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I never expected Battlefield 3's official Facebook page to share my Bitmob article of music playlists. I wanted to create a third and final one to please those fans.
After two months of compiling, I finished my third Vicious War Tunes playlist to listen to while playing Battlefield 3.
This is probably my most ambitious pet project to date. I combed through my entire CD collection for hot tracks. I browsed through my huge collection of indie rock, techno, grunge and rap.
[embed:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q2IgMpPMj2k ]
The first song is, "Left Right," an unusual Chemical Brothers track off of their "Push the Button" album. Like most Chemical Brothers tunes, this song features slamming beats and electronic sounds. It also features a guest appearance from a rapper named Anwar Superstar.
The rap could literally pass as the theme song for Battlefield 3. Anwar uses the word "battlefield" and plenty of nonsensical lines about how Bush and Saddam Hussein seem to be on the same team. The words just seem to fit the senseless first-person shooter environment of chaotic violence incredibly well. After all, these military games always pit people on a single path where they have to shoot whoever happens to shoot at them. No one really has a choice in these games.
[embed:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxKWTzr-k6s ]
I've mentioned Pearl Jam before in a previous music article about Battlefield 3. I had to include their song "Even Flow." The lyrics and the guitars have a grating quality that fits the explosive environment incredibly well. Besides, it is a classic song I've always loved since I first heard it in middle school.
In fact, a lot of the playlist songs came from my favorite rock albums of the 90s and the 2000s era. Bands such as Live, Radiohead and Rage Against the Machine played monumental songs that I've always enjoyed. The grunge era has an iconic magnetism that draws me in whenever I hear an old classic.
I had trouble finishing the list, though. I had no choice but to bust out used rap CDs from my local entertainment retailers. I really love rap from the late 80s and the early 90s. Gang Starr and the Black Sheep were among my favorite groups in this period.
I'd never heard about these groups until I heard snippets of their songs in various YouTube videos and TV commercials. The Black Sheep hold a special place in my heart. Their single, "The Choice is Yours," was featured in one of the coolest car commercials in history. I'm talking about the Kia's hip-hop hamsters, of course.
[embed:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jOHwjjhFTac ]
The whole advertisement is silly, but the hamsters are perfect representations of modern pop culture. The hamsters even had the guts to perform a dubstep dance in a post-apocalyptic video game world. They're among the few characters who have a deep understanding of gaming culture.
I also added in the Propellerheads remix of the theme to a James Bond film. Their rendition of "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" sounded too epic to pass up. Besides, the newest Bond movie, Skyfall, reminded me of all the things I loved about the game Goldeneye. I could never play an FPS without thinking about Goldeneye's awesome soundtrack.
[embed:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Waok1NkMMkk ]
I also wanted to integrate some long forgotten classics from various indie artists. My personal favorite is "Man of the Year" from Len. The band is a one-hit wonder that performed the overplayed "Steal My Sunshine" song. I really wish radio stations would play "Man of the Year." It has an infectious dance beat and a groovy techno drone in the background. The lyrics also pay special tribute to Biz Markie, one of the earliest rappers in America.
Anyhow, here is what the final playlist looks like. I hope every Battlefield 3 fan enjoys all the tunes I've dug up for this compilation.
Vicious War Tunes (Volume Three)
1. The Chemical Brothers – Left Right
2. Pearl Jam – Even Flow
3. Len – Man of the Year
4. The Crystal Method – Name of the Game
5. Arcade Fire – Neighborhood #3 (Power Out)
6. Radiohead – Where I End and You Begin (The Sky is Falling)
7. Alice in Chains – Rooster
8. Gang Starr – Soliloquy of Chaos
9. Live – Heropsychodreamer
10. Rage Against the Machine – Wake Up
11. Neko Case – Fox Confessor Brings the Flood
12. Ima Robot – Dirty Life
13. Beck – Rental Car
14. Propellerheads – On Her Majesty's Secret Service
15. Black Sheep – The Choice is Yours (Revisited)
What other songs would you add to the playlist? What other kinds of music do you like to listen to while playing video games? Let us know in the comments below.