Triarii - Muse In Arms [2008]

And now for something completely different.

The music made by Triarii is often referred to as 'martial industrial' - basically industrial music with a militaristic feel to it. Featuring orchestras, battle choirs and lots of clunking chains, grinding gears and army shouting, it's the kind of soundtrack you'd expect a war to have.

"Muse In Arms" is perhaps Triarii's best-known album, containing the haunting "Birth Of A Sun" and the epic-sounding "Europa". I'll have to admit I'm not much into martial industrial so I can't recommend it over other, similar works, but if this concept sounds interesting to you, give it a shot.

Mp3, 320 kbps

Megaupload

Jeff Beck - Emotion & Commotion [2010]

And here's my other favourite Jeff Beck album. As great as his '70s releases were, many of them don't offer much that "Wired" doesn't.

Beck's most recent studio release is this, the astonishing "Emotion & Commotion". In what was an interesting step away from his usual works, "E&C" contains a wide variety of styles. This includes (but is not limited to) the hard-rock track "Hammerhead", the cover of well-known soul song "I Put A Spell on You" and the orchestral album-closer "Elegy for Dunkirk". As usual, most of the tracks are instrumental, but where there are vocals, Beck has enlisted the help of such well-known singers as Joss Stone and Imelda May. Although this album is lacking somewhat in original compositions, the cover versions are done in Jeff's unique style which makes them massively enjoyable to listen to again and again.

Mp3, 128 kbps

Link was taken down. Comment on this if you would like to see a reupload.

Hans Zimmer - Inception: Music From The Motion Picture [2010]

It seems as though Hans Zimmer has the uncanny ability of making soundtracks which fit the on-screen action to within a millimetre. A prime example of this is the soundtrack to the blockbuster Inception.

The now-infamous "BRAAAAAAAAAH" at the start of the film is but one piece in the complex jigsaw of layered orchestral arrangements, sweeping soundscapes and intense crescendos that this soundtrack offers. Featuring guitar work from Johnny Marr of The Smiths fame, "Inception" is a soundtrack which - quite simply - works.

~320 kbps (VBR)

Megaupload