Opera Singer Plays and Reacts to the Music of The Vow of The Disciple Raid || Destiny 2 OST

I really had a fun time with this raid group. I hadn't raided in several years and this sure was a banger to come back to. The music here too is just wonderful. Really atmospheric and tense. Bungie did a great job really getting you to feel the heaviness of Rhulk and the weight of this experience.
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[@pikespeakaudio8898]

1:57 *casually reveals that he actually beat Spire of Stars with his emote*

[@MarcoMeatball]

i was THIS close to the title. also fuck spire of stars. FUCK IT.

[@pikespeakaudio8898]

@@MarcoMeatball Tell us how you really feel.

[@Lightna]

I don't think you even needed to beat Spire of Stars to get it. I believe I got it from the first encounter.

[@romanmckenzie5674]

@@Lightna yep you only needed to do the first encounter to get it

[@izanagisburden1080]

@@Lightna it dropped during moments of triumph 2020 when beating the whole raid

[@ConstellationDrac]

I'm glad we did this, I had a lot of fun, good jokes all around!

[@dredgen_lux]

What I love most about this raid is simply Rhulk in the final fight, he invites us to duel him, toying with us until his final stand, where he realizes "they might actually kill me". He unleashes his full power, but it was too little too late.

[@beninmalgaard9836]

The music of Destiny is some of the best orchestrated music out there. I haven't gotten far in this video, but I already know I'm going to enjoy it.

[@ocfos88]

18:20 The reason the music is such a smooth transition, is because the music consists of many layers, and it is coded to shift appropriately at the closest interval. It always adds a lot more to the encounter, compared to a constant track throughout the battle. One of my favourite of the 'halfway' track changes is on Atheon in Vault of Glass, when he's below 50% health.

[@SuccubiSage]

My favorite raid of all of Destiny, simply because of the music. My favorite part of Rhulk's theme is right at the end, when it switches from the Guardian theme immediately back into the Rhulk/Witness theme. He's pulled off the gloves. He now understands the threat we are. He's channeling all of his power. But it's not enough. His pride was his undoing.

[@lazyvoid7107]

Sheesh

[@draysmusicalshtposts6340]

Yup! The recent pantheon dossier things they've posted confirm this too, he only lost bc he even entertained a fight to begin with.

[@APeculiarHabit]

The lore nerd in me was super impressed with this raid; it appropriately Upended the lore. You have this Worm God Mother being enslaved by Rhulk and the Witness and it begs the question... what being is above a god? And you realize we have no words to describe Rhulk and the Witness...

[@just_d3spairity]

Congrats on the clear! I love singing along to Rhulk's music too lmao. The wall at 10:38 has a little story told in the glyphs that appear there. You can only see one shown each time you go through, but they're always in the same spot. Hive scorn love darkness worship witness pyramid fleet enter earth stop guardian witness commune traveller drink light witness kill The last one is never shown.

[@c.smidgeon2847]

I adore Rhulk’s voicelines in his boss fight. There are a bunch that the game can choose from to play. A personal favorite is “[Yawns in mocking exaggeration]” If you wanna see the rest of them, Destiny Lore Vault here on KZbin has a playlist with all the possible options. He’s one of my favorite characters in destiny, and he only appears in this one thing. They do such a fantastic job characterizing him with the environmental storytelling, the music, and his own design that even without his voice work, you can tell exactly who he is.

[@thrilla72]

Rhulk may be the best villain in the entire franchise. He didn't disappoint

[@lumina6012]

In my Opinion Rhulk's Action theme perfectly represents the fight. A Back and Fourth Between the Guardian's and his theme. It's so fitting and sooooo gooood.

[@lastguardian5400]

Watching you play this whilst describing the music made me realise how fantastic this raid was on day 1 compared to the most recent raid, I still really enjoyed the root of nightmares but this raid is on another level :) love your content, keep up the good work :)

[@ericbright1742]

To be fair, despite spending over 7 hours dying to the last boss in contest mode, the music of the DPS phase *still gets me hyped.*

[@lastguardian5400]

@@ericbright1742 yep we never got past the boss - got damaged checked for hours 😂

[@adamboy0559]

@@ericbright1742Rhulk or nez? We had to give up on Rhulk but we managed to beat nez on contest

[@ericbright1742]

@@adamboy0559 Nez. The chorus is everything.

