COMICS PORTAL: Music and Comics—Perfect Together?

Z2 is getting to be one of my favorite comics companies! As reported here by MajorSpoilers, Z2 Comics and Hilltop Hoods announces ‘Noctis’ and it blends music and comics together creatively! I’d like to see more of this!

‘NOCTIS’

Here’s more info on Noctis from the press release:

Z2 Comics continues to define the relationship between music and comics; bringing together the comics industry’s best talent with recording acts from around the world! (Gorillaz, Yungblud, Babymetal, Jimmy Eat World) This time the publisher heads down under to bring one of Australia’s biggest musical groups to outer space in Hilltop Hoods Present: Noctis this fall, and available for preorder through Z2 now!

And here’s an important paragraph you should note:

Written in partnership with the artists themselves, who are also characters in the book, Noctis adds writer Scott Dooley (The New Yorker) & Andrew Archer (The Tokyo 5) with art by Jeff Nice (The Tokyo 5) and will be released in comic shops and bookstores everywhere this October, with multiple editions available for preorder through Z2 now, including a deluxe and super-deluxe edition, featuring limited edition art prints, vintage trading cards, sticker sheet and more!

Z2, you may remember, recently released Chasing the Bird about musician Charlie Parker, and this hardcover graphic novel was created by comics creator Dave Chisholm. I bought that and enjoyed reading (and listening to) it. Highly recommended, by the way!

I have long believed that music (sound) and comics complement each other very well!

MAKING MUSIC AND COMICS

If you’ve been reading comics in the last several years, you’ve likely noticed that several musicians have also been making comic books! Probably the best known has been Gerard Way from the group My Chemical Romance. He’s been behind The Umbrella Academy, which has also seen great success on Netflix.

He’s not the only one, of course. Translucid from Boom! Studios was penned by Coheed and Cambria’s lead singer Claudio Sanchez. He also worked on The Armory Wars. Also, Tom Morello from Rage Against the Machine was behind Orchid.  Musician Rob Zombie from White Zombie has created El Superbeasto, both a comic and an animated film.

Another creator who has made waves in both the music and comics industries has been Max Bemis from the emo rock band Say Anything. He wrote A+X for Marvel featuring Magneto and Spider-Man and has gone on to create Oh, Killstrike for the aforementioned Boom! Studios.

And I’m sure I could mention many others with more in the works!

OTHER MERGINGS OF SOUND AND COMICS

If you read several comics coming out today, you’ll see the writers and artists often listing lists of music you should play while reading their comics.

One of the best-known melders of music and comics is Kieron Gillen. His Spotify playlist has had at least 283 songs on it, lasting an entire 24 hours or more.

Then, too, Scott Snyder (he of Batman fame) made a playlist for Wytches, his first Image Comics series. And that’s only two of the many creators who make playlists available to

Of course, Deadly Class was strongly influenced by DIY and punk. And that’s only scratching the surface of music that has influenced comics.

DRAMATIC SOUNDTRACKS

I remember the very first time I came across a soundtrack with a comic. It was back with Nexus #3, and that comic included a “flexi-disc” with it that creators Mike Baron and Steve Rude generated as a soundtrack to play with the book. You can listen to that here on YouTube.

If you go to that same website, you’ll find playlists to listen to while reading comics. I’m sure there are several, but here’s one I particularly like! There’s also a pretty great Soundtrack for a Supervillain that I think people might also enjoy!

Then, too, Marvel’s comics in the 1960s were turned into cartoons that literally swiped the illustrations instead of creating new images. I still know several fans who can sing those famous theme songs. “When Captain America throws his mighty shield…” one begins.

The point is that music and comics truly work well together! Z2, to their credit, are one of the best comics companies taking advantage of this fact! I bet many of you readers can list other creators or comics producers with playlists we might also enjoy! Feel free to post them in the space below!

What do you think? Do you listen to music while reading your comics? Is there a comic creator who posts playlists you particularly enjoy? Or do you prefer to let your own imagination provide the soundtrack? Whatever your opinions, be sure to share your thoughts in the space below!

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