Printable View
And please no cheater answers like "Sephiroth probably listens to no music" or "Kefka only listens to his victims' screams". Okay, well, I guess listening to no music at all is okay. Just in general when it comes to existing types which one do you think fits the character.
Well, for Chaos. . . :roll2
Being slightly more serious though, considering the general state of development the world is in and where I presume Garland is from (Cornelia), I'd expect that Chaos would listen to classical compositions, likely lute based as the instrument was probably present in the Cornelian court and, considering a Lute was passed down through generations of the royal family, it isn't too far fetched to assume the sound of the instrument was common in the culture.
Sadly, I can't think of anything else the four warriors would likely be listening to, as I'm not sure where they are from or of any other instruments existing in the world, so . . . folk songs on lutes and beer for them! :D
Thinking about the Emperor, I'm again left with classical compositions like with Garland, but since I don't recall any instruments in FF2, I'll just assume his court had access to most contemporary, non-electrical, instruments. Knowing what little I do of the guy, he's not an especially compassionate emperor and doesn't appear to have any interest in lowering himself to the level of the common man, so I'd expect class to factor heavily into his musical tastes -- less tavern bard songs and more elaborate court pieces. I considered perhaps opera, as it (generally) requires well trained artists in both composition and execution and would be quite removed from the 'drivel' entertaining the general citizenry, not to mention represents war and conquest, both things he appears to revel in, much more directly and satisfyingly than traditional compositions do. Buuuuuut . . . the presence of an active colosseum and opera's general trend towards strained love stories kind of shoots that theory down. Regarding the latter point, quick consideration of the man's temperament leads me to believe he'd find dramatic love tales, even dotted with warfare, exceedingly trite (if not outright annoying or offensive), and, for the former, the presence of the colosseum not only takes up ideal opera house real estate, but also offers the warfare opera could represent directly and without the need for musical accompaniment.
So, not an opera guy.
This lead me to another possibility I'm much more happy with -- he probably enjoys classical violin music, either solo or with accompaniment, with particular appreciation for technically difficult pieces. Additionally, I expect that he would be the one playing said violin. My first reason for thinking this goes back to what I said about class likely playing into his musical tastes -- the violin, along with the piano, are generally what I've always encountered as the upper class instruments. Based on that, I'd expect a combination of the two to be his sound of choice, with a clear preference for whichever conveys more 'class'. This leads to my second reason for suspecting he probably leans towards the violin -- his private box in a public colosseum. It's pretty common practice for rulers to have private boxes in places like this, but when one examines why, especially considering the Emperor's personality, it does indicate a desire to be seen by the people 'below' you, and to convey that even when you partake in what entertains them, you are still 'above' them. Linking this to the previous point, the piano bears little resemblance to anything the common people would have, while the violin shares visible strings with more common instruments like Lutes and Lyres, but requires a tool to play and remains more exclusive and advanced. Thus people would see an instrument 'like' what they had, but still 'above' them. This is also the reason I suspect he would be playing said violin, since it would show exactly how far superior he was, and why I suspect he'd be drawn to more difficult pieces or solos, as they would further elevate his playing above both commoners AND those in his court who might also be playing the instrument.
He also looks more like a violinist to me. :shifty:
Seriously, you can't tell me him impassively playing his violin in front of a window as his tornado-shrouded castle tears up cities and murders people is at all out of character.
Keeping this to villains.
Garland/Chaos listens to Smashing Pumpkins Bullet with Butterfly Wings as it represents his anger and the fact he's trapped in his time loop.
Emperor Mateus listens to David Bowie's The Man Who Sold the World because he's a dead ringer for Jareth (played by Bowie) but also because the song represents overcoming a difficulty in the past and never losing control of a situation, just like Mateus.
Xande listens to Hootie and Blowfish's Time, as the song is about understanding how how we can let the important things slip by and defying the nature of letting time get the better of us.
Golbez listens to The Stranger by Billy Joel, as the song is about how we hide our true selves behind masks and deceive the people we know, even ourselves.
ExDeath listens to Magic Man by Heart cause he's a magic...tree but both ExDeath and the song signify watching something innocent get corrupted and that'works for ExDeath's backstory. Besides, he strikes me as a 70s rock type of guy.
Kefka listens to Fire Starter by Prodigy cause... well just watch that video.
Sephy listens for the sheer irony Ship Happens because of his fans...
Ultimecia listens to the Time Warp from Rocky Horror Picture show because it's fitting and she obviously takes her fashion sense from it.
Kuja listens to Queen's I want to Break Free because he's as hammy as Freddie Mercury and the lyrics are fitting. The video having drag also fits with his fashion sense.
Seymour listens to Hungry Eyes by Eric Carmen because it's a creepy stalker song and Seymour can't take a hint after being killed so many times that Yuna doesn't want to marry him. Bonus points for fitting with a zombie character.
Shadowlord listens to Leave Out All the Rest by Linkin Park cause it's surprisingly fitting for the character if you know his backstory.
Vayne listens to Everybody wants to Rule the World by Tears for Fears because the lyrics kind of match up with his actual take on doing it.
Barthandelus listens to Loser by Beck, because he is one and his motives and plans make as much sense as Beck's lyrics.
Lahabrea listens to Emenim's Berzerk because he's just trying to set the world back to the way it was before the mothercrystal.
NSFW
I don't know if it would fit him, but with Sephiroth's hair he would be a god among headbangers.