Music, much like literature, has the power to drive your imagination; it can lift the soul and create real emotion.This is Bookish Beats, a feature which will showcase some of the soundtracks which have enriched the worlds I’ve found between the pages.
Assassin’s Creed III (Original Game Soundtrack)
Composed by Lorne Balfe
Listen to with:
An action-packed fantasy adventure
Such as:
The Way of Shadows by Brent Weeks
Another day, another foray into the world of Assassin’s Creed. The soundtrack for Assassin’s Creed III, composed by Lorne Balfe, is a fantastic stand-alone album comprised of action-packed orchestral numbers, tense synths, sweeping string and soaring woodwind pieces which, nevertheless, sits well within the ever expanding AC catalogue. This is a soundtrack which gets better with every listen and provides an utterly thrilling and incredibly atmospheric backdrop to reading.
Those who love an action filled soundtrack will not be disappointed. Nearly every track picks you up and throws you along on a riot of non-stop action and, other than my top track in this category, Trouble in Town, The Battle of Breed’s Hill and Battle at Sea really stand out. Not to mention, anyone up for a bit of an Irish Jig have Fight Club and Beer and Friends to sample.
Assassin’s Creed III is not without a good dose of tension either, and though there is a tense undercurrent to many of the tracks, some pack more of a punch than others. Although I’m usually a fan of subtle tension, Eye of the Storm had me on the edge of my seat. It’s an almost overwhelmingly tense track, faintly discordant and brimming with action and movement. I defy anyone to listen to it without feeling that knot of tension build up inside.
This soundtrack is not without its slow, gently soaring moments either; tracks filled with emotion, tracks whose subtlety is perfect for those quiet moments. An Uncertain Moment and Speck of Dust are firm favourites in this category and the use of woodwind in Connor’s Life, Through the Frontier and Homestead create moments in which time stands still; incredibly beautiful and wonderfully contrasting when compared to the pace of the rest of the soundtrack.
The AC soundtracks may all be different, they are the work of many different composers after all, but they retain a consistently high standard which capture real emotion, danger and tension. The soundtrack for Assassin’s Creed III may not be as thematically strong as its counterparts but every listen surprises me, every time it gets better. It’s certainly one I intend to return to time and time again.
Favourite track
01 – Assassin’s Creed III Main Theme
Top track for action
Top track for tension
Top track for emotion
Books by Proxy 
Oh my goodness, soooo much love for this post! I am big on video game soundtracks, I even co-host a pod-cast that just focuses on MMO music.
Do you listen to a lot of soundtracks? Not just games, but anything, like movies, shows? I love just relaxing with instrumental scores sometimes. I don’t actually own the Assassin’s Creed 3 OST, though I have the one for Black Flag. I kind of stopped playing the games after AC3 and so I havent’ been as attached to the music, but maybe I ned to pick this one up after all!
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Oh excellent! I’ll have to check that out! Very glad to see game soundtracks getting some love 😀
Yes I’d say half of all the music I listen to is from soundtracks – games, movies and shows! I’ve just been listening to John Powell’s Bourne Identity soundtrack during a family dinner, forgot how good it is! I actually own all the AC soundtracks but AC3 is one I neglected in favour of the others for a long time. Not even sure why because I think it’s awesome!
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