↑ Return to Music

Lord of the Metal Rings


Introduction


“Lord of the Metal Rings” is an upcoming arrangement album of music from the Lord of the Rings trilogy. The album is intended to have around 8-12 songs of music from all three films and will be performed in a a metal/rock style. Think Sauron with a flying V, Uruk Hai playing blast beats, Hobbits doing Pete Townsend slides…you get the idea. The purpose of the album is to both pay tribute to the incredible score of these films (composed by Howard Shore) and to demonstrate my own abilities in rearranging, performing, producing and advertising an album of music.

The idea was conceived in late 2010, and officially started in February 2011. The arrangement, performance and production of the album will be made entirely by “Sbeast” (that’s me). There is no official release date as of right now, because the project is still in progress. I intend to post samples of songs, give updates on the progress of the album, and perhaps ask for feedback/suggestions.

This is a Nonprofit album that will be released for free when it is completed.


The Plan

I am in the process of filming and uploading the videos to my Youtube Channel. Once all the videos have been uploaded I will then add download links for the album, along with artwork, track commentary. Because this is a free album please help by: sharing it around, like and favourite videos, embed on forums and websites e.t.c

Subscribe to my youtube channel to be notified when I upload the songs.


Frequently Asked Questions


When will it be finished?
My original goal was by the end of 2011, but I have overun by a bit. So now the goal is ASAP.

Will you make tabs for the songs?
Tabbing out the whole album could take some time, but ONCE the album is completed I will tab out some of the popular requests.

Why are the names different to the original songs?
I am making covers of ‘themes’ instead of ‘songs’ from the original soundtrack, so I think it is better to create an original name for my covers.


Tracklist (In Progress)


01 – One Ring to rule them all
More info about “One Ring to rule them all”
The album begins with an arrangement of the ‘Ring theme’. I thought this would be a great way to open the album. There is also a short appearance of ‘Gollums theme’ and the music that plays during the Argonath scene in FOTR. I also used a sound effect of the ring hitting the ground and a distant heartbeat to add to the atmosphere of the song.

02 – Shire Folk
More info about “Shire Folk”
Track 2 is an arrangement of the music related to the Shire and the Hobbits. It’s one of the more upbeat and melodic tracks on the album.

03 – Riders in Black
More info about “Riders in Black”
‘Riders in Black’ refers to the Ringwraiths and this track combines several of the themes and motif’s used for them. It is also one of the heaviest songs on the album. I tried to emulate the violin glissando heard in the films at 2:04 and I also experimented around with a video effect at 1:47 to look like the wraith-world.

04 – The White Hand of Saruman
More info about “The White Hand of Saruman”
‘The White Hand of Saruman’ is the symbol used for the Uruk-Hai from Isengard. I recreated some of the instruments found in the original music, such as Taiko drums and a metallic percussive sound. I kept the time signature and aggression of the original music, whilst adding new riffs, harmonies and a melodic section to contrast with the other parts.

05 – Nine Companions
More info about “Nine Companions”
‘Nine Companions’ refers to the 9 members of the Fellowship. This is an arrangement of the Fellowship theme, one of the most memorable themes in all 3 films. I also included another theme that plays when the Fellowship are leaving Rivendell in the extended edition of the first film.

↓ Watch the videos here ↓



Updates

February 29th 2012 – ’2012 Update’

It’s been several weeks since my last song release, but the next song will be uploaded to my youtube channel very soon. It’s taken a while to come up with an arrangement that I am happy with. I plan to get the rest of the songs finished as soon as possible, then I will be releasing the whole album as a free download. Stay tuned!

December 10th 2011 – ‘Fellowship Anniversary’
Fellowship Theme Teaser

Today is the 10th anniversary of the Fellowship of the Ring film. Here’s a teaser of the Fellowship theme to celebrate.

September 18th 2011 – ‘Video filming’
I am now in the process of filming, editing, and uploading videos of the songs to my Youtube Channel. It could take some time to finish them all, but expect to see the first few very soon!

September 2nd 2011 – ‘The Plan’
I’m getting close to finishing the album now. Once it’s completed I will begin uploading the videos to my Youtube Channel. Once all the songs have been uploaded I will then make the album available as a free download from this page along with album artwork, track commentary e.t.c

August 27th 2011 – ‘Rohan Teaser’
Rohan Theme Teaser

Here’s a teaser of the Rohan theme from “The Two Towers”, which is one of the songs featured on the album. I’ve still got a little way to go to finish the album, but it’s my main focus right now so it shouldn’t be too long.

August 12th 2011 – ‘Progress’
Just a small update to say that the album is making good progress. I will include another song sample in the near future, until then…go watch the trilogy again?

July 19th 2011 – ‘Tracklist decisions’
After listening to a lot of music from the films, I think I have decided on the track list for the album. Right now I am planning on making 12 remixes. There will be at least 1 remix of music from each film, and some of the themes are present in all of films. I will reveal which songs I am remixing at a later date. I also still don’t have a release date but I am making good progress.

May 18th 2011 – ‘Song Teaser’
Ring Theme Teaser

Here is a 1 minute teaser of the “Ring Theme” which will be one of the tracks on the album. This is to just to give an idea of the production quality and something to listen to. Please note this is subject to change…Enjoy.

May 17th 2011 – ‘Equipment Upgrade’
I recently got a new computer, so I can now use the full features of my POD X3. This means the final recordings should sound even better than the song samples included in the trailer. The album is still in the early stages but I am making good progress!

April 27th 2011 – ‘So it begins…’
I posted the ALBUM PROMO VIDEO to youtube. As of right now I have 1 complete song, and about 3 that are Works in Progress. I am also still deciding on which tracks that I want to include in the album.

LOTMR Artwork