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Review: Koji Kondo’s Super Mario Bros. Soundtrack (33 1/3)

Koji Kondo's Super Mario Bros. Soundtrack (33 1/3)
Koji Kondo's Super Mario Bros. Soundtrack (33 1/3)

Review: Koji Kondo’s Super Mario Bros. Soundtrack (33 1/3)

April 30, 2016 Posted by Bill Loguidice Review No Comments

While I’m not personally familiar with the 33 1/3 book series from Bloomsbury Academic, it’s apparently well regarded for its analyses of famous music. As far as I know, Koji Kondo’s Super Mario Bros. Soundtrack (33 1/3) (Andrew Schartmann; 2015) is their first videogame entry.

The legendary Super Mario Bros. (1985) for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) and arcade makes for an interesting subject. The game itself is of course iconic, but, if you think about, so is its sound effects and music.

The premise is that Super Mario Bros. represented something of a sonic evolution in the audio arts for videogames. While I’d argue that’s not necessarily the case, I’d be hard-pressed to think of anything more iconic that’s not solely sound effects or a translation of pre-existing music released earlier than 1985 for console or arcade platforms.

The book is pocket-sized. It's slightly taller than a 6 inch smartphone and about 50% wider.

The book is pocket-sized. It’s slightly taller than a 6 inch smartphone and about 50% wider.

Within the book is a brief and mostly unnecessary history and analysis of the game, then a complete deconstruction of its approximately three minute soundtrack. Given the length of this pocket-sized book, you’d be forgiven for thinking this was a superficial analysis, but it does amount to a deep dive, complete with accompanying musical notation.

While list price is $14.95 for a small book that’s about 140 pages, it’s only $11.13 on Amazon right now ($9.99 for the Kindle version). If you’re into videogames and music theory, it’s a fascinating read, and a unique angle on an oft-covered subject.

Thanks to Bloomsbury Academic for the review book.

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Tags: Arcadebloomsburybookkoji kondomarioNESNintendoSuper Mario
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About Bill Loguidice

Bill Loguidice is a Founder and Managing Director for Armchair Arcade, as well as a critically acclaimed technology author and journalist.  He is also the co-founder of creative services firm, Armchair Creative Services, and a noted videogame and computer historian and subject matter expert. See full bio

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