Whoops

Its been awhile hasn't it? I recently got a little caught up in playing Megaman X Command Mission on the PS2. Its a Megaman JRPG and its pretty fun.

SO HEY! Let's get the back back rolling with a little Paper Mario! Paper Mario was a slick N64 RPG that didn't disappoint in being a sequel to Mario RPG on the SNES (I'll have to post about that later). There was also a second Paper Mario on Gamecube, but I just couldn't really enjoy it as much. I really felt like it dragged out too long for a game that was more of the same.

So take Paper Mario for what it is: An original RPG on a console that was starved for them. At a hint of platforming and some really nice looking settings, you've got a fun game. If I had to pick one song that had lasting appeal on me, it had to be The Koopa Bros Theme. The first REAL boss of the game, you and your partner gotta take on 4 badass Koopas dressed up like Ninja Turtles. The best part is that its a sick remix of the original Hammer Troopa theme in Mario 3. All the bosses got their own theme, which was pretty awesome.

Battle for Evermore

Secret of Evermore was made by a North American division of Squaresoft. When Japan got Seiken Densetsu 3 (Secret of Mana 3), we got Secret of Evermore. Both were really good games, and both countries should have got both games, but instead we were all divided. Personally, I think we came out on top with this one, because Secret of Evermore was a subtly amazing game.

Ever notice how I mention 'atmosphere' in a lot of music? Well, that's what I've seen SoE do that no other game has been able to top. When lost in an odd and curious world, going somewhere new actually felt like honest exploration. The game is just so eerie and lonely, and the music captures it perfectly. This game was made by an amateur composer, his time working on a video game before. But he knew exactly how to play his cards: Not trying for a simple catchy style, he tries to fit the game, adding to what makes SoE such a unique experience. Literally half the game is just ambiance, no music, and its just so powerfully done.

There were 4 worlds you could visit in this game: The dinosaur world, the Egyptian world, the Victorian Gothic, and the robot world. My personal favorite was the Gothic one for the music.


Then there's the Boss Track #1, which feels fitting for the whole game. I love the tribal-esque sound of the drums, the, once again, atmospheric 'aaaahs', and that string instrument which you'd hear in the egyptian or goth world. It kinda of fuses them all together for a hard hitting track that tells you shit is going down.

seasons

I find it funny how people were mentioning Banjo-Kazooie in the comments of my last post, since I was planning on putting up a BK song today. I'm sure you all know Banjo-Kazooie was made by Rare (RIP) and of course you know by now that Rare is no stranger to amazing composers.

Anywho, Banjo-Tooie was a great sequel, but I can't really think of many songs off the top of my head, aside from Isle O' Hags and Glitter Gulch Mine (My favorite level in the BK games). BK had a much simpler yet catchier soundtrack and I've gotta play a few here.

I've got 2 favorite levels, mostly because of their music too. Firstly is Freezeazy Peak, the fun snow level. I love Winter-themed levels.

MAN, I love this song. When little trumpet boy (That's actually probably Robin Beanland) pops in at 0:26, the song really kicks into high gear. Its got the winter theme going on without being slowly drawn out like you might expect. Upbeat and atmospheric, it makes a great tune for the level.

My other favorite level had to be Click Clock Wood, for a multitude of reasons. Firstly, its a pretty big level. And then the level is multiplied by 4, one for each season, each one with a fitting remake of the theme for its season. My personal favorite on this one has to be the spring theme, probably because of how modest the beginning is.

You can hear the fallout of the Donkey Kong inspiration with that drum at the beginning. Then at 0:40 it gets really fleshed out into a really joyful and exciting track.

Man. What a good game. I miss you Rare.

Best video game name ever

The last game I completed was Quest 64 for the first time. Shit bro, that game was awesome. What's better is that apparently the entire world thinks its the worst game ever (protip: its not), when its really a solid game you can beat in a couple sittings. There's the fun combat system, and the magic leveling system that adds an element of customization and replay value. I dunno what everyone else is talking about, I had a blast the whole way through. I'd like to see someone somewhere make a spiritual sequel to this poor sand-covered gem.

shitty shmups

Earth Defense Force had good music. No, not THAT Earth Defense Force, I mean Super Earth Defense Force on the SNES! It was a Gradius-esque SHMUP where I guess you fly a plane and shoot aliens or something. I don't know, it wasn't a very good game. BUT THE MUSIC WAS GOOD! Here's the song from the first level, its pretty fitting for the setting of flying high above the clouds speeding past you in the background. And foreground. Anyway, its a pretty slick tune so have at it.

Oh man, Mana

I owned Secret of Mana as a kid. My two brothers always dragged me into playing it, and I absolutely LOATHED it. When I play Secret of Mana music, its all just so terrible to me, I can't stand it.

We still got Legend of Mana on PS1 when we got the console. I decided to give it a shot since the watercolor-style artwork was really nice, and since I got to play as a chick who punches and suplexes everything to death. The game was subpar at best. But the music was definitely one of the better soundtracks. I prefer to take unbiased approaches at everything, and while I didn't enjoy Legend of Mana, the music was DAMN good. This song is aptly titled "The Wind Sings of a Journey" which seems to describe it quite well.

A quick hiatus

Narcissism always wins in the end. Today I want to take a break from the video game tunes to talk a little about myself and my other music interests.

Surely enough, if you looked at my iTunes, you wouldn't find nothing but video game music. Actually you'd find close to none. In fact I would absolutely HATE for anyone to think the only music I listen to is from video games. Ever since high school I've been a pretty anti-mainstream guy and took an interest to mainly stuff like punk rock and ska. I was the "I listen to music you've never heard of" guy, always wearing semi-obscure band shirts all day erry day. I was a hipster BEFORE it was cool. Here's some songs from my personal favorite bands:

The Lawrence Arms, and absolutely brilliant 3-piece band from Chicago that holds high regards for poetic lyrics backed by fairly simple powerchords.


And Streetlight Manifesto, who have been starting to rise in popularity by being genuinely good (which is pretty rare these days). They've definitely lost steam after their first album, Everything Goes Numb (Which is absolutely FLAWLESS, mind you. And I don't say that much), but as far as talented bands they're one of the best.


Relation I have with this music to video games? Uh, none. Well maybe all those years I spent humming Earthbound tracks, they've got a kind of ska influence in them. Well, there's Bomb The Music Industry! which is one of the most influential bands I've listened to. If you aren't into those loud shouting types of music (I wasn't either before listening to them) you should still give them a listen. Mostly just one guy with a laptop making punk rock with some 8-bit sounds here and there, all of it free at http://quoteunquoterecords.com/. Represent.

Ain't I a sexy one. I'll be back tomorrow with a little something from Legend of Mana.