[@adamboy0559]

@@ericbright1742 the dps theme for nez was good tbf probably what kept us motivated to beat him.

[@Jukantos]

I will *never* forget those triumphant horns at the beginning of Rhulks bossfight. The fact that we beat him in 46 hours (with 2 breaks) during the Contest Mode Challenge definitely is part of that, but yeah. It's engrained into my brain forever as one of the craziest and coolest things i will ever do in video games. And my goodness did it feel good to finally take him down with just 80 minutes left to even run attempts on that difficulty.

[@bohba13]

a note about how The First Deciple in game starts with only percussion, Rhulk was _toying with us_ right up until final stand. it shows he's holding back. seeking to dominate us with the bare minimum of his power.

[@Real28]

Guess I need to join the discord because raids are my single fave part of the game and I pretty much specialize in raid stuff. Always here for your Destiny content. I'm also a huge lore nerd. Vow has the most wild lore and story. Rhulk is the cockiest MFer in the whole Destiny universe and I love it. When the Music changes for DPS, I get goosebumps every time. I love this raid and fight SO much. Ughhh when the horns come in during DPS 🔥🔥

[@smatt5153]

It's so crazy to me that he only starts trying on final stand, to which he drowns us in darkness in mere seconds, but we barely kill him

[@drhyde894]

Rhulk is a one savage mf for sure😂

[@nikoalen13]

The most glorious music I have ever listened to.

[@ItsMeSpooks]

Oh man I absolutely love this style of review. Adding the element of gameplay perfectly captures the feelings you are meant to be having alongside the music. This type of review is fantastic, you should do more in the future. I know you've previously reviewed music from the Deep Stone Crypt raid, but doing this kind of reaction with the chaotic gameplay of DSC would be perfect.

[@rhulkdiscipleofthewitness217]

Glad you liked the theme of my trials. You should do Root of the Nightmares Next.

[@MarcoMeatball]

Thank you for the kick 🦵

[@rhulkdiscipleofthewitness217]

@@MarcoMeatball you're welcome. I have more when you come by.

[@crimsonamaranth7735]

@@rhulkdiscipleofthewitness217 Did you finally sherpa those Shadow Thralls through the encounter?

[@randomviewer2730]

I cant wait to see you do Riven/Queenswalk. Easily my second favorite raid music (this one being first)

[@parsifalkitty5109]

2 people in my fireteam love this raid. Caretaker on its final phase on Day 1 was intense. All tensions were high and we were so tired too. We had fought long and hard. Outbreak carried that last phase since we all ran dry with ammo.

[@Blazuchan]

Wow, watching makes wanna do raid and crank up music. This is great stuff Marco, and im glad that you filled in the gap that none other Destiny KZbinrs does. Musical playthrough/breakdown.

[@A1RTA1L]

I like how Deep Stone Crypt musics (from Beyond Light expansion) are just calm, beautiful & heroic, including a slight horror sound before the 3rd encounter. But while playing Vow of the Disiciple, bro the soundtracks feels like you actually playing a psychological horror game like Amnesia for some reason or you actually dealing with someone or something that is hunting you down while its watching you.

[@gv584]

Great video Marco doing the activity wich goes along the OST really elevates it to the next level and i'm glad we have someone like you to translate these feels into words. I'm a bit sad that 3rd encounter part is that short tho, since i really like the shifts in Harvest. Please if you can do this for every other raids !

[@putak2285]

Oh yeah, I can already tell this is going to be a great video, really hope you do this with Root of Nightmares, and the other raids as well, they all have good tracks behind them. :)

[@aniblues1424]

Loved the video format!! playing while talking about music sounds amazing

[@InsomniacDoggo]

I'm so glad you did this! hearing a game's dynamic music in action as a fight ramps up is really something else.

