Old Crow Medicine Show & Helms Deep
Plus Folk Hero TTRPG & Satanic Panic Zine
I love every chance I get to break the stereotype that only heavy metal or prog rock is appropriate inspiration for fantasy tabletop roleplaying games. As such, I’m pleased to add Christopher “Critter” Fuqua from Old Crow Medicine Show to my list of D&D-loving musicians as explained in this Saving Country Music article:
“The band’s changed again, and now there are a couple of guys who are doing solo stuff, and we just, you know, roll with the changes,” Critter said in August. “I tend to think in black-and-white terms, but I’m trying to let that be what it is. For me, my life outside of the band is a good one. I do a lot of writing and reading; I’ve got a heavy metal side project; and I’m a total nerd who plays Dungeons and Dragons.”
I found further proof of Critter’s old school RPG fandom with the shirt he was wearing in a short video.
H/T to Professor Dungeon Master who made this connection for me in one of his excellent “Front Porch Lectures” for his DungeonCraft patrons.
Helms Deep
Although I enjoy busting RPG/music stereotypes, I still love my metal (and prog!). Last month, Florida metal band Helms Deep released their second album called Chasing the Dragon. I am really digging this album, and I agree with the following from the album press materials:
An eclectic and raw blend of power and speed metal with elements of prog and fusion. Highly recommended for fans of Savatage, Raven, Crimson Glory, and Satan.
I also agree with the praise of the album from this The Razors Edge review:
“Chasing The Dragon” is another superb release from Helms Deep. It is unashamed 80’s metal worship with the sounds of power, progressive and speed metal bands from the latter half of the decade really influencing the sound. The album also has a very organic sound to it with many of the performances having been done live in the studio with minimal editing and also due to the production and mix. This is an excellent album of old school heavy metal worship and one that can easily be recommended to fans of bands such as Riot, Manilla Road, Crimson Glory and Savatage.
The amazing cover art was done by Bob Eggleton:
Bob has won nine Hugo awards, and his work includes concept art for Star Trek, fiction book covers, Magic the Gathering cards, and album artwork for other bands.
You can preview and order Chasing the Dragon from the Helms Deep Bandcamp page:
Folk Hero
Folk Hero by Tim Roberts from Critical Kit is a solo-play expansion for Punk Is Dead, his Mörk Borg compatible songwriting TTRPG that I covered in a previous newsletter. It is described as a “six-string acoustic role-playing game about bringing hope to a hopeless world through music.”
Here is a longer description:
Folk Hero is the follow-up to expansion for Punk is Dead, a post-apocalyptic songwriting game. It features a standalone solo mode that doesn't require the original rulebook, but also contains more lore, creatures and gigs that will work in the multiplayer game.
Taking place in the same alternative version of the UK, the UnUnited Kingdom, Folk Hero gives you the opportunity to explore the world as a lone troubador. You'll find yourself touring this fractured isle, helping the helpless, kicking bad guy ass and creating protest songs that kick back against a land tormented by a fight for power between monsters both real and imagined.
The main themes of Folk Hero include:
Folk music as a tool of hope and bringing people together.
British folklore creatures reimagined in a post-apocalyptic world.
Discovering the overlapping boundaries of the individual and the collective.
Fighting fascists and handing their asses to them.
Punk Is Dead was a Judges’ Spotlight award winner at the 2025 Ennies. Tim Roberts also created the award winning Be Like a Crow, and I love the way the art and graphic design of his games fit their themes.
Folk Hero is currently crowdfunding and you can pledge your support here.
Satanic Panic Zine
The satanic panic of the 1980s and 1990s had a significant impact on both music and roleplaying games. Bloat Games is producing a Satanic Panic Zine that “that chronicles some of the most notorious events of the satanic panic…and how they affected tabletop roleplaying games, and those who loved and played those games.”
The zine is appropriately limited to a print run of 666 copies, and the thumbnail images of the zine look very cool:
There are several days left in the Satanic Panic Zine crowdfunding campaign, and you can pledge your support here.
Thanks for the link to the Satanic Panic Zine! Having lived through that as a teenager, I am curious to how Bloat Games tells the story of that amazing time in my life so I made a pledge. Tipper still rules!!