6. Silent Hill 2 The Theme
Written and performed by legendary composer Akira Yamaoka, it is reported that Song of Laura, the main theme of Silent Hill 2, took him only two days to finish. Of course, I'm guessing that the rest of the game took him a little while to do (just because you're a legend doesn't make you Superman) but it is that piece in particular that constantly takes my breath away. It invokes such a feeling of loss and love and fear and terror that I don't even have to be playing the game for it to strike its intended chord. A month or two ago I was at the bus-stop and it shuffled onto my iPod. I could see my breath in the dark purple of the night and as the guitar struck up delicately in my ears, the rolling thump of the beat joined it, and my chest swelled with neither joy nor fear but something born of the shadows in between. By the time it ended, however, I was mighty grateful to see the bus turning my corner... and I breathed a sigh of relief as I saw that it would reach me before the fog rolled through the valley.