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Super Mario Galaxy - The Soundtrack
I've been a fan of Mario games since the first one, but I never loved the music so much that I wanted to listen to it outside of the games on its own merits. Sure, the songs are cute and iconic, but by and large, the tracks are too tinny and cartoonish to put on while I'm working on other things because they're distracting. I did enjoy the Super Mario 64 soundtrack, but I was terribly disappointed with the music from Super Mario Sunshine (to be honest, the music wasn't the only thing I was disappointed with in Sunshine). The Mario games haven't ever had that "wow, I need this soundtrack!" score going for them, and it's usually not missed. This is why I was so pleasantly surprised with the music tracks in Super Mario Galaxy. Not only does the soundtrack contain a number of large, sweeping pieces, but a number of the scores are actually recorded by a real orchestra rather than MIDI synthesizing. The music was one of the first things that grabbed me about the game, and it's hard to imagine that the levels would have quite the same impact without the big musical scores.
The introduction music really starts things off well - the title screen and Star Festival (running to the castle) music set the stage well. Right before Mario reaches the castle, however, the music changes tone with an excellently redone version of the classic Airships music from Super Mario Bros. 3. Not only is it a fun piece of nostalgia, but you can tell that this is what Nintendo had in mind all along for the airship song. It's nice to see an idea finally realized.
This soundtrack really shines when it comes to the big outer space tracks - Good Egg Galaxy, Battlerock Galaxy, Space Junk Galaxy, Buoy Base Galaxy, Melty Molten Galaxy, and especially Gusty Garden Galaxy have such tracks. The orchestral backing really emphasizes the wide open levels, and you really notice the music as you're shooting between planetoids to move through the level. The music helps to create an epic feel to some levels that the earlier Mario offerings never have. Not all the tracks are epic-sounding. Some, like the Ghostly Galaxy and Dusty Dune Galaxy, just enhance the particular environment for the level. They don't stand out as much because they integrate so closely with the level you hear them on. A few of the tracks do have the Mario 64/Sunshine feel to them. It's not that these tracks are bad, they're just average - not notable. Honeyhive Galaxy is one of the levels with a background score like this - it's peppy and bouncy, but it doesn't feel at all epic.
The main staging area, the Comet Observatory, undergoes some musical changes depending on hwo many Grand Stars you've collected. You probably won't notice this as you're playing the game the first time through. The music carries the same tune but adds more instruments and harmony parts as you progress through the game. It's a nice touch that keeps the in-between areas of the game feeling fresh.
There are a few other nostalgia tracks as well - several versions of the "underground" theme from the original Super Mario Bros., and a redone version of "athletic" from Super Mario Bros. 3 that works very well for the tricky "old school" platformer stages. One of Bowser's levels is a slightly improved version of the Super Mario 64 Bowser level music. It's not nearly as impressive as the remixed NES songs, but its addition to the score works. Of course, it wouldn't be a Mario game without a nod to the iconic Super Mario Bros. theme, which appears in Toy Time Galaxy.
By and large, though, most of the music in this game is brand new. There are new themes for several of the super powers with a time limit (the Fire and Ice Flowers, as well as the Flying suit). There are many new songs to be found in the many levels of the game (unlike Super Mario World or Super Mario 64 which had one main theme that went through several remixes depending on the level). In Mario Galaxy, the Gusty Galaxy melody appears in several tracks including the Purple COins song and the credits roll. The startup fanfare is also repeated in several places including the credits roll and the Flying Suit theme. The most striking thing about this soundtrack is that it doesn't necessarily sound like video game music. It's pleasant to listen to both in-game and as background music while you're working. Of course, you'll have the obviously game-related tracks like the invincibility powerup song and the star catch tune. The boss battle songs don't necessarily stand on their own like the musical scores do, but with a little track editing, you can put together a very nice cosmic collection of music. To date, this is the only Mario soundtrack I've really enjoyed independent of the game it came from. So far, the soundtrack has only been released as a promo item for Japanese gamers - let's hope this becomes available to American gamers soon. If it becomes available for purchase, I'd highly recommend picking this one up! BACK to Game Collectibles
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