Villains. Rivals. Antagonists. Baddies. Call them what you will, but they definitely won’t be joining the main party. Any antagonist worth his or her salt needs to have an epic theme song and there are tons out there. I don’t know about you, but I’m kinda tired of hearing overly-dramatic orchestral numbers…so here’s a list of baddie theme songs that come in more unusual flavors.

Bandiger’s Theme - Love Mania - Thousand Arms



If it’s Three People… - Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles



Elvis PALB_3106 (:Appearance) - Wild ARMs 5



The Theme of Chester - Ys: The Oath in Felghana



Warrior’s Whistle - Wild ARMs Alter Code: F



Just You and Me (and Ted E. Bear) - Sam and Max Season One, Episode Three: The Mole, The Mob, and the Meatball



And my personal favorite…

Booby Trap - SaGa Frontier

The original: calm and serene. The arrangement: playful and energetic. Is this really the same song? The original melody is cleverly hidden in the piano version, prominent enough to qualify as an arrangement, yet subtle enough to create a completely new song. If you listen carefully, you hear the essential parts from the original—the piano, the ocarina, the bass line—all combined into a single flowing phrase.


Attic Archive
Original:
Arranged:

Again, we have a case where the arranged song is pretty much the same as the original version. But there is one really important difference between the two: sound quality. To be honest, I didn’t like the original version of the song because the steady tempo and synthesized instruments made it sound so flat and monotonous.

I completely changed my mind about this song once I heard the orchestral arrangement, though (Orchestral, or string quartet and piano?). No more fake oboe or English horn or whatever the hell it’s supposed to be. The gentle pizzicato and piano evoke the sense of curiosity you’d feel while exploring the titular attic. Also, the violin’s subtle variations in tempo and expression bring the main melody to life, succeeding where the original failed.


Mysterious Forest
Original:
Arranged:

I’ve been disappointed by lots of vocal remixes lately. Either too much time is spent writing horrible Engrish lyrics or the arrangers rely on the singer’s star power alone to sell the song. Not to mention that I can’t stand the sound of most vocals in the first place, especially female vocals.

And then there’s this arrangement. A voice sings the main melody, but you can’t quite make out her words. I’m not even sure what language this song is in since no lyrics were provided in the liner notes…but it doesn’t really matter. You still feel the sadness and desperation in her tone of voice, the uneasiness from the mysterious male voice and the strong bass and percussion. (And if you’ve played Suikoden, you can imagine the Elves singing this song after a certain event.)

(P.S. If you know what language this song is in, please let me know! It’s been bugging me for ages.)

BOOKS.

Rearranging music should be about more than playing the exact same song with different instruments or tempo. The end result needs to evoke the original piece, yet add something new to make it stand out on its own. There are several examples where I feel this has been done correctly.


Warren Report
Original:
Arranged:

Since the original version of Warren Report is only about 18 seconds unlooped, the new arrangement doesn’t have to do very much to keep the melody. While the composers could have left the song unchanged, they made the right choice in extending the song to 1 minute 23 seconds. The new sections continue seamlessly where the original left off and don’t feel at all out of place since they draw upon the same melody and tone.


Unhideable Anxiety
Original:
Arranged:

Now hold on—didn’t I just say that an arrangement shouldn’t be the exact same song with different instruments? Well, there are some exceptions. The White Melodies version of Unhideable Anxiety closely follows the original song, but the style is completely different. Instead of a tense synthesized orchestral ensemble, you get a playful jam session with guitar solos. The arrangement is unique enough to stand on its own and not just a rehash of the original.


Great Edo’s Warrior Tonosaman
Original:
Arranged:

At first, the Gyakuten Meets Jazz Soul version sounds nothing like the original song. But if you listen to it carefully, slow down the original melody in your head, then everything starts to fall into place. The piano at the beginning plays the intro in a more subdued manner, and the muted trumpet carries the melody. From the Steel Samurai to a hard-boiled detective—what a shift in style! This might just be my favorite arrangement ever because of that drastic change. There should be more songs like this.


More to come later…maybe.