Steampunk Inspiration Sources

[Dannyalcatraz]

Abney Park- just looked 'em up on YouTube...

Interesting. They definitely have the visual aesthetic down tight. Not sure about the tunes. They're alright, I guess- good enough for me to bookmark for further contemplation- but I'm not sure their sound is distinctive enough to be a new genre. It actually reminds me of Enigma and the work of the composers for Cirque du Soleil. Maybe Massive Attack as well.

Part of that is the keyboardist. No nock on her skills, it's just the sound she's chosen is fairly contemprorary...

OTOH, if she had a steam caliope...


[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=odMCKR54VRc&feature=youtube_gdata_player[/ame]

(perhaps with more dissonance...)

...or fire organ
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WsjFLgqF-yY&feature=youtube_gdata_player[/ame]

 

[Mishihari Lord]

On the recommendations here I checked out Abney Park on iTunes and found them quite appealing. (Thanks!) Particularly liked Airship Pirate and Aether Shanty.

Any fans out there with a recommendation for a favorite song I should check out before I decide which album to buy first?

 

[rkwoodard]

On the recommendations here I checked out Abney Park on iTunes and found them quite appealing. (Thanks!) Particularly liked Airship Pirate and Aether Shanty.

Any fans out there with a recommendation for a favorite song I should check out before I decide which album to buy first?

Not sure you can go wrong, my first one was Aether Shanties and it blossomed into 4 more. I like their latest "Ancient World" but would not recommend it as a starter.

RK

 

[WhimsyTheFae]

On the recommendations here I checked out Abney Park on iTunes and found them quite appealing. (Thanks!) Particularly liked Airship Pirate and Aether Shanty.

Any fans out there with a recommendation for a favorite song I should check out before I decide which album to buy first?

From Lost Horizons, I would recommend The Secret Life of Dr. Calgori.

From Æther Shanties, I would recommend Under the Radar.

From The End of Days, I would recommend The Wrath of Fate.

I just tried to think of an evocative song from each of the three albums that I own, but RK is pretty spot on, you can't go wrong (IMO). I was mistaken when I said I had their last three, since I don't have Ancient World, yet...but will soon.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Here's one- Dr Who, "The Next Doctor" set in London, 1851.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Another genre that somewhat overlaps with Steampunk is Wierd West. Set in roughly the same time period and occasionally featuring anachronisms like unusually high tech, it's just as mineable as any other source.

1) Wild, Wild West- TV show & movie both have anachronistic and often steam powered advanced tech

2) Adventures of Briscoe County, Jr.- TV show, set in the West, has a (good guy) mad scientist who makes nifty steam apparatuses, some "super weapons", and an artifact from the future.

3) The Prestige- Nicola Tesla's genius is the big reveal

4) Kurt R. A. Giambsstiani's "Fallen Cloud" books feature not only some advanced tech, but Dino-riding Plains Indian tribes.

That last one also makes me think that mining the Deadlands RPG would be helpful.

 

[Razjah]

A Short Story:
The Anatomist's Apprentice- Darker than most steampunk but a very interesting short story.

Steampunk Blog:
Brass Goggles- it even has az list of links to help out on the right side, just scroll a little bit.

Van Helsing- not exactly steam punk but some of the gadgets form the film can be a source of inspiration.

Some Magic Cards that have Steampunk or Steampunk-like art for inspiration:
The Izzet Guild
The Talas People
Quicken
Frazzle
Assembly-Worker
Cunning Sparkmage
Piston Sledge

 

[Lord Pendragon]

As a setting, The Iron Kingdoms has a pretty strong steampunk vibe.

 

[radja]

although strictly speaking it's not steampunk, you could do worse than watching "The abominable dr. Phibes" and "Dr. Phibes rises again".

 

[DnD_Dad]

The pc game arcanum has lots of steam punk in it mixed with fantasy.