The 10 best songs from the Madden game series
Much like Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater, the soundtracks for the Madden games have struck a chord with fans worldwide. Starting with Madden 2003, a slew of artists found themselves gaining a bigger audience thanks to EA Trax. We look at 10 of the best songs to have graced the Madden soundtracks for over 15 years.
10. Grouplove - Colours (Madden NFL 12)
In 2010, alternative rockers Grouplove unveiled their self-titled debut EP, which began with the infectious tune “Colours.” The following year, the tune would make its way to Madden NFL 12, which kickstarted the band’s momentum towards the release of their debut album Never Trust a Happy Song. A remix of “Colours” was featured in FIFA 12.
9. Set Your Goals - Gaia Bleeds (Make Way for Man) (Madden NFL 10)
Set Your Goals' Epitaph Records' debut This Will Be the Death of Us delivered one of 2009's most hard hitting tunes with "Gaia Bleeds (Make Way for Man)," which includes vocals from Turmoil's Jon Gula.
8. Quarashi - Mr. Jinx (Madden 2003)
Icelandic rap rock act Quarashi made their breakthrough outside their home country with their 2002 studio album Jinx. "Mr Jinx", which peaked at number 43 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart, grooves with its sample of New York City's cut "Sanity."
7. Matchbook Romance - Monsters (Madden 2007)
Emo rockers Matchbook Romance changed their tune with 2006's Voices, which finds them diving into a more darker tone. The album's lead single "Monsters" was also featured in Arena Football: Road to Glory and Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock.
6. Damone - Out Here All Night (Madden 2007)
Massachusetts rockers Damone earned their sole charting track "Out Here All Night," which stemmed from their 2006 studio album of the same name. The band found a fan in Candlebox vocalist Kevin Martin, who covered the track for their band's 2012 studio album Love Stories & Other Musings. When it came to the cover, Martin told Loudwire:
“I love that song, I love that band and Mike is actually a very good friend of mine now. We started covering it back in 2006 when we started touring again. I had been a fan of Damone for quite awhile. Candlebox has always thrown cover songs into the middle of our live set and we like to have a lot of fun with our show rather than just playing the same songs over and over. So we started covering that song and it was one of those songs that people just started yelling out at our shows. Our manager thought we should track the song for the record, even if it ended up being a B side, to at least get it out there because we loved it, it has that great Boston rock element to it that Damone is so good at.”
5. The Sleeping - Don't Hold Back (Madden 2007)
In 2006, Long Island post-hardcore group The Sleeping unveiled their Victory Records' debut album Questions and Answers, which included the act's most well-known single "Don't Hold Back." For many, the track was an introduction to the genre, which saw a rise at the time thanks to bands such as Thursday, Thrice, and Glassjaw.
4. Blink-182 - Action (Feeling This) (Madden 2004)
Fans got an early glimpse of Blink-182's self-titled album with the release of "Action," which is an alternative version of their single "Feeling This." In an interview with The Punk Site, drummer Travis Barker said:
“"Action" just sounded kind of dorky to us. Like we would always call it "Feeling This" and then someone at our label, I think, like wrote it as "Action" one time and sent out singles to people. And it was always supposed to be "Feeling This".”
3. The D.O.C. vs. Earshot - The Madden Re-Match (“It's Funky Enough” mashed-up with “Wait”) (Madden 2005)
Madden 2005 delivered one of the best mashups ever with The D.O.C colliding with Earshot for "The Madden Re-Match,” which was created by mashup producer Z-Trip.
2. Enter Shikari - OK, Time For Plan B (Madden 2008)
British post-hardcore rockers Enter Shikari gained a plethora of new fans worldwide with the track "OK, Time For Plan B.” In a 2008 interview with Racket Magazine, vocalist Rou Reynolds discussed having their cut in the game:
"Well, EA sports. You know at the beginning of EA Sports games they say “EA Sports: it’s in the game” because we’re quite big EA Sports fans, we used to do this thing on stage where I would say “EA Sports” and the crowd would shout “It’s in the game!” And I think that somehow they picked up on that and they were like “it’s pretty cool that you’re doing that. Would you like to be on Madden ’08?” And that was like crazy because John Madden was one of the first games I ever got on the Sega Megadrive (the European version of the Sega Genesis) it was like Madden ’95 or something like fuckin’ old school and it was like one of my favorite games so it’s pretty cool to be on there."
1. Avenged Sevenfold - Chapter Four (Madden 2004)
2003 was a turning point for metal act Avenged Sevenfold, who turned heads with their sophomore studio album Waking The Fallen. The track "Chapter Four" managed to also work its way into EA's NHL 04 and NASCAR Thunder 2004. The edited version of “Chapter Four” for the game was a headscratcher for many, though.