I was thinking back to one of my favourite books this year this morning, Serial Killers Incorporated by Andy Remic is a great book by Anarchy Books and was co-released with a soundtrack by th3 m1ss1ng. In the bizarre way that my mind works this then reminded me of a few tweets by Adam Christopher about what he’s listening to whilst writing or editing. One flashback into my teens later I was thinking about how I relate certain books with certain music.
For me it all started with the Dragonlance Chronicles by Weis and Hickman. If you are a Fantasy fan then these are a must. I can remember laying on the swing chair in the garden reading these books, but I remember just as well that I chained extension leads together to get my stereo outside and listened to a C90 cassette (Google it kids) with Slippery When Wet by Bon Jovi on one side and Kings of Metal by Manowar on the other. I guess that places it in the summer of ’89. All this time later if I read those books again I can almost hear those albums in my head, and conversely if I hear any of those tracks I can’t help thinking of Dragonlance. There are other instances where I relate music and books together. The Dark Tower books by Stephen King are closely related to Garage Inc. by Metallica.
Not all music goes with all books. I’ve tried reading Gary McMahon whilst listening to Teddybears Sthlm and it just did not work even though I loved both. So not all music goes with all books. There are rhythms to books, the pacing of the plot and the speed of the reader. I’ve often wondered if what the author listens to whilst writing would work whilst reading, or if some books and music just go together.
I’d love to know what other people think and whether I am the only nut who relates certain books and albums so closely.
Tony's Thoughts 