I followed an interesting tangent of related topics in the gaps between work today. It started last night as I was at home trawling through some Devil May Cry 3 and 4 skill/combo videos. These videos are always played to some kind of metal; one of them was covered by 2 Rhapsody of Fire songs, and several others I couldn't name. It was then I discovered another power metal band, Kamelot.

Kamelot's When the Lights Are Down was the song being used, so I found which album it was on, did a bit of reading about the album, and it turns-out the album is a sequel to an earlier concept album, loosely based on the story of Goethe's Faust. It was this part caught my attention because my brother (film/theatre student) has been involved in several productions of Christopher Marlowe's The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus. Intrigued by the naming coincedence, I continued my reading and learned that both Goethe and Marlowe wrote their stories based on a German legend about a man (Faust) who makes a pact with the devil in exchange for knowledge.

I knew how the Marlowe version went from my brother, so I focused on learning about Goethe's version and about Goethe himself, and somewhere along the way I realized, "Holy crap, I've stumbled upon a literary heavyweight!"

You can read about Goethe's epic resumé and mark on history anywhere on the Internet just by Googling his name. As I did I felt both awed by his achievements, and stupid for not having heard of this guy before. The last time I felt like this, was when I threw "circles of hell" into Google (I was using the concept in a story of mine) and came across another epic: Dante's The Divine Comedy. Therein lay several other Devil May Cry and popular culture references.

So what did I learn? Plenty. And that power metal and video games can be educational too :P

So Guitar Hero 3 is either out, or up-and-coming (depending on where you are in the world), and while I'm not a fan, I was directed to a YouTube video of someone attempting Dragonforce's Through The Fire And Flames. If you know that song, or know power metal in general, you'll know that it will be impossible to get 100% for that song on expert level.

Continuing on the YouTube trail, I went and watched the actual music video for that song, as well as another of their songs, Operation Ground And Pound. In that video I think the band is on some sort of post-apocalyptic Earth, surviving the onslaught of the alien race that has destroyed it. I don't know if my words can evoke the right kind of imagery, but damn it looked cool.

So I don't know what everyone else's version of armageddon looks like, but my one has been slightly altered to have the 4 horsemen riding in not to the sound of the screaming masses, but being greeted by a synth orchestra, double-kick drums, and humankind's most ridiculously over-the-top electric guitar solo ever.

It'll be our finest hour :D