Boss (theme from Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards)
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- This article is about the boss battle theme from Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards, and should not be confused with other similarly named boss battle themes.
"Boss"[Japanese title] is the main boss battle theme of Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards.
Composition[edit]
"Boss" is an energetic song set in the of A minor, vaguely reminiscent of the boss battle theme from Kirby's Dream Land 3 and "Room Guarder". Its main characteristic revolves around main melody mostly using five chords per bar at a constant rhythm, and changing some notes of the chords and their distance and duration to color the song. Accompanying the main melody during the whole song is a steady and strong drum 'n' bass sample that gives the song its energetic vibe and maintains its rhythm. Countermelodies are also present often, mostly consisting of rapid array of notes that help even further with the song's energetic nature.
The song starts with a one-bar intro that sets its mood. The first eight bar group features a constant rhythm between the five chords per bar, that is only broken in the eighth bar, which features a longer distance between the fourth and fifth chord. As for note variations, they come in bar pairs, and the melody follows a pattern of A-A-B-B-A-A-C-C. The following eight bars feature shorter chords, and each bar raises their pitch by a bit. Regarding the rhythm, the last three bars of this group also feature a longer distance between the fourth and fifth chords. Following is a simple repeat of the first eight bar group of the song, and while the eight bar group after it appears to be identical to the song's second group at first, at its fourth bar, the rhythm is altered much like previous bars (with a longer distance between the fourth and fifth chord), and this trend continues for the following bars, as each continues to go up in pitch. However, at the eighth bar, the song breaks its pre-established rule of only having five chords per bar, and instead features eleven. With the rule broken, the next eight bars instead all feature six chords each, and these bars stick to a constant rhythm similar to previous sections. As for the melody, it follows a pattern of A-A-B-B-A-A-B-B. Finally, the song ends with an eight bar outro which has a melody completely different from the rest of the song, without a constant rhythm or patterns between bars; instead, it features a melody of simple notes, including many that are much longer in duration. Afterwards, the song loops, skipping the intro.
Game appearances[edit]
Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards[edit]
"Boss" plays during most boss battles in Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards. The two exceptions are Miracle Matter, that has a track inspired by the theme but is mostly unique, titled "Miracle Matter", and 0², that uses the unique theme "0² Battle". The theme can be found as track 19 in the game's Sound Check.
Kirby's Epic Yarn / Kirby's Extra Epic Yarn[edit]
In Kirby's Epic Yarn and Kirby's Extra Epic Yarn, both of Yin-Yarn's battle themes are remixes of the theme, with the theme for Mega Yin-Yarn being a much faster version of the one for Yin-Yarn's first battle. The two themes follow the same structure of the original song, although the second eight-bar group is shorted to a four-bar group instead. Interestingly, at some parts of the remixes, new unique countermelodies are present, which sound similar to parts of "Beyond the Hill" and "Perfect Sledding Weather" from Kirby's Return to Dream Land, but it's not known if this is a coincidence or not. The first theme is named "Yin-Yarn" in the game's Tunes, and is listed there as track 51, while the other has no official name.
Unlike the other classic covers in this game, neither of these versions are acoustic; instead, they sound similar to how music is typically rendered in other Kirby games. This was done on purpose by composer Jun Ishikawa, as he wanted to surprise players in the final battle.[1]
Kirby: Planet Robobot[edit]
In the Sub-Game Kirby 3D Rumble, the theme receives an extremely faithful rearrangement that plays in stage 3-5, during the battles against the first two Mashers. This remix is named "VS. Mini Masher" in Kirby: Planet Robobot Original Soundtrack, and is arranged by the original composer, Jun Ishikawa. It can be found as track 65 in the game's Jukebox.
Kirby Fighters 2[edit]
The theme is remixed as the boss battle theme of Duo Edge in Kirby Fighters 2. Like many remixes in the game, it has an ancient-Japanese style with an electronic spin, but it also incorporates some synths similar to the original version of the track. It extends the song's intro, making it four bars long, but otherwise the structure of the song remains unchanged. It's also slightly slower than the original.
Names in other languages[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Japanese | ボス[2] Bosu |
Boss |
References
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