[@Fanatic_5150]

Love that you’re getting into the harder content for us, this video was great!❤️ I’d love if you could talk about the music from the Forsaken expansion. The Fanatic and Guns blazing are my favorite.

[@SPKRoach]

VOW is such a beautifully put together Raid. The creative part of Bungie really blew it out of the water.

[@biiill5259]

We definitely need more of these videos. I’d love to watch you go through the raid and music of kings fall and root of nightmares

[@joep6stuijt]

My absolute favourite final boss music, on top of being my favourite raid boss

[@PolygonalThoughts]

This stuff is so interesting. Love your dives into the meaning behind the music, i.e. what the music evokes. Something simple that you can hear in the music and feel, but most people wouldn't dig deeper. Ya know what's funny is we kill enough enemies during dungeons and raids that it'd count as genocide anywhere else but Destiny's music nevertheless is usually there to amp you up about it. Makes you feel heroic usually when taking them all down heh.

[@theluigideathstare8373]

So glad you got to experience this! I was looking forward to hearing your thoughts and seeing your reaction

[@atoafriend]

It was a joy to take you through! Can't wait to do the same for Deep Stone Crypt and Root of Nightmares.

[@Coppermind343]

I was watching your run on the discord. You sound like such a fun group to run raids with

[@Coppermind343]

@@atoafriend already there friend. That's what I meant. Think i was watching your shared screen

[@atoafriend]

@@Coppermind343 oh my gosh, i can't read lol

[@synthnotik5980]

Definitely my favourite raid. Although I do prefer the visuals and final boss music in RoN

[@sowxsu]

Vow for me one of the best in d2 with deep stone also

[@timothyaintit5989]

​@@sowxsu deep stone lullaby❤❤❤

[@fabiandeutschle3372]

I was just wondering when this will come out! You really live rent free in my head, Marco.

[@unfortunatemoments2232]

I love your videos! Keep up the great work!

[@Jorgon01]

Oh man I've been waiting for this one since I saw your first Destiny video.

[@Volcanopyre]

That snare in the Rhulk encounter kept that song in my head for days after Contest mode, and was the reason that song was my alarm for almost a year. Love this type of vid, do more!

[@TSGN_Leviathan]

The acquisition encounter music is my absolute fav from this raid! The build up is incredible!

[@williamsmith9324]

Yes! I've been waiting for this!

[@strider2175]

This reminds me why this is my favorite raid, even if I haven't gotten to do it as much as I'd like. Great analysis as always!

[@trevorgoretski]

Sad I couldn’t be there, but love that you finally got to experience it!

[@akqa8186]

This is such a cool format i love it!

[@jacobh48]

this is great. a new way to look at destiny. I study music education in vocal performance, so I do admire music. I'm glad I found this channel. It allows not just me but many others to understand what bungie wanted us to feel. I'm really enjoying myself here.

[@mcswisscheese3031]

At 18:57, that horn is playing the witch queen motif, or savathun's theme. Which makes sense as for you one, it takes place in her throne world and two, she is the reason we were even able to fight him since he was trapped and crippled. So its as if she was fighting with us in a way.

[@ladytookie9169]

Youve reminded me how much I miss doing new raids/first time raid runs, I'm not sure if I could ever get back in to Destiny but boy do those good memories flow back 🥹

[@smartdoge4626]

Rhulk has to be my favorite raid fight. The music fits so well. The beginning is us knowing he’s just toying with us. Downplaying us the entire time for his own amusement whilst we desperately try to get some edge. But when the second phase enters? It becomes this air of the guardians feeling a bit better about ourselves. As for Rhulk? He’s a little taken aback, but still fully in control of the situation. So, he persisted. Just like us. But that third phase? Is him finally realizing like “oh. Theyre here to kill me kill me. Shit!” But its too late. Because the guardians are fully in control now. And finally? That ending sting? Is just a sudden and dramatic end to the entire thing. Love it. And the silence that ensues when everyone is just sitting around, finally being able to relax? It hits us too. “We coulda died.”

