I feel great about Allura being Prismatic Core from 2Nite. It's kind of dark but transcendent and it has a lot of really heavy energy
  Allura is a being of pure determination and hope. There's no better theme for her than Starlight Brigade from Together Through Time.
  
  
  
• Reverie
  I also straight up came into this knowing what Reverie's was going to be. Roll With It from Over the Top is about persevering even though the whole world has changed and it's very difficult to keep going.
  
  
  
• Sable
  Sable might be Stargazing from The Longest Weekend? I'm going to keep looking, but I kind of like this at least in her "Ode to Zeldafront" version that's present in the Beaumont Ball lol
  Sable operates in illusion and misdirection, but in a way that allows her to exist in a world that she would otherwise have a hard time understanding or living in. Much like the misdirection highlighted in Have You Heard? from Friends of the Blues.
  
  
  
• Ekik
  Ekik, maybe. I'll keep listening and come back around to it. For now, we have Destination from Over the Top. It's a very high-energy song about basically being a destructive force in a direction you've been pointed.
  This magnificent bastard deserves no song more than Superior Moves from New & Improved. A song about being your best self.
  
  
  
• Ariadne
  Ariadne is one of two. We have Under the Sun from Return to Wherever and Ukiyo from The Longest Weekend. They're both very chill songs about being with your friends and having a good time, but there's a feeling of sadness in them that is hard to place. Like it's a fear that this can't last forever, or that something's still bothering you.
  

[close]

Cat

Spoiler

• Alyson
  "On This Rock" for Alyson, as it's about knowing things can't be the same as before, but embracing the future and building something better. Either that or "Starting From Scratch" because of all the mention of building and creating
  

[close]

So now it's up to you! Do you continue with one of these challenges? All three? Or do you propose a challenge of your own?

[Emily]

Challenge Two Addendum:

Ryla
We're not so different, you and I. We all smile and we all cry.

Nephthys
Funky cult member be like

[El]

Raemi
She's a greenhouse flower.

Gao
This matches my bleeding-heart of a romanticist well, sentimental dreamer that he is but always forcing himself to act on realism instead.

Cherri
She's as sweet as her name implies.

Lucius
...It just works. (Though I almost chose Perfect Product just for the laughs)

Fajar
She's awake.

Dgin & VaVas
Thankfully I can't see this becoming a reality anytime soon, but man, it's a great choice for their bond.

Ciel
When is it NOT? Ciel never dulls her sparkle.

[El]

NEXT UP! I'm putting forth this playlist for us to pick from. It features a bunch of character themes from the game Honkai Star Rail. I haven't played the game for easily over a year at this point, but regardless of what you think of gacha games Hoyoverse makes incredible music and I feel like this is a tasteful sample of variety! I'm very curious to see what folks end up choosing 👀

Lucius
This one is already known! Dramatic, with some hilariously corny moments that ramp up into true flamboyant techno drama! A perfect fit.

Dgin & VaVas
Upbeat and good-humoured  - maybe even a lil' mischievous? - because even when you're basically dead, it's only just begun. Where there's a will there's a way and a laugh to be had!

Ciel
Really bouncy but with a funky, unnerving off-tilt. Ciel is often playful but also incredibly mercurial. When you've got a predetermined expiry date, you're bound to be a little twisted and reckless - but don't forget to keep cute!

Gao
I cracked up laughing imagining Gao's life to this, and now I just can't pick any other song. Sometimes (often) he's an accidental goof, but y'know what, he's actually quite a badass too. My silly, stubborn, bleeding-heart of a cowboy, brute-forcing his way through life.

Cherri
A graceful darling, adoring and playful. But as sweet as she is, something just isn't quite-...right. (I changed this choice a bunch of times - so many fit!)

Raemi
Raemi is very prone to melancholy, but for all her internal struggles she still finds the beauty in life - and the beauty she can create to share with others. This dreamer is capable of far more than she'll ever give herself credit for.

Fajar
She lives an existence of eternal torment, all just to keep the past alive and its lessons shared. But she doesn't ask for justice - the horror is an honour. Her birthright duty. I HAD to choose something dramatically epic for my nightmare b*tch.

[Emily]

Ariadne

This song is so jazzy and funky. Despite the title, it doesn't say idiocy to me, it says exploration and movement. Ariadne goes places, she sees things, she immerses herself, but never sacrifices who she is.





Sable

There's a quiet dreaminess to this piece. It lulls you by being calm. There's a curiosity and playfulness to the centre before the light hits it just right, letting it finally explode into its full regal grandeur. The song is simple, which makes sense as it's on the first album, but even with intense songs like Soloist, Lullaby, and Wordless coming later, I never took this off the list. And at the end, I realised it was because this was the song for Sable.





Reverie

Despite its melancholy opening, this piece explodes with energy. It's grounded in traditional instruments (mostly), with a central melody structured around Chopin, which tells me a story about a long, unbroken history to a more genteel and refined time. And it goes.





Ekik

There was never any other choice. There's a swagger and energy to this jazz fusion song that nobody else on my roster moves with. The duel between the trumpet and clarinet, both following the same notes, one with refinement, the other with a muted bluster (hold onto that, it'll be important later). This comes in with a goal, and the coordination required to get a band to have so many moving parts execute so perfectly cannot go understated. This is skill and preparation joined together.




Allura

There's darkness, there's depth, there's whimsical strangeness around the edges.





Ryla

This one sneaks up on you, or at least I found myself losing my focus and just grooving to it. It has so much charm and technique, you only lock into really hearing what's happening when the acoustic guitar kicks in, and at that point it backs off again until the moment it's ready to execute everything it's been building toward. Perfect for someone with a lot more depth and work ethic than they let on.





Nephthys

It's playful, it's fun! There's nothing sinister at all going on here. Just enjoy the technique, the acrobatic melody, each staccato hit of the strings another footfall as we run together through the desert at night. Enjoy yourself, and we'll talk about it tomorrow when the sun's out.



????

[LuckyBlackCat]

Alyson:

The title says it all. What else but this peppy piece for a boundlessly energetic handywoman, always happy to pitch in wherever she can?

Claria:

The beginning's sombre piano part brings to mind the eerie melancholy of the Depths, and while maintaining its solemn feel, this song gradually builds up into intense battle music fitting for my literally radiant warrior.

Micah:

Soft and gentle, yet the faster parts convey his curiosity and sense of adventure despite his perpetual "oh no what's going to go wrong this time" vibe. And something about the low-pitched instruments makes it sound apt for a Goron.

Carmine:

"Crank the sound and let your soul be free!" A feisty, upbeat song for a determined and ambitious Rito, rising ever higher toward his dream.

Florimel:

She never expected to meet again with the one she'd vowed to serve, but she did, however fragmented said deity had become. This track sounds suitably hopeful and epic for her realm-spanning quest.

Rowan:

This slow-paced piece conveys someone who appreciates the simple pleasures of life and the warmth of community. Got to make the most of these things - you never know how long they'll last.

[Chaosome]

Describing what I mean by certain songs fitting is tricky for me, cus it's a lot of like. Vibes based stuff LOL, so hopefully y'all feel these fit as much as I do! (Tho obviously the mystery character remains a mystery!)

Malon:

Moosh:

Makar:

Arcade:

Jamil:

[Redacted]: