#65 - The Adventures of Bayou Billy
Street & Swamp Fightin' (Stages 1, 3, 6, 8)
Listen to this track:
Requires Flash10
Track information:
| Game title: |
The Adventures of Bayou Billy |
| Track title: |
Street & Swamp Fightin' (Stages 1, 3, 6, 8) |
| Game release year: |
1989 |
| Composers: | Kyouhei Sada, Michael Maezawa, Damian Fujio, Shinkon Ogura |
| Download: |
NSFE
(complete), NSF (track 2)
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Review by Jace:
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What a strange "world music" essence this one has, despite being fairly rocking. I think that's what gives it a jungle-y feel, and therefore makes it brilliant. It's standard NES fare except for the sampled bongo/conga percussion elements, and that turns out to make a lot of difference. |
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#64 - Metroid
Kraid's Lair
Listen to this track:
Requires Flash10
Track information:
| Game title: |
Metroid |
| Track title: |
Kraid's Lair |
| Game release year: |
1987 |
| Composer: | Hirokazu "Hip" Tanaka |
| Download: |
NSFE
(complete), NSF (track 5)
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Review by Jace:
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The ultmate in atmosphere. This song is distinctly "maddening," not in the sense that it is annoying, but that it appropriately indicates an essence of madness. Hip Tanaka clearly put himself in the place of Samus as she explores dark and unknown realms while composing this tune. In particular, the triangle channel is rarely, if ever, used with greater impact than here in Kraid's Lair. You will die if you try to breathe the air. |
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#63 - Mega Man 3
Needle Man
Listen to this track:
Requires Flash10
Track information:
| Game title: |
Mega Man 3 |
| Track title: |
Needle Man |
| Game release year: |
1990 |
| Composer: | Yasuaki Fujita (BUNBUN) |
| Download: |
NSFE
(complete), NSF (track 2)
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Review by Jace:
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Oh, BUNBUN, you so crazy! What seems to be an okay attempt at melody on one square wave in the main figure is cluttered by a neat, but kind of unfocused, "woodblock" sort of sound on the other square wave. I've listened to this track about 15 times in the midst of trying to review it, and I still struggle to recall specific passages. I do appreciate the brief use of the triangle to create a whistle-like sound in the opening, perhaps hinting at Proto Man? Ultimately, I think this one just provides more fuel for my fiery notion that Mega Man 3 music is taking up space on this list that deserves to be held by more creative and powerfully executed music from games that almost no one 'round these parts has spent a lot of time actually playing. Not that I think that many of us have spent a lot of time necessarily playing Gremlins 2 or Gimmick! (and as juef mentioned, the previously-reviewed Gimmick! song wasn't even in the game!) but I suspect (with no empirical evidence) that "okay" songs in Mega Man 3 were heavily reviewed under a lens of strong positive associations resulting from actually having played the game. I admit that this is just conjecture; as someone who's not really much of a gamer (the only game on this whole list that I ever played a lot of as either a kid or adult is Mega Man 2, and by example of contrast I had never even heard a single note of that favored Shadow of the Ninja track that appears at #69 until beginning my reviews in phase one of this project), I don't know how hard it really might or might not be to distance your opinion of a piece of music from having experienced it in a game that you loved. I need someone who has not spent time playing this game but loves the music to help me understand what it's doing here. For what it's worth, I did enjoy the Top Man tune, I love Spark Man's theme and Wily stage 3, and another soon-to-be-reviewed Mega Man 3 song is my personal favorite Mega Man song for the NES. I'm not trying to "hate" on any particular track or the soundtrack overall. I just think it's over-represented. Essay over. |
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#62 - Bionic Commando
Processing Plant
Listen to this track:
Requires Flash10
Track information:
| Game title: |
Bionic Commando |
| Track title: |
Processing Plant |
| Game release year: |
1988 |
| Composer: | Junko Tamiya |
| Download: |
NSFE
(complete), NSF (track 7)
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Review by Jace:
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A tune that is far more atmospheric than it has any right to be, with that damn typewriter percussion flopping over everything. But the progression is floaty in an engaging way; it is almost daring you to find it mediocre. And it isn't. It is an upfront tune, looking you in the eye and saying, "come with me, for I am Adventure." |
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#61 - Akumajou Densetsu
Overture (Dracula's Room)
Listen to this track:
Requires Flash10
Track information:
| Game title: |
Akumajou Densetsu |
| Track title: |
Overture (Dracula's Room) |
| Game release year: |
1989 |
| Composers: | Yoshinori Sasaki, Jun Funahashi, Yukie Morimoto |
| Download: |
NSFE
(complete), NSF (track 14)
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Review by Jace:
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I have no idea what's going on in this song rhythmically. A joy to listen to in the same way that a passage of latter-day James Joyce can be to read. What am I looking at? Where is it going? I cannot see through the fog. Yet the dark mood is undeniable, and the weird stabbing breakdown right at the end of the loop pops out like a ghost in a mirror. One of the most demented tracks in the Castlevania oeuvre and certainly worthy of our list. |