[@thechickenhat548]

Highly recommend going back and doing Last Wish for one of these. Definitely a trip even all these years later

[@Maxeh]

Man, glad you finally got through vow! Definitely gonna drop by and see if I can slide in 👀

[@fruityplumguy6532]

I remember this was one of the first raids I ever attempted a day 1 clear on and this was something else. The music, the setting, the enemies, it was terrifying but it was something I’ll never forget.

[@DefactoOverlord]

Yes! I was waiting for this!

[@austinrader8135]

I love when they blare the witness theme really loud, it gives me goosebumps

[@TheLegacyDude]

I am really happy you did this. Really enjoyed whole the video.

[@MarcoMeatball]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@arthursouza9027]

The entire raid is rhulk trying to get you on his side, on the witness side. now in rhulk's theme song he still acts with a lot of arrogance thinking we're nothing more than mere pawns, and when he's sure that you won't join him in the witness's plans and he gets even more arrogant, and the longer we last in the fight he realizes there's no way he can defeat us

[@charlie-vw7zw]

Can't wait to hear your reaction to the music in last wish's vault encounter

[@MarcoMeatball]

So uh. I just did it for fun and for cheese ..

[@torro8208]

You make me appreciate destiny music 10x more. Your analysis gives us more insight into what rulk is thinking and feeling, something I wouldn’t have taken notice of on my own. Awesome vid 👍

[@MarcoMeatball]

No problem!

[@alzatar2265]

I would LOVE to see more raids from you!!!

[@Sipkon]

yesss i've been waiting to see you run a raid for a long time!

[@MarcoMeatball]

More to come!

[@arxidiax2arxidiax276]

There’s a little ending part to the First Disciple if you draw out the fight to a 3-phase and it has the most HAUNTING strings I have ever heard

[@MarcoMeatball]

We did but it didn't make the video sadly

[@samrambo6976]

I know I haven’t commented for a while but I’ve been excited for this for a while, and I’m glad you finally did it.

[@samrambo6976]

Just watched. Good choice to comment over the footage! Such great music. I remember when I saw rhulk for the first time in game. So terrifying and cool.

[@mun123keet]

The First Disciple is up there with Eyes Up in terms of final raid boss music. 2 of the best music Bungie has composed and nothing else has come close yet IMO.

[@reecedawson3435]

12:14 i like how he has a picture of the symbols open lol

[@MelDSnow]

I'd love to have a video of those with RoN! I enjoy running RoN so much and the way the music changes during the fights and encounters really hype me up!

[@whaleborne1308]

As much as I'd want to join one of these raids, nerding out over the OST... My timezone would not be good for it. I'd assume I'm at least 12 hours ahead of you so... Unfortunate. But it's cool to see you doing some of the cool newer stuff in the game, as well as doing what you do with your analysis. A joy to watch as always

[@spinfoilhat3087]

Oooh I definitely want to see Deep Stone Crypt next! I think the context of Deep Stone Lullaby is going to be a lot different than what you might expect if people haven't already spoiled the context. It's one of those pieced that even though I have done DSC the most out of any raid (Even Vow, my favorite) the moment that first piano key hits, it seems to do that same magical something that it did the first time someone called "com silence" for this beautiful piece. I always appreciate these videos because every time I walk away with some new detail I never noticed before watching. I've been playing Vow since the day it released and it was only just now that I noticed the *BOOM* when Rhulk slams down on the platform.

[@MarcoMeatball]

It's my sincere pleasure

[@Esylus]

Anything to do with the Darkness and the Pyramids, musically and aesthetically is some of my favourite content in Destiny, it's all so fucking cool

[@1205matthew]

You really need to do the vault encounter in last wish. The music in that encounter is an experience.

[@fala5764]

He just needs to do all of last wish, the slow buildup of themes in the entire raid just flows perfectly

[@VoidShyrok]

I have my grievances with Destiny. More than a few. But one of the few things the game always does well is the sound and level design. The music is almost always a treat in some way.

