Nox Arcana's music is melodic and moody, focusing on a dominant melody line. Instrumentation varies with each album as appropriate to the theme or time period of the album concept, and typically includes piano, bells, violin, pipe organ, harpsichord, timpani drums and other percussion. Some albums also include cymbals, lutes, acoustic guitars, bagpipes and glockenspiel, depending on the theme of a given album. Their music is generally classified as dark neoclassical or dark ambient, sometimes sandwiched into the
gothic music genre and aptly labeled "atmospheric gothic." The moods associated with Nox Arcana music describe it as ominous, romantic, lush, epic, otherworldly, menacing,
spooky and
eerie, Nox Arcana's music covers a broad range of subgenres within the
rock and
alternative music categories. Joseph Vargo explains Nox Arcana's style to a writer for Gnostic.com, "Our music is mainly classically based instrumental, although we do incorporate chanting choirs and spoken narratives for dramatic effect to achieve a blend of darkly haunting melodies that encompass the complete gothic spectrum the romantic, the mysterious, and the horrific. We utilize a variety of instruments such as piano, pipe organ, violin, acoustic guitar, drums and tolling bells to achieve symphonic orchestrations. Our concept has always been to create moody and melody-driven gothic soundscapes that take the listener on a musical journey through various dark realms of fantasy."
Carnival of Lost Souls though primarily a
dark cabaret-style album, also contains a
heavy metal song, while the music on the
Blood of Angels album blends
industrial dance and tribal rhythms with ethereal-style vocals. In an interview with
Metal Sound Magazine, when asked to define Nox Arcana's genre, Vargo said, "Because we have a variety of styles, it's difficult to classify the entire spectrum of our sound with one label. I think it falls between several genres, but if I had a gun to my head, I would classify it as Gothic instrumental, or dark neoclassical. Most of our music is very melody-driven, unlike most ambient music, and some of our music has a heavy edge with powerful orchestrations. We also use sound effects and narratives to help us relay our theme, in addition to having occasional guest vocalists and rock musicians." Vocals and narratives are also used sparingly to help relate a story or serve as introduction to a musical piece, for example, the voice of "
Jonathan Harker" and whispered female voices of "
Dracula's brides" that beckon to the listener, with a variety of low
Gregorian-style chanting and choirs on
Transylvania; the use of
calliope music and a
carnival barker with the indistinct sounds of a circus audience in the distance on
Carnival of Lost Souls,, the gravelly voice of a "
witch" casting a spell on
Grimm Tales; low tribal chants and heavy pounding drums on
Blood of the Dragon. Enforcing the theme and the narrative are the use of sound effects, such as a door creaking, a pendulum swinging, and the muffled voice of a man calling out from the grave after being prematurely buried on the
Poe-inspired
Shadow of the Raven; and the creaking of a wooden ship and the splashing of waves among traditional pirate-inspired songs on
Phantoms of the High Seas. ==Billboard charts==