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Kid Icarus
The original game was one of those early NES titles that really showed what the sound hardware was capable of doing in the hands of a skilled composer; there isn't a weak or even mediocre track in the entire soundtrack.
- The Title Screen tune sets the mood for the epic story that awaits in the game; as a bonus, it also introduces several of the series' Recurring Riffs.
- The Underworld Theme, which starts from one of the musical ideas from the Title Screen theme, is perhaps the most recognisable tune from the original game (possibly because so few people get far enough to hear the later tunes); listen out for the opening phrase from the Title Screen music just before it wraps around.
- The buoyant Overworld Theme is just plain fun to listen to.
- The light and airy Skyworld Theme sets the stage nicely for a series of levels in the clouds.
- The spooky Labyrinth Theme takes some of the sting out of getting lost in the maze or turned into an eggplant while a dozen rooms from the nearest healer.
- The Palace in the Sky Theme ingeniously remixes some of the ideas from the Underworld music to bring the game full circle.
- And the Ending Theme adds to the sense of achievement of beating a game that helped to define Nintendo Hard.
Of Myths And Monsters
- Kid Icarus: Of Myths and Monsters has Sky World Tower Theme, an uplifting relaxing tune to boost one's spirits after the previous levels.
Uprising
The composers for Kid Icarus: Uprising? They include Yasunori Mitsuda, Motoi Sakuraba, Yuzo Koshiro, Masafumi Takada, and Noriyuki Iwadare. Whew.
- Opening is a fun medley of themes from the game that plays over footage from the game's Attract Mode, giving players a tease of what's to come.
- Boss Battle Theme 1 combines the soundtrack's usual triumphant orchestra with a rocking electric guitar to pump up players during each chapter's climactic finish.
- Lightning Battle. An intense rock theme that is by far the most badass battle theme in the game.
- Medusa's Final Battle., guaranteed goosebumps especially at the intro.
- Lord of the Underworld. (with Noriyuki Iwadare), similar to Medusa's Final Battle in that it starts out the same but it sounds deeper in the beginning only. After a while, it starts to change from being heroic and upbeat to more ominous and threatening, before ending in a rather serious and dangerous tune. The entire latter half of the music portrays the fact that even with the Three Sacred Treasures, Hades is no enemy that Pit can take lightly. The entire first battle sequence shows that Hades is far from his casual and lighthearted self...
- The War's End (with Noriyuki Iwadare) is a Boss Remix of Hades's Infernal Theme, with heroic interjections of the Underworld Theme thrown in for good measure. As the battle progresses, the theme gradually slows down and becomes more dramatic, as though both Pit and Hades are growing tired and weary but still continue to fight for the fate of the world.
- Dark Pit's theme goes for a Latin flair with its acoustic guitar melody, invoking the fitting idea of a Mexican standoff between Pit and Dark Pit.
- Reaper's line of sight. Remember the ear-piercing jingle that would play every time you irritated a Reaper in the original game? Now it has been reimagined as an upbeat orchestral march. A lot more pleasant on the ears, but still just as adrenaline-inducing.
- The Seafloor Palace and The Wish Seed (Volcano Route) both remix the original game's buoyant Overworld Theme into something darker. The former goes for a mysterious desert vibe and then segues into a new adventurous melody. The latter goes for a more dangerous sound and continues to build upon the original theme throughout the whole track.
- At The Seafloor Palace is a remix of the original Labyrinth Theme, bouncing back and forth between playful woodwinds and "Psycho" Strings to create something that is equal parts lighthearted and dangerous, much like Thanatos himself.
- Chaos Island provides some great battle music, but what particularly stands out is its use of the recurring tragic leitmotif that plays throughout the Chaos Kin Story Arc. The first time it's heard in this track, it's exciting and heroic. At the end of the track, it's heard again, this time incredible and dramatic, reminding you that Palutena's fate rests on your shoulders.
- Magnus's theme, an oddly heroic theme for a blatant Anti-Hero.
- Mysterious Invaders. The overall choice of instruments and Orchestral Bombing make it sound a bit familiar.
- The Lunar Sanctum is basically Yuzo Koshiro's parody of Star Wars (leaning towards A New Hope), and it's an incredible track even then.
- At the Sanctum features a Dark Reprise of the Underworld Theme, guaranteed to pump up the player as Pit storms the Lunar Sanctum.
- The Ring of Chaos (with Motoi Sakuraba) is Player Punch given musical form. It starts off with a reprise of Wrath of the Reset Bomb, then builds in frantic turmoil... and then, suddenly goes silent. When the music resumes, it's now a slow and heartbreaking combination of mournful strings and One-Woman Wail.
- Destroyed Skyworld (with Motoi Sakuraba) opens with a dark and aggressive march, but then it transitions into a beautifully somber section that reflects both the terrible state of Skyworld and the determination of Pit as he hopes to restore its former glory.
- Aurum Island is an absolutely boppin' smooth jazzy tune that oddly fits the geometric and clean silvery white aurum areas.
- Little Girl's Theme is a heartbreakingly melancholy violin tune. And then Dog's Theme comes along, takes the same melody and instrumentation, and makes it much more uplifting.
- Palutena's Temple (with Motoi Sakuraba) goes for a Retraux arcade game sound, perfectly fitting the sequence in which it is played.
Noriyuki Iwadare:
- Hades's Infernal Theme is the perfect theme for the game's Big Bad. It has dark and dramatic Ominous Latin Chanting that is so over-the-top that it feels like the song itself is a Large Ham, and then follows it up with a beautiful violin solo that invokes the Dissonant Serenity of Hades's nonchalant villainy.
- In The Space Pirate Ship feels like equal parts "high seas adventure" and "epic Star Wars battle", which is the perfect combination for the concept of Space Pirates.
Takahiro Nishi:
- Boss Fight 2, which serves as the battle themes for Medusa and Palutena. It's dramatic enough to trick players into thinking Medusa is the final boss, and somber enough to highlight the tragedy of fighting Palutena. The fact that it's shared by these two characters also is significant, seeing as they used to rule over Angel Land together before Medusa turned against humanity.
Other
- Super Smash Bros. Brawl had wonderful remixes of classic Kid Icarus tunes, including the Underworld theme, the Skyworld theme, and the Title theme.
- Behold, Shady Cicada's remix of Dark Pit's theme that was so awesome, a Smash Bros fan regained faith in Dark Pit.