[@giles.9862]

By the way, the "pah pah ratata" part in the caretaker is actually a motif taken from towerfall in the red war.

[@MarcoMeatball]

Oh?!

[@xanaboi821]

I played percussion for a bit over 8 years and for Rhulk I see the part as the "lead" in your face, percussion is always what most pieces rely on to move and no one really goes "oh look the drums!" the main focus is usually the strings and horns (minions of darkness" and facing Rhulk (percussion) is shoving the backbone in your face. It's Insanely clever

[@smatt5153]

I love fighting rhulk and his entire theme. Sometimes I wish I ran it with non meta weapons so it can go longer

[@greasychipbutty]

I love this marco. Great idea.

[@MarcoMeatball]

Thank you so much

[@GabrielPiazentin]

thank god a react in context. this is the first time I saw the "witness motif" mentioned in those videos. it is great how the motif is almost omnipresent in destiny these times lol also, for me, heavy brass = darkness (I still don't get what is the "theme" of light tho) edit, ps: kinda pisses me off in raids that we have the fireteam speaking while the music is also telling a history but we need to focus to keep the mechanics

[@bruenastralith5404]

Great analysis! Definitely feel like the jump back to the loud horns during the final stand is Rhulk saying "oh shit, I'm about to die, I need to stop pulling my punches" but its already too late. His death ends with the loud Darkness motiff and not the Guardians' triumphant theme because the REAL reason he loses is because of his own arrogance.

[@felipeandre1996]

Nice Review of the Raid OST❤, also nice autorifle dps meta 😂

[@salmanhusainie4270]

Awesome video! Please do more about other raids (Root of Nightmares, Garden of Salvation) and maybe even other dungeons 👀

[@adamboy0559]

For your guess on is Rhulk afraid lore wise no he’s confident he believes to be above us he’s a different being he’s higher he thinks we will fall no matter what. Rhulk invites us to the damage arena to prove his strength and we crack his armour which isn’t confirmed but best guess is releases his true form and that’s why the guardian theme plays. We are triumphing over him and as we reach final stand he sees we can actually kill him and starts to panic as nis times running thin. Would love to run a raid with you raids are by far the best part of destiny to me and I’m always down to run them whenever

[@dongerlord4631]

Sort of unrelated to this video, but as an idea possibly for a future video, I'd highly recommend checking out the Max Payne 3 soundtrack. A lot of unique, interesting tunes and themes I haven't really seen done in another game. The band who composed it used a zoothorne as one of their main instruments, and it truly sets the games soundtrack apart from most. The game's music hasn't aged a day. Some of the more somber, moody tracks like TORTURE, PAIN, DEAD, and PANAMA are great ones, while tracks like THE GIRL, PAINKILLER, KILL, and SHELLS are tense, combat oriented tracks. TEARS is also practically the flagship "theme" for the game, so if you were to only pick one, that would definitely be the best option. HEALTH is apparently going to release an anniversary remaster of the entire tracklist sometime later this year, so that may be a good time to check them out.

[@rjmooose2795]

The caretaker’s theme fits for me since it’s basically a test subject. You’re fighting the first successful bonding of Scorn and Hive worm, and this is emphasized by the large lumbering beats saying that this is unlike anything you’ve encountered scorn-wise

[@brendenparish7227]

Shout out to everyone who let him listen and discuss this! You all did the deeps (big dps).

[@MarcoMeatball]

The real mvps

[@CloneMalone]