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#60 - Mega Man 3
Gemini Man
Listen to this track:
Requires Flash10
Track information:
| Game title: |
Mega Man 3 |
| Track title: |
Gemini Man |
| Game release year: |
1990 |
| Composer: | Yasuaki Fujita (BUNBUN) |
| Download: |
NSFE
(complete), NSF (track 4)
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Review by Jace:
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Great execution of tense atmosphere. Each part more tense than the last! There is also some fine-tuned and deliberate variability in square wave manipulation (i.e. percussive plucking vs. airy chords and whistles) that lends the track cohesion and focus. Lots of style points; still identifiable as a BUNBUN Mega Man tune despite the dark and aggravated tone. |
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#59 - Journey to Silius
Stages 1 & 5
Listen to this track:
Requires Flash10
Track information:
| Game title: |
Journey to Silius |
| Track title: |
Stages 1 & 5 |
| Game release year: |
1990 |
| Composers: | Mabocha N, Marumo, Naoki Kodaka, Nobuyuki Hara,
Shinichi Seya |
| Download: |
NSFE
(complete), NSF (track 3)
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Review by Jace:
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Much of my favorite NES music uses the system's unique capabilities to create music that combines rocking rhythms and riffing with wistfully emotive, deviously complex melodies that remain catchy despite their intricacies. This song exposes great examples of what makes Journey to Silius' music effective overall: there is a space, a notes-not-played openness that, in combination with the dire sound of the melodies, suggests fresh possibilities in a post-apocalyptic world. Anchored by unstoppable sledgehammer rhythms that never clutter the melodies with unnecessary accents, this song, and others like it on the soundtrack, solidifies the listener's assimilation into a world of simple purpose. |
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#58 - Zelda II - The Adventure of Link
Town Theme
Listen to this track:
Requires Flash10
Track information:
| Game title: |
Zelda II - The Adventure of Link |
| Track title: |
Town Theme |
| Game release year: |
1988 |
| Composer: | Akito Nakatsuka |
| Download: |
NSFE
(complete), NSF (track 7)
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Review by Norrin_Radd:
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Here is another amazing Zelda song that Nintendo has ashamedly neglected to associate with the recent Zelda brand. Listen to this town theme. I mean just listen to it! This is a damn town theme if I've ever heard one. Square 1 is constantly used to create specific two-note chords with the lead (square 2). It's nothing short of brilliance when you break it down and start to listen to how they are playing together. I can't remain objective about this song any longer. I love Zelda 2, and I love hearing this song! So sue me! |
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#57 - Mega Man 2
Air Man
Listen to this track:
Requires Flash10
Track information:
| Game title: |
Mega Man 2 |
| Track title: |
Air Man |
| Game release year: |
1989 |
| Composers: | Manami Matsumae, Yoshihiro Sakaguchi, Ogeretsu Kun |
| Download: |
NSFE
(complete), NSF (track 7)
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Review by Norrin_Radd:
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Otherwise known as Air Man's stage music, this song actually has quite an anomalous arrangement. I hear a fusion of Latin flamenco samba, 80s pop, and electro. It could just be me, but the interplay between the triangle wave and the squares really creates this bouncy rhythm which I have always just associated with Samba (even though I could technically be way off). The triangle wave is used to create toms that add the electro touch, making me feel like robot dance moves should be in order. Directly at 0:34 seconds in, I get a strong 80s pop vibe. Like, I think Cyndi Lauper could be singing this lead, and it would probably sound pretty normal. I cannot stress enough how well-written this song is. For a chiptune that consists of only 3 melodic channels, this song is a bloody marvel of cerebral song writing. I absolutely urge everyone who thinks otherwise to open this track up in Winamp and solo each track separately. Each on their own, they sound disjointed and "off", but when you combine them all together, they amalgamate into one juggernaut of melody and style. |
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#56 - Metroid
Mission Completed Successfully
Listen to this track:
Requires Flash10
Track information:
| Game title: |
Metroid |
| Track title: |
Mission Completed Successfully |
| Game release year: |
1987 |
| Composer: | Hirokazu "Hip" Tanaka |
| Download: |
NSFE
(complete), NSF (track 12)
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Review by Jace:
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Out of darkness, blinding light! The brooding figure that opens this song stands in stark contrast to the potent themes of victory that follow. I love a good fanfare, and on the NES, this is one of the best. Strangely, what I really think propels Metroid's victory music into the upper echelon of VGM is a very clever exploration of the possibilities of the NES' undeniably limited noise channel. Not that there is even a great breadth of sound, but the rhythms used in each section are razor sharp and optimized for maximum musical movement. Everything in this song flexes Hip Tanaka's creative muscles to a veiny bulge; that propulsive noise channel, the wandering bassline that somehow maintains a close watch on the melody, and the melody itself, the essence of triumph. |
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