Eminence Online, Game Music Review

Perfect Selection Dracula ~New Classic~, oftentimes just referred to as "Dracula New Classic," was an orchestral album released in 1992. Savvy fans and importers of the Castlevania series know that the game is called "Akumajou Dracula" (Demon Castle Dracula) in Japan. The album we're talking about features arrangements of music from the three NES Castlevania games, as well as a little touch of the Game Boy Castlevania (Legend of Dracula).

Before going further, I have to qualify the term "orchestral." Some tracks make use of a medium-sized orchestra. Other tracks are small chamber music medleys. Most tracks also incorporate synthesized music, or sound effects, in one form or another. A few tracks are entirely synthesized and have no acoustic instrumentation whatsoever. So this is hardly a "traditional" orchestral performance, with the only exceptions being the opening and ending tracks. I guess this is what is meant by "New Classic."

The music itself? It's wonderful. First of all, the source material includes some of the best compositions from the Castlevania series. Those same themes have been used over and over, for two decades, and it seems we gamer/audiophile types just can't get enough of them. "Vampire Killer," "Bloody Tears," "Wicked Child," "Beginning" (the standard opening stage music) and others are represented on this album, with varying degrees of arrangement put against the melody and harmony.

The opening track is a medley of "Vampire Killer" and "Wicked Child." The Wicked Child melody fills in the middle of the track, with Vampire Killer acting as thick bookends. I love this arrangement of Vampire Killer. The instruments used make the syncopated melody sound like something akin to John Williams' Cantina music for Star Wars. It is, without a doubt, the most airy and whimsical version of the Vampire Killer medley ever published by Konami.

Of all the recurring instruments (acoustic or synthesized) found on this album, the best performances invariably come from the woodwinds. Flute and clarinet parts are written in so well for these arrangements, I caught myself more than once in a state of jaw-dropped wonder. The oboe solos are also fantastic, particularly when paired up with other instruments (as we hear in the arrangement of "Bloody Tears"). But this is Konami Kukeiha Club, so you can expect at least one guitar solo. It is an acoustic guitar solo, in fact, found on track 9, "Praying Hands." The guitar appears about halfway through an otherwise entirely-synthesized track. The only problem I found with the performance is that it was too short.

The timing of this album's release, in that same early '90s release bracket as the first Orchestral Game Concert CD, as well as Falcom Neo Classic and a host of other symphonic game music, is important for two reasons. First, it marks Konami's entrance into the orchestral gaming scene. Unfortunately for fans of orchestral arrangements, Konami's dabbling in this realm is sparse. Their sound team, the Kukeiha Club, much preferred fusions of rock, jazz, and synth pop to virtually any other genre or classification of music. It is a shame, because I would have liked to hear many more arrange albums in this style from other Konami games, and I would certainly like to hear more of it for the Castlevania series.

The second bit of relevance, for our purposes as fans and collectors of game music, is that many albums from this period of time never got reprinted. And, as such, they are highly-valued items for collectors. Dracula New Classic was the first album I ever saw break the three hundred dollar (USD) mark on eBay, and that was a decade ago. Prices fluctuate, but it's safe to say that anyone who wants to own this CD needs at least one hundred dollars set aside, and that's for a good deal on the album.

Which brings me to my final point. Dear Konami, if any of you are reading this, please take the proper action and have this album reprinted. The music is fantastic, but no 40 minute album is worth the price that collectors are presently paying for it. Spread the love, and get this music out to a new generation of Castlevania fans!

Comments

Add a Comment

You need to register and be logged in to post comments.