A bit late to the party but I did want to point out something interesting about this raid lore wise, which was that it essentially proves the Scorn (formerly Fallen/Eliksni) have essentially traded places with Savathun's Hive. In the music you can hear references to a track from Destiny 1 titled "The Temple of Crota" or less formally, the Hive Rave theme, and here it's being used for Scorn who are being controlled by Rhulk and experimented on with Hive worms (which is what the Caretaker is the product of). In Destiny 1, the Hive in our Solar System were directed by Crota and then Oryx, who were pretty much the Hive's equivalent to Rhulk seeing as they worshipped the Witness, or simply "The Darkness" at the time, directly. Unlike say Savathun, who was always on the Witness' radar, hence why Rhulk and his Pyramid were placed in her Throne World. Sure enough Savathun has found a way to turn her and her Hive into Guardians, so she no longer needs the Hive worms or the Darkness, and so Rhulk has entered in a "Turf war" with her, as the Vanguard put it. And as mentioned, you can see that reflected in the music with the Scorn's music being a bit more Hivey compared to what it was when they were introduced, and the Lucent Hive's music is very angelic and ethereal especially compared to what you might here from Xivu Arath's Hive. The composers over at Bungie are really talented. Oh also one more thing. What's pretty cool about Destiny is that nearly EVERY track in the game is split into a percussion layer and the instrumental layer, so you'll end up having quite a few moments where nothing but percussion is playing until a key moment happens!

[@bragekv9937]

love this

[@jackodenthal2392]

You should really listen to the main theme for Darkest Dungeon. It's one of the best menu music's I've ever listened to

[@karateka_95]

13:05 Another good example of percussion-only tracks being used in a game is Halo. Halo Reach in particular has a few good ones during the Firefight mode when the final wave of enemies arrives.

[@Suzanako]

Dont know if this is the right video for this but I have a recommendation. Asuras wrath symphony no.9. Its a pretty interesting song.

[@moonsinne2992]

I swear, the way Rhulk says "Embrace the end!" sounds IDENTICAL to an Abyss Lector in Genshin.

[@jamieharper1051]

When we battle Rhulk the 6 guardians using light/dark were underestimated by rhulk the whole entire raid and fight . It was a game to him that he unfortunately realized too late that he was losing

[@punchline1729]

I understand your joy during the raid thanks for quality analysis I wonder how you liked the mechanics and lore also Root of Nightmares when?

[@skarf1428]

I love the music and environment in Destiny. The different seasons or campaigns may not be the best story-wise, but they nail the music and scenery every single time. In my opinion, of course. It's also quite interesting to hear this kind of perspective on the music. Before finding your channel it was just something that hyped you up, but now it actually have a meaning, a message. Never thought about it like this before. Really interesting. Looking forward to more breakdowns!

[@MarcoMeatball]

That's awesome. Thank you for sharing!

[@benwood4416]

i need this for every raid!

[@austinrader8135]

Would love to see this style of video with the newest raid, Root of Nightmares

[@akkaruinikko7872]

Rhulk is not afraid, not even in the slightest, the change in layers in the dunking phase feel more like his well contained anger is being let out and we guardian feel it

[@bi-disaster5037]

I love all your videos and the way you can extract meaning and emotion out of the places I would never think to look. I don't know if you actually take requests or if you do what you feel is right but there is a track in the game 'Life is Strange 2' called "into the woods" that, while simple, never fails to make me cry so... yeah.

[@MarcoMeatball]

Thank you so much for your sweet words! Most requests come via Patreon but I'm always looking for things to explore :)

[@vgernyc]

17:40 It's Savathun who is concerned. She had sealed Rhulk away in his own Pyramid using her Light we broke that seal to battle him. She uses a Hive spell on whoever hears her song/theme and this allows her to see and gain intel on many things. She wants us to default the Witness for some unknown reason.

[@akaj2013]

The beginning and "High Action" sections of the First Disciple OST are my favorite parts.

[@IntroBean]

I've asked for it before but I would really love to see you do the Grasp of Avarice Dungeon.

[@austinfraser8765]

I love the contrast of rhulk and nezerec, one being contained and precise and the other being sporadic and barbaric.

[@alias-yv2ro]

I kinda wanna see you do these gameplay type videos for Furi. All the OSTs are multiple stage boss fight OSTs, and a slightly malicious part of me wants to see your reaction when you tackle a bullet hell sort of game

[@ahandlebar]

This channel is amazing!

[@MarcoMeatball]

Aw thanks

[@jamarswope2341]

Wow I was literally wondering less than an hour ago if you were gonna do Vow some day

[@cod3mhorf34]

i loved this idea of video