Name that rock tune

September 25, 2006 2:14 AM

Can anyone name this tune? (MP3 file) This is my primitive recreation of a song I heard the other day. More information about the context inside.

I heard a song on the PA at FYE (a music/books/etc. store) the other day. It started out as an instrumental rock number which sounded vaguely like ELO or maybe Queen. I've reproduced a bit of the melody in the MP3. The main melody was played on an electric guitar, probably in chords rather than single notes like I have done. The drums were acoustic and probably nothing like what I included in the MP3, but it was a typical driving rock rhythm.

After a minute or two of instrumental, a male vocal came in, singing to roughly the same melody. A moment later it seemed to transition into a different vocal and melody entirely, but that could have been the next song.

It sounded vaguely 70's but the production quality was better than it should have been so I suspect it was a more recent song with a bit of a retro flavor.

It's been running through my head ever since, and I'm hoping someone recognizes it before I go insane and listen to Amazon's entire catalog to find it. Thanks!

posted by mmoncur to media & arts (6 comments total)

Knights of Cydonia by Muse?
posted by blenderfish at 2:18 AM on September 25, 2006 [2 favorites]

I'm sure 4 minutes isn't an AskMefi record, but it's still damned impressive. Thanks! "Knights of Cydonia" it is - I recognize the lyrics you linked to, and the RealAudio sample at Amazon confirms it.

Amazingly, before posting this I had browsed Amazon for likely candidates and listened to the previews for half of this album before giving up on Muse... Of course it had to be track 11.
posted by mmoncur at 2:22 AM on September 25, 2006

Check out the video too (it'll be on YouTube) - it's awesome.
posted by EndsOfInvention at 2:31 AM on September 25, 2006

Oh...well...yeah...

What blenderfish said.

Here's the video link. Very well done music video.
posted by Colloquial Collision at 2:42 AM on September 25, 2006

The video is excellent... I wish they'd actually make that movie.
posted by mmoncur at 2:59 AM on September 25, 2006

When I heard your rendering i thought it sounded like a Morricone theme, and then I saw the video :)
posted by neustile at 4:56 AM on September 25, 2006