The importance of music can’t be underestimated. It brings out the vibrance of an event and welcomes the audience. It also showcases the identity of the host every time you hear it. There are two types of songs the club needs at Villa Park. An official anthem for the club to be played during warmups and a walkout theme before kick-off. The anthem should bring out the passion and emotions of the crowd similar to what “¡Hala Madrid!” and “You’ll Never Walk Alone” do. It needs poetry, historical context, popular chants (“Holte Enders in the Sky”), a beautiful melody, and great instrumentals and vocals to engage the audience. Regarding context, it needs to tell the journey of Villa since 1874 including but not limited to them being a founder of English League Football and the modern passing game, the European Cup win of 1982, the decades of domestic successes, the decades of struggle, the resilience and determination of the team to keep fighting, and the awakening of the sleeping giants. I don’t follow Madrid and Liverpool but their anthems are exquisite and Villa need something like them to similarly resonate with the audience. Meanwhile, the walkout theme has to be majestic and elevate goosebumps to their peaks as “Head of the Table” does. It should elicit the feeling of a big game approaching for even the neutral fans to watch.
The right instrumentals are essential as well because every instrument elicits different emotional responses. The change in the UCL anthem (2024/25-present) is an example of how subtle modifications can make huge differences. The previous anthem had instrumentals with a powerful string orchestra that described the magnitude of the UCL. But the current one puts more emphasis on brass instrumentals and has less bass which reduces the majestic nature of the anthem. The old one also allows me to have my own feelings while the new one tells me what my feelings should be without me actually feeling them. Some listeners may not notice the differences nor care, which is totally fine. However, others will pick up on them and tell you this version doesn’t highlight the prestige of the UCL like the previous one did. This was something I was disappointed with after Villa qualified for UCL. I wanted the old anthem to be played at VP but UEFA just had to fix something that wasn’t broken. Thankfully it didn’t ruin any UCL nights though. Moreover, to be fair, the old anthem did play in the PSG game after the UEL anthem was incorrectly played so at least it happened. We still need the old anthem back though. Believe me when I say that.
To sum it all up, we need an anthem that captures the fans’ passion, the history, and the resilience of Villa. It should tell the world that no matter how many times they’re pushed down, they’ll always come back up. The melody should be so moving that even Villa haters would love it. Imagine Wolves and Birmingham City fans going “I just can’t stand Villa but oh my word why did their anthem have to be so good?”. The lyrics will make Villa fans feel at home while the melody will invite everyone else to that home. We also need a walkout song that shows the fortress that VP is and the watch worthy game that follows. At the moment Villa’s anthem derives from Jeff Beck’s “Hi Ho Silver Lining” and the walk out theme is Ozzy Osbourne’s “Crazy Train”. I have nothing against these songs in general. The anthem is melodic but Wolves also uses it so this song isn’t unique to Villa. I love “Crazy Train” for the song itself and I’m grateful for Ozzy’s music and his connection to Villa but if we intend to change this theme then we’ll need a grandiose one to replace it with. Of course, another thing to consider is what the fans want because nothing should ever be forced onto them. Rather they should collectively express their own ideas for everyone to benefit from. And if they want to keep one or two of the current songs then that’s also fine. I’m only explaining my ideas but music is important nonetheless and only the Villa community as a whole can do it justice. Only they can decide on an anthem that’s 40% goosebumps and 60% heart, and a walk out theme that is 60% goosebumps and 40% heart.
by Amethyst-